Weekend fun

Macy and I attended her girl scout Mother-Daughter Tea last month. The theme was garden party-

I think she was most excited to just have some time with Cameron and Samantha though... 

Meanwhile, Tate and Brian were off camping with the Boy Scouts! This was the very first campout that Brian was able to go on with Tate since he became a Boy Scout last spring...

Yes, he wanted to be with Tate- but I think he also just wanted to take his jeep out for some fun!

This campout was at the Rod and Gun Club and was focused all on shooting sports, a big reason why Brian wanted to make sure he was there with Tate

And he realized while the kids are on their own for meals- from the planning and shopping ahead of time, to the cooking while there- the parents go BIG!

Tate's group had bacon for breakfast. That is it. He said he had 7 pieces of turkey bacon. Why? Because the "grub master" forgot to bring the eggs...

I had a little surprise for Macy on Saturday night- a couple Leadbetter boys! When Sara told me that Chris was driving down from CT to help his mom (who has lived just 20 minutes from us up until recently) get ready to sell her house, I suggested that he bring a long a kid to spend the weekend with us. Turns out we got Shane and Nick for 2 nights! I feel like we share custody...

Macy was just in the kitchen messing with something and the boys quietly walked in through the garage and got almost to her before she looked up- happily confused!

The quickly got to building forts in the basement together-

And sliding down the stairs in sleeping bags! Why not, right?


Shane had lost a tooth on the drive down, so Macy got him all set up for a visit from the toothfairy-

 In our house, you get $1. But 2 summers ago when we were with the Leadbetter's at their family camp on Lobster Lake in Maine, Macy and another cousin both lost a tooth the same night. We had zero cash. Chris' brother gave us a 5 dollar bill- which she was delighted to find the next morning!

Well, Shane woke up to $5 at our house... and Macy quickly said "just like what I got a Lobster Lake!" It makes me feel wildly excited about all the childhood memories these kiddos share.

Sunday morning Brian and Tate snuck out of camp a little early and walked into the living room about 10am. Nick and Shane decided to hide under blankets on the couch and popped up when he walked in- it was so great!

They decided they wanted to go mini golfing that afternoon, so after we got Tate stink free, off we went! But first, ice cream...

Let me just say how EASY this 4 some is. We pulled up in front of Dairy Queen, gave Tate a 20 dollar bill and off they went inside to order and pay for their treats themselves. Then we drove over to mini golf. I showed them where the clubhouse was, gave Tate another 20 dollar bill and off the went to go pay and get their clubs and balls!

They even played the whole game by themselves-

The winner-

Also the scorekeeper- should we be suspicious? Not of this kid! He did ask us to come along to keep score, we declined his request. Benign neglect? Perhaps.

After not seeing Brian all weekend, I was thrilled to sit with him and enjoy a glass of wine while the kids golfed-

I had lunch all set up for them when golf was over-

Seriously- unbelievably easy. WE HAVE ARRIVED! We are at the point where we can enjoy being with them and not doing for them...

Sunday night Chris and his mom Barbara came over for dinner and Brian made a big family dinner for us all, which was wonderful except that I didn't have MY bestie.... 

Suddenly it was Monday morning. No no no. Oh yeah- these kids also don't need to be monitored while going to bed either- sigh of relief. We let them watch a movie, and told them to turn everything off when it was over and go to bed. Guess what? THEY DID! 

Tate and Macy went into school late on Monday and I absolutely adored getting ready for my day while hearing all the joyful sounds coming from outside while they all sucked up every last minute of fun they could together- 

I hated that Sara was not here for this visit. That would have made me happy. But I loved that my kids were so happy with their besties here. There's little better in my mind than making others happy... I'll gladly sacrifice my happiness for my kids.