Time with Nana

Nana was the last of the visitors to grace our home. What a wonderful finale it was! 

Originally, she planned to arrive the day after the Wirthlins left.  We had the house prepped and were anxious for her arrival.  Unfortunately, due to terrible weather on the east coast her flight was cancelled and rescheduled for a few days later.  We know she was just as disappointed as we were. I believe they found out on their way to the airport.  Not fun.  

At that point, Camille needed her to stay with them first because they were going out of town the following weekend.  We also had Josh, Kendra and Noah arriving on Saturday.  We did a little musical chairs, made it work and were excited for Nana to stay with us the following Thursday.  I was a little bummed, knowing that Ethan's vaccines would be right before her visit instead of after like I originally hoped.  Unfortunately, he was already late and needed them. 

Ethan came down with a nasty stomach flu on Tuesday evening, the day of his vaccines.  We were a little stressed because Josh, Kendra and Noah were still here, but we were comforted in the fact that they didn't have too much interaction with him. Luckily, they headed out Wednesday and finished their trip here unscathed. 

By the time Nana arrived to stay with us on Thursday, the sickness spread to Mylie and she was puking her little brains out.  Ethan was pretty miserable as well, due to his shots and molars breaking through.  Only a few hours after she arrived, I had to leave for a stake music training and found out that Luke came down with it too while I was away.  I hate being away from my babies when they're sick! Luckily, it was a short training and I left early to grab some necessities from the store for my sick family. 

I walked in the door with propel, bananas, bread and anything else I could think of to take care of a sick little family. In the middle of the night, I came down with the dreaded bug and started puking as well. 

By the next morning, Mylie and Luke had stopped puking but their tummies were still on edge.  Ethan was still pretty miserable and Justin had a mild version of the bug as well.  Nana held down the fort all day Friday and didn't hesistate to get knee deep in the sickness to help everyone.  What an angel she is! I was able to sleep most the day and Justin was able to rest a little as well. 

We had all been so looking forward to our time with Nana.. and here we all were.. so so sick! Nana was so gracious and took care of all of us.

I was so stressed that Nana would catch the nasty bug too and recruited many prayers on her behalf.  By Saturday, everyone was starting to feel better and we needed to get out of the house! We decided to go to Zupas and Nana was instantly a fan. We all enjoyed the fresh air, beautiful skies and yummy food.  

Afterwards, Nana and I took a fun little trip to Home Goods.. my very first time.. and had a blast! I was hoping to find a lamp for the family room and we had success.  We enjoyed scouring the store and fell in love with so many things.  But, rest assured, we had self control and only left with a few items that weren't on our list.  I set a terrible booby trap for Nana with the lamp in the cart.. and once again, she came to the rescue.. saved the lamp and sacrificed her body to do so.  I owe you, Nana!

Sunday was full of the usual Sunday responsibilities, but Nana lovingly stayed home with Ethan so that he could get good sleep and feel better. Can I just say how nice it was to be able to sit through sacrament meeting! Wow.  

Justin and I kept looking at each other in disbelief.  It was wonderful.  

After church, we had dinner and then Matt's gang came up to say farewell.  It always fun to see Justin's family. 

We really don't get together with them near as much as we should so when people come to town, we welcome all of the family time!

Monday morning, we said our sad goodbyes and Justin whisked her away to the airport.  My least favorite part for sure! I can't even put into words how much we enjoyed our time with Nana.  

She's such a kind, gentle and loving soul. 

The circumstances definitely weren't ideal. It's hard when this time together only happens a few times a year at most and it's laden with sickness, but we made the most of it! 

We also missed Papa, who stayed in SC to take care of the temple.  We hope he knows how much we love and missed him, but are so grateful for his service and example. 

Thanks again, Nana for traveling so far and spending so much time with us! We miss you already! 

We love you dearly! See you in December!