CT

John's buddies from Bates invited him to join them in Colorado to celebrate a few different folks who had just turned or were about to turn 50.  Since it's cheaper to fly out to of NYC, the kids and I decided to spend the week in CT with the grandparents (and some friends).

First stop was a night with Nana and Grandpa in Farmington:

Nana playing ball with Hazey

Cal being a "Silly Gal"

a delicious dinner on the porch

Reading "Charlotte's Web" with Nana

Big hugs on the front steps

Next stop was Bumpa and Grandma's.  We were excited to get right out on Bumpa's most recent indulgence, a 28 foot day sailing boat:

Captain Philip

Captain Hazey

Goofy mates

xoxoxo

We were lucky to overlap with James and his family for a night.  These are the outfits that Jamey and Bumpa picked to wear for a day of sailing-- great minds think alike:

On Monday morning, John caught a super early flight.  The kids and I got to spend the day at the zoo with Bumpa and Grandma.  Having never been to a zoo like this, the kids were thrilled:

on the monorail with Grandma

a mama gorilla and her nursing baby

Riding on the Praying Mantus-- insect Carousel

Checking out how big the kids are compared to a tiger!

Hanging out with the red pandas

The kids had a ball all week.  We spent time at the neighbors pool, riding bikes in the neighborhood, playing at various playgrounds, swimming at wee burn, visiting with friends, and actually playing really well together.

John returned on Saturday morning and we went straight up to Cheshire to celebrate Mark Jones' 50th birthday.

We had such a lovely trip.  The kids adore their grandparents and loved all the time they got to spend in the water, riding on pavement, and being with people who love them so much.  A perfect first chapter for our summer!

Poker Hill Graduate

This girl is a graduate of Poker Hill School!  We can't even believe it.  It has been such an unbelievable place for her to grow as a little person.  Two years ago, she was a three-year old who had a reputation for being bossy at her daycare and whom we thought might have gotten our non-musical genes.  Now, she is a compassionate, social, musical, confident, inquisitive, independent person.  She marches to the beat of her own drum and I can thank Poker Hill for much of that.

Poker Hill doesn't believe in a formal graduation, but they do have an end of the year hike up the teepee and sing-a-long/ice cream social for the families.  It was so fun to see Cal show Hazen around and explain the "ins and outs" of Poker Hill to him.  We are so excited to have our next chapter there with him.

We aren't really sure what inspired her, maybe it was moving on from preschool or the hot weather, but the week after Poker Hill got out, Cal asked to get her hair chopped.  We decided this was a job for the professionals, so we brought her down to Bridge Street Hair, where one of my first biology students gave her a "bob".  

My end of the year was kind of crazy.  The weekend guests and traveling, combined with taking an online class, hosting the Mt. Mansfield Union High School "Ladies Luncheon" for ~50 colleagues, and the regular hustle of grading and wrapping things up at school made things rather hectic -hence the lack of blog posts for about six weeks.  When it was finally all over, on June 19th we celebrated at our friend's Marcia and Tim's house. 

  

Yeah Summer!

Father's Day Weekend at Ricker Pond

The kids have been asking to go camping for months.  We hadn't been since September.  So, weeks ago, I coordinated with a few families and reserved a few campsites at Ricker Pond (in Groton State Forest)  for Father's Day Weekend.  I didn't factor into the equation that I would be in the middle of exams at school, hosting the "Ladies Luncheon" for my faculty at my house, needing to grade 60 final projects, and taking an online class.  But you only live once, so I got my ducks in a row and we made it happen.

And it was so, so worth it.  Camping is the best.  Especially when you are with a fun crew.  It strips life down to the basics.  I'm not going to lie, it's a pain in the neck to get the gear together and pack it up and set it up and unpack it, but so, so worth it.  I'm so glad that we made it all work out. 

And the father's felt loved and appreciated with a big fat brunch and the green light to go for an epic mountain bike ride in Stowe.

This family loves to camp and we love the guy that the kids call Dad, but we realized that a group camping trip was no way to really show our appreciation for all that he does and is for us.  So, we got a waiver and decided to celebrate father's day for the entire week after the actual day!  He deserves it!

Reunion

I love my family.  But I also love my friend.  The friends that I met in college are some of the greatest friends I have-- even if 20 years have elapsed.  Because my alma mater is only an hour from my home, it doesn't take much to get me to any of my reunions.  Fortunately, many of my friends have a soft spot in their hearts for Vermont, so they gladly make the trek up here.  But because many of them are coming from far-- California, Virginia, Idaho, NYC, etc., we decided to prolong the event and make a four day event out of the whole thing.  With the help of these friends (and my fabulous husband)

I was able to spend some time with these lovely ladies and lots of other fascinating classmates during a beautiful weekend in June.  John was able to join me for the first night of festivities because Tom and Cara had the kids over for a slumber party and then took them to a fund raising event at Oakledge Park in Burlington for the day on Saturday.  

 It was so great to see old friends and even connect with folks I hadn't stayed in touch with for the past 20 years.  We stayed in dorm rooms, ate cafeteria food, and really felt like we were in college again-- pretending for just a weekend that we didn't have all the responsibilities that we have now, realizing how amazing it was to be in college-- where coffee was made for you everyday, dishes were washed for you, and your biggest stress was writing a paper and getting enough sleep.

 

Meanwhile, John was playing a superstar role as husband.... he stocked the refrigerator and cupboards at High Meadow where five of us returned for two nights of relaxation.  He took the kids climbing, drove them to school, delivered us a fruit salad, and let my friends meet the kids for just the right amount of time.

Every once in a while, Cally asks me why I have to leave to see friends for an evening or several days.  My response is always the same.  I hope she develops great friendships like the ones I am so lucky to have.  Where time can elapse and distance can come between us, but we always have each other in our hearts.