Chillin with Chilens

July 28, 2013 

The rest of my stay with the Gomez family was a relaxing break from my journey.  Other than spending a chunk of time on the phone with the bank to report my missing cards and request emergency cash, I spent my days catching up with Ashlee and playing with the two little girls of the house, Savannah who’s three, and Allie who is almost 2. 

            My first day there, Ashlee took me riding in her little car with the kids in the back.  The Texas air was hot and thick, but the windows were opened wide to allow that sweet breeze in to help cool us down.  We drove around the suburbs to some local burger joint and Ashlee was so kind to treat me to a veggie burger and a shake. 

            When we got our food stuffed into their papery bags, my job was to ensure that the french-fries did not get cold.  I guarded those fries as diligently as Big Kitty guarded the bathroom door. 

            We drove to the military base where Nate was stationed.  The base has a beautiful lake with tables and grass and local birdies; it was the perfect place to set up our picnic.  Nate joined us shortly, dressed smartly in his Navy uniform, contrasting us casually dressed girls in our cool summer attire and flip-flops. 

            Savannah only wanted to drink her chocolate milk and eat French fries, avoiding the rest of her meal.  Allie threw French fries on the ground and we all jumped to stop her from scarfing down the now soiled potato strips.  Since the wind, while acting as a relief to us from the heat, also blew our napkins from the table; I acted as the official napkin chaser. 

            After we ate, Nate had to go back to work and left us to wade in the warm lake water and skip stones over its surface.  Ashlee had gotten this art down.  She stood with her legs slightly bent, feet under her shoulders in a wide stance, extended her arm back and smoothly set those stones to sail, bounding over the water’s surface.

            The girls, in attempt to imitate their mother grabbed nearby rocks and plopped them into the water.  <plunk>  The lake swallowed the stones whole, while the girls jumped up and down in glee!  I watched these spectacles from behind my camera, standing a little further in the water, facing the shore toward the family of girls.

            When we had had enough of wet feet, we grabbed our shoes and made our way across the grass towards the car.  We sat down and were greeted by a large green grass hopper chillin’ on the dashboard.  Ashlee waited patiently as I  photographed this phenomenal insect before I escorted him out the window.  Off we went to get slurpies, go home and take afternoon naps.