My boys are lucky to have grandparents who love them and the boys love their grandparents. Visiting Grandpa Brent and Grandma Jeanne is always a happy experience!
Bobby isn’t a big fan of people. He gets nervous around others and chews his nails, amid crying and fighting to get away. However, I was able to catch this rare (and blurry) moment of Bobby climbing up to sit with Grandpa Brent. It only lasted a few seconds, but it happened!
On Sunday we went to church with Kevin’s parents. It is never easy to tell how much my boys learn from church. I am usually too focused on keeping them quiet and still to worry about making them listen. They get notepads and colored pencils and I hope they pick something up. I learn best while doodling, so maybe they will, too. This particular Sunday, though, I KNOW they learned something.
One of the speakers was a convert who had lived a very colorful life. As he told us his story of coming unto Christ, he shared a story about finding happiness no matter what your circumstances are. In the story, there was a cookie singing, “I’m a cookie! I’m a cookie. I’m a cookie! I’m a cookie.” The cookie gets shot and his whole middle gets blown out. Looking down at the hole that remains, the cookie now sings, “I’m a donut! I’m a donut. I’m a donut! I’m a donut.” My boys heard that story (and got the moral of it, too) and I hear, almost daily, at least one of them singing, “I’m a cookie …” Oh, how I love knowing that they listened at church!
After church, we decided to visit a couple of cemeteries in honor of Memorial Day.
We visited the Arlington National Cemetery. More than 10,000 flags were put out to honor these heroes. The boys thought it was pretty cool and, despite being encouraged otherwise, they headed off on their own among the headstones and flags. Once they found their way back to their parents, and were scolded for crossing one of the driving paths inside the cemetery, Tommy proudly said, “I looked both ways before I crossed that road…Billy didn’t!” And then he smiled big. As if THAT were the problem, my son!
We also went with Kevin’s mom to the cemetery where his Grandpa and Grandma Van Blankenstein are buried.
Kevin’s mom shared a few stories and memories as we all looked on.
I enjoy visiting cemeteries. I like thinking about who these people are and what their stories were. There is a peace in cemeteries for me.
We were going to leave for Disneyland fairly early on Monday morning, so a good night’s sleep was in order. Rusty and Tommy snuggle so well whenever they need to share a bed. They actually seem to enjoy sleeping together…
