Run Fox Run

So Leda’s been doing this thing recently where she asks us whether we remember something she did or saw. A favorite is, “I saw kitty cat with Grandma, ‘member?” We say that yes, we remember that she saw a kitty cat in Los Gatos a few weeks ago, and we ask if she remembers the cat’s name, and she reminds us that it was Charlotte. We thank her. Sometimes it’s something she just did the previous day, like, “I saw Jamie, ‘member, mommy?” I pretend that I’m not sure I _do_ remember, and maybe she could jog my memory?, and she quickly prompts me: “We had pizza!”

Well, Leds, here’s the thing: we remember *everything* you’ve done, said, sung, eaten, or seen in the last two years. Most of it, we have pictures of. About 10% of it is pasted into your baby book, and I promise to be better about that. But you don’t have to worry about us forgetting the details anytime soon.

Take Halloween.

When, a few days from now, you ask me, “I went trick or treat, ‘member?” the answer will be yes, Leda. I remember every ever-loving moment.

Knocking wood, crossing my fingers, and waving a clove of garlic, let me say this in a whisper so as not to jinx myself and anger the toddler-sleep Olympians. Leda has moved into her new room, complete with big-girl twin size bed. She slept through last night beautifully, even with the disruptive influence of the time change — somehow we were able to convince her that 4 am was not, in fact, time to wake up. She is not normally receptive to what her parents think of as reason, so we were very proud. Also relieved.

Toby has been painting and assembling Ikea bookcases late at night for the last two months, and my mom and I enjoyed picking out sundry linens. Leda chose her Hello Kitty sheets herself; she has a thing for kitty cats. She helped us move her clothes, books, and toys into her new room, and made a sign for the door, dictating the names of the friends who would visit her. We still have some things to put up on the walls, but she does not seem bothered by the somewhat spartan aesthetic. (Perhaps this is Uncle Sable’s influence.) Tonight, for the second night, she climbed into bed after several stories and asked for her “violins” music. Was it only two years ago she could only sleep 90 minutes at a time, and then only after serious coercion?

And it begins.

Man do I love Halloween. I’m not saying that I’m ready to go out and cause trouble with a quill full of bottle rockets, dress in my sluttiest “rocket scientist” costume, or place an inordiante number of lawn decorations in front of my house to make it look “scary”. However, pumpkins and Jack-O-Lanterns are de rigeur for generating Halloween excitement. Today we selected, cleaned, and carved our pumpkins. The selection was not the idyllic search through the field of farm bred pumpkins searching for the optimum orgainc selection. Instead, we went to the most local of places to quickly grab the best looking pumpkins we could find (and we discovered some real beauts!).

After nap, it was time to carve our pumpkins. Leda was unsure about scooping out all the pumpkin guts with her hands, but armed with her small spoons, she was scooping out a fair amount of orange muck. She then designed her pumpkin face and had her Mom do the carving. Hers is the one with the third eye, and I wasn’t even aware of her deep knowledge of eastern religions. Because she went for a three eye design, I decided to limit myself to just one. Thus, Jenn’s is clearly the best classically designed pumpkin of the bunch. After carving, out they went onto the front steps for display. Leda was proud of her design but also praised her mommy and daddy’s effort. So with the pumpkins done, I am looking forward to Tuesday night, seeing Leda in her costume and enjoying as she works the neighborhood over for their candy.

The leaves are hitting their prime colors here and starting their monthlong journey from branch to ground. Leda and I headed out to learn the time honored tradition of raking the leaves. Or rather, I did a fair bit of raking and Leda jumped in the pile many, many times. To be fair, the only reason I was raking yesterday was to create said pile of leaves FOR the sole purpose of jumping in them. Leda got right to it throwing leaves on me and letting me toss her in the pile. She also took a ride in the leaf bin out to the curb.

Sunday, Leda, Jenn, and Grandma/Grandpa headed over to Hillview farms to pick apples and procure some pumpkins. Leda hefted, measured, and examined the pumpkins but found them wanting. So they moved on to apple picking where Leda enjoyed many apples (a small “tummy-ache” followed) while helping to fill her Grandpa’s bushel. All enjoyed the beautiful fall color, the hay ride, and wide assortment of apple varieties. Photos for the weekend in the Leda in Fall gallery.

While out in California for the wedding, we had some time to take in some local sights. Whenever we go back to the west coast, I am invariably drawn back to my favorite places from my youth. This time we had a chance to go to the beach and visited Natural Bridges State beach. I can remember going here as a kid with my sister/mom/dad to look at the tidepools, with my friends in highschool for dawn patrol with CCMDs and DP and later at night to imbibe adult beverages, and then with Jenn when we were first dating. So now we’ve added Leda to that historical record. She loves the beach and usually heads straight for the surf (though I’m sure she was surprised the water temperature turned out to be much colder than the balmy Atlantic). We played on the beach and walked around the tidepools where we “petted” sea anemones and played with a wayward starfish. Leda was pretty darn impressed.

Second stop on the trip down memory lane was Oak Meadow park where I spent many an hour playing in my youth. The best part about this playground is that they have maintained a number of the original distinctive items from 30 years ago. These include the antique fire engine and the World War II era fighter plane. Of course before liability suits and cookie cutter playgrounds, the aluminum surface of this fighter jet would reach “burn your hand” temperatures in the summer months. Now it is safely coated with what appears to be several layers of Bondo and epoxy paint. Leda was game for these new play surfaces, but still will head for the swings at the beginning of any park visit. Photos of the trip are available here.