Our Beautiful Mom and Amazing Nana

My Mom was everything I could have ever asked for in a Mom and Nana to my kids. She was my best friend, I told her everything in my life. Before she went home to heaven, we had many sweet moments together and I told her that I want to be just like her. She always had unwavering faith in God. I told her that her legacy of love lives on in me, my siblings, and in her grandchildren. She has had such a positive impact on my life in every way. I love you so very much Mom and I know that I will see you again someday.

This past month I have been writing down all of my favorite memories of my Mom. I have also asked Brian and the kids to tell me their favorite memories of Nana and I have written them down. I am going to include them here and I will add to them as we remember more because there are so many amazing memories of Mom. 

I loved calling Mom up on the phone everyday to tell her everything going on in my life. She always was so excited to hear about everything and she was always so encouraging of me. I would tell her the big events and also the smallest events in my life. I loved listening to her sweet and happy voice on the phone. She wanted to hear about everything about me, Brian, and the kids. Whenever I think about her I get this warm sunshine feeling, that is what she was, everything good in the world. She would call me and the kids "sunshine", "sweetie", "angel", and "pumpkin". She truly was the sunshine to all of our lives.

I loved it when she would drop by our house and she was so thrilled because she found amazing deals at garage sales for us and the kids! I loved seeing her excitement on her face and it was because she wanted to bless her family. She was always great at finding deals at garage sales and at GoodWill. I look around my house and most of the decorations and items we have are from her. She loved giving gifts to her loved ones. She loved to see the reactions from the kids when she would give them gifts and sweets. 

She was an amazing and gifted artist. Mom loved doing art projects with my siblings and I when we were kids and she loved doing projects with her grandchildren. My kids have all said some of their favorite memories of Nana are when she did all of the fun art projects with them, especially the ones with glitter!

I loved baking with Mom when I was a girl. We would bake all different kinds of cookies together with my siblings for Christmas. Nana would bake cookies with my kids for Christmas too, gingerbread cookies were their favorite ones to make. We will continue to make them at Christmas in honor of Nana. I remember Mom and Dad made gingerbread houses with the kids while we were moving into our new house almost 2 years ago. The kids had fun creating art with Nana and Papa while making their gingerbread houses.

I remember growing up and how much Mom loved watching Anne of Green Gables. She would grab the whole family together and we would settle in for a night of watching it on PBS. I do look forward to showing it to my kids someday. 

Mom loved putting on special birthday parties for us as kids and even when we were older she would make sure our birthdays were special. She would give us family and friend birthday parties. We would have cake, ice cream, presents, and games. Mom enjoyed helping me prepare birthday parties for my kids. She would help with the decorating and the cake decorating. In more recent years, I have loved going out for high tea for my birthday celebrations with Mom and my sisters. 

Mom was available to me in every way. Growing up and always I was able to come to her with any concern I had in my life. She would listen and she would pray for me. We had open communication and I am so thankful for that emotional support I have always had from her. Mom helped me with every school project when I was growing up and she cared about every aspect of my life. Mom was always available to help with my kids and she always wanted to hang out with us. I remember when I was in high school and being so excited to go out for lunch and shopping with her after church. We did a lot of out to lunch and shopping trips together! 

Mom made delicious meals and Brian especially loved her lasagna. I loved her Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter feasts for the family. I remember her excitement to give us our stockings and gifts under the tree on Christmas morning. She would make us bacon and eggs afterward and we would enjoy a big family breakfast together.  I loved going to church as a family every week. On Easter I remember searching for the candy she and Dad hid around the house, Easter egg hunts, and dying Easter eggs. Mom made a yummy strawberry pretzel jello dessert for the family that was a staple at all of our family holiday celebrations. For Valentines day Mom would sew a huge heart out of wrapping paper and put our gifts inside. She did this for us as kids and for my kids too. She made everything special.

Mom enjoyed making dresses for my sisters and I as we were growing up. She loved putting us in the matching dresses and we would wear the dresses for all of the holidays. Mom saved the dresses she made and I have enjoyed having Greta wear those dresses. Mom loved giving us dolls to play with and she loved giving Greta dolls too. 

Mom liked it when my siblings and I would brush her hair when we were little. We would play beauty parlor together. Mom always twirled and played with her hair. Greta takes after Nana because she likes to twirl her hair, especially before she falls asleep at night. 

