Anniversaries

Yesterday was Henry's first official day of kindergarten. He's a little confused by that term, since he's in the same "primary" class at his montessori school as he was in last year, but I took a "first day" picture anyway. It was a terrible reentry. He's been out of school for a month this summer, and yesterday afternoon he said he wished he had only been out for two days because a month was too long for him to be used to it again. Yesterday when Matthew dropped him off, he completely freaked out and it took three teachers to get him out of the car. But then he calmed down, as we knew he would, had a good day, and was completely nonchalant about it this morning, even knocking on the school door himself to be let in.

Wednesday was Matthew's birthday and we had a very low key evening. That morning, he decided he didn't want any fuss, he just requested a "cake I can eat with coffee for breakfast." So Henry and I baked a lemon pound cake that afternoon, and Mom and my grandfather, who moved in with her this past week, came over for takeout from Lebanon's and some of the cake, still warm and moist from the oven. Henry gave Matthew the presents he picked out for him at the grocery store -- a pineapple, mini-watermelon, Kit Kat Bar and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. (I had suggested to Henry that Daddy might like a nice bottle of wine, maybe of the Shiraz variety, but Henry insisted Daddy wanted a pineapple because it was "juicy" -- and he was right).

Last weekend we spent our first night with Matthew's parents in Mandeville since Dean was born. It was also the first time we've really had a chance to kick back and just enjoy the surroundings, since we are usually there for a particular family or community event. This time, Matthew brought his windsurfer and while he and everyone else was down at the lake, I sat in the house and read a book while Dean took his afternoon nap. It was such a treat to sit for a spell with absolutely nothing to do except read -- there was no laundry to do, no household chores, no kids to keep up with, no computer access -- I just sat there for an hour and started reading Zeitoun, my book club's next selection which my mother-in-law also happened to be reading. It's a sort of authorized biography of a well-known New Orleans painter (he painted my in-laws' house before Katrina and is currently painting our next door neighbors' house) who was treated as a terrorist in the chaos after Katrina and imprisoned for months. It's a timely read, considering we are at the anniversary of the worst man-made disaster in history. Last night we sat up late talking with Scott, Rachael and Philip's friend (and ours too, now, but I want to give credit where credit is due) about where we think the city is going. Scott is from Canada but has lived/visited all over the U.S. and adores New Orleans. He's actually spent the past three days volunteering to rehab houses that have sat empty since the storm (there are still thousands), and it was so nice to chat with an "outsider" who nevertheless seems to grasp the confluence of political and natural factors that complicate our recovery. I still can't quite believe it has been four years -- but there's Henry, starting kindergarten (he was only a year when we evacuated) and there's Dean, seven months old and still just as happy and smiley as his big brother at this age. I am reminded once again of how lucky I am.