Elaine Writes

Below is an excerpt from Andy’s sister’s email to the family about their visit. It’s fun to hear her perspective and she said she didn’t mind if I use her writings for my blog. Elaine volunteers at the Dream Center, a rehab program for ladies coming off drugs and alcohol and she also recently started dating a guy named Brandon. So if she talks a lot about Brandon, now you know why. 🙂

HEY GUYS!!!

I so valued spending time with Andy and Tabitha and their family. So good to just be together.

Especially when Jasmine got beyond melting down at the sight of us…two days after we got there. It was great that by the end she would come up and cuddle. She thinks that her dad is The Best Thing Ever, even though she screams when he tells her “no”.

Between her and Gabe there were so many quoteable moments and looks. Especially LOOKS. One day Gabe was crrrrrrrrrying up in his bed at nap time not impressed. I was down below them, in the bathroom, and heard Jasmine give him a quiet but firm “no” and immediately a completely outraged scream erupted from Gabe.

I kinda wanted to try it then…

Gabe asked why. Successively. All the time. So I started asking it back. We kinda thought his love language is quality time so when he kept on coming up to me and asking me what I’m doing when it’s OBVIOUS AND I TOLD YOU THREE MINUTES AGO, I started answering him by asking him what HE’S doing. Which was a smart move because he was always doing something far more interesting than me (shooting bears, making pancakes, making a garden…)and we could talk about that for awhile with both of us interested. He lit up with this and would walk away happily after a minute or so of conversation and I would be happy too.

Oscar is happy. Except when he’s not. Which is usually when the other two are. You know the drill…

He’s really fun to get laughing and Gabe and Jasmine really know how to get him laughing.

Andy and Tabitha are as in love as ever, which is good since that was one of their goals in life. We talked about love languages because I was reading “keep your love on” as well as “wild at heart” thoroughout the week.

Last Sunday Brandon came and was able to meet Andy’s and spend the rest of the visit with all of us.

Monday morning was another highlight – touring around Anchor Point and Homer in the big van with the Whooooole shooting match. It was definitely a Kodak time – the kids were happy all at the same time, for the whole morning (cue surprised music), the weather was PERFECT, and BRANDON was along:):):).

We got pizza for lunch at this cooooooool place where they make 28″ pizzas in a wood fired oven and throw the dough up into the air and spin it. And the prices were good as well as the product.

Tuesday we were in my area, Hatcher Pass, and I THOROUGHLY enjoyed berry picking…okay, one side of my brain throughly enjoyed it while the other side had a constant stream of running through logistics.

While I looooooved climbing the open mountain sides and roaming across the tundra like in the sound of music, the warm sun at our backs,
I was also thinking about Mom in the van at the bottom and how long the baby will sleep and if Jasmine is screaming her head off because she wants to go along (or if she’s still sleeping as well, and if so, how long she’ll stay that way), and if Andy and Tabitha are getting any cell service for their phone job…etc.

Still a whole lot easier logistics than taking the women in the program hiking in this section like I did last year…Or even just being with them during a normal day.

Tuesday evening I took everyone out to Jim lake where Brandon and Zach and I had gone kayaking/fishing before Brandon and I started dating.

Andy and Tabitha went on a leisurely kayak ride and the kids stayed with us and didn’t even blink an eye. I THOROUGHLY enjoyed that fact, they’d been around us long enough at that point that it wasn’t melt down every time mom or dad left…or even like QUICK LETS KEEP YOU CONSTANTLY ENGAGED AND DISTRACTED. Gabe was so good at knowing how to fish correctly.

Brandon joined us as soon as he got off work and immediately spotted a moose on the other side of the lake. He and Dad scoped it out for awhile and I eventually saw it.

Brandon made a crane call out of a used shotgun shell that he found in the water and started to use it as Andy and Tabitha paddled in, Andy responded with his own call…with just his mouth (I know you can all believe this). Brandon was impressed, “He’s better than the natives around here!” Andy then sounded his train whistle.

Andy and Brandon proceeded to talk calls and brainstorm ways to make them from the flora and fauna around the area:);):):) It was so fun to see them interact.

A solo swan came flying in at dusk and landed as if it was starring on the discovery channel. I was completely enchanted.

Elaine