It is both comforting and heartbreaking to go up to Dad's niche with Nora and Billy. It's nice to have a place where we can "visit" Dad, but it also makes me more aware than ever of how unfair it is that Nora and Dad never got to meet each other. Each of them would have loved the other one so much. While we were there Nora ran around, picked flowers, and pooped her diaper. I laughed to myself when I realized that choosing this moment to poop was kind of the perfect tribute-- it was like her way of letting Dad know that her colon is in perfect working order. : ) I asked her to say "Bye Bye, Grandpa," which she did, and then I said "I love you," and she said "I love you, Grandpa." It is so hard.
We also had a chance to meet up with a bunch of my high school friends, their kids, and their husbands. I try to organize some sort of get-together each year, so while I've seen most of these friends in the past year or two, I haven't seen several of them since our college years! Everyone's kids were so much fun to watch, and Nora loved playing with the big kids. This was the first time she could really play with Krista's girls, Clara and Evie, and I loved watching them run around together. Later in the week, another of my childhood friends, Katie, stopped by with her daughter, Delia, who Nora and I were excited to meet for the first time!
Although we were only in Portland for a couple of days, we got to spend plenty of time hanging out at Oma's house, too. Nora always remembers exactly who Oma is and takes no time at all to warm up to her. Mom must know the secret to getting on Nora's level and interacting with her on her terms. We took a trip to the Portland Zoo, and Nora enjoyed the whole experience, but her favorite part might have been the snow cone Mom shared with her. She kept saying "nother bite Oma?" over and over until it was gone!
Nate and Everett made the drive from Bend to join us, which meant we were able to spend two extra days with them. Vickie came back through town before flying back to Maryland, and Billy camped out at the hotel with Nora so I could spend an evening with Mom, Nate, and Vickie. There were a lot of fun things we did on this trip, but having a chance to relax with my family is what made it really special.
Nate and Everett also joined us for a lunch date with the Shiras, which gave us a chance to see Nora, Everett, Connor, and Caleb all interacting with each other. The boys are getting so big, I can hardly believe it! But they are so great with Nora that I was not surprised to see them look after Everett, too. I know my Dad would have given anything to see them all together, so I tried to savor the moment instead of feeling sad that he wasn't there.
And although my Mimi and Papa never lived in Portland, our visits there make me think of them, too. We like to stay in the hotel just across the river from West Linn because it is convenient, affordable, and right on the Willamette River. It's next door to the motorhome campground my grandparents stayed in when they were visiting Dad, so when we took Nora down to the water to look at ducks and throw rocks, I was imagining how much Papa would have loved to show her around the camping area.
That wraps up the photos I have to share from our trip as well as the details I thought people might be interested to know. I definitely think this set a record for the number of people we were able to see on a trip home, as well as the number of events we were able to attend. It's no wonder Nora slept the whole way home and has slept in each day since we returned!
Now we are ready to get back to school!
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