Berkshires Vacation - Day 6

What a fun day! We got up early to drive the hour + to Charlmont, MA, where Crabapple Whitewater Rafting is located. We had the best time. Our guide Lily made it very comfortable for all of us. Shara "rode the bull" by sitting up at the front of the raft with her feet hung over the bow. She also took a bucket to soak the rafters in the other boats during the water fights. Her favorite part was the "Minefield - Out of the Lemon Squeezer and right into the Minefield - zig and zag through the exposed rocks that are everywhere in this rapid. Cut the rocks close and make the next move before it is too late." She also loved doing the wheelie - all of us sat at the back of the raft, tipped back and the guide, who was standing behind us, used a rope to get us all the way back and the raft almost vertical. I had trust issues and couldn't put myself all the way back but apparently it was good enough. My favorite part was when I fell in during the first rapid because I didn't have my feet tucked. It was great because I concurred one of my phobias - being thrown in the water! Shara says, "Umm... It was so fun!" Needless to say, we were soaked, tired, and exhilarated! Next time Shara will be old enough to go on the trip with the class 3 & 4 rapids! This was class 1-3. Still so much fun.

The kids take over the ship!

Through the rapids 

Quebec 2012 - Day 2

This was an exciting day for us. We were going horseback riding, and on the beach too! The evening before I went to the resort office to see if they knew anything about the horseback riding place I had found and they didn't. They said it was very far away though - 1.5 hours. That wasn't too far for us, and the resort didn't have any stables that offered riding on the beach, which I really wanted to experience, so we keep our original plans. Happily they called the stables for us to verify the details because it was unclear where we were supposed to meet. They confirmed our reservation and it sounded to the girl at the desk that we meet at the stables. She printed out the directions (indicators) for us and even printed the directions from the stables website, which were more detailed. Alan's nav system didn't have any trouble though.

We got up and moving fairly relaxed because our reservations weren't until 1 PM, and we needed to arrive 1/2 hour before. We had breakfast in the condo, I think we played a game of Uno, left at about 10 am. The ride there was beautiful. We saw tons of cute farm houses and lots of land. Most of the route was along the water and it was so blue! Many of the metal roofs were a blue similar to the river. We passed a number of houses selling vegetables (legumes and bluets are in season now), fromageries, a bucherie or two, and a couple of poteries. There was only one touristy town we went through during this trip and we didn't stop because we were going to get to the stables at just the right time. The road varied from mountains to seaside and seaside mountains. There was only one road that was nerve wracking, and it was close to our destination. I didn't like the huge hills we (Alan) had to drive up and down, because I never felt comfortable that there wouldn't be something over a rise that we couldn't see, like a mousse or a stopped car. During the drive, Shara read one of her Pet Fairy books and played on her itouch. She didn't enjoy the scenery as much as we did but often when we'd point something out, we'd get a "wow" or "shush" depending on what she was doing. We're working on rudeness!

We got to the farm and a person there knew enough English to tell us yes, we were supposed to meet on the beach. We had seen a sign at the beach that said Equestrian, but weren't confident it was our place, so just to be safe, we drove up the hill to check. Can't be right all the time and we had time, so no big deal. Back to the beach and park and walk over to a blue & yellow (similar to Cirque du Soliel colors) canope with horses. It was a cute setup. They had a picnic table as their office and the horses had the canopy as their stable, with hay and water. We signed the release, paid, and were assigned a horse. Shara had peanut, Alan had Bella, and I had Ali (not sure if it was a male or female). Shara's was the smallest and we were told she'd ride behind the guide, and he held a lead. There were about 10 people in our group. One of the people said they had been on this tour before and the horses were gentle and well behaved. I was a little nervous, not being on a horse since I was Shara's age. Mostly I was nervous I wouldn't be able to hoist myself up onto the horse. This was Alan's second time on a horse and Shara has been on pony rides and that wonderful lesson with Korin, but that was already two years ago! She did remember what she was taught and handled everything beautifully. When we first got on, and I did get myself up fine, we all got in line. These horses weren't automatons like many trail horses. These had to be steared and would stop and not follow the line all the time, or get really close to the horse in front of them. I was following behind Shara and Alan was behind me. I have to mention, the beach wasn't a fine sandy beach but rather rocky and muddy and shaped like a cove, with a high, wooded hill to our left, where we walked toward. It was low tide we could have walked out pretty far. Before we set off on the trip down the beach, Peanut got a little feisty and didn't buck, but did that horsy, backwards walk. The guide had to get him back in line and tell him to stay in line and be good. I held my breath, thinking Shara was going to cry and say she was done, but she was a trooper and carried on. We walked a bit, then were told to stop the horses and let them drink at a little stream, and then went down the beach. Much of the time we heard a thuck, thuck of the hooves in the mud. It was rather relaxing and felt very natural and I kept fantasizing how it would be to take off. On the way back, Peanut had a couple of episodes where he showed he wasn't in a cooperative mood - he started to trot twice, and Shara just hung on and dealt with it. She seems very comfortable on a horse and reported back that she did get nervous when he did that, especially since her foot had come out of her stirrup. When it did, she said something to the guide and he stopped while she worked to get it back in. She said what she was most worried about was how she was going to get off. They didn't use a step-stool to get her on - mostly just helped push her up. To get down, she got her leg across and they helped lift her down. She loved it. I liked it a lot but there were times when it was a little monotonous, and Alan enjoyed it. We want to try the woods next time.

