Education

This morning we saw a couple of cute little dogs being walked while we were on the way to school.

Me: Aww, look at those little dogs.
Sarah: Awww, they're so cute! I want a little dog.
Me: Me, too. But Daddy says we can't have one.
Sarah: Well, we'll just have to make Daddy smarter.

;D

Painted By U

Sarah, Leslie, Lauren, Stephanie and I went to a really neato place Saturday - Painted By U. This is a shop where you can choose an unfinished piece of pottery, paint it any way you like, have it glazed and fired, and pick up in a week. It's super cool and great fun!

Here's how it works. You pay for a studio fee and the price of the piece. They have a pretty big selection of items ranging from small bowls to large platters, to basic 4x4 inch tiles to a really big piggy bank. Once you've chosen your piece you can pick out what color paints you'd like to use. They have a myriad of paints with samples on already glazed & fired tiles so you can see what the end product will look like. Depending on how many coats of paint you apply, the result will be light, medium or dark. Next you sit at a large table set with a cannister of various paint brushes, some paper plates to hold the paint, a couple of bowls of water and some paper towels. And off you go! The paint dries quickly, so no need to sit around and wait to apply more color. Once you're finished, you pay, they take your name & info and you pick it up in one week. Voila!

It was really fun! Sarah had a BALL painting a "rubber duckie" bank and a small picture frame. I painted a chip & dip bowl, Leslie worked on a plate, Stephanie painted a square plate and Lauren painted an elephant bank and a light switch plate.

It doesn't matter how you paint it - the kids I think are the most creative. You can do anything you want to. The kids did super jobs! Oh, and the grown-ups did, too! ;)

We are definitely going to do this again!

White chocolate gator

I've had a lot of disappointment with the zoo lately. I guess the Breakfast with Santa did it for me. Today was no exception - well all except the new gator. He was pretty cool. And it was a great day to go to the zoo. Just ask the everybodies and their mothers who were there!

OMG! I don't think I've ever seen the zoo that packed in my life on a Tuesday! Okay, yeah, it's Spring Break and since it was a yucky rainy day yesterday, everyone decided to go to the zoo today. The only time I have seen this many people there is during Boo at the Zoo.

Anyway, while dodging all them country people who've never stepped into a dentist's office (do they at least brush?), Sarah reminded us every 3 seconds that she wanted to ride the merry-go-round. "Mommy, I want to ride the merry-go-ride," and "Daddy, I need to ride it, NOW!" You know, I remember when riding the train was 50 cents. Okay, that was ages ago, but to charge $2.18 for a 2 minute merry-go-round or a 5 minute train ride?!

And speaking of high prices, I had forgotten my chap stick (GASP!) and went back to the gift shop. Boy did I ever get it in the behind just for an off-brand chap stick. But when you're an addict and desperate, you'll pay anything. So sad.

Plus, they've put up these big signs at the entrance and in the snack areas saying that they don't allow outside food, please eat at the picnic areas OUTSIDE the zoo if you brought your own fare. Ummm, NOT! I pay out the nose for this place, I'm gonna eat what I want where I want, pal. I'm not forking out a ton of dough for their crappy food - this ain't Disney World.. don't they know that?

Okay, so back to the story. There is a new gator at the zoo on loan from who knows where. An albino gator. None of us, of course, had ever seen one, and it was a real surprise. I'm not exactly sure what I was expecting, but to tell the truth it looks like it's made of white chocolate. That's the only way I can describe it. A white chocolate gator. He was livelier than the regular gators, too, meaning that he actually MOVED. The normal gators are just a bunch of lazy reptiles! ;)

So, if you want to see a gator made of white chocolate and don't mind braving the rabble from the country, scoot on over to the zoo. I can't really say that it's WORTH the trip, especially having to weave your way through all those people, but at least it's a fun place for the kids to go.

It seems like only yesterday...

... that I held Sarah's tiny little hand as she sunbathed under the bilirubin lights in the NICU.

