Where We Used To Live

Getting my kids back to Buckley was tricky. Gene now has a work schedule and it's prone to change at the drop of a hat or a change in the weather. We had planned to be there this week for a few days but it turned into one (fast) day. We had a blast. It was my most favorite visit back there ever. (It might even have beaten my Christmas visit, where Jennifer suggested I stay on with the kids and I ended up getting hooked on the TV show "Intervention"... I barely left her couch for 3 days!)

We set off by 7:30, Bay stayed awake the whole way there. It was already 75* when we got there at 10:00 a.m. and it rose through the day to close to 90. (Obviously WAY to hot for me....) So much fun though. Jennifer and I spent the day by their pool talking and catching up. Alisa stopped by with Corbin and he and Bay played and splashed each other in various stages of undress. Neither of them took the slightest bit of notice of each other's bits.

All the kids played. Haley and Neil bellowed. Gene and Nick alternately skulked around like irritable teenagers or horsed around in the pool like 9 year olds. Gus was in the pool most of the day. This was a HUGE surprise. He usually hates the water, but he explained his "cure" to Jennifer in six words : "by the magic of Lake Crescent". Apparently, he got over his fear of water by playing in the lake! He was doing running jumps into the water and attempted the back flip repeatedly.

Jennifer has the same amazing sense of humor. Life seems so uncomplicated with her outlook. She manages to say things that make you realise she could be a stand up comic. Irreverent, sarcastic, dark, witty and observant... she's got the humor thang down.

All the kids were sad leaving. The day went way too fast, but I promised them that we'd come back in two weeks and stay a few days. I was pretty exhausted from all the noise and poolside action so I was actually quite happy to get in the car, turn the A/C on full blast and just drive in the quite. (It was very quiet.... everyone was tired.)

We stopped at Lisa Bosselmann's on the way home and the day only got better. The kids played, we ate dinner (although I had fed mine drive-through on the way there and told them NOT to arrive at Lisa's complaining of being "hungry". But apparently all that swimming rendered them STARVING...) Sat around there chatting. Lisa and I don't get to talk very much at ALL anymore since she is in school now, so that made that visit even more special. (I'm sounding much more gushy than usual... (almost maudlin) but it really was a great day from start to finish!!!) Bay had a "makeover" from Claire and she is still admiring her "toe nailish" three days later! By the time we got in the car Neil was in full-blown sunburn mode. I do this EVERY year to one of my kids.....

I have got to get my eyes checked because driving home from Gig Harbor in the dark made me realise that I have dreadful, CRAP, awful night vision.

Home just after midnight. Advil-ed Neil. Drank some water. Snuggled up with Trent and Bay.

Fourth Of July

6 Tents. 6 Dogs. 12 Adults. 19 kids. (10 Girls, 9 Boys.) 1 Grandma. 5 Dozen Doughnuts. 3 Dozen Ears of Corn. 7 ipods. One Bathroom.

Our house may still be lacking in almost everything that could make the weekend a success but we had a blast. (In the words of Jim Turnipseed "oh my God! what a blast I had in Seattle".) The families do not get together the way we used to when the kids were little. Lisa packs her two every year and heads (by plane) to be with family and that's how we used to be. Now months go by and although we all talk all the time, we don't get to hang out the way we'd like. We are holding on to our twice yearly get-togethers... Fourth of July and Thanksgiving. No matter how cliched it is our kids are growing up way too fast. Gene is the eldest kid at 14 and Aoife is the youngest at 18 months. We hit every age and stage in between. Our collective experience should mean we've got this child rearing thing all figured out, but we're all just muddling along jerry rigging and adjusting, three steps forward, one back. We are right on the brink of having a large mix of non-related teen aged boys and girls and that sure will be interesting. We can try to keep up the pretence that they are all related but I'm pretty sure that we aren't going to get away with it.

Gus was the only casualty of the weekend (surprisingly...???!!!) when the hatchback of my car was opened and he got smacked above the eye, splitting the skin open (in that spot nearly where nearly everyone has a scar, and Gus now has three). Terry and Lisa stuck him back together with superglue. There's a joke in there someplace........

Trent made Mojotos for everyone until he got bored sometime around Saturday afternoon and resigned as barman. (He won't be hired next year.)

I'm already making plans for next year's event. I've promised everyone at least ONE more bathroom.

The Bossellsmans Visit

The Bossellmans are like cousins. In fact all the kids in each family have at some point mentioned the other family as "cousins"... Lisa, Terry and I encourage the myth cause it's so damn cute... and we are damn good as a family.