I think the most anyone slept last night was about five hours. Jet lag is not for sissies. Even the twins were up at five, ready to see what America has to offer. I made pancakes and bacon for breakfast, which is a typical dinner meal in Norway. I wanted to be sure our guests all knew they weren’t in Norway anymore. We ate out on the deck with the sun shining brightly (see photo). The sourdough pancakes were a hit even though they taste nothing like Norwegian pancakes. Tobias thought the American pancakes he had in a restaurant were terrible. He said they just tasted like gobs of flour with no flavor. I think he’s right. It’s amazing how our taste buds get developed so much by just what we are used to eating. I guess that’s why some people can eat monkey brains, and I have no desire to ever try them. I’m glad they all tried my pancakes.
Tobias’ whole family left us today for several hours as they went shopping down at the outlet mall in Marysville, and every store in between. It was too nice of a day for shopping if you ask me, but they came with empty suitcases and needed clothes, shoes, coats and everything else in between. Inger, Tobias’ mom, was completely overwhelmed with how many options there were for every little thing she wanted to buy, so she didn’t buy much. The twins were quite the distraction and jet lag probably played a part of that too, but they didn’t come home with a car full of merchandise, like I thought they would. They just bought a few things today but I’m sure by the time they leave, America’s economic indicators will have turned just based on their purchases. They came here to shop.
Kory and Kaleb took a long walk out on the mud flats, as the tide was super low and the beach was calling. I stayed back at the cabin because my friend, Rhonda, came out for several hours today to paint. She’s an artist and loves new venues, so we set her up on the deck and let her creativity fly. It’s amazing what beauty can be captured in just a short span of time. Afterwards we went for a long walk on the beach and caught up on all that’s happened these last few months we’ve been gone. It’s good to have friends.
Without anyone to play with, Kaleb was bored to tears by late afternoon. I took him up to the Stanwood library while I got on the internet and checked my email and sent his final science report in to his teacher. If he doesn’t read at least one book a day, he’ll go insane. He can read a 200 page book in about an hour, so he had to stay until it was done, and then he stopped whining.
Tobias’ family came back from shopping by late afternoon. We all took a walk out on the beach, waiting for the tide to come in. The slippery mud on the beach was just too tempting for the four boys, so a mud fight ensued (see other photo). The incoming water took care of most of the clean-up, as the water was warm and Tobias and Kaleb played around in it while waiting for dinner to be ready. We had an all-out American BBQ with steaks on the grill, baked potatoes and corn on the cob. We ate out on the deck, overlooking the water. The temperature was perfect and ambiance was about as nice as America has to offer.
After dinner we all went out on the water; Tobias’ family in the row boat, our family in our rubber raft. We were trying to keep the twins from falling asleep too early, and our plan worked. We just paddled along the shore, checking out all the houses along the beach. Fish were jumping, eagles were flying overhead, kids and dogs were playing in the water along the shore, people were out in front of their houses sitting in lawn chairs drinking beer. It was a slice of America even we don’t get to enjoy all that often, so we are thrilled to be sharing it with our guests. Life is good.
No comments:
Post a Comment