Brain Spill

Last Sunday Sempi decided he wanted to setup a lemonade stand. Yoshi and Sempi went to store to pick up a bunch of lemons and spent the morning hand squeezing them.

It was made with the finest ingredients (cane sugar and ice cold water). Yoshi said she can help make the signs and Sempi declared that he's going to give free lemonades. He insisted that he won't charge for his lemonade. 

At this time I'm beaming with pride with his decision to give away his lemonade for free.

He sat out in the scorching sun in the middle of the day calling out to passersby "Free Lemonade". When people came over his first words were "you don't have to pay, this is free lemonade". Then he diligently poured some lemonade in a cup and handed it over.

Our neighbor across the street came over for some lemonade. He not only gave him a few quarters as tips and he was also the salesman of our fine stand. Calling out to bikers and walkers to come taste the delicious free lemonade. It was a grand success.

At one point even Vian was sitting inside the little lemonade stand helping his brother. 

I'm incredibly proud of my son's decision to setup a free lemonade stand. He is the best.

Nice hot day for driving to the gorge and visiting some of our favorite falls. First stop Bridal Veil falls. 

Bridal Veil falls:

After an awesome hike we have a clear view of the bridal veil falls. Sempi takes in the view and announces, "Appa I'd like to pee now". Of course, you do.

Zinger between me and Yoshi.

Me: Do you think it is named Bridal Wails falls because it sounds like a wailing bride?

Yoshi: I can see why you would think that, but the wailing you saw at our wedding is a special spectacle, I had my reasons. No one does that.

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On our hike back from the falls, I convinced Sempi to say that the falls ran out of water. He wasn't quite convincing, but he tried his best. Unfortunately none of the hikers heard what he said. Oh well, we'll try it again next time.

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Multnomah falls:

After Bridal Veil we were trying do decide which one to visit next. The top contenders were Multnomah falls or Wahkeen falls. Multnomah falls won hands down because they have soft serve ice cream. Priorities!

Once we got our soft serve cones and started walking up, Sempi became increasingly distraught that his cone was melting. So I generously offered to switch his cone for mine. He agreed and we switched for a minute but then he realized my cone had very little left in it and promptly switched back.

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A little while later...

Sempi: Appa can you just eat the ice cream so I can eat the cone?

Me: Gladly!

But unfortunately before I could do any damage to his ice cream, he changed his mind.

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After the ice cream is done we were sitting at a bench and admiring the view. 

Sempi: Appa do they turn off the water at night when they close the gates?

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We're getting ready to visit the library to return the books. I'm walking around the house finding all the books and filling them up in bags.

Me: Filling up three large bags full of books to return to the library indicates a reading problem. Especially since they were checked out only a week ago.

Yoshi: These books are almost due, we checked them out two weeks ago.

Me: Oh well, that makes all the difference then. (as I'm struggling to carry three heavy bag of books). 

I'm quite proud of how many books Sempi goes through. Even though we're the ones reading it to them, he prefers books over many things, which is not all that bad.

Vian's vocabulary isn't quite as good as his brother's. So what's documented below is my own interpretation of his actions and expressions.

It's bedtime and I'm rocking Vian to sleep. He fell asleep on my arms and I've been rocking him for nearly an hour. I decided it was time to put him down. 

As soon as I put him down, he wakes up in shock and disbelief.

Vian: I can't believe you've done this. 

His lower lip starts to quiver.

Vian: You better pick me up you overgrown human or I won't hesitate to use these brand new vocal chords.

He's back on my arms and starts to grunt a few times. 

Vian: Let that be a lesson, don't let me catch you in one of your shenanigans.

Promptly fell back asleep in my arms.

Vian and I started taking walks around the block in the evening. I carry him around all swaddled and he coos and babbles for a few minutes. I sing his favorite Tamil lullaby and he slowly calms down and rests his head on my chest and drifts into sleep. The awesome thing about our neighborhood is everyone I meet during the walk is genuinely happy to see us. I usually get a thumbs up from cars driving by or neighbors want to stop and take a closer look at Vian. Some of them offer up great advice about how they raised their kids. If he's ever fussy during our walk I add a bounce to my walk. At times like that, I get a sympathetic nod from fellow walkers and one woman said "It'll get better, don't worry" as she was passing by.

Night time is a whole another story. Yoshi wakes up a few times to feed him. Sometimes she'll hand him off after the feeding to change him or rock him. Those are my favorite times. He's wide awake and giggly. He's smiling the entire time I'm changing his diaper. Even after I swaddle him back he's usually all smiles. I rock him on a yoga ball and within 15 mins he's passed out again. I hold him for another 5 or 10 mins and then put him back on the bed. The best part is his sleepy grin after I put him down. His eyes are closed and he's asleep, but he still manages to crack a dreamy smile. So I always take an extra few minutes to take in his smile before returning to sleep myself.

Even though not every night is as smooth and easy as I described above, I'm quite content with my life.