If you talk about something enough, you can make it happen. Such as, "You really should stop and see us along the way. It would split your trip up and make the drive easier." Or....."It really doesn't make any sense not to stop and see us, because Denver is halfway between Texas and Montana." And, last but not least: "You want to see the grandkids, right? They're growing so fast!" The power of persuasion is a wonderful thing. Another wonderful thing is getting the chance to spend a few days (when that's all time will allow) with your family. We were all so glad that Mom and Dad DID decide to come and visit enroute to their summer habitat. (Yes, Mom and Dad, you really do migrate.) For those of you who know my parents well, you know how easily they can skirt around a topic. "So, when will you be leaving Texas?", "Oh, we're not sure yet....(insert excuse here).", "So, do you think you'll swing by and see us?", "Oh, we don't know yet. It depends on....(insert tentative schedule here)." So, it truly does feel like a victory of sorts when they actually pull into our driveway. It's one of those classic cases of "I'll believe it when I see it." And, you surely don't tell the grandkids they're coming just in case something changes their agenda. Boy, I'm wondering if this ambiguity is a payback for something when I was younger or if, gulp, it's yet another chance to teach me the value of flexibility. HaHaHa. Because for those of you who know me well, you'll know how much I love to plan things and flexibility has never been one of my strengths.
So, the long and short of it (as apparently I am long-winded today) is that Mom and Dad came and spent four days with us a few weeks ago. It's always nice having them and this visit was particularly relaxing and low-key. Well.....I thought it was relaxing but maybe Dad views it differently! See, unfortunately the timing of their visit was only two weeks before having our driveway ripped out, expanded and repoured. (It all starts tomorrow!) Sven, Dad and Nikolas cut down about 20 scrub oak trees in the front yard and hauled the logs around to the woodpile in the backyard. We always want Mom and Dad to sit, relax and enjoy...that usually works in theory and not reality. Once Dad found out what had to be done, he had his work jeans on before I could stop him. Hopefully it wasn't too much work, and we really, really appreciate what he did for us. Watching Sven and Dad (and at one point a neighbor as well) work on those trees made me wonder how Sven and I could have handled it ourselves. Experience (and yes, muscles) are a wonderful asset for projects like these. Thank you, Dad, so much for all of your help. NEXT TIME, I promise, you can relax.......
The kids loved having Grandma and Grandpa (or, as Emalie says, "Baba and Baba" or "two Babas") here. Nikolas got in some great bonding time with Grandpa while doing the wood-cutting and hauling as well as fishing at our neighborhood lake. Mom's extra set of hands with Emalie was wonderful, too. By the end of the day, I'm usually not too eager to tackle feeding Emalie dinner and Mom was always quick to step in and do it for me. Yay, Grandma, thank you!!
At least this trip I didn't shed as many tears upon their departure. It sure helps knowing we'll get to see them in six weeks instead of an unknown period of time. We're really looking forward to heading north to Montana in July to celebrate Mom's birthday, spend some time on Flathead and visit the family in the Bitterroot. What a lucky year it is for us being able to see my family so much. It's not quite like living next door to Grandma and Grandpa (by the way, Mom and Dad, that corner house DID go up for sale last week.....hahahaha!) but we'll take what we can get!
Part of our "forest" before the chainsaws came out. This was our view from our front door before.
When the scrub oak fills out in the summer, you can hardly see the street from our house or vice versa. It almost made our house feel like a tree house.
But then, the sawing began.
And before I knew it there was only one tree left standing.
And then there were none.
Hmmm..... our 'new view' from our front door. It's quite a shocking difference.
No private tree house anymore. It's going to take me (and the deer) awhile to get used to this.
We had to take down some of the trees in order to widen the curve in the driveway.
That sure looks like we took down a lot of trees!
It was nice seeing Nikolas work alongside Grandpa.
I watched the transformation take place from the front deck where I could keep Emalie away from all the action (and sharp blades!). When I wasn't documenting the driveway, I was capturing Emalie's sweet, little face.
I guess it's only been two weeks now since she's started riding her bicycle forwards. Until then, she rode around our kitchen in reverse. She's so proud of herself. Her speech is improving as much as her pedaling: "ride my bike". Adorable.
You don't eat in the KraussHaus without a family pic.....
Emalie loves to move all of her cooking supplies to the table and 'cook'.
Showing Grandma her memory book.
It's not easy to get Nikolas in pictures anymore these days. But, here's one that's cute.
Emalie is really turning into a Grandma's girl. Every night at bedtime she had to go to Grandma and give her a big hug. It's so sweet how smitten the two are with each other!
Now there's the Nikolas I know! Emalie can't always be the center of the show!
Family hugs at bedtime.
I rarely get a picture taken with Mom and Dad. I told Sven,
"I want a picture with my Mommy and Daddy!"
Of course Emalie wanted to be in the picture with "Baba and Baba".
Love you, Mom and Dad. Glad you made it safely to Montana. Can't wait to see you there!
