Adventures with Grandma and Grandpa Z

Grandma and Grandpa Z came into town the day after Christmas for some quality time with Owen and some adventures in and about DC. With some very cooperative weather, we've packed in quite a bit of site seeing into the last few days. 

Over the weekend we walked by the new Capitol Visitors Center and seeing the long lines decided to save that for later in the week, which was just as well with Owen since instead he could take us back to the Botanic Gardens to show Grandma and Grandpa the trains.

On Monday Elaine had to go back to work, but the rest of us took advantage of an amazingly warm and sunny December day to explore Mount Vernon. For Owen, George Washington's Christmas Camel alone was worth the price of admission. He loved petting the 11 month old camel and even serenaded him with a loving rendition of I Like to Move It Move It. Eventually we had to tear Owen away from the camel to explore the grounds (with a promise that we would see the camel again on the way out). Owen had a blast exploring the gardens, and even more fun running around on the lush green grass and enjoying the spectacular view from George's porch. He eventually tired of the scenic beauty and demand to go back and see the camel again. Upon seeing the camel he happily pronounced, "Yeah, the camel waited for me!" Not to be outdone in the enthusiasm department, the camel gave Owen a big wet kiss.

The plan for Tuesday was to meet Mommy for lunch at the National Portrait Gallery, so Owen could splash around in the courtyard wearing his new bright red boots. The meeting Mommy for lunch part of the plan worked perfectly, but the splashing about part of the plan crashed and burned when we found out the fountains were under repair. Undeterred, Owen had a great time running about the courtyard and pointing out all of the trees. After nap time, the cough that Owen had stolen from Grandpa came back with a vengeance, and our poor little guy was sick enough that we decided he should visit the doctor Friday morning.

When Friday morning rolled around we spent a couple hours at the doctor's office with a little boy that was clearly on the mend. We decided it was time to venture back to the Capitol Visitor's Center with the expectation that the weekday time and the chilly wind would cut down the crowds that had deterred us before. We met up with Grandpa Fawcett and saw his first 'movie' in a theater, Out of Many One, the movie everyone now sees before touring the Capitol. No doubt this was very exciting, Owen stood on his chair and repeatedly told the whole audience, "It's dark in here!" and "We're inside the Capitol everybody!" The audience was very appreciative of this information. Owen had fun on the rest of the tour, being particularly impressed at being inside the Capitol dome that sees almost everyday. 

Tonight Grandma and Grandpa Z are babysitting Owen and Mommy and Daddy get to go out for a nice dinner to ring in the New Year. If you see Owen anytime in the next few months, I'm sure you'll be able to convince him to say, "Happy New Year everybody, and Happy Thanksgiving too!" 

 (click here to see all the pictures)

Hinkel Horn Honker and Bright Red Boots

Aside from his boxes, Owen's favorite presents this year were his bright red boots (just like Gossie's), and his Dr. Seussian Hinkel-Horn-Honker (which is really called a Saxoflute, but it's much cuter to hear Owen say Hinkel-Horn-Honker). We all had a lovely Christmas, as we spent most of the day up at Mom & Don's with friends and family packing our day with fun and our stomachs with delicious food. Grandma and Grandpa Z arrived in town the day after Christmas, and we're looking forward to closing our 2008 with a week of fun and adventure in and around DC.

It's Not A Box

Pop Pop

My grandfather (Pop Pop to me, Pop Pop Pop to Owen, Marvin Atchison to the rest of the world) passed away today. We're thankful that the end was peaceful, and that we were able to make it down to Austin for one last visit just a few weeks ago. Pop Pop was the only one of my grandparents who lived to meet Owen (my other grandfather passed away just a few months after he was born), and I'll always treasure the memories of them together. Pop Pop may not have been able to see, but he knew that Owen looks just like his daddy, and his daddy looks just like Pop Pop. And he didn't need his vision to hear Owen say, "I love you Pop Pop."

It's hard to know what all to write in this post, but I wanted to at least share some of my thoughts and memories of a remarkable person. My memories of Pop Pop are all of a wonderfully happy person. When I was young he would always play with us grandkids, crawling around on the floor and tickling me when I was little, or teaching me how to play pool and golf when I was a little older. He was quite the flirt, and he inevitably charmed the young ladies, as Elaine or Adrienne would be happy to tell you. Hearing the story about how he swept Mom Mom off her feet I'd say he was always pretty smooth, and as the father of three adoring girls who still call him Daddy (while they all called Mom Mom, 'Mother') he had plenty of practice over the years.

