Weekend With Dad

Shane and I caught up while Carrie was out. He wanted to watch TV, but I don't like to sit around. I dragged him up to Carter Mountain.

It's not apple season yet, but the view are great.

You can see the building on top of the mountain from all over Charlottesville. Now that we've been there, Shane points and says "I see Carter Mountain!"

It was not the TV he asked for, but Shane will admit he had fun. You can't make whirpools out of rain water on a mountaintop barrel on a couch.

Do you know what the first thing Shane said when we arrived was?

"I smell doughnuts. Can I have some?"

I smelled them, too. That's good marketing. We bought apple cider and apple cider doughnuts.

Not that Shane needed any sugar.

Shane rolled a not-so-round rock up and down a small hill until I dragged him off to our next stop:

Our 'old' apartment.

We've had a lot of foot traffic, but no bites. I think I see why.

The owners decided to do a little construction. From their point of view, it makes great sense. No one is in the house to complain, but we're still locked to pay until July.

Shane enjoyed the wall, at least. He got a final run in.

11:00 AM brought story time at the library. Shane didn't sit for 10 minutes before he wandered off into the stacks.

We made a final stop at a game store and then Big Lots for an alarm clock. Shane would have stayed and played foosball straight through nap if I let him.

I didn't. He needed to nap, and I needed him to nap, too.

We walked the trail after he woke up. Spoiler: he got wet.

Shane has learned that sticks make everything better. Bigger sticks make them better-er.

Sunday was church and running up and down the street. We watched a Jonah Veggie Tales to kill time for an oven delivery (more on that later).

After nap, I took Shane to a local park with a spray station. It was someone's birthday so there were lots of kids around.

Lots of kids and toys.

Shane asked the boy in yellow to fill some balloons up he found with water. The boy obliged! He enjoyed doing it, too. He started to spray his brothers after a bit.

The water was really cold, but I bet it will be awesome when the heat hits.

We hung around the park for a little over an hour to socialize and get some energy out.

I was so proud when Shane tried to run up and push a little boy. He wasn't very good at it. He tried so hard!

We played some Forbidden Desert after we got home. I found it while I cleaned and unpacked.

I also found Frank and Bertha. Shane asked if they could sleep with him Sunday night.

We had a fun weekend! It was not all roses, though. Shane enjoyed to toe the line. We had a few head to heads and heart to hearts. I hope he'll be good for Carrie this week!

Ten days of work to go as I type this. Then I'll get to move down south with my family. It's funny how things get a harder right before the end. Lord, help us all to hang on!

Proof I Got a Girl to Play

I asked Carrie to try an intro game of Descent with me for my birthday. I got to cash in today!

Maybe she'll try another round for Christmas!

Happy Summer Day-Care

I have to convince Shane to come home from day-care. He's quite happy there. Of course, I have to convince him to go in the morning, too. Shane's nothing if not consistent.

The Russian Branch

Nana and Pop are in Russia to help Megan with Baby B. Big B is in Afghanistan. They are a globetrotting family.

I grabbed these pictures off of Facebook.

The playground looks top notch!

Notice Pop's pants. He had to wear identification at all times.

Life is exciting in the State Department.

Megan will have help after Nana and Pop leave. Irina is 55 and will be Baby B's full time nanny. She's transitioning from one State Department family to another.

Nana and Pop will have tons of photos when they return. I wanted to make a quick note here. I can't help it. I think my family is interesting!

Mom-Mom's Funeral

Mom-Mom's funeral/remembrance was this weekend in St. Louis, MO. Carrie woke up at 5:00 AM Saturday to make her flight. It was a life-well-lived and not a sudden tragedy, but I still expect it to be an emotional weekend. Even when someone was ready to go, you know that you will miss them. I'm glad that Carrie took the opportunity to be with her folks and extended family.

Carrie has sent some great pictures home for Shane. I bet it was Grandpa's idea to look at the trains!

If it weren't for the big blue train, I would find it hard to believe they were in a train station.

There are wooden bridges...

...and fish...

...and a mall?!? The sign says "TRAINSHED." Unless, the misspelled "tarnished" I think it's safe to assume this picture was taken close to the blue train earlier.

Grandma and Grandpa love to travel. Travel agency suits them.

This picture actually looked like a train station to me (albeit an incredibly fancy one).

I hope that Carrie's family is enjoying their time together. They should swap stories, celebrate the good memories, enjoy each other's company and pay their respects. I'll add more pictures if Carrie sends them. 

UPDATE: Carrie reported that the trains are decorative and no longer functional. No wonder they looked so clean. No current lines pass through. It's a thematic/historic mall.

Library Summer Challenge

Shane and I knocked this sucker out in a day.

WHOA

I picked up Shane from day-care Friday. He pulled out his snack and asked "Can I eat some crackers?"

"It's dinner time! Let's see what Mommy has planned at home." I buckled Shane in and walked around to my door. "It's only a few minutes away!"

I hopped in and said "I missed you! Did you miss me?" Shane muttered a reply. I turned around to talk a little more. "How was your school day?"

"Gwft." Shane's mouth was full. When did he learn to open wrappers?

"Oh!....You can open those now," I said

"Yupft."

I was part miffed part impressed. I went ahead and rolled with it. We backed out and went home (I got my own pack later).

Kitty Friends

Max has a cat 'friend.' Jackson likes to saunter up and say "Hello." Max plays defense. 

There was a hiss and a loud crash Friday night. I saw why when I reached the dining room.

It went back in easily. One plastic snap is missing, so it could happen again. Maybe Jackson learned not to mess with Max's windows.

Random Work Emails

Text: "Alright this email was sitting in my outbox and JUST sent…how does this happen TWICE in one day?"

My reply:

Morale: Pictures make great snarky responses over email.

I can't wait to find a use for this one:

Full Disclosure

I started to tell kids I am moving. I don't start a conversation with it, but if a question leads into it I give the reveal. One kid told me he was going to wrestle next year and asked if I would still be a coach.