June 30. 2011

Bye, Daddy Wayne!  Love, Lindsay & Billy

Through the haze and smoke, we said goodbye to Daddy Wayne this morning.  He’s heading back to Spokane today.  All visits seem too short!  He and Karl did manage to make it down to the crab trap this morning and check for new captives.  They turned up one [dead] hammerhead and one [live] hermit crab, which Karl took to camp this morning for their tanks.  It is apparently feisty.

Me:  How did it go with your crab this morning?

Karl:  Fine. 

Me:  Good.

Karl:  It totally fought with all the other blue crabs in the tank.  The one that’s molting took a huge beating.

Me:  Bummer.

Karl:  It was great.

So smoky you can't see the other
side of the sound

Karl with the [dead] hammerhead

Instead of going to the beach, we drove to Hubert for some fun with Ashley (Bartley) Cook and family.  Her parents have a pool that we all enjoyed thoroughly. 

FUN!

The view from the pool.  Not bad.

Gerry continues to earn his keep by puttering around the house.  Today, he and Gayle bought a new grill for the back porch which he put together this evening.  He also plans to use the Gorilla Glue tomorrow to repair a shutter.  Happy as a clam, I bet. 

Interlude:  Heads up all you locals!  Lowe’s offers a 1-year warranty on grills for 5 bucks.  If it falls off your boat, rusts on the porch, or burns to the ground because you cooked bacon in it (you know who you are), they replace it immediately. 

The smoke cleared up today – went out to sea, perhaps? – which is a relief.  Let’s hope it doesn’t return.

Welcome to the beach, CC!  

June 29, 2011

There are apparently a few wildfires near Holly Ridge, NC, just 45 miles south of here.  We smelled the smoke when we drove through Jacksonville, but it has gotten worse since then.  Today the haze was noticeable across the sound.  And then the haze turned into thunder clouds, producing rain and ash all morning.  Since we are from the Southwest, we are used to a little smoke haze every now and again.  But this stuff was super-yucky.  And who knew it could rain smoke?  Humidity is still not my friend. 

The view from the back porch

Smoky skies do provide good sunsets

We caught more crabs in the trap today.  Lindsay polished off at least two for lunch.  Since Karl has been at camp, he’s missed most of the action, but plans to make a special trip with Dad out to the traps this evening and again tomorrow morning. 

Karl & Daddy Wayne

The one on the bottom speared the top one.

We finally made it to the beach in the afternoon.  Afterwards, some friends of Dad’s from Jacksonville visited – Elaine & Mike Stroff and Nancy & Alex Willis.  It is always great to see them and catch up. 

Lara (me), Wayne (our dad), Gayle (my sister)

For dinner, we ordered take-out steamers and hush puppies from the Crab Shack.  Lindsay would have eaten all the clams if we let her.  She likes her seafood.

June 28, 2011

We are keeping a close eye on the fires in the Jemez Mountains and are praying for our friends who are displaced.  The memory of the Cerro Grande fire has not faded.

We checked the crab traps this morning.  Success!  4 crabs!  They are cooked and ready for lunch tomorrow.

Blue - Gayle's dog - is a pro in the water

Daisy - our dog - views the water as utilitarian in purpose
"Can we go in? Can we go in? Can we go in?"

Inspecting the haul

4 males, medium in size

Bradley has the good weapons, and Billy has taken a liking to his plastic knife collection.  He is not interested in knowing the actual names of each one.

Billy:  Have you seen my stabber?

Me:  It’s called a ‘dagger’.

Billy:  WHERE IS IT?

More beach time today for most of us.  We always take plenty of snacks.  Swimming and building and hand stands are hard work.

Lindsay:  Slim Jims are like gum.  But it’s like spicy gum.  It’s Slim Jim Spicy Gum.

The kids buried Daddy Wayne (my dad) today and had a great time swimming with him.

 

Karl spent most of the day at camp today exploring the sound.  He collected specimens for the camp fish tanks – haddock, hermit crabs, blue crabs – and learned all about the estuaries.  He was very excited about the squid dissection they did in the afternoon.  He (and I) learned that squids have 3 hearts, you can squeeze the brain out of the mouth and the blood is yellow. He (by himself) learned the ink sac will burst if you squeeze it too hard and then leave stains/stink on your hands and papers.