Growing up I knew Pop Pop fought in the Pacific during WWII, but I never knew the stories and only had the vaguest idea that he was a war hero. I once asked why Pop Pop didn't eat rice, and heard in hushed tones that it was because of the memory of maggot infested rations they ate during the war. Eventually I heard the stories of Pop Pop receiving a Purple Heart when he was shot through the neck on his 21st birthday as the Marines landed on Tarawa, and the Silver Star for his bravery in a ferocious battle on the island of Saipan. After Mom Mom passed, he was more willing to revisit those years. One of the earliest posts on this blog has a video of Pop Pop telling the story of that battle on Saipan. Every time I listen to the story I'm left in awe of the sacrifices made by the greatest generation.

On our wall at home I have a picture of that young Marine, Pfc. Marvin E. Atchison. It's hard not to think of Pop Pop the war hero when seeing the picture; but looking at his smile, the jaunty tilt of his cap, and the light in his eyes, you can't miss the happy and joyous person who savored his happy ending in the wonderful family and life he built after the war.

Marvin Eugene Atchison

November 20, 1922 - December 10, 2008

Pictures at an Exhibition

On Saturday I was playing with Owen in his room when he started singing the Alphabet Song. He got to about "G" when he suddenly stopped, turned to me and said, "Go get the camera."

It's understandable that Owen would assume that we would want to capture his every adorable act, since in our quest to nail the perfect pic for our holiday card, we've been photographing him seemingly non-stop the past week. But despite all the footage, we still weren't satisfied with any family shots and so on Sunday we headed to the National Botanic Garden where we hoped to persuade some stranger to take a winning family portrait of us.

We hadn't realized how many other people would be of a similar mind, and so instead of posing amid the crowds in front of the Christmas trees, the plant replicas of Capitol Hill, or the "Windows to Wonderland," we opted for the Orchid Garden. Owen was appalled that we would leave the trains for someplace sorely lacking in locomotions and was less than a good sport about smiling for a very generous stranger. As a result, Owen got one more tour of the trains before nap time, and we'll be using a wide-shot from early November for our Christmas card.

Thanksgiving Leftovers

There was turkey. There was pie. There was a "naked boy" doing laps in the livingroom. It was a fun-filled Zimmerman Thanksgiving with Grady relations Bernie, Blaine, Caitlin, Ellen & John there for an afternoon of food, family and bird puppets.

The Zimmerman cousins, aunts and uncles all left by Friday afternoon, but the Fawcetts were just starting to gather and so on Friday night Owen had a playdate with his second cousins Ethan and Grace (though Grace slept through most of it). The boys hadn't been together since Owen's baptism and it's amazing how much trouble they can get into now that they're both mobile. Fortunately, there were a lot of us around to intercede when necessary, and the boys had great time together.



(click here to see all the pictures)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Devil's Haircut

While many of Owen's friends are beauty shop regulars, Owen had yet to have his head coiffed. Allen claimed that he didn't need a cut until his hair was in his eyes, which due to his generous forehead was still several months away. I just thought since we had waited this long we might as well try for the record books. And so we might have, all the while ignoring comments from various friends and relatives concerning the length of his locks, had not Owen himself informed us that he wanted a haircut. Multiple times. Even threatening to do the deed himself.

So after failing to get an appointment at a children's hair boutique, we took Owen to Great Clips this morning where, after chastising us for waiting so long, Erin transformed our little guy from a toddler to a real boy in about 10 minutes.

Harvest

Owen really lucked out when Grandma and Grandpa Z moved to Iowa. Just this trip he's already ridden in a tractor with Grandpa Z, ridden in a semi-truck twice (once with cousin Kent and once with uncle Ken), and ridden in a combine harvesting corn. It's almost too much fun for a little boy who loves diggers, trucks and the like to handle. 

 

(click here to see all the pictures)

Milk Shots

Earlier this month Elaine and I were having a glass of wine with dinner, and Owen expanded on his descriptions of what we all eat with this little gem, "Mommy Daddy drink wine. Owen no drink wine. Maybe Aunt Katherine's house." Well it's not quite wine, but Katherine did have Owen doing shots of milk this weekend when we stopped at Cleveland on our way to Iowa for Thanksgiving.

Messes in Texas

We try to make a trip to Austin each Fall, in part to replenish our Longhorn gear, revisit some of our old haunts and get our Tex-Mex fix. But mostly we go to visit Pop Pop, who hasn't been feeling too well of late. Owen had a great time rooting for the Horns with his Pop Pop Pop, and his presence brought a huge smile to Pop Pop's face and induced a fair amount of naps (though not enough for Owen).