The Beach

After riding, we went to a Casse-Croute across the street and were able to order a Grande Marie (Alan), cheeseburger (Shara), chicken burger (Laurie). Turns out the Grande Marie, which sounded like a grilled chicken sandwich with fries and cole slaw, was a very vegetably chicken salad  - had shredded lettuce, chopped chicken and some mayo, in a buttered/grilled hot dog roll, with fries and cole slaw. My chicken burger was fried, but really good - Weaver, I'm sure, and Shara's burger was a burger. After we went for a very short walk up a hill, through some woods behind the Casse, that went to the road we originally drove down. A nice stretch for our legs before we got back in the car and headed toward our home away from home.

Entrance to the little trail

Along the way we saw an Alpaca farm and pulled over to take a look because we couldn't resist the cute, little creatures. They were adorable and so many of them! They were recently sheared so the only furry parts left were the feet, tails and heads. We went inside their shop and Shara kept calling me over to feel this and feel that; very soft. The rest of the journey wasn't exciting and we ended up having an early evening. Shara and I did our nails on the deck and Alan relaxed with a little gaming.

Alpaca farm

date with Auntie

Shara's off for her first Auntie Chrissy & Shara date! They're going out to lunch and then see Ice Age.

First Grown-up Concert!

Last night Shara had her first real concert experience. I took her to see Further at McCoy Stadium. We met our friend Kathy and her kids there. A kid got in free with an adult ticket and there were several there, but it certainly wasn't a kiddie show! We get to the main parking lot and Shara says, "these people think it's Wacky Wednesday, Thursday too!", or something like that. At AFY it was Wacky Wednesday, Thursday and she had on a boy's shirt and had her hair in a unicorn horn.


The best part of the concert for her was the orange soda I let her have for dessert, but we had a good time dancing too. We started in the bleachers, then took a walk because she was bored, then back to our seats, then another walk down to the field where we got to the far side of the rave-like center. By then it was getting dark and the glow sticks started to come out and we danced and grooved until it felt like time to head back to the main-land so we could get out before the crowds started pushing to the one exit from the field. Kathy was basically on the same schedule and she did a great job leading the way off the field, through the dancing crowd! We left right after and I felt we were super-smart because there was no traffic - we walked to the car, got in and about a 1/2 hour later were home. We would have been sitting in traffic for an hour had we not missed a few songs, though I would have liked to have heard Sugar Magnolia/Sunshine Daydream. Great time and so glad to have shared that experience.

New Year's Eve

 So yesterday we had a very relaxing morning and actually had brunch rather than breakfast. We enjoyed Beth Howell's pancakes and added chocolate chips, berries, apples, and nothing! By the time we got showered and dressed and the bag packed for our trip into Boston for First Night, it was already almost 12:30! That was ok though. We had to meet a friend who was going to buy Alan's pin from us because he was stuck home with a migraine - boo!

