....so let it snow....let it snow....let it snow!

................the Black Bamboo is lovin it......

......and finally my favorite plant in the botanical garden.......our Nootka Pine.......

The Last Days In Ohio.....

Mel and Sam decided before leaving to fix a French meal for Bob and Claudia, Bill and Pat........

...........a delicious appetizer preceded the meal........

..............as Eloise kept us entertained. Although she doesn't "walk" yet.....she will "walk" around the kitchen with some assistance from her Father!

............and the meal was finished off with a delicious French apple upsidedown pie!

Out of Order Alert!

...........after the game (see post below) Davey and Kim had seats reservd for one last family gathering at Damons.

.........It was a good time for everyome to get a last look at Eloise before she headed back to home country of France.....

State Championship Gathering

As previously covered in this blog our "family gathering" took in two State playoff games. For the State Championship game....we joined the tailgate gathering in Canton. This is Wes's graduating class members serving brats and burgers. Kevin had come from Tennessee......

.........Wes McLaughlin flew in from Arizona ............

................and his brother Granger, sporting his LV hardware.....arrived from Chickenville........... When the boys were growing up Granger it is reported could smell Tacos cooking from his house 1 mile away and show up at the Weavers for supper just as they were going on the table! All were gathered to see the Panthers take the State Championship at Canton's Fawcett stadium.

In The Stadium.....

...............Mel and Sam....Mark and Liz.......

............Grandpa, Wes and Cheryl............

.............watch the Panthers from the best seats in the house!

A Valiant Effort....

..........in the waining moments....this attempt to make a catch to tie the game failed.......and having turned the ball over 5 times....the Panthers fall to another Central Ohio team, Big Walnut..........inspite of holding them to only 3 first downs and dominating them statistically in nearly every catagory.....

...........the last play of the game left us 10 yards short of the title ............and with the agony of defeat......

..........and so to the State Runners up ............

Off To The Airport.....

.......Grandma escorts Eloise to the departure gate......

.................two works of art.............

................leave it to Sam to find a creative way to take a parting family portrait.......

.....and finally.....DEPARTURE...

........Good bye sweet Eloise..........until we see you again..........

............there is something very special about the love of we have for our children.......... It's most evident when we have to say good bye to them knowing it will be a long time until next visit........

...........tears fill our eyes as we experience a parting hug and know the power of love to draw our hearts together........... and to keep us until we are back together again............

..............and see them off..........to Washington DC where Melaine will do a beautiful job presenting the findings of her research to an international audience.............and then back to France.