Thoughts

Lily's class recently made these wishing rainbows. This is what each of Lily's strips said:

• I wish I was an only child. 
• I wish my friends would respect me more. 
• I wish my teacher would give out candy. 
• I wish there was 100% peace on Earth. 
• I wish my school had a Ferris wheel. 
• I wish my family was rich. 

Well, at least she has the peace on Earth part covered, in case she ever enters any pageants.

In other news, I'm a little worried Lily may not have properly focused on the standardized testing at school this week. One morning on the way to school, she said, "I made a perfect "2" yesterday on the DC CAS! I mean, it was perfect. The curves were just right. But it was in the writing section, not the mathematics section." Hmmm.

After her Dad's Heart

Lily recently asked me if 16+16=32. Duly impressed, I said yes and that she should tell Heather, who I knew would also be impressed. Heather then went to the next step and asked what 32+32 was. This paperless mental exercise continued in the car as follows:

16+16=32
32+32=64
64+64=128
128+128=256
256+256=512
512+512=1-24
1024+1024=2048
2048+2048=4096
4096+4096=8192

At this point, we stopped asking her what was next, since we would be hard-pressed to verify the answer ourselves without straining. Needless to say, we were impressed.

Biker gang

 Testing out our new riding skills up at the school this morning. 

Lily's suggested caption to this picture I took when I picked her up from school on Friday: "Addicted to a book." Have I mentioned that I'm pretty sure she's my daughter?

While Heather is Away

One of the last times Heather went to Atlanta, our dog Blue died, so I was not sure what to expect this time around. As you can see, the outcome was much better. I am a very proud father. Enjoy. I did.

Peaking early

 

Walking among the cherry blossoms after school.

The evening was so lovely, we decided to eat on our front porch.

 I must be eager for summer. I made barbecued chicken, grilled corn on the cob, and watermelon.

 This was our view. I love this time of year in DC.

Spring Break 2013: Day 6

 

 Dinosaur chicks.

 

 Going ape.

 

 

These guys look a lot better than they smell (the flamingos, not the girls).

 

I guess even flamingos get lazy.

Duncan the Dinosaur.

 

Lily and Amalia went up to check him out after the show.

 

 Grandma Carol and I stayed a safe distance away. 

 Monkeys on the zoo train. 

 Enjoying dessert the last night in CA. A great visit.

At least we're moving back to the same coast in a few months.

Spring Break 2013: Day 5

 At the Underwood Family Farm in Moorpark. 

 I think the kid likes that. 

 Heading out to the fields. 

 Putting the girls to work.

The girls compared their hauls at the restaurant. (Lily edged out Amalia by one strawberry.) This also happens to be where we saw William Shatner and Tom Bergeron walk in and sit down at the booth right across from us. Lily was very excited to see the host of America's Funniest Videos, giggling that he smiled at her.

It must have been the day for fresh produce. That same evening, the girls went over to the Lutzes to pick oranges from their tree.

That's all from one tree. And they didn't even make a dent.

Spring Break 2013: Day 4

 

Beach day in Malibu

 

  

I wonder where she gets this smirk from. 

 

 The girls loved the water--and the kelp. 

At Cho Cho San's that night. The girls loved the chef cooking right in front of them.