our trip to illinois for gma’s funeral

Aaron’s grandmother passed away on Monday (11.29.21). She was extremely close to us all and her passing has proven to be impactful on all of us in some way.

Her funeral service came together and we packed up the crew and headed out to Illinois to honor her at 7am on Thursday (12.9.21).

We were on the road for a little over two hours before we needed to stop for gas and a potty break. This also meant I fed Spencer.

Once everyone had their snack and we got a movie set up, we were back on the road for a longer stretch before taking our second break, this time for some energy outlet and lunch preparation.

We arrived to our Air’b’n’b around 6pm and ate dinner, unloaded and let the girls stay up past their bedtime to run around and get some energy out. But when we did put them down, they were g.o.n.e!

The next morning (12.10.21) we ate breakfast and immediately got ready for the funeral service.

It was just immediate family at the service.

I’m not going to sugarcoat it guys, the service was so impersonal. The pastor they hired to speak said Gma’s name incorrectly, spoke of his own family experience more than Gma, said things about our family that were not accurate and it just felt not genuine. In a way, it lightened the mood for us but still…

Aside from reminding Paisley multiple times to speak softly (which goes against every bone in her body), the girls did great! I stood up with Spencer and walked around in the back and the girls sat in there aisle. they brought a lot of hugs and smiles to the family which was sweet.

After the service, we went out to lunch with the family.

We also got those couple cousin pictures that are always fun to take.

A couple of Aaron’s cousin’s wives also had babies this year (two girls – one is 7weeks and the other is 4months), so we got a “baby club” picture 😉

From there, it was a whirlwind. we went back to the air’b’n’b for maybe an hour before Michelle, Amberlyn, Aaron, me and Spencer got in a car and drove two-hours to Michelle’s sister’s house to select which of Gma’s belongings we wanted.

We got home late and basically went straight to bed. In the morning (12.11.21), we got packed and loaded up to head home.

How was the trip? Quick. too quick. and exhausting haha. it’s been a few days since we returned and we’re still getting back into routine and rest.

But we’re glad we could honor Gma and the legacy she left behind through us.