Chapter 14

SUMMER FUN!

On June 13th, a year to the day that Tim called Jerry Bishop to tell him that the rumors he heard about a nuclear attack were true, the family packed up again, although this time for a much happier reason.

Grandpa, the senior and junior Gibbses prepared to begin their trek to Ruidoso for a week's vacation. As Tim, Jethro and Ty loaded luggage into their vehicles early that morning, they laughed at the sight around the ranch house. Eight other vehicles were loading up, a mini caravan. Ellie's parents, her brother John and family arrived yesterday. Behind their SUVs were the Cranes, Hubbards, Palmers, Mallards, Penny and Ms. Lu riding with Kelly, her boyfriend Matt, Rob and Ali in Matt's large SUV with rooftop storage. Another vehicle contained Tobias, Mel, Emily and Haley Chalmers who was riding with them and would share their cabin.

After much discussion, the 3 sets of parents with infants decided not to go and the Colonel opted to stay home with his family. Pete originally planned to go but ended up working. Haley felt bad going without her family but Bob and Sarah felt she needed some fun. Likewise, Mel felt guilty for going but Bec and Geo insisted.

Rob worried that all of the family doctors would be gone but Timpa pointed out that he and Kelly didn't live there anyway. And that most families don't have resident doctors. The babies were all healthy, past the 'scary' stage of their infancy and sleeping through the night. Finally reassured, Dr. Rob Gibbs was excited about returning to what Ty and Brynie still referred to as 'our lake'.

The Vances thought of going but then Jared won an internship in Southern California and they decided to take the twins out west to visit big brother and Disneyland. At 2½, they were the perfect age to meet the Mouse. Not about to miss any family time, Kayla was going with them.

The vacationers reached the resort at Ruidoso in late morning. They'd arranged an early check-in and their cabins and motel rooms were ready for them. After unpacking their swim and beach clothing, towels and toys, the Tim Gibbs family had a light snack, changed, and lathered on the sunscreen.

Dr. Kelly knew about Ellie's pregnancy after Tim insisted they ask about the high altitude. Now she came by to take Ellie's vitals, which were fine. Dr. Kelly said that due to the altitude Ellie was going to be unusually tired for a couple of days.

With Mackie and Lia in the double stroller, the family finally headed for the beach. The insulated bag with their lunch was tucked under the stroller, gently pushed over the rough terrain by Daddy who had a backpack full of baby necessities and towels while Mama pushed a roller bag and Ty and Brynie carried more towels and water toys. As Mackie and Lia slept in the car on the way, they were good for a few hours of play.

Poppy and Nonny caught up to the family before they reached the beach, helping them carry everything. Ellie smiled gratefully, she felt fine and Kelly said her BP, pulse and the baby's heartbeat were fine. Still, as Kelly predicted, she was tired and looking forward to stretching out on the beach.

On top of the high altitude, she'd had an emotional week as she ended her career as a field agent. The change had been under discussion since Mackie's birth. She'd loved staying home with him and Lia and had a difficult time returning to the field. Tim was supportive of his wife doing whatever felt right to her. Whether it was changing jobs, being a stay-at-home Mom or anything else.

After deep reflection, Ellie decided she wasn't yet ready to throw in the towel on her career. Instead, she'd opted to become an Intel Analyst, a position where she would use many of the skills and experiences learned as a field agent and at the NSA. The hours weren't always regular but she could work from home if necessary and she wouldn't be putting her life on the line every day.

Tony was not surprised when she told him she was leaving the team. He'd nodded, saying, "I know how hard it was for me to return to the field after my leave, I can only imagine what it must be like for you and Maggie. We've had a good run together, Bishop, 3 years on Gibbs' team and 2 more on mine! I wish you the best and I'm really glad we're family!" He added, "Thank you for breaking the curse on that desk, you're alive and haven't disappeared anywhere without a word in years!"

She didn't bother pointing out 'that desk' had been blown to smithereens; the workstations here had new furniture. She understood the sentiment. When she'd cleaned out her desk before leaving the Navy Yard for the last time, she found the objects from Kate and Ziva. She thought of leaving them but decided to preserve, or resume, the continuity and brought them with her. Their first official day in the office, she'd slipped both items into a drawer, feeling silly but determined.

