June 24, 2014

Harry and I were lying in bed.

It was dark. The stars and the crescent moon were reflecting their little lights on the ceiling.

"I love you Mommy," said his little boy voice.

Sweeter words, you will never hear...

"I love you too, Sweetie," I answered.

"We each love both of us," he added.

Harry reached over across the small divide between our identical twin inflatable beds and wrapped his little hand around mine. 

He likes to fall asleep holding it.

Once he's sound asleep, he quickly lets go.  Which is a good thing because he's become quite an active sleeper. 

Most nights Harry ends up sleeping horizontally across the bed, his head at the open window.

He's tired in the morning and doesn't want to go to sleep at night.

Typical 4-year-old.

Our absolutely amazing and wonderful, biggest news of late is that Harry has finally decided to pee and poop in the toilet and to wear "big boy underwear."  

We are THRILLED with his decision. 

Harry is very proud.

So proud, that he insists that Grandma and I see his accomplishment...each and every time.

Once we've taken a look and cheered uproariously, he'll flush the toilet, shut the lid (Hallelujah), move his little stool over so he can reach the sink. Then he scrub, scrub, scrubs his hands, shakes and then dries them.

I've mentioned our ongoing potty training attempts from time to time, but haven't dwelled on it because I don't want Harry to read this when he's 16 and be horribly embarrassed. 

We started the process over 2 years ago. We've had lots of disruptions, small traumas and many, many changes in those same 2 years, so it's not surprising that we've had varied success and some false starts.

All it took really this time was for Harry to decide.

I know he understood the concept and had even gone through the motions of sitting on the potty many, many times before.

But nothing ever really happened while he was sitting there.

"Shy bladder," my sister said.

Everyone in the family has been trying to help in their own way...

Grandma helped him to understand what happens when you potty or poop by showing him drawings of the human body...inside and out.

She explained the process, what happens when and how it is all just plain normal.

Source book for potty training.

Whatever the combination of events, education and attempts, (I think Harry's recent conversation with God might have helped as well - BLOG post 061114) it has stuck.

He still wears pull-ups to bed. We need to find the magic formula for night time dryness, although Harry has woken up absolutely dry many times in the past...

All in all, we are talking MAJOR accomplishment here!!

Major milestone.

There were days, when I was wiping his little bottom of poop, that I thought he might never actually be potty-trained...that I might have to keep buying pull-ups month after month after month...that I would always have to wipe his little bottom of poop!

But after just two short weeks, he's practically an expert.

I am relieved.

I am thrilled.  

I am sooooooo happy.

We continue to celebrate every day!

.....

Harry's 4 1/2-year-old Birthday party was a success.

I was really, really nervous about the predictions for rain and thunderstorms ever since we had dropped the space-themed invitations into the mail a week before.

It rained day after day after day, and early predictions were for scattered thunderstorms on Sunday, the day of the party.

I sent out texts to the invitees saying that we were in a holding pattern for launch.

On Friday, things had cleared a bit and I was certain (or at least faithful) that we would have good weather for the 1 p.m. start. 

I sent a text update.

"We are GO for shuttle launch!"

Waiting for the party to start.

To occupy and entertain the little ones, we had a bean bag toss, bubbles, soccer ball and cones, T-ball set up, over-sized badminton rackets and shuttlecock, frisbees and jump ropes, and a big green grassy back yard to play in.

The food was good.

Brats soaked in onions and beer and then grilled.  Hotdogs for the little ones. Hamburgers, seasoned just right. The "Fenske (my sister's married name) beans" and potato salad. Chips and drinks.  

We roasted marshmallows over our new little fire pit and made classic S'mores.

I'm not much for marshmallows...or graham crackers...or Hershey bars, for that matter, but there's something about the combination of them all together in that gooey, ooey mess called a S'more!

Then...there was cake.

Space shuttle cake.

Not just any cake, but a Space Shuttle cake made and decorated by my sister, the Zen Master of birthday cakes.

The Space Shuttle pinata was a bit hit. (Ha.)

Harry was first in line.

It actually withstood the smashing blows from each ferocious little swing as the 7 or 8 children, including Harry, took turn after turn trying to bring the contents crashing to the ground.

