Larks and Golf tourney

We kicked off the weekend by sending Ainsley to Grandma's house! We had big plans and I'm not saying that Angry Ainsley would have weighed us down but we had things to do and limited time/ability/attention spans to do it! 

It was a weird weather week - we've had rain/downpours/thunder storms (much to G's concern) often this summer. Overall it's been very temperate and pleasant - probably the best I can remember in a long time. We also showed the kids how to pick and harvest the peas. I attempted to trellis them this year... my trellises were too short. Try again next year. 

Saturday night we had Lark tickets... now Matt and I have had some lengthy conversations... he thought we should get a family package but I was concerned that it may be too much for attention spans. I would hate to invest the money and leave totally irritated after 2 innings because they're BORED (their words, not mine). We had a friends give us 4 tickets... so it worked out perfectly. We did stay the entire game but they aren't quite ready. G tried for a bit and Eleanor was just their to wolf down popcorn... like her life depended on it. We'll try again in 2 years. 

Sunday was the parent child alternating shot golf tournament. I was expecting a fun filled day of swings and tries... I underestimated the amount of dads at said event that appeared to be trying out for the PGA tour. Matt paired with Eleanor, I paired with Grady. I was happy with how they played and I was 50% on my own game. However due to waiting for the "pros" to launch onto the greens from their child's tee shot it was a lot of waiting around for greens to clear. I was sad that the kids were frustrated and antsy and I was frustrated and exasperated. G had a few good drives at the end and Eleanor had a few chips. I was proud of my husband that he realized it wasn't about his game but getting them to take shots, get contact, and advance the ball. G could tell that I was tense so there he would tell me that he loved me and pet my arm... bless him for understanding me and trying. 

Later that afternoon Eleanor had her BFF's birthday party at raging rivers - she had a ball and it made my heart happy to see. 

In other news, Ains has been working on a few projects at school. She was 
very excited to show me her flamingo. As we approach the fall, I'm nervous about her being alone at preschool and do not want to revert to the separation anxiety we overcame from the daycare closures. 

Also... if you happen to run into Matt, ask him about his cooler... he just got... which he informs me will be a benefit to the whole family... and also help us make trips to Trader Joe's.... I'm going to hold him to it... all of it. 

Boat. Gracie's first. River Run.

 So Matt finally got the boat out and running... it's been collecting rainwater for quite some time but it's been hard with the kids and all the activity and the stuff. So he spent a day getting it sea worthy - and the kids were excited at first... and then it took too long. They can only vacuum and turn the wheel until it irritates him so much.

MJR begins pulling boat to front driveway.
G: I'm going to go tell my sisters.
Runs awkwardly to backyard, yelling: DAD'S GETTING THE BOAT OUT.
Yelling continues: DAD'S GETING THE BOAT OUT.
Yelling continues but is getting further away: DAD'S GETTING THE BOAT OUT.
MJR: Grady! Get up here and put blocks under the wheels so it doesn't roll away!
Yelling continues, uninterrupted, unphased: DAD'S GETTING THE BOAT OUT.

The next day, they took it out to run it around a bit. Matt wanted a quiet lake that they could open up on. He said they had a blast and luckily everyone understood that this was a driving time, not a fishing time. 

MJR prepping fishing poles.
Ains grabs her pole and begins to run out of the room. In this movement, catches MJR in the face with the edge of her line.
MJR: AINS! Watch your pole! 
Ains (singsong): Whoopsie daisy

The following weekend, given the success of the maiden voyage - they all went out fishing. Matt wanted to put them on some crappie or blue gill and basically plug and play. Luckily everyone understood that this was a fishing voyage, not a drive time and the lake didn't allow wake. They came home with one less fishing pole and 15 little fish. 

That evening, we celebrated our niece, Gracie's first birthday. It's so funny watching babies grow. You look for different things with each child. I know it's easier for me to observe given where I'm at in life and knowing what I know. The first birthday is a giant milestone in parenting life and I'm proud of my sister for getting there - it's hard and each day you struggle and each day you say good bye to independent life and those little people are wonderful and bright and make you laugh but also question everything in a swoop. I was excited to see our kids excited for her... especially as it can be hard to celebrate other people's birthdays. 

Ains: Why does Baby Grace get her own cake?
ALR: It's her first birthday, when you turn one you get a cake all to yourself.
Ains: Well I think she should share.
ALR: You didn't share your first birthday cake.
Ains turns and walk away: Nobody asked - I would have shared.

The following day we made a river run - this is probably one of my favorite things to do in the summer. We started doing this a couple years ago and have near about perfected it. We load up all the things we need - head down to "the dessert" aka Kimball Bottoms and within 25 minutes we are set up for the day. We pop up a tent, blow up floaties - rope and stake them, get sand toys, drop coolers... we usually have a lunch and snacks and everyone for a couple hours plays - no fights, no scraps, and it's wonderful. And the weather was grand for it... hot and made dipping legs in and dropping in wonderful. 

Other happenings of the week ... baseball, golf, and tennis... we are coming to the close of those as well but it's hard to believe summer is half over. 

PA: Part 1 - the family stuff

 Earlier this year, Matt and I had a big discussion about our family. This was after we had said good bye to another of my grandparents. The result of the conversation recalculated our family vacation plans - we both decided it was important for Matt to spend some time with his last remaining grandparent and also introduce our kids to him and him to our kids. So off we went to PA. We also decided it was important to have a multigenerational approach to this so Matt's mother could be a part of the conversation. 

