V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N

Its the most wonderful time of the year.....vacation! I know some say back to school is the best time of the year or the holidays, those are indeed good times, but I enjoy vacation!

Our vacation starts Friday 7/23 at 5pm. We are off for two weeks. This year, we cannot afford to go to Virginia to see Zack the first week, but we have things planned to do around the house. There is yard work, house cleaning and of course relaxing to do!

The second week, we will have Zack in Massachusetts. His mom is bringing him up to us for the week. We have little things planned but our big adventure is to spend the day at a state park beach in CT, stay over and then visit Mystic Aquarium and Seaport the next day. I can't wait to see Drew's reaction at the aquarium and I know Zack will have a wonderful time too.

So, bring it on! I'm so ready!!

Coming To An End

Today is the last day of our two week vacation. Yeah, we have the weekend, but this is the last weekday of being off for two weeks. Its going to be tough going back to work on Monday, but my motivation is the next long weekend coming up for Labor Day.

Plans for today are-

Jeff, Zack, Ally and Jeff's brother are out geo-caching. We used to do this several years ago and loved it! Drew can't go since we can't spray him with sunscreen or bug spray, so him and I stayed home.

Myself, my FIL and Drew went to my SIL's house to get the last minute baby things together for her. We put the batteries into the electric devices and set up the complicated baby monitor. Later on this afternoon we will go visit her (the poor little guy has been in ICU for the past couple of days, they are running tests on him to see why he wasn't eating, but everything has come back negative, so that's good).

Then this weekend, we have Zack until Sunday. We don't know for sure what we will do tomorrow, but on Sunday we will start moving into our new room! Yeah!!

We Came Back

We had a busy, active, relaxing and hectic type of vacation in Virginia. Drew traveled wonderfully on our way south. We stopped overnight a little more then half way and then continued to our destination the following day. Zack arrived at our hotel that afternoon and it was non-stop ever since.

We all loved the indoor pool we had at the hotel. Everyday we visited that thing. Drew loved it much more then his first pool experience back in June since the water was so much warmer. Zack would swim around between all of us underwater and Drew would just look around while being hel in the pool. Later on in the week we bought a floaty where he could sit in and was dragged around the pool. It was too cute.

Oh, and Drew has started to roll over while we were away. He rolled over about 5 times during the week, so watch out now!!

The boys (Jeff and Zack) went to play golf at a local par 3. Yeah, Zack beat Jeff by 4 shots but in defense for Jeff, it was his first time out this season. Later on in the week they also went mini-golfing. While the boys played golf, Drew and I went shopping. It was a great compromise.

The kids in the pool

We explored a local zoo called the Mill Mountain Zoo. Its a smaller zoo, but its set up on a mountain in Roanoke and its so beautiful and serene. The views off the mountain are breathtaking and the variety of animals was great.

A bird at the zoo

We visited a local kids museum too. In an advertisement it stated its the oldest museum in the country (I'd agree with that since the displays were a little outdated) but it was a great, fun educational place. Zack had a great time playing with all the scientific displays, including the one that sounded like a fart (oh, to be 11 years old again).

Zack hula-hooping at the museum

The hectic part of the whole week was poor little Drew was not feeling well. We took care of him of course, but it was nerve racking being so far away from his regular doctors office for a consult. I did call the nurse to chat and we were doing everything correct. We told Drew that he's on vacation, he's not suppost to be sick. But, the little guy is doing much better.

Drew and Great-Grandpa Guy

As we headed North, we stopped by Grandpa's house for a weekend visit. It was so fun to see Drew with Grandpa. We had a great time visiting with all the family in that area too. Drew is such a big ham when it comes to people coming up to him to say hi.

Last night after we got in, unpacked the car, got Drew situated (Zack was with his mother since she brings him to MA for the second half of our vacation, he'll come later today) we noticed something my FIL did for use while we were away. He painted our new room! The paint and supplies were there when we left, waiting for us to return to paint and he did it for us while we were gone. We were so surprised! He also washed and waxed the floor. What a guy! Now we can start to move upstairs sooner....yeah!

Vacation Notice

Its that time of year, vacation time! We are driving south to see Zack and we can't wait. The car is packed, the oil is changed in the van, last minute errands are done...now we wait for my work day to end. Then, its off to Virginia for the week, spend the weekend in Maryland and then head home. We will then have another week off, but at home with Zack.