Once the hook that held the pinata to the bungee (that held it to the old apple tree) broke; and our secondary idea of using the bungee cord to hold the shuttle to the old apple tree directly, failed...I simply took the shuttle in my hands and ripped it open high above the throng of squealing children. 

There was pure chaos as a mix of small hands grasped and clutched after the Dum Dums (candy suckers) and Life Savers, stuffing them into their pockets, shirts and dresses.

A chant filled the air..."Caaaaandy! Caaaaandy! Caaaaandy!"

Harry rescued one tiny sucker from the grass, stood, turned to me and said, "This is all I need, Mommy."

The melee cleared quickly as I handed a gift bag to each of the children.

More treasure.

The weather did hold...just about perfectly.

Just as family started to leave, the winds picked up, the temperature dropped suddenly, the big, gray clouds moved in.

All in the matter of a few minutes.

My sister and niece Sarah quickly helped collect the games and toys and took the leftovers inside to the kitchen.

Clean up was quick.

As everything was collected, the lawn chairs put away, the grill covered and the deck cleared, the rain started to fall.

We couldn't have wished for better timing...or a better day.

Gift bags, on theme.

.....

A jar of strawberry freezer jam went home with each family too.

My sister and I had gone strawberry picking at a local farmer's market called "Country Bumpkin." 

My sister Laura.

It's just "down the road" as we say here in the country.

We had each picked several quarts of berries.  

My hand-picked bunch.

I had rushed back home, before going to pick Harry up from school, to wash and clean and freeze about half, leaving the other half for my next day project of making strawberry freezer jam.

It's incredibly simple and anyone who makes it shouldn't really take credit for anything but slicing the berries.

On their way to jam.

I can't imagine how anyone could get it wrong.

It is incredibly tasty.

And I imagine even more so because of the wonderful flavor of the berries.

The difference between "store-bought" strawberries and freshly-picked from a field on the farm is immeasurable, really.

I made two batches and combined them to make Harry's *First Batch* (robustly ruby red & ripe) 2014 Strawberry Freezer Jam.

Harry's *First Batch.*

Country Bumpkin also has a petting farm (with llamas, alpacas, chickens, goats, sheep, donkeys and ducks), small "kid-sized" buildings to play in (a house, a church, a school and a barn), a wheeled cart track (with big enough carts for me to pedal around with Harry on my lap), pedal-powered tractors, a splashing water duck race game and a zip line for the adventurous.

Although I had just spent an hour or so picking berries there that morning, I had promised Harry that when I picked him up from school, we could return to play.

So, we did.

Kid-sized home with a porch.

Harry's favorite color is currently pink.

.....

Harry and Grandma and I are trying to take advantage of the warm weather, now that we have been released from the polar vortex and have managed to settle in a weather pattern outside of the thunderstorms and tornados that wreaked havoc a week or so ago.

There were 9 tornados in Wisconsin on one recent day in June. EF2 and EF3s.

We do something somewhere almost every weekend, along with running errands and tending to chores.

Harry and I went on a Duck Boat ride (the amphibious land and water vehicles). 

It was another "resident free" offer just like the Tommy Bartlett Water, Ski, Sky and Stage Show (BLOG post 061114) that was such a big hit with Harry.

It was an amazing day to be outside on the Wisconsin River.

Sunshine.

Absolute blue skies.

A slight breeze.

Harry was just as excited as if he had never been on a Duck Boat ride, ever before. (We had just gone on a ride with Grandma last May when we were here on vacation.)

It's always fun to see him sooooooo excited.

While on a Duck Boat we met a regular boat tour along the river.

The beautiful sandstone cliffs along the Wisconsin River.

The cliffs and the cloudless sky.

Harry and Grandma and I also visited Wisconsin Big Cat Rescue (a rescue and educational center) located in Rock Springs, WI, a small town with a population of only 356.

The rescue center has been open for 8 years.  The animals have been collected and rescued from zoos where they have outgrown their habitats and from private owners who have mistreated them.

There were Bengal and Siberian Tigers, Lions (and lionesses) and Leopards. 