Mom loved being in out in nature, she was a creation enjoyer. She loved visiting Lake Superior, the Pacific Ocean, and the mountains. Mom especially liked to hike by Point Lobos and visit China Beach on the Pacific Ocean. We would get family pictures out on the same tree every time we would take a family hike out there. Mom enjoyed camping at campsite 4 at Split Rock Lighthouse on Lake Superior. 

We had many epic cross-country family camping trips to National Parks on our way out west to visit family in California. I remember driving through the desert and Mom would put wet towels on us to cool us off because we did not have any air conditioning back in the day!

Mom was an encourager, she always gave me and the kids the best compliments. She was the biggest fan for everyone in our family. She loved kissing and cuddling her kids and her grandkids. I remember when I was little she would say, "Is this a kissing spot?" After she said that, then she would kiss me all over my face. My sisters and I loved taking Mom out for Caribou Coffee and pedicures on Mother's Day each year. Mom and Dad spending time with our kiddos so that Brian and I could go out on dates together. 

Eli said his favorite memory of Nana was when he chased her around her house with a toad! He thought it was so funny that Nana was screaming! Asa said he loved doing art projects with Nana. Greta said that she loved it when Nana came to watch her dance at ballet class and did her hair.

Mom had her priorities in order. She always put God first and she had strong faith in Jesus. She would then prioritize her family. She wanted to give her best to us and she did. Mom was a prayer warrior, she was always praying for her family and friends. I want to live my life the same way. 

Mom was gentle and committed to our family. Mom was a servant and she was humble. She would think of others more than herself and she was generous. I remember laying my head on her lap during church as a girl and she would softly stroke my face in such a loving way. 

I loved Mom's laugh, it was so loud and joyful! I am happy to say that I got her loud laugh! I know that God is saying to her, "Well done my good and faithful servant." I have included the pictures that I had running during her slide show from her Celebration of Life Gathering. 

Wanda Jalyne Meyer 

July 17, 1952-July 29, 2019

Wife, mom, nana, and artist. Wanda Meyer was born in San Jose, California to Jack and Arlene Chaplin. During her high school years she became a christian through Young Life Ministries. Wanda graduated from Chico State University in California with a Bachelors Degree in Geology. As a teenager through her college years and beyond she worked for the National Park Service in Grand Tetons National Park. 

She loved working in the mountains, yet she felt a call from God to move to the Minneapolis area where she joined a christian community in 1977, and met her husband Gary Meyer. They were married in 1980 at Knox Presbyterian Church in Minneapolis. Their daughters Katrina (married to Brian Bossany) and Karen were born in Minneapolis. In 1986 the family moved to Blaine Minnesota where daughter Kristi and son David were born. The family was heavily involved in Way of the Lord Church and Northside Christian School for many years. In more recent years, Wanda and Gary have worshiped at Substance Church where Wanda served in various roles, attended many small groups, and made many friends. 

Wanda was a homemaker and always put her family first. Wanda was skilled in various arts and she loved to create. She created works of art for her home and her family. She enjoyed painting and working with fabric art. She enjoyed going on many adventures with her family. Wanda loved camping, hiking, and traveling with her family, including many epic camping trips cross-country to visit her relatives in California. 

She is survived by her husband of 39 years, her four children, and 3 grandchildren, Eli, Asa, and Greta, her mother, and her four siblings Steven, Annette, Paul, and Peter. 

Her Celebration of Life Gathering will be held this Sunday, August 11th from 1-4 pm at their home at: 

17742 Oakland Drive NE Ham Lake, MN 55304

We will be making a memory book about Wanda. At the Celebration we will have paper to record stories and memories about her. 

These are the picture displays of mom we had at her Celebration of Life.

I like this picture of mom that Grandma shared with me. She was told not to peek at the presents.

We had a family burial service with close family and friends. Paul Lindgren lead the service and Dad had some of his friends come up to read scripture verses. Vicki Martens lead us in singing Mom's favorite hymn, Great is Thy Faithfulness. Dad surprised us all and sang this beautiful song for Mom.

Here are some pictures that Aunt Sue took at Mom's Celebration of Life. Thank you Aunt Sue!

Love you forever Mom.