Skating

Two years ago we went ice skating, and really, it wasn't the most successful of endeavors. I think we tried again last year and C6 had a fit over the Zamboni.

But we decided to go again. When we told C7 she blew her stack and went apoplectic, but we just said she had to go and enjoy herself and get hot chocolate, or go and not enjoy herself and be a pill and annoy the heck out of the rest of us and NOT get hot chocolate.

She wisely opted for door number 1 and came willingly. She even put on pants and mittens without a fuss.

We all unloaded from the car and who was there but .... the same girl and her mom we went skating with two years ago! Not to mention a whole host of other people we knew, including Q5's good friend K5 and C7's best friend M7.

SO ... they both had a great time, they both skated by themselves, slowly and carefully, but they enjoyed themselves.








Q5 proudly told anybody who would listen that she went around the whole way without holding my hand and without falling. It's true. She did.

And the next day ... C7 was asking to go again. We'll go again next weekend.

Museums

Out the the museums with Ninoo!

Q5 watching the mammels movie:




We hit the rocks and minerals and the hall of mammels of course but this is the first time since they've had a choice as to where to go that somebody chose the dinosaurs.

This is how much they liked the dinosaurs:





And this is how much I liked them.

January excitement

This morning our smoke alarm/carbonmonoxide detector upstairs started beeping. So, C42 being out of town, I grabbed a chair, took it down, and changed the batteries. But THEN it yelled "CARBON MONOXIDE!" at me and continued to beep.

Admittedly, the beeps were not ferocious, or even very urgent, but the fact that the thing yelped "CARBON MONOXIDE!" at me made me think I'd better have it checked out.

By this time the girls were outside and would not come back in. I even brought their pancakes outside, and they were unable to eat them, they were worried.



I called the fire department to have them come and just bring the carbon monoxide detector. We heard them driving through the neighborhood (no sirens, but we could tell from the deep rumble) and then ... they drove up Livingston Street instead of Longfellow.

I heard them stop at the comparable house on Livingston and waited for them to come around to us. They didn't. The phone rang, I picked it up and dropped it. The fire department didn't call back. What?? I thought they'd call back again. I gave them another 5 minutes, and then called them back again.

While waiting I asked a friend to come get them at 7:30 am (yes, she was still in PJs) just so they would stop freaking out.

As my friend and the girls walked away the fire department roared around the corner with a giant hook and ladder, lights flashing, ready to rescue us.





It turns out the sensor on the fire detector was bad, we didn't have carbon monoxide anywhere. New detectors all around.

SNOW!

Every time is snows down here we have to have a snow post. Just letting you know in case you hadn't realized.

I woke this morning around 4:30 to silence. Bright silence. I put on my glasses and looked out side to see a nice thin layer of snow. Turns out it was wet and slushy snow, but that was OK, it was very nice looking.






15 minutes later at 4:45 I heard from Q5, who yelled out for me. She'd woken up and looked outside her window to see if my car was still here (she thought it was a work/school day). It was, but much more importantly, it had snowed. I told her to go back to sleep.

15 minutes after that I heard C7 run out of her room to Q5's room yelling "You have to look outside! You are going to be so surprised!!" Well, we weren't but that's OK. They both started running around acting like they were going outside, but I got back up and told them to say in bed until 6:00. They didn't, but they did stay in their rooms.

At 6 they got up, dressed and out we went.





We had a snowball fight (Well, C7 and I did, and I'm pleased to say her aim is getting MUCH better), cleaned off the cars, and walked around the block twice. The sun came up around quarter to seven, and by seven we were cold and tired and headed back inside for hot cocoa and oatmeal for breakfast.

Ninoo is visiting!

C42 is away in sunny California, so we are here in cold Maryland with the sunny addition to our house of Ninoo, who is here to help. Ninoo brought some wonderful shells with holes in them. C7 and Q5 decided to make necklaces out of them.

Yes, Ninoo is looking at herself in the window!





And here are the creations. Q5's finger ended up over C7's photo. And Q5's necklace is on her head.

math

These kids are amazing. C7 just was demanding math problems. We did word problems at dinner (Six dogs are chasing 20 hares. Two hawks get two of the hares. How many hares do each of the dogs have to chase?), then just straight addition and subtraction (she's working on what they call "regrouping" these days, but for us older people we call it "borrowing" ... she can do up into the thousands, although she prefers not to go so high). Now she's writing her doubles facts down on a piece of paper. For fun.

Today, winter

Tomorrow they predict the weather will be 50 degrees, but today, thankfully, it is cold and snowy. I need some winter. This global warming is depressing. Not because I like to be cold, but because the pretty soon we'll have no more polar bears to frighten and awe us.

But, environmental considerations aside, winter is also good because it affords an opportunity to eat snow. C7 and Q5 were outside after school while it flurried, but when we returned home the flakes turned large and fluffy and gorgeous. C7 immediately wanted to go outside and play, and put on her boots, hat, mittens, scarf, and coat (and buttoned it all the way!) and headed outside.





And mandatory eating of the snow. If you are quiet you can hear the snow. And the neighbor's car.








Wonderful.