Sixteen tigers, 7 lions and 3 Leopards.

They are well cared for. 

Well-fed.

For $12 you can buy a large frozen chicken, chose an animal to eat the frozen foul and the staff will "feed" it to the tiger, lion or leopard of your choice.

Harry was soooooo excited...

Bengal Tiger.

A regal pose for the King of the Jungle.

Harry and Grandma and I try to go for walks often, either on the property or down the road.

Down the road...

Along the road...

The other side of the road...

The blooming prairie...

And...we've started a list to keep track of some of the things we want to do and see the rest of this summer:

Natural Bridge State Park

Devil's Lake

House on the Rock, Spring Green, WI

The Circus Model Train Show in Baraboo, WI

The Circus Parade in Baraboo, WI

It's going to be a fun summer!

.....

It is, unfortunately, another dry period for open positions in my field.

I'm afraid once we get to August, it will be drier still with vacations in full swing.

Then September brings the approach of budgeting.

October is generally when budgets are done and everyone starts to panic about money and tightens up on hiring.

And then before you know it...it's winter again.

Argh.

I continue to wait for any news, any news whatsoever, of my dream job.

I applied for something in Maine yesterday.

It is totally a back-up plan, in case I start to feel even more desperate than I feel at the moment.

June 11, 2014

"I was talking to God upstairs when I was sleeping," Harry explained when he awoke from a nap.

"God's my new friend," he added quickly.

Harry stood at the bottom of the stairs, his demeanor just a little more serious than usual, as Grandma and I listened to his retelling of his conversation with God.

"God said, 'Help your Mommy at once!'"

I know that it is said that children communicate with God quite easily. 

They are innocent.

They aren't plagued by doubt.

They haven't learned to question everything...quite yet.

Harry went on to say, "God's coming later."

I quickly smiled and said, "I hope that's much later, Sweetie." 

.....

Harry and Grandma and I took advantage of a late spring offering by a local tourist attraction to attend a show that was free for residents; The Tommy Bartlett Ski, Sky and Stage Show.

It describes itself this way on the official web site (www.tommybartlett.com):

For great live entertainment in Wisconsin Dells that will keep you on the edge of your seat, the thrill and excitement of the Tommy Bartlett Show is just the ticket. One of the Midwest's most-loved family shows revs up the action as the celebrated Tommy Bartlett water-ski team struts its stuff on Lake Delton.

Summer of 2014 launches the Show's 62nd season in Wisconsin Dells, entertaining generations of visitors. Each 90-minute live show is packed with jaw-dropping tricks on water, on stage and high in the sky. The show features a mix of extreme water-skiing, masterful boat maneuvers, light-hearted comedy and dare-devil stunt artists, all packed into one show.

Harry was sooooooo excited.

At the Tommy Bartlett Ski, Sky and Stage Show.

Once we had parked the car and passed through the gates, Harry started saying loudly to almost everyone we passed: "Welcome to the big ski show!" 

Over and over and over again he welcomed each and every single stranger with a big smile on his little face: "Welcome to the big ski show!" until we arrived at our seats.

They were great seats.

Right down front. Near enough to the stage. Right in front of the two ski jump ramps. Just left of the "beach" where all the skiers come to dry land after their stunts to be recognized with applause and to take a bow.

There was a crazy futuristic water jet thingy that propelled a skier into the air.

There was a hang glider that flew high above us and threw a trail of sparks as it drifted slowly past the almost full moon. (We went to the 8:30 p.m. show.) 

There was a boat that looked like the Space Shuttle. Its top doors opened slowly to reveal three skiers dressed as astronauts!

Harry LOVES the Space Shuttle.

He had spotted it off to the side of the shoreline, well in advance of its appearance to the rest of the anticipating crowd.

"What's that Mommy?  Is it going to take off into the sky?" Harry asked, barely able to contain his excitement at the prospect of seeing a space shuttle launch right into the sky above us.

I tempered his enthusiasm, "No, sweetie, I don't think it's going to blast off into the sky, but let's see what it is going to do on the water..."

As I mentioned, we had chosen the late show on Sunday night.  

I had no idea that it would last so long.

