E's first hike

We were inspired by The Krangle's to see how Ethan would do on a hike under his own power. Last weekend we took him to Harold Parker State Park to give it a shot. He got to pick which way he went but he got distracted a lot and we only got him to keep moving by telling him we were looking for a bridge. There really was a bridge, but it was farther than I remembered.





He was cracking himself up by hiking his shorts up! It was pretty funny.



We weren't even half way around the pond when we had to stop for snack and E went into the backpack...under protest. He insisted I carry him and then wouldn't let me keep a ponytail in my hair. He kept pulling out the elastic. Needless to say I was sweaty and gorgeous at the end of this one!



This was a big mommy moment for me. Under normal "Carrie" circumstances, any sight of a snake would have sent me running from the scene. That was, in fact, how I started to react but Steve stopped and I thought that Ethan should see it and not be afraid of it so I went back to see it too. I am still not a fan, but I was proud of myself for hanging in there for E.



Ethan has been a big fan of losing either his shirt or his pants through the course of the day. He was looking so manly in his Thomas belt that I had to get a picture. As usual, he refused to look at the camera so Steve told him he saw Santa Claus out the window. We're such bad (but effective!) parents sometimes!

Make Way for Ethan

I woke up on Mother's Day to the boys waking me up to come down to breakfast. Ethan had something to say, Steve was prompting him and out came "happy birthday mommy". It was very sweet. Steve had made crepes and lots of filling's for us to eat and we had a lovely breakfast. Then we got dressed and headed to Boston Common for the Make Way for Duckling's Parade. I guess I didn't realize that this was mostly a local story, but to those of you outside the Boston Area, it's a story about a family of ducks that come to live in the Public Garden's where the Swan Boats are and the parade commemorates their police escorted walk through the city to get there from the Charles River.

Well...as delicious as the crepe's were, Ethan didn't eat much and then he fell asleep on the way in to Boston. As you can tell from picture number one, he was less than interested in all of the people and the Harvard Marching Band. He did enjoy pointing out the instruments they were playing, but there was no dancing at all which is so unlike him.



His mood did improve slightly when Steve came back with a couple of munchkins for the munchkin.



He managed to have a little fun with the duck whistle.



And he even walked a little of the parade route. We didn't have a duck costume or anything for him but we did dress him head to toe in his beloved Red Sox gear. Some people really go all out for this event and dress themselves and their kids for the occasion. Maybe next year...



We hadn't gotten very far when we heard the all too familiar words "hold you". He's perfected this maneuver where he cuts you off and lifts his arms for you. It's kind of irresistible. I love it when he says "hold you" and "mommy read me" and "excuse you" when he burps.

Once we were out of the crowd his mood improved. It may have been overwhelming for a tired hungry little guy. From here we went and got lunch and after a few oyster crackers he was jumping on the booth demanding his lunch...loudly.

We were all so tired from our big adventure that we all took long naps when we got home. E was the first one up, Steve the last. It was a perfect day.

Big Papi Style