The Stars at Night...

C

The Ice Cream Man Is Coming!

Get your Putt Putt On

Fascinated

Ghostcrabbing

D

Disturbingly Pin-Uppy

D

It's a Plane!

The Girl Can Scooter

First, for the record, yes, it is hot in Texas in June. THAT IS WHY WE GO THERE YOU IDIOTS. There, I had to get that off my chest in response to the comments I got from almost every San Franciscan who asked me where we went for almost two weeks. What the hell is wrong with sunshine people?

When the wheels touched Texas soil C yelled "Good bye cold, hellooo warm!" And that was definitely the general theme of the trip. We left winter behind and hit the ground running on summer. We did so many things and had so much fun we made a list at the end of the trip. Here is a round up of the trip:

• Chuck E. Cheese and playing games for an hour. Embarrassed to admit it, but despite all the things we did, this might have been the highlight for them. Luckily they don't know they exist in CA, yet.
• Going to 2 Astros Games
• Meeting "Mr. Jack" the policeman who watches Sam and Gram's house some nights. Mr. Jack gave them stickers one night and let them speak into the loud speaker of his squad SUV another night.
• Taking swim lessons.
• C and D went off the high dive for the first time, and the Club gave them trophies. They are so proud of them and show them to everyone.
• Going to 2 of Ainsley and Hayes' swim meets
• Playing Putt Putt in Galveston
• Making pottery at the Mad Potter
• Seeing a 'movie' in a theater for the first time. It was a 12 minute Dora and Diego. Only problem--it was 4 D, complete with spraying water and smells. Going to be a disappointment when they realize all movies are not like that.
• Going to the Rainforest Cafe in Galveston. LBD LOVED it. She kept jumping up and down singing "The gorillas are gonna dance! The gorillas are gonna dance!" She was in heaven.
• Going ghost crabbing and catching the world's smallest ghost crabs.
• Swimming, water sliding, biking, scootering, and doing so many things outside in heat as opposed to fog. Hanging with cousins.
• Getting ice cream from the ice cream truck in Galveston. They would hear the music in the ocean air and start running and yelling.
• Watching Sam's 'noisy car' get loaded into a truck and head for California.
• Playing in the ocean. The Galveston beach is warm, calm, shallow, and with little under toe. In short, perfect for kids.
• C going to the doctor. She was sick and we took her to The Dodson's good friend and Andrew's pediatrician as a child. He asked C how her trip to Hawaii was. C's answer: "Dylan threw up." Sam said she was just giving the medical report.

Lila was particularly fun on the trip. A few notables:

• Lila introducing herself as "I Lila. I not twin."
• Meeting the policeman: "Mr. Jack, I like your police car."
• C was sick one morning in Galveston so I said they could watch Charlotte's Web. Lila got all upset, stamped her feet and said "I don't want Charlotte's Web. I want "Lila's web."
• And the most infamous? Every time she met someone knew L would ask " 'Member what happened to Debwah?" Of course they didn't know Deborah (a teacher at our preschool) or what happened to her. They'd say, "No, what?" L would tell them excitedly, "A fwy flew into her thwoat!" She must have said this to 20 people. At one point L asked Marsha the question yet again -- "Member what happened to Deborah?" and C looks very seriously at Marsha and says, "Gram, I think it's about time we start answering "YES."

The girls are actually quite pissed to be back in "Cold California" again.

Graduation

C
D
Getting into the singing
We are big girls now
Saying goodbye to friends
Chicken Bok Bok
Jokesters
D saying goodbye to a teacher
Partner dancing with her favorite boy (and the son of one of my best friends from college!)

C getting her diploma

Someday I will show them this when he won't give them a second look

C and D graduated from preschool today. It was maybe the sweetest thing I have ever seen in my life. From the moment that the director got teary about how much he would miss the class, to the moment they walked in singing It's a Small World, to the finale of Grand Old Flag complete with a side kicks and flag waving, I was in heaven. Many of the the songs had been sung for the past 30 years so it had an almost retro feel to the event. C and D are very animated when they sing so it was so much fun to watch them.

For their graduation I let them each pick out a dress that was their last 'present' from Gumma. C, surprisingly, didn't pick something pink, and wanted to wear a red bow, while D's dress had some pink in it---which really confused some people. But they were happy with what they chose and I am starting to realize that is all that matters.

