California Adventure: Home Again, Home Again

After saying good-bye to Grandpa Bunker, we headed north for the final official stop on our California Adventure: the Graff ranch in Templeton.  It always amazes me when I go "home" how much things have changed and grown.  I remember when we got the first stoplight in town; it was a big deal!  Now the Central Coast is rapidly becoming the "New Napa Valley," and there are vineyards everywhere.  It's still gorgeous, though I think I'm becoming partial to the green of the Pacific Northwest.

We didn't have too much downtime once we got to the Ranch; within a couple hours I put my poor, travel-weary kids back in the car to visit one of my high school friends, Joe, and his adorable family.  I knew both Joe and his wife, Joanna, in High School, but hadn't met their two little girls.  They were kind enough to fix a fabulous dinner and provide a swing set to keep Aubree and Bryce happily entertained while Joe, Joanna, and I reminisced.  I was impressed with how much they remembered that I had forgotten.  It helped fill in some gaps in my memory.  Though, speaking of forgetting, I did forget to take any pictures.  

The next day was my "baby" brother's 18th birthday.  Daniel was only 3 when I left home to go to college, so him turning 18 and graduating from High School definitely makes me feel old.  The kids spent the morning making a big "Happy Birthday" banner and helping Grandma blow up balloons so we could surprise Dan at school.  We showed up at the High School during lunch time and slowly made our way across campus until we found Dan.  

I think Dan enjoyed the attention and after he shared his balloons with his nieces and nephews, he handed out the rest to some of his friends.  (I have to admit, it was a little strange to walk around my alma mater with three kids in tow and a big pregnant belly).

Daniel really is a remarkable young man and I'm proud to call him my brother.  We pulled him out of school, and to celebrate his birthday, we went to the park and let the kids play (how's that for unselfish?).

Here's an excerpt from a letter my mom wrote to Ian (serving a mission in Africa) about our experience at the park:

"We let the kids play on the playground where we encountered a park bully. He started with Anna, pulling on her bow and almost pushing her off the wall. He moved on to Tyson and grabbed him around the throat. He tried to annoy Aubree but she was bigger. He successfully tore Kylee’s balloon off the ribbon and let it go. This kid was fast and relentless. We were on guard, your sisters were ready for blood, and finally his mother (who didn’t stop him, only said he was a ‘rough player’) left and we all settled to a delightful afternoon."

Friday it was time to get serious about final arrangements for Lauren and Dylan's Atascadero reception.  We spent a couple hours at the church pavilion arranging tables and making plans.  The kids thought this was great.  Thane and Tyson (we should start calling them T-n-T...), were immediately attracted to the fenced off satellite area and quickly discovered that the gate wasn't locked.  It took some maneuvering, but they eventually figured out how to undo the latch and we adults spent the rest of our time trying to keep them out of the enclosure (though someone later asked why we didn't just close them IN).

When not escaping to the gate, Thane and Anna kept themselves happily occupied digging in the dirt.

Aubree doing what Aubree likes best:

That evening Grandma and her friend, Ann, took over all seven grand kids while Kira, Katie, Stew, and I went out to dinner.  The kids had a super-fun time watching a movie, eating popcorn, and playing with their Grandma (she later confided that Bryce and Thane took their popcorn eating very seriously).  We got home in time to help throw very sleepy, but happy kids in their beds.  

(On a funny side-note, I had set out pajamas for bed, but somehow [Kylee claims credit] Baby Piper's diapers had been placed by my kids' clothes.  So, when Grandma got Thane ready for bed, she naturally reached for the diapers that had been set out for her.  Guess who woke up soaking wet in the middle of the night?)

All the cousins had a lot of fun playing together at the Ranch.  Grandma has lots of great toys, but one of their favorite activities was a little less typical... not long after arriving, the kids discovered that "Roly-Poly" bugs abound.  Soon, they were collecting and playing with their new pets regularly.  Kylee was the ring-leader in this pursuit.

Saturday was the day of the planned reception and we spent all day getting ready.  I was in charge of a Costco run, but before we left, Bryce had a chance to take a quick horse-back ride.

After Costco, I took my kids to the church and we spent the rest of the afternoon helping get food and decorations ready.  Again, it was hectic and chaotic, but Lauren and Dylan showed up to help and were calm as could be.  "It's just a party," Lauren kept repeating.  And a fun party it was!  It was great to see old ward friends, especially those who were influential in my life as a child and teen and who continue(d) to be great examples to my younger siblings.

