Memory #7: Penelope The Prelude

When I was sixteen I was SO excited to get my license and a little bit of freedom that seemed like SO much more back then.  I was all set to get my sister Katie's old car but then unfortunately I was rear ended in this car while driving with my dad when I still had my permit.  Not surprisingly that small accident totalled her car and she needed to get a new one and then subsequently I needed a car too.
 
My parent's turned to my Grandpa who was then working at The Little Nickel.  He was the family's "go-to-person" for many things one of which was cars.  He was so knowledgeable at finding good used cars, through the adds in the Little Nickel.  I'm pretty sure that is where my parent's found the Corolla in the first place :) 

My Grandpa was good at finding good deals on used cars but it was not a quick process as he patiently waited for a good deal to come a long.  I was anxious for a car and finally the day came...I was almost 17 years old by this time :) I remember my dad telling me that him & my mom were going to meet my Grandpa to go look at a car for me that afternoon while I was in school.  I was beyond excited.  It was all I could think about that day at school and I couldn't wait to get home to see if they had bought it.  I had no idea what kind of car it even was!  ...and was a little nervous it would be a big old boat of a car.

When I got home I was so happy to see that they had picked out a cute little 2 door Honda Prelude WITH A SUNROOF!  I was in heaven.  I remember going to Bath & Body Works with my sister Katie and buying some air freshener and wipes especially for the car (even though it smelled fine).  Sometimes I have smelled the same scent at B&B works and it takes me right back to that time, driving through Edgewood to my best friend's house with the windows down and the sunroof open :)   I named her Penelope

Penelope was a great first car,  thank you Grandpa!

Memory #6: Beard

The last time I visited with my Grandpa at his house I remember he was holding Penelope (and she actually let him!)  She had been experiencing some "separation anxiety" and would usually cry whenever someone else would hold her for more than a minute or two.  On this day however, she was happily content in her Great Grandpa's arms.  It was such a sweet moment because she seemed to be in awe of his beard. She was just staring up at him and gently touching his beard with her little hands.  My Grandma and I were both surprised at how content she was in his arms and how she seemed to like his beard because she doesn't normally like people with beards.  My Grandpa offered the explanation that it was because his was so long it was probably softer than most so Grandma and I joined in with Penny in touching Grandpa's beard and it was indeed very soft :)

Memory #5: The Movies

When I was in elementary school, I think maybe 3rd or 4th grade? My parents took a trip to New Orleans and my sister, Katie, & I stayed with my grandparent's.  During this time my Grandpa & Grandma took us to go see a movie, The Beverly Hill Billies :)  This was a special occasion for us because our parents rarely spent money on the movies and I remember Katie & I were so excited to see this.  Now, if I ever see this movie again it will bring back those fond memories of that time I went to the movies with my Grandpa & Grandpa.

Memory #4: Suspenders

My Grandpa is the only man I know to wear suspenders on a regular basis.  I'm not sure how many pairs he had, probably not too many because he was a pretty frugal man.   It would be a rare occurrence to see him without his suspenders on and if you did, chances were he just had a jacket on covering them up :) 
Love you Grandpa

Grandpa Memory #3: Accent

With a last name like Schmidt, no one ever asks you what your family origin is.  It is a very common German name.  When I was younger my mom would tell me that back in Germany our ancestors were known as Von Schmidt and were actually royalty.  So, if we ever moved to Germany I would be a princess :)  I have realized this is a "Big Fish".

However, when I was a kid, I believed it.  I also thought my Grandpa moved to the US from Germany as a child.  I thought this because when I was younger I had a hard time understanding my Grandpa.  He had a uniqueness in his voice that made it sometimes hard for me to understand him when I was a kid.  Because of this I thought he had a thick German accent.  I actually grew up thinking this and would tell teachers and friends that my mom was a second generation American, her father coming to the US as a child from Germany.  I will forever remember my Grandpa's sincere and unique voice.

Thursday 8.8.12

Grandpa "Smitty" Memory #2: "Gotch'ya"

Ever since I can remember my Grandpa & I had this special thing we would do whenever we saw each other.  He would inevitably at some point casually point to my shirt and say "I think you got something right there Sally" when I was younger I would immediately and naively look down at myself but before I could say "where?" He would tap me on the nose with his finger, smile and say "gotch'ya".  It always made me laugh :) 
As I got older I knew what was coming but would continue to act surprised because I liked having our own  "thing".  Sometimes I would even beat him to the punch and be the one to point out something on his shirt before he had a chance to try to get me.  At some point we stopped doing this.  I'm not sure when, maybe it was when I graduated high school or moved away for college or maybe sometime after I got married...I'm not sure.  And I actually forgot about this familiar ritual we used to share until a couple of days ago when I walked into his hospital room and saw him laying on the bed.  I instantly tried to make light of the situation and did the first thing that popped into my head...
"I think you have a little something...right there Grandpa". 

Smitty

Leroy Schmidt

September 16 1924 - August 7, 2012

I'm going to take a break from finishing Penelope's Birth Story today to write about my Grandpa "Smitty".  He passed away somewhat unexpectedly yesterday afternoon.  He was a classic, hardworking and generous man who would be turning 88 next month.  So, with some inspiration from a friend I have decided to write a memory of my grandpa here on my blog each day until his birthday on September 16th.  Here's to you Grandpa, they don't make 'em like you anymore :)  Love you!

My grandpa is hardest working person I think I have ever met.  Even after he retired at the ripe age of 75 he was always keeping himself busy.  He rarely sat down for a long period of time.  There was always something to clean or fix.  It would not be unusual for him to stop mid track and bend over to pick up a tiny speck of something off the floor of his home...a piece of dirt or lint.  Earlier this year, maybe even the day I took this picture, I went to visit my Grandparents.  It was not long after Penelope was born because I had just gotten a new car and a new license plate but hadn't put it on yet - My Grandpa was eager to take care of that for me.

Noticing the dealer plate on my back windshield was almost expired he asked "Well, Sally, don't you have the new plates yet?" I responded that I had them in the front seat but had been so busy with Penny that we hadn't put them on yet.  He said "Well, go ahead and get them out.  I'll put them on right now".  I tried to tell him it was okay and I would have Ryan do it as soon as he came home from work that night.  He would not take no for an answer.  Please note, this was some time in January and my grandpa was 87 years old, however that did not stop him.  I went inside with my Grandma & Penny (because of the cold) and my Grandpa proceeded to carefully put on the plates :)   When I was leaving I thanked him but he said he didn't do a very good job because he didn't have the "right" screws and had to use the little ones that the DMV had given along with the license.  He said he would keep looking for some because he "could swear I had just the right ones right here somewhere".  I didn't think much of it, I was sure the ones he used would be just fine. 

A couple of months later when I was visiting again Grandpa disappeared to the garage, which was not an unusual thing.  As I said earlier he seemed to alwlays be working on fixing something around the house.  However, when I left that afternoon he told me that he had "found those screws and replaced the cheap ones" the DMV had given me with some stronger ones for my license plate.  It took me a minute to realize what he was talking about.  I had long since forgotten all about how he didn't like the screws that came with the license.  This is just one example of my Grandpa's great personality. 

He is survived by his beautiful bride of 65 years.  5 Children.  14 Grandchildren.  18 Great Grandchildren.