06 August 2010
Maxin' and Relaxin' In Grandmama's Beautiful Yard
My mother has what must be the largest and most beautiful rose bushes in her back yard. They serve as the backdrop for this backyard pool party photoshoot. It took us until the last day of our trip to pull out the pool, but it was clearly a highlight of the trip.
PS. I opted not to include a live-action shot of the sneaky brown poop that emerged about 1/2 way into the party!
PS. I opted not to include a live-action shot of the sneaky brown poop that emerged about 1/2 way into the party!
Portland, Oregon
This summer has been full of visiting with grandparents. After spending the better part of 2 weeks in New Hampshire with Craig's family, we took Maceo on his maiden airplane voyage to visit Grandmama Martha in Portland. The weather was wonderful which gave us many opportunities for outside fun. What follows is a collection of photos from various adventures both near and far.
Fun at a city water park: As you can see from this collection, Maceo is fearless when it comes to the water!
Fun at a city water park: As you can see from this collection, Maceo is fearless when it comes to the water!
03 July 2010
40 feet, 86 degrees and 8 hours: Part 4
Ready for action!
How does this life jacket go on?
I love this photo.
Having a ball.
How does this life jacket go on?
I love this photo.
Having a ball.
40 feet, 86 degrees and 8 hours: Part 1
After a chance meeting at Whole Foods several months ago, Craig recently reconnected with an old friend from high school who had been living in Asia and recently moved back to Boston. After some facebook back-and-forth, we were invited to enjoy a pre-4th of July boat cruise on the Charles River with Jung and a few of his friends and family. In years past, Craig and I have precariously navigated inflatable rafts on the Charles to enjoy the July 4th fireworks display. Secure in our knowledge that we would not be making a similar trek this year with Maceo, we thought an afternoon cruise on a real boat sounded fun. Little did we know that the "real" boat would be a 40 foot vessel equip with a legitimate kitchen, dining room, 2 bedrooms, a full bathroom and seats for 20ish!
The weather was prefect: crystal clear, 86 degrees and sunny. We got a ride to the Quincy Marina where the boat was docked. By noon we were ready to pull out of the marina, coolers packed with snacks, lunch fixin's, and plenty of cold drinks. Only around 6pm did we discover that dinner would be on the hibachi grill: fillet mignon and sushi-grade salmon (did I mention one of the passengers was a sushi chef?)! Needless to say, it was an afternoon and evening to remember. One particularly cool element was floating under the Zakim Bridge and waiting for our turn to pass through the locks for entrance into the river. See photos for a visual. Once we passed through the locks, we anchored 100 yards downriver from the Mass Ave bridge and about 200 yards from the barge where the fireworks originate.
We initially thought we'd be able to hang out for about 3-4 hours and then need to take a dingy to shore once Maceo started to melt down. Apparently Maceo realized that this was a once in a lifetime opportunity (well, hopefully at least twice) and was an INCREDIBLE passenger. In a total of nearly 7 hours on the boat, he didn't cry once and only offered about 4 squeaks of sleepy protest (despite resisting all naps and MAYBE sleeping a total of 45 minutes). More on sleep challenges/solutions in a different post.
In concert with recent posts that Maceo seems to be a water baby, apparently he is also a boat baby. While he did not get into contact with the water of the Charles (for obvious reasons), he did spend a good chunk of time watching the sky line and the waves and seeming as happy as a clam as the the boat bobbed away (and occasionally rocked back and forth with some real vigor). At about 7:15pm, we reluctantly got on the dingy and headed to shore where we jumped off, snugged Maceo into the Ergo Baby carrier, make a quick stop at JP Licks on Newbury Street for a cool and creamy treat, and walked to the Mass Ave T stop to head home. I could go on an on, but I think the photos speak for themselves.
The views of the Boston skyline and waterfront were incredible and the entire experience was a real treat. Thanks go out to Jung and his family for graciously including us in such a memorable adventure. While it took Craig and I a collective total of 72 years to enjoy such an exciting luxury, Maceo managed to experience it at just 6.5 months.
