What To Do on a Hot Afternoon
the girl
Cycles
When the Girl was little, Big Wolf was a popular guy who helped us pass a lot of hours.
“Shhh!” L would exclaim. “Big Wolf coming!” We would dive under whatever cover we could find and count down so that together we might sit up and command, “Big Wolf! Walk away!”
One day in the zoo, we found a plush wolf and knew what we had to do. It remains a highlight for us, a story K and I can retell with a smile, making L smile now too.
Time passed, though, and L grew, and the things that once thrilled her no longer did so. Big Wolf soon became one of many plush toys packed into a net hanging in the corner of her room. Forgotten? Not quite. But almost.
In recent days, the Boy and I have begun playing “Big Wolf” again. He holds his index finger to his lips, shushes us, and proclaims, “Oh! Big Wolf!”
We most often do it in the hammock, a recent discovery for us both. Three days in a row now we’ve gone down the the blue hammock in our wooded backyard and lay there as the evening sun sets all the leaves above us aglow. Just as with L, we play that we must pretend to be asleep in order to keep from provoking Big Wolf. The Girl has brought E her wolf plush toy, and now the Boy must have Big Wolf in the crib at all times, nap and evening rest.
The Girl in the meantime continues to create new cycles for the Boy and me to repeat later. Trips to the pool become lessons in sitting on the bottom of the pool, managing to touch the bottom at the deep end, and holding one’s breath for extended periods. Just as E is now, L was once terrified to put her face in the water, horrified at the thought of getting a droplet of water in her eye, and completely frightened of the deep end. Sooner than we realize, the Boy too will put away Big Wolf, take up his goggles, and tell me, “Tata, teach me a new pool trick.”
Another Day, Another Park
“I don’t want to go to the park! We went to the park yesterday. We went to the park the day before yesterday. I’m tired of the park. I’m sick, sick, sick of the park.”
Thus we began our morning. Breakfast, a bit of My Little Pony on Netflix, some freshly picked raspberries and blackberries — none of these things, which some might be tempted, incorrectly I might add, to call bribes, worked. On the way to the car, it was the same.
“I’m taking my Pokemon handbook,” she huffed. “I don’t want to play.”
Of course by the time we got to the park, she’d reconsidered and thought she’d just give the playground a try.
“If not, I’ll go get my book.”
Naturally, she never went to get her book. How could she when the Boy was on such a roll: afraid of nothing, he even went down the big slide — and I mean big slide — all by himself. He panicked a bit on the way down, which is why he burned his forearm on the smooth plastic and probably explained that wide-eyed look he had, but it wasn’t enough to keep him from trying again.
Morning at the Park
Around the Table
Everything these days seems to revolve around the table. The Boy seems to be eating constantly, so we’re either at the table, the bar, or his high chair.
L’s friends are always hungry, so we have snacks around the table.
Three Adventures
Three adventures today, as varied as imaginable.
With the Boy, breakfast is always an adventure. He wakes up with the same declaration: "Dość!" which is "enough" in English. Enough sleep, enough fasting, enough of the crib. Just enough. And the second exclamation is always the same as well: "Cheerios!" And then it's an endless train of food. Today, eggs, a small sausage, more cereal, and a bit of fruit. He can easily out-eat L these days.
The second adventure was after dinner, when L and I went out with camera in hand and discovered that we had not one but four cucumbers ready, the firstfruits from our garden. It's our first year growing cucumbers, and we're both shocked at how well they grow, and how much the bear. We'll be making pickles, salads, and eating them straight from the garden until we're utterly sick of them.
The final adventure: Bobiwa. That's Bob the Builder in E-ese.
"Can we build it?" we ask.
"Es we caaa!" he chirps in return.
A construction crew is putting up a new fast food restaurant near the grocery store we frequent, and so E and I headed over to look at the equipment while K and L picked up a few items.
With school out and paperwork complete, daily adventures like this await us.
First Day at the Pool
Goodies for the Teachers
The chocolate treats we sent L’s teachers were such a hit we decided to do the same for E’s teachers. And when I say “we” in that sentence, I mean K.
Gifts for the Teacher
A Reading
L spent much of these last few weeks in school working on a book during class writing time. All students were required to write their first book, and K and I were pleased and proud that L’s topic had only very little to do with Frozen.