Busy Weekends and Mystery Bugs

A big thank you to you all for your thoughts, support, emails, and comments.  It's not in my nature to pretend everything is fine when it isn't, I think it's a lot more productive to acknowledge what's going on and talk about it.  Airing my feelings here is giving me the courage I need to take necessary steps forward at home.

But enough of all that for now.  Mister has worked the last few weekends, and the minions and I have been exploring and playing and eating and (thankfully) napping!
Last weekend we went to the Brandywine Arts Festival.  Artist-types, musicians, and fair food?  Yes please!  I didn't take any pictures of what was being sold because the festival itself is huge - it took us almost 3 hours to negotiate most of it.  Everything from stunningly beautiful reclaimed wood furniture to stained glass to a woman who was writing on single grains of rice, then putting them in vials of oil to magnify the inscription.  It was so much fun.  The minions of course, were most impressed by the ice cream

Earlier that day Mooch started soccer

 The next day I wanted to just let the kids play in the backyard and relax.  No luck.  Cue neighborhood kids crashing our yard :

I love Butterbean's expression. 
I was inspired by the fall air and told the kids we could have a firepit and roast hot dogs and do s'mores.  Yeah.  Let's just say my fire-building skills need some work (I swear just last summer I was REALLY good at this!)  We ended up cooking the hot dogs inside then they ate them in their playhouse, and I managed a lil' bitty pathetic fire just big enough to roast our marshmallows over.  For SHAME.


This Saturday we went to the amazingly awesome Longwood Gardens.  If you are ever in the Philadelphia area, go here!  Pierre DuPont bought this land to preserve the trees that were on it, and built gorgeous fountains, conservatories, and grounds.  They always have fun events going on - concerts, fireworks shows, art exhibitions, all kinds of festivals.  They had an acrobat troupe from Australia called Strange Fruit, who performed on these flexible poles.  Hard to describe, but very cool.

That last chick was about a millimeter away from a wardrobe malfunction.  
After we watched the show (minus escaping boobehs) we went into the conservatory and looked around, then headed into the children's garden.  It features lots of fountains that the kids are encouraged to play with, lots of herbs and kid-size tunnels and cool sculpture.  Why I never remember to bring a change of shirts for the girls is beyond me - by the time we leave they're always soaked.  We ran into my aunt and uncle and her two kids, who are my kids age as well.  What can I say - my Grammom started having babies at 18, and had my aunt at 45.  She's only slightly older than me.
Girls with their "cousins"

Then yesterday we had Community Day here in town - another big festival, the girls and I walked around for 2 1/2 hours and had a blast.  But this week is going to remain under-scheduled and low key.  I need a break!


First ever contest here on this here blog.  *Trumpets* **Fireworks** *More Trumpets*  This weird creepy-crawly appeared on my back deck.  I love bugs, and I was thinking this was a grasshopper until I saw the thorn-thing sticking out of its ... scientific term here ... hooty area.

Like I said, I usually like bugs, but this one kind of scared the shit out of me.  I was waiting for it to fly up and attach itself to my face.  It looked like an alien.


OK, so contest is - be the first one to identify this buggy for me, and you will win a Halloween-themed prize that will rock your socks.  I have not googled this or looked it up, so it will be news to me.  Ready GO!!