Yesterday my in-laws and I took KC to eat lunch at the oceanfront after picking him up from preschool. The restaurant we chose had just reopened the outdoor seating area after being closed for the winter. (Another delightful sign of Spring!) The sun was high overhead, its warm rays dappling our tabletop as we watched ships slide along the horizon and wondered where they were going and who was back home missing the sailors on board. People were all over the boardwalk, jogging, biking and snapping vacation photographs with the blue sea as a glittering backdrop. As we munched on seafood and pasta lunches several seagulls converged overhead and I tried to capture them in the midst of their own sea food lunch.
Like those departing ships at sea, my husband's parents also left today. Seeing them twice a year is not nearly enough but one beautiful part of their visits is the sheer intensity of fun we can pack into one week. No matter what my children ask, their loving grandparents unfailingly answer yes. As in "Grampa, do you want to go outside and shoot hoops with me?" or "Grama, do you want to play Hearts with me?"
As I busied myself in the kitchen I thought of how beautiful it is to be able to expose my children to the unconditional love of their grandparents. While I must often respond to requests to play cards with a gentle, "Not right now, I am busy", their grandparents are here to indulge and bless my boys with their full attention. We miss them terribly already and look forward to our road trip to spend an extended amount of time at their house over the summer. More time for basketball, cards and basking in the sunlight of their smiles.
Once or twice a year visit with grandparents is all my son had...but I, too, was grateful for that time.
ReplyDeleteLovely photos...what beach is that?