I will share our adventures when we return to Massachusetts. Until then, take care and see you soon!!

Off to Maryland!

Will be back real soon!

What I Learned This Weekend

As you know, we went to Maryland this weekend to visit Zack and my Grandpa. I don't have pictures ready to share with our adventures yet, but I did learn a few things over the past couple of days I thought were interesting.

1. Baby Drew gets the hiccups often.


2. Zack was amazed when he felt his little brother kicking (hard) for the first time.


3. I can lie to Zack's mom, while looking straight in her eyes, about how "wonderful" she looks in her wedding dress (she showed Jeff & I a picture that was taken while she was trying it on).
   
4. My mother takes way too long to fix a cup of coffee at a rest area (she tagged along on this trip).


5. My grandpa is like a little kid......he tries to sneak an extra donut when he thinks no one is watching, but still gets caught red handed.


6. Jeff likes to play tag with other cars while driving long distances (I knew this one already, but forgot).


7. I can't follow 3 conversations at once anymore, its very frustrating and tiring.


8. I am definitely getting a case of mommy brain (I kept forgetting little things either at the hotel or in the car).


9. I can't see my ankle bones any longer.....they've disappeared under some swollen skin.


10. Priceline rocks for cheap hotel prices.....we got a room at a Fairfield Inn Marriott for $49 a night and the hotel was great.

Oh Canada, Eh?!

Jeff and I made it back from our weekend bus trip to Niagara Falls in Canada. The weather was definitely winter like all the way from Western MA to the Buffalo area. Then it was just overcast while we crossed the border (oh, and cold too).

We were early arriving so the bus was able to stop on the American side at the Duty Free store. Yes, there was more then alcohol in the store, but all the drinkers on the trip where able to stock up on their favorite drinks for the weekend (we were able to take the purchases into Canada since we were there more then 24hrs).

Our hotel was right along the main road that runs along the falls/river. Our hotel had stores, restaurants, Starbucks, a casino and other shops within walking distance. It was pretty neat how everything was connected from the inside that was affiliated to the hotel so you didn't have to bundle up and go outside if you didn't want too.

Our Hotel

Friday evening after supper, the group was on our own for entertainment. So, a bunch of us went and explored the street behind our hotel which is catered to the tourists. It has arcades, haunted houses, wax museums, other fun museums, souvenir shops and anything else you can think of, including a few rides.

View from our room of the entertainment district

The ride we checked out was the Skywheel (the large Ferris wheel pictured above). The awesome thing about it was the cars on the Skywheel were climate controlled. They were encased and the riders are either warm in the cold months or cool in the hot months. I liked that idea! It was nice to take a ride, look over the town, the falls and warm up at the same time. Yeah, it was $10 (Canadian) for each person, but it was worth it to see that beautiful view.

The cute couple on the Skywheel

On Saturday, we had a jammed packed day that was planed for us through the tour company. We shopped during the day in Niagara by the lake and went for high tea for a snack and warmed up after wards. There was some free time back at the hotel after tea so Jeff and I explored the stores not affiliated with our hotel. Then it was off to a guided tour (in the bus) with a local tour guide. We were able to see an indoor Christmas display of beautiful flowers, an outside drive through Christmas display of lights and finally the falls.

The thick ice on the falls railing

We didn't get to the falls until it was dark, so my pictures of the falls at night really didn't come out too good. But, what I was fascinated with was the ice that formed with the spray from the falls on the railing's and the area along the water. It was so thick and beautiful. I just wish I could have seen it all during the day to see how the sun reflected off of it all, but we did have a lot to cover. There is always next time!

After our quick stop at the falls, it was time to head to our dinner and show. The show we watched was The Christmas Carol and it was done by the same drama company who typically puts on Oh Canada, Eh. Its a group who does the play with mistakes built in as a comedy routine. Its was pretty funny!

On the bridge exiting Canada - The America Falls on the left with the Canadian Falls in the mist in the center

Then Sunday morning after breakfast, it was a brief stop at the Canada side Duty Free store and then it was time to head home. I picked up a nice bottle of Ice Wine that is exclusively made in Canada. I know that it'll be close to a year before I can try it, but wine should formant for some time, right? We learned that the ice wine is made with frozen grapes rather then regular grapes from the Niagara area. I was told the ice wine is a little sweater then normal wine, so I can't wait to try it.