So Shara and I had quite an adventure in Boston. We got there about 1:20 and I wanted to get moving because a magic show started at 1:45. I didn't realize how crazy I was thinking that we could just stroll in and get a seat, etc. I didn't realize we wouldn't be able to park right away. I didn't realize how bad my directions are when I'm walking and not driving (with help from the nav system, of course!) So by the time we got parked, since we went to the Prudential tower parking first and went around, backed out, around again, no spaces, left, finally found the original garage I had wanted to go to, went in and up and up and up and found spots on the 4th level already! Left the garage and went right instead of left and oops, now we're at the chiming concert on Christian Science Plaza, which was great, but we needed to get to the Hynes Convention Center! So we meandered our way and it turned out to be just around the corner, and about 1/4 block from the parking garage. We headed to the next magician show - 3 PM now, and got in line and were told don't hold our breath getting in. We waited a bit, seeing if anyone else was going to leave and took the opportunity to have a bar so we could keep our energy up. Being the troopers we are, we ended up going to the Gerwick Puppets "Midwinter Magic" show. It's based on Debussey's Snowflakes Are Dancing. It was very lovely but knowing we needed to get in line for the next magic show, we left a little before the end and got back up to the third floor. We were in line about the same place as we were the first time, so we then decided to not wait so long and just leave for the ImprovBoston's family show. We found the auditorium and got a little confused because the band was still playing. We did enjoy listening to the music and were able to snag a couple of seats as people left. Shara was quick and popped herself down, right before another person managed to get in. Go Shara! That was a fun show and I think we would enjoy seeing them again.


After that, we heard that they were going to have fireworks after the parade in Boston Common, and decided to go closer to the Common to view the parade. Along the way we planned on getting some dinner. That turned into a hot dog at Copley and we stayed there to watch. Good thing too, because afterward we made a side-trip to Panera to use their facilities. 

Waiting for the parade to start

Here it is!

So we continued on to the Common but ended up watching from the garden. They were the absolute best fireworks I've ever seen. The only ones that come close were the ones Alan and I saw at my first and only other First Night, 11 years ago. The other activity we didn't want to miss were seeing the ice sculptures. They were much harder to find than I remembered. We made our way over to the Common and tried not to get crushed between the two little gates they had open and the tons of people trying to get through. We survived but were cold and tired (sorry, I was tired, not Shara) and finally found a sculpture and it was cool, no pun intended, but not as amazing as it should have been for the hunt involved. But, it was right near the T stop, which is where we were headed because Shara was done with walking around in the cold. We did get on the wrong T and got off at the Prudential, which was no big deal because we were able to walk right inside to get to the Convention center. We actually ran into Hannah, of all people, the person who bought our pin! We went on through to the Hynes, and back out and to the car and high-fived each other when the car was actually where I thought it should be. The garage looked a little different than it did when we left it so many hours ago!

On the way home we called daddy and put in a dinner order, since Shara's hot dog and my apple just weren't enough. We ate dinner at about 9 PM, and as promised, Shara was allowed to get in her jammies, brush her teeth, get her blanket and pillow pet and come downstairs to wait up for the ball to drop. I was amazed that she found it so exciting and she got me excited about it too. It was a great way to bring in the New Year and if daddy is sick again next year, we're giving up on him! Two years in a row is a coincidence. Three is a trend.

Stowe Vacation, day 8

Today was pretty sad, but we were brave and kept busy with a really fun event - the Alpine Slide! Shara and Alan were psyched to go but mommy chickened out. Shara said that sometimes we have to do things even if we're scared. She was scared but was still going to go. Right she was, but after I watched a bit of the action, I didn't feel scared and wished I had gotten a ticket. Well the fates took over and Alan and Shara were behind a woman who went really slowly and her husband gave me their third ticket! Pretty cool! Shara was thrilled because she really wanted me to go. We tried to keep the goodbyes quick and no one cried.

A girl with a purpose

Stowe Vacation, day 6

I have no pictures for today but we took a drive up Mt. Mansfield and checked out Spruce Peak via Smuggler's Notch, "A shorter and easier route to this scenic pond leaves from the parking area at the top of the Notch. The trail is steep and rocky for the first half mile, then flattens as it traverses Spruce Peak. It is another half-mile to Sterling Pond and a round trip total of 2 miles." We only went about 1/2 way. After going up the steep and rocky part, Shara wiped out on a tree root and called it a day. That was fine because Bubbe and Papa made really good time and were basically ready to meet us at the resort. After they settled in, we went to get tickets for the local theater production of Oklahoma. We thought we'd be able to get dinner in the village, but could see that wasn't in the cards, so headed back toward the resort and ate at Piecasso. I didn't think very well and didn't mention to the waitress that we had tickets to the theater, so had to hunt her down to let her know. Then things got speedier.

Shara loved her first experience of musical theater. What she didn't like were the gun shots, but we were warned before the show started. The next day I downloaded the soundtrack from the movie and got it onto her mp3 player. Then I heard she saw the movie at the Lookers!