The famous Patriotic Tower of Skiers.
(A screen shot from Google Images.)

The performances moved from the water (and sky) to the stage where we watched an old-school juggler, some acrobats and one of those big metal balls where two motorcyclists enter the steel cage and drive around in 3 dimensional circles managing to maneuver so as not to crash into one another. 

The show ended with the Entrancing Waters. Brightly colored spotlights shine on numerous fountains of water that "dance" along with music. 

The performance we attended, as part of the Community Appreciation Days, was dedicated to the men and women who have served our country, including those recognized in the audience that night with applause.

Elvis sang "America" in the way only Elvis can sing "America" as the waters "danced" behind the stage.

When I was young, I remember them being called the Dancing Waters.

I also remember the Dancing Waters featured on the David Lettermen show.  

It was in the late 80s.

Google says that the owners of the "Dancing Waters" trademark threatened a lawsuit and after some visits from the NBC lawyers, the name changed to the Prancing Fluids for the purposes of the Lettermen show.

I'm afraid Tommy Bartlett may have had to rename the light and water feature that rounds out his show because of the trademark infringement as well.

We had a terrific time...especially Harry.

All three of us have been really tired for days.  

We didn't get home until after 11 p.m., and to bed until well after midnight.

That is much later than all of our usual bedtimes...

.....

There was an open house at the new, $6 million dollar Fire and Rescue Center of Lake Delton.

I thought Harry might like to visit.

When Harry was going to school in Milton, MA, the Milton Fire station was right next door to the school.

We would visit the station and the firemen almost every single day after school with only a few exceptions.

Milton, MA Fire Station.

Harry's favorite: Ladder #1.

Fireman Ray became Harry's friend. But since we were regulars, he had his own celebrity with all the other firemen too.

Everyone knew Harry.

Harry got to ride in the ladder truck for his birthday, although it took several months from his actual birthday in December to convince him to take Fireman Ray up on his offer.

Fireman Ray (and a few of the other firefighters) would ask Harry on every visit to the station.

"Do you want to take a ride in the Ladder Truck?"

They were very persistent. 

Until...he finally agreed.

It was pretty cool.

Sitting in the front seat of that monstrous machine as we made our short tour of the neighborhood near the station.

I think I enjoyed it just as much as Harry did.

He sat quietly on my lap...almost expressionless.

He was just 3 1/2 years old when he took that ride, and a little shy.

Fireman Ray said he couldn't quite tell if Harry had enjoyed himself on the several block-long ride around the Milton neighborhood.

I explained that he had loved it and would probably tell me just how much once we got home.

And he did.

Now that Harry's 4 1/2 years old, it's no mystery when he's excited or having fun.

The firemen at the brand new fancy facility weren't as friendly as they were at the Milton station. And certainly not as engaging with Harry. 

"Is Fireman Ray here, Mommy?" Harry asked.

"No Sweetie, he is very far away at the Milton Fire Station." I tried to explain.

The old Milton station is in need of repair and a little paint and a lot of spiffing up. 

The $6 million dollar station is state-of-the-art with every imaginable convenience and comfort, but it lacks personality.

The old Milton station and its firemen had personality to spare.

Harry in the driver's seat of Ladder #1.

.....

I'm throwing a little party to celebrate Harry's 1/2 Birthday. 

His actual birthday is in December and gets a little lost in all the holiday hoopla.

My OBGYN had suggested the idea of a 1/2 Birthday celebration once we had established my due date.

Dr. Quaas was a wonderful, caring, gentle, terrific young doctor and he made my pregnancy experience all the more amazing.

His birthday was also in December and he had told me that his parents had always held another celebration for him in late May...to celebrate his 1/2 Birthday.

I think it's a wonderful idea.  

It will be the first time that we've celebrated Harry's 1/2 Birthday.

He was too young to really appreciate the meaning before now.

My sister, the QUEEN of cakes, will make a Shuttle-shaped and decorated cake.

There will be brats (it's Wisconsin), burgers and hotdogs for the little ones, of which there are many.

There will be potato salad and the Fenske beans, as well as my Mom's broccoli salad.

We'll round out that great summer menu with S'mores...right before the cake and ice cream!

