My "fine figure of a man" picked up two of those short, adoring young boys. From right off the playground. We loaded in their family van and headed north. The adventure began. They were pretty quiet. Speaking when spoken to. Answering in short sentences as if the comfort level was low. Uncle Grant was coffee. Somehow he now shares my desire for Starbucks. Ashland, straight ahead. "Anyone want a Starbucks?" So the family van took it's first detour and we had our first treat of the weekend.
My sister was scurrying around in a rapid pace to make sure we had dinner. Packed? No, not yet. "Well, go do it" was my advise. I was wondering how we were going to get them out of our hair quickly so our weekend adventure X5 could begin. They weren't eating with us but she had made a favorite: tacos. In and out, back and forth. Dithering we call that in our family. "You leaving yet?" "In a minute". The newly formed family of 7 was sitting at the dinner table with plenty of food to keep us busy and satisfied. "Okay guys! When they go out the door, we'll all holler YEAH!" So we watched and waited. As soon as Von rounded the corner we all let out a joyous yell and then laughed like crazy when she reappeared in total disbelief that we would do that. Ha Ha. That was fun.
It was a weekend of playfulness, donuts on Saturday morning, laughter, pizza, cops and robbers after dark, and the Superbowl. We went for a hike to the "lookout". I kept looking for a Forest Service lookout building. Turns out it was a bench. But the view was amazing and after a few minutes we left to go down the mountain. Braden delighted in showing us the steep trails he had ridden his bike down. To be the oldest of 5 and have experiences beyond what the other boys had made him smile as he shared his adventures.
You really can't experience Grants Pass, Oregon, without going to the Grants Pass Drug Store for a phosphate. The boys sat up to an old fashioned soda fountain while enjoying these tasty little, inexpensive treats.
There's nothing like driving around with a van full of boys. The chattiness and subjects discussed are priceless and worthy of a chuckle as you listen. So we decided that "what happens in Grants Pass, stays in Grants Pass". Pretty much our motto for the weekend. And everyone agreed!
For Grant and I, just being around 5 young boys with all their talking, laughter, and special qualities was a healing time. They were so good. Congenial and loving.
One of the funnier things was realizing that telling young boys to shower is not just enough. You have to tell them to wash, with soap! I had forgotten that. Funny.
We ended the Superbowl weekend by picking up Morgan and Danielle from the airport at 10:30 at night. Sunday night. Leaving for home at 11:00 p.m. makes for an interesting, already exhausted couple of people. So the week was a little long but in light of the wonderful weekend, well worth it~
So thankful for brothers and sisters who trust us with their precious children~ We love you!
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