T minus eight to grandson kisses

The last time I got hugs and kisses from Bubby and Mac was last October.

The kisses part of the package looked a little like this:

Funny how quickly a photo shoot can morph into a kiss fest.

I loved it!

And look forward to it again.

In eight days!

Today's question:

What do you look forward to in the next seven days?

Boys are just as crazy as girls

What I learned this week:

Having had three daughters, the childrearing years my husband and I faced were filled with lots of drama, plenty of boy-crazy moments.

As they've had only sons (so far), I thought Megan and Preston might escape the thrills, chills, and tear spills associated with the crazy crushes on the opposite sex. Mostly because I didn't think boys were as crazy about girls as girls are about boys. I thought concerns about cooties — as well as indifference to cuties — was par for the course for males under the age of, oh, maybe 14 or so.

Then I saw something yesterday that changed my mind.

Mac and I walked to pick up Bubby after school yesterday. Bubby and his classmates ran around while parents mingled or talked to the teacher — Megan, my daughter and Bubby's mom, whom I wanted to touch base with before heading back home with her sons. Mac joined the big kids, and as I waited, I caught the following, a foretelling of what Megan and Preston have in store:

So I admit I was wrong: Boys clearly get girl crazy — and far earlier than I ever would have imagined.

Thank you for reading! Enjoy your weekend!

Today's question:

How old were you when you had your first crush and who was it on?

18 things my grandsons miss by not visiting their grandparents

My grandsons haven't visited my house in more than a year. It's been 15 months, to be exact, with no plans to visit in the next... well... I don't know how long. 

Though I'm thrilled to pieces that I'll get to see them soon at their house, there's plenty they miss out on by not visiting PawDad and Gramma at our house. Things found only at our place, things I'm sure they'd enjoy.

Things such as these:

Their special bedroom we call The Boys' Room, despite Bubby having slept in it only a handful of times and Mac having never slept in it — yet...

Exploring our back yard and front...

Playing at the food stand again...

Hunting for treasure PawDad hides in the sand by the waterfall...

And swinging with Gramma in the swing made for three...

Not to forget: the basketball hoop that's just the right height for boys to dunk balls — with a boost from PawDad...

And the bouncy house Bubby and Mac have never even seen — though it delighted other pint-sized friends of Gramma's...

Plus the popcorn machine for treats once the bouncing is done...

And there's Rock Dog and their Glo Worms and lions that stand guard from out front...

Plus, they could play on Gramma's piano (I promise to share)...

And the mini desk where Bubby loves to sort through Granny's nesting frogs...

Beyond Gramma and PawDad's house, there's fun and adventure found just out the door — like ITZ, the North Pole, Pikes Peak and more...

Most of all, though, what my grandsons miss out on more than anything are hugs and kisses and attention from their Colorado family — folks who miss Bubby and Mac to their core...

I truly and wholeheartedly understand that travel with little ones taxes Megan and Preston's body, mind and budget, too. And I do know Bubby and Mac will eventually get to visit Gramma and PawDad's house. Eventually.

I just hope it's before my grandsons reach the age that what they'll most enjoy about Gramma and PawDad's house is having a beer at our patio bar.

Even then, though, I'd be delighted to have Bubby and Mac visit our house.

Today's question:

What did you most enjoy about visiting your grandparents' house when you were a child?