My baby girl is, as she reminds me just about everyday, a big girl now. *sniffle*

Four years old. Man, has it really been that long? She's growing so fast! She's learning French, taking dance, has loads of friends at school, helps us take care of her little brother, and is so so smart! She remembers everything - it's creepy. ;)

It would take forever to list all the things I love about this kid, so I'll name a couple. I love it when she asks me to do something and I'll ask her why. "Because I love you and you're my favoritest mommy." Or she might be playing in the kitchen while I'm cooking and out of the blue she'll say, "Mommy, I sure do love you."

Oh, it just melts your heart.

Yeah, there are times when she really gets my goat, but it's all part of growing up - for both of us. I see a lot of myself in her.. and hear it, too. Heh. She'll scold her baby dolls, imitating me. I'm not sure if that's good or bad, but I try to make an effort to not sound like my dad. Eeek! (Hi Dad! Love ya!)

Anyway, she had a great birthday! She got to go to Chuck E. Cheese, had a party at school, and had a great party at home! Wow! I hope her photographic memory remembers these early days - we're having lots of fun - because with all the holes in my brain, I'll need someone to remind me what happened. ;)

Happy Birthday, sweetie! (March 10th)

Big air balloon!

Saturday was a beautiful day, so Sarah said she wanted to sit on the deck that evening and eat her popcorn. I was getting dinner ready while Daddy and Rooster were downstairs watching TV.

Every now and then I would glance out the windows at Sarah to see what she was up to. She continued to sit quiety at the picnic table, looking into the distance while eating her popcorn.

I thought that was very unlike her to be so still... so quiet. So I opened the door and asked her what she was doing. "I'm watching the big air balloon, Mommy." She pointed to the horizon. Sure enough, there was a hot air ballon floating to the west. It was too far away at that time for me to make out what it said, if anything, but it was yellow with a red something on it. Heh. I called to Daddy to come see and we all watched it float away until we could no longer see it.

This reminds me of the time when there was a hot air balloon race starting from George Ward Park. I was about 8 years old. My dad took my sister and me. It was really neat to see all those huge balloons lying on the ground waiting to be "inflated." I mentioned this to Pete and he said, "I went to that, too!" We probably saw each other there... might even played together while we waited for the race to begin. Funny how that is, eh?

My Sleeping Beauty

I took Sarah to see the Alabama Ballet's production of Tchaikovsky's "The Sleeping Beauty" this past Sunday. I knew she would really enjoy seeing an actual ballet, but I wasn't sure if she would be able to sit through he whoe thing. But she and I don't get to spend enough quality time together, just the two of us, so I thought I'd take a chance.

We "dressed" up, putting on make up, fixing our hair and looking pretty. At first she asked if she could wear her ballet outfit, but I told her that only the dancers on stage got to wear those. Then she asked if she could get on stage with Princess Aurora. "No, honey. We're just going to watch."

There were a lot more kids there than I thought there would be. And several of them were dressed up in their Disney princess costumes. I saw a couple of Cinderellas and a lot of Princess Auroras.

We found our seats, but Sarah ended up in my lap so she could see better. The lights dimmed and up went the curtain.

Act 1, the princess is born, celebrations, the evil fairy comes... you know the story. From the peanut gallery I heard, "Mommy, where is Aurora? Who is that? Where are the king and queen? Why are they sitting there? Where is the princess? Is she a baby? Why is she a baby? Did she come out of her mommy's tummy? Oh, who is that?" and so forth and so on.

Act 2, Princess Aurora's 16th birthday. When the princess fist appeared, Sarah said, "Aw man! She's not wearing her dress!"

Intermission. We used the restroom and returned to our seats.

Act 3, 100 years have passed. Sarah snuggled up in my lap. I had the suspicion that she was nodding off, but she would clap when everyone else did.

Act 4, The wedding. Sarah would still clap on cue, but she was snoozing away. I asked her if she wanted to go, but she said no. "I'm still watching." Yeah, right.. the inside of her eyelids. ;)

We did scoot out of there before the final bows & curtsies.

Man, we had a great time. I feel guilty that I don't spend enough time with just her. But it's difficult right now with the Rooster at this age. I try though. I try.