The wet weather moved out of the Ridge River area overnight, and it was nice to see the bright sunshine this morning when Mom and I got up to take care of the twins before going outside to exercise by the river. We were all missing Dad as much as we did every time he was away, and the first morning always seemed the toughest. I tried to spend as much time with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana as I could before needing to leave for school, but it still didn’t seem like very long before Rowen came over to round me up and we headed out for the day.
Sally Reynolds started our day and school week off great by giving Rowen and I invitations to her eleventh birthday party. She hasn’t become a really close friend, but Sally will always have a place on my friends list just for being the first girl at school to invite me to her party after I moved here last year. Her invitation also reminded me that there was a fairly significant anniversary coming up in just under two weeks – two if you counted Mom and Dad’s wedding and my adoption separately. I should definitely talk to Dad about any plans he might have for that weekend; with Aunt Leanne and Grandma to see about doing something special for them too; and we’ll definitely need to set up a date for going shopping.
While thinking about birthdays and anniversaries got the day off to a good start, and Rowen and I did have fun at school, there wasn’t anything else all that exciting going on in our class – just the usual lessons and class work. After school, Rowen and I did our homework first, and then she helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana while I went outside and cut the lawn. Leaving it until the weekend had been an option, but with all of the rain we’d had, that would’ve just made the work on Saturday that much harder – especially if we’d needed to rake the clippings for the whole yard.
Rowen stayed for dinner, and we both helped Mom with the cooking and cleanup before she had to go home. Grandma and Grandpa were our evening volunteers, and they took care of Ethan and Ehlana for a couple of hours while Mom and I did a Magi lesson, and took care of a bit of work on the family business. We did the bedtime story while Ethan and Ehlana had their nine o’clock feeding; with Grandpa telling the story; Dad joining us via Mom's link with him; and me providing the telepathic enhancements and imagery.
Except for writing this, my work for the day was done after that. Grandma and Grandpa are staying until after the midnight feeding, and they sent Mom to bed while they continue to watch Ethan and Ehlana. Since Mom will have to get up for the three o’clock feeding; they’re going to bottle-feed the twins at midnight, and I’ll help Mom nurse Ethan and Ehlana at three instead of the other way around like we’ve usually been doing the night time feedings. The best news there is that Mom and I should both get nearly five uninterrupted hours of downtime; which I’m going to get started on right now!
Monday, September 19, 2011
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Cassie's Journal - Sept. 18, 2011
It’s been another rainy day; though there was at least enough of a break in the weather this morning so I could go outside for my morning Tai Chi. I was hoping to exercise with Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam, but they must’ve decided to skip today, or were busy with Ethan and Ehlana while I was out in Rowen’s back yard. There was an audience of one watching me, but I pretended not to notice the eight-year old, second-floor admirer so he wouldn’t be embarrassed.
Rowen and I helped her Mom to make breakfast, and then we were set free to get ready for church while the boys cleaned up. Mr. Emerson definitely got the worst of that deal; since his two helpers were a fair bit less enthusiastic about their jobs; and he probably ended up doing most of the work. The rain was coming down steadily by the time we left for church; so we drove over, and Rowen’s Dad dropped us off at the front doors before going to find someplace to park. Mom and Dad were already there, and judging by their smiles, I really didn’t want to know what they’d been doing with their night off from kids.
Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne were smiling too when they joined us; and Ethan and Ehlana looked like they’d both had fun and were glad to be reunited with Mom, Dad, and me. After the rounds of hugs and kisses, Rowen and I got to each take care of one of the twins until it was time for us to go to Sunday school with the rest of the kids and teens.
The Emersons had family plans for the afternoon, so I was bff-less for the rest of the day. Dad needed to work in the office, so while he did that, Mom and I did a long Magi lesson with Ethan and Ehlana after lunch. They had an afternoon nap after the mid-afternoon feeding, and I kept Dad company in the office and worked on the family business for a couple of hours. We were meeting Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Leanne, and Uncle Adam at the Inn for the late buffet, so once the twins were up again, I helped Mom with them until it was time to drive over to the Inn.
