I'm Baack!

Sorry to be silent for so long. I and the boys went on an extended trip to the northeast, covering Boston (Hi A!), Worcester (Hi L!), and Philadelphia (Hi B!). A good time was had by all, but we're quite done in by now and glad to be home again.

While we were up there, the boys got their first taste of a summer camp, in the form of a YMCA day camp. Generally they had fun, but the camp administration left a lot to be desired - starting with losing our paperwork a couple of times before we even got there, progressing through putting Aaron in the wrong section to start with, and culminating in not calling me when Robbie got a second-degree burn on a hot iron (the plastic-welding sort). Not only not calling me, but not even telling me about when I picked him up. I noticed the band-aid after we'd gotten back to my friend's apartment. Plus, when I checked on the accident report the next day, they had not given him appropriate first-aid. A quick splash of cold water and a band-aid is not sufficient for a deep 2nd degree burn - they're horribly prone to infections.

As a consequence I have been serially apologized to by the entire administration, will recieve a discount should I send my kids back next year, and we have a free three month family membership awaiting us, should we ever have need of it. In Boston. Heh.

After Boston, we went down to Philly, which went a bit smoother. We all trotted off to see the King Tut exhibit, which is spectacular. There was a little too much effort put in to making a mysterious ambiance for my taste, but the pieces were wonderful anyway. I do wish someone would realize that a dark exhibition hall with the exhibits in spotlights doesn't work so well in a jostling crowd - especially while trying to keep track of children. The actual historical information was also really interesting, though I wish there had been more of it. It's quite startling to realize that Tutankhamun was Robbie's age when he became king of all Egypt. Robbie was pretty startled to find that out too. The rest of the museum was also excellent - we stayed until they kicked us out at closing time. Then we went out for dinner (bison is quite good), and dessert. B took us to an Italian gelato place where the lemon ice cream is the next thing to a religious experience. Based on the noises, the boys had the same feelings about their Bing Cherry sorbetto (Aaron) and White Chocolate Kahlua (Robbie).

Lastly we went up to Worcester, where we got to be in on the arrival of some new guinea pigs. My friend L had some in her teens - her last one actually died the day of her wedding. I remember it vividly, since as Matron of Honor, my job expanded to guinea pig transport and related items. She hasn't had any in the fifteen years since then, but has now decided that rather than inflicting a new kitten on her remaining older cat, she would get some piggies instead. Cute things too. A pair of rescue brothers, one tortoiseshell and white, and one red and white. Her oldest son got to name them (Warrior and Burglar), and is supposed to be their co-owner, though he really hasn't quite got the quiet and gentle part down yet. Upon being told to be especially quiet for the first day to avoid startling the already nervous pigs, he took to pushing over Aaron & Robbie, and then reprimanding them for making too much noise. It will be interesting to see if he learns better over time.