A 4th Post

We had a good time just mostly hanging out yesterday. Ash cut the back lawn and played baseball with the kids. He only needed to cut the back yard because I made him stop on Sunday night when our babysitter called and said she was in town and would like to come over so we could go out. Well… ok! Ash ran in and showered so we could go to the movies. We hadn’t been in forever, so it was a nice treat. We saw Larry Crowne. I heard the reviews weren’t great, but we were happy with it. It didn’t have lots of explosions, violence, or sex, so maybe that’s why critics didn’t like it.

Ash grilled out around 1:30 for just our family. We had burgers and hot dogs, of course. I mean, that’s a July 4th given, right? I also bought watermelon and cantaloupe even though I knew only Binh and I would eat it. The other two in our family are sort of picky eaters, but I wanted some and I knew I’d be able to count on my boy to help me out. He did not disappoint, either. I think that kid ate half a watermelon by himself! How can you tell a kid to stop eating fruit? I just let him keep going.

Then, we went to a fireworks display put on by a guy from our church. He makes his own fireworks and then invites people to come to his house on the lake to watch them. He shoots them from one side of a large lake and we sit in the field on the other side, so it’s pretty safe. The display was really something. They were as good as the ones the city puts on every year. I took my camera (which has been acting up, but that’s a different post) and had fun playing with it trying to get fireworks shots. You could say I have a long way to go when it comes to night shots, but I had fun.

Yes, that’s just the glow from the fireworks illuminating their faces. It was big show, I tell ya’. I can’t believe the guy made them. The next one is of Ava and Ash watching together. Cute…

After the big display, we came back about 9:30 and shot off our own fireworks we had bought for the kids. Binh seemed to enjoy them more this year than Ava, but I think she was just really tired.

I did take a picture of the kids like the one I did last year just to see the difference. Here’s last year’s July 4th picture:

Thanks goodness it wasn’t as humid this year, but they were still looking a little disheveled. I guess it had been a long night! Here they are:

Hope you all had a good time, too.

A Child of the 80’s

When we were on our way to our cabin in Helen, Ga. for our vacation, I noticed the sign for Babyland General Hospital as we passed Cleveland, Georgia, just a few miles from Helen. In case you’re not a child of the 80’s (or perhaps you’re male) then I’ll tell you that it’s the place where Cabbage Patch Kids are “born”. I can remember reading about it when I was a little girl and wanting to go there so bad! You can see where this is going, right? Luckily for me, everything old is new again and Cabbage Patch Kids are enjoying a certain revival, as are Little Ponies and Strawberry Shortcake.

I decided to take Ava to Babyland General Hospital one of the days we were in there. At first Ash and Binh were going to go fishing, but then we found out the forecast called for rain in the afternoon. Since they would be in the state park without transportation, they decided to just tag along with us to Cabbage Patch Kids mecca.

I have to tell you, it was cute and a little weird at the same time. There were “baby rooms” for both boys and girls, with piped in baby cooing or crying sounds. Then there was a playroom for the older “kids”. The last room was a huge CPK showroom that also contained the magical tree where CPK are born. They had a “birth” while we were there and the workers, who are dressed as doctors and nurses, came to help out. Ava got to name the new baby boy who was born. She went with Julien; apparently, he’s European.

Ava also got a doll while she was there. Oh yes, and never call them “dolls” at that place. They’re strictly known as “babies”. The place is free to get into because it’s all about trying to sell you stuff once you’re in. I mean, the staff isn’t pushy or anything, it’s just geared to sell you a doll.

Ok, here’s a little of what we did.

The outside of Babyland General. Pretty grandiose, huh? It has a huge parking lot, too. We went the morning of a weekday, so it’s wasn’t crowded at all. There were maybe six other people there. I bet this thing was packed in the CPK’s 80’s heyday. In fact, inside there was a hallway with autographed pictures of celebrities who had visited, and it wasn’t just a few pictures.

Here’s Ava and I outside the place. The sun was ungodly bright, so Ava wasn’t really having a blast.

Ash took this one of the kids on the big cabbage chair at the entrance. (I think I accidentally made this one “medium” so sorry it’s small. I’m not going back in to change it.)

Here’s the tree where new CPK are born. Ava made friend. She’s like her daddy that way..

This is the “new baby” that was born while we were there. Ava was proud to have her picture taken with Julien. (See that one “premature” baby still in its cabbage leaves over the in the incubator? Cute or creepy? You decide.)

And no outing to Babyland General would be complete without dropping some $$ on a baby. Here’s Baylie and Ava.

Though it’s not the kind of place you need to visit again and again, I’m glad I went and satisfied my childhood curiosity. Ava and Binh actually had a quite a good time with all the pretend play stuff they had in the giant room that housed the “magic tree” or whatever it’s called. We ended up having a fun family outing and Ava was excited to see all the dolls.

