Margaret Elayne Buck Yard passed away last Friday night. She was a wonderful woman who gave everything to her family. She made all of us feel welcome at her home anytime, even those of us who weren't born to her family. She loved to create things. I always remember her as making something, ceramics, porcelain, crochet, handmade dolls, clothing. She taught me some of those skills. I missed out on others. She made the best shrimp gumbo in the world, and I learned that recipe from her, as she learned it from her daddy. My mother and her brothers remembered her spirit. She loved Betty Boop, and they placed one of her Betty Boop dolls with her at the funeral. Everyone had something wonderful to say about her.

Elayne made it just past the Missouri state line when she got the news. Brian had to stay home because of the work he missed in the hospital, so Elayne made this emergency drive by herself, with all of the kids. She pushed through anyway, to be there for her mother and to help with the funeral, and made it to Houston by late Saturday night. Sunday she had to replace the brakes on the van, though, because she'd made the entire drive without brake pads on one rotor. The wake was Monday night at Wanda's home; Wanda is now the last surviving member of Margaret's generation, the new "matriarch" of the family. Tuesday was the funeral.

Elayne will be staying in Texas until Monday or Tuesday. We can only manage one trip home each year, so this is it. She'll be heading over to San Antonio Friday and Saturday so the kids can see their Hunt relatives, and the rest of the time she'll be in Houston with her mother. At least the drive home will be freer from time pressure, so maybe a little less stressful on everybody.