Minnesota Trip

So this last weekend was the big party for Eric's grandmother in Minnesota. She turned 80 so all of the family went up there for the weekend. We left here Thursday afternoon and drove to Dallas then caught a plane up to Minnesota. We got in pretty late, said hi to the fam, and then headed to bed. The weather up there was WONDERFUL! It was so nice to get away from the 100 plus heat here. It was funny, on Saturday they were going to have a high of 90 and the weather station up there was like giving out heat advisory alerts... it made us laugh. Anyways, we got there Thursday night, the party was on Saturday and we left Sunday. Over all it was a good trip. I got to know the cousins better. I had met them twice before but as the "girlfriend" not as the "wife." So it was fun. One of Eric's cousin's is a little 9 year old girl. She was so cute. Following us around asking how she could help and wanting to be a big girl. I remember being like that... wanting so bad to be like the grown up girls. Man, when did I become that grown up girl? The other cousins are all boys, 18, 16, and maybe 14 years old. I am so proud of my husband. He made it a mission to make sure those boys had fun, and that they were entertained. (granted I think he had fun doing it!) He played smash brothers with them, he talked to them about things that THEY liked. Lets face it, it had to be hard for them to spend that long at their grandparents. I'm just glad that Eric doesn't feel like he is "too old" to be the cool, fun cousin. I know that he remembers some of his older cousins playing with him when he was little. I'm just proud and in love with my Eric! Other than that, Friday we set up for the party, and Saturday was the party. The turn out Saturday amazed me! It seemed like everyone over the age of 65 in the town of Fairmont came! We probably had 175 people, and let me tell ya, it was a little room and the air wasn't working properly. It was fun though! I'm so proud of my mamma in law! She planned it all, and was so calm and patient with everything! I know that while grandma didn't really say Thank You she felt special and loved. Good Job Mamma!! After the party, Eric and I got to sneak away back to the hotel for a bit. We both drove grandpa's old standard truck. So much fun! I miss driving standard. We also got to just relax without a million people around for a good half hour. It was nice! We went back, ate dinner and then went bowling with the cousins. It was a blast. It took me awhile to get going but in the end it was fun and I laughed a lot at the boys and their competitive ways. We went back to the Grandparent's house, said goodbye and headed to the hotel to sleep before leaving early Sunday morning. All in all, it was a good trip, but I have to admit, I'm glad it's done. It's always so good to come home! I was worried the whole trip about leaving our car. We took the new one and left her under covered parking, but I was still worried. Everything turned out fine, and it was even nice to come home to a clean house! I'm thankful that the Lord kept our family safe as we all traveled. Here is a little pic of the family before the big birthday party. Sorry it's a little blurry, the 9 year old took it.



Now that the trip is over it's time to focus on school. This is my last week of summer. But I've to to get my room ready. Today and tomorrow I will be spending most of my time at school. They told us last week that they were going to be closing the school the rest of this week to wax the floors. We were upset to say the least! Then next week we start in-service so that means I've really just got two days to finish it. Then I'm going to try and enjoy those last three days the best I can! Wenesday I'm going to have a girly day with one of my favorite girlies... my sweetie roommate! Then one of the other days I'm going to have a post-Minnesota-trip date with my mother-in-law. We're going to have lunch and margatias then go see Julie and Julia. (so excited about that movie!) I also need to sand and paint a few pieces of furniture for the classroom. So this week should be pretty busy. I'm excited and nervous about the new year, but I'm ready for summer to be over.

Sorry this post was so long. Hope all you fellow teachers out there at enjoying the last little bit of summer. :)