Thanksgiving 2023

 This year we had a really relaxing and lovely Thanksgiving in Cleveland with the March family.  We all enjoyed getting to spend such a long weekend together in Cleveland.  There were lots of cousins in town this year from the Ricke family, so I enjoyed a night out with some of them the night before we left for Cleveland!

Rest in Peace our Sweet Roxie Girl

On November 17th we put Roxie girl down.  We had the best 14 years of love from her, and she was part of so many great memories in our family.  The kids took it as best they could but there have been lots of tears (mostly from Josie) about missing her.  She was such a great dog and was so gentle and loving to our kids - we are so grateful for the time we had with her! We miss you, Roxie!!!

We celebrated her the night before and got to share lots of memories with the kids of when Roxie was a puppy, and the kids shared their favorite times with her.  Each kid handled it in their own way when we told them, but we felt like we got to spend great time as a family loving on her and loving on each other during this difficult time.

 

Mama and Charlotte Fly to ABQ

 I had the great opportunity to spend 5 days in ABQ helping Amy and Zhenya after Zhenya's surgery.  I like to take one kid with me each time I go, and I took Charlotte this time.  Charlotte and I counted down the days to our trip just the 2 of us and it was even more special than I imagined!

It is so unique to get to slow down, get out of town and spend uninterrupted time with just one kid - it's one of my favorite traditions and hope that I can keep it going!  Amy needed to spend time caring for Z this trip, so we got less time with her and Z but an abundance of great quality time with Amelia!  I had such a wonderful time getting to know her better and watching her and Charlotte's relationship blossom!  We also had lots of relaxing slow mornings and evenings at the house with Amy!