Summer Vacation

Sorry, but my posts will be few and far between this summer.

I am wallowing in the soup of summer.
The heat and salty sea.
Swimming, sleeping, and eating each and every day away.
It's difficult to extract myself long enough to write about it.
But I'll be back, full time, come mid-September.

Promise

fresh eyes

We've been living abroad for two years now. Very much have found our groove and great comforts in our new home here. Things have normalized.

But I must say, how refreshing it is, energizing, to see the place again, through fresh eyes.

We have some friends visiting these days and it has been such a joy to see them experience the beauty of our home and remind us of how lucky we are. How different the flow of life is here and to have them point out all the wonderful things about this new culture. Things I have started to take for granted and things I had stopped thinking about.

So nice to notice the birds again.

world's best work out...

Holding on to a speeding boat with style...

Get the skis on your feet without swallowing lake water
Smile as the boat circles you like a shark
Don't wring your neck with the rope
Yell, "hit it" confidently
Get your butt out of the water before your swim suit comes off
Check for full coverage as you speed past the neighbors
Watch those chicken legs!
Go outside the wake at least once despite the sound of the water cackling against the bottom of your skis
Bail before your body does, and then walk around stretching your sore muscles for the next two days (all in less than 5 minutes!)

Wisconsin, MIA

Highlights from our trip back to the good ole' Midwest USA...


Stepping off the plane in Chicago:
Punkone: I need a corndog!
SP: Wow. Really?
Punkone: I need a corndog now.


Went to a waterpark. Management stopped me as I was leaving the wave pool with Punkette.
Mgmt: Ma'am... is that your daughter?
SP: Yes.
Mgmt: Ma'am... she's gonna have to put a top on.
SP: What?
Mgmt: Ma'am... if you don't put a top on her, we're going to have to ask you to leave.
SP: ??? She's five. ???
Mgmt: She has to put a top on Ma'am.

later...
Punkette: Mom, why do I have to wear this T-shirt?!?!
SP: Because people here are stupid.



Gathered around the campfire:
Punkone: Tell me a scary story
Grandpa: (in a spooky voice) Once upon a time,
Punkone: GRANDPA!!! Stop! You're giving me nightmares! Ok, tell me a scary story, but don't use that voice.
Grandpa: (whispering) there were two children that visited Lake Blackstone.
Punkone: GRANDPA!!! Don't whisper! And this isn't Lake Blackstone.
Grandpa: I know, it's just a story.
Punkone: Ok, tell me a story.
Grandpa: (touching Punkone's back) One cloudy night,
Punkone: GRANDPA!!! No TOUCHING! Tell me a story, but no whispering and no touching.
Grandpa: they were gathered around the campfire...
Punkone: GRANDPA!!!