Family Filled Time

It’s the end of June as I write this and I am astonished at how fast these last two months have flown by.  May and June have been filled with family togetherness.  In our last blog we listed many events that were planned and eagerly anticipated in NJ.  But sometimes we have to be flexible and change in mid-stream.  So when our son Josh needed some help, I flew to Tucson to be with him.  His situation is resolving well now but I am happy that I got to spend lots of time with Josh, his wife Liz, our two grandchildren Sawyer and Sarah and our daughter Amy.  Josh, Amy and I hung out binge watching our favorite shows, checking out our favorite local restaurants, and got to just be with each other for over a week.  Josh and I bonded in a special way and staying at Amy’s nice new apartment provided the space to relax together.  I explored Amy’s new neighborhood walking her dog Selena.  It was a special interlude with a good outcome for Josh but I did miss out on some of our plans in New Jersey and especially spending time with our children and grandchildren.  Doug was able to have a sleep-over in our RV with our nephew Nico.  And then when I returned to NJ, we were thrilled to be able to see most of our family at a BBQ at Emily and Claude’s home.

Then we left NJ, our 22^nd state, to spend just two nights in Woodstock, NY (our 23^rd state).  We drove through pretty green mountains to Foxboro, Massachusetts (our 24^th state).  The campground in Foxboro, Normandy Farms, was the best location for us to camp and store our RV while we headed to Portland, OR by plane.  We were a little nervous about putting our home in storage, but Normandy Farms was a secure place to do this.  We emptied our refrigerator and freezer, put things away, cleaned and did everything necessary to safely store our home and just about everything we own.

Doug made the whole process look easy, but it took lots of planning and coordination to get us to the airport in Boston, where we took a long flight to Portland.  After an endless travel day on Saturday, we were grateful for Bev and Barry’s pick up at the airport.  And we were very grateful that we could spend Sunday settling in and getting our 18 month old Paisley used to us.  She hasn’t seen much of us except on Facetime, but she was comfortable right away and led us on a long walk through her favorite park.  This was great since Julie went into labor that night and Doug was alone with Paisley the next day.  Don’t tell her parents, but Paisley never seemed to care that Mom and Dad were absent as she pleasantly went through her normal routines with Doug.

Griffin was born at 2:25 pm on Monday, June 5^th.  Although it was predicted that he would be a very large baby, he was 7 lbs, 10 oz and 21”.  He seemed tiny when we first saw him and he looked just like his sister.  Julie said she felt like she had given birth to twins eighteen months apart.  Julie and Jake once again accomplished a birth with love strength and stamina.  Griffin, or Finn as we sometimes call him, is sweet and calm.  He hardly cries and sleeps well.  His chill-ness is evident as he stretches his long arms and legs.  He is missing the pudge that endeared Paisley’s thighs to us but he has her charm and cuddliness.

We are so lucky to have been present for his birth.  I will always treasure the gift I was given to be able to see this child born.  And Doug will always think of those special hours alone with Paisley as moments to be cherished.

We celebrated Griffin’s birth and Father’s Day with a family party.  The theme was Harry Potter (Julie’s choice) and we ate magic wands, wizard cupcakes, winged snitches, and drank a Potion Punch.  We snuggled our new little muggle and blessed him with the warmth of wonderful family and friends.

There was lots of time in our three weeks in the Portland area to be with family.  We saw even more extended family at the retirement BBQ Bev threw for Barry.  Jake’s family came into town giving us all time to catch up with each other as we took turns holding a sleepy infant and playing with Paisley.  We had a great day with our great-nephew Trekker, who is just a little older than Paisley. We took lots of walks, ate at Burgerville and Red Robin (our favorites) and went to a few play times at local libraries.  Jake and Julie treated us to a wonderful dinner at Spaghetti Factory and Doug and I ate a great Thai dinner by ourselves in Forest Grove.   Happily Doug and I got to spend lots of time with his Dad.  We even got to have lunch with Josh and Jenn at a picnic site near their boat.  It was a bit of a whirlwind of happy family times.

