When the cat’s away…

This year while David was down in Ecuador, Michelle came down to spend some time with us and it was certainly a whirlwind of a week! Tuesday, we jaunted up to Saginaw to visit Oma (A2’s Great-Grandma), chat a bit, play a little ‘fire truck’ and take a dip in her pool. Wednesday, we stopped by Brian and Renee’s on the way up north to drop off some goodies and visit with the Pomeranian pups before they headed to new homes. And Wednesday through Sunday we returned to Uncle Jim’s cottage to spend a few days down by the lake. It was a grand time as Trent and Lexi were also staying with Jim and Marlene for the week. Alexander was just giddy to have more cousins to play with. He and Trent spent hours playing diggers, little people town and splashing in the water. But his favorite game of the week had to have been Connect Four, where laughing laughing, he would scramble to get his chip into the top slot before his worthy opponent, then shriek with delight when he “won” again. (it’s a race of checkers to the top of the board don’t you know? Forget the whole “four in a row” thing.) We took a couple jaunts on the boat (even Nana went for a spin), got to be the first to try out Uncle Jim’s new steps (the new landscaping looks really good) and had a few yummy treats- including a Mama/Alex favorite– dunking graham crackers in milk out on the deck. And for the most part, he even managed to hold himself together in spite of missed naps nearly every day. Our mild little Aidan was just along for the ride. He was happy to go lap hopping, lounge in his new little blue chair and make adorable faces for the camera. He did head down to the waterfront on occasion and dipped his feet in the water without much reaction. However, he’d fill the cottage with his new little laugh when Mama tickled his toes or chatted up close– especially when on the changing table– oh, he would giggle and giggle to Mama’s delight. It was a lovely retreat for our little crew + Nana and Grammy. It was nice to spend some more time with Jim, Marlene, and Karen, and some fun kiddo play with Trent and Lexi. We even got a surprise visit with Mike and Dee on Sabbath evening. Still, by Sunday our little crew was ready to head home and reunite with our beloved Papa. We’re looking forward to our vacation all together next year!