Was the first thing out of my mouth as I saw them coming around the corner of the park. Still not even sure if she heard me say that. Trying to hurry the girls for the face to face greeting really tried my patience. Was all I could do not to just leave them on the sidewalk 500 feet behind me and run over and scoop up my Princess! But time and reality had their own agenda, so the anticipation was even more brutal as they took their sloth-like time to get to where my mind was currently at.
Finally
We got close enough where the face behind the glass was materialized and @katrina-ariel became a part of my physical world. It's scary sometimes, meeting someone from an online atmosphere. But, we were both all smiles and instant comfort spread through our bodies as we gave each other real life endearing hugs. I love her hugs. She is just as amazing, if not more, in person, as she is online.
Introductions
Came next. We already knew each other, obviously, so it was breaking down the barrier of the more apprehensive children in our lives and midst. Ryan and Zachary. Luna, Khaldessi and Freya. I believe her boys were a little more shy than my girls were and after a stop at the restrooms, we headed over to the playground.
No Pictures
I really didn't think about getting any pictures while we were at the playground, I was too busy absorbing everything and watching their interaction. At the same time, trying to find spaces between tracking children and having a conversation with Katrina. I should have had shoes on Freya's feet though. The asphalt was hot and she found it out real quick. Luckily, Princess came super prepared and had some socks we snugged up on her little tootsies so she was able to walk around a bit outside of the shaded areas. She even had like a neat scarf to put on the hot ass swing for Freya.
It Was Getting Hotter
After running around all over the place and Luna cracking her head on one of the crossbeams below the castle, it was the general consensus that we needed to cool off.
So, off to the nearby creek! This is where the kids really started to open up to each other and enjoying themselves. Everyone except me, took off their shoes and got in the cool running water. I don't like my feet. Don't ask. Just a thing. Was too early yet for crawdads or tadpoles, but they had fun chucking rocks in the water and most of all, starting the cool down while being beneath the elms' and birches' plentiful shade. Most evident in this next picture.
The Crystal
Next up was the fountain, but prior to heading that way, she said she had something for me. She pulls a small soft rolled up terry cloth from her backpack and proceeded to open it up. It held two crystals. My eyes got real big. One was a single crystal and the other was a larger crystal with two smaller ones at the base. Luna was enthralled, she's always picking up pretty rocks. But, she said I could pick one, I chose the one with the 3 crystals. Why? 3 reasons. 1 - The clarity of the larger crystal is impeccable. 2- It drew me to it. And 3 - it also spoke as a reminder that this was the day I met Katrina (the larger crystal) and her twins (the two other smaller ones). An even bigger smile came across Princess' face when she said, "That's the one I picked for you." Love it Sweets, thank you.
At The Fountain
Is where I found out that the comfort level of everyone was in full acceptance.
I (was the only one that) had to pee and gave Luna and Khaldeesi the option of coming up with me, or staying at the fountain with Katrina and the twins. They huddled around my Princess Kat-Leia hugging her legs saying they wanted to stay with her and play in the fountain with Ryan and Zachary. I got kinda melty and said I'd be back shortly. When I got back they were all having a blast. Couldn't ask for happier faces. This may have been the children's favorite part of the day, but there is no real way to tell. The girls said they liked it all LOL!
Backwards Up The Hill
Was the way to get to the Train Depot! Yes, all the kids decided it was a good idea to walk backwards up the hill, it was cute and Katrina even followed suit.
I have a picture, but Google is being stupid and hasn't synced all my photos yet or else this post would have been out sooner. Will post it later. Remember I said Luna likes rocks? She found a shell there at the train station, was pretty neat. They all fun in and out and on top of everything. Katrina included. Ryan was all over the place, think he really got into the train yard pretty well. Every time we turned around, he was in a different car LOL! I have one more picture here that topped the day off for us as we set off to feed our hungry bellies and tune in to PYPT briefly. But not before stopping to smell the roses, literally :D
We Bid Our Adieus
After listening to a few presentations and letting the kids just run around a little more near the amphitheater. Luna switched our hats and @katrina-ariel has some really good pictures from her points of view too on that. Stop in and check them out! We gave each other a few more hugs and set plans in motion for Saturday. Khaldeesi gave the twins a rough 'you guys are awesome hug' and we set out back down the hill. I ran back over real quick after a few steps and got one more squeezy hug before we left. Oh, Luna wants to keep your crane shirt btw :P
@katrina-ariel became a part of my physical world. It's scary sometimes, meeting someone from an online atmosphere. But, we were both all smiles and instant comfort spread through our bodies as we gave each other real life endearing hugs. I love her hugs. She is just as amazing, if not more, in person, as she is online.
@liberty-minded made this badass gif