Raccoon State Park

 We all had a blast at the beach!  It was great watching all the cousins play together, we all had time to gab, and the hot sun made it easy to get wet!

We ended the day by toasting marshmallows and enjoying some delicious s'mores

Bottle Rockets - Nelson Family Reunion

All the cousins had fun building and decorating a bottle rocket to launch on the last day of the reunion.  The kiddos loved the entire process and had a blast (no pun intended...) launching them and flying kites on a beautiful summer day.

 

Grandpa's Zipline

Grandpa continues to find new ways to bring more and more fun for the grandkids.  This year he successfully installed an epic 200 ft. zip line and let me tell you, it did not disappoint!  We all (yes, all three generations of 'kids') thoroughly enjoyed trying it out and not one person was disappointed.  Truth be told, I felt like a stuntman from the experience!

In addition to the 200 ft. zip line, he also built this smaller ride for kids to enjoy 24/7.  Lillian LOVED it and was often heard yelling "BOING!" when she reached the spring at the end.

Quick side view of one of Geoff's runs

Lillian surprised us all by going twice!

Eliana was not interested in trying out the zipline, so imagine our surprise when she voluntarily asked to give it a go!  She wasn't up for a second run, but I was so proud of how she handled the daring experience.

Thanks to the four brothers with their strength and healthy backs and a 4-wheeler, Janna was able to experience flying on the zip-line.  When asked if she liked the ride Janna replied, "I most certainly did!"

Thanks for making this amazing thrill ride, Dad!  Up next...roller coaster?

Helping Out at Grandma and Pap Pap's

 We spent one morning at Grandma and Pap Pap's helping with a few projects around their house.  We got a lot accomplished and had a ton of fun in the process.

Nelson Family Reunion - July 2021

 On the Fourth of July weekend, we packed up the van and headed to Grandma and Grandpa Nelson's for an action packed week of family fun!  Being with the entire family was a wonderful treat and we made many beautiful memories that we will reminisce about for years to come.

Dad spruced up the ol' Dunk Tank--the hot weather sure made it easy to find plenty of willing volunteers!

Lillian asked Grandpa to try to hit the target

And she was quite appreciative for the cool splash!

No trip to Grandma and Grandpa's is complete without a few spins on Grandpa's swing

The highlight for me was being able to spend so much time with these two--in person!

10 Year Anniversary

 During our family reunion, Geoff and I reached a special milestone--our 10 year wedding anniversary.  I don't know how ten years flies by in a blink of an eye, but it certainly did for us!  We are so thankful for all of the experiences we have shared, for the children we have to love, and for the future we have before us.

For our special day, we decided to sneak away from the reunion for a quiet walk.  Since we were in PA, I thought it would be nice for Geoff to see where my Great-Grandma Usenicnik lived and was the place my Grandma Furin grew up.  Because someone else now owns the home, we just stood at the foot of the driveway.

This driveway is a sweet memory for me.  We drove up this path every Sunday to visit Great-Grandma and would get here as early as we could on days it would snow because we would try to arrive before my Great-Grandma--at age 90--would shovel the driveway so we could walk up to her home!

Growing up I would often hear people declare, "Marriage takes work."  I never understood what that meant and wondered why people rarely elaborated on that comment.  After ten years of living in a marriage relationship I will agree, that marriage does take work.  Anything worthwhile and with imperfect people is going to require focused effort.  Effort to communicate effectively, effort to understand how to best help and support one another, and effort to know how to navigate the tides of change.  Every day is a different day with different challenges and different joys.  Being in a relationship isn't about following a manual or living by a checklist--it's about following your heart to be able to nurture each other's hearts.  I'm so thankful for how Geoff has cared for me and my heart and am thankful for the fact that we have many more years ahead of us to continue to figure out how to grow in love and patience.

10 years, 4 kids, countless tears, and countless laughs later I can still sing, "Nothing's missing, nothing's missing, nothing's missing."