Stowe Vacation, day 5

Today we went bike riding on the recreation path and then had dinner at the Alchemist. Shara rode on a trail-a-bike attached to Alan's bike, which was a good thing because I wiped out. I have great balance, but not on a bike and certainly not the confidence or skill needed to support another person. Shara was scared at first, but we took it slow and she ended up loving it.

The way into town was downriver, but back to the rental place was all up and she really helped peddle. Alan said she was a huge help. The path was really neat and the woman at the bike place gave Shara a list of things to look out for on the ride. We saw most of the things, including tall cairns, sculptures, and a man galloping on a horse (that wasn't on her list, but very cool!). We also made a stop to search for a geocache near one of the bridges. Alan found this one and Shara traded her fairy doll for a couple of sillybandz.

We stopped when we got to the start of the trail, which is in the village of Stowe. We walked up to Main St. Alan and I got a sandwich to split and Shara got a lemon soda in place of an ice cream. After the sandwich we got ice cream. More maple - a creamy for me and a maple walnut hard ice cream for Alan. Don't worry, Shara had several tastes of each and again wished she had gotten what I had. But all was good and we forced her to eat some peanut butter pretzels. Before getting back on the bikes, Alan checked and found a geocache nearby. Shara had the sharp eyes and found this one, even though it was really small. We signed the log and got back on the path. We seemed to make less stops going back but it was uphill so there were more short stops for water and to walk the bikes up a hill or two. The shifting was difficult and there were several sharp turns that came right before hills, so it was harder to get the speed up enough to make it up the hill.

When we finished the path, we went back to the resort so we could get ready for dinner. We needed to get there early so we could miss the two hour wait. We were successful! Shara had root beer and pizza and some of my rice & beans. I had beer and rice & beans, and Alan had beer and a burger & fries. We skipped dessert but on the way back to the resort, made a pit-stop at Ben & Jerry's. Shara couldn't believe I made this suggestion. She kept asking, "really? now? we can really go?" Well it was open and we got in to the 7 PM tour. There were a few others there. The tour leader reminded Alan of Samantha. She was about the same age, enthusiastic, cute, and very personable. She also had fun making silly cow jokes. Here was another tour where they weren't actually packaging anything, for some reason, but we still saw the movie, the equipment, and had a sample. They were making  chubby hubby, but the sample was Americone - the Stephen Colbert flavor.

Mooo!

Drive-In

Last night was Shara's first trip to the Drive-In. What was playing, the Smurfs! After being gone all last weekend, on Monday I picked Shara up early from Tina's and took her to... the Smurfs. We had a good time both times, but last night we had the bonus of being with other kids from school. Actually Shara only new one, but she was more than happy to see her and boy was Shara excited. She talked non-stop, all the way to the Mendon Drive-In. We all followed together so we could get spaces together and ate, played a bit, then the movie. It was fun and I'd like to do it again.

Whale Watch

Last Monday we had a very nice time going on a whale watch from Plymouth. We didn't see the whales super close, but boy there were a lot of them. Shara was so excited to go that when the whales started jumping, I think she was  a little disappointed because they were farther away. The boat can't get too close, and they didn't come right up to us. She did take a nap on the way back to the harbor, and has very happy memories of the trip and wants to go on another, so that's really the tell-tale sign of how much she liked it!

Big Girl Party

Yesterday Shara went to a Rock Diva's bday party and I emailed the mom to see if it was a drop-off or not and it sounded like it was so I dropped Shara off and she went up with the birthday girl and joined right in. What's funny is I got there and the other moms had stayed the whole time! I would have liked to have stayed and talked to them and seen Shara get dolled up. It was a rock diva party. They said she did great getting her hair and makeup done, and watching her face when they did her hair was funny. She was wrinkling her nose as they pulled but she didn't make a peep. She also was a great model - they brought out a runway for them to strut! They took video & pics, so I'll be able to see. Shara also said if I had stayed she would have basically attached herself to me and wouldn't have had so much fun, so it was good I didn't. I told her she should be very proud of herself and it looked like she was.

Horseback Riding

Shara finally got to get her pony ride today and she loved it. Koren, who donated the ride from the church auction, though Shara was a natural. She was so comfortable on the pony. She wasn't scared at all and they started slow, but Shara wanted to hold the reins, and then they went on to halting and steering, and then Koren let out the rope a bit and Shara had a little room to go in a circle. After the lesson, Maya and Shara had a really fun time playing in the hay loft and then in the field. It was such a nice time and a great opportunity to get to know a fellow UU family.

