I Had a House Party

I remember hearing/reading that word when I was younger, and thought it sounded like a lot of fun. It is...

My niece, nephew-in-law (I have to find a new word for him because I love him), great-niece, and nephew all arrived Friday around 8:30 p.m. My sister got here just ahead of them (she lives around the block), so the fun was about to start. The baby came in and looked around (she's almost twenty-three months old), and decided that she needed a snack before she went to bed (she lives in a different time zone, so she was staying up VERY late, but had a nap in the car on the way). She helped me get out her chair, and we all talked and laughed a little before she went to sleep. The adults talked and laughed for another hour or so, then sister went home and we all went to bed. It's usually just the dog and me, so it was wonderful to have five people sleeping in my house...and a blessing from God that I had enough room (and enough bathrooms!) for all of us.

I got up first,showered, and made coffee. I then watched television in my bedroom to keep from being tempted to get the baby up to play! Everyone was up by 9:30; my sister arrived during the morning commotion, and I went to pick up breakfast for the adults. We finished getting ready, and headed for the municipal park that's about three minutes from our houses (see earlier post and picture). We got our admission bracelets, and went to the platform to wait for the train. We made a complete loop of the park, and on the second loop, we got off the train and went to the animal habitat to see what/who was there.

The baby wasn't exactly pleased with the decision to get off the train, but after we got to the animals, she decided that it might not be so bad. She was able to pet the llama, the sheep, and the donkey. There was a rooster waiting for us at the entrance to the barn area, and he was about at her eye level; she decided that she could probably see everything better if her dad was holding her (and she's right...her dad is about 6'5"). There were turtles, guinea pigs, baby ducks, baby chicks, various kinds of birds and fish, a wolf, a fox, a chinchilla, and a female lion. She heard the train whistle as we headed toward the deer enclosure, so we decided to look at the deer the next time they come over. We hurried to the platform, and planned to head home for snacks and a nap.

The train made its stop at the playground platform, and when her Grammy asked if she wanted to go to the playground, she thought that was a good plan. She tried out all the swings on one set, with her uncle pushing her (he pushes best). Grammy and Uncle went to the nearby fast food restaurant to get ice cream while the rest of us went to the slide and on to the bouncing purple dinosaur. We had our ice cream while sitting under a picnic shelter next to the playground, and then it was time to head home. There was some rebellion on the part of a young girl, but that 6'5" daddy tucked her under his arm and headed for the car (she's at a biting/hitting stage, and he deals with that very well).

While she napped, we visited and played Rook. After she got up, she and I went out to the deck and played with her plastic Easter eggs (they stayed at my house with her other toys). We sorted them by color, lined them up, put them back in the bucket, found the ones that rolled off the table, and talked to the dog. We ordered dinner from a local restaurant, and called Poppy (her step-grandfather), and asked if he thought he could come home from work a little early to see her before she had to leave for her house. Her parents usually try to leave for home (a two-hour drive) around her bedtime so that she will sleep during the drive (harder to do when daylight saving time starts), so after we ate and laughed some more, it was time for the fun to wind down. The travelers left for home, my sister and her husband went up the hill and around the corner to feed their dogs and cats, and my dog and I settled back into our routine. House parties are a lot of fun...