Short but sweet time with grandparents!

Wednesday (9-16) was forecast to be a beautiful day in our area.  It was supposed to be near 80 and a lovely fall day.  When my mom noticed this weather in the 10 day forecast she said it would be the perfect day to come for a visit.  My parents live 7 hours away and our week days are filled with school and therapies so it isn't the ideal day for a visit, but the weather was perfect.  I am thankful they came just when they did.  We have a very special time together. 

The wildfires were really changing our sunrises and sunsets for a while.  This particular morning the sun looked like a red-orange ball in the sky.  It was very unique even though the photo might not show it. 

Morning walk view.

My parents arrived at 3:00pm.  M was just finishing zoom therapy.  T was just finishing outdoor art therapy.  She screamed, "Grandma and Grandpa are here!"  It was a total surprise to the kids.  T was already wearing her mask from Art so she just rolled with it and hugged my parents and went on with life in a carefree way.  M was so very overwhelmed.  He said he thought he might never see them again.  He was crying so much that he ran to church and cried as Brandon held him for quite a while.  Then he came home and fell on the floor and cried more.  After about an hour he was ready to engage with them.  Yes, we did learn from this experience and we gave him an hour warning before Brandon's parents visit. We spent a lot of time in the backyard and were able to be without masks.  COVID has increased so much now that I am not sure I would have been comfortable with all we did.  This is another reason I am so thankful they came when they did.  

Having my parents here was surreal.  I talk with my mom on the phone a lot.  Since COVID we have been talking 4-5 times a week with probably 3 of those times being long conversations.  We both enjoy walking and talking on the phone so we can catch up and get exercise.  Because my mom and I talk a lot,  I feel very close to them even though they are far away.  This is a blessing because I don't miss them as I would without our conversations.  While they were here I just kept thinking that we needed to take pictures and make memories.  Our together times might be short and far between for a long time.  We know that seeing them at Thanksgiving and Christmas isn't assured so I wanted to cherish that time as much as I could.  

T and my mom went on a hunt for grasshoppers and bugs.  T was really into this for a couple of weeks.  She truly enjoys studying bugs.  

I love seeing them together. 

T: I caught one!

While T and Grandma Kathy were looking for bugs, M was playing HORSE with Grandpa Daryl.  They played a lot of basketball.  It was so special to see them both smiling together. 

M: I sure do love Grandpa Daryl.

M: I like to go for the hard shots and make Grandpa work!

T: Grandma is pretty good at Connect Four.  (T is REALLY good and always beats me.)

Taking a break from Basketball. 

T picked clover and was trying to get my mom to eat it.  My mom was such a good sport.

T: I think Grandma Kathy might just be pretending. 

T: I was trying to look extra sweet. 

We had Culvers in the backyard for dinner.  The kids were very happy about this.  Shortly after dinner we walked downtown to the ice cream shop for dessert.  Seeing the kids hold my parents hands was so precious to me. 

I love the way M is looking up at my dad. 

Awww

So thankful for these two!

When your owner friend is working and you get your very own ice cream scoop!

It was a beautiful night with lovely atmosphere and company.  It felt like we were on vacation.  COVID felt a million miles away and I felt so at peace with life.  It was a gift to have an evening like this. 

I sure do love these people. 

On the way home the four of them were all holding hands.  T is so busy and refused to walk in a straight line so I could get a pic.  I took MANY pics and the picture below is as good as it gets. 

Can you tell she is holding his hand? 

I was planning to have a camp fire when we returned, but we lent our fire pit to others for the night. We ended up just sitting and chatting.  My dad told all his funny stories and EMT stories. He is an excellent story teller and M eats up every word. 

M: I love his stories. 

After a while T asked Grandma Kathy if she could talk with her alone on the front porch.  It was very sweet to see them having special time together. 

T: I had lots of questions for Grandma Kathy. 

The flash made it tricky, but this is a nice group picture. 

My parents headed to their hotel around 9:00 so we had about 6 hours together, perhaps a bit more.  

On Thursday (9-17) my parents returned around 8:30.  The mold removal people arrived before 9:00 so there was lots of chaos trying to get everything ready to do school at church.  It was lovely to have my parents there to entertain the kids and I ran around inside. 

M: I wanted them to stay longer. 

Before my parents headed home we gave them a tour of the completed church.  Their last visit was before Christmas and many of the new areas were not finished at that time.   It was fun to get to show them around, but tricky to keep T from touching everything. 

I sure am thankful for our time together. 

M was sad and T was anxious to start school. 

Sort of wish I wasn't wearing an orange T shirt, but thankful for a whole group shot. 

Family COVID shot with a glaring girl and a sad boy. 

After taking pictures my parents got on the road pretty quickly.  They left by 10 something.  It was such a short visit, but it was very precious.  Their departure meant a tricky start to our school day.  Doing school at church was tricky, but trying to get everything going after the big feelings was extra tricky.  T just wanted to sleep so I let her snuggle for a while. 

T: I still love a good cozy nest!

Eventually we got in the groove and managed to get lots of school work done.  I was even able to do sample coloring sheets and crafts for my second packet.  It ended up being a very productive day. 

T's sign might have said "School is cool" and I might have influenced her to add "my home" to the beginning of it... you will never know. 

T: It was fun to play in the nursery. 

My parents made it home safely and we have all felt healthy, so no COVID was spread and the kids fevers were not passed to them.   I am so thankful for this very special time together, even if our time together only equaled the time it took them to drive to our house.  Thank you for the sacrifice mom and dad!  We are blessed!