"Wow"

The title of this blog entry was Grafton's reaction to first seeing the Grand Canyon. Rolling out of bed at around 5:30am (8:30am EDT), we threw on our clothes and headed out the door to catch our first glimpse of the Grand Canyon during sunrise. This photo was taken at Yavapai Point.

What Mommy Missed

Work duties had Mom flying off to Utah today. So it was just the boys at home today, left to fend for ourselves. Except we didn't spend much time at home. Upon picking up Grafton from school, we drove  to a playground at an elementary school in Granby. But we struck out. The playground was surrounded by a veritable moat, riddled with pools of water many inches deep around all the play equipment, including a small ocean at the base of the slide. We decided to try another outdoor spot to play, and headed to Defresne Park. But from the road it didn't look accommodating either, as it was still surrounded by snow. So we did a quick drive around Granby, but ended up back at Mt Holyoke College, where we usually do our evening walks.

Filled with Goldfish, Grafton was ready to burn some energy. He ran and ran, challenging his Dad to keep up with him. We stopped for a bit to enjoy the view of the raging waterfall of the Upper Pond dam. We soon reached the amphitheater, walking onto the large stage, and then climbing up the stairs (Grafton even led with his left foot a few times while climbing). Looking back, Grafton saw the stage and told me, "I wanna sing a song on the stage." As I followed him down the uneven stairs, he demanded that I sit down and watch! He climbed on the stage and started singing Old McDonald Had a Farm while dancing around. He really seemed to enjoy himself. When he finished, he demanded that I put on a performance as well, which of course, I was compelled to do. Fortunately, for me, no one was around. As the show came to a close, the cloudy sky opened up to reveal the radiant and uplifting light of the setting sun. Unable it to see it directly, I implored Grafton to run up the stairs with me so that we could catch the sunset.

After enjoying the transient light, we headed back to our car, Grafton in my arms. The car was parked across the street from the District 2 fire station, and I noticed that one of the garage doors was open. The garage bays were all lit up, and I could see a fire engine inside, and I knew Grafton would enjoy seeing it up close. We headed over. Peering inside, there was a fireman working on a small truck. He invited us in! I thanked him, and brought Grafton in for a quick tour. I pointed out the firemens' jackets, boots, and oxygen tanks, and of course the fire engines! He quietly took it all in, remaining uncharacteristically speechless. As we passed by the welcoming fireman, we thanked him again, when he asked Grafton if would like a fireman's hat. Grafton didn't answer, so I graciously accepted the offer for him. With hat in hand, preparing to leave, the fireman asked Grafton if he wanted to sit in a fire truck! Shyly, Grafton whispered a low, "yeah." After opening the door, Grafton bolted up into the back of the cab and jumped up into one of the seats, carefully checking out his surroundings. Of course, he didn't want to get out, but after a little while I lifted him down. Apparently, it was a slow evening at the fire house, because Grafton was then offered to ring the (decorative but functional) bell on the front of one of the fire engines, which he did. Then the fireman opened another garage door bay, got in the second fire truck, and put on the emergency lights for Grafton's enjoyment. I'd say Grafton was enjoying all of this, but there was more! Next, Grafton was offered to get in the drivers seat of the fire truck, which he enthusiastically accepted. Up in the seat, Grafton was turning the steering wheel and forcefully manipulating the turn signal (I thought he was going to break it). I thanked the firemen a few more times, but on our way out, he brought us to the ambulance parked outside, which Grafton also got to "drive", and then we were allowed to peek in the back, where we saw the empty stretcher and all of the medical equipment. What a tour! We were invited to come back anytime.

After our long evening out, we finally headed home for a quick lasagna dinner, a book, and then off to bed.

Mom's away tomorrow evening as well, so I'll have to figure out how the two boys can have even more fun tomorrow.

Rites of Spring

Thanks to the snow having finally melted away from the roadsides, I was once again able to safely walk to Grafton's daycare and pick him in the toddler hiking backpack. When we returned home, we stayed outside and played golf together in the driveway. We then took out his bike for a quick ride, and next we pulled his toy car out of the garage for a short drive. (We checked the tire pressure, since it had been sitting idle for so many months, but Grafton reported, "it looks good!") In the backyard, which is now again accessible via the brick pathway, Grafton placed his slide back on its feet and took a few test runs. Finally, we kicked around the soccer ball a bit, and then headed inside to wake up Mom from her nap. It's time to stop hibernating--Spring is on its way!

