Thunder, Lightning, and Hale: 4th of July

"What color is the Target?" asked Scout.

"Gold," replied Eagle. "We better get out of here in case we are spotted," she told Watson.

Back at the safe house, Eagle and Watson waited with heavy anticipation. The Target could arrive at any moment. They had to prepare the Package for immediate detonation.

Scout was sprinting back toward the safe house, waving his arms with warning. "Keep out of sight. I'll let you know when to send out the Package," Snapshot instructed. The Target pulled up to the safe house, unaware of what was in store.

Operation Surprise generated the desired outcome: tears.

I suppose that's enough spy analogy for today. But this plot was about as close as I will probably ever come to being a spy: surprising my parents with their grandbabies for the Fourth of July.

We had been proposing ideas all year about how Mimi and Pappaw could see their new granddaughter and favorite grandson before the babies turned old and grey, but a reunion seemed unlikely since Curtis's job would be taking us across the globe for the rest of the year. At first, we planned to make every effort to come to Kansas City for the Parco Family Reunion, but Curtis wasn't able to get the time off he needed for us to make the trip. Mimi wanted to drive out to visit us in Charlotte, but they weren't going to be able to get their new van in time before we left for Germany. By the time we realized Kansas City was our only hope, flights were outrageously priced. And I'm not sure I was ever willing to fly with two babies by myself. It was a lost cause. A worthy cause, but lost.

The Friday before the Fourth, Curtis found out at the very last minute that he would be able to take off the next week if he wanted to. The project he would have had to work on was delayed until the week following the holiday. We decided we would attempt the 15-hour car ride (which, it turns out, is actually a 19-hour car ride with two babies), but we didn't tell my parents. We planned with Aunt Mischa to surprise them upon their arrival in Kansas City, and I texted my mom distracting texts throughout the week.

Uncle Will (Scout) kept watch for their gold van (the Target) driving past the park. Emily (Snapshot) looked out the window to let us (Eagle and Watson) know when to send (detonate) Sebastian (the Package) out of the (safe) house once my mom got out of the van. The rest is one of those must-see stories.

Family members gathered around their van, upbeat smiles on their faces. Gosh, we're not that big of a deal, my dad thought. Kids ran across the ramp of the van as my mom lowered it to the ground. One boy, in a blue shirt and plaid shorts stopped in front of her. She picked him up, slightly puzzled. She didn't recognize him as one of the cousins. "Is this mine? Is this mine?" she buzzed as she examined the boy's face a little closer. At that point, Curtis and I came out of house with Livia in our arms. Upon realizing what was going on, tears (of course) streamed down her face. "Surprise!" I handed her Livia for the first time.

The rest of the weekend was filled with fun, food, and faith. We shared a barbecue picnic with the neighbors for the Fourth of July and watched Uncle Will light fireworks in the cul-de-sac until Sebastian passed out. We attended the temple on Saturday morning and blessed Livia at Will and Mischa's home that afternoon. We ate lumpia, siopao, and pancit to our hearts' content that evening, and topped the weekend off with a little Magic Fish Pond.