My mom used a laptop and got my Dad on Skype so he could participate in a small way in the celebration.  

Not surprisingly, my kids' (and their cousins') favorite parts of the reception were the fancy ice-cream punch, the cake, and playing in the dirt (blast those white dresses!).  

Bryce became buddies with one of Dylan's nieces

Thane decided he's a fan of Grandma, so when he wouldn't stay with me (remember that fenced enclosure?  So did Thane...), she was a great back-up.

All too soon it was time to clean-up again.  

By this time all the kids were exhausted, yet wired - which is not at all conducive to effective working.  So, I took my kids home plus Tyson and Anna while everyone else stayed to finish cleaning up.  It was a bit complex trying to figure out how to get 3 two-year-olds, plus Aubree and Bryce to bed effectively on my own, but it worked out, and all the kids were sleeping by the time everyone else got home.  

Not long after I put the kids to bed I heard what sounded like soft crying on my monitor.  After investigating, I found Aubree sobbing in her bed, with tears coursing down her cheeks.  I pulled her out of the room, cuddled her up, and asked, "What's wrong!"  

"I just realized," she sobbed, "that tomorrow is our last day here and it's the last day I'll get to see and hold Piper. The next time we see her [Christmas], she won't be a baby anymore!"  She's right, so it was hard to console her.  I tried telling her that next time we got together with family there would be THREE babies to hold, but she responded, "yeah, but they'll all be boys." 

The next day, Sunday, was Thane's second birthday!!!  What a lucky kid to get to spend his special day with his Grandma, aunts, uncles and cousins.  We went to church and I helped out in the nursery, since there was only one leader and our crew doubled the regular three kid attendance.  Plus, I was happy to spend the extra time with Thane on his birthday.

To celebrate Thane's birthday, we had a big dinner outside, watched the solar eclipse, and had leftover wedding cake and ice-cream.  Then I put the kids to bed at a semi-reasonable hour and packed the van to get ready for our drive back to Washington.

Before I knew it, it was Monday morning and time for the long drive back home - solo this time.  Atypically, I didn't have a solid plan for how the drive back would go; I wasn't sure how long we could travel, or how tired I'd get, or where or when we'd stop.  The only thing I did know, was that we were going to make a quick stop to visit with another college friend, Heather, outside of San Francisco (about 5 hours into our drive).  

Heather and I met when we both lived in Wymount at BYU and didn't know each other long, but we had an immediate connection.  I think we were friends in the pre-existence.  It had been over seven years since we'd seen each other, but we picked up right where we left off.  Only one of her four kids was home (the rest were in school), but Kathryn got along great with Aubree and Bryce.  We couldn't stay long, but right before we had to leave her older kids got home from school and they put on an impromptu concert for us.  Oh! We loved it!!  Aubree had an immediate connection with Heather's seven-year old daughter, Anna, and still talks about her.  Anna played the violin beautifully, and now Aubree is convinced she wants to play too.

The only downside to visiting with Heather and her family, was that it made me realize how much I miss them and I wished we lived next door again.

We didn't make it too much further that day before stopping at a hotel outside Redding, California.  And that night? Miserable.  Terrible.  My kids would not, could not go to sleep.  It took HOURS.  Thane was the worst.  And me? I was pretty close to losing it.  In fact, I remember praying, "Heavenly Father, please, PLEASE help these kids fall asleep soon because I'm about to lose it and I can't lose it, because I'm the only one here!"  

After that experience, I made the decision that NO MATTER WHAT, we would make it home by the following night.  No more hotels for me. Thank you very much!

We got on the road at 9 am and were home to our own beds, safe and sound, by 9 pm.  And I have to say, that 12 hour stretch was the smoothest of the whole trip - the kids got along and were pleasant and happy, I stayed calm and didn't feel flustered by the occasional quarrel, the car ran without a problem, I didn't get sleepy or uncomfortable, my feet and legs didn't swell... "Why?" you ask, "what's the secret?"  

One word: Miracle.  I don't say that lightly.  I truly believe that day was a tender mercy from the Lord, because, if left to my own devices, none of those things would have been the case and certainly not all of them.