NSJ

We spent some time down in Santa Barbara with the family celebrating Mom and Dad’s 40th anniversary. (All photo credit to Mom.)

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Niko now equates discomfort with “cold.” So if the straps of the car seat are too tight he says “too cold.” If you really think about it, this is pretty spot on. Cold is pretty painful. Even better, it gives me a chance to show my unending wit, “Just wait until December in CT kid. I’ll show you too cold.”

Ha ha. Thanks, I’ll be here all night.

We took Niko to the Google summer picnic last week. He was remarkably unimpressed. I thought the two story inflatable slides would change his mind but he took no interest. Fortunately we found an area where he could dance near the band but away from the crowds. Jul made up for the torture by taking him to Wall•E again after the picnic.

We headed down to Carmel while they were getting our house ready to sell (thanks LWR). Luckily none of the fires have made it to Carmel by the Sea, although the smoke does make for amazing sunsets.

The best part was for the first week we were without child (or sans l’enfant as the French like to say). Grandma Pat took him back to Washington D.C. to see Jan and John and then on to Ann Arbor to see Great Grandma Louise. Hopefully he didn’t get too used to first class travel. After the cross country round trip Mom, Dad, and Niko joined us. On our way back from dinner one night Jul gave the boy some pennies to throw into a pond. Most. Fun. Ever.

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Niko and I headed down to LA for the weekend to visit Melodie and Reece. Since it was just us boys traveling, we only brought a change of underwear and an iPhone full of Pixar movies. Meaning, among other things, we didn’t bring a camera. Fortunately, Melodie had a camera and took some pictures. When Jul read about the poorly executed standing diaper change I heard her mutter, “I am so glad I don’t know what goes on when you are with him alone.” Ain’t that the truth.

LA feels oddly a bit like home. I realize “homey” is not how many would describe LA, but bear with me on this one. When my parents were married, my mother moved from LA to Detroit [1]. My mother, who was raised on authentic Mexican food, was forced to make due with tortillas from a can for decades before even average Mexican food made it to the mid-west. Needless to say, we spent a lot of our summers in LA with my Grandparents, if anything just for the Mexican food. I have vivid memories of the gigantic highways and how they seemed to have more lanes than was physically possible. I was fascinated with the fly-overs that were covered in vines. No vine could make that kind of progress in Michigan before getting relentlessly beaten back by a Michigan winter. But of everything I remember about our summers in LA, the beaches were the highlight. Beaches are just a part of everyday life in LA, which seemed strange to a Midwesterner. People didn’t just go to the beach on vacation, they stopped by the beach on a Tuesday at 4pm. My summers were a mix of sand, waves, and watching old ladies hand make tortillas at a local restaurant.

True to these memories, we were at the beach within 20 minutes of landing in LA. Watching Niko run on the beach was nostalgic in a “oh my god that was me” kind of way. There was a stark contrast between Reece, who sat nicely and played with the sand, and my son, who never stopped running for more than three seconds. Niko and I slept in the same room (thanks Bethany) which gave me insight into Niko’s night activities. Turns out he doesn’t stop moving even when he sleeps. So now I can say, “my son never stops moving” and not feel like I’m exaggerating. That and he seems to wake at 5am and sing for an hour before jumping up to plan his escape. Hearing a little voice at the foot of the bed say, “Oh, hello dad-ee” breaks my heart in a way that bleeds into instant forgiveness for the 6am wake up call. I’m pretty sure that is Darwin at work.

We got on the plane on Sunday with sand still in our clothing and bellies full of Mexican food. “Hello co-pilot,” Niko said as the pilot handed him a Southwest pin and I flashed back to collecting airline pins on our trips to LA. As we made our way to our seat and Niko talked about waves, I realized we were starting to collect Niko’s memories. While I want them to be his own, I also want them to resemble mine or at least have the same texture. LA, sand, waves, Mexican food, and great friends are a fantastic start. Thanks Melodie.

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[1] This is kind of insane to me because I love my wife but I would never move from California to…oh wait, never mind.

I’m not sure how you get insurance for something like Gymboree, but it is absolutely genius. These people basically decided to pad a room, fill it with soft climbing equipment and other crazy fun toys, and set kids loose in it. Not only does Niko have a blast but it is the equivalent to lashing him to a treadmill for an hour. I wonder if anybody ever considered Niko as an alternative energy source. Solar, wind, geo, nuclear, and Niko.

We had a great time with Mart and Lew while they were here. They were very patient and helpful while we attempted to purge or pack all our earthly belonging before the great migration east.

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I took Niko to Wall•E on Saturday — his first movie in the theater. We have been watching previews since they released them six months ago, so we were both pretty excited to finally see the film. He surprised me by sitting patiently in line for 30 minutes while we waited to get into the theater, and then another 30 waiting for the movie to start. When the first preview started on the big screen, Niko was stunned into silence (rare for my son). He was quiet for about two minutes and then turned to me and said, “biiiiig.” And when I think about it, that screen really is pretty damn big.

He sat in my lap the entire movie and barely moved except to ask me questions and point out notable events. At one point during a tense moment in the film the theater went quiet and he yelled out, “Wallllllleeee, Eeeeeeve!” breaking the silence and sending the audience into hysterics. We were all worried about Wall•E and Eve — he just vocalized it for us.

The movie was absolutely brilliant. More than anything, I revere Pixar for all the passion that clearly goes into their movies. A film like this doesn’t happen — cannot happen, without a dedicated, driven team that won’t settle for anything but the best. This movie was loved by its makers and it shows.

I was oddly sentimental leaving the theater and would admit (only under extreme duress) to tearing up having taken him to his first movie. It isn’t really a milestone people mark, but it is a milestone nonetheless. He is now more boy than baby. We shared something we both loved. Together we ate popcorn until we were stuffed. Together we were captivated by a great story. Together we drove home through quiet neighborhoods with all the windows open — enjoying the sunshine and wind. Him in the backseat chatting endlessly about Wall•E, Eve, and Moe. Me in the front seat tearing up in the moment and how wonderfully simple life can be sometimes.

If there is anything a parent earns, it is the right to get sentimental at any damn milestone they want.

Two is just around the corner. You would never know it…

“Hello Dad-dee,” he said as we woke up from a nap, his blue eyes shining. Then his lids got heavy again, and he nestled down deep against my chest, breathed deep, and went back to sleep.

There is, without question, no better feeling on this earth.

Happy Father’s day to Dad, Lew, Jonathan, Luke, Melodie, and all the Fathers in my life.