Tuesday night

The boys in matching hats from Uncle Mike!

We’ve had several warm days in a row… so we’ve spent time outside thoroughly enjoying all those things that become habit during the summer. While in July tossing the baseball for Alex over and over can get monotonous—now it is a thrill! Albeit a bittersweet thrill, knowing that the temperatures will drop again soon and we’ll probably end up with more snow. It’s almost been like a quick vacation away from “normal”.

Saturday was a very busy day. Alex and I went to his gymnastics class at the YMCA. I ran on the track above the gym while he practiced somersaults, cartwheels and balancing on the beam. He also spent a lot of time looking up, waiting for me to run by, and then waving. Maybe the novelty will wear off next week. Then we picked up Stefan and Jameson and went out to one of the Metro parks outside of Ann Arbor along the Huron River. There we met up briefly with some of our friends in the outdoors club.

We enjoyed “playing” outside on the swings and throwing rocks into the river. Jameson is such a happy swinger and really delighted the college-aged crowd! Then we went back to Ann Arbor and picked up some lunch near the farmer’s market and ran some errands. Jameson had his first bites of fried rice from Stefan’s Chinese lunch.

After napping, we went to a wedding of some friends from the Leslie Science Center. It was at Cobblestone Farm, which is park of the Ann Arbor parks system. As you can tell by the name, it was once a farm… the barn has been refinished and it is now a great facility for gatherings… especially because of the grounds surrounding it. The wedding was wonderfully casual and off-beat. As we sat at the round tables waiting for it to began, Jameson settled in happily, looking at the little white lights, the smiling faces of friends, and a new toy (noise maker from the table).

He was so excited, in fact, that when the bridal party arrived and the vows began, he filled the ceremony with VERY LOUD happy baby "chirps" and "squawks". Everyone—all 100 or so people present—could hear him! He and I were given many amused glances, especially of other parents close by. I saw shoulders shaking of those at our table as they tried to keep their laughing under control. I tried (unsuccessfully) to shush him a little. Eventually I moved toward the kitchen area in the back so the bride and groom could hear each other! That, of course, made him more excited and so I'm not sure if it helped at all.

But… I figured happy-baby-squeals were better than upset-baby-screams. He was spreading joy to the couple, right?? The ceremony was over in a few minutes and then we enjoyed drinks, conversation, and the beautiful weather outside while waiting for dinner to begin. Jameson had some of his first experiences in grass while his parents had the opportunity to refresh their skills in pulling rocks, sticks and grass out of a little mouth. Alex discovered during dinner that there was a large supply of “ring pops” at the wedding. He thought of little else for the next hour, until he got to play a game where the prize was one of the coveted objects. He concentrated very hard, and with Daddy’s help, was able to pull a rubber ducky with a “C” on the bottom out of a tub. (C= candy) There were other games too, such as bouncing a ball into a fish bowl, and toys stashed around the room. Alex came away from the night with two ring pops, four glow sticks, one pin-wheel, and one noise maker. He declared it the best wedding ever. (Jameson came away with one noise maker!)

The weather, as I mentioned before, was amazing. We took a lot of pictures and really enjoyed being outside.

The past few days have not been nearly so busy, but they also passed quickly. The big thrill of Sunday (besides my 90 minute yoga class, which is AMAZING!) was walking a mile (give or take) to Washtenaw Dairy for the first time this season… wonderful, wonderful ice cream. You can justify ice cream if you get the child’s size and you walk there, right? We didn’t give Jameson any, but he had a little of Stefan’s cone. He ate most of it and smeared the rest on the back of Stefan’s coat (he was in the backpack). We stopped at the playground on the way back. Alex, after throwing a massive fit that we weren’t going to go swimming, “scooted” the entire way and thoroughly enjoyed his ice-cream.


"Baba" and "Papa" also stopped by for a quick visit on Sunday.

Jameson the drooling boy:

On Monday I spent most of the day inside working!! But I did get to spend an hour playing football with the cadets. Not many in the working world get to have fun like that. Stefan and the boys went on two expeditions into the local woods and then we played outside in the evening after dinner.

First hike (pants and long sleeves):
Hike 2 (shorts and short-sleeves):
The other hiker, in the backpack:
Alex the intrepid explorer:
Today I attended a seminar for my upcoming career change, but Stefan and the boys went to another patch of woods to explore. They found frogs and turtles. I came home a little early so I could get in some baseball with Alex before dinner. Alex takes a picture of Daddy and J-Mo:

During dinner a thunderstorm started, so we moved to the front porch to watch it. Alex and I took turns running out into the rain—although he ended up taking many more turns than I did. Jameson was—surprise, surprise—delighted by the rain and seemed ready to join us, if only he could run. Maybe in a few weeks, at the rate he is developing!

Note: another quotation from Alex, as long as we’re on the topic of Jameson’s development. Said to a friend, “When we go on vacation this summer my brother will be RUNNING and when we get back he’ll be PLAYING SOCCER!” I wasn’t aware that playing soccer is now a milestone. We’ll have to inform the people who write those baby development books.

Oh, and somewhere in the last few days Jameson cut his two upper teeth. Maybe that’s why I didn’t get much sleep Saturday night?

Stefan just disappeared to go searching for salamanders, and I’m blissfully ignoring the laundry that needs folding so that I can get all these memories “down on paper” before it gets cold again.

Time to relax after all that hiking!