Owen was a bit of a wild child this trip, terrorizing Aunt Janis & Uncle Truman's dachshund Brandy and Nana & Uncle Don's canine brigade. From a play-date with Calder Lewis on the roof of Whole Foods where they managed to scare away all other children, to a stop at Amy's Ice Cream where after a sip of milk chocolate milkshake he announced it was "party time" and proceeded to run up and down South Congress pausing only long enough for additional sips of said milkshake (we finally had to throw away the offending milkshake lest he implode), we seemed incapable of reigning him in. We might have hit the "terrible" phase of his two-ness.

Don't get us wrong, we aren't planning any trips to Omaha soon, but we might check out a few episodes of Suppernanny.

(click here to see all the Austin pictures)

Food for Thought

We were discussing the dietary habits of various species the other day (as we are wont to do) and Owen made the following observations:

1. "Horses eat grass and hay."
2. "Doggies eat goldfish and sticks*."
3. "Owen eats watermelon."
4. "Daddy eats food."
5. "Mommy eats candy."

Yeah, he might be a little too perceptive.

* This is actually true. A dog absconded with Owen's goldfish crackers at the park on the way home one night and then later that same week, Garcon ripped a stick out of Owen's hand, hence doggies eat goldfish and sticks. He's probably scarred for life but on the upside, it's looking less likely that we'll have to get him a puppy.

Fall

It's been a beautiful Fall weekend here in DC, and we've done our best to take advantage of it. Friday was Halloween of course, and Owen decided not to waste any of the day napping. He had a Halloween party at daycare, jumped on the moon bounce with his friend Cole at Eastern Market, handed out candy with Grandpa Fawcett, and went trick-or-treating at his friends' houses on our block. We didn't get many pictures on the actual day, but the weekend before Halloween Owen wore his tiger costume to the Halloween parade in Mom Mom's neighborhood, where we took several cute pictures. To complete our week long Halloween extravaganza, we went to the annual Halloween party at Brad & Marlo's house. Sadly the costumes at the party weren't what they once were, but Elaine's idea for me to go as Dr. Horrible was too good to pass up, so I borrowed Mom Mom's sewing machine and spent a couple weeks making what I think is a pretty darn impressive Dr. Horrible costume (I even did the embroidery!).

Today we took advantage of the extra hour of sleep we fell back into, and were still able to make it to the mall fairly early this morning to play around the pyramids by the National Gallery, and take in the new Ocean Hall at the Natural History Museum. All in all it was a great weekend.

(click here to see all the fun pyramid pictures)

The Owen EP

Owen is really into singing these days. It's pretty adorable, take a look.



Track Listing:
1. ABC song
2. Mary had a Little Lamb
3. This Old Man
4. Ba Ba Black Sheep

5000!

At noon today Owen went through his 5000th diaper. Yes, we're still tracking...

I'm thinking of something orange...

The annual Red River Shootout took place over the weekend. For those not familiar with Longhorn football, that's when Texas plays Oklahoma at the Cotton Bowl to a crowd of 92,000. It's an epic battle, the sort of thing that you don't really want to watch alone, so Brad had the entire crew (Marlo, Mia, Brandon, Anneke, Andrew, Claire, Luke, and ourselves) over to watch Texas, despite a series of questionable calls, beat the Sooners and snatch their #1 ranking. To celebrate, it seemed only fitting to surround ourselves with all things orange, and so those of us with kids headed to Butler's Orchard to pick some pumpkins. Adorableness ensued.

This Shirt is Chaffing Me

This past weekend was our annual F Street Block Party, and for the first time since we've been living here, we took full advantage of the festivities. It helps that Owen has a ton of friends on the block, and when you spend as much time playing on the sidewalk as we do, you can't help but get to know your neighbors a little better. Owen in fact feels so at home outside on our block that he insisted on taking his shirt off at the Block Party so he could run around shouting, "Owie Naked!" Fortunately our block is dominated by little boys. Unfortunately this wasn't the last party Owen would attend this week.

On Wednesday I took Owen to our annual EPA Climate Change Division Picnic, where despite temperatures that caused senior management to dawn jackets, Owen decided once again to strip down and alternately chase after little girls to give them kisses, and chase after senior management to tell them that he was naked. On the bright side, I work of the EPA where everyone dresses casually. I was too busy chasing after him with his shirt to capture a good picture of naked Owen, so this cute picture of Owen, Cole, and Sophie (three junior members of the Climate Economics Branch) will have to do.

