Shaky Egg

Today was our last music class. It was bittersweet for me, not because of the content of the class (which was the usual drums, scarves and maracas, with a pinch of black sheep and lassies and hickory dickories thrown in for good measure) but rather because 11 weeks ago, when we started, Jarrah was dozy and baffled, had a very short attention span, and no spirit of cooperation whatsoever. I am proud to say that she is far more alert and social now, even if her attention span is not strong enough to keep her from running to the windows every few minutes, even if we're supposed to be in a circle at that time, getting our armpits tickled. I was thrilled to see how she responds just like the other children when the teachers say "Time to put the scarves away!" and runs to put her bundle into the basket. Ah, obedience. It's a beautiful thing. ;) She claps and sways and puts her hands on her head when requested. And she knows to sit in mama's lap when it's time for singing and chanting. I think we will go back when it starts up again in fall--maybe she will turn out to be a musical genius, or at least a guitar player.

In the mean time, I'm actively searching for more activities for us. I'd like her to learn to swim, and also just think it would be fun to splash around in the pool with her--she loves the water. I even signed up for a free Gymboree class on Friday, just to see what it's like. "Jarrah is in Level 4," I told David. He looked suspicious. "Who are these people and what do you know about them?" "Not much," I admitted, "But they're famous." We'll see how it goes.

We had a really fun Memorial Day with Mary and Paul and Joy. In the morning, we all descended upon Jen and Craig's to visit tiny Ian and terrorize their pets a little with our toddler maelstrom. Afterwards we took our two nappish girls to Soup Plantation for some salad and muffin. Gone are the days when Jarrah dutifully ate anything I put in front of her at that place, including every type of green vegetable as well as those of other colors. Now we're down to noodles, peas, garbanzo beans, and hunks of corn bread. I'm going to have to get more creative. She has me figured out, though--tonight I gave her her first raspberry with a tiny dollop of cream on it; she licked off the cream and handed the raspberry back for more. Whoops.

We brought them back here for some dual napping action, which actually worked, after a bit of complaining from their respective corners. The adults lay around talking and reading magazines (David fell asleep, like a good baby) until we decided they must have had enough at nearly 5:00. Then we packed everybody in the van (having arranged twin car seats in the back row) and drove to Mari and William's out in Jamul for a barbecue. I have always thought of M and W's place (it's more of a "spread" than a house, like a ranch or something, but without the horses) as one of the most relaxing places I've been in the world, surrounded by golden hills, and featuring a limpid pool between the fabulous house and the extra-fabulous pool house/bar/sauna. There's even an actual bed, with a canopy, at pool side. I could loll around there all weekend with nary a care, reading, sipping tasty beverages, and lowering my heart rate to just above coma level. But friends, all good things must come to an end, or at least be altered beyond recognition, within the force of Toddlerworld. My adrenalin soared every time Jarrah scampered near the pool, and she frequently punctuated my otherwise leisurely dinner with "Ma-MAs!" intended to indicate who, exactly, needed another bite of turkey dog at that moment. But it was still lovely, and I got to relive the spa-like fantasies of yore when I was encouraged to change Jarrah's diaper (man, Mari is the consummate hostess) in the guest room of my dreams, which looks out on a verdant landscape and features an antique bed with the world's fluffiest white duvet. I think I could happily sleep for a week in that bed, getting up only for snacks. Even Jarrah saw the specialness, buried her face in the comforter, and pronounced it "Ahhhhhh!"