an olympic weekend

I now present to you the Page Cousin Olympics. First up, the Synchronized Snack Toss (much thanks to the Family Fun magazine for this crazy idea). First, find two people willing to wear shower caps covered with shaving cream:

Next, find two people anxious to throw Cheetos at the Shaving Cream Heads:


The "Team" with the most Cheetos stuck to the shower cap at the end is the winner.


Hard to believe that it was an actual tie - 15 each. No, that was not rigged, just meant to be I suppose.

The Throwers were much more shaving cream-free than the Shower Cap-ers.

The final round consisted of all of the children throwing Cheetos at Nate. He's such a good sport.

The laughing that ensued was hilarious for all to behold.


Really, can I ask for a better husband than this. I think not, he is the BEST!

After a "quick" clean up...

Its on to water basketball, synchronized water-dancing, and the diving competition.

In the end, we were all winners (I think that's just how we roll around here).

the wilderness man returns

Nate came home on Friday night.
He even brought me (a picture of) a flower. See:

He had days of adventurous adventuring under his belt.

He faced sheer rock faces, crossed the river several times a day, bouldered and climbed rock (and I mean BIG rocks), he got up early and looked at birds (can you say 'Peregrine Falcon'??)

And he did all of this while keeping track of 14 year-olds and ensuring that no one met a rattle snake teeth-to-skin (there was an "encounter" but a "safe distance" apparently was kept).

See, he had a good time:

A highlight was the coatimundi tracks (and scat, which you should say, "thanks Sarah for not posting the several pictures you have of said scat," and to that I will say, "you are more than welcome" and then restrain myself from going all TMI about the scat; but I will add, "yuck."):

And here is another close encounter. This one is only a bear:

Hi bear,

Thanks for coming by and not tasting anyone.

Don't come back now. Y'hear, Mr. Bear?

I'm glad Nate went, because he was so excited to go. I'm glad he's home because I need him. He's a necessity around here. And I'm very glad he came home when he did, because thanks to him I am now in recovery mode from the dang-bronchitis rather than the dying-mode of the dang-bronchitis. Also, he plays a huge role in our Pokemon-ing and Nintendo playing around here (that would be "vintage" Nintendo in case you were wondering).

Now, if I can will myself better to give the guy a decent Father's Day tomorrow...

romance

According to James, when you give a bunch of flowers to Your Woman when you get Married and she stops to smell them, they will all turn to butterflies and fly away. That is True Love.

the doctor has left the building

This is my doctor. He is old now, like me. He chose Texas sheet cake to celebrate that fact. It was swoon-fully delicious.

He is now in the midst of the wilderness, somewhere in the middle of nowhere, on a 3 day hike. He could not have been more excited about this trip. It is a passion he and I do not share. He loves the outdoors and the creatures one sees. I on the other hand enjoy the outdoors only if I know I can come back inside whenever I want, and frankly most creatures terrify me.

Every night when I go to sleep, I am grateful to be sleeping in a very comfortable bed all the while being cooled by divine a/c. I think he is probably grateful to be up 3500+ feet, covered by a blanket of stars (and a blanket of insect repellent).

He will be home soon. He will be dirty, the laundry will be almost as scary as woodland creatures, and he will be very happy. I will be too! We miss him around here!

We already have a date night lined up to celebrate his return from the wild. I'm looking forward to it.

visiting the past

Once upon a time, we lived not too far from this place (like a 10 minute drive) (now we live a mere 6 hour drive from it).

A few weeks ago the stars aligned and we were finally able to go back.

A few things have changed since our last visit, namely that Jimmy actually likes the ocean now.

Don't get me wrong, he still loves the sand too.

Grace has always been our water baby. Her love affair with the beach is not ending anytime soon.
Her latest passion has been digging up sand crabs. Mmmmm, tasty.

Oh dear beach, why can I not find you here in Arizona? There's been rumors about ocean-front property in Arizona, I just can't seem to find it.

all in a day's work

Grace has found her sport - Lacrosse. She's done two seasons. Thankfully they see fit (at this age anyway) to take the summer off because, well, because it isn't too fun to play (or watch for that matter) when it is 104 degrees outside.

LAX is a mystery sport. The rules seem to combine hockey, basketball, and football all in one.

There is plenty of flicking, scooping, and running to keep one busy.

Did I mention the running?

It requires serious teamwork and communication.

It is also exhausting!

sweet dreams

When I peeked in at the kids tonight before going to bed I found Grace, all snuggled in her bed, dreaming the night away. I found Jimmy completely cover-less, freezing, and crouched up into a human ball.

As I covered him up and snuggled him down, he said:
"Do you know which song I want to hear?"
"Which one?" I ask.
He replies, "The one that says, 'American Woman!'

I suppose we all have our own individual tastes in lullabies, now, don't we?

morning solitude

We had 5 children for part of the last 4 days. It was so fun, and so very exhausting. Nate and I did a weekend swap with his brother. We take their kids for a long weekend and they will take our kids for long weekend. So under my care was a 10 year old, 8 year old, 6 year old, 4 year old, and a 1 year old.

We did fun games, fun crafts, ate lots of kid-friendly food (which is why I have a ton of Swiss chard and beets in my fridge from the CSA. I just didn't see that going over too well). We even had the Page Cousin Olympics, complete with synchronized swimming, water basketball, and a crazy game involving shaving cream and Cheetos (pictures to follow soon).

So this morning as the children left for morning summer camp, I breathed in a huge sigh of relief. It is so quiet here, I can hear the whir of the washing machine (I cannot even tell you how much laundry there is). I am savoring the moment.