Cape Cod Bound

Today, JT and I set off for Cape Cod and our third annual camping trip with the R-K family. The car is loaded with our tent, sleeping bags (and air mattresses.....we like a comfy camp bed), bicycles, the camp stove, toys for the beach, and other camping necessities like potato chips and cookies (Lewis and Clarke wish they had camped with us).
I love the quiet pace of life at camp: the long, lazy days; bike rides on the trail; trips to the beach to walk out on the sand bar at low tide; and the pages and pages of reading that I will complete. Though we'll be away for a few days, I've arranged for a few postings that will appear while I take a break from my daily life. And, if I can find a wireless signal, I plan to post from the Cape.

The fabulous K has promised to check in on our home and the kittens, so things in Jersey are in the most capable of hands. Cape Cod, here we come!

Christmas Vacation!

The holiday break started yesterday afternoon at 3:05 when school let out. The first thing I did when I got home was turn off the alarm on my alarm clock. No more 5:45 am wake-ups for me (well, at least for two weeks).

Then I had a nap.

Today, the boy and I enjoyed a luxurious 9 am sleep in. And then I played Monopoly Junior with this shiftless ne'er do well.

He beat me twice.

But it's a few minutes after 12 pm and we are both of us still in our pajamas. So you'll hear no complaints from me.

Vacation Journal

For the past two weeks, I've been out on the very tip of Cape Cod, camping with friends near Provincetown. We've done a lot of bike riding and swimming and plenty of relaxing. I read voraciously. The time to regroup got me thinking. Over the course of the vacation I wrote a few essays that I will be posting over the next few weeks. I'll post them with the date of the original writing at the end of each essay. Some are variations on themes that have frequented this blog; some are new ideas. Mostly they are thoughts about where life has taken me, especially in the past year, with some hopes for the future thrown in for good measure.

Road Warriors

Taking a break from watching Harry Potter the boys discovered that nothing moves Friday afternoon traffic on I-95 like a little Lenny Kravitz.

Off to Camp

This afternoon, we head northward for two weeks of camping at the very tip of Cape Cod. We expect cool mornings, sea breezes, bike rides, camp meals at a family picnic table, playing games, trips to the beach, and lots and lots of fun with the R-K family. We'll be at the North Highlands Campground ----- the office phone is 508-487-1191, if you need to reach us.

We're expecting some big fun. The picture is one of the memories from last year. And here at Sassafras House we're looking forward to new memories and stories to tell. Fresh adventures and a lot of laughs are on the agenda.

Also, if we're really, really lucky, maybe the kids will let us tie them to a tree again.

Ingredients for a Perfect Day

One baseball game - Yankees v. Braves (Yankees win, 5-3)
Ice cream sundaes for supper
Pirate costume ----- with tattoos
Splash Mountain with your Mama - at night
Staying up really, really late ---- past midnight
Miss Amy
A ride on Peter Pan ----- the story that began this obsession so many years ago

And when it's all said and done your little boy will announce that it was "the night of a lifetime."

Indeed.

Go Fetch

Today's Spring Break adventure featured an extensive game of Mama fetch. The deal is that JT is utterly fascinated by my ability to skim along underwater and fetch the diving rings. It's a skill I honed during the hot summer days of my childhoood in California. And, along with the flip-flop induced giant space between our big toe and the junior toes that follow, this shared talent is how I know my sister is actually my sister and not some smart-mouthed imposter. Who knew that it would be this skill that convinces JT that I'm worth having around on a daily basis? But it is and I was happy to oblige. So we played Mama fetch this afternoon. The warm sun added a few freckles to our matching noses and there was plenty of laughter.

Summer vacation is soon, yes?

Fun, Mama Style

One of the hardest things about being the only full-time parent in the house is that you are so busy getting the chores done that fun runs the risk of becoming just another chore. I don't want JT to grow up thinking that the only way that I showed him my love and affection was by getting the laundry done. I have fond memories of fun things that I shared with my parents and so I very much want him to have happy memories of fun times with me.

So I banked some fun today at Animal Kingdom. We rode the Mt. Everest ride 3 times, I consented to yet another stuffed animal to join the herd at our home, and I took photos of the snake he had painted on his face. We had a really great day. And we'll both have memories of the fun we can have together.

Pool Shark

Yes, the pun is intended. I am my father's daughter, you know.

We've had a lovely afternoon playing and relaxing.

My Enchanted March

In preparation for my upcoming vacation I have been re-reading Elizabeth von Arnim's 1922 book The Enchanted April. The novel is the story of four women who leave dreary wet London in April for a stay at medieval Italian castle cloaked in wisteria and sunshine. The story is indeed enchanting, as the castle and the holiday prove quite perfect.

I'm not headed to San Salvatore but I am leaving cold wet New Jersey for a week in Orlando, Florida with some friends. The promise of a warm pool and hot tub, weather that demands sandals, and a trip to Disneyworld is pretty enchanting right now. JT is excited well beyond belief, and he told his first grade teacher that he didn't think he could fit in any homework because he would be "too busy in the pool, the hot tub, on the roller coasters, and stuff like that."

I'm tired and worn out from the demands of single mamahood. And I still miss parts of my old life. But this upcoming week will be a chance to renew and relax and a reminder that my new life is coming along nicely.

PS: If you haven't read the book, go right out and pick up a copy. It will make you anticipate the coming spring with that much more happiness, knowing that you'll soon be feeling the warm sun.