On Friday evening after work, we went to Five Star Burgers. It's by Whole Foods and is very popular. We grabbed a couple of stools to wait and have a microbrew and Shirley Temples for the boys. We saw our neighbors at a table, and they came over to chat when we got a table. The boys wolf down the burgers there. Jack, in fact, orders two of the kid's burgers. I've tried the bison burger the last two times. It's not as exotic as I thought it might be. It's just a very good burger. I love the people there, I love the place, the food's good, the bartender is fun and energetic, but there's always some little screwup in the service. It's almost humorous how consistent that is.
Ry has been anxious for his Lego package of missing pieces, so he can complete his vintage fire station. Jack asked to download a voice changing software, and I think I convinced him there was something suspect about the source for the free download of the program. Ry fell asleep, as he usually does, in my arms. He asks me to put his arm around him as he falls asleep.
Ry and I got up early on Saturday. He wanted to go to the skateboard park. We woke Jackson up gently after a bit, and he came around to going with us even though it was still cold.
We went first to Starbucks--the usual hot chocolates for the boys, a coffee for me, an apple fritter for Ry, a chocolate doughnut for Jack. We sat down and started to play Uno, and a fellow asked if the chair beside me was taken. We recognized each other; somebody I worked with over 20 years ago who now lives in Chicago. We were talking when Don, Nicholas and Lauren came in, and we chatted with them for a while before they took off to see their grandmother.
The boys rode their scooters around the park, then climbed the ramps without their scooters, and then we went home. Cyndi went to a body pump workout, and I did some major clearing and pruning in the backyard, while the boys played on their computer. Ry came out for a bit to dig in the sandbox. After some lunch, we then went to Brendan's basketball game. He was pretty darn good and his team won.
I wanted to go to the Albuquerque Museum of Art and History, so we drove to Old Town. The museum has really changed since I last was there. Very impressive inside. The history section was closed, a two year renovation had just begun. Another exhibition is due to open next week. There was an exhibit about social commentary and satire and in another gallery pieces from their permanent collection. So I procrastinated whether we should go at all. It was inexpensive and so we went ahead. I told the boys they needed to settle down and they couldn't run around, and wondered how it would go.
There were some photographs in the halls and a few historical displays and several small drawings of Old Town. The boys took some interest in the displays. The social commentary and satire exhibit really was pretty good, and I recognized some of the artists. The permanent collections exhibit was outstanding. The guards were watching us pretty closely, but not in that oppressive way, and the boys were good and not touching things or running around. After I saw most of the works, Jack showed me his favorite. It was a New Mexico landscape I really liked, with repetitive figures for junipers and an approaching storm in the sky. I agreed that was one of my favorites, surprised that he picked it out, too. Then Ry took me to show me his favorite, another landscape with an approaching storm, that I had also liked a lot.
Here is Ry's favorite.
I could not find Jack's favorite anywhere on the web. But here's one that's close. The one at the museum had more hills and mesas in the distance, more rows of junipers in the foreground, and the approaching storm was smaller in the composition.
Anyway, I was so thankful the boys behaved well and actually liked it. I enjoyed the visit, and probably the shorter visit was better for the boys before they tired. We walked through the sculpture garden and in the back there's a small entrance to an Old Town patio of shops. We found a magic shop, which the boys loved. The owner showed us a few things and the boys were looking around. Ry found a small prank in the price range I pre-approved. Jack found something, too, and then asked the owner what he liked, and the owner took out a magic pen and showed us a good trick and then when we bought it how it worked, using magician's words to describe how it worked (misdirection and palming), taking them step by step (but only once) through the act (which involved requesting a dollar bill from the audience, promising to return it with greater value, and then allowing the audience to examine the pen), and swearing the boys to secrecy. Jack and Ry have been practicing (it even came with a DVD), and showed it to Cyndi and Brendan today.
