The few words of Rob Soukup
For a quick date I took the twins for shopping separately. Alexis first and then Rachel. It’s funny how important the girls find it that they take turns being “first” for each rotation of dates. Alexis gets the first date and then Rachel. Next time, Rachel goes first and then Alexis. Why not just rotate? Whatever. If it’s important to them then it’s just plain important.
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Rachel was first and then Alexis for a round of theatrical shows at Christian Youth Theatre. Rachel saw, “The Wizard of Oz” and Alexis saw Alladdin.
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This Christmas season I took Alexis out on a date to Barnes and Nobles. Alexis was first and then Rachel – both to the same place execpt on different days. Both girls purchased a book for their sister using a gift card they had earned from school. I also treated them to a Steamer (Alexis picked the peppermint flavor and Rachel chose caramel). I brought a peppermint Steamer home to Heather because she was kind enough to bring Rachel a stuffed animal at school. Apparently, Rachel forgot to do it for her assignment so mom bailed her out.
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While the twins were at AWANA, I took Heather out for a slice of pie at Around the Clock in Crystal Lake. We sat together where I could put my arm around her shoulders. We shared a yummy piece of French Silk pie and a pot of hot tea. Good times.
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This date was a double date where I took both Alexis and Rachel on a wagon ride. We rode to Walkup Woods Park (aka “The Yellow Park” or “Woodlands Park”). The ride started at 7am as the girls snuggled into their blankets, squeezed their growing bodies into the two person wagon, and went for a peaceful ride coffee in hand of their chauffeur.
It was Alexis’s turn to go first on this date so originally I was intending to take Alexis one morning and Rachel the next. However, Rachel was so disturbed by not being first that she took the trouble to arrange a double date. I wonder how she’s going to take it when I tell her that Alexis is still first on the next date. A double date is not considered a “turn” in the “who goes first” rotation. Ah, the life of a child.
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You know you have a good wife when she makes poetry out of work. We were calculating hardware quantities based on length measurements. That’s when she wrote this poem:
How do I love thee?
Let me count the ways
6, 4, 16, 32, 88, 36, 24
Let me measure
All my love And
I won’t have a tape long enough
Ah, true love!
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This date was in Woodstock, IL. We started by going to the local restaurant for dinner. Alexis ordered the Jumbo Hotdog. Then off to mini-golf. Alexis took her first Go-Kart ride with me. It was a thrill. Then we played a game of mini-golf. To top off the evening, we went to a jazz concert in the square.
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We went to Woodfield Mall for this evening’s date. We had great conversation about the upcoming school year, being separated from Alexis for classes, and making new friends. I recounted how adding new friends was a wonderful journey. Then I described my friends from Ohio, college, seminary (meeting Heather), and Wisconsin. Upon entering we raced up the escalator and down the elevator. Rachel posed with all her bling. We found a delightful train which Rachel chased all the way through the mall to the station where we boarded. Rachel made a new friend at the playground. We ate yummy ice cream and kissed in the parking lot be the sunset – that was no longer visible. Good times.
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The McHenry County bike path is building a bike path, Ridgefield Trace, a two mile path that connects McHenry County College to Walkup Ave, in our backyard. Well, it’s really under the power lines. The path is 10 feet from our property line. We are very excited about the path and are sure to make many happy bicycling memories in the coming years.
We said goodbye to our garden as the skid steer plowed through half our garden. Fortunately, we harvested most of our garden in advance. Sure made the weeding easier.
Today’s rain storm made a perfect mud pit for Alexis.
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Rachel wanted to go to Veteran Acre’s new splash pad for her date with Dad. The splash pad just opened along with the new pavilian and playgrounds. One playground targets younger children and has a sand pit nearby. The other playground is designed for older kids with whirly bars and has swings nearby. Rachel loved the splash pad and ran through it with her play clothes on instead of a swimsuit. The splash pad is closed (water is turned off) from 11:30-12:30 and 3:30-4:30 daily. The water is off if the temperatures are below 72 degrees.
We went home to change before heading to Dairy Queen for dilly bars. Then a quick trip to the adjacent pet store, Birds and Beasts.
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