Yesterday was her last day on Tony's team; they had a team lunch out and thankfully enjoyed a quiet day. When they returned from vacation, she'd go to her new department. She took comfort in knowing that her husband understood how she felt about leaving the team, the field. And before she left the bullpen, she slipped something of hers in with Kate and Ziva's things, along with a note as to their origins and importance.

Now, she smiled at Tim as he pulled a small pillow out of their wheeled sports bag, handing it to her. She laughed outright when her sister-in-law Jazzy arrived carrying an exercise mat for her nap. "Is it that obvious that I'm tired?"

"How can you not be, working full-time with 4 young children? Add in a big change in altitude and yep, you need to rest!"

Ellie grinned, "You forget my very supportive husband. He does all the cooking, at least half the child care and lately most of the household chores."

Tim huffed, "I'm not out chasing dirt bags all day long. I sit in a chair at a desk and yes, I catch criminals too but I don't get any exercise at work, other than the fitness center. So I'm not physically tired at the end of the day and I need to get my circulation moving, doing things when we're at home. And I've always done the cooking."

"That's true but lately I haven't even done the post-meal cleanups."

He chuckled, "Don't worry about it; Ty and Brynie still love to help."

Mackie squawked at them, he wanted up from the stroller. They'd borrowed an old playpen, one with a bottom to it so that the baby wouldn't be directly on the rocky sand and dirt. Tim quickly set it up in the shade before placing his very happy, squealing baby son into it.

Ty, Brynie, Victoria, Teddy and the Bishop cousins were in the water with Grandma, Grandpa Jerry, Poppy, Nonny and Penny. Lia and Ricky played along the water's edge with Kelly and Matt while Jim and Claire were swimming with all three of their kids. Rob and Ali were halfway in, daring each other to dip and swim. The Crane boys were out on the diving platform, jumping in and goofing off for their parents who were on the beach. Taking advantage of all the child minders, Jimmy and Breena had slipped off for time alone.

Tobias, Ducky, Mac and Haley stood in the shallows, the older men willing their feet to go numb while Haley shivered. Mel and Emily dived right in; they were racing each other to the diving platform. The younger kids knew they were not allowed to swim past the rope. They were all good swimmers but their parents collectively decided the rope was far enough and then only with plenty of their adults around.

In a manner of speaking, Ms. Lu and Maisie were already in the water. They'd moved their chairs into the shallow water, secured them and were having a wonderful time watching everyone, calling out encouragement and chatting to each other.

A cheer rose as Haley finally took the plunge, followed by Tim who waded in before dropping and swimming. Nonny returned to shore, urging Kelly and Matt into the water. Daring each other, the two followed Tim. Once away from the children and other swimmers, they caught up to Tim, Rob and Ali. Kelly splashed her brothers. After sputtering through the unexpected wave of water, they returned the splash and a splash battle followed with Matt wisely taking Kelly's side. They 'fought' until Tim heard Mackie calling for him. Or said he did.

Mackie first uttered the magic words, "Mama and Dada" a week before Ruidoso, several days before he hit the 7-month mark, and loved to practice them. Now he squealed happily when his daddy gave him a raspberry kiss on his tummy. After applying baby-safe sunscreen and putting a sunhat on the little guy, Tim took him into the water.

His back held securely against Tim's chest, Mackie was almost bent in half looking at Daddy's feet, trying to figure out what Daddy was walking in and where he was taking them. Tim scooped a little of the warm-ish surface water, dribbling a little bit on baby's arm. When he was rewarded with a giggle, he held Mackie up, saying, "Ok, we're going to dip your toes in, just a little."

Watching from nearby, Ty and Brynie were laughing, knowing their baby brother probably didn't understand what Daddy was saying. However, just as when they were little, Mackie was calm and happy because Daddy was calm and happy. With a big smile, Daddy moved Mackie so his feet were dangling and then he felt water, just like his bath. This water wasn't as warm but it tickled and the little boy squealed; he liked that! He squealed again when all his big people laughed. In less than a minute, Lia and Ricky abandoned beach buckets and shovels, toddling to Tim's side, holding their arms up. Poppy and Grandpa Jerry appeared and the three youngest littles laughed and squealed as their toes were dipped and swept quickly through the water.