We grabbed a pizza from Dion's on the way home.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
and through the woods
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| Jackson, Roscoe, Rylee |
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| Lauren, Nicholas, Brendan, Jackson, Rylee |
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Ariel and Chris arrived Friday and they came over on Saturday. We exchanged some gifts. Rylee got a Lego game from them that he and Jack put together and learned to play. Jackson got a Tin Tin book, which he hasn't really discovered yet.
We drove to Las Lunas first to pick up Lola and then met Ariel and Chris in Belen for Christmas Eve. There was a ham and posole and tamales, and later we met everyone in Albuquerque's Old Town to see the luminarias and listen to the carols. It was very cold, which drained some of the fun. We mostly sat inside the church, listening we think to Handel's Messiah, and hugged and said goodbye to Ariel and Chris.
On Christmas morning the boys discovered the gifts from Santa, and we went to church.
Christmas day we visited Cyndi's family in Belen. Jackson took his new chess set and played. He brought it along everywhere and played it in California, too, as well as at the Grand Canyon. Rylee got a Lego set and we're just now trying to put it together, despite some missing pieces. Ry got excited about it once he found out from Nicholas that it was a rare set and it had over 2,000 pieces. I think we could have gotten Karl's help in building it, but we had to get home to find alternative pieces for the ones that were missing.
As I recall, now a few weeks even later than when I started this post, we hit the road about 3 in the morning and the boys stayed awake for a while until drifting off to sleep on the couch in the back. Cyndi nodded in the chair beside mine in the front while I listened to my ipod. Around Grants, there were signs of the serious blizzard the week before Christmas. We stopped at the usual place in Galllup, where the pumps were frozen and had to be reset by the attendant. In Flagstaff, we grabbed some McD breakfast and gassed up at the Little America. In Kingman, we got some Starbucks and more gas. Cyndi ran into a store for Christmas wrap.
 
Meanwhile, the boys played with their new Skylanders game on the Wii console Jackson hooked up to the tv in the RV. I think by the time the day ended, they reached Level 18.
We didn't stop in Needles or in the Mojave. Somewhere out there, Dad called to measure our progress. In Barstow, after some gas, we were going to look for the original Del Taco but missed it and found ourselves headed to Mojave City. Cyndi was desperate for a bathroom at this point, and I knew there was a couple of gas stations at a junction up ahead in the middle of nowhere. Amazingly, the traffic and the bathroom lines were jammed, a sign of desperation we were sharing with lots of post holiday travelers. In Tehachapi, we had our only good meal on the road and we made a reservation for a room for our return. In Bakersfield, we stopped at the Costco for gas, grapes and hot dogs and salad. The traffic was brutal now. The lanes filled with commuters and travelers, everyone going very fast. It was dark now. The country road to Paso Robles, such a pretty drive in the daylight, was scary. Our final stop for gas before heading up the Salinas Valley, and we were hanging by a thread. We limped into Mom & Dad's, some 19 hours after we began our trip that day.
Everyone was pretty much there when we arrived. I don't remember Sarah's menu schedule, but there was always plenty of good eating while we were there. On Tuesday morning, I was desperate for a big breakfast, so I took the lead, after some warning, to cook up some eggs along with the spread Mom had set out. It tasted so good and there was enough for many more as we sat around the kitchen. At some point, we borrowed Beth and Gary's car and drove into Monterrey. We stopped first at their skateboard park near the Dennis the Menace park down by the beach to tryout the new Santa skateboards, and then we headed toward the fisherman's wharf.
  
   We needed this. I missed the smell of the ocean and the dampness. We went to a different place than usual for our clam chowder and sourdough bread. And this time the boys also split a half order of steamed dungeoness crab.
We were joined for a brief walk before heading back for dinner. Mom had her wonderful brisket, and everyone gathered around that evening for some gifts and cookies. The boys played a little on their Wii, always asking for permission first, and played some new games, as well as chess, with Eric and Terra. The next day, before pictures and his wonderful ribs, David took us out on the bay on one of the boats he built.
