Kenny and Tyler’s Visit - The Fifth Installment of a Five Week Long Series - Preserving Memories Grandma’s World & ET Phone Home

For the Record
Kenny and Tyler’s Visit
June 22 - July 27, 2014

Writing this on Friday July 4

Kenny and Ty spent time with their cousins over last weekend.  Friday night they were with Domani at their grandfather’s house.  It was Christmas in June for the boys with Aunt Anne. 

Jimmy in the Rocker
Aunt Anne Sitting Crossed Legged on the Floor
Kenny and Tyler Opening Gifts
Domani is in the Green Shirt

They spent Sunday night with Bella, Ryan and Jackson at Aunt Jen’s and Uncle Derek’s. 

While they were with Bella and Ryan they learned that they can interact with each other playing  the computer game called Minecraft on their iPads. 

Bella Curled up in the Corner
Ryan in the Green Striped Shirt
Tyler in the Red Shirt
Kenny in the Blue Shirt

When they got to our house on Monday, they were no longer able to “connect” with each other. 

Now, for a person of my generation I consider myself to be a little more computer savvy than some of my peers.   

When I looked at this game, I was totally baffled by it.

 All I can say is HUH?  
But, I was able to figure out how to configure the network settings on their iPads to allow them to enter each other’s Minecraft world’s. 
I told them that I was going to learn how to play so that they would be able to enter Grandma’s world.
Now they keep asking when they can go to Grandma’s world.   

On Tuesday, for a change of pace, we took the boys to the bay beach.  Although it was stinking hot that day, there was a breeze by the water.   We told the kids that they could bring their super duper water guns with them.  
Ross and I never go to the bay beach.  We prefer ocean side.  
We got to the bay around noon time and it was jammed packed with little kids and their parents.    We quickly understood why the bay beach is popular with this crowd. There is a fairly large fenced off area where the water is very shallow and the beach is guarded. 
The first thing we found out was that squirt guns were not allowed.   But, the boys headed right into the water.  They played for a short while but were not able to “swim” like they do in the pool.  They quickly got bored. 

We left there, went back home and they went in the pool for a short while. 

In the afternoon on Wednesday the boys wanted to watch a movie.  They were arguing over which one to watch.  Kenny wanted to watch Harry Potter.  Tyler didn’t.  
I asked them if they had ever seen ET.  They hadn’t. 
I tried to convince them that it was the best movie ever!  I assured them that they would love it.  I told them that I had taken their father to see it when he was a little kid.  I asked them to try a preview and just watch it for a little while.  I told them if they didn’t like it, they could watch something else. 
I learned a little something about Kenny that day.  He can be quite stubborn.
Tyler was agreeable to it.  Kenny refused.  He kept putting a pillow over his eyes so that he wouldn’t be able to see the TV.   
What I found interesting was that even though he put the pillow down as soon as the movie started and it was obvious that he was being pulled into it, he refused to admit that he was enjoying it.   
Since Kenny has been up late, waiting for his father to get home, he has been falling asleep in the afternoon and naps for about an hour or so.  And, he fell asleep in the middle of the movie. 
Tyler, though, stayed awake through the whole thing.  
At the end he said, “That sure was a long preview!”
I keep asking Kenny if he wants to watch the rest of ET.  Stubbornly, he says no. 
Because of the holiday, Jimmy has a nice long three day weekend.   Yesterday, before he and the boys left to go back to Jimmy’s house, we took the kids to the pool.  
Those boys just cannot get enough of their father.  

The week flew by.   There were arts and crafts and “Go Fish”  card games with Pop-Pop.

 They like to hear the poems I read to them from Shel Silverstein’s “Where The Sidewalk Ends.”

So far the weather has been perfect every day for time at the pool.  Ross has been slowly and patiently  teaching the boys how to float on their backs, do the dead man’s float, and blow bubbles.  Tyler is a little more persistent than Kenny.  But they both try hard.  He thinks that by the end of their visit they will each know how to swim. 

I’ll be right here.

Today, it’s raining here as a result from the backlash of Hurricane Arthur.  We have no plans.  Maybe I’ll watch ET again.  That movie still makes me feel all mushy.  
Kenny, I hope you will finish watching it someday.