We were a bit early, and there was a small line-up waiting for tables, but that gave me a chance to go back into the kitchen and visit with Rebecca, Jenny, Dillon, and Jake for a few minutes. Miranda, Jacob, and Stephanie were all really busy, but I did at least get to stop them long enough for hugs before they continued on with their work. Dillon still looked as happy as he’d been at church this morning after spending most of Saturday with Violet. Some of the other guys working with him in the kitchen teased him about hugging me first, but he ignored them, and had wanted to thank me for inviting Violet to come for the Fall Festival weekend. He was even happier when he found out that the invitation had been given full parental approval since the last time he’d talked with Violet.
The buffets are always great, and we all had fun for the hour and a half or so that we were at the Inn. Dad still had a bit of work to get done once we got home again, so Mom and I took care of the inevitable question and answer time with Ethan and Ehlana. They went to sleep after their nine o’clock feeding, so Mom and I both took that opportunity for some quality Jacuzzi time. Dad was finished his work by the time we were finished doing that, and we had our bedtime snack in the kitchen before he and Mom went upstairs so he could pack for his trip and wait for the twins to wake up for their midnight feeding. Mandy and I were sent off to bed, and once I have this archive entry done; I’ll be ready to get some sleep. Mom and I do have lots of help with the twins this week while Dad’s away, but we’re still going to have five very long, busy days ahead of us.
Rowen and I helped her Mom to make breakfast, and then we were set free to get ready for church while the boys cleaned up. Mr. Emerson definitely got the worst of that deal; since his two helpers were a fair bit less enthusiastic about their jobs; and he probably ended up doing most of the work. The rain was coming down steadily by the time we left for church; so we drove over, and Rowen’s Dad dropped us off at the front doors before going to find someplace to park. Mom and Dad were already there, and judging by their smiles, I really didn’t want to know what they’d been doing with their night off from kids.
Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne were smiling too when they joined us; and Ethan and Ehlana looked like they’d both had fun and were glad to be reunited with Mom, Dad, and me. After the rounds of hugs and kisses, Rowen and I got to each take care of one of the twins until it was time for us to go to Sunday school with the rest of the kids and teens.
The Emersons had family plans for the afternoon, so I was bff-less for the rest of the day. Dad needed to work in the office, so while he did that, Mom and I did a long Magi lesson with Ethan and Ehlana after lunch. They had an afternoon nap after the mid-afternoon feeding, and I kept Dad company in the office and worked on the family business for a couple of hours. We were meeting Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Leanne, and Uncle Adam at the Inn for the late buffet, so once the twins were up again, I helped Mom with them until it was time to drive over to the Inn.
We were a bit early, and there was a small line-up waiting for tables, but that gave me a chance to go back into the kitchen and visit with Rebecca, Jenny, Dillon, and Jake for a few minutes. Miranda, Jacob, and Stephanie were all really busy, but I did at least get to stop them long enough for hugs before they continued on with their work. Dillon still looked as happy as he’d been at church this morning after spending most of Saturday with Violet. Some of the other guys working with him in the kitchen teased him about hugging me first, but he ignored them, and had wanted to thank me for inviting Violet to come for the Fall Festival weekend. He was even happier when he found out that the invitation had been given full parental approval since the last time he’d talked with Violet.
The buffets are always great, and we all had fun for the hour and a half or so that we were at the Inn. Dad still had a bit of work to get done once we got home again, so Mom and I took care of the inevitable question and answer time with Ethan and Ehlana. They went to sleep after their nine o’clock feeding, so Mom and I both took that opportunity for some quality Jacuzzi time. Dad was finished his work by the time we were finished doing that, and we had our bedtime snack in the kitchen before he and Mom went upstairs so he could pack for his trip and wait for the twins to wake up for their midnight feeding. Mandy and I were sent off to bed, and once I have this archive entry done; I’ll be ready to get some sleep. Mom and I do have lots of help with the twins this week while Dad’s away, but we’re still going to have five very long, busy days ahead of us.
