The end of summer draws near

Travis has been taking Tyler to the pool at least once a weekend (which, we guess, will close after Labor Day which is too early this year!) and he has been getting more and more fearless each time he goes. I got to see this first hand this past weekend. We went to Lynchburg to visit Grandpa, Uncle Eddie, and Great Nana Woody, and the Hill City Fishing Club’s annual end-of-season get together was Saturday. So we got to go too. It’s always held at John & Helga’s house, and they have a pool. Tyler had a blast jumping in from all sides, splashing at us, sticking his head in the water, and playing with the pool noodles, kickboards, and other pool toys. He also had a good time watching Wagner & Waylon (who were there with Bridges) play, swim, and splash. We definitely have a water baby on our hands! I’m frantically searching for some place to enroll him in swim lessons this winter so that he’s ready for next summer. The problem I keep running into though is that it seems that most toddler classes of ANYTHING are held during the weekday. Well, that’s just great for those people who are fortunate to stay at home with their kids, but what about us working parents???? Argh, rant over.

Anyway, we had a great time visiting with friends, and playing with other kids. Tyler did really well and entertained the masses. He had a blast looking at a set of twin boys that were at the cookout. They were 10 months old, and Tyler liked to look at them in their carriers, or spy on them while they were in their floats in the pool, or sneak a peek while they played on a blanket on the pool deck. With all the little ones around that day, I’m sure he felt like it was just another day at daycare! Tyler got to help Grandpa with his cooler maintenance, which he loved. Apparently, those skills stick with you for life.

Tyler’s been enjoying the summer with his Gramme & Granddad Snead too. On a few visits, they have taken him over to Short Pump Town Center to play in their play area, and to ride the train that goes through the shopping center. I don’t think that he was really impressed with the train the first time, but he seems to be warming up to it. They also were given a “log cabin” toy house by some neighbors, and Tyler has had a great time playing in that. It’s a house that’s just his size!

Travis & I also took Tyler to Trav’s alma mater recently, since we had visited Mary Wash. We headed up to Ashland to Randolph-Macon College (VERY short trip – only about 20 minutes or so), and sat at the train station to see if we could watch some trains go by. We only saw one, which was disappointing, but we’ll head back up there again to try. We also walked around the campus and let Tyler dip his feet into the RMC fountain, which he loved. It was pretty cold, which shocked us all, but he had a great time anyway. I’ve been in the Richmond area for 6 years now, and this was my first time on the RMC campus. It was nice to finally get a chance to walk around and take it all in. There were a lot of features that were very similar to MWC.

So we’re at the final countdown for summer, and we’ve got lots more to cram in before it’s over!

A Mary Wash reunion

This past weekend Tyler & I got to visit with some dear, old friends of mine from Mary Washington. Californians Meredith & Ryan (along with almost 8 week-old Evan) were on the East Coast for a wedding, and to visit family, so they made a pit-stop at our friend Heidi’s house in Fredericksburg. Heidi has a 3 year old daughter, Riley, who we met last summer when Tyler was a few months old. Meredith, Marty, & Elise (2) made the trip from Pennsylvania, and Shoshana came up from Raleigh with her two little girls, Reagan (3) & Lauren (just 2 weeks younger than Tyler). It was a house full of good friends, and our little ones. It had been many years since I had seen the majority of everyone. Meredith Thomas – 4 years ago at our wedding. Meredith Molloy – we think we figured out it was 2002, and so of course, we had never met each other’s little ones. Shoshana – I’m pretty sure it’s been since 2000. Like I mentioned before, we did see Heidi & Riley last summer, but unfortunately had not seen them since.

When Tyler & I got to Heidi’s, we went outside to see Heidi & the Merediths and to meet little Evan. What a cutie! It’s amazing. I had forgotten that Tyler was ever that small. Teeny, tiny little hands and feet. He’s so cute, and was such a good little man. I know he was trying to take in all of the excitement around him, with his wide & alert eyes. I did get to hold him for a short time, which was wonderful. Well, it was wonderful until Tyler realized what I was doing. I didn’t expect him to be jealous, but boy was he ever! He stood at my feet and whined and fussed, he tried to climb onto the ottoman that I was sitting on, and tried to climb on me while I had Evan in my arms. Needless to say, I had to give Evan back to his daddy before I was really ready. Once Evan was back with Ryan, Tyler calmed down and went back to playing with all of the little girls. I realized that this was the first time that Tyler had seen me hold another baby, and I guess that he just wasn’t ready to share his mommy with anyone.

Riley was a perfect little hostess, allowing the other kids to play with all of her toys and play in her bedroom. She also went around the room offering snacks. Reagan & Lauren were too sweet, and they both played with Tyler very well. Tyler seemed to always want whatever toy poor Reagan had, but she handled it so well and shared with him, even when it wasn’t Tyler’s turn. And beautiful Ellie was exactly how I pictured her to be. I know that seems like an odd thing to say about such an adorable little girl, but it’s funny, I had never met Ellie until that day, and I felt like I already “knew” her from reading the Molloy’s blog since the day Ellie was born. For two years, I’ve read a weekly blog about her, and all the things she’s learned and does. We all commented on that a lot that day. While we hadn’t seen each other (or even talked on the phone) in years, we felt like we hadn’t missed out on much in each other’s lives, thanks to the internet.

After a few hours of indoor & outdoor play (it was SUCH a beautiful day, with temps in the 80s and low humidity), we decided to parade on over to the Mary Wash campus. Thanks to Marty for taking a lot of really great pictures with my camera. It was so neat to see four old girlfriends walking down Campus Walk, pushing the strollers of their little ones. (Shoshana had to head back to NC, unfortunately, and couldn’t make the trip to campus.) Four old girlfriends sitting in front of the fountain that they had met at to go to lunch 10 years ago, now sitting there with their children kicking and splashing in the water. Four old girlfriends reliving fun college memories, while the kids babbled away in their strollers or ran around playing. I was really glad that we were able to get over to the campus.

After campus, we headed over to Carl’s Ice Cream to get some frozen custard. Now, if you’re not an MWC alum or have never been to Fredericksburg, you probably don’t know what I am talking about. But Carl’s is just great. (Click here to find out a little more about what makes it so special.) We all got ice cream, or slushees, or shakes, and sat down to enjoy. Tyler loved his first taste of Carl’s, as I knew he would. And just as I also knew would happen, he became a wired little boy after that!

We headed back to Heidi’s after that and had hot dogs and hamburgers before the Thomases, Tyler & I had to hit the road. (Yes, ice cream before dinner. What about it? Haha!) It was really cute to watch Ellie, Riley, & Tyler sitting at little tables together in their little chairs. I took advantage of the opportunity and got a few more minutes of “Evan time” in, before Tyler realized that I had run off and found me cuddling up with the little guy. I quickly handed him back to his daddy, finished our dinners, and off we went. Tyler & I had such a good time that day, and I thank Heidi for inviting us all into her home. It was so good to see everyone, and to finally catch up in person. I loved meeting all of the new additions, and hope that we’ll all be able to get together again sooner rather than later.