The Beauty of the Library

I was reading  a section over at The Pioneer Woman’s blog (yes, I still read her blog even though she ruined my life. I don’t know how to quit you, P-dub) written by a homeschooling mom that contributes to her site. She was talking about going to the local library and the books her kids picked up while there. It reminded me of my childhood and my summer days spent at the library.

When I was a child, the street our house was on was right next to the library. It took me about a minute and a half to walk to the library. It was a nice library, too. Our city clearly thought libraries were important because this wasn’t a “main” library, but it was large, well-stocked, and had all sorts of programs for kids. When I was really little, my mom took to me story time. I remember the lady sat in a big wicker chair as she read her stories. I thought she was some sort of princess on a throne. I always wanted to sit in that chair. Later when I was “big” I was allowed to walk there with a friend. We’d peruse the rows of books or visit my favorite space, a covered wagon (without the cover) filled with books. My friend liked the social aspect of going to the library, but I really loved the books.

Our library had a summer reading program, like most libraries do. I think I went to the library 2-3 times a week during the summer. I went for the craft time, movie time, story time, and to just look around. I never thought about how lucky I was to just be able to go there anytime I felt like it or how there were kids in my city who had never been to a library in their lives. It was just a given in my childhood -those wooden doors with screens after the main entrance, the smell of all those books, the friendly librarians greeting me by name.

I always said I wanted to live in the library building. It was a big brick building with (of course) huge open spaces on the main floor. The basement had a kitchen and lots of different rooms where they’d hold the many activities they offered. It was an old, beautiful building. I’m sure it was also a drafty, inefficient building because a few years ago, the city decided to sell it and build a “new, up-to-date” library. If there was any way on this earth for me to buy that building, I so would have. It just wasn’t in the cards (or the finances) for me to buy a library building in a city I don’t live in, though.

One of the passages in the section I read on PW’s blog reads “ The Public Library is the most valuable resource for most people’s educations. When this planet gets itself together, it will have much less school and much more library.” I never thought about the implications living right next to the library had on my education or my ability to learn. I grew up loving to read, being able to research things on my own, and developing strong critical thinking skills. Was this because I had a public library at my disposal? I’m sure some of it, at least, had to be.

Now days, I have to plan a trip to the library. With my kids now learning how to read, I find myself getting more excited at the prospect of visiting the library. Binh goes through spurts of needing to know information about a certain subject. A couple of months ago it was dinosaurs, currently it’s the solar system. We have a trip planned today to go get some books about planets, and I sure hope I can pick a little something for myself to enjoy as well.

With all the waste and stupid spending our government does, I think this is one thing we have that is smart. So how often do you take advantage of this wonderful, free resource? Do you have fond memories of the library like I do?

Spirit Week

Ava had spirit week at her school last week. I took a picture of her each day to share, but I have to say that some didn’t come out that well because 1) we were in a hurry to get to school (or at least I was) 2) Ava was excited about her outfit and 3) she’s pretty much a diva and wants to be doing some crazy “pose” for the camera!

Monday was wear you favorite team day. Can you believe my child didn’t have a Red Sox shirt to fit her? I’m a terrible mother. She’s already informed me she wants a Beckett shirt (pitcher). If I’m going to spend 20 bucks for the shirt, he better have a better year than last. She wore a Yumiori Giants shirt that I got her in Japan and was quite happy with it. I told her I was almost positive she’d be the only one with that shirt!

 Tuesday was pajama day. Ava thought she was going to wear a polka-dot nightgown, but she opted for some princess flannel pj’s after the cold weather blew in the day or two before.

 

  

 Wednesday we decided to go 80’s for decade day. Strangely, we actually had all of these clothes on hand, including the hair crimper!  She wanted that for Christmas this year. I have no idea how she knew about them except for a girl at church who had her hair crimped one day. Who does that, anyway? I guess everything old is new again. By Wednesday, Binh was wanting to get in on the picture action. The quality of these two pictures is poor, sorry. After all the crimping, we were running late and I had some settings on my camera wrong. That’s the bad thing about manual mode..

 

Thursday was the day the kids were supposed to wear attire from a different country, so you know we chose Vietnam. Ava kept calling herself a Vietnamese princess. She chose this pose. I’m not sure that Vietnamese people do this at all; I think it’s more of a Thai thing, but whatever. Never argue with a divalicious 4-year-old, at least not when it comes to photographing her.

 Friday was the day of the “big game”, so Ava wore her school sweatshirt and jeans. You’ll notice in almost all of these pictures, she has to have some sort of prop with her. She wanted me to take her picture with her friends- bunnies, pigs, etc.

Ava had a fun week, and it was a nice break from uniforms, for a little while at least. Next year, I guess I’ll have two to dress. Morning should be real fun then.