RIP Grandpa John

Aotis and I took an unexpected trip out to Los Angeles the Friday before Christmas, to say "Hi" to my Grandpa John who was in the ICU with organ failure and not expected to make it through the day.  He held on long enough for most of us to get there to see him, then early on Saturday, December 19 - interestingly enough it was the anniversary of his first date with Grandma - he said enough is enough with this hospital and passed on through to the other side.  I was grateful for the chance to see him one last time, and the visit with my family that weekend was a great way to remember Grandpa.  

Grandpa, Dad and me, circa early 1979?

My travel buddy was amazing.  He rocked his first airplane travel experience like a champ.  He maintained his sunny disposition, took naps, entertained our neighbors, and only needed to roam free on the airplane one of the four legs of our roundtrip excursion.  He even tolerated being awoken to get out of the car at the hospital, then having to wait in the hospital lobby while the adults took turns going up to the ICU, falling asleep again, then being woken yet again to go get a bite to eat after midnight and ultimately staying up waaaay past his bedtime our first night there. 

Posing for a selfie on our flight out west

Both of these guys were ecstatic to see one another :)

GGma Margie was happy that Aotis wanted to sit with her too

A very unusual-these-days moment of just the three sisters! (picking Shannon up from the airport)

Paying close attention to Grandpa Dave on the computer

Enjoying the view

Airplane! 

As always, my cousin Travis couldn't get enough of baby-time!  He and Aotis were entertained for a long time with the peep hole in GGma's front door.

Rockin' with GGma in his Great-Great-Great Grandpa's chair

I was glad to have Aotis with me on this trip.  Our last night in LA I think was my first night ever(!) in a hotel alone…sort of…since I had Aotis with me I wasn't technically alone.  I was mostly worried about not waking up in time for our 6:30 am flight out of LAX, but we made it!  Gotta love traveling with little people…getting through the security line goes so much faster!

Close up of the airplane

I typically pick an aisle seat, but I thought he might enjoy looking out the window since it was daylight during this flight back to WI.

While the purpose of the trip was a sad one, we had a nice visit with family.  It's strange to think that I no longer have any living Grandpa's, and my kids won't likely remember the only Great-Grandpa who was alive during their lifetimes.  But to find the silver lining, my cousin Kristen and her husband Morgan welcomed their first born on Christmas Day!  Quite the circle of life.

My last visit with Grandpa prior to this trip - March 2015

Rest in Peace Grandpa.
John Stonewall Miller
May 5, 1926 - Dec 19, 2015