We'll be able to show off all the hard work Mom and I have done on the yard.

Whew!

Harry's 1/2 Birthday is a great excuse to have a party...and to celebrate a few more things.

We'll celebrate Harry...

We'll celebrate Grandma...  (Because you should always celebrate Grandma.)

We'll celebrate Summer...

We'll celebrate my upcoming Birthday (July 2)... 

We'll celebrate family and friends...

And we'll celebrate what I still believe is the possibility...no, the probability of my being employed soon. 

Fingers crossed.

And say a little prayer.

Invitations for Harry's 1/2 Birthday party.

June 4, 2014

There's a lot of catching up to do.

Yesterday was the one year anniversary of my job elimination.

It was also, ironically, the day that I got an email saying that another candidate had been chosen over me for the position that I interviewed for last week.

I actually wasn't surprised...or disappointed...or even upset.

I had come back from the interview in DC feeling very conflicted.

I need a job.

I need an income.

But it just didn't feel right to me. It wasn't the right fit for my skills and my experience.  

I knew before that email hit my inbox that they would choose someone else.

It was actually a little bit of a relief when it was confirmed.  

The decision was made for me and actually freed me from feeling the pressure just to take a job, to have a job...even if it wasn't the right one.

The right one is still out there.  I know that.

I was contacted a couple of days ago by that start-up magazine that I had negotiated with a few months ago. We are going to talk about a contract for the next edition.

If that goes forward as I would expect it will, I'll have an income while I continue to pursue other options.

Oh...and, I'm still in the running for that dream job of mine...me and about another 30 or so candidates!

.....

I've stayed busy with lots of other projects and self-assigned chores.

The moles persist in the yard and have been joined by several massive ant hills.

There are at least 10 or 12 of them.

I spent some time Googling "natural" ways to eliminate the ant hills.  Mom would like them to move somewhere else and not be harmed.

Maybe the moles and the ants could get together and start a new life somewhere else?

Somewhere, out of our lawn?

I found some information on using common grits on an ant hill.  

The worker ants take the sweet grits to the queen, she eats them and then when she takes liquid, the grits expand and well....

The queen dies and the hill dies.

You should have seen my Mother's face when I explained that to her!

We settled on ant stakes from Farm & Fleet that are supposed to do pretty much the same thing as the grits (which, by the way, did not work.)

We transplanted more ferns from the surrounding woods to ring an old pine stump on the perimeter of the yard, near the Prairie. 

The amazing fern.

We finally sprinkled those wildflower seeds on the edge of the Prairie as well.  We had barely finished raking a light protective covering over them when it started to rain.

Good timing.

We treated the wooden Prairie sign with Thompson's water seal and re-hung it in its place by the road. Mom had the sign made when she started her natural prairie project years ago. 

A sense of humor runs in the family.

We planted new trees around the yard and in the existing woods.

Grandma on the hunt for a spot to plant a new tree.

I took advantage of the nice weather and hung some early morning laundry to dry on the old clothesline in the back yard.

Laundry.

I spent Memorial Day (the day that marks the beginning of the tourist season here - the whole tenor of the city transformed by the influx of thousands of tourists - some who stay for the summer and some who just visit) power washing the deck.

Seriously, the whole day.

There were a few short breaks for rain showers.

It was transformative.

The mold, mildew and bacterial growth all sprayed away.

Where I power washed, and where I didn't.

The deck, in process.

I'll need to get some deck wash solution and follow it with a waterproofing treatment and it should stay looking great for a few years at least.

It looks great right now.

I also oiled the teak picnic table and two benches.  

That was an investment of time, energy and muscle. 

Two coats of oil, the first coat soaking into the freshly power washed clean surface of the furniture for 30 minutes. The second for another 15 minutes before wiping the excess and letting it sit for 8 to 10 hours.

I bought 4 citronella candles.

Mosquitos LOVE me.

And in Wisconsin...? The joke is that the mosquito is the state bird!

Best to be prepared.

I began a search for an umbrella stand.  To Walmart, Home Depot, Farm & Fleet. I found it yesterday where Mom had actually bought the umbrella last year or the year before. 

