The Beach

Today we took Tyson to the beach - well, back to the beach b/c yesterday was his first day at the beach but I was too exhausted to write about it. Yesterday, he was Mr Adventure - today, not so much. He couldn't get enough of the surf and sand yesterday and it was a very cool moment when he saw the waves for the first time. His eyes got wide with wonder and he practically dragged me into the surf. No fear. Within minutes both of our shorts were soaked and he was laughing at the way the sand felt on his feet. Then he sat down in the dry sand with my mom and played for over an hour - completely covered in the stuff.


Today it was a different story - we went back to the exact same spot on the same beach and he looked at the water like he'd never seen it before. When we tried to set him down in the sand, he freaked out and screamed like...well, like a little girl! He ran away from the incoming waves and started crying, hiding behind Melissa's legs. He even tried to stop the waves from coming in by yelling at them in snuffly Mandarin. To no avail - you can't stop the tides, son. So, it was back to the jungle gym - and the drawing board - for Tyson and the beach. BUT we do have pictures to prove that he isn't a complete wimp.

Today was my last day of freedom and recovery - tomorrow it's back to the salt mine, but Melissa gets to stay here and domesticate our son. He's a wild man but learning things every day. He's picking up new vocabulary words daily and has been behaving himself better than he ever did in China. I think the new digs, new duds, new toys and consistency have been a big help. We don't have to tell him to sit during a meal nearly as much as we used to - only a dozen times or so per meal which is a BIG improvement. The down side is we are having trouble finding food he will actually eat. So far he will only eat the dumplings my mom got him at a local Asian grocery store. Today he had three meals of dumplings and the bag is shrinking. It wasn't for lack of trying - today alone we tried cooking 2 types of Asian noodles, scrambled eggs, hard boiled eggs, sticky rice, lasagna and yogurt, to no avail. We'll keep trying but it certainly makes meal time interesting.

On the other hand, he is mesmerized by the TV, particularly cartoons. So far, Ni How Kai Lan and the Backyardigans have gotten the biggest response but pretty much anything on Nick Jr is fair game. My DVR has a new occupation - baby sitter - JK. Anyhow, it will be interesting to see how Ty responds to one more of his entourage leaving him tomorrow when I go off to work. Only Melissa will be left to do his bidding. More to come on that front.

Tomorrow I'll blog an update on Ty but will also probably touch on the new supercollider in Europe that may end the world on Wednesday. Can't wait until tomorrow to find out about the black hole that may swallow us all? Just Google "LHC"; you can't miss it. Until tomorrow...maybe.