Fun with Sammy, Bianca, Destiny, Austin

My goal for this weekend was to be able to see Sammy and Bianca.  Three weeks is a long time in an infant's life, and I don't want to miss more of Bianca's babyhood than I have to.  I also really wanted to spend time with Destiny, because this next month is going to be very busy, and I'm not sure if I'll get to see her until Thanksgiving.  

So I took a trip to Lancaster County without Dick this time, so I wouldn't have to be back home for his work on Saturday morning.  I left around 4:30 on Friday, remembering the horrendous traffic back-up we got into last Friday.  I was very glad there was nothing like that this time.  I went to Sam and Jenn's place first, arriving about 6:45.  Sammy is always so delighted to see me!  They had the delicious makings for tacos all ready for me.  I had fun with the kids for over an hour.

Then I took Sammy with me to Reading to pick up Destiny, who was just getting back from a movie with some of her friends.  As we were driving Sammy asked me,  "Where did everybody go?"  I wondered who he meant, and he said, "Where did Sophie go?"  I realized that the last time I was at their house three weeks ago, Lisa and Sophie were there.  It's so fun to see how he's getting to know and be attached to various family members, even at a distance.   Sam said that he had the greatest time with Jeremy and Mike last weekend.  They even went to the pumpkin patch at Renaissance Faire down the road from Sam and Jenn's.  

While I was driving to Reading, Dick and I talked on the phone several times as he watched the stats on Bjorn's game online.  We were heartbroken for him when we realized the game was over with the Baron's losing AGAIN, 14-21.  We just could not believe it.  They had started out with 14 points before the other team scored any.  But they were never able to score another point!  And most unbelievable of all, the other team (Garden Spot) had NEVER beaten the Barons before.  How sad is that??

Destiny and I had such a good time talking on the way back to Sam and Jenn's.  It was the first time I'd had a chance to hear all about her classes and teachers this school year.  I love to hear the things she's learning in each class.    

Sammy went to bed soon after we got back, and Destiny was not too far behind.  

In the morning Jenn had to leave bright and early.  It was her National Guard drill weekend.  It wasn't long till Sammy found me and snuggled with me for a while.  

When Bianca woke up, I pretty much held her for the rest of the morning until Sam and the kids left for a birthday party at Jenn's parents' house.   I gave her a bottle, she slept, and then she woke up and smiled and smiled and smiled.   She LOVES my singing!

It's easy to imagine her giggling out loud, isn't it?  But she's not at that stage yet at 10 weeks of age. 

Look at the laughter in those eyes!

And the tricks!

This is my favorite. 

After Sam and the kids left, Destiny and I slowly got ourselves cleaned up and beautified. (-:  We discussed our day, and we had so many ideas, but the time was slipping away.  It came down to Salvation Army, hahaha!!  Out of all the people we could have stopped in to see, or the funny movie we could have gone to watch, what we wanted most to do was go shopping at the Lancaster Salvation Army thrift store!   It really is sentimental to us.  We went there so often when she was little.  She would play in the toy section, which was right next to the children's clothes sections where I would be picking out clothes for her.  She just loved going there.

Our trip there took forever.  First of all we got into the backed-up traffic due to Renaissance Faire.   Then the Wendy's near Salvation Army, where we intended to eat lunch, was no longer in existence.  So we had to drive around looking for another place to eat.  The traffic was horrible everywhere.  We found a Subway, which is also sentimental to us, because we often used to eat at Subway after church when she was little. 

Before we left we had to do our restroom selfie pics!!

Then we made our way to Salvation Army again.  We were busy talking, and at one point I mindlessly turned into the street that leads into Park City mall.  Rats!!  We were NOT going to the mall!!  So we had to battle some more traffic to get out of there, hahaha!!  We were laughing so bad!  

FINALLY we made it there.  We checked out the shoes first, because that's what we always used to do.  Then we hit the ladies' shirts, NOT the children's section anymore.  They organize their clothes by color, and her favorite colors right now are blue and green.  So she told me to look through the greens while she looked through the blues.  She ended up with four really cute sweaters and shirts.  When we went to check out, there were 23 people in line ahead of us!!  But we had fun anyway, looking at the gadgets and stuff that were displayed on either side of the line.  

And then we headed back to Reading.  It was shortly after 6 pm when I dropped her off with hugs and kisses and more laughter.  My heart was so full.  Being with her is like fitting into an old comfortable shoe.  We know each other so well.  When I left to pick her up on Friday evening, I grabbed an apple and said to Jenn, "I'd better take this apple along.  She'll probably ask if I have any fruit when she gets into the car."  And she DID!  In fact she said that all week she had been craving fruit, and that evening she had told her friends, "I'm so hungry for fruit, but my grandma will have some for me when she picks me up."  Boy, am I glad I did!

I had a good, non eventful drive home.  Prairie Home Companion was my companion part of the way.  That always provides some good laughs.  I also called Bjorn to offer him my sympathy for Friday night's loss.  He was having fun on a hayride at the high school, so that made me feel good that he wasn't sitting at home moping, hahaha!  

When I got off 322 at our exit, I suddenly realized there was a Penn State game going on at Beaver Stadium.  There were cars and RVs as far as the eye could see.  The traffic director assured me I could go right ahead, that the game was in progress, thus very few cars on the road.  And I drove right on by the stadium without a problem.  

Dick was watching the game when I got home (around 9:15).   In fact, he stayed awake to see the end of the game, which went into double over time, and Penn State LOST to Ohio State by seven points.  Sad, sad, sad.  

We went to our two church services this morning, then brought Austin home with us for lunch.   I was just amazed again at my lovely hanging petunia when I walked into the house!  It is looking far better than it has all summer.  It's just teasing me, because one of these times that Jack Frost is going to do it's ugly deed.  

Austin brought some new Star Wars Legos along with him, and we had fun figuring them out with him.  

He's such a tease.  His smile looks sweet, but don't be deceived.  It surely had something to do with him  breaking up something I had built!

And now I need to get busy with music prep for the next few weeks.   Jeremy and Mike and their Penn State graduate neighbors are coming here next weekend for the football game.  And then the following week we're leaving for our annual trip to Lisa's in Tampa, complete with Sophie's gymnastics competition.  Meanwhile, this is my busiest season of the year at the church office.  No time to waste!

Have a great week!