Saturday, June 20, 2009

Twilight Camp

BOY WAS IT HOT! We had a great time at cub scout camp. Joshua made it through the whole time. I really didn't know if he could take the heat but he did not give up and stayed every day. I do not have any pictures because I was with Josh and if I took pictures of him I would not have gotten any of Teddy who was also there but with the Wolf den. (Josh is a Weblow) I try hard not to make the other children feel like Josh is always getting special treatment. So no pictures of one without the other. There is supposed to be pictures on the scout website of them both so I will have to wait and see if there is. Anyway, we had such a great time. Teddy loved being a Wolf, this was his first scout event. The girls were in the tot lot so they were out in the heat with us. (I couldn't just leave them home alone) They had fun with their groups too.

Ok, let me just tell you how proud I am of Joshua. He did BB guns for the first time and it was very hard for him. It is a six step process before you can actually fire the gun and it was very stressful for him because he could not remember all the steps. You know, things like check the safety, load the bb, cock the gun........ anyway the first day he took so long to get through the process he only got to fire 4 times. And by the time he did he was so stressed he didn't even hit the target. Well the next time we went to the range I told the Range Master and he worked with him. It took 2 extra tries but he not only got the process down he made his badge. You have to score 35 points and he got 36! Not everybody gets the patch for junior shooter but he did. Most of the boys in his group got it but they have all been shooting several times before and only one other boy got it on his first time at camp. I don't think that the guns are a favorite of Josh's but he stuck with it and got it done. He was really into archery and now wants a bow and arrow set but I am not sure about that. Anyway, he got at least 3 badges and I am very proud of him. He is well on the way to getting his Weblow badge and Arrow of Light.

Well, I just finished packing the kids for cancer camp and tomorrow we leave so I will write more when I have news.

Thursday, June 4, 2009

The Last Day and a Trip to Remember

Well we really know how to party! If you want some stellar crab dip drop by Celia's and Cliff's. The house in under construction but they still can do it up right. We had a great dinner there. It was nice to relax and the kids love their cousins, Erin and Kenny were lots of fun to play with. We also got to see Susan and Richard in a parade! That was pretty neat for the kids. I truly think Dorothy will ride a motorcycle when she is older. As you can see she takes it pretty seriously. There was a group of cheerleaders in the parade and my girls thought they were princesses so we had to get a picture with them. (I think it was more special for those cheerleaders than being in the parade.) The last picture is one that means a lot to me. I love to take the children to the cemetery where my dad is buried, it makes him real to them. Being able to go on Memorial Weekend we a real treat. The cemetery was filled with flags and very peaceful. Whatever holds us back from family in this life is nothing. In the end we are bound to our ancestors and they to us. Who we are is forever linked to our family and they are the ones in the end who shape us. It reminds me that whatever Joshua's future he has and continues to touch so many lives. It makes me so glad I was able to be raised with my wonderful sisters and brother. I am truly the sum of them and my parents. I hope I can pass their great qualities to my children. Anyway, I loved this picture of my babies hands on his grave. Each generation touches another.
OK, who said I could get philosophical? I loved the whole trip but seeing my family really was the best. We didn't get to see everybody, there just wasn't time but we love them all and as the saying goes, We'll be back!!! Enjoy the pictures and at the end I have another story to tell. This one is kind of funny and a little shocking......










Here it goes. We have officially ticked off Make a Wish. I would like to start by saying we are very grateful for all they did and the chance to meet Mrs. Osborne. However, that said, you are not going to believe this! When we found out the trip was only for 2 1/2 days we asked if they could extend the flight home by several days. We said we would pay for hotel and meals and expenses. We just wanted them to change the flight day. Well they said no, but when our local Make a Wish representative told us she suggested that we call the airlines directly to do it. So when we got to New York we did just that. They said no problem and got us the flight on Sunday. One of the things that is included in the Make a Wish program is a ride to and from the airport. So we called the company that provides that and changed the time on the ride. Now mind you these changes did not cost Make a Wish anything. We were careful to be sure of that and took care of everything ourselves. Well when Make a Wish found out they flipped. We got a very vague call in New York from them saying that they didn't approve of the change. Well, we get home on Sunday at about 9am. We are exhausted, the kids are in their pajamas and we have a ton of luggage. We get off the plane and there is no car to take us home! I called the car company and the man looks at the notes and says that Make a Wish called them and said that the client doesn't get to make changes and canceled the car. They left us stranded at the airport! I felt bad for upsetting them but can you believe that? No matter what happened I thought Joshua came first and making the trip special for him was what mattered. I guess the rules are more important. Oh, well. We got one of those airport shuttles to bring us home and they were very nice. Luckily they were not too busy and we only had to wait about 40 minutes to get on the road. It just made the trip complete, we always cause a fuss, even when we try not too. I remember once I heard someone respond to a problem by saying, "oh well, it is a journal entry". That is so true, this was just a journal entry and I had too much fun on this trip to let anything be upsetting. I hope you enjoyed this journaling and the pictures of the trip. I loved sharing it. We will keep telling our adventures and the news as it happens. We have a lot coming up in June, scout camp, cancer camp, and an MRI. Watch for more posts and know that we love you all...............




Monday, June 1, 2009

On To Maryland!!

Ok, we hopped on the train. It was a 2 1/2 hour adventure. The cars were mostly full and I took each of the children from the front to the back so they could see the entire train. I thought it would be smoother but it was stop and go and I had a headache by the time we got to mom's. As you can see it truly surprised my mother! She was so happy and so were we to see her. Of course no visit is complete without a swim in Aunt Nancy's pool. We even saw Frank and Paddy and their kids (sorry I didn't get pictures of them) It was alot of fun. Nancy has quite a nice spread of Iris and I loved this picture of Joshua I took. And of course all our days end the same, Dad and Rachel passed out somewhere. Tommorow I will rap up this grand adventure with the rest of the pictures of Maryland and the interesting trip home.