Justin and I did another race together. This was our third one together and by far my favorite.

I’m not sure what specifically made it so great, but I can say that the weather was perfect (not too hot), it was in the evening (I prefer evening runs), and it was challenging (a 4 miler instead of our usual 5k’s). To top it off, I came in under 40 minutes (and Justin came in around 33 minutes). I was pleasantly surprised by my time and happy to spend another “date” running a race with my hubs.

Sophie participated in a living Wax Museum at school. I was quite impressed that this was something she was excited about and wanted to participate in. Normally, she is not interested in things that draw too much attention to herself.

For the living wax museum, the students pick a well known person from history. Then they dress as them and stand still until a pretend button is pushed, signaling for them to tell their life story. Sophie chose to be Sacajawea. She did all the research on her own and wrote the one-page biography she would read during the event.

We lucked out and found a friend willing to loan us their American Indian costume (that also fit Sophie). Paired with Sophie’s braids, it was perfect! She did a great job!

We tried and tried to find a weekend for our girls’ trip to Chicago to visit my sister, Samantha. Nothing seemed to work for us all, but when Sam found a fundraising 5K for Pancreatic Cancer, we decided it was the perfect opportunity to get together!

Sam lives just a block away from Wrigley Field. I’m not a Cubs fan, but just being there compelled me to buy a Cubs t-shirt. I now wear it proudly!

Aww, mom and daughter are so cute!

We visited some great food places while in town. My two favorites were Salt and Pepper near Sam’s house and Bandera’s in downtown.

We also visited “The Bean” and took some fun pictures.

After we were tired of walking, we decided on an architectural boat tour. It was relaxing, informative, and interesting.

Finally on Saturday morning we did our 5K. Samantha’s roommates joined us too. It was fun to walk together for a good cause and share fond memories of dad. We named our team “Captain Underpants” in remembrance of him. I’ll have to share the story behind that another time.

It was such a fun trip and perhaps a tradition we’ll uphold each year.

Archer really loves being around people and never misses a chance to be with his friends.

We’re lucky to have some great neighbors to play with. He’ll be sad when they go to kindergarten next year!

They wanted to go for a walk together in the rain.

He also has some great friends from church. Besides preschool with them, we try to get together to explore different points of interest in the area.

Walker Nature Center

Hidden Oaks Nature Center

Frying Pan Farm (Sophie was home sick this day and got to join us. 🙂

Green Spring Gardens

Hanging out in a hammock after preschool.

I joined a great group of ladies in a 5K Warrior Dash. We were muddy messes by the end, but that’s kind of the point. It was loads of fun!

This year we stayed close to home for Spring Break, but I tried to plan something fun for us to do each day.

On Monday, we took a quick downtown visit to see the Cherry Blossoms before the kids were off to hang out with friends in the afternoon.

In the middle of the week we went to Chuck E. Cheese to play games and then went to the pet store to look at dogs (my kids love this, as you can see from the pictures).

By the end of the week Grandma Sue and Grandpa Bob came to visit. We decided to explore the National Harbor together.

Over the weekend we celebrated Easter with coloring eggs, getting baskets, and dupfing.
(I’m not sure if I spelled that right. I did a google search and couldn’t find it. It’s a Swiss tradition from my Grandma and Grandpa.)

We had a fun week!

My Aunts and Uncles planned a lovely service to honor Grandpa. Even under the circumstances, it was wonderful to see all my relatives. I don’t think all us cousins have been in the same room since Grandpa’s 90th Bday.

Then:

Grandpa’s 90th Birthday Party, May 2006. Back Row: Jay, Scott, Dave, Greg, Keith; Front Row: Dee (with Truman), Deb (with Graham), Matt, Grandpa, Amy, Beth

Now:

Back Row: Jay, Scott, Keith, Greg, Dave; Front Row: Beth, Amy, Dee, Deb

And here’s the entire group of Carl and Dorothy descendents (plus in-laws).

My first memories of  Grandpa Carl are checking under his recliner for loose change when we would come visit. When he would recline in the chair the change in his pocket would fall out and collect in the chair. I’m pretty sure that if he ever knew we were coming, he would add a little extra under the chair for us to find.

Circa 1978, Deanne and Amy with Grandpa in his recliner.

Grandpa’s house never changed. It was frozen in time. The same carpet, the same pictures on the walls, the same furniture, all the same for decades. There was almost something comforting about the never-changing quality of grandpa and his surroundings.

