Alice Mouse Goes Skiing
Mini Alice Mouse recently helped Rebecca Jobson tick something of her bucket list in memory of her Gran
Rebecca said, "I grew up in Leeds and my Gran was the only grandparent I ever had, so from a very young age I loved spending time with her."
She would pick me up every day after nursery and I remember going back to her house for dinner afterwards where she would give me tomato soup. I loved to stay over at my Grans house and probably slept there most weekends until I went off to Uni. I even went for a sleepover after my First Holy Communion – still in my little white dress and veil!!
I was so close to Gran which is why I am eternally grateful for the care that she received at St Gemma’s Hospice in Leeds. She was admitted there just before Christmas 2003 for end of life care. We pretty much camped out at St Gemma’s, staying with her the whole time until she died on the morning of New Year’s Eve 2003.
Gran always spent New Years Eve alone. Every Christmas she would either be at our house for the day or one of my auntie’s homes, but come New Year she was always happy to be at home, with her dog, Jasper, and a couple of Baileys.
In some ways it kind of felt right that she died on the day that she did, and now every new year I always have a Baileys too, just for her.
I was 24 when Gran died and had never felt grief like that before. She had been my friend for all of my life and now she was gone. She had been on many family holidays with us and as a family of 5 she always evened things up by sharing a room with me, although her snoring was the butt of many jokes. My Gran loved holidays and went lots of family ones with me and my cousins.
We had a family skiing holiday booked for the first week after she died, arranged long before she was admitted to St Gemma’s, and the whole extended family were wonderfully patient in waiting for us to return before we held her funeral. I have only been skiing a couple of times since because it always made me think of that time and opened up old wounds… until now.
Well, now I am 40! I work at Alice House Hospice in Hartlepool, which is amazing, and have 3 little children of my own. When Mini Alice Mouse came along and wanted to do a bucket list I thought “well it’s now or never”.
This January, 16 years since my Gran died, we took Mini Alice Mouse and our 3 kids on their first ever ski trip and they all loved it. It was brilliant and I particularly enjoyed one or two Bailey’s Coffee’s in her honour.
If you would like Alice Mouse to help you with your bucket list or you would like to complete something for someone you love – CLICK HERE