A love that's bursting at the seams

I think we have pretty well established that parenthood is not easy.  No really.  It is hard.  What with adapting to having something constantly depending on you (as in every waking, and well yes, most non-waking moments) for food, security, developing, as well as protecting them from themselves (for instance introducing the notion of what goes up, must come down - including your newly-standing self), it is not for the faint-of-heart.

But then, every so often, you get a day where you just have to step back and go wow.  No really, WOW.  Thinking secretly to yourself, how did I get this lucky to have the honor of being this amazing creature's mamma?  Today was such a day.

Mr. All Smiles donning his 'amber teething necklace' said
to relieve pain and inflammation associated with teething,
or, well - it just looks cool!

While we've had a few rougher-than-usual nights (seems the Temple of the Tooth is making room for the Temple of the Teeth), and we actually had to revert to a steady dose of paracetamol last night with the requisite ungodly wake-ups.  Nonetheless, his mamma's 3-hour sleep last night notwithstanding, someone was bright-eyed and bus(h)y-tailed at 06h30 this morning (at this point I feel it necessary to disclose that we did not in fact get to bed until after 01h00 after hosting a few folks for pizza and wine).  I was brave enough to try last weekend's strategy of bringing him to bed to 'play it out' for an hour or so, and then hopefully he would fall asleep again for two hours like last Saturday - but by the fourth time he was practicing the drums on daddy's (sore) head - I decided to get up and get going with him.  We jumped in the car with nothing but his breakfast in his little travel cooler (no nappy, no anything) and headed out to a local beach bar for mommy-and-Luka breakfast.  While mommy nursed a cappuccino, Luka sat every-so-happy in a big-boy chair, no restraining device, no high chair, just lounging with his arm on the arm rest, happily eating his yogurt, fruit and breadsticks, while gaping at the people, televisions and sights around him.  He was all smiles, to the general amusement of the staff and patrons alike.

At home, Luka took a standard 30-minute nap  (while mommy dashed off to pilates) to prepare him for the next adventure of the day - Swim Lesson #3 at a local hotel pool.  He had a marvelous swim class and was able to finally relax a little bit on the back-floating exercise,  and did remarkably well in the submerging section (cannot believe how these bubs are going to be swimming in no time!)  With Luka squealing with delight all the way, we changed him, and had lunch at the lodge.  He (for the first time in...I don't know, months!) sat happily on my lap for over an hour, feeding himself raisins, a teething biscuit and his macaroni, bean, mince lunch.  We took him home for another quick nap (while mommy got a pedicure this time), before his next big adventure.

The exhausted hasher kips on the mountainside above
Dili.

At 4pm, Chris loaded his Chariot Cougar I in the car and set off for the local Hash House Harriers club (while Luka might not remember this, he actually participated in a Hash run in utero). Chris probably should have known from the host that it would be hilly - but didn't put 2 and 2 together until they set off from the Co-Operativo Cafe Timor (CCT) compound and started heading up, up, and more up.  According to Chris, it took about three guys to haul the chariot and its passenger up the hill, and some careful braking on the way down. But it was all worth it when Luka was honored in the circle with his very own Hash t-shirt.  Someone clearly has been following his growth trajectory, since despite its adult S size, we're convinced he'll be in it before Christmas!

After the hash it was home for dinner, a bottle, a bath, followed by mommy's nightly full-body massage (something I have done since birth - for which he actually laid fairly still for once) and he was asleep before he even hit the bed....

Luka receives his first
hasherdashery.

What an incredible day to be a parent.  They're certainly not all like this, but boy do they make it worth it....