Another beautiful Saturday

It was a picture perfect day and, thanks to Beatrice regressing to her early toddler days of late and waking up shortly after 5 a.m. we were able to be awake and aware of most of the hours of it! We spent a little time outside this morning trying to get a decent Christmas photo of our two "kids."  The settings on the camera were all off, which of course I noticed after the best shots were taken, but I think we have something to work with.  It was a rush finish because then Bea and I headed to the Lutz children's museum in Manchester, as we'd planned to meet buddy Ethan for a playdate.  It was a step back in time and the kids had a blast.

Look at how tall my girl is getting?

                   Several of my great-aunts were postmistresses.  Thought of them here:

You'd be amazed at how high the prices were at this general store!

Ethan and Bea had fun running the farmers market, 

and following Mr. Schultz's strict instructions in this one-room classroom:

I wonder if this is how she looks in school sometimes:

Goofballs!

The animal room was not a favorite for Bea, although she enjoyed petting a beautiful rabbit.  These two buddies are such nice friends.  Just love seeing them side by side:

Meanwhile, here are a few pictures that didn't make the cut for our annual card:

Actually, this was my favorite, but for some reason the official artist in the house gets the final vote:

3-day weekend

We had a wonderful weekend highlighted by a visit from Maryam and Muhammad,  a late-night playdate with dance buds Lucy and Faelin (while Mommy and Daddy got a movie night) and meeting our friends David & Meaghan's new baby Annalena, born October 1st. Unfortunately I have no photos of those events to prove it!  I did however take out the camera when Truman and Hank stopped by this afternoon and the kids were having a blast outside.  Our playset is always a favorite place for these three!:

She can't hang by her knees yet, but enjoys this as a trapeze:

My brother Dan, who has not appeared very often in this blog:

She tried to keep up with her baseball-loving cousins, but this game was short-lived:

Did you know that jumping between pitches makes it much more fun?

Worry not PETA, that isn't an animal around her neck, by the way, it's a velvety, fabric-rose-wrist-and-cuff lined top that Beatrice wore all three days of the weekend.  It even served as pajamas last night since she went to bed right from the car after her playdate. She's in love.  I can't help but call her Zsa Zsa in it:

Back to the swing set:

Adoring her big cousin Hankie:

                                                         Look what I can do!!!!!

Hank climbed across the top and back today, very proudly, but Bea stayed at the top of the ladder:

Making yourself dizzy never gets old:

                                                          Birdseye view:

                                                     Truman, looking very "8" in this picture:

A couple hours with the boys wears this girl out!

I'll end with this photo of Annalena on Halloween, as bread-stealing hero Jean Valean from Les Mis.  Best Halloween costume ever???? Only a baby born in Manhattan could be this cool at 4-weeks old.

Quoteworthy

“I’m your little walkin’, talkin’, breavin’ (breathing), boobie!”

“Mama, are you my sidekick? ‘Cause I need a sidekick and I hope it’s you….”

4:45 a.m.  “Mama, what is nighttime for?”  me:  “Sleeping!”  Bea: “No I mean why do we have sometimes day and sometimes night?”  (this led to a lengthy explanation by her father about astronomy.  Thank you Daylight Savings Time!)

 

"Here is Pepere, juggling in heaven" (said at my Dad's memorial mass when she ripped out a sketch she'd drawn of just that)

(on the phone with me) "I miss you Mama.  I love you a lot.  Can I go now?"

a couple quirky little language things that make us smile:  Beatrice says "Great if..." or "Great that..." instead of "It would be great if/that..."  For example, "Great that we bought more tissues at the store yesterday!" Also, "Good idea?"  She loves to throw out options of things to do and then follow it up with an excited "Good idea????"

Magical Afternoon

Beatrice and I headed to the Florence Griswold museum in Old Lyme, CT, about an hour away down near the shore.  I'd always wanted to go, and heard that this month they had a Wizard of Oz/fairy display that was well-worth the trip.  This was the last weekend, so today was the day.  It didn't hurt that the weather was spectacular, showcasing the last of the fall colors and gardens:

We watched the Wizard of Oz movie last night in preparation.  I was amazed at how NOT scared she was!  That witch still does me in...

The field of poppies was breathtaking:

Beatrice hoped some snow would start to fall to "wake us up", but no luck today!

There were 24 miniature fairy displays in the trees and on the grounds, and this lover of little collectibles and doodads was in heaven checking out the arrangements:

The grounds are right along the river and it was breathtaking:

See the witch's legs under that house???

Yup, I burst out into show tunes and belted out "Follow the Yellow Brick Road...."

We got to see the inner workings of a scarecrow making factory:

And here's the tin man's red heart that was left out:

Did you know in the original story the Munchkins' homes were all blue?

Couldn't stay away from those poppies!

What a Wizard of Oz display without some flying monkeys?

And trees that come to life and try to grab you!

The last scene was "back at home" in Kansas, safe and sound once again:

This fairy was available for photo-ops:

She put some green glitter in her hand and told her to make a wish:

I wonder what it was?

In the craft barn, we made this fairy headband:

and stood near Vince Van Scare Goh:

When does the time come when it's no longer possible to slip on a fairy costume over your t-shirt and shorts and head out the door?  

Inside the museum, we went to the permanent exhibit and my daughter tap-danced around the sculptures, declaring "art is boring."  Gasp.  So says the girl who visited the gift shop and walked right by magnet sets, games, dolls, fairy everything, and wanted a Moleskin sketchbook and colored pencils.....

End of the Soccer Season

Beatrice, forgive me if you're reading this some day and it's out of order.  It took until March 2014 to get the photos I'm sharing below from Lily's dad, and while I thought I'd written a post without photos about the receiving of your first trophy, I can't find it.  I'm guessing at the date of your last first soccer season.  Anyway, it was a great day and you not only went up, you skipped right up to receive your trophy, skipped back, smiling the whole time, and ran into my arms to share it with me.  It was an awesome and proud moment for you, and maybe even moreso for your parents.