Back in time

Let's just pretend like it's mid-July, and I am totally on top of my blogging. I took so many pictures in Connecticut that I don't know where to start. The answer is, just start!

Mom, William, Ryan and I flew out of DFW. This worked out great because it's a direct flight into Hartford. Not changing planes is pretty super because you save so much time. Waiting around is not your friend when traveling with small children.


This picture was taken mere moments after William darted in front of one of those cars that carry handicapped and elderly passengers to their gates. My mom did not miss a beat with a very loud and stern "William, STOP!" That kid is no fool. He knew he'd better stop. Don't mess with CC!


Thank goodness for help on airplanes. Those are some tight quarters with two kids! My mom (on the way there) and Mikey (on the way back) were indispensable. Mom took William to the bathroom - he did so great! - and when he was in there, he said he wanted to go back to the airplane. Those bathrooms really are a little freaky.


William did not get tired of riding on the mower with PawPaw.


Ryan rode in style in a very cool wagon that is usually reserved for gardening supplies. His eczema got so bad at the end of June. It is mostly under control now, although every time I think he's over it, he has another flare up (like he has today).


Uncle Michael played a whole lot of baseball while we were in town. We made it to a number of games. William LOVED it, especially the first few. It was the most still I have ever seen him sit. He didn't even want to leave his toddler-sized chair to walk around and check things out.


PawPaw has the baby thing down. They had a lot of bonding time at baseball games.


This is the life! Michael usually wears number 7 (yay for Biggio!), and William came home insisting that we all have number 7 on our backs. I have since told him that I wear 88, and Mikey says that he is number 17. William is standing firm with number 7.


It's fun for me to watch them play together.


If you live in Texas and have forgotten what green grass looks like, hop a flight to Connecticut. I have total grass envy.


Ah, the simple things in life like trying to catch a big bubble. There is such joy to be found when you slow down.


Turkey burger time.

Mom had the brilliant idea to rent a beach house for the second week of our trip. It coincided with the week that both she and Mikey took off work. It was nice for them to have something that felt like a real vacation. The house was just ten minutes from home base, so we could go back and forth, Michael could still keep up with his rigorous baseball and volunteering schedule, etc.


We went one day just for lunch, and it started raining soon after we arrived (thank goodness I remembered to tell Mikey to close the sunroof and windows on Mom's car right when it started). These guys were playing stickball just outside our house, and it looked like a ton of fun. They kept talking about going in, but someone always piped up that they liked playing in the rain. Of course young William was fascinated.


It was really coming down here.


Toys are unnecessary. Kitchen accessories rule.


Isn't that just the cutest house?! This is the start of our fun and festive fourth of July. I can't even describe the scene, but it was like something out of a movie. There were clearly a lot of people who do this every year and have it down to a science. Lots of muscle-y guys doing their thing on the beach.


These two played together a fair amount. I think Michael can appreciate that William is becoming a pretty fun little guy.


Good buddies!


The main reason I took this video was to capture William dancing. He finally does toward the end, and it's ridiculously adorable. One of these days, I will look into editing my videos, and you won't be subjected to long, rambling videos. Until that day, well, you get long, rambling videos that may or may not take a minute or more to get to the good stuff.


It didn't take CC long to figure out why the basin intended to wash sand off our feet was in a constant state of sludge. Someone thought it was fun to get his feet wet and drag a bunch of sand into the tub.


Ryan spent most of his time in the shade. We are the palest family on the planet. Seriously.


He is such a sweet, go-with-the-flow guy.


More burgers, of course.


This is our private beach on the fourth of July. Whew, it was tough to get through the dozen or so people on that vast expanse of sand.


That fence in front of Mikey marks the divider between the public and private beach. The public beach was unbelievably crowded. I would have turned right back around and gone home if I had walked up to that and tried to find a spot.


It was fun for people-watching, but talk about a mass of humanity.


Ryan and PawPaw had a quiet moment on the beach together.


A picture with just us? No way. It's like seeing a unicorn.


You would think Mikey was telling William something profound as they gazed out over Long Island Sound. Knowing William, they were probably talking about when he can play golf again.


This is one of my favorites from the beach.

We had the perfect view of an amazing fireworks show put on by some beach neighborhood regulars. There were a couple of guys who must have spent thousands on fireworks, and they hauled them all to our little stretch of beach. People did the same on the other stretches of beach to our left and right, so we were really treated to an amazing show. William and Ryan started off very displeased with the fireworks. Mikey put his hands over William's ears, and they stayed that way for the duration of the very long show. At first I just let Ryan stay inside because he was scared, but I got a little envious of all the fun, so I ran out to the porch and put my hands quickly over Ryan's ears. It worked! He was mesmerized by the pretty lights and colors. The boys stayed up way too late that night, but when else should they stay up late if not at a beach house with family over the fourth of July?!