    
While the boys played with Roscoe and some cousins, Cyndi had a nice chat with Sandra, and I got caught up with Jennifer and Jacques' life in Valdez and the times they skied with Ariel and Chris up there, with Emily and her experience in South Africa, and with Sarah in her new career phase in Chico. Eric parted with his favorite baseball bat, and his girlfriend joined us for a walk around the pond below the house. I chatted a bit with David, and Beth, and Lisa, but nowhere enough. Mom acted like she didn't see the stain I made, which Sandra helped me to clean. Jackson looked for rocks. He and Ry ran up and down the hill where the lupines grow in spring.
We left around noon on Thursday. It was sad to say goodbye so soon. It was sad, too, that Ariel and Chris couldn't be there and were about to leave Albuquerque for a wedding in Jackson Hole. I'm sure they would have arranged to be in California had I planned our trip earlier. We ended up breaking up the return trip into three days, but the days still felt long. We hit all our gas stops for the most part. We found the Del Taco in Barstow. It's not the original but it's store no. 1 and it really was pretty good eats, even though not much distinctive to look at. We did our night in Tehachapi. The indoor pool was shut down but we had real beds for the night. After a decent breakfast there, we headed toward the Grand Canyon.
That day felt long again and we were a little under the gun to get into the campground before dark. It wasn't crowded at all, so we drove over to the historic district on the south rim, where we had an okay meal and played some chess, before claiming a spot for the night.
In the morning, after coffee in the RV, showers at the camp-
.ground, and breakfast at the Yavapai Lodge, we drove along the south rim toward the east gate, stopping along the way and exploring the Tower. 
We searched in vain in Flagstaff for some more Skylanders, got home after dark, put our things away, and went to bed. It was New Year's Eve. The next day we went to Monroe's for some New Mexican chile.
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a weekend
I've still to finish a post on our holidays, with pictures of our trip, but in the meantime let's see how quickly I can write a post on our past weekend before Cyndi and I go over to the school this morning. Jackson's teacher recommended him for the gifted enrichment program, and we've filled out some questionnaires and today we meet with a committee before Jack takes an initial test to measure "intellectual ability." I think that's some form of an IQ test. We prepared by going swimming last night and Cyndi made sure the boys had a good breakfast.
The beginning of the weekend is a bit of a blur. We went to a new Italian place in the far Northeast Heights and ate pizza, with a beer, a wine and an Italian soda. Saturday was going to be a big day, with an early registration for a chess tournament and then sign-ups for baseball. Elley, Nicholas and Lauren were coming over for dinner later, and I took out a chuck roast from the freezer.
On Saturday, we had a breakfast of blackberry pancakes and bacon. Both of the boys were being rambunctious, and Rylee especially was on a whirl. He just wouldn't listen to me, and I had to get stern with him. The chess tournament had a huge turn-out, but like us most of the parents had not pre-registered. That put a crimp in the organization of the tournament that never really got better. We also learned that it was going to take the better part of the day. The children would play four rounds.
These chess tournaments, since we are so new to this, are very stressing. We had a one-game tournament during the prior week for elementary school children, which Jackson played in. We got there early and Jack set up his new set from Santa. He would play in second position for his school. I asked the director if I could grab a chair and sit along the side of the room with Ry, which is how it was done at our only prior tournament experience. He said they were going to have the parents in a separate room. I looked around the room, which was filling up with parents eager like me to watch their child in competition, and I thought to myself that wasn't going to go over well. He said the parents could walk in for a few minutes during the play. That struck me as odd. Sure enough, the parents were directed into the room. Ry and I grabbed a seat in there. Equally certain, many parents did not comply and there was no followup to enforce it.
