Hot July - complete with Hamster!

Summer is here in full force!  In typical Seattle fashion, July  = the true start of summer, and OH BOY was it hot.  Global warming in full evidence and this wussy Seattleite nearly melted into a puddle.  The kids have loved it, though, as time out from school + warm weather has meant camps for Lily (science, circus and a brief flirtation with boating), field trips and lots of wallowing in dirt for Matteo, and neighborhood playdates pretty much every night.  Of course Lily has had some help beating the heat...she now goes to bed every night either spooning an ice pack or resting one on her feet.  Smart kid.

The month started with a memorable 4th.  For the first time in my adult life I actually bought fireworks....and wound up with a hamster as a bonus.  After promising Lily we would get some sparklers, I took the kids to a stand up in Lynnwood the morning of the 4th.  It wasn't open yet, so we went to the strip mall down the block to kill some time.  Of course the only thing open in the strip mall was...PetCo.  There we found what may have been the cutest guinea pig I'd ever seen.  Lily of course wanted it immediately and I have to admit I was swayed.  We agreed to discuss with Daddy and headed back to the stand.  Now open, the stand had a dizzying array that made me feel panicked - I asked a kind woman to please help me fill my bag with things that wouldn't leave me fingerless and she obliged while I pulled item after item from Matteo's wee fingers.  Well-stocked, we headed out.

Once home we told Chris about the guinea pig and we headed back to PetCo so he could check one out for himself.  He wasn't impressed and by then I'd quickly researched guinea pig care and realized we were not equipped for guinea pig care.  However there was a Chinese Dwarf Hamster in the pet adoption section that was both cute and in need...and just like that we came home with Filbert.  So far he's been an easy and entertaining pet, but we quickly learned we have to keep his cage locked or a certain pet owner will forget to close it.  Fortunately it only happened once and Chris found him quickly (thankfully still alive and more than ready to return to captivity) in the toy bin.

The night of the 4th we participated for the first time in the block fireworks.  Scott went all out, bringing back a truck load from Boom Town.  The show went on and on....so long in fact that Matteo looked at me about 30 minutes in and said "No more fireworks - I want go home" and that was that.  I knew the poor kid was fried as his new favorite saying at bedtime is "5 minutes!" complete with a wee hand showing 5 fingers....for him to ask to go home knowing bedtime awaits is a rarity indeed.

This month also had its quirks and milestones.  For Matteo he upped the ante on bedtime quirks with this new teeth brushing shtick.  He will now only allow them to be brushed when he's in bed, and while he will still resist having them cleaned, he will enthusiastically point to where you should be brushing on either side.  For Lily she's suddenly growing up too fast for me, going from leaping up for hugs, to now standing on the ground.  Thankfully she still holds my hand, but never around kids her age and typically only in places where she isn't 100% sure of herself.  Taller, she will now stand next to me, one arm casually draped over my shoulders, leaning against me.  It melts my heart and makes me feel incredibly special that this sweet girl has chosen to me.  Matteo continues on his quest to be the dirtiest kid around...so much so that one night gravel came out of his hair at bath time.  And Miss Lily finally got to ride in a SlugBug - and a convertible one at that! - when the VW dealership gave us one as a loaner.   

 

And of course with quirks come quotes:

Matteo at the park, upset I made him share the communal sand trucks: You go to store and buy ambulance and then I will be happy. 
A compelling argument....but no.

Me: Lily, would you like a banana?
Lily: Ok, but make sure it doesn't taste like a rotten coconut! (??)

Me to Lily: Do I give you not enough, too many, or just the right amount if hugs and kisses? 
Lily: Jusssssst the right amount!
(phew!!)

Matteo, seeing my suitcase the morning I left for ComicCon: You going on airplane today!  Get ready for takeoff!  It goes down the runway and flies!