Me:  How was your day?

Karl:  We got to do an autism on a squid!

Me:  You mean autopsy?

Karl:  Well, it was more like a decision.

Me:  You mean dissection?

Karl:  They have 3 hearts!  And when I poked at the eyeballs, they got lost in its head!  And then I nearly cut the head off trying to get them out!  And then…

Camp is good.

This evening, Gerry, Daddy Wayne, Karl, Lindsay, and Katie went to the Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium and fed the touch pool animals.  All agreed that this was worth the time and would like to do it again next year. 

Learning about the horseshoe crabs

Katie, Karl & Lindsay

June 27, 2011

Karl isn’t much of an ocean guy (yet) so this year we enrolled him in the Trinity Center’s Sound to Sea Environmental Camp.  They explore the various habitats on Bogue Banks.  Today, they explored the maritime forest and learned about the animals that live among the cedars, live oaks, pines and vines. Tomorrow, they will use dip nets in the sound and pond to find out more about the biology of the various creatures that creep, swim and crawl around on a barrier island. Karl is keeping a journal of new discoveries.

While Karl was at camp, the rest of us enjoyed the beach, here.  The surf is choppy due to the wind, but no one seems to mind.  The wind keeps the flies and mosquitoes away.  There is a nice sandbar to swim to at low tide.

Lindsay:  Do they have a life saver thingy here?

Me:   You mean a life guard?  No.

Lindsay:  No, I mean one of those rings that pops out of the deep end.  It has a button. And the ring just floats to the top.

Me:  What?  No.

Lindsay:  OK.  Just checking.

What was that about? 

Billy, the over-achieving swimmer, is required to wear a life jacket at all times.  I admit to always wanting to have a child who loves, loves, loves the water.  But this is a little nerve-wracking.

Food update

This is one of the best parts about being in Eastern North Carolina.  We bought 4 pounds of shrimp and 1 pound of grouper from Willis Seafood this morning.  We left our slop bucket with them for the day, with the hope that they would have a few fish heads for us with which we could bait the crab traps.  Alas, no fish heads.  But, they were nice enough to give us a few near-rotten halibut.  Woo-hoo!

We boiled the shrimp and baked the grouper (it started raining just as the grill was getting warm).  Happy, happy, joy, joy!

Things I always forget after I’m away from NC for a while

• Water boils super-fast.
• I spend the first few days here thinking everyone loves me!  That Southern Hospitality gets me every time.
• People wave at you even when they don’t know you. 
• It can rain and steam at the same time.
• The service at stores and restaurants is FANTASTIC.  I’m a chronic over-tipper outside of NM.
• The helicopters seem to fly very low.
• Rust occurs overnight.

I forgot my camera today.  Instead, please enjoy these videos of Karl’s Trampoline Madness.

Karl's Front Flip 1

Karl's Front Flip 2

June 26, 2011

And, we’re off.  Again.  The kids are watching ‘The Princess Bride’ in the backseat.  Billy is already quoting lines.

Billy:  Stop that rhyming, I mean it! Anybody want a peanut? Arrrrrg!

I couldn’t be more proud.

We’ve reached Emerald Isle.  It’s sticky here.

June 25, 2011

Once a month, Gayle volunteers to feed the animals at the Winston Salem Children’s Home.  We joined her this morning.  The Raban kids have clearly spent too much time at the Rio Grande Zoo where you are not allowed to touch the llamas because, “They spit.”  Consequently they were more than a little cautious around Tutti Fruitti, resident llama, who enjoys a close up kiss and does not spit.  They had no trouble chasing and catching chicks, though. 

Karl, Lindsay and Katie

"Uh-oh, Mama.  I stepped in something."

Baby chicks are very cute

Even Karl thought they were cute

"Back up, Mom!"

Tutti Fruitti is blind in her right eye

I stopped at Sonic for a Coke Zero in preparation for grocery shopping with Gayle.  We are loading up in anticipation of spending the next two weeks at the beach.