So, it was a great fun filled weekend. With lots of eating, walking and shopping. I mentioned to Jeff that I'd love to go back when its a little warmer to be able to explore more outside in the area and be able to see the falls up close and personal, maybe on the Maid of the Mist! We'll see what the future holds!

Canada, Here We Come!

Jeff and I are taking off to Canada for a long weekend. Jeff's work for the last few years have arranged bus trips to different locations during the holiday season. This years trip is to Niagara Falls on the Canadian side.

I've never been to Canada, but I have my passport and I'm ready to go. Jeff's been to the area before we started dating, but it wasn't with me so it doesn't count. I was so excited when he brought home the information during the summer for this trip. Yeah!

I'm thinking this is our last big getaway for just the two of us before the baby comes too, so it makes it even more special for us to go this weekend. Yeah, we'll do things here and there before the end of April, but nothing like this until who knows when!

*Even though I'll be out of the area, I'll still have a post ready letting you know how my appointment went*

Last Weekend of Vacation

This past weekend was the end of our two week vacation (sniff, sniff). We will have little weekend get-aways here and there to go see Zack, or day trips, but it won't top having two straight weeks off from work. Oh, well....until next summer!

On Friday we had decided to hop in the car and take a drive to the original Yankee Candle. The store is only 45 minutes away and all three of us love to go, so it was a wonderful thing to do towards the end of our time off. Of course half the stuff Zack bought was for his mother, but whatever! We all still had a great time.

Friday night, we had plans to have my niece overnight since Zack really like the idea of her spending the night. He heard about her staying over a couple of weeks ago and wanted her to do it while he was there. So, after some arranging, it was done!

Zack & Ally

It was such a blast that night with both of them together in the house, laughing, giggling and having a great time together. Yeah at times it got load, but it was all in good fun! It was a time when the both of them could relax and spend some quality time together since they really don't get to see much of each other living 10 hours apart.

Zack and Ally feeding the animals

On Saturday, the rain seemed to be holding off, so we decided to go to a local petting zoo/ice cream shop (it was too early for ice cream, but if the kids weren't with us, I would have definitely snuck a scoop.....I had to be a grown-up though). It was so cute to watch Zack help Ally feed the animals, giving her courage to go up to them and watching their reactions towards the animals.

Zack & Jeff on the same team playing outside

After lunch, we went back to Ally's house to play outside. The boys played badminton (they were practicing for the Olympics, too bad it had already started for this years games) and the girls played in the yard.

Ally on her favorite bike

Then on Saturday evening, we played one last game of poker (with REAL poker chips this time). It ended up being a very long game. I kept trying to go all in with my chips, but I kept winning. Finally it was down to me and Zack. Zack was the dealer and he flopped the first 3 cards. I noticed I had 3 of a kind and I immediately said I was all in. After some thinking on Zacks part, he called and continued his dealer duties. Can you believe it? We had the same hand! We both won! So, we called it a tie and settled in for the night.

Zack was picked up yesterday morning around 8am. He was heading to Cape Cod for the week with his mother. We will get him next weekend (well, not even a full weekend, but whatever) and then that will be it until Thanksgiving. MAYBE we will have a quick weekend in October in Maryland to see Zack, but its all up to his mothers new work schedule, so we'll have to wait and see.

Its going to be a very long day at work today!

Rain, Rain, Go Away! Please!?!?!

I like rain on most days. Its good on a lazy days when I want to curl up on the coach with a good book or watch movies. Or to help water the garden or grass. Or to cool things off on a hot and muggy day.

But, today I'd rather it not be raining for two reasons. The first reason is my camping gear can't dry off with it laying all over our backyard trying to dry from camping the other day. We've had consistent on and off again showers/storms for most of the day and I can't catch a break (we even had some hail during one of the storms). I laid the gear out this morning since the weather said we would get PM Thunderstorms. I thought the situation was perfect! I could lay everything out during the day and by early evening we would be all set.

So I laid everything out this morning in the bright sunshine. I went out to lunch with my FIL (Jeff and Zack were golfing) and when we came out of the restaurant, it was raining. Ugh! So, that was the beginning of my run outside after the rain, dump all the puddles off the gear then hear rain again tapping on our windows indicated that all of the gear was getting wet AGAIN!

