Sammy likes the Suburbs!

So after the Easter Feaster, Ben and the girls reenacted a scene from This Old House and basically alienated our guests into leaving while they dug up a tree in our backyard to immediately stop the "mulch volcano".  They did not like being questioned about whether this was good for the tree, or what to do to clean it up, tho they may have admitted later to biting off more than they could chew in the middle of Easter Feast.  But, Samantha was again in her element.  She was more than ready to get her trike and go for a walk with me.

Side note:  one benefit of living in New England is that is where This Old House is usually filmed.  So when your husband accidentally digs up the root system of a 100 year old tree, maybe murdering it, maybe not, you can track down the specialists from the exact episode and invite them to your house to assess the damage or benefit done.  Of course this comes with a fee, but hey, our celebrity arborist will be visiting us tomorrow (amidst 4 preschool interviews for Samantha tomorrow too, but that's for another post...hey, should she wear her overalls?).

Oh Yes We Did

Put Julia in the dress.  She's a little young for a quincenera, but she would fit right in.  Julia was representing for all of us on Easter, who were otherwise wearing jeans and t-shirts.  Our tiny baby girl happily chirped the day away in ruffles and bad headbands making us all feel more festive.  Here are the highlights of the Dress.

Oh, and if you put Ben in charge of the outfit while you by chance make Jacques Pepin's recipe for cheese souffle, Julia will come out with the headband like a sweatband and her lacey scratchy collar tucked under her chins for most of the photos...and chives will sneak their way into your cheese souffle.

Shark Tank!

Last Friday we went to the new exhibit at the New England Aquarium:  the Shark and Ray Touch Tank.  We put our hands in to feel rays and a bonnet head shark, which is like a mini-hammer head.  Both girls were happy to splash their hands in the water and hold still for the fish to come by...and then yank them out  when marine life actually came near.  There were many rays, but very few sharks.  When the shark came by the first time, Samantha saw it, said "shark!" and jammed her hand in the water to try and catch it!?  Huh? really?  Afraid to touch the fishies, but fine to try and grab a shark?  I love it.  And I really love that she did not freak out that her entire sweater dress arm was soaked through.  Normally I would have expected this to be a clothes yanking off tantrum resulting in her topless and in tights for the rest of our visit - but no!  She was a trooper this time.  Three is really agreeing with her.

Bonnet head shark and Elliot's arm

Ray and Sam & Ellie's arms.

Chihuly!

The MFA has a new Chihuly exhibit that is tons of fun.  I know very few artists by name, and this is one of them...and mainly known to me because of the fabulous ceiling he did at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, but nonetheless, I was very excited to take the girls during the members-only preview of the exhibit.  Not only was it free because we are members, but we got to see it early.  And the best part about our membership is that I won it on an art scavenger hunt with Ben earlier this year.  So many great things about beautifully colorful blown glass.  Anyhow, a photographer would have a field day here.  

Entering the exhibit

This is the first piece.  No flash allowed, so the shots with the girls in front for perspective did not work.  This is about the size of an actual rowboat.

Too bad Julia slept through the exhibit.  She is usually staring at the ceiling and this would have tripped her out for sure.

And if you were looking for something funny, this maybe is not it.  Chihuly was in a car accident late in his career. He is apparently fine, but he lost an eye from the accident and he wears an eyepatch.  There was some info on this at the exhibit and I mentioned it to the girls, who then had a hundred questions.  In the museum shop at the end, there was an art kit with a picture of Chihuly on the cover.  He was dressed like a lumberjack and kneeling down with his eyepatch on.  Somehow, it struck me as funny, like some SNL skit and I laughed out loud.  Elliot asked me what I was laughing at and w/o thinking, I just said, "I am laughing at his eyepatch."  And then I heard what I said through the ears of the adult next to me, who looked at me like the most insensitive person in the world.  And maybe I am, but the look of the lumberjack pirate trying to sell me an art kit at the end of the exhibit was funny, until it registered that he was not in character and I just told my 4 year old it is okay to laugh at someone b/c they have an eyepatch.  Which then I tried to cover up by suggesting, within ear shot of the adult who heard me, that it must be very difficult to do this art with one eye and when we get home we should try some one-eyed art to have an appreciation for it.  Funny, later that day when I was unpacking boxes, I found an eyepatch in the medical kit and pulled it out for Elliot's art project.  She's been bugging Kassi ever since to be able to do some one-eyed painting.  I still love Chihuly, but if he ever reads this, he probably will not love me.  

Grandma and Grandpa visit and all I got were these crummy photos