And they're off! (Sniff)

Our time with Granny and Grandpa here has come to an end : ( We delivered them to the airport last night, which was very hard for us all. I still can’t believe what a great time we all had together!

I have a new found appreciation for my parents, too. Before I moved here and got involved in babies homes and adoption, and my sister got involved in foster care in the U.S., I pretty much took it for granted that my parents loved me, cared for me well and kept me safe when I was a youngster. They did so much more than that but those are, what I thought, basics. Some of the things I’ve seen, experienced and heard about first hand from my sister (whose a foster parent to the “hard” foster kids) has given me such a greater appreciation for my parents and my upbringing. I never, once during my childhood worried about if I would be able to eat or have a place to sleep the next day, nor worried about my safety. The older I get the more I realize what a blessing that was and have a lot to thank my parents for! Well, plus the fact that they would travel thousands of miles to visit me and my children and would stay several months to help me when I’m an adult : )

My mom and dad celebrated their 39th (??) wedding anniversary while they were here. In honor of their anniversary they took the youngsters and Sarah out to eat ( I was slaving at work) and the kids, of course, had to dress up for the event. Get a load of the results!


If you’re smart, don’t mess with Ella. Gad*ffi has women bodyguards and we’re wondering if Ella could grow up to be a woman bodyguard someday. It looks like there’s a lot of potential there – must be the princess dress ;) Frankie on the other hand, well, from this picture it looks like he’ll have a good chance at growing up and becoming a clown!


Granny and Grandpa took the kids and dogs for a picnic in the Botanical Gardens too, one day while I was at work. They are quite the crew (hang on Granny! Glad the dogs didn’t see a monkey!)!

During one of our trips to the zoo, Granny got to pet the hyena,

Grandpa got to ride the camel,

And I got to pull the rhino’s tail! (this is a picture of my arm and hand reaching through the bars and grabbing onto her tail : )

Hello, big fella!

Granny and I shamefully exploited poor old Grandpa while he was here. The poor man probably babysat and played more games of Uno than ever before in his entire life! Even though the poor guy was hungry most of the time, he never complained and was a big help.

And then there’s Granny. Wow. Can’t say enough about ol’ Gran. She cared for children, (not only mine, either! But the neighbors AND another friends!), fed us all, taught children, washed clothes, cared for animals, played Rummykub, cribbage and Yahtzee with me, went shopping, gardened, washed and doctored the kitten – you name it, she probably did it! What a huge help she was in EVERYTHING. I love yah, Nan!