Gardening

Our new house has no yard at all - just this planter in front and on the side. We've been planting herbs there. Also transplanted a bunch of bearded irises from the side, to make room for a few of our 14 (!) tomato plants.

Henry's favorite part is the watering, of course. He will water anything you let him, including the brick wall and the sidewalk. Also his parents, despite their protests. "Yes, I do have to water Daddy!"

Under construction

Here's Henry's big-boy haircut: my dad did the beginning, then (after this picture was taken, I think) Ann straightened it up a bit. It's amazing he sat at all still for both of them.

The little guy has been under some stress with the move. He has thrown several fits in the past few days about how he "won't go to James' house any more" -- James is the 18-month-old son of the full-time summer babysitter we've found for Henry. Her house has a nice big yard with a garden and is just 3 blocks away. She's from Wisconsin. She seems super sweet and very competent, unflappable. But it must be strange to suddenly spend 40 hours a week with someone you've barely ever met before. He is having a hard time adjusting. Has a great time once he's there, plays and eats and naps and everything, but every morning he screams and cries when it's time to drop him off.

Every day we hope and pray we'll get enough writing done to justify leaving this guy for someone else to take care of. (Then on the weekend all his accumulated temper comes out and he refuses to nap and drives us crazy.)

More wheels

More from 10 days ago, during the move. (Jeez, has it been that long already?)
Henry took to the scooter pretty quickly. (This isn't the one we bought for him but another one someone in Andover had set out on the curb.) Seemed to grasp the whole steering thing and the idea of pushing off with his foot.

But we ran into an unexpected problem: his attention span. The hardest thing with the scooter and the bike, as with walking, is that he tends to look off in some completely other direction than the one he's going in. We tell him to stay focused, but anything will distract him: a bird, a truck, kids playing. Oh well: I guess he's only two.

Boston boy

Uncle Aaron's hat helps keep the sun away at the pond. (Also during the move.)

New teams to cheer for now - better get used to it, kid!

Summer fun with Grandpa Gary

We've unpacked enough to find our camera and batteries. Here are some photos from the move. It was incredibly hot during the days when Ann and Ken were working on the third floor of our house: tearing down one and a half walls, peeling wallpaper, patching drywall, painting. (It looks great now.)

Meanwhile, Henry and my dad were having a lot of fun in Andover. Here they're testing a "sand mill" Henry got for his birthday from his great-uncle and -aunt Boris and Irene. Seems to work well with water.

And here's Henry (still pre-haircut) learning to ride his new bike.

The funny thing is that he's already really vain about being photographed. More important than mugging for the camera, he was also anxious to be seen riding the bike BY HIMSELF as soon as he saw me show up with the camera.

We're pragmatic about these things. If vanity helps him learn, we'll take it!

Unfamiliar waters

Henry is settling into his new house. There have been some irregularities: an 11pm bedtime (Monday, first day at his new babysitter) and a 10pm bedtime (yesterday); a strong desire to sleep on the alpaca rug on his floor beside his bed rather than on his mattress itself (which we indulge). There have been lots of adventures: a visit from Ann, who worked miracles on the house; a trip to Rhode Island for his cousin's christening. New photos coming, when we can find our battery charger. Meanwhile, here's a pic my friend Kathryn just sent of Henry's last bath with Paul, before leaving New Haven. (Sigh.)

Cognitively, he's growing fast. I think the move has helped. The tense-of-the-week is definitely the imperative. Recent memorable dicta:
"Tell me a story about a little girl named Mommy." (I explained that there had never been such a little girl, but that I could tell him about a little girl named Margaret... which he sort of seemed to accept.)
"No, don't pee sitting down on your butt! Pee with your penis." (I explained that I didn't have one. He absolutely did not accept that.)

"Wash your hands!" (Afterwards.)
"I want you to go up on that roof again and tell us to come inside and eat pasta." (He and Ken had been planting herbs and tomatoes in the flowerbed in front of the house, and I yelled down from the second-floor balcony calling them in to supper, very 1950s.)
"I want to water the sidewalk!" (Ditto.)

"No, it is not white noise. It is black noise!" (This was in response to my mom's harmless remark that the buses on Mass Ave are relatively unobtrusive, like white noise.) As I said, he'll contradict anything. He has learned the useful word "actually" to let you know when he's setting you straight: "Actually, he is in the roller skates, not on the roller skates." "That is not pasta. Actually that is noodles."

I suppose having teachers for parents can make you bossy and overly precise. Occupational hazard. We'll see if he outgrows any of it.

Outside the box

Henry is handling all the moving-related chaos pretty well. Here he's goofing around with Grandma Ann:

Closing day

After some last-minute delays and surprises, we closed on our new house yesterday. Henry, who had been hearing about the impending move for weeks, came over immediately with my dad and Ken's mom and ran around in a flurry of excitement. He was excited to give a tour of his new bathroom (with his new bathtub, sink, and toilet) and his new bedroom.

Henry is 2

Henry turned two on June 3. He got a new scooter (from Mom and Dad) (and he can already ride it)...

...a new bicycle (from Grandma Masha and Grandpa Gary) (and it's got real training wheels) (and he can almost already ride it)...

...and a photo with our crazy sage flowers, which we didn't expect to winter over but which surprised us this summer by coming back bright purple and taller than Henry.

There will be a lot of changes in the coming year, starting with a new babysitter (more like a home-based preschool) whom we found. She's right next to Ken's office, and she seems wonderful. Henry will be the youngest of the 10 kids there. Plenty to learn.

Dark playground tunnel

Henry was a little timid about going in here at first.

More fun with company.

Nice hair, dude!

At the playground

Ornery contrarian

On the Phillips Academy campus (a marker at the site of the first headmaster's house). One of Henry's not many cooperative moments today. In general, he has become very contrary, as befits an almost-two-year-old. Contradicts everything, even obvious facts. The thing that works the best is reverse psychology, sometimes to a ridiculous extreme: "Now Henry, we're going to not go home and drink some not-milk and take a not-nap."

All part of discovering his identity as a big boy, I guess.

Happy Anniversary!

In Andover, just for fun. Henry helped make a chocolate cake for my parents.

Happy anniversary!