After a long first shift in the car today, we exited in North Platte, Nebraska for a lunch break. We had sandwiches and then asked if there were any parks, playgrounds, or McDonalds Playplaces around. We were directed to the other side of town where instead of a playground, we found a community pool. On a whim, we decided to go swimming (it was a blazing hot day, perfect for a dip). The kiddie pool was awesome. When we left, Griffin ran back to the fence and made it very clear that he wanted more swimming and less driving! (But he fell sound asleep in his carseat within three blocks.)
It’s our first full day in Boulder, hanging out with Alli and Nik. After a very cranky breakfast, we put Griffin down for a much-needed nap. Auntie Alli and Sarah went shopping and Nik headed out to a meeting, so I was left in charge while Griffin slept. After he awoke, we had a super-fun afternoon!
First, we went and got the laundry from the laundromat downstairs. To Griffin’s immense excitement, while investigating behind the trash can, he discovered a huge dirty plunger. Fun!
Then we went back to the apartment and decided that folding all the laundry was a bore… so we had choices: lunch or swimming. We decided on swimming. The pool was cold, but Griffin had a blast. There were inner tubes and a ball that he kept throwing into the water. And there was a puddle on the deck to splash in. I was a bit nervous heading down there, because Griffin has no sense of self-preservation when it comes to the water… he’ll happily walk right off the edge into the water. But we were in sync this time, and had fun exploring the whole environment. He seemed to understand the concept of the stairs better this time — he knew that he had to stay on the first two steps. (Later, however, he did try to make a sudden leap into the deep end.)
After swimming we were hungry. Griffin happily ate a piece of bread, half a banana, turkey, ham, cheddar cheese, and even a bit of pesto. Yum.
Then, of course, it was time for a stroll around the courtyard. More fun, and Griffin was happy to smile for the camera. (See the pics below.) It feels pretty good to have only one responsibility: being Dad.
We’ve made great progress today, day two of our road trip to Minnesota. Griffin has been a champ, and we have sacrificed some of our ideals in an effort to keep things interesting for him.
Sacrifice 1: McDonalds Playland, Elko, Nevada. To be clear, we did not eat a meal there, but wow was Griffin immediately mesmerized by the place. And, honestly, for good reason. The slide was gigantic and colorful and filled with friendly kids. All this joy can be yours for the low low price of a big mac. We settled on an ice cream cone.
Sacrifice 2: Rainbow Casino, Wendover, Nevada. We thought this might be a good place to stop for lunch. (Casino restaurants are fairly cheap and offer some healthier options than fast food chains.). We forgot how weird casinos can be. We all gasped when we walked in. It is definitely the strangest place Griffin has ever been: a glittering wonderland. He was so excited by all the lights and sounds and mirrors and thick soft carpeting! Of course the place was fairly deserted, with only a handful of decrepit people pouring money into the slot machines. By the time we finished lunch the magic wore off and we fairly sprinted out of there.
View from inside the plastic labyrinth.Griffin loved sitting in Ron's lap. Seriously, he would keep trying to climb up!Mama extraction.This doesn't do justice to the over-the-top decor of the casino.
Raven’s real birthday (her fourth) was on Friday, but she celebrated it today with a fabulous party at Kids In Motion. I had no idea that such a cool place was only a short walk from our house. It’s like a huge padded gym for toddlers, featuring a massive trampoline, balls, balloons, rocking things, bouncing things, swinging things, sliding things… all the good stuff. It was awesome. I’ve posted a full set of photos in our gallery, with some highlights below.
Dangling MaxGriffin had a blast!Raven on the rope.Zoe looking exceptionally cute.Raven helping Max down the scary slide.I don't know either of these two guys, but is that not the cutest look you've ever seen???Besties!Burrito MonsterNancy with the cake.
Griffin has been a babbling brook of sounds lately. I wanted to jot a few down before he actually starts reciting poetry because knowing this noggin of mine, I’ll have a hard time remembering what seems like unforgettable information.
Da-da: First word! We initially thought this was only in reference to Andrew, but we soon realized he was not really that discriminating and everything was da-da for a while.
burr: bird (this used to be any kind of animal, but now is pretty much exclusively birds)
Hard at work once again, making delicious oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. (Griffin understands, like his father, that raisins destroy an otherwise excellent cookie.)
Today I made banana walnut muffins with Griffin, and it was truly a transformative experience. This may seem like the beginning of a silly anecdote, but I am totally serious. It really opened my eyes to the fact that my child is ready for things I didn’t know he was capable of.
The idea of involving him in making muffins (which I was going to do regardless) transpired after reading a book called Sign With Your Baby and watching the corresponding DVD. I’ve been working on signing with Griffin since returning from full time work, and already he’s picked up more, milk, and all done. I wanted a little more guidance, though, and so turned to these resources. The babies in the video were communicating on such a sophisticated level that it motivated me to first, learn more signs so I can introduce them to Griffin, and second, really involve Griffin in everyday experiences so we can have more opportunities to communicate and experience things together. Muffin making this afternoon seemed like the perfect chance to start. I thought at the very least he’d be fascinated by the mixer!
Griffin watches the muffins baking in the oven
I put him in a little apron and pulled the step stool up to the counter. He watched me measure the flour, sugar, and other dry ingredients and put them into the mixer. He listened to my warnings not to put his hands near the moving parts, and was indeed taken with the sound and movement. Next, we worked on the wet ingredients, which were set aside next to another bowl. This is where the magic started happening. I was standing behind him while he was standing on the step stool: I cracked the eggs in front of his face, which elicited an excited, “ooooooooh!” I brought out the egg beater, and we spun it together, hand over hand, to beat the eggs. He giggled. He poured in the milk and yogurt without spilling! We stirred it together with a wooden spoon. I showed him how to mash the bananas with his hand and put them in the bowl, and to my amazement, he did it unaided. This was by far his favorite part. He was laughing with every squish and signed more! when he was done. I crushed the walnuts, and he dutifully put the walnuts in the batter, one by one, after I’d combined the wet and dry ingredients.
He did get banned from actually filling the muffin tins since he wanted to stick his hand in every single one, but this is only the first of many collaborative cooking efforts; I’m sure we’ll get to a point where he will be able to help every step of the way.