In addition to the singing the kids had taken weeks making a robot. They also each suggested a name for it... C was a little disappointed more people didn't like "Rainbow" while D was thrilled that her suggestion of "Robotcha" was a top contender. In the end, "Chicken Bok Bok" won and the kids were thrilled that after yelling "Move Chicken Bok Bok!" over and over at the top of their lungs, THE ROBOT MOVED. Wonders never cease. I think it was the broken Iphone 3 that C used to make up her part of the robot, or the taxi toy car D used for her body part, that did the trick.

I sat there the whole time wondering how the past 5 years had gone so quickly and how I was going to make it through Lila's graduation intact if she is in fact my last one. I can't even think about it now without getting upset.

I hope their graduation is one of the snapshots that passes before me right before I leave this earth.

Ballet Recital

Mesmerized by a group of older girls performing a more "hip hop" number

Nervous and excited (C left)

C left

On our new couch (yes, it is almost white, we are idiots)

C

C

D

D

C

The big girls had their first ballet recital. Last year we missed it because we were on our way to Texas. In retrospect I am really sorry I missed it because it was ADORABLE. There were about 10 performances of a few minutes each--some of the little ones were barely 3. C and D's class was the best of the group because they were the oldest. And they lucked out on the costumes their teacher chose for their class (some of the others were a little tarty I thought).

The girls did well and were very proud of themselves. I have come around on ballet and I think we may do it again next year.

P.S. Don't they look old? It is crushing me.

P.P.S. My pictures would look better if I could edit them and post them as edited, but I am stuck in the old blogger because for some reason I can't figure out how to post pictures in the new blogger. I think I might need solution. If anyone is still reading this and has ideas, please send them!

Quotes

Walking to the grocery store with their "parasells"

We try to discourage potty talk. C and D sometimes say "shake your booty" and we call that potty talk (mostly because they say it in a really annoying way and I just can't listen to it). Lila pronounces it "Shake your boodha"---but it is still potty talk to her.

One day she was in the playroom and she must have been showing off her devilishness and saying "Shake your boodha boodha!" So C and D start laughing and repeating it. Then L starts telling them "you saying potty talk" and they explain that 'boodha' isn't really potty talk. She gets all upset and comes running down the hall to me. She explains the situation and I tell her that yes, in fact "shake your boodha" is potty talk and they shouldn't say it.

From down the hall I hear C yell, "Mom, boodha is not potty talk...IT'S A CHINESE MAN!"

________________________________

All the girls love the band Mumford & Sons. "The Cave" is LBD's all time favorite song and she always asks me to play "I won't let you choke the noose awound yor neck." Yes, call CPS, she does.

Turns out the version of "Little Lion Man" that I have on my phone is not G rated. We always stop the song right before it gets to "I really f%@#ed it up this time" and when the girls ask why we say "because there is a bad word in it." One day D walked triumphantly up to me, slammed my phone down in front of me, and said, "Mom, you are wrong--there is NO bad word in here. I listened to the whole song. They never, ever said "poop."

______________________________________________

C knows that when she was a baby she received a blood transfusion from Andrew so that she could leave the NICU. The other day she says to me, "Mom I think maybe the reason that I love Daddy just a little bit more than I love you is that I have more of Daddy's blood in me."

______________________________________

D still wears boys underwear. Cars, Thomas, Woody. About a month ago we had a playdate and she came running in to me after using the bathroom.

D (upset): "Mom, Sarah said these are boys underwear."

Me: "Well, they can be for boys or girls."

D: "NO. She said that the hole in front--you know, the one I use for scratching---she said it is for a penis!"

Somehow I managed to keep a straight face. Somehow she managed to get over it quickly. She still wears boys underwear and when I told her she probably needed new ones (most are 2T/3T!) she said this time she thought she'd like Captain Hook underwear.

___________________________________________

L: "Gram, I need to ask you a question."

Gram: "What sweetheart?"

L: "Did you get that swimsuit at the grocery store?"

_________________________________________

L used to say "I want bofe" if I gave her a choice between two things.

Recently, she changed it.

Me: "Lila do you want this or this?"

Lila: "I want ALL."

Then after I give her something, say toothpaste on her toothbrush, she will ask me, "Mommy, is that ALL?"