Just before play began, I checked on Jackson. He was already a little upset because the coach from the school he was playing against had moved him up a chair because the first seed from Jack's school hadn't shown up yet. Jack wanted to move his set, instead of strangers playing on it, and he wanted to wait for the first seed, but the opposing coach belittled him for not complying with her. After play began, Ry and I went inside the room with the chess players, and the opposing coach was hovering over Jackson during play. I could see Jackson was distracted, and I wondered why coaches were allowed to do that. Even worse, the opposing player's friend was "talking trash" to Jackson and even reached over and moved pieces on the board Jack was playing on. Jack held his own on that, I thought. Then Jack made a few mistakes and he became more despondent. He even tried to retire. He was devastated when he lost. The opposing player was good but Jackson could have beaten him. It hurt to watch Jackson so demoralized.
He sat there watching the players next to him playing a game on his board. It turned out that those players had already finished their game and were playing a friendly game. Ironically, the opposing coach thought Jackson was interfering with the game and asked the director to move Jack away. When the director did, I looked at him questioningly. He told me he had a complaint. I almost lost it. I said, complaint? I said, I wasn't going to say anything but now I have a few complaints of my own. The director became apologetic. He tried to tell me the coach didn't know how to play chess. I said that really didn't matter; she was a distraction.
Well, all that recap and support lifted Jack's spirits a bit, and we told Cyndi all about it when we got home.
The Saturday tournament was just as stressful. I remember back in fall when we went to the tournament at the school and I was so impressed with the children. This time I thought many of them were obnoxious and rude. In the first round, both Jack and Ry won their game. Jackson simply overpowered his opponent. Ry was playing a kid that was really a good kid, but as I watched the kid I swore he was secretly moving pieces out of turn and poor Ry tried to call him on it. That game ended when Ry put him in check and the kid thought he was in checkmate and conceded the game. The rule is that when both players agree who won, then the game is over. I told the director that the boy just didn't see one move that would have saved him from checkmate, but the director said that was the rule. The same thing happened a few other times that day.
So the boys having won their first games, I was relieved. At least they would both have a win.
In the second game, Jackson made some mistakes and he ended up retiring. He was devastated again. I grabbed him as he tried to leave the room and asked, did you shake hands? He said he didn't. I said I would insist that he do it. He did. I followed him out and we went outside to talk and we talked about many things. He didn't come around immediately but I knew he was listening. I was glad he won the first game and I was glad his second opponent was actually a good and gracious player. I thought this was a pretty good way to learn about losing a chess game in a tournament. It was also a pretty good way to learn about winning.
We went to lunch. On the way, we signed up for baseball. Nothing remarkable there, except that they are going to have an evaluation session for Ry to see which machine pitch league he should be in and a draft session for Jackson to see what minor league team he will be on. I figured Ry, because of his age, ought to repeat the first level of machine pitch, but maybe we'll see he should move up already. Either way would be good I think. Jack has had the same coaches for several years now and they want Jackson on their team again. It's been a great group of boys. The pressure is off Jackson for the tryouts for minor league, because his coaches actually hope he does poorly so they can draft him onto their team. The boys saw some friends at the fields and played with them. The boys got out their gloves, balls and bats later that day to play at home and all three of us played catch on Sunday in the front yard under the trees.
We had a light lunch and chocolate milkshakes at Flying Star, looked at a house Cyndi and the boys like to look at, and we got back to the chess tournament by 1. The third round had already begun. One of the officials had told several parents the wrong restart time. The director moved things around and Jackson and Rylee were playing. Jackson won his. Ry played a very obnoxious little kid but he was also a very good player and Ry lost. The boys both lost their final games and we drove home to start the dinner.
Ry wasn't sure if he wanted to play in the tournament but said he was glad to get the tournament experience. He wants his own Santa chess set now. Jackson said he could move to varsity now that he had played a tournament. There's another one next month.
