Washington, D.C. Day 3

On day three of our trip, we enjoyed a visit to the American History museum. I got choked up seeing the actual star-spangled banner about which Francis Scott Keys wrote our anthem. Despite the mess that our country manages to find itself in at times, I am so thankful to be a citizen of America.

Clara especially loved the kid toys, and I was relieved to find a more kid-friendly museum display.

In front of Julia Child's kitchen--loved it.

Michael's sweet musical creation in the kids' "SparkLab."

We were able to get tickets (free) to take the ninety-second elevator ride up to the top of the Washington Monument. It was neat to look out on all sides and get an aerial view of the beautiful city. On the way down, the elevator dude slowed the elevator down so we could see some of the stones that were carved for states on the inside of the monument.

One of the many views from the top. Pretty cool.

A highlight of the trip was renting bikes and biking along the Potomac River and seeing some of the sights for a few hours. Unlike my husband and mother-in-law, I am not a confident biker but wanted to swallow my pride and do it anyway.

After biffing it within the first fifteen minutes of riding, I managed to escape accident-free the rest of the time and had a really wonderful time riding by the water with the wind blowing dandelion tufts through the air.

Clara had a good time, too (my giving her some new Silly Putty for the ride might have had something to do with it). She was definitely digging the helmet.

What a trooper.

The Jefferson Memorial.

Please note my stylish rolled-up pantleg. I don't think it was obvious to anyone that I wasn't an avid cyclist . . . especially not to the pedestrians who saw me fall off my bike at the crosswalk.


Our lovely trip ended with a half-day spent in Harrisonburg, meeting with elementary schools and visiting our future home.

Now home again . . . There's nothing like a few days' excursion to make you appreciate a full night's sleep in your own bed.

Washington, D.C. Day 2

After church and quiet time (nap time for me and Grandma, quiet time for Clara), we headed over to the Washington, D.C. temple for the afternoon while Michael had more meetings.

It was absolutely beautiful. And thank goodness for Goofy, for without my sorry imitation of his voice, this picture might not have been taken.

Dang, I love this girl . . .

. . . and I'm not the only one.

The Residence Inn where we stayed was very nice and had a little kitchenette. Much to our dismay, however, it had no oven. I brought lots of food to make us tasty dinners, and homemade pizza was one of them. Upon this disappointing discovery, Michael's mom remarked, "Well, if that doesn't work, we could always try the toaster!"After a no-go attempt on the stove top, we thought we might try to cook the dough in the microwave. It was a bit chewy, but really not half-bad, and I was happy I didn't have to throw away the pizza dough.


To be continued . . .

Washington, D.C. Day 1

Michael had an orthodontic conference in Washington, D.C. this past weekend. Since his program was paying for the gasoline, we decided to come along for the ride.

A 10-hour ride is a pretty long time, but Clara was a real trooper.

The Washington Monument.

We invited Michael's mom to come, and she was a great help with Clara and did some babysitting for us as well. I always love my time with her, and this trip was no exception.

Clara loved the Air and Space Museum--she was much more interested in going inside the Skylab than seeing stuffed, scary animals at the Natural History Museum.

To be continued . . .

Mourning and rejoicing

(It's kind of fun to use really dramatic words when you have nothing significant to say. It makes me feel important.)


I am a big Target fan. I eschew Wal-Mart, love Target. I return lots of stuff there after I realize we don't really need it/can't afford it/don't want it.

Besides the generous hand-me-downs from family and friends, the baby and kids department at Target has been the backbone of Clara's wardrobe. I dig the $4 shirts and shorts, especially the $3 scooters I snagged for spring and summer a couple of weeks ago.

But the sizes only go up to 5T. Target, can't you please keep making these sweet outfits in bigger sizes? No? How about if I throw a tantrum on the Target floor?

Still no? You're saying I should trade this . . .


. . . for this?


My child is only five years old, people, not eleven. Or sixteen. What's a mother to do? Buy cute but pretty darn pricey clothes from Gymboree that still resemble childhood apparel? Or splurge on the essential wardrobe staples of the Southern belles?


I am going to start wearing sackcloth and ashes when I go shopping.


And now on to the rejoicing.

For the first time ever, Clara asked and let me paint her toenails! It was huge. Okay, not really, but it did make me happy in a girly-mom sort of way.

Other reasons for joy:

EarthFare serves kids free on Thursday evenings. Check out this pizza Clara (aka Mom and Dad) got. And this was in addition to a no-sugar yogurt, organic chocolate milk (what a joke), and a fruit kebab. Sweet.

Little girls in beach paraphernalia are pretty darn cute.

And a girl who likes the beach who used to not be such a fan? Even better.

Of course, if you're seeing said little girl at the beach on a day-trip to this place (guess), even more rejoicing is involved.

Easter celebrations, Clara-style

Finding eggs is lame, but eating the candy inside is sweet.

These irresistible blowing flowers get me every time.

Flitting through this flower field makes me feel like a fairy.

Look at my pretty dress from my cousin!

I'm so funny. No wait, you're funny.

Is there a restroom nearby?

I'll oblige you and pose by this rusty gate.

And then I'll dye some eggs with you to make you happy.

