A Sunday with Aiden

I had a really nice visit with Aiden today.  When I picked him up, I saw that he had brought with him a change of clothes (A thank you to Aiden's mom for sending extra clothes yesterday that  Aiden ended up using today, as the extra clothes that I had bought him got sent back with him a few visits ago.)

I brought Aiden to see the home that I just moved into. It took about an hour to drive there, and another hour to drive back, taking up half of the allotted four hours. However,  I felt it was important for Aiden to see where he's going to be spending time with me.  I want Aiden to be comfortable and happy at his second home. I let him explore the rooms, and showed him the bedroom that's going to be his. He was excited to have his own room, complete with a mural-sized map of the world on one wall. I showed him the Los Angeles dot, then showed him New York state. Someday, he'll have some understanding of how far away that is. I certainly do, given that my sweetheart is still there.

After showing him my apartment, we took a walk around the neighborhood. I specifically chose the apartment because it's in a very kid-friendly area, on a quiet cul-de-sac with sidewalks Aiden can ride a bike on, a fenced backyard where he can play safely and help me plant a garden, and lots of natural areas nearby to explore. 

Then we drove a couple blocks (because Aiden didn't want to walk!) to the entrance to a hiking trail. Aiden enjoyed leading me down the path. I asked him what he should do if he saw a snake; he said, "Stop! And back up!" (Smart kid!) I'm really hoping to spend time outdoors with Aiden, to help him develop his "sense of wonder" about nature firsthand. 

After hiking, we came back and made peanut butter sandwiches, then drove back to Long Beach. I sat on a bench in the church yard and read Aiden more of "James and the Giant Peach" while we waited for him to get picked up. I overheard an elderly husband exclaiming to his wife that "Aiden's dad is reading to Aiden!" It struck me as odd that they would think this was such a remarkable sight. What have they been told about me?

All in all, I had a very good time, and I think Aiden did too. It felt really good to finally see Aiden in my own home, even if it's as new to me as it is to him. Now that I'm back in California for good, I'm looking forward to many more times like this with my wonderful son.