Speaking of Santa: I'm sure Ry is wise to the whole thing. He overheard me talk about the skateboarding shop and ordering the firehouse Lego set on Amazon. He's not saying, but he knows, I'm certain. We started unpacking and sorting the firehouse Lego pieces (there's thousands), the one Ry got from Santa, while we were in California. Karl watched us enthusiastically, anticipating Roscoe someday building one. It took a few weeks to get it started. The set comes in two stages and as Ry and I sat down to do the first stage it was apparent that were many pieces missing. We were trying to substitute, but it became more and more difficult and we finally had to stop. We hardly got off the ground. So I called Lego tech support, and they knew exactly what bag of pieces was missing and would send them from Denmark. In the meantime, we decided to start on stage two, which is the second floor and the roof.
Ry has done all of it by himself. He is so engrossed in it now. I stand around and he allows me to find the pieces from the bags we put together to help sort them all out, but he has built it himself, piece by piece, except for one roof feature that he asked Jackson to help him with. It is now nearly completed, and he loves it. He's already playing with it. He's planning to add on other buildings. He carries it up to the bedroom at night, along with the shoebox of bags of pieces, just to be able to see it when he wakes up. He devoted most of Sunday to it.
Jackson spent most of the day Sunday designing his Cool Club website. He's researching new software tools to code the page, as well as researching things like copyrights and licensing. He designed a new console, with its own unique USB ports. I told him he ought to send it off to the Patent Office. He has since put together an online employment application. He and his friend Zach talk about it on the phone. Guess they're going into business together.
First thing Sunday morning, Jackson, Rylee and I also went to the skateboard park. Right now, they are using the new scooters they bought with Christmas gift money. We stopped first at Starbucks where the boys get their Kid's Hot Chocolate with Extra Whip and our baristas put them into tall cups for lots of extra whip cream. Jackson also got a donut and Ry an apple fritter. They each gave me a piece and saved a piece for Cyndi.
Ry says he can't wait for Dixon's Apples again so he can have one of their apple fritters. Jackson wants lots of their apple cider. We're not sure of the fate of Dixon's Apples, which suffered freeze, fire and flood all in one season last year.
We stayed a few moments and played our Set card game (a traditional game from Ariel's childhood) before heading to the park. Cyndi got it out for Jack and Ry last week, and Ry and I played one night before bed. Later Sunday, we all went together, with Elley, Nicholas and Lauren, too, to see "We Bought a Zoo."
Funny, when I thought I should write about our weekend, there were so many details I wanted to share about things they said, things they did. Can't think of them now, but here's something I did remember. We've been battling over bad language. We call it cussing. Finally, I said that when they use those words they are looking like a baby. Since that discussion, both of them, particularly Jackson, has cut the words out. Now, whenever I cuss, of course, they tell me I'm acting like a baby.
They are such good boys. I love the way Ry gets so engrossed in his projects and talks about them. I love the way Jackson is growing up, getting so mature in the way he talks and thinks. And I love that he still asks permission. Ry not so much.
Meanwhile, Ariel is back at work in NYC. She's going through a pretty intensive interview process for a really great new job, making wedding plans, and being busy with everything else. Chris is the midst of graduate program applications and interviews. They are planning a honeymoon in southern France and the Alps that includes some climbing and mountaineering. Ariel is very excited for June.
The beginning of the weekend is a bit of a blur. We went to a new Italian place in the far Northeast Heights and ate pizza, with a beer, a wine and an Italian soda. Saturday was going to be a big day, with an early registration for a chess tournament and then sign-ups for baseball. Elley, Nicholas and Lauren were coming over for dinner later, and I took out a chuck roast from the freezer.
On Saturday, we had a breakfast of blackberry pancakes and bacon. Both of the boys were being rambunctious, and Rylee especially was on a whirl. He just wouldn't listen to me, and I had to get stern with him. The chess tournament had a huge turn-out, but like us most of the parents had not pre-registered. That put a crimp in the organization of the tournament that never really got better. We also learned that it was going to take the better part of the day. The children would play four rounds.