Hanging out with nice grown-ups is pretty fun . . .

. . . even though sometimes they enjoy kid stuff more than I do.

My mom is pretty nice.

And my dad is pretty creative--he made that Easter caterpillar out of plastic eggs.

Speaking of fairies, who needs a bunny when they can have an Easter fairy?

Go on, say it. You know I'm cute.

But I just can't help it.

Words of wisdom, by Clara

CLARA: The Holy Ghost is squished in my tummy from my food. (said after dinner, apparently building off the concept that she can feel the Holy Ghost inside, in her heart)


MICHAEL: Clara, what's lightning?
CLARA: Thunder.
MICHAEL: What's thunder?
CLARA: Lightning.

(Glad we got that straightened out.)


CLARA: (referring to Mr. Bear) This is my only begotten bear.


CLARA to me: Can you pretend to be Mama and I'll pretend to be Clara?
ME: Uh, Clara, I am your Mama, and you are Clara.


CLARA: My bum is full of my skirt.

(When you think about it, it's sort of impressive that she managed to tuck her Sunday skirt entirely inside of these little shorts.)


CLARA: The sun sweated me! (said while sitting in the hot car)


Clara is fond of certain vegetables--broccoli, spinach, brussel sprouts, peppers, tomatoes, kale, sweet potatoes, onions, etc. She is not a fan of potatoes but will eat them if she's really hungry as long as they're not mashed. She likes carrots in moderation. We have been eating a lot more vegetables over the last couple of months, and the other day I was making her lunch for school the next day.

(Kale after it's cooked down--in case you're wondering, it is a member of the cabbage family and has a fairly mild flavor--it's not as squishy as cooked spinach)

ME: Clara, would you like pizza in your lunch tomorrow?

CLARA: Yes, and kale.

ME: I don't have kale, just brussel sprouts. Is that okay?

CLARA: Yeah.

She really enjoys roasted brussel sprouts, or she likes just eating the frozen bits of brussel sprouts that come out of the freezer bag.

CLARA: (upon seeing a head of iceberg lettuce, probably for the first time since I'm not a big fan) What's that big brussel sprout thingie?

The pic above is another example: We made homemade pizza again last week, and I was putting cooked spinach on it. She kept asking before each bite, "Can I have some more?" and probably ingested at least 1/4 cup at that sitting, er, standing.

The other day I was fixing broccoli and had cut off the stems of some frozen spears to cook the florets. The half-thawed (and to me, unappetizing) stems were on the cutting board, and before eating each one she inquired, "May I have this?" and then proceeded to eat at least four.

I think this is somewhat bizarre. Don't get me wrong--I am thrilled and wish I could pat myself on the back (although I know that if she didn't want to eat it, there would be virtually no way to force her to even if I wanted to, which I don't), but I can't help but wonder if she's missing some vitamins or something.

Is there such a thing as veggie pica?

Don't answer that. I don't want to know.

St. Pat's

Do you ever do something that sounds like a good idea, in theory?

You know, like put chemicals (aka food coloring) in perfectly wholesome, steel-cut oats in celebration of a holiday?

What, that doesn't look good to you? (Michael's bowl.)

How about with the addition of cottage cheese? (My bowl.)

No?

Yeah, Clara didn't think it was such a good idea either. So I switched it out and gave her old-fashioned, non-colored oatmeal instead. I think her inner food purist rebelled: Green-frosted cupcakes are perfectly acceptable, but green oatmeal? I don't think so.


Clara was feeling a bit nervous during her preschool St. Patrick's Day parade. As a side note, I've never experienced the hurrahs of St. Patrick's Day like I have here--you see Irish flags hanging on houses, of course the Catholic schools are closed, and it was incredible to me the number of people (our family included) who were wearing green. It cracks me up.

Hope your day was as lucky as the blarney stone.

Big weekend

This past weekend Michael and I enjoyed a night away in Atlanta while Grandma watched Clara. We attended an orthodontic conference at a fancy hotel and ate lots of delicious food.

We also signed the contract for our future.

Yep, we really are moving to Virginia in December and buying a practice. It's a done deal.

Wow.

Signing contracts. Amazingly enough, even though this single act has changed the course of the rest of our lives, I feel peace and excitement. I have no nagging uncertainties, although there is certainly some fear and nervousness. We have felt the hand of the Lord in our lives.

If either doctor backs out, they have to pay a lot of money to the other. A LOT of money.

As the attorney put it, "It puts a little blood in the water."

Later that night, we went out to eat with Dr. Alvis and a few of his staff. Michael ordered a caesar salad on the side, and he was surprised to learn that anchovies are part of the recipe (when you order it at a nice restaurant, that is). So Michael split the slimy little fish in half and we each ate it on top of a crostini. Although the taste was not revolting, it wasn't too grand either.

This experience made the second "first" we had that day.

Sitting with most of Michael's future staff. Yikes!

They are kind, welcoming, and supportive. Dr. Alvis is a man of integrity, has a good practice, and has been very helpful and considerate. We get along very well, and we couldn't feel more pleased and thankful. We all know there will be some definite adjustments, some bumps in the road--perhaps significant ones--but we feel peace that the direction we're pursuing is right.

And that makes the future pretty exciting.