What did we do today? We played cards. Pinochle (3-handed and 4-handed, which are very different games), Gin Rummy, Oh Hell, Cribbage. We played cards. It brought back memories of cooling starry summer nights gathered around a bright propane lantern, with Alex just old enough to play one card game with the grown-ups before being packed inside the dark tent. It also brought back more recent memories of trips like this, where rainy days were spent indoors in the cabin perfecting our pinochle game between walks on the beach. We did a few other things today, but in between everything there were card games.
Worthy opponents.
My genius teammmate.
Last night was no fun. Sabrina was awake and fussy at midnight when I went to sleep, and awake and fussy at 1:45 when Jen woke me up, exasperated. I loaded her in the carseat, and took her in the car. She was fed, diapered, burped, warm, taken care of, etc., so any residual fussiness was either colic (medical speak for I-don’t-know-why-your-baby-is-so-pissed-off) or nothing at all, so I wasn’t too miffed about letting her cry it out for a while. The night was beautiful. A striking, bright full moon and clear sky with big drifting clouds. I stole my camera and drove around to various viewpoints on the coast, snapping pictures in the dark, hoping some of them would turn out. None of them matched how arrestingly beautiful the night really was. The Dirty Three on the car stereo fit the night perfectly. There was nobody on the road. I didn’t see a single other soul for probably the first hour-and-a-half I was out there, driving around.
Of course, Sabrina would wail every time I stopped the car or turned on the light or opened the door. I got her finally to sleep while the car was running, but then a few passing log trucks woke her up and it was back to the fussing. I pulled into the carport of our cabin at 3:30, fully expecting to bundle a crying baby back in Jen’s arms almost immediately. Instead, my head nodded, and I was awoken at 5:30 by a worried Jen. Edgar woke up, and she was worried we were in the car asphyxiating. Such was not the case. I know how to use the “recirc” button just as well as she does, but she just doesn’t trust me.
It rained all day, representing different descriptions such as drizzling, spitting, squalling, pouring, drenching, deluging, inundating, and just plain raining. I can hear it now outside coming down in sheets over the everpresent dull roar of the surf.
After breakfast in my parents’ cabin, we took food scraps from yesterday and today, threw them on the picnic table, and let the crows and seagulls fight over it. Edgar was so excited. “Wow, Daddy, Wow!” He really wanted them to eat food from his hand: “Here, bird!” None of them were quite that brave. We spent probably half an hour taunting the birds with more and more scraps and leftovers, and Edgar had the time of his life.
Getting ready to feed the birds outside the cabin.
"Can I eat this cheeto?" "Yes, Edgar, if you'd like." "How disappointing. I guess I'll feed it to the birds, then."
"Here, bird!"
Amidst the chaos
"Wow, Daddy! Wow!"
A photogenic crow.
A pair of photogenic crows. The crows hung out in mated pairs.
Queued up and ready for Edgar's next excursion.
Grandma bought Edgar a pinwheel. He called it a flower. Then, he held it over his head with both hands and called “Flower of Greyskull!” Awesome. Another funny Edgar moment: My mom and I were playing Gin Rummy, and Edgar was sitting at the table playing with a toy motorcycle. After beating her for several rounds, my mom finally got a good hand, and excitedly yelled “Gin! I did it!” Edgar turned around to his mother: “Mama, Grandma did it!” (not getting his mother’s attention) “Mom-my, Grandma did it!” … (“Gin” sounds a lot like “Jen”, doesn’t it?)
We were all really tired from last night, and everyone, especially Grandma and Grandpa, wanted an early nap. They took the now-cute and quiescent Sabrina and Jen, Edgar, and I retired to our cabin before lunchtime, which is usually way too early for Edgar’s nap. I turned up my headphones and slept while Jen dealt with an over-tired and not-wanting-to-nap Edgar. I woke up not too long later to Jen giving up on Edgar. I let him cry in his crib for a while, refilled his bottle twice, sang to him once, and tucked him in and he finally went to sleep an hour and a half after we began this process. I read my book and watched the day get sunny outside. My parents stopped by to inform me that they were leaving for a walk, and would I go to their cabin to watch the still-sleeping baby. So, I read, and watched the sun on the water, and read, and watched the clouds roll in as Sabrina, Jen, and Edgar slept on. I missed being out in the sun, but as it turns out, it was a very short bit of sunshine.
...but I did get a few pictures from our porch in the sunshine. Pretty, ain't it?
We had an afternoon squall today almost identical to yesterday’s, complete with lightning on the water, peals of thunder, and sideways hail. Jen and Edgar slept through most of it, and Mom and Dad came back from their walk just in time to miss it. We had another hailstorm later this afternoon. Grandma explained to Edgar that hail was little snowballs. Since he had recent experience with snowballs, he wanted to go out and see them. He went outside, showed me lots of snowballs, and then attempted to throw snowballs at his mom. It was cute.
"Snowball, daddy!"
We went to dinner at Lake Quinault Lodge, a good 35 miles away, but pretty much the closest civilization. Lake Quinault is beautiful. An emerald pool set among verdant mountains. I’ve never been in the lodge there before. It was very rustic and elegant. The sort of old-fashioned rest-cure place that super-rich people went to 100 years ago or so. The kind of place where one would stay for a month, strolling around the grounds, canoeing in the lake on nice days, and reading a book or socializing with the other guests in the lobby. Dinner in their restaurant was super-expensive, but very tasty. We drove back in the dark, listening to Jen’s new Bonnie Prince Billy CDs and Edgar singing in the back seat, and finishing my book.
We put Edgar to bed immediately upon returning, played several more rounds of cards in Mom and Dad’s cabin while mom cooed over Sabrina. Then, a return to the cabin with two wakeful kids. They both seem to be sleeping now, I hope it lasts.
No comments:
Post a Comment