20100912HorseBack

First day of camp

Shara had her first day of camp today. Tina took her and helped her find her group, gave her a hug and kiss goodbye and off she went. Tina said she was excited and had no problem. When we picked her up she was all smiles and that lasted through the night. The part she didn't like was writing in her journal. She was supposed to draw or write about her favorite part of the day, which was the hike she selected to take for their choice time. They gave them all a small notebook and pencil, so I can see why she had a tough time drawing a picture. But she really like the rest of the time. She even earned a good job coin that she can use in their store. She knew one girl from school too. I think she's almost as proud of herself as I am of her.

Last night we all went to Cirque du Soleil's OVO in Boston. It was amazing. afterward Shara said she wants to take gymnastics at the same place Tenley goes. I told her that there are some gymnastics taught at the dance class she's probably going to go to. She was so excited by it all, and rightfully so. We all were. If anyone is thinking of going, do it. It's well worth it.

A Visit to Camp Looker

Shara had her first big girl trip away from home last week. Jill, Samantha and Liz picked Shara up last Thursday for a few days in upstate NY. Liz wasn't able to join, but Shara had a great time with the rest of the family. I'm hoping Jill or Samantha will be able to contribute to this so Shara has a lasting memory of the trip. Getting her bags packed was fun. I'd tell her what to fetch from around the house and she was on a mission, "ok mommy, I'm on it..." Off she'd go and then ask for what was next. She's great at helping if she's given specific tasks.

From what I heard, they went to their camp at Sacandaga Lake and Shara went kayacing and even swam with the fish! Seeing that she enjoys playing with the frogs in our pool, that's not so surprising though. They all watched the Princess Bride - Shara's now 2nd favorite movie. When we picked her up on Sunday she was happy to see us, but not in a hurry to leave! I think she could have had another day or two and been fine.

We had to make a stop at Jumpin' Jacks. We all enjoyed the fine food & atmosphere. What's summer without Jumpin' Jacks?

She really is feeling better about being independent. I'm very proud that she's decided to go for a week at one of our local day camps, without even knowing who's going to be there with her. Tina is going to drop her off and pick her up for us, which is great because the time they make the camp day is really for stay at home moms or people with au pairs/nannies.

Shara doesn't like beer

Last Saturday we went to the Blue Hills Brewery Festival and Shara tried the watermelon beer. She didn't like it. It was actually just ok. We liked the wheat beer better. Shara didn't take another sip though. We had a fun time in the drizzle - took a tractor ride around the Irish cultural center, walked around the center and listened to some music, ate some pulled pork, watched people throw some kegs, and even hunted for a keg. We didn't find it - boo. Afterwards we went for an early dinner at Takara in Canton for yummy sushi, then walked the long way back to the car, and finished up at Crescent Ridge. Nice day!

Sunday we went blueberry picking - got a huge bucket full - ended up being 5 quarts to put in the freezer. Do we have a blueberry pie this Thanksgiving? I think we may!

The rest of the week was less eventfull. Swam every day though and on Thursday evening went to the library to get a museum pass and took a walk through the gardens. Wow, they're beautiful! Friday found 5 frogs in the skimmer basket. Shara made pets out of two of them - Fat and Thin. They may be in the garden behind the garage. Shara was sad to release them but knew that they'd be much happier in a garden than in the chlorine pool.

Check out more photos at Picasa.

1st Grader!

Yesterday Shara graduated Kindergarten! She walked across the stage and the principal shook her hand and gave her a certificate. She got all E's on her report card and now has her 1st grade teacher assigned. It's the same teacher Anna had this year, so I know she's going to have a lot of homework. Shara said it was the happiest sad day.

Graduations

The past couple of weekends were filled with graduation parties and gearing up for the end of the school year. Today's the last day for Shara - she wears her special t-shirt of her classmates' hand prints. A great souvenir to remember kindergarten. Alan & Shara had a Wendy's night while mommy went out with the girls. Shara's still dining at her own table in the dining room. She got a certificate for participating in "field day" - likes going in the bouncy house now.

