Our trip to New York...bits and pieces

Here is a conglomeration of the last few pictures... The weather was lovely while we were there. Different from what I am used to in Georgia -- I was chilly most of the time and dressed in layers to keep warm while the residents all wore shorts :) -- but it was a beautiful taste of early fall in central NY and I enjoyed it. We had a massive rainstorm one day and one of the kids took a picture of the tail end of it, so I thought I'd share it. Most of the days were beautiful, with crisp mornings and sunshine in the afternoons, blue skies with big fluffy clouds, and trees just starting to blush here and there. I do miss northern autumns, so I really enjoyed getting to see the early hints of it. The kids enjoyed every minute of our visit, too. They explored everywhere and got into everything, they played with Amanda and Alicia, they "helped" Grandpa and played games with Grandma, they ate incessantly, they drew and colored and read in between, and they fell into bed exhausted every night! Here is a picture David took of Abigail loving on Aunt Shelly's Raggedy Ann dolls. Here they are waiting in Chile's for our lunch date, both engrossed in their new books. I'm glad we passed on the gene of being able to immerse oneself in a book anytime, anywhere!

Playing at the Town of Schroeppel playground... Abigail was annoyed that the dinosaur didn't go anywhere. She thought she was going to get a real dinosaur ride!

My grandma and I spent most of our free time playing games together and we had a blast! We played during morning playtime and in the evenings before bed...and we squeezed a game or two into every little space we could find in between meal prep, tending to the kids, and going places! We also had a Monday morning knit-a-thon; her PBS station has knitting, quilting, and sewing shows on all morning starting at 9, so we sat down and enjoyed them together. Abigail even got in on the fun for a little while. (I also enjoyed having a day I could stay in my pjs until lunchtime!) We also worked on a set of place mats; she dislikes doing free motion quilting, but I love it -- so I quilted these and now she'll finish the binding. Teamwork!My grandparents live on the Oswego River, and my grandma, knowing how much my kids love to learn how things work, wanted so badly to show them the nearby locks and drawbridge in operation. We watched all week to no avail, so finally on the last afternoon we were there, we went down there just to look at them. We explored and explained to the kids how it all worked; we walked in the park, and then, as we were getting ready to leave, a boat arrived and we got to watch the whole process! It was a moment of sweet reminder to me that God is the Giver of good gifts, Who is involved in even the minute details of my life...He arranged the details in so many different people's lives just to get a boat there on that day, at that very moment, for us to enjoy!We had such a wonderful visit. My heart is full and I am so thankful for the time we spent with all of our loved ones, and my grandparents in particular. It was hard to say goodbye, but at the same time it was so good to come home to Bruce. Life is so full of dichotomies!

David said something last night that I think sums up our trip very well...

"Mommy, there was only one bad thing about our trip...leaving."