Monday

Minutes disappear fast. That's my observation for today. On our early morning drive to a big box store to pick up some furniture for my mom's apartment, Ed noted that we haven't played disc golf once this season. Nor have we played tennis. Don't I know it!

We have a leisurely breakfast, on the porch...





(Sunshine!)






And later, I have a leisurely snack, also on the porch (rhubarb cake, though unfortunately not my own)...






And in between, I go from here to there, always a little behind schedule, always wishing I weren't running out of minutes.

Picking up Snowdrop from school is actually a bit of a break for me: I can do nothing else now. I am with her. And today is special. Ed is with me and our goal is to take the little girl out in a boat.

Now, Ed's love of boats is no secret, even to Snowdrop. She talks about "Ed who loves boats and actually likes to sleep on them." She has rhapsodized about someday going out on a vessel with him, with the both of us. But it's all been rather theoretical.

I'd been waiting for a good weather day to finally put us on the waters and I thought this would be it: warm, but not too hot. Partly cloudy. Lovely.

I wasn't paying much attention to the breezes. At the farmette, the breezes are rarely intense.

We drive out to Wingra Park. There is a lake of medium (for Madison) dimensions. There is a park and a boat rental place. All that we need for an adventure!

And it is an adventure.

I suppose I should have taken heed when the boat rental place placed limits on rentals for the day: kayaks only. No canoes. Why? Because of the winds. And I should have listened hard when the rental person said -- we suggest you head east, into the wind. Then the return wont be so grueling.

But I didn't. This is our boating day. I am excited. So is Snowdrop, saying as much. "I'm so excited!"

Until we come to the boats. And the life vests go on...






And the boat is put in place and the wobbliness of the whole enterprise has the little girl feeling that this is perhaps too much excitement.

Gaga, I don't think I want to go in the boat -- she tells me as the attendant helps hoist her into my lap.

Would you say "okay" and abort the whole operation?

I don't do that. I sweet talk her into going along, right there in my lap. Ed will have to paddle without any assist from me. My arms are around an apprehensive little one.







She does relax as we got going.






We paddle close to to the shore (with lovely water lilies to admire) and resist the temptation to cross the lake.






Too, Ed is such a good paddler that he can keep things reasonably placid even as the waves are popping up left and right. But when things got splashy wild, I know it's time to end our boating adventure. Through my very splashed up lens, I catch the girl on the shore, looking quite happy to be on solid ground once more.






Of course, I'm glad we went. I tease her about being a land lubber, but in fact, I know she likes to think of herself as being rather adventurous. Of keeping up with Ed (so often she'll talk about going camping with us in the mountains). Of doing brash bold stuff that you read about in story books. Of course, Ed is a tough measuring stick: however bold you are, he will always be bolder. Don't I know this about him! Still, the girl doesn't give up. Not today, not any day.






We head to the playground, where she swings high and navigates ladders and crawls through tunnels.






And lets him spin her around on the twirly thing...






And then we head back...






The band of three, big and small and one somewhere in between...






....to the beloved (if somewhat buggy right now) farmette, where cherries and a drawing pad with pink markers at your fingertips never looked so good!











Oh, how Snowdrop loves to draw!

While in her head and sometimes in real life, adventures come flying.