t h e . r i d i c u l o u s . p a n d a

so happy to be out of the house with papa on saturday morning.

after unsuccessfully trying to find a last minute rainy day babysitter for silas, we decided he might as well just be the third wheel for our date. but we replaced the movie plans with bowling. apparently the ball return is hours of delightful entertainment.

the low key approach to competitive bowling.

silas introduced us to a new version of pool where the balls can be stolen from the table at any moment and just when you've set up your shot a new ball can come rolling by. i must admit, this "baby pool" was way more enjoyable. but i still lost. twice.

posing with the referee.

after spending the afternoon in a bowling alley and adjoining bar, silas skips it off.

celebrating cuatro de mayo with georgia at the beat kitchen.

fueling up with a cupcake from bleeding heart before the bicycle ride home.

the last moments of the weekend. sigh.

there are so many places in this city that i haven't yet taken silas. every day he gets a little older and that list of unvisited places itches at the back of my mind. monday was that combination of perfectly sunny and breezy. silas spent the morning saying "no, no, no." we had to get out of the house. so off we went to the Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool.

silas stick fished, threw dried up leaves in the water and watched all the waterfowl.

these two geese came honking from way away. i heard them before i saw them flying towards us. and they landed in the pool right in front with feet stuck way out skidding on the water. it was so damn cool. and with silas's current admiration of geese i can only hope they felt the love.

conveniently the lily pool is just a hop away from the zoo.

and the lincoln park conservatory. he's charging at me because i had the audacity to remove his hat.

but he got over it.

in general, bribery is probably not the best tactic for encouraging your toddler to get a move on. but i have yet to find anything that gets silas to put his boots on as fast as promising him the chance to see amy. she lives just a few doors around the corner from us and even though silas seems equally fond of her son, husband and puppy, he has yet to compose a song in their honor. a song i hear at the least five times a day.

forrest is incredibly calm, happy even about sharing the affections of his mama.

spending the stormy morning at garfield park.

silas considers the view.

forrest spares me just a moment.

as if my son did not think the highest of her already, amy dropped us off at our doorstep with a crunchy apple. silas did not want to go inside until he had savoured every last bite.

. happy mother's day to you + you + you .

+ especially you: ruth ann . ann marie . kimberly .
eliza . amy . sarah . patty . fran . shana . missy .
lisa . alicia . ali . rachel . jill . amy . elizabeth +

happy birthday, my love.

saturday morning with papa. still trying to get those feet to reach the pedals.

it was mother's day, but silas had more love for the grits at breakfast.

spending some time with the turtles.

and the frogs.

silas summarizes the informational placard.

well, top of the mornin' to you too.

more interested in the amazon rising than the family photo.

papa and silas

and this guy.

watching the dolphins swim by.

my attempt at his new camera pose.

while electric mixing papa's birthday cake, silas has the confidence to reach for a tomato. brave, little boy, quite brave.

celebratory dinner at the diner with the artist formerly known as lisa.

two bowls of noodles = silas taking care of himself during the meal.
a restaurant in boystown = lots of hipsters for the baby to ogle.

lady emily and i.

future benchwarmers at the nature village.

olivia is posing for her mama, i reap the benefit.

of course, this is his reaction to my comment that that branch is probably too heavy for him to carry.

we were halfway across the boardwalk when we heard this bullfrog calling us back.

baby goslings, one week old. and just like that silas's love of geese reaches a whole new level.

if he was a better typer, silas would title this photo "hat"
instead we title it "know what you're getting into when you serve cous cous for dinner"

a noon start time for saturday's cubs game meant that sam and i had to wear the baby out sufficiently enough to warrant a morning nap. we hit the green city market at seven thirty and silas lived it up in lincoln park until he started his sleepy face rubbing and saying "eyes"

the game was fantastic. a whole nine innings without even a whimper. but among the three of us, nobody packed the camera. praise the lord for fan foto, providing proof of our presence in the stands. now if i could just find a way to offer all of the photos i post on ohkatie available with a 14x18 Commemorative Etched Glass Frame with 24k Gold Overlay Team Coin & Minted Bronze Coin with Field dirt.

