I a puzzlemaker!

Just before we left for California this summer, Dada found a set of eight 12-piece wooden jigsaw puzzles at the Magic Hat Thrift Shop in Marblehead. The puzzles each feature a different vehicle, and Caden loves them. Until a few weeks ago, Caden always wanted either Mama or Dada to help with the puzzles. However, on the 1st of September, Caden put his first one together by himself—a fire truck—and hasn’t looked back since. He will announce, “I a puzzlemaker!”, take each puzzle from its compartment, and put it together carefully. Right now, all eight of the puzzles are assembled on the train table in his play room.

We’ve had some fun events over the past few weeks. The month started with a Labor Day picnic at our house. Caden’s friends Summer, Mae Mae, Chelsea, and Savannah, and their parents (plus a few other lab folks) came by to enjoy good company, summertime foods, badminton, and homemade ice cream.

The following weekend, we drove to northwestern Maine, where we camped for two nights at beautiful Rangeley Lake. The water was swimmable, the bugs were much less fierce than we'd feared, and even the remnants of hurricane Hannah couldn’t dampen our enthusiasm. And one of the best parts about camping at Rangeley Lake State Park: free hot showers! Caden and Dada even took a shower together one evening. Other highlights of the trip included a fun hike along a stream and a meandering drive back along ridgelines, down river valleys, and through the Maine countryside.

Shortly after we returned from Maine, Dada flew west for a four-day trip to Santa Barbara. Dada came home early on the morning of the 13th, and we spent a day furiously making final preparations for Mama’s Cascade Lemonade booth at the Melrose Victorian fair. Caden had a great time at the fair on Sunday, playing with his toys, checking out the booths, and watching performances of local karate, dance, and music groups.

This past week, we’ve been settling into our routines, including teaching (Dada), data analysis (Mama), and playing at home and school (Caden). This Saturday was the annual Marine Science Center Open House, so the three of us spent most of the day at work. Caden even got to wear an official name tag with the title, “Future Marine Biologist.”

All eight puzzles

Making ice cream

Badminton antics

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Rangeley Lake sunset

Hiking in Maine

With Mama at Coos Canyon, Maine

Reading in camp

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Future marine biologist

All four grandparents at once!

We spent a wonderful week last month in Alaska! Ama and Adad flew up to join us at Nana and Boopa’s house in Petersburg. Caden loved his Alaska bedroom, the little table and stool where he ate his breakfast and lunch each day, the deer on the beach, and, perhaps most of all, being cuddled, played with, and entertained by four grandparents at once.

On August 7th, right after we landed in Petersburg, we headed down to Boopa’s boat so that Caden could say “hi.” Caden, who loves all things that go, was really excited to see both Boopa and the boat. He even got to go for a couple of boat rides later in the week, including a memorable one—he still talks about it—to visit the sea lions on the mid-channel buoy at the mouth of the narrows.

Dada’s Grammy and Grandpa—Caden also calls them Grammy and Grandpa—recently moved to Petersburg, and we visited them several times while we were there. Caden had so much fun playing with Grammy and Grandpa that he asked to go see them again and again.

On August 8th, Ama and Adad arrived. It was great fun to show them around Dada’s hometown and Miktof Island. Mama and Dada spent a memorable day on Boopa’s boat with them watching whales. Getting to watch (and listen to) group bubble-feeding by humpbacks was amazing! We all went “out the road” for an afternoon to go on a couple of hikes. And we ate lots of fresh, tasty fish.

Our last couple of weeks in California were a whirlwind! Mama had to wrap up her summer’s experiments, and Caden spent many hours in the lab, often playing on the floor of the lab while Mama counted tunicates and bryozoans. On the 26th, Caden said goodbye to Cherrise, Ruby, Scarlett, and Pup at his California school—he still talks about them virtually every day—and on the 27th we flew back to our “other” home in Massachusetts.





Four generations

Playing with Grammy and Grandpa

Nana loves Tuiui!

Caden leads the way

Whale watching

The viking ship

California school

California adventures: Camping, Train Town, and Caden’s first haircut

We’re playing blog catch-up now—we’re over a month behind—which is testament to how hard Dada and especially Mama worked during our time in California. We arrived at Bodega Marine Lab on July 16th and spent three weeks enjoying our old haunts in Sonoma County before heading north for a week in Alaska.

In California, we enjoyed spending time with friends and colleagues, and Caden brought home some really fun projects from his “California school,” including a bird feeder, lots of paintings and drawings, and some beautiful paper flowers that are decorating our dining room table. He spent workdays at the home of an acquaintance of ours who used to work at BML.

Last month, before we headed to Alaska, we escaped for a one-night camping trip to Humboldt Redwoods State Park. It was our first camping trip in almost two years—last summer’s move put a serious crimp in our camping schedule—and we re-discovered how nice it is to spend time sleeping under the trees and swimming in a river. The campground was a short walk from the Eel River, and Caden and Dada had fun trying to catch the little steelhead and minnows that would nibble at our feet while we waded in the river. Just before we packed up for the drive back, we headed down to the river again, where the sun was shining on the water. Mama and Dada tried to coax Caden in, but he was content to play in the sand while we swam. When we returned to the riverbank, Caden had a surprise for us. He said, “I made you a birthday!” and held out his bucket. He’d filled it with sand and planted sticks upright in the sand: his version of a birthday cake.

