On Vacation and Back Again

We got to spend a glorious week Up North last week.  It started off with a stop to visit some Ethiopia travel friends at their home and a visit to the zoo near their home the following day.  It was so lovely to see them and their precious son B, who my E says she's going to marry some day.  Like R (our friend, not my daughter; sometimes not using names is confusing, right?) said, it was like family was coming to visit.  She's right, she, D, and B really do feel like our family.  There is something about experiencing meeting your children for the first time that bonds you...  Teary-eyed as I type, I'll just say that was such a lovely way to start off our vacation, and I wish we could have spent more time with them.  They are so very dear to our family.

After that visit, we traveled the rest of the way to our vacation spot in the Northwoods.  Lovely, peaceful, beautiful... and full of mosquitoes.  My parents and my brother J were already there.  My brother A, his wife L, and their huge sheepdog puppy would arrive about 5 days later.  I know going on big extended family vacations aren't for everyone, but I love them.  Despite that obviously no one in my family is perfect, I love being with them, going on vacation with them.  I love that my girls get to spend so much time with my family. I love that my E loves her Uncle J so much and gets up on his lap to cuddle with him (J's not exactly cuddly).  I love that my dad takes my girls and his dog for a "quick walk," and 45 minutes later, I look out the window and see them playing tennis or down at the lake.  I love taking the girls for boat rides and going to the local markets with my mom.

Admittedly, our trips Up North weren't always my favorite thing to do as a kid/teenager.  But I've grown to appreciate and love the place for what it is.  And, my grandmother's family is from there...  So I suppose it is in my blood.  And, even if it is not in my girls' blood to love it, it is in their hearts, and I hope that they always will love it, too.