What happens when my wife and I decide to spend our holiday weekend at the in-laws?

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Over this past 4^th of July holiday, my wife and I decided to travel to central Illinois and visit her parents.

While most of you were sitting at the lake, beach, etc, I was at the in-laws, and it was… perfect.

Since the visit, I’ve reflected on the experience, wondering why I enjoyed it so much. 

The weather, like most of the Midwest, was a mixture of oppressive heat + humidity.

Our entertainment consisted of random conversations with Wimbledon in the background (tennis bores me), a Simon and Garfunkel concert on TV (Art G is underrated), and setting up a new PC (we were replacing a 10+ year old HP with a disc drive and Windows 95).

So, what is it that makes visiting the in-laws such an enjoyable experience?

It’s the relationship I’ve developed with them over the last 25 years.  

They make us feel welcome and loved from the minute we step through the door until we back out of the driveway to go back home. 

We don’t need a packed agenda because they’ve created an environment where we all enjoy simply being around one another. 

More importantly, they’ve played an unbelievably important role in the lives of my kids, helping to shape them in numerous ways.

Friends, life is short – cherish the relationships that matter most.

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—CJ McClanahan

Speaker | Advisor | Recovering Overachiever

CJ McClanahan