Fishing With the Cousins

This is where we were yesterday. I knew there was a park in the vicinity of the Yellow Breeches, but I did not know that it was a perfect place for a family with small children to fish and picnic for an afternoon. Now I know.

The Chief wants to get out of the house this summer - no complaints here - and fishing seemed like a good way to do it. So he invited my nephews' father to go fishing with us, and then Pappy (the Chief's dad) as well. The Yellow Breeches was Pappy's idea. We were skeptical, but pleased in the end, obviously.

While the men fished, I made sandwiches for everybody, and the kids chased each other around and tried to fall into the creek. Only Aiden actually succeeded in getting wet. The Wart (my baby) wouldn't keep his shoes on, so the Chief suggested letting him pad around in his thick socks all afternoon. They became filthy, but at least we didn't lose any shoes, and there were no cut feet or poison ivy, either.

It was a nice warm day. Elijah learned how to cast a fishing rod. Nobody actually caught anything, but we all had fun anyway.

The Chief had so much fun that he said he'd just like to throw an unbaited hook in the water and put his feet up, like a hobbit.

Here's Olivia trying to save her little brother's life.

Here are my darling nephews. Aiden talks a LOT but he's getting to be more mellow in his old age. Damien doesn't talk much and he doesn't like me. He won't even take a sandwich from me. I have to pass it to Pappy first. That's ok, I still love him, and I know he'll grow out of it.

My sweet girl (the only girl in the clan) and cousin Aiden.

I could actually get smiles out of Damien as long as I was behind the camera.

I told the Chief I was happy with the day, because these are the kinds of memories that make a happy childhood. He really enjoyed the day, too. Afterwards, Nan watched the kids so that Lee could take me to see Date Night with Tina Fey and Steve Carrell. It was very funny, we laughed a lot. It's also nice to see a movie that centers around a married couple. The stars did a good job portraying a semi-realistic married couple, and the hidden romance that a marriage holds. I like it. And yes, we laughed a LOT. Definitely not a movie for the kiddoes, though.

The Chief is very unhappy right now. He has done well at his job so far, but it is starting to weigh on him. Working for the driver's license center, he gets yelled at every single day by people who have lost their licenses to suspension, and can't get them back yet because they didn't follow the bureauracratic procedure. He doesn't like to be yelled at. Sometimes when I ask him what I can do to make him feel loved he says "just don't yell at me."

Last week, he was sick for the better part of the week - muscle weakness, vomiting, headaches. He couldn't figure out why. But I knew why.

Obviously, I really like the better pay and benefits of this job, but if he decides to get a different job, I won't be giving him a hard time. I would rather live on less than be married to someone who is all dead inside. It's not that I don't want stability in my life - I'm a mom, so I have settling instincts, of course. But the fact is, I like the excitement of being married to someone who is a little crazy. I love watching him grow and change, and discover new things. As long as we are fed, warm, and safe, I am happy. I feel so blessed. I sometimes think that I was specially designed to be married to Lee, that I was literally sent into the world to be his helpmeet and to raise his children up to the Lord. Does that sound crazy? I don't even care.