Popping in

We had a great trip to PA to visit my fam and then on the way home (sort of)we spent a couple of idyllic days on Chincoteague and Assoteague Islands, VA. We even got to cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge on the way home (yeah, a 19 mile bridge and tunnel system - and I'm not too crazy about either, but it wasn't too bad and actually kind of fun, but I didn't say that).

Trip highlights (off the top of my head)

1. Visiting my sister and her beautiful new home in VA (and my brother-in-law Joseph who is the king of the grill). My sisters and I enjoyed and long and enthusiastic Broadway piano and singing time, my daughters and their aunts made a fairy house, and my son was captivated by Joseph's huge Transformers collection. Oh, and my dad did a great lip sync to "You've lost that lovin' feeling".
2. Getting together with my childhood friend Lisa. We talked for hours. I wish we'd had days.
3. Watching the birds that built a nest on my mother's deck. I named the parents Mary Jane and Clark. Their eggs hatched while we were there and we enjoyed listening to and watching Juju, Tootsie, Dot, Nerd, and Baby Ruth.
4. Getting to know my cousin Angie's new husband Shaun, and playing a great game of Mafia with them, Uncle Joe, and the rest of my family
5. Anna's first real roller coaster rides - in threes, on the Comet and in the front row of the Super Duper Looper. Rosie had to settle for the tame coaster, but she is rarin' to go.
6. Meeting my parent's neighbor Jade. She was four when I met her, but told me that on May 28 she was going to be 55 (a conspiracy of my dad's based on her wearing her grandma's high heels). She was a gem and my girls loved playing with her at their found and cleaned up (and perfect and beautiful) kitchen play set.
7. My daddy and Ethan trying on a Jack Sparrow hat and wig at the Disney Store outlet - oh, and I got wicked good deals there too.
8. All of our trip to Chincoteague. It was wonderful there. Captain Barry's boat ride, a family size ice cream sundae (five scoops we all picked one - cream cheese snickers, oh my word!), Anna Kate's perfect birthday pics at the beach, the kids playing in the surf, Rosie digging, a super high kite, a fantastic fresh seafood dinner on the bay, my kids falling in love with Misty's descendants...

Now I've unpacked the clothes, but still have clutter to clear, and I'm focusing on parenting other household stuff.

I read a great book on my trip (and Brian did too - it's great to be on the same page) - To Train Up a Child. It really connected all of the dots for me, in wanting to be consistent and Biblical, but not overbearing. And we are already seeing the results. (Updated 5/1/15 - Parenting is a journey that sometimes takes you 180 degrees from where you were.  I would no longer in any way recommend this book or any book that recommends spanking/corporal punishment.  We were never good at it thankfully because it never felt right, but it was what we were taught that good parents did.  We're now on a much happier journey in positive parenting.)

I'm not planning to post as frequently for a while at least. Computer time is really consuming more than its fair share and I want to be fully present here where I am. So we'll see. I do love you all and want to visit with you as well. :^)