We spent the weekend furiously trying to pull in some quality family time, what with spending recent free hours stationing the three year old in front of some awful princess movie and hitting the snooze button.
Warp speed has continued for us, and will do so through mid-September when I will finish my wine program and likely die of exhaustion. We have been having visitors, thank heavens, to break up the tragic monotony of work-and-school-and-work-and-school, but have paid dearly for every moment with them over the week following their stay with us, when we look around and realize no one has had time to grocery shop and we’re going on day four of waking to find there is nothing clean to wear to work.
We had been planning to drive down to the Monterey Bay Aquarium and dazzle the baby with penguins and sea otters for some
time. Saturday was the day and along with the “big fishies and little fishies”, the baby was absolutely estatic to discover cotton candy, a thing she had heard about but never seen in person. She chomped down a tottering cyclone of blue cotton candy as we strolled the 1.5 miles to the Aquarium. She could have stopped there but the Aquarium did not disappoint, and we even had time to do the whole clam-chowder thing on the pier before driving back home.
Sunday morning I pulled some time in at work while the wife and kid attended a successful 2-year old birthday party that apparently involved chocolate cupcakes, great coffee, and a guest named Xander, in honor of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer character.
Nursing the activity hangover that afternoon, we stopped into Bakesale Betty for her infamous fried chicken sandwich and lemon ice, grabbed a seat on the sunny sidewalk and chowed down. It felt lovely to people watch our truly rad and diverse neighborhood, and I felt encouraged by the fact that we live in a community that embraces sitting on stools along the sidewalk at tables made of brightly painted ironing boards. With all our pushing and life-building to the “next big thing”, I sometimes forget how amazing life is just outside my kitchen window.
The baby is also relishing the moment. She takes a bite of her chicken, and a long draw of lemon-ice and reflects on her weekend. She is smiling.
“What’s up, baby?”
She leans over and hugs me deeply, burying her face into my shoulder.
“I’m so happy my tears are coming out”, she says.
I hug her back.
“Why are you so happy today, sweetie?” I whisper into her ear, still laying against my face.
“Because I love you” she replies.