FBR is in the House!!

It has begun. The annual summer granddaughter invasion of our house commenced today when we arrived back from New Jersey with the FBR in tow. The coolest thing; she’s every bit as excited about this as we are. I think it may have something to do with the list of Grandparents House rules posted in the kitchen. I think she may also like us a little bit. This is an event my Favorite Panamanian aims for each year and tries to outdo herself with each visit which is a pretty high mark to achieve. Both she and I remember fondly summer weeks spent at our own grandparents’ houses so we’re bound and determined to make these times as special as possible for our own grandchildren.

Breakfast This Morning

The Posted Rules

We up the ante even more tomorrow when my son will deliver the BRS for a week. Today’s trip was fraught with danger. I tried to wargame the trip to New Jersey facing off against my steadfast and ancient foe, the State of Connecticut highway system. I timed Thursday’s drive to miss the Hartford rush hour and barely dodged Connecticut’s latest effort as they were in the process of closing down two lanes of I-84 as we snuck by. We even made great time on the Merritt Parkway which is almost unheard of in the summer. We arrived in time to pick up the FBR from her last day of summer camp. You could tell she had made her mark with the counselors as they all wanted to get a goodbye hug from her. The lady has personality.

Abuela with her Favorite Cat

3 Generations Heading for Ice Cream

After dinner we all walked to the center of Maplewood to patronize a new ice cream place. While the ice cream was welcome the best part was spending time with my daughter, Wingman and Wingmom. My daughter and Wingman are gearing up for an epic trip to Scandinavia to celebrate my daughter’s upcoming 40^th birthday. (My God am I really going to have a 40-year-old child!!!). I had a really fun time watching a movie with my daughter after the FBR retired for the night. This morning we were up early (hard to avoid with the FBR). She is the exact opposite of her mother who is the least morning person I have ever met. We had a fun breakfast at our favorite Maplewood diner before loading the car for the trip north. The FBR bestowed a heartfelt “family hug” for her parents which told them how much she was going to miss them despite reveling in running her grandparents into the ground over the next two weeks.

Departure Family Hug

I got on the road as early as I wanted, to shoot the gap between the NYC morning rush hour and the summer vacation traffic heading to New England. I apparently caught Connecticut sleeping and charged through the state without an issue, not getting held up once, a new record. The Mass Pike was a different story but the holdup was only about ten minutes which is nothing compared to a usual summer Friday. I pity the folks out there now. As we pulled off the Pike there was a three mile long line of cars waiting to get on. Oh well, I’ve got a granddaughter to squire around – couldn’t be happier!

Two movies fell in my A-Z watch, both keepers, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, a classic, stands up well although you want to punch him sometimes, whatever happened to Mia Sara?; Fever Pitch – not the greatest movie but anything associated with the 2004 Red Sox gets a pass, tears forming during the climatic montage

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RECURRING CHARACTERS:                                     

ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete - my daughter in law; BR3 – Blog Reader #3 – granddaughter #3; BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; CRC - Connecticut Riverboat Captain – another close friend from high school, renowned sailor of the big river; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during him her single days in Brooklyn; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter; First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd Musquetera (musketeer); Namesake Nephew – son of Great Aunt and Soxfather named after me; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member; PanaGals – female relatives /friends of my wife from Panama; Panamanian/Latin Mafia – inevitable group of Latino friends my wife accumulates wherever we have lived & their spouses; PCR - Pittsburgh College Roommate– high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; PCR+1 - Pittsburgh College Roommate’s wife; Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; Soxfather - my brother in law; Tia Loca – wife’s younger sister; Wingman – my son in law; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom, of course