October 2017: Nan and Grandad's Visit!

It's always exciting when Nan and Grandad come to visit, and this visit was no exception! In my mind, it was the best visit we have had together for a whole host of reasons that included decent weather, better bedroom and porch spaces in our house, and the girls being older, funnier, and more engaged in the decision-making for how we spent our days together! We miss Nan and Grandad tremendously, and I made a video of our adventures that the girls love to watch and remember, even though it has only been a few months! If you would like to watch, see below or go to https://youtu.be/n8QJDTN3nnc. 


The first week of Nan and Grandad's visit was dominated by our everyday schedule as the girls were still in school. It was nice to have some quiet time during the day where my parents could stop by for lunch or I could take one (or many) work calls! Nan jumped right in and went to school for lunch visits and also helped with swimming, piano lessons, etc. Grandad helped us at home with tidying up the front garden as well as making delicious breads for dinner. He also helped Moira with her homework and teased her as much as she tried to tease him!  




The Friday that school was out the girls, Nan and I went to the Children's Museum for the opening of their Haunted House called "The Haunted Woods." We had the run of the Children's Museum along with other "VIP guests," and the girls and Nan had a great time exploring the circus exhibit and their old favorite Playscape, going through the Haunted House with lights on, dancing to the band, and having balloon wands and hats made! Our only mistake was waiting for the Haunted Woods a second time when lights were off. They thought they could handle it. They were wrong! But we had fun anyway. 




I've noticed that we don't have many photos of me, so I included one of Alan and I on Day 1 of the Hilly Hundred. We rode 50 kilometers with Kate and Scott, and it was one of the hardest things I have ever done! The weather and the views were absolutely beautiful, though, and I'm glad we made it happen. Nan and Grandad stayed home with the girls, which by all reports was a success as well. 



We had a lovely picnic and day out at Fort Ben Harrison State Park. We managed to go on a half-hour horseback trail ride in honor of Nan's love of horses and the girls' desire to try it. It was Hannah's first time on a horse, and she did remarkably well. It was a pretty trail through one of the ravines in the park, and we all managed to survive! 



We traveled downtown one day and hit the Indiana State Museum. Both Alan and Grandad engrossed themselves in the history of Indiana while the ladies made our way through the museum a bit more quickly. The girls liked trying to build giant sculptures in front of the huge Indiana statue probably the best, and we all liked the IMAX movie Amazon Adventure that was 3D and educated us on a Victorian naturalist named Henry Walter Bates, who discovered "mimicry" in butterflies and his work indirectly supported Darwin's Origin of the Species. 




The next day we went to Holliday Park and had another lovely day out where we walked down to the White River via beautiful trails. The girls were particularly adventurous and went off on their own for a bit. And then they enjoyed the massive playground and a snack before heading over to the new Ruins that have just recently been refinished. It was stunning. The fountain was beautiful and so were the flowers. The bench the girls and Nan are sitting on was called "Nana's Bench," so they insisted on a photo. 




We also had a lovely day visiting Newfields at the IMA with both sets of grandparents. The weather was very cooperative that day, and we had a nice picnic at the Greenhouse before visiting Newfields itself and exploring the grounds of the IMA. They were just starting to set up for Winterlights, where there would be one million lights to walk around and see during the holidays. On the warm day we visited, it seemed like winter was so far away! The photo above is one of my absolute favorites as it captures Moira and Grandad's relationship on this holiday just beautifully. 






After a bit of resistance from the family, I convinced everyone to carve out a craft pumpkin that we could put out again next year and the year thereafter as well. I was impressed with the outcome! 


Our last weekend together was very busy! We celebrated Moira's birthday as a family on her actual birthday, which was very special for her. We kicked off the day with pancakes and breakfast in the morning. And then we had some quiet moments before the gathering where Moira was surprised by Uncle Gav's gift and Nan and Grandad's gift of a watch that takes photos! And then my sister's family, Grandma and Grandpa, Aunt Marilyn, and Linda and Les all came over to celebrate Moira's big day as well. As always, there was a beautiful cake made by Aunt Kate, and everyone seemed to enjoy the beautiful weather and hanging out on the porch. Moira also enjoyed the new bike that Grandma and Grandpa gave to her. One highlight for me was Hannah bringing out her microphone and singing karaoke songs for everyone as the party began to wind down! It was a fun day, and I can hardly believe that Moira is nine!  








On our last day together with Nan and Grandad, we went to the Red Bull Air Show at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. We received suite tickets through the generosity of Visit Indy, and I only wish the weather would have been a bit better. Nonetheless, we watched the planes fly through the obstacle course and enjoyed the opportunity to experience the track in a different way! 




And last but certainly not least, we celebrated Nan's birthday before she left as well. Nan is essentially like the glue of the family when we are all together. She happily goes with me to the girls' activities, shops with me at the grocery store, helps keep everything tidy and moving with our full house of people, sews Halloween costumes (!!), cooks dinners, and so much more. So, it seemed like the least we could do is to make sure to celebrate her! The girls were excited to decorate, choose small gifts and an ice cream cake, which was a first for Nan and Grandad, and importantly sing to Nan. It was the perfect way to end our holiday together. We missed them as soon as they were gone!  



These are only the highlights. There are so many more wonderful moments that we captured through the video montage as well, but I hope this gives you a taste of the lovely holiday we had together.

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