Then we flew back to Foxboro, MA to get our RV out of storage, restock food and supplies and then after just one more day at Normandy Farms, we relocated to the Minuteman Campground in Littleton, MA where we now have to readjust to being alone with each other.  We both miss our loved ones and remind each other of the fun and special times we spent with them in Portland, Tucson and New Jersey, but we both agree that it is also nice to come back to just the two of us enjoying our adventure together.

On Wednesday, June 28^th we toured Walden Pond in Concord.  Since I first read Thoreau in the early 70’s I have wanted to see this lovely place.  We got to walk through the woods, sit on the sandy beach and feel the peace and serenity that inspired Thoreau’s words. The beach at the pond was lively with summer day-trippers but this didn’t spoil the essence of this place.  I am currently reading Walden again for a full Thoreau experience and our son Jon recommended a passage by Thoreau about his time in the Maine woods (where we are headed next).   This time at Walden Pond will be a day I will always remember.

Yesterday, we got up early and drove to the nearest T stop, where we boarded the commuter train to the heart of Boston.  The T is a great public service which was well worth the cost.  The train cars are clean and the ride is pleasant.  It was $9.25 per person each way, plus a $5 parking fee.  Parking in Boston would have been much higher and the biggest benefit is that we didn’t have to fight traffic and avoid the crowds of pedestrians walking in the narrow cobbled streets.

It was a busy and energetic day, putting 14,366 steps on my chart.  Boston is a walking city – proved by gridlocked traffic on both the small winding streets and the larger highways.  We tramped through most of The Freedom Trail, starting at the Old North Church and ending up in Boston Common, where the water park was filled with dancing, running and laughing children.  We were far from alone as we tried to keep our feet on the red brick trail through the historic cobbles.

Of course, we stopped for lunch at Fanuiel Hall where I lovingly ate a cup of New England Clam “Chowda” and a buttered lobster roll.  Doug had some delicious potato curry, enjoying Indian food in the rotunda of Quincy Market.  Our feet were sore as we climbed back on the T to get us back to our car.  Doug and I have each visited Boston but this was the first time we shared it together – a great day!

It’s hot and muggy here, but that didn’t stop us from spending a day exploring Lexington and Concord.  After visiting the Visitors Center in Lexington, we walked through the streets seeing historic houses, reading informative plaques.  We stopped to talk to Alan on the Green, who was dressed in Colonial garb and who shared his knowledge of the local battle lore.  When we needed to cool down, we got back in the car and drove to the Minuteman Visitors Center and enjoyed a 45 minute presentation on the start of the battle that began the Revolutionary War.  Later we saw the spot where Paul Revere was captured and we drove alone the Battle Road.

To put the perfect touch on our day, we stopped at The Orchard on Battle Road in Concord, one of the childhood homes of Louisa May Alcott.  This is the home where Alcott wrote Little Women and I had the thrill of standing next to the little white desk where she actually wrote her most famous novel.  Most of the artifacts in the home were authentic.  We saw the wedding gown Louisa’s older sister wore to her wedding, we saw many of the sketches and oil paintings done by her younger artist sister, and we saw the little piano next to a portrait of her sister who had passed away.  These items touched me since Little Women was very much autobiographical and having read it many, many times, I know the details and objects and relationships described in that book as if they were part of my own family memories.  The guide seemed to know everything about the author and her family so we felt we received intimate details of Louisa’s life.  Walking around this home brought back the hours and hours I spent deep in the middle of Jo March’s life.  Looking through the bookstore there, I confirmed that I have diligently read most of Alcott’s treasures.  I say most, because it seems I keep uncovering something I missed.  My last discovery was her descriptions of a really different part of the March’s lives while they lived at Fruitland.  So much more to enjoy, I’m sure!

Our time here in Massachusetts is coming to a close, but we feel like it all came together when we saw Thoreau’s portrait in Alcott’s house and we learned the amazing connectivity of their lives.

Now we spend some time doing the mundane tasks of living – laundry, cleaning, shopping – and get ready to move on to our next location in Maine.