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No Sleep Till 2 AM

Dear Hazelita,
I feel your late night owl sleep patterns are correcting themselves back to normal (normal for you has been sleeping through the night until at least 7:30 since the day we brought you home)...and as I typed this I know I am threatening the sleeping beddy bedtime gawds to shake your bed and tickle your toe and wake you up.  You're not a cranky teether, just an awake one.  So the other evening I took pictures of what a baby lady does at 2 AM.  The answer, just about everything.  
You like to play with your little barn, only at this late hour.
You love taking the big bricks out of the box, arranging them on the fireplace and putting them all back, and repeat. 
You want something to drink.
You want a little snack.
You want to dance to the music I put on to try and sooth you to sleep, and steal the remote and change the channel to some weird Mexican reggae dance hall music...and then hid the remote, of which I still am searching.

When I asked you where you put it you shrugged your shoulders.
You like to roll on the floor.

You like to pull out the National Geographics and pretend you're reading it while pointing to pictures and making words that may be the languages of some of the people featured.

You like to say new words of your own...like, "Go pee, pee!" 
You also seem to enjoy stopping all the above to mean mug me as if I'M the one keeping YOU up, several times! 

I love it.  You are so funny and ornery at the same time.  It is sweet, cute and some you and me time...but I'll just let you know, we can get all this done by midnight, too.  I am not complaining.  We have friends whose little boy your age doesn't sleep longer than a couple of hours at a time, ever.  I feel for them.  I am also sooooo grateful this is fun for me because it isn't the norm. (Let's keep it that way!)
Love, Mama

Good Morning!

Surprises!

Dear Travelers, 
Our two weeks in Florida was plentiful with peeks of this and that, lots of animals.  With surprises at every turn, one of my favorite days was spent at Animal Kingdom.  Despite an oddly cold day we made it through as many places as we could.  We warmed up with Daddy's stocking stuffer hand warmers we had stowed in his backpack.  You cuddled yours Hazel and Henry you kept yours in your hip pocket looking for a little bit of toasty.  Daddy had them tucked around his hood.  

We started the animal tour on the safari jeep ride.  Super fun!  The two of you sat on the seat next to me peeking out, being the first to name out the animals, being sure to remind me to check the off in the Explorer booklet.  

The bloat of hippos and the congregation of alligators were exciting!

We were able to work our way through Africa, getting distracted in an area that featured a stream with brightly colored fish.  

After turning the corner we saw yet another stream cross section with what appeared to be just more of these fish.  Just as Mommy started to say, "Yep, more fish," a large thing floated in front of the window.  I said "Oh, Manatee! OH OH OH! No! A GIANT HIPPO!"  It floated across the window and just when you were about to walk away, the hippo turned and the GIANT FACE WAS RIGHT NEXT TO YOUR FACE!  We all flipped out!  It was beyond cool and so unexpected!

Even more unexpected was the thrill of riding a big roller coaster with you, Expedition Everest.  This sucker had you screaming the entire time from the front seat and begging and cheering for another ride when it ended!  I loved hearing you telling daddy about the yeti ripped apart tracks that you thought we would fly off, the backwards, the dark and the "exhilarations."  This meant we would be riding roller coasters at every opportunity.  
   A really amazing opportunity at Animal Kingdom is the Wilderness Explorer program.  We started our visit by getting a booklet that put us on a scavenger hunt to learn about the animals and places you see around the park.  It was so well laid out and had a funky gestures you learn at the start that you were sold on it right away and driven to find all the info you could.  

In particular you loved the gorillas and the people working that station.  Their enclosure was great, if you have to be an animal in an enclosure.  There is a lot of room for them to roam.  

You both loved watching them, touching the skulls and seeing how you measure up against a gorilla's size.

Finally, we made it to the enclosed conservation learning center and by the time we made it out it warmed up for about an hour.  We pet some goats and pigs.  

If this was all we had done the entire day it would have been enough.  Daddy had goats all around you (Hazel) and his chair rubbing their backs and eating his mug.  You were all giggles, while Henny, you were busy brushing some blissfully sleeping pigs.  

After washing hands and getting something to eat the cold made it impossible to stay.  We went to see the Nemo production in one last hope that it would warm up by the time it was over.  No such luck, but it was super neat and elaborate.  Hazel, you popped the bubbles falling down on us at the end with such joy, it made it worthwhile.  We headed back to the buses, went back to the hotel and tried to get warm and rest.  

This was my favorite day at the Disney parks by far and one place I would return to for the parts we didn't make it to; Dino World and Asia.  I loved learned and exploring with you both, my little Wilderness Explorers, Caw Caw.

Love, Mama

Hold on tight, Let it go

Dear Beach Babies, 
We spent a day in Daytona Beach.  A great beach as it allows Daddy's chair to run effortlessly across its compact sands.  This was the day I most looked forward to, images of my babies running and chasing Daddy across the sand, skipping feet through the cool water.  

As I watched the two of you play some things that were already obvious to me became striking in a new way.  You both have a lot of enthusiasm for new things, a zeal for jumping right in after a cautious survey of your surroundings.  Henry you were beyond any bit self control to be able to wait to make it to the beach.  When we got to the water's edge Daddy and I hung back a minute.  You stood and stared, digging your toes into the sand.  You stretched your arms wide out to your sides, welcoming it all, before crouching to your knees and grasping your hands out, plunging them into the sand and squeezing the sand over and over.  

 

 
You'd pull out a fist full and pile it to the side, over and over.  I felt like you were having a real moment connecting to the earth, the water, the sand.  

 

I was touched watching you.  The rest of the day went like this for you, squeezing all you could around you, including Hazel.  

  This is pretty much our day today at home, too.  You like to grab, squeeze, and compress us and the world around you.  You can bring such depth and intensity to things sometimes, with a tender edge.  I enjoyed watching you run around and try to slip your arms under the water's edge, only to get splashed in the face.  
    Hazel, you on the other hand, bring light and air to your experiences.  Timid at first, you were unsure of the sand and water, only allowing a single big toe to dig.  

You stretched your body long and threw your arms back to catch the wind. 

 Grabbing the sand, you threw small fists high into the air allowing the wind to blow it around.  

 

 

You plopped your feet in the water resulting in grand splashes that converted to giggles.  At one point you shoved your head into the water, standing up quickly you squealed; until you lost your balance and were completely wet!  

 

 

 You are such a sensory seeker you used your head as a bulldozer, moving sand along in front of you.  Your gentle way with a punch at the end seems so joyful and buoyant.  
      You both are so different, yet I love that variety and the challenges those differences bring.  To top our day, the ice cream truck drove along the beach and we were ready.  Henry you tried to protect Hazel from the cars crossing the beach but she was too concerned with catching up to me to eat her Screwball ice cream.  

 

 

 We played together a bit more before we were kicked off the beach as the sun set, Daddy chased you both some and enjoyed your love of the beach.  

A beautiful afternoon with my family, complete with some insight into how you each operate.  I had a moment of sadness for those that don't get to leave the area they live in, those who don't get a break, those who don't get to see different trees and landscape.

  There is nothing like it for moments of peace and perspective.  I am grateful Daddy works so hard that we are able to take such a trip, to give you these experiences every human deserves. 
Love, Mama