Magnuson Park is transforming from the wild, underutilized sanctuary it was when B first considered it her Seattle home park ten years ago. First discovered when she relocated from 3 years of life on the Ave (or one block off) to the radically quiet Sandpoint neighborhood. Now Magnuson's got some fancy new playfields with highpowered lights, and they've cleaned up some of the brush, and the foot traffic there has increased considerably, but on a day like today, it's still as perfect as ever.Ever since it's gotten above 40 and every single morning it isn't raining B and A set off. A in the Bjorn, B hoping A will be bjornized, that is, take a nap on the go. This morning it was at 9:30 when they set off. A couple of moms and kiddos were at play in the playfield, but just passed the playfield, almost no one was to be found. It was a perfect ~65 degrees, the sun was that most excellent kind of high in the sky springtime sunshine, and Rainier was peaking out, just a little hazily, around every bend.
In under 15 minutes, the almost ubiquitous white noise of outdoors in the AM lulled A to a deep and solid rest that lasted for 1 1/2 hours. B dug her 'so much fun this is not a workout' fitness regime of walking around with a 17 lb featherweight, drinking in the sounds she normally wouldn't have noticed. Rhythm of life only registered now for her gratitude in their ability to help baby sleep peacefully. The hum of airplanes, water, wind, mowers, birds and dogs barking, a girl and a boy stumbling through the theme song of Laverne and Shirley, an elderly couple whispering hello, while Tiny snoozed peacefully. These days at the park are easily those precious moments in life where everything is just exactly as it should be and life is just as grand in its simplisity as it can possibly be.
And when we get home S is back from work and tells Tiny that he knows Mommy and she have been to the park because they smell like wet dogs again. Something about walking by the water (or is it the proximity to the dog park?) has that effect, but it's worth it, and well they don't smell it anyhow. Grounded has never been so good.
