Crea Weekend at Cathy's House

We went to the cities this past weekend to see family. Cathy had a gathering at her house that included my immediate family, my Uncle Greg, Aunt Jeanne, and their three kids Rebecca, Matthew and Nicholas, my Great-Aunt Mary, and a close friend of the family Diane Longendyke. It was wonderful to spend time with family, and for many, it was their first time seeing Megan (even if she did sleep for a large part of our visit.) Brendan had a wonderful time playing outside with Matthew and he talks about him every day now, asking me to go visit his house, asking about Matthew's school, talking about playing with Rebecca, Matthew and Nicholas at Rose Lake, and praying for their whole family every night. It's pretty cute.


Brendan, mid-tickle from Zizzi Cathy.

"Ummmm....there's a big Dozer in my face!"

(Also, "Ummmm...there's really cute Megan in my face!")

Megan getting to spend some time with my cousin, Rebecca.

Brendan and Matthew played outside for a large part of the afternoon. They golfed, played football, played baseball, and here they made a "campfire" and are roasting pretend marshmallows on sticks.

Brendan laying claim to Matthew.

It was hard to get a good picture of this, but as we were getting ready to leave, Cathy put Megan in her carseat and then was playing "Boo!" with Megan. Megan thought it was hilarious and was laughing like crazy (which was neat because it's the first time she really had a laughing fit for someone other than us.)

We stayed overnight at my grandparent's house, knowing that it would most likely be the last time, as they're getting older and it's harder for them. Saturday night I had a good time chatting with my grandparents while Brad put the kids to bed. The next morning I came down to get some toys for Brendan (so we could stay upstairs and let my grandparents sleep longer), and I found grandpa on the floor, where he had been for some time, unable to get up. After some quick calls to my family, I ended up calling the ambulance to help me get him up and make sure his breathing was okay (he was having a very hard time when I found him and he was very, very pale and unable to talk.) Everything turned out okay, and Brendan really enjoyed seeing the ambulance, but it was a bit of a wake-up call for me regarding my grandparents' health. Being exposed to a close call like that really made me even more aware of how much those around me every day mean to me. Thank you to all friends and family who are there for us. We love you.