A Sad Event, but a Happy Trip

After 96 wonderful years, my grandmother passed away.  She will be greatly missed, but we are fortunate to have shared her life for so many years.  Clara and I made the trip to Michigan last week to celebrate her life with family.  We flew from Boston to Flint on Saturday.  Clara loved playing at the kids play area at Logan airport while we waited for our flight. 

Grandma and Grandpa picked us up in Flint when we got there.  Clara was happy to stretch her legs!

We were excited to join Clara's cousin, Ella, at her third birthday party on Sunday.  Ella didn't know we were coming.  We arrived at her house after she went to bed on Saturday night.  Ella woke up on Sunday and came downstairs expecting to find only Grandma and Grandpa.  She was surprised to see Clara and me as well.  She smiled and said "It's Clara!"  Then she walked over to Grandpa and said, "Clara's here."  She had a dinosaur-themed birthday party.  Ella and her cousins shared the sand box and cake with Clara.

We spent Monday and Tuesday between Port Huron and Richmond.  The visitation was on Monday.  Clara spread a bit of joy at the sad event by laughing with her baby in the hallway.  After the visitation, the whole family shared stories, snacks, and drinks in our hotel room.  It was great to have the family together.  After the funeral on Tuesday, we spent some time at Aunt Chris' house on Lake Huron.  It was a bit chilly, so we didn't get our suits on, but Clara certainly enjoyed getting dirty in the water and the sand.  She gathered rocks by the handful from the lake to make rock stew in her bucket.

On Wednesday, we traveled to Gaylord to spend the rest of the week at Grandma and Grandpa's house.  On the way, we did some crossword puzzles to pass the time, and we stopped for a picnic lunch at a roadside park.  Clara liked the merry-go-round and the slides.  She thought it was pretty neat to have Grandma swing too.

  

When we arrived at Grandma and Grandpa's house, Clara spent lots of time playing with all the babies that live there.  We went to the park, helped Grandma make apple pie, and enjoyed the best pizza in Northern Michigan at Vivio's in Indian River.

We had a good week, but we were both happy to see Daddy when he picked us up from the airport on Sunday.  Sunday afternoon we went apple picking at the local orchard.  Yummy!