Reunited (the multi-dimensional version)

It seems only appropriate that a week after Allen's high school reunion I should get to see one of my favorite people from college. Former NU roommate Cecily and her family's East Coast invasion made Allen's absence far less tragic than previous international trips (though the fact that this one was only four days didn't hurt). 13 month old Dylan was a welcome distraction to Owen who was surprisingly generous in sharing numerous balls with him, though less so with his stacking cups. While they were only here 64 hours, we still managed to hit 3 museums (Matt actually hit 4), 2 sculpture gardens, and even a Klezmer concert at Eastern Market (Klezmer music is apparently very popular with the toddler set). Owen got a little upset when Daddy had to drive them to Union Station Monday morning, but hopefully we'll be able to return the visit soon.

Austria

Last week I was in Austria for the Energy Modeling Forum 22 meetings hosted by IIASA at Schloss Laxenburg. It was pretty cool to have our meetings in a castle that was once the summer residence of the Habsburg family. Not to be outdone by the meeting place, our hotel was also an old castle, Schloss Weikersdorf in Baden. The meetings were productive and the setting was gorgeous, but I'm glad to be home with Elaine and Owen and without any big trips on the horizon.

(click here to see the pictures)

Reunion

We took Owen to my 15 year high school reunion on Saturday. I had a good time catching up with some old classmates, and in a stroke of genius befitting Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, there was a moon bounce at the reunion which ensured that Owen had a blast. Unfortunately, technology was not so kind to me that morning, as the settings of my trimmer magically reset themselves resulting in my accidentally shaving off my beard and sideburns. On the plus side, I was easily recognizable to my former classmates (though less so for Elaine and Owen), but sadly it's probably going to be a while before my beard and I are reunited.

Beach Trip

2008 is an off year for our biennial beach trip to the Outer Banks, but Owen had so much fun at swimming lessons and playing in the sand at the Pond that we couldn't let the Summer slip away without a quick trip to the coast. Mid-September is a dicey time for a beach trip, but Summer held on for one last weekend of gorgeous weather, and while Bethany Beach isn't quite the Outer Banks, it served us well for frolicking in the waves and leaving footprints in the sand. Owen was much more adventurous with the Atlantic than last time around, delighting in running on the beach with the surf licking his toes, but he still preferred to hold on tight to Mommy or Daddy while facing the crashing waves. Hopefully next year we'll get the crew back together for another beach adventure.

(click here to see all the pictures)

finished...

We took Owen to see the Jim Henson exhibit at the Smithsonian International Gallery today (thanks for the tip Brad!), and Owen absolutely loved it. His favorite part was a puppet theater with a giant Kermit the Frog and a tiny Cookie Monster. The theater had a TV camera and multiple monitors, and while Owen didn't do any performing himself, his squeals of laughter propelled many other aspiring puppeteers to newfound heights. Unfortunately photography was not allowed in the exhibit, and we forgot to take any pictures at Andrew and Clare's new house on Saturday (Owen had a great time playing with their son Luke, and of course Mia was there to join in the fun too), so instead the pictures in this post will cover our latest home improvement projects. We just had the house painted this week (Creekside Green was the winning color), and earlier this year we had the kitchen remodeled, so now we're finally done with all the big projects we had planned for the house.

(click here to see before and after pictures)

No, it's Iowa...

Living on the east coast it's easy to forget how idyllic summers in Iowa can be. The weather has been perfect, the fruit has been delicious, the tractors have been fun, and the pond has been wonderful as usual. Owen has had a blast running around Grandpa and Grandma Z's house, playing in the grass, chasing butterflies and bunny rabbits. We met Leanna and Troy's baby Grace on Monday just six days after she was born (and just five days after Owen's birthday). On Tuesday Owen charmed all the folks at the retirement home in Des Moines visiting Ethel and Karen. Uncle Bernie drove down on Wednesday and Ken & Helen came over for yet another celebration of Owen's second birthday (this one involved ice cream cake). Thursday convinced Owen that Iowa is a great place when he got to drive Uncle Ken's tractor (daddy took the wheel while turning, but Owen was very insistent that only he was allowed to shift gears). On Friday we kicked it up a notch when Owen got to ride in cousin Kent's digger and play on cousin Kent's firetruck! After the firetruck, a last trip to the pond to play in the sand and pick fresh plums (Owen took a few bites out of ten different plums which doesn't bode well for his diapers) preceded one more visit with Leanna, Troy and baby Grace. Now on Saturday we're driving back to Aunt Katherine's house, then on to DC and back to life in the big city.

