Build-a-Friend

Okay, our last Orlando post. One of our "breaks" from the parks was a trip to a local mall that has a Build-a-Bear Workshop. F misses so many of our family outings with being a soldier and all, that I wanted him to come along for this special moment for our girl. So, even though we have a B-a-B Wksp locally, we went to the one in Orlando. C picked out a kitty instead of a bear (after I talked her out of the turkey...just couldn't see the appeal of that lasting). At first she couldn't figure out why the kitty was so flat, then she got to the point in the line where she could see another child's bear being filled with stuffing and she felt much better about it. Her little face was so concerned as she stepped on the pump that pushed the stuffing into the animal, and so awed to see the kitty plumping up.  

It took her a minute or two to figure out what the clerk was telling her to do with the heart, but eventually she smiled and enjoyed it, but was solemn again when she put it into her kitty.

Then, of course, C had to kiss her kitty when the clerk finally handed her back. 

The next stop was the fluff-bath. This was possibly C's favorite part of assembling her kitty. She kept wanting to go back and brush her again and again. We've gotten her a brush (shhh) like this for Christmas. 

Dressing kitty was quite an event as well. First she picked out the sparkly red shoes and then found a dress to go with them...big surprise, a Snow White costume. C put it on mostly by herself, with minimal help from Mommy. Now that we're home, the Snow White outfit has taken up with C's basket of costumes, labeled a "costume" by C. Apparently kitties don't wear clothes, just costumes. However, she's been named "Snow Kitty." 

"Seaing" the World (SeaWorld)

Talk about a company that shows its support to the military--Anheuser-Busch, who owns SeaWorld. Because we're a military family, we got one day of free admission to the park. One day of admission may not seem like a lot, but when we looked at the price guide at the admission gate, we were impressed at the show of financial support that one day's admission really is. Neither F nor I drink beer, but for those who do have an occasional pint, you might want to think about supporting Busch and their support of the troops.

We did spend one day in Orlando at SeaWorld, and again C proved that she just likes to take pictures with characters--this time with a dolphin, whale and (while not a character persay) one of the clydesdales. We didn't intend to skip the shows, but the one we wanted to see first was full by the time we got there, so we went instead to "Shamu's Happy Harbor" to play for a little while. It was far more robust in the rides area than I expected, and we spent the majority of our day there. As we surveyed the rides, it seemed C was going to be too short to ride anything, then we found one that she was tall enough for, and we rode on it. The line was non-existent, so I had a chance to visit with the very personable young lady who was operating the ride. She said that most people didn't see that the heights are for unaccompanied riders, and that C could ride on all but one ride there, as long as she had a parent with her. Much encouraged, we were off! C wanted to make all the spinning rides spin (she had a great time making Mommy sick to her stomach) and at this park she was finally re-interested in the carousel. Her favorite was probably the miniature "space shot" ride that goes straight up and bounces up and down until finally it reaches "down". F tried to take her up on a very high (3 stories!) climbing net structure, but C (to put it mildly) freaked out and pulled on his watch, breaking it. I only mention this because after they climbed down from the thing, F managed to find all the pieces and put it back together! We probably had the most ride-time at SeaWorld, even though that wasn't necessarily the original intent in visiting the park. We did see a few marine animals though, the baby dolphins and the penguins. These days C is finding it delightful to show mommy how a penguin walks.

Up...and down...Up...and down...
Spin Mommy, spin!
If a character whale is this much bigger than C, I hate to imagine her next to the real thing!
You decide, who's more enamored with whom--the "dolphin" with C or C with the "dolphin?"

Universal Appeal

On of our other stops in Orlando was Universal Studios: both the original and Islands of Adventure. We spent two days at Islands of Adventure, mostly at Suess Landing. This led to the discovery that it didn't so much matter which characters C was posing with, as the fact that she was posing with characters. Prior to our visit, I'd read a few Dr. Suess stories to C, with something of limited interest from her. However, she wanted to get pictures with the Grinch, the Cat in the Hat, Thing 1 and Thing 2 as well as Sam-I-am and the lead from Green Eggs and Ham. I pointed them out and she eagerly climbed out of her stroller to stand in line for pictures. I expected her to be very excited about the Caro-Suessel (A Dr. Suess style carousel), but that was not the big hit. She enjoyed the Cat in the Hat storybook ride, and the train that went around the whole "island" (that she was just barely tall enough to ride). The popular attraction though, the one she clamored to ride again and again, was the One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue fish ride...probably because it had fish that sprayed water at the riders and she got to get wet. During her naps I got to ride on a few grown-up rides: the Hulk, Spiderman, and the Dueling Dragons. Fortunately for us, the days we went were light on the crowd factor, so I didn't spend the whole naptime in a line, but riding! Whee! We also wandered through the other "islands" looking at the shops and finding something for C here and there. In Toon Lagoon she spent a good hour on "Me Ship, the Olive," a playground of sorts, and in the Marvel area, she met and posed with Spiderman, who was astonished that she knew who he was.

