Why We Are "Still" Here
There have been numerous times that we've been faced with the question... "Why are you still there?" Meaning, why haven't we gotten out of Dodge already?
While I'm not politically savvy enough to know where Nebraska falls on the continuum of "the worst places to live"... a scale solely taking into account our family dynamics. I do suspect there are "worse" places for us to live along with a plethora of "better" places for us to live. Obviously if we were to move, we'd narrow our choices based on this ever changing scale along with utilizing our personal lifestyle preferences to make such a decision.
But experiences like tonight are strong reminders of why we are really still here.
After the girls' soccer game we loaded up and headed to Fremont where my Grandma was awaiting our arrival. Fremont is a nice little town about an hour away from us. This is a place that created many of my childhood memories. It is a place where many from my Dad's family routinely gather together throughout the summer months. It is a place where my kids now have an opportunity to spend time with their extended family and create the memories that I had a chance to create. It is a place where we have a time like no other. Grandpa & Grandma spend a great deal of time at the cabin and I know they greatly enjoy all the traffic that the summer months bring.
Earlier in the week Grandma (my paternal Grandmother) was on the phone requesting that we bring the kids out. Sure we are supposed to see them this coming Saturday at "the" soccer game (featuring Abby, Ellie & Lexy) and they are planning on coming to Spencer’s birthday party that afternoon. But she was anxious to show them all the new babies at the lake. Because the cabin is on a private lake, the traffic - especially during the week, is pretty low key. There are an incredible amount of deer, geese, turkeys, and a couple of ponies at the lake. I'm sure I’ve missed a few species and I'm absolutely certain Grandma & Grandpa could tell you exactly what is there, how many there are, and probably even how old they are. They, along with many other cabin owners, get great enjoyment out of all of these animals that have created their home on the lake.
So we make the trek to the lake for an evening of animal watching. It was a nice night for a drive, and we enjoy driving – if only the kids would enjoy it as much as we do. Thank goodness the sun is setting later! Grandma met us at the gate and then joined us in our van to toddle around the lake.
On a normal summer night she'd load up all the kids (every single kid around) in her car and just she and they would drive around in search of the animals. She'd have loaves upon loaves of "bird bread" that the kids would alternately eat and toss out for the birds. They would return to the cabin with slices of bread on top of the car. Somehow it is always a sign that they had fun. But the cabin isn't really open yet and it was just us there tonight so we all were treated to her animal adventure. We were treated to our kids having incredible fun with their Great Grandma. The smiles and laughter on all their faces was priceless.
After a good hour of exploring we stopped by the cabin to get jammies on, etc... Then we went back to the gate to make our trek back home. As we were locking the gate behind us, Grandma was headed down the road, back to the cabin, on the 3-wheeler.
It was at that precise moment as I watched Grandma hop on the 3-wheeler that it really hit me. The memories, oh the memories our kids are going to have. I mean, how many Great Grandmas’ would hop on a 3-wheeler to get home?
It is these experiences that keep us planted here.
It is vitally important to us that our children have the opportunity to create these memories with their family, a large extended family at that. We want them to be able to have lasting memories of their Grandparent’s and Great Grandparents. All 4 of their Grandparents and 3 of their Great Grandparents are still alive, thriving, and involved in our lives!
And yes... the photos of Ellie and Spencer are of them hanging out the sunroof of our van! They were looking for animals. I think at that moment they were looking for the turkeys in the trees. Have you ever seen a turkey fly? It is pretty cool!
While I'm not politically savvy enough to know where Nebraska falls on the continuum of "the worst places to live"... a scale solely taking into account our family dynamics. I do suspect there are "worse" places for us to live along with a plethora of "better" places for us to live. Obviously if we were to move, we'd narrow our choices based on this ever changing scale along with utilizing our personal lifestyle preferences to make such a decision.
But experiences like tonight are strong reminders of why we are really still here.
After the girls' soccer game we loaded up and headed to Fremont where my Grandma was awaiting our arrival. Fremont is a nice little town about an hour away from us. This is a place that created many of my childhood memories. It is a place where many from my Dad's family routinely gather together throughout the summer months. It is a place where my kids now have an opportunity to spend time with their extended family and create the memories that I had a chance to create. It is a place where we have a time like no other. Grandpa & Grandma spend a great deal of time at the cabin and I know they greatly enjoy all the traffic that the summer months bring.
Earlier in the week Grandma (my paternal Grandmother) was on the phone requesting that we bring the kids out. Sure we are supposed to see them this coming Saturday at "the" soccer game (featuring Abby, Ellie & Lexy) and they are planning on coming to Spencer’s birthday party that afternoon. But she was anxious to show them all the new babies at the lake. Because the cabin is on a private lake, the traffic - especially during the week, is pretty low key. There are an incredible amount of deer, geese, turkeys, and a couple of ponies at the lake. I'm sure I’ve missed a few species and I'm absolutely certain Grandma & Grandpa could tell you exactly what is there, how many there are, and probably even how old they are. They, along with many other cabin owners, get great enjoyment out of all of these animals that have created their home on the lake.
So we make the trek to the lake for an evening of animal watching. It was a nice night for a drive, and we enjoy driving – if only the kids would enjoy it as much as we do. Thank goodness the sun is setting later! Grandma met us at the gate and then joined us in our van to toddle around the lake.
On a normal summer night she'd load up all the kids (every single kid around) in her car and just she and they would drive around in search of the animals. She'd have loaves upon loaves of "bird bread" that the kids would alternately eat and toss out for the birds. They would return to the cabin with slices of bread on top of the car. Somehow it is always a sign that they had fun. But the cabin isn't really open yet and it was just us there tonight so we all were treated to her animal adventure. We were treated to our kids having incredible fun with their Great Grandma. The smiles and laughter on all their faces was priceless.
After a good hour of exploring we stopped by the cabin to get jammies on, etc... Then we went back to the gate to make our trek back home. As we were locking the gate behind us, Grandma was headed down the road, back to the cabin, on the 3-wheeler.
It was at that precise moment as I watched Grandma hop on the 3-wheeler that it really hit me. The memories, oh the memories our kids are going to have. I mean, how many Great Grandmas’ would hop on a 3-wheeler to get home?
It is these experiences that keep us planted here.
It is vitally important to us that our children have the opportunity to create these memories with their family, a large extended family at that. We want them to be able to have lasting memories of their Grandparent’s and Great Grandparents. All 4 of their Grandparents and 3 of their Great Grandparents are still alive, thriving, and involved in our lives!
And yes... the photos of Ellie and Spencer are of them hanging out the sunroof of our van! They were looking for animals. I think at that moment they were looking for the turkeys in the trees. Have you ever seen a turkey fly? It is pretty cool!
posted by Sonya at 11:12 PM
1 Comments:
I really liked this post. I think it's great that you have so much family surrounded by you.
Oh, and you have been tagged.
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