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Cassie's Journal - Sept. 17, 2011
The good news this morning was that the yard work was called on account of rain. Mom was happy to have us help her with housework until lunchtime instead while she and Alicia helped her with the twins and their usual Saturday work. I cleaned the third floor, and the second floor guest bedrooms and bathroom while Dad took care of the living room, dining room, office, and main floor bathroom. We had lunch shortly after Mom had finished nursing the twins at noon, and then Rowen came over to hang out with Mandy and me in the lounge for the afternoon.
We watched a movie and played until a bit after four, when we found out that I was going to be doing a sleepover at Rowen’s house. Ethan and Ehlana were doing a sleepover too; though they weren’t going over to Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne’s house until after their nine o’clock feeding. Aunt Leanne and Rowen’s Mom had set up the surprise for Mom and Dad so that they could have most of a night off before he’d be away for the week. I had time to pack my bag and make sure that Mandy had everything she needed before Rowen and I walked over to her house; getting there just a few minutes before her Mom and brother got home from the store.
Patrick was going to have Scott Faulkner staying overnight with him, and was sent upstairs to get his room cleaned up – or as Rowen advised me; stuff all of his junk into the closet and hope nobody opened the door. Rowen and I helped out with making dinner for six, and had everything ready by the time that Mr. Emerson got home after closing the store for the day. Dinner conversations at the Emerson’s usually included a large dollop of computer talk.
Now that they were getting into a slow time of year at the store, Mr. and Mrs. Emerson were talking about things they could do to get new business. Building on their one-customer custom computers was one option; though since Rowen's Dad was the only one who could build them right now, they were limited in how much they could do with that. I personally liked their idea for a data center. They already had a small setup that the school, town, and most of the businesses in the Ridge River District used; so it really wouldn’t be all that hard to add capacity for new clients. I might even know exactly where to find a few big customers to help make that work out very well for them!
Patrick was usually very shy whenever I was around, but he and Scott were both fired up tonight, and acting like typical eight-year old boys. Rowen was more annoyed by them than I was, but her parents were able to mostly keep their goofiness to a minimum during dinner; and then the two boys went up to Patrick’s room to play video games while the rest of us watched a chick flick in the living room. They saved their worst for after we all went upstairs to bed, and then they spent more than an hour trying to spy on our bedtime chat and spring pranks and practical jokes on us.
Rowen and I both did a little surfing and emailing on our computers while we sat up in bed talking; and that was when I found out how Violet’s day in Crystal Springs with Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie had gone. They’d done a little shopping, caught the late afternoon matinee, and then gone out for dinner before they all had to head for home. Violet also let me know that Dillon would be going to Woodvale for an overnight visit in two weeks; and when I sent her a reply, I invited her, Dawn, and Jillian to come to Witch Falls for the Ridge River Fall Festival – pending parental approval, of course.
Going back to the junior pranksters, sometimes it’s very tempting for Rowen and I to use our special gifts to deal with things like annoying little brothers and their buddies. They’d likely be less enthusiastic about their tricks after a few creative applications of Transmutation or Telekinesis on, for instance, the rubber snakes and spiders they tried to scare or gross us out with. Speaking of the little troublemakers; they’re back and at it again! Time to wrap this up, since it seems like the only way to stop them from bugging us is to call it a night and go to bed; so that’s exactly what Rowen and I are going to do.
We watched a movie and played until a bit after four, when we found out that I was going to be doing a sleepover at Rowen’s house. Ethan and Ehlana were doing a sleepover too; though they weren’t going over to Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne’s house until after their nine o’clock feeding. Aunt Leanne and Rowen’s Mom had set up the surprise for Mom and Dad so that they could have most of a night off before he’d be away for the week. I had time to pack my bag and make sure that Mandy had everything she needed before Rowen and I walked over to her house; getting there just a few minutes before her Mom and brother got home from the store.