On our last day in Orlando, we didn't have to be at the airport until 3:00 pm, so we were able to spend the morning at the regular Universal Studios. It was a good amount of time, as there was little to appeal to C there. When we arrived, we were fortunate enough to see her favorite character as we were walking in, heading for the Nickelodeon kidzone. That's right, Curious George was right there on the "main street." Again, she proved that the appeal was in posing with a character, any character and not just ones she knew, as she also posed eagerly with Woody and Winny Woodpecker, Bullwinkle and Scooby Doo. We spent an hour in Feivel's playground, filled with oversize objects that help you imagine you're the size of a mouse. She had her first experience with a ball-pit there. Then, we rode her first real roller coaster, which once again she was barely tall enough to ride: Woody Woodpecker's Funhouse Coaster. Unlike the "coaster" at Worlds of Fun, this one actually had a steep drop or two, and several rushing, sharp turns. She loved it. From there we visited another playground-style area, this one themed on Curious George. Most of this was water-play, so we weren't able to enjoy it as much as I'm sure she would have liked, but since we were flying back to Kansas that night, I told her we couldn't play in anything that would get us wet, and she obeyed my request. She did really enjoy pushing the buttons in the circus tent that made the sounds of the other animals we see on Curious George.

Ooh, ooh, what does this button do?
Did you know I'm small enough to ride a spoon?
Up fish, up fish, up, up, up! Down fish, down fish, down, down, down!
C and Daddy on the Caro-Suessel.
Now she recognizes the Cat in the Hat on books, on souvenirs, and we read Dr. Suess a whole lot more!

Disney Delight

In November, we got to take a little vacation. We met up with F's parents (Hi Nana and Papa!) in Orlando and visited DisneyWorld. If you ask C where we went, she'll tell you we went to Disneytown. She'll also tell you all about the characters we saw and the rides and seeing Playhouse Disney Live! (twice).  We didn't tell her where we were going until we were actually headed to the park in the morning. She was so excited when she saw the Minnie and Mickey on the sides of the entrance gate. If she could have bounced in her carseat, I'm pretty sure she would have. She enjoyed the rides, but she was truly delighted to meet the characters. Her favorite rides were It's a Small World  and the Magic Carpets from Aladdin. I was really impressed that C stood in line so well to see the characters (50 minutes for Tigger and Pooh). Mostly she just wanted to hug them, feeling like they were her friends; she knew them so well from the shows she watches. Of course, we didn't spend all our time meeting characters. I think she played for an hour in the "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" playground and another hour in the "Hundred Acre Wood" playground. We spent three days visiting Disney parks, and at the end, when when we were leaving to go to the airport, of course she said she didn't want to go home. She "wanted to ride more rides!" (specifically Dumbo.)

Posing (so grown up) with Tigger and Pooh.

I know she's tiny, but this is ridiculous...(at the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids playground).
Meeting the Little Einsteins, so excited to see her "favorites!" (Everything is her favorite.)
Such amazement, seeing her Playhouse Disney characters Live! on stage. 
Who's got the goofier grin? She was so happy to see Goofy.

Christmas Trees

C loves Christmas trees. She's been excitedly proclaiming "It's a Christmas tree!" every time we see one around town. I had been contemplating not putting ours up in the house this year, but when she specifically asked, "Mommy, can we have a Christmas tree in our house too?" I couldn't see how we could not put it up. Our friends "Miss Danielle" and Erin came over to help us assemble and decorate it. The girls thoroughly enjoyed themselves, putting up the ornaments, especially the Dr. Suess and other contemporary pop culture ones that they recognized. I am glad, however, that I didn't try to do it on my own with C "helping." The whole business really needed two adult sets of hands. Daily, C announces with a sigh, "Our Christmas tree is so beautiful." It should be interesting when it comes time to take it down. 

