Salamanders and Cranberries

Late September and October (thus far) continue to be relatively busy. I'm trying to finish painting the house amid rainstorms, falling temperatures, and other commitments. I'm off to Oregon today for a work meeting, leaving Tara and Liam behind for a few days. We have to get our iChat's going so we can videoconference our hellos.

We're really glad that Columbus 'discovered' America so we could be rewarded with a day off from work. Good job Chris! We celebrated his efforts with a trip to the Smith's cabin on Sebec Lake and a canoe excursion for wild cranberries. The cabin, as usual, was a wonderful retreat with good food and games with B, Chris and Joel. Last time Liam was there, he took his first bath in a kitchen sink. This time he took his first stream bed hike. Down the road from the cabin is a mossy streambed, with little pools of water for splashing around. It was the perfect place for salamanders, and we managed to find a few, which Liam (like me) found fascinating. When I let it go, Liam picked it up remarkably gently and was able to hang on to it despite wriggling and attempts to leap away. Yes, salamanders can leap. After Liam's attempt to taste or eat the salamander, we let it go. Much to it's relief, I'm sure. See the video below. We still have to be rather vigilant with what Liam attempts to put in his mouth. He tried a penny the other day, which he didn't like. I was able to snag it before it went any farther down the pipe. He made a rather hilarious sour/gross face, and I'm sure he was thinking 'I guess that's what 1000 pants pockets taste like'.

To round out our Columbus Day celebration, we went wild cranberry picking with Rich, Natalie, and their baby daughter Anouk. We took Liam cranberry picking last year, when he was a little less mobile. I remember he wasn't thrilled about being cooped up in the Bjorn while we bent over to search for cranberries. We canoed up Northeast Creek, into a what Rich described as a 'fen'. Liam was a great canoe passenger this trip, sitting in the middle of the boat, letting his hand trail in the water, and helping paddle. The ground up the creek is relatively firm unlike a swamp or a bog, so we got out of the canoes and searched on foot for cranberry plants. This was the perfect plan. Not only are the berries abundant away from the edge of the creek, but we were also able to sit Liam down on top of a cranberry bush and he could commence picking and eating to his heart's content (the report from his daycare provider is he had several bushels of undigested cranberries in his diaper the next day).

Liam's walking is starting to pick up speed, and he's making moves toward jumping, I think. He likes to stomp his foot, one at a time, and alternating. He's starting to climb up onto chairs and walks over to his booster seat when he wants a snack. His favorite perch is standing on top of a very low end table, where he has a view out the window. He's also starting to pick up a few more words (sock, shoe, hat, ball) and sounds (moo) since our last few posts.