Island Exposure
I have often joked that I gave birth to 5 children solely for my entertainment. And while having 5 kids in as many years has had it's challenges, the joyous times have definitely outweighed the latter. One of the things I have really come to appreciate is the occasion when other people find my children as entertaining as I do...or at the very least, tolerable.
This past week we had the opportunity to spend some time with friends I haven't seen in years out in beautiful Georgian Bay. When I was a teenager I had the unique and wonderful position of "Camp Owner's Daughter." My dad owned and operated a fishing camp for several years. While I wasbasically forced into child labour happily fulfilling the light responsibilities my mom and dad bestowed upon me I got to meet many people from all sorts of places. I made great friends, some of whom I'm still in touch with.
One friend in particular makes a yearly pilgrimage from Tennessee to her family's private island in the Bay. I used to spend at least one night per year on the island with her, her parents, friends, siblings, and cousins. I was accepted as a family member and my presence was expected. Those times have made for some of my most reminisced about adventures. That is, when Dad wasn't keeping me shackled to the gas dock. (Just kidding, Dad...he reads this!)
My friend, or "Auntie M" as she is known by my kids, has only ever met the two older girls in person and the last time she saw them was 8 years ago. This year I was bound and determined to give all of the kids the "island experience" I was so privileged to take part in. Hubby was working so I had to set up a water taxi to get us to the island. My dad, partially because of his expertise and partially because he didn't charge me, was the obvious choice to take us out. He sacrificially took time out of his day to have an excuse to go fishing. The river where we would be going out was not the same river which I would be coming in so the first obstacle was dropping off my van at one marina and driving to the other less than 10 minutes up the road. The problem came about because my dad's vehicle does not seat 7 people. We had to do it like we did in the '90's and pile a few of the kids in the hatch for the minuscule jaunt. The girls who climbed in the back were almost giddy with excitement that they were chosen to be the rebels without a seat belt. When we pulled in to the launch area I instructed the kids to sit on the ground out of the way and wait patiently for Papa to launch the boat. They were patient for all of 4 seconds. Papa started chatting with a former customer so Buddies 1 and 2 decided they had to pee, 9 year-old started whining that she forgot her sunglasses, 11 year-old didn't want 7 year-old touching her books....you get the picture. When my dad was ready to launch I walked away from the chaos to help. The 7 year-old decided she hadn't gotten her fair share of the attention during the ruckus so she called after me,
"Mama, I have a question! It's important!"
(It always is)
"You'll have to wait while I help Papa." I call over my shoulder as I continue to walk away.
Undaunted, she yells into the crowed parking lot, "I need to know why we broke the LAW!!!"
Without missing a step I turned 180* on my heel, marched back to her and said "If you don't hush yourself I just might break the law again!" I'm not even really sure what I meant by that, but it didn't matter. She never said another word during the launch process.
All the way up the river Dad and I pointed out memories to the kids, the old cat-fishing hole, the "Ice Cream Scoop", the cliff I used to have the guts to jump off of....it was fantastic. Our arrival at the island was greeted in the typical way with arms waving and faces smiling. I couldn't wait to let the kids explore. The first day there was visiting and swimming and running around with wild abandon. The cabin was the focal point though. It was full of toys and games the little ones couldn't wait to get their hands on. Buddy #1 took a particular fancy to the Tinker Toys that have probably been there since the 70's. We watched them play Twister and eat watermelon. We ooo'd and ahhh'd at the 'treasures" they found. We had a slight heart attack when Buddy #2 decided a 2 year-old Boxer was a suitable exploration partner and we lost track of him for about 10 minutes. We talked about all the stuff we used to get into. They were loving it as much as I remember loving it and that made me happy.