In May 25, 1916, Grandpa was born in Thompson, Ohio. He lived on a farm with his parents (George and Elise N.) and siblings. In December 1943, he married Dorothy L. in Ashland, Wisconsin. They lived there together for nearly 20 years before relocating to the Toledo, Ohio area. Together they had 3 children – John, Tom, and Dottie.

Carl N. and Dorothy L.

Dorothy and Carl N. Circa 1975.

Dorothy, Dot, John, Carl, and Tom, 1956.

In his retired years, he was a feisty old man. He usually wore a gruff exterior, but always has a special place in his heart for his grandchildren. While I saw him act differently with others, he was nothing but kind and generous with me (although occasionally a bit ornery).  He would usually let a jabbing remark leave his mouth, just to give me a sideways look and secret grin.

1995, Grandpa’s 79th Birthday.

Circa 1975. Grandpa sitting poolside with his grandkids.

My Grandpa stayed active when he could. For many years he drove to Florida for the winter months. He loved to fish, boat, garden, golf, and play poker. I’m not sure which came first, his love of boats or his career. He was employed by Oglebay Norton as a captain of Great Lakes freighters and retired in 1977. Later in life, when his arthritis dictated his activities, he enjoyed playing with investments in the stock market and buying things on T.V. auctions (mostly for his grandchildren). He lived on his own at his house until he was 95. He enjoyed cooking and always had some food to share when I would come visit. I remember on one occasion him sharing some homemade chicken noodle soup with me. I found a few bones as I ate it and pointed out to him to be careful not to choke. His response was gruff, “Bones?! What? Naw.” but with a crooked mischievous grin.

Captain Carl

Grandkids, Keith and Dave after a fishing trip with Grandpa. Circa 1980.

Amy, Jay, and Scott visiting Grandpa in Florida.

Grandpa’s advice to me (and I think his other grand-daughters) was always, “Don’t work too hard” and “Don’t do today, what you can put off until tomorrow”, basically enjoy life.  However he didn’t seem to have the same mentality with his own children or even his grandsons. To him, my cousin Amy and I were his “Muckle Chuckles” and “Partners in Crime”.  I never saw him be more unguarded or gentle than when his great-grandbabies were around. He truly enjoyed seeing them.

Many times Grandpa would take us out to eat when we would visit. His favorite place – Bob Evans for breakfast.

Grandpa taking us out to breakfast at Bob Evans in 2010. Dee, Grandpa, Amy, and Deb with baby Archer.

Grandpa passed away on March 29, 2014. He had been living in an assisted living home for almost 2 years after his leg was partial amputated. It was a hard transition for him to go from living on his own and doing the things he wanted and enjoyed to having to be cared for and ask help for everything. He was a stubborn man and never quite acclimated to his new living situation. His children helped the best they could. Now more than ever, he seemed to look forward to frequent visits and communication from his grandchildren.

Dee and kids visiting Grandpa at the assisted living center in 2013.

He will be missed.

Summer 2009, Dee and Grandpa.

We had many fun-filled days when Grandma Kathy and Aunt Sam came to visit. It got even more exciting a few days later when my brother and his family joined us. We found lots of things to keep us busy.

I like to see new sites in DC when we have visitors. The National Portrait Gallery seemed like the perfect place to check out with Samantha, who loves art. The food truck just outside of the Gallery was a fun and new experience as well!

The National Geographic Museum was a fun visit the next day. However, it’s not necessarily a museum we would visit again in the future because of the entrance fee and relatively small exhibit area. Lunch and Georgetown Cupcake afterwards was a nice end to our little outing!

Sunday was a quiet day spent at home waiting for cousins to arrive. The kids loved hanging out together and had fun playing Xbox, Just Dance, and watching the Spartans play basketball!

Much to their protest, I had to send Sophie and Truman to school some of the days family was visiting. Archer didn’t mind them not being there and loved his “alone” time with cousins and Grandma while we were at Arlington Cemetery.

The highlight of their visit (for me) was being able to tour the White House (a first for me and Justin).  Archer missed out this time. We opted to leave Archer at a friend’s house because of the long day in DC. We all enjoyed eating lunch at The Hamilton afterwards.

After the White House we stayed downtown and visited the Natural History Museum as well. We were lucky to see the dinosaurs, since they will begin renovations in May and not reopen for 5 years! Truman was brave and held a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach.

We ended our busy day hanging out at the hotel swimming pool.

On their last day  in town, Dave and I took the kids to laser tag for some fun. Then we headed to the Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum near the Dulles Airport.

It was tons of fun to have everyone here visiting. We hope they come back again soon!

Lesson of the Day: Be more suspicious when the house is quiet.