Patrick was going to have Scott Faulkner staying overnight with him, and was sent upstairs to get his room cleaned up – or as Rowen advised me; stuff all of his junk into the closet and hope nobody opened the door. Rowen and I helped out with making dinner for six, and had everything ready by the time that Mr. Emerson got home after closing the store for the day. Dinner conversations at the Emerson’s usually included a large dollop of computer talk.
Now that they were getting into a slow time of year at the store, Mr. and Mrs. Emerson were talking about things they could do to get new business. Building on their one-customer custom computers was one option; though since Rowen's Dad was the only one who could build them right now, they were limited in how much they could do with that. I personally liked their idea for a data center. They already had a small setup that the school, town, and most of the businesses in the Ridge River District used; so it really wouldn’t be all that hard to add capacity for new clients. I might even know exactly where to find a few big customers to help make that work out very well for them!
Patrick was usually very shy whenever I was around, but he and Scott were both fired up tonight, and acting like typical eight-year old boys. Rowen was more annoyed by them than I was, but her parents were able to mostly keep their goofiness to a minimum during dinner; and then the two boys went up to Patrick’s room to play video games while the rest of us watched a chick flick in the living room. They saved their worst for after we all went upstairs to bed, and then they spent more than an hour trying to spy on our bedtime chat and spring pranks and practical jokes on us.
Rowen and I both did a little surfing and emailing on our computers while we sat up in bed talking; and that was when I found out how Violet’s day in Crystal Springs with Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie had gone. They’d done a little shopping, caught the late afternoon matinee, and then gone out for dinner before they all had to head for home. Violet also let me know that Dillon would be going to Woodvale for an overnight visit in two weeks; and when I sent her a reply, I invited her, Dawn, and Jillian to come to Witch Falls for the Ridge River Fall Festival – pending parental approval, of course.
Going back to the junior pranksters, sometimes it’s very tempting for Rowen and I to use our special gifts to deal with things like annoying little brothers and their buddies. They’d likely be less enthusiastic about their tricks after a few creative applications of Transmutation or Telekinesis on, for instance, the rubber snakes and spiders they tried to scare or gross us out with. Speaking of the little troublemakers; they’re back and at it again! Time to wrap this up, since it seems like the only way to stop them from bugging us is to call it a night and go to bed; so that’s exactly what Rowen and I are going to do.
Friday, September 16, 2011
Cassie's Journal - Sept. 16, 2011
Today’s school highlight was music class. We started our introduction to orchestral musical instruments, and it was a lot more fun than the recorders and ukuleles we’ve used in music classes up to now. While we’re doing this unit of study, we’ll get to try playing as many of the different instruments as we want, and then next year we’ll get to pick one to learn how to play. I thought that the alto saxophone was cool, and Rowen liked the flute the best. No surprise that more than half the boys wanted to try the drums and percussion first. Not one guy would even come near a flute, let alone pick one up and try it. Boys!
Rowen and I did our homework right after school, and then we took care of Ethan and Ehlana while Mom worked in the kitchen. Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, Deborah, and Nick were all coming over for our Friday night dinner and a movie, and Rowen was staying too; though we weren't doing another sleepover tonight. It’s been a cool, damp day, so we went upstairs to the lounge, watched a little television, played with Mandy, and Ethan and Ehlana told Rowen and I about what they’d been doing all day while we’d been stuck at school. Rowen is getting used to just how extraordinary my little brother and sister are, but she still looked a bit amazed whenever Ethan and Ehlana actually talked with us, or talked about how their education was progressing. I’m usually just amused – especially when they talk about things that bug them; like not having the physical abilities yet to write or type on a computer keyboard.
