So last Sunday, I was anticipating the arrival of Wyatt and Phoenix, who were to be dropped off by their other grandmother, Lela (short for Abela) that night, through torrential rains. I made a trip to Five Below to stock up on goodies for the Treasure Chest. The Treasure Chest is filled with Matchbox Cars, Silly Putty, Candy, Stickers, Games, Invisible Ink Pads, Bouncy Balls and all kinds of kiddie booty that will be rewarded at the end of the day, if the children behave.

It’s kind of like the threat parent’s throw out of: “Santa’s watching”, that makes kids behave for the month of December, but this is a quicker reward. This comes at the end of the day and, if I do say so myself, it is genius. Because when a child is acting up or not listening, all I have to say is “Treasure Chest” and they straighten right up. Sometimes I had to say it three times, like a magic mantra, but it works! There was only one day they didn’t get a prize from the Treasure Chest, so they were pretty good.

I was particularly worried about Phoenix (3 1/2) because he can be… difficult. They arrived, I fed them pasta and they slept with me upstairs. Wyatt was on one side, I was on the other and Phoenix was in-between, with his feet in my back, forming the crossbar to the giant H in bed. Not a great night’s sleep.

The next day we swam for TWO HOURS, then I packed a picnic lunch and we went to Pinecrest Gardens. Pinecrest Gardens is a great place to take kids, as they have a playground, splash pad and petting zoo. We had a great time, I got them ice cream popsicles (coconut and mango) in the cafe and home we went.

Looking back on it, Homemade Pizza (2 kinds!) was overly ambitious under the circumstances, but that is what we had for dinner. I made one similar to California Dreaming from Miami’s Best with red sauce, goat cheese, spinach, artichoke hearts and mozzarella. Wyatt made one with pesto, cherry tomatoes, spinach and lots of Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Phoenix was hungry and took the bag of shredded mozzarella cheese, which ended up scattered all over my kitchen floor, at which point I questioned my sanity.

Phoenix wanted to eat by the pool, which we did (but it was hot) and he insisted on saying the blessing, which was him singing “Take me Home, Country Roads”; controversy ensued. It then started raining, so we moved inside, into the wonderful air conditioning. We all liked Wyatt’s pizza best.

You can bet your bottom dollar I was VERY happy to see their Mom, who arrived that night. I had saved some pizza for her and grabbed my glass of wine to go watch The Bachelorette with Zeke in the family room. Phoenix slept with me and he was pretty good. He woke up and said “You’re the best Gigi in the world!” Wow. But he is basically a Dr. Jeckell and Mr. Hyde because when I asked him for a kiss goodbye that morning he said “Never!” but like he was from Boston, so it sounded like “Nevah!” and then for emphasis, “Nevah evah!” Thanks baby.

I took them to the movies that afternoon- Harold and the Purple Crayon– which was a very weird movie that didn’t seem to be for kids OR adults. I don’t recommend it unless you’re a glutton for punishment. As we left, Phoenix asked if we could come back and see it again tomorrow. Nevah evah!

The rest of the week flew by. Wyatt had camp at Riviera from 9:30 to 2:30 and Phoenix had swimming lessons at 3 pm. He did really good and listened to his teacher, which was surprising to both his mother and I. The unsuspecting swimming teacher didn’t realize how lucky she had it.

Wednesday night they were supposed to see their grandmother for dinner, so Zeke and I tried our first Miami Spice at Le Petit Maison on Brickell. It was lovely and we even saw Gloria and Emilio Estefan going in as we were leaving.

Thursday A.J. and I took Phoenix to Fairchild Tropical Garden, where they had a dinosaur exhibit. Phoenix loves Dinos, so it was perfect! We took the trolley ride and visited the Butterfly Garden as well. We finished just in time to pick Wyatt up from camp. Well, A.J. did. I went home and took a nap.

Emma came over that afternoon with the baby and A.J. got to meet Celine for the first time. We were having a dinner later, but Emma came over earlier to avoid the crowd. She has been careful about where she takes the baby, as she is still newish-born.

A.J. had requested a family get-together, so we had a Barbecue on Friday. I figured this was the last hurrah for summer, so tried to think of all the summery dishes I could. Drinks were Iced Tea, Lemonade, Rose Sangria, La Croix water and juice boxes for the kids. Corn on the cob (so sweet right now!), Baked beans (my Mom’s recipe), Shorty’s Cole slaw and Potato salad (with a vinaigrette instead of mayo) were the sides. I am sorry I forgot to put out my homemade pickles!

Zeke grilled hot dogs and hamburgers on the charcoal grill and I had all the fixin’s to go with them. What made it easy was everyone brought something. Angie brought Caprese (tomatoes and mozzarella balls with basil) on skewers for an appetizer, A.J. got the coleslaw, Elise brought ice and Allison brought a delicious Vanilla cake with whipped cream icing. I served it with refreshing Basil Ice Cream and Strawberry Frozen Yogurt. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a photo of Allison’s cake. It’s hard to host and take pics.

We put on “Take me Home, Country Roads” and all sang along to it, along with a pleased (and possibly confused) little Phoenix. We aren’t the Von Trapp singers by any means, but we didn’t sound too bad. Everyone enjoyed dinner, the adults told family stories afterwards at the table, while the kids played in the family room, and everyone left at the same time. Hurrah!

On Saturday morning, I dropped Wyatt and Phoenix off at their Tia Jessica’s so they could spend time with their cousins in Palmetto Bay. And that was that. Summer, for them, is over as school starts today.

I asked Wyatt what his favorite part of his visit to Miami was and he said “Spending time with family.” “I totally agree”, I said and headed down to the Keys for a well-deserved rest.

Up Next: Le Petit Maison review