Ethan and Ehlana's Journal - May 26, 2019

Ethan:

Gourmet breakfasts at the Stone’s home may be the best in town, but there are always awesome bakery treats at Aiden’s house; so I did pretty well for that – and Aiden and I had fun with Tai Chi by the river too before getting around to that morning meal.  Memorial Day weekend is one of the more-somber church services, but we still had a good morning while there; and then it was back to having fun again with a barbeque lunch and a play afternoon.  The bike ride, fun at the park, and an hour in the canoes was all awesome; and we especially loved getting to do all of that with Cassie, our families, and friends.  Michael had to work at the Inn, so we didn’t see him as much, but he joined in to have dinner with us when we went to the Inn for the buffet sitting that the parents and grandparents had picked for our gang.

The holiday Monday is always really busy, so we’ve had a quiet night at home since getting back to the Inn; baths and Jacuzzi time was part of that wind down from our play day; and then we all hung out in the lounge for a while before heading for our beds.  Michael’s working until close, and is going home from there; so Cassie’s on her own tonight – and doing some family business work while she has the chance to do that.  I’m not going to do any work, studying, or reading; since I’m just ready to get some sleep – so I will.

Ethan – out!

***

Ehlana:

Ethan’s covered the highlights; and we’ve had an awesome day; so I’ll only add one comment.

I love my Jacuzzi! ;^)

This is Ehlana Proctor; coming to you live from what is now my past!

Ethan's and Ehlana's Journals - May 25, 2019

Ethan:

I’m going to leave this update to Ehlana – except to mention that I’m having a sleepover at Aiden’s house; we got here after the campfire; and he’s already fallen asleep after only a bit of gaming in his room using our portables.

It’s late; so I’m okay with going to sleep now too.

Ethan – out!

***

Ehlana:

It’s just as late for me, but Naomi and I are still busy with our bedtime girl chat; so I can multi-task this report.

Tai Chi by the river for eight was an awesome start to our day; the breakfast buffet at the Inn kept the fun going; and then we – the younger kids – were mostly with the Moms for the shopping while the teens and older cousins – including Cassie – had their own shopping groups.  Holiday weekend sales are always great; Mom picked up a few things for me; and then we eventually made the rounds of the stores and headed home.

Oh yeah – the top funny shopping story of the day goes to Aunt Leanne.  Mom was happy to advise her that one of her purchases at the second-hand store was a top that she’d donated to the charity – and then she ended up buying it anyway; deciding that it was for a good cause; and she could always donate it again sometime in the future.  We had a barbeque lunch; and then the afternoon entertainment was a trail ride or corral adventure.  We had a large gang for all of the horsing around; had a lot of fun on the trail ride; and then we had ice cream treats back at home before moving on to more play time.

The pre-dinner fun included a canoe ride to the park; some playground entertainment; and then some games in the back yard until dinner was ready.  That meal was at Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne’s; it ended up being a multi-family food fest with the Emersons and Seagers; and then we followed the food fun up with more play time.  Volleyball was part of the entertainment for the adults and teens, but we – the younger kids – played other games and hung out by the river.  Our campfire started at dusk; we had an even-larger group of family, friends, and neighbors with us for that; and then Mom and Dad ended up getting a kid-free weekend after I was invited to stay with Naomi, Aiden then invited Ethan over to his house; and Cassie finished setting that up by making plans to stay with Michael at his house.

No other details of the rest of the night for Mom and Dad will be requested or wanted! ;^)

We didn’t stay right to the end of the campfire; Ethan and I had to go home to get overnight bags; and then Naomi and Aiden were with us for the walks to their houses.  There were goodnight hugs and kisses involved in that parting, but we’re kids; so don’t make a big deal of it.  The campfire wrapped up at around midnight, and Naomi and I could catch glimpses of it from her bedroom window, but we also took time to get cleaned up and ready for bed; and now we’re winding down until we’re ready to sleep.

That won’t be much longer, but that’s all I have for tonight; so I’ll wrap this up and get back to the chat time with my best friend.

This is Ehlana Proctor; coming to you live from what is now my past!

Ethan's and Ehlana's Journals - May 24, 2019

Ethan:

Our day started with Tai Chi by the river and breakfast for six; and we loved having Cassie and Michael with us for both.  We worked around the school and yard this morning; loved having pizzeria pizza for lunch; and then Cassie came along to the park with us for our part of the town clean-up.  Our class was one of the groups assigned to the park, but while the work could get a bit gross – especially the garbage collection; it was fun too.  We worked until it was time for the country kids to catch their buses home; Cassie went with us for the walk to school and then on to our home after we picked up our computer bags; and then we had a snack break with Mom – and with Naomi, Aiden, and Sophia.

