I bought John some Thomas the Tank Engine pajamas and he LOVES them. He wants to wear them all the time. I actually had to wash them in the middle of the week so he could wear them again. Silly boy….
Thomas Pajamas!
After Work Relaxation on the Deck!
Somersault
The perpetual motion machine that we like to call John has been doing lots of somersaults lately. He gets this from the weekly visit at daycare by the Gymnastics Express bus, which is an old school bus outfitted to be a gym. The kids learn gymnastics and other sports. Both of them love it and it’s always interesting to hear what they learned that day.
Jim and Eileen Hammond
Today was the visitation for Jim and Eileen Hammond. They were killed in a car accident on Saturday morning. Their daughter, Deanna, was a classmate of mine at Astoria. Over the years, they often were a second set of parents to me. I probably listened to them more than I did my own parents, because, really, what teenager listens to their own parents? I got to see them in May when I returned to Astoria for my 20-year high school reunion. When I saw Deanna and her parents, it was huge hugs and time spent talking to them about life. They were curious about my life, the kids, Andy. They just wanted to know everything. It was so great and I felt like I was really home. Jim even said, “It’s my second daughter! How are you big girl?” When I saw the news on Saturday on Facebook and then called my mom, I was so sad. My heart hurts for them and their family. I may not live in Astoria anymore, but there are countless people from that small town that influenced my life and Jim and Eileen were two of the best. My last memory of them as I was leaving Club 24 was them tearing up the dance floor with huge smiles on their faces. They may be gone, but I will never forget them.
Andy is Home!
We went to the airport to pick up Andy today after five days in North Carolina. The kids were not only excited to see Daddy, but were also very excited to see the planes at Columbia Regional Airport. Laura was tall enough to see out the window for the first time and anxiously awaited the arrival of Daddy.
As they saw him get off the plane, they both started to cheer, “There is Daddy! Daddy is here!” Laura ran to give him a big hug and wanted her picture taken with Daddy (for this blog!).
Because of the number of people milling around the baggage claim area, John wouldn’t let me put him down, so he didn’t really give Andy a hug. While John was excited to see Daddy, I think he was more excited about the planes. On the drive back to the house, both kids talked nonstop. Andy was all smiles about it, but asked, “Were they like this the entire time I was gone?” My response? “Yes.” Once we got home, John decided it was finally time to give Daddy a big hug.
Andy had a great time at BLTW, but he was also glad to be home! We were just happy to have him back here safe.
Tired Boy
After a crazy fun night of play with Kathryn and Laura, John was a little tired today. I noticed right about 2:00 pm that it had gotten very quiet in the family room. This is why….
Sleepover!
Kathryn is here for a sleepover tonight. Within 30 minutes of her arrival, the kids’ room looked like this…..
It’s all good though! After the kids played, played, and played, we all had spaghetti for dinner followed by ice cream for them. Then they played, played, and played again. After playing, it was bath time followed by a movie.
During the movie, they played, played, and played….and fell asleep.