Thank you, Nanie.

There is no way I can put this into words as eloquently and tastefully as you deserve, but here we go.

Ann Hussong was my grandmother, best friend, role model and biggest Fan. To most of us, we knew her as Nanie and she was the most vivacious and beautiful person you would ever meet.

Nanie has always been my style icon. She has always been fashionable and never looked unkempt a day of her life. She mixed patterns, textures, materials and accessorized to perfection. Always. She is the reason I pursued this fashion journey and I will forever be in debt to her. Thank you, Nanie.

She supported my blog and my creative passions. She was so proud of me and my writing that she told her friends about it so they would start reading it. My biggest hype girl. Nanie believed in me and made sure I knew that she thought I was talented. Thank you, Nanie.

Nanie glowed with confidence. She empowered me to take on the world and challenged me to succeed. She believed in my goals, dreams and passions every step of the way. Thank you, Nanie.

She taught me the value of knowing yourself and being confident and fearless in who you are. Nanie was absolutely authentic. She loved peanut butter and pickle sandwiches, black licorice and loved the color brown so much that she used to joke that “she could lick it,” which makes sense as she also was obsessed with chocolate. She taught me that no matter how weird you are, you will always be special. Thank you, Nanie.

She taught me the value of taking care of my skin. And let me tell you that woman had firmer, more glowy skin than anyone I had ever met. I’m honestly upset she wasn’t sponsored by Glossier because that woman copyrighted the dewy look. She took care of herself. She moisturized and stayed away from the sun and taught me to do the same. Thank you, Nanie.

Her mom loved to play cards which was passed on to her and then to my mom and onto me. She taught me how to play card games using strategy and tactics that I had no idea would translate into my real life. But she knew. She knew that it was important to teach me how to play well with others so I could get ahead in life. Thank you, Nanie.

Nanie taught me the importance of being strong. She taught me how to lead by example and take care of the people I cared about. She taught me that it’s okay to sad but to never forget how strong you are inside. Thank you, Nanie.

Nanie always smelled like coffee and hairspray. As I mentioned before, she always looked beautiful and yes, that included her hair styled to perfection every day. She loved coffee. She could drink caffeinated coffee at 7pm and still go to sleep that night without any trouble. I loved the smell of coffee and hairspray and I always will. Thank you, Nanie.

Nanie was a professional organizer. She used to work on Hoarders and would organize the most difficult of messes. She was fearless. She would come stay with me and my family every summer where we had our annual “clean out our closet party.” Except it wasn’t a party and I hated having to try on all of my clothes to see what fit and what didn’t. Nanie taught me how to throw away the things I don’t need– I’m still really bad at it. So yes, I’ll admit I’m still a work in progress. Thank you, Nanie.

Nanie helped me through every heartbreak. She would tell me that there are always more “fish in the sea” and that there are a lot of “handsome” guys out there. She’s seen them, she said. She told me I was beautiful and smart and that she never really liked (insert ex here) anyway. She always made me feel worthy. Thank you, Nanie.

Nanie was an olympic athlete and in 1958-1959 she was the National Pentathlon Champion. She was the top female amateur athlete in the Country during that time. She was featured in Sports Illustrated at only 13 years old because yes, she’s incredible. She was a health teacher for 25 years and when she first explained sex to me I was terrified. There is no doubt that she made sure that I was educated. Thank you, Nanie.

She loved me despite my faults. She loved me through every tantrum, scream and troubling time I went through. She would have done anything for me. Nanie, I can’t thank you enough.

Nanie– you taught me how to celebrate life. You taught me that life is too short to not take chances, to love hard and to make mistakes. I will continue learning from you for the rest of my life and I would give anything to hug you right now and smell your coffee and hairspray. Thank you for being more than just my grandma. You are and will always be my best friend. I love you more than any word could ever describe.

Forever,

Miss J.