- The "last day" of summer

Retrospective (9/18)

Patch #249 Tire swing

Original Post 

The Summer of 2016 has come to an end ...

in St Louis anyway. Kids are already back at school and Labor Day marks the last day at the neighborhood pool ... 

It went by too fast ...

It always does ...

- (re)Purposeful

Retrospective (9/17)

Patch #248 J's crib sheet

Original Post

Stories at bedtime are a wonderful family ritual ...

So what if (my daughter wondered), what if I made some sort of backstop for the boys' reading corner using J's old crib sheets ...

Sure thing! So I brought my sewing machine from Texas to St Louis and made pillow covers ...

by hand. I mean really, what was I thinking?

- Happy Birthday Jace!

Retrospective (9/17)

Patch #247 Two years already?

Original Post

Turning two is a big deal ...

worthy of a trip to the St Louis Zoo on a day when summer finally loosens its grip ...

A day when ice cream is allowed at 10:30 in the morning ...

and you get to practice for your drivers license in 14 years or so ...

A day for walking and wondering at all there is to see ...

And when you get so tired that you simply can't take another step, there's a big brother to sit down and keep you company ...

Later, after a very, very long nap, there's even cake ...

and presents ...

because turning two is a very big deal.

- What we do

Retrospective (9/17)

Patch #246 READ

Original Post 

I just finished reading Deb Sposa's ode to grandparent-hood over at Artisun and yes, it's a wonderful gig.

Watching Mickey on PopPop's iPad ...

Taking a walk after dinner ...

Making cookie dough for dessert (so glad to have such good help with taste-testing) ...

And bedtime stories of course ...

Not to mention all the things that didn't make it onto the camera because we were too busy being in the moment ... we'll remember them in our hearts.

- Driven

Retrospective (9/17)

Patch #245 Destination

Original Post

We try to see our St Louis grandkids every couple of months. Once or twice a year we fly up and we always get together at the Outer Banks (NC) in June. The other three or four times a year we drive.

Day one we point the car north and drive straight up I-35 to Oklahoma City. Then we hang a right and drive east on I-44 for another full day.

It's worth it ...

And while it can be hard to get these two to sit still long enough to take a picture, the step-stools kept them occupied for a minute or so ...

Tomorrow Don will put the stools to good use when he paints the dining room ... which will most likely take more than a few minutes.

- Northbound 35

Retrospective (9/15)

Patch #244 Pottery path

Original Post

We're on the road again, having left at 7:30 this morning. After traveling ten miles from the house to get on I-35, this is the straight-shot view that we have had most of the day ...

Northbound 35 provides lots of opportunities to slow down and take pictures of construction vehicles ...

Fortunately, there were also some scenic views along the way, such as this one at the Turner falls overlook ...

and we also had some fun for the grandkids' enjoyment at the impressive Sam Noble Natural History Museum on the campus of Oklahoma University in Norman ...

Last, but not least, we marveled at the exhibits of Native American arts, including these pottery motifs that are sure to appear on a future patch or two ...