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Finally settling back in to the routine of my 'normal' life after spending an extended period of time with 3 of my darlings in St. Louis. FRP is growing, thriving, healthy, happy and such a joy to be around, which makes the 7 hour car ride to view her in action a piece of cake!! The weather there was warmer than back home, even with their unusual 8-inch snowfall and the frozen ice plates barely floating down the Mississippi River, so we were fortunate to be able to spend a good amount of time outdoors. Baby got her first taste of snow, literally, and we enjoyed hours of nursery rhyme singing through parks, windy roads & city streets, as well as celebrating her 1st birthday again!!Can't wait for our next encounter and those warm & rosy smoochable cheeks, but first I'm off to San Francisco where the cheeks of my very first darling await...oh, and some Dim Sum dumplings!!
A funky, homemade trike; checking out I-55; Milwaukee skyline; Jefferson Memorial Arch; 100K mile mark on the old 4-wheeled vehicle just shy of the St. Louis city limits; a much deserved nap after serenading us for miles to the bumps in the road!!
I woke up in St. Louis this morning. I live north of Milwaukee. That's 440 miles in between. A 6-1/2 - 7 hour piece of cake ride, well, technically a drive, because I had the 4-wheeled vehicle. (Hey, it was only 45 degrees last Thursday when I left home.) Of course it was in the upper 70's all week in SL, but I gave up predicting weather when I descended earth, and besides, I've done my time as a frozen Popsicle, and quite frankly...it's not that freakin' cool.
Anyway, the mission was to get back home before the polls closed at 8pm. No problem, except that I
was hangin' with my FRP and it is sooooooo hard to say goodbye. I pulled it off though...got in as many smooches as baby would allow and hit the road, only stopping once for gas and once for a photo-op. Arrived at 7 on the dot, filled out my ballot, snapped a photo and finished the journey home to watch the night's events unfold. And glory hallelujah, unfold it did!!
When I heard that my FRP was going to go out after dark, dressed up in a costume to bang on stranger's doors and beg for candy, I was like...I'll be right there, cuz this I have to see for myself!!
Unfortunately for her, she was only allowed to suck on wrappers, mainly because she has no teeth, but also because she has one of those Dads who will sell her out for a big Snickers bar and a Mom who refuses to let her try anything 'bad' until she falls in love with all vegetables first (good luck with that BTW!!)
We carved pupmkins (notice no braggin' photo of that!), baked pumpkin seeds, tricked & treated way past dark (the folks of St. Louis demand that trick 'r treaters tell a joke before receiving their treat - I had never heard of such a ritual, but think it's a fun one - they also offer adult beverages to adults which I declined, but also think is a fun ritual!) and in general had a very Happy Halloween...something I have purposely avoided for years. Funny what those little devils do to you ~
Our visit with my Future Riding Partner was all too brief, but oh, so enjoyable!!!
She and her chauffeur, daughter B, arrived just in time for a family favorite, Southwest casserole - tortilla chip crust layered with beef, chilies, sour cream, enchilada sauce, onions and tons of cheese, along with garden fresh veggies marinated in my secret sauce - all so yummy! And, of course, a side of delectable baby food for our precious little toothless one.
It was a long 7 hour ride for the two of them, so we planned to just chill out, catch up and see first hand baby's latest achievements - crawling in a fast forward motion was the absolute highlight!
Daughter D and a friend traveled a bit to witness her relatively new niece's progress and we spent Sunday being totally entertained, awed and amazed! Baby is VERY alert, comical, strong, fast, neat (as in clean), curious and kissable (we smooched her for everyone we know at least 1,000 times!) and loves things that move, that shine, that make noise, that fit into her mouth, that involve water or anything with texture.
Her little peanut head practically spins off as she attempts to take in all around her - the slightest sound or movement and she's on it!! By the size of her thighs, cheeks and torso, it appears that she hasn't met anything she won't eat - from fuzzy baby biscuits and sauerkraut juice to flower tops for example! She talks and giggles often, sometimes when you least expect it, and growls like a bear on command (actually, I think it's a motorcycle thing)!! She is so fast on her knees that occasionally an elbow will give out, but she keeps going!! We're convinced that crawling could be the next new Olympic sport! She readies herself for sleep by pulling a blanket partially over her face or by clutching a soft toy under her chin, but forgoes the ritual when Grampa rocks her. She wakes up noiselessly, full of smiles & hugs and ready for anything all over again.
We wish she lived closer, at least next door!!! ~
...the arrival of my future riding partner and I feel slightly manic, so I'm taking a brief pause.
It isn't like there was a ton to do - the house, for the most part, is always clean, at least odor & lump free and presentable. Suddenly, late this morning, I decided major appliances needed to be dusted under and furniture orifices required vacuuming - this development was so unnecessary, not because the appliances and furniture couldn't have used a bit of attention, but next week, or next month would have been soon enough; why today? Roger joked about rigging F.R.P.'s 7-1/2 month old hands and knees for dusting the hardwood floors - I was all for it, so why did I spend 2 hours on mine??
Then there's the food thing...always more than enough of it in and around our house, but I planned to pick up Thai food for tonight any way - my daughter (F.R.P.'s brave & daring, long distance chauffeur) has been craving Burmese food since her last visit to San Francisco and Thai is as close to it as it gets in this neck of the woods. So why in the hell did I chop, slice, dice, brown, marinate and create an entire menu for 20 while making up things to clean???
Am I worried that my 7-1/2 month old Granddaughter will leave here with a bad impression? She's visited before and didn't complain. Or am I concerned that my daughter would freak out to see her baby's obvious knee prints in hardwood or worse yet, permanent stains on her knees? For a true "clean" test, we could confine her to the white carpeted areas of the house, but confinement is no fun.
Funny thing is that nobody is even going to know that I spent half of a perfectly good, end of the summer season riding day doing chores I didn't have to do, because in the end, the house looks exactly like it did when I woke up this morning with a few more things to eat in the fridge!!! ~
You put the gas in here, right? Now how much did you say that will cost me in 16 years???
Spent a few days with my future riding partner, the perfect excuse to put on a couple of miles. Returned home a day shy of adding the 452 mile leg to HD's Million Mile Monday campaign, but I figured I would rack up some more today to contribute. That, unfortunately didn't happen. Too much to catch up on in the house & garden, not to mention the two flats of annuals Roger thoughtfully bought while I was off riding or the organizing of all the pix I took of that face! I'll plan for next year's MMM - maybe even set a record!
A funky, homemade trike; checking out I-55; Milwaukee skyline; Jefferson Memorial Arch; 100K mile mark on the old 4-wheeled vehicle just shy of the St. Louis city limits; a much deserved nap after serenading us for miles to the bumps in the road!!
Anyway, the mission was to get back home before the polls closed at 8pm. No problem, except that I
When I heard that my FRP was going to go out after dark, dressed up in a costume to bang on stranger's doors and beg for candy, I was like...I'll be right there, cuz this I have to see for myself!! 
Our visit with my Future Riding Partner was all too brief, but oh, so enjoyable!!!
You put the gas in here, right? Now how much did you say that will cost me in 16 years???
Spent a few days with my future riding partner, the perfect excuse to put on a couple of miles. Returned home a day shy of adding the 452 mile leg to HD's Million Mile Monday campaign, but I figured I would rack up some more today to contribute. That, unfortunately didn't happen. Too much to catch up on in the house & garden, not to mention the two flats of annuals Roger thoughtfully bought while I was off riding or the organizing of all the pix I took of that face! I'll plan for next year's MMM - maybe even set a record!
