Busy Isn't a Big Enough Word
Family Is the Focus and Food Gives It Fine Tuning
Week two was just as hectic as week one here in MA. This 2nd week started off with some sad news that Ray’s cousin Sharon’s husband Billy had passed away unexpectedly. This was a shock to all of us and certainly put a damper on our visit.
Friday we helped Ray’s cousin Larry pack a small U-Haul and move to Punta Gorda Florida. We couldn't have done it without Larry’s sister Maureen. We were very lucky the rain held off most of the time we were packing. From Larry’s we went to Costco in NH to get new tires on the Ford. From Costco we went back to MA to join Maureen and Larry for dinner. The end of a very long but enjoyable day.
We learned a lesson we won't forget, Once you get to 70 years of age stop pretending you can easily move your belongings or those of anyone else!💪😅
Great Times for the Fourth
The Fourth of July seemingly marks the middle of the year, and sets us racing toward New Year's Day, this one will be no exception. After the Fourth, it's Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas in short order! But we celebrated over many days, sharing meals, experiences and oft told stories! Raise your hand if you've heard this one before!
The weekend of the Fourth we ate Munchkins with the munchkins, the kiddoes of Lalia’s nephews! We had not seen these family members for over two years and it was amazing how much the children had grown. We had a very enjoyable morning catching up with Joshua & Jill and their children Roderick and Finley, plus seeing Matt & Holly and their children Paige and Lachlan. (For our Florida friends, Joshua and Matt are Reubin’s sons.) After two large boxes of munchkins were devoured, we headed to see Lalia’s Mom because Ray offered to cook supper and she requested Shrimp Scampi with Scallops. Another fun evening with Mom and Lalia’s sisters Susan and Barbara. You do notice a trend here – food, food, food and in many instances, wine to wash it down.
 |
| Miss Paige Elizabeth oversees the entire entourage! |
 |
| When he isn't playing Lacrosse outside Roderick can practice Soccer inside |
 |
| Lachlan is a builder |
 |
| Wish we had Finley's energy |
So, to continue the eating binge the next day, again with a box of munchkins, we visited Lalia’s great niece Taylor, her partner Chad and their son Blake, who we also had not seen in a couple of years. It was wonderful to see them and their new condo. It's a lovely new home for them and for Taylor's sister Morgan. We had not seen Lalia's great niece Morgan since 2016. Seeing Morgan again was truly a gift! Having graduated from high school, Morgan is now working with Taylor in addition to sharing her home.
 |
| Blake is such a big little man! Terrific to see Taylor, Blake and Chad |
After visiting with Lalia’s niece, we drove around the corner, literally, to have lunch with Ray’s only living uncle, Carmen and his friend Linda. Ray’s uncle is a great cook and offered to serve us homemade raviolis and a little wine! To continue the eating binge we left Carmen’s and went to Lalia’s nephew Matt’s for burgers, hot dogs, and ribs to celebrate July 4th. Matt smoked the ribs and they were great but our diets are not doing well. What a great day!
On to the Second Half of the Year and More Food
July 5th was a day of rest and not eating much! We did visit with Lalia’s Mom and sisters again but this was a good day of resting up for the next day and back to the crazy schedule. We started the day by meeting for coffee with our Massachusetts "backyard neighbor" Joan along with Hester, who is currently living in the Chelmsford house we owned for almost 20 years. It was great to talk about the old house and also to give Hester some information about people we used to do some work around the house. After a short visit to the cemetery where Ray’s mother is buried, we headed to lunch with Ray’s cousin Jackie and her husband Terry. Nice lunch with a lot of laughs.
 |
The next day we met up with Florida friends Shirley and Steve at Panera Bread for breakfast. They were in southern NH having their dog Duster groomed so we thought it would be a good time to get together for a short visit. Fun seeing them and hearing about their summer in NH.
 |
| Pretty sure Steve and Shirley will forgive me for taking this candid |
After some shopping in NH we headed back to see Lalia’s Mom, and sisters. Ray made a meatloaf, at Mom’s request, and we enjoyed another evening with the family.
An Early Departure
After many hugs and stories, we went back to the RV and watched the updates on hurricane Elsa. The weather forecast for the area we were in did not sound good so we decided to leave a day early and head to Vermont. We made a quick trip to give Mom many hugs goodbye then we left our RV park and headed to Vermont.
 |
| Ready to head for Vermont Out running Elsa |
No comments:
Post a Comment