Day 6: Beach, fishing, and bikes

On Monday morning, we pontooned over to the Charles Mill Lake Beach.  We had the place all to ourselves for the first hour or so.

Alice got right in and started swimming away. Later, when some other kids came, she tried to make friends with them. That meant she swam near them while declaring, "I can swim!" She tried her best, but her targets were not very interested in striking up a beach side friendship.

Everyone had fun making a big river to the sea.

Both kids were worn out after the activities, but surprisingly did not fall asleep on boat ride back.

After lunch and a nap, the kids got back to work playing. Simon loved playing with this big camper van.

Alice went fishing for a bit, although she mainly ran around on the dock and jumped on and off the boat. Doing activities that require you to be still, quiet and patient do not last very long with her.

They did manage to catch some fish though, and Simon enjoyed looking at them in the bucket.

But what her really enjoyed the most was scooting around on this green tricycle, a hand-me-down from Braeden.

The kids had a lot of fun riding the various bikes around in the drive way. Here, they play bumper bikes, with some enhanced sound effects at the end.

Day 5: Portraits, cousins, & pontoons

On Sunday, we bid farewell to Cam and Don, went to Taesen's for lunch, then drove on to Mansfield, where we had supper with my cousins and their new baby. Then we took a pontoon boat ride.  It was a very busy, but fun-filled day.

We attempted a family portrait before leaving Ashville. We did it on the steps since that's where the kids were playing. As always, they had trouble staying still and looking at the camera.

Simon really got a kick out of Don's beard!

We bid a sad farewell to Cam and Don and drove to Taesen's house. So intense is the experience at Taesen's that we completely failed to take any pictures. She gave the kids their birthday presents, then Alice wandered around discovering various toys tucked behind the couches, while Simon fixated on driving his new trains on the coffee table. Lunch was a disaster, as social eating events always are, but I did enjoy my steak. We ate out on the deck and it was quite sunny. Alice played with her cousin Kaelyn a bit, while Braeden mainly did his own thing. Zac and I went with Taesen (and brought Simon) to briefly look at the neighborhood and lot where they planned to build a house. We left Alice there because she appeared to be engaged with some sort of bead bracelet making with Kaelyn. But when we got back, Chea was watching her while she played with ponies alone on the deck. So we've still got to work on building those cousin-relationships up. It's hard when they don't see each other very often. Plus, Alice was really tired and fell right to sleep as soon as we were back in the van, headed to Mansfield.

When we got to Mansfield, we visited for a bit, then my cousin Joey and his wife Hannah and their new baby Amelia come over for supper and a brief pontoon boat ride. It was a lovely evening, and so sweet to see a little baby.

We have a tradition of honking the boat horn when we go under the bridge. Simon and Alice loved it.

Day 4: Park and pool

On the 4th of July, we went to a different playground at the park near Cam's house. It was shady and beautiful and we had it all to ourselves.

Near the playground, there is a perfect little creek to play in. The mosquitoes were intense and we had to rush off to meet a friend for lunch, but we'll definitely come play here next summer.

On our first night there, Cam made a big batch of chicken and dumplings for supper. Thank goodness, because it was the only significant thing Simon ate during our entire stay.

We left the kids in Cam's care at lunchtime, and headed out to restaurant to meet Brian. While we were gone, Simon reportedly napped well but Alice did not. Cam and Don had bought a blow-up pool for the kids, but the weather had been too cool and rainy to use it so far. But after Alice's pretend nap, they blew it up and filled it with water. Alice had been fixated on the pool since first seeing it int he box, and as they inflated it, she reportedly was so excited that by the time they turned around she had stripped all her clothes off. They say she rolled around in the pool for a while, but it was quite cold and she didn't last long.

By the time we got back, things had warmed up, and I convinced Alice to give it another shot. She eventually changed back into her suit, scooted around in the pool a bit, then got out to make mud soup. Simon was not interested in interacting with the pool.

Before bed, Alice made us promise to wake her up for fireworks. We did indeed try to wake her up when we saw some in the distance, and Zac even carried her downstairs, but she remained fast asleep and had no memory of our attempt in the morning.

Day 3: Park, umbrellas, and ice-cream

Friday morning we got up and went to the park near Cam's house. But not until everyone had had their morning beverages.

The kids enjoyed going down the slides, but I hate the sqeeking sound a belly makes as it goes down the plastic.

Alice enjoyed flying her kite some more in the nice big field at the park. She's a good runner.

Simon and Alice both love swinging. Alice had a big breakthrough today as she learned how to swing herself for the first time. It didn't last long...she had trouble keeping the rhythm. But it's a start!

Simon spent a long time driving the stroller back and forth on the pavement. He especially likes to push it over bumps.

Because we were at the park for such a long time, we saw a few families come and go. One time Alice made friends with a girl about her age and was so happy to have a playmate at the park. Being somewhat socially impaired ourselves, we always encourage Alice to be friendly and outgoing, so we are quite happy when she is able to strike up an impromptu friendship.

Back at the house that afternoon, Simon expressed his intense desire to go pick apples again, so we donned umbrellas and headed out into the rain.

The kids had their first ice-cream cones of the summer, and possibly ever. Alice loved licking hers, but wouldn't bite the cone. Simon liked his OK, but was not happy about it being so cold.

When Zac came out with an ice-cream cookie sandwich, Simon traded in his cone for a cookie.

Day 2: COSI, kites, and cake

On Thursday, we went to COSI in the morning with Cam and the kids. Simon mainly played with the trains and trucks, but also enjoyed watching the hot air balloon go up and down. When we tried to interest him in other things, he would just declare, "Play trains!"

Alice took advantage of many of the activities COSI had to offer kids, but she spent the longest time building with the magnetic tiles on a light table.

 

Back at the house that evening, after nap, I took Alice out in the yard to fly a kite. She did a great job running back and forth, and getting it in the air. It was hard to keep up since the wind was just gusty, not steady.

Meanwhile, Simon bonded with Don.

After supper, Alice helped Cam open her birthday present.

Then, we had cake. Cam had not planned on candles, but we said Simon would be very disappointed if there were no candles on the cake, so she found this one candle.  Simon was delighted; he loves fire and candles.

Day 1: Drive to Ashville, Ohio

On Wednesday morning, we finalized our packing, loading, and prepping the house for our departure, which somehow took us until 10 am.  Both kids did great on the journey, with plenty of stops to use the restroom and stretch our legs. And, nobody threw up or appeared to be getting sick. This trip was off to a great start!

We arrived at Grandma Cam's in time for supper, followed by some apple picking, tractor sitting, and swinging.

The late Ohio sun can be disorienting in the summer, and we wanted to try and keep the kids on somewhat of a schedule so that they would get plenty of sleep.  Which means all too soon it was time for bedtime snack, a bath, and books.