Great Grandparents

This past Fourth of July, we visited my Grandma's house.  I feel like a kid again when I walk through her door.  My kids know her as Oma and my Grandpa as Opa.  They are "great" grandparents in every sense.  The kids look forward to going to their house all year.  We have a big, wonderful breakfast of my Grandma's famous pancakes (with all the sides you could dream of) and two different kinds of syrup.  Then, after we loosen our belts, we spend the day outside in their spacious yard playing games, swapping stories, and stuffing our faces with more delicious food.

The babies love Oma.  Charlie was taken with her.  He smiled and cooed at her.  But who wouldn't?  My Grandma is the epitome of wonderful grandmotherliness.  Everyone should be lucky enough to have a grandma (or great-grandma) like her.  

My grandparents had 8 children who all had children of their own. . .which means that these days, the great-grandchildren are sprouting up at every turn.  These babies were all born within a few months of each other, and another was born just after this picture was taken.  What fun!

Charlie enjoyed having like-sized little people to grab, but I think he will especially enjoy having some great playmates as he gets older.

The sandbox is always a hit.  James and William loved it this year.  Oma always packs it full of great toys.

The slip-n-slide my Opa put together years ago is also very fun.  My Opa can build anything.  You should see his woodworking skills in action.

I have similar pictures of myself from when I was young.  This slip-n-slide has gotten a lot of love over the years.

It is always enjoyable.

Oma always has little trinkets to give the kids.  Somehow she knows just what they will like.

There are many fun great-Aunts to dote on the kids.  My Aunt Pat made these amazingly fun streamer wands.

Ashley especially took to them.  We even got to take them home with us!

Aunt Pat also made these pool noodle swords.  She is so clever!  All of the kids loved these, as well.  

Ashley was not intimidated by the size of her opponents.

She has too much confidence in herself to back down from a fight.

Of course, she was not the only one.

My kids, and the other great-grand kids, are lucky to have Aunts like Aunt Pat to spoil them rotten.

I don't know what a large gathering at Oma's house would be like without homemade root beer.  The dry ice is a hit every time.

Oma had goody bags ready for each of the kids.  They loved them.  There was so much else that was good to eat, I don't know how they even managed to enjoy it all!

But enjoy it they did.  No one can come to Oma's house in the summer without having an ice cream cone.

Other notable enjoyments: 

Picking raspberries from Oma's forty raspberry bushes.  Everett looks forward to this every year and Oma always indulges him.

Playing in the two-story playhouse.  It has been around for decades so there is not a member of the family that doesn't have fond memories of it.

Jumping on the trampoline.  With so many cousins around, there is always someone to jump with or play poison with.

I had to get our annual picture.  The kids are worn out by the end of a fun-filled day with Oma and Opa.  But it is the best kind of worn-out in the world.