Archive for June 30th, 2013

Our time in Ohio this week

Sunday, June 30th, 2013

A fun last lunch before finishing the move

We have had a wonderful visit with Robyn and Eric and their family, and with Tamara and David and their family. I had been in Ohio only a little over a week ago with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir so I had seen the grandchildren recently, but Grandma had not seen them for about a year. They were very happy to see each other! We took an overnight flight and arrived at their home late in the morning on Thursday, before Eric came home from work. We had a little time to spend with the children and get re-acqiainted with them before Daddy was home and we needed to get moving things into the moving truck.
Robyn and Eric's new home!

Robyn and Eric’s new home!

This afternoon we helped move Robyn and Eric into their new home in Massilon, about 5 miles from where they lived before but they are still in the same ward. There were two ward members from the area that helped get the truck loaded, and at the new home there were several families who were there to help get things moved into the new home. The help was wonderful and very welcome! Grandma and I stayed at there with their family Thursday and Friday nights, assigned to the girls’ room (while the girls stayed with Henrik in his room). The new home is very nice and accommodates them well at this time. We were very impressed that so many friends and neighbors offered their assistance to get the move taken care of.
What a beautiful family!

What a beautiful family!

We enjoyed a nice lunch there after Mierae’s baptism and met some of their close friends. We are very proud of her decision to be baptized a member of the church! Mierae was given some birthday gifts and had a nice group to be there to share her joy of the occasion.
We drove to Columbus Saturday afternoon and through an enormous storm on I-71 that was the heaviest rain I have driven through in a long time. The deluge lasted about 30 miles or so and went through areas of construction. It was all the wipers could do to keep up, but it let up as we approached Columbus.
Mom and Rebekah prepare the birthday cake

Mom and Rebekah prepare the birthday cake

We have had a lovely visit with Tamara and family in Columbus including their church meetings. Today we celebrated Megan’s third birthday. Rebekah and their Mom worked hard on a special cake for the celebration. We also had delicious home-made pizza and salad along with a nice berry smoothie for dinner. I have seldom seen a little person more excited to open her birthday gifts than Megan was at this time. She just screamed with glee when she opened an umberella, and the beautiful doll from her other grandparents is her closest companion now. The got a backpack playhouse and a few other fun things including some “magic” slipper shoes.
Blowing out the candles!

Blowing out the candles!

Megan was very excited to open her gifts, so excited that she even forgot about cake and ice cream her mother and sister had worked so hard to prepare for her. It was so fun to see the excitement in her eyes and her voice. We had a really fun time and her siblings enjoyed this almost as much as if they had been receiving the gifts themselves. Their family tradition indicates that the birthday person blow out their candles before we sing happy birthday to them, so we did this. It was a nice variation on the way we do it! We are very blessed to have our wonderful grandchildren and know that they are all loved and wanted by their families. The gospel of Jesus Christ has had such a profound effect on our upbringing, and we are by grateful to have the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in our lives. Te teachings of the restored church have been a wonderful blessing in our lives. All of these grandchildren are growing up so fast! It was really fun to play some games with them and see them interact with each other. We look forward to our next family reunion!