Oh no he didn't!

Today my 9 year old had her first kiss. From a boy. On the lips. Yes. The lips. My 9 year old. Apparently watching a video about Abraham Lincoln will do that to the younger set. Miss Áine Clare and the lothario, uh, R. were sitting on the rug with their fellow classmates watching the video. Áine was taking turns with her friends holding their hand doing the usual "nose, cheek, hair, ear" thing she does for those who know her. At some point after she and R. finished pointing to Áine's nose, cheek, hair, and ear more than once, my sweet little girl leaned her head R.'s way. Now this is usually Áine's way of offering a kiss. A slight head butt. The gentler version of her brother's way of "kissing". R. seized the opportunity and lips met lips and after finishing the kiss with said cougar (Áine is the oldest student in the class after all) R. was reported to have exclaimed, "Wow, wow, wow." Hmmm... so my 9 year old is a good kisser, I take it? Just what exactly is a mother supposed to do with this nugget of information? Offer a "way to go, girl"? Or how about a high 5? Better yet, I'll record it here for posterity and then quickly remove it from all recent memory.

The Left Coast Rainforest

As reqested by the lad, "rainforest" has been written in bold letters on our master calendar for today -- February 20 -- since about a month ago. So Brendan and Mom ventured to the local rainforest. (Thank you for the suggestion Aunt Eliz.) We enjoyed seeing more peacocks than Mom would have liked. And don't you know it's not every rainforest that has its own peacocks! We had a great walk and Brendan was particularly drawn to the trees from Australia and New Zealand -- you learn something new about the contents of the rainforest every day ;o) -- so much so that he took this picture below, which I think is pretty grand.

This next shot was taken pre-afternoon scheduled haircut and pre-chasing the geese. Mom and geese have long had a standing dislike for one another, so when Mom was waxing poetic about the waterfall aka glorified fountain a voice from behind her whispered "geese". So enthralled with Fern Gully, Mom continued the water talk only to next hear in a very clear determined voice... "I chase geese!" And that he did as he and the 6 geese he counted ran through the lush green of the rainforest. This adventure came to a close as Brendan smiled and squeezed Mom's arm and guided his animal fearful Mother through the treacherous peacock-laden exit of the rainforest. "All done rainforest. All done."

Crazy Hat Day

Today was Crazy Hat Day at Áine's school. She immediately sought the assistance of her big sis, the resident Fashionista, who promptly searched her hat drawer. "This is as crazy as I get, Áine." The result is below.

I added this one, just because I think it's too cute. This was at the doctor's office last week.

A One-Woman Show

About a month ago, I did something out of the ordinary and purchased 3 shirts for myself. The resident fashion expert had some advice for me.

This shirt, which I ordered in brown, has an "awkward print". Good to know.

This shirt, purchased in burgundy, looks like a "13th century Renaissance nightgown." I have to admit I was stumped by this. Was is reminiscent of the 13th century or of the Renaissance period?

Lastly, this shirt in hunter green and somewhat of a mainstay look for me since high school was "perfection".

As a final note, at the end of Mass today just before the Final Blessing, Msgr. C. announced that this Friday and about 50 pilgrims were off to the Holy Land for a couple of weeks. Ciara was very excited. He went on to talk about a visit to the Holy Land being the Fifth Gospel and about walking in the footsteps of Jesus. Then with a puzzled expression she turned to me and whispered, "Is he talking about Jerusalem?" I nodded. "Oh, I thought the Holy Land was Ireland." Ah, what a girl I have!

Dental Health

Ciara has her first consultation for braces with the orthodontist next week.

Both Brendan and Áine had dental checkups this morning at CHLA. Brendan did beautifully during the exam and cleaning and now has one wisdom tooth fully in and one erupting. He is seeing the oral surgeon for a consult in late April and then should be scheduled for oral surgery 3-4 months after that.

Áine has two teeth with issues and the dental staff finally agreed to schedule sedation to take care of her teeth and get xrays and they have postponed her cleaning until then. This will take 8-10 weeks to schedule. Sigh. So there will be more drooling and hand in the mouth until then.

Such a pro!

Miss Áine Clare started her growth hormone injections today. The nurse met with us this morning and Momma was trained and then gave Áine her first injection. She was a peach!