Sleepover with Claire and Evan

Last Friday night was a big night for me and Judy.

Claire and Evan arrived right after school and stayed

overnight for our first sleepover at our house (we've

slept over at their houses a few times).

So we did a few different things together.  The kids took

this vintage pipe cleaner puppet kit that my mother had

bought decades ago and put their own creative touch to it.

The finished product.  Ta-da!

It had been a long time since Claire built one of her

signature horse farms, but she had plenty of time to

do it right this time.  It included a "Predator Park" at

the bottom right and an obstacle/training course at center.

Claire displays her "obstacle course and training center."

The horse center grew and grew all the way 

into Saturday.  Claire also develops her characters

and creates a story line as she constructs.  Always

different, always fun.

Evan and I played our Melissa and Doug "Suspend"

game, an exercise in balance and strategy.  We successfully

got all the pieces on without a catastrophe. Then the

kids demonstrated their courage by posing beneath the

teetering monstrosity!

 A lot of things were not pictured. Like Grandma's 

classic chicken nugget dinner, Saturday breakfast

at Granny's Doughnuts, many, many games of 

mini-soccer, and a cuddly viewing of "Beauty and

the Beast."

As our time together waned, we piled in the car and

headed up to the old property to see what changes 

have occurred.  The kids know we'll eventually be

back there, so it's not all sad.

This massive willow oak tree has roots that remind them

of a huge water oak in Atlanta at my parents' house. They

played around that one just after Christmas.

I'm not sure what the kids thought of this huge clearing

where Pinehurst Senior Apartments will soon be.

Over the last three years we scarcely played on the part

of the property we planned to sell.  All our trails, plus

the tree house and waterfalls, are on the property where

we will rebuild in the near future. 

The kids had a nice view of the changes from the

mini-mountain.

Off to the stream and the waterfalls.  We were so

thankful for a springlike day this early in February.

We'll have chances to spend summer days at the stream

even before our house is built, so this was a sign of

things to come.

Grandma Judy loves being at the stream with the

grandkids.  It's one of our many special places.

The bridge (one of four) passes inspection.

The kids never tire of floating objects like leaves and

sticks down the stream, navigating beneath the bridges.

Occasionally, they have to use long sticks to lend

a helping hand when objects get stuck.

Claire and Evan will be at our house again TODAY,

less than a week later, and we can't wait to see what

they'll have in store for us!