Tess: "Grace, I would be crying every day of my life if I didn't have you for a sister."
Travelingjenny
Navigating the hilly terrain of motherhood
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Today the McNallys took to the sledding hill for the first time this winter. And all I have to say is that we cannot wait for more snow and more sledding days. [Stay tuned for more sledding pics later this week.]
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In case you were wondering, this is what you do when it is 6 degrees outside.
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Today was the first real snowstorm of the year. It has snowed a couple of other times, but nothing like today. The girls and I hunkered down and played inside. All day long. We played veterinarian, animal shelter, doctor, and Uno. I sat through several magic shows, and one musical performance. And the girls watched television for the first time in three weeks (this induced a TV coma, but that's another story). It was a nutty day. A stay-in-your-pajamas day. A good day.
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Two Saturdays ago, we took a ride on the Candy Cane Train. It's a beautiful trip from Bath to Wiscasset, complete with elves and carolers and snacks and — Santa! We rode the train last year as well, and ended up having to explain to Grace (due to her many questions) that it wasn't the real Santa who we'd be seeing on the train, but one of Santa's helpers. She didn't talk about it much this year, but when Santa strolled into our train car she ran right up and gave him a big smile and a HUGE hug. He was quite surprised, and pleased (Grace has that effect on people). Tess, on the other hand, hid her face in my shoulder when she knew Santa was approaching, and didn't look up until he was gone. This was an improvement from last year, when she cried (AND hid her face). That's okay, we were just glad she had agreed (at the last minute) to join us on the train. And I'm sure Santa knows how she really feels about him.
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Last Thursday, in the car:
Grace: "Mom, is Santa real? Because Julia says he's not."
Me: "Of course he is real!"
Tess: "Of course he is Grace – you've met him, on the Candy Cane Train!"
Grace: "No, that wasn't the real Santa. The real Santa is too busy in his workshop."
Me [long pause]: "Wow, look at those beautiful Christmas lights!"
Last Friday, in the car:
Grace: "Mom, is Rudolph real?"
Me [long pause]: "What do you think?"
Grace: "I don't think so. How could he possibly have a shiny red nose?"
Tess: "Red paint!"
Me [long pause]: "Wow, look at that beautiful sunset!"
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Last night we took part in a solstice celebration at a friend's house. We had an outdoor fire, lit candles, and sang some sweet songs, like Silent Night. It's amazing what a little candlelight can do to make a simple outdoor experience seem so magical.
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Today the four of us, plus Nana, went to see the play "The Snow Queen" in Portland. It was excellent, and we were especially impressed with the costumes and the portrayals of animals. After a nice dinner in town, we took a lovely horse-drawn sleigh ride through Portland to see the Christmas lights. It was an fun, celebratory evening. And yet again, we feel really lucky to live here.
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Adam will tell you that shooting an acceptable family photo took half the morning. Don't believe him — the time stamp on my camera tells me it only took about 8 minutes. Either way, I'm not sure why we went through that exercise — we didn't even use this phot in our Christmas card!
Travelingjenny 