This 2-year-old can best be described as exuberant these days. He is shedding his seriousness, making jokes with us, smiling when he isn't concentrating on something, in a state of perpetual motion and exploration, and almost constantly singing. Griff and I went on an adventure today while Darrell got some much-needed grading time in. While we were at the park, not one, but two people remarked on how much he sings. Old standards like "The Wheels on the Bus," "Teddy Bears' Picnic," "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Baa Baa Black Sheep" are mixed in with "The River Song" and "Dirt Made My Lunch" by the Banana Slug String Band and various songs featuring tractors and trains ("Little Red Caboose," "New River Train," "Freight Train," and "Driving My Tractor.") Mostly he sings large chunks of the songs straight through, but often enough we get fun combinations like "The wheels on the bus go round and round, thanks for my milk, my salad, my sandwich, and my munch, up the spout again." Ironically, when Darrell teases Griff by singing "Driving my tractor down the muddy road" Griff will correct him with a "bumpy road, daddy" even if he is in the midst of elaborate train play session.
Anyhow, back to our adventure today. We started out with a hike along the coastal bluff, Griff eating some snacks in the stroller while I got some exercise. We saw loads of birds, sea lions, fishing boats, and a John Deere discing a field. A successful hike for us both.
Then we moved onto the historical part of the park. The first thing Griff wanted to do was visit the tractor he can climb on. The tractor is one that was pulled by horses and has been retired on the grounds for kids to climb on. It has a metal seat on a spring, with some levers that attach to a disc. Griff loves to climb on it and pretend he is tilling the field. Once some kids his age came along and wanted to head over to climb the tree, Griff decided that would be a good thing to do, too.
The park has the best climbing tree ever. It has branches that grow horizontally for quite a way and then turn upward. It has a large, central section that is wonderful for hanging out on or climbing onto and then out along another branch, like the spoke of a wheel. Griff has climbed here before, but not up to the central spoke before. It was no problem this time, he was off and adventuring on his own as soon as we arrived. I could barely keep up with him to spot him, not that he needed it, it turns out. He is pretty careful, seems to be sure to have good footing before moving on along the branch. And he looks for good handholds. All the while singing a song or a few words.
After our first climbing session, Griff wanted to visit the tractor again and then we went to see the horses that might be able to pull the tractor, some Clydesdales. They are beautiful, but I find them intimidating. Griff wanted to feed them some of the hay that was there, so we gave them some bunches that were long, so we didn't have to get our hands close to their strong chompers. A walk back to the barns and we blew some bubbles, rode the wooden horses, and tried our hands at hoop rolling...we can use some practice. We had one more tree climbing session before we headed back to the car. He was asleep before we got home.
I got a few hours of work in while Darrell and he went for a run in the stroller, played "Sink or Float" and "Pooh Sticks" in the river, and visited our neighbors with the tractor. After dinner it was some fun with the new train set with tracks from Grandpa John before bed.
This blog has been getting some visits from international locales where we don't have friends or relatives. As it is really meant to be an update for relatives and friends, I am thinking of making it private. If I don't directly know you, can you leave me a comment as to who you are and what you might get out of visiting the blog? That way I might be better informed about whether it makes sense for me to make it private or not. If I don't get comments, I will certainly make it invitation-only.
Riding the wooden pony...
...but easily distracted by tractors, carriages, and other wheeled things.
"Hi cows!"
"One, two cows"
Tired after a long pony ride.
Hide and seek in the plants
Perpetual motion
On top of the center of the tree!
Concentrating on good footing on a tight squeeze.
Finally tired enough to sit still for a quick picture.
Playing "giddyup" on some branches and climbing the "wild tree."
Riding the wooden pony...
...but easily distracted by tractors, carriages, and other wheeled things.
"One, two cows"
Tired after a long pony ride.
Hide and seek in the plants
Perpetual motion
On top of the center of the tree!
Concentrating on good footing on a tight squeeze.
Finally tired enough to sit still for a quick picture.
Playing "giddyup" on some branches and climbing the "wild tree."
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