Suburban Odyssey
Will this make the blog? | May 12, 2009
As soon as we pull in to the DeHoust’s driveway, the whole family greets us. Deidre immediately apologizes for not having a beer waiting. Someone’s been doing her blog homework.
Kyle, who’s almost five, takes Cady into the playroom. Cady had asked earlier if they would have dress up clothes, and I said that they probably would—but not princess dresses and such. Soon, Deidre and I hear Kyle say to Cady, “What? You don’t want to be a construction worker?”
Blake, who is two years old, is infatuated with Juliet. “Bay-bee, bay-bee!” He takes it upon himself to be her personal toy retriever. Juju is happy to be out of the car, but not happy enough to let Deidre hold her.
They must teach hospitality at Virginia Tech, because the DeHousts are also fabulous hosts. We dine on custom-order pasta bowls a la Brady, and a scrumptious salad a la Deidre. Kyle and Cadence even have their own special table, and we can hear them having “little kid conversation” as they eat. Fast friends.
The older kids get to stay up late playing tonight, and Kyle eventually reads Cady a story about trucks, of course.
They finally go to bed after 9 p.m., attempting another sleepover in Kyle’s room. They fall asleep pretty quickly, but Cadence ends up downstairs with us around 12:30 a.m. At least she tried.
The adults have a nice evening filled with laughter and conversation. Topics run the gamut—from kids to the Hokies to Emmett Swimming (again) to houses to wine to wearing helmets while skiing (sorry, Brady). We promise for more get-togethers in the future, and hope they’re seriously considering making it up to a BC vs VT football game (or Syracuse 2010?) soon.
It’s a quick visit, because Kyle has soccer in the morning, and then the DeHousts are off to Lake Anna where Brady is running in a triathlon(!)—and we’re headed to see Grandma, who is anxiously awaiting our return. We leave their truly gorgeous home with happy hearts, and a special parting gift for Craig from Brady. Apparently, the two of them consumed more than their share of Snyder’s pretzels while “studying” for exams in college. Brady bought them special for Craig’s visit, but almost forget until we were about to leave.
As I wait in the car, I watch them say their final goodbyes, and I can see the invisible ties that connect them, even after all these years. I’m thankful that we decided to take this trip on the road. These Hokie visits are well overdue.
1 Comment »
Craig, Beth, Cady and Juliet: Thank you for making Bankfoot Court a stop on your suburban odyssey. Your company was a pleasure and your girls are so well-behaved. Beth – you are the definition of calm, cool, and collected; there’s just no way to even fake that on the tail end of a journey down-and-up I-95 with a 4 year old and 8 month old — oh, and a 34 year old.
I was telling my mom on Sunday how “easy” it was. I haven’t seen Craig in … way too many years; yet when he pulled into the driveway, it was as if he was coming over for the weekly Friday night dinner.
We certainly crushed many’o'boxes of Snyder’s back in the day – not always studying, and they go much better with beer anyway.
Remember, it’s the visit that counts – not the duration. Guess we’re up next.
Comment by Brady — May 13, 2009 @ 12:52 pm