We had such a busy day today, so many activities. But first I must apologize up front -- I forgot the camera and so there are no photos. I'm starting to be very jealous of people who have cameras in their phones. Of course I usually don't even have my phone with me, or if I do, it's not charged, but if I were the kind of person who has a camera in their phone I'd also probably be the kind of person who always has their phone with them and it's always charged. Anyway.
It's still blazingly hot here, but we're getting to the time of year where it shouldn't be so hot anymore, so organizations are starting to schedule activities. The first thing we went to today was the Family Fun Fair, which was at Leroy Jackson park. It was sponsored by the United Way and lots of local nonprofits had booths. My Ridge Writers group had a booth, though we never actually found it. The Boy Scouts were there, Girl Scouts, Friends of the Library with a tiny booksale. At the Boy Scouts booth you could make a paper rocket and then a Scout would shoot it into the air for you, using compressed air. Boos did not make a rocket, but enjoyed watching others' rockets being shot into the air. This being Ridgecrest, there were also Tea Party supporters roaming around handing out copies of the Constitution along with obnoxious brochures. A man offered me one and I said "No thank you, we're Democrats," but he said "That doesn't matter!" so Rocket Boy took one.
Boos eventually got too rowdy and wouldn't stay with us, so we stuffed them back into the car and went to a rummage sale out at the fairgrounds. The sale was to help send a drama group from our high school to Edinburgh (yes, Scotland) next summer. Boos sat in their stroller and politely allowed me to look at books. I bought 4 and Rocket Boy found an old thermos and a tool set. Boos requested and received 3 balls (a baseball, a softball, and a golf ball), and we also bought some muffins at the bake sale.
Then home for lunch and a short nap drive. In the late afternoon we went to the pool on base to go swimming, since tomorrow they close for the season (Ridgecrest feels that you can't possibly keep a pool open when it's less than 100 degrees during the day). I have discovered a nice thing this summer, which is that it is starting to be fun to take the twins swimming. They're just a little more responsive, a little more helpful, a little less of a pain -- and somehow it all adds up to make swim trips more pleasant.
We spent most of our time in the wading pool, with just a couple of forays over to the big pool. A Mormon family with several children including a 2-year-old girl were also there part of the time. (Rocket Boy, afterwards: "Why do you think they were Mormons?" Me: "Well, the Brigham Young University t-shirt that the father was wearing was a clue.") As I sat in the wading pool, I was musing about how odd it is that we have so much in common with Mormons, when our politics are completely different. I mean we don't smoke, almost never drink. We don't have any tattoos. We're very family oriented. Then I noticed what the mom and the teenage daughter were wearing to swim in: one-piece swimsuits AND shorts AND t-shirts. I kept thinking the daughter was going to take off her shorts and t-shirt, but then the mother came out of the dressing room wearing HER shorts and t-shirt (you could see that she had a swimsuit on underneath), and I thought ohhhhhhhhhh. I guess we don't have much in common after all.
After the pool, we went to Nickoletti's for pizza, which didn't work out quite as well as it did the last time, probably because in the car on the way over the boos noticed that I had an apple and demanded the right to eat it. Honestly, don't you wish you were 2? They think apples are these wonderful special treats. Also raisins. Raisins are their favorite thing in the whole world. Except for maybe apples. Oh, and oranges. And watermelon. Anyway, they filled up on apple and had no room left for pizza because they have these teeny tiny little stomachs. Have I mentioned that they have only gained about one pound in the last 6 months? I wish I were 2.
After pizza we went to Freedom Park, which is the one park in Ridgecrest with really good grass. They must spend a fortune watering it. Freedom Park is right next to City Hall and the Rec Center, and it has a fountain and a gazebo/bandstand thing, and tonight at 7pm there was going to be a free concert by the local community orchestra. They have this every year -- last year I thought about going but it was very windy and boos were too little and I gave up on the idea. This year the weather was perfect for an evening concert. Boos were still too little, but I thought maybe we could hear part of the concert.
The concert's theme was pirates and people were encouraged to wear pirate costumes. I ignored that part of it, thinking who has a pirate costume? About one-third of the many concert attendees, that's who. Is there something I've missed? Are we supposed to have pirate costumes? Is it a wardrobe staple now? (Shirts, pants, dresses, pirate costume?)
We got there about 20 minutes early, but that seemed good because it would give the boos time to wander and play and get tired so that maybe they'd listen to some of the concert. We brought a big ball to kick, but Baby B was on a mission: he walked very fast ALL over the park, so we had no choice but to follow him. As it got darker, both twins pointed out "Venie" (Venus) to us. My sweet boos don't know their colors, but they can spot Venus in the evening sky.
Finally as it got close to starting time we sat down on the edge of the fountain. (Most people had brought their own lawn chairs, but our lawn chairs all have black widow spiders living in them.) Baby A was willing to stay with us, but Baby B insisted on walking back and forth down an aisle in front of us. We decided that was OK as long as he stayed fairly close by. The concert began and the music was lovely. They played a selection from Pirates of the Caribbean, then the overture to Offenbach's Bluebeard, and then the overture to Pirates of Penzance. That's all I know, because we had to leave halfway through the third piece. Baby B, who seemed to be almost dancing through the first couple of pieces, began running back and forth shouting "Mommy Daddy Mommy Daddy" and we decided he was being disruptive to the other concertgoers, so we left. But really the whole experience was delightful. An outdoor concert is surely the best way to introduce toddlers to orchestra music.
There may have been Tea Partiers there, there may have been Mormons, there were certainly liberals (not just us). It didn't matter. Everyone was simply enjoying the music (and gearing up for the pirate costume contest, which was to be held during intermission). A lovely evening indeed.
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