The second reason is, it brought water into our basement again today. It happened about a month ago after a hard, fast rain and we couldn't figure out what had happened. Well today, I was bringing in some of our camping gear to lay out in the basement and noticed that we had puddles in our laundry area. I immediately summoned Jeff and my FIL to check out the issue. We ended up having up to 2 inches of water in some areas and it just go into everything. *Sigh* We figured out it came through our sink near our washer since the street was temporarily flooded from today's heavy rain.

My FIL jumped into action putting some sort of fitting that would allow only out-going water through the pipe. I hope it works and prevent flooding somewhere else in the house. Oh, I hope the rain will end soon! But, it doesn't look like there will be an end in the immediate future since its still raining out there now! *Sigh*

Camping With Zack

Lets start from the beginning, Monday morning. We still hadn't told Zack that we were going to go camping. We didn't know how he would react since a few months back we brought up the idea and he wasn't too thrilled about camping. We just didn't know how to pack the van and not let him know until the last possible moment so there was no negative feelings.

So, we came up with a plan. Monday morning, Jeff would bring Zack to get a fishing licence. We could tell him that much since he had to pick out a pole and he already likes to fish. No problem. Then while they were out, me and my FIL/Grandpy would pack the car.

Yup, we got the van packed with all of our supplies without Zack even knowing what was in store for him. As Jeff asked him to get in the car, Zack noticed all the stuff and he heard that we were staying over (since Grandpy said I will see you tomorrow when I come to visit). Zack asked, are we staying in a hotel? Jeff looked over at me and said, Sure! So, Zack hoped out and got a few things to take along since we weren't going to be back for a little while.

After we hit the road, there were a couple questions - where are we were heading? (since he wanted to know if he could take off his shoes in the car), when were we going to fish? But nothing about all the stuff in the car.

About an hour later, we pulled into the check-in area at Tolland State Forrest. Zack stayed in the van and when we returned I mentioned to Jeff to ask him if he has any idea what we are doing. Jeff asked and Zack said, we are fishing and camping. Bingo I said. And then the questions came pouring in from the back seat. Since he's never been camping, there was a lot to ask. They were the basic, but good ones to know-
Where are we going to sleep?
Are there any animals around?
Where do we put our stuff?
Where do we go to the bathroom?
What do we eat?

Zack and Jeff setting up camp

After answering and showing Zack what our plans were, it was time to set up camp. Jeff immediately involved Zack in the set up process. He let him pick where we would put the tent, let him help pound the steaks in, carry the stuff out of the van (while I was getting things out of the van for the eating area) and load things into the tent.

Our camping area (the green tent covered the picnic table area)

After we were settled in and the van uploaded, Zack wanted to know what we would do? We said relax and spend time with each other in the great outdoors. You could tell he was a little nervous since he didn't know what to expect, but as time went by, he warmed up to the idea.

Our fire keeper

Zack helped run the camp. He kept an eye on the fire and made sure there was plenty of wood in it to keep it high. He also helped make the marshmallow sticks with his new camping knife (hey, we though he was old enough to have his own under our supervision since his mother still treats him like an infant which is obviously not the case).

After the evening wore on, he was able to see first hand how we eat our meals while camping and keep ourselves entertained by playing many games (yatzee, uno, scrabble & poker) . Then we made s'mores and sat around the camp fire. Yeah, he had his PSP, but he barely picked it up (score for us for keeping him away from it). Then it was time to sleep for the first time in a tent outside. I think it went well since we were all in the same tent and just kept telling him there are no bears (well, at least we hoped so).

Our little fisher man and Jeff in the back of the canoe

On Tuesday, it was time to go fishing. Jeff's co-worker has a camp sight there too and he said we could use his canoe to go out and fish. So, we all hoped in the canoe (I believe it was my first time and I know it was Zacks, and we all did alright) and headed to a quite area on the lake. Unfortunately, we didn't catch any fish, but we had fun trying to paddle and stay straight on the water. Yup, we did a few 360's but it was all in good fun.

Zack and Grandpy before fishing

About lunch time, Grandpy came to visit. He brought lots of goodies, including live bait to fish with (we used a lure earlier). After we ate and showed Grandpy around our camping area an a little beyond (you know the important areas like the restroom facilities) it was time to head back to the water and see if we could catch anything this time! The four of use couldn't fit in the canoe, so we fished off the co-workers docked boat (yeah, that was my idea) since he wasn't around to bring us out on the water.

