A bittersweet memory for John and Chris…and SO many others…

  As you may know, we spent 5 nights in Zionsville, IN to watch our 2 youngest grandsons while their mom and dad went to Boston.  Their dad, John Wolff, had qualified to run in the Boston Marathon, and it was all very exciting …too exciting.  I cannot, for the life of me, wrap my brain around such acts committed by people who see it in their power to terrorize innocence…be it homegrown, or from afar.  Thank God that all is well with our family, and John and Chris are now home in Zionsville safe.  If only it were so for others.

Here is the scenario in a nutshell..

McGyver and I watched the race on the TV Monday, and John had programed Den’s phone at each 10 kilometers to give us his time, and after John crossed the finish line at 1:25PM, Chris called us with his time….We were sooo proud of John!!  He ran the 26.2 miles in 3 hours and 18 minutes…Chris had been considering waiting for him at the finish line, but others advised her to go to mile 24 where she could get a better view of him as he ran by. John and Chris went back at their hotel as soon as he gathered his pack and cooled down…The hotel they were staying at, (Hotel 140) was only 1 block from the finish line, that’s why they chose it…

As it turns out, McGyver and I went outside about 2PM with the kids, after we knew John had finished ..We were riding bikes, scooters, swinging, and then took a walk.….We managed to corral the two boys with the promise of a treat, and went inside about 3PM …Suddenly my cell phone rang, and I saw it was Chris…I answered and all she said was, “John and I are OK”…I was clueless. We had been outside and had no idea what had happened.  She told me to turn on the TV and watch..but assured me that she and John were safe inside their hotel.

As we watched in horror, the tragedy just kept getting worse.  Chris and John skyped the boys about 4:30PM, after Boston lifted the cell phone ban.  It was soooo good to see their faces and those boys were excited to see them too (although Maddox, at age 2, was wanting to jump into the computer and grab his mommy!)..Chris told us that their hotel was on lockdown, as was everything within a large perimeter near the finish line…Everyone was on edge because you just didn’t know if there were other bombs planted, and if so, where. 

  Something like this certainly puts things in perspective, and makes all else pale in comparison to having your family safe..Chris and John were also lucky that they made their 6AM flight out of Boston this AM (they thought it might be canceled),and arrived at Midway Airport in Chicago about 9AM Central time, then drove the 3 hours home to Zionsville. (They flew out of Midway because it was less expensive than Indy).

I want to thank everyone for their caring concern for our family on Monday…We had MANY phone calls, text messages and Facebook comments about their safety..  We are very blessed with great bloggers, great friends and extended family…and were lucky where other families were not.  I am sure many, many people will never forget this Boston Marathon, so marred by the tragedy of a cowardly, senseless act of terrorism.

  On a lighter note, we had a great time with those two Wolff Cubs..…If you click on it you can get the full effect…and yes, that is McGyver “swinging” with Madds.

 

Chris and John have a lovely home just East of Zionsville in an established “subdivision” called Raintree…

Have you ever seen a Bentley Car Dealership…Well there is one in Zionsville (left photo). Middle is their Walgreens, and right pic is the McDonalds…very low key…and up scale..eh?

We arrived Thursday about 1PM and went with Chris to see Aiden take his swim lesson.  This is held at the Zionsville High School pool, and his teacher is a student who teaches swimming after her classes..

Aiden and Maddox thought they could sneak inside Chris and John’s luggage and tag along…WRONG! IT’S MUCH NEEDED “MOMMY AND DADDY TIME”!

Pic on left is the “Wolff Den” from the back…and on the right is the house across the street from them that Aiden thinks his Mimi and Papa should buy…hmmm..only $599,000…NOT!

Chris got a new dining room table…Looks like a board meeting could be held there..Right pic, if  you look close, you will see a white cat amongst the pillows on their bed…That is Lady Di..

Lady Di loves McGyver..But McGyver???? not so much.  He hates cats..I find it hilarious that she choses him to lay on!

With all of the scary news out of Boston on Monday, John’s mother, Jan, and step dad, Mark, came over with a bottle of wine and some pre-cooked ribs and dip…We had a toast to our wonderful blended family. (OK, maybe a few toasts!)

Mark and Dennis finished the ribs on the gas grill…Jan and I supervised…Every person in John’s family is AWESOME!!

Grama Jan and Mimi…just part of one great big happy family…and counting our blessings FOR SURE!

These photos were taken Saturday…How could any of us have imagined how life would change for so many…As I said, bittersweet. This brings to mind the lyrics to one of my favorite songs…

“And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance “

                                                ~Garth Brooks, “The Dance”