This last week, my hubby and baby accompanied me on a very treacherously long journey. It was very well worth it though. We left on Saturday and began our trip to Tennessee to visit Blake's grandparents. The entire drive was going to take us 27 hours to complete. Thankfully, we had three drivers and a half way rest stop at my parents in Nebraska, otherwise, the trip probably wouldn't have happened.
We started the car drive midday and arrived at my parents house at about 7:30 am. We went to church at Plattsmouth Ward, where I went to church since birth, and then had a filling lunch. We left there about 3:30 pm and arrived at the LeGarde's around 3:30 am. We had a quick bite and crashed, literally. It was a very hard drive and it took many days to recover. Luckily, it was very relaxing at Grandma's house, so recovery came easy.
There is such a spirit there! They fill their lives with the Holy Ghost always and everything finds itself in it's proper order. It is a breath of fresh air. Going there was the best thing that Blake and I could have decided to do. We were physically and spiritually rejuvenated and made some new commitments to improve in many areas of our lives. We found an increased desire to return to the simple things in life. The beauty and simplicity of life tends to get so mixed up in the craziness of school and stress; this semester, we intend to not let what's important get swallowed up in the very thing that we have been asked to do. We found a reevaluation of priorities, and made some decisions that will lead us within right paths.
One of the first things that we did was go to the care facility to see Blake's other grandmother, Mema. She is his dad's mother. She is ninety-one and is living in a very nice care facility. We wanted to introduce the newest member of the family to her, and Alex took to her beautifully. Blake's Uncle Paul and Aunt Kim were there, as well as his Aunt Martha. It was a great family reunion.
The days seemed to blur together. There were many late nights of talking, laughing, and learning from one another. Alex started eating out of a highchair and began to try new foods. He ate oatmeal mixed with apples and he also had peas. He has improved so much in his sitting and eating skills. It amazes me how fast they learn and grow. He turned six months while in Tennessee! Six Months! It seems like I just had him yesterday.
We went and took a tour of Hendersonville. Blake was born there and so we went and saw all the places he had memories of. The hospital when he was born, the apartment that his parent's first lived in, the places where his great grandmother Baba lived and where his grandparent's lived too. They still live there! It's crazy to think that four generations all lived in that town at one time. AND that because we came to visit, we had three of the four Rawls generations there again. It really puts family into perspective.
This trip was the best decision that we have made all year, besides moving to the Lemon's house. It really has drawn our families, ours and the LeGarde's, closer together. We have become more as one family and have helped each other fill voids that the other was missing. I think one of my favorite parts, aside from the talking and visiting, was when we looked through all of Sharon's old photo albums. We saw her in Europe, and saw pictures of Blake's mom and him as a child. It was really cool to see an inside look. I always felt like there were walls put up, keeping me out of that past life and now the walls were brought down. It was a very cool moment.
On a random note, we bought some really cool souvenirs. We found a replica poster of the Beatles first US tour concert. She loved it. I was so excited to find it! We spoil her a little too much. lol. We got Alex some books for when he is a little older and Blake and I bought a Genie's lamp for our bedroom. We have been looking for one for months now. We were so excited to find it.
I have tons of pictures, but I am still getting them off of my phone. I will post them in a few days along with our visit to the Parthenon which was one of the coolest part of the trip. Au revoir! Til then!
We started the car drive midday and arrived at my parents house at about 7:30 am. We went to church at Plattsmouth Ward, where I went to church since birth, and then had a filling lunch. We left there about 3:30 pm and arrived at the LeGarde's around 3:30 am. We had a quick bite and crashed, literally. It was a very hard drive and it took many days to recover. Luckily, it was very relaxing at Grandma's house, so recovery came easy.
There is such a spirit there! They fill their lives with the Holy Ghost always and everything finds itself in it's proper order. It is a breath of fresh air. Going there was the best thing that Blake and I could have decided to do. We were physically and spiritually rejuvenated and made some new commitments to improve in many areas of our lives. We found an increased desire to return to the simple things in life. The beauty and simplicity of life tends to get so mixed up in the craziness of school and stress; this semester, we intend to not let what's important get swallowed up in the very thing that we have been asked to do. We found a reevaluation of priorities, and made some decisions that will lead us within right paths.
One of the first things that we did was go to the care facility to see Blake's other grandmother, Mema. She is his dad's mother. She is ninety-one and is living in a very nice care facility. We wanted to introduce the newest member of the family to her, and Alex took to her beautifully. Blake's Uncle Paul and Aunt Kim were there, as well as his Aunt Martha. It was a great family reunion.
The days seemed to blur together. There were many late nights of talking, laughing, and learning from one another. Alex started eating out of a highchair and began to try new foods. He ate oatmeal mixed with apples and he also had peas. He has improved so much in his sitting and eating skills. It amazes me how fast they learn and grow. He turned six months while in Tennessee! Six Months! It seems like I just had him yesterday.
We went and took a tour of Hendersonville. Blake was born there and so we went and saw all the places he had memories of. The hospital when he was born, the apartment that his parent's first lived in, the places where his great grandmother Baba lived and where his grandparent's lived too. They still live there! It's crazy to think that four generations all lived in that town at one time. AND that because we came to visit, we had three of the four Rawls generations there again. It really puts family into perspective.
This trip was the best decision that we have made all year, besides moving to the Lemon's house. It really has drawn our families, ours and the LeGarde's, closer together. We have become more as one family and have helped each other fill voids that the other was missing. I think one of my favorite parts, aside from the talking and visiting, was when we looked through all of Sharon's old photo albums. We saw her in Europe, and saw pictures of Blake's mom and him as a child. It was really cool to see an inside look. I always felt like there were walls put up, keeping me out of that past life and now the walls were brought down. It was a very cool moment.
On a random note, we bought some really cool souvenirs. We found a replica poster of the Beatles first US tour concert. She loved it. I was so excited to find it! We spoil her a little too much. lol. We got Alex some books for when he is a little older and Blake and I bought a Genie's lamp for our bedroom. We have been looking for one for months now. We were so excited to find it.
I have tons of pictures, but I am still getting them off of my phone. I will post them in a few days along with our visit to the Parthenon which was one of the coolest part of the trip. Au revoir! Til then!
Wow, what a great trip! I just love things that make me feel like I'm a better person for having done them, and it sounds like your trip was definitely one of those(0: Way to be, Rawls Clan(0:
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