Trading Time for Memories in Boyer world

We are those parents now... living for the times when family can be together. And this last week was a beaut'. Chelsea had 96 hours, no more, after finals. Lydia had a couple more days than that. Lynne's parents came up, and my Mom came down. Plus it was Grandpa's 84th birthday. The week would be full of energy, fun, and quirkiness, all the things that make time with the Boyer family great. Lydia showed up first on Friday, and Saturday morning we went strawberry picking in the mud to make some jam. The berries were not great so that we had to cut off the bad parts as we were picking. But in the end we had enough berries. We made low sugar jam using half sugar and half monk sugar.  Meme showed up on Tuesday just in time for a game of Qwirkle, and Lynne's parents showed up on Wednesday. That evening we headed directly for Chic Fila for armed forces night for loads of free chicken sandwiches. Thanks CFA! Chelsea showed up Thursday in time for she and Lydia to head to Missi...

We sent Abigail to Madrid Spain via Philadelphia International Airport, officially making us empty nesters. She was headed to Madrid to teach in an English speaking school for 90 days, the most time you can volunteer without a visa. I must say that's a bit of an odd feeling for us. For about 23 years, since Abigail was born, we have had a kid regularly in the home, because Abigail returned right when Chelsea left. The packing process for Abigail was amazing, and something I could not contribute a lot to, except for carrying two large bags downstairs and loading them in the car. However, Meme, Lynne, Olivia Patton, and maybe others all contributed to figuring out what Abigail would wear for the next three months. Eventually, she was packed and ready to go. We drove to Philly, without incident and I dropped them off at departures, and then went to park. That was easier said than done. I was terrified. I kept driving and turning and I felt like I was making circles. I was doggedly det...