The Boone Family

On Monday, January 18th, 2016 Grandpa Grochowalski passed away.  Since my last visit with him, his health has slowly gone downhill.  The leukemia had spread in his body and he developed pneumonia.  My parents, aunts, uncles, and Grandma had diligently spent time with him while he was still here.  Towards the end the minor things were very painful and we prayed that he would no longer have to suffer.  He passed peacefully. When we learned of his passing, we were devastated.  Grandpa Grocho lived to be 87 years old.  Grandma and him were such a huge part of my life growing up, attending every sporting event, birthday party, or anytime moment that they possibly could.  Now that we have our own family, they made every effort to be with the boys that they could.  They would stop over every time we were in town, they drove up to our house to visit, they were at every birth of each child, baseball games, birthday parties, etc.  The joy that he had for me, Bob,  and my boys is unmeasurable.

What happens when the Boone's don't have any plans for the weekend…we take an impromptu road trip to Pittsburgh!  Early Saturday morning we jumped into the van and started out!  The boys were more than excited to head out to our first stop…The Pittsburgh Children's Museum.  We arrived late afternoon and it was a little crowded but we stayed until they closed and kicked us out!   We built structures together using nuts and bolts Peek-a-Boo! The boys love to climb through this "hamster" style climbing wall.  Nolan begged me to climb in but oh how it makes me claustrophobic.  The light tables are a lot of fun…they spread sand over them and they use their hands to write their names and make designs I love how Nolan is watching so closely as Landon plays.   The "Garage" is a room that contains everything boy…wheels, cars, tracks, slides, climbing, etc.  The boys wanted to stay here forever.   There was a ro

This past weekend the boys and I went down to Bucyrus to visit Grandpa Grocho while Bob went to Michigan to celebrate Angie's birthday.   Grandpa is currently in the nursing home in Bucyrus where he is doing well.  When I got there he was roaming the halls with Grandma by his side.  He was in the wheelchair using his feet to push himself through the halls as he talked with Grandma.  It is a moment forever written on my memory because they both were together smiling.  Dad and I joined Grandma and Grandpa in the cafe to chat while Grandpa ate.  He ate very well…better than I had seen him eat in a long time.  He carried on a great conversation and was as close to himself as I remember.   After the visit, we ventured over to one of our favorite outdoor places:Lee-Volk Nature Center.  They have great hiking trails and a super cool nature center with real creatures to watch.  The weather has been unseasonably warm for January (51 degrees).   We love being outside and exploring!

The year quickly winds down to welcome in the new year. After our road trip to Defiance, we stopped home to get ready to party at the Malear's house.   Nolan loves to help in the kitchen.  Making chocolate chip cookies This was the best attempt at getting the kids to smile and look at the camera After eating and playing we made our way back to our house before the meltdowns began.  Nolan was a hot mess quickly and we put him to bed. Landon and Carter were so looking forward to watching the ball drop and listening to all the music.  Bob had a great idea to have a family slumber party in the basement and the boys were over the moon about it. We lugged pillows and sleeping bags downstairs and all cuddled up together on the couch. Carter made it until 11:30 and Landon made it until 11:45. This is our crazy life…there isn't any other place I would rather be.

Each year around Christmas break, we try our hardest to get together with the Hammer's!  The past few years we have even been lucky enough to have the Grieser's stop by and stay the night with us on their way through from Charlotte.  With Grandpa being in the hospital we had to change our plans and meet later during break but we were so glad that we did! Me, T, and Koenn all together with T's little one (Natalie 6 months) It is so great when you have friends that no matter how long since you talked or seen each other you can pick up the conversation right where you left off.  I get so excited to see them and their families!  Catching up and recalling old memories make it so much fun. Here is the crew:  Landon, Tyler, Carter, Nolan, Aubrey, Elise, Haley, Natalie Carter and Haley are working on a lego set together It always surprises me with how well the kids all play together.   Nolan playing Pie Face…so silly Bob gets it! TJ