At the end of the month we took a quick trip down to Seaside to meet up with the Fell family, who were there for Dana's family reunion.  We'd never been and fell totally in love with Cannon Beach.  There was an anchovy die-off in Seaside which considerably diminished its charms, but we still had fun feeding the seals at the aquarium, riding one of those bike-buggy things around town and stocking up on Salt Water Taffy, but playing by Haystack rock was definitely the highlight. Lily of course found new friends to play with and got a round of freeze tag going with the life guard's sons - poor boys couldn't come close to catching our speedy girl.  We hit horrible traffic both down and back...so bad that it will be awhile till we make that trek again...but Cannon Beach is in our future.  So much left to see and do!
A few cuteness moments from the trip:

Matteo driving over the Astoria bridge: Wheeeee!  That was awesome!

Me to Matteo: You're silly
Matteo: I'm not silly, I'm funny!
Lily, totally deadpan: Honestly, that's my job

Me: Matteo, do you like the beach?
Matteo: I dooooooo...it's AWESOME!
(I think I maybe say that word to much and it's rubbed off on him?)

Me: Bedtime!
Matteo: I don't want bedtime!  I want to hang out!
(made much cuter by his squeaky voice)

Don't worry, dude - we'll hang out plenty in August.

Lily at Circus Camp - is she a natural or what?!



R.I.P. to Mr. P

Dearest Paco -

With heavy hearts we said goodbye to you this month.  I can still hardly believe it - on the one hand you soldiered on without complaint these many months and deserve to rest at last...but on the other hand you've been our steadfast companion for 11 years, so how could we possibly let you go?  Our Seattle life has had you in it almost since the beginning - from the Ravenna house to Maple Leaf and Lily to the current house and Matteo - you've been with us through it all.

Looking back to those early days, I still remember seeing you for the first time.  I was so sad for you in that shelter I agreed to adopt you based on a picture and a guarantee from a stranger you were a great boy in need of love.  I was ill-prepared for the love-at-first-sight we would experience - you were so much smaller than I expected, your thick fur as soft as a bunny, your soulful eyes full of love.  I remember you quivering on Chris' lap the whole ride home, how one squirt with a water bottle and you were instantly house trained, how you put up with Cass humping you with an "if I must" look on your face, how Chris had to teach you what toys were, and how you would then pick up everything around the house and bring it to us as if asking "and this?  is this ok?", and I remember that first winter, your Fido fleece and wrapping you up snug every night so your little Puerto Rican body wouldn't get cold.

Through the years you were the easiest of dogs.  You certainly weren't the brightest, but what you

lacked in cleverness you more than made up for in devotion.  It took so little to make you happy - butt scratches that made you wiggle from paw to paw, treats that would make you simultaneously sit and prance on your front paws, bursting in from the dog door on a cold night (IT'S....PACO!), walks, running off leash, any car ride.  You were the dog that loved everyone, the dog that would rest his head on laps, staring up sweetly (I remember Christine, not a dog person, saying "stop making me love you!"), the dog people called the therapy they didn't know they needed, the dog every kid in the neighborhood could pet and love with complete confidence.  You were patient and kind, trusting and loyal.  You didn't have an aggressive bone in your body, but your would come downstairs with me and sit in the doorway, guarding me, until I came back up.  You were my shadow, my companion, my sweet boy.

With the addition of kids, we didn't always give you the attention you deserved and for that I am deeply sorry.  I knew it, I even acknowledged it, but I didn't always fix it. You never punished me for that, but instead waited patiently.  You were patient with all of us.  You curled up and kept Chris company silently when he began to work from home, you waited out Lily's toddler years and didn't hold them against her, you endured the past three years with Matteo, despite our not always being able to protect you from his whims.

You will be sorely missed.  Know that I don't do well without a dog in my life, but any new canine that joins us will never be a replacement for you.  Never will another dog share your quirks: your tidiness, your desire to only lie on something soft until the last months when lying anywhere became the norm, the secret pooping, the way your front paws danced, the way you would wedge your bottom under hands and crossed feet to "self-scratch" until the person took the hint, your love of winter fleeces, the way you jumped to say hello, but somehow made it seem sweet.  So many of those things changed in the end...but I want to remember you how you were for 10.5 years, not the final few months.

Wherever you are, I hope you are getting that scratch you always wanted...that Cass isn't having her way with you...that you know how very loved you were....and that we will someday meet again.

All my love,

Julie