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Journal Key:

Green = Steve | George = navy | Janet = Purple | Evelyn = Black

7/21/09-7/25/09 (Tuesday-Saturday)

Our trip to Florida was a wonderful success. The night before we left, Cara requested a Curious George. We put on the one in which he goes to the airport. Cara enjoyed both airports and both plane flights very much. She liked pushing her backpack in its tub along the counter at the security checkpoint. Her favorite part of the trip was when the plane was bumpy. There was a lot of giggling at takeoff and landing.

Last year's rental car was gold and looked like a hearse; because Cara doesn't know that word, she, and therefore we, called it the Purse. This year's car was a white Saturn Vue. (I was very excited.) Claire and I asked Cara what we should call it. "The Cool Black Fish." So we did. I loved the Purse. I loved the Fish, too. Oh, we thought that maybe the "black" part of its name was because it was black inside and Cara was inside the car when she named it, but we checked and the interior was gray. So I just don't know.

Uncle Arnie was once again a big hit. He can play music with his hands. He can put a quarter on his elbow, fling it off, and catch it with that hand. He can raise one eyebrow. He can juggle. He did not attempt to walk on his hands, which was popular when I was Cara's age.

We got Cara into the pool almost every day. She went in both with and without her swim vest. With it, she can kind of paddle around, sort of. Without it, she can stand up a lot better and hop around. I think she inhales more water without it. She liked jumping to us. At first she would reach out and take our hands first, but soon she was just jumping. We brought two pool toys; a little fish and a turtle. They were perfect for swimming to and throwing, and, if you squeeze them out over someone's head, you can "give a shower." People love it! There was a teenage girl at the pool with us a few times, and Cara loved her. They played together. One favorite game this trip involved one person getting to be the "starter," who would climb out with both toys, then ask who wanted which one and throw them accordingly.

Grandma Anne and Aunt Nancy and I took Cara to the mall. At Build-a-Bear, Cara got the only cat they had that she hadn't made already. It's Hello Kitty, whose head is the size of a small watermelon. She almost got a Little Mermaid costume, but instead she got a princess dress and high heels. Hello Kitty has a bow on her head, but it's velcroed on, and we got the package of extra bows and flowers in different colors. nancy generously bought all of this for Cara, and she has ingeniously recognized that she is now all set for holiday shopping: more clothes! I do not know why I hadn't thought of that.

We weren't done at the mall. Grandma took us on the carousel, too, which Cara enjoyed to the utmost, and then there was the little Tiny Town right nearby. Cara was tired from being at the pool, but this instantly perked her up. It was hard to get her out. She ran around, climbing on top of things and jumping off. She's right about at the upper height limit, which is scary. Of course, there were bigger kids in there, running around and playing tag. Cara really, really wanted to join them, I think, but then she got distracted. Uncle Arnie showed up! She had to show him how she could climb all the different objects.

That night, when I peeked in at Cara asleep, all I could see of her was her arm around Hello Kitty's neck. Hello Kitty, by the way, narrowly escaped being named Deesta. She has occasionally been called Deesta and seems to answer to it. Her name is Florida Kitty.

Steve came down and joined us Wednesday night, and on Thursday we got into the Fish with Claire and Grandpapa and went to Lion Country Safari. The drive-through, of course, was great. Cara was delighted to have a corn dog for lunch, perhaps her only hot dog of this trip. We fed the lorries; Cara held the nectar cup and I held the bird, until Cara gave Claire her cup. It's strange, but I think that giraffes are perhaps the only animal she really feels comfortable feeding! We did feed them, too. Cara and Grandpapa and Daddy went on the ferris wheel, which seems to consistently be Cara's ride of choice. In the gift shop, we told Cara she could have whatever she wanted. "Something squishy" was the answer. I showed her all of the stuffed animals, which were rejected. "Something gooey," she elaborated. She ended up, delighted, getting a horrible gooey squishy squeezable bouncy ball with tendrils coming off it. It cost $2.95.

The morning we left, we went over to Nancy's for breakfast. Cara explored all of the drawers of toys that she loved last year, too, and I believe she impressed Grandma Anne with her ability to put nesting dolls together.She got to pet one of the cats. She saw brushes and asked to paint, and she painted a girl, wearing pink, with yellow hair. Guess who it is! She gave it to Nancy. All too soon, it was time to head home.

7/26/09 (Sunday)

Today was a day of many parties. In the morning Casey and PJ came over for an hour or so before Casey's party; Steve and PJ played Samis. Casey played with Cara's girls and her Playmobil dollhouse and playground. "I'm going to get this," she kept telling me, "if/when my mommy says yes!"