There we were at 5 AM, waking the kids up with Grandma and Grandpa, to tell them that we were going to Pennsylvania and going by plane - first time for some (E flew when she was 4 mo old and says she remembers it - Who am I to question her). I had already packed their clothes, packed busy bags, packed water bottles, packed shoes, packed stuffies, packed pens, hopes, dreams, and anything else so all they needed to do was wake their "happy" selves up and get on the plane. They were excited and it was fun to see their anticipation. 

After switching planes in Minne, we arrived - got a rental and headed out of town directly to Judy's. We had sheet pizzas that night with wings. We were crashing in the camper while at Judy's.

Our first day involved a trip to Grandpa Dave's. Matt helped with a house project and the kids fell in love with the creek - walking, exploring, and hunting for crawfish. Cousin Liam came with us - he is about 2 years older than Eleanor. They played quite a bit over the week. The other creek that gave them a ton of fun was the one behind Judy's house. That night after a fireworks run, we all had italian hoagies. 

On Saturday, we did a Independence Celebration of sorts - East Coast style - meaning clams. We had clam chowder and stemmed clams - completely new concepts to my kids. It was also a bit weird convincing them to have soup when it was 80 degrees, with 875% humidity but it was very tasty and I was proud that each of my children tried it. E seemed to like the clams well and we ate until we exploded - mostly because 800 clams had been purchased. We watched fireworks that night - Chris and Judy don't take the 4th lightly... they got the big booms. Memories were made!

The next day we went to Steamtown - a national park dedicated to trains. We even went on a steam train ride that went through the town a bit and by a beautiful water bed. We also went through the museum, including a round house and some cars. I liked the mail car the best and I also was fascinated by the hobo culture surrounding train life. The kids' favorite part was either the ride or ringing the train bell - depending on when you ask. 

We had Texas weiners at a Coney Dog place in downtown Scranton. We also are dealing with E's ability to read a menu - there's no getting things slide by her anymore. We headed to Natalie and Matt's house - Natalie is Matt's cousin, she's a bit older than we are but the two were thick as thieves growing up and it was fun to hear them chum. Our kids paired up with their girls pretty quickly, making it easy to chat with the grown ups. 

The next day, us 5 headed to the Lackawanna Coal Mine Tour - this had been Matt's idea and I was mildly interested but upon completion, it was fascinating. I really enjoyed it. You go a quarter mile underground and then the tour is a mile through the mile and then they drag you back to the surface. It's a hour in totality. I would have enjoyed it even more if I hadn't been responsible for lugging the 30lb whine ball. See, when you go underground the temperature is consistent - 50ish degrees. It was 90 degrees above ground with 327% humidity but underground it was pleasant - unless you were Ainsley. Our children (in tanks and shorts) were too cold and the smallest one was freezing. With the low ceilings, I thought it was best if I carried her so they both didn't crack their head on the rock ceilings. The interesting parts to me were the child labor situations and the operations of the mine - including the contracting, the safety, the hauling... Our guide was fantastic too. 

Afterwards we went for ice cream and that night we went to Uncle David and Aunt Liz's. They've always been good to us and they have a beautiful family. It was good to meet brand new baby Cameron as well as hear Paige (their middle child) stories as Matt thinks Ains and Paige have the same streak in them. Our kids couldn't decide what they liked more... the chickens, the pool, or the berry picking!

G upon landing in Philly: This is my favorite part!

Ains leaving David and Liz's after 9:30: You are wasting my bedtime.

8 years, weather change, breakfasts out

We celebrated a wedding anniversary. Matt and I joke often that we aren't the people we married. Meaning, he's not the man I married and vice versus - I'm not the woman he married. But to get deep in thoughts quick, we really aren't. Life has changed us. Kids have changed us. The world has changed us. We communicate differently, we have different triggers, different pet peeves, and styles or preferences. But here's where it gets important - we have grown together and instead of holding on to that person that we once were, we have accepted and cherished it. I can't expect him to be the boy I fell in love with and to be honest, I love that man I'm married to in a whole different way, one that is deep, true, forgiving, and playful. He is my person. He is my support system. He answers my call, loves me in spite of my flaws and sassitude, and makes me smile every single day. I think of the children that we are raising together and I've hoped for many things for them... hoped they are kind, tenacious, find happiness, and I continue to want those things for them but probably more than anything I hope that they find and receive love like I have/get from their father. 

We celebrated 8 years together pretty lowkey - we got things that we enjoy, pretzel bites, mussels, sushi, fish dip, and cooked them up together with the kids. As I sipped some great cider and listened to their laughter and chatter I realized that little circle, that I was a part of, was the best thing in my life.  

The week creeped by for the most part - we went on a bike ride. We did the school scene. We had the last hot day of the year (we are guessing). We put on suits and had one shot at the river/dessert - the chill cut a bit more in the air than it had in the past but that didn't stop them from having fun. 

We had some breakfasts out too - Saturday was at the zoo, Sunday was at the airport. Saturday night we headed to Wes and Kristi's for a potential final smore of the season. That was after a day of cleaning - Matt and I went through the garage and worked to organize. There were a lot of things that went out to the curb - which was intentional as it was powwow weekend. We were able to get rid of a TON of things and it felt good to clean a bit more out. 

EER: How do you spell "Free"?
Thinking he heard her wrong, MJR: Free or three?
EER: Free, like grab what you want? F - R - E - E?
MJR: Free, yes, very good!
ALR: Did you see that out on that table?
EER: Yes.
ALR: Good reading!

Grady drawing a family pic.. in order from top (L-R): Matt, me, Lola, Grady, Eleanor, and Ainsley (Green one with less hair) We are at the river.