The kids were very excited to have houseguests, as they always are (more people to play with them!). Once Jack and Stacy got their fifth-wheel ("Irv") situated in our driveway, they got the grand tour of the house and the yard. And, more importantly, the kids got to go inside of Irv (since they were also obsessed with my parents' trailer... I think there is something very exciting about a "portable house," especially when you're a kid!).
Yesterday, since it was a day where Maya didn't have preschool, we went apple picking! Going in the middle of the week is awesome, I have to say. We pretty much had the entire orchard to ourselves. It was a very crisp morning, too-- the thermometer said it was 37 in the back yard when we woke up! But the sky was bright blue and the sun was shining-- it was a great day to pick some delicious apples!
While he was at school, I decided to make grape jelly. I harvested FIVE POUNDS of Concord grapes from our wild vines out back, and there are probably another 20-30 pounds out there that I can't get to. So tempting! Wasn't there an Aesop's fable about that? Anyway, I had gotten the juice out of them on Monday (a labor-intensive process, since I don't own a juicer), and was ready to make jelly. Well... It went alright until it was time to pull the full jelly jars out of the hot water canning bath. As I was pulling out the last jar, the band on it jumped right off and boiling hot grape jelly erupted all over my kitchen. I am still finding it in places! Luckily (miraculously??), I was not hurt at all. And my clothing shows no signs of stains, most likely because I stripped on the spot and ran upstairs. Also luckily, Jack and Stacy had gone for a walk on the Rail Trail, so there were no witnesses to this spectacle. But, yeah. That was not fun!
The day improved, however! After I got everything cleaned up, it was time to go pick up Niko at school and take him to his swim lesson. Stacy came with us to watch. Remember, now, that last week was the first time that Niko had ever swam without a floatie. Yesterday, he was all over the pool! GO NIKO!!!! So proud! It's amazing-- that switch finally flipped on in his head. We have a SWIMMER, folks! His instructor even told me that his form is pretty impressive for someone who just learned. If he gets his breathing under control, he'll actually be swimming freestyle (no doggy-paddle here!). :) Sorry for the poor quality-- I took it with my phone!
After swim class, Jack and Stacy took us to dinner at Niko's favorite restaurant, where we all enjoyed a nice, cozy dinner. With corn fritters and pecan rolls. Because really, everything is better with corn fritters and pecan rolls!
This morning was another preschool day for our girl. She is really loving it so far, which was a huge relief (since Niko isn't there with her!). She's also talking and interacting with everyone-- she's coming out of her shell! I'm so happy for her, and excited for this year.
Shortly after that, Jack and Stacy took off for the airport. They are heading back to the west coast for a little while to take care of some things that can't be done from afar, and we are babysitting Irv for them while they are gone. Niko is especially excited, and is already asking if he can eat breakfast in there tomorrow. ha! We'll see (I'm thinking not...). :)
And then, when I went to get Maya from preschool, we had a little excitement! I was driving past a parked car in the driveway, when a passenger in the car opened his door and slammed it into my car. It made a decent dent and scratched the paint, which meant that we had to exchange information and whatnot. I felt bad for the driver. She's someone I see all the time, and she lives right by us. And it wasn't her fault-- it was her father-in-law who just threw open the door without looking. But it will all be okay. And it's just cosmetic damage to my car, since I was moving at a snail's pace. Still, it shook me up for a little bit. She was very nice and apologetic about it, though! We even talked on the phone later.
After that, it was time for a quick lunch, then dance class. Niko didn't have school today (it was a Professional Development day), so he came with us. And then we drove back to check out the awesome playground we'd spotted when we went to the fair a few weeks ago. And it was, in fact, AWESOME. It has the most amazing rope climbing structure I have ever seen-- the kids couldn't get enough. And this was just ONE of the play structures-- the others are interesting, too! We will definitely be going back!
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