The saddest day of the year

You may be wondering why I'm so sad with this beautiful trio to delight and amaze me on a regular basis.  Today is Wednesday, and 3 days ago these sweet angels left with their parents for the annual 3-month stint at Kanakuk Kamps near Branson, Missouri. It's a wonderful experience for the kids, and Jenni and Dave absolutely love working there.  Kanakuk summers are the reason Dave gave up a career in aerospace engineering to become an AP physics teacher.  That move was engineering's loss and education's gain.  He's a wonderful teacher.  There is a multitude of good reasons for their commitment to Kanakuk, and they look so forward to their time there every year.  But with every passing summer and each new addition to their family, it gets harder and harder for those of us they leave behind.

I know, I sound like a whiney puss.  So many of my friends' kids live across the country from them, and I am so blessed to have mine close by.  Still, it's a jolt to suddenly go from easy access to the kids whenever I want, to Skyping with them once a week.  I always pray they'll remember us when they come back at the end of summer.  Zoey will, and maybe Ruby.  We'll have to get reacquainted with little Maggie, though.  A lot of changes take place when one is growing from 4 months to 7 months of age.

An unexpected turn of events caused the family's normal 7-hour trip to turn into a 27-hour nightmare.  As they approached the last leg of their drive, the giant storm that caused all the destruction and death in Joplin, MO engulfed them in northwest Arkansas.  It was so bad they eventually had to find a hotel for the night because it was getting dark and the weather was making driving hazardous.  It's a good thing they took shelter, because there were tornado warnings for the entire area.  The next morning, after a relatively good night's sleep, they were able to continue on to Kanakuk, and while the weather was still pretty bad, driving in daylight wasn't quite so treacherous.  Needless to say, I was more than relieved to hear they had made it to their destination.

The following are some recent memory-making photos and videos of the girls to help Grammy get through the summer.  Enjoy!!

                                           Zoey

Ruby

 

                                                  Maggie

                                   Decorating cookies with Grammy

                                          Chatterbox Maggie                            

                                      A tender moment between sisters