Fun with the Johnsons

As virtual school ended and summer began, it was all about trying to find activities to keep everyone entertained, safe, and connected with friends. Local parks were restricting numbers and you had to reserve a time to go and hike. We managed to arrange a reservation for one Saturday in June to go to Raven's Run with the Johnsons. It was a beautiful day and everyone was so excited to be out of their respective houses.

There's always fun stories involved when we get together and this time was no different. We learned on the hike that Mason would not be removing his hat because he had attempted to cut his hair since barbershops were closed, and let's just say this won't be a profession he will pursue in the future. We managed to be good and not knock "by accident" to see what the damage looked like.

Emerson charged into the open space like a penned up thoroughbred let loose in the field. Reese was right behind him, and we constantly had to make sure they weren't leaving us all too far behind. The whole hike was a good reminder of how nice Raven's Run is and how much we enjoy spending time with the Johnsons. The only drawback to the day was that our reservation was only for a two-hour block which meant we couldn't just lose ourselves in the day. We had to return to our car by a certain time, which added some unneeded stress to what typically is a care free hike.

Although we didn't get to spend a lot of time with the Johnsons at Raven's Run, we did get to have a whole week with their two cats. They were getting out of town and needed someone to feed and love on Charlie and Greta. Reese and Callie said yes before the request was even complete, and we stocked up on benadryl for Reese so that the love affair wouldn't lead to a swollen face.

Overall it was fun having the cats around, though it had some drama. Our hamster Charlie was not necessarily a fan of the intrusive guests and we soon moved him out of the living room. The cat Charlie, meanwhile, was not sure what to make of this house. He disappeared for the first 24 hours until John found him in the crawlspace under our addition that he had managed to crawl into and couldn't find his way out of. Ultimately he spent most of his time in the rafters of our basement. Greta barely had time to breathe because Reese wanted to hold her every minute of the day. With a cat fix like this we would avoid getting a pandemic pet of our own.