July 11. Broke open the music for the first time in the trip. Nine days without music. For such audiophiles it is odd we have been so quiet. We are 25 miles or so from from the border and it is strange to see convoys of army trucks and later a car marked Border Patrol. Don't think of our northern neighbor when considering border issues. We made it through the border despite my best efforts to prevent it from happening. In my packing frenzy I picked up the passports bound together with a rubber band and tossed them in the glove box without looking at them. Not only were there only three, it was Reese's expired passport, the picture taken when he was six months old. Needless to say, I was mortified and disappointed, but the border official let us through. It would have been a loooong detour through Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania if he chose to enforce the law. Let's hope the US Border Patrol is as forgiving. July 12. We pushed the kids hard today. At least they pushed back hard. It will be great to be out of the van for more than one night. We are staying at my cousin Amy's on Lake Joseph in the Muskoka Lakes of Ontario. I grew up spending at least a week every summer visiting grandparents here. Naturally my vision of what we will encounter is tainted by time and nostalgia. I hope it lives up to half of it. It will be exciting to meet up with east coast cousins again, as it has been at least ten years since I have seen them. We drove along Lake Huron, through Amish country and heavily wooded, wet lands. We spent the night in a Provencial Park. Unfortunately we didn't capitalize on what it had to offer, such as hikes and waterfalls. It was very nice, heavily wooded and more privacy than we have been accustomed to. There are KOAs here in Ontario, but none in striking distance. The kids were disappointed, but not I.

It happened. The inevitable. One day, only one day not using it and it stops working. The air conditioning. It blows great, in fact sometimes it blows detritus out at us, but the air is no longer icy. Or cool, even. At least not cooler than outside. So here comes better gas mileage, smelling the surroundings, more noise and personal swamp coolers when needed. The kids can't really hear the music either, the wiring went weird last night, maybe after Reese was kicking the rear speakers. The kids tend to turn the van into a gymnasium when we stop. They climb, hang, jump, whatever they can do in the van instead of running around outside.

July 13. We are here!!! Muskoka!! It is wonderful! Amy, Ross and Abby are wonderful! Amy is my cousin on my dad's side whom I haven't seen since we don't know when. Abby is 3 and a half, a perfect companion for Ruby and someone else for Reese to terrorize. Their house is beautiful, built from the ground up by themselves. We went down to the lake, to Ross's cousins where Reese was initiated into lake life by jumping off the boathouse into the crystal clear water. My heart was so full seeing him experience what I grew up experiencing! It is probably about a 12 foot drop off the boathouse to the lake. Reese did about 20 laps. Ruby and I raced off the dock together, but surprisingly she wouldn't consider going off the boathouse.

Another first for Reese---he caught a fish! A small mouth bass, which is quite the step up from sunfish or rock bass. Rock bass are the predominant fishing fare from the dock. Once again, my heart filled with pride and love. It was uncanny, as Ross and I were on the other side of the boathouse at that very moment talking about Reese fishing and getting him some bait. Once again, stopping through and visiting cousins, it seems blood runs thick. Homes and hearts are opened and connections are re-established. Shared interests and values are discovered. We draw on past experience and the knowledge we are bound together by shared ancestry. It is lovely. It is raining hard this morning, potentially squashing plans to go out on the boat, visit an old family island. We are getting together with Amy's siblings and my uncle as well as another Canadian cousin who is coming up with her family. So lucky! And so nice not to have to get in the van and drive away this morning!!!