Summertime Adventures

Lucy and I have been busy! We went up to Maine for the 4th of July. Lucy was much less trepidatious about going in boats, though still not what I would call eager. Still, she got in her life jacket just fine and survived all of her boating experiences without tears. Here she is looking at Tumble Down Dick before we rowed over.

Uncle Henry came with us and showed Lucy how to skip rocks:

The next day, Uncle Henry went home, so we brought him to the mainland on Gramps' boat. Here is Lucy looking not-miserable with me:

Since Maine, Lucy has helped Elliot and me celebrate our birthdays in style. "It's my birthday?" "No, Lucy. It's Daddy's birthday." "It IS my birthday." February is a hard concept for a two-year-old to grasp in July.

Third Annual Trip to Maryland

Lucy, Henry and I met Grammy down in Maryland last weekend for a lovely visit with Grandma and Grandpa. Lucy did very well on the plane ride down - asking if she was safe as we took off and enjoying the individual TV that Jet Blue provided her. It was a relatively quick flight, but she's also at an age where we can talk about what's happening and help her manage some of the anxieties a new experience like this present.

The pool at my grandparents' place was a big feature again this year. Lucy showed her characteristic trepidation at first, but warmed up to it very well after a little while. By the end of her last dip, she was actually starting to paddle with her arms and kick with her legs. Here she is resting and taking in the surroundings:

All the swimming tired Lucy out so much that she fell asleep at lunch on Sunday. She literally couldn't keep her eyes open, and I was at a bit of loss until Grandma suggested that we let her sleep on the floor. So, with a napkin as a pillow, Lucy happily curled up in the corner of the dining room next to us and slept while the grown-ups enjoyed a tasty lunch at Londonderry.

That night for dinner, we went out to a Japanese steakhouse nearby with Uncle Tom and Aunt Pam who came up to see us while we were visiting. Lucy was NOT a fan of the flames that the exhibition-style cooking generated. She noticed it at other tables after we arrived and was ready to bolt once our chef started cooking for us. Fortunately, he was willing to forgo the flames once we realized that Lucy wasn't going to warm up to them and then we just enjoyed fancy knife skills and tasty food. For the next few days, though, Lucy kept reminding me: "No fire, Mommy. Tell the man no fire."

It was a wonderful trip - great to see so much family and enjoy some time relaxing with each other. Now we're back at Wellesley and enjoying seeing Elliot a little more now that Explo has gotten underway. Lucy and I will head up to Islesboro on Sunday to celebrate the 4th of July. She's expressing interest in going in the rowboat and exploring "the island." We'll see how it goes!