...and so it ends

Yep, another summer vacation has come and gone.  Tonight's last hurrah of sorts, a bookgroup outing for dinner and discussion and some pity shopping with Sue.  Sigh, a quiet end to a fairly quiet summer, but it is with sorrow that I say goodbye, yet again.  Today I was looking back at old blogs, of summers past, and reading about exactly the emotions I am having right now.  It surely is time to get back to reality, to schedules and structure, to regular bedtimes and to dependable tooth brushing.  It is time for cooler temperatures, crisp fall air, color in trees, and football on Sunday, but alas, for a moment I must look back.

This summer started out the summer of Lucy, our sweet little black lab, who is still sweet, but less little.  It continued with the regular fare such as our fourth of July festivities, day trips, and fun with friends, such as American Girls Night Out with  me, Gwynn, Sue and Jilli.  There were swim lessons and lazy days in the yard.  We moved a hot water heater, installed a mammoth invisible fence, and, stupidly, ripped apart a computer room in the week before school, but hey, it's progress.  We travelled, of course, this year ONLY to Ocean City, MD, Albany, NY and Tim and myself at least, to Burlington, VT...not too shabby for a summer we weren't going to travel much - gas prices be damned.  Tim realized how old he is in the advent of his 20th HS reunion, but I realized I am just one  year behind.  Friends from college moved back to the area, and I couldn't be more thrilled.  As a final, but not to be overlooked note as well, the kids went to Lansing and stayed with grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins for about 1 and a half weeks of the summer ON THEIR OWN.  What a gift, both to Tim and myself, and to the kids and family.  Even in living an hour and a half away, we have nutrtured secure bonded relationships, between the kids and us, AND between the kids and the rest of their family, and I couldn't be happier.

This was a big milestone type summer for us too...15 years married.  We so wanted to do something big this year, something special.  Maybe we'd take a cruise, go to New York City...Europe even, but you know, we didn't.  Don't get me wrong, we did special things, like our day out at Empire Brewing, and wine touring and Dano's, and a couple of days in Vermont, but Tim said it best one night when we were sitting out on the patio eating a lovely dinner while the kids were in Lansing.  For our anniversary, we got TIME...Time to enjoy ourselves, time to enjoy eachother, and in being refreshed in such a manner, time to really enjoy our family as well.  

It has been a good summer.  I am thankful, but also mindful that we're headed like lemmings to the cliff of back to school.  As we careen over the edge, may I want to stay in touch with the peace I feel right now.  May I remember that a day is only a day and I am only one person.  May I continue to count my blessings.  Finally,  may I still realize that the present is a gift, and may I keep on giving myself, and my family, that precious gift that is TIME.

-Cheryl

The Hershey Let Down

So the big family vacation has come and gone for another summer. Of course comparing anything to last year's DISNEY would have to be tough...but come on. How can you mess up CHOCOLATE?

We arrived in PA on Wednesday the 13th and things were looking up. Nice weather, gas at $3.55 a gallon and a decent motel. In some ways, the motel actually topped Disney in the breakfast department. Each morning, we went down the stairs and across the front a few steps to the lobby for quite a nice spread, all included in our stay. There was cereal, fruit, bagels, toast, donuts, and boiled eggs. But the best of all, was a waffle maker for you to make your own custom made waffle with choice of toppings. Then there was coffee, tea and juices. After breakfast hours, the lobby had a movie theater popcorn machine with all the yummy popcorn you could eat in those cute little bags even! The kids just loved this! They had a decent inground swimming pool even. Our room had a nice fridge, microwave and coffee maker. So when comparing our Disney stay and the 4 mile walk to breakfast, carrying our cups, PA really was ahead.

