My parents were visiting this weekend, and Molly, Claire, my dad, and I went down to to the clubhouse to read and do homework. Molly found some dominoes in the game cabinet, so we gave it a try. This was Molly’s first turn with dominoes. Molly, my dad, and I played a few rounds while Claire did homework. Molly loved dominoes and made up her own nonsensical rules. We also played the standard rules. The game was fun but surprising easy and lacking in strategy or really any surprises at all. Are we playing this right?
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Taking it to the Streets
America collectively gasped as Donald Trump was actually inaugurated as president of the United States. A miracle did not happen to stop this, and it did not turn out to be a big prank. Fulfilling an absurdist joke from The Simpsons, Trump is actually now our president. Otherwise calm and happy people took to the streets, and kids in Claire’s fifth grade class are riled up and talking about politics and now planning to run for office one day as Democrats. They are totally serious about this.
The girls went to an anti-Trump rally with their mom and a friend. Way to go, kids! It’s your first political protest. And you’re only kids! Gotta love the response people are having to this weird turn of history.
Molly, in first grade and ever the optimist, says we should give Trump a chance. “C’mon, guys! You never know. He could be alright.” She is adamant about this point. Wait and see how it turns out before judging, she says. I really do like her instinct. With any luck, maybe she’ll be right. But so far, it does not look good.
I Mean, Really
I decided to make up a fresh, healthy, homemade meal for the girls today. I got the recipe from a cooking magazine called “Cooking for Two”. While technically I am cooking for three, I realized that this magazine was perfect because I can cook for Claire and myself and just assume Molly won’t eat it. Molly is still only interested in six foods total: yogurt, lil’ smokies, raspberries, PB&J sandwiches, flour tortillas, and black beans. So why not just go with it? I decided to make a real recipe for Claire and myself and let Molly have an Uncrustable® and some raspberries.
I decided on the tandoori chicken because Claire always likes chicken. Let’s add in some fresh apple slices, try sneaking in some steamed spinach, and toss in some potato chips to ease things along. This was a serious cooking magazine from America’s Test Kitchen designed basically for at-home dates. This was not a “quick dinner” recipe. I spent 90 minutes making the tandoori chicken from scratch and finally presented the final meal to Claire for a slightly late dinner. I was so proud. Claire and Molly helped out with the cooking some, which made it more fun.
Once I served up the mean, Claire gobbled up the potato chips and apple slices and picked at her chicken. She ate a few bites and said it was pretty good but couldn’t finish it because she wasn’t very hungry. Molly ate her Uncrustable® in like 2 minutes. It was maybe five minutes before the girls were finished and off to other things while I sat alone eating my hard-earned tandoori chicken. Okay, the chicken was slightly dry and bland, but I worked hard for it! And really, it’s tandoori chicken. It’s supposed to be that way!
So I worked for 90 minutes on a fresh, healthy meal that was partly eaten in five minutes. This is why Chick-fil-A makes so much sense. I could have spent only $10 and 10 minutes getting them Chick-fil-A and spent an extra hour playing with them. After 11 years of practice, parenting is still tricky. You can never win!
Super Mario Sister
Molly is super into Super Mario Bros. on the Nintendo DS that she got from Santa for Christmas. She got to level three all by herself and was very appreciative when I helped her get to level 4. Somehow the Nintendo DS is the perfect handheld for Molly at this age. There is no internet, no texting, no email. Just fun, solid gameplay that she can handle. Way to go, Santa!
Claire the Flapper
Claire had a major role in the 5th grade musical play the year.
She was a flapper and got a brief solo singing part! She sounded amazing and looked great in her flapper outfit. She’s a natural flapper. Way to go, Claire!
Here’s Claire with her friends Susie, Wolfie, and another girl whose name I forgot. (oops!)
I Got Ready for Bed Early
Molly got ready for bed extra quickly tonight and made a little sign that said ‘I.G.R.F.B.E.”. She asked me to guess what it meant. After a few clues, I figured out it meant, “I got ready for bed early.” She wanted to get ready early so she would have extra time to read.
Reading on the Swing
Molly seems to enjoy multitasking, including reading while swinging at West Austin Park. Not bad for a first grader!
Last Day of School ’15
The girls head out for their last day of school for this academic year. This was Molly’s last day in Pre-K and Claire’s last day in 3rd grade. It is a pajamas day for Molly, and both girls get to bring games, stuffed animals, etc. for their last day with their classes.
Strawberry Shortcake Seeds
According to Molly, these are Strawberry Shortcake seeds. They were left on her plate after eating some Strawberry Shortcake. If you plant them, a Strawberry Shortcake will eventually grown from the ground. Molly is not kidding about this
McG Kids 