Alex, Clover, and the Wall

Normally, if Alex wants to go to the park in the evening, we do so right after we get home. I get home at least an hour before Eugene does, so there's usually time to play a bit before I have to get dinner ready. Today, although Alex asked to go to the park, he also wanted apple juice. After I gave it to him, he wanted to watch an episode of The Wonder Pets! I thought he'd forgotten about the park, but he remembered--just as a friend called. I had to cut the call short and carry him to the park.

Once there, he went down the slide a couple of times and then on the swing. I tried urging him home (since I'd seen Eugene arrive), but as toddlers do, he became distracted. A huge patch of clover in blossom was next to the park, and he wanted to watch a bee visiting them. Luckily, he didn't try to touch the bee; I warned him it would be "owie." Alex kept calling the clover blossoms dandelions, even after I told him they were clover. He also wanted to pick some of them--or rather, have me pick them for him. I thought he might take them home, but he dropped them.

Alex then wandered over to the stone retaining wall separating the grass from the park. The drop to the park is a couple of feet. I've let him walk on the wall before when I could parallel him on the ground and hold him steady. Of course, that meant he wanted to do it now, when I wasn't in a good position to support him. I followed behind him as closely as I could, holding onto one arm and trying to get him on the other side. He was doing OK when he slipped. The good news is that he fell onto the grass next to the wall, so he didn't fall far. The not-so-good news is that he scraped his leg. It's not serious--it already looks better than it did earlier--but it upset him. I distracted him with a pine cone I found under a tree and finally carried him home for dinner.