Travis and Anne's Shindig

Travis got married in January on the west coast. His family threw an east coast reception for him this weekend.

Of course, Shane and I attended! 

The reception wasn't until the afternoon, so I'd hoped to connect with some other people. Nothing panned out and John was even working during the reception. Bummer! That meant a quieter morning of chores before we left (I'm sure Carrie really appreciated it!).

Shane and I started up north listening to Space Case by Stuart Gibbs. We arrived a little before the party, so I had Shane sign us in.

ADHD moment: There were fire trucks active across the street. We'd passed a station on the way in. I was really curious, but eventually party people came! Priorities!

Travis and his wife, Anne, arrived with Travis' younger boys, Brayden and Noah. Ryan wasn't there.

I pushed Shane to greet the kids. The boys all acted like they didn't quite remember each other. I hadn't realized it'd been so long since they had played! (Our summer 2019 meetup hadn't worked out.)

Once Noah and Shane started talking video games they bonded again. I pushed Shane to include the young cousin in glasses (like Cole's!) and he at least greeted him, too.

It was a Mexican food themed reception. I approved! Shane really wanted to try a La Croix strawberry pineapple flavored water thing while I grabbed a water bottle.

Can you guess who finished my water bottle and who got stuck with the can?

I was glad Shane came with me. Frankly, I felt alone. None of our old crew made it but me. John was working, Bill was in NJ, Dan in Vegas, Matt has a new son, and I don't know if Travis kept up with Landstreet, Cooley, or Chris and his brother. I knew some of Travis' extended family in passing, but the brother I knew the most, Ron, wasn't there yet and without assigned seating it looked like everyone parked with their families.

Travis had a lot of people he needed to talk to, so I focused on helping the boys connect. Once Shane got some food in him, I suggested inviting kids to the playground. He balked at first, but it seemed like Travis' mother heard me and liked the idea.

The three older boys hit the playground. Two younger boys followed soon after.

There was roaring, play fighting, and Shane turned into a zombie. Some of the play fighting had me a little on edge, but it soon became clear they were all having fun and no one was using excessive force.

Shane managed to scare the liver out of me and the other dad keeping an eye on things. He climbed up on the roof of the play structure. I called for him to get down, because I didn't want him setting a bad example for the other kids. He was taking his time and only half-obeying me, so I started a real slow count (I didn't want to rush-rush him just in case).

Shane slipped.

He was sitting on his butt, slid off the green roof, and it looked like he launched himself into a swan dive. His leg hit the yellow pole and I think an arm did as well, but he fell all the way to the mulch. 

For a split second I was in disbelief. The other dad ran through the gate while jumped the fence. Shane got up by the time I was halfway there and I had him sit on a swing while I checked him out. He'd have a nice bruise on his leg, but there didn't seem to be an emergency.

I probably either had a few hairs turn gray or fall completely out. Does my hairline look further back? 

Shane was sufficiently recovered to stand in line for cake. He was running around like nothing had happened soon enough while I had a mild tension headache. 

I praised Shane for having the wits to fall forward instead of backward. He was able to use his limbs on the way down and landed on hands and knees. I told him he was a great climber, but this was a lesson that even great climbers need to be careful! The risk is partly what makes it fun, but it's not fun to get hurt so do it right!

Shane wasn't the only kid to eat cake. There was a lot of running and screaming going on down the church hallway. Lots. A parent came by and told the kids to stay out of any rooms and then disappeared back into the reception.

The dark hallway was plenty of fun. Shane was a zombie again. He's got a pretty convincing zombie walk for a kid who's never seen a zombie movie! 

I try to be a laissez faire parent while paying attention in these situations. I would stand just around the corner so I could hear, but be out of sight. Then I'd walk around every now and then to get eyes on things. I want Shane to be able to function without a shadow and I wasn't too worried since there was one older teen playing with all the kids. It turned out she was just a really tall 12 year old!

Eventually, some of the mothers started to wander out and check on things. They went into the mix to moderate instead of hanging back like I had done. None of them knew me, so I'm not even sure they realized I'd kept at least somewhat of an eye on things. 

We'd been there for nearly three hours and the reception was winding down when Travis came out to play with the kids some. He joked and poked while the kids laughed. Ron came up next and showed Shane a "magic trick" (Snap with the right hand while your left hand puts the quarter away...Presto!).

We left after hanging around about 3.5 hours. Travis and Shane bowed to each other and both made some karate sound effects before we left. "He's funny!" Shane said.

It was a lot of driving (nearly 5 hours) for a short stay, but it was worth it for a unique event. Travis was happy we'd been able to make it and I hope to get the boys together again before another year goes by!

We took 95 home instead of the usual route. We made it home in time for horse chores and bed! (I think Carrie put Shane to bed and only I did horse chores, though!).

