Loneliness

Kjersten and I are enduring our first extended time period without Jonas this weekend. He left Thursday morning and will hopefully return home Monday afternoon. And what is my husband doing? Trying to kill a black bear. For those of you that know Jonas, this may surprise you a bit. He started becoming interested in guns about two years ago with his best friend, Daniel. While we were living in Utah, they would often go shooting together, and slowly each has been building his knowledge and store of guns. Sigh. Whatever makes him happy. :) No, I don't really mind the guns, especially as I'm a better shot with his 9 mm than Jonas is; I just don't like 5-day hunting trips. This is his first hunt, and they've been planning it for at least six months.

It's kind of lonely. Kjersten is a wonderful girl, and she is extremely verbal, so it's not like I don't have anyone to talk to all day. Amy took me out to lunch yesterday, and we hung out at our friends' the Bastings while our carpets were cleaned. We've been having fun, but it's sad to know that Jonas won't be coming home to us in the evenings, bringing new energy and stories from the day.

Luckily, the weather has been beautiful, with comfortable 80-degree weather. Today we plan on biking to a nearby park where they have a dog park, picnic tables, and trails along the river. There's a great wading area in the river, and Kjersten loves to get her feet wet. If you don't know what a dog park is or haven't seen one, let me enlighten you. Most yards here are really small, and a lot of people own dogs. There are quite a few parks in the area that have a dog park, a large, fenced area for dogs to run around in. Kjersten loves dogs too, so she has a fun time watching them. It's fun to watch the owners throw the balls and frisbees for the dogs, and I think the dogs like the socializing time too.