Saturday, September 25, 2010

She's 5

Her favorite song is You Belong With Me, by Taylor Swift. Every time it comes on the radio, she and Claire yell their favorite (incorrect) lyrics at each other: "She wears short skirts, I wear sneakers, she's cheer captain and I'm on the bleachers!" She reads fairly well, and has a pretty good grasp of math for her age. She has an incredible imagination, and loves to lead her friends and siblings in new games, usually with a good degree of bossiness. She stands with her hands on her hips and a gleam in her eye and says, "Mo-om..." in her best 13-year-old voice. She is the youngest in her class, but is not the tallest, somehow.

Kate is obsessed with art. Any kind of art. She will occupy herself for hours, drawing complex pictures with detailed storylines. I am continually amazed by her artistic talent and her creativity. Give her some scrap paper, a cardboard tube and some crayons and she will come up with something I wouldn't think possible.

A short interview with the birthday girl

What's your favorite color? "Red, white and blue and purple and pink." Me: "That's it?" Her: "Yes."

What is your favorite thing to do? "Ummmmmm.........play. My favorite toys to play with are Legos and Barbies."

What is your favorite food? "Ummm...favorite food is...macaroni and cheese."

What is your favorite dessert? "Ummm...s'mores." [certainly this has nothing to do with her father's breakfast treat this morning: s'more pancakes.]

What is your favorite part of school? "My favorite part of school is art."

What is your favorite movie? "The Twelve Dancing Princesses."

Who is your best friend? "Annalisa." [I have no idea who this girl is.]

Who are you going to marry? "CJ." [I was informed of this fact yesterday. Have not met said boy.]

What is your favorite book? "Barbie in the Mermaid Tale, and The Island Princess." [Thankfully she can mostly read these by herself.]

What is your favorite thing to do outside? "Draw with chalk and exercise and play."

The Barbie Princess cake, hastily put together by a still-jet-lagged mom. At the time of its construction, purple was on her list of favorite colors. Oh, wait. I just re-read her index of colors above and purple is indeed on there.


Kindergarten is a time of constant learning. For instance, we are working on manners these days, and learning about etiquette. She opened many art- and Barbie-related gifts, and then unwrapped the one from us. "That isn't a very good present." It was a boom box/CD player, which she now loves and listens to all the time. Ah, five-year-old attitude. We love you, Kate! Happy Birthday, Baby Girl.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

In Response to (Not Unreasonable) Questions About My Health and Well-Being

Sydney was awesome. I really need to write more about the trip, but am still battling the time-change and will have to do that later.

We got back on Saturday morning, and I am mostly unpacked. For those who know me well, this is agonizing for me, yet I find I have no time to actually complete the task of removing all my stuff from my bags. And then there is the matter of the soon-to-be-five-year-old's birthday and her party. So, to answer necessary questions:

1. Tim is home.
2. We are not sick.
3. I am not pregnant.

More on Australia to follow. Until then: