Last Days with Grandma and Grandpa

Once we came home from our excellent adventure in Brazil, we had just over a week with Carl's parents. They had vacationed in Western Bolivia and a bit in Peru and arrived home the same day we did. Of course, they had their share of adventures, how could it be travel in South America without any!?

On our last weekend, we went to the Botanical Gardens, out for Chinese and cone pizza, and had lovely birthday cake to celebrate Dad's, Kezia's and Joel's birthdays. The guys had a day trip to one of the colonies and we had a very special breakfast with Mom and Dad while the kids were in school. It was unbelievable how quickly the time went; how could 7 weeks just disappear?

We all appreciated more than words can express the time we got to spend with Mom and Dad Heppner. Each of the kids got to bond in their own special way. Kezia had a great time baking with her grandparents or doing gymnastics stunts outside. Joel was thrilled to play baseball and read and Asha loved having stories read to her and all the cuddles from Grandma and Grandpa.

Carl and I were so touched with all the help Mom and Dad gave while they were here. Mom sewed up a storm for one of the workers (and tackled other jobs that I was a bit hesitant to try!), Dad was always mowing the lawn and helped Carl with the concrete work. Carl told me afterwards that if Dad hadn't been here, he wouldn't have been able to do it. We also were blessed by Mom and Dad's encouragement. It hasn't always been easy serving here and they could see that we needed someone to come along side us for a while. And that's exactly what they did. They worked along side us, they played with us, they spoke words of encouragement and of course, they fed us lots of good home cooking.

We are really going to miss them. It'll be a while before we see them again, but we know that just like when they came to Fresno, precious memories and experiences have been made. Joel and Kezia still talk about the trip with Grandma and Grandpa Heppner to San Diego, and that was 2 years ago!

Our kids are attached to their grandparents, although there is physical distance, because of the quality time we had over the last 2 months. Thanks Mom and Dad for making the effort to come and entering into our daily lives. And for loving us so much.