Baby's Day Out

Josie spent Saturday on an adventure with her Dad. Mom got to stay home and do laundry, while big sister, Maddie, went to her High School football game...

She rode the carousel outside the Smithsonian 'Castle':



She ate Dim Sum:





She flew an airplane (at the Air and Space Museum):



And took in a few of the exhibits:



What a lucky girl!!

Hershey Park

This past weekend, Josie, Maddie and I visited with Aunt Claudine. We drove to her house in Maryland on Friday after school. Grandmom & Pop-Pop drove over from Delaware to get in a quick visit with the girls. On Saturday morning we (Aunt Claudine, Maddie, Josie and me) drove up to Hershey Park, which was about a two hour drive from Claudine's house. The park was open for a special event - allowing only employees of Claudine's agency and their families.

The weather was beautiful as we departed Maryland, but the closer we got to the park - the more cloudy and cool it got. When we reached Hershey (where all the street light tops are Hershey kisses - really!) it was rainy and very chilly. Just about 50 degrees. The weather did not dampen our enthusiasm, though. We took the tour of 'Chocolatetown' and waited for the weather to clear.



Once in the park, Maddie and Claudine headed for the rollercoasters. Josie and I headed for the kids rides. I did persuade Maddie to ride the merry-go-round with Josie before making herself scarce. The picture above was the best one I could get... that thing was really spinning!

Josie rode a few of the rides by herself... Not willingly, but she did it! Worse ride was the kiddie 'pirate ship'. The pendulum effect always gets to my stomach, but I figured Josie would be okay on the kiddie version. I was wrong. In Josie's own words, she "freaked out a little". She was practically climbing behind the little girl next to her, hiding her face. Then she would hold the bar in front of her with a death grip and grit her teeth. There was nothing I could do - longest minute and a half of my life! Just as the ride was at a complete stop, she raised both her hands up in the air and came off smiling. Whew!

After riding on the antique cars we ran into the Hershey kiss. Josie was thrilled!



We returned to Claudine's house around 6:45PM and my Mom had made a delicious roasted chicken with stuffing, mashed potatoes and green beans. Awesome! Nothing beats Mom's cooking! Here's a photo of Josie with Aunt Claudine's 'baby', SoCo:



Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

My Birthday Dinner

From Birthday Dinner 10/1/08 8:37 AM

I'm coming clean right now... I totally blew my healthy eating plan last night. I haven't had a hamburger for nearly half a year. And french fries? Well, it's been a long time since I've had those too. James & the girls decided that I deserved a treat, so the picture above shows what I had for my birthday dinner. It was awesome!!!

Oh, and the cake was fantastic too! Although the sugar gave me an upset stomach, it was soooo good going down!



Regretfully, I'm back on track today. But, I'll only turn 46 once. 'Nuf said.

Red (letter) Day

This week, Josie's preschool class is learning about the color red, the letter A and designing a 'family tree'. All the kids are supposed to wear something red today - and I found this most appropriate outfit at Gymboree over the weekend. (On Sale, too!)

Today is also my birthday, so James scheduled his meetings close to home. He's taking Josie to school today while I head off to the gym for a cycling class. Then, for dinner tonight, we will have two treats I have been denying myself for months... a Five Guys burger and some chocolate cake!!

Here's a few shots of my stylin' princess before she left for school this morning:









And here's another snazzy outfit she wore last week:




Many thanks to my dear friend, Sue, for the lovely personalized birthday card I received yesterday. (I love it!) and to my family who always remember - much better than I do!!

Under the Same Moon

From Moon 9/15/08 10:24 PM

My girls have always loved looking at the moon. They both have a natural fascination with watching it rise in the evening sky. When James was away on travel, I used to tell Maddie that Daddy was looking at the same moon no matter where he was.

James is away on travel right now and the girls are fast asleep upstairs in Josie's room. They fell asleep together while Maddie read Josie her nighttime story and they played "puppets". (Puppets is the very appropriate name that Josie gives her imaginary play... most kids would call it 'make pretend')

Tonight also marks the Chinese Moon Festival:

The Chinese Moon Festival is on the 15th of the 8th lunar month. It's also known as the Mid-autumn Festival. Chinese culture is deeply imbedded in traditional festivals. Just like Christmas and Thanksgiving in the West, the Moon Festival is one of the most important traditional events for the Chinese.

