Nona's Birthday and My Goodbyes

It is nearly midnight here in Boston and I have just finished packing the bags. These last few days have been a whirlwind of crossing things off my list of things to do and saying last goodbyes to family and friends. We have had an amazing trip filled with so many unique and wonderful experiences. But, tonight as the suitcase is ready to be closed, I am ready to go home and I have fresh energy to bring back to Seattle.

Here are some snaps from the last few days. First, here are my little girls, so precious and loving.
This weekend Audrey and Aaron returned to spend time with us and to celebrate Nona's birthday. This rainy Sunday (after Aaron and I ran), Talya enjoyed some snuggle time doing the crossword with Uncle Aaron.
And, Aunty Audrey recruited help baking Nona's birthday cake. Nona needed a little help blowing out the candles.
Our final visit was such a treat - A, L and E met us in Brookline for some kosher food and playing in the park.
Tomorrow, Ron and the girls will head to New Hampshire for some special time with Nana and Grandpa!

Our Girls' Morning At The American Girl Store

This was a day that the girls and I had been waiting for! We had a reservation at the Natick, MA American Girl Store for story time and tea party. The look on the girls' faces was priceless as we walked up to the store with their babies in hand.

Both of them had a great time, sitting with their dolls, listening to the story, having treats and then of course, shopping a bit afterwards.

I tried to capture their joy in the photos below.



After our morning, we visited Navisky cousins and had more smiles!

Special Time With The Yanceys

We were so excited for Ron's arrival, after spending Shabbat on the Cape, we met the rest of Ron's family at a chalet that they rented in Humarock. Over the next 4 days, we spent time with Ron's parents, siblings and their children, playing at the beach and enjoying a lot of time together.

Here is a photo of the chalet from the beach below.
There were a total of 12 cousins to play with (Michaela was missing), ranging in age from 12 down to 3. They had such a great time together.
The view was so beautiful.
And after hours of playing at the beach, the kids played games at the kitchen table.
Here is a beautiful shot of Ron with some of the girl cousins during our walk exploring the military base.
Here are the newlyweds, Mark and Jenny. This visit was the first time I had the opportunity to meet Jenny, it seemed so quick, but was such a treat!
On our last night together, we went to Canobie Lake Park. Ayelet discovered the kiddie rides and she was unstoppable. Perhaps this year, she will do the Puyallup!Here she is with cousin Brenden, they were so precious!

Girl Time

Girl time at the Cape was so special. We took long walks and looked for bunnies.
We read on the beach...
...and with Aunty Nicky.

Our Pace Has Changed

Our pace has changed. This photo says it all.
Talya, Ayelet and I returned to Cape Cod on Monday morning and immediately, upon arrival, calm set in. Our first weeks were filled with fun adventures. We did a lot and saw a lot of VERY special people. With our return to the Cape, we were alone and it was just the three of us, with no agenda and no plans for 4 days. For me, that was exactly what I needed, some time to play with the kids, some time to think and reflect and some time to rest. So, what did we do? Well, more of the same, the beach, ice cream, walking in the evening after dinner - looking for bunnies, of course, a visit to the library to replenish our supply of books... Our pace was just slower and we weren't tied to any schedule. Eric came over this morning so that I could go for a run and then we spent the rest of the day playing.

Here are some snaps from last weekend and the past couple of days.

The Tuesday Beach Club, on Friday, getting ready for birthday cake and ice cream.
All the kids - forced to pose.
We had a wonderful visit with a high school friend and his family. It was so special to reconnect as adults, with families! Here are all the kids together. R and Talya hit it off and became fast friends.
Brian's lovely wife photographed all of us, I just wish she was in the photo, she is a treasure!We had to escape the intense Boston heat, so what better than a trip to the Museum of Science. The water table at the Science Museum - Ayelet was so happy there, I thought we might spend the whole afternoon there.
Time with Nona and Nono in the Discovery Center.
Back on the beach, the Tuesday Beach Club, back in session.

A Boat Ride

Our dear friends from the Tuesday Beach Club so kindly invited us out on their boat on Thursday. It was such a sweet invitation, Thursday was the day that the heat wave was supposed to hit the east coast. There was a lot of talk of how to get relief from the potentially record breaking temperatures, so we were thrilled to be invited!

The morning of our scheduled excursion, the forecast had changed to include heavy winds off the Cape, but our host went to check the water and things looked peaceful and calm on the ocean and lots of boats were out, so we went ahead with our plans. It was SO wonderful, Sesuit Harbor is beautiful. Our plan was to take the boat out, anchor just off a secluded beach, swim in to shore, play, then swim back to the boat and return to the harbor.

We set out slowly through the harbor, then picked up speed as we went into the open water. I loved watching the different reactions that my girls had. Michaela sat quietly, apprehensive and not sure what to expect. Talya loved being out on the water. When we picked up speed as we left the harbor, she was thrilled. Ayelet hung on tight to me, but seemed to like it. However, we discovered how quickly things could change. The ride out was pretty quick, but as we approached the area that we were going to anchor, we could see that the wind had picked up. Instead of being calm, the ocean darkened and we could see white caps all around us.

Our hosts were phenomenal, quick thinking and sensitive. They quickly decided that we needed to turn back. They gave us instructions on what to do and prepared us for what to expect during the return trip. Thank goodness we had had a calm trip out to get us acclimated. The return was bumpy and wet and felt much like a roller coaster ride. Almost the same reactions from the kids though - Talya had the time of her life, Ayelet hung on for dear life and Michaela looked terrified.

Here is the boat.
Here we are, the crew, windblown but happy, after our adventure.
We spent the rest of the day at the beach!

Visiting with C, H, M and E

One big difference between this trip and other years is that this year we are doing more visiting than usual. We have done a lot of traveling which has been tiring, but it has also bee so special for us to spend such wonderful time with friends and family.

This particular excursion took us to Falmouth, MA. C & H were such wonderful hosts. The kids played so well and we had a chance to catch up. We went to the beach together, spent the day playing and then ate pizza on the beach!

Here is Ayelet with her new friend - she has discovered the art of finding playmates on the beach.
And here are our wonderful hosts.