A Bit of a Mismatch

I'm pretty sure Clara doesn't know how to play.

Letterboxing

We started letterboxing this fall. The kids just love it, and will happily hike longer distances if they know there is a stamp at the end. Lee's stamp is a snow leopard, and Clara's a tiger. Both my girls are Big Cats!


This particular day we were looking for a letterbox that involved walking the length of the McDowell Reservoir, which was significantly longer than the clues said. It was chilly, and as you can see the girls weren't dressed warmly enough (thanks, Mom!) because Clara is wearing Bridges' fleece vest.

We finally did get there and find the letterbox (which was also a challenge as the clues were not clear), but instead of walking back to the car, we walked out to a nearby road, and the girls and I waited while Bridges ran back and got the car. We had a fun time waiting, as there was ice forming on some big puddles and breaking that up provided lots of entertainment.

The Umbrella

Clara's developed a reputation around Nubi for being relatively impervious to the cold. It's November, and she's still often seen running around in a t-shirt with no shoes on. Actually, the week before last we had a rather warm day and both she and Lee went swimming in the pond (which was chilly!), although Clara was the only one to submerge herself.

Last night I brought them home from Ms. Melody's in Hancock, and it was dark and around 40 (although not raining). Clara had picked up this orange and blue NY Mets umbrella from the Mini Mall (definitely over the size limit but I let it slide). So there she was, walking up from the car in a t-shirt with her umbrella open over her head.

Clara, I said, don't you want your fleece on?

No, Mommy, I have my umbrella!

Of course.

The Mini Mall

Peterborough has the nicest dump (er,sorry, I mean to say Recycling Center). You drive in through this forest of pine trees, and then opposite the parking area is this beautiful garden full of flowering plants. The people who work there are nice, and it's a pretty pleasant experience to go there every week or so.

There's also a Mini Mall, where you can leave things you don't want and take things other people have left. The kids love the Mni Mall, and if they come with me to the dump they get to take home one small thing (it has to be approved by me). It's really interesting to see what they choose, and I like that they get some new object in their life but it's recycled.

I do, however, need to start insisting that we bring something to the Mini Mall each time.

Lee's First Song

Lee started piano lessons this fall, and I really like the way the teacher started her off. She started with simple ear training and learning familiar songs by ear, and all along she has encouraged her to improvise.

This was Lee's first song. It's a bit slow but wait until the end.