Weekend Away.....at Home

This was our first weekend since February, without any commitments.

No baseball.

No softball.

No DI.

No Brownies.

No Sunday School.

No Recitals.

No Birthday Parties.

No Company.

We considered going away for the weekend as a family, but, quickly realized all we really wanted was to spend some quality time together as a family.

We all agreed ~ no phones, no computers, no mobile devices, no television, no electronic devices. Oh what fun the kids had coming up with an agenda for the weekend.

We kicked off our weekend with dinner on the back deck (Julie's wings - corn on the cob and salad). The competitive family that we are, we then had a Hula Hoop contest, bop-it contest and water balloon toss. Of course our daughter blew us away with the hula hoop & bop-it....can't say there was a winner with the balloon toss.

We roasted marshmallows in our fire pit.

We watched fireflies & gazed at the North Star before turning in for the night.

We planned a day trip to a state beach (lake) in Brookville Indiana.

We packed for the day....aahheemmm...just a day. Look at all this stuff!

We arrived at the lake by 9:00 a.m.'ish. It was lovely. Clean beach. Lots of picnic tables. Clean bathrooms. Bath houses with hot water.

Loved watching the kids work & play together.

We had lunch on one of the grassy knolls. Loved watching Daddy & Lil talk boy talk!

We left the park at 4:00 and drove North to Whitewater State Beach just to be nosey. Also drove through Metamora Indiana - a quaint little town with a canal running through it. The Main Street, was lined with small shops filled with candy & ice cream. Just darling.

We stopped at Mama Mac's for pizza. A little Mom & Pop pizza & ice cream shop with red checkered table cloths. We felt like we were worlds away on our weekend away, at home.

We were almost home when Daddy exclaimed we couldn't go home without having ice cream. After all this was our weekend away, at home!

The kids went to bed with a smile on their precious faces, talking about our plans for the following day......

On Sunday, we went to Indian Lake to spend the day with our dear friends.

We swam, we laughed, watched the kids jump off the dock, went for a boat ride, saw a Bald Eagle's Nest in the top of a tree. Incredible!

We were home by 10:00 p.m., completely unpacked from our weekend away (at home), by 11:00 p.m.

Monday morning, we all agreed, it was an incredible weekend as a family ~ just what we needed.

Up Up and Away...

We have lived in the path of Life Flight in Worcester, Massachusetts.

We have lived in the path of airway traffic in Charlton, Massachusetts.

We have lived in the path of airway traffic from Dayton Wright-Brothers Airport.

We have lived in the path of military aircraft in Jacksonville Florida.

Now, I can officially say, we live in the path of Hot Air Balloon Traffic in Springboro Ohio.

Each summer, we will hear the roar of the fire from the balloon before we see it peek over the tree line.

Each time, the kids and I race around to the front of the house watching, in utter amazement as it travels over our home. We giggle, we screech, we hug, in utter amazement. Another reminder of our smallness in the big picture of life.

Happy Birthday Handsome

Did you know I fell in love with my soul mate?

The first time I met him, it wasn't electric.

It wasn't a falling star.

But, I could pick him out of a crowd of our 6 billion population in an instant.

We instantly connected. He finishes my sentences for me.

He laughs at my silly jokes.

He likes my legs. I love his barrel chest.

We share the same faith. We share the same beliefs.

We believe in family. We love our elderly relatives the best.

We enjoy similar music. We love the beach.

We love the Red Sox.

He taught me how to feel beautiful as a woman.

He taught me how to enjoy the simple pleasures of life.

He taught me how to make a strawberry daiquiri.

He taught me ONE person could eat ONE pound of pasta and not pass out.

He taught me we could learn to snow ski and still be friends.

He taught me how to build a coal-stove fire to keep warm.

He taught me how to enjoy skinny-dipping.

Did you know I fell in love with my soul mate?

He used to call me so many times at work it drove me bonkers.

He still puppy dogs me around the house until I wish he was paper-trained.

We kiss every morning and every night.

We end every conversation with "I Love You" and mean it.

We hug, we touch, we laugh, we cry.

We love passionately.

I love my soul mate, my companion, my lover and my friend. And as this photo so obviously portrays, our kids love you too!