Zacks first fish of the weekend

It took no time before the fish started to bite. Why didn't we think of this area first? But then we wouldn't have had the fun on the canoe! Zack caught 5 fish (we caught and released since its a lake rule). We think the first two were the same, but hey, it was still fun. He was such a big kid since after he caught them, he put the gloves on to hold the fish to help remove them from the hook. He even tried to use the pliers to remove the hook (but daddy and grandpy actually did it while I took pictures) but it didn't work out to good for him.

Me and my first fish I caught since I was 12 years old

After Zack caught his 5 fish, he was all set fishing. But our philosophy was after spending $30 on a licence and grandpy spending $20 on bait, we weren't done yet. So, we all took a crack at it. I caught 2 fish (under the agreement that I didn't have to take them off the hook, why should I since there were 3 guys who had done it 5 times before I picked up the pole....Zack needed the practice anyway, right?).

Jeff and his prize fish

Then Jeff tried a few times and caught one fish. He was trying out in a different area then us to see if the fish would bite there, but no luck. So, he was happy to catch the one fish in the same area as us. Grandy tried, but he had more fun tormenting the fish rather then catching them. He would hold the bait over the boat and move it out of the area before he would actually catch the fish. Oh, well what ever floats his boat (no pun intended).

After fishing again, it was time to eat supper. After we all ate we walked grandpy around the entire state forest camping area for a nice evening walk. Then he hit the road to head home. That evening we were invited back to the co-workers camp for some fire works and a big campfire. It was a wonderful end to a great couple of days.

Yesterday morning, was a little different. We woke up to the sound of rain on our tent. So, we packed up everything in our tent even before checking out the rest of camp. We got outside and realized it wasn't raining hard at the moment, but everything in our picnic area was soaked (the rain must have blown in sideways). So, we decided to skip making breakfast, pack everything up and take care of everything after we got home. Oh well!

Even thought it rained on our last day and cut our camping adventure short, it was still a wonderful first couple of days that we all really enjoyed! Jeff and I will camp one last time before the cold weather comes in the fall and we will definitely do it again next summer with Zack.

Oh, a camping we will go........

Jeff, Zack and I are off to our campground. Wish us luck because Zack has no idea what is in store for him. He just knows we have a surprise for him! We will be back Wednesday evening and I'm sure I will have all kinds of stories to tell and pictures to share.

Weekend with Grandpa

What a quick and great weekend we had with grandpa! Its too bad it went by so fast. We'll see him again over Thanksgiving, but sometimes I wish he lived closer so I can see him more.

Grandpa's posing in the car, he didn't want to drive it for real

But he kept us busy! He was shy at first about asking us to do things for him around the house, but I kept insisting that we do stuff for him (after the trip to the mall of course so he could people watch while Jeff and I would go into stores).

Jeff showing grandpa where the roof went on the convertible

It started off by replacing the kitchen mats and table place mats that we bought at the mall. Then Jeff and I washed the front of the house windows (Jeff had the outside while I had the inside). After the windows, Jeff cut the front lawns grass and then put down some grass seed over an area where Grandpa had a tree cut down. While Jeff was doing that, I was cleaning up area's inside for Gramps.

Grandpa sitting on his chair outside

After a hard day of work, we enjoyed a great supper out on the town.

Today, after we went out for breakfast, we were on the hunt for a new desk chair from Grandpa. We finally found one and then put it together for him. His old chair started to give him a problem.

Here's the story about the chair-Grandpa explained to Jeff the issue with the chair, when he would sit in it, the chair would go down (also picture grandpas hands up in the air over his head, like Frankenstein arms, and then slowly move down). Jeff went into the room to check out the situation. Shortly, Jeff came back to report that it didn't give him an issue. Oh, Grandpa marched right into the "little room" and showed Jeff just how the chair was acting up. What it ended up doing was after you sit in the chair, it would slowly give away and sink to lowest point it could go. Oh Jeff said, the hydraulics went. So, that was the start of our chair searching adventure.

It was such a great time seeing him. I can't wait to see what he has in store for us next time!

Heading North

This morning, Zack had a golf tournament. He has one every Friday throughout the summer at Brookside Par 3, 9 whole course. Its a cute set up they have there for the kids. Each group has 3 kids (and at least one adult to keep score) as they walk the course, but not specifically by age group. On the score card, the ages are noted and then later on it is determined who won in the age groups after all the score cards are collected.