The party, of course, was fabulous. We took the kids in the pool; they've all made progress. Cara, given her swim vest and a noodle, can basically be trusted to get herself around with minimal intervention. Cara got to try water balloons for the first time. I'm not sure she really was on board with the idea that they were supposed to pop. There were hot dogs for lunch, which was perfect, and when it was too hot outside there were toys inside to play with. Yesterday I picked up a mermaid in the airport to add to Casey's gift and got one for Cara, too. If Casey likes hers half as much as Cara likes hers, it will be well-loved. Em made an amazing Sleeping Beauty cake without the doll-cake kit that I have, which was very impressive. It was pink, as requested. The party theme was "pink." Casey was disappointed that the inside of the cake wasn't pink. Poor suffering child! When the girls were on the way downstairs to open presents, Casey looked up and said, "Happy birthday, Cara!"

Cara and I also had Nick's party to go to, which was at the same place they held it in last year. We got there and said hi to Denise, and then Cara was off to play! There was a bounce house again, which was great, and the pinata was fun. Cara, on her turn, gave it three good solid whacks. Then she managed to collect a respectable bag of candy when it finally scattered. We won't need any Tootsie Rolls or Dum-Dums for a while! Upstairs, Cara's favorite thing was that there was a little camera hooked up and you could dance and watch yourself on a big tv. It was a good party!

7/27/09 (Monday)

Today Cara got to go with me for a dental check-up. She brought a picture to color and the receptionist gave her a clipboard to use, which was perfect. She made out like a bandit. She got a new toothbrush, which has Ariel on it, and two flossers shaped like princesses! From the prize box she chose a gold bracelet and a stretch, gooey lizard. It was a good trip.

We stopped at Target for a few things, including a dvd copy of The Emperor's New Groove. Cara watched that one on vhs in Florida; it was the first time she's just sat through a movie the first time around without getting up to go be scared. Admittedly, she was tired. She watched it about ten times, though, in the four days we were there. I'm happy, because I still like it a lot, even though I now have it memorized.

After dinner (two and a half hot dogs), we went over for Casey's on-the-real-birthday cake. Her grandparents were still there, and we had ice cream cake and Steve played with the kids and everyone had a nice time. We came back here and got the recycling ready and out and got Cara ready for bed and I asked her what her favorite part of today had been. "Having cake and seeing PJ's grandma."

7/28/09 (Tuesday)

Grandmama and Grandpapa picked me and Cara up this morning and we all went down to Trenton to see a baseball game! Kids eat free, so Cara got a hot dog, chips, and a drink. It was hot. We slathered on sunscreen, and Cara and I got Italian ices; I got Cara's in a souvenir baseball-cap, which reminded me of trips to the Ground Round in my youth. When we'd both finished our ices, we rinsed out the hat and dried it so that Puma could wear it. The mermaid also tried it on, but it really belongs to Puma.

We did kind of watch the game, and all three of us, even Grandmama, who had brought a book of sudoku, explained elements of baseball to Cara. The thing she got the most out of, though, was the inter-inning on-field games. A little girl ran the bases. A boy and girl raced each other on bouncy balls. The one where two grown men had to spin around and around while touching their foreheads to bats and the bats to the ground for two minutes and then race each other made little impression on her, though it was my favorite. One fell over. I would have.

It was really, really hot, though, and we left early. Maybe we can try it again, when we won't get baked!

7/29/09 (Wednesday)

Cara finally got back to preschool today, having been away since last Monday. She was excited about going; she got dressed herself and was ready to head out. She remembered her own lunchbox and carried it herself. "I hope I get to see Miss Jane!" Miss Jane is apparently a pretty exciting teacher.

It was a good first day back. Miss Jane read a story that had to do with three kids and a wolf, who at one point dressed up as their grandmother. When Steve asked her about her day, she reported that there had been a girl named Abby whom she sat next to because she also has yellow hair. There was also a boy named Ralph. "He's still a little boy."

Cara spends a lot of her time singing, of course. She has recurring phrases in her songs, though they mostly have to do with whatever's happening at the time. The phrase Steve has noticed is "to me." "It's so good . . . to me!" I've had a line in my head all day: "How it is the best of me!" I really don't know what it means. I've noticed variations on it, as well, such as "How it is the best to find!" in a sing about finding something. Well, it's all very positive, anyway.

We made brownies this evening. Cara wanted to use the teddy bear cookie cutters on them, as we once did. I suggested squares as an alternative and was shot down. The idea that succeeded as a compromise was to cut them in diamonds. I did cut them on the diagonal, but once they come out they look like squares (except the edge pieces, which are triangles). However, I got away with it!

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