Tim spent most of the afternoon playing with the kids, his and everyone else's. After their picnic lunch, the two little ones and their daddy returned to the cabin for naps. After he put them in their portable cribs, he set up the baby monitor and decided to have a nap himself. He wasn't worried about Lia climbing out of the crib; she'd played extra hard and would probably sleep the rest of the day if he let her. Just to be sure, he settled into the comfortable well-worn recliner in the main room of the cabin.

The smell of coffee woke him up; he smiled as he spotted his dad sitting at the table reading the newspaper he'd brought with him.

"Hey, kiddo, have a good nap?"

"Yeah Dad, guess I needed it. Babies still asleep?"

"Out like rocks, both of them. If you want to go back to the beach, I'll stay."

"Nah, I'll wait. I've probably had enough sun for today anyway."

Dad laughed, "Yeah, Duck made everyone get out for what he called a 'shade break'."

It was good spending time with his dad. They'd had plenty of time together in the shelter but going back to work and now living in separate houses meant they didn't get to see each other as often.

Jethro looked his boy over carefully; he looked tired but content. Shannon thought Ellie might be pregnant again and was impatient to know. She had more baby things to make if it was true.

Tim smiled, "I pass muster?"

"Yup. Looking fine, Elf Lord. Glad you're all moved into the new house; your mother was a little afraid we'd have to postpone this trip."

Tim shook his head, "No way, we need this too much! The past year, nearly a year and a half, has been too crazy, needed some fun and sun. The house is fine for now; we have beds to sleep on and enough furniture to be comfortable. If there's anything else that Ellie decides we need, we'll look in the storage shed or buy new."

"How are you doing with the Fielding mess?"

Tim looked at his father, "I'm doing all right. Dr. Tack cut my sessions back to one session a month. I worry about Mom, Grandpa, you and Kelly."

Dad shook his head, "Nothing we can do to change the past, Timson. What she did is with us for good. Your mother, with help from her doc, is determined to focus on the present and that helps Mac, Kelly and me – and I think you too."

"It does, Dad, as long as we still acknowledge our feelings."

"And we are, sweet boy, we all are." Smiling at his son, Jethro pointed to the newspaper, "Congress has finally passed the Recovery bills."

"Great! So…mortgages are on hold until new appraisals or did they find a solution to that?"

"Yes, using the satellites, they've been able to find some buildings in parts of the blast zone, at least 100 miles from Ground Zero, that are still intact, four walls and a roof, even though no one can currently live or work there. Mac's is one of them and there are a few others. As there are no humans living there, there's no government to support - no property taxes until they can start recovery in a few years and probably none until the area is safe to live in.

"Because the area is unsafe, mortgages for the few buildings standing are frozen until new appraisals can be done and that won't happen until…it's safe to live there. Mortgages where the property still exists but homes are gone are also frozen. They've done something more for the area flooded by Chesapeake Bay.

"Credit companies have agreed to ignore the frozen mortgages and unpaid bills after June 28th 2019; the day the government evacuation began and will extend the credit ratings existing on that day for another 18 months from now, but will also adjust for any payments made since then. The credit community has also agreed to drop their interest rates for evacuees."

"So the mortgage and credit industries will have to survive on the business they do in the rest of the country."

"Yes and that was another piece of the bills, the mortgage and credit companies are not allowed to raise interest rates for 36 months."

"Wow!"

"Yep. Well, with 40 million people displaced, everyone's in on this."

Tim nodded, "Yes, the latest statistics show 36 million of those 40 million were employed before July 28th and 17 million of us are again employed. Not necessarily at jobs that equal previous salaries, but something. That's nearly half."

Dad chuckled, "Considering how many of the 36 million are government employees, that's not too surprising."

"Any news on the new capital?"

His father shook his head before asking, "When did you stop reading the news?"

"November 16, 2019, the day Mackie was born. Between family, work and everything else, something had to go; it was either read the news or sleep."

"And sleep won."

"You betcha."

"Got plans for the rest of the summer?"

"Mm, I'll probably do a tour of my CCUs in the next few months. Originally thought Ellie could join me but she won't want to leave the new job so soon. Might wait and go later if she feels like she can take the time then."

"Think she's going to like the job?"

