July 2023 - Letterbox on the Lane

R&R June 2023

R&R 2023

As soon as school let out for the summer, Jackson and I were on a plane to the U.S.A.

Travel to the east coast from Jakarta is brutal. We took three planes. The first flight was from Jakarta to Tokyo and was about 7 hours in the air. Then we had a 9-hour layover in Tokyo! We tried ramen, we shopped in the Japanese souvenir store, and we walked back and forth to kill time.

Next up was a 14-hour flight from Tokyo to Washington, D.C. This leg is tough. We couldn’t get off the plane fast enough and thankfully breezed through customs and immigration with our Global Entry passes. We collected our checked bags, rechecked them, and then boarded our last flight for another 2 hours to South Carolina.

Jackson said a quick hello to Grandma and Grandpa (and their dog Indy), before he was whisked off for a summer adventure with his dad.

For the next week or so we suffered from jet lag – sleeping all day – and lying awake all night, until our bodies accepted that we are on the other side of the world.

This visit, I hung out with my mom and dad for two weeks.

Once Jackson was finished with his visit to his dad, he and I took a road trip to see family in Pennsylvania.

After a month of sleeping on air mattresses and living out of suitcases, we were both ready to head home.

Trying Ramen in Tokyo (the broth was very fishy!)

Playing the piano for grandma and grandpa – showing off all of the new songs he has learned.

Celebrating my birthday at Seven Springs!

Jackson rode the Wild Mouse at Idlewild…and he LOVED it!!!

Kettle Corn at the Arts and Culture fair at Twin Lakes Park. It was hot, fresh, and delicious!

Cousin time! We got to see cousin Chelsea perform at the festival!

I picked up a National Parks pass while home.

CELEBRATE

Cub Scouts Blue and Gold Breakfast 2023

I volunteered to help with the Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet this year.

It turns out that the banquet is actually a breakfast that we combine with the bi-annual awards ceremony, the Arrow of Light (AOL) ceremony, and the crossing over (to Boy Scouts) ceremony.

Collaborating with the scout leaders, I designed the program: Awards first, then crossover, and lastly, our Blue and Gold celebration. This program included blue, yellow, white, and green candles. I did not have colored candles, but I did have acrylic paint. I painted clear glass votive cups to match the required colors. The program also called for colored face paint. I could not get my hands on safe/quality face paints in time, so I used water-based/non-toxic paints mixed with zinc-based sunscreen. The colors were vibrant, did not stain the kids faces, and most importantly, were safe.

I then designed the coordinating e-invitation, welcome posters, thank you tags for the parent volunteers (these were attached to blue and yellow iced fleur-de-lis shaped sugar cookies), and personalized AOL photos of the kids crossing over to Boy Scouts.

Luckily, I had lots of help decorating: blowing up balloons, hanging streamers, setting up the awards tables. Everyone had a great time, and we’ve set the bar for next year!