The Girls and The Boys

I have to back up a little bit... okay, a LOT.  With all of the birthday fun, then exciting medical stuff, then March of Dimes, then more medical, then Easter, then more medical... whew.  I have to back up to a very special weekend. The weekend of February 12th and 13th!  Most importantly, it was a celebration of my grandfathers life. Second, it was the first time any of my children have met a great-grandparent. Third, it was also the first weekend DB and I have split up, besides hospital trips, and had time with just one or two of them... Olivia and BB flew out to AZ and George, Samuel, and DB had a boys weekend at home.  Fourth, I got to see my high school BFF and her wonderfully beautiful pregnant belly :)

Grandad Biaett, I love you!  Grandad was such a great man, and it was wonderful to be able to spend time with family celebrating his life. There were tears at the service, but there were also smiles as the story-telling began. One of the consistent themes from his children and grandchildren was his unwavering support of each of us as individuals, and believe me, we are all very much individuals :)  He loved each of us so much. Grandad was also hysterical and had many quotable moments, which was also solidified as people told great stories about his life.  He loved being around family and friends, any chance to celebrate, and kids.  My biggest heavy-heart moment came when Olivia walked right up to the biggest picture of Grandad and I swear she looked at it as though she knew him... even though this was the first time she ever got to meet him.  It was a moment that will be forever etched in my memory.  Even though I know it wasn't possible, and that one day they will meet him face-to-face, I am sad that my kids didn't get to meet their great-Grandad here on Earth.

Olivia and I left the house at 4:30am... she was such an amazing travel buddy!

She made sure Cookie Monster got a prime view of the tarmac :)

Dinosaur too!  And yes, these were her two main travel buddies :)

Peanuts for everyone!

After a flight to ATL and then to PHX, Olivia took a quick snooze at Mo and Do's before I had to wake her up to head to the memorial service.  I'm telling you, she was incredible!  From there we headed to a reception.  Did I mention there was a 2-hour time difference not in our favor?!  This little girl did so well.  Of course, the moment she chose to warmup and speak a little bit was when we went up to say a few words about Grandad :) 

Due to medical circumstances and restrictions over the last year, we have not traveled home to see my family before this weekend.  In one incredible swoop, Olivia met ALL of my cousins, aunts, and uncles (both my fathers family and my mothers family came which was just awesome), and lots of other family.  It was so wonderful to see everyone!

Some of my dad's side above... it was amazing how many people were able to make the service!
My mom's side in multiple pictures below...  

Above: Mo, Do, brother Aaron (in from Colorado); Cousins Galadriel (in from California), Lorienne (in from North Carolina), Tyler (in from Boston), and Robert (in from Texas); Aunt Marta and Michael (in from Washington); Aunt Silvia;  Cousin Bob.

Cousin Katrina (in from Washington)

Cousin Micah (in from Peyson), cousin Josh (1st baby due soon!), and brother Aaron

Cousin Jared (recently back from China), brother Aaron, and cousin Micah

Aunt Mary Jane and Uncle Bruce (and brother Aaron :) )

The next day was followed with an incredible visit to my Granny and Grampa!  Grampa, at 97, continues to amaze us all! 

Looking at photos of all three kiddos :)

A few more things I will never forget, one of which was the comfort that Olivia displayed when meeting her great-Granny and great-Grampa.  She is generally a nervous little girl when it comes to new people, but she must have felt the love in the room because she was reading and high-fiving and even sang to Granny.

 

I will also never forget the look on Grandpa's face... he couldn't take his eyes off of Olivia :)  It was absolutely heart warming.  And even though Granny is in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's, and was unable to open her eyes, she smiled a mile-wide when Olivia sang Jesus Loves Me and ABC's and hugged her.  I have to admit, I left with a full heart but also a bit heavy that I'm not able to see them more often.

In whirlwind fashion, we left Granny and Grandpa to head to brunch with extended family and then it was back to the airport.  Whew!

Thank you PHX airport for this kid area!

After this photo Olivia passed out... for the entire 4-hour flight.  Good thing too, there were NO open seats on this flight so she was on my lap the entire time... which isn't too bad with a sleeping, snugly little girl :)

We arrived in ATL that night and headed to hang with some of my girls for the evening - loved it!  Especially the part about seeing my Kirby preggers!  Our current living arrangements - on opposite sides of the country - don't allow for too many visits so I was extremely happy to see and hug her and Baby Girl!  (Since this post is ridiculously overdue, Kirby has since given birth to beautiful Walker Emeline on April 24th!) 

After brunch it was back on the plane to head home... whew.  If you're wondering why there are no photos of DB or the boys from home, apparently what happens when mom is out of town is only for the boys to know :)

One piece of ridiculously disgusting info from the weekend that I just have to share... while my family was at the memorial service, my parents house was targeted by burglars.  Hard to believe people can be so terrible.  They didn't trash the house or take any of the electronics or appliances, but they did take something maybe even worse... all of my parents jewelry, including all of the family jewelry - wedding rings included.  It still makes me sick to my stomach.  The necklace I'm wearing in the photos from the service may be the only thing they have left.  The other hard part is that after returning from an evening of reminiscing and smiling about my Grandad, this was what we came home to.  My dad said goodbye to his dad only to be greeted by home invasion.  Nausiating.