David Meets Leila & Emma Sings Karaoke

David is in the house! Jon picked him up yesterday for his six-week summer visit with us. This is our last opportunity to see David as a "child"; he's seventeen now, so next time we see him here he'll be a legal adult. Where has the time gone??

When we met, David was a rosy-cheeked, tow-headed two year old. He looked a lot like a tiny version of the little Dutch boy (see photo below left). He didn't speak, but his eyes were expressive and he knew how to get his point across. His big imagination made him almost seem magical... he used these powers to get Grandma Jane to serve him up lots of ice cream. And he got Grandpa Bud to watch cartoons with him for hours, just by sitting on his lap.

David has turned out to be a sensitive, interesting young man. He's a free thinker and a gentle spirit. He accepts the adoration and enthusiasm of Michael and Emma with remarkable patience and equanamity. He's becoming more politically aware and loves to discuss issues. He doesn't try to be like everyone else, or put on a show; he's very genuine and unabashedly David.

But, for now, he's sleeping (so is Leila). Michael and Emma are off to summer school. I signed them up for an elective program where they do math, reading, and writing, but in a fun way. They have three hours of classes, four days a week (for two weeks), so it doesn't take up a lot of their summer but gives them something educational to do and keeps them in touch with school friends. A school bus comes to pick them up, and they have class till noon. Then they have time to eat a sack lunch I pack for them before going to writing club (which is also a school program). Writing club lasts for an hour and a half. After that I pick them up. So far they love it. Michael came home yesterday enthusiastically reading me a story he wrote about rabbits from Venus who try to settle in Russia and instead end up in Australia.

With the new baby and the price of gas these days (yikes), we've been home a lot this summer... but the kids have still been finding plenty to do. Emma has gotten to be friends with a neighbor girl named Makayla; she's over almost every day, playing with Emma and Michael. They've gone over to her house a couple of times to swim in their backyard pool. Makayla has a teen-age sister and a younger sister. We've met the parents, too, and they all seem nice.

Jon made another branch of trail in our woods this weekend. He's been picking up dead firewood along the way and using Dad's woodsplitter, to good effect. In the evenings Michael and Emma help stack the firewood Jon splits. They've been known to complain a little, but we believe it's good for kids to work and help out. I'm just sorry I was such a work-avoider when I was a kid (sorry Mom and Dad).

Saturday afternoon we went to Arnold for Jon's niece Brittany's highschool graduation party. Brittany is the daughter of Jon's brother Eric. She's pictured at right (tall, white shirt) with Jon's parents and their other granddaughters. From left to right is: Susan, Jessica (with her daughter Malia), Lisa, Allison, and Brittany. Of course, Emma's in front and Leila wasn't born yet in this photo (taken X-Mas 2006).

Festivities at the party included a DJ and karaoke in an outdoor tent. Jon's brother Brent captured the photo below with his cell phone. Emma had been watching the DJs set up, with polite interest. They let her start the show with a sweet performance of "You Are My Sunshine", followed by "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" and the "Hokey Pokey". I can't imagine singing in front of a tentful of adults like that when I was her age, but I'm glad that Emma is confident enough to do it. Being shy can be such a handicap (though it can also keep you out of trouble).

I also wanted to post the photo below of me with
cousin Peggy Linskey. We ran into Peggy a couple of weeks ago at another of Jon's niece's graduation parties (Lisa Meyer's). We plan on attending Peggy's annual 4th of July picnic in Holcombe this year. I don't think I've been to Peggy's since Emma was a toddler, so am long overdue there.

Hope everyone is well and enjoying the nice weather this week. See you soon!

40th Anniversary River Cruise

Here's my southern belle niece, Beth Bragg (age three). What a sweetheart!

We made a quick stop in Cornell on Father's Day morning, to say hi to Grandpa Bud before heading north to Rhinelander for Mom and Dad's anniversary.

We stopped along the way a couple of times to feed the baby, so arrived in Rhinelander later than we originally planned (right at lunch time-- sorry Mom!). Luckily brother Don had grilled brats and Mom had other food prepared, so there was plenty to eat.

Here's my sister Laurie and brother Bill (with Mom and Dad's new puppy, Oscar).

