Wading pools, bathroom windows, and babysitting

 

I learned several things today.  In no particular order:

1. Always bring toys to the wading pool.  You need some goods to barter otherwise you're going to have the schmuck toddler who runs around stealing other water toys with nothing to give in return.  Also, don't eat all the snacks before the lifeguard calls all clear for chemical treatment.  Yesterday I literally had to tackle Hudson to keep him from running into the water while she treated it and all the other kids seemed to wait so patiently, not kicking and screaming.  I had that kid.  However, today I had food to hunker down with, and in the quiet I could hear some other toddlers screaming... perhaps I just couldn't hear them yesterday over Hudson's own noise...

2. Never lock the door without keys.  Our front door can be locked by turning the switch on the handle on the inside and then pulling it shut behind you.  Not cool if you've accidentally left your keys inside.  What's even less cool is when you get to within a block from home after walking in the midday heat from the Green Lake wading pool to realize you don't have keys, and figure that they must have fallen out at the lake so walk back in the heat to look again in the grass and ask the lifeguard, only to find nothing, because, of course, they are in your living room.  Back at home, and with toddler finally waking up from his nap (spent entirely in transit in the stroller to and from the lake twice), the only option is to grab one of Ben's painting ladders from the side of the building and set it up next to the bathroom window.  Distract toddler from trying to climb with you.  Try not to think about the chain of events that will ensue if you fall and land on either the concrete outside or the mass of tile and porcelain surfaces inside.  Try not to break the towel rack even though it seems to be the only thing between you and a concussion against the bathroom counter.  Cheerfully say hi to toddler as you appear from the front door as if nothing happened, except that you are considerably dirtier and more out of breath than when he saw you last.

3.  Have the babysitter come early.  But try not to have your ride show up too.  Hudson cries whenever anyone comes over, whether I'm staying or leaving.  He just assumes I'll be leaving.  We don't have enough friends come over to hang out, we only have babysitters.  (Although Hudson actually got used to his Aunty Sarah the other day.)  So, the babysitter came fifteen minutes before my departure and Hudson was just coming out from behind my back where he was hunkered down with his sippy cup, playing some very coy peekaboo, when my ride to the poetry reading came and his anxiety got all riled up again.  I almost might have been able to say goodbye without tears.  But you know, I will take it as it is, because at least he bawls because he loves me and is attached healthily.  Within fifteen minutes he's fine and playing enthusiastically. 

What a day.

Flap your wings like a chicken!

Hudson flaps happily at... something in the garden.

We attended the Seattle Garden Show yesterday with the explicit aim of spending time in the Playgarden for kids they had set up there.  (And also to see the fabulous garden designs on the other side of the show as well.)  We each paid the entrance fee of $20, which I still feel a little queasy about,  but I feel like it was worth it.  Hudson was squirming in my arms while waiting in line so much that I was not about to question the ticket booth attendant about their pricing policy. 

When we finally made it inside and figured out where the Playgarden was, we had a super duper great time.  We had to make it through the trauma of watching the musician, Caspar Babypants, play the guitar that Hudson couldn't touch (trauma of all traumas).  He played fun songs though, and all the OTHER kids were dancing around and jumping up and down, not squirming on the floor and crying.  Sigh. 

Little Guy digging in the seeds!

The next challenge was going into the "chicken coop" and desperately wanting, then not wanting, to touch the hen.  There were bigger kids picking up the hen and touching it, and I think it was also a bit crowded (Hudson could not maintain physical contact with me at all times) so Hudson was both ecstatic and freaking out at the same time.  He was flapping his little arms at the chicken intently, but then he'd reach out for it, and then retreat emphatically and start crying.  The other adults were getting a kick out of it.  I'm glad we could provide some extra entertainment for you all. 

The digging gardens were the best.  That's where we found our rhythm.  There were planting boxes full of chicken feed that were set up like sand boxes with diggers and dumpers and sieves and cups.  Then there were planters full of real dirt and hidden vegetables that kids were digging out.  I can't imagine how much effort it took to set up that garden.  Hudson played in the seeds with the trucks (filling the dump truck, dumping it out) nearly forever and only had a couple toddler run-ins when sharing the dump trucks became an issue.  He loved discovering the vegetables, and when he found a carrot he immediately tried to eat it.

I was mildly observant at the Playgarden and saw that it is in fact a permanent place in Seattle, somewhere in South Seattle, and by the looks of their website it is a pretty cool place.  Next time I think I will take the trip down there instead of paying $40.  But at least we brought our own lunch, and we were able to walk around and see some other garden fun at the show before Hudson descended into total pre-nap and overcrowded grumpiness.  He was happy again in his backpack as we walked up towards capitol hill where papa had parked the car, because there was traffic and taxis and trucks and other favorite vehicles. 

Thanks for a fun morning, Garden Show!

The toy dilemma: batteries and plastic and noises, oh my!

I'm one of those mamas that said she would never give her child a battery-operated toy and that everything would be made of wood, etc.  Then I saw how much those perfect wooden toys cost in the stores, even second hand ones.

The truth is that Hudson loves music and lights, so anything that makes music, or makes lights blink, or a combination of the two, is a winner.  Usually these toys are made of cheap plastic and require batteries, so I have accepted their presence in my home.  There are several toys that we cheered about when their batteries died and we decided to not replace them, but there are also toys that we keep the batteries in and that Hudson simply flipped over when we did replace dead batteries.

His favorite toys are currently his nightlights.  There are three of them, and none of them serve as night lights because they are so distracting to him that there's no way he will sleep if they are in the room.  The first one is the Cloud B Sea Turtle that I bought over a year ago and has been a button-pushing delight from the start.  It shines stars and a moon on the ceiling in two colors and also illuminates animal pictures (of endangered animals) around the turtle's shell.  They also make a regular turtle without the endangered sea creatures, but the box says that part of the price goes to organizations that protect them.  Hudson loves turning the stars on and off, changing the color, and finding the moon on the ceiling.

His other night lights are LED charged and don't require batteries, and he has a green turtle shape and a blue car shape, but they are the same brand as the truck I found an image of online (I know that's cheating).  He didn't know how to turn the light on and off at first, but now that he's a little bigger he can do it himself and the lights aren't a cause for frustration.

As for music, he has a whole passel of second-hand toys that make music electronically as well as naturally.  Of course, his favorite music-maker is the guitar, which he will drag around the house with him even though it's bigger than him.  He also has toy drums, a little plinky piano, and a little camera that sings songs.  When he's big enough to manage an iPod, I'm sure he'll be constantly "plugged in".

So what is Hudson getting for Christmas?  I bought him a "wooden stacking train" that has wooden pegs on each car for stacking some colored blocks.  He is getting into trains (the 1977 wind-up train is a hit, I'll have to post a picture of it!) and I think he'll like the blocks on it.  I hear rumor that he's getting some Dr. Seuss in Spanish from Grandma Mary Jeanne, but other than that we won't be showering him with too many Christmas gifts.  It will be his first Christmas he's big enough to start "getting" what's going on a little, at least physically able to open some presents, so we'll see how it goes.  He does know that Christmas trees are supposed to light up, and when we saw a tree unplugged in one of the community centers, he ran to it and asked to turn it on.  Like I said, anything that will light up will hold his attention for a long while.