Typical Friday Night

Tonight we all headed to Marshalls to do some clothes shopping for Neva and Grafton. Grafton needed new pajamas, but we didn't talk about this in the car. However, half way to the store Grafton spoke up from the back seat, providing a lengthy description of his thoughts that went something like, "I want to buy new pajamas, because I'm growing bigger. I'm a big boy. My other pajamas are too small. I wanna buy big boy pajamas at the store." After grinning at one another over the surprising lucidity and detail of his words, we explained that we probably wouldn't find the same "guitar" pajamas that he likes so much. He thought for a moment and then accepted this fact, requesting "I want to buy blue pajamas."

The conversation soon turned to skeletal matters. Grafton stated, "Dinosaurs have bones. I have bones in my body too." We smiled at each other again, then pointed out how all animals have bones in their bodies. But I think we'll need to try again at explaining to Grafton how insects have exoskeletons, and not bones. He didn't seem to quite grasp that one yet.

Before turning into the parking lot, we were stopped at a traffic light. Sirens were wailing behind us and getting closer. Mom pointed out to Grafton, "A fire engine is coming up behind us!" As soon as it passed, Grafton caught a view of it and corrected his mother, "that's NOT a fire truck...that's an ambulance!"

So we arrived at Marshalls. While Mom did her shopping, Dad followed Grafton all around the store, as he pushed a small, wheeled, carry-on luggage bag that he found in the travel department. He was very careful not to ram the luggage into the store displays, heeding Dad's warning that if he did, we would have to put the luggage back where we found it.

Eventually, we found our way back to Mom. She had found two pairs of shoes that looked like possibilities for Grafton. We had Grafton try on the first pair--blue running shoes. But Grafton didn't like these, and he told us immediately after placing them on his feet. No, instead he preferred the Merrells. Considering how he frequently wavers back and forth on such matters of personal taste, we asked him a couple more times, but he remained consistent in his decision. Unfortunately, we thought the Merrells were too big and clunky on him, so we quietly overrode his decision and purchased the blue ones. When we got home, we wanted him to take off his shoes before going upstairs, which he refused to do. So we explained that he could change into his new shoes if he wanted. This option excited him, but when I took out his new blue shoes, he frowned and told me he didn't want those but wanted the "other shoes". He came over to look in the shopping bag to see where they might be, and was upset when he couldn't find them. I explained that we didn't buy them after all, and he gave me the most distressed look. I tried to convince him that new shoes would be great, and he soon agreed, as long as we cut off the tags. Which we did quickly. And he was happy again.

We had dinner. We watched footage of the Japanese earthquake disaster. Afterwards, Grafton watched Pete Seeger lead the audience at his 90th birthday celebration in a song of "Amazing Grace", singing along at times. And then it was off to bed. But not before Grafton knocked over Mom's glass of wine, breaking it, and spilling the wine all over the floor. But this disaster was pretty minor, considering where it measures on the Ricther scale.

Fire Fighter Costume

Thought we'd share some photos of Grafton's makeshift fire fighter costume: Orange winter jacket, yellow construction hat, and gray sweatpants with rolled-up cuffs.  The snake doll, of course, is the fire hose.  The sound of spraying water is simulated by Grafton's mouth (note the puckered lips).

 

Going Swimming

We signed up Grafton for swimming lessons at the YMCA, and his first lesson was last night.  We weren't sure how it was going to work out, since our little man can be fickle about what he enjoys doing, and he had refused all pools last summer.  But it worked out great, and he was very excited about the whole affair.  He remembered all day that he was going swimming in the evening, and when Dad picked him up from daycare, he ran all the way to the car, exclaiming that is was time to go swimming!

More photos here.

Double-sided photograph

Grafton, Neva, and I were looking at a framed photograph of Neva walking off into the distance on a beach on Cape Cod. Grafton was holding the frame in his hands, intently studying the picture when he commented, "That's Mommy on the beach".  We confirmed his observation and then he asked "Where's Daddy?"  We told him that Daddy wasn't in the picture because he was the photographer behind the camera.  To verify our claim, Grafton flipped the frame around to see if his Dad was on the other side. (Or maybe he just wanted to see if his Mommy's face could be seen on the flip side?)