Scrapbooking Buddies and Sticker Junkies...

It meant a lot to me that Darlene was able to go on this getaway with me. I’ve really missed her since she moved back to California in December 2009. During the four years that Darlene lived in Holland, we spent a lot of time scrapbooking together, so it was fitting that we were able to visit the Mrs. Grossman’s Sticker Factory together. There was a mix-up about our tour time and we ended up with a private tour. We weren’t allowed to take photos of the factory itself, but here you see us holding a roll of the first sticker that Mrs. Grossman designed in 1981. Sadly, I haven’t worked on any of my scrapbooks since Darlene moved, but still couldn’t resist buying some stickers. Afterwards, we wandered around Petaluma and had some lunch before heading back to my parents’.

A Touch of Tuscany in California with Darlene...

I was thrilled to be able to spend some extra time with Darlene. I took the train up to Martinez. She picked me up and we headed up to the wine country. Her husband Mike was sweet enough to give us an award certificate for a free night at a Holiday Inn just a little south of Napa. We dropped off our luggage and explored St. Helena and Calistoga. Along the way, we stopped at this cool castle, the Castello di Amorosa, where we did a chocolate and wine tasting.

Turning 14 in California...

As crazy as this sounds, after visiting Massachusetts, we flew back to California to spend another week at my parent’s (Jimmy was already back at work in Holland). We arrived just in time to celebrate Veronica’s birthday with my family at a Chinese restaurant. Sadly, we forgot to include Ashlynn or my brother-in-laws in the photos. As usual, the girls spent much of the week in the pool. I went to a few movies with my parents without the girls. Then the three of us went to a slumber party at Leigh and Mike’s.

I Could Have Stayed Longer...

The younger girls didn’t always include Veronica in their plans, 13-year-old Chris stuck to himself and I was busy chatting with Lisa, but Veronica managed to entertain herself.  She enjoyed swimming out to the swim platform despite the chilly temp of the water; occasionally Ashlynn would join her. She convinced me and Lisa to go with her once; I made it, but had help from a boogie board since I didn't have fins. Our time at the beach came to an end much too quickly, but we needed to head into Providence on that last night to check into a hotel because we had such an early flight in the morning. It was Joe’s birthday, so we all went for a nice dinner in the Federal Hill area (known for its good restaurants and its mobsters). After dinner, we did a quick walk around and the girls enjoyed dancing to a swing band in a plaza. We might have arrived nearly strangers, but left good friends.

A Sweet Friendship...

Ashlynn and Ally might be six years apart in age, but they formed a very sweet friendship when they met in Bonaire. Ashlynn seemed to thrive in the role of the big kid and was very excited about visiting Ally. They started their beach adventure with some crabbing. First, they dug out some mussels as bait, which they tied on strings and dangled among the rocks. Then they collected the crabs in a bucket so they could show us their catch before throwing them back.

Much of our day and a half in Mattapoisett was spent at Crescent Beach, which was very laid back and relaxing. In addition to crabbing, the girls swam, took walks and went shelling. After a sushi dinner, we went back to the beach to watch the beautiful sunset and to set off some fireworks.

Off to the Beach...

Joe and Lisa both had to work in the morning, so I had the task of driving the four kids to the beach in Mattapoisett. Luckily it had stopped raining and the path back to the freeway took us through some lovely countryside. Their charming cottage was just a block from the beach in a area with no thru traffic; they said the terrain in this area is quite similar to Cape Cod without the craziness that comes with the influx of tourists. They’ve only owned the house for a short time and are in the process of updating it; the new oven and indoor shower had both arrived but weren’t hooked up yet. Of course, no one complained that we had to eat out or use the outdoor shower, which was fantastic. Shortly after we arrived, Lisa joined us and we headed down to the beach, which was really beautiful.

A Detour to Massachusetts...

Planning this summer’s itinerary was complicated already, but then I had the crazy idea of taking a detour to Massachusetts to visit some folks that we met in April while scuba diving in Bonaire. It was a risk for both families because we really didn’t know each other well, but it was a risk worth taking as we had a great time. The original plan was to head straight to Joe and Lisa’s cottage at the beach, but due to torrential rains, they decided it would be better to spend the first night in their home in Rehoboth. It was a really special treat to have a dinner cooked in the Italian pizza oven that Joe built (he even studied masonry for the task). We started with tomatoes and courgettes, then shrimp cooked in cast iron pans, followed by a variety of pizzas. What a great way to cook!

Brunch at Weaver Street...

Another home leave tradition is going to Weaver Street Market in Carrboro for their jazz brunch. Unfortunately, due to some early morning rain, the band was cancelled, but we still enjoyed the delicious food. I didn’t manage to get to a hash while in town, so was extra happy that a few hash friends (Carolyn H., Jim and Suzanne with little Celia) were able to join us.

We were thrilled that Erika, Rachel and Ben joined us in Carrboro for the first time. There might not have been a band to dance to, but at least the folks were there with their giant hula hoops.

Dinner with the Ladies...

It’s now a tradition to go for sushi with the ladies when I’m in town. Of course, the group varies depending upon everyone’s schedules (unfortunately, both Theresa and Carolyn S. were out of town), but typically there’s several Harriettes (Carolyn H., Jeannette, Anna and Carolyn V.) and some of my scrapbooking buddies (Karen and Debby). This year was a small group, but it was a lot of fun as it was much easier to chat with everyone. Kristine wasn’t able to join us, but luckily was able to meet me for lunch at Neomonde, one of my favorite places.

Local Fun in Apex...

It brought back good memories of gem mining in our backyard when we went to this funny little place in Apex. The kids enjoyed finding polished rocks; Veronica also found an arrowhead among the discarded rocks on the ground. Later in the day, we went to Apex Lake to introduce Rachel and Ben to geocaching.

