On Saturday we went to a barbeque at a friend's house. The kids (all age 3 and under) easily outnumbered the adults at this gathering, and it was a rousing game of hot potato trying to keep them all entertained/fed/diapered/out of harm's way. It was hard to finish more than 2 sentences in a conversation without dashing off to catch Caroline before she fell off the deck, or tripped over the riding toy, or shoved another fistful of sand in her mouth. (This kid confounds me. She puts EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN in her mouth, except food. She must've consumed at least 6 handfuls of sand, despite my repeated attempts to discourage her with a stern 'NO EAT!' She just looked at me and then shoved another handful in her mouth. We fully expected that she would crap out a sandcastle in her diaper the next morning.) She thoroughly enjoyed herself though, and was most amused with the trampoline. She saw the big kids jumping and was determined to do it too.
Sunday we headed over to Bill's sister's house to hang out with his family and take the first dip in the pool. I was especially curious to see how Caroline would do in the water. Last summer she seemed to enjoy it, but she was so young it was hard to really tell. I knew she loved bathtime and splashing and putting her face in the water, so I was pretty sure pool time would be a big hit. She certainly did not disappoint....she loved it!
She and cousin Riley had a blast splashing around and playing with toys.
Caroline even ventured into the deeper water with Daddy and practiced her freestyle moves. This amazes me, given that she's never had a single swim lesson. I guess she takes to it like a duck in water!
I was very pleased that she enjoyed her pooltime because she is officially starting swim lessons next week. She will be taking an ISR swim course (Infant Self Rescue) which teachers her how to survive if she ever fell into water unattended. Babies as young as 6 months can be taught to flip to their backs and float and wait for rescue! Babies 12 months and older can be taught to swim-float-swim to get to the side of the pool, which is what Caroline will be learning. Since we'll be headed to the beach in July (and there's an enormous pool at the condo), I thought this was absolutely necessary.
Monday we spent the afternoon exploring the Houston Children's Museum, one of her favorite playspots. I always enjoy noting how she's handling the toys differently, how she's mastered new skills, and how she interacts with the other kids.
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| she particularly enjoyed the cars during this trip |
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| time for a pit stop! |
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| picked up a new passenger. she slowly but surely tried to scoot over and crowd the poor asian girl out of the car. |
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| she's loving balls right now. big balls, small balls, all balls! |
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| the oatmeal table was a short-lived exploration. 2 handfuls on the floor, then a handful in the mouth. DONE. |
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| is it really a good idea to teach children how to unlatch the door locks? just ask my mom, who found my 2-year-old sister wandering down the street one Saturday morning... |
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| She spent a fair amount of time listening to music! This was a first. Usually she has no patience to sit still for very long. |
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| The outdoor waterworks park was also a big hit. Tables were juuuust the right size for splashing around. |
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| She was soaked head to toe by the time we left! |
Simple sweet memories like these this past weekend mean so much more when you realize they are such a gift. My thoughts continually turned to the children and families still stuck at the hospital, with tests and procedures and surgeries ongoing. And here we were, living it up at barbeques and pool parties with a sweet, happy, energetic, and fully-mobile baby. Thank you God for the blessings we don't deserve.
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