We also took Caden to Lonnie’s Barber Shop in Sebastopol for his first haircut! He seemed to appreciate all of the fuss, held very still, and was very excited to receive his lollypop reward at the end. Caden’s hair was becoming pretty crazy, especially when he woke up in the morning, but we held out for Lonnie’s because Dada knew that they were really good with little guys there, as both Owen and James can attest to.

A final adventure before heading to Alaska was a trip to Train Town in Sonoma. The centerpiece of Train Town is a scale-model railroad that passengers can ride on. We rode the little train through tunnels and past waterfalls to a scale-model town where we saw—as Caden will tell you—goats. It was a great outing for a train-loving two-year-old.

First haircut: before
and after!

In the barber chair

Eel River breakfast

Trying to catch minnows

Stitching party!

Train Town

No time to say goodbye

Before heading west to California, we enjoyed summer treats, outings, and the Fourth of July in Massachusetts. Caden finished his “Massachusetts school” for the year, and we hosted our friends Anne and Bonnie over the holiday weekend.

One of our weekend outings was to Russell Orchards, where we had fun picking late June strawberries and meeting some friendly sheep. Caden quickly became an adept strawberry picker, and we soon filled two pint containers. The strawberries made wonderful decorations for a Fourth of July flag cake—a tradition in Mama’s family—that we shared with Anne and Bonnie during their visit. On the fourth, we took the blue train into Boston, where we walked the Freedom Trail with Anne and Bonnie. Caden’s favorite part was the “statue” busker we met outside Faneuil Hall, though he was a bit shy when we got close to her.

The weekend before we left for California, Mama flew down to Washington, DC, to go to Amy’s wedding—a fun reunion with college friends—while Dada and Caden did projects around the house in preparation for our trip. The highlight of Caden’s weekend was finally getting to meet the ice cream man who drives by our Massachusetts house every day. Caden got a red popsicle, and he still talks about it a couple of weeks later.

Cheers!
I made pizza
The "statue" busker

The Girls in Washington, DC

Flag cake

At Old North Church

Weekend wanderings

We’ve developed a typical Saturday summertime routine. Our first stop is the YMCA, where Caden plays and Mama and Dada get some exercise. When we get to the Y, Caden always climbs the stairs to the front door. He has become quite a determined climber of anything climbable and often refuses help—or a hand placed to keep him from falling—by pushing us away, saying, “No! I do it!”

From the Y, we go to the Marblehead Farmers’ Market to do as much of our week’s veggie shopping as possible and share lunch or a treat. The Farmers’ Market is at the middle school, which also houses the Magic Hat thrift shop (it benefits the local schools), so we wander over to the Magic Hat, where Caden plays with the toys while Mama and Dada look for bargains. After that, we usually swing by the post office—which sometimes involves a walk down the rail trail—before heading home.

A week ago, our friends Sal and Liza invited us to spend a beach day with them (and of course, Caden’s friends Summer and Mae!) in Cohasset, which is south of Boston. Liza grew up there, and her dad has a sailboat moored in the harbor, so the boat served as our base of operations. Caden had a great time experiencing different boats: we spent time in a canoe, on the sailboat, and in a skiff. And he still talks about the neat Scooby-Doo life jacket that Sal and Liza shared with him. We ate lunch on the sailboat—the kids lined up along one side—before heading over to an island in Cohasset harbor for the afternoon. The beach was great, with sandcastles to build and destroy, shells to collect, and a not-too-cold ocean to wade in. Mama and Mae even went swimming! Caden spent most of the day sitting between Summer and Mae, because they kept arguing about which of them got to be next to him. After an entertaining dinner at a pizza parlor—the kids lined up along one side of the table—we headed back home.

No, Mama, I paddle!

Little sailors

Sandcastle

I a big kid

For lunch on Father’s Day, we stopped at Woodman’s, a neat old seafood restaurant in Essex. We ordered way more food than we could eat: a crab roll for Mama, a clam roll for Dada, and a kid’s clam strip meal for Caden. Caden ate a few clams and made a valiant effort on his fries, but Dada ended up with enough to eat for both lunch and dinner.

Caden has been trying on “titles” for himself these past few weeks. He seldom calls himself a baby anymore, and really wants to be a “big kid.” When he does something correctly, especially if he’s really pleased with himself, he’ll announce,“I a big kid!” Sometimes, he teases Mama and Dada and says, “I adult!” He also throws “toddler” into the mix. It can get pretty silly at times.

Lately, he has been saying “I a big kid” a lot when he uses his potty chair or goes to the bathroom using the big toilet. And, best of all as far as he is concerned, he gets to flush when he’s finished.

In other news, our last swimming lesson was this past week. Classes run for six weeks, and we’re leaving for California in just over three weeks, so we’ll have to wait until we get back for more fun in the pool. As you can see, Caden loves the water!

Big kid potty

Eating clams with Dada