Thursday, July 16, 2009

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

We spent the last 2 plus weeks in Ohio, visiting family and reveling in the joys of summer in the Midwest.

The best part of the trip was being surrounded by family every day. Island Boy always had cousins, Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles to play with and even though we had some rain and a bit of cooler than expected weather, we still spent the majority of our time running around outdoors in endless stretches of lush grass and at the beach along the smooth sand at the water's edge.

We visited a UNESCO World Heritage Site candidate, a National Park, the world's largest basket, a small town railroad museum and a big city dinosaur museum, watched a parade and fireworks on the 4th of July, read books, saw bald eagles, wild turkeys, baby bunnies, deer and ground hogs in the wild, ate fresh basil from the garden, fresh mulberries from trees and black raspberries and blueberries from backyard vines, roasted marshmallows, dined on local delicacies, sampled handmade ice creams and frozen custards, shopped local farmer's markets and picnicked on the sweetest sweet corn you can imagine, savored beautiful sunsets, climbed trees, chased lightening bugs and - this part really goes without saying - ran around barefoot and threw rocks in the lake.

Yes, Ohio in the summertime is, in my biased opinion, one of life's great pleasures and one that is made even better when it's shared with your children.

Thursday, July 02, 2009

Delay Tactics

Island Boy is a master of creativity. This evening was no exception.

As we prepared for his bedtime, he pulled a new arrow from his quiver and told us he had an "owie" on his toe.

We took a look and indeed there was a bit of a rough edge on one of his toenails, so Daddy went off to get the nail clippers, came back and clipped the offending nail.

All better?

Not so fast!!

"Now, this one!", said Island Boy.

Daddy took a look at the new area of concern and obediently complied with the request. All set?

Not yet!

"This one!", said Island Boy. Once again, Daddy complied.

"This one!", Island Boy said and this time neither Island Boy nor Daddy could keep a straight face as they both realized how ridiculous the game had become. He may not have gotten to bed quite as early as we'd hoped, but we did all have a good giggle along the way.