Deep Creek

I saved the last set of summer 'bacation' pictures (as Allie would call them) for a pick-me-up when I was lost in the dark days of schedule-conflict-resolution, and here we are! As any good educator and family would do, we 'summered' right up to the bitter end. The last weekend/early part of the last week of freedom, we went to Deep Creek, Maryland with Chris' parents and stayed in a mountain house that would have been perfect for a skier and was even more perfect for a non-skier in the summer who wanted to sit on the porch and look at the mountains and lake with a cup of coffee. The first long-weekend, my parents joined us and then Chris and I staggered home in time to go back to work, and Allie stayed and basked in the grandparent glow with Barb and Steve and their good friends for the rest of the week. It was a fabulous way to say good-bye to summer bacations and hello to fall.

The 'hill house,' as Allie called it, was stocked. We got to enjoy the scenery outside...

:o)

:o)

and take advantage of the fun inside.

There was a little ping-pong playing...

Buuuut, even more ping-pong celebrating.

Regardless of whether the ball was actually hit.

Allie had some quality kite-flying times.

Which meant...

Grandpop had some quality wind-sprint times.

Who knew the extent of untangling that came with kite flying?

There we go.

This pic was taken following one of our successful hammock-approaches.
The not-so-successful approaches remain undocumented.

We got the chance to go for hikes in the nearby parks and trails.

Now, tell me this doesn't look like a face you could trust to lead you through the woods...you'd be right.

Many are unaware of the stripes requirement for such hikes.

She takes her job seriously.

All are expected to get in line.

But it is kinda tough to say 'no' to this face.

Hate to break it to you guys, I doesn't usually 'do' low-key.

But I DO do...

snuggles.

And birthdays!!! Happy Birthday, Grandpop!

Woooah, that sure is a lot of fire.

You ready for this?

Our dancing dinner entertainment thanked the crowds graciously (we're working on adding 'appropriately' to that description).

There's a ton of 'adventure' fun to be had in a ski town during the summer.

High-speed racing, for example.

Motorcycle riding.

What? Not impressed?

How about now?!

We all rode the 'Mountain-coaster' at WISP.

It was a hit.

Then back to the house for more tiresome hard work.

And fun with post-braid 'cranky-curly hair.'

And, because we didn't get enough the first time...

We went for another hike!

Hark! I hear something.

It's coming from over here.

There it is!

The view's good from the top.

Grandparents, grandparents EVERYwhere!

A grandpa's work is never done (check out the pocket).

But the pay is pretty good.

While we were in Deep Creek, Cookie Shaiko (Barb and Steve's dog and Allie's buddy), passed away. She had been sick for a while and it was her time to rest. We had been talking about Heaven with Allie quite a bit in anticipation of Cookie's passing and here's a little snapshot of her take on it.

****

Allie: When Cookie goes to Heaven, Duke the Dog and Maggie (the dog) will be there too.

Me: Yep. And they'll all run around and play together.

Allie: Yeah-And God will laaaauuuugh! He'll laugh so hard He can't stop.

****

After Cookie passed away, she told us that it was OK, that Cookie is in our hearts just like Jesus.

If you ask me, I think she's got it just about right.

ROAR-some!

Turns out I had pictures all set to post for our July adventures and forgot to finish up the post! Summer brain strikes again. Alas, I'm shaking out the cobwebs back at work already (had my first case of the Mondays and everything), but I refuse to accept that the fun stops here! Here's a little re-cap of our short, but big summer...

In July, Allie, Grammy and I fancied up and headed to the Kennedy Center to see The Lion King with Gayle and Brady (you've seen them here before :o). We loved it and Allie continues to refer to herself as Nala and mentions being chased by hyenas on a daily basis. We know she's changed to lion form when she refers to us as 'Mom' and 'Dad.' I guess she thinks that felines are more formal.

We're working on our ROAR!

Broadway (in DC) Bound!

We felt extremely honored to have been photo-bombed by Brady :o).
Look closely, you can see Allie thinking...wait a second...I know that move!

Gayle grabbed a great shot of Grammy sitting pretty.

We may be a little biased, but these two totally rocked the red carpet and I think they could have swept the vote for most adorable leading couple. 

'Coooome, here.'

'I always get my man.'

Fancy photography courtesy of Gayle Gonzales Photography (I just made that title up, but seriously, if you see REALLY good pictures, she took them).

Some dresses are just made for twirling.

Poombaa and Simba joined us on the ride home. 

Soon after in the month of July, we took what has been dubbed, 'The Group Trip.' I've been fortunate to have had these girls in my life for over twenty years and their friendship has been one of my greatest blessings. The chance to get to spend a week with most of them and their families, watching the kids play together, and catching up each night with a glass of wine outside on the deck after the kids had gone to bed, was priceless.

We've definitely expanded since elementary school...I think it looks good on us :o).

'Who let the moms out?!'
(The dads, that's who. Thanks, guys :o).

 Having the next generation of eight kids all under the age of 6 under one roof was...well...energetic, but when the madness was somewhat under control, we had this...

Hugs...lots of hugs.

Fashion shows.

Couch snuggles.

Baking buddies.

Always good food.

Crafting.

And, of course...joy.

We'll have to figure out how to photo-shop Barrett and Eve in here, but here they are in all of their morning jammers glory.
The Next Generation.

Shawn even gave us the gift of one of my favorite family photos to date. With summer memories like this, what's there not to smile about?

Happy Summer, from the Eicholtz Family.