Grandfathers, Nieces and Mysterious Packages

Oh my? Whenever I list three things like that, I feel the need to say it in the spirit of The Wizard of Oz.

We’re rounding out our posts on our August trip to the States. Our last stop was Rochester, Minnesota, where John’s sister, brother-in-law and our niece live. However, before I get to that, I have a short work story to share.

Each month, I send our birthday cards with little gifts in them. They’re always little company trinkets – a key chain flashlight, pens, ya know…thingamabobs. This week I got a call from an employee who has a birthday this month. The phone call went like this:

Employee: I got a package thing from you. Was there supposed to be something in it?

Me: Uh oh. Yes. Was it empty?

Employee: Well, was there supposed to be tape on the envelope?

Me: Yes. Is the tape  missing?

Employee: I think someone ripped it open and took out what was inside.

Me: Oh no, I’m sorry.

Employee: Yeah. All that’s here is a little black box.

*At this point, I try my hardest not to laugh*

Me: Oh…that’s a business card holder.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

So about the last leg of our trip…

We flew into Minneapolis/St. Paul – I hadn’t been there since 2002, which was the last time I got to see my grandparents before they died. As soon as we landed in Minneapolis this time, I started crying. I wasn’t expecting it, but I just got sad. Sad was maybe even a positive change from the awful nausea we felt flying into the cities. Neither John nor I have ever felt so airsick before in our lives. The pilot was all over the place.

Once we got our feet back on solid ground and rented a car, we had about an hour drive to Rochester. After having been in Texas for about 2 weeks, we relished the cooler Minnesotan temperatures. It felt a lot like Germany to us, and it was nice to feel like we were “home.”

When we arrived at Catherine and Louie’s house, we were eager to meet baby Kinsley and hold her in our arms. She was so tiny! We spent three and a half days in Rochester helping out the new parents as best we could. We ran errands, went to the doctor’s office, made a trip to the ER (don’t worry, everyone is ok), cleaned the house and held Kinsley while Catherine slept some during the day. We were so glad to get the opportunity to help out while also getting to spend time with family!

It was also neat for me to see the Mayo Clinic again. Apparently I saw it when I was younger during one of our trips to see my mom’s parents in North Dakota – I only vaguely remember. My dad’s dad (Papa) did his OB-GYN residency at the Mayo, and my dad was a baby then, so he’d spent a little time in Rochester.  Unforutnately, I never got to meet my Papa. He died about 2 weeks before I was born.

Anywho…I don’t know how to segue from that to anything else, so, uh, want to see pictures from our trip? Please enjoy the slideshow below 🙂

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I hope everyone has a great Labor Day weekend! We’re headed out of town and look forward to sharing our adventures with you all when we return!