Aug 7, 2008

EuroLIfe: Day 305

A Lovely Day


Michael, David and I had a really fantastic visit with Michael's family, and there is a lot to share from that visit. We did quite a lot of jetting around town, and David did quite a lot of snuggling. Before I do a post about that visit, though, I thought I'd do a quick one about today because it was, as the title indicates, lovely. (And because I'll never write about it if I don't do it now, whereas I will of course eventually share the family photos :)

David wakes up happy. Well, first he wakes up hungry but once he's been fed, he's all smiles! He coos, grunts, makes all manner of noises, and he smiles. It's the best, even if it does all take place at an hour at which I'd rather be in bed. (I am going to try to get a picture of him smiling tomorrow morning.) This morning, after our coo-fest, David and I went to grab pastries for breakfast (one of these days that absolutely has to stop) and came back to sit out in the sun with Michael for breakfast.

Much of the morning went to feeding, clothing, and cleaning David and myself (while Michael, whose hygiene is his own business, went off to the library :) We had made plans to meet Michael at the Mensa for lunch, so I left early with David to go for a walk in the hills. It was incredibly warm, sunny, and clear today and the neighborhoods up in the hills were so beautiful.
David, alas, slept through it--he simply cannot stay awake in the stroller, try as he might. In the meantime, I managed to combine a nice summer walk--primarily an effort to get out of our tiny apartment--with a serious workout! I did not know how heavy the stroller was, or how steep the hills are, before today. We ended at the Mensa with about a half hour to spare, so I lay a still-sleeping David on a blanket in the grass and read a novel. Just lovely.


We had lunch with Michael and Timo, some of which David was awake for, and afterwards David and I headed off to meet a friend for ice-cream. (I know, I know, but it's hard to kick the vacation-eating habit immediately, and our visitors JUST left!)



Kirsten will be moving back to the UK in a few weeks, so it was great to get a chance to sit and chat with her.




When we got home, David was awake and happy and Michael was back home. (Well, first David was awake and grumpy from the heat. Once he was freed of his clothing, he was a happy little guy :)

We had a nice evening, though Michael is killing me in our current dinner-time Scrabble game--and then Michael's friend Timo came over to celebrate the fact that they are both officially becoming "doctors of philosophy" this week! (In fact, David is sitting outside with them right now--which is why (1) I am able to be writing this post, (2) I was able to take a long bubble bath just before writing this post, and (3) despite my promises to myself, I am not yet in bed.)

Well, after typing it up, I recognize that today was perhaps not the most exciting of days...but I liked it! Some days it's a lot harder than others to get out of the house, and yesterday the poor boy, normally rather content, was gassy and cranky all day long. (All. Day. Long.) Today was nice because it was a good example of the kinds of days Michael and I had wanted to have once David was born...not sitting inside with the baby, but spending time out and about with him. Now I just have to incorporate some work, but I plan to try to tackle that beast next week :) Anyway, that was my day!

As for my night...say a quick prayer that David comes back around to the whole crib idea. He had been great--napping and sleeping with little or no problem--but now he's had nearly 4 weeks of cuddly, snuggly visitors and he's decided the crib thing is bogus, and sleep must be done in somebody's arms.

One more thing I've been meaning to share: David has the most enormous Big Toe. It was one of the first things I noticed when I first saw him, and I'm being completely honest about that! So, here it is...I hope the photo gives you SOME sense of it's magnitude, 'cause it's just huge.



3 comments:

Unknown said...

What a cutie! I think I write that each time... Anyway, I am so glad to hear about your day. I remember my first day out and about with Emily like that and it just feels like a true dream come true. Thank you for sharing it. It is those simple things that are so precious and that can bring such joy. And don't you LOVE the smiles? Abigail is doing the smiles ad coos as well and I adore them. Unfortunately the coos only really happen when one of us can put our full attention on her and stop to listen - she just lights up as though she were just waiting to smile and "talk" to one of us (kind of sad). Wish we could hang out with our little ones and just can't wait for when we can. Love you guys, Moira

katie said...

Dolores,
I loved this post because it reminds me of those quiet days when it was just me and Micah, and reading a book was a luxury, not a given :) We had a lovely day today in Rudesheim with friends, taking cable cars up above the vineyards and the Rhein...I feel a blog post coming on!

Mrs. Aleisha Brixius said...

Wow - that was a lovely day. Oh, to have those days again. I really don't get to read to often these days. I took 2 books to the beach last week and guess how many pages I got to read? 1 page! Isn't that awful?

Also Congrats to Michael! A doctor of philosophy. WOW!! That is wonderful.