Spring Break with Grandma and Grandpa

All the days of the week of spring break are now mushing together since it was a few weeks ago, but we spent time going on walks, playing at the park, swimming at our neighborhood pool, and hiking through the neighborhood trails. Dad helped me appreciate where we live a little more. Whenever he came up missing we just looked on the deck or the patio to see him watching golfers. He was in heaven. Sometimes he was laughing hysterically and sometimes he was just simply smiling. Joseph and I are not golfers, we appreciate the beautiful view we have, but having my Dad here was fun because he loves the game and really appreciated our surroundings. It was fun to see it through his eyes.

For my Dad's birthday we gave him a round of golf. The kids didn't realize how long a round of golf is, so I had the pleasure hearing this question all day long, "Why is he taking so long?" We live on the 16th hole and they were so excited to get to cheer on a golfer that they actually knew. They set up their chairs on the deck, then they moved to the patio, then they came inside, over and over and over again. Finally about 4 hours after he started, they got to see him on our hole! (Which, according to Dad is the hardest of the course. He told me to be careful when the kids are outside playing because he heard some choice words from a few golfers who didn't have they're A game on).

Dad was probably humiliated as we cheered from the deck while he played. The kids were so happy to see him on the course. I'll appreciate where we live a little more now after having dad here to point out the beauty of it all. Mom went with him for the first half and then came home to sew while Dad finished the rest of the course.

Brynn wrote the cute birthday card below for Dad. Hearing her read it was the best! It really says it all. He is such a great guy! Everytime he comes he looks for things around the house and car that need to be done and puts himself to work. He replaced light bulbs, secured the fence, cleaned up animal droppings, made the random beeping sound go away, took trips to the hardware store, took trips to the grocery store, and I'm sure did many other things that we haven't noticed yet. He quietly goes about doing good. I am so lucky to have such a great dad and my kids could not ask for a better grandpa.

At times I am tormented by the fact that my parents miss so much of my children's lives. There are times I think it nothing of it and then there are times that it really hurts. Just last night, Isaac was squeezing my neck and giggling as I put him to bed, and I thought, "I wish Grandma and Grandpa could see how cute you are right now." I love my kids so much and I know that my parents do too. No one celebrates and enjoys your children like family, atleast that's the way it is with my family. The silver lining of living away is that when we visit each other, we really get to spend alot of time seeing regular everyday life, whereas I know that if we lived closer, we probably wouldn't get to spend that kind of time together. It would just be quick visits here and there. Sometimes I just want it all.