A Bejeweled Guest

School's out, which means that the dream of maintaining a schedule for one's (my) sanity is temporarily put on pause for a couple of months. In the meantime, I must try to keep our kids entertained, ensuring that they don't get sunburned (apparently, here in Oregon that's not a problem), make sure that their television time is limited, and that they have enough social activities to get them from one week to the next. It's nice not to have to be somewhere. Yet, I find myself asking "what can we do?" School has now been out for 2 weeks, and so far we've stayed busy.

Today, Cooper had a friend from preschool over to visit. He's a shy guy with a little speech impediment that sometimes makes it difficult for people to understand him. Somehow, I do. Cooper and he have become friends over the past year, and it was hard for them to realize that Summer vacation meant you don't see each other again until Fall...Until KINDERGARTEN. So, this little guy's mom and I decided to have them get together this Summer, today being the first visit. A few minutes after arriving and becoming instantly petrified,  he loosened up and had a blast. While the kids were playing outside in the yard, I pulled up a lawn chair and began to play on my ipad. Before long, this little guest was coming over to me to see what I was doing. I didn't even have a chance to say anything before he began to swipe his fingers across the screen turning pages and inadvertently opening apps; he was instantly mesmerized with it. I couldn't stop him - I gently told him no, and began to pull it away only to find that no matter the direction I turned, he was still attached! I laughed out loud, because it was so much like a drug to this little guy and he just "had to have it!" I was playing bejeweled blitz, and that's just what he wanted to do. So, I let him swipe his finger, moving one glittery block after another until the colors matched and the blocks fell, causing the sweetest, most endearing burst of cheery laughter that was great enough to make me smile and cheer right along with him. A few dropped blocks in and he suddenly remembered that there was an airplane to be ridden - So off he went.

I'm looking forward to the memories and adventures that the next friend brings with them, on one of many playdates I'm sure this Summer will entail. And I can't wait for the next burst of laughter to share with em'!