I Don't Think Thumper Accurately Describes His Energy Level...Perhaps Tazmanian, or Nuclear?

Last week Thumper, Bambi and I ventured out to an amazing off-leash dog park in Shirlington, VA.  Bambi had a good time, but Thumper had a GREAT time!  The park is about a quarter mile long, running along a small creek, and Thumper walked and ran the entire way.  He stuck his arms out like a T-rex and ran and giggled to his heart's content. He loved pointing at all of the dogs and saying, "Doh!"  A few of them were even so kind as to let Thumper pet them.  He's getting much better at understanding "gentle" and all of the K-9's were very appreciative.  He also learned how to shake his hands off when he falls and gets them dirty.  He grins wildly and scissors his hands back and forth knocking any debris off of them.

Another big adventure last week was a trip to Gymboree.  I don't mean the store Gymboree; I mean the small segregated section of the world where children roam free to do as they please in a jungle of mats, toys, wedges, balls, slides, and many other obstacles which I can't even begin to name.  Thumper crossed over the threshold into this magical land and his eyes instantly glossed over like a kid that had just consumed 4 gallons of soda.  The T-rex arms shot up and he was off.  I could see the constant struggle in his head whether to begin collecting toys or run for the slides, and then he saw it...a big bright colorful tunnel.  He pounced on the ground and crawled like he's never crawled before.  As he made it in one end, I ran to the other side to pop my head around with a smile and a giggle.  When he saw me he laughed hysterically and struggled to recall how to move his arms and legs in unison.  He managed to turn around in the tunnel and do something resembling a crawl in between his fits of body convulsing laughter.

Our class was about an hour long and we did some structured events like singing songs and pushing a giant inflatable log/tube across the floor with about 15 other 1-ish-year-olds.  The kids went crazy and the parents did their best to prevent swan dives off of the top of the slides or fights over toys strewn about.  All in all we had a great time, and I loved getting so see Thumper interact with other kids his own age.  Hopefully in Hyderabad we'll get him enrolled in some kind of part time day care so that he can get some real play time on a regular basis.  I know I'm fun and all, but I'm well aware that I'm no match for 15 kids his own age :-P

Time is flying by and we're getting ready for all of our visitors!  Thumper and I go to Hawaii in a little over a week, and then it starts.  After returning from Hawaii we'll have a constant stream of visitors until January with a few short breaks intermixed.  We are so ready for a taste of home, and some babysitters!  Ha ha.  Legs and I already have a mental list of date night things to do when family arrives.  We're doing great and we can't wait to see all of you that are coming to visit!

Happy Travels!

Pancho