Zack didn't want me to take pictures while he golfed, so I snagged some before he started. He didn't want me to interrupt him while he played (such the concentrated player).

Jeff walked around with him as I stayed back, snapped some photo's of the area and then went back to the car to read (yup, I finished my book today that I started at the beginning of the week with the airport read challenge, yeah).

Zack finished the course in an hour and half. He came in 3rd today. He had fun with his dad and the other kids he walked around with. That's all that matters.

After Zack played golf, we went out to one of Zack's favorite restaurants and that is when we met up with his mother (yeah for us). We had a civil lunch with her (even though I wanted to jump over the table and just show her how I really feel about her) and then it was time to say goodbye for the time being (remember, she has to drive him to MA for the second week of vacation, its all BS).

This evening we made it to the Beltsville MD area in decent time (since there is always traffic on the VA/MD border around the beltway). We stopped in the see grandpa for a quick visit for tonight to touch base and get things worked out for tomorrow (we had to find out what Jeff and I have in store for this weekend to help him out). Oh how we have our hands full for this weekend!

The hotel we are at now charges us for the Internet connection. So, I will tough base on Sunday after we return home before the second half of our vacation kicks off. Have a great weekend!

Day Six - Dixie Caverns & Girls

Today is our last full day in Southern VA. We didn't have anything planned for today, we kind of just went with the flow. The weather was warm, but overcast with on & off showers which limited our outdoor activities. We decided to head to the near-by Dixie Caverns in Salem VA.


We arrived at the caverns just in time for the start of a tour. These caverns do not have enough room for more then one tour at a time and we would have had to wait for a half and hour before the next one to start. Phew, good timing!


The tour was good. The guide was knowledgeable, but seemed like a know-it all punk kid, but I won't hold it against him since he gave us a decent tour.

The Dixie Caverns was discovered in the 1920's by a family walking their dog along the mountain range which was above us while we were under ground. The dog fell in a whole (which is in the photo above-the bright spot in the middle of the photo). When the dog was found in the whole, the caverns were discovered. Also, the dog made it out ok too. The dogs name was Dixie, hence the name of the caverns.

There was 300+ stairs all throughout the tour which were slippery and steep. I wouldn't recommend the caverns if you are wobbly on your feet (sorry mom, they are not suitable for you) or if you are claustrophobic.

I guess caverns in the area have wedding spots for couples who want to get married there. I guess there are weirder things out there! The picture above is called the Wedding Bell and this is where the Dixie Caverns designated marriage spot is. I wanted to get a picture of Jeff & Zack under it, but Zack ran ahead to be with the tour guide....oh well!

The big thing about the caverns is, you CANNOT touch the walls. The oils from our hands prevent the growth of the deposits since oil and water cannot mix. Imagine if people didn't listen, there wouldn't be beautiful pictures to show off.

This is the caverns other claim to fame (along with the wedding bell). The above picture is called the Turkey Leg. I don't see it, but someone must have in order to name it that.

So, that was your brief tour of the Dixie Caverns in the event you have never been into a cavern. Last year was my first time in a cavern (we ventured into the Natural Bridge caverns last summer) and its still amazing to see what water, mud, fault lines, air and time can do.

Like Father, Like Son-

After the caverns, we returned to the hotel. Jeff and I were relaxing on our bed and Zack on his. The curtains were open which overlooks the pool area. All of a sudden something caught Zack's attention outside and he jumped out of bed to investigate.

He reports back to use that there are "hot girls in bikinis out there, I want to go swimming". Jeff and I just looked at each other and asked why? Zack said, I want to go swimming. Jeff peaked out the window and realized there were two girls Zack's age out in the pool. After Zack asked several different ways to go out there, we caved and all three of us headed out to the pool area.

Jeff and I decided to sit and read while Zack swam. Zack tried to start a conversation with one of the girls, but it didn't take. He didn't give up though! He kept trying, but the girls got called in by their mother. Poor guy! He was just trying to make friends! After the girls left the pool area, he was ready to head back inside.

Well, like I said the other day, I have a mini Jeff on my hands. That apple definitely didn't fall far from that tree.

We don't have poker chips!

Last night, after our usual drive around with the top down adventure, we decided to head back to the hotel so the boys could take an evening dip. Well, by the time we got back, the girls softball team that arrived yesterday had taken over the pool area. The boys decided it was best to stay in and play poker (I can't believe the sight of some teenage girls would make the boys shy, but who knew).

