Nothing but flowers

Lily made this picture for her friend Colleen, but Andy wanted me to capture it before we gave it away.

Clothes encounters

Lily has always had a strong sense of style. But she does tend to get a bit forlorn as the weather turns cooler and she has "nothing to wear." 

 Here is this morning's solution to my ban on tank tops when the temperature drops below 40.

I had to capture the outfit not only for its inventiveness, but also because it made me nostalgic for the Laker Girls.

Over their heads

This morning I helped chaperone Amalia's field trip to the National Air and Space Museum. When I got back to the office, I needed a nap. 

 Don't you just love a bunch of kids in matching oversized t-shirts? 

 Friends from the Ladybugs classrooom. 

 Checking out the flux capacitor. 

 What does this button do? 

Story time: the race into space. ("It was the United States of America against a country we'll call Russia."--storyteller)

 Trying out her wings. 

Roger, Roger. What's our vector, Victor?

The first of many

Well, today was Amalia's first foray into the birthday party circuit. It was for her friend JJ, who was turning 3, and was held at the National Capital Trolley Museum.

 Featuring special guest, Lilo, who also sings at Amalia's daycare every Wednesday.

 Dancing queens. 

 Amalia and her best buddy, Nadia. 

 Silly faces. 

 The line-up, waiting for the trolley ride. 

 Amalia (nearly a head taller than everyone else) looking pretty for the camera. 

 The big yellow trolley. 

Our car operator, an entirely volunteer position. 

Here's a quick clip of the kids dancing to Lilo's La Bamba, which quickly devolved into a fencing match. Not surprisingly, Amalia fell asleep in the car on the ride home. 

It's all a blur

Sorry this picture is a bit fuzzy, but I was trying to sneak a shot of Lily trying to walk and read at the same time. It so reminded me of my childhood.

Halloween in Glover Park 2011

 Lily giving me the hairy eyeball at her Halloween parade. 

 Amalia crashing the first grade class party. 

 Don't mind if I do! 

Can you spot the interloper? Amalia was surprisingly well-behaved at Lily's class party. Perhaps all the games and snacks kept her distracted. (Did I mention that I'm a Room Parent this year? It's so unlike me!)

Fast forward about four hours to our trick or treaters: Amalia the Pegasus, Lily the Eskimo Girl, Zahra the Supergirl, and Sophie the Cheetah. 

 

I'll get you, my pretty!

 Pegasus butt crack. 

Our neighborhood goes all out for Halloween. Much more than Christmas. This house featured an outdoor viewing of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, along with beverages for the grown-ups (that's Andy on the right dressed as Billy Beane).

Some houses take more of the scary route. These things all groaned and popped up at various times. Amalia wouldn't get candy at this house.

It's hard to tell from the picture, but this house featured all kinds of special effects, including live fireworks and Piccolo Petes. No candy was retrieved from this house, either.

 Arrgh!

Running into classmates and neighbors. 

Heading home. Andy ended up going back to the Charlie Brown house with Amalia. Not sure if it was her doing or his (recall the adult refreshments). 

Cognitive dissonance

The only problem with these pictures is that they were all taken on the same day. 

The weather was enough to make Lily put on her Christmas dress. But it was in fact two days before Halloween.