Don't Cry for Me, Argentina

While Momma and Juliette were driving all over the place this morning taking pictures of fountains, I got to go to the park, go out for breakfast, and play soccer with daddy.

Don't worry about me, I had a blast!

You can see more about Momma and Juliette's latest photo adventure at:

http://juliettegoesclick.blogspot.com

I'll ask for a camera when I turn four too, but for now, I'd rather have pancakes with Daddy anyway.

Peace out.

Edward Tulane

I've really done it this time. Bitten off more than I can chew, I mean.

At a recent visit to the library, we picked up The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. It is a story about a rabbit (a "China" rabbit, Juliette would be quick to correct) who learns to love.

I did no advance research. We are 6 chapters in. Edward just spent 297 days AT THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN. No good for a little girl who is desperately trying to learn to swim.

It is such a good story, I found myself cheating on Juliette and reading the Amazon review to find out what happens.

NOT GOOD.

Edward's four year old owner dies in chapters to come. WHY, OH WHY don't I read Amazon reviews before impulse choosing at the library????

Is it too much to ask for a HAPPY CHILDREN'S story? This novel is almost biblical in it's associations with grief and suffering.

Do I say Edward Tulane needs to go back to the library and switch it out for that misbehaving misanthrope Junie B. Jones???? Do we skip the part about the four year old?

They write books on what to do about diaper rash, but there is no book to help with navigating the murkey waters of children's literature.

New Hairbands

Just like our friend, Julia! We love you Julia!! We miss you too!!!!

I can't stand up on a motorcycle

Time: Saturday, 10:05 pm

Place: Dining Room and Evie's room

I'm working on what has to be the boringest part of editing a document, checking references. This particular document has more references than text. This is not an exaggeration.

Evie has recently learned to ride a two-wheeler with training wheels. She is excited and is narrating her progress via shouts from her room. (Imagine about a 30 second pause after every piece of punctuation.)

"Mommy? What are you doing? I ride my bicycle down the hill. I ride through the neighborhood."

"I'm not scared, I want to do it again tomorrow."

We then get off topic.

"Daddy isn't kind, Daddy laughs at me." (????? is she kidding?? she loves making daddy laugh!)

"I can touch my foot."

Then we get to the heart and soul of the matter before we break into our closing song.

"Mommy??? Do you like motorcycles? Can I ride a motorcycle when I get bigger? I can't stand up on the motorcycle, it wouldn't be safe."

Can you imagine why I don't feel like editing when I've got this comedy being broadcasted at me from the closest room?

If Men Ruled Etiquette

One more brief golf post.

As we boarded the bus for the tournament that first morning, I realized quickly we had landed in the world of men. Except for one other lone women, we were the only females on a fully-loaded tour bus.

Excitement was in the air.

The men were dressed to the nines.

Their version.

Khakis.

Golf shirt. From the most prestigious country club or sporting event most recently attended.

Baseball hat. From the second most prestigious country club or sporting event most recently attended. (To be in uniform would be tacky!)

Laniard. From the third most prestigious country club or sporting event most recently attended.

The bus laniards were ditched when we arrived at Congressional and everyone received their inaugural AT&T classic version. (Evie begged for mine throughout the day and on the bus ride home.)

When we got home and Bruce saw them, he immediately found a place of honor to hang it.

Guess what he'll be wearing the next time he goes to a tournament?

Life would be much more comfortable, let alone wedding attire, if men ruled the etiquette world.

Lessons Learned from the 7th Green

We are just back from attending two days of the Congressional AT&T golf classic. For those of you who don't know, my Mom is a huge Tiger Woods fan. Huge.

So, here is what happens when you take two girls under the age of five to a golf tournament in Washington DC in July.

1. Rules are waived - no food no drinks no cell phone no nothing. We got in with food and drinks thanks to the little cuties (what - are we going to find something for them to drink at the Grey Goose Vodka tent? I think not!)

2. The Red Sea parts. We all know Tiger Woods is a big deal, right? You have no idea how big. There is a complete blog posting in my head called "The Tiger Woods Effect on Golf" which I have decided to spare you. Watching Tiger on a course is like watching a major prophet from the Old Testament with healing powers - everyone follows him. The hole is 5-10 people deep around the entire perimeter. We are talking a couple thousand. Just to watch what Tiger would do. Then to cheer or moan.

When you have little girls they get to go to the front of the pack and sit on the edge of the hole. The sound / motion guards don't yell at them to quiet down - instead they goad Evie into roaring by asking her who she is waiting for. She will then let loose with her tiger impression.

3. Going to the port-o-potty becomes a huge game of trying to get Evie to NOT TOUCH ANYTHING inside. Use your imagination.

4. Speaking of the potty. Juliette is just about guaranteed to have to REALLY REALLY GO RIGHT NOW after you have been waiting for Tiger to approach for an hour, he's finally coming, and she hasn't had a drop of liquid in four hours. It happened more than once.

5. Riding the bus to the tournament was the highlight. Standing in line for the bus (300 people deep) was only slightly less exciting because it became a game of bus-spotting.

All in all, there was a great deal of fun had by all!

After thinking about it and recouping after two such wonderful days, we will consider all offers to borrow the girls to attend any male-dominated sporting events if their mother can tag along too!

Happy Independence Day, America!

An open letter from Lucie and Cutie

Dear big people--

We are adjusting to our new bowls here in the dining room and thought it time to send you a short note.

Now that we are past the infatuation stage of our relationship, we have just a couple of requests.

1. Please keep your hands out of our bowls.

2. Likewise, please keep flotsam and jetsam out of our bowls. This includes -- dead insects except mosquitos (flies leave a bitter aftertaste), all princess items (we have no use for disney), and finally leaves and plant debris - please remember we are carnivores.

3. No tapping on the glass - if you want to visit us, please just stick your face near the bowl, we promise to swim over and say hello.

4. Keep the big guy away -- we can sense he is not crazy about animals.

5. We can smell the desire for a cat in Juliette. Continue to say no to this request. Cats are our mortal enemies and we were here first.

Thanks for listening. Remember, our royalty checks are due the fifth of every month - spread the love and keep the money coming - or at least the dried worms.

Sincerely,

Lucie and Cutie