We're HOME!

As much as I don't adore Connecticut, I do love being home. We have spent so much of this summer traveling that spending a full week at home has felt like bliss. We all got back into the swing of things this week. Lilly was so excited to be surrounded by her toys again, I loved our lazy mornings, the visits to the gym, the cups of coffee, the trips to the park, watching the Tour de France, and spending time with friends, and Jim loved going back to work. Well, at least Lilly assumed he did. One evening, after Lilly's lips were purple from playing in the pool for the afternoon, I convinced Lilly that we could continue playing in our own pool...the bath, where it would be nice and warm and neither of us would freeze to death. So, upon assuring her that she could have a bath in her tutu bathing suit, we moved our party inside. Jim arrived home from work shortly after and we said our usual hellos, Jim asked about our day, and then Lilly turned to Jim and said, "Did you have fun at work today, Daddy?" She caught both of us by surprise. Jim and I just looked at each other and smiled, and Jim replied, "Yes, Lilly...I had so much fun at work today!" Why would she think any differently? Her day is filled with everything she loves...trips to the park, playing in the pool, books, baking, apple juice, her water table, cheese, tutus, skype chats, picnics, coloring, Winnie the Pooh, Judy, her one, and Latoof the camel. So, it makes sense that she thinks Jim's day is filled with things that he loves too.

As I mentioned, Lilly and I watched a lot of the Tour de France this week. Or, as Lilly says, "Are you watching bike racing again, Mum?" Yes, the Tour was on for the greater part of our mornings and although we didn't sit and watch it from start to finish each day, we'd both stop and different points of our morning to check in on the riders. Lilly witnessed one of the crashes on Friday morning and spent the rest of the day asking me, "Where is the man that falled, Mum?" She was very concerned about Jens Voigt. Lilly also caught a rider having a "gu" or gel of some sort, and then tossing it into the trees, to which she responded, "oh no, naughty man Mummy...trash goes in the trash can, not in the forest." I agreed with her and decided to forego the conversation in which we discuss racing circumstances where throwing trash on the side of the road is considered acceptable. She'll have a field day at her next Ironman, watching people throw cups, wrappers, banana peels, even water bottles. And I'm sure she'll have something to say about all those situations as well.

My favorite part about watching the Tour with Lilly is that that as she watches intently, she says she sees Jim. And, funnily enough, Jim is always the rider in front. Lilly gets genuinely excited, points at the television and says, "Look Mum, there's Daddy!" That must be what she envisions when Jim goes off to work. Yesterday, after Jim came home from a sweltering 90 mile ride feeling less than fantastic, I tried to boost his spirits by telling him that according to Lilly, he won the toughest stage of the Tour, in the Pyrenees. Watching the Tour with a two-year old has certainly allowed me to see it from a different perspective.

We had the perfect weekend at home--one that we had been in need of for awhile now. Jim did a lot of training, we played at the pool, but mostly we just enjoyed our little family. In 11 weeks, we'll have our newest addition. I remember these last weeks before Lilly was born, when Jim and I wanted to spend as much time together as possible, not knowing how things would change with the arrival of a baby. It's the same thing again this time. We love our lives at the moment and even though we know things are changing for the better, we're going to savor every moment together as our family of three.

This is the perfect opportunity to thank Dad for his advice on baby names for the newest Clark. You can find his advice here. It is clear that Dad is tapering this week in preparation for Ironman Lake Placid next weekend. He seems to have a lot more time on his hands, so I'm sure we'll see some more blogs like this one in the weeks ahead. After all, this one focuses primarily on boys' names. And while Percy and Rufus are welcome suggestions, what if we have a girl?

No blog is complete with out pictures, so here are some from our fun filled afternoon with Brien, Liz and Stella yesterday. As the girls are getting bigger, we are starting to enjoy some more relaxed time hanging out together, like we used to. Although now, instead of drinking beers by the pool, the dads were in swimming with the little ones, who were wearing their tutu bathing suits, while the moms caught up. There will come a time again when someone isn't pregnant, the little ones won't be so little, and we can all drink bottles of wine late into the night again. Just not for a few more years.