We wish them well and send our love...

The family guitar leans against the Victorian couch in the fireplace room. The songs of the past ten months call out from Youtube and echo in our memories. The TV is off and the deep-throaty laugh that cut through the quiet for month upon month is silent. The washing machine whines away in the basement while upstairs two empty beds hug the walls of the front bedroom. In the center of my chest there's a small ache like hunger; I am not alone with that feeling here in the River Valley. The boys have headed home. 

The difference? Now Alex and Peter have two sets of friends, two hometowns, two families, two homes... and in a real way, two countries.  

We wish them well and send our love, always.  

Celebrating Alex & Peter... a See-You-Soon Party!

Forty kids and ten adult friends gathered at The Kent House on Prospect Avenue for a three-hour Open House celebrating Alex & Peter's stay in America. 

Thanks to our friend & neighbor, Kate Clough, for serving as Official Party Photographer. Thanks to our friend Gayle for baking her face off in support of our sugar habits! Peter's friend Kathleen brought a chocolate brownie delight made by her mom that sent most of us into never-never land. And Aunt Connie whipped up a magical Chocolate dish that Peter and I finished off for lunch today. 

The boys were showered with cards, kind words, and tears. Alex sang with his guitarist friend Paul while Peter held up in the sports room challenging friend after friend to matches of foosball. 

Special thanks to Anne Wood (we missed you, Betty), Jerry Cohen (we missed you, Jennifer), Mrs. Judy Kuhn, Deb and Chris Carver & kids, Uncle Ben, and Pam & Fred Kent for finding their way up to the house after a busy work day to celebrate these two remarkable young men.

Alex and Peter, we're not saying farewell, we're saying "See you soon." You always have a home in Maine.     

GOOMHN YLHD  

(a message from Rich to the boys)

––Mette, Marie, Niels, & Michael, you're just going to have to figure this one out for yourselves! ;-)

Great gift from a great friend. 

Classmates & friends

Party table

Paul, Alex's guitarist friend

A t-shirt from Brandon for Peter. 

Tyson 

Anne & Rich

Back hall filled with teenagers' shoes

Suzanne

The party's over...but there are more to come

One of the party invitations sits unceremoniously in the driveway the morning after. And the boys' room is in a state of organized chaos as suitcases are readied for the trip home. 

Dinner with the Venskuses

After 50+ meals at the Connie and Ben's house, the boys treated their aunt and uncle to dinner at Rumford's finest restaurant, Brian's Bistro.  

Back at our home, the boys showed off their gifts from Connie & Ben to Rich.

The boys sporting their new hats, gifts from Connie & Ben. Alex's is an official Boston Red Sox hat; and Peter's, well scroll down. They also received "Rumford" road signs for their bedroom walls at their "other" homes. 

Oh, Peter's Dink t-shirt ("dink" is a Maine term for... well, can probably guess) was a Christmas present from Rich. 

A not-so subtle message to Peter from Aunt Connie & Uncle Ben.... :-)

Click on the picture to enlarge.

Graduation!

Peter and Alex with Kate & Gayle's furry children!