The weather was prefect: crystal clear, 86 degrees and sunny. We got a ride to the Quincy Marina where the boat was docked. By noon we were ready to pull out of the marina, coolers packed with snacks, lunch fixin's, and plenty of cold drinks. Only around 6pm did we discover that dinner would be on the hibachi grill: fillet mignon and sushi-grade salmon (did I mention one of the passengers was a sushi chef?)! Needless to say, it was an afternoon and evening to remember. One particularly cool element was floating under the Zakim Bridge and waiting for our turn to pass through the locks for entrance into the river. See photos for a visual. Once we passed through the locks, we anchored 100 yards downriver from the Mass Ave bridge and about 200 yards from the barge where the fireworks originate.
We initially thought we'd be able to hang out for about 3-4 hours and then need to take a dingy to shore once Maceo started to melt down. Apparently Maceo realized that this was a once in a lifetime opportunity (well, hopefully at least twice) and was an INCREDIBLE passenger. In a total of nearly 7 hours on the boat, he didn't cry once and only offered about 4 squeaks of sleepy protest (despite resisting all naps and MAYBE sleeping a total of 45 minutes). More on sleep challenges/solutions in a different post.
In concert with recent posts that Maceo seems to be a water baby, apparently he is also a boat baby. While he did not get into contact with the water of the Charles (for obvious reasons), he did spend a good chunk of time watching the sky line and the waves and seeming as happy as a clam as the the boat bobbed away (and occasionally rocked back and forth with some real vigor). At about 7:15pm, we reluctantly got on the dingy and headed to shore where we jumped off, snugged Maceo into the Ergo Baby carrier, make a quick stop at JP Licks on Newbury Street for a cool and creamy treat, and walked to the Mass Ave T stop to head home. I could go on an on, but I think the photos speak for themselves.
The views of the Boston skyline and waterfront were incredible and the entire experience was a real treat. Thanks go out to Jung and his family for graciously including us in such a memorable adventure. While it took Craig and I a collective total of 72 years to enjoy such an exciting luxury, Maceo managed to experience it at just 6.5 months.
28 June 2010
Water Baby!
As we have long suspected, Maceo really is a water baby. Yesterday we went to a friend's 3rd birthday party at a sweet little lake in Newton. We came prepared with lots of sunscreen and a couple water diapers, excited to see how Maceo would respond to a body of water larger than the shower or tiny inflatable baby pool.
Sure enough, the second his feet got wet he was transfixed. As you can see from the photos below, he was too focused on the water to smile, but you'll have to trust us that he was indeed happy. After spending time in about 10 inches of water jumping up and down and practicing his latest skill of sitting, we ventured over to deeper waters where he both floated on his belly and his back. When he was on his belly, he was actually intuitively kicking his legs and somewhat paddling his arms. On his back, he was distracted by the sun in his eyes but was able to relax his body and not squirm around.
Probably the most interesting part was how completely fearless he was of the water (and the chaos surrounding him). With several toddlers and first graders screaming and splashing and tying to help him "swim" - in one case with aggressive gusto, he never seemed anxious or scared. I think he would have lounged in the water for hours, but at the 30 minute mark it was time for cupcakes so we reluctantly came to shore.
Looks like we'll be spending lots of time in the water this summer.
Sure enough, the second his feet got wet he was transfixed. As you can see from the photos below, he was too focused on the water to smile, but you'll have to trust us that he was indeed happy. After spending time in about 10 inches of water jumping up and down and practicing his latest skill of sitting, we ventured over to deeper waters where he both floated on his belly and his back. When he was on his belly, he was actually intuitively kicking his legs and somewhat paddling his arms. On his back, he was distracted by the sun in his eyes but was able to relax his body and not squirm around.
Probably the most interesting part was how completely fearless he was of the water (and the chaos surrounding him). With several toddlers and first graders screaming and splashing and tying to help him "swim" - in one case with aggressive gusto, he never seemed anxious or scared. I think he would have lounged in the water for hours, but at the 30 minute mark it was time for cupcakes so we reluctantly came to shore.
Looks like we'll be spending lots of time in the water this summer.
Prunes, Prunes the Wonder Fruit
...the more you eat, the more we HOPE Maceo will p__p!
Our foray's into solid foods have slowed down Maceo's digestive system so we have been adding prune juice to just about everything. Thankfully, he seems to be a fan of the flavor.
Our foray's into solid foods have slowed down Maceo's digestive system so we have been adding prune juice to just about everything. Thankfully, he seems to be a fan of the flavor.
27 June 2010
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
