Aunt Karin emailed on Friday to remind me that Sunday, September 7th would be Grandparents Day. I had seen signs in the greeting card section at Loblaws and, while I didn’t plan to purchase a care, I meant to have Reid say, “Happy Grandparents Day” to whatever grandparents she encountered. In the end we saw, Grandma Joyce, Grandmama, Grandma Barb and Grandpa Terry and didn’t offer any of them the day’s special greeting.

Aunt Pam and I talked Grandma Joyce into coming to the hotel’s hot tub with us. First, we all went into the fitness room - Reid is a fan of the treadmill and elliptical trainer but most of all she loves the water dispenser and the cone-shaped cups - and then Aunt Pam, Reid and I went into the swimming pool while Grandma Joyce went straight to the hot tub. We wondered if we’d have a grandma who was cooked like a noodle by the time we were done but Grandma Joyce is pretty tough. We played a game of catch with Reid for a while in the hot tub. It was too small for her to go far but it did give Reid lots of chances to get her face wet (not normally her favourite thing).

After checking out of our hotel, we went to the Rotary Club playground that I’d read about in one of the reviews of the hotel. The playground is fairly new and has a pirate ship theme, sort of like the one at the Leamington Marina, but this one is bigger and accessible to kids in wheelchairs. There are ladders and other walls to climb but most areas have other ways to get to them. The ground is covered with different colours of rubber and some marine animals are painted on it to keep up the nautical theme. All of a sudden the temperature dropped and we decided we should be going for lunch.

My GPS couldn’t find a Pizza Hut closer than 67 kilometres but did volunteer Paulo’s Italian Trattoria as an Italian restaurant. Grandma Joyce, Aunt Pam and I each had a fabulous wood-oven pizza and salad and Reid had bare penne with lots (and lots) of Parmesan cheese on it. Wow, I can’t say enough about my pizza. To think I’ve been going to the Belleville-area for 13 years and never ate one before. Before we even left the restaurant, Reid was talking about having a nap. Pasta makes me sleepy, too. On our way out of Belleville we drove by a Pizza Hut but I’m glad my GPS was unaware of its existence.

We gave Grandma Joyce and Aunt Pam big squeezing hugs and smacking kisses at the side of the street and then Reid and I went to Grandmama’s while Aunt Pam and Grandma Joyce started their journey to their homes. Reid fell asleep about 3 minutes into the 40 minute trip. I didn’t even try to wake her since it would have only made us both crabby to fight the nap for 37 minutes. Of course, Reid was disoriented when we got to Grandmama’s but she warmed up as she always does. We had a nice visit with Grandmama and, after a while, Grandma Barb and Grandpa Terry came over and we had a good visit with them, too. I gave Reid a bath and enjoyed the shower head on the hose when it came time to wash Reid’s hair. I’m thinking of having Reid smile extra-sweetly at Uncle Dave to get one in her bathroom. Does anyone have any recommendations for or against this type of shower hose?

We all went up Highway 7 a bit to the Madoc Dairy for supper. Reid finally got her cheese burger. She’s been talking about one for age. When Uncle Roger visits, he usually buys A&W burgers at least once and Reid had a mozza burger the last time he was here. She enjoyed the hamburger with real cheddar from the Madoc Dairy much more than the one with a processed cheese slice we picked up somewhere but she said that it still wasn’t as good as the one from the “W”.

After supper, Grandpa Terry took Reid to see the cows in the cattle truck parked in the parking lot and then we said good buy to Grandmama, Grandma Barb and Grandpa Terry. Reid was in a hug-hoarding mood and so I had to give extra-good ones to Grandmama and Grandma Barb. Unfortunately for cases like these, Reid doesn’t feel jealous or threatened when I say, “Fine, I’ll hug them, my hugs are better anyway.” Most of the time, that is a behaviour for which I’m glad.

The little nap deducted itself from Reid’s bedtime and she stayed up until nearly 8:00. Yes, I’m a bit obsessive over her bedtime. Reid stayed asleep while I carried her in and so I was able to pack my lunch, Reid’s swimming bag and our supper and laid out Reid’s clothes. I even called Melissa for a chat! As always, I got carried away by the freedom of being awake and stayed up later than I should have. Maybe once it starts happening more regularly I’ll be better at going to bed.