I took a vacation day today, to spend some time with the children before they start back to school on August 11.
I slept late [7:45, whoopee!] and got up and schlepped all over the yard, watering plants and deadheading petunias. Next year I will try and find geraniums. Petunias are pretty but deadheading isn’t pleasant. Mom was right.
I had to help Mother with some financial stuff and eat some breakfast, and it was about 11:30 before we could get away. We went to the Clayton County International Park. It’s a really nice park, south of Atlanta. Takes about 45 minutes to get there. They have bike trails, tennis courts, picnic tables, etc. It’s where the Olympic volleyball events took place in 1996.
We went because they have a man-made lake and a trampoline in the lake. Alesia and Michael thought it would be cool. It wasn’t that great, the kids reported, because they couldn’t get much bouncing done. However, there was a big water slide they enjoyed, and a little kiddie play pool area that was cute.
I spent the afternoon dashing into the kiddie area to stand under the giant water-spouting mushrooms and cool off, then I’d go back to my umbrella table and read.
I don’t recall ever going to a man-made lake like that. The beach sand is too perfect – like a movie set or something. Hot as blue blazes, too.
Michael felt very self-conscious at first, and didn’t want to swim. After a brief dip with Alesia, he came back and threw himself into a chair near me. He sat and pouted. “Everyone is LOOKING at me!” he complained.
I think some of this is adolescent angst creeping in, and some is just his difficulty with any new situation. He was so nervous about camp he was a total pill for a couple of days, you may recall.
I pondered for a moment how to get him out of his funk. Finally, I said “Michael, you stick close to Alesia. Close, OK? All the time.”
He looked at me like I was nuts. “Why?!”
“Michael, your sister is a beautiful young girl. Nobody is going to look at YOU. They will be looking at HER. Stay close to her.”
He frowned, pondering this. Alesia giggled, “Yes Michael, I am so BEAUTIFUL!” she laughed. I glared at her.
Finally, he went in.
Later, Alesia got something to eat and I went in and swam with Mike a little, and his mood improved even more.
At almost 4, I was starving, and we left. We stopped at Wendy’s, which was the closest place. Michael ate an order of chicken nuggets AND a hamburger. Alesia ate a burger and fries. I had a burger. I couldn’t believe he ate all that.
We came home and crashed for a while, the kids in front of the TVs and me with my book. There’s something about being outside all afternoon, in and out of the sun and the water, that saps all the energy right out of a person. I was making everyone drink water, too. Mike drank two bottles on the ride home.
When we got home it looked like a massive thunderstorm was blowing up. However, nothing much came of it – some wind, a few drops of rain, some thunder and lightning. Not enough rain to do any good whatsoever. Drat.
As tired as I was and as late as we ate lunch, I just made some tuna salad for dinner, and gave the kids a cucumber and tomato salad. Nobody needed a big meal.
Back to work tomorrow. I need the rest.
Photos of the water park are below. The first one shows Alesia and Mike on the stairs at the top, fixing to go down the big slide, which they both declared was the best part.
