It’s slowly slipping into fall, that beautiful contemplative time of year. You know, when you can grab a cup of hazelnut or pumpkin spice coffee, sit down near a window and just enjoy the color and the quiet. And where do my thoughts go? Back to the summer. And what a whirlwind summer it was! My dear friend Val was the one that dubbed it the 2012 Grandbaby Tour. The grandbabies have certainly been coming, and coming quickly and close together for the last few years. Our oldest, turning 8 in just a few days remarked recently, “There was only two born in this round, Grammy”. Made me smile. She’s heard me refer to the cycles the babies have been born in as “rounds of four”!
The “tour” actually started in April when we made a quick trip up to Indiana to see oldest son Joshua and family; wife Christina, Gabe, Zeke and Josie. They relocated to Warsaw in late February from Utah and we could hardly wait to be able to drive to see them since we always had to fly before! It has always helped me to see where the kids are, where they live, learn about the area they are in, their ministry. It helps me feel more connected when we talk or see pictures. Did I say kids??? Is that typical?? Josh is 31 now with 3 children; Daniel is 30 with 4 children; Aaron is 28 with 4 children; and Seth is 26 with 3 children…yep, my kids. I guess they will always be “the boys” to me, or “the kids” which includes their beautiful wives. My four wonderful sons and their precious families; I’m so grateful. And now all these grandchildren! They make life so full and fun! As full and fun as it was, and continues to be for that matter, to be mom, it is multiplied over and over with the addition of grandchildren!
At the end of May and early June, once Jordan finished the school year, we headed to Texas to see Aaron and Martha and fam, Elisha, Arya, Emma, and the newest born early May, Adley Renee’. Jordan is the 16 year old “daughter” that has come into our home and hearts as part of the family now. The ‘tour’ was also an opportunity for her to get to know ‘the brothers’ and rest of the family better. She did much of the driving too and saw parts of the country she has never seen. It was a great trip. It was also the first time seeing where Aaron and Martha are now living and ministering. Whew! is Dallas a big and busy city! Although they live in Plano, their church is in south Dallas. We rode the commuter train into Dallas to the zoo…we love zoos!! After a super visit…always too short…we left for home, but decided to do so via Atlanta for a quick overnight stop with Seth and Rebecca. Coming into west Atlanta from interstate 20 was so beautiful! And Jordan was able to chalk up even more states traveled through.
In July it was back up to Indiana, this time for the installation service for Josh as the new pastor of Community Bible Church. Not only did Jordan make this trip, but we took Makenzie and Elijah with us, the two oldest grandchildren and Grandma Harding came along too. In Utah when Dan and Steph still lived there and ministered together with Josh and Christina, the cousins were practically inseparable. So it was priceless to see the looks on Gabe and Zeke’s faces when they saw their cousins! And they had quite the adventure in “the cat barn”…another story for another time. It ended with everyone needing a shower and having to wash their clothes, including Poppy once they were found. I’ll leave you to imagine! Then there was story time with Grammy to learn a valuable lesson.
The ‘tour’ ended with a trip to Atlanta at the end of August to be with Seth and Rebecca after the birth of their third, another little girl Evelyn Josephine. Isn’t that beautiful? You should hear big brother Ephraim say it; “This is my new baby sister Evelyn Josephine.” Side note: the daughter-in-laws middle names have been used with each other’s daughters, and I think it’s the coolest thing! Maybe because it is a blessing to my heart to know the sister-in-laws love each other and enjoy spending time with each other so much. Rare and sweet! Rog left me for a week to help with Ephraim and Ellie while Rebecca recovered. My what a special time. What a joy to be able to be able to help my kids.
Well, coffee is gone. The afternoon has slipped away. My thoughts turn to autumn and how quickly it is approaching. It was just a year ago in October that our family was all together here at home in West Virginia. All the great-grands were even able to be here. The house was bursting at the seams! I don’t know when we’ll be able to make another ‘Tour’, or when we’ll even all be able to be together again. And I’m ok with that because I treasure the times we do have and have memories stored to hold onto. In the meantime, there are cell phones and picture texting and Skype and Facebook…thank God for technology!!
I’m ready to welcome another fall in all of its glory.
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