Our 5-night stay at Erika’s was very relaxing and low-key with several delicious meals courtesy of chef Michael. It was very sweet of Erika to host a swim party at their community pool for some of Veronica’s 3rd grade classmates; Ashlynn was thrilled to see Holly from our old neighborhood. We also enjoyed seeing our old neighbors, Dave and Elise (and really appreciated the loan of Dave’s car), and visiting our house for the first time since the reconstruction. Jon Provost, our contractor, was nice enough to meet me over there for a walk-thru and I was really impressed with his work.

Best Friends...

After Florida, us girls went one direction while Jimmy went another--we headed to Raleigh to stay with Erika and Michael while he went to DC to stay with Jim and Nina. Veronica was especially excited to see Rachel, who’s been her best friend since she was five (her mother Erika is one of my closest friends and her brother Ben is great friends with Ashlynn). One afternoon, I took the girls to the North Carolina Museum of Art. It had a major expansion since our last visit in 2009 and we were very impressed with the new building, which included both of these cool contemporary pieces (the massive one on top was made out of recycled aluminum and copper wire). It was especially fun looking through the Dutch and Flemish paintings in the Northern European collection.

Let the Real Adventure Begin...

The calm of our trip changed abruptly when we arrived at a spring where a local hermit lives. The rental guy failed to mention that this particular hermit was Naked Ed. He had a series of funny signs on the path to the springs, where he’s been hanging out since the mid-80s. He told us that if the kids wanted to get naked, then us adults would have to get naked, too. We appreciated the offer, but kept dressed. While the kids enjoyed swimming in the spring, Jimmy and I explored his hut and had a nice chat with him. Just for the record, despite standing next to him, he was discreetly positioned so I didn’t see him in all his glory. During the next portion of our journey, an electrical storm hit. With two kids in a metal canoe, we quickly tried to get to the side of the river. I stupidly stepped out of the kayak too quickly and managed to fall into the swamp. Later when we pulled over again to get out of the storm, a giant spider settled on my foot. Then when we thought things couldn’t get any stranger, we paddled past a dead deer in the water. While we had a great time, we were all ready to get off the river. Check out the video that Veronica made about our day.

A Kayaking Adventure in Central Florida...

After our visit to the Alligator Farm and dinner at the beach, it was time to head to Gainesville for a few nights with Vivynne and family. Our big adventure was a 4-hour kayaking trip down the Santa Fe River. Tony had to work, so he missed out on all of the excitement.

The first half of the trip was actually very calm. We had a picnic before we hit the water. We had one metal canoe, one double kayak and three single kayaks. There were no rapids or even a current; there also weren’t any signs of alligators, but we did see a lot of turtles. Part of the river was wild and part had houses along the banks. We laughed when we saw this sign: Trespassers will be hogtied and told they have a purty mouth.

Zipping over the Gators...

It was impossible to capture what they were zipping over, but they assured me that they were going over a lot of behind-the-scenes enclosures with small gators and crocs (they would have had to sign up for the longer tour to go over the main enclosure with the giant gators). Clearly I’m the only chicken in this family!

Crocodile Crossing...

When the girls heard that there was a high ropes course over the enclosures at the Alligator Farm, that couldn’t wait to sign up. Unfortunately, Johnny had to leave for a sailing regatta and Jimmy was too short, so the girls had to go without their cousins. Of course, their dad went along, but their mom stayed on the ground to take photos.

Alligator Farm...

Yet again, we expected the Alligator Farm to be cheesy and it wasn’t. Debbie and Jimmy arrived to join us in time to see big Jimmy and the girls zipping along. Then we went to see the rest of the park,  included a feeding demonstration in the main enclosure (the caretaker is about to toss a rat in a gator’s mouth with just a stick to protect her).

The Fountain of Youth..

 I often joke that the Fountain of Youth is all that rain we get in the Netherlands that helps wash away the years. But, we all know that the real Fountain of Youth was discovered by Ponce de Leon in Florida in 1513. Jimmy remembered visiting the Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park as a child, so thought it would be fun to show the girls. We were expecting it to be cheesy, but it was actually pretty cool. We started with a drink from the legendary fountain, which smelled like sulfur and tasted horrible; hope it was worth it considering there’s no evidence that the fountain was even in St. Augustine.

Then we saw a planetarium show and a cool multimedia show before exploring the grounds. Afterwards, we walked around the historic district and saw America’s oldest wooden schoolhouse built in 1716.

Jimmy’s Family...

It wasn’t easy getting everyone ready and smiling at the same time, but we did it twice. And thanks to Jimmy’s advanced abilities with Photoshop, the photo on the beach wasn’t completely washed out as the sun was actually rather harsh by the time this was shot.

Family Portraits...

 Jimmy and his girls!

 Jimmy’s sister Debbie and her boys: John, Johnny and Jimmy

 The cousins! Veronica is the oldest at almost 14 and James is the youngest at 1 3/4.  Notice that all the boys’ names start with J’s.

Brother Joe with Shannon, Arden, Jack and James

Brother John with Lara, Justice, Joseph and Jacob

Ashlynn Takes a Surfing Lesson...

Ashlynn decided at the last minute to join her cousins for a surfing lesson. She built on some of the basics she’d learned back in Holland and managed to stand up on the board in the low waves. Glad that Debbie was there to capture the moment since I was hanging with Veronica back at the condo.

Ashlynn enjoyed being with Jimmy, Johnny and Justice for the lesson at a beach north of our condo. Once back at our beach, she was more hesitant to try out her new skills. Jimmy liked zipping along on his skim board, which brought back memories of my one attempt in 1996 that led to a broken ankle--needless to say, I just watched.