Rosalie and her buddy Raya are taking swimming lessons at a pool in the area that is heated perhaps even more than Seattle pools are heated. These lessons began in April, and sometimes we parents find ourselves huddled in our parkas while we watch our kids swimming comfortably in the pool, from which steam is rising. Anyway, Rosalie is loving her lessons, especially since it also means:
Goggles.
What an invention; it's like having an extra superpower. She's still not a huge fan of dunking her whole head in water and has had her share of spluttering moments, but she's forging onward.
By the way, the girls are wearing life vests here because they went into the big pool to use the big waterslide the other day. She loved going on that slide.
Brave!
Mom, Rosalie and I went to Oklahoma this month to see relatives and friends. How on earth did I take exactly one picture on my phone this whole time?
Here's Rosalie at IHOP on our way to Tulsa from OKC. We had a good time on our trip. It was great to catch up with loved ones, introduce Rosalie to some family & friends, and also to have a chance to help, if only in a tiny way, some of the people who were hit by that tornado two weeks ago.
Rosalie was a 5-star traveler on this trip. I imagine that there were times when she got bored when the grownups were talking, but between coloring books, the occasional video or pet kitty, or a kid or two her age, she made it through like a rock-star big kid.
Springtime (and my accidental over-ordering of 4 cubic yards of compost) has brought with it a ton of gardening, and Rosalie has been helpful with planting starts & seeds with me. She also sometimes likes to get lost in the back yard, singing songs. The other day we assembled a tiny bouquet with flowers found around the garden. It was so irresistible that it led to an impromptu photo shoot.
Another wonderful thing about this warmer weather has been the chance to play with some neighbor kid friends. Two sisters across the street (11 and 8 years old) have adopted Rosalie in the sweetest way. We've set up forts with blankets and camping chairs in the front lawn, and many games of chase and hide & go seek have erupted around here as well. We're lucky that there are so many kids on this block. One of my favorite times of day is after school when a good game is going on in our front yard, where I can watch & listen with the windows open while I'm making dinner. All is right in the world. At one point I came out to take a shot of this. Has a hula hoop ever been more adorable?
Too bad these kids are camera shy.
I have similar feelings of life contentment when we have a block party. I'm sure I've mentioned this in years past, but in Seattle if your block is an approved place (such as not on a major arterial), you can apply for a permit once a month to close down your street on either end of the block and have a party in the street. During the spring and summer our block does it several times. Anyway, we had another one this last Friday, and Rosalie had a blast, although she was probably still slightly wiped out from the OK trip.
I love it when the kids run around in packs, screaming, laughing, ordering each other around. They are probably biologically supposed to do all of this. Meanwhile the adults are catching up, laughing, and occasionally being as silly as the kids. We join in to chat & joke with people, but sometimes after we've gone inside with the party still happening, I feel just as good with windows open, letting all the happy rumble of community bonding happen right near me. I'm just glad we're doing it. The details are less important.
There have been other adventures since the last post. When Michael is "on duty" during the weekend, he really likes taking Rosalie to one of the places where we have memberships. So a zoo trip and Museum of Flight happened this last month:
The zoo has this great little building that sells popsicle sticks with peanut butter and birdseed on them, and birds come down to have a bite.
Kid...in....spaaaaaaaace!
This was taken in Ocean Shores recently, but I cannot remember when. Maybe even January or February. Our regular treks to see Grandma & Grandpa are always great, and since it's often chillier there, we are often wearing the same warm coats. But anyway, there we are! Hope you're having a happy spring.
