American Girls

Last weekend my sister and her youngest daughter (Sydney), Eva and I went to Atlanta for an American Girl weekend. Mimi met us there, and we all went to the American Girl store, where independently of one another the girls both ended up choosing Chrissa, the doll of 2009.

I think Eva was most taken with her llama and swimsuit/swim gear. They each found some great outfits and accessories; here's Syd and her Chrissa in matching outfits.

We also found some much less expensive outfits at Joann, so the dolls have fairly extensive wardrobes already. We had dinner at the American Girl restaurant, and then we headed to the Marriott near the store where they have a fabulous American Girl package. The girls were treated like royalty. They had their own check-in process at an area roped off just for them.

They received Very Important Girl (VIG) cards which could be redeemed for dessert in the restaurant or a candy bar from the gift shop (they chose the latter). When we got to our rooms, there were beds for the dolls, and soon after we arrived in the rooms, the girls and their dolls were brought cookies and milk. The room rate also included breakfast the next morning, and we chose to have room service!

Of course, there was an indoor pool, so Eva and I had an early morning activity while the others slept in a bit. Altogether fabulous fun!

Ruby Falls

We definitely took our time getting back from Atlanta, stopping once for yummy Georgia peaches and other produce and another time at an outlet mall. Then, the highlight of our return trip was a visit to Ruby Falls. One can see the signs for it and Rock City all along the highways in Georgia and Tennessee. While I wondered if it might be as tacky as the world’s largest ball of twine or some such “wonder,” it really was fascinating. Ruby Falls is a 145 foot waterfall that is 1,120 feet underground. We parked on the side of the mountain and entered by traveling down 260 feet by elevator. We then walked ½ hour into the cave to the falls. It was so neat to see all the formations along the way. And the falls themselves were beautiful. We were able to walk behind them, and as they told us, when looking up at the falls, the way they were lit, it appeared there were diamonds falling from the sky. Beautiful.

Wacky Wednesday

Last Wednesday at Camp Invention was Wacky Wednesday. Eva had a
lot of fun wearing pants with two different length legs, one pig tail and
one braid, her shirt on backwards and mismatched shoes. Don't tell
anyone, but she often wears two different colored crocs, even when it
isn't Wacky Wednesday. Also, don't tell Eva, who thinks I was cool
and fun for cutting off a pant leg, that those pants were about to be made into shorts anyway, since there were huge holes in the knees!

Super Girl Invents

Eva had so much fun at Camp Invention last week. She learned a lot and had so much fun with her friends. This photo is from superhero day. Eva went as Super Girl and had a blast leaping wide puddles and tall curbs on her way into the school. And then, I am sure her super-powers helped her when it came time to work on her fabulous invention.

Summer Fun

As you can see, Eva loves to climb. Combine that with her lack of fear, and she's dangerous! I've really had to get over my fears in order to let her do pretty much whatever she sets her mind to do.

Meet Kristine

Toward the end of school, Eva came home with a bean plant they had started at school from seed. It lived in its clear plastic cup for quite a while, and finally a week or two ago, we planted it in the dirt between our house and our beloved neighbor, Irish. Irish is a real gardener, and she will be disappointed to see that I took the picture before she taught Eva to weed! Anyway, as we were getting ready to plant the bean plant, I said I had saved the wire stand from my friend Kristine's campaign sign to use as a support for the plant. Somehow Eva thought when I said, "Kristine's stand" that I meant the plant was named Kristine. It stuck! So meet . . .

Kristine!

Aristo-Dog

During the weekend with strep, we watched a lot of movies, and one of the ones I rented for Eva was Aristocats, which Eva enjoyed very much and several times. At one point, she asked me what an “aristocat” was, and after fumbling to find a way to explain it, I finally said, “basically, it’s a fancy cat.” Without a moment’s hesitation, she said, “I want an aristo-dog.”

Summer Stuff

Eva with Counselor "Gator"

Eva with Counselor "Pocahontas"

Here in Nashville we’ve been out of school 3 weeks and already I am ready for the routine of the school year again! Not really, but it is hard keeping up with all the various plans we have for Eva. She spent two weeks at Camp Widjiwagan and had a blast! It is the Y Camp that is on a lake out in the country. They got to swim in the pool everyday, play on the beach, ride a banana boat, go down a long water slide into the lake, climb the alpine tower, ride horses, sing songs, play silly games and more I am sure. Eva rode a bus to and from camp each day and enjoyed that, too. Unfortunately, at the end of the first week, she came down with strep throat and we had a not-so-happy weekend. I found a sitter for her that Monday and finally last Tuesday she felt more like herself and could go back to camp. I’m learning that there are lots of theme days at camps, so there is always some “costume” to put together or prop to bring. And, of course, a lunch to pack and backpack to prepare, etc. It’s not unlike school, but it is slightly different each week and I am having fun keeping up with the “where” and “what” of each week.

This week, Eva is enjoying Camp Invention, which is being held at her school, so the location and many of the children are familiar. She’s having a fun time taking apart a VCR and making plans to turn it into something else. They are also working in teams to build a sled-racer for the big Extreme Sled race. Apparently, they have a monkey named Viper who will race on the “sled.” I can’t wait to hear more about all this and see a program at the end of the week. They’re also learning a number of new games that can be played with things around the house, which is fun to hear about and try out!

Next week is Vacation Bible School at our church and the week after that Eva will go to camp at the Nashville Children’s Theatre. I think my little “drama queen” will have a delightful time with that one, too. Then, we’ll have our 19^th Annual Whalen Family Week at Oglebay Park in Wheeling, WV, and will return to another two-week session at Widjiwagan.