There is a moral to this story.....read on.

What a wonderful Summer Time event. Jeff, Suzy, Laney, and Cameron Kyle swung into my place on their was to Southern California for their "first ever, Big Road Trip Vacation". I was so excited when they called and said they were about 30 minutes away and they had driven it in 13 hours. Jeff Kyle "You are THE MAN". But more about that in a few minutes.
We hugged and hugged, I almost fell over when I saw how much Laney had grown since the last time I saw her. I pinched Cameron's cheeks, which I must say, nearly embarrassed him to death because he barely remembered me.
(Jeff, please note I got your business number in the photo. So folks, for all your insurance and financial planning needs, call Jeff)


Next morning we headed for Marin County to see Mark and his family. We have all known each other for years but because of distance we haven't visited much in recent years.What a great visit we had. Laney rode with me and we chatted like crazy.



The little boys bonded and played...................

And the big boys bonded and played................

When all of a sudden there was screaming from the back yard...."HELP!!, there's a SPIDER in the play car.....HELP!!! I think it's a black widow SPIDER....HELP US!!!!" The kids were freaking out.


Dianna hollers at Mark....."eewwww...will you go and see? I hate spiders and you are the Dad." But alas, Mark was busy cooking breakfast.


Jeff hollers from the living room, "I am 'the manly man' and I will go and see". He runs out back to the yard, singing the Mighty Mouse song, "Here I come to save the day"....
"QUICK! Somebody get me a jar! I want to save it and look at it", he yells into the house from the back yard. After a tense struggle with various instruments, he yells, "CAPTURED!!!!! Victory is mine!!! It is MY kill."
(Personally I thought those phrases were saved for shooting big game in Africa, but whatever)


Let's look at it and see if it really is a black widow..........


"Let me in, let me see," squeals Suzy.



"Eeewwww. That really freaks me out," Jaylin snarled. "Sure, you are the hero now Jeff, and THAT spider is dead, but what about the spider's family that probably still lives in my back yard." "That really troubles me."


Jeff proudly displays the spider which he now refers to as "MY CAPTURE."

The parents announce, "Let's all go to the pool, and cool off and forget about all this spider business. We will have such a good time!!! Come on kids, get your suits and towels and let's get in the car. Hurry up!"



"Here we are having such a wonderful time with our friends." "See, we are
swimming and laughing and taking pictures and laying out in the sun." Well most of the family is, but notice on the right hand side of this photo... ...."Hmmmm, I may be little but don't try to cheer ME up Folks, cuz I know those darn spiders are probably waiting for me to come home again....."

MORAL TO THIS STORY:
So there ARE spiders as well as fun when you are on vacation.