Our 7th Labor Day weekend at Unicoi State Park….a family tradition

 ….with Sean and Emily and our dear grandsons, Soren and Sebastian!

We have many traditions when we vacation at Unicoi Lodge and State Park.  One of these traditions is to spend hours together on our cabin deck—eating, playing games, talking, and laughing together.

2018 on the deck….our first trip to Unicoi together.

2022….all of us together on the cabin deck!

Every year Sean honors Labor Day by putting up an American flag…..thank you Sean!

Proud Mother with her sons….

Sean and Emily always host us by planning and cooking delicious meals. 

Another tradition is to celebrate Emily’s October birthday at Unicoi during Labor Day weekend.  This year we brought some of our homemade white chocolate fudge for her….which she very generously shared with all of us.

A highlight of our Unicoi vacation is visiting the Bavarian themed town of Helen where Betty’s is nestled.  This is our very favorite little grocery store!

And, of course, every year we always head out to the lake for a boating adventure!

The pirate captain of Grandpa and my paddle boat….

Sean spends hours creating amazing dinners which we all thoroughly enjoy.

The hike around Unicoi Lake is one of our favorite activities.

We added a new tradition this year—Woodruff Monopoly….based on the Scout camp in Georgia where Soren has worked for the last two summers.  The “boys” played a vicious game, with Soren as the winner.  Grandpa wiped out first Sebastian, then Sean when Grandpa “mistakenly” overcharged Sean for a stay at his lodge.  Soren had the final revenge and bankrupted Grandpa, when Grandpa landed on the Trading Post that Soren owned.

A trip to Fred’s Famous Peanuts is another favorite tradition of ours.

More Fred’s…..

Soren in 2018 at Fred’s….

And more fun at Fred’s this year….

2025….

2024….

Soren and Sebastian in 2022….

Another tradition that we started a few years ago is to visit Cabbage Patch  Hospital!

Where the Cabbage Patch babies are born….Grandma and Grandpa in 2023.

Sebastian adopting a Cabbage Patch baby in 2023….

Emily and Sebastian getting Christmas outfits for their Cabbage Patch kids in 2024….

Soren as the Cabbage Patch Kids King in 2024….

On our way back to civilization here’s our last Unicoi tradition—stopping at the Mountain Fresh Creamery and eating a boatload of homemade ice cream!

Look at Sebastian at the Creamery in 2024.  Looks how much he has grown compared to the above photo taken this year.  It’s pretty obvious that a ton of ice cream is good for a growing teenager!

All too soon, it was time to say goodbye to Soren, as the weekend was over, and he headed back to college….

Soren drove to the airport.  He is a great driver!

Sean said goodbye to his son….and so did we.  

Sebastian took a break from his homework the night before we had to leave this lovely family….we’re so happy to see that Sebastian is still a little kid at heart.

This morning, we said goodbye to Sebastian as he waited for his school bus….luckily, he is spending his fall school break with us, so we’ll see him in just a few weeks!

We planned an afternoon flight, so we could squeeze out just a tiny bit more time with this special family that we love so very much.

We went on a morning walk with Emily and the “puppies” (Daisy and Lucy) around the most beautiful neighborhood where they live….homes nestled beneath towering trees and surrounded by lush grass and abundant flowers!

As Dad Graybill always said when we left, “I wish you had never come.” That is because it is so hard to leave those that you love.  We know how he felt.  We are sad that we live so far apart.  

We love you Emily, Sean, Soren, and Sebastian very much.  Thank you for a most lovely week….see you for Christmas!

Arizona….FLOOD WARNINGS!!!

 Fire, fire everywhere….

….except for Arizona, Utah, and Yellowstone National Park where there have been numerous flood warnings.

 

Here in Arizona for almost three months now, we have had  95+ degree days until mid-afternoon.  And then several days each week the monsoon storms descend from the mountains and surround us for hours.  By the next morning it’s warm and sunny with bright blue skies again!

So now we have abundant grass, wildflowers, and mosquitoes in both our Arizona deserts and mountain mesas.   Well, it’s certainly better than smokey wildfires that destroy our forests and homes.  

Just stay out of the washes while driving and hiking….and buy some misquote repellent!

Papa is back home with his family

And boy, they are all so happy….and so are we!

Remember the Nazi Holocaust…..Stop Antisemitism in our country!

We are sickened by the increasing amount of antisemitism that has been growing worldwide and in the United States.

We are baby boomers.  The horrors of World War II were part of our childhoods, including the literature that we read and the television and movies that we watched.  Dan saw "Mein Kampf" when he was 12 years old....his father taking him to see it to show him what it was really like.  So it is disturbing and disheartening to see the rise of antisemitism and racism of any kind.  

God would be appalled by this hate and the “cancel culture” that has propagated this racism against our fellow man, Jews, and Israel. 

We decided to let the world know how we feel.  When we looked on-line for a bumper sticker that would reflect our views, we found that there were none!!!

So we made our own bumper sticker….

Join us in protecting our fellow men and women.

Heart surgery scheduled for our littlest grandbaby

Every day we include a special prayer for little Gideon.

He was born with a hole in his heart.  

We were there when, several months before his birth, Owen and Mila received the news that there was a problem with their baby’s heart….and we were there when they received the news that their child would need open heart surgery before he reached his first birthday.  

For the past several months, almost a year now, we have stood by Owen and Mila….been with them, supporting and loving them.  We have been to countless doctor appointments with them, witnessed Gideon’s little body in utero and after his birth, and went through echocardiograms one or more times a month.  

We were with Mila for Gideon’s birth and I cut his umbilical cord!!  We were there when Mila and Owen received the news that little Gideon didn’t have any of the genetic defects that are commonly associated with a hole in an infant’s heart.  And we were there when, after he was born, the doctors told us that our little grandchild should live a normal, healthy life after the hole in his heart has been repaired.

We have seen this little baby almost every day since his birth, and have watched him grow and thrive….we have seen his first smile and saw him start to roll over.  He now talks to us as he gurgles and smiles in response to seeing us come to visit him and his older sister and two brothers.

Gideon is almost six months old.  He tries to sit up and stretch his legs as he dances in our laps. He is now big enough and strong enough to undergo the open heart surgery.  

Gideon’s surgery has been scheduled for October.

We are pleased that he has reached this point where the doctors believe that he is able to (and should) have the surgery that will repair the hole in his heart.  And we are pleased that modern medicine has advanced to a stage where a baby can have open heart surgery to fix a serious heart defect….and that after this surgery a child can live a long and healthy life.

But we are also so very frightened.  He is still just a little tiny baby.  He is Owen and Mila’s little tiny baby.  He is our grandson. 

We love this precious child.

Here are some photos of all of us taking Gideon to the Phoenix Children’s Hospital...2 hours away.  Just a few photos of a part of our lives….a part of our lives since we are parents and grandparents….an important part of our lives because we love all our children and grandchildren so very much.

We thank God for our children and for all fifteen of our precious grandchildren….and we ask that God bless, protect, and guide each and every one of them. 

Every night Gideon’s six-year-old sister Hannah, and brothers, three-year-old Vernon, and two-year-old Robert say a special prayer for God to bless Gideon and keep him safe.  This is our prayer also….to bless Gideon and keep him safe.