sunday, sam and silas hit the garage sales in ravenswood manor. this shark with moveable lower jaw was the killer find.

ending the day with a skype call to our family in nyc. silas watches his cousins watching him watch them.

silas studies the freehand technique at the forest preserve.

seriously, give the kid a pocket full of dried apples and the opportunity to find a big stick and your job is done for the day.

in between school groups, this guy took the time to show us all the things you can fish out of the chicago river. silas didn't flinch until the crayfish tail flipped some water in his face.

he didn't bother asking twice once i gave him permission to throw rocks.

and really, what's the point of living in the city if you don't take a little time out of every day to stare at some sassy, foulmouthed and flexible teenagers?

silas points ashore or at a puppy at foster beach. probably a puppy.

it didn't feel quite so cold and windy if the baby kept our feet covered with warm sand.

because a sunny day is way better when shared with my mom.

silas and his grandma, maybe next time we'll pack our swimsuits.

i originally grabbed the camera to get the sucking on a lemon expression seen in the first two seconds. the fruit vocabulary review is just a bonus.

(just a moment as it loads up...)

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Silas Lee, you make me goofy. And I mean that quite literally. You make me do anything to get you to laugh. Wear your pants on my head? Check. Howl in a grocery store? Check. All that matters is the laugh. But more often than not, you crack me up.
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You take us everywhere. Never content to stay home on a perfectly good weekend day, you take us bowling and to the aquarium, to farmer's markets and the beach, on hikes in the woods in the city, to Cubs games and to garage sales.
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And when we don't go anywhere, home is ridiculous. Inside. Outside. With us. Alone. You find new ways to play with everything and everyone. You're such a good kid. Such a big kid. Seriously, Katie and I just really like you. You're just really fun to be around. You make it easy for us.
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So nineteen months ago you were born. You were so tiny, but always sturdy. I never felt like I could break you. I never felt like you were fragile. It's amazing to see you jump now. To see you climb stairs or run. I love that you have friends. That you know them by name and which general direction they live in. I love that you recognize home. I especially love how you say the word "nose", like it's spelled "nosche." I love that you shout "throw" every time you see the Cubs. And that you somehow got Lisa to play hockey with you. You bring the best out of everybody and the best of my life together.
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So once again, Silas, thanks for making this whole thing fun and interesting and just really great. I don't know who you'll be as you get older, but I'm super excited to find out.
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the first time we thought to pull out the camera on the official holiday weekend was on sunday in the neighbors' backyard. and because i get so easily overwhelmed, it's all that i can fathom posting for now.

they went thattaway!

they went thattaway!

a side note that i can't help but mention when i see this photo...tonight (already wednesday) when sam and i were putting silas to bed after a twelve hour day with only a twenty minute nap, silas did his breathy last moments of the day sighing and caressing after reading books: maaamaaa. paaapaaaaa. and then he threw in an "amy" for good measure. sam and i laughed under our exhaustion, silas was completely serious. i think her name just is equated with relaxation in his little heart.

looking at this photo now reminds me of an old home movie of my mother gesturing at geraniums in my grandparents' greenhouse in arkansas. i don't even think i was born yet.

sunday evening on the back porch.

the final picture of the day is easily the best.

celebrating memorial day at the beach.

and that is how you do a three day weekend.

seriously, it's after nine am. where is everybody?

we found this hippie dancing at the farmer's market. when my request for a sip of the rhubarb, peach, mint smoothie was met with an emphatic NO, i explained to my toddler about how that drink was bought for sharing. he listened and then turned and gave a sip to olivia.

silas sprints through the flats.

breakfast with georgia.

asparagus soup for lunch.