Spring Break

The girls and I spent the past five days in Boulder.  At dinner last night, I suggested the girls tell Les about our trip.  Lacey didn't know how to begin.

"Well," I explained, "If your teacher asks you what you did during the break, what will you say?"  And she began.

Lacey:  We stayed at a hotel by the airport because we had to get up so early.  Mommy cleaned out her purse because it was too heavy to drag all the way across the airport.  She found a bunch of stuff including some dishes from her lunch at work.  We went out for dinner and brought all the leftover garlic bread back to the hotel with us.  When we got up, Mommy said we better eat the garlic bread right away because the people on the plane might not like to smell that.  Okay, Cassie, your turn.

Cassie:  Well, the whole airport thing was a disaster.  First, we had to wake up the shuttle bus driver.  Then, it was snowing.  They told us to be at the airport two hours early so we got there at 3:30.  Only, the ticket and luggage handlers don't start working until 4:20 so we had to shove our way into a line with people and all their skis.  Then, there was only one lady handling all the luggage.  She was so slow that Mommy finally started yelling.

Me:  I didn't exactly yell.  I said "excuse me" very loudly.

Cassie:  The lady was so slow that I wanted to put the tags on our suitcases for her.

Lacey:  Mommy, you tell what happened next.

Me:  Well, after all that, we had to drag our suitcases across the airport to the x-ray machine.  There was a hallway that was about 4 feet wide for passengers who were both coming and going.  Then, we had to wait for someone to get our luggage.  By this time, we had about 15 minutes to make it through security and take the shuttle before our plane started boarding. 

Cassie, with an evil laugh:  I get to tell the next part.  When we got to security, the lady asked Lacey her name.  She had to ask three times before Lacey answered.  Then, the lady asked her who Mommy was and she wouldn't answer.  I thought Mommy was going to get arrested or something.

Lacey:  Tell Daddy about the people behind us!

Me:  Well, all I need to say is that the family that sat behind us had seven kids.  We boarded on time then sat on the plane for two hours while we taxied, went back to the gate to de-ice, taxied again and again went back to the gate to de-ice.  Les, did you ever know that de-icing a plane requires removing luggage first?  And, Les, I know you're thinking that I should have accepted that extra two hours as time to sleep.  But, every time I dozed off, the girls woke me up.

Lacey:  Okay.  We got to Colorado to visit Aunt Susan and Oma.  Oma was sick and we had to take her to the hospital.  Cassie and I had to stay in the waiting room because the paper gowns that Mommy and Aunt Susan had to wear were too big for us.

Cassie:  While Oma was in the hospital, I gave a violin concert one night.  The nurse closed Oma's door.  On Wednesday, we got to order lunch from the menu.  And, a therapy dog named Toby came to visit.

Lacey:  And, we made a quick trip to the knitting store.  Mommy was going to drive and she thought there was a new security switch or something on Oma's car because it wouldn't start.  Mommy was glad that Aunt Susan was still home so we could drive together.  Then, Jordan came and fixed the car.

Cassie:  We went to the Pearl Street Mall.  Mommy and Aunt Susan found their new favorite store.  It's called, "Clutter."  Some man told Mommy, Aunt Susan, Lacey and me that we were a special family.  He wanted us to sign a petition.  Also, we got to show Lacey a real pay phone.  And, we ate falafels at a restaurant that Mommy used to go to.

Lacey:  We made cookies with KatyAnn and Juliet.  Aunt Susan did an awesome egg hunt for us and we were having a big party when Oma came home.  Everybody was there - Aunt Mary Lee, Ed, Bronwyn, Jordan, Pam, KatyAnn, Juliet, Haley, Jayden, Aunt Susan and us.  And then, we had to get on another plane and fly home.

Me:  Yes, that's about it. 

Girl Cousins

Relaxing at "Clutter"

A real pay phone!

Toby the Therapy Dog

An egg-hunting princess

The littlest egg hunter

Egg hunting

The welcoming party

Jordan and KatyAnn

On the neighbor's trampoline

Haley giving Grandma advice about the right makeup tones

Family

Giving the wheel chair a workout

A Crown

Lacey brought this paper home from school today.  Sometimes hard work really is rewarding.  Sigh.

