Everyone say, "Hi!" to my mom, Nana (AKA Banana)
As I said in my post introducing my dad, Papaya, Banana and Papaya moved in with us almost 6 years ago now. They moved in for a number of reasons, including so I could finish school and to get them out of a neighborhood that had gone downhill until it was no longer safe for them to live in their house.
Banana grew up in Florida and Georgia and this is the first time she's ever lived outside of the South. This picture was taken right after a major snowstorm. She'd never seen so much snow before!
She is a baby boomer born right after WWII ended, to a housewife who drank and smoked way too much because they didn't know how if affected unborn children back then. It was truly a miracle she survived, only weighing 4 lbs at birth. My grandmother said when she was finally allowed to bring her home, a month or more after her birth that the palm of her hand was larger than Banana's head. (And Grandmom was a tiny woman, only reaching 4'11" and having been a ballerina!)
Banana does a marvelous job of helping me with the kiddos. She takes the younger ones to school in the mornings and picks them up in the afternoons. And since Cookie was born, she's been helping make their lunches in the mornings, too. She'll be taking care of Cookie while I'm at work, when I go back. (Which is rapidly sneaking up on me.)
She was almost always a stay at home mom. I remember only one job that she had when I was growing up and that was packing candied pecans at a pecan factory. She kept the job one season and then stayed home, taking care of my grandmother and I until after I left home. After that, she worked in a grocery store in the seafood department.
Banana was my biggest supporter growing up, never missing a single ballet lesson or performance, soccer game, parade, football game (I was on flag line.), or band concert. She brings just as much dedication to my children as she did to me. (Thanks Banana! We love you!)
So say, "Hi!", to my mom!
