One of the side benefits of Ouest going to school is that it opens up more time for Lowe and I to spend one on one. With Ouest I’ve always had plenty of this. We had her first twenty months before Lowe came along, and we’ve had at least a couple of hours a day while Lowe naps.

Lowe has been really attached to Ali the past few months, and after a while I think I probably just let it go. It’s tough to pick up your baby boy only to have him start calling out for Mama. So now Lowe and I are making the mornings “man time.”

I’d stumbled across something about a natural ocean pool here in Mazatlan that is just a few blocks up the road from us, so we packed our swimsuits and headed over there this morning. It turned out to be a bust. The building was in shambles and the waves were crashing over the pool making it look not much safer than some Class V rapids. So instead we just wandered the city together, ate tacos, and picked up some new toys (or as we adults call them, squirt bottles).

So we’re now on the hunt for a swimming pool. The beach is fine, but this time of year the surf is up and the waves break right on shore. No bueno for a two-year-old.

An additional side benefit to this arrangement is that when we got home Ali proudly announced, “My inbox is empty!”

A bunch of people commented on the last post about how Ouest would soon be teaching me Spanish. Which is why I found this exchange amusing tonight.

“Ouest, I’m so proud of you for going to school and having so much fun.”

“Papa, will you teach me more Spanish.”

“Of course I will, but you know, you’re going to be learning so much Spanish in school that pretty soon you’ll know more than me.”

A smile crossed her face as the thought formed in her head. “Then I’m gonna teach you Spanish.”

Nothing would make me happier.