Out on the Town

Casey is out of town tonight, so Kenny and I decided that we needed a distraction.

Actually, I found out at 3 o’clock today that I had to make a drive into downtown Annapolis to drop off something somewhere that is vaguely related to Casey’s birthday present.   Kenny and I found ourselves in the middle of the Historic District at 5:30 on one of the most beautiful nights of the summer.   I realized that I’d not only forgotten to bring a diaper bag in my rush out of the house, but I’d also really missed timing on dinner, so we wandered to a casual outdoor restaurant and sat at one of the outside tables.   The waiter was instantly taken with Kenny, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

Kenny sat in his high chair, holding court as the business men and women, joggers, dog walkers, Naval Academy officers and boaters walked by.   I had a glass of better than average Syrah, and we shared an enormous smoked turkey and gouda sandwich.   (Kenny’s appetite made me realize that we are going to have to start ordering off the kid’s menu soon!)   It was a perfect night – 83 degrees and breezy with a cloudless sky.   We managed to clean our plate (Kenny ate all the pickles), and pay the tab without so much as a fuss from the little guy.   Even the ride home was uneventful, save for five minutes of the boo-hoo’s right before we got home.

We arrived to find Dudley merrily chomping away on the toothbrush Casey couldn’t find when he was packing last night, and a night so gorgeous on the water that it made my chest ache.   As soon as Kenny was bathed and in bed, I sat on the screened porch with Dudley and we shared an obscene amount of gourmet oreo ice cream as we watched the sun set –  his  consolation prize for missing the trip downtown.

I had to steal myself against envy as I watched the boats zoom by, and I starting thinking about how much life has changed in the past year.   It’s obvious, to be sure, having a baby, but there are so many little changes that make up the one big change.   Like the fact that I was eating a tub of ice cream and not worrying about fitting into my jeans.   That I was sitting on the screened porch with the door open so I could hear inside, instead of sitting at the end of the dock, or going for a walk, or taking the jetski out for a spin…

Funny, though, I can’t even feel slightly  melancholy about any of it when  I think of our little circus, and his crazy hair sticking up after a bath, and his 4-tooth smile.   He is such a great kid.   Tonight, as I was  sudsing him up in the tub, he suddenly did the sign for “All  done!” and held up his hands for me to get me out.   I was amazed.   He’s been getting the idea when he’s eating, with signing “more” and then “all done,” but this is the first time he’s signed spontaneously and out of context.   And not only is he a veritable genius, but  he’s affectionate.   While I was leaning over to zip up his PJs  he reached up to touch my face and  cooed, “Daa daaaa daaaa….DAD DEEE!” (which I think, roughly translated, means, “Mom, you are the most beautiful, fun woman on the planet.   Even more fun that Dudley.”)

That reminds me that I need to write about this past weekend.   We went to Boston to visit Casey’s brother and his family and Kenny fell instantly in awe with his big cousin Ryan.   I’ll have to write more about that later,  once I’ve got  all two hundred pictures downloaded…