A Visit From Relatives

Rich's sister and her family live overseas as missionaries so we didn't have much of an opportunity to see them. When they do return to the States for furlows and visits their homebase is in New Jersey. This has always made it hard for visits since it means long traffic jams through DC, Baltimore and New York.

This week they are taking our oldest nephew to college for his freshman year, with their younger son to follow next year. Where does the time go? Next will be David's turn—aargh! Since we are about an hour off their route they came early and spent the night.

David has always loved his big cousins and enjoys spending time with them and this time was no different. Unfortunately the younger of his two cousins had to return to school before the visit, but David still roped the older one into lots of bike rides.
Since it was just an overnight visit I decided to not spend my time in the kitchen and instead we ordered Papa John's Pizza. We ate on disposible plates and drank from cans and bottles, no fuss dinner. This decision was a big hit with all of us.

Our nephew will be about seven hours away so we may get to see him more often. They had planned on him returning to the mission field over the Christmas break but unless the price of gas breaks and reduces air fare that doesn't seem as likely. We are praying for this, but if he can't go home, he is more then welcome to stay with us.

Rich's sister and brother in law have been really good about guiding their kids and lending advice on these major life isues. They talked their kids through about not only the subjects they wanted to learn, but also the school environment. Big campus with lots of activities going on or a more intimate campus with less activities to choose from. So often this is not thought of when making the decision.

I have a relative that has taken all choices out of their child's hands. They have stated not only what college she will attend but also the parents have decided to move to the same town to watch over the child. The child has voiced her opposition to attending this college, but it is falling on deaf ears. There is still a couple more years before she leaves home, so we will see if the parents will take into consideration the child's wishes or if this will cause a breach in their relationship.