On Thursday we drove to Hershey Park, about 15 minutes from where we stayed in Harrisburg. First, you had to pay $10 to PARK your car. Luckily we'd bought advance tickets from a friend of Margie's who is a PA resident and gets a discount somehow. We got into the park right when they opened at 10am. There were honestly more people at the gate than when we went to the Magic Kingdom (and not on the magical extra hours either). The kids waited forever in lines, some much longer than anything we waited in Disney. The water park attraction totally bit. Freezing water, CROWDS and CROWDS of people and you couldn't sit in chairs and watch your children, you had to physically be IN the water with them. We are spoiled by the expansive layout and casual family like atmosphere of Enchanted Forest. We all agreed that the water park blew.

Then lunch. 3 sandwhiches (Jillian and I shared) and 4 beverages ran us $35. We ate dinner the night before at Applebees, and for our 4 meals, desserts and a BEER...it was only $43. We were not at all impressed. Around 5pm the sky opened up and it began to POUR. Of course Jillian had been waiting in line for a hair wrap for about 40 minutes and JUST sat in the chair when the thunder/lighting began...and then the downpour. There we were, standing under a big table umbrella. If anything it forced her to choose the hair UNDER neath which only cost us $13, rather than on TOP which would have cost a lot more ($2 an inch!).

We left the park at 6pm and never looked back. We were glad to be outta there.

After a quick meal at WENDY'S we hit the convenience store across the road to bring dessert and beer back to the room. We grabbed ice cream, but there was NO BEER! We went back to the motel, and Billy left in search of beer. After several stops he was told he could go to a BAR to buy beer. WHAT!??! Yes, they can sell you a 6 pack or a 12 pack as long as it does not exceed x number of ounces. Are you KIDDING me? Or he could go to a DISTRIBUTOR. Someone gave him directions and he was off to purchase a case of BUD LIGHT. He returned with a 24 pack of 10 ounce cans. They were just the strangest looking cans! When he questioned the employee about the chase for the beer, she said to him, Welcome to Pennsyltucky! Alrighty then! You can smoke in restaurants here, buy fireworks and use your cell phone while driving but can't purchase beer at a gas station or grocery store!??!?! HELLO!

Chocolate World Tour was the next day. Another $10 to park. I don't know what I was expecting, but this was not it. I went to Hershey as a child, with my Aunt and did the tour. I would have bet money that we toured the ACTUAL FACTORY. I have one vivid memory of it. But now I am questioning whether it is that I am remembering, or if it is the UTICA CLUB BEER BREWERY tour I am remembering! Yes, as a child I toured a brewery with my aunt! Anyway, I looked online when I got home and it said that they closed the factory to the public in 1973. I am trying to get my mother to remember what year that would have been that I went. I doubt she'll figure it out, I will have to call my aunt.

The tour of today is a DISNEY-IZED ride through a pretend factory with singing cows. WAY disappointing. We paid a ton of money to watch a 20 minute 3D show that was kind of okay. The kids paid $15 to wait in a long line to pretend to be a factory worker and package Hershey kisses and get an ID badge. We spent over $100 at the gift shop and I refused to buy any chocolate there. All of the same chocolate is much cheaper every day at Walmart, and was actually on sale this week at Price Chopper. I was a little shocked. And they didn't even have my coconut kisses there! I was really kind of hoping they'd feature some of their retired flavors, but no such luck.

I was really all too excited to get in the car on Saturday morning, after our last yummy motel breakfast, and HIT THE HIGHWAY back to NYS!

GREAT, GREAT, GREAT book...To Be Someone by Louise Voss.  It is all the life story of a former 80's pop star, told through the soundtrack of her life.  It has a realtime storyline, and in the alternating chapters you hear the "backstory" as it relates to all these songs.  I picked it up out shopping with Sue, off of a bargain table, for $4.  We thought it sounded so "me" in its premise, although I recognized only a third of the songs, being that much of the story is set in England, thus the whole europop edge.  I didn't have high hopes, but it was a bargain, and in the end it did not matter in the least.  It was a wonderful story, with great writing, great feeling, and it has set my mind adrift to contemplate my "soundtrack."  Fine use of my day, I know, but hey, what else is summer for? ( I am concurrently multitasking through my day anyways - re-reading the second Traveling Pants book, cleaning my upstairs, and packing for our Albany/Vermont trip too, so hey, cut me some slack!)

