Precious Family Time

Hello World!

There was a time in this country where many people grew up in the same area in which they were born.  Extended family lived close to each other and spent quite a bit of time together.  Today, we are a mobile society.  It is the exception rather than the rule that people will live within a short distance of where they were born and/or grew up.  We live in a fast-paced and busy culture, and family does not seem to hold the importance it once did.

Our youngest son and his new wife (married less than a year) are here in Tennessee visiting.  Both are graduate students who work as GAs at the university they attend in Georgia, and my daughter-in-law is also a part-time art teacher at a private school.  They are busy; however, that have taken the two week break between semesters (our son is in a program that goes all year long for three years – breaks are few) to come visit family and friends in Tennessee. Yesterday, we made the trek to Decatur, Alabama, to see my dad, PawPaw as he is known to his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

PawPaw & Nancy with great-grandchildren Liam & Presley

Dad had knee replacement surgery three weeks ago, so we were especially glad to find him doing as well as he is.  A little over 20 years ago, he and my mother divorced.  My mom still lives in southern Middle Tennessee, so we had planned our day so that we could also stop and see her.  It was good to visit with family.

My husband and I have six kids between us; when we married we became a modified “Brady Bunch” family.  Our three oldest were already out and away from home, and in the seven years we have been married, the other three have flown from the nest.  Only one, the youngest, remains unmarried while she attends college.  Not a single one of the six children live in Tennessee.  My oldest two have not even seen each other in about five years, so we are going to try to rectify this problem in March.

My kids as teenagers with Aunt Cynthia

During Spring Break in March all of my kids with spouses and children are going to join us at a resort in north Georgia for a week of family vacation.  The HH and I have reserved two two-bedroom condos for us to use, and if my dad and step-mom are able, they will also get a condo there to be with us.  Unfortunately, my mother does not travel at this time.  The rest of us are looking forward to this time for our family to be together for a week.  My husband and I hope to have a similar gathering somewhere during a summer break to gather his three children, spouses, and their children. Timing is more complicated for them because their children are in school.

While I may not have appreciated this fact as well as I should have in the past, despite the fact that I have made a habit of talking with my parents almost every day, as I get older, I see the importance of making sure families have precious time together.  I’m adding a goal to my list for the next 12 months.  It is a goal that I have been working toward already without even realizing it – make spending more precious time with family a priority.

Do you spend precious time with your family?

Have a blessed and happy day!

Angela