 

(click here to see all the pictures)

On the Road, Part II

After packing a day's worth of activities into a single morning at Aunt Katherine's, we assumed Owen would be sufficiently tired to sleep at least half the way to Uncle Steve & Aunt Becky's. Alas, he was awake before we entered Indiana and growing restless by the time we hit Illinois. By the time we reached the door, he was about to implode from pent up energy. Fortunately we were greeted by all of Owen's cousins plus a couple of their friends who led Owen to their newly installed jungle gym and offered him every toy known to mankind plus some baby bunny rabbits nesting by their mailbox . Two hours later, Owen was ready to crash and after a book read by Olivia and a song sung by Maura, he was out for the count.

Sunday began with outside play with his cousins followed by church, which was essentially more outside play for Owen as he was so filled with the Spirit that he couldn't be contained for more than a few minutes at a time. After church we headed to Spring Valley where we saw horses, a six day old calf, and a plucky rooster. Then it was back to Steve & Becky's where Uncle Dave & Aunt Kara joined us for a barbecue while Owen napped. He woke up just in time for presents and a beautiful cake courtesy of Olivia who decorated it herself and was extremely generous with the food coloring, so much so that Olivia, Maura & Sam had to give Owen a bath immediately afterwards. After several more hours of running around outside, we finally packed up the van and headed to Grandpa and Grandma Z's, who were eagerly awaiting our arrival.

(click here to see all the pictures)

On the Road, Part I

Grandpa Fawcett convinced us we were crazy to leave DC after work Friday for our cross country trip to Iowa, so we only put in a couple of hours at the office before heading home via the park and library, where we quickly packed up the car, grabbed lunch and left for Aunt Katherine's. We planned it so that Owen would be exhausted by the time we hit the road and figured he'd sleep a nice chunk of the way. We didn't factor in I-270 traffic, however, and so when we came to a standstill outside Hagerstown so ended the sleeping quietly portion of our first leg. Happily, we'd borrowed Grandpa Fawcett's van which comes equipped with a DVD player and so Owen got to watch his first movie ever, The Jungle Book, while on route to Aunt Katherine's. And while we don't generally advocate using television to placate our child, thanks to it we managed to drive 6 1/2 hours without a single stop.

We got in around 9:00 that night and ran around and played while Katherine made dinner and then put the little guy to bed. The next morning involved riding trikes, searching for ducks, trying on football helmets, naked sprinkler time, climbing rocks, and investigating a train, all before lunch. Afterwards we headed to Uncle Steve & Aunt Becky's for leg number II.

Owen's Birthday 2.0

Owen's turning 2 has been a lot easier on me than his turning 1 last year was. Maybe it's because Owen's been saying "Happy Birthday Owen" for the past month and so the shock of his turning 2 has worn off. Or it could be I've just gotten used to the idea since I stopped giving his age in months around March (19 months just sounds weird) and started responding to inquiries about his age, "he'll be 2 in August." But probably the reason this birthday hasn't inspired the tears that last year's did is that Owen really hasn't been a baby for a while, and the fact that he's so excited for it to be his birthday makes feeling sad about it seem a bit silly.

Anyway, it's been a big year with a lot of ups and some pretty big downs. Through it all we've learned the following lessons:

1. "No" sometimes means "maybe”.
2. Bath time is infinitely more fun with bubbles, crayons and swim moves.
3. Never tell your child which Sesame Street character is on his diaper. Because while his preference ordering might very well be Ernie ≤ Cookie Monster ≤ Elmo, this only holds true if you haven't just put an Elmo diaper on him, in which case the ordering is reversed and tears are shed.
4. Saying "bye-bye" to an object beforehand makes it much easier when that object is gone. Saying "bye-bye" to people? Not so much.
5. Doggies are good in theory. In practice, the jury is still out.
6. Do not utter the words "cookie" or "ice cream" unless you are prepared to back them up.
7. Sitting on the potty is not the same thing as going potty.
8. It is much easier to put home videos on a loop then to hit "play" every few minutes at your child's bidding.
9. Pools, regardless of size and location, are humankind's greatest invention.
10. Babies are cute, but toddlers are fun.

Party Boy

We managed to get Owen's birthday presents fairly early this year and planned on giving him one the day of his birthday party and one on his actual birthday. But when softball fever hit in July and our 23 month old son was insisting on having real softballs hurled at him while he attempted to swing a real softball bat, we decided that maybe giving him his bat, ball, and glove early, wasn't such a bad idea. And it probably wasn't, except that we told him it was an early birthday present, which led to "Happy Birthday Owen" becoming his own personal mantra for the past three weeks.

Finally, the long wait is over.

On Saturday, Owen spent the morning riding his new tricycle (yeah, he got that a few days early as well) before going to swimming lessons, having lunch, and (eventually) taking a late nap. When he awoke, he was surrounded by his east coast grandparents, balloons, cake, stuffed animals, and more presents. He seemed overwhelmed with joy. Then Mia, Cole, Will and their respective parents showed up, at which point he became downright giddy. By the time we got to the cake & ice cream, I really didn't think it possible to have a happier child, but then I was proved wrong as more presents were unwrapped.