When suppertime rolled around the kids really got into the spirit of Island life. Each one of the girls took on responsibilities in the kitchen. The 7 year-old helped with the salad, the 9 year-old made the garlic bread, and the 11 year-old boiled the noodles. My job was to keep the Buddies busy and out of the way. After supper we decided to have a rousing game of Monopoly.Three of the 5 kids had never played before so we chose partners while the little ones learned. Ten minutes into the game the 11 year-old was almost bankrupt due to poor real estate investing and Buddy #1 and the 9 year-old had teamed up and divorced twice. Being a homeschooler, I look for every opportunity to have a teachable moment. Monopoly is perfect for a fiscal responsibility lesson. I had teamed up with Buddy #2 and he was trying to buy every property we landed on. I explained that was needed to start making some money before we spent any more. He wasn't impressed, but conceded. I made a remark about how he was his father's son when it comes to spending money. We played for short while more when my partner looked over at his financially unstable sister and started to charitably hand her a $500 bill! I grabbed his hand and said "What are you doing?!?!?!" The little stinker looked my right in the eye and said,
"I AM YOUR HUSBAND'S SON! FREE MONEY FOR EVERYBODY!!!!"
The game broke down shortly after that. We couldn't stop laughing.
When we awoke the next morning Auntie M's mom, or "Friend" as Buddy #1 had taken to calling her, went to the kitchen to make some coffee. Buddy #1 heard she was a school teacher and decided they needed to have a little conversation. He tested her knowledge on the symbiotic life of humans and plants as it relates to oxygen and carbon dioxide. She was quite impressed at his "extensive knowledge". After the conversation was over he jumped off the little stool and ran excitedly to me with the declaration that he had made a new friend. "You did?" I asked.
"Yep," he said, "The old girl in there!"
I was mortified. I gently reminded him that "Friend" is a much more appropriate way to refer to this dear lady.
When it was time to leave we made the usual round of thank yous and I started to make my usual apologies for my childrens' behaviour. My friends so graciously assured me that they were just delighted with the kids and that they were welcome anytime. During our good-byes, I asked Buddy #1 what he thought of our island adventure.
"It's horrible!" he blurted out. My jaw hit the floor and my cheeks began to burn. I couldn't believe he would be so rude. I was just about to reprimand him when he finished his thought. "It's horrible that we have to leave." Friend smiled and assured him that he was welcome back next year. He asked if we could stay for ten days instead of two!
This past week we had the opportunity to spend some time with friends I haven't seen in years out in beautiful Georgian Bay. When I was a teenager I had the unique and wonderful position of "Camp Owner's Daughter." My dad owned and operated a fishing camp for several years. While I was
One friend in particular makes a yearly pilgrimage from Tennessee to her family's private island in the Bay. I used to spend at least one night per year on the island with her, her parents, friends, siblings, and cousins. I was accepted as a family member and my presence was expected. Those times have made for some of my most reminisced about adventures. That is, when Dad wasn't keeping me shackled to the gas dock. (Just kidding, Dad...he reads this!)
My friend, or "Auntie M" as she is known by my kids, has only ever met the two older girls in person and the last time she saw them was 8 years ago. This year I was bound and determined to give all of the kids the "island experience" I was so privileged to take part in. Hubby was working so I had to set up a water taxi to get us to the island. My dad, partially because of his expertise and partially because he didn't charge me, was the obvious choice to take us out. He sacrificially took time out of his day to have an excuse to go fishing. The river where we would be going out was not the same river which I would be coming in so the first obstacle was dropping off my van at one marina and driving to the other less than 10 minutes up the road. The problem came about because my dad's vehicle does not seat 7 people. We had to do it like we did in the '90's and pile a few of the kids in the hatch for the minuscule jaunt. The girls who climbed in the back were almost giddy with excitement that they were chosen to be the rebels without a seat belt. When we pulled in to the launch area I instructed the kids to sit on the ground out of the way and wait patiently for Papa to launch the boat. They were patient for all of 4 seconds. Papa started chatting with a former customer so Buddies 1 and 2 decided they had to pee, 9 year-old started whining that she forgot her sunglasses, 11 year-old didn't want 7 year-old touching her books....you get the picture. When my dad was ready to launch I walked away from the chaos to help. The 7 year-old decided she hadn't gotten her fair share of the attention during the ruckus so she called after me,
"Mama, I have a question! It's important!"