"Yeah, she's pretty excited about it. Just didn't want to continue risking her life every day."

"I expect Maggie will do something like that too."

"Or Tony, he's only a few years off his mandatory. And his lungs…"

"They've been fine so far, thank God!"

Tim nodded, "Copy that."

They talked and played cards for another hour before Lia woke up, Mackie not far behind her. Tim gave the baby a bottle while Lia had a snack, then they packed up and wandered back down to the beach.

Over the next week, the vacationers thoroughly relaxed, taking advantage of every bit of fun offered at Pinecrest. With the possible exception of Dr. Matt Jansen. He found Kelly's father, grandfather and older brother very interested in getting to know him better. Having been warned by Kelly and his stepfather, he did his best to be himself and apparently, like Bob before him, gained approval. If he'd done a little preparation by talking with the other Gibbs' in-laws, that is Ellie, Bob, Maggie and Bec, beforehand, no one else needed to know.

Leaving Mackie with the Cranes and Lia with the Palmers one day, Tim, Ellie, Ty and Brynie joined John, Jazzy and their kids on a hike. Remembering they'd gone too far the first time they were here, they turned back a little sooner.

One afternoon, Tim and Ellie rented paddleboards and spent a few hours on the lake. The next time they went, Ty and Brynie went with them, sharing their boards. That was a lot of fun and when they saw a class offered at the marina, they signed the two older kids up for it. While Lia was a good swimmer for her young age, they decided to wait a year to introduce her to paddleboarding. And Mackie was just learning how to hold his breath and do his baby version of swimming.

Another day Tim, Poppy and Jerry took the kids Teddy's age and up horseback riding while Ellie and several of the women drove halfway down the mountain to an old town that had many fun shops, both antique and crafty.

There were hikes, walks and visits to the campfire circle where they learned more about the constellations, the local Native Americans and other topics. They even watched a movie out there one night! The kids thought that was funny after watching so many movies inside their shelter.

When the ranger heard John, Jazzy, Jimmy and Jim playing guitar and singing in front of the cabins one night, he asked them to perform at a campfire. That was fun as the quartet played and sang songs the adults knew and the kids soon learned.

Most dinners were grilled out in front of the cabins, which frequently turned into a laugh fest as the men teasingly inspected everyone else's dinner. Poppy, Grandpa, Uncle Jim and Uncle Dave took Hannah, Victoria, Teddy and the two older Gibbs' kids fishing a few times. That was nice as Penny, Ms. Lu and Maisie took the littles at the same time giving the Palmers and the junior Gibbses precious time alone.

Tim was amazed how much Tyler remembered of their first stay here. Brynie remembered the lake, the horses and the ice cream shack, but not much else. Both of them remembered Uncle Tobias' cold feet.

NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS

Back home after all the fun, the adults unpacked, washed clothes and prepared to return to work. They said goodbye to the Bishops as they left Saturday night. George had been holding the ranch together while Jerry and John were away. Once they reached home, he, Eileen and their kids would head out for their own vacation. Tim and Ellie made plans to spend the kids' school break in Tahlequah the following spring. It seemed an impossibly long way off but they knew the time would go quickly.

The City of Albuquerque, in partnership with 3 day-care centers, including Lara's, sponsored a day camp for kids 5 and up. Ty, Brynie, Victoria, Teddy and Hannah were very excited about attending. The camp would be held at one of the city parks with plenty of fun activities ranging from arts and crafts to sports, including swimming. The day-care centers would transport the kids to and from the camp and the kids would return before their parents arrived in late afternoon.

Camp Fun, as it was called, would be in session for two weeks. After it was over, Lara had plenty of other plans for the kids' summer. Continuing his educational talks, Granducky would pay a few visits and tell some of his stories; other visitors would include Native Americans who would tell them about ancient Albuquerque and teach them some of their culture. For the school-age kids, there would be outings to a senior center in town where the kids would adopt a grandparent. The kids would read to them and there would be simple craft projects done together. A trip to the Ortiz ranch would include visiting the animals, now back in their own pastures and swimming in their pool. There would be a surprise visit to Explora and the zoo. All that would take them through the summer. Lara thought they'd have a second trip to the Ortizes or the city pool for one last swim before school started in August.