Monday, September 6, 2010
A day filled with porch-picnicking, puddle-dipping, toe-tickling, and silly giggling...
...but first - our morning.
Chilly 7 a.m. stroll to our fave, faraway Starbucks. Ayize did some dramatic shivering and welcomed his hoodie "blanket" en route.
Predictably, within twenty minutes, it was balmy and beautiful out. Anyhoo, we got our drinks (his was a Horizon chocolate milk), and headed back home, two happy patrons.
Then we ate breakfast and got ready for our morning activity: a post-wedding brunch at Karen's aunt's house (the judge who officiated the ceremony) with lots of her family plus the remnants of our Evanston crew who were still in town.
Driving over - it was a perfect Pac-Northwest fall morning.
I caught this view of the river as Jo's car whizzed over the bridge.
Seeing this reminded me that I wanted to ride the aerial tram with Ayize before the fast-approaching end of our trip.
We were actually about to have an even-closer encounter with the tram, unexpectedly; Karen's aunt happened to live in a house directly below the tram's path. We could see the suspended wires up above through her many skylights. She laughed as she reminisced about when the tram first went up and how sad they were to have their unspoiled view of sky disappear. Unfortunately for us, we didn't get to watch them run overhead, as it was Labor Day and they were on hold for the holiday.
Speaking of those lovely skylights!
Anyhow, I enjoyed the sunny, spacious, gorgeous home...
...while Ayize amused himself with the dog's Kong. Caramba!
Jo Jo breakfasting and chatting with the groom. Congrats again, James!!!
"Enough with the dog toys. I'm heading out!"
He flung the doors wide open with aplomb, yes, but after that dramatic entrance, the unexpected sight of all our E-Town peeps put him right back in Shy City.
I, on the other hand, was overjoyed to see everyone. I also had (no big surprise here) the most energy - partly because I probably got a little more sleep than these dudes (okay, not much, having been woken up around 6:15 by The Mister), and partly because happy and hyper are simply and incontrovertibly a part of my genetic makeup. I flounced over happily to meet & greet...
...but someone hung back stubbornly on the steps. Normally, he's much more engaged, but I think the sheer volume of new people he'd met over the course of the weekend was a bit intimidating, even for this social butterfly.
The bride beckoned him, but he shunned even her sweet solicitations, and plonked himself on the wooden deck, where he proceeded to breakfast solo.
My little berry-loving, juice-slamming, bagel-munching loner continued to play the part of Philosopher on the steps while I exchanged happy hugs with everybody.
Lizzy and her folks! I've known these guys since middle school. Mrs. Nicholson entertained us with a hilarious story of her pants being on fire. And no, not as the result of flagrant fibbing, as the nursery rhyme would have us believe, but rather, the product of an ironing debacle.
Somebody was growing a bit bored. In a bid for attention, he began to rapidly race up and down the stairs, periodically interspersing some dramatic, stoop-shaking jumping for flavor.
When that didn't work, he climbed to the porch's highest safe point, where he appeared to be contemplating a mighty leap to the garden below.
Kicking it old-school. We were all well-fed by this point, and the caffeine was beginning to seep into our bones.
Back to just eating and hanging - he'd now adopted a "whatevah, yo" posture.
Spilling down the steps as he played with his beloved trains.
All hail the mighty Kails!
Time to explore.
Off on his safari. I wasn't sure if we were now trespassing into another neighbor's yard, so I eased him back into the garden proper.
As I did, I spotted some of the groom's family gathered on a bench in the backyard and was excited to catch this shot of them together.
It had been a super-fun morning, and Ayize had behaved beautifully (with the exception of a single plant massacre, but it kind of looked weed-ish anyway, so I think we were all good), but much time had passed, we were fast encroaching on the Napping Hour, and the party was winding down.
I stopped to chat with a schoolteacher who was interested in my book recommendations (!) having watched me read and story-spin to Ayize at some point during the morning's gathering, and after that, Jo Jo and I had a lovely conversation with the home's owners and more of the bride's and groom's families. But it was high time to be leaving, so with a last sad farewell to our many friends, and bunches and bunches of hugs, we were on our way.
Ayize crashed in the car literally within minutes of leaving, and we had a peaceful drive home. Once inside, I transferred him to his bed, where he enjoyed a lovely slumber.
That afternoon, Stephanie and John came over to visit. Bahar and Stephanie talked knitting for a bit...
...but Beatles: Rock Band busted out soon enough. Bahar and John handled the guitars; Jo Jo pounded the skins; Stephanie belted out the tunes. Ayize was a rapt audience.
He dug his perch up on high, from which to watch the action.
I got him turned around and focused on eating lunch, but then Uncle Jo Jo walked by and he was all, "WHOAH, dude!"