Not a single tear. Not a single tantrum. Clearly the best day of his life... so far.



(click here to see all the pictures)

The Fair

I grew up in Des Moines, home of the Iowa State Fair, and was an annual attendee at the event until I left for college and my parents moved away. It was there that I first discovered that any animal can be replicated in butter provided you have proper refrigeration. It was there that I won a green ribbon for my peanut-butter cookies when I was eight. It was there that I almost met Gloria Estefan & the Miami Sound Machine until my friend Lisa convinced me we should try and meet boys instead. And it was there that I discovered that boys that hang out at fairs are generally not worth missing a free concert for.

So when Brad, Marlo & Mia invited us to go to the Montgomery County Fair this past weekend, I was really excited to relive one of my childhood memories with Owen. The brochure they'd received boasted of the family friendly fun to be had and even mentioned a petting zoo. But when we first made it to the midway, the only animals to be had were those of the genetic mutation variety -- a dog with two bodies, the "zonkey," a zebra-donkey hybrid, Goliath the freakishly large horse -- whose main selling point appeared to be that they were alive. Inundated with carni-esque glory, I realized that we clearly weren't in Iowa and wondered if we had made a huge mistake.

But as we continued to make our way through the fair we eventually happened upon the local fire department which gave Owen & Mia helmets and let them check out the engine. A little further up the road we encountered the goat barns, followed by the sheep barns, rabbit pens, pig barns, and Owen's personal favorite, the cow barns where he and a champion jersey got into a mooing contest. There was a parade which included some mounted police and a lot of 4-Hers spreading their love of sheep and swine. After some barbecue, we happened upon a field of John Deere equipment which included a combine that was made into a slide. Before we left, we even managed to find the horse and pony stables and got to do a little petting.

It was threatening rain, but held off while we were there. And despite it being August, the temperature was in the low eighties the whole time. Owen and Mia and the rest of us had a pretty amazing time and we really couldn't have asked for more.

Except, maybe a butter cow.

Boundary Waters

While Elaine and Owen were home alone last week, I was feeling guilty while canoing in the Boundary Waters up on the Minnesota-Canada border. Seven years ago we went on our first Boundary Waters adventure, finally making good on Dad's promise to relive his boyscout adventures of his youth . This summer we decided to do one more Boundary Waters trip before the old guys were too old to carry a pack on a portage.

After a 14 hour drive to West Branch, IA on Friday, and a nine hour drive to Ely, MN on Saturday, we were towed up Moose Lake to Indian Portage and set our canoes in on Birch Lake early on Saturday morning. We made quick work of the five portages around a series of rapids on the Canadian border to make it to Knife Lake where we would spend most of the trip. Our first campsite was a lovely little spot with a view of Robbin Island, made all the better by the delicious steaks we packed for dinner on our first night.

On day two we paddled up Knife Lake, by Thunder Island, and into South Arm Knife Lake, where we found an amazing campsite that we would make home for the next three days. (Both the picture on this post are views from our base camp, which was on a small island in South Arm Knife Lake. The top picture looks from the big rock at the front of our camp back across a little cove in our island, and the bottom picture looks up the narrows alongside Thunder Island back up towards Knife Lake). From our base camp, we made a little excursion to Eddy Falls on our third day, and that night Thomas and I stayed up for a beautiful view of the night sky (sadly the northern lights weren't out this trip, but we did see the International Space Station, which was considerably brighter than it was seven years ago) . On the fourth day we made a big circuitous loop up to the Canadian border and back with lots of fishing along the way. Thankfully Thomas caught some fish and Cary the wonderful backwoods chef fried up some delicious appetizers. Music was provided by David and Jimmy who egged each other on singing more and more obscure (at least to the ears to someone under 40) songs from the last 70 or so years.

The beauty and serenity of our little island base camp really gave us a wonderful place to enjoy nature and reflect on all the things that bring us to the Boundary Waters. Thomas and I had a wonderful chance to bond with our fathers, while planning the next trip when we will take our sons. (As soon as they can carry a pack we think they'll be ready, although we figured that we might have to break the all guy tradition if we can convince Joe to bring along Gigi, but we figure we'll have to wait and see which parent she takes after to see if she'd be up for the canoe camping experience).