Fittingly, our gifts for C's teachers are Christmas trees this year. We made enough for all the watchcare workers at the chapel, her room teachers in Hourly care at the Child Development Center and her dance teacher. That's a lot of trees. I covered wooden trees with Christmas paper from Close to My Heart and attached them to brown paper-covered blocks using hot glue. Then C decorated them with Christmas-y buttons and then I attached a miniature clothespin to the back. I'm going to clip a card that says "Merry Christmas from the Wongs" to it with the clothespin. When they get it home, they can attach a picture or a card or whatever. C thought it was fun helping Mommy "make something." (Her term for anytime I'm working on a papercraft.) She even got to wear an apron to wipe her glue-y fingers on. Dress up and making something--what a combination. Here's the final product.

Can I really be the mother of a 3 year old?

C's birthday was a month ago. That month has gone by like lightning. Then I think of the last three years, and I'm trying to figure out where the time went. It's all a blur, punctuated by moments of clear memories in vivid detail. Suddenly, instead of a tiny baby that admittedly was born with her own Personality but otherwise simply a baby with basically physical needs, I have a little girl with ideas, opinions and an attitude. How does so much happen in just three years--or 6 months, for that matter? Since we moved, she's learned so much, and developed so many new interests. Her latest "thing" is ballet. She's been interested since catching a snippet on a show I'd recorded. After that, coupled with her dance classes, she asked to have a ballet birthday. I asked our guests to wear their ballet gear and I made ribbon wands for C and her friends to dance with and for the girls to take home. They turned out beautifully and the girls boogied down to music from the Imagination Movers and some other Disney favorites. The preparations for the party were nothing but a labor of love. I spent several hours making ballet slipper candies and decorating a ballerina bear birthday cake. The moment she saw the cake, those hours were worth it to see her face. The girls went home with Angelina Ballerina books and ballerina coloring pages I printed from the internet. I'm pretty sure everyone had fun, not just the birthday girl, and that's my goal for her birthday celebrations. 

Snow and Winter

Heard at Grammy and Papa's house:

P: C, do you want to see snow?

C: Yes! (pitter pat of running feet to see the snow out the front window)

*** 45 minutes pass ***

C: Grammy, I want to see the snow again.

G: There's no snow out there.

C: Yes there is. It's winter.

G: It didn't snow yet,C.

C: Yes it did.

G: (finally looks out the window) You're right...there is snow! How'd you know that?

C: (giggles)

Today, leaving the gym:

C: It's cold out here.

Mommy: yes, it is

C: It's cold and it's blowing and there's snow and...and...it's winter!

I guess snow = winter for the little miss.

Nutcracker

The pictures and stories from vacation will have to wait until I have time to post them. For right now though, a brief story about C's first trip to the ballet. Last night we went to see the Nutcracker by the Russian/Moscow ballet company that's on tour. They performed right here on post. The storyline was perhaps a bit less clear than I recall from previous versions of the ballet, but the dancing itself was enchanting. C's enamored with ballet and ballerinas in general right now, and she sat, watching intently for 90 percent of the performance. For most of the segments, she simply watched with a captivated look on her face, but when the male dancers began their leaps and jumps, she gasped, looked at me and pointed (not that I'm encouraging pointing, but it shows how impressed she was). 

Cutting Hair

I decided it was time for C's first haircut. Lately, her hair has been something of a tangled mess, getting in her eyes, and generally all over the place. It's been uneven, and crazy looking unless I comb three or four times a day. She refuses to have a ponytail and the barrette only lasts about 10 minutes before she takes it out. So, we called my friend Tracy, who cuts hair in her home, and scheduled our first trim. She was SOOO good with C. She explained what the clothes cover was, and (it has a cute monkey applique on it) that the monkey would keep her company while Tracy trimmed. Tracy also gave C a special comb to hold and showed her the squirt bottle and what it did before she sprayed on her hair. C sat very still for the entire trim and independently too! I got to take pictures. C was so proud of her beautiful haircut at the end. How cute!

