Change of Address

Big daddy here. So, this time we have an excuse for being blogosphere deadbeats. Besides being preoccupied with the move, we were actually without internet for a couple of weeks. Finally on Friday, a technician from AT&T came to plug us back into the series of tubes. He arrived while Ezra was napping. When Ezra awoke, Ash brought him out into the living room and pointed to the tech -- she said, this is Sam. He's hooking our computer up to the internet.

OK, stay with me. Fast forward two days. Things transpire. There are shopping trips and playdates. New foods are tried and rejected. It's the weekend now, Ash and Ezra are at the playground. Apropos of nothing, Ezra busts out with, "Sam! Computer! Internet!" It's kind of stunning to observe how much raw information is sinking into that kid's head. I feel like he's way, way beyond anything we as adults are capable of right now. If he kept up at this pace, he'd crush us within a couple of years. Luckily, he'll slow down and his old dad will still be able to boss him around for a while yet. At least, I think so.

So, as always, the flip side of Ezra's frenetic little mind is that he can be impossible to manage. We made an ill-advised trip to IKEA Saturday, which we naively thought would be fun. Ezra instantly took the place over. He rolled his little toy lawnmower thingie all over the place, disassembled stuff, darted in and out of the massive (and quite dirty) shelves and stacks down on the first-floor warehouse area. And he would not tolerate being reined in. Somehow, other toddlers we saw were placid and even bored. But IKEA, to Ezra, is something like a performance-enhancing drug, complete with bouts of 'roid rage.

Anyway, between that trip and some dogged unpacking, we're slowly managing to move this lovely new apartment from utterly chaotic to just pleasantly disheveled -- in short, like the kind of place we would live. We're really liking it, though. Our landlords live below us and have twin three-year-olds, and the first-floor tenants also have a three-year old. Everyone is really friendly and welcoming, and the back patio is all set up with toys for both kids (sandbox, playhouse) and adults (deck chairs, gas grill). The in-unit laundry here is a godsend, and the place just generally seems bright and full of good vibes.

There are also several very fine playgrounds nearby, which Ezra has been exploring. And while we traded away our close proximity to the Lake, we now live a 5 minute walk to the River, where there are several miles of bucolic little trails and plenty more playgrounds.

Ash is swelling up nicely. We had our 20-week ultrasound almost two weeks ago now, and everything looked A-OK. Moose is measuring right where he should be, and seems to be generally on schedule. Now when we point to Ash's tummy and ask Ezra what's in there, he says, "Baby!" Then he says, "Come out!" Though as Ash points out, he may be eating those words before long.

Anyway, we apologize for not posting pics of the new place yet, but it's still such a wreck that it's just not quite ready for prime time yet. Perhaps on the next post .... which, I promise will not take as long as this one did. Thanks to Sam.

Much love,

Gabe, Ash and Ez