Fireworks, Part 1 - I realize now that you can't see a thing other than fireworks when we are outside. I thought you would be able to see William with his ears covered, but I'm sure you can imagine how cute it was.


Fireworks, Part 2 - This is just a tiny snippet of the long, beautiful fireworks show that was literally out our back door.


Bubba doesn't look that big to me here. I am obviously getting used to his giant stature because there is no question that he is a (very sweet) beast.


Everyone should have an outdoor couch...and good summer weather to complement it.


Who would have guessed that he would like to watch PawPaw grill?


We went crabbing one evening. I was having trouble capturing the sky and bridge. It never fails - I hand the camera to Mikey, he pushes a few buttons, and voila! Out comes the most beautiful image. And to think, I'm the one who has read the books and taken the photography class. He's a natural.


I just thought this was pretty.


The stairs lead to a neat little overlook. There was a couple up there, and the guy was on the phone for quite a bit of their time sitting there. The woman apparently complained (loud enough for Mikey to hear) that we disturbed their quiet. Excuuuuuse me? Your husband was on his cell phone, blabbing away, while my family and I were trying to have a little fun. The boys were not being crazy or anything - just making normal kid noises.


Mikey caught a crab about four seconds after tossing out the first net. It was a tiny little thing, but we thought that meant we would have a successful night. Not so much! That was our only action. It wasn't for lack of trying - Neil and Mikey really wanted to pull up some more crabs for William.


What a fabulous bunch of guys.


Do you even need to ask? Yes, Mikey took it. Note the moon, the sky, and the train with its headlight almost directly under the moon.


To you, this may look like a picture of William playing golf. But no. This is a remarkable feat, one that I have not witnessed in well over a decade. Jack is relaxing. On the grass. You have to know him to appreciate that this dog is the most anxious thing. I don't think I have seen his butt touch grass, perhaps ever. He prefers to spend most of his time in the crate. When he is let out to do his business and has the opportunity to enjoy his spectacular surroundings, he usually wants to be let back in to his crate. I was astounded when I saw him relaxing like a normal dog. It made me smile. Mom may or may not have since sent me a picture of Jack asleep on the outdoor couch. It's nice that he is finally able to enjoy life in his twilight years.


William cracked up when Jack stole one of his "burgers" (a piece of bread) as he was grilling.

I have no photographic evidence, but Mikey and I were given a priceless gift - a night with no kids! We stayed at the beach house and knew that our kids were in the best hands. I had never been away from Ryan overnight, but being that he is baby number two, I was ready! :) Some things are very different between your first and your second.

The day of our mini-vacation-within-a-vacation, Mikey played golf with one of my mom's co-workers, and I had Michael drop me off at the beach house. I didn't know what to do with myself, but somehow I managed to just be alone. When Mikey got to the house (in my mom's super-fabulous convertible that she loaned us for the night), we walked along the beach and couldn't believe how much quieter it had gotten since the fourth of July craziness. That night, we went to a nice restaurant overlooking a marina. We had grown-up food and grown-up drinks. I think we may have even talked about some things other than the boys.

My only worry that night was about Ryan waking up in the middle of the night. No one ever has to mess with that but me, and I felt bad. Luckily my mom is a trooper, and she doesn't require much sleep! Ryan did wake up once for her, and she handled like she had done it before. Imagine that!

The next morning, we went to my favorite little coffee shop/restaurant in the area (bagel and lox - yes please). As we enjoyed our breakfast and read the paper, Mikey noticed Michael walking in. They waved to each other (my back was to Michael), and then my brother proceeded to chat it up with a couple of friends (one of whom just happened to be a cute girl). No biggie. Then he left! He didn't even come over to say hi. I thought it was hilarious. He told Mom and Neil that he saw us but didn't mention that he didn't speak to us. I must have forgotten what it was like to be a teenager and to think it was totally embarrassing that I had a family.

Anyway, I was ecstatic to get back to the kids. I sure did enjoy the time away, but it was wonderful to get them back.

Our trips to Connecticut are so special to me. The pictures and words just can't capture what it's like for me to watch my kids get to interact with Mom, Neil, and Michael. They all really get to experience each other because we are there for so long that we can settle in, and the kids get into a new routine. We have even talked about going for three weeks next summer!