My Great-Granddaddy rocks!

Dennis had a lot of fun today, just as I had hoped he would. We met up with Gran and Pop and went to shop for some shoes for Pop. Dennis had the run of the sporting goods store, running all around and checking out everything. We rode up and down the escalators over and over while Pop debated the merits of the Merrells he eventually decided to purchase (2 pairs!). We played with basketballs and volleyballs and several single shoes and then had a tantrum when it was time to get back in the stroller. To distract him, I presented my cell phone (which I have already damaged all by myself so didn't much worry about what he'd do to it) and he quieted right down and tried to call China to get the final tallies on the Olympics. At least that's what I think he was doing, punching in all those numbers before hitting the green send button.

After shoe shopping and snacking, we visited with Pop's parents at their house, and we had such a good time there. Granddaddy is 94 years old, and just a minute after we arrived, he was sitting down on the floor and playing with Dennis and his new toy car. I can't believe he can still get up and down so easily! When Dennis had exhausted himself of his new car and mega-blocks set, he found all the remote controls and pushed some buttons on the DVD player then sorted some magazines, a pencil, and a stapler on the coffee table. He sorted them right onto the floor! He did, to my amazement, grab the pencil and scribble on a piece of paper that was handy. I don't know if he's even seen a pencil before but he certainly knew what to do with it. Bright little guy.

The most fun he had was running around in the backyard in the nicest, thickest, greenest grass he's ever set foot on. Granddaddy went in and got a basketball and football to play ball with Dennis, and Dennis had so much fun kicking and dropping and fetching and rolling the balls and equally as much fun ignoring them so that he could check out the beautiful flowers, the windchimes, and the bird feeder. He was beyond exhausted but cried when we went back inside. We said our goodbyes and hoped he'd nap in the car. Since he didn't, we went to the Whole Foods market and loaded up on food and diapers and recycled products for the house. He enjoyed driving around the little car on the front of the shopping cart, taking his shoes off and trying to put them back on while driving. Maybe he's been watching us a little too closely in the car! Granted, I might take off my shoes, but they are always slip on backless clogs or sandals, and I have never to my knowledge bent all the way over headfirst to bite my shoe while I was driving down the road. So maybe it wasn't imitation after all.

We met up with Daddy after he went and saw a movie and the three of us went to eat at Chick-Fil-A. Dennis enjoyed the indoor playground, and David and I have now climbed to the very top of the hamster tubes because Dennis wanted us to. Scary for us, fun for him, but at least we know now that those things will really hold some weight. Not that we were in them at the same time, but still being high up in a plastic tube is unnerving when you are a full sized (and then some) adult. Dennis giggled all the way down the slide both times, and I am hopeful that in a couple of months he will be able to navigate this structure without our assistance. It was a LATE night for him, but he did manage to squeeze in a whole bunch of fun to make up for being somewhat confined with us all week at the job site. It's going to be a great weekend at the lake, I just know it!