So around 1 or so, D1 is due here with a car packed with 2 boys and 2 dogs. She's been watching Betsy, the enormous puppy, while D2 and Jonathan are in Lake Geneva, WI, enjoying some cool breeze lake time with some couples' friends, one of whose family owns a kick ass house up there. Turns out Lake Geneva is the go-to escape for Chicago and Milwaukee folks...
Since D1 is always overflowing with energy, she also invited a nice family she's met -- NY transplants who moved to Palmetto Bay with twin 4 year old girls. Could she invite them? Of course, I said right away, and Wifey said after a few moments of griping about it. I reconnoitered yesterday during an evening walk -- there are still a few mangoes on the ground, so we can take the covered wagon on a "mango hunt," which Little Man loves, though he reminds us that it only works when his tall Tio Jonathan is along so he can jump into the branches and pull down some of the fruit.
If the new Dad or Mom is a drinker, I shall fix some adult beverages. If not, I shall not.
But it's lovely to have our usually VERY quiet and chill house buzzing with kids and dogs who actually act like dogs, as opposed to our Special Needs Spaniel Bo who rarely moves -- for hours at a time.
The plan is for D1 to leave Little Man and Betsy and Lemon here overnight, so Little Man can wake me at the crack of dawn, and we can make our usual trip to House of Bagels where the retired professor will be outside drinking his coffee and eating his bagel and reading his Sunday Times, and the sweet counter girl, who is VERY white and VERY American and speaks VERY inner city Black greets us and fills our order.
At some point, we will load Betsy and Little Man into the car and re-home both of them, so that D2 and Jonathan can return home later tomorrow evening to a very happy half Great Pyrenees and half Golden Retriever. They love that dog bigly.
I'm saving up my energy for later -- worked out yesterday AND walked my 3 miles -- this am it's just coffee and chilling. I have zero doubt the energy level will be rising here in a few hours.
Wifey and I blasted "Untamed" and enjoyed it. Sam Neill plays an older park ranger, the boss of the main character, played by Eric Bana, and there's a scene where he (Sam Neill) is playing with his granddaughter. He says "I love being a grandpa, but I am TOO damn old to be raising a kid anymore."
Amen. I totally relate to that. Parenting is for the young. Grandparenting -- caring for the kids in, to use our late friend Elizabeth's malaprop, works in small dosages.
Our former neighbor was my age, and had a whole slew of new babies with his 30 year younger wife. He had plenty of money to pay for nannies, but I would still shudder when I saw myself in that role. Been there. Done that, Paid for college and grad school and took them around the world.
My time has passed.
But today -- bring 'em on! Ready to run around, walk around with wagons and large dogs -- hell -- maybe even swim.
If only these arthritic joints hold out...
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