A busy few days

I just looked back at the blog to see where I left off. Last Thursday, before we left for Sharon, I was all excited about having posted new pictures of our four grandchildren to the blog. That feels like a million years ago!

Our drive with Eliana and Maya up to Sharon went very well. They took turns playing games on an electronic device and we talked about all the things they did at Camp Grandma. I have to say I am truly impressed with Ronen’s Mom’s energy and good spirits, as she seemed none the worse for the wear when she brought the girls to Riverdale Thursday morning. We stopped for a nice picnic lunch, and I am happy to say that we even managed to keep them happy with only moderate amounts of unhealthy foods.

We took the girls home to their parents, who had a very nice few days on their own but were elated to see them. I spent Friday morning doing some things around the apartment, and in the afternoon Simmie invited me to come with the girls and her to play miniature golf (Barry was working). None of us had ever been to this particular place, although Simmie had heard good things about it. It was easily one of the cleanest and well-kept miniature golf courses I have ever seen, but (and you knew there was going to be a “but”) it was absolutely not handicap accessible. Quite a few of the holes had steps, sometimes many, and like so many miniature golf courses, to quote an old Allman Brothers song, “ain’t but one way out, baby.” So between my slow ambulation and a very-determined-but-a-bit-young-for-this-game Maya, we had to let the people behind us go ahead a few times. But we finished the course, and Simmie even won a free game by landing the ball in the correct slot in the ball return.

We had a nice Friday night dinner at Simmie and Ronen’s, an old Moosewood recipe that is a family favorite called Rebaked Potatoes. After synagogue on Saturday morning we went to Dina’s house, where the six of us and a friend of Joshua’s had lunch. We ended up staying for the whole afternoon, most of it spent outside on a truly glorious day with sunshine and low humidity. Ella was determined to finish the latest Lego kit we had bought her, Olivia’s House, and Joshua’s friend also got into working on it, all outside on a folding table. By the end of the afternoon we had completely finished it – all 695 pieces! Simmie and Ronen and the children dropped by on their way home from another friends’ house where they had eaten lunch, and stayed for a while. Dina and Aaron live on the corner of two streets that lead to the homes of many of their friends, so on a nice day they are never alone.

After Sabbath, Barry, Simmie, Dina and I went out for ice cream. We enjoy going doing this every now and then, sort of like old times for our family. We went to a really good ice cream parlor called J.P. Licks. There are places closer to Sharon but none can hold a candle to this one, and they even have some very good dairy-free choices for those who need them. If you happen to be in the Boston area, check it out at http://www.jplicks.com/ .

On Sunday we went to see the Pawsocks, the minor league team for the Boston Red Sox, with Joshua and family and a few friends. This was their last home afternoon game of the season. We have been to see them a number of times and they have lost every game we have seen, until this Sunday, when they beat the Buffalo Bisons 3 to 1! They do a lot of cute things for the fans at these games. Joshua’s birthday is coming up in a few weeks, so Dina and Aaron arranged to have birthday greetings to him on the monitor. We did not know exactly when it would happen, but somehow when it did I managed to snap a picture of it!

But I fear all this baseball talk has created, or more accurately, reawakened, a monster in Barry, who just bought tickets for an upcoming Mets afternoon game. Reluctant as I am to say this, it is actually not a bad way to spend an afternoon, as long as the weather is good. Our seats are in the shade, the people-watching is fun, I can eat peanuts (which I enjoy but never do anywhere else), and because I am not emotionally invested in the teams I can just relax and enjoy. What’s not to like?

I know I had something else in mind that I wanted to share, but for the life of me I cannot remember what it is. Hopefully it will come back, and I will do it then. Meanwhile, try to get outside a bit and enjoy these last days of summer.

Love,

Rebecca