After lunch we spent most of our time outdoors, socializing as we enjoyed the antics of our dogs and children. Mark and Laurie brought a yard game with them that everyone enjoyed... I forget the name of it, but it involves throwing a string of golf balls so that it wraps around a pipe structure, for points. Kind of like horseshoes.

A hilight was watching the Bragg brothers try to get one of those ball-strings detached from a tree branch it had wrapped around. A teetering ladder, a shovel, and finally a tree pruner were employed before the balls were finally liberated. Those of us watching from the lawn chairs had a good laugh... and not just because we enjoy laughing at each other (though that is true). It was also fun just being together.

At left are Laurie and Mark's dogs, with Coco.

About 5:30 pm we headed to the river for our cruise. The boat was much larger and more comfortable than I expected. Dining was below deck, but the room was spacious and airy-- every table was seated by a window with clear views of the river, so even if it had rained the whole time we would still have been able to enjoy the cruise. As it was, there was also comfortable seating on the upper deck, with broad, sweeping views of the river and wooded shoreline.

It didn't look like the cruise had filled up... ours was the largest group by far. So we were able to move back and forth from the upstairs and downstairs very comfortably. The kids had lots of room to play with each other and look for mischief. The crew was friendly and the kids were able to take turns helping the captain steer the boat. We had prime rib for dinner. The meal was good, but I especially enjoyed the hot chocolate and rum drink my brother-in-law Mark treated me to.

Here's Mark with Jon.

There were a few structures visible along the river, but mostly the shore was undeveloped and natural-looking. We saw bald eages, cranes, and other wildlife along the way. There weren't any other boats out. The captain pointed out things of interest along the way, like an indian burial mound.

It misted lightly during most of the tour, but there wasn't enough rain to force us inside for long. And when the rain finally broke up, it was followed by a spectacular full rainbow. At first the rainbow was faint and barely visible, but after a few minutes it gathered in intensity, until every color of the spectrum was fully present. Of course we had Mom and Dad pose together under the rainbow, for some lovey-dovey pictures. It seemed a fortuitous happening for their anniversary, and I know we all felt lucky and happy to have our health and be together for such an enjoyable outing.

Here's Emma watching our boat's wake, and with her cousin Beth:

Mom and Dad on their 40th wedding anniversary, with all of their grandchildren:

Somewhere under the rainbow...







At right, Mom and Dad with their six kids. Below, brothers Bill and Bob.

"The Braggy-Bunch": Don, Bill, Laurie, Bob, Lisa, and John.

Who's Leila Smiling at Today?

Just a short post, to show pictures from today:

Jon's parents and sisters came over for a visit. They hadn't been here since moving day, so it was fun showing them around (now that we've settled in and made the place our own).

Michael and Emma were delighted to accept bagfuls of goodies from them-- candy, water pistols, sidewalk chalk-- things that are always in short supply around here.

Leila showed everyone her smiles and posed for lots of pictures. Here she is modeling a new beret from Grandma Jane.

We'll see the Hurlburts again next weekend, for niece Brittney's graduation party. We think David will be with us by that day.

Sally showed the kids how to play Boggle-- I don't think I ever played that one before. It looks fun. She also let Emma take her for a walk in our muddy, buggy woods (we've had lots of rain lately).

The other day I took some pictures of Leila lying on a blue quilt Mom made. I thought it would match her blue eyes, and it does...

Looks like a baby fashion shoot, doesn't it?

A Visit With the Arkansas Braggs

Here we are with my brother Don and his family earlier today-- during the brief part of our visit with them when it did NOT rain. They left our house about an hour ago, and are on their way to Mom and Dad's home in Rhinelander right now.

Don and Hope encountered rough weather on the way over. They were actually driving through La Crosse while a tornado touched down (though no one realized it at the time). Don took impressive photos of the black storm clouds they passed beneath-- hopefully he posts them on his blog later.

They made it to Colfax all right, but it rained pretty hard during the night. We woke up the next day to hear that another tornado had passed by during the night within five miles of us, in the town of Wheaton.

I'm guessing that Beth is probably asleep right now; she did a great job keeping up with older cousin Emma this weekend, but was pretty weary by the time they left. Our baby Leila "acted up" during their visit by boycotting her morning and afternoon naps.

We were amazed to see how much Stephen has grown (and how outgoing he has become) since our last visit. He's nine months old now, while Leila's only two months, but the size difference between the two of them is impressive. Compare the size of their legs in this pic!

