Trip to Canada

This is going back a few months, 

but this was a trip I don't ever want to forget. 

My Oma (my Mom's mom) passed away in October.

We were so blessed to be able to go be apart of the wonderful family memories.

Our kids are getting older now (5 and 2), which makes traveling so much easier than those days of diaper bags, breast pump, bottles, bouncy chairs, swings and practically half your house just to leave the house!

Aubrey Rose and Austin were near perfect this trip.

They are kids, so no kid is perfect, but honestly

it was just an easy, relaxing, wonderful trip.

I am so glad they got to come!

My parents went a couple of days before us.
When we arrived, it was the best reunion to see them in Canada.
So fun!

First thing we did was we met up at Scott St church.

This church used to be the church my Dad's father was a pastor at for years.

My parents grew up in this church,

but for my dad, this was practically his second home. 

It was pretty fun to watch him show the kids every nook and cranny of every hiding spot in the place.

At the end of the trip, Aubrey told me going around HER church with Opa was her favorite part of the trip.  :)

Our hotel we stayed at had a mini golf course.  

The kids loved it and Austin loved driving his cars on the balcony.

First outing was sight seeing in Port Dalhousie in Ontario.
Love it there!

Opa and Austin were singing together

One of my mom's favorite Aunts!  She is the best!  Love her!

Austin had no idea there was a viewing and a funeral going on upstairs in the church 

because he spent most of his time in the playroom downstairs.

Happy boy for sure!

One of the bittersweet things about a trip like this is being with family.

My mom comes from 7 kids in her family and my dad has six.

Most of my family live in Canada still.

Pictures like this with Aubrey Rose and Heather make me want us to all live in the same city.

In Heaven, I see us all living in the same house!

I. can. not. wait!

Aubrey Rose finally got her wish to play a little mini golf.

Oma is so sweet to her!

Opa and Aubrey Rose

One of Aubrey Rose's favorite people is one of my favorite cousins!

Love you Kiersten!

Austin did cut his ear open on the edge of a bookshelf at the end of the reception at the church.

Pretty sure it will be a scar for a lifetime.

We did have lots of free time catching up and playing games.

Here are my cousins.

Big Settler of Catan fans.

Yep, one cousin brought a beer pong kit.

Really?

Here are some of our youngest family members trying to get the ping pong into EMPTY red solo cups.

My Oma would never have approved IF she knew the real game.  

Good thing we adapted to our crowd. 

Oma would have loved laughing and watching us all have fun together.

Oh this night.

Ever heard of a Stag and Doe?  (I think that was the name of it)

It is a party the bride and groom throw to raise money for their wedding.

My cousin is getting married this next year.  

They had a Halloween themed Stag and Doe.

Your pay to play fun games and then you pay to get raffle tickets to win prizes.

My cousin Mark won a leaf blower.  

He was that fastest competitor to win the game above with stacking the red cups.

Fun was had by ALL!

Breakfast together on our last day.

Family pictures before we head out.

So this is everyone from my moms side of the family.

We were just missing a couple!

Pretty impressive since very few live in the same city anymore.

We got a few minutes with one of my favorite cousins from my dad's side of the family.

Yet again, I can't wait to live in Heaven together.  

I loved even the few minutes we got to spend together.

And some more favorite memories….

Aubrey Rose inspecting some Canadian money.  

She couldn't believe that there was a section you could look through.

We left that night after dinner and drove across the border to stay in Buffalo.

We all went to bed about 11pm and woke up at like 4 am to catch our flight.

Praise the Lord our kids were smiling.

The smiles actually continued all day too.

I was quite impressed.

Flying home before the sun even came up.

Pretty much the main thing these kids fought over on this trip was who got to pull the pink backpack.  This boy was VERY happy when it was his turn.

Of course, Sissy was not happy when it was his turn.

But we made it home safe and sound. 

Thank you Jesus!

We flew into San Francisco, so we meet up for a late lunch at the park to see my sister and her hubby.

Kids got some energy out before driving home.

The entire trip was so wonderful.

I miss our family though.

I really wish we all lived in the same city.

Oma.  My sweet, dear Oma.  I miss her so much.

She sure would have LOVED to see us all together.

She loved when anyone visited, called or wrote emails to her to update her.

I miss being able to send her photos to update her on the kids or Blake and I.  I loved how she always called Blake "your Beloved."  She would say, Tell your Beloved that I love him or that I say hi.  She was the best.  I miss hearing her laugh.  Even till the end, she still had her wonderful sense of humor.  She was quick to make us laugh.  She loved so dearly.  If you had ever met her, I am sure she prayed for you.  She was quite the prayer warrior.  She has left an amazing legacy.  A legacy of faith, of prayer, of commitment and love.  One thing I will never forget is how much she loved the Lord our God.  She served him and followed him ALL the days of her life.  I pray that my life my grandkids one day will say the same about me.  She lived well.