Making Our Own Memories

Cat we met at the marina who wanted to sleep in our room

It has gone down in family lore: the time my Mom, Dad and I drove for hours around upstate New York looking for a hotel to sleep in.  We kept driving further into the foggy night and finding only no vacancy signs.  Evidently Saratoga was racing and hotel rooms needed to be made in advance.  The three of us were making our way back to Ohio after visiting my mom's sister in Montreal.  We were stopping in Cooperstown to see the Baseball Hall of Fame and we needed a place to stay.  After briefly considering sleeping in the van at a rest stop, we kept driving almost all the way into Cooperstown and stumbled upon Gail and Larry's Roadside Motel.  I, in all my adolescent glory, said no way to the scary looking 50s style motel, but my Dad went in and through a stroke of luck was given the key to the last available room.  The room was wood paneled and covered in plastic, the linens were from the Carter era.  I was convinced there was a camera in the tiny shower.  On the plus side, there was a lovely diner attached to the office of the motel.  The diner had the most delicious pancakes.

Milo running on the docks

I was reminded of all this last week as we spent a night at a lodge along Lake Cumberland.  The room had the same funny smell, the same wood paneling and the same discomfort that had me laying awake all night imaganing bugs crawling all over me.  Still as I tried to get comfortable in the small room - Leo in a pack and play in the closet, Milo in a cot and Chris in the other twin bed - I listened to all the sleepy breathing around me and realized we were making our own traveling memories.  Memories of me locking us out of the room and the office staff spending two hours trying to get us back in the room.  Memories of us all walking along the docks trying to make the best of a situation that wasn't turning out at all the way we envisioned when planning the trip.

The four of us now have our very own Gail and Larry's.  Just without the pancakes.

This Summer

At the end of last summer, I was waxing nostalgic about the season being over and it never being the same again.  I was right to know things would never quite be the same.  Turns out I love the age of 2.5 and find 3.5 to be more trying.  Also, each afternoon last summer there was a long afternoon nap that rejuvenated all of us and left the family ready for more adventures in the evening.   Now, the nap is a thing of the past and evenings typically pass in a rush of dinner and baths while keeping fingers crossed that none of us will melt down before lights out.

I was right, too, though to know this summer would have its own sweetness to it.  A trip to the Fair where Milo was so proud of himself for catching his first fish.  At the same trip to the Fair, I was so proud of him for marching right up to the carnival rides, giving his ticket to the person, fearlessly launching himself on to the ride and smiling so big the whole time the ride was in progress.

We've also been taking lots of walks in the woods at various parks.  We've found new paths and brought friends to our old favorite haunts.  My Mom will sometimes join us for a walk around the creek behind the Dublin library.  This week we watched as gold finches flew around the heads of echinacea flowers and explored a dry creek bed together.

Our garden isn't doing great, although the tomatoes continue to be our prized crop.  Instead we have used the backyard for a couple of fun play dates with our friends.

August will move along quickly with a trip out of town soon and then Milo will begin preschool in September.  Tonight it is cooler after a day of rainy weather and my thoughts again turn toward the next season.

Leo - 7 Months

Yesterday, Leo turned seven months old and today it's like he is a whole new grown-up baby.  His cries are starting to sound like words (mmmmaaaa, dddaaaa) and are used with more direction (I saw Mommy walking by and she didn't stop to feed me, I should let her know that's not right).  He's had his "vampire" teeth for a few weeks now, but this week he also sprouted his bottom two front teeth.  There may be others in there, too, it's dangerous to stick fingers in to check.

What's that you say, 7 months already?

Also, just today, he has started rolling over from back to front.  This pisses him off when he does when sleeping or trying to get sleep.  He's otherwise not moving much.  Poor guy just spends in circles when he tries to crawl.  Again, this frustrates him.

Otherwise, he's an easygoing and fun little guy to have around.  Lots of shrieky laughs and big gummy smiles.  He still loves to be bounced and lifted up overhead.  We've had a few pool trips this summer and he is a great kicker in the water and doesn't mind getting wet one little bit.

An example of his easygoingness is this: even though he's been eating solids for over a  month (and can now pick up and eat Cheerios and also grab green beans straight from my plate to gnaw on), there are nights we don't feed him.  I still nurse him, of course, but he doesn't seem to really miss not eating his purees on busy nights.

Speaking of nursing, it's still Leo's favorite thing.  He will fling himself into breastfeeding position whenever he gets the chance to.  We've tried a few times with a bottle and he just won't take it.  Most nights he wakes at some point to nurse, but there are other nights he sleeps through (so wonderful).

Milo continues to be Leo's main entertainment.  He wants to be able to see what his big brother is doing at all times.  They are also starting to play with another more.  Milo is sometimes, what I consider to be, too rough with Leo, but then I notice Leo is laughing and smiling.  Boys!