The only thing was, we didn't have our poker chips. We did have a deck of cards (since I carry one in my travel bag for situations like this). Jeff came up with an idea. We each picked up a bag of potato chips for a snack to keep in the room, so we decided to use the potato chips and popcorn in place of the poker chips. Brilliant!

We divided up the chips to even piles. Zack's snack was the Cheddar popcorn and was worth a $500 poker chip, my snack chip was the Utz crap chip and was worth $200 and Jeff's Doritos was worth $100.

So, we made due and played our Texas Hold-Em using our potato chips and popcorn and played like we had regular poker chips. It was so fun!

Oh, and by the way I WON! I don't think I ever won a poker game with Jeff. That's right! When you have pockets Aces and your husband says "all in" at the sight of his hand, I agreed and said "all in" too! I flipped my cards and it was revealed that I won. Yeah baby!

Thanks to Jeff with his imagination working full force last night, we have a new way of playing poker and a great vacation memory.

Pardon the Venting

Ok, I need to vent a little. Yeah, I vented with Jeff at supper, but I'm still fired-up around Zacks MOTHER. Please excuse the interruption of the happy go-lucky vacation stories. We are having a blast being here with Zack, but I can't stand HER.

I don't know where to start, so I'm just going to let my hands type-

His mom can't just make one phone call to find out whats going on. NO. She has to call a couple of times with questions she could have asked the first time she called. For example -On Saturday when we were waiting at the airport in Hartford, she called us. She wanted to check with times and the schedule for the next day. That would have been fine, but she had called the day before to ask the same questions! The thing was, her birthday was Saturday and I'm sure she wanted to see if Jeff would wish her a happy birthday (which he did because I reminded him, just to avoid any ill-feelings since she told me the month before when we were arranging the schedule).

She calls every day to talk with Zack. Which wouldn't be so bad if it was just ONCE a day. If she feels she couldn't say goodnight to him in an appropriate way, she'll call back about an hour later to do the same thing. The thing is, when SHE has Zack and Jeff tries to call him, her phone goes to voicemail (or she doesn't pick up), no one answers the home phone and she returns the call when she feels like it. She would have a fit if we ever did that to her (even though we are tempted we don't).

Also, we rented a convertible. Yes, we splurged but its our decision, its our money, its our little perk for HER moving to VA and making us come to VA to see Zack. So, when she makes a comment as she exits her car last Sunday "Oh, what a fancy convertible" in her jealous/envious voice that we both decided not to comment on, its like running fingernails down a chalk board for me.

Then on Monday we had to run by Zacks house to get his goggles. HER parents noticed our car. HER father said, oh look who makes the big bucks, how much did this run you?, what happened to the other car? Um, this is a rental I said, but they all made up their minds that we purchased this car. Then SHE mentions, oh its only a two seater (for the back seat) so you guys can only have one more kid. OK.....this is a rental and its none of her business how many kids we will have. I didn't even want to waste my breath after she made that comment so I just smiled.

Those are just a couple of things. I can go on and on about her and how she brain washes her child. That, I will save for a different time, but for now I appreciate you listening.

Please don't get me wrong. I love Zack. He IS my first child. He IS my step-son. I WILL do anything for him. I just can't stand his mother. She not only makes Jeff's life a living hell, I'm in on this ride too.

Day Five - Lazy Day

Today, we took advantage of not having anything planned and slept in LATE. We missed the hotels continental breakfast so we went out to get donuts from Krispy Kreme. We don't have one near us at home, so we had to work those donuts into our schedule some how!



After a very nutritious breakfast (wink, wink) we decided to spend most of the day by the pool. Once again, we had the pool and area all to ourselves. It was such a beautiful day to sit out by the pool and relax. It was definitely a good idea.



We spent a few hours playing in the water it was time to head out for a late lunch. After lunch, we decided to just hang out in the hotel room until it was time for Zack to go with his mom for her Wednesday night supper arrangement (yeah, its all BS if you ask me.....).

Zack jumpin' in the pool

Now, Jeff and I are waiting for the phone call to let us know that she is on her way. After Zack returns, the boys are planning on going back into the pool since its open until 10pm. I'm thinking about just sitting by the pool and reading my book as those two horse around in the water.

Zack & Jeff before Jeff tosses Zack in the water