A Sunday at the Park

Joe had to work so Oliver and I got to spend some extra time—just the two of us—together his weekend.  After a difficult couple of weeks at work, today was just what I needed.

I love this little boy.  He was such a trooper for the whole day even though I tried to cram a weeks worth of mommy and me time into one day and he is teething again.  He was patient, sweet, and wonderful. 

We woke up, ate and got ready for church.  However, Oliver passed out and slept too late for us to make the 9:30 service.  When he woke up, we changed and walked to the DuPont Circle farmer's market.  Then we walked to a nearby bakery for a latte and pastry.  Oliver and I found a nice spot in the shade in DuPont Circle and spent a couple hours reading, walking and playing in the grass, looking at the ducks in the fountain, eating, napping, and people watching.

 Next stop, the bookstore.  Afterward, we stopped at the little city park that Oliver goes to with Sheryl pretty regularly.  She has told me stories about how much he loves going on the swing.  This week she said that another woman at the park told her she had never seen a baby giggle so much while swinging.  People often ask her if he has ever been on a swing before.  I got to push him on the swing for the first time.  I learned something new that I love about Oliver, he really does enjoy the swing like it is his first time, every time.  It was non-stop giggles for the full ride.

We stopped at Whole Foods and then got home where he promptly ate and feel asleep.  The rest of the evening was the usual, play/read, eat, bath, and bed routine. 

Oliver started essentially crawling about a week ago.  He does not lift his belly so it is more an army crawl, but he is fast.  He also figured out how to sit himself up a couple days ago.  He pulls himself to standing in his crib.  Yes, it has gotten very scary, very fast.  Tonight, I was blending up some mango and eggplant for his meals this week when he “crawled” from his toys on the living room mat (where I can watch him from the kitchen) into the kitchen with me.  After picking up the cat bowls and quickly wiping down the floor, I let him stay with me in the kitchen.  He made a move toward an extension cord in he corner.  I said “Oliver”, and he turned right around (spun on his belly) and looked up at me; smiled and went back toward the cord.  I said “Oliver, no-no”  He spun around again and smiled.  One more time, except this time he looked at me and shook his head no-no (did not say it) and crawled away from the cord.  We did this routine 2X tonight.  I have to admit, I was totally impressed that he (1) so clearly knew his name and (2) understood “no, no.”

I wish I could have more days just like today, but I also know I am so lucky to get every one of these wonderful days with this amazing little baby boy.