Summer in The District

I have to warn you all that this is going to be a two part-er. We did a whole lot this summer and made lots of good memories along the way. It was a long time with just the two of us (Peter worked a lot during the summer and all of the other kids were in camp) but it was, for the most part, really great. I kept telling myself that this is the last summer of just us and trying to soak up every minute and do lots of fun things. This new baby will be a big change for all of us- but especially for Rin- and I just felt that I needed to give him that last little bit of my undivided attention while I could. So let’s start at the beginning…

Hi All- So we have been keeping pretty busy, me and Rin. And really, is there any better place to have no plans than DC? I mean, there are thousands of people who come here to visit, so we have more than enough fun things to do. And this summer we did a lot. A whole lot. It was sort of fun not to have the time constraints of school to contend with. We had all day every day to do whatever we want. Every morning it was the same question from Rin “After my breakfast, what are we doing to do fun today?” And it was always up for conversation. A big favorite (especially due to the ridiculous heat) was the dinosaur museum. How many times can this child go there and still be entranced? I have yet to find out. His current favorites are of course the dinosaurs, followed closely by the insects. The volunteers there are always impressed that he can hold the hissing cockroach, leaf insect, exotic looking grasshopper, and big fat green caterpillars without freaking out. Little do they know that he’s done it so much it’s like it's his job. Then it’s usually a quick trip through Mammal Hall, the Ocean Animals (the giant whale skeleton and giant squid in particular), or the Evolution exhibit, and off to the café downstairs for some lunch and a giant dinosaur cookie. Then hop the Metro back home and down for a big fat nap. For both of us.

We have met some really wonderful people during these excursions. The café is pretty busy during the summer and we usually end up sitting at a table with other people. Rinat is not shy in the least (which anyone who knows him knows well) and he always manages to make friends. One of the days we ended up across from some young people (did I really just say that?) and Rinat was showing off his giant blue diplodocus cookie to them and we got to talking. They were a group of college bound students from somewhere in the mid-west who were the first in their families to attend college. This was their big, end of the year celebratory trip before they started college. Sometimes I forget how lucky we are both to have the luxury of education and how lucky we are to live where we do. These people came from so far away to see something that we do on random Tuesday because there’s nothing else going on. I love DC. I love how it puts our lives in perspective. I love how it changes my day and makes me feel lucky when I am in the dumps because I don’t get everything right when I want it. I love that it opens the world to us.



Other days we head to the Building Museum where he and his friend run around, their happy screams echoing off the two story ceiling as they race to the play room to be ‘working men.’ It is so great for me because it is air-conditioned, right across from the Metro stop, and I can just sit down and chat with my friend while he plays. It’s almost like a day off. Almost.

And on those days when the heat is almost bearable? The zoo, baby. If you go early enough in the morning and be sure to visit some of the indoor exhibits, it’s not so bad. Oh, and the water misters help a lot too. You find one, bang the bejesus out of the button, and sweet heaven rains down. Besides the Reptile and Small Mammal Houses, we have discovered some new gems this summer. Amazonia is pretty awesome. The rays mesmerize me by floating around their tank over and under each other in circles. And we have tried hard to spot the monkeys in the rainforest upstairs. On our way out, we stop and cool down for a bit and stare at the giant world before heading out. On our most recent trip, there was a man in the Reptile House holding a snake that told us about the octopus feeding time at the Invertebrate House. I had no idea that place even existed but we headed right over it too is amazing. There are lots of new things to look at. We saw them feed not only the octopus but ‘teeny tiny s’imps to teeny tiny ‘quid’ as Rin put it. He thought it was really cool. And every trip to the zoo is capped off by a big fat cone filled with the most amazing gelato known to man. The Dolci Gelati cart is located across from the Mane Restaurant and every flavor they have is amazing. My fave is the strawberry and Rin’s pina colada. Yum. Sitting on a patch of grass as gelato drips down my sweet baby’s fingers and our morning is winding down is what summer is all about for me. The craziness around us becomes quiet as we recount the trip and all of our favorite parts. It is a day well spent.

Another fun thing from this summer was Daddy’s Bday. Peter was out of town and I think Rinat was missing him as much as I was. One day I told Rinat that I missed Daddy and wished he was here. He said “Don’t worry Mommy, I take care of you. I do laundry.” So funny and so sweet that he thinks that's what Peter's for.  Especially since he's never once actually done my laundry.  During that week, we also lost power for several days. And did I mention the temperature hovered around 100? So for lack of anything else to do, Rinat got it into his head that we should decorate the house for Peter’s birthday and make him a cake. So we made a paper chain that we hung from the chandelier, Rinat make a whole lot of ‘confetti’ for the floor and we decorated a sign for him. Then, once the power returned, we made him some brownies too. And it was all my little boy’s idea. The whole thing. Sometimes he’s just so sweet I can hardly stand it.

During the power outage and crazy heat, we also spent a lot of time at the pool where Rinat kept working on his swimming skills. He started to put his head under to go under the rope which was a big step for him. And I love to see him leap with such abandon from the side of the pool. Goodbye forever baby pool. Well, goodbye until the next little one comes anyway.

And aside from that, there have been several trips out of town which I will detail in the next post. Until next time, -m