{vacation}

Our trek across the world is nearly over. OK, it's only across a couple states, but it sure feels like we've driving to Japan and back. Is that possible?

We had a lot of fun at Nani and Poppy's and I'm sure they're going to need time to recuperate now that we've left. Actually, the kids did pretty well while we were there. There wasn't a whole lot of DON'T TOUCH THAT, IT'S BREAKABLE or STOP RUNNING IN NANI'S HOUSE or DON'T USE CRAYONS IN THE LIVING ROOM! They kept themselves pretty busy. Uncle Randy and Aunt Jo-ann came for dinner one night, too. Gerard and Morgan were both pretty tired by that time and unfortunately there was more than the usual SIT DOWN WHILE YOU EAT and DON'T MAKE THOSE NOISES and EAT OVER THE TABLE! Overall it was a very nice visit, and well worth the trip. I'm just sorry I didn't take any pictures with Nani.












We left Nani and Poppy's on Wednesday morning and had a chance to meet up with Lynn and Mary K. Lynn had the brilliant idea to meet at a McDonald's Playland. Not my favorite cuisine, but the kids sure appreciated it and had so much fun. It also gave us a LOT more time to sit and chit chat. The kids were so happy to be out of the car and running around, we probably could have stayed for hours. Wait. We DID stay for hours. We could have stayed for MORE hours then. I brought my camera in, but was totally preoccupied with all the gossiping and catching-up, that I totally forgot to take any pictures. Bummer.

Both Lynn and Mary K gave the kids presents that were PERFECT for the car. Gerard spent some time "writing his book" in the notebook from Lynn and Morgan loved the Dora dress-up book from Mary K. My favorite kinds of gifts -- ones that keep them busy and quiet! (Oh, the Teddy Grahams helped a bit too!) THANKS!!



Since we were already there, we decided to take a slight detour and drive past our old house. Yup, still there. It needs a good lawn-mowing and the landscaping needs some work, but it's still there. We even stopped across the street to say hi to Mrs. S but she wasn't there. She would have loved to have seen Gerard and meet Morgan. Oh well. Next time. I left her a note...




From there we drove to Granpa G and Mima's house where we also got to see Aunt Elizabeth and eat some pizza. Gerard was sad that their cat died... he was really looking forward to a good chase. He got over that quickly, as Mima and Granpa G had some cool toys for him to play with. Of course, I think Mima ended up putting the race car together after Gerard had given up. Something about a zillion unmarked pieces must've intimidated him.

Thursday was one of our busier days. We first went to see Patti and Dick. Of course Gerard was excited to see the fish, play their piano and play with the magnetic thing in the family room. (What would you call that, Patti?) They had presents for the kids, too. Nothing like a good tiara for our little princess and some Bendaroos for both of them. THANKS!! Gerard promptly made stuff out of the Bendaroos, like a fire for roasting marshmallows. Very cute. Patti took these pictures (Patti, I got them from my mom, thanks!)




It was nice seeing them, and luckily I remembered to take some pictures. I figured Arleen would kill me if I didn't take any.



We left Patti and Dick's and went to Wegmans. HALLELUIAH. HALLELUIAH. Can't you just hear the bells from heaven? We picked up the necessities, like a half dozen bottles of Salamida's State Fair Spiedie Sauce. The cashier thought Gerard was a bit nuts, but who cares!

Then we went to Stephanie and Craig's house for some good food, good friends and good swimming. As expected the kids played wonderfully, even though it's been YEARS since they've seen each other. In fact, Natalie was ONE when we saw her last, and Morgan wasn't even born yet!

Morgan and Natalie enjoyed the sandbox. Or should I say mudpit. Natalie dug her way to China and Morgan was kind enough to jump into the hole. I think the pictures will speak for themselves. And Morgan's bathing suit that I worked so hard to get clean (thanks for the OxyClean, Jayna!) is now a filthy mess again. Ahh, to be a kid again.







Ethan and Gerard fell right into a routine like it was old times. They swam in the pool and Gerard even jumped off the diving board and then they spent a lot of time in the hot tub, chit-chatting like old men.





From Stephanie's we all headed over to Laura's for dinner. It was a bit chaotic with 6 adults and 7 kids under the age of 7, but we had fun nonetheless. It was nice to see Laura, Derek, Christian and Noah, but it was especially nice to meet baby Grace finally. I can't believe this is the only picture I took!



Today we hung out with Mima, Granpa G and Aunt Elizabeth. The weather didn't look promising at first so we stayed at their house for a while, but once the sun came out we went to Godfrey's pond for some lunch and fishing. BOTH kids caught fish and had a blast, and I took lots of pictures, but I'm too tired to post them all now. I'll do it soon, I promise! Goodnight for now!