Trip to Minnesota

During my trip to Minnesota last weekend, in addition to my parents adorable anniversary photo shoot, I got to spend a lot of time photographing my family as we hung out.

We decided to make things more interesting by taking our little beagle puppy along with us to meet all 11 of my nieces and nephews. 

It's been a good long year since we've all been together, and it was delightful to see these munchkins again. 

They all loved meeting Pixel, and we were happy to allow the kids to wear her out. :) 

One of my favorite parts of the trip was sitting down with my parents to reminisce about the home they've been in for over 30 years and all the adventures we've survived together. I also got to ask them some questions about how they met, details about their wedding (it's amazing what you forget in 40 years!), and what they've learned since dad's cancer diagnosis almost 7 years ago. 

At one point during our weekend together, dad began a conversation about what we should expect in the event of his death. Logistics, finances, property, memorial plans, etc. It was painfully sobering, but amazingly peaceful as we discussed the reality in front of us without fear. 

But we made sure to laugh a little bit along the way. 

it's amazing how bearable grief can be when we're in this together.