Car Hop:  What’s that on top of your car?

Me:  A car top carrier.  We just took a long road trip.

Car Hop:  Where to?

Me:  Here.  We live in New Mexico.

Car Hop:  You live in Mexico??

Me:  No.  NEW Mexico. 

It had to happen at some point…

Again we spent the afternoon at the pool. All three kids acquired new skills:

• Billy can jump off the diving board and swim to the ladder. 
• Lindsay can dive off the board.
• Karl can dive off the side and do a front flip off the board.

WOW!

Pool check, aka BREAK! [insert whistle sound]

Billy's mad skillz

Bradley, the miracle child

Brave, Brave Karl

Cannonball Lindsay

Tired.  We are all very, very tired.  Lots of activity combined with cousin-excitement and a new time zone is leading to the need for a down-day.  I hate to say it, but I’m glad we will spend 5 hours in the car tomorrow.   Emerald Isle, here we come!

June 24, 2011

Whether in NC or IL, our days are starting early.  Instead of tornadoes, I'm chalking this one up to kid excitement.  Gayle's two kids and ours were on the trampoline at 7 am, sharp.

While Katie and Bradley went to their last day at music camp, we spent an hour or two at the Winston Salem Children’s Museum.  They have a new vacuum display where you can send scarves through a series of 4-inch clear pipes. 

Gerry:  I could make one of those.

Afterward, we watched Katie and Bradley at their end-of-the-week concert.  The theme was “Cowboys” so we felt right at home.

Tiny Lindsay & Tiny Karl at the Children's Museum

The afternoon was spent at the local swimming pool.  It turns out that Billy is the best and worst kind of swimmer – brave, reckless and overconfident.  He apparently did not notice that he was wearing a life jacket while lake-swimming in Illinois.  Consequently he walked right up to the edge of the pool and jumped in.  If you were wondering, Gayle is super-fast with the emergency drowning rescue.  From that moment forward, we had several life-guards and mothers watching Billy’s every move.  When he decided to go off the diving board, all I could do was let him and pray.

Lindsay honed her diving skills and has become quite a swimmer.  She and Katie had a great time playing the Color Game.  She still has water in her ears from Illinois, though.

Lindsay:  My ears still hurt.

Me:  You probably have water in them.  I’ll put some alcohol in them when we get home.

Lindsay:  How is beer going to help my ears?

Bradley - age 4

Katie - age 6

Gerry and Karl stayed home and did minor repairs on Gayle’s house.  Items fixed by Gerry and Karl include rehanging a gutter, tightening the bathroom towel racks, and leveling the dishwasher so that it now closes.  When we came home from the pool, they were sitting in the porch swing, reading.  I suspect they were happy to putter around.  

June 23, 2011

Shew.  We left Lenzburg at 4:24 am and didn’t stop until Louisville, KY for breakfast at Cracker Barrel.  Reviews were mixed.  Gerry liked the coffee, Karl liked the golf-tee game, Billy ate fries because everything is coated in butter, Lindsay’s fruit plate only had bananas, and my grits were runny.  Daisy ate the leftover eggs which she thoroughly enjoyed.

We passed multiple motorcycle groups (caravans? convoys? traffic jams?) early this morning.

Lara:  There must not be a helmet law in Kentucky.

Gerry:  There must not be a sleeve law either.

That guy did have some hairy arms.  It looked like a fur coat.

In West Virginia, it seemed appropriate to listen to John Denver.  This is the effect his music has on the kids.  Why didn’t we think of this earlier??

We drove through West Virginia and Virginia on our way to Winston-Salem.  It was a beautiful drive through the Appalachian Mountains.  Amid groans and complaints, I turned off the DVD and made the kids look out the window. 

Me:  Look!  These are called the Smokey Mountains.  Can you guess why they are called that?

Lindsay:  I don’t see smoke.  I see fog.

After the AZ fires this spring, I can see where she is coming from.

