Pool Party

Summer is here and so is hot weather. Nothing better to beat the heat than a pool party! I filled up your pool with water and let the sun warm it all day long. It was just the right temperature. Then we put on your yellow bathing suit, floppy hat, sunglasses, lots and lots of sunblock, and got into the pool. At first you didn't quite know what to think of it and almost cried. The pool was a lot bigger than your bathtub. When we brought out your favorite yellow bathtub ducky you knew everything would be fine and you started to relax and have fun. You noticed the octupus and sea creatures on the bottom of the pool and tried to get them. Splashing me became the cool thing to do. First you splashed with your hands and then with your feet. The kitty was curious about what we were doing and watched from the sidewalk. Mommy directed the fun, scooping grass out of the pool, watching out for mosquitoes, and taking photos for posterity or blackmail when you get older. You even got her a little wet with your splashing. She was also in charge of drying you off when we got out. I was your lifeguard, swim instructor, and I made sure you didn't wrinkle up like a raisin. I also watched out for sharks and was prepared to welcome any dolphins or mermaids just in case any decided to show up. None did, but maybe next time.

Class Reunion

In the year 2027 you are going to be graduating from high school. I can't begin to imagine all that the next 18 years will bring us and you. First day of kindergarten, class plays, field trips, driver's ed, the prom, the SAT's, and finally, your own graduation. twelve years worth of experiences. Your mom and I graduated in 1985, during the last century. Her 25 year class reunion was recently held. It was neat seeing how people had changed and grown up, or at least grown old. Not bragging, but we were two of the youngest looking people there. I guess we were just well-preserved. Noone could believe she had you just 9 months ago. Some of her classmates were already grandparents. If we had stayed until the end of the party we would have won a prize for having the youngest child. Instead we lost to someone with a three year old, but we would rather get back home with you.

The Tortoise and the Hare

Your crawling progress has reminded me of the fable of the tortoise and the hare. You went from being a slow moving turtle crawler to a quick moving diaper wearing bunny rabbit moving all over the place! You are really moving fast now but remember slow and steady wins the race, so the fable says. Your mom sings a song as you move: "Ain't no stopping her now." It is a song suriving from the disco era, just like the tortoise made it from prehistoric times to the present. You have a look of determination on your face as you crawl all around the room, getting faster and faster with each passing day. "Ain't no stopping her now, she's on the move."

Learning To Crawl

You officially learned to crawl at the beach while we were on vacation, each one of us being in various stages of particularly nasty upper respiratory infections the whole time. Our entire vacation was spent coughing and feeling bad but at least the three of us were all together. You are such a good baby that you didn't even let being sick keep you down and learned to crawl in spite of feeling bad. Moving backwards and zig-zagging was cute in its time, but you became a full fledged crawler. At first you dragged one leg and foot under you while the other set did all the work. You were slow but steady and straight and true on your course. On the warmest day we let you actually crawl on the beach just like a cute little crab. You liked the sand so much that you even tried to eat it! We just tried to keep it between your active little toes!

Going Low Tech

We played with some old-fashioned tried and true toys this week. Your mom and I pulled you through the neighborhood in a little red wagon yesterday. This was lots of fun. You really enjoyed it, stretching out and getting comfortable just enjoying the view. It was a gift from your great aunt. I had a wagon almost like it when I was a child. You did good until we were almost home and then you wanted to pull yourself up on the sides of it and stand up. We couldn't let you do that. Kissing the pavement would not be a good thing. A Jack-in-the-box was another classic toy that amused you this week. No matter how many times we played it, you were always taken by surprise when we got to the point where jack pops out. Pop goes the weasel never gets old. You even cranked the handle a few times on your own. The classic toy phone was another fun toy that you loved. This is a rotary phone on wheels with bright blue eyes that blink up and down as the phone is pulled by a string. I'm not sure what it is about this toy that is so appealing, but children love it. The eyes look a little creepy to me, but you seemed fascinated by them. You also liked the rotary dialing function, letting your little fingers do the dialing. I don't think that you will ever use that obsolete technology, but I will describe it to you one day. It will be as by-gone as switchboard operators. Everything will probably be voice automated by the time you get old enough to use a real phone. Maybe one day children will play with toy cell phones from "the good old days." These low tech toys are something from my childhood that I am glad you enjoy. Battery operated toys are nice but its also fun playing with things in which you provide the energy and imagination yourself.

From A to B

I'm pretty sure I remember from Geometry or some math class that the shortest distance from point A to point B is a straight line. I thought about that as you zig-zagged across the floor learning to crawl. I won't go to the trouble of plotting points on a graph to show the course you made as you moved from point A to point B, but rest assured, it wasn't a straight line. Not even close. You moved in all directions, sometimes even backwards. I will just say that you were taking the scenic route, or as Robert Frost once put in his famous poem, "The road less travelled."

"I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference"

Keep taking the road less travelled, even as you become steadier and more skilled at crawling and then walking. Be a trail blazer but take time to smell the flowers along the way. Who knows what you might find along your journey, and remember that the real journey begins where the path ends. The shortest distance from point A to point B may be a straight line, but it is not always the best path.

Foot In Your Mouth

Your foot sometimes becomes your own personal teething toy. Those toes of yours sometimes seem to be just the right size to do the trick when your pacifier or anything else just don't seem to satisfy. When you are nurturing an incoming tooth it seems that you need a variety of options to assist in the process. I like to watch your technique for stretching your leg to put your foot in your mouth. It is enviable to a former yoga enthusiast like myself. Keep stretching. Don't forget to breathe as you stretch that foot closer. I would love to be as flexible as you are. It is something you don't want to take for granted. Don't forget the taste of it either. I seem to forget the taste of my own foot. It is usually in my mouth quite a bit, but in another sense. Your foot is literally in your mouth. My foot ends up in my mouth proverbially. More often than I would like. I do believe that this makes for totally different tastes indeed!