Summer Days in Dayton

Monday, August 10th - We checked into the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno intending to get a good night's sleep before our 6:00 A.M. flight. The boys were excited to look out our fourteenth floor window at the pool party below. Needless to say, bedtime ended up being delayed by a good two hours!

Tuesday, August 11th - At 4:00 A.M. Brian called to cancel our wake-up call since we were already awake and had been awake most of the night. Apparently, Sam talks in his sleep.....a lot.

We were on our way to the airport by 5:00 A.M. and the boys were groggy but excited to ride on an airplane. After checking one suitcase, Brian accompanied the boys and I through security and to our gate. He stayed with us until we boarded at 5:40. By 6:10 we were in the air on our way to Denver. The boys were wonderful the entire flight and by the time we needed to switch planes they were ready too. We had to maneuver from one concourse in Denver to another by way of a small subway train. Ben loved the train and the people-movers in the airport while Sam took a short rest. After getting some cheese pizzas for an early lunch, we boarded our second plane to Dayton. Again, the boys were great in the air and we had some of the nicest flight attendants I have ever met. Brian's parents, Dave and Sarah, known to the grand kids as Nan and Teddy, were at the Dayton airport to welcome us and transport us to Tom and Elma Talbot's home in Kettering.

I had forgotten what it's like to be in the land of humidity after living in essentially a desert climate for several years. From the moment I stepped off the plane I felt suffocated. Luckily, the Talbots have a big, beautiful grassy back yard complete with a swimming pool so the boys and I immediately changed into our swim suits and took a dip - or in Ben's case, the plunge. Not much later Chris, Emily, and their kids (Elyse, Camille, and Harrison) arrived for a visit and dinner. It was Emily and the kids' first time meeting Sam and my boys and my first time meeting Harry. All the kids are not only cuties but also well-behaved. Sam and Harry being only five months apart in age really seemed to hit it off.

Wednesday, August 12th - After a decent night's sleep considering the previous long travel day, the boys played for a bit with Teddy while Sarah, Elma and I took a walk. My left knee was feeling pretty stiff after hours of being crunched into economy seats on our flights so I was happy to stretch out some. While walking we ran into one of Brian's old high school classmates, Holly, and her two little boys. We have been exchanging Christmas cards with Holly for the past few years so it was nice to actually meet her.

After our walk, Elma returned to the house to get cleaned up to retrieve her son, Tommy, his wife Cristina, and their two kids, Cate and Peter from the airport. Sarah and I loaded the boys up in the double stroller and walked to Orchardly Park. Sam ended up napping along the way but Ben was quite happy to be awake to enjoy a huge sand pit, multiple climbing structures, a teeter-totter, and a water sprinkler/fountain area meant for kids to play in. Eventually Sam woke up, ruining all chances of an afternoon nap, and played with Ben more. Ben had asked me several -weeks ago to go to a play ground with a teeter-totter so he was extremely happy to try it out with Sam.

When we arrived back to the house we were greeted by Tommy, Cristina, Cate and Peter. Ben and Cate were quick to hit it off and spent hours over the few days playing in the sun porch with a variety of old Fisher Price Little People toys.

Again in the afternoon we got more time with the other Browder kids, swam in the pool, and had a great dinner out on the deck. I put Sam down for an early bedtime and Ben stayed up until after dark to catch fire flies. Many people don't even think about it but if you live on the west coast you just don't see fire flies. In fact, fire flies are seldom seen west of Kansas! Mr. Talbot was wonderful in leading Ben out to the front yard and helping him see the flashing critters. Tom has a definite knack for making people feel at home. Sam really seemed to connect with Tom, even exclaiming when Tom returned home from work, "Hi, Tom!"

Thursday, August 13th - Ben's first request upon waking was to go play in the sun porch with the toy airplane and Cate. And Sam was happy to be part of the trio.

Mid-morning, Elma, Tommy, Cate, Peter, Sarah, Ben, Sam and I loaded up and drove across Dayton to the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery (http://www.boonshoftmuseum.org/). The museum was amazing! The hands-on activities for the kids were endless and engaging. Ben was especially fond of the water activity table where he was able to connect pieces of plastic pipes and fittings and watch water flow through. There was a fossil pit, a pioneer log cabin, a huge rope ladder with a long spiraling slide at the top, and even a small zoo! The one downfall was that it was impossible to see everything with four toddlers all going different directions.

Later on in the day we spent more time in the pool, of course. Ben's favorite swim buddy was Teddy. Ben would stand on the edge of the pool and yell, "Teddy are you ready?" and once it was confirmed that Teddy was in fact ready, Ben would launch himself into the water and into Teddy's arms. Ben's level of comfort in the water has grown by leaps and bounds this summer and I would guess that he will be a little fish next summer.

Ben also ended up stepping on a bee which stung him on the big toe. He as surprised and a little hurt but did not have any kind of allergic reaction, thank goodness! After having the stinger removed and numbing it with ice, Mrs. Talbot treated him with Benadryl cream and a bandaid.

We were also lucky to see Jane and Russel Falck, more friends of the Browders from their days in Oakwood. Of the three couples (the Browders, Talbots and Falcks), only the Falcks remain grandchild-less. As I told Jane, I am happy to share my boys with her anytime!

We also said our goodbyes to Emily and the kids as they headed back to Seattle while Chris stayed on until Saturday.

Friday, August 14th - A full day of playing inside and outside! Ben and Cate were practically inseparable the entire day. I also let Sam stay up late with Ben so he too could experience fire flies. Nan and Teddy gave the kids bug jars with mesh lids so the boys were anxious to catch fire flies to have with them at bedtime.

Saturday, August 15th - I spent a good portion of the morning trying to get myself organized for the flights home. The boys played and played all morning. We took a short swim before changing clothes, having lunch and heading to the airport.

We had no problems with security and were inside the airport ready for our 4:00 P.M. flight from Dayton to Denver with time to spare. The flight was full of families with young children and once again the boys were wonderful on the plane. We arrived in Denver, changed concourses via the train, and got some food for dinner. Our plane was delayed by about 15 minutes but once we were in the air it was smooth sailing. We were absolutely exhausted by the time we started our descent into Reno. The boys had not napped at all the entire day and Sam especially was running on empty. He literally fell asleep as we landed. I managed to lug the boys with Sam in his car seat off the plane and headed toward baggage claim. Brian joined us within a few minutes and we all headed back to Incline.


We had a wonderful visit to Dayton. The Talbots were unbelievably gracious, giving, and kind. And I can't even begin to sing my praises for my in-laws. Without Dave and Sarah the trip would have been a major challenge.

Ben, Sam, Brian and I extend our thanks with big hugs to everyone for an amazing summer trip!