Peach Pie Festival

It was a weekend of family fun.  My son, my daughter-in-law, her mom, and my grandson and I, went on a road trip to Bob’s Discount Furniture.  It is a fantastic bargain shopping experience in New Jersey – I’ve bought many things there.  We loved entering into their air-conditioned store, leaving the 98 degree, 85% humidity, kind of day.

Arthur, wearing new shoes, ran around, re-arranged the table-top decorations, the price placards on the tables, tried to climb everything and pushed chairs into the places they should have been.  He sat on chairs and couches, played in the rugs hanging from the ceiling, and really loved exploring the hall to the restrooms.

After the furniture store, we found a new splash park in Weasel Brook Park, which was small, self-contained, and a perfect fit. It was so freaking hot that there was no chance of a chill, even when soaking wet.   All the grown-ups had an iced coffee or tea, and Arthur went to town in the splash park.  His mom and dad slathered him up with sunscreen, Baba put on his water-proof diaper and swim shoes, and I got out my camera, and he was off to the races!  He loves a water park more than anything, and was strategically attending to all of the different fountains and waterspouts.

There were all colors and sizes of kids there, which made it extra-fun.  He has no fear of other kids, nor of joining right in the fun, but he doesn’t follow them around.  He definitely has his own agenda – and I know he wants to rip up the concrete and look at the design plans of how the water fountains work, and the sequence they are programmed to deliver watery blasts of fun. I love to watch his mind work as he plays.

The next day, my son and grandson gave my daughter-in-law and her mom a day off, and we went to the Jersey City Peach Pie Festival.  Arthur was all dressed up in his new shoes and a natty new outfit, and off we went!  The first challenge was parking, but we found a space eventually, and strolled to the festival where local farmers had all of their goods for sale, a local band was playing and the biggest hit of the whole thing?  The guy who blew the world’s biggest bubbles.  Arthur was transfixed by the bubbles that were bigger than he was, and he laughed as he chased them around.

There were all kinds of fruits and veggies, but the highlight were the peaches!  Peaches always remind me of my mom, my aunts and cousins.  When I was little, my mom  (then a recently recovering Mormon), did a lot of canning, and peaches were a big deal. 

I remember sitting in the middle of  the kitchen table, helping the family slip the skins off the blanched peaches, cutting them in half, and placing them in the sterilized jars.  We would put up dozens of bottles of peaches, pears and apricots with pineapple.  We’d also do dozens of bottles of both bing cherries and pie cherries Then, in the dead of winter, mom would bring out the canned fruit, and we would enjoy a burst of sunshine (that I didn’t appreciate nearly enough).  A lost art, canning.

Back to the festival, We bought lunch of local olives, peaches, plums and tomatoes.  Then we had a tasting of the peach pie entries who were vying for the prize of top peach pie.  I bought some micro-greens, and my son bought blue cheese for his wife.  After that we came back to my home, and Arthur immediately went to his toy box to empty out every single toy from its interior. 

We played and did patty-cake a dozen times, and then I made chicken tacos, and we all sat for lunch – Arthur loves my chicken tacos. 

Then it was bubble time on the balcony – and we started the little bubble blowing machine, and he squealed with delight and popped them, one after another.

Finally, it was bath time, and we filled the tub with warm bubbly water, and he played with his duckies and squishy toys, and emerged clean and bright. 

Then something amazing happened.  He came into the front room and systematically started cleaning up his toys and putting them all in his toy chest.  One after another – he was ready to go home and he cleaned up his space.  Is he just sent from heaven or what?

My favorite take-away from these days is I get to build the bond with my son, my lovely daughter-in-law and her mom, and of course, my grandson.  It makes me long to have my daughters here too – and my sister. 

Keep your family close, surround them with love, it’s the only thing that matters.