Photo Scrooge Discovers New Level of Purgatory

I'm actually posting this on June 16th, but backdating to satisfy my OCD need for order.

We all know how he feels about photos; today Photo Scrooge discovered something he likes even less: preschool. I had to be at the hospital for cataract surgery at 8:00 a.m., so after he dropped me off, he came home and got Ainsley ready for her last day of preschool. It was Circus Day, and we got a note saying parents were welcome to come, although it would mostly be a performance for the kids' entertainment. Well, Ainsley wanted us to come, and after seeing her perform the gorilla rap, it seemed promising. It was kind of a big deal, last day of preschool for our youngest. I probably would have been fighting back tears, because as tough as they can sometimes be, I LOVE toddlers and preschoolers. I feel like every one of Ainsley's milestones is bittersweet. So it's probably a good thing that unsentimental Rob went. When I got out of surgery I found the following text messages waiting for me:

"Most annoying program ever. Lame teacher skits."

"Worse than a dance recital."

And finally, "I'd rather be having eye surgery."

Divide and Conquer

The activity overload of May has started to creep into April, and we found ourselves with two kid events tonight. Joey's Raingutter Regatta, and Ainsley's preschool "Spring Sing." On top of that, it was the swim team pizza party, and none of the kids wanted to miss that. At least dinner was covered. So Rob met me in the parking lot at the pool, took Robbie home to work on homework, and Joey to the church for scouts. The flip-flops are a really nice touch in the flag ceremony.

However, Ainsley really wanted Rob to come to her program, since they were drawing a couple of dad's names out of a hat to sing to during one song. Luckily my dad was willing to come cheer on Joey, and even took photos for me.

Meanwhile, I took Ellie with me to Ainsley's program, and it was delightful.

Ainsley is a born performer. Here's a sample, although I was running out of memory space, so I turned off the HD, and it's not high quality. Ainsley is in the back row, 2nd/3rd from the right.

She had a great time.



She was excited to have her Grandma and Great-grandma in the audience too.

We're lucky to live so close to family, and have grandparents who are involved in our lives.



We all made it back to Joey's scout meeting in time for the last few races, treats and awards. Joey won a ribbon for "Most Stickers Used"—you can see most of them on his sail in the photo above. He also had the third fastest boat of the Webelos, although I think those races hinge more on breathing technique than ship construction. Here he is with his half-eaten 3rd-place cookie.

April showers bring...

Field trips to see the flowers. After Wednesday's rainstorm our picnic at Temple Square was changed to a visit to Cactus and Tropicals. The kids loved it, and we didn't have to try to find parking downtown.
It was a nice coincidence that it was Earth Day.
I'm getting excited to start planting outside.
I have given up on indoor plants for years now. My previous attempts all ended in plant neglect. I'm wondering if these would thrive without effort on my part? I love the bright colors. Buying a cactus might be asking for trouble with kids around though...