After a few great days at Jack and Kathy's, we ran around the Wisconsin area to visit the other friends and family members! Paul and I drove up to Green Bay and were able to visit my Grandma Marsh and stop and chat for a bit. It was nice to have Paul with me - usually I take trips home by myself since it is so hard to coordinate our schedules. We were definitely a family doing the rounds that day. Grandma had found some pictures of me and Curty when we were little. She had dad's senior photos and then some pictures of us all on vacation and up the by the lake. I love looking through old photos.

From Grandma's house, we stopped to see Lyssa and Shane to see how they were doing! Lyssa surprised Drew with some Xmas goodies that we can all enjoy - a basketball hoop. It's good to start them young!

While we were in the neighborhood, we stopped to see Grandpa VB as well! He was in the middle of replacing carpets in his house, but we didn't mind! It was so nice to visit. I took the opportunity to show Paul all of the family photos that he has on his wall. The VB family is a large one, and it is an academic exercise to remember them all!

From Oneida, we went back to my parent's place to get Drew a nap before we met up with his cousin for playtime that evening. Matt was on the grill, so it was bound to be a great dinner! It is always a nice treat to meet up with Drew's cousin while I'm in town. I hope they continue to see each other on a regular basis and grow together. Drew and Ollie are so similar in their temperament, so I have a feeling they will grow up to be close friends. Here's to keeping family traditions alive and well! I was reading a book, and they suggested that tradition is what keeps families linked from generation to generation - I have to agree, and I hope we can maintain these special traditions for years to come.

Unfortunately our visit went by too quickly. Some how Paul managed to pack everything into our SUV before we hit the highway back to Cleveland. There was not a inch to spare in closing the back hatch. Dale was sitting on 3 feet of gifts and luggage, covered by a blanket. Dale and Drew were traveling troopers and relaxed most of the way home. I am so fortunate to have a husband and son who go with the flow of life - they make life all the more wonderful.

New year goodbyes!

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