During our week vacation, Jasmine had lots of time to play and get to know her cousins Josh and Savannah.
Josh is a bundle of energy and always on the go. Jasmine wasn’t sure how to play with him at first, much less keep up. But they found common ground in their love of snacks and playing cars.
Jasmine fell right in love with Savannah. They both kept very busy making baby noises and funny faces.
We had a wonderful visit with my Uncle Walter, Aunt Jane and Uncle Robin. Jasmine was initially shy, but Aunt Jane immediately broke through with an offer to go feed the fish at the pond. Later, Uncle Walter took Jasmine and me for a ride in his MG. He has been rebuilding this vehicle for the last several years and it looks and sounds amazing. After the exhilarating ride, Uncle Walter was Jasmine’s new best friend. Apparently, Jasmine has a thing for convertibles.
For our first birthday celebration with Jasmine I wanted something quite, small and intimate. Emily and Jasmine wanted something big, loud and energetic. With two against one, I lost. And so the princess party at Chuck E. Cheese’s was born.
Chuck E. Cheese’s was a sensory overload of noises, smells, and visuals. Somehow the kids liked this environment, while the adults walked around like forlorn zombies stumbling after the children who wondered from one diversion to another.
The mechanics of the place was confusing to me. There are these things called tokens which you use to play games. If you do well at a game, it will spit out tickets. And then you feed these tickets into another machine, which spits out a different ticket. Finally, you use this ticket to exchange for merchandise. Its almost like being a rat in a maze. Hmm.
Anyway, Jasmine had a blast. She loved the games, she loved dancing on stage, she loved being crowned and metaled by the Chuck E. Cheese costumed character. And I loved watching Jasmine having lots of fun, even though I didn’t quit understand what was happening. And yes, the pizza is as bad as people say, but us famished zombies ate it anyway.
We were very excited to meet our niece Savannah and happy to attend her baptism. She is a beautiful baby who always seems to be smiling.
Our summer vacation began in Maryland visiting Emily’s family. Grammy Carolyn made us a wonderful dinner including a mixed green salad with avocado slices which I had several helpings. After a long day of traveling, a nourishing salad is just what I need. For dessert there were mixed berries, spongecake and whip cream. Uncle John, who is a children’s librarian, bonded quickly with Jasmine, getting her giggling and playing with his silly faces and antics. Grammy Carolyn soothed Jasmine to sleep with a nice bedtime story.
