Snapping Turtle

We saw this giant snapping turtle in the road in front of the barn. Calvin was fascinated and also a little freaked out. Isabel practiced taking a flying leap. And on the trip to the top of Crane Mountain I practiced staying upright while my knees turned to jello every time they got a little too close to the edge of the cliffs for my comfort.

Calvin has taken to calling me a scaredy-cat and takes great delight in watching me trying to control myself when the kids do something brave and daring that pushes all my mommy buttons. They are growing up, yes, but they are a long way from having much sense yet, so I'm gonna trust what those knees tell me until they are out on their own in another ten years or so... And even long after that, I expect that I'll be taking messages from those jello cups also known as knees.

Lessons in Levitation

We climbed Crane on the first day of summer. There were almost no black flies. Unfortunately the ones that were around did find Calvin and Isabel and they did get a few bites. Calvin has finally gotten his mountain legs. He climbed all the way up and all the way down with only a little bit of carrying after bonking his head on a big rock. There were some great views and clouds at the top. Dave gave Isabel a brief lesson in levitation and Calvin seems to be finding his own way there without much help from anyone. We look forward to warmer pond water later in the summer.

Mikala Sarah (Spelling?)

As usual the spelling eludes me. I guess I can keep falling back on the fact that I learned to read and write in Spanish: "slippi" is the logical spelling for "sleepy" and so forth. The English spelling rules just never stuck and I'm terrible with names. This little baby girl is a much-welcomed addition to the Rowley clan in Binghampton. Here are a few pictures of her with her mom and her cousins Ashland and Isabel, each of whom had a turn holding her.

Calvin's Blue Tongue!

Wow, I don't think I want to know what was in the lollipop Calvin had after his last immunization--but I think it may be more scary than what's in the shots. At least he looks good in blue. Here he is at his pre-K graduation.

International Fiber Collaborative Gas Station

This gas station had a makeover thanks to the International Fiber Collaborative. I like it much better now. Stumbling across it last week was an incredible surprise. It made my day. I hope some of you will find time to check it out. It's at the corner of Colvin and Nottingham across from the P and C grocery store. There is also a website.

Leah's Wedding

My sister is now happily married. Sometimes you really can tell that things are going to work out for people. They are such a happy and comfortable couple that you just can't imagine either of them with anyone else. It was a hot weekend, but everyone managed to stay cool despite the weather. We got to see lots of relatives that are scattered across the country; even my aunt Debbie and her twins made it. I especially enjoyed meeting Josh's sisters and talking with his mom again. They seem like a really nice family.

Isabel and Calvin were stellar travelers. They read, watched movies, read license plates -- for hours -- played word games, sang songs, slept, ran around at rest areas, and were generally civil to each other for the long ride down and the even longer (14 hours!!) ride home. I don't know how they managed to be so good, but it sure made it fun.

On the way down we stopped in D.C. and spent the night with our old college buddy George and his wife Molly. They have three boys and another baby on the way and managed to put us up in their basement apartment too. Molly helped me to pin money on the back of Leah's quilt the day before the wedding.

Here are some picutures from the trip. My mother is still battling her Glioblastoma. She looked great despite the lack of hair under that amazing hat she wore. It's hard to see her so sick. She enjoyed seeing all the kids running around and was happy to see Leah getting married. When she got the diagnosis in March, she wasn't sure she'd make the wedding. My mother's cousin Nancy is a minister and she performed the wedding ceremony for Leah and Josh.

Isabel danced with Leah as did a bunch of other kids. The music was great for dancing. Then they played a game of tag and duck-duck-goose on the grassy slope outside the reception area, while the band played on.