Those are problems that I definitely can relate to, and I had a suggestion for them about what they might be able to do about that – get Mom to install voice recognition software for them. My idea sent Rowen into the giggles as she pictured Ethan and Ehlana in their carriers wearing computer headsets and working on computers in the office. That did seem funny, but it would also work, and the twins were so fired up about the idea that they had us take them downstairs to talk with Mom about it right away.
Mom was fairly amused, but liked the idea too – especially since she was currently the person doing most of the page turning and computer typing for the twins. She was even more enthusiastic when Rowen suggested that a pair of iPads might be an even better idea for Ethan and Ehlana to start with. That way they’d be able to use the voice recognition software and probably be able to manage a fair bit with the touch screens too.
Since we were downstairs anyway, Rowen and I set the dining room table for dinner, and then stayed in the kitchen to talk with Dad and Nick while they took over cooking duties and Mom and Aunt Leanne went upstairs to nurse the twins. Uncle Adam and Aunt Deborah joined us just before dinner was ready after having another busy Friday afternoon at the clinic; and Mom, Aunt Leanne, Ethan, and Ehlana came downstairs again by the time we had everything on the dining room table and ready to go.
My favorite part of our Friday night dinners is getting a chance to catch up on what everyone’s been doing all week. I don’t always get to hear about everything when we’re busy with other things like game night, Magi lessons, or work. School news from a teacher’s perspective is always fun too, and I’m really glad that Aunt Deborah and Nick are getting so close. I doubt it’ll be all that much longer before Ethan, Ehlana, and I can adopt him as an Uncle!
After dinner, Rowen and I watched Ethan and Ehlana again while the cleanup was being done, and then we watched ‘A Cinderella Story – Once Upon a Song’. We won’t tell on them, but Dad, Uncle Adam, and Nick may have broken a man-law or two by actually seeming to like the movie. There were the usual, required chick-flick jokes, but I definitely heard Daddy humming one of the songs while helping to clean up from our drinks and snacks.
Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam walked Rowen home when they left, and they were going to meet up with Aunt Deborah and Nick at Sheldon’s. Mom and Dad were invited to go too, and I offered to watch Ethan and Ehlana, but they decided to stay home and make it an early night. We had a little question and answer time with the twins while Mom nursed them, and once I’m done with this archive entry; Mandy and I are going to get some sleep. Even though Dad has to get ready for his week in Crystal Springs; hopefully we’ll manage to have some fun to go along with the usual weekend work.
Rowen and I did our homework right after school, and then we took care of Ethan and Ehlana while Mom worked in the kitchen. Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, Deborah, and Nick were all coming over for our Friday night dinner and a movie, and Rowen was staying too; though we weren't doing another sleepover tonight. It’s been a cool, damp day, so we went upstairs to the lounge, watched a little television, played with Mandy, and Ethan and Ehlana told Rowen and I about what they’d been doing all day while we’d been stuck at school. Rowen is getting used to just how extraordinary my little brother and sister are, but she still looked a bit amazed whenever Ethan and Ehlana actually talked with us, or talked about how their education was progressing. I’m usually just amused – especially when they talk about things that bug them; like not having the physical abilities yet to write or type on a computer keyboard.
Those are problems that I definitely can relate to, and I had a suggestion for them about what they might be able to do about that – get Mom to install voice recognition software for them. My idea sent Rowen into the giggles as she pictured Ethan and Ehlana in their carriers wearing computer headsets and working on computers in the office. That did seem funny, but it would also work, and the twins were so fired up about the idea that they had us take them downstairs to talk with Mom about it right away.
Mom was fairly amused, but liked the idea too – especially since she was currently the person doing most of the page turning and computer typing for the twins. She was even more enthusiastic when Rowen suggested that a pair of iPads might be an even better idea for Ethan and Ehlana to start with. That way they’d be able to use the voice recognition software and probably be able to manage a fair bit with the touch screens too.