It would be an understatement to say that he was impressed by Jo Jo's hennish (mit lederhosen, ach!) headgear.
Soon enough, the Bryants had to depart for the airport. We said our goodbyes, amidst many hugs, and then Jo Jo and I got ready to meet my friend Travis.
Travis had told me about this hot spot when we hung earlier in the week, and when my face registered surprise at the location, he affirmed that this kiddie funville was indeed located in the heart of this business district. Many businessmen and a lot of local residents were apparently none too happy about this fancy water sculpture turning into a free-for-all wading pool for the swim-diaper set but after much controversy, the sculpture-cum-splash pond stayed, and local kiddos have enjoyed it ever since.
I was really grateful to Jo Jo for taking us, as it was a bit of a hike from his place. I knew Ayize would have a blast and I really wanted to meet Travis's awesome kids and say farewell before leaving. I was planning on taking public transport originally, but that would have been a pretty complicated trip and we didn't have much time before we needed to head out to Beaverton to meet Bahar's parents for dinner. Hence, Jo Jo to the rescue! He said that the park was en route to Beaverton anyway, but still - parking downtown was a hassle and traffic was already a bit heavy, so I was very appreciative of the effort. Gracias again, homes!
Travis and the smalls! It was awesome to meet his dynamic duo. His son kept tackling him in the exact same manner as Ayize was tackling me - from behind, and with great force upon the delicate neck bones. A mirror image! And his sweet daughter took my hand and led me towards the water, telling me it was so nice to have a girl around (this last remark made as she directed a dirty look at her big bro LOL).
Can you spot Ayize? He immediately waded fearlessly into the fray.
This park was super cool - thanks, Trav!
There was a stone structure, resembling a much-more orderly version of the red rocks of Sedona, and from it water flowed, pooled, then retracted. It basically had its own tide. Very cool. My munchkin definitely dug. It was a hot day, too - perfect weather to get soaked in!
Ayize particularly liked climbing up a rock or two (I discouraged this particular too-high attempt, though!) before leaping in with aplomb.
It was so random to be in the midst so many marching business suits yet surrounded by so many swimsuit-clad kiddos. Eve Ayize seemed puzzled at times.
Daredevil, walking the wall.
Dashing out of the water dramatically to tell me that...
...something smelled bad! LOL
Time was running short. It had been a ton of fun, but we had to move on towards Beaverton.
I changed Ayize into his dry-weather duds and we said our goodbyes (way too many of those today - and yet, there were even more to come), and we trotted off towards Jo Jo's car. Ayize loved walking through downtown, taking in all the sights, and importantly announcing to us that, "Car coming!" at every intersection.
Strapped in his car seat, and we were driving away from downtown.
"Did you like that park, honey?" I asked.
A reverential whisper of "Yessssss" and this endearing look were my only answers.
Off to Beaverton!
I was super duper mega excited to see Abdi and Farangis, Bahar's parents, again. They are totally fun, funny, frank, serious, hilarious, at turns - and sometimes, all at the same time. I know I've raved about them before, but it's impossible to stop myself from doing so again here, because they are just that great. I would never wish less than the best for my beloved brother, but on this one point, God/Gaia/Buddha/Allah forgive me for being just the bittiest smidgen of jealous, because he has seriously been gifted with the greatest in-laws on earth!
As I uploaded photos, I noticed something very funny: Ayize did a repeating pattern of behavior over and over for the first hour or so of our visit. I only noticed it later, as I looked at the photos, but check out this series of three, and a couple of photos later, check out the next series of three. Too funny!
So...step one of Ayize's "routine": feign participation in Abdi and Jo Jo's conversation about computers, while actually using the opportunity to stuff one's face with black olives, pimiento olives, green olives, and pickles. Oh, and some nuts.
Step two: "Huh? Who, me??" (chomp)
Step three: roll around on the floor at Uncle Jo Jo's feet, giggling uncontrollably.
A brief pause in the action, as we headed out to the porch to check out Abdi and Farangis's adorable patio, with Abdi's hand-built bench and a great collection of potted plants and cool rocks and shells. Ayize particularly dug this big conch.
The sky in one direction...
....and the sky in the other. Uh oh! It was definitely looking like rain was on its way in for our last full day. Sigh.
Back to the routine:
step one.
Step two - and really throwing out all the stops on this particular expression of naive innocence!
Step three. This time, Jo Jo threw in the dreaded "scissors move", much to Ayize's delight!
A beautiful wedding portrait of Farangis and Abdi.
Communing with best friend Thomas.
Farangis putting the finishing touches on her delicious saffron rice dish...so yummy!
