Lake Season is Open

Lake Season is finally upon us! Our first lake weekend was also Memorial Day weekend. For the first year since I entered the teaching profession, school actually ended before the holiday weekend. I was so excited about a relaxing two days with family, movies, sun, and naps. I should have known better. When Barry goes to the lake, there is no relaxing . . . especially when his child is involved.

I'll start with the easy stuff. Canon got to spend a little more time with his new cousin, Xan. The last time they met, Canon was a little feverish so we kept them apart. As it turns out, Canon really wasn't bothered too much by that. Now that they are able to hang out, Canon's just not that interested. I hope this isn't any kind of foreshadowing for future siblings. The rest of us still had fun with him . . .

One person Canon was VERY interested in was Aunt Lydia. She taught him all kinds of new tricks, including how to climb on a stool to sneak chips off the counter.

And though he doesn't look completely ecstatic in this picture, he really loved riding on the SeaDoo with her.

Aren't aunts the best!

We also tried a little bit of swimming, but Canon wasn't so crazy about his lifejacket. He liked it best when his dad sat on the dock with his legs dangling in the water. Barry would hold him on his legs and bounce him up and down in the water. Apparently, it was much more fun than floating.

We also tried a sprinkler toy, but apparently it was just a little too aggressive for Canon. We'll try it again soon, I'm sure.Ok, now for the scary stuff. You already saw Canon on a SeaDoo. Well, he rode that several times with various people, and I was proud of myself for not hyperventilating every time he was passed across open water from one pair of slippery hands to another. I know I sound neurotic, but even though I'm an experienced swimmer and love the water, I have this freakish fear of drowning and an even freakish-er fear of my one-year-old son drowning. I blame it on the fact that I read "The Perfect Storm" as a teenager and paid much too close attention to the step-by-step breakdown of what your body goes through when you drown. It's horrifying . . . don't read it!

So, I pulled through on all of the SeaDoo experiences, then finally gave in to Barry's plea to let Canon ride the float. Now, I know what you are thinking. "A float? How dangerous can a float be?" You're absolutely right. A float is not dangerous . . . until it is pulled behind a motorized water vehicle at 30 mph and there are babies on it! Even after agreeing to this absurdity, my stomach was in knots. I made myself let Barry go through with it because I was too embarrassed to back down in front of so many people who assured me that it was fine. As it turns out, they were right! And it really was so much fun to watch him. He loved it!

Barry and Lydia rode with him. I have a hard enough time keeping myself on a float, and I didn't want to chance falling off. Jon rode beside them on the SeaDoo, just in case.

Can I say again how much he loved it?! Poppa drove as slow as possible to keep the float on top of the water and was very steady. I don't know if it was the water splashing up or the wind blowing in his face, but he really had a great time.

I think it's good that Canon has two parents who don't always have the same idea about what's "fun."

Hopefully, it will mean that he gets to experience all different kinds of fun and will find it all entertaining. And it definitely means that I'll be forced to participate in those same experiences so that Barry doesn't overestimate the abilities of a toddler. But that's ok. I've got plenty of "fun" quiet nights at home that I intend to force upon Barry and Canon at some point in the next fifty or so years!

We've Created a Monster: An Unreliable, Invalid, and Completely Ridiculous Parenting Theory

In the last couple of months, Canon has been biting Colt. It doesn't seem to be out of anger, or really for any reason at all. But it always ends with plenty of crying on both ends and a nasty mouth-shaped bruise on Colt's arm.

The other day, our tiny family was in the car headed . . . somewhere. Anyway, I was sitting in the backseat with Canon, trying to entertain him on our long road trip. He loves to stick his hand in my mouth and giggles incessantly when I lightly gnaw on it. After awhile, I decided to extend our little activity to his arm. You know, treating it like it was a corn cob, gnawing up and down repeatedly. I love to hear Canon laugh and will do practically anything to keep it going. I had only eaten about two rows of corn when I froze and looked at Barry, who by this point was watching us in the rearview mirror.

"I wonder why Canon likes to bite everybody?" was all I could ask as I sadly put his arm down. Until he learns how to gnaw instead of go for blood, we'll have to find other ways of making him giggle.

Not long after this, Canon was trying to take a toy from Colt, something he does quite often by the way. We had realized by this point that his stealing might possibly be due to a game of "give-and-take" that Barry likes to play with Canon. Again, an innocent attempt to hear that angelic chuckle. Well, Colt had had just about enough of Canon's bullying. Colt leaned down, mouth open and teeth bared to self-defensively "gnaw" into Canon's stealing hand. Again, lots of tears and more mouth-shaped bruises.



Since that time, we have quit playing "give-and-take" and "corn on the cob." The biting seems to have stopped, though Colt has gotten in a few more rounds. The stealing phase, however, is still in full swing. I guess we'll have to figure out some other way to teach him that everything does not belong to him.

Other Forms of Life

I'm not sure if it's due to my insecurities as a parent, or if it's simply because I like pretty things . . . but there is an indescribable feeling I have when the green buds in my garden beds finally split and my world begins to show signs of color. My flowers are finally blooming!

As I said, it is an indescribable feeling but, of course, I have to try. The first feeling is a sense of accomplishment. No matter how many children I disappointed at work that day or how many times I didn't give Canon what he wanted that day or how many times I rolled my eyes at Barry for doing (or not doing) something I knew he would (or wouldn't) do beforehand, I have brought these petals to life. Though God created them, I nurtured them, and I could have easily killed them - and often have. But I didn't this time. This one made it.

The second feeling is a feeling of hope. If I can make a flower grow, what else am I capable of? Should I change my career path and become a professional gardener? The hot sun quickly rising above me assures me that I shouldn't. Should I spend more time making my yard even more beautiful than it is? The crying baby inside and my husband's tight hold on the funding assures me that I can't.

The third feeling is a sense of acceptance. After getting over myself and my arrogance at having simply watered a plant a couple of times a week, I have acceptance that, in this particular area of my life, this is the best that I can do. And I'm ok with that.

Because I do so love to see beautiful things, I joined Leslie and Tuan on a Garden Tour in Dothan. It was on this Garden Tour that my feeling of accomplishment turned to a feeling of humility. These gardens were perfectly amazing. They truly are indescribable so I've included some pictures to help guide you through our tour.

These first few pictures are of Ed's aunt's garden. It was, by far, the most beautiful of the gardens we toured. This first flower was very interesting to me. I'm not sure what it is called.

I have this fascination with Container Gardening. I think it's because I have absolutely no idea how to do it. I was very eager to take pictures of as many potted plants as I could.

A couple of the houses just had a little "extra" that I thought were worth remembering.

And these are just some things that I liked.

,