Saying Goodbye

The girls had Fall Break this past week, so we took the opportunity to head North to my Grandparent's house. For the past several years we have been up at least twice during the summer. This time it had been a full year since we'd been and it was not a happy anniversary. It's been a year now since my Grandpa passed away. This trip was my last chance to say goodbye to the town and house that I spent summers growing up in.

Our first day on the road proved quite eventful when Sarah started throwing up just hours into the trip. I was sad to have to cancel our visit with friends for the weekend, but thought a detour to my parent's house with some recovery time for Sarah might prove wiser. With everyone (relatively) well on Monday we headed North. Michigan greeted us with gorgeous color and beautiful skies. And yes, I do drive with my camera in my lap....please don't tell on me.

My girls slept in the same hide-a-bed that my sister and I grew up sleeping in. It's in my Grandparent's den and I loved how cozy we were in there. When we were up for Thanksgiving, we got to watch the Macy's parade in bed - such a poignant memory for me. It's also where we slept on Christmas Eve, giddy with anticipation at what we'd find in the living room, come morning.

My Grandpa loved three things above all else: God, Family and Wood. My Grandma has been known to say that the only thing he ever showed patience with was a block of wood. He taught me how to use his jigsaw, band saw, belt sander, drill press and many other things. I thought nothing of being a young girl in his basement going to town on pieces of wood. I loved it and he loved it.

He truly amassed an amazing collection of tools, hardware and "materials" (for lack of a better term for all the random boxes of things we found). The above shot should give you some idea of what I'm talking about. Sadly, part of the mission of this trip was to pack up the house. What stays in the family has been taken and what's left will be up for auction in the spring.

I'm thankful that I got to make one last trip back while this place still belongs to my Grandparent's. Grandma is now living near my parent's in Indiana and we will have to return once more to bid her goodbye, but the house will no longer be ours to return to and there will no longer be a reason to visit this small town that has been a part of my family's life for generations.

It seemed fitting and also a blessing that we were given gorgeous weather and beautiful sunsets while we were there. Closure looks so much nicer in the glow of a sunset on the lake.