Friday, June 6, 2014

Back To The Dells!

We returned from our little vacation today, having spent the past three days in Wisconsin Dells in a repeat of last year's summer's excursion.  Same lodge, same morning at Tommy Bartlett's Exploratory, same Northwood's style McDonalds.  This year, we added a visit to Circus World in nearby Baraboo, WI.  And, objectively speaking, that ended up being my favorite part.  During my last five visits to Brookfield Zoo, I have not been able to see an elephant.  Like, you just assume, oh, I'm going to the zoo, I'm definitely going to see an elephant.  Nope, not the case!  I don't know what the deal is in Brookfield, but there are no elephants and the price of admission is the same and/or higher despite this fact.  Unbelievable.  But, at Circus World, I got to see an elephant.  Three of them, in fact!  Very up close and personal during the circus performance part of our visit, so up close and personal that I can honestly say I've now visually examined an elephant's bathing suit area and the elephants that performed during the circus were definitely boy elephants.  Now that's the kind of elephantine detail you just can't get outside of Circus World!


But I had another favorite part of our three day excursion, and that was Andy.  Oh, sure, I delighted in watching Alex splash around in the water, and I definitely enjoyed my alone time with Alex perched on my lap while we rode the lazy river in our resort, but there was something about Andy during this vacation that made my heart beat for him just a little bit more than usual.  I think it's because he's growing up, and I could see his blossoming independence as he rode the water slides without help and made decisions about what he wanted to do and where he wanted to go- but it was also more than that.

It was the rapt look on his face when we watched the circus.

It was his guidance of Alex throughout the entire trip.

It was his acceptance of when it was time to start an activity and end an activity.

It was the way he carefully ate his meals and behaved so well in the various restaurants.

It was the easy way he stuck his hand in mine and asked me to "join in" during story time before we sat "crisscross applesauce" in the lobby.  Sidenote: I guess we're not supposed to say indian style anymore in reference to this way of sitting.  Is "indian style" really that offensive?  If you'd like, you can say Italian style since that's how I sit and I'm Italian.  Or Polish style/ Hungarian style/ Chinese style.  Go ahead, pick one and go for it, and I'll report back to my people that it's okay.

There's something changing in Andy.  He's still my little boy, but he's not my baby, he's not my toddler, and he's growing into such a lovely child.  It was evident to me on this trip, perhaps because it was in such sharp contrast to Alex's mostly piss-poor behavior (sorry, little man, I know it's the age, not you).  Andy is starting to grow up in a way that's different than how he's been growing up until this point.  He's calmer.  He's becoming more intellectual and interested in the things we do.  He has smart questions and remembers details.  He calls out adorable things like, "Come on, family!" when he races exuberantly to the elevator.  He is secure in his own skin and place in the world, and I'm so proud of this almost-four year old that I can't even believe I'm lucky enough to be the one his hand searches out for when we make a new journey.


I read somewhere a while ago that while it's a shame that adults can't remember the early years of their own lives, that having children is our way of reclaiming that lost time.  That even though I can't remember what it's like to be a baby/toddler/preschooler, I get to have some of that time back through the experiences I have with my own kids.  That notion has stuck with me throughout these initial years of parenthood, and on this vacation, I was reminded of that idea once again.  I remembered that thought as I raced Andy down a water slide, and I thought about why Chris and I had planned this vacation in the first place.  It was for us, for the kids, for our family.  It was to see the world through their eyes as we entered that huge water park or gazed upon those circus elephants. But it was also to be surprised by these kids, to realize that they're growing up, too, and that it looks like there's even more of them to love as they transition from babies to big kids. And it turns out that they're really great kids.

Yes.  Sigh.  Even Alex.

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