My parents came to visit in December. It was for a tennis tournament for my Dad. And also, I like to believe, to see us:) I love how much Lucy loves these two. And how they zone in on her when they visit.

Oh I was so wanting to just sit in front of the fire and talk deep with them, but boy howdy they happened to come during what may have been the three most crazy days of December. It was that window of time when Christmas cards sat in various stages of readiness being stuffed and stamped all over the kitchen, I was in “on duty” for my salad group, I was in charge of our Relief Society Christmas gathering and I was driving for the deliveries for Brain Food all in one day.

All the while Lucy was working so hard on final projects and final grades while trying to round up what she needed to finally finish her Boston University application, her angst and stress tangibly filling up the kitchen. (Although dissipated for sure by my calming parents presence.)

Relief Society Dinner Prep

We got some of the set-up done the night before for our Relief Society dinner.

So much to coordinate on that I felt like I was putting on a wedding reception but hoping to make it so filling spiritually.

Turkey Trot Wrap-Up

It was the big night of the Turkey Trot wrap-up for 2024 as well, so our house was filled with the “dream team” who put it all together.

Christmas Card stuffing

…and my parents sitting there stamping and stuffing batch after batch of our Christmas cards.

Thank you Mom & Dad!!

Salad Group Assembly & Delivery

While my dad played tennis the next morning, my Mom helped me throw together fifteen salads early in the morning and deliver them…

(I had prepped all the stuff in the midst of the Turkey Trot meeting and card stuffing the night before…)

(They were pretty yummy salads I have to say:)

BrainFood Volunteering

Then we dashed off to volunteer at BrainFood packing and delivering all those bins:

Then more card-stuffing:

…and more RS dinner set-up.

Keep in mind this is all with my mom faithfully hobbling around at my side since she had just had a minor knee surgery.

She is a superhero. And then to have her share her thoughts with everyone that night? She is a pure angel from heaven I tell you. (I talked about how much I loved this back in the post outlining this evening.)

Tennis

And THEN when I could finally breathe a bit, we finally got to the tennis.

Did you know my Dad is number nine in the NATION for tennis (in the 80’s category, but still, yow, right?)

I loved hanging out on the sidelines with my mom watching he and his doubles partner whack that ball. And get that thing back and forth in the craziest angles. These guys are incredible tennis players.

Sadly I missed the singles matches but my dad lost in the finals. And made it to the finals in doubles too but his partner wasn’t feeling so well so they had to forfeit.

No worries though, more time to help Lucy with her creative writing assignment.

Dave’s paretns happened to drop by right when my parents were here.

How did Lucy (and all our kids) get so lucky to get not one pair of incredible grandparents, but TWO.

Seriously, we are all the luckiest in that category to have these people to set such incredible examples for us all.

Our last night we got to sneak away to a little corner of our favorite Italian restaurant and bask in the deep conversations we had been longing for.

(Josh was there too, but got cut off in the BeReal, dang it!)

Thanks for visiting, Mom and Dad, and helping us pull off those crazy days.

Love you forever.

And ever.

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12 Comments

  1. We recently watched the Netflix mini series “a man on the inside” which touched on aging (fantastic show btw!) and they listed loneliness as the number one risk factor for seniors. It would have been very easy to look at everything piled high on your plate that week and think, “there’s no way we have time to visit!” but looking at the way your parents jumped in and lifted your burden, you were all in service to each other, whether or not you realized it at the time. It’s wonderful that they are so active and have their hobbies and pursuits outside of your family, but this connection is truly priceless and has been scientifically proven to increase health and longevity.
    Thank you for sharing your life with us, and wishing you all a happy and healthy new year!

  2. Your parents and in-laws seem like such wonderful people! The smiles on their faces can brighten anyone’s day. I’m so glad you all got to soak up each others love and support!

  3. i’ve noticed that whenever your parents visit, it seems they jump IN to the chaos and contribute, rather than sit back and expect to be hosted. I hope I remember to do that for my own children one day! what a gift!

  4. Your mom sure doesn’t come close to looking like a woman who had NINE kids!! She always has such a look of
    peace about her and always a true smile on her face. And so does your dad. I get such a kick out of his playful, easy going way and how much of a kid he can be! Right down to the restaurant picture of him with his phone in
    his hands at the table!! What a lucky family you are to have them in your lives.

  5. Oh my, your salads look delicious! Would you link to the recipe? Or give broad strokes?
    Happy New Year to you and your family!

  6. My daughter plays high school tennis here in Utah. At the end-of-year banquet two years ago, the coach’s dad got up and said the very best thing about tennis is that you can play it for the rest of your life. I love that your dad is 9th in the nation! Very cool and inspiring. I hope to be that active in my 80s!

  7. What fun we had! Thanks so much for welcoming us despite your incredible load right then. It was so fun to see you in action and be part of that crazy few days! I can’t believe you made it all the way out to the tennis match in the middle of it all! You are a marvel! Love you sooo much!

  8. I can’t add much to what already has been said, but your parents and in-laws are so inspiring at their age. Hope to wish that I will be so ‘in action’ as they are when I get there. Thanks for the inspiration to move in so many ways.

  9. Shawni, I just find it SO awesome and inspiring that your dad has always exercised and keeps on doing it; it’s SO important! He reminds me of a Mrs. Nora Rónai , a senior swimmer. Lady is in her 90s and swam until very recently, it’s just great! You should check her Wikipedia page; she was born in Italy and ran to Brazil during fascism because she was jewish. She was the wife of late Paulo Rónai, an amazing linguist. Anyway, I just love the discipline, fierceness and positive discipline your family conveys. 🙂

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