Thursday October 8, 2015  “THE UN-GROWN ONES”

So much is happening around the table that I can’t wrap my head around it.  I think this blog will be short tonight.  We have a lot of different opinions being spewed back and forth around the table regarding family portraits which will take place tomorrow.  I will not go any further tonight with that discussion, but if we are still together as a family tomorrow I will tell you how it turned out.

Today was a delightful, spur of the moment adventure.  Son, wife and kiddos went to an amusement park.  That left daughter, husband,  Dave, and me on our own for the day.  Neil has never been to Branson and wanted to see the area.  Rebecca and Neil had a destination in mind which I had never heard of.  So we went exploring to find “Top of the Rock” a bit south of Branson.  Its actual name is “Lost Canyon Cave and Nature Trail.”  It is a privately owned natural habitat, golf course, with lodging, restaurant, tours, museums, and amazing caves and waterfalls.  Its location is referred to as Top of the Rock.   It is located in Lost Canyon.   Neil and Rebecca treated Dave and I to a beautiful lunch at the restaurant, which is housed in a magnificent barn.  The barn was disassembled by the Amish from Latrobe, Pennsylvania, and reassembled at the TOP OF THE ROCK resort area in 1987.  The barn was originally built in 1852.  It is an amazing hand hewn structure of great proportions.  Some of the barn’s interior timbers are over 46 feet long and over 250 years old.

After lunch we were also treated by Rebecca and Neil to a tour of the lost caves. .  It was a self-guided tour via a golf cart.  Everyone voted that I was not to be the driver.   Hmmm…for the life of me I can’t figure out why.  Actually is was quite nice because I didn’t need to concentrate on driving and could pay more attention to all I wanted to see.  So, we were all happy.

We returned home to have dinner and game time.

Now everyone is settling down for the night.  The first quiet we have experienced since arriving home this evening.  Whew!  My head is spinning.  I sometimes don’t know how Amy stays sane.  I think she really likes her job.

THE UNGROWN ONES

By Kathleen Martens

October 8, 2015

My head is spinning

From all the sound,

From all the commotions

Spinning around.

Laughter and clapping,

Bantering and song.

No sound that could be made

Could possibly be wrong.

My smile inside

Just grew bigger

As I listened intently

As laughter triggered.

Two little boys

The pride of our lives

And of those present

Who are husbands and wives.

Grandsons and nephews,

Sons and brothers

And out of all the world

I’d rather have no others.

Today was a happy day for a lady I’ve never met but only talked to on the phone.  Earlier this week my daughter-in-law found a beautiful piece of jewelry.  She and Courtland asked the neighbors if anyone had lost a piece of jewelry.  No owner could be found.  It’s a long story but to make it short I will just say that the owner was found.  Both Courtland and I were actually able to speak with the owner of the heirloom diamond ring on the phone.  She was ecstatic.  She had been crying off and on since she had lost it.  I am so happy that we were able to help her have a good ending to her story.  I hope she has a very peaceful sleep tonight. 

This has been a fast week, a long week, a too short week, an exciting week, and a fun filled week and even a few minutes of “spewing”.  Too soon it will be over.  The kids (the grown ones) may actually be happy when it over.  The two kids, (the un-grown ones) probably hope it lasts forever.  Who wouldn’t like six adults doting over them, no school, wonderful meals (which they don’t really appreciate), videos, board games, loud laughing parties, later bedtimes, amusement parks, birthday parties, treasure hunts, two dogs to play with, and book tapes to listen to?  It’s fun for them.  It’s fun for us!

Good night faithful reader.  May God bless your night.