Getaways with the Grandkids
Tuesday, January 20, 2026
“God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.” – Augustine of Hippo
Two years ago, Deanna and I started a new family tradition of taking our grandkids away on a vacation. Just Noni, Papa, and the grandkids for five days and four nights of “together time”.
The first year, we took the four oldest ones – Brady, Sadie, Levi, and Dylan – to northern Kentucky where we visited the Ark Encounter, the Creation Museum, the Newport Aquarium, and an alpaca farm amongst other attractions. Then, last June, we took the same four grandkids to southern Kentucky to explore Mammoth Cave and Lost River Cave, visit Dinosaur World, take a train ride to an abandoned mining town, and tour a yak farm.
I can’t begin to tell you how much we enjoyed spending so much time with our precious grandkids… making lasting memories along the way.
Last month, we decided to take an overnight trip to Ocala to visit the Kirby Christmas Farm in nearby Williston. This time, we took our two youngest granddaughters – Bella and Charlotte – along, too. We stopped at Wild Florida, a wildlife park in Kenansville, on the way up and at Gator Golf in Orlando on the way back. We also took the glass-bottomed boat tour at Silver Springs State Park in Ocala.
What a fabulous trip it was… and I can’t wait for the next one!
Of course, being proud grandparents, Deanna and I can’t resist showing pictures of our grandkids. And so, each time we go away, we post pictures of our adventures on Facebook and Deanna even makes little videos of the fun times we have together. Well, whenever one of those pictures or videos pops up on Facebook, one of my friends – who is an amateur comedian and loves his grandkids as much as I do mine – always comments, “I forgot which one you said is your favorite.”
Of course, he’s just needling me because he knows that I love all six of them the same. But that – and Augustine’s quote above – got me thinking. You see, my friend, God doesn’t play favorites either when it comes to His children. He loves you and me as much as He does Abraham, Moses, King David, and the Apostle Paul.
Now don’t you feel kinda special?
“What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices more over that one sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.” Matt. 18:12-13
- Rev. Dale M. Glading, President