I bought it, assembled it this morning.

I dragged the brand new gas grill that has occupied a space on the basement floor for the past 2 or 3 years, up out of the basement and set it up on the deck. 

I bought the small liquid propane tanks for it and tried to get it to work last night, hoping to grill some cod, potatoes and onions.

Alas, it was not to be.

The igniter wouldn't work.  No sound at all.  I could tell Mom was nervous about the whole thing...liquid propane and all, as she stood hovering over me with that worried Mom expression.

I called Cuisinart customer service this morning and they are sending a replacement part.  

Just like that. 

No need for receipts or serial numbers or proof of purchase! 

THAT is great customer service.

Just sending a replacement part.

Simple instructions included to replace the faulty regulator.

Maybe we'll have grilled fish by the weekend?

I've had an ongoing dialogue with the lawn mower repair fellas.

Every spring, like clockwork, Mom has the riding mower and the push mower picked up and serviced for the season.

This year, that was followed by 4 inches of April snow, delaying the start of the lawn work.

When I went to start the push mower (preferring it over the riding mower for exercise) it wouldn't start.

It's a Toro.

Known for its one pull start guarantee.

I was on the phone to the lawn mower fella almost immediately.  

"Sounds like there is bad gas in the carburetor..." explained the younger of the two lawn mower fellas.

I asked why that wouldn't have been addressed in the spring maintenance that had been done? After all, it hadn't even been a month since the two mowers had been returned to us - all maintained.

I also asked him why I had found a HUGE amount of dry grass stuck in the venting area in the back of the mower. 

"Oh, I don't work on that part of the mower. Wouldn't have touched it." He explained.

I continued, "So you charge around $50 to perform maintenance on a mower and you don't actually perform maintenance on the whole mower?" 

Hmm?

Anyway, he agreed to come by to fix the mower.  Wouldn't take but a minute, he had explained.  Just need to spray "something or other" into the filter, it would absorb the ether and start right up.

I waited for him to come.

And waited.

And waited.

I called to see what was up.

"Oh, yeah...." the younger mower fella mumbled, "I forgot."

After some discussion, he was on his way with the can of the "something or other" to get the mower running.

It worked and I mowed the lawn, skipping over the areas of the yard where the wild violets were still blooming.

I went to start the mower again last week, to get the yard cut before the weekend.  

The mower would start, but it wouldn't keep running; stopping within seconds of starting.

On the phone again to the mower fellas.  

If I could bring the mower in, they could take a look and see what was going on.

I mused about why a mower that was almost brand new and had just had its routine spring maintenance would not be working?

I think it was completely lost on the mower fellas.

I loaded it in the back of my 4Runner and took it to A1 Saw and Mower in Reedsburg.

That was followed by a succession of follow up calls, checking the status.

Meanwhile, the rains continued and the grass, dandelions and weeds grew and grew and grew.

I called again on Monday. 

I was told that the rotating part that passes the spark plug and keeps it igniting was defective and when that part was ordered, arrived and opened, it had a note explaining that if that part was being replaced, an adjacent part would also need replacing.

Anyway, I should see the mower sometime today.

I waited and waited and waited, until yesterday...a beautiful sun shiny day in the 70s...and I just couldn't wait any longer.

I borrowed my sister's mower and started mowing the lawn, which I hope to finish later today.

Whether it's with my sister's mower or the one I've been promised will be delivered today, remains to be seen.

THAT is not such great customer service.

......

We have had regular nighttime visits from a very large raccoon, who scours the ground and crawls easily to the top of a bird feeder that sits on a post for food.

The other night, it was making it's way out on a branch where a wired container holds seeded fat for the birds, but the raccoon's weight was too much for the old apple tree. 

The branch crashed to the ground.

We'll have to find another spot on the tree to hang the Oriole's jelly feeder and the bird fat.

This is exactly why Mom, every night around sunset, removes the bird feeders from the trees and stores them in the garage for the night.

Pesky raccoon.

We also had to remove a bee's nest from just outside the back door to the garage.  

Again, Mom wished she could have just moved it without harming the bees and she agonized over spraying it and knocking it down.

