Dick took a vacation day on Friday, so on Thursday evening we drove down to Sam's and spent the night. Unfortunately Bianca had the stomach bug and was soon sleeping for the night. Sammy, however, was in all his energetic glory. He's not ready for Christmas to be over, so he had wrapped things around the house in blankets and was giving them out as Christmas gifts! Here's Sam acting completely surprised by this Buffalo Bills pillow!
I was the lucky recipient of this stuffed animal - I think it's a wolf, but it certainly doesn't look very scary!
Sammy opened a gift and "found" this book!
On Friday morning Dick and I went to my stepbrother Carl's house (about 20 minutes from Sam's house) to visit Grandma Mary. She's experiencing some health issues and was staying at their place last week. We had a sweet time catching up with her and getting acquainted with Carl and Mae's 3-year-old granddaughter who was there.
On Friday afternoon we went to Manheim, our home town, and waited excitedly at A&M Pizza. Waiting for what? For Maggie and her family! Maggie was our precious foster daughter when she was five and six years old and then again when she was sixteen through eighteen. About two years ago we reconnected through Facebook. She and her family were stationed in Hawaii, recently moved to Fort Bragg in NC, and were visiting her family in Reading, PA this holiday season. We could not miss this chance to see her and meet her beautiful family. We had SO MUCH FUN together!
Some of you may remember the story I told about Maggie's teddy bear. We gave it to her for her 6th birthday, and she took it with her when she moved to Puerto Rico with her dad. When she came back to us at age 16 she still had it, and said that it had been precious to her all those years because it was her connection to our family. However, when she moved away as a young adult she left some things behind, including the teddy bear. I have kept it all these years! I wrapped it as a Christmas gift and gave it to her on Friday. What fun!!
Later I made this sweet collage.
One of the things Maggie wanted to do was show her family the country home where she lived with us, just a couple of miles from A&M Pizza. So I messaged our friend Melissa who bought the house from us in 2005 and told her that she might see some people walking around their house. She said that no one was home, but if we could find an unlocked door we were welcome to go inside. Hahahahaha!! That probably sounds so crazy, but we have a history of practically living together in that house while we were in the process of transferring ownership. We got quite comfortable with each other. But that's another story!
We did go inside, but I didn't take pictures. Then it was time for last pictures and goodbyes. )-:
Maggie and I with her four daughters.
And their adorable family once again. I truly hope we will see them again before these children are all grown up! It was such a fun afternoon together.
We spent the evening at Sam and Jenn's. I made our favorite meal of tomato soup and grilled cheese for dinner. Then Sammy helped me to make peanut butter rice krispie treats.
By Saturday morning Bianca was all better and back to her funny, free spirited self. But alas, it was Sammy's turn for the stomach bug. Yikes! I had been sharing my water bottle with him the evening before! Poor guy was content to just lie there with that green bucket nearby, sucking occasionally on a Pedia-pop.
I made chocolate chip pancakes and sausage for the rest of us. There's Bianca with her signature smirk!
Needing her pacifier and knowing how to use a drill, hahaha!! She's 2 going on 22!
We left around noon and stopped in at Grandma Mary's house before heading home. My sister Mary Ellen was staying there with her for the weekend, and my stepbrother Lester and his wife Erma stopped in while we were there. Any time there are some Zimwits together is a good time!
We got home before dark and could have gone to downtown State College for the First Night celebrations, but we were absolutely exhausted. We opted for staying home, watching the movie One Special Night featuring Julie Andrews and Robert Woodward. We napped off and on till midnight when we watched the ball drop in NYC. Sunday morning and our 8:15 am service at Fillmore came way too soon!
I have more to post about Sunday and Monday. Next post.
2 comments:
Another wonderful weekend! Sammy always cracks me up! I'm so glad you got to catch up with Maggie. The pictures of her with the Teddy are precious. I love that Zimwit relationship. Praying that Grandma Mary is soon feeling better.
Your beautiful family never ceases to make me smile and be amazed at the blessings granted to you all. Thanks for sharing the love & fun! The teddy bear sequence brought tears to my eyes. Those little ones are so adorable!
Post a Comment