The Moon Festival is full of legendary stories. Legend says that Chang Er flew to the moon, where she has lived ever since. You might see her dancing on the moon during the Moon Festival. The Moon Festival is also an occasion for family reunions. When the full moon rises, families get together to watch the full moon, eat moon cakes, and sing moon poems. With the full moon, the legend, the family and the poems, you can't help thinking that this is really a perfect world. That is why the Chinese are so fond of the Moon Festival.

The Moon Festival is also a romantic one. A perfect night for the festival is if it is a quiet night without a silk of cloud and with a little mild breeze from the sea. Lovers spend such a romatic night together tasting the delicious moon cake with some wine while watching the full moon. Even for a couple who can't be together, they can still enjoy the night by watching the moon at the same time so it seems that they are together at that hour. A great number of poetry has been devoted to this romantic festival. Hope the Moon Festival will bring you happiness.

The moon cake is the food for the Moon Festival. The Chinese eat the moon cake at night with the full moon in the sky.


I am not sharing a romantic evening with my husband... but the girls and I are safe in the home he has provided for us. He is not having a romantic evening either - out scouring the stores for the toy horse he promised Josie he would bring back for her. And, in this family, it's more likely that we'll have chocolate cake than moon cake! Still, we think our little corner of the world is 'perfect'.

There were 'silk clouds' in the sky tonight and I just wanted James to know that the girls and I thought of him tonight while we watched the beautiful moonrise.

I have limited photographic skills, but these are a few of the photos I was able to get out front of our house this evening:

From Moon 9/15/08 10:24 PM

From Moon 9/15/08 10:24 PM

From Moon 9/15/08 10:24 PM

NASCAR Chevy Rock n' Roll 400

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

James & Maddie had their annual NASCAR race outing this past weekend. Originally scheduled for Friday night and all day Saturday, the events were postponed to Sunday - due to the remnants of tropical storm Hannah which hit us on Saturday. They both really enjoy this event, held at the Richmond International Raceway. They get VIP treatment, which includes meeting the band that performs before the race.

This year, the band was Three Days Grace. Both James & Maddie said that the band members were engaging and quite nice. They took the time to chat and pose for pictures. Last year, they were very disappointed with the surly Daughtry so, it was a great surprise when they actually got to converse with the band. The lead singer even gave Maddie one of his guitar pics !!

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

Because of the delay of the race, Chevy was left with a shortage of manpower... everyone had stayed in Detroit. This provided an opportunity for James and Maddie to participate in the introduction of the NASCAR drivers. James drove and Maddie rode 'shotgun' as they drove around the track with drivers Ryan Newman and Mark Martin.

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

Mark Martin climbs into the bed of the Chevy Pick-Up:

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

Ryan Newman hops onboard:

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

Maddie snapped this shot while they were driving around the track:

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

From Race Day 08 9/7/08 6:21 PM

Maddie was still smiling when they returned home in time for a late dinner with Josie and me. It's rare that a 14 year old girl gets to share this kind of event with her Dad - they both just love the races! James loves having the one-on-one time with Maddie and returns home feeling very proud of how all the folks at Chevy compliment him on his lovely daughter. Maddie, on the other hand, loves getting to go to the concert and meeting all the people. (She also confessed to liking the time with her Dad...) !!

She's Off !!!

Today was Josie's first day of school. I'm proud to say we both handled it quite well. Neither of us cried and Josie settled right in. She looked just as sweet as can be, outfitted in a lovely dress and the backpack that Grandmom gave her.



She went right to work - or should I say, play - with a few of the girls from her class. Here, the ladies get acquainted over Playdoh:



In case you are wondering, I haven't gotten any photos of Maddie leaving for school because it's just too early in the morning! Maddie wakes up at 5AM and is out the door at 6:10AM. Her bus leaves the church parking lot at 6:30 sharp! She gets home at 3:40PM and goes right to work on homework and catching up on her emails. I barely see her !!! I do, however, still get my kiss goodbye and an "I love you" before she heads out.

I'm so proud of both my girls!