She sprayed it a few times, but when she knocked it down, a live bee came buzzing out.

Hardy bee.

The bee, building its nest.

And then...there was the Hog Nose snake.  

Yuk.

Much bigger than the little pine snake I had come upon when raking near the edge of the lawn.

And it showed its displeasure with us as well, flattening out its neck and hissing that all familiar snake sound, as we directed it to the grassy ditch toward the field of alfalfa.

Nasty snake.

Hog Nose snake showing its displeasure by flattening its neck.

.....

Grandma, Harry and I went for a walk at Rocky Arbor State Park one morning.

It was following a rain storm or two...something we should have considered a little more, I think, before venturing along the trail we chose.

The first half of the trail followed along brackish standing water, prime breeding ground for mosquitos.  

We weren't on the trail for even 5 minutes before they were swarming around us...well, at least Harry and I.

Mom seemed to have some natural kind of repellent pheromone that I wished I had shared.

I was in shorts, tall rubber boots and a short sleeved shirt. Harry was in jeans, a short sleeved shirt and rubber boots. (The boots he calls his "Mr. MacGregor boots"...from The Tale of Peter Rabbit.)

Mom was in jeans, ankle boots and a long sleeved shirt, layered over a short sleeved shirt.

"The mosquitos are literally swarming all over your back..." Mom explained as she tried to keep pace and swat them away.

"You should have worn a long sleeve shirt," she advised.

"That bit of motherly advice would have been more useful before we left the house," I responded.

It was THE...FASTEST...EVER...walk through Rocky Arbor State Park. Ever.

It was truly miserable.

As Mom labored to keep pace behind me, I was practically dragging Harry along, holding his hand tightly and imploring him to "move faster."

Harry looked up at me and said in a very concerned tone, "Mommy, I don't think we're gonna make it..."  

And then followed a little later in the journey by, "I really think I need a nap..."

Mom was laughing so hard, her pace slowed and we got quite a bit ahead of her.

We finally found some relief when we reached a paved road which would eventually take us back to our parked car.

Perhaps it wasn't the absolute best idea to take a walk in a heavily wooded area, near brackish still water, following a few rain storms?

Yeah.

Respite from the mosquitos on the pavement.

.....

I've been taking advantage of having fresh flowers growing in and around the yard, by bringing them indoors to enjoy.

Daffodils, Lilac, Lily of the Valley, Irises and of course, ferns.

Lilac.

Harry continues to enjoy playing with his "cousins." 

I found him at my sister's running around with a garbage can over his head, chasing his cousin Tylor (yes, that's how it's spelled) riding or pushing a small version of a John Deere mower, who was chasing Uncle Gilbert on his actual riding mower.

Harry was giggling. Tylor was laughing. Uncle Gilbert (or "Gilbird", as Harry calls him) seemed nonplussed by how much fun could be had just chasing him around the yard.

Harry is under the garbage can.

We took a couple of rides on the Merrimac, WI ferry. 

Over and back.

We used to ride the ferry (although it's probably the same ferry boat) when my brother and sister and I were kids.

It seemed like it took a lot longer to cross back then.

It was a surprise for Harry.  I had just told him that we were going to do "something" fun.

When we arrived, he was SO excited, craning his head out the car window to get a look at the ferry boat coming slowly across the water to the dock.

We road it over and then turned around and waited in line to ride it back across.

About 15 cars or so make the trip each time, as well as bicyclists and pedestrians.

It was another beautiful day.

Perfect for a ferry ride.

Harry's first ferry boat ride.

Waiting for the return ride.

Fun in the sunshine.

Harry and I went mini golfing the other day too.

He was equally excited about the prospect of a round of mini golf as he had been about riding the ferry.

"I'm a lucky boy," he said to me as we chose our putters and balls.

Harry chose an orange ball.  I chose green.

It took a bit of time before I could calm him down enough to actually play. 

He ran from green to green consumed in his own excitement.

Mommy got a hole in one on the Par 4, 13th hole.  

And then another on 18.

We had great fun.

I'm a lucky Mommy, I thought.

Harry took this picture of me, Pirate's Cove Miniature Golf.