2012-07-13 to 2012-07-15: Staycation

Dad had been wanting to go camping for some time, and Mom had this entire weekend off from work, so they planned to head to Flaming Gorge for a couple of nights. The weather didn't cooperate, though, so around Wednesday they finally decided to replace the camping trip with a "staycation" and find things to do that would tolerate rain and possibly lightning storms.

Friday's activity was a visit to Cherry Hill, a waterpark in Kaysville. Grammy came along, and the weather was quite nice. Upon arrival, the conditions were cloudy and around 80 degrees, but the sun came out later and warmed things a bit. Mom and Dad tried taking Nigel on the tube waterslide (tube as in riding on, not sliding inside of), and pulled off the first trip through with a fair amount of fear and excitement experienced by all. The second trip didn't go so well, however.

The ride has a number of short, steeper sections that spill out into slow-moving pools, in which people can get stuck for a good while. From one of those pools, Dad slid over the edge and down one of the steeper slides, but couldn't pull Nigel and Mom down after him, separating the train. Mom and Nigel ended up taking a different exit from that pool, and tipping over Mom's tube. They decided that was enough adventure for them, and climbed out at the next pool, leaving Dad wondering where they had gone, once his path reunited with the other. The rest of the time there was spent in the lazy river, which was lovely, especially after the sun came out, and a large swimming pool, where Nigel jumped and swam around with Dad. Grammy was enjoying a book and the generally lovely weather.

As an aside, Nigel's comfort and abilities in the water have improved greatly this summer - his comfort in particular. Bathtime is much easier now than it used to be, and far less screaming occurs. His eyes can get wet now without him getting upset, and he actually thinks getting water in his ears is fun and will lie in the tub with them underwater. Only a couple of short months ago, water in his ears or eyes was grounds for yelling until a towel was provided to dry them with. He will put his whole face or head in the water if a good-enough reason is provided, and kicks well. His arm strokes are starting to improve, as well. Perhaps best of all, he looks forward to swimming lessons, which have been Mondays-Thursdays for 30 minutes a night, six of the past eight weeks.

Saturday was unexpectedly spent on exercise. Michael called in the morning, asking about a bike ride. Dad agreed, and the family went to Park City to take Michael on the McLeod Creek trail. Everyone took a turn pulling Nigel in the trailer, and Dad pondered whether this would be one of the last times for that, as Nigel is getting to be quite good at riding his own bike.

Sunday saw the family headed to Timpanogos for the cave tour. Again, Nigel proved his mettle as a hiker, walking the entire mile-and-a-half up to the cave, and nearly the whole way back down after the tour. (Actually, he ran about half of the way down, with Dad chasing along beside him). Nigel's favorite part of the cave was the "cave popcorn". Dad's was the mirror finish of the perfectly still pool in the cave, and Mom's were the Christmas room (filled with helictites and other intricacies) and the Heart of Timpanogos.

2012-07-06: 5 Years Old

The classrooms at Dancing Moose are numbered, to keep track, and those numbers are on the doors to the classrooms. When Nigel started attending, he was placed into classroom number 2, with Miss Holly and Miss Chelsea. He was two years old at that time, and he appreciated the similarity between his age and the number of his classroom. Upon turning three, he moved up into a pre-school classroom -- room number 5 -- initially with Miss Katie and Miss Ali. (Miss Shanny later took over for Miss Katie.) Of course, Nigel decided that being in room number 5 meant that he was now five years old.

Nigel is now absolutely set on the idea that he is five years old, not three, and any attempt to dissuade him from that notion has resulted only in defiance and his being upset. Mom and Dad have now taken to calling him five years old when he is listening, but three years old when he is not. This makes for some interesting interactions with other grown-ups, when they ask his age. Nigel usually answers for himself, then if the person looks confused or surprised, Mom or Dad are left to try to signal "three" to them without Nigel realizing.

Nigel does seem to be of the opinion that on his next birthday he will be four years old. Perhaps he will just skip three? No one knows what to expect come his fifth birthday, but hopefully the logical contradiction will not cause him discomfort.