Thursday, December 15, 2011

Visit From Grandpa

December 9-11, 2011

I was teaching in Columbia, Maryland for a week.  The week following, I was to teach in Archbald, Pennsylvania.  This presented a rare opportunity for me to go see Andrea and her kids in Stafford, Virginia - about 80 miles from the Maryland site and about 250 miles from the Pennsylvania site.  It meant sacrificing going home over the weekend, but Mar and I decided that would be okay just for this chance.

After work on Friday, I drove through construction around Washington, D.C. and finally got to Andrea's house.  Thank heavens for GPS.  She lives in a little out of the way development  - even in the out of the way corner of that out of the way development - and if I was trying to follow a map, or even directions, I would still be lost.  It is a log way from everything which is a challenge for Andrea and her family, but it is truly beautiful.

It was a fun weekend.  We had a ward Christmas breakfast on Saturday.  We went shopping.  The boys had two parties.  The kiddos just kept me having fun.  I enjoyed myself very much.  Spencer gave up his bedroom for Grandpa so I was well cared for.  Unfortunately, Ben was gone on a "road show" for the Marines.

After enjoying them all, I left and traveled up to Pennsylvania.  I took a suitcase full of gifts and treats to deliver back in Colorado.  I missed home, but I loved being with the kids.

Here are some pictures of their house and home (with not so candid shots of the kiddos.)



The cute little house in the woods - Andrea says in the summer it is really so thick in the woods that you can not see the houses next door.

A couple of nights before I got there they had a big storm which blew over this tree - it is stuck on another tree and if that one falls it will hit the house - anybody got a chain saw.

Living Room

Master bedroom

Spencers "Pirate" bedsroom

Emma's room

Jasen's abode

Michael's abode
The boys share a large room and each half is "decorated" to their taste

Family room - downstairs

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