Other than a little rain early this afternoon, we still haven’t gotten the rain and storms that were forecast for most of the weekend; but that did still mean changing our camping adventure plans. The good news was that the Arrows were able to play their game against the Tornadoes, and we – the kids and teens – were still able to have our campfire while our favorite adults were at the Pub party.
The good and bad news in baseball – for the Arrows – was that they won the game fifteen to ten, but that wasn’t by enough to get into the Championship match. There were a few disappointed Arrows players, including Aunt Leanne, but I think that Mom and Dad are just as happy that they won’t be playing next weekend. That will make it a bit less hectic for them next Sunday.
I should back up to this morning.
Mom and Aunt Leanne both ended up spending some time on the phone after breakfast, and their tentative plans were only changed for what the older kids and teens would be doing instead of camping. The majority of parents decided to leave it up to their own kids to work out sleepover plans instead of saddling Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne with a house full of teens. The campfire at our house was still tentatively approved, weather permitting, and by lunchtime; Mom had four babysitters and fourteen kids booked for the night at our place.
Would you like a guess as to whether I was drafted for the guest bedroom and bathroom cleaning crew to get ready for the impending sleepover? I didn’t actually expect that yesterday’s yard work would get me off the work schedule for today, but cleaning the entire third floor – except for Violet’s room – kept me busy all morning. While I was doing that, Dad and Violet made a grocery store and bakery run to pick up extra supplies for everything from snacks and drinks for tonight to enough food for a major breakfast on Sunday. We all pitched in after lunch to get the second floor ready, including an extra cot in Ehlana’s room so she could have Naomi and Sophia Bassett in her room tonight.
I was set free after that, and met up with Rowen to hang out together for the rest of the afternoon. We didn’t really play much, but by dinnertime, we had her overnight bag packed and in my room; had gone for a walk with Ethan and Ehlana; and went swimming with them at home after a little side trip for Emporium ice cream treats. The outdoor parts of our afternoon had been after the couple of little rain showers, and there were heavy clouds in the sky almost all day; but the sun was out for a while when we had dinner with Mom, Dad, Violet, Aunt Leanne, and Uncle Adam.
Alicia, Erin, and two of their friends were starting their babysitting work after the game, but they both came over to our house just as we were finishing the dinner cleanup; and took custody of Ethan and Ehlana when we all went over to the park. That left Rowen and me free to play during the team warm-ups, but we were back at the ball diamond in time to get our cheerleading squad ready to go. Ehlana and Naomi were helping us as usual, but we had extra support tonight from some of the other girls that were going to be at our house for the sleepover; and Violet, Alicia, and Erin all helped us too.
The game was fun despite the fact that our team’s season is over now. There was a party at Sheldon’s or a campfire for all of us to get to, and we weren’t at the park for long after the game ended. We had quite a gang coming home with us, though not even a third of the kids and teens we had around the campfire by the time Jake, Stephanie, and Dillon joined us after the Inn closed for the night. Mom and Dad were only home long enough to get the fire started and get showered and dressed up for the party, and then Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne picked them up; and the back yard party kicked up a notch or three.
By then, all of the kids staying at our house were there, and the teens were joining the campfire in waves of small groups. Rebecca, Jenny, and the girls that were staying at the Stone’s house tonight came over shortly after the fire was lit, and Michael and Tim came with them. The boys had been invited to stay at our house, but had decided to stay at Michael’s house instead. I’d say there was a direct connection between that decision and having a house full of Rebecca’s and Stephanie’s friends doing a sleepover at their house too.
Yes, Aunt Leanne, I do know that you were behind that offer to the boys. Cut it out!
I suppose it’s time for some scary observations from the campfire – which is still going on for most of the teens as I sit in the window alcove with Rowen and write this.
Jenny’s heart seems to be on the mend faster than Rebecca’s is if tonight is any indication; and there were a couple of boys around the campfire tonight who were happy about that. That could make things a bit strange next weekend when Martin’s here, but we’ll see what happens. Rebecca looked like she was having fun, but she wasn’t really paying any attention to the boys who were trying to impress her. Alicia and Erin had boys vying for their attention too, but unfortunately for the guys, they were far too busy keeping up with their kids tonight. I will give bonus points to them for helping out with the younger boys – including Ethan and Aiden. They even managed to do that without seriously damaging their reputations!
Speaking of reputations, Michael earned some points tonight too – from most of the guys and at least two girls – when he ended up playing guitar for the campfire until Jake took over. I knew he could play, but I didn’t know that he’s nearly as good as Jake already.
You can stop grinning like that, Aunt Leanne. Yes, I was impressed, but the girls I was referring to above were classmates; and Vanessa was all but tethered to Michael from the time she got to the campfire until she and Nora decided that they needed to go home too when Michael and Tim left.
Anyway, while Michael and Jake took care of most of the music, there were also campfire stories that started out mild while the younger kids were still awake, and moved on to scary as the toddlers, and then the rest of the kids were taken to bed. Rowen and I came up to my room to help with Jessica Bassett and Lindsay Faulkner, but ended up having a pair of sleepover buddies in the lounge; and we didn’t get back to the campfire at all after spending nearly an hour getting the girls settled and sleeping.
It was after midnight by then, and there were mostly just teens left at the campfire anyway, so we got changed; turned out the lights; and have been watching and listening to the action around the campfire while having a little computing and girl talk time. I’ve actually been doing most of the talking, and Rowen’s been a lot quieter than usual. I know why, but we can’t really talk with Jessica and Lindsay nearby; a house full of guests; and a gang of teens in the back yard.
Let’s just say that my best friend is showing symptoms of something we’re both trying to avoid; she’s annoyed with someone specific; and that it’s probably a very good thing that we aren’t allowed to use our special abilities to deal with things like that. Mandy must know something too, since she’s been extra-cuddly with Rowen. I’m sure we’ll get around to talking about this soon, but for tonight, I’ll just go with extra hugs, and keep talking; since that’s all that Rowen seems to want right now.
I’m going to wrap this up now, but we’ll likely sit here in the alcove for a while unless the campfire breaks up soon. If anything else newsworthy happens later, I’ll add it to my journal tomorrow.
Live from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!
