So, Mr. Ambrya and I didn't watch the debate tonight because we went out on a date. My friend Katherine, who as an apprentice midwife is usually on-call to go to births, has the month off because her preceptor is on vacation. So for the very first time ever, Tristan went over to visit Katherine and her son on a playdate without me present. The only other time I've ever left him with anyone has been at his grandparent's house and then only for a couple hours at a time. This, however, was a whole afternoon and evening affair.
Let me preface this by saying that Katherine is an extremely diligent, conscientious and attentive mother and I had absolutely no worries about leaving Tristan with her, except for the normal reservations about leaving my kid with someone new for the first time ever. I could tell I was feeling a little anxious at this new situation, though, because as we drove past a park near her home that features a large pond, my brain went off into a horrible daydream/nightmare about Tristan falling into the pond and drowning while with Katherine (Thumb's recent family tragedy might have played a roll in this as well.)
Except for checking in once I actually restrained myself from pestering them. As the time for us to meet up and pick Tristan up neared, however, I get a call from Katherine telling us she's on her way to the rendezvous point and she mentions that she's got to tell me about the "little adventure" Tristan had today.
They went to the park (not the one with the pond near her house, but a different one alongside a river) and after swinging and playing on the slide and whatnot, were walking near the river visiting with the ducks and geese. Katherine had left her purse on a boulder, and Tristan was wanting to move on, so she half-turned away from him for all of a second to grab it. In that instant it took her to pivot, grab her purse, and turn back, my son (who had been standing only a foot away from her, well within arm's reach) made it to the water's edge and dove head-first into the river.
By the time Katherine ran into the water and grabbed him by the foot and pulled him out, he had been fully submerged for only a couple seconds. He gave her a startled look, spluttered, then promptly started grinning and laughing and trying to lunge out of her arms and back into the water. He continued to try to escape her grasp and run back into the water as she stripped off his wet clothes and wrapped him in the sweatshirt she'd had tied around her waist. Apparently he really, REALLY wanted to go swimming.
I've known my kid has no fear of water ever since the day in August when we were walking along the shore of Lake Michigan and he kept trying to let go of my hand and run out into the water, even though it was far too cold for swimming. But still, you'd think going head-first into a river would make him even just a LITTLE bit hesitant to try it again, but no. The child truly has no fear whatsoever.
I'm torn between absolute horror and reluctant hilarity, because I can all to well imagine the way he grinned and laughed as he tried to run back into the water. And I'm giving half-serious consideration to getting one of those toddler harness/leash things I've always disdained before, at least to use whenever there's a body of water less than half a mile away.
Tristan is perfectly fine. Katherine promptly took him home and dumped him in the bath to get the river water off him, but I do need to keep an eye out on his eyes to make sure he doesn't get an infection, and he had a little bit of a cough on the way home tonight I'll be paying attention to.
But despite that, something tells me I won't be sleeping well tonight. Or ever.