So Levi walks into a small town....

I could see the one-liners sparkling in his eyes as he took in mom and dads new place. From the bumpy gravel driveway to the off kilter garage, it was a whole different world than the one we'd left- and that was without stepping in the front door.

It was about 11:00 on Friday night when he arrived and after a quick hug he observed,

"Your whole town is closed." He drew out the world 'closed' as if to emphasize the total quiet he had encountered.

"Yeah," interrupted Dakota "it closed like 3 hours ago!" as if Levi was silly for even noticing it.

I was a bit suspicious that Uncle Dan had warned Levi to expect some major changes. They'd had several hours for Dan to tell tales of barn cats and hippies. Levi stepped gingerly into the living room and managed to take the whole room in with a glance. From his perspective the last time he'd seen the items in in our living room (Dining table, desk and computers, two sofas, the big screen and entertainment center) they had been spread out over a couple thousand square feet. It must have looked like an episode of "tiny house in the valley" to him. I saw his eyebrows launch upward involuntarily before he took control.

Chibi flung herself into Levi's arms before everyone was even able to greet him, and even Mack noticed the arrival. Ruby, who had not endeared herself to Levi during their brief introduction in Woodinville, received a dirty look and a warning kick.

He barely had time to settle into the guest suite (a.k.a. the sofa) when our next set of guests arrived, the Lewis family. The poor Lewis' clan had been traveling for 7 hours in a packed suburban with a blind (and mentally challenged, I was later told) German shepherd, and Red Australian Shepherd and weekend supplies for a family of 8.

Any hope I had of Levi having an epiphany and deciding to embrace our new lifestyle died about then. The 5 dogs and 8 cats (yes, we are making progress) proceeded to introduce themselves the ways dogs do at at 1:30 in the morning, while the weary travelers traipsed past Levi single file for a chance in the lone bathroom to shouts of "Light a match!"

The next morning, we had a large breakfast planned. We'd invited some of our new buddies as well as the out of towners here for the weekend. In addition to the aforementioned, Paula, Raine and Laraine had bunked at the Junction and were able able to taunt all the Rainey property guests with their fresh, clean smelling selves. We had already warned our clan (and the Lewis' did the same) that a shower was out of the question for 48 hours, as we already had 15 people and one bathroom. (Someday, I will get through a post without mentioning that we have only one bathroom, and that will mean I have truly adapted to life here-it just still astounds me that we have functioned pretty darn well so far.)

After the feast, I had a chance to visit with Levi. He was holding down one side of the sofa and trying to stay awake.

"Hey" I started, "you bored?"

"Yup" he said before the words were out of my mouth.

I told him I really appreciated him making the trip, that I wanted to show him the view from our service territory and that he only had to visit me twice a year to make me happy. A look crossed his face as if I had asked him to wrestle a gator. I could almost hear him thinking "I was going for bi-annual, not semi-annual". Negotiations have not yet commenced.

He did find one thing he really enjoyed doing here.

Sunday after meeting, we had a field day planned (more about that later) and Levi did manage a pretty decent time on the obstacle course, earning him a round of applause.

Monday morning, Levi knew he had one duty left to perform and he did it with his usual efficiency. We took him up the hill to Havillah and tried to spark some enthusiasm for the fabulous views. About then he let me know that he gets really, really car sick. The poor guy had been enduring the trip for my sake and I felt really bad. Unfortunately we were 13 miles into a 25 mile gravel road that didn't get any better. He took it like a trooper and arrived back at the property no worse for the wear.

All in all, Levi showed me what every mom wants to know- that your kids love you. He did something he really wanted to do because it made me happy. I am not just talking about the Monday drive. This was the first weekend Levi has had off in months and months. He spent it driving here, sleeping on the sofa and putting up with a lot of stuff that wasn't all that fun for him. He never offered an unsolicited complaint (although he could have been slightly slower to respond to questions like "Are you excited to get on the road?") and I enjoyed every minute visiting him.

Levi, if you read this, I love you and I am so proud of who you are. Thank you for coming to see us.