Summer Trip 2013- Cleveland

We started our long trip by heading to Cleveland! We planned this as a half-way "break" in driving out to New Jersey, and a much needed visit with family.  It worked out more than perfectly!  We had the opportunity to attend Matt's family's Going Away Dinner for Uncle Ian's family.  Though we are sad they are headed all the way to Texas, we are so happy that they have such a great opportunity!

As always, I imagined Parker taking his bucket and filling it with all the love and support surrounding him there! 

Some of our most special moments from the Cleveland trip were Parker's snuggles with three of his great-grandparents -Grandma and Grandpa Manoni, and Grandpa Glass.   We consider each visit we get with them to be such a privilege.  P showered them with smiles and dreamy, blue-eyed stares.

We also loved spending time with Matt's parents, Grandma and Grandpa Preis! We spent some time going through the Preis family tree, and some amazing information and artifacts from Ancestry.com- one of my favorite things to do!  Parker had the chance to show off some of his newer skills, and we all just got to BE together...which doesn't happen nearly as often as anyone would like!  I also got the chance to sit outside under the beautiful trellis and talk with my 2nd "mom!"  She is such a genuinely kind person that adores Parker.  Those are minutes that I will honestly treasure.

At dinner last night, Matt and I, after a week apart, got to sit and talk and relax, and ended up on the topic of our families.  Our resounding theme was how lucky we are!  Both of us can say that we have in-laws that care about us, and so many people that truly want the best for our little family.  More and more, I realize what a rarity that can be.


We left Cleveland feeling gratitude for getting to pack in so much visiting in a short weekend!  Off to New Jersey...