Claire & Emma make a trip to our place!

This was the week Danny & I were supposed to be meeting up in Crested Butte…but, that didn’t happen.  My mysterious health crisis is ongoing & not getting any better.  But, here’s the happy news.  When Sara realized my July plans were all going to have to be cancelled (as had part of my April, all of my May & June plans,) she scheduled a trip for the girls to come up to our place.  I know she did it to give me a boost & something to look forward to (since there’s been zilch of that happening). The girls hadn’t been to our place since 2019.  The 2020 trip that had been scheduled, got nixed because of Covid & they’ve never made it back…until last week.  I’ve had a “fun to do at our house” list going since 2020 & it was pretty long.  So, during my good times, I went into prep mode.  We have both been so excited for them to come.  Sara made sure to plan their trip during Danny’s vacation & I’m so grateful she did.  During the times I couldn’t play, he happily jumped in & they all loved every minute of it.  

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Sara flew up with them on Sunday night & she flew back home early Monday morning…& then it was just the four of us.  And we had a blast & the girls did great being away from home for more than one night the first time.  

I had a closet full of costumes I’d had since 2020 & thought they’d have outgrown alot of them.  The first thing they wanted to do Monday morning, was try them all on.  And every one of them fit on one or the other girl…yay!  They dressed up & put on a show for us singing some of their fave tunes.

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We have a fantastic three story toy store in Lawrence & the girls were really looking forward to a trip there…it didn’t disappoint.

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I love our library & couldn’t wait to take them.  They read in the book nook, played on the furniture, checked out books for the week & tried the outdoor play & create area.

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We had a picnic in the park & checked out the train.

Emma loves masks & headbands!

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Emma especially loved going through & trying on all my Grandmother & Mom’s costume jewelry I’ve kept all these years just for that purpose.

We had a huge storm here one night…Tornado warnings in the next town over.  So, the girls & I took refuge in our closet (our storm shelter).  Claire noticed a giant tub on the highest shelf in the closet, so Danny got it down for us (it was a nice distraction as Emma was a little bit scared).  The tub holds over 200 Pez dispensers & all kinds of Pez paraphernalia that belongs to Pete…he was a Zephead.  They had fun looking through it, then got comfy with their blankets, headlamps & stuffys.  The storm blew over, we still had power & the only thing it did was  throw around all our outdoor furniture & knock a few limbs down.  Thank goodness.

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The girls gave Danny an early customized birthday present.



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On their first day here, Emma informed us “I do not do naptime on vacation”.  But this is how it went everytime we left the house.



We did science experiments.

Danny took them fishing in our pond a couple of times.



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We stayed at the house most of the time & had a lot of fun.

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Silly stringing the trees.

And the cats….they loved the cats!


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All three of us love to do arts & crafts…& we did plenty.

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We played salon.

I made sure to have them play the piano…for one last time.  It’s on its way out after they leave.

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We made balloon Animals & Swords!

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At 90 degrees, it wasn’t exactly campfire season, but we roasted hot dogs & made s’more cones anyway.

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We did a ton of baking.  Claire & I had been planning to try Tsunami or Pull-Me-Up cakes for a long time…so they each made one.

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And, they enjoyed playing in Danny’s new trailer.  Claire & Danny slept out there a couple of nights.  Emma gave it a try, but she & I ended up back in the house.

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But they still liked playing in my camper-car (poor little neglected adventure vehicle).

We made a trip to Kansas City to Fritz’s (a train drives by & drops your food), to Moon Marble to watch marbles being made & choose a ton of marbles & went to 7 Eleven on 7.11 for free slurpees.



We strung lights out in the rock garden & had a dance party…Danny being the lead dancer!

Sara & Kevin flew in late Friday night.

Saturday was scheduled to be a special day…a family party.  Danny worked so hard cleaning (a job I could normally do in no time, but not today) & Claire, Emma & I cooked up a boatload of food.  The girls created a cute candy charcuterie plate & they were very proud of.

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The party included two cousins of Emma & Claires that they hardly knew.  They’ve met them one other time, but Emma had no memory of them.  But they were super stoked to be seeing them again.  And it took like 5 seconds for them all to bond.

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The cousins also liked dressing up.

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It was great to see the family out here.  I’ve not been too social for the past three months & I was hoping I’d be feeling good that day & I was, but I knew if I wasn’t, the party would still go on.  

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The only things that would have made this party perfect, is if Luke, Pete & Leia were here & Jordan, who has never been here or met the family.  And, if I would have been feeling normal.  I had a couple of bouts of tears & annoying uncontrollable emotions that day. My emotional state is declining just as my physical state is.  I go from sadness, to pissed off, to huge frustration then straight to doom & gloom…& the tears flow frequently.  But, I was really grateful everyone came, they had a good time, there was lots of joy & laughter & hugs all around!

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The cousins ended up spending the night & they all had a great time!

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On the girls' last full day here, it rained part of the day & Sara & Kevin went into Kansas City to visit a brewery & eat BBQ (me & Danny’s favorite date places).  The four of us watched Alice in Wonderland & then I pulled out my Mad Hatter costume & we all tried it onexcept for Danny.

Sunday night, we all went to the new ice cream store in the little town just south of us.

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Snuggling with Grampa & saying goodbye the night before they were leaving.

Monday came way too fast & they all packed up to head to the airport.

What a fantastic week it was with these littles!  I treasured every moment with them & thank Sara so much for making this happen!

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