Grammy and Grandpa

Our month of August just kept getting better and better when my Mom and Dad came down from WI to spend a week with us. Lots a quality time and special memories, and the kids really bonded with their grandparents like never before. Lucy still pouts and asks me every day why they had to go home, and Caleb tells me Grammy is his favorite person now.

mighty proud

gotta bring the purse like Grammy

I had forgotten how good Mom was at playing dollies.

I think Dad read a hundred books.

the famous bear at the zoo
Dad has an incredible ability to snap the picture
in the split second when they both look and smile.

The Bear's Den

Backing up a few weeks, Daniel's whole side of the family had the amazing opportunity to take a week-long vacation together up at a beautiful cabin called "The Bears' Den" overlooking the Smokey Mountains. Getting everybody out of our normal schedules, and spending so much consecutive time together made for a real bonding experience, not to mention loads of fun! The only sad part was saying goodbye at the end of the week. Unless we are still in the US at Thanksgiving, this was our last chance to have everyone together for years to come.

On Sunday we visited Mountain Home Independent Baptist Church in NC, a supporting church to Daniel and me, and home to our friends the Knotts.

our hearts are in Seattle

Daniel is on a two-week eight-church whirlwind-trip in the Northwest, and we are really missing him back here. We are staying busy busy with all our friends, but there is a big hole in our home without Daniel. Caleb understands exactly where Papa is and why he is there, but Lucy... as simple as I try to make it, no answer I give her satisfies the hourly questionings: "Where's Papa? Can I go see him? Can I go to Seattle? Can I go on airplane now? Can you go get him now? I want Papa to come home now!" 

But we are making the most of skype. Today we just left the sound on for a few hours while Daniel made phone calls and the kids and I did our work at home. Listening in on each other made us feel like we were right in the other room. Today it dawned on me that our kids will never know the time when you couldn't have a live visual conversation long distance. I still think it's crazy that it is possible, but to them it is already old hat. 

Sorry about the reverse images. We took these with the computer's camera, and I haven't figured out how to flip them around.