Back in Business

I can't believe I have taken such a long break! I didn't intend to, but we went up to the lake for 2 weeks and let the relaxation seep in. And we unplugged. Up there in the woods, there is no cell phone reception, no WiFi, and no television. It's just lake, boats, and each other.

And by each other, I mean 16 of my favorite people in the world, my sisters, parents, and all of our children. There were tons of cousins, slipping right back into that cousin love that comes so naturally.

And I got to spend time with my sisters. We did a good bit of relaxing and even went water skiing behind the boat that we learned to ski on more than 30 (gulp) years ago. Gliding around that lake on water skis again transported me back many years. And now the next generation is giving it a go.

 If you've been following me on Twitter, you know that my sisters and I are planning to do a triathlon together and in addition to sitting around gabbing we did lots of training. The Adirondacks are a great place to swim/bike/run, and all that is way more fun with my sisters. So was the ice cream afterwards. But I don't think anyone had more fun than Buddy, who was free to run and swim to his heart's content. He spent hours standing in the lake chasing minnows, ducks, and, frogs, and plowing through weeds and muck. We definitely saw the retriever side of his personality as he repeatedly tried to retrieve anyone who swam out far into the lake, even grabbing me by the arm and trying to haul me to shore during one of my training swims.

We also had a week with just our family which gave us time to play in the sand, paddle around, play cards, and eat lots of foods that we try to avoid the rest of the year. Heaven, really.

 A quick father-son trip to Cooperstown to the Baseball Hall of Fame generated much discussion of baseball history and trivia, and lots of time practicing baseball, sometimes alone and sometimes with others, but always with a mini souvenir bat and a ping pong ball. I think Oscar was impressed with Rod Carew's stories of playing baseball as a child with a paper plate for a mitt and a wad of paper for a ball.

It was a great summer and I'm not quite ready to leave it behind. Olivia captured it for me yesterday morning just before she headed off for her first day of school: "I'm just so sad that summer is over!" But after a couple of weeks of adjustment we will be back into our fall routine. The children are all looking forward to being back in school, seeing their friends every day, and getting started with their various fall activities.

And I'm looking forward to spending some more time here with you. Because I have missed writing and hearing from all of you. So yesterday, while the house was quiet -- just Buddy and I and the air conditioning repair man -- I started plugging in again. We have still been cooking over here, and I am working on a few scrumptious things to share with you.

I hope that your summer is winding down nicely and that you carry some of the good parts with you as long as possible. Welcome back!

Comments

[eva]

Yei Margy!...Welcome back!!!...What a beautiful summer the family had.
Many great wishes going your way for the swim/bike/run, like we say in Spanish,
Coraje!

[Tamara]

So glad you are back! I missed HTC!!!!! Love the pictures of TLC. I'm hoping to experience it for myself next summer. Good luck with the Tri!

[Alexis]

I missed your posts and recipes, but it's good to see you were able to unplug and spend time with the family. We went to Suriname for 2 weeks and was thankful not to have my smartphone to check email, although I did have wifi :-) for facebook. No work, lots of good quality time with the boys and Alphonse's family. Hope to see you soon. Good luck with the triathlon!

[Betsy @ zen-mama.com]

Your posts remind me of my own childhood in Minnesota and the time we spent at our lake with many cousins! We go back for a huge reunion every 5 years!! For now I am very content at our tiny lake here in Colorado. Looking forward to more recipes soon!