What a wonderful mid-summer vacation to the lake! We spent 4 days at the cabin enjoying warmer-than-average temperatures and refreshing swims in the lake. It was also a trip with a lot of "first times". This was Parker's first time at the lake - something you can see he was very excited about!
After getting over his initial outburst of joy he prompty got back to doing what he does best - smiling, chewing on things, and sleeping. Ainsley's first request after she climbed out of the car was "Nana, can we ride the T?" (that's ATV for those of you who are not well-versed in 'Ainsley-speak'). Last year she was very nervous about the ATV, and she flat-out refused to ride Papa's tractor. Apparently a year makes a huge difference because this time there was no hesitation!
Riding in Nana's Ranger
Helping Papa drive the tractor!
One of many "T" rides with Daddy!
In addition to her newfound interest in riding on things with oversize tires, Ainsley also enjoyed fishing for the first time! Papa helped her with the worms and the hook but she helped bring in those big fish (3 total)! She was a little more interested in watching the fish in the bucket rather than waiting for the bobber to move. I guess patience is something we'll have to work on this year.
One reason we come up at the end of July each year is to celebrate my mom's birthday. Nana was so happy to be able to have both of her grandkids to help blow the candles off the cake!
That's one happy Nana!
The whole family spent some time at the Guest House to clean out some of the sheds and junk under the deck. Parker was a big help, as always.
Last year Ainsley was happy to play by the dock and throw rocks for the dog. This year she is much more confident in her swimming abilities, so she was ready to head out to the float. She helped Mommy and Nana pick lily pads from the path (making a nice salad for her "supper"). It didn't take long until she was climbing the ladder and jumping off, eager to splash whoever was near. That's our little fish!
Lila figured out it's much more fun to float than swim.
The past few years we've tried to do s'mores but it never seemed to work out with the chaos of dinner and bedtime. This year we decided to get the fire going early! Ainsley helped Papa collect sticks and then anxiously awaited her turn to "cook" her marshmallow. Unfortunately she was not as interested in eating it. Instead she picked marshmallows straight from the bag to eat. Oh well - at least she enjoyed the process and the rest of us got to eat the rewards!
This was after her marshmallow fell off into the fire.
Parker got to meet some family and friends for the first time - the Moomeys and Linaberrys (family friends), and Great Aunt Sue, cousin Lauren and Jim, and second cousin Kaitlyn.
The first weekend in August is always one of Susquehanna County's biggest events - the Blueberry Festival! Ainsley and cousin Kaitlyn enjoyed playing games, crafts, and of course, enjoying all things blueberry.
She got a hole-in-one on her first try!
Then she missed a few so Daddy had to step in and coach.
This fishing is MUCH easier!
In addition to riding the Ranger, ATV, and tractor, swimming and jumping, going for walks in the woods, fishing, and making s'mores, she even took a few minutes to enjoy a boat ride with Mommy.
Parker did what he does best - he watched his sister and smiled at her happiness. And he slept.
My baby girl is ELEVEN today!!! She couldn't have a big party, but she sure had a special day. We surprised her with yard signs ( cardmyyard.com ). We released the butterflies into the garden. They hung out on the kids' hands for a while before flying off. Her gift from us was a purple hoverboard - she is so excited! Her neighborhood friends came and secretly decorated the garage for a little party. She was so surprised and loved sharing cake with her best friends. THEN to add even more excitement, two of her best friends from school came for a 'drive-by' socially-distant celebration. She was thrilled to see them drive up - she hasn't seen them in person since March 6, before Spring Break!! Both sets of grandparents gave her a new bike (she will get to go shopping and pick it out herself next week). She has grown so much and is in desperate need of a new bike! My beautiful 11 year old... how time flies!
Things were rolling along quite nicely yesterday (well, not really but let's not get caught up in subtraction regrouping lessons). We were getting ourselves set up for success on this temporary schedule. We were learning things and reading things and writing things and then... the bottom dropped out. The governor announced all schools are closed for the rest of the year. I'm sure all the other parents watching the news conference had the same physical reaction that I did. I felt like I'd been punched in the gut. Tears, anger, disbelief... my poor children. ALL these poor children. When they left for spring break they didn't realize it would be the last time they'd see their friends. The last time they'd see their teachers. Ainsley, in particular, is taking it the hardest. She's missing her last Lower School play. Her last Grandparents Day show. No field day. No fifth grade graduation. No class graduation party. She is heartbroken. The next time she sets
School is out. We're still working. There are no camps. What is there to do? Move to the lake! My parents offered to help watch the kids during the day while we worked, and they were ready for some quality grandkid time. We packed up the whole family - kids, dogs and cat - and moved to the guest house for two weeks. This has been such a great change of scenery for all of us. We would eat breakfast at the guest house each morning, and then the kids would get dressed, pack their backpacks, and ride their bikes to the main cabin to spend the day with the grandparents. My DH and I could work peacefully at the guest house, taking a break to have lunch with everyone. Then after work we can sit outside, help with some chores, and all eat dinner together. During the day the kids have been busy helping Nana and Papa with chores. They spend ALL day outside - exploring in the woods, swimming in the lake, kayaking, fishing, riding bikes (thankfully my parents keep everything and had 3 of
Comments
Post a Comment