We’re taking a chance on when or if the
rain will come overnight or in the morning and having our first camping
adventure of the cousins’ vacation. It’s
been a fun, lazy play day; with a touch or three of tween and teen weird here
and there to make the day fairly interesting.
This will be out of order for the day, but
first up on the tweird list was having Dawn and Jillian discovered by the local
boys – and two of them in particular.
The fact that they’re getting noticed isn’t a surprise, but when one of
the boys in question is Vanessa’s younger brother; that definitely rates fairly
high on the tweird scale for me. Vanessa
will likely think so too, if she hasn’t heard that Tommy, and his best friend,
Julian Sparks, were hanging out around us pretty much every chance they got
today. Dawn and Jillian seemed to be
happy enough with the attention; though they haven’t decided whether they’re
interested in hanging out with Tommy and Julian or not.
While we did pretty much have a play day
all day, Michael, Tim, Rowen, and I also had Ethan, Ehlana, and all of the
younger cousins with us too; so there was a fair bit of supervision involved
too. It was also really hot today, so in
addition to the biking, playground time, and exploring; we also went swimming a
lot and had two Emporium ice cream runs to help us keep cool. Rebecca played with us quite a bit, and Jenny
was with us too; but she and Jonathan spent most of their time together, and
they weren’t all that interested in playing with the younger kids. They’re both camping with us tonight too, but
again, Rebecca is helping out with younger cousins – including Sophia and
Jessica; while Jenny and Jonathan are pretty much off in their own world
tonight. Since they do have tent mates,
I’m sure they’ll get to their own tents eventually; but they’re not there yet
as I’m writing this.
In addition to our play time, we also had
lunch together at our house and a barbeque dinner here too – though that meal
was pot luck; and most of the grandparents, aunts, and uncles pitched in to
supply the food. I didn’t have to help
with that work, or the clean-up; but I was on the campground set-up crew and
had ongoing kid control before, during, and after dinner. Michael and Tim had their ball practice
tonight after dinner; so we took the kids to the school playground to keep them
entertained for another hour or so; and then we all went for a long swim until
it was nearly dark and we could start our little campfire.
We’d collected extra kids and teens by
then, and while some, like Naomi and Aiden, were staying overnight; most were
just hanging out for the swim, campfire fun, and the snacks and drinks. Michael and I were in charge of the musical
side of the campfire entertainment, and then we let Tim and some of the other
teens take care of the scary stories. We
also skipped most of the rest of the campfire after eleven too because we put
all of the younger kids into their tents then; and stayed nearby to keep an eye
on them – or deal with any late night toddler issues.
The mid-range kids – Jaimie, Kaitlyn, and
Kara; along with all of the pre-teens joined us at the tents by midnight. Rebecca came with them, but Rowen, Tim, Dawn,
and Jillian stayed at the fire pretty much until it was nearly out – even after
the other teens went home for the night.
Jenny and Jonathan had gone for a walk by then, and while I’m wishing
that Michael and I had a bit of alone time tonight too; I don’t really need to
know what they’re up to while off on their own.
I did almost miss adding in the cameo
appearance at the campfire from Jake, Stephanie, Violet, Dillon, Christina, and
Josiah; but their visit was fairly short – and mostly to say goodnight to the
younger kids before they went to bed.
Since we’re camping, Dillon’s staying overnight with Violet, though I
don’t think that whether we’re in the house or not matters anymore; since they’ve
apparently crossed that bridge in Woodvale now.
Moving along, once we had some more
support, going for another swim was an option for Michael and me; so we did
that and then wrapped up our night with some cuddle time and chat with Rowen,
Tim, Rebecca, Dawn, and Jillian before we were all ready to turn in for the
night. We’re tentatively planning a
canoe to the whirlpool adventure tomorrow with a six and up age limit; but that
plan might change depending on the weather.
There’s a lot that I haven’t covered from today, starting with Tai Chi
and breakfast to all of the play time details; but it’s been a long, hot day;
and I’m tired out, so that’s all I’ve got for tonight. Day One of the cousins’ vacation hasn’t
exactly been best-ever for them; but they are all having fun; so I’d say we’re
doing pretty good so far – and the fun is really just getting started. I’m going to need what sleep I can get to be
ready if we do paddle out to the whirlpool and back, though; so, until next
time...
...Live long and prosper, fellow Magi of
the Light!