My One Political Statement

Like it, or not...there is a winner in this election, and Barack Obama  will be sworn in as the 44th President of the United States in January. And it's not really him that I want to discuss, but the "like it or not". I've been browsing the news articles that address the reaction to Obama's election. I'm reading statements from McCain supporters that read as "I'm afraid for our country" and "I dread this Obama presidency." Mr. Obama has been demonized and vilified in a variety of advertising throughout this campaign, leading to these very emotional and negative responses. What good did it do to make some of our American people fearful when it comes to Mr. Obama? He's the President-elect that we have, and the President that we will be living with, and _all_ of the American people need to be prepared for him to represent us. He will be my husband's next commander-in-chief, and I, for one, have to place my trust in him to do what is best with our military. It serves no purpose to have instilled fear. Perhaps when the next election comes 'round, the candidates will consider what impressions of one another that will best serve the people, rather than what impressions will provide a "win at all costs." From here on out though, only time will tell, and we must go forward in faith, not fear. Perhaps candidates will consider that we need to be able to do that with either of them, regardless of who wins the election. (On a more humorous note, maybe we're all winners today: no more election ads!)

Footnote: I read a similar commentary on a reaction site, and this prompted the above thoughts. I can't find the site again, or I'd credit it. 

My little Minnie Mouse

I love Halloween on a military post!  I love that everyone gets in on the act--parents and kids--it's a family affair. I love that everyone in a neighborhood sits out on their front porch (weather allowing) and passes out candy together. Most of all, I love that trick-or-treating has a time limit--no starting in the morning, and no doorbells ringing at 11:00pm. I also love that I know so many of my neighbors and they all got to see my sweet Minnie Mouse. This year, I saw Halloween through my daughter's eyes, and I wouldn't have missed this for the world. We'd talked about dressing up as Minnie Mouse for a few weeks, but I didn't let her see the costume until tonight because dress-up is her favorite thing to do these days and I didn't want to ruin the costume or have it lose it's appeal before t-or-t-ing. While we ate dinner, I told her we were going to dress up and go get treats and she wasn't too sure she wanted to dress up, but when I got out the costume, she saw it and started peeling off her regular clothes. Her eyes widened with serious disbelief when I got out my makeup box and told her she was going to get to wear Mommy's makeup (mascara on her nose and cheeks). 

We started out with our neighbors, Pammie and Maddie, who ran from door to door boldly, but C wasn't so sure about going up to strangers and talking to them (not necessarily a bad trait!) and we were left lagging behind. After the first house, she came back to Mommy and Grammy and said, "I got a treat!" with some surprise. The expression on her face when I said we could go get more treats made me giggle. I'm not sure she believed me right away. I was so impressed with C's politeness tonight. At some stops she forgot to say "trick or treat," but only once did she fail to say "thank you" (and that was toward the end and I think she was just tired.) Most of the time the order got confused and she'd say "thank you," and then "trick or treat." But everyone thought that was just the cutest thing. A few people didn't believe she was (just a week shy of) three years old. She spoke up loud and boldly after she got used to the whole ritual. Such a grown up girl! Everyone thought she was adorable as Minnie Mouse (the only one I saw all night). At one house, the treat-giver must have said, "you're so cute." three or four times. When she came back down the steps to Mommy and Grammy, she quipped, "I'm cute."  A few houses later she started announcing, "Minnie Mouse is here!" as we climbed the steps of the porch. We laughed so hard. 

As far as her treats go...she was very proprietary over her pillowcase, wouldn't even let Grammy or Mommy carry it for her when her arms were really drooping. She wouldn't let the givers put the treat directly in the bag, she carried the bag up, took the treat, and then brought the treat and bag back to G & M to put hold the bag open for her and she would place it in. When she received more than one treat at a house, she would meticulously place one treat in the bag at a time. 

I was also really impressed by her responsibility. She got a piece of gum open and was chewing it for a while before I realized she had her first piece of gum in her mouth. She didn't swallow it, just chewed it for a while. When she was done, she pulled it out, held it up and said "Mommy throw this away." She didn't swallow it, throw it on the ground, but gave it to me to toss. What an awesome kid! 

By the time it was all over and we headed back home, she was so tired, but she still told us all about the evening: "being Minnie Mouse in the dark, and say trick-or-treat and thank you, and get treats! It's so much fun! Go home, show Grammy and Papa my treats. I share with them. I share with you." (So sweet--she was willing to share treats with us, without being asked!) I guess the challenge tomorrow will be explaining to her that just because she dresses up as Minnie Mouse again, she doesn't necessarily get treats! Then again, I think the dressing up part was the bigger hit of the night.

