Interlochen (part 1: Butterflies)

Parker is now THREE weeks old (can't believe it!) Time is flying!
I can't tell you the last time I actually went out of town... probably our NY trip last fall... when it turns out I was pregnant with Parker, but didn't know it yet, because my body threw me for a loop!
So, since my folks and my sister and her family were all camping, we thought we'd head up to Interlochen for the day, stay at a hotel and leave the next morning. Call it a dry run for our big excursion to Massena next weekend! Unfortunately, it was the last weekend of Cherry Festival, and finding a place to stay that was affordable and didn't require a two-night stay was a challenge. But, at last we found a place, and so I had the car all packed up on Friday night, and we were on the road by 8:30 a.m. on Saturday.

Parker and Aunt Dianne

When we arrived, Parker got to meet (great) Aunt Dianne and Uncle Larry for the first time. Maia was happy to introduce him: "Thass my beebee brutha!" And if you ask his name, she's happy to yell "Pah-kuh!" She's a proud big sister.
Maia could not have been more thrilled to spend the whole day outside, although inside Papa and Grandma's motorhome was pretty fascinating too. What was really exciting? Getting to eat all her meals outside too!

Her cousins did a great job keeping her busy. Blowing bubbles, walking around, playing "Pony Girl," "Buzzy Bee," "Tick Tock" games with Maia on their laps.

But one of the more fascinating things for Maia (and certainly for Lydia) was catching butterflies. There was a tree two sites over that was leaking sap and attracting Painted Lady butterflies. By the time we left, Lydia says she'd caught (and released) over 50 butterflies during her week (we suspect they weren't 50 different butterflies...)

Lydia would hope for the butterfly to calm down enough before she let it go that she could hold it on her finger for a moment before it would fly away. And sometimes it would After they let the butterfly go, Maia would play with something else for a while, and then she would grab Lydia's hand and ask "More Buh-flies?"

In the mean time, Parker seemed absolutely content in the warm, humid air. He's such a cuddle bug and loves to be wrapped and warm in the house (where the air conditioning or the attic fan are usually on, depending on the temperature outside). He would actually lay comfortably on a lap (some one's lap or arms... he got handed around a bit!) and hardly fussed at all.
Now that he is three weeks old, we are also seeing a LOT more awake and alert time. We're really seeing him study faces, turn toward something interesting (often his sister who is coming to give him kisses for the millionth time today).