"what's going on to you?"
charlotte, march 2017
luca is three years, jack is six months
this trip to charlotte was of the day-and-a-half variety, like the ones i used to take each month when i was employed by a company and not a family. which is to say, when my bosses did not give me the same vacation time they had because they weren't essentially taking my job with them, as is what happens when you work for a family, and i'd simply take half days on fridays once a month to make the quick trip.
i forgot how long the 6.5 hour-long trek feels when you do it twice in three days. i forgot how little a day and a half actually is, especially when you have two nephews to spend it with.
i did not forget how absolutely, undeniably worthwhile it is.
it rained on saturday morning, which meant our plans changed from watching luca play soccer (it was cancelled) to hanging out at my parents' house. J and abs were finishing out their week in charlotte when i got there. we had only half a day of overlapping time, but it felt so good to squeeze them.
(the shirt i am wearing.)
later, we hung out at home.
luca, at one point, came over to T and declared that "we haven't watched tv in a while. we should probably watch something." which is great, in itself, because he obviously thought it over and decided that would be the best, logical way to get the answer he wanted.
also because, "watch something" is still one of my favorite phrases he says as his three-year-old self. "alright" is near the top of the list as well. it sounds more like "oh-white," and i discovered that my mom will say things just to get him to say it in response. genius.
at one point, luca and i were having something of a sword fight. something, meaning he had a sword and i did not. then jack woke up from his nap, and i was at another disadvantage: no sword, with a baby in tow. we carried on, and this is when i discovered the absolute joy of hearing jack giggle so hard – at anything and everything luca does. like the love he has for luca spills out of him in the form of laughter; he can't contain it.
that moment, right then, is what makes 13 hours in the car worth it.
the night ended with a dance party to the trolls soundtrack, and i can't actually remember the last time we had a real, all-out dance party with luca. i kept remembering that moment, mid-dance party, at almost a year and a half, when he first discovered his belly button. it feels unreal to think how that happened over a year and a half ago when it feels like last month.
now, he does this thing where he dances like they do in the movie. it starts in his shoulders and, like the bergens, he acts surprised – like he's dancing, not on purpose, but because he can "feel it." he'll say "i can feel it!" and "can you feel it, auntie?" and "what's happening?" and "what's going on to you?"
this, of course, is my favorite. (everything he does is my favorite.)
on sunday, my mom and T and i went to the movies to see beauty and the beast. i have no photos to share from this experience, but it was delightful. it was a theater that had recliner chairs and as my mom and i lounged with our feet up, T was sitting on the edge of her seat, nodding to the music.
can you tell which one of us initiated this trip to the movies? 5/5, by the way. beauty and the beast is the best story and this movie version was really well done. in spite of the added scenes that, T was quick to point out, didn't belong. (and i don't even mean the "controversial" ones. everyone sure made a mountain out of that molehill.)
and, because the movie is two hours long, that about wrapped up my trip this time around.