Childhood Songs 

Get Off of My Cloud - Rolling Stones

Take a Chance on Me - Abba

Witchy Woman - Eagles

Hotel California - Eagles

The Greatest American Hero theme

Star Wars soundtrack

Annie soundtrack - even when Tomorrow was being played/sung by mom on the piano

I Love Rock and Roll - Joan Jett and the Blackhearts

Flashdance - Irene Cara

Private Eyes - Hall and Oats

Peg - Steely Dan

Saturday Night Fever and Grease soundtracks 

(and I wonder where my love of a mix tape comes from - soundtrack queen)

JFS Middle School Year 

Eye of the Tiger - Survivor

Cum on Feel the Noise - Quiet Riot

Hello - Lionel Ritchie

DURAN DURAN!

Camp

Dust in the Wind - Kansas

Crosby Stills and Nash - Daylight Again album

new age guy Andreas Vollenweider or sthg...

Amy Grant Amy Grant Amy Grant!

Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon and Garfunkel

Get Together - ?

Early Lansing

DURAN DURAN - STILL!

Stairway to Heaven - Led Zepplin

College

SO many to name...so many, but Steve Miller Band stands out for sure...

Early Marriage

All I Wanna Do - Sheryl Crow

You Gotta Be - Desiree

Hannibal Hell/Buying House

Long December - Counting Crows

If It Makes You Happy - Sheryl Crow

See, I could GO ON...but life calls.  Have to take Tim and Devin down to try out their new canoe "thing."  Rock the boat, don't rock the boat baby...

-Cheryl

AND JUST A THOUGHT SO SUE WILL REMIND ME...WE NEED TO ASK JILL IF WE COULD POST HER TATTOO ON OUR BLOG!!!!

And So It Goes...

So, as promised, my first entry in the Vacation Without Dog (VWOD)Blog as now Sue is away at Hershey Park.  It'd have been so much fun to go with her and her family, but alas, on Friday we are off for the next in the slew of Howell family weddings. At least for this one, we are simply guests, and there is no stress of flower girl duty.  Post wedding, Tim and I are off to Vermont for a few days without kids.  Now what is that?  VWODK?  Sounds a little weird, but I will go with it.

The image on the left SPOKE to me today, loud and clear.  I mean, here  I am on August 13th, merely three weeks from the start of school, and I am finally picking up on this writing thing.  Every summer, I have the intentions of writing...working on some new stuff, polishing stuff I have, setting up a writing assignment I envision for our extended family (ever the teacher you know...) and possibly even submitting some work to be published, somewhere, somethow, and alas, the time has flown by.  Mind you, I have no regrets for my summer.  We have had a great time, despite somewhat crappy upstate New York weather.  We had a great trip to Maryland.  We reconnected with high school and college friends, in part due to being 20 YEARS out of HS, and in part due to college friends who have moved back to the area.  I've had plenty of "me" time, cleaning, organizing, remembering, reading, and out with friends, relaxing, dining, shopping.  My kids have had swimming lessons, weeks at their grandparent's homes, and just enough playdates.  Last, but not least, Tim has done TONS around our home. I am thrilled, and in a really good place, and truth be told, school may be three weeks away, but it is the FURTHEST thing from my mind.

So the picture spoke to me, as I said, because summer is in its last hurrah.  We have done a lot, and there is more to do, but it is bittersweet in a way.  We are certainly in the home stretch...winding down...and I am bad at this part.  In fact, I am pretty sure I could look back at older posts and see many a maudlin rant about summer's end and school's start.  Yet, as every year, this time I am going to try.  I will try to relax, I will try to embrace, and I will try to change gracefully.  We'll see...