Eli took his first trip to the San Juan Islands Wednesday (12 days old). We had fantastic weather, and he woke from his nap sweaty (and poopy). He needed to be cooled off, and I thought the salt water might work wonders on his red diaper bum. ; ) So, Eli went skinny dipping in Indian Cove!! He protested slightly during the event (the water was cold, afterall!) but then was SO happy and much cooled down! Good times!
*This reminds me of a time when I dipped Collin! Collin was three years old, and we were camping in Chelan. He's started skipping naps by then, so I had let him skip his nap one afternoon. At about 4:00, he had one of his famous meltdowns (Collin could tantrum for an hour straight without loosing focus! None of my other kids to date can beat that perseverance!). Anyway, he melted, and I was trying a time-out in the HOT tent and, after at least a half hour, I was losing patience. So, I decided to emerge from the tent and dunk him in the kiddie pool to cool him off. Mind you, I debated the appropriateness of this for a good ten minutes. Was I a mean mom for wanting to cool off my child in 4-inch deep water?! At the time, I thought I was nuts - but running out of options. (Now I think I was onto something and should have went straight to the cold shower. I digress.) I took Collin to the pool, praying that he'd calm before we reached it so I wouldn't have to shock him with the cold water. Except I plopped him down and he barely paused! The pool water had been sitting in the sun all afternoon and was roasty-toasty! It certainly did NOT have the shocking effect I'd been seeking! At that point I remember laughing and throwing my hands in the air. I don't recall if I took him down to the lake to chill out or not, but I do know that, of course, the tantrum eventually ended and that afterwards we enjoyed a fabulous afternoon. I celebrated with a glass of mimosa; the kids enjoyed Popsicles. Much better!