Since we were downstairs anyway, Rowen and I set the dining room table for dinner, and then stayed in the kitchen to talk with Dad and Nick while they took over cooking duties and Mom and Aunt Leanne went upstairs to nurse the twins. Uncle Adam and Aunt Deborah joined us just before dinner was ready after having another busy Friday afternoon at the clinic; and Mom, Aunt Leanne, Ethan, and Ehlana came downstairs again by the time we had everything on the dining room table and ready to go.
My favorite part of our Friday night dinners is getting a chance to catch up on what everyone’s been doing all week. I don’t always get to hear about everything when we’re busy with other things like game night, Magi lessons, or work. School news from a teacher’s perspective is always fun too, and I’m really glad that Aunt Deborah and Nick are getting so close. I doubt it’ll be all that much longer before Ethan, Ehlana, and I can adopt him as an Uncle!
After dinner, Rowen and I watched Ethan and Ehlana again while the cleanup was being done, and then we watched ‘A Cinderella Story – Once Upon a Song’. We won’t tell on them, but Dad, Uncle Adam, and Nick may have broken a man-law or two by actually seeming to like the movie. There were the usual, required chick-flick jokes, but I definitely heard Daddy humming one of the songs while helping to clean up from our drinks and snacks.
Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam walked Rowen home when they left, and they were going to meet up with Aunt Deborah and Nick at Sheldon’s. Mom and Dad were invited to go too, and I offered to watch Ethan and Ehlana, but they decided to stay home and make it an early night. We had a little question and answer time with the twins while Mom nursed them, and once I’m done with this archive entry; Mandy and I are going to get some sleep. Even though Dad has to get ready for his week in Crystal Springs; hopefully we’ll manage to have some fun to go along with the usual weekend work.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Cassie's Journal - Sept. 15, 2011
As I sat here in bed with my computer, I realized that this was really the first time that I’d stopped all day; and even now, writing this archive journal doesn’t exactly count as not doing anything. It’s been one of those crazy-busy days, and I’m going to try and make this quick so I can get a few hours of sleep before I’ll need to help with the twins in a few hours.
Rowen and I had fun at school. Mrs. Warren assigned our first big project of the year – this one in science – and gave us time to get started on them. With a Gym class, lunch, and recesses added in; it was nearly non-stop fun all day! Since Rowen was working at the store after school, we did our after-school snack there, and then I went home and worked in the office on the family business until dinnertime. Mom had Alicia there to help her until then, but since Grandma and Grandpa were having dinner with us, Alicia decided not to stay and eat with us tonight.
Mom wasn’t directly involved in the travel plans that Nancy Emerson coordinated, and though she was regularly kept up to date on everything, Grandma and Grandpa’s upcoming trip to South America was the main dinner conversation topic tonight. There's still just over five weeks to go before they’d be going, but the final travel arrangements, and their itinerary, had been finalized now; and they’d wanted to talk about both the work side of what they’d be doing for the family business and the sightseeing and fun they had planned around the work.
Grandpa joked about taking me along as their personal translator. I thought it was a great idea, but Mom and Dad didn’t think I should take a month off of school to do that, and vetoed the suggestion. Oh well – maybe they’ll let me go on a summer trip with Grandma and Grandpa sometime. Anyway, for this trip, their four weeks are going to be split up with a week each in Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil. Most of their work will be checking out our business investments; though they’ll check in on a few charity projects too.
We’d been able to take our time having dinner, and Grandpa, Dad, and I did the cleanup while Mom and Grandma got Ethan and Ehlana ready to go out to the Inn for game night. Rowen met up with me there, and we ended up hanging out with Rebecca and Jenny for most of the evening. Sometimes I really miss doing things like this with them all the time like we did before they ‘crossed over’; but neither Rowen nor I miss it enough to join them on the other side yet. The good news for us tonight was that Rebecca in particular was having a ‘boys are gross and stupid’ day; though it was fairly obvious that her sentiment was directed at one specific boy.
