My children have wonderful grandparents who love them dearly on both sides of their family. Unfortunately, my parents are unable to travel because of my step-mother's heath. Thankfully, their other grandparents are not only close enough for my kids to have a good relationship with them, they love camping with their family. Starting the year I was divorced, they have taken my kids with them every summer for a big campout where they invite their kids and grandkids.
The first year they went, I drove out with them to Granby, spent one night, and went home with the assurance that Eric, Sean, and Noel would be cared for by their grandparents The kids got to spend time with their cousins, and I was able to have a few days where I could go to work and not worry about my 5, 7, and 9 year old children. It was a nice relief from the pressures of being a single parent.
The following year, their grandparents offered to take the kids again for this big family campout. (I think this was the year their father went, but I may be wrong about the year he went.) They had a lot of fun, felt special, and got to go somewhere they would not have been able to go otherwise.
This has become a tradition. There were some years that I was asked the scout camp schedules to make sure that there was not a conflict, and they were kind enough to schedule around it. One year, they were with them on my birthday, and I was sent pictures of my children with a happy birthday message. For the most part, this is something my children look forward to. I am not convinced that they all like camping, but I know they like spending time with people they love that love them.
Last year, Eric was not able to go. He had moved out, was looking for a job, and didn't want to leave his girlfriend behind. Noel said it just wasn't the same. This year, not only did Eric and his girlfriend go, they picked up Sean and Noel before heading over to their grandparents' house to caravan with them and their aunt, uncle, and cousin.
After the funeral last week, we took all of the kids out to eat and made the arrangements for Eric and Peyton to pick up the siblings. They talked about whether Sean and Noel would ride with them just to the grandparents' house or all the way to the camping destination. Noel really wanted to ride with Eric. Sean seemed to not really have an opinion who he rode with until Eric told Sean he would have his own seat row in their vehicle. That cinched it. Sean was excited that he would have so much room.
Yesterday, Eric picked up his siblings around 8:30. He loaded up everything in the trunk other than what they wanted to have with them for the drive, they gave me hugs, and they were gone.
It makes me happy they are able to get along well enough to do this together. I love that they have grandparents that are willing and able to take the kids all of these places even when they have to pivot and camp closer to home. I hope to someday be able to see as much of this beautiful country as my children have been able to see.
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