Sometimes it's the Little Things...

that make you cry(the good tears).

When we planned our trip to Vancouver to check out all the Olympic hubbub, one of the things I was looking forward to was picking up a pair of the Olympic mittens that everyone in Canada was sporting. Well, as you know we never made it up to Canada on the first try because of the accident, but when we went that next weekend, all of the adult mittens were sold out! Believe me, I dragged my family to the department store where you can stand in line just to get into the store to browse at all of the Olympic wear. When we got in, the rumors were correct. The mittens were sold out. I was bummed, but it was definitely not the end of the world.

Two weeks later, my mother and father-in-law came to visit us. They had just been to Arizona the weekend of our accident and met some ladies at the airport that were coming back from the Olympics. They got talking to them and told them our story. After the flight, one of the ladies came up to Daron's mom, Mary, and gave her a pair of the red mittens. She said that she had bought an extra pair and wanted to give them to us. Wow-thank you! I hadn't even told Mary that I wanted them and it was an amazing 'little thing' that meant something larger to not only Mary(she was so touched by this ladies' generosity to strangers), but it meant SO much to each of my family members when they surprised us with them last week. My kids knew how much I wanted them. They knew we searched for them. They saw how the little things really can be huge blessings and make us smile.

We had a great time with M & M. Fia and Kwame got to help make caramel rolls and they loved every minute of it. We also spent time swimming at the hotel they stayed at a few nights so the kids could enjoy the pool. The all-you-can-eat seafood buffet was also a bonus! This weekend, Justus played his last game of basketball, so that was fun to be able to bring them there too.

Justus and Grandpa share a common love of grapefruit and it has become a special breakfast treat for them to share when we are together with them. How cute is that? They also took Maynard squidding. They caught two, so luckily I didn't wait for my calamari dinner, but they were great and I think this is looking to become a favorite pastime in our home.

All in all, it was a wonderful weekend that we got to spend together. The kids are so blessed to have two sets of grandparents and two great-grandmothers that are a part of their lives that are great examples of faith and love. Thank you M & M for making it a priority to come out here and spend time with us a couple times a year. We love you!