I didn’t mentioned this in my journal last week, but Ethan and Ehlana are very popular at game night; and they love getting passed around – mostly among the Moms, Grandmothers, and teen girls. There aren’t usually very many babies or toddlers at the Inn on Thursday nights, so that makes them a bit of a novelty. One concern that had come up was from the ongoing comments about how good they always were – never crying or fussing in public. We all talked about how to deal with that as part of Ethan and Ehlana playing ‘normal baby’, but decided not to have them do anything different. It was one thing not to talk or read in public, but pretending to scream and cry for no reason other than for show just seemed silly – not to mention noisy and irritating to all of us!
After spending a couple of hours playing games we went home, and I helped Mom get set up to nurse the twins while Dad went to work in the office. Ethan and Ehlana had a lot of questions for us while they nursed, but they were soon ready for a nap too. While they slept, Mom and I joined Dad in the office, and we worked until just a few minutes ago; when I came up here to my room and got ready for bed. For me, that extra work time was mostly because I’ll be taking most of the weekend off from family business work. Now that’s something to look forward to – one more school day, and the weekend will be here!
Rowen and I had fun at school. Mrs. Warren assigned our first big project of the year – this one in science – and gave us time to get started on them. With a Gym class, lunch, and recesses added in; it was nearly non-stop fun all day! Since Rowen was working at the store after school, we did our after-school snack there, and then I went home and worked in the office on the family business until dinnertime. Mom had Alicia there to help her until then, but since Grandma and Grandpa were having dinner with us, Alicia decided not to stay and eat with us tonight.
Mom wasn’t directly involved in the travel plans that Nancy Emerson coordinated, and though she was regularly kept up to date on everything, Grandma and Grandpa’s upcoming trip to South America was the main dinner conversation topic tonight. There's still just over five weeks to go before they’d be going, but the final travel arrangements, and their itinerary, had been finalized now; and they’d wanted to talk about both the work side of what they’d be doing for the family business and the sightseeing and fun they had planned around the work.
Grandpa joked about taking me along as their personal translator. I thought it was a great idea, but Mom and Dad didn’t think I should take a month off of school to do that, and vetoed the suggestion. Oh well – maybe they’ll let me go on a summer trip with Grandma and Grandpa sometime. Anyway, for this trip, their four weeks are going to be split up with a week each in Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil. Most of their work will be checking out our business investments; though they’ll check in on a few charity projects too.
We’d been able to take our time having dinner, and Grandpa, Dad, and I did the cleanup while Mom and Grandma got Ethan and Ehlana ready to go out to the Inn for game night. Rowen met up with me there, and we ended up hanging out with Rebecca and Jenny for most of the evening. Sometimes I really miss doing things like this with them all the time like we did before they ‘crossed over’; but neither Rowen nor I miss it enough to join them on the other side yet. The good news for us tonight was that Rebecca in particular was having a ‘boys are gross and stupid’ day; though it was fairly obvious that her sentiment was directed at one specific boy.
I didn’t mentioned this in my journal last week, but Ethan and Ehlana are very popular at game night; and they love getting passed around – mostly among the Moms, Grandmothers, and teen girls. There aren’t usually very many babies or toddlers at the Inn on Thursday nights, so that makes them a bit of a novelty. One concern that had come up was from the ongoing comments about how good they always were – never crying or fussing in public. We all talked about how to deal with that as part of Ethan and Ehlana playing ‘normal baby’, but decided not to have them do anything different. It was one thing not to talk or read in public, but pretending to scream and cry for no reason other than for show just seemed silly – not to mention noisy and irritating to all of us!
After spending a couple of hours playing games we went home, and I helped Mom get set up to nurse the twins while Dad went to work in the office. Ethan and Ehlana had a lot of questions for us while they nursed, but they were soon ready for a nap too. While they slept, Mom and I joined Dad in the office, and we worked until just a few minutes ago; when I came up here to my room and got ready for bed. For me, that extra work time was mostly because I’ll be taking most of the weekend off from family business work. Now that’s something to look forward to – one more school day, and the weekend will be here!
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