Memorial Day Weekend round-up

A fantastic weekend, with perfect weather. The weekend started off strong with a visit on Friday to an art teacher for Nikita. It was really interesting to see how the teacher evaluated Nikita's personality based on the way he drew (very brisk, not into details), and to understand what she meant by "talent" (emotional and physical readiness to accept instruction and convey what you want on paper). Igor, meanwhile, listened to the life story of her husband, who also is an artist, but more importantly, fought in WWII. He is 87 years old, but still swims in the ocean in the winter.

On Saturday, we spent a lovely day at Elm Bank reservation in Wellesley. The last time we went there, Vanya wasn't mobile, so it was really cool to watch him explore a new area. Nikita tried out his rollerblades again. He's getting a hang of balancing himself; I only need to hold him by a belt loop in the back. But Nikita and Ivan really enjoyed being held by Igor while he roller-bladed.

Sunday was spent at home. I cleaned parts of the house to Morphine. Igor took Nikita to the art museum, mowed the lawn, and helped build the front steps of our next-door neighbor. The help was rewarded by dinner at my neighbor's: ribs, sausages, and pulled pork smoked by another neighbor.

Monday morning, Igor helped out again. I cooked soup to make sure there was food in the house because in the afternoon, I had two BBQ's to attend, and Igor didn't want to go. I only took Nikita because otherwise, I wouldn't be able to talk to anyone. The parties were great because there were lots of kids around Nikita's age, and I got to see folks I hadn't seen in a while.

Bedtime routine lately has consisted of yogurt and chopped prunes or apricots while watching a few scenes from Mary Poppins: Chim Chim Cheree, Step in Time, Let's Go Fly a Kite. Nikita has been working on his skipping, but isn't quite there yet; I became fascinated with Mary Poppin's scarf, and actually found a pattern for it here. Then we wash up (Vanya is really obsessed with his new toothbrush), and read The Carrot Seed. I also recite Pajama Time and Goodnight Moon for Vanya, the latter with Nikita's input.