Montana, etc

Back to it…

Diana and I had a great vacation this past week, flying out to Montana to visit with my parents and enjoy some Big Sky country. It was Allison’s first set of plane rides, so in spite of her generally calm, agreeable demeanor, I admit to being a little anxious. How would the pressure affect her little ears? How would she feel not being allowed to roam around, now that she’s used to crawling and moving around?

The morning started off at something like 4:45am. By the time we got to the airport around 5:45am or so, Allie was all smiles, looking all around and chatting it up with the world. She slept for the first portion of each flight, and sat happily in our laps for the remainder. It was really easy, thanks in large part to Diana’s preparation. We had bottles all ready to go, and lots of toys and books for instant distraction purposes. It all worked out really well.

Our time in Montana was great. We had lots of good family time with the grandparents. I snuck away one morning and played 9 holes of golf in the beautiful mountain course up there. It was awesome to have mountains on one side, and the lake on the other, with some deer frolicking in the trees. Just gorgeous. I shot a 51, which is totally average for me for 9 holes. Later in the week, Diana and I left Allie at home with my mom, and went on a float trip with my dad and another guy. Diana floated and relaxed and I fished. After about two hours of NOTHING, I caught three fish in about 10 minutes. That turned the trip around right quick. We ended up being gone for about 7 hours, which is the longest anyone has babysat Allison, and both she and my mom did great. That 7 hours comprised a full cycle (nap, lunch, awake time). Previous to this, Allison always seemed a little suspicious of my parents, so it was wonderful that they could spend some quality time together.

And now we’re back home. Our kitchen remodel continues, albeit slowly. We’re still a few weeks away from moving back home, I think, which kinda sucks.

Today is a big day for Allison. It’s her 10 month birthday, as well as her first official day of daycare at Dorrie’s! Dorrie is a nice lady who runs a day care from her home (and has been doing this as her chosen career for the past 25 years or something). So far, we’re pretty impressed with her. Since this is a tough age with regard to separation anxiety, Dorrie suggested that Diana start coming over for lunches and doing some acclimatization, which has been going on for the past couple weeks. Today, Diana dropped off Allie at 8:30am, and picked her back up at 12:30pm. I just got a message that everything went really well, with only a few minutes of crying before naptime (which is totally normal). So, that sounds really good. She’ll continue to do half-days for a couple days this week, then do a couple full-time days next week, and then start full time as Diana and I go back to work.

Now that I type that, I realize was a big change that’s going to be for everyone. I’m used to being apart from Allison during the days, obviously, but it’s going to be huge for both her and Diana. I mean, I always knew that it was coming, but it’s just kind of sinking in. As I said, we’re pretty pleased with what we’ve seen at Dorries. The children are really well behaved, and she treats them with respect and politeness. I hope it lives up to my expectations.

Speaking of expectations, I went out with some boys to see the new Batman movie. Long story short, I thought it was really good. It started at 10pm, and we left the theater at like 12:45am, so I was a little sleepy, and afraid I might have missed some of the subtleties, so I’m looking forward to a second viewing. I thought that Heath Ledger’s Joker completely stole the show. All the buzz you’ve heard about him is well deserved.

And finally, we have a new pet! Diana caught a stick bug! And by “caught”, I mean “found it on her foot”, and by “stick bug”, I mean “baby stick bug”. The thing is about half an inch long. But I put him in the requisite jar with holes in the lid, along with some sticks (natch) and grass and a piece of spinach. I’ve named him “Pointy”. I hope he does well. It’s always fun to look in the jar and try to find him.

That’s all, blog. Smell you later.