A veritable vegetarian feast! Farangis went above and beyond to cater to Ayize's and my diet - I felt a bit embarrassed that everyone else had to "go veg" for the night, but those emotions were immediately replaced with excited anticipation as all the delicious food was placed before us. Besides the rice, Farangis made fantastic homemade fried veggie fritters, a super salad, and a mouth-watering ravioli dish. Ayize and I heaped our plates and pigged out!
Ayize mid-meal. He went to town on the delicious spread! It was funny watching him try to handle a gynormous, heavy adult fork - especially when it came to the slippery and evasive rice grains. He actually did pretty dang good, if I do say so myself!
After our meal, we headed out for a postprandial stroll. He needed to burn off a little steam, so we tromped into the great beyond.
Just outside the front door, we came across this neighbor's license plate. My name! (Kind of.)
Whoah!
I was about to take a picture of Ayize as he strolled down this courtyard path anyway, and then this outdoor light came on, just as I was snapping, and - voila! Great moment, caught on film.
Rubbing his hands with a bit of trepidation; not sure what to expect next along this once innocuous-seeming path.
Breaking into a jolly jog!
"Rock, Mama!"
Strolling along the deserted street and back to his usual devil-may-care stride (the light incident having nearly been forgotten already).
Do we ever let a little harmless sign stop us??
Past the sign, we find a winding path that overlooks the site of a housing development.
As we get closer, the beautiful sunset comes into clearer view.
Following the path along its meandering zigzag.
Further along still.
Nature versus development.
Nature wins!
Our small hike has led us to yet another housing development. Ayize enjoyed strolling about on the brick border wall. After a bit, back we climbed...
...and once back at the top, we began a circuitous stroll back towards Abdi and Farangis's house.
I liked this sign because it looked like the guy was about to take his dog golfing!
Approaching Bahar's parent's house, I admired the foliage around the back porch - such gorgeous greenery and colorful flowers. But what I liked best was the golden light emanating from within.
I was reminded of one of Ayize's favorite bedtime books, Susan Swanson's The House in the Night, whose last lines read:
"Here is the key to the house.
The house in the night.
A home filled with light."
Up close, I could even make out Jo Jo's profile, absorbed in earnest conversation with Farangis at the dining room table.
We headed towards the front door to rejoin our friends.
Inside, Bahar knitted while Farangis and I caught up. Ayize did the daredevil thang again. Jo Jo must have taken this photo when I wasn't paying attention - sneaky guy!
Reminiscing on our labors and births.
Meanwhile, Ayize asked Abdi for some more olives.
Then he dispensed hugs...
...before hopping down, and pulling Abdi by the hand towards the grapes.
"Over there!"
Abdi obligingly gave him some grapes, too.
Then Ayize set to work on his "dessert" - a mixture of pickled olives and grapes. Wow! I myself would find such a combination horribly unappetizing...
...but apparently, my offspring knows something I don't!
Sagging, but still in the game, all guns blazing. He busted out his Matchbox firehouse, Thomas, and Percy. This was some serious playing.
Poor Abdi hardly had a moment's rest, however, before Ayize was back to tormenting him with his particular brand of affection. He began jumping around on the sofa behind Abdi...
...who responded by grabbing him up in the air, as he shrieked with wild delight! LOL
Trading more hugs for snacks.
Ayize seemed to be throwing us all a gourmand's "bravissimo" kiss as he polished off more of his potent grape-olive mix.
Hugs from a sleepy toddler are always the sweetest.
Time for a change. Ayize obligingly let me diaper and dress him in his jammies.
Then he leapt to his feet and did some crazy running-dancing-hollering moves.
A brief lull in the action...
...was all Uncle Jo Jo needed to snatch him up and swing his long, lean body like a pendulum - a much-loved activity.
"Tick-tock/tick-tock/I'm a little toddler clock..."
Suddenly, someone was sleepy. He lazed around on the floor and played footsie with the glass-topped table while we gathered our stuff and prepared to go.
Grandma Farangis gave him one last affectionate toe-tickle.
Then we headed out the door. He dashed gleefully towards our parked car, a little munchkin in jammies. Farangis and I giggled as we watched him nimbly dash through the dark.
Safely strapped in and ready for the ride home. Meanwhile, I exchanged tearful hugs and kisses with Abdi and Farangis. I was so happy we had a chance to hang out again! They are already very missed.
Then it was into the car, and on the road. Jo Jo, as always, provided us with a perfect, pleasant cruise. We were both lulled into a peaceful - though sleepless - state by his smooth driving. By the time we got in the house, we were super ready to hit the sack!
Tomorrow was to be our last full day. I felt such a pang of sadness just before falling asleep as I made that realization.
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