She also seems to like church now. Yesterday was the end of the religious education program for the year. The unit was Celebrating Mother Earth and the kids learned about Native American beliefs. Shara's class mostly did art projects. Well the end was celebrated with an inter-generational service where the kids showed what they learned. Since I've been attached to Shara each class, the plan was for me to be there with her. I really didn't like that idea, but the deal is that I'd stay with her until she is six, then she's on her own. We get to the church, get her mask and sit in the back with her class. Then the kids have their procession, carrying their masks, to the front of the sanctuary. I went with her, but when they lined up at the front, I left her there and sat in the front pew. Then the kids sang a song, the teachers taped up their masks and then all went to sit in a couple of other pews together. So basically she was off with her class, and not attached to me any more. She seemed to have a good time. They went up again later in the service and did their poem with movement and Shara did great. Then they gathered around Tom to hear a story. After that they came back to sit with their families and we both joined Alan in our usual spot. A bit later the congregation stood around the sanctuary in a big circle to sing a song of mother earth and pass around a blow-up earth ball. Throughout the service, a local flutist played wonderful Native American music for us. What a great day for all of us - really felt like Shara came full circle and into her own. We're so proud of her!

Feels a lot like summer

Friday evening we went to our first professional baseball game. We saw the Brockton Rox with several others from Shara's school. It was fun. What was most enjoyable was just being silly with Shara and not needing to look at the clock or feel like there is something that needs doing. Since it was opening night, we also got to enjoy some fireworks. It's also fun that, though neither Alan or I are big sports fans, we do know most of the rules and were able to teach Shara what was going on.

Saturday Shara and I went shopping at Target and had a good time looking at the clothes and picking out squirt guns. After lunch, I weeded 1/2 the garden while Alan & Shara cleaned the pool a bit and had a squirt gun fight. We decided to relax that evening with dinner & a movie - sushi or Shara & Alan, shrimp & pasta for me, and Alice & Wonderland (Disney version) for all.

Sunday was busy. We went to church, then to work to change the backup, then home to have some lunch & get ready for Theresa's going away party. We're really are going to miss them. Hopefully the new people will be friendly, but it's rare to get neighbors like Matt, Theresa, Anna, and Johnny. The party was great. Fred & Sandy are wonderful hosts and the bbq was fired up 2x. It was so nice to see all the kids playing together and so nicely. They really are sweet with each other. Shara & Alan got their first swim of the season. We all danced the night away - Tina doing the hussle, all of us singing, Fred yelling and scaring the kids (he was telling the grown-ups a story and told the kids to go away, that this wasn't for kids, Jack & Shara came back over and he yelled at them to get out of here, and I never saw Shara run so fast! Of course he was laying it on thick, but they didn't know that!), and of course Sandy teaching them all bad words. Toward the end of the night Shara asked what those things were up there, the things that look like shooting stars swirling around. I asked if she meant the moths and she thought they looked so beautiful.

Today I got up and went to fix lunches at church and Shara & Alan fended for themselves. When I came home they were outside doing more pool work and playing with the squirt guns. I was able to get most of the garden planted by the time we needed to get ready for Shrek. What a surprise that movie was. Much darker than I realized, but Shara liked it. She did get sad enough to tear up but duckie & giraffe stayed in my purse and Shara stayed in her own seat. When we got home and ready for dinner, we had a new, but usual fit about sitting at the dining room table. We're trying to figure out what's going on with this. A few weeks ago, several meals a week Shara has a fit about sitting at the table. She says it's not straight and she freaks out about it. I'm not sure if she's uncomfortable because she can't adjust her chair while in it or what, but it's a real issue these days. I seem to remember this happening a while ago and allowed her to move her table into the dining room, and then it shortly went back to her eating at the table with no problem, so maybe that will be the case this time, but it's not fun having battles, especially when I think she's really upset and not playing a game. She was super tired today (though she slept until 8 AM), so maybe that was the real problem.

Mother's Day

For the first time Shara woke me up with a "Happy Mother's Day"! She remembered all by herself, and then went to get all the presents she had stashed. She made me some beautiful things in school. I got a hand-painted plaster hand print, butterfly soap, and a wonderful book all about Shara & Mommy. So far it's been a great Mother's Day.

Yesterday Shara & I went to Legacy Place to see their kid's matinee - Barbie in a Mermaid's Tale. We got there a little late and sat in the front. I never sat there before. It wasn't too bad. We shared popcorn and Shara mostly drank her decaf iced caramel machiatto by herself. We then had fun in H&M looking at all the clothes. Then had some chicken nuggets at b-good, and then tried to find shoes, which we didn't. So today she'll have to wear black shoes with her dress. Oh well, better than slippers.

Shara lost her first tooth!

You can see that the new one is 1/2 in already!