Leisure time

The first signs of spring have come, and the toddler set (and their parents) have been enjoying the milder weather.

Edith's friend Matilda came up from Philly for a visit last Saturday. Here the girls were getting a lift to the neighborhood swimming pool, where a good time was had by all. Since Matilda is not quite ten months old, something one tends to forget when confronted with her incredible athletic prowess and engaging smile...


...I turned Edith's carseat to face backwards to drive Matilda and her family to and from the train station. Wouldn't you know that the next time we got in the car, not having had time to flip it forward again, Edith thought that that was the coolest thing. "Baby Tildie ride back[wards]," she kept telling us. "Edith ride back[wards]." This from the girl who screamed bloody murder when riding backwards through the first year of life. Ah, peer influence.

Swiming always makes one hungry, of course, so the girls whipped up some oatmeal and other goodies for us. Or as Matilda's mother observed, a textbook photo of parallel play.

Yesterday was mild enough for the first neighborhood barbecue of the season, to Edith and Harrison's delight. Edith loves her new junior catcher shirt, to her father's delight. She pointed out the baseball and glove to everyone at school. When I asked her what her favorite activity on the school playground was, she responded, "Baseball." Her father did a happy dance.

Neighborhood barbecues are one thing, but Edith was less pleased when the paparazzi followed her on her spring break jaunt to the topless beaches of the Costa del Sol.