Great food, Great stories, GREAT-Grandparents!

Last Thursday night we squeezed in a fun visit with Grandma and Grandpa Bauerle. We had planned to go out to dinner together, but Grandma wasn't feeling quite up to going out, so instead, we brought dinner to them. Grandma is a big fan of Wendy's hamburgers! It's fun to watch her eat them because she so thoroughly seems to enjoy them!

Being away from them while we lived in AZ made us truly appreciate what they bring into our lives. Since moving back we had a strong desire to visit them on a regular basis but of course weren't the best at prioritizing sometimes and didn't do it like we'd thought we would. Then in December Grandma had a nasty fall and ended up with a new hip and a broken arm. She spent a couple months in a rehabilitation center where she could receive 24-hour care as she healed. The Bauerle family organized an online calendar where the entire family worked together as a team, signing up for days to ensure that nearly every day Grandpa had a ride over to the rehab center and also so Grandma would have frequent visitors. It began to be a habit for us to plan our Thursday afternoons around these highly-anticipated visits. The kids even started understanding...Wednesday night typically found either Halle or Wyatt asking me, "Are we going to see Grandma B. tomorrow?" I realized how beneficial these regular visits were to everyone involved and I promised myself I would continue in our commitment in nurturing this important relationship between all of us, even after Grandma was able to move back home with Grandpa at Heritage Place. We don't make it every single week like we did before, but my goal is to go at least every other week, if not more, and so far I am happy to report that we've made it a priority and I've never regretted it. Not once! How could I?

~

I love watching my kids interact with their Great-Grandparents. Sometimes children can feel shy around older adults, or even uninterested. The fact that Halle, Wyatt, and Carson adore (and I do mean ADORE) Hugo and LaRee so much is a testament, I think, to the kind of people Brett's grandparents are. My children genuinely look forward to spending time with them and I know they always walk away feeling as though they are truly loved and valued by their great-grandma and great-grandpa! It warms my heart with a bit of pride, I admit, also to see my kids express their love to them and see how it brightens their grandparents' faces.

Like many grandmothers, LaRee has a number of beautiful (but breakable) knick-knacks decorating her home. We've found it's in everyone's best interest to keep Carson strapped down in his stroller during our visits!