One of those days

Funny how, no matter how old you are ... no matter how many years flash by or places you live ... you always the remember the sound of a summer rain storm when you were a kid.

Today was an ordinary day and also one of those days that is close to perfection.

We woke up this morning to a gleefully happy baby who kept guffawing so hard, I questioned whether something was wrong. I think Nate has gotten over the worst of his cold now and has returned to his cheery ways.

It's delightful.

Mela, as usual, was hilarious right off the bat ("Oh my! Oh boy!") and after breakfast, went to her (last!) swimming lesson, where she demonstrated her amazing progress by jumping off the side of the pool into the water!

I rocked Nathan to sleep for his nap ... a bad habit I've picked up lately but we both love it so much, I'm loathe to stop. There's nothing like a warm, fat, snoring baby to make you feel like everything is right in the world.

I then had a quiet house to myself so I drank some coffee and read the paper (gasp! free time!!). I had a great phone chat with a friend then Nate woke up and we met Dada, Mela and the Hearn-Burke's at a local "Fun Fair" (outdoor fundraiser for a local school).

There was an awesome play structure (Mela loves ladders these days), a dunk tank (Mela was confused) and delicious food (no hamburgers but tabbouleh salad, chicken souvlaki and samosas - love this neighborhood!). Mela had her toes painted (scandalous) and got a temporary tattoo of a giraffe ("neck!").

We ate our food on the grass and Nathan had his first (non-family-member) kiss! A gorgeous little girl with blonde ringlets came up out of the blue, leaned down under his hat and kissed him on the lips. Shocking but Nate seemed to like it.

After all the fun, we came home and put the toddler to bed. Nate did some good tummy time and actually moved forward on his hands and knees for the first time! A couple more tries and he's going to be off like a shot.

The rest of the afternoon was sunny and cool and Chris and I both worked in the yard, cleaning up and planting flowers. We barbequed our dinner and marveled at how Mela wanted to eat nothing but Craisins and pickles, while Nathan (who ate half a hamburger!) laughed obligingly at everything Mela did but kept one eye constantly on her leftovers.

Around this point, we started to realize that this was one.of.those.days. We didn't want to say it out loud, in case of jinx, but we both recognized the streak. Chris phoned a friend to go watch hockey and drink some beers and I picked out a movie and a couch.

We managed to squeeze in a quick web call with family and the kids kept it together long enough for us to talk about some life-changing decisions.

Bedtime went smoothly and as the cherry on the sundae, there was even a last minute summer rainstorm. I sat in the dark in Nathan's room and nursed him quietly while the thunder rumbled and I watched the wind whip the branches of the tree outside his room.

It's hard to believe how much has happend since we moved to this city. Chris and I weren't even engaged. And now I have two rings on my finger and two little babies asleep in their beds. In this city, we started as two separate people and became a real family.

If we move away, Nathan and Amelia will never remember this house. They will be too young to remember this neighbourhood, these friends, these summer days at the home where they were born (literally, in Nathan's case).

How do you leave a city where so much has happened? A home where you listened to far-away subway cars while you rocked your newborn baby at dawn? A neighbourhood park where your children learned to crawl and then to walk and then to run?

How do you say goodbye to so much that makes your life what it is?

On the road ahead, there are new memories to be made. These memories will just be of a different house with other windows for the sun to stream in and summer storms to shake. There will be other parks, other friends and other fun days.

I just hope that someday they read this and know how happy we were here.