I don’t think I’ve watched the weather forecast in the past 10 years as much as I did for the past 6 days.  It is strange to be in a place again where it can be predicted with some accuracy.  I don’t even know what channel the Weather Channel is in Corrales.  But I know which local station carries the best forecast in Southern Illinois.  And I just received a text message from Trudy to stay tuned to weather.com for updates as we drive.  Apparently there was a tornado in Louisville just before we arrived.  Gah! 

Toodle-oo Tornadoes, Hello, Hurricanes!

June 22, 2011

We had a down-day at the lake today in preparation for the long drive tomorrow.  Gerry took Billy and Lindsay out in the boat while Karl honed his artillery skills by shooting his BB gun all day.  Laundry, snack purchases at the grocery store, and organizing and packing the car consumed me.  I did find a few minutes for a swim.  The one good thing about strip mines in this area is that they produce very nice swimming and fishing holes.

Billy dreams of having a vehicle big enough for this wrench.

Lindsay and I picked fresh veggies out of Trudy’s garden.  The cherry tomatoes didn’t make it to the house, but the green beans are coming with us to NC.  Trudy cut fresh lettuce for our salads at lunch.  Apparently cleaning muddy lettuce is not one of my strong suits, but regardless of chewing dirt, YUM!

The evening was spent around the campfire with Gerry’s mom and siblings and all the cousins.  Everyone finally had to stand still long enough for a few photos. 

Gerry, Trudy (G's mother), , Richard (G's brother), Kenny (Trudy's husband)
Billy, Karl, Lindsay

Richard, Gerry, Nathan (G's brother), Julia (G's sister)

Rabans!
Julia, Gerry, Nathan
Geralyn, Karl, Billy, Lindsay, Nate, Christopher, Aubrey

June 21, 2011

The St. Louis Zoo!  What an amazing place.  It is huge and beautiful and free.  12 of us ventured over there for the day – Trudy & Kenny, Julia & Geralyn, Tim & Maddie, Gerry Sr., and all of us. 

It is National Pollinator Week, so Karl took this as an opportunity to educate the docents on Bee and Wasp behavior.  But Karl did learn that without midges and small flies, we’d have no chocolate.  We also took a much needed respite from the heat and humidity in the penguin exhibit.  At 48 °F, it was cool.  [Groan.]  

Rhetorical question of the day:  If you don’t like child-like behavior, why do you volunteer your time at the zoo?  I guess it is good to know that some things are in fact global.  You can expect 1 out of every 4 docents to be crabby at any public venue.

Billy, Maddie, Karl & Lindsay

Raja

Billy tried the misters to cool off .
He spent the rest of the trip with his shirt off.
"It's too wet and scratchy!"

We were ultimately rained out, but managed to make our way to Ted Drewe’s for the best frozen custard in St. Louis.  We felt close to home since it is also an historic Route 66 landmark.  Billy and I popped into Arby’s next door for French fries instead.  Darn that dairy allergy!

The last part of the day was spent in the storm shelter with 17 of our closest relatives and one wet dog. 

Trudy:  Who needs a drink?

Me:  ME!

June 20, 2011

Today we trekked to St. Louis to see the arch.  Gerry Sr. and Trudy were our tour guides.  The first and only time I went up it was 1985 and Gerry’s last time up was in the 1990’s.  We both noted many improvements – a new museum of Westward Expansion, documentaries of building the arch and St. Louis, the metal detectors to get in the door, Busch Stadium and improved elevator pods to the top. 

It was a good thing Trudy and I reminded both Gerrys to leave their pocket knives in the car.  Little Gerry’s was your basic garden-variety all-purpose kind, but big Gerry’s was Crocodile Dundee-style.  With as many metal pieces as he has in his knees, elbows and heart, he was certain to get a pat-down at the door.  Who knows what would have happened if he forgot to leave the knife in the car.  

The kids, Gerry and I went up to the top in the elevator pod.  They go up in groups of 7, each fitting 5 people.

Billy:  Where is the seatbelt?

Gerry:  There isn’t one.

Billy:  What happens when we go upside down?

We picnicked on the lawn near the monument and watched the barges on the rain-swollen Mississippi.

 

After dinner, the kids and Trudy played an amusing round of croquet.  Note the badminton court in the background.