(It always is)
"You'll have to wait while I help Papa." I call over my shoulder as I continue to walk away.
Undaunted, she yells into the crowed parking lot, "I need to know why we broke the LAW!!!"
Without missing a step I turned 180* on my heel, marched back to her and said "If you don't hush yourself I just might break the law again!" I'm not even really sure what I meant by that, but it didn't matter. She never said another word during the launch process.
All the way up the river Dad and I pointed out memories to the kids, the old cat-fishing hole, the "Ice Cream Scoop", the cliff I used to have the guts to jump off of....it was fantastic. Our arrival at the island was greeted in the typical way with arms waving and faces smiling. I couldn't wait to let the kids explore. The first day there was visiting and swimming and running around with wild abandon. The cabin was the focal point though. It was full of toys and games the little ones couldn't wait to get their hands on. Buddy #1 took a particular fancy to the Tinker Toys that have probably been there since the 70's. We watched them play Twister and eat watermelon. We ooo'd and ahhh'd at the 'treasures" they found. We had a slight heart attack when Buddy #2 decided a 2 year-old Boxer was a suitable exploration partner and we lost track of him for about 10 minutes. We talked about all the stuff we used to get into. They were loving it as much as I remember loving it and that made me happy.
When suppertime rolled around the kids really got into the spirit of Island life. Each one of the girls took on responsibilities in the kitchen. The 7 year-old helped with the salad, the 9 year-old made the garlic bread, and the 11 year-old boiled the noodles. My job was to keep the Buddies busy and out of the way. After supper we decided to have a rousing game of Monopoly.Three of the 5 kids had never played before so we chose partners while the little ones learned. Ten minutes into the game the 11 year-old was almost bankrupt due to poor real estate investing and Buddy #1 and the 9 year-old had teamed up and divorced twice. Being a homeschooler, I look for every opportunity to have a teachable moment. Monopoly is perfect for a fiscal responsibility lesson. I had teamed up with Buddy #2 and he was trying to buy every property we landed on. I explained that was needed to start making some money before we spent any more. He wasn't impressed, but conceded. I made a remark about how he was his father's son when it comes to spending money. We played for short while more when my partner looked over at his financially unstable sister and started to charitably hand her a $500 bill! I grabbed his hand and said "What are you doing?!?!?!" The little stinker looked my right in the eye and said,
"I AM YOUR HUSBAND'S SON! FREE MONEY FOR EVERYBODY!!!!"
The game broke down shortly after that. We couldn't stop laughing.
When we awoke the next morning Auntie M's mom, or "Friend" as Buddy #1 had taken to calling her, went to the kitchen to make some coffee. Buddy #1 heard she was a school teacher and decided they needed to have a little conversation. He tested her knowledge on the symbiotic life of humans and plants as it relates to oxygen and carbon dioxide. She was quite impressed at his "extensive knowledge". After the conversation was over he jumped off the little stool and ran excitedly to me with the declaration that he had made a new friend. "You did?" I asked.
"Yep," he said, "The old girl in there!"
I was mortified. I gently reminded him that "Friend" is a much more appropriate way to refer to this dear lady.
When it was time to leave we made the usual round of thank yous and I started to make my usual apologies for my childrens' behaviour. My friends so graciously assured me that they were just delighted with the kids and that they were welcome anytime. During our good-byes, I asked Buddy #1 what he thought of our island adventure.
"It's horrible!" he blurted out. My jaw hit the floor and my cheeks began to burn. I couldn't believe he would be so rude. I was just about to reprimand him when he finished his thought. "It's horrible that we have to leave." Friend smiled and assured him that he was welcome back next year. He asked if we could stay for ten days instead of two!
Comments