As I said, Saturday was busy. Actually, the busyness started Friday night when I left the boys home with Craig and headed to Geneseo for a reunion of sorts. During my college years I spent the vast majority of my time involved with Intervarsity Christian Fellowship. My roommate found out about it, and we both got involved early in our second semester. It turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to us, as we met a ton of awesome people. We both rediscovered our faith in new ways, and it really made those 3-1/2 years more fulfilling than we ever could have imagined. Well...it's now been over 16 years since that discovery, and over 13 years since we graduated. There have been a couple reunions since, but this one was mostly to celebrate our college pastor, Dave, who is retiring. He's got his reasons, and I am happy for him, but those kids won't know what they're missing without him. He's an incredible man and was a second father to so many of us. In the years since I graduated, I can't even tell you how much I've loved popping into Geneseo from time to time and seeing the look on his face when he sees me. A couple years ago when I stopped into town to buy a baby shower gift for a good friend of mine, I randomly prayed on the way down that I'd love to somehow run into him while I was there, and sure enough...who do I see walking down Main St. but him! The odds of it were slim, and yet...there he was. Made my day. Anyway, Friday night was a throwback to Friday nights of old, with the same kind of meeting we used to have...some music, a speaker, and lots of time to catch up with old friends. It was nice to go without the kids (though they did have childcare, that just seemed like a battle I didn't want to fight) and just enjoy myself for a night. Even though I catch up with everyone over Facebook nowadays, it was so nice to see them in person.
Saturday there was a picnic. It meant another trip to Geneseo, and this one was with the kids. Craig had to work up in Canada, so it was all me. All things considered it went well. Jacob was a little difficult at times and didn't want to be social with the other kids during craft time, but we survived. I got more time to catch up with friends, the food was great, and it was generally a lot of fun.
From there we headed back north and east to Victor, to visit with more friends. I've blogged many times about our visits with my parents' friends' daughter Laurie and her son Colin, along with their more recent addition Kelly. The last time we saw them Kelly was just a few months old...and now she's two! I guess we've all just been a little busy in the interim when they've been in town! We've kept up online, of course, but it's still amazing to realize how much time has passed. Once upon a time we were both pregnant at the same time, and now not only do we both have two kids, but both of those first babies are on their way to Kindergarten. We discovered during this visit that we possibly enjoyed their time together more when they ignored each other, as they were quite a handful this time. I'm not sure who influenced who at which time, but they got into a lot of mischief, including throwing balls into trees and gardens, going too far out in the yard, and touching things they shouldn't have been. They were both equally stubborn during dinner, as well, and finished off the visit purposely crash landing on the grass from riding scooters around the driveway. BOYS! I think they both felt like they had found a suitable partner-in-crime, or at least someone else to pin the blame on, so they just did whatever seemed like fun at that moment. Oy. Definitely easier when they just laid on a blanket and stared off into space! Kelly is quite the adorable little girl, though she's definitely got some spunk! I forgot how cute that phase is where they can talk just enough so you know what they're saying, and where it's cute when they say or repeat certain things, but before it turns into a constant stream of elaborate questions. Those days will be here again for us soon enough, and I'm sure I'll remember the tougher side of that as well! But despite the troublemaking, we had a nice visit. Here's a shot of all four kids, three of which are enjoying their ice cream sandwiches...
Still, I was happy to get home after so many hours away, but I definitely felt like I accomplished something after surviving that long of a day away alone with both kids!
One other wacky thing from the past week was a freak storm that hit our area. Last Thursday Craig called me while I was still at work. He had gotten out of work early and was getting ready for t-ball. He said, "I don't know what happened in Greece, but it's a mess." There were trees down, a road closed, and branches everywhere. There had barely been a rainshower in the city, but Greece got hit with a major thunderstorm, and our neighborhood in particular (particularly the road we take to our neighborhood) got hit with a microburst, leaving lots of tree damage in its wake. The road to our neighborhood had a bunch of large trees down, and there was this view across the street and two doors down:
What you can't see is that there are actually two arms of that tree down, and they just brushed up against the house where they fell. That tree is now gone, not surprisingly. We had no damage, but it definitely feels a little too close for comfort. We've had a series of bad storms, including quite the light show I drove home through on Friday night. Seems everywhere from here to Canada has had some sort of damage lately.
Today we were back to the grind, another long day of work and t-ball. Jacob finally got his game ball tonight! He was due since everyone else had gotten one, but he tried hard tonight, the long-awaited first night of coach pitch. He had a hard time with his coach's pitches (he's good with Craig's), but the swings looked nice even when they didn't connect. Still, he was excited to get a game ball.
Amidst all of the craziness, I have had this picture putting a smile on my face all week...
Well, here we go with another week...
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