Post Peanuts Post

The Saturday after our return from Georgia, NL slept through an entire trip to Cocoa Beach. They missed little, though, as the excursion was wrought with a battle with the sun and constant wind blowing sand into every cranny of their car seats. Still, Kel and I managed to cavort among the high waves and strong current of the warm Atlantic, while JimPa and MarMa chaperoned the kids and discussed whatever it is that JimPas and MarMas discuss in their pre-retirement years.

Noelle and Lucas appear to be entering that magical age that verges on the ability to conduct two-way communication. Day by day they are trying out their vocal chords, so far stuck on all the varietals of "a:" short, long, high pitched, medium pitched, back to high pitched, and then they wait for a response. Fun game for all involved. Sometimes I wonder though if they ever asked me to play or just find it amusing enough to hear themselves speak. Though we're hardly advanced enough to banter about the merits of import tariffs, I'm immensely proud of their achievements in acquiring a sound other than wailing.

On the topic of words that end in 'ing', I'm pleased to report that NL are no longer being subjected to nightly swaddling. Not only was that ritual a royal pain for the swaddlers, but likewise for the swaddlees, who one morning awoke to discover that their blankets migrated to their northern hemispheres. We prefer that our kids enjoy oxygen for the duration of their sleep, and so immediately discontinued that childish practice.

A week ago NL dabbled in some community service by visiting me at City Hall. I'd been promising to showcase them after the first set of vaccines. Six weeks later, I delivered. The kids cooperated for the majority of their visit, patiently allowing themselves to be passed around like a peace pipe, though did take the occasional opportunity to release some pent-up gas on an unsuspecting co-worker.

As a treat for enduring this entire entry, below are photos of the Peanut Fest and miscellany:
http://picasaweb.google.com/gros.islet/PlainsSeptEarlyOct08#