Tot Turns Two

We celebrated The Tot's 2nd birthday today and oh my! I'm not sure that I am ready to say good-bye entirely to the babyhood stage of mothering. The Dad would argue that it's one step closer to the end of diapers. True that, but there's something irresistible about chubby babies tucked into mei-tei carriers or slings.

To celebrate, we had a little party at home for The Tot. Grandma & Grandpa Naperville came in and were joined by two families that The Tot sees most often: Allison, Becky and their respective children. It's probably not what Barbara Kingsolver had in mind with her recent book, but we ate locally: pizzas from La Villa and a wonderful chocolate carousel cake from Whole Foods Sauganash (this buttercream version was delish and comparable in price to those of Dinkel's Bakery, at $25 + $6 for the personalization on a 1/4-sheet cake). We had lemonade for the kids, beer and wine and water for the adults, and I made a simple ricotta-lemon-chive dip as an appetizer. The kids all played happily, leaving the adults to chit-chat.

The Tot wore his new "2" t-shirt from the T-Shirt Deli, which The Boy and The Girl helped me choose from the Andersonville location on our way to pick up the cake. He was in absolute heaven with the Sodor Bay Bridge that Grandma and Grandpa brought, although he first had to be distracted away from the plastic wagon of outdoor toys that Becky brought for him. The Dad and my gifts to him (Duplo Lego) are still sealed in their brown shipping box. We'll get those out on another day of this rainy week.

Playgroup Reunion

This morning, we had a reunion of sorts of our playgroup. The occasion for the get-together was Ben C.'s 3rd birthday party at Pump It Up in Lisle. The Boy and The Girl had a fantastic time bouncing on the huge, generator-powered inflatables. The Tot also seemed to have a good time, although he could only climb up (and slide back down) the triangular wedges at the base of each unit. The Dad mainly helped him. Truth be told, I should not have been there as I was feeling under-the-weather.

Meanwhile, I caught up with three moms (and one dad) of our original playgroup. It's weird to think that two of our playgroup families have been suburbanites for longer than three years. It also seems strange to me that the original kid members are now all in kindergarten; it was interesting to see how much the kids still recognized and related to each other.

We all had pizza and cupcakes after the jumping bits, and then headed back into the city. We took the Eisenhower back in so that The Dad could stop by Red Eye Eyewear to pick up his new glasses. Everyone (save The Dad, who was driving) passed out in the car on the way home. When we got home, I took a much-needed 4-hour nap.

An afternoon salvaged

This afternoon, we were supposed to attend a birthday party at Foster Avenue Beach. Getting to and parking at the beach on a 90-degree Sunday afternoon is no easy feat. My friend was stuck in the parking lot between Foster and Wilson Avenues for 40 minutes. After driving around Foster Avenue and Lakeshore for 20 minutes without finding a parking spot, I bailed on the party. My kids were crying. My friend's kids were crying. So we salvaged the afternoon by going over to her house to swim and eat cupcakes.

How did I not know this was here?

Today, The Dad, The Boy, The Girl, The Tot, and I all piled into the car to attend our playgroup friend S.'s 2nd birthday party. It was at Adams Playground Park, on Seminary, tucked into a corner of Lincoln Park. It was an awesome space, with a shaded sandbox, two playground sets on recycled tire hardscapes, and a separate water playground within the lot. How have I lived in the city for this long and not known what a gem was lurking around the corner from my favorite strip of Armitage (with its Paper Source, Art Effect, Old Town School, and CBA)?

We got there late, so we had pizza and cupcakes with bright blue frosting, and then changed into our suits and played. The Girl, who normally does not like water features, was having a blast going down the water slide with The Boy and A., while The Dad and I enjoyed chatting with R. and M., and The Tot alternately walked around the water park and explored the traditional playground features.

After the park, we headed out to Naperville for a post-4th BBQ at Grandma-and-Grandpa's house. I had not planned to be out of the house for more than just the party, so we stopped at Meijer in Naperville to pick up disposable diapers and fresh clothes for everyone. The kids had a great time at G-and-G's house with their cousins.