By the fifth day it was time to start the long journey home. We paddled all the way back to Birch Lake putting all of the portages behind us, with a stop to climb thunder point along the way. We made it to our camp on Birch Lake just in time to beat the rain, and after the rain stopped, Thomas put his fire making skills to the test by building a roaring one match fire out of some shockingly wet wood. On the morning of the sixth day we paddled to our pick up point and had a 'tow' back down Moose Lake. After a quick lunch in Ely we drove back down to West Branch. The next day we stayed in Iowa for the Fawcett Sweet Corn Festival, then drove back to D.C. on Sunday.

By Sunday night I was home, and Owen gave me the most amazing welcome home I could ever imagine. He was nearly beside himself with his joyous shouts of "Daddy! Daddy! I Love Daddy!" and the hugs and kisses just didn't stop. And of course I have to thank Elaine for being such a wonderful wife taking care of Owen and the home front while I was away and letting me go on such an exciting adventure.

(Click here to see the highlights from the trip)
(Click here to see all 200 pictures)

Just the two of us...

Allen left last Friday for 10 days, including a 7 day stint canoeing in the boundary waters where he will only be available via satellite phone one hour a day. Due to the ridiculously high charges associated with communicating via satellite, Allen implied that I should only call him if copious amounts of blood were involved. As that hasn't been the case yet, Owen and I have been largely on our own.

It's been ok. The first night I made the mistake of thinking that admonishing Owen not to hurt himself while I used the bathroom 10 feet away was sufficient to insure that he didn't hurt himself. 3 seconds later I heard a "thud" and a scream as he fell off a stool. Saturday we managed to make swim lessons, play in his pool and pick out paint samples while contractors worked on our kitchen. Sunday we had a brief reprieve with swimming and dinner at Mom mom's after a morning of errands and the park. By Monday, Owen had resorted to wearing women's shoes in public. By Tuesday, I was taking him to bars.

It's now Wednesday. We're more than halfway through and things are looking up. Owen had two friends over to play this evening (or rather, two of the neighborhood kids invited themselves in to check out Owen's toys), we had dinner in the dining room like civilized people, and as a special treat, Daddy called to say that he was ok (apparently he isn't bound by the copious blood standard).

So what if bedtime has gravitated to nine o'clock, that we ate dinner standing over the kitchen counter last night and that bath time has degenerated into 3 minutes of Owen screaming and refusing to sit while I dump soap and water over him? Allen will be home in four more days and then all will be well.

Until he goes to Vienna in September...

Pedal to the Metal

Owen had a fun day at Mom Mom and Grandpa Don's on Saturday filled with new experiences. We went swimming in Rose's pool and Owen took a liking to jumping off of the diving board. After seeing daddy jump off of the diving board Owen decided it was "Owie's turn." His first few attempts at jumping off involved sitting down on the end of the board and scooting off into daddy's arms, which while not quite a proper jump, was still pretty impressive. After a few rounds of "Owie jumping" it was time for, "Owie daddy jump," which involved me jumping off the diving board while holding Owen. The excitement of the jump was apparently worth the dunk under water at the end of the jump, as Owen reeled off peels of laughter and demanded to jump again and again. We capped off the pool fun with a few more pool tosses, then went back over to Mom Mom and Grandpa Don's. Owen went straight for his tricycle and we thought it would be a good idea to try teaching him how to pedal. To our surprise, he hopped right on his tricycle and took off pedaling without any instruction from us. I guess he's learned a thing or two at daycare that didn't show up on his report card...

Let the record show...

Owen has apparently mastered playing purposefully with toys. We know this because he received an "M" for "plays purposefully with toys" on his first progress report from daycare. We receive updates periodically on Owen's development and have even had conferences a few times with his caretakers, but this is the first time that a letter grade has been attached to his ability to try and manage his own behavior (he got a "D" for developing on that one). We're not really sure what to make of it all, and we're not sure how accurate it is -- trust me, "Owie" is beyond "beginning" to refer to himself by name -- but we thought that you might find it as amusing as we did.

Home Again

It's hard to complain too much when work sends you to Paris, but I really missed Elaine and Owen while I was away, and a nice long three day holiday weekend together when I returned was just what we all needed. Despite not having any real plans for the 4th (other than recovering from jet-lag), we had an absurdly full weekend.

On Saturday morning Owen had his first swimming lesson. After a rocky start involving daddy's jet-lag, mixed up start times, and an aqua-aerobics class, Owen's swim lesson turned into quite the success. He blew bubbles, kicked, and went under water on multiple occasions. By the end of the lesson he was feeling a bit clingy, and wasn't sure about the deep end (although he loved saying 'deep end'). Our tired little boy needed a big nap to prepare himself for the rest of his exciting day.