These chess tournaments, since we are so new to this, are very stressing. We had a one-game tournament during the prior week for elementary school children, which Jackson played in. We got there early and Jack set up his new set from Santa. He would play in second position for his school. I asked the director if I could grab a chair and sit along the side of the room with Ry, which is how it was done at our only prior tournament experience. He said they were going to have the parents in a separate room. I looked around the room, which was filling up with parents eager like me to watch their child in competition, and I thought to myself that wasn't going to go over well. He said the parents could walk in for a few minutes during the play. That struck me as odd. Sure enough, the parents were directed into the room. Ry and I grabbed a seat in there. Equally certain, many parents did not comply and there was no followup to enforce it.
Just before play began, I checked on Jackson. He was already a little upset because the coach from the school he was playing against had moved him up a chair because the first seed from Jack's school hadn't shown up yet. Jack wanted to move his set, instead of strangers playing on it, and he wanted to wait for the first seed, but the opposing coach belittled him for not complying with her. After play began, Ry and I went inside the room with the chess players, and the opposing coach was hovering over Jackson during play. I could see Jackson was distracted, and I wondered why coaches were allowed to do that. Even worse, the opposing player's friend was "talking trash" to Jackson and even reached over and moved pieces on the board Jack was playing on. Jack held his own on that, I thought. Then Jack made a few mistakes and he became more despondent. He even tried to retire. He was devastated when he lost. The opposing player was good but Jackson could have beaten him. It hurt to watch Jackson so demoralized.
He sat there watching the players next to him playing a game on his board. It turned out that those players had already finished their game and were playing a friendly game. Ironically, the opposing coach thought Jackson was interfering with the game and asked the director to move Jack away. When the director did, I looked at him questioningly. He told me he had a complaint. I almost lost it. I said, complaint? I said, I wasn't going to say anything but now I have a few complaints of my own. The director became apologetic. He tried to tell me the coach didn't know how to play chess. I said that really didn't matter; she was a distraction.
Well, all that recap and support lifted Jack's spirits a bit, and we told Cyndi all about it when we got home.
The Saturday tournament was just as stressful. I remember back in fall when we went to the tournament at the school and I was so impressed with the children. This time I thought many of them were obnoxious and rude. In the first round, both Jack and Ry won their game. Jackson simply overpowered his opponent. Ry was playing a kid that was really a good kid, but as I watched the kid I swore he was secretly moving pieces out of turn and poor Ry tried to call him on it. That game ended when Ry put him in check and the kid thought he was in checkmate and conceded the game. The rule is that when both players agree who won, then the game is over. I told the director that the boy just didn't see one move that would have saved him from checkmate, but the director said that was the rule. The same thing happened a few other times that day.
So the boys having won their first games, I was relieved. At least they would both have a win.
In the second game, Jackson made some mistakes and he ended up retiring. He was devastated again. I grabbed him as he tried to leave the room and asked, did you shake hands? He said he didn't. I said I would insist that he do it. He did. I followed him out and we went outside to talk and we talked about many things. He didn't come around immediately but I knew he was listening. I was glad he won the first game and I was glad his second opponent was actually a good and gracious player. I thought this was a pretty good way to learn about losing a chess game in a tournament. It was also a pretty good way to learn about winning.
We went to lunch. On the way, we signed up for baseball. Nothing remarkable there, except that they are going to have an evaluation session for Ry to see which machine pitch league he should be in and a draft session for Jackson to see what minor league team he will be on. I figured Ry, because of his age, ought to repeat the first level of machine pitch, but maybe we'll see he should move up already. Either way would be good I think. Jack has had the same coaches for several years now and they want Jackson on their team again. It's been a great group of boys. The pressure is off Jackson for the tryouts for minor league, because his coaches actually hope he does poorly so they can draft him onto their team. The boys saw some friends at the fields and played with them. The boys got out their gloves, balls and bats later that day to play at home and all three of us played catch on Sunday in the front yard under the trees.
