glad to be home

Robert and I traveled to Colorado recently; I'm home, and he'll be back in a few more days.

The primary purpose of the trip was to attend a wedding of one of Robert's high school friends. Because R's parents live in the area, we thought it would be fun to have a mini family reunion, too. So Robert's sister and her family (husband, three four-year-olds, and a 1.5 year-old) came from New Jersey.

Highlights for me were the wedding, hanging out with the grownups, seeing some of Robert's friends for dinner. Robert's high school friends (and their friends) are delightful, warm, funny, caring people.

Lowlights were the kids. The little one is very cheerful, but was sick, so I admired him from afar. The four-year olds were, for the most part, whiny. They play a game (and did it for days on end) of peering around a corner, expecting to be chased. When I'd look up, they'd shriek and run away. I found this wearing and less than pleasant. They're also hyper sensitive. So a lot of the time, they were crying, hiding, or sulking. (True, they did cheerfully play by themselves the rest of the time.) We were not a good match.

We were also cooped up in Robert's parent's house -- the entertainment was supposed to be the children. I didn't feel comfortable going for a walk by myself, so I felt quite trapped. (If I go to another of these events, I'll prepare better for going off on my own.) Robert did get us to go swimming one day, at a magnificent new pool (actually, the complex has three pools, each with a different purpose).

Also, despite many months of advance notice, Robert's brother couldn't make it, to my great disappointment. Robert and his sister will see him, but I missed out, alas.

Fortunately, Robert managed to make a connection with the kids and played with them and read to them a fair amount after the first few days. To me, that's what really counts and is meaningful to me. On the other hand, I think he can make that particular connection easily without me, and that's certainly also another option for next time.

We have another summer trip coming out, brief but just the two of us, and I look forward to a happier trip soon.