Tadashi, one of Owen's friends from daycare, had his second birthday party on Saturday afternoon. The thrill of seeing his daycare buddies Tadashi and Leo on a weekend was almost too much excitement. All the boys had cake for a little extra sugar rush, and Owen and Leo spent much of the party running around like they were at a track meet.

For days now Owen has been saying, "Mia water," in hopes that we'll take him swimming with his friend Mia again. On Sunday his wishes came true as the rain held off just long enough for us to go swimming with the Brown's at their neighborhood pool, and grill some delicious fajitas for dinner. All told it was a great weekend.

(click here to see the Paris pictures)

Daddy, we miss you.

Allen left on Saturday for Paris. This is the first time Allen has been on an extended trip since Owen was almost four months old, and while I can't be certain that Owen is more upset than last time (he cried a lot back then so it's hard to determine how much was for Allen), he's certainly better equipped to express his displeasure at his father's absence this time around. He screamed "Daddy sit!" when we dropped Allen off at the metro station, pointing towards the front seat and crying inconsolably. He was so convincing that Allen briefly did sit, although we decided this was just prolonging the inevitable and so he eventually, while tearing up a bit himself, said goodbye. Owen has called for Daddy to tuck him in each night and Allen's picture has joined us at the dinner table lest we break bread without him. While we've managed to talk several times and Allen has left voice messages for us, it's still shaping up to be a long and lonely week.

Fortunately, Allen gets back Thursday afternoon and should be able to put Owen to sleep that night at which point everything will be right again with the world. Until Allen leaves for his canoe trip in three weeks...

We're still not getting one...

Allen and I had tickets on Saturday to Anthony & Cleopatra (because nothing says "Happy 5th Anniversary" like a double suicide following a disastrous military campaign). Mom Mom & Grandpa Don graciously agreed to babysit for us and as a special treat, took Owen to visit Don's son, Jeff. Jeff and his wife Krista have a Bernese Mountain dog named Luna who's been trained to pull a cart which just happens to be Owen-sized. Owen happily took a test drive and quickly decided that canine carriages are the coolest rides out there.

----Updated----
Now with video!

Father's Day

After a lovely brunch, and nice long nap, we took Owen to the pool with Brad, Marlo and Mia on Father's Day. As you can see from the video, he thought the real pool was a bit more exciting than the wading pool on our deck...

Beat the Heat

We came close to setting some records in Washington this past weekend with 96 degree heat and the type of humidity that makes it feel far worse. Even so, we managed to have all sorts of outdoor fun on Sunday. Our strategy consisted of a two pronged attack: an early morning trip to the zoo, and a late afternoon dip in the pool.

We hit the zoo in the morning before the crowds and the heat materialized and managed a quick visit to see the lions and tigers; a stop in the air conditioned Great Ape House to hang out with the orangutans; a stroll through the mister; and Owen's favorite, a round of monkey high fives at the secret monkey statue garden.

During Owen's nice, long, sun-induced three hour nap, we realized that the neighborhood pool isn't open on Sundays. Not to be deterred, we blew up the old wading pool from last year's trip to the beach, and hit the deck for some backyard swimming.

Owen loved everything about it, from his new zebra swim trunks to splashing mommy with cold water. Looks like we'll have to take him to the real pool soon...

Moppet News Flash

Owen now says "water" instead of "wa-wa." While I'm proud of his speech development and elocution, it makes me more than a little sad to see him grow up. Fortunately, he still says "ee-ah" for monkey.

And now for your listening pleasure...

Owen demands that we sing to him constantly, but he only wants to hear the hits -- his favorite song is "Ba Ba Black Sheep," followed by "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" (a.k.a. "Ba Ba Black Sheep" with hand motions -- hand motions are very important to the toddler set), "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" and "Do-Re-Mi." This can be very tiresome for us, particularly Allen, who feels this erodes any indie-rock cred he'd built up over the years. Allen's solution? Create hand motions to accompany songs you enjoy singing, such as Grand Champeen's Train Whistle...

Babysitting Gigi

Our good friends Joe & Cate were in town this past weekend for a wedding and we had the good fortune of not only having them stay with us for a visit, but since kids were not invited to the wedding, we had the pleasure of babysitting little Gigi Mettenburg! Gigi and Owen were pretty adorable together, and aside from a couple tears from Owen when mommy was holding someone else, and a little resistance to the idea of sleeping without mommy and daddy near by from Gigi, the whole babysitting adventure went amazingly well.

Of course we also had a wonderful time hanging out with Joe & Cate as always (although sadly there was no time for any bridge this visit). If only St. Louis were as close as Charlottesville...

(click here to see all the pictures)