In more detail #5: Red Barn Farm

Earlier this month we went to the Weston Red Barn Farm, north of Leavenworth. When I told C we were going to the farm, she got so excited. "We're going to see pumpkins?" yes. "We're going to see goats?" yes. "We're going to see cows?" yes. "We're going to the farm!" She was ready to go and at the door in seconds, no dawdling. She is fascinated with farms and all the animals on them, and enamored with pumpkins. She shouts and points at any pumpkin or jack-o-lantern she sees. All the way to the farm C babbled about all the things that would be at the farm. When we got to the ponies, it was all I could do to keep her waiting in line and not shoving forward. She held her own tickets and was so grown up when she handed her ride pass to the pony handlers. When we went to pick our pumpkin, I thought I'd have to talk her out of a big giant one. Not so. She went straight to the bins of small pumpkins and went through them, obviously searching for her ideal. It turns out she was hunting for the smallest one. Too cute. Outside the pony corral, a small haystack pile was set up for children to climb, slide and jump on. C joined in with the other children who were playing. We left, to get a snack, and C kept wanting to go back for more jumping and sliding on they hay pile.

In more detail #4: Renaissance Festival

South of Leavenworth in Bonner Springs, technically a suburb of Kansas City, is the site of theKansas City Renaissance Festival . This is an incredibly huge event with vendors, crafters, games, performers and experiences all set in the renaissance period. I've been to a renaissance festival before, and I was impressed that this one didn't just use "Renaissance (generic) Europe" as its setting. There was a bandit's den, a more "orient" area and the other areas each had a different geography from Europe as its theme. C got to feed some goats, which were quite feisty about getting to their treats, getting a tad intimidating for her (they tried to nibble a bit on her dress!) We also got to ride on a giant swinging boat that was literally man-powered...by two men pushing it. Unfortunately I didn't get pictures of that. C played one of the games, in which she had to try to throw rings on bottles. Now, they didn't have pony rides available, but we took advantage of another option--a camel and elephant! C giggled as both of them began. I found out that the elephant's backbone was surprisingly prominent. Oh, and we also had to get her a princess outfit. Not exactly authentic, but she oohed and ahed over it, so I indulged. Check us out!

In more detail #3: AppleFest

Honestly, I wrote the most interesting thing about Applefest on my previous post: that C was chugging the apple cider. I mean, seriously, I asked her if she wanted a sip of mine, and she took the cup and handed it back to me, empty, about a minute later! However, we also got to go on another pony ride. Here's the pix. 

In more detail #2: Ciderfest

South of Kansas City is a little town called Louisburg, "famous" for it's apple cider and the mill that makes it. During apple season they offer tours of the mill. There's also a quaint little country store where they make quite tasty cider donuts. The first weekend in October it's the site for the Louisburg Ciderfest; we went on Saturday, the 4th. There's a corn maze, and a big ol' pile of pumpkins to choose from. The crowd was crazy that day, and the craft vendors were plentiful. Along with the craft fair, a vendor offered pony rides. Of course, that was something C had to do. She sat that little pony so confidently that the man running it asked if she'd ridden before. Maybe horseback riding is in her future? (Every time I think something like that, I imagine all the number of things that could be in her future...how wonderful to have so many possibilities!) We got to taste the Louisburg Cider on Sunday at the Weston Applefest. C loved it. She guzzled down a full cup and a half of it. I'm thinking that sometime soon we'll have to get down there and buy some. 

in more detail #1: Raggs

Now that things have begun to slow again, I wanted to share about some of our adventures in more detail and post some pictures. 

Relatively recently C discovered the Raggs show on PBS, as it was on when I turned on the television one day. Shortly thereafter, my friend Kimberly told us about taking her daughter Sophie to a Raggs concert out in Virginia--so I knew that a live-show/concert existed. The last 

weekend in September, I was reading the newspaper and came across a very small blurb about a Raggs concert in Liberty, Missouri...not too far for us to go. I don't know that I would have noticed it if I hadn't known the event existed. On the 3rd of October then, I skipped the gym and we were off to the concert. We got a third row seat and bought a paw for C to

 wear during the concert (imagine one of those big foam fingers that fits over your hand at a football game, only shaped like a pawprint). We also picked up a new "friend" at the concert, a beanie-baby sized version of Trilbie, one of the Raggs band members. C bopped and wiggled through the concert. She did a pretty good job of following the storyline of the performance, and she tried to do the dance moves that the dogs did. Her face lit up when they threw the bucket of "water" confetti on the audience; they got us! Of course, that meant  she asked (excuse the hyperbole) another 42 times when they were going to do it again. Here she is, rockin' it out.