Vacation, Part two...Fun at Toona and Gido's

Toona and Gido are DH's parents.  The boys have never been to their house, so we decided to spend a few days there on either side of the beach trip.  We told LO he was in a for a treat.  We feel so cramped in our little house, that Toona and Gido's felt like a mansion.  It is easily the largest home that Lo has ever spent any time AND it has a yard AND a playground in the neighborhood.  DH and I were excited for a little down time in a place that is so close to what we wish our home could be for the boys.    Without really discussing it, I think we both had visions of the boys actually playing in the grass (instead of in the road, where they have to play at our house) for long periods of time.  We expected them to be as excited about that as we were.  Instead, sadly, it seemed they had no idea what to do with a big yard.  I don't know how we could have expectedly differently, but we did.

In any case, our time at Toona and Gido's was fun.  Our first few days there we spent the mornings at the playground.  It was warm and muggy, but tolerable there in the first hours of our day.  NB played there for about 30 minutes, then had to go back to the house for a nap.  DH and LO stayed longer enjoying the play equipment more and being silly in the shade of a small stage area there.

NB on the playground.  Eating dirt and climbing stairs.

LO on the playground.  There were two big pieces of equipment; LO preferred the biggest one.

 Once the heat was less bearable, playtime moved to the finished basement that served as a playroom.  Two floors below where NB slept, it was easy to let LO play as he wanted without feeling stressed about whether NB would have his nap interrupted. After years of four older cousins having played in the same space, the room was stocked with all sorts of toys.  Most were louder and had more lights than we like at home, so LO felt like they were a real treat.  There were also tricycles, a large play jeep, and a plasma car with space to ride them in the basement, though the carpet kept them from being too fast. When the afternoon brought shade or cooler temperatures, we took the plasma car and tricycle outside.

LO on the plasma car

A happy moment for NB.  He thought he was big time on this  trike.

DH and I sat in the grass to encourage play there, but LO kept ending up in the driveway.  He did get the hang of the plasma car before too long and enjoyed riding it down part of the hill and dragging it back up.  We have so little space for LO to run and play that we have allowed him to run in our house, walk his bike around inside, and climb on one of our tables all in the name of getting him a little activity in his day.  With all the space at Toona and Gido's he had fun just running from one side of the house to the other saying "look how fast I can go, mama!"  NB got in on the action too.  When he wasn't napping he preferred to climb anywhere he could.  In the playroom he liked to climb into the big jeep, on the main floor, his favorite was a small ivory upholstered chair, and, when he could, he went up and down one of the two staircases.

In and out of this chair, NB played for hours over the course of several days.  

Playing peek-a-boo

Our last days there, NB also found the wooden coaster to be a good stacking toy.  He got pretty good at it pretty quickly, and Gido marveled at how quickly he learned.

NB stacking coasters

NB prefers to walk down like a big boy, though he's not walking anywhere yet.

Racing brother on the stairs

When they weren't entertaining themselves, the boys loved the attention Toona and Gido gave them.  NB still has separation anxiety, so he loved them from a little further away than LO.  Where LO gave good morning hugs and kisses, NB mostly blew kisses and waved.  He definitely warmed to them during our time there, but it was a gradual process.  Toona so badly wanted to hold NB, and he just wasn't game for that.  I suspect increasing sleep deprivation over the course of our two weeks away meant that, though he was more familiar with her when we were about to come home, he was so tired that he just didn't want anyone but us.  Fortunately LO was more than willing to take his share of attention and NB's.

Gido is more of a night owl than Toona, and LO was so antsy in the mornings waiting for Gido to finally show his face.  It was really sweet to see LO and Gido together be it playing, talking, or reading books.  LO had a little extra twinkle in his eyes during those times.

Gido reading to LO.  They read this same story over and over.  Gido never seemed to tire of it.

Time at Toona and Gido's also meant DH and I had a little more freedom than usual.  We were able to run errands or have dates while the boys slept and Toona was happy to be responsible for them when we were away.

LO, DH, and I got out during NB's morning nap. DH was on the prowl for a cheesesteak, but his favorite place was closed.

We ended up with out second trip to this favorite hoagie joint.  I got the veggie bobbie, and DH said the cheesesteak was pretty good. 

Our second night there, DH and I went to see Man of Steel after the boys went down.  At home our boys are really good at staying in their rooms at bedtime.  LO may not stay in his bed, but he doesn't leave his room. On vacation we had to let LO know he could leave his room to go potty and then go right back.  He doesn't have to do that at home, so he took vacation time to explore those boundaries a bit.  When he knew we were out of the house, he also took advantage of Toona telling her he was afraid of the thunder.  We made the mistake or texting Toona to check on him, only to get a reply mid-movie that LO had been on the couch with Toona for some time reading books.  We let Toona know she had been played, and LO spent many of the subsequent nights trying to get away with more of the same with us.  We of course did not let that happen, but it made for a good number of interrupted nights.

LO needed a picture taken while I was taking pics of NB in the chair

LO and Da wrestling

Our last night of vacation, we put the very tired NB down for bed as early as we could, then let LO have a bath in Toona's big tub as a treat.  DH and I had plans to hit the Cheesecake Factory for a dessert date, and darn if it didn't storm again before we left.  We let LO linger longer in the big tub of bubbles and he marveled at the sky lights and watched the rain there.

As he got out, Toona pointed out a double rainbow from the window.  It was a sweet ending to a sweet time.  We ushered LO off to bed where he promised to stay (and did) all night.  DH and I made the trek to the restaurant and had a great time.  It was really nice to get in just a little more "us" time before we faced the stress of the return trip home. Thanks Toona and Gido for having us.  We had so much fun!

Our "silly face" picture...looks a lot like our happy face one.