Projects and Plans

Is there any day lonelier than the day after a long weekend, when that day is a home day and you have no plans? No, there is not. Which isn't to say we are not keeping busy over here, because there is much to do. In fact, I have not posted in awhile, in the name of Getting Things Done. This has been mostly successful, although I have not gotten Everything Done. Then again, does one ever get Everything Done? No, one does not. So here I am.

One of the projects nearing completion is the horrid digging out of the rock border in our backyard. The new tarp is now laid and I've been trying to put the rocks back, sans dirt and detritus. This is unexpectedly problematic, since it seems the centers of my rock piles have turned into heavy black dirt. Dirt which will not wash away, but instead turns to mud and stubbornly clings to the rocks from which it has come. Stupid dirt. Maybe I can train Isaac to start throwing individual rocks onto the tarp.

Other than moving rocks to and fro, we did have time for some fun stuff over the long weekend. We went to the Denver Aquarium, which is strangely owned by a restaurant. We saw some interesting creatures, a fun demonstration of a flash flood, and animals both in the water (lungfish! sea turtles! Nemo!) and out of the water (otters! a tiger!). Isaac caught glimpses of animalia here and there, but spent most of the time tearing through the crowd, pushing his umbrella stroller and yelling "beep! beep!" whenever he ran into someone or something. He appeared both terrified and intrigued, existing in a state of heightened arousal. Needless to say we did not stay for dinner, but collapsed at McDonald's and engaged in Happy Meal therapy.

Our zoo trip last week was a similar experience. Isaac spent the whole time at 100 mph, while Anna was mostly at 0 mph. What I'm learning from these experiences is that I need to rethink my plan for the summer. I have a mental list of fun things to do in the area, and was going to do one a week. Unfortunately, unless I leash Isaac I'm almost guaranteed to lose him in the crowd. Or lose Anna while I chase Isaac. I need to think of events that are in more small-scale, enclosed spaces. Oh well. Those are cheaper, anyway.