Back to Bay City

We all took a trip back to my birth place this past week. I don't go back to Bay City, MI often, in fact it's been over four years since we've last visited. But with such a big move coming up, I knew we needed to go see my family there before we left.

It seems like a lifetime ago that I used to call this little city home.

But I did, once.

And it's good to go back and revisit those memories.

My girls never cease to amaze me. Those are some truly special kids I've been blessed with. They wasted no time getting reacquainted with my dad and Gloria and making themselves at home. Marvelly was only three months old the last time we came back and Sydaleigh was only two. But upon arrival they give big ole running bear hugs and act as if they've known them for years. They do that a lot. They just have this special God given ease where they can find instant comfort and familiarity even with people they just met. I wasn't like that as a kid. Even with family. If I hadn't seen you in a while, or if you had a beard, or were old, or loud....I kept my distance. My girls....they don't keep distance. And I just love that.

We had a great time while we were in town. We mostly just hung out around my dad's, lounging and talking while the girls played and ran around.

But we also hit up the park a couple times. Bay City still has those good old school parks with the massively tall metal slides, and metal monkey bars and merry go rounds.

Just looking at this picture makes me dizzy. I don't know how kids can stomach these rides.

We did sparklers and went to Mussel Beach for ice cream.

We had a bonfire and roasted marshmallows.

We did a drive by photograph of the old house. The pear tree is still growing high on the side yard, and the circle garden is still out front. It looks the same. It's nice to see that whoever is living in it now is taking good care of it.

It rained a lot while we were in MI. One day it thunderstormed the entire day. Now, it's one thing for it to rain an entire day, but to actually have thunderstorms, for an entire day...that does not happen very often! And I am a gal that likes some thunder.

In the rainstorms wake was left some hefty sized puddles in my dads driveway. And...my girls like some puddles. I have a weird thing for thunder. They have a weird thing for puddles. Love how different and quirky God makes each of us.

Nothing makes them happy like a good puddle.

Free.

We also hit up the beach where there is an awesome wooden play ground and new sprinkler park.

Girls loved the playground. They splashed at the sprinkler park for about ten minutes....and then....their eyes fell on this beauty.....

oooh yeaaah....the mother of all puddles. It's not really even a puddle. Just a flooded area of the park from the last night's rain. But in no time they ditched the shiny new splash park for this!

My dad was mystified, "they don't want to play at the sprinkler park anymore? They'd rather splash in a puddle?" Yup. That's my girls. They're odd, but I think it's cool. They like what they like even if it's different from the main stream. The rest of the park was over splashin' it up in the sprinklers, and there's my girls....havin' a rompin good time in a big ole puddle. Makin' a commotion and hootin' and hollerin' happy as can be. I love it. And I love that they love it too.

My last day in town I got my thrifting on. D.C. has a sorry excuse for thrift stores, so I was not about to leave Bay City without hitting up a couple. My steal of the day.....a play skool doll house for $3.50....oh wait...that's what it was before she took 50% off....making it a grand total of ONE DOLLA and SEVENTY FIVE CENTS! Woot woot!! *fist pumps!!!* Do we need a doll house? Uh, no. But I was not about to leave that at the store for a dollar seventy five! You just don't say no to that kind of cheap!

My dad even scored a massive hard shelled guitar case that retails for about $150...for $5. Five dollars. I showed him the light. The thrifting light. I think he's hooked.

I had to take this picture. Not to photograph my dad's house....but to photograph the skull on his front door. So my dad. That's who he is....an all black wearin', long hair havin', skull and bones kinda guy.

We took an afternoon and had lunch with my Grandpa too. I love that man. He is fascinating. He served as a seabee for the Navy during WWII and was awarded a bronze metal while he was in the Philippians. He has 87 years of knowledge and experience stored up in him and he is a joy to talk to. I didn't get to see my Grandma though. Her mental state has been slowly declining over the past five years. Her severe dementia has been hard on the family, to put it mildly. But through it all, He's stuck by her.

I'll never forget what grandpa told me when we were standing waiting for our table at Big Boy, tears in his eyes, he took my face in his hands and said, "Your Grandma loves you. She loves her granddaughters. She loves you."

Still defending her honor.

And then as we sat at the table, again with tears in his eyes he said, "We've been married almost 66 years. Your grandma has her good days. And she has her bad days. And I'm stickin' by her till the end."

And he will.

For better or worse. And this would definitely be the worse end of the stick. But he is loyal, and committed, and resolved to extend grace. 

Ya know, I hoped to meet with my grandpa and offer him whatever encouragement I could for this strained situation they are all in having to handle my grandma's health. It can't be easy watching your loved one slowly deteriorate. But at the end of our lunch....I'm the one who walked away uplifted. Funny how we set out to try and give and offer something of ourselves, and God turns it around and we end up being the ones getting taught and offered something in return. What a beautiful example of commitment and grace God shared with me. 

It was a good trip. There were some really great parts, and then some hard parts. But it was restful and good to go back and see everyone. I'm glad we got to go up there before we move again.

(Isaak had to fly back on Monday morning leaving me to drive back solo with the girls on Wednesday. Just had to give myself a little shout out for that. :~) )