We had a light lunch and chocolate milkshakes at Flying Star, looked at a house Cyndi and the boys like to look at, and we got back to the chess tournament by 1. The third round had already begun. One of the officials had told several parents the wrong restart time. The director moved things around and Jackson and Rylee were playing. Jackson won his. Ry played a very obnoxious little kid but he was also a very good player and Ry lost. The boys both lost their final games and we drove home to start the dinner.
Ry wasn't sure if he wanted to play in the tournament but said he was glad to get the tournament experience. He wants his own Santa chess set now. Jackson said he could move to varsity now that he had played a tournament. There's another one next month.
Speaking of Santa: I'm sure Ry is wise to the whole thing. He overheard me talk about the skateboarding shop and ordering the firehouse Lego set on Amazon. He's not saying, but he knows, I'm certain. We started unpacking and sorting the firehouse Lego pieces (there's thousands), the one Ry got from Santa, while we were in California. Karl watched us enthusiastically, anticipating Roscoe someday building one. It took a few weeks to get it started. The set comes in two stages and as Ry and I sat down to do the first stage it was apparent that were many pieces missing. We were trying to substitute, but it became more and more difficult and we finally had to stop. We hardly got off the ground. So I called Lego tech support, and they knew exactly what bag of pieces was missing and would send them from Denmark. In the meantime, we decided to start on stage two, which is the second floor and the roof.
Ry has done all of it by himself. He is so engrossed in it now. I stand around and he allows me to find the pieces from the bags we put together to help sort them all out, but he has built it himself, piece by piece, except for one roof feature that he asked Jackson to help him with. It is now nearly completed, and he loves it. He's already playing with it. He's planning to add on other buildings. He carries it up to the bedroom at night, along with the shoebox of bags of pieces, just to be able to see it when he wakes up. He devoted most of Sunday to it.
Jackson spent most of the day Sunday designing his Cool Club website. He's researching new software tools to code the page, as well as researching things like copyrights and licensing. He designed a new console, with its own unique USB ports. I told him he ought to send it off to the Patent Office. He has since put together an online employment application. He and his friend Zach talk about it on the phone. Guess they're going into business together.
First thing Sunday morning, Jackson, Rylee and I also went to the skateboard park. Right now, they are using the new scooters they bought with Christmas gift money. We stopped first at Starbucks where the boys get their Kid's Hot Chocolate with Extra Whip and our baristas put them into tall cups for lots of extra whip cream. Jackson also got a donut and Ry an apple fritter. They each gave me a piece and saved a piece for Cyndi.
Ry says he can't wait for Dixon's Apples again so he can have one of their apple fritters. Jackson wants lots of their apple cider. We're not sure of the fate of Dixon's Apples, which suffered freeze, fire and flood all in one season last year.
We stayed a few moments and played our Set card game (a traditional game from Ariel's childhood) before heading to the park. Cyndi got it out for Jack and Ry last week, and Ry and I played one night before bed. Later Sunday, we all went together, with Elley, Nicholas and Lauren, too, to see "We Bought a Zoo."
Funny, when I thought I should write about our weekend, there were so many details I wanted to share about things they said, things they did. Can't think of them now, but here's something I did remember. We've been battling over bad language. We call it cussing. Finally, I said that when they use those words they are looking like a baby. Since that discussion, both of them, particularly Jackson, has cut the words out. Now, whenever I cuss, of course, they tell me I'm acting like a baby.
They are such good boys. I love the way Ry gets so engrossed in his projects and talks about them. I love the way Jackson is growing up, getting so mature in the way he talks and thinks. And I love that he still asks permission. Ry not so much.
Meanwhile, Ariel is back at work in NYC. She's going through a pretty intensive interview process for a really great new job, making wedding plans, and being busy with everything else. Chris is the midst of graduate program applications and interviews. They are planning a honeymoon in southern France and the Alps that includes some climbing and mountaineering. Ariel is very excited for June.
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