Eastern Standard Time




I have been out west to Californ'.
But I miss the land where I was born.
I can't help it.
Dum-de-dum-de-dum-dum-da-dum-day
Oh, New England.

-Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers


No matter where I go, there I am. But when I'm in New England, I'm back at the beginning. All my childhood memories are set in Boston, Wareham, Bourne, and Falmouth. It's a place I wanted to run from, but it still has hold of my heart.*



Now Cooper is making his own East Coast memories. Mimi and Grampy took us out on their boat in New Hampshire. Coop and I took a dip in Bow Lake. Some would say it was cold, but I'll say it was, "brisk." I can't remember when I last swam in a lake.



Each day was more New Englandier than the last. Deep fried seafood. Soft serve ice cream. A cruise along the Cape Cod Canal.



And here's Coop's version of digging for clams:



My child has my husband's features. What did he get from momma? Boundless enthusiasm and volume, volume, VOLUME! The kid has excellent projection.





Being the amazing grandparents that they are, Mimi and Grampy took us to The New England Aquarium. Ok, let's all sing-say it together, "I can walk like a penguin!"



The SMELL of the penguins brought me back to when I visited there as a child. My dad held me up so I could get a better look at the penguins jumping off the rocks and slipping into the water with playful grace.





I heard more than one toddler say, "There's Dori! There's Crush the turtle!" (Oh, Disney/Pixar. You are gospel to anyone under 6.



Honestly, I was dreading the Pick-up Pond. Last time we tried this at Sea World, Cooper nearly murdered a starfish by launching it in the air while screaming, "Patrick!" (Oh, Nickelodeon. I kinda hate you.)

But Cooper listened when the aquarium staff kindly told him to place the urchin back in the water so it could live. Then he made her laugh by scrunching up his face and saying, "It's sooooo prickly!"



The task of tracking a raucous 3 year old in a crowded, dark enclosure with many exhibits is not easy. But all the, "HOLD MY HAND! COME BACK HERE! PLEASE LISTEN TO ME! DON'T RUN AHEAD! STAY BY MOMMY, PLEASE! WAIT FOR ME! WAIT YOUR TURN!" is worth it.









I think my next art piece might have something to do with this last image.

Thanks to our families for an unforgettable summer vacation. We miss you. We started missing you before we left.





*pattern recognized, I assure you.

1 comments:

RIRI said...

I know exactly what you mean about running away but tugging at the heart. Great photos and super posting. Looks like you all had a super eastern standard time. Mimi stopped in last night and gave us some candid pictures of lobster at Lizzy and Pauls.