In case you need an interpretation, and because it makes me so happy to keep rereading this, it says, " I would give it to my sister because she is nice and she is helpful to me.  She is the nicest sister I ever had in my whole life.  My sister does hard work.  That is why she deserves the nice crown in my family."

Evolving

People frequently ask me if the girls fight.  I'm never sure how to respond.  Do people want to hear that the girls always get along perfectly?  If I admit that, yes, they fight, will I appear to be a failure as a parent?  Or, will the person asking understand that the girls have become siblings and that they should argue once in awhile?  I'm still kind of new at having "kids" so I don't really know what's normal.  I do know that it was hard for both Lacey and us to have her plunked down in our midst at age 6.  It's hard enough for families to adjust to a newborn.  But, a 6-year old that walks, talks and has opinions can be challenging.  

Over the past few months, I've really been able to appreciate how the relationship between the girls has evolved and how we've all adapted to having another person in the family.  Initially, Cassie wanted Lacey to depend on her for everything.  She had envisioned a little sister who would be rather needy and would want to cling to her hand.  Lacey had no expectations of an older sister because she was used to taking care of her sister.  She accepted the many efforts that Cassie made but she didn't really appreciate them.  Now, I think she is learning how to exploit Cassie's desire to nurture.  I also find myself laughing on a daily basis as I realize how far Lacey has come in terms of personal behavior and manners.

The other day the girls were snacking on Irish soda bread and Lacey said, "Cassie, wipe the crumbs off your knife before you put it in the butter!"

Several times a day we hear Lacey say, "Cassie, be patient!"  Now, that is really a switch.

We marvel at how quickly Lacey is learning English.  Cassie continues to be the best teacher Lacey will ever have.  The other day they were playing a storytelling card game.  Players take turns telling a  story based on pictures on the cards.  I thought it might be a little difficult for Lacey to play.  Then, I overheard Cassie saying, "And havoc was wreaking!"  

A couple days ago Lacey asked if I wanted some of her candy. I answered, "poquito."  She said, "Okay, I'll give you just a little bit."  Cassie then asked, "Did you use context clues to figure that out or did I already teach  you?"

Lacey's choice of fashion has been especially challenging for Cassie.  Cassie is the queen of accessories.  Most of her clothing comes from the thrift store because she doesn't want to look like anyone else.  Lacey, on the other hand, would wear the same thing every day.  She is quite happy in blue jeans and T shirts.  Her favorite is the black shirt from Taekwondo summer camp that has doubled as a paint shirt.  I do worry that people will look at the girls standing side by side and think that Lacey's getting the short end.

A few weeks ago, I went to wake Lacey for school.  She climbed out of bed wearing pajama pants that were dragging on the floor.  As she walked over to her dresser, I realized that the drawers were so full they wouldn't close.  In fact, the drawers were overflowing.  "Cassie cleaned out her drawers,"  Lacey proclaimed. "Do you like my new pajamas."

 That evening, Cassie's phone was ringing.  She jumped up saying, "Oh.  That's my alarm.  I set it to remind me to help Lacey lay out her clothes for tomorrow."  And off the girls went.  The first efforts were a little rough.  I think Cassie tried to hard to impose her style on Lacey.  I overheard Lacey telling Cassie that a classmate told her she looked weird.  Cassie responded, "If anyone ever insults you again, just tell them that your big sister knows much more about fashion than they do!" 

Les and I really enjoy watching Lacey adapt to mainstream American culture.  While there are still huge gaps in her background knowledge, it's amazing what she has absorbed.

While on our way to the supermarket she glanced out the window and said, "Someone likes the Redskins.  I can see by their car."

Last week I asked Lacey what she had learned about in Sunday School.  "Jesus went to Nashville!" she answered.

Lacey walked into the room while a TV ad in support of same-sex marriage was on.  She watched for a few seconds and then walked away saying, "Oh.  I thought it was an ad for eharmony."