More Grandkids and Fun With Baby Goats

Dave and Jes went skiing yesterday with Rachel and Alex so we had the fun of a day with Zack and Matthew. We started out with the traditional Paka breakfast - pancakes, always a favorite. (Although for some reason Matthew didn't eat his.) After getting dressed we drove over to the North Mountain Vineyard to get some wine for Alice and Chris. (Tom's Brook Red is their favorite.) Larry gave up wine for Lent but I tasted a few to add a few bottles to our winerack. They have a great Claret and Chardonnay. The boys were a little rambunctious so Larry took them outside where they wandered among the vines and met up with a Clysedale. He was in the back at the top of the hill so I missed him. But we got to see plenty of other critters during the day. Matthew complained that he was hungry (next time eat your breakfast, Matthew) so we went home for mac and cheese and then headed out to the Owen's house to see the goats. But first we stopped for a quick photo of the baby lambs in the field at the top of the hill. They were born in late January or early February. Brrr... But they seem to be doing fine and have grown a lot in the past month. There will no doubt be lots more added to the flock in the next few weeks as all the spring lambs come to term. Then it was on to the Owen's house to see the little goats. Zach wasn't interested in having his picture taken, so most of the goat photos were with Matthew. They were funny, nibbling our guide (Eddie)'s jeans. Goats will eat just about anything although all the little ones eat right now is Mama Goat.

We had a great day and stopped at Sheets on the way home for kid treats. Dave and Jes also had an enjoyable day. Rachel and Alex decided skiing is fun. Rachel said going down the bigger hill was a little scary, but "really fun." They all came home tired and happy. When both the A team and B team have a great day, you know it's been a successful outing for all. (Paka and I look forward to our next grandkid adventure!)

Marianna and the Movies

Jamie and Jonathan have taken advantage a few times of nearby babysitters to get a break and go to the movies. We are always happy to fill in. I call my grandchildren lambs and birdies because those precious little quadripeds always remind me of innocence and the tiny baby birds are always chirping with wide open mouths like hungry babies. I'm an avid bird watcher (and bird feeder) so I call the video below Feeding the Little Birdy. She does remind me of a baby bird in the nest calling mom and dad to hurry it up with the goodies to deposit into that little open mouth.

Watch out for the scammers on Craigslist

Within 45 minutes of posting an ad for our Isuzu Trooper on Craigslist we had a scammer (I'm sure) offering us $200 more than our asking price and wanting to get our PayPal account information. I did a search and got some warnings about how scammers use PayPal information and some kind of software to find your password and get into your account. Craigslist has lots of warnings about selling locally and hopefully we'll get a local offer. I have the car on the Northern Virginia site, but may switch it to Harrisonburg if we don't get a bite in a few days. The clues to scammers are bad English (that one applied), an out of country purchase where they want you to ship it to them (he claimed to be a sailor but said he'd pick it up), and taking the item sight unseen (bingo!). We sold another car on Craigslist without any trouble and without any scammer contacts. We'll see what happens this time.

Of March Lions and Little Ones

March made its entry like the proverbial lion with bitter cold temps, a dusting of snow, and another winter storm predicted for tonight. But the last two weeks have been filled with fun visits from family and our precious littles ones keep our hearts warm and young. Dave and Jes came out for Monday of Presidents' weekend and we had a fun day of games and visiting and celebrating two February birthdays: Matthew's and Jes's. I had a package of Valentine M&Ms and they made very pretty (and easy) decorations for the cake and cupcakes. We also had a festive flower arrangement thanks to Marianna who stayed with us while Jamie and Jonathan went off for a Valentine's dinner at the Melting Pot in Fredericksburg. Larry has been working on painting the office and putting in a laminate floor so the kitchen table was in the family room and my desk was in the kitchen (along with my swivel desk chair). Matthew took the opportunity to go for a merry-go-round ride and I snatched the camera for a quick video.

The next weekend Tara and the kids came out for a visit and I played countless games of Sesame Street dominoes, Memory, and Sorry. Funny, I enjoy playing these things forever with my grandkids but found it a chore when my own children were young. Not sure what that means, but I wish I had played more when I was a young mom and worried less about all the other things I had to do.
But the weekend wasn't all fun and games -- it was also ice cream! Coffee is Brendan's favorite so we always have that on hand when he comes. And French vanilla is a staple for Gramma. Everyone seemed to be happy with the choices. Unfortunately I got no pictures from the roller rink where everyone spent a fun Saturday afternoon except for me and Sean. Tara and I had gone off with Jamie and Jonathan and the babies to the Emporeum to browse while Paka took the older kids to the fun center to roller skate, etc. I dropped Tara off at the rink after our shopping adventure and I took sleeping Sean home to finish his nap. On Sunday Jamie and Jonathan came over for brunch and treated us all to an early visit from the littlest Easter Bunny. What a fun weekend!