Summer dreaming

Here at the Headquarters de Rooster, life is viral. In other words, we're all at various stages of unpleasant colds. Despite being the index patient of all illnesses, E has more energy than B and me combined. We parents sloth about from one couch to another, hoping that E remains within eyesight so we don't have to follow after him and prevent him from playing with knives or whatever other dangerous items he always manages to find when he wanders away from us.

Of course, keeping E within eyesight is no guarantee of overall safety, as E's belated Valentine's Day gift to me proved. The cute little guy threw a block that landed squarely on my lower lip, resulting in swelling, bruising, and crankiness, not exactly what an already unhappy patient wants. Rather than encourage his clearly MLB-level talents, we will continue to discourage throwing and hope that eventually, he will learn. (Or at least have less painful aim.)

When we're not playing dodgeball with wooden objects, we're gazing longingly at the calendar, looking forward to warmer days, fewer germs, and some time spent away from home. Yes, I'm happy to announce that 2013 will feature the return of travel.

Our adventures are tamer than they used to be, but adventures they will be nonetheless. Here's what's on tap for our family this year:

A spring trip to New York City
When you're still scheduling life around one nap per day, you tend to focus on places that allow you to be in the middle of the action. And let's face it, just about everywhere in NYC is in the middle of the action. We're staying at a hotel that's a bit south of Central Park, where we expect to spend much of our time.

When we aren't playing on the (amazing) playgrounds at Central Park, we'll be visiting the dinosaurs at the Natural History Museum, saying hello to the animals at the Central Park Zoo, jumping on the giant piano at FAO Shwarz, sampling macarons and violet ice cream at Laduree, and riding the carousel in Central Park. And staring in awe at all of the trucks and buses that drive by.

A summer trip to Martha's Vineyard
Summer will arrive, and with it will come our first beach vacation in a long time. Granted, we're going in June, so we don't expect to spend a lot of time on the beach, since summer weather doesn't tend to start in earnest until July on the island. However, since our little man tends to be a bit persnickety when he gets crumbs on his hands at mealtime, we're not expecting him to turn into a beach bum by summer. We'll be happy if he's happy to sit and dig in the sand for a bit.

Other activities we're looking forward to on the island: Eating fudge from Mad Martha's, playing on the playground, going to storytime at the Oak Bluffs public library, riding the Flying Horses carousel, seeing the cliffs at Aquinnah, watching the ferries arrive and depart, and stopping by the airport to see the planes take off and land.

A fall cruise to Bermuda
I admit to feeling some trepidation at the prospect of a cruise, given recent cruising events. Engine fires are scary. And having no electricity on a ship is also concerning. However, as of right now, our cruise is on, and we're excited about it.

I think the part of the cruise that excites me the most is not having to prepare or clean up a single meal for an entire week. I'm also looking forward to seeing Bermuda for the first time, introducing E to another country without having to get an airplane or undertake a lengthy road trip, and experiencing some warm weather after our weather has turned cool.

But really, the biggest appeal is not having to cook for and clean up after E for an entire week. And the free soft serve.