Skip to main content

Papu Comes to Visit 3

Since the last post we've had two more weeks of Papu visiting with us and then one very long week since we dropped him off at the airport.

In mid-July we went to Burlington Airport en route to my final exam, and recreated what should have been his triumphant arrivals lounge experience in June. PJ took him to Lake Champlain and surrounds while they waited for me to complete the test and then treated me to "the test is done" lunch.

We spent a rare hot afternoon at Silver Lake Park swimming with friends, we shopped 'til we dropped at The Vermont Spot, we were able to see the clean-up operations happening in flood-stricken Montpelier and even managed a quick stop at the Vermont State House. 

We visited the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe and enjoyed Ben and Jerry's ice cream at their factory. We took a drive around my old VTC campus in Randolph and Gifford Medical Center where I practiced this past year. We drove through the Dartmouth campus and the Boat House on the Connecticut River and had a mini golf tournament on a sunny Sunday afternoon where Papu and Adrienne took top honours! We also attended the last couple of Nighthawks Baseball games of the season.

All of these lovely outings could not trump the braais on the deck while playing games, the bike rides and walking hand-in-hand to collect the post, watching him prepare specialty dishes for us to enjoy during (and after) his stay and calls home with him on our side of the phone for a change. We were entertained by Jorja's shrieks for summer bugs, Ethan's hungry antics and Adi's tight grip on Papu's arm (and attention). No doubt that the drive in the Slingshot was fun, but transforming the dining room table into a table tennis championship space was even better! 

Watching Papu pack his bags and having to take him to the airport was tough. I get sad just writing about it now. The 35 days we had with him was like a balm. How quickly we relaxed into having him a part of our daily lives and how much we miss him all over again now! Still, I remain grateful for the amazing Summer that he brough us, and hopeful that he'll be able to return one day again.



Comments

  1. MichelleAugust 13, 2023 at 6:03 PM

    So glad you and the mini du Plessis's got to spend time with your dad!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A home-made birthday

Due to the fact that we celebrated Jorja's birthday with the Weber and Wilcox families in the UK last year - over a few days and in various styles - we were a bit out of practice. In fact, if Jorja had not brought it to my attention with just two weeks to spare, I must confess that I would not have expected it to arrive for another few more weeks! But Moms could never let that seem to be the case, so we got cracking on 5th birthday celebration arrangements... On the night before, I set out every baking ingredient, apparatus and accessory that I could find and hoped that we would make it work! Aunty Robyn and Aunty Ilana arrived just in time to help us bake off the first round of vanilla cake pops and cookies with sprinkles. At this point, there was no turning back, our kitchen was already in a state of bake! The biscuit batch baked beautifully (and bountifully) and Jorja was well pleased with her assisted effort. As she head to bed on the eve of her birthday, I popped the...
2 comments
Read more

That's so amazing about Grace

Scrolling through some photos this afternoon, I came across one of our friend Tarrin-Rae and her new baby girl, Isla, born last Thursday 31 October 2013. Isla Grace Graham I struggled to contain my own emotions as I observed this special moment in Tarrin's life (and new Isla's too) and thought back to my own experiences. I immediately asked Tarrin if I may use this to share a bit more of what I some times feel as a Mom... At first glance, I see relief . She's finally here! We can see her face in real life and we can say out loud "I am a Mommy!" Like my own kids, Isla was in no hurry to be born and labour was induced. What's worse than having to wait 40 weeks to meet your newest family member?? Having to wait longer still! I must confess, that this feeling was mixed with a fair dose of disbelief  on my part too - when I sat quietly resting between visitors and feeds, I had to pinch my literal self and realise - the baby was here. Then I see comfort ....
5 comments
Read more

Travel Diaries Day 1 - 4

Hi Everyone I've grouped this entry together for two reasons: 1. I have a lot of catching up to do, now that I can kind of work out what day it is and I've found a battery charger for my pc 2. The first couple of days (including 24 hours of travel) makes for quite a blur of memories and all I've got to go on are the notes that I jotted down on the piece of paper in my bag Day 1: The Departure We had a quick check in at the desk and then head to our family steak ranch for a super send off with the family. Ethan fell asleep as we arrived at the airport but woke up in time to greet everyone with one last goodbye before we went through the departure gate. As we boarded, he started whining and I went into a slight panic. The looks from the other passengers was unnerving - how much harder could a long haul flight be?? Oh, but our travelling troopers played their part well: all buckled up in their respective seats and watching Frozen (thanks Annie for the intro!) as we to...
3 comments
Read more