Having grandchildren is not new. Our ten began accumulating in 1994 – three within six weeks of each other – twin granddaughters when our son married their mother and a grandson born shortly after. They have all lived far away, primarily in Arizona, Texas, and Maryland while we have been here in Mississippi.
All has not been lost because of distance. I have good memories of biennial Christmas events when we have rotated among the family locations for the celebration. Three boy cousins, one from each family, dubbed themselves the “three twins” after getting matching Baylor t-shirts from one of the 
dads, a title that has stuck. On these occasions, we’ve learned to watch a couple of the girl cousins to be sure they leave some of my homemade chocolate covered cherries for the rest of the family. Conversely, another cousin treats us to her own homemade toffee.
Good times have included grandparent-grandchild trips to north Louisiana, West Virginia, and Flagstaff and Sedona, Arizona. We’ve enjoyed thank you notes that are not only polite but clever. I’ve had more art lessons from an artist grandson and a photographer granddaughter than I ever did in school. Sometimes the older ones even like my posts on Facebook. They’ve also become accustomed to what they will get from me, expressed by one ten-year-old grandson as he opened his birthday present, “I think it’s a book.”
It’s been good, but one thing has been missing. I’ve never had grandchildren living in the same location. I must confess to a bit of envy for people with grandchildren in the same town, handy for running by for a few minutes.
Missing no longer, on August 18, three grandsons arrived to call Hattiesburg home. One headed to Tulane the next week, but two hours away, it’s an easy trip for a long weekend. The other two? 
One mentioned liking a sandbox the first day he was here. The next morning Grandpa had his tools out building one. The other issues me an invitation, “You wanna play toys with me?” Oh, yes!
Now, I promise not to turn this blog into nothing more than a grandchild report or overwhelm you with how cute and smart they are. On the other hand, if you should insist . . .