Congratulation, Travis and Anne! May your marriage be a blessing to each other, your kin, and all who meet you.

Bonus Day Up North

I felt a little guilty. Shane and I had a phenomenal day yesterday while Carrie's horse fun was rained out. Carrie decided to relocate Nibs and spend Sunday at Sonya's, so Shane and I found ourselves at Jama's another night.

Our sleep was interrupted when Jama came in at 3 AM. Ed had fallen in the bathroom and she was going with him to the hospital to make sure he was alright. Jama said they didn't get back until 6:30 AM, but she still called us at 8 AM to make sure we were coming up for breakfast!

Shane and I went to our old church in Chantilly and then had Subway for lunch (Shane picked). 

We were killing time until we could meet up with John!

I hooked Shane up on Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes (A very fun little game I once wrote off and then discovered years later to my delight). He mostly entertained himself, but called me over to help and witness what was going on intermittently.

John and I set out to learn and play a game of Blood Bowl.

We nerded out for the next three hours or so. John's orcs (who don't pass) ground their way to a score in the first half (with a pass they don't do). I learned that I could throw to empty space instead of players and manage to throw a long bomb to nowhere in the second half. I picked the ball up for a touchdown to tie the game before we called it. John won the moral victory when we figured out we'd been not giving him the strength advantage when defending blocks and one of my players was down and out for good.

Jama couldn't believe that we found the game and all it's rules fun.

Our final stop on the way out was Travis'. I'd left my phone charger there day 1. John had been at work and unable to see Travis Friday, so he joined us.

Travis hooked Shane up on an emulator, so that we could talk.

And so we could game! I brought out 5-Minute Marvel. I got so excited about playing with old friends that I started to rush through the rules. I realized I was fast-talking even as I did it (I'm clearly where Shane gets the excitability issues from even though I mostly control it nowadays).

Shane and I didn't get home until 9:40 PM (we stopped for gas and a burger). Thankfully, Carrie didn't get home until 9:30 PM, so there was no issue!

I've needed this break from work. It's been great seeing everybody.

Oops. We drove there again.

John was like, "Don't bother coming up for board game day. It'll probably suck." 

I replied, "Are you kidding? Shane and I are looking forward to seeing you! Get ready, because we're coming!"

The only problem was I needed somewhere to go in the morning Shane could play. John was working, Megan was out of town, Matthew and Renee were swamped, and Ken and his kids were on vacation. 

Luckily, Travis and his boys were around! I've tried to meet up with Travis a few times over the summer, but the schedules never fit. Today, it happened. It's been years since the boys have seen each other. 

There was Minecraft, so there was no shyness. A controller was handed to Shane and the kids got right to it.

Travis and I talked and watched. I was really impressed when the kids built a minecart roller coaster while my attention was turned. There was a huge ramp that went through lava, curved underground, hit speed boosts, and a ramp!

Shane did not want to leave. He started to throw a fit when I told him it was time to go. He was overstimulated to the extreme!

But leave we did. The original point of coming up was to help John with his club and bolster his spirits! Never leave a friend in need! Especially one as true as John. 

Shane got hooked up on the Switch with Shovel Knight when we arrived.

There was a much lower turnout this time. Four adults (including John) were playing a game about Disney villains called Villainous. There was a teenager, Pablo, looking at a game called Roll Player I've been curious about, so I introduced myself and said, "Let's roll!" 

We ended up playing a couple of different games. It was a good thing I showed up, or he would have had to wait for the first game to end to get into the next (assuming he stayed).

Hopefully, the low turnout was a fluke due to it being the end of summer. The hope is that the club will be self-sustaining.

John showed off some of the terrain he's been working on for Adeptus Titanicus.

I played some Mario Kart with Shane while we waited for John to get off work. I haven't lost the touch.

I would have finished 1st in the first game we played if Shane hadn't nuked me from last place with a spiked shell!

I worked it out, so that John would come with us to visit Travis on our way out. We all go way back. I want to keep bonds intact and it'd be nice if those two found ways to meet up during the week.

John promised that the quality of the quarter pounders had gone up at MacDonald's so we stopped there for dinner. "I don't know what they were making their burgers with before, but they promise it's real beef now," John said. "And it's not half bad."

I think the touch screen ordering, while a novelty, made things go slower. The light up tables were cool, though! I had to scrub it down, and noticed the lights changed colors. Shane was amazed when I pointed it out.

I was amazed at how he could zone out on the TV after having played electronics morning and afternoon.

The sound wasn't even on!

Shane became player three again the moment we hit Travis'.

And John and Travis got right back to it like days of old! We all talked a lot.

We couldn't stay too long. Travis had work to do, John was worn out, and Shane and I had a couple of hours of road ahead of us.

