Class of 2009 - Jump - Sines

I woke with a slight headache – a common occurrence after drinking Barley beer- no matter how few. It was 6:30am. Headache aside, I felt plenty rested. I got coffee started and began my exercise routine. I was done with exercises and Ykraps’ walk before 7am. In fact, by 7am I was already engaged in work. I flipped between work and updating my blog until 8:45am when I left for a run. Meanwhile, Mindy was still sound asleep. I ran my usual route. It was gorgeous – sunny and 60 degrees. After my run I conversed online with my boss. Still no sign of Mindy. Around 10am I headed out to start planting the small rose bushes. Mindy came outside for coffee while I was in the middle of the first planting. I stopped for a few to spend a minute or two with her on the new waterside patio. We discussed many things, including taking Landon & Rocky with us to Kelsea’s graduation party. Mindy agreed to fetch them around noon and after her shower while I finished planting flowers and veggies. I filled a planter with leftover impatiens to place on the new patio (Mindy’s request). Next, I planted our tomato and pepper plants. This is the latest that I’ve planted my veggies in recent memory. But it’s not like it’s that late. I planted four varieties of tomatoes, two of each - first lady, roma, pink lady, and better boy. I also planted three varieties of peppers, two each – jalapeno, habanera, and bell. I planted all the veggies on the east side this year. That bed gets a uniform hit from the irrigation system and lots of decent sun. We were both running behind. Mindy didn’t leave to fetch the boys until 12:40pm. I got a quick shower and then prepped the soft cooler with soft drinks and ice. Mindy and the boys were back just after 1pm. Mindy had new outfits for both to wear. Long overdue, I gave them the Easter eggs still prominently displayed in a kitchen vase to throw into the pond. It contained about ten of them. They tossed all but three of the pretties into the water. We left for Kelsea’s graduation party being hosted at Tommy’s around 1:30pm. We couldn’t stay too long, however. We had plans to grill out with the Jump’s and Imber’s at 5pm in Grandview. Even before that, we had to be home to intercept the kids from Jimaken at 4:30pm. We arrived at Tommy’s place in Pickerington around 2pm. Parking was a bit of a mess at first, but Tommy quickly asked some guests to relocate their cars to make room so that others could get up the drive. We eventually parked out by his party barn, which wasn’t being used for this event. Mom, Dad, and Shelly we already there. I presented Mom with her petunia planter as soon as we got settled. I hadn’t seen Shelly since before Xmas 2005, just before Tommy shared the news of their imminent split. I greeted Shelly warmly, along with her new boyfriend, Lenny. Sitting with Shelly was her friend Kim and her husband Ray. We went karaokeing with them one night many moons ago. Kelsea looked all grown up compared to the last I saw her. She introduced me to her H.S. friends, who were all hanging out inside the house. Meanwhile, back outside, the boys were having a nice time playing with Tommy’s son Wally and Dad. Mindy and I enjoyed having the boys with us. They’re both well behaved. After some food and play, several of us took a walk around the property and into the woods. Dad was in the larger group and had Rocky with him. I walked with Mom, Mindy and Landon. Somewhat knowing the terrain, we cut through the woods and met with the others towards the tail end. We probably walked about a mile. Mom must’ve felt as though she were in heaven walking with dad for the last quarter mile or so. J It was already 4pm. We had little choice but to head for home. Just as we got back to the house Charles walked up with Lea. I quipped that I was leaving because he was there. They were just about to prank Kelsea as we were leaving. I gave Dad my leftover pepper and tomato plants before hitting the road. Sensing that we’d be up to 30 minutes late, Mindy phoned neighbor Chrissy on our drive home to see if the kids could play at her house until we arrived. Jimaken was dropping them at 4:30 and it was already 4:10pm. We still had to drop the boys by Lindsey’s. Landon asked to go to our house. We pulled up at Lindsey’s around 4:40pm. Olivia and Ashley were there for a visit. It was good to see them. We needed to remain mindful of the time. We left for home at 4:50 and arrived right around 5pm. The kids, we could see, were playing at the neighbors as we passed. We restocked the cooler with a six pack of HopSlam and drink boxes for the kids. Mindy grabbed a bottle of wine and two bags of chips to take along, too. We arrived at the Jump’s around 5:30pm. The Imber’s were already there. I hadn’t seen the Jump’s since a few days after Ella was born. I guess that would have been March. Jeremy & Courtney both look great. Porter was in a good mood. – but generally is. He interacted with all of us. He’s 20 months old now. Time flies. Jeremy poured me a Rye-PA right off. Good flavor, a tad on the light side. Nice! We hung out on their stepper patio while Jeremy started the grill. Bob showed off his new minivan and played the new Sarah McLaughlin CD. He offered to burn me a copy. Heck yeah! The burgers were ready in a snap. We planned to eat from their attached screened-in porch that faces 1st Ave. Very nice! Along with burgers, Jeremy whipped up some home made baked beans, too. Bob brought a batch of his famous guacamole. Before and after dinner, Jacob spent considerable time playing with Porter. They played with his trucks in the patio gravel, and Porter watched Jacob ride his scooter that we brought along. Mindy held Ella for quite a while. Ella didn’t seem to care much for Mindy’s touch initially but eventually warmed to her. She’s still so tiny. After dinner, Bob broke out a bottle of Mean Manaleshi, and then a Double Bastard Ale. Around dark, Mary Ann broke out three varieties of Jeni’s ice cream: kona stout, black coffee, and cherry sorbet. I had a scoop of the kona stout served on top of a home made brownie. It was very good. We stayed at the Jump’s until almost 9:30pm. Got home before 10pm. Mindy & I got in the hot tub after the kids were in bed. We saw a few distant flashes of lightning, but nothing to worry about, or at least we hoped. We were in bed by 11pm.