Over the river and through the woods...

This past week Evan, Eli and I went to visit the Great-Grandparents. What an adventure! Back in the good old days Pat and I could make the drive in a little less that 4 hours. Travelling by myself with the boys it took me 6. I was sure I was going to lose my mind before we arrived.

I had carefully planned my departure time, so that I could make it to Queechee Gorge before nap time. The plan was to get some miles in, go for a hike at the gorge, feed the baby, and enjoy lunch at the snack bar before setting off again. What I didn't factor in to this equation was the driving rain, or the fact that Evan would actually fall asleep before we got there. So much for careful planning. I pressed on past the gorge, only to make it to Woodstock (just a few miles down the road) before Eli's cries could no longer be placated with the pacifier, which by the way took some major contortioning on my part to hold in his mouth while driving. Unfortunately as soon as I stopped the car Evan woke up, after only a brief 30 minute nap. By now the rain was coming down in sheets. I parked as close to the restaurant door as I could, but we still managed to get wet. While we waited for our food I nursed the baby and tried my best to politely ignore a very talkative dad at the next table.

Once back on the road, we made it to Rutland (about 30 miles) before Evan needed to use the potty again and I needed a cup of coffee. I went out of my way to a great little coffee shop downtown, only to discover it had gone out of business. Moving on, we made it another 30 miles this time to the VT/NY border before Eli decided he needed to eat again. After feeding Eli, Evan and I played frisbee on the wet grass until the rain forced us to move on. To my relief that was the last stop. Eli went to sleep, but Evan was growing restless. I really couldn't blame him, but it took all of my energy to keep him occupied. I had remembered to pack the portable DVD player, but I had forgotten to pack more than one DVD. By the third showing, the 30 minute Elmo video was driving us both batty. And so we filled the last hour with "I spy with my little eye" which is a great game if you are not riding on the Northway in the Adirondacks. Because there is nothing to "spy" except trees, and highway signs - but I managed to stretch the game out until at last our exit came in to view.

Our visit was more than worth the effort of the journey. Evan enjoyed his Great-Grandparents very much (and vice versa of course).

Buff-fa-flies!

This past weekend our friends, the Wiatrowskis, came with their 4-year old daughter Alyssa for a visit. We all had a good time together catching up, flying kites,eating ice cream and playing frisbee (Evan's new favorite sport), but Evan particularly enjoyed having a playmate closer to his own size and age. There were some issues with sharing early on (Evan is not too good at it), but after a while the two of them were playing and sharing like they had been friends for years. It was particularly funny to watch Alyssa whisper into Evan's ear - it was like an instant game of telephone. Evan would duitfully repeat what he thought he heard to everyone's amusement. "Let's go out for ice cream, okay?" became "ice cream cake!"


On Sunday we all visited the Butterfly Place in Westford, MA. What a cool place! The Butterfly Place is a giant atrium filled with butterflies and flowers (and the occasional quail and iguana) that visitors can stroll through. The butterflies were a huge hit with both kids, and they really were beautiful. But once Evan saw the coi pond - forget about the butterflies, it was all about the fish. This kid never tires of fish. The coi were quite beautiful (and big), but in order for Evan to see the fish he had to be held, since the pond was well hidden behind a stand of butterfly bushes. The fish got old real quick for those of us who had to hold him.

Inspired by our visit we purchased our very own butterfly pavilion. I have sent away for the larvae, once they arrive we will be able to watch them form a chrysalis and then eventually hatch into butterflies which we will release in to the wilds of our backyard. I hope Evan will enjoy this as much as I will. More to come on this...

Kite Flying Day 2

Go Fly a Kite!

I took Evan to the park this afternoon to fly his new kite. Today was perfect kite flying weather with nice gusty winds - perfect for novices like us. The first time I got the kite into the air Evan was screaming with delight and of course, being the independent child that he is, he wanted to hold it. So, I showed him how to hold on and run and then I let him take control. He actually flew the kite pretty well. He held the string tightly like I showed him and then as soon as the kite was airborne he would take off running laughing hysterically as he went. The wind was pretty strong today and I kept the string short so the kite would climb quickly (with my help), dance around wildly for a minute or two before eventually crashing spectacularly. Evan was thrilled by all of this and was shrieking with laughter the whole time. It was so funny to watch him giggle and scream while running wildly through the field. Once the kite would crash he would let go of the string in an effort to pick up the fallen kite - this is where my sprint to keep the kite from flying away would begin - I couldn't convince him that this was a bad idea. I wish I had had my camera or video camera with me. It was so much fun to watch him. I kept thinking of my Grandfather - Evan's namesake - who also loves kites, and helped me build paper bag kites as a kid; as a fellow kiter I know he would be proud. We are going to go kiting again tomorrow - this time I'm going to bring a camera!

New York City!

If New York is a city of dreams then for Evan it is a city of dreams come true. With taxis, garbage trucks, police cars, ambulances and buses on every street - Evan was on overload. Not to mention the cool grates, and bulkhead doors that line the sidewalks that he got to walk and jump on. We had carefully planned our itinerary around activities that would interest Evan - The Natural History Museum, The Bronx Zoo, Central Park - but as far as Evan was concerned we could have just ridden the subway all day and had just as much fun. The excitement of riding the train was palpable and Evan could hardly contain himself. As soon as we descended the stairs from the street Evan would begin making choo-choo noises, as though we were about to board an old time trolley. Woo Woo!! Chug, chug, chug, chug! He caused many a New Yorker to turn and smile.

We arrived on Sunday afternoon. First stop: Tompkins Square Park, two blocks from Emily's apartment. It was a beautiful day and the playground was full of children and their hipster East Village parents. Very good people watching - and strangely lots of children in their underwear - we clearly weren't in NH anymore. Evan quickly found a slide he liked and formed a routine of climbing and sliding. He eventually adjusted to sharing his personal space with all of the other kids and politely tolerated kids who didn't wait their turn.

Monday we headed uptown to the American Museum of Natural History. Since Evan is currently infatuated with dinosaurs this was the place to go. The dinosaur bones were of course a huge hit. Sadly there was an incident in a crowded elevator that resulted in a spectacular tantrum. Word to the wise: always, always let a two year old push the button in the elevator - even if someone else has already pushed it. A hard lesson learned, one that reduced both of us to tears. Barring that incident the museum was great, but we were quickly overwhelmed. It is a an incredible museum, and while Evan definitely enjoyed it, I think he'll enjoy it even more in years to come.

Tuesday we rode the subway to the Bronx to visit the zoo. The train ride was 45 minutes of pure joy for Evan. The zoo was great. We saw giraffes (my favorite), lions, monkeys, tigers, camels, peacocks, and ...ducks. Wouldn't you know the ducks were Evan's favorite - the same type of ducks we see at the park down the road. I guess there is something comfortable about the familiar. But the highlight of his day wasn't the animals, it was eating an ice cream and riding the aerial tram or "rocket ship" as we called it.

It was a very fun, but exhausting trip for all of us. After 3 days of a mixed up schedule and very short naps, Evan was tired. But, once we were back at home he slept like a champ. When I asked Evan what his favorite thing about New York was he told me "see big bridges" "see Emily" "see train". For Evan it's the simplest things that make a great adventure.