Shane threw a fit again when it was time to leave. He wanted to spend the night at Jama's, so he could play more in the morning with the boys. He was confused when Brayden and Noah told him that they wouldn't be there tomorrow, because they had to go to their mom's. Shane and I talked on the way out about what that meant (Travis and his ex split custody week by week). 

Besides, we had one more stop I wanted to do! Genevieve and Chris lived near Travis!

I didn't know if they were home (or doing married stuff), so we stopped outside and took some pictures before knocking. Carrie was on her computer and phone trying to gauge where they were, so we could surprise them.

Carrie sent Chris the pictures we were taking. He was surprised and popped outside! Genevieve was still driving back from work (I don't miss NOVA traffic).

Shane and I went inside to wait. Oliver, their 'special' cat, took one look at Shane and hissed.

Chris threw the cat in a room and pulled out a 'dubious gift bag.' "It should all be child appropriate," he chortled.

Shane didn't like his first gift.

"You're wearing that the whole way home!" I laughed.

It was an empty box meant as a joke, so Shane got to pull out a different gift after we were done laughing (Shane not so much!). This time he had the perfect pull: A small Mega-man toy.

Genevieve came home shortly thereafter. I loved the space stickers they put up.

Shane asked for a cup of milk. I pointed out the "his and her" swords that "Genevieve and Chris quested with."

The best line of the night came from Shane. We were looking at Gen and Chris' board games and he wanted to play.

"Sorry," I said. "You don't satisfy the age requirements."

"I can satisfy anything!" Shane replied.

He didn't know why we all thought it was so funny, but I'll quote it when he's older! Genevieve promised to tell Carrie if I didn't.

We got back later than planned, but it was a great day! I wish Carrie was built for that sort of road trip with unplanned pit stops, but at least Shane's a good traveling buddy!

Game Mastering

Patrick asked about running another online campaign. I ended up GM'ing for GURPs. So far, it's John, Patrick, Travis, and I. Dan wanted to play as well, but he moved to Lincoln, NE over the weekend!

The hope is we'll play a couple of hours every other Sunday.

It feels good to be creative again. I've been writing up player aides, reviews, and previews while Shane's been cooped up inside. It's nowhere near as fun as being able to be with my friends, but it's what's possible.

I've done more writing for the game than I have for the blog. I'll have to play catch-up later.

Tavisimo

Shane and I went on a side quest today: we visited my "brother from another mother" Travis and his boys!

It was a 45 minute drive in the rain, but we were opposite traffic the whole way. I got to point at the lines of stopped cars for Shane and say "Glad we're not going that way! Hey, look! A garbage truck!"

Travis has three hyper boys: Ryan (10), Brayden (4), and Noah (2). We spent three hours running and rough-horsing around! I was worried that Shane would take his "whole nap" on the drive home, but he was ready to sleep some more when I pulled him out of the car-seat.

Very nice!

I got a few pics of the ensuing hyper-chaos.

Here, all the boys decided to hide under than same blanket on the couch. Why? They're boys. It's like wrestling, but without wrestling. Travis' oldest, Ryan, was good about being gentle and playing with all of the little ones. He took multiple knees to his nuts. Travis had to remind him "You have to protect yourself! Let them know when you're done!"

It was a little rainy/drizzly outside, but there was too much energy to keep everyone inside. Travis served up breakfast for his bunch (Shane got bacon!) and then we all went outside for the next hour.

I love that Shane got a chance to be around a bunch of boys (of all different ages, too!). There are some things you learn in a pack naturally, that an only child doesn't have a clue about.

Number 1: Toughness! Shane is quick to cry, whine, or let you know he's "hurt." Sometimes it's not so much that he's really hurt, it's that he's frustrated and wants an adult to "fix" things.

That doesn't happen in a boy pack! There's no time. You have to keep moving or you'll get left out of the fun. When the boys were wrestling on the couch, Shane punched little Noah straight in the gut. It looked like an accident (Shane was flailing around), but I said "No hit!" Noah shrugged it off and jumped straight back into the pile. No hesitiation. 

When something similar happened, Shane squealed and told me to do something about it! "Daddy! He hitting me! He hitting me!" I said "You're fine! Go play!" My son got with the program after a little while. 

Later, there were times I told him to "Say 'My Turn!'" and to be assertive if someone grabbed something straight out of his hands. We practiced a trade or two, as well.

Number 2: How to play together! Travis' boys were clearly used to playing with each other. Shane couldn't quite climb up the climbing wall until we got Brayden to help pull him up. Later, it took some doing on the dads' parts, we got Shane to hold hands and try to run around with Noah.  Life is more fun if you can share it!

I don't have a picture, but there was cute moment where Noah and Shane both sat in my lap. They wanted me to read a Blue's Clues book to them.

Fun times! I've had a hard time keeping in touch with many of my friends after moving out from my parents. We all live further away, have jobs, and several of us have families. There's not enough time in the day. Travis said that he'd bring the boys to visit us the next time around!