Halloween, Excavations, Visitors, and Baby Lily

Gorilla

  As stated in previous blog entries about Halloween, our street, Lewis Ave, is the only place to trick-or-treat on Tybee.  Not only is it the only place, but it is THE place to be for not just Tybee, but many Savannah folks as well.  It's like a carnival/block party, and Mathieu distinctly remembered it from last year.  He didn't eat the candy last year, but, being one year wiser, he was clearly looking forward to collecting his treasure.

Dave's boss said to Dave, "Man, you've got to be comfortable with yourself to walk about in a wetsuit." I went as "Mommy with Sleeping Baby."

In other news, there's been much construction going on around our house.  Mathieu has taken to shoveling so many holes in our sandy front and back yards that it looks like I have a gopher problem.  My mother-in-law once remarked that I have the best yard for little boys.  I definitely agree with that statement. I won't win any beautification awards with my weedy, sandy landscape, but it sure does make great digging!

Mathieu happened to not only dig a rather deep hole, but to hit the exact spot where Dorm 4's sewer pipe was located.  He agreed not to dig any deeper and that perhaps it was wiser to dig a shallower ditch rather than a deep hole.

As he was digging his ditch, he would fill the dump trucks with the sand and transport it throughout the yard ...

... where he would then construct new roads.

Lined up and ready for a new day of working.

 We've been lucky to have a steady stream of visitors since early August.  After our camping trip, Dave's parents remained for another few days.  We all had a great time with them.

My father-in-law is a committed Economist reader. When not actively reading the magazine, it resides in his back pocket.  

 My cousin, Amie, and her husband, Derek, arrived for a Tybee vacation the day of my in-law's departure.

Sunset dinner on the beach

Dinner by the marsh.  My handsome husband looking very suave.

Cool dudes

My yummy flounder dinner with Lily right beside me.

When the gnats became bad, I just added the netting.

All babies love Cousin Amie

Life with Lily

Holding your own baby boy or girl is such a precious gift, and I thoroughly enjoy snuggling and kissing and holding my baby Lily. 

 What's it now like to spend my days with both Mathieu and Lily?  Well, I'm very glad that Mathieu is as old as he is.  Mathieu independently uses the toilet and washes his hands, can now mostly dress himself,  actively uses his imagination, and has a great relationship with Daddy.  All this has been very helpful with the transition of Lily in our lives.  The great relationship with Daddy has been crucial.  When Mathieu was younger, there was a lot of, "No, Mommy do it.", even if there was another highly capable individual around, like Dave.  Starting last December, this began to shift, and towards the end of my pregnancy,an abrupt shift came where, for example,only Daddy was desired for reading stories and doing the bedtime routine. A bit sad for me, but comforting that other people can now fulfill his emotional needs as much as me, and that it was his choice to branch off from me and not thrust upon him because of the arrival of a new baby.  Now, without talking about it, Mathieu seems to accept that Mommy and Lily spend a lot of time nursing, and that in general, I need to spend a lot of time and energy devoted to taking care of Lily.

Mathieu and I spend every day together. We read lots of stories, cook together, clean up together, chit-chat together,go on tons of walks, and play together, but he also is old enough to want and seek out independent play, and he definitely enjoys playing with other children, which I love and encourage by having him play each day with another child.  He figures out ways to help me with Lily, and now, when Lily is napping and it is just Mathieu and me, that time feels even sweeter because it's not as abundant as it used to be.

When Daddy comes home from work or when it's the weekend, Mathieu and Daddy are inseparable, leaving me freer to be with Lily and not making as many comprises towards her napping schedule, or lack thereof.

It's a bit dicey at times, and we've hit some bumps, but we've been taking one day at a time, and I'm so thankful for Dave's, Mathieu's, and Lily's love.