Stephen sits up well but occasionally topples over. He moves himself around with a kind of army crawl that gets him where he wants to go; he likes roaming the carpet and thinks that electrical cords are fascinating. While Leila is our smiley baby, Stephen charms by laughing out loud, in a deep baby voice like his older brother Kenny. He also likes to growl and pretend he's a "mean baby". But despite his independence, he's a cuddler.

Michael and Emma adored him, of course. But they spent most of their time playing with "older" cousins Beth and Kenny, who are four and six.

Beth and Emma both have strong, feisty personalities and lots of energy. They played dress-up and house but also played with bugs, rocks, and shells outside.

Kenny and Mikey played board games together, but also joined the girls for dress-up and pirates.

It's always fun to watch the kids interact together (and exchange parenting notes with Don and Hope). We wish they lived closer by but appreciate their efforts to travel back to Wisconsin when they can and keep in touch. Thanks to their efforts our kids will grow up "together" with good memories of each other.

We'll see them again next weekend (along with the rest of the Bragg clan) in Rhinelander. June 15th is Mom and Dad's 40th wedding anniversary, and everyone chipped in to take them on a river cruise. It's a 3-hour cruise around a river in Rhinelander, and the whole family will be there. They'll even serve us a steak dinner on the boat. Should be fun, and very exciting for the kids (hopefully it doesn't rain!).

The kids are on summer vacation now. Tomorrow morning they'll start swimming lessons-- a school bus will actually come pick them up and then bring them home afterwards. After two weeks of swimming, summer school starts up. That'll be about the time that David comes over for the summer.

Lisa's Graduation Party; Fun Outdoors

Hi everyone!

Thought I'd open with a picture of Sally's new puppies. Aren't they cute? They fit right in your hand. Their mama (pictured here, with pups) is actually Jon's niece Lisa's dog "Holly" (I think she's a poodle); their dad is Jon's sister Sally's dog "Buddy" (a tiny dog, smaller than Holly, who looks to be part chihauhau). Both dogs are white. Buddy is a particular favorite of Bud's; whenever Sally visits her parents and brings the dogs along, Buddy makes a beeline for Grandpa Bud's lap (where he is very welcome).

Emma LOVES these new puppies, of course. We met them this weekend while at Lisa's highschool graduation party. I don't have pictures from the party itself, but the photo at right shows Lisa in her home. When Sally sends it to me, I will post a picture of me with my cousin Peggy Linskey (who also attended the party!). Peggy lives in Holcombe, too, and knows Jon's sister because both are active in their church. Peggy's daughter Shauna lives very near Sally's house, as well.

We left the party earlier than we otherwise would have because we knew Mom, Dad, and Bill would be waiting at our house. Mom and Dad were helping Bill move to a new apartment in Minneapolis, so stayed overnight at our house Saturday so they could get to Minneapolis early the next morning.

While visiting with them Saturday night, we discovered that they planned to make two separate trips to Minneapolis this weekend, so they could haul Bill's stuff (and help him carry it up to his third story apartment!). Jon volunteered to help them haul a load of stuff with his trailer and Tahoe, so they would only have to make one trip. Since he went along to Minneapolis too, Jon was able to help Bill carry up his heaviest pieces of furniture, so it was a little easier for Dad.

While here, Mom and Dad walked with us on the new trails Jon's made. Our trails are still pretty rough-- not as finished as we'd like-- but they're walkable and we've already made lots of use out of them. We walk the dog and Jon takes the kids out for 3-wheeler rides, but I like walking on them just to "meditate" and enjoy nature. I like that it's our private land, and that if I want to I can walk outside first thing in the morning, with my glasses on and my hair sticking out like a bird nest. I'm also pretty sure we don't have bears in our little area, so I find it more relaxing than walking in Rhinelander (where we KNOW there are bears).

This is the kids' last week of school. Their last day is actually Wednesday, and that's only a half day. So they're pretty excited for the upcoming break. And they have a fun thing to look forward to right away: a visit from my brother Don's family this weekend. Don has three kids similar in age to our kids, and we just adore seeing them when we can (they make their home in Arkansas, where Don is a forester).

Here's a picture of Don's kids from Christmas (Stephen, Beth, and Kenny), and Don with Stephen:

Ofcourse, no posting would be complete without a picture of Leila, our little sweetheart. Don't you just love her??