This weekend my brother Dan and sis-in-law Bonz came to visit for the weekend and we had a blast. I don't think I've laughed that much in months! My brother Eric dropped his daughter Stephanie off on Friday night and she spent the weekend with us also. Eric went bear hunting with brother Dave and friends. My sister Clare and bro-in-law Joe were supposed to come, but after hearing the miserable forecast, opted to go someplace where they could ride their bikes and enjoy their anniversary. They ended up at a B & B in Waupaca and rode 20 miles worth of trails, so I'm really glad they had fun. Hopefully we'll get to see them in October. And despite the chilly, rainy weather, we really enjoyed ourselves.
Friday Bonnie and Dan surprised me and showed up at the Courthouse while I was working. It was a great treat. They got to see where I worked which was really nice. Our family doesn't have the opportunity to share that part of our lives with many family members, so it always means a lot to us when we can. Which was why Nick was especially in heaven all week, as he was really looking forward to having family watch him play football. My kids see most of their friends having family come and watch them play and it's become evident to me that they miss that in their lives, so they don't take it for granted when it happens.
Anyhow, they came grocery shopping with me (Dan LOVED it) and then Dan and Nick went home to play a few games of football. In fact, Nick pretty much latched on to Uncle Dan all weekend! He loves guy time. But Bonnie and I went to pick Taylor up after volleyball. Taylor practically busted a gut when seeing her god-mother and came running into her arms. I loved it. So she gave her aunt a tour of the school and then home we went. We unpacked groceries and I made dinner while Bonnie had quite the jumping session with the kids on the trampoline. I will get pictures on the website soon. Both Bonz and Dan were such good sports while the kids kept them busy doing this or looking at that. I just wish I would have gotten pictures of Dan and Nick playing football. After dinner we had the usual firepit and cocktails, but were in bed fairly early for football the next day. Are we getting old or what? Sigh.
Nick had his second of two "tournaments" playing other schools. Alas, his team did not win, but he had fun none-the-less, as did we despite the 4 HOURS OF RAIN AND COLD! But we cheered and talked and kept warm. Luckily we had gotten hot cocoa and cappucinos to hold, and we hung out in the van as long as possible. Plus I got to show off more of my family to my friends. Steph and Taylor kept busy playing tennis and skating in the skate park, but we were all glad when it was over. We headed to downtown Hayward to get warm, get a bite to eat, and then enjoy as much of FallFest as we could. It was smaller this year than normal, and I'm not sure if it's because of the weather, or the price of gas, but there weren't as many vendors or people. The guys headed home to possibly go hunting, but us girls stayed to enjoy the rest of the festival and stocked up on some mums and other fall flowers. We also hit a pumpkin farm on the way home and now my porch looks very pretty and "fall"ish with flowers, pumpkins and gourds. When we arrived home, there was a nice cozy fire waiting for us, but we made the mistake of letting Dan tend it!. Within hours we had the doors and windows wide open and had to keep an eye on Dan to make sure he wouldn't close them! Too funny. We had dinner while watching the Badger game, which had an awesome ending by the way, and the kids had fun making candles and playing Uno. In the evening we played Taboo until about midnight. We laughed so hard and acted so silly... well, let's just say it felt like great therapy. Bonz and I weren't near ready for bed, but the guys were long overdue, if you know what I mean. ;-)
Alas, Sunday arrived and departures came. Bonz and Dan headed out, but not before Eric arrived to get Stephanie, and we all got to see his bear that he shot! I have a feeling he's going to make the skin into a rug for me. Not sure why, just a hunch. Right bro? It will only cost him $500 or so, so why not?
But anyhow - that brings you up to date. This weekend we have my friend Donna's kids for the weekend, so the kids will have something to do and I won't have to listen to how 'bored' they are. So that's it from here. Until next time...