Cassie came with us for a bike ride at the park after that, and the highlight of that play time on the trails happened when Cassie took up Miles’ challenge for a competition.  He should’ve known better, but I’m glad he didn’t; since we all got to see Cassie play around with some of her best bike tricks – including a backward flip and a seven-twenty spin.  Miles found out that girls can be better than boys on bikes; and all of the girls in our group loved that.  The fun continued at the park for a while; we did a loop over to the new section of town that included picking up overnight bags for Naomi and Aiden; and then Mom and Dad hosted the barbeque family and friends dinner night.  We had a good turnout for that; the food was great; and then we had more park play time and biking before splitting up again for the night.

Mom and Dad wanted to get some work done in the office tonight, so after having a bedtime snack and chat; we – the kids – were sent upstairs.  Cassie and Michael joined us in the lounge – since he was finished work at the Inn in time for that snack break; we watched a movie; and then there was a bit of video gaming that got cut short when Mom and Dad advised us that we’d be going to the Inn for the holiday weekend buffet breakfast.  That – along with the shopping plans for the girls – had the majority of us choosing to call it a night and get some sleep.  Aiden and I weren’t in the majority, but we’re going to use our portable game systems for a while instead.  He’s taking his turn in the washroom, and we’ll get to that gaming soon; so I guess that’s all I have for tonight.

This has been a great start to the holiday weekend, so stay tuned; since there will be lots more to come!

Ethan – out!

***

Ehlana:

Ethan has the highlights covered; so I’ll only add a couple of comments.

First, there was some cuddle time involved with the movie tonight.  Second, Michael is here for another sleepover with Cassie too, and while Naomi would have been happy to do a roommate swap with Aiden so that she could stay with Ethan instead of me; that isn’t happening – tonight.  Finally, we do want to be rested up and ready for that breakfast buffet and shopping; so that’s it for me tonight too.

This is Ehlana Proctor; coming to you live from what is now my past!

Ethan's and Ehlana's Journals - May 23, 2019

Ethan:

It’s been a good day.  We had a wind-down day at school heading into the long weekend; and it’s going to be a play and work day tomorrow – along with a pizza day!  Cassie and Michael have been busy today too, but they came home for the after-school snack with Ehlana, me, and some of our friends before going back to the pizzeria to help with the dinner rush.  We ended up biking and playing instead of going to the lab; we had dinner at home; and then went to the Inn for game night.  Cassie and Michael weren’t there for that – they were busy welcoming Jen and Garrett home and surprising them with the furnished and decorated new house.  I’m sure that was fun, but they aren’t back yet as I’m writing this; so I’ll have to hear all about that story tomorrow.

We got home from the Inn, did a short Magi lesson with Mom while Dad got to work; and then we were sent up to bed comparatively-early so that we can get some extra sleep ahead of the long weekend.  I’m ready to do that now; so that’s all I have for tonight.

Ethan – out!

***

Ehlana:

Ethan has the highlights of the day covered, and I’m tired too; so that’s all for me tonight.  We do need the rest, since we will be in for a long, busy day – especially with the town clean-up and the start of our holiday weekend adventures tomorrow.  Stay tuned – there’s sure to be a lot to write about this weekend.

This is Ehlana Proctor; coming to you live from what is now my past!

Ethan's and Ehlana's Journals - May 22, 2019

Ethan:

We’ve just finished our movie night with Cassie and Michael; and we got to have play time with them tonight too – a bike ride and some play time at the park while Mom and Dad were busy with their baseball practice.  That’s been the top news of the day for me, and while we had a good day at school too and some play time between then and dinnertime with our friends; it’s been having a few hours with Cassie and Michael that has been the best part of our day.

Now I need to get some sleep; since we’re going to be very busy as we head into the holiday weekend.

Ethan – out!

***

Ehlana:

I agree with Ethan.  The Cassie and Michael play and movie time has been an awesome way to wrap up our day.  The ‘what’ we did or watched doesn’t matter.  We may not get to spend a lot of time with them; but we are making the most of the time we have gotten so far.

I’m good with that, so let’s call it a night; and I’ll go get some sleep too.

This is Ehlana Proctor; coming to you live from what is now my past!

P.S.  Cassie is keeping Michael here for a sleepover; and I’ve only been surprised that they haven’t been staying here or at his house more-often so far.  No other details are wanted or will be reported here! ;^)