Ponies for Christmas

Well, just to borrow--not to keep. We took the girls to the Rock Creek Horse Center yesterday for reindeer pony rides.

But before they rode, they learned a bunch of interesting horse facts. (We went with our friends the Maloneys, so that's Amalia and Matthew listening intently.)

This is the face Amalia made upon learning that horses poop 10-12 times a day. 

Tell me more about poop!

The older sister wasn't impressed. 

No-fear Amalia rode Bobby Sox. 

Lily's horse was Scooby Doo. 

Even Santa made an appearance. 

Sharing secrets. 

Lily told Santa her favorite game to play is Twister. He said his beard and belly get in the way. 

The buddy system

Amalia's Pre-K class took a field trip to the U.S. Botanic Garden with their 2nd grade Reading Buddies   class. I was lucky enough to tag along as a chaperone. 

 Amalia and I are in the back of the bus. 

I was assigned to keep track of 3 kids, including my own. 

On a plant scavenger hunt

Amalia's standing in front of her reading buddy, Sophie. Tadesse, the small boy on the left in the striped shirt, was one of my charges. 

Plants, plants everywhere

The gardens were also decorated with organic sculptures for the holidays.

Messing with the microscope

Investigating the cacao plant

Learning about carnivorous plants

Success! We didn't lose anyone. 

Dance, dance, Rudolph

Amalia's dance school had its holiday showcase this afternoon. That girl does not have an ounce of stage fright. 

Unlike the girl at the end of this train, who kept her hands over her eyes throughout the entire performance. 

Apparently there was some rough play backstage after her performance. Note the torn tights at the finale. Still pretty as a picture, though. 

Sweet Dana Dog

Well, I think Dana must have known how much Blue needed her. We had to put our feisty, proud dog down today. Blue's probably back to eating her food in doggie heaven. 

Really, Santa?

Last weekend while Heather was feeling a bit under the weather, I took the girls to Clemyjontri Park to see Santa, rain or shine, as the flyer said. It was gray and drizzly and seemed more like a ghost town than Santa's Village, with us outnumbered by Santa's helpers. Also a draw was the carousel being open just for Santa's visit. (The carousel usually closes on Labor day and doesn't open until Memorial Day the following year.) When we first arrived, the girls saw this and were non-plussed:

Then Lily saw a sign that said Santa was on a break. Whew!

We ran around a lot to stay warm in the drizzle, rode the carousel, and generally ate up time waiting for Santa's return. When he emerged, I saw a bunch of people around him, so I thought there was a line, so we waited and kept playing. When the line didn't move for 10 minutes, we went over and discovered they were all Santa's helpers and Santa was sitting in his sleigh all alone waiting for us to arrive:

We rode the carousel one last time - literally the last time before it closed up until next year - and then went home to save Heather. It was good for all of us.

Hostess with the mostess

Lily wants to make brownies for Santa on Christmas Eve. We were just looking at the recipe and she said, "Maybe we should leave this out for Santa, just in case he's allergic to something."

"Maybe he'll say, 'No, thanks. I'm allergic.'"

Fruitarian

Amalia has a field trip tomorrow so I need to pack her lunch instead of her usual hot lunch. I decided to ask her what she wanted.

Me: Amalia, what do you want in your lunch tomorrow?

Amalia: A banana--I really like bananas! Some sliced apples. An orange. Strawberries. Grapes.

Me: We don't have grapes.

A: OK, I'll do without grapes. Do we have cucumber?

Me: Yes.

A: I want sliced cucumbers, too.

Me: How about some yogurt?

A: OK.

(I'm so glad she was able to "do without" grapes.)