I Feel Good...

Finally, I can blog about the last week of track out for Kate...when everyone was on the mend and we could actually get out and do something! And it will come as no surprise to anyone that knows our family (okay, me) that our first outing was a trip to The Cupcake Shoppe (pronounced shoppy, according to my daughter). Please, if you haven't tried Sara's delicious cupcakes--you need to get your booty on down to Glenwood Avenue in downtown Raleigh.

Our n&fs, The Riveras, had never been, so we piled 2 mamas, 3 girls and 1 little boy in my minivan. While a little sighing and a couple of "how much longer" questions could be heard from the back rows of my van during our trek, there were many more "oohs" and "ahhs" and just plain 'ole squeals of delight once we reached our destination...the cupcake counter. Eureka! And for one moment, after all of the kids were served his/her very own Cookie Monster cupcake, I believe there may have been a second or two (maybe three?) of silence. Here are two shots I got of my kids:

I don't know what Aaron was more excited about:
eating his cupcake frosting or just getting out of the house!

The pretty patient dressed in purple...she finally had her appetite back!

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Next on our "to do" list was a mommy/daughter date night! After our days of sickness and isolation, I thought BOTH of us deserved a night out. We drove off in the Civic, music blaring, sunroof open and windows down (actually, it was probably cold so I'm guessing not, but you get the idea). We were foot loose and fancy free!!!!

First stop, Kate's school's fundraiser night at the local Barnes & Nobles. We headed straight for the children's section and soon found a cozy corner for two. Kate loves Shel Silverstein's Where The Sidewalk Ends, so we grabbed it off the shelf and began to read together. There are those times in parenthood where you just want to soak up the moment, you know, somehow take a snapshot with your mind and pray it stays there for always. Sitting there that night, with a happy, healthy child in my lap, laughing with her big, bright eyes...I just wanted to stay there a little bit longer. Kate's favorite of the night..."Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout Would Not Take The Garbage Out"! Didn't you love that one as a child?

Here is Kate with Kyle the Crocodile (her school's mascot) and her friend, Meredith. Kate still enjoys meeting the mascot every chance she gets (even though she knows that there is a real person inside). Funny to me.

Okay, so after our little snugglefest in the children's section, we decided to join the rest of the students on the other side of the B&N. There was a bunch of benches set out for our kids to sit on while they listened to their teachers read from a selection of books. However, Kate got sidetracked by one itty, bitty thing. Ahem...person. Ummm...boy.

Yes, it appears that my little girl really does like a certain someone from her class. One minute she was by my side, and then the next thing I know...poof! She's gone. I looked over to see my smart, independent Kate blushing furiously after spotting O-W-E-N. She hurried to grab the bench next to him. And then, she moved closer, actually sitting with him on his bench. And then, she draped her arm around his shoulder. (All kinds of mommy alarms were going off!) I was looking around to see if there was another mommy in the crowd looking as concerned as I was (surely Owen's mom would notice, right?). I didn't see any. I tried catching Kate's attention, and finally got her to remove her arm from his shoulder. We stayed for a few more minutes, and then I convinced Kate that we really needed to go. I can promise you that once we got in the car, Kate and I had a discussion about appropriate vs. inappropriate behavior for a six year old girl. Don't worry, I didn't make a huge deal of it, but I had to address the arm around the shoulder bit. I mean, really? Where did she learn that move?

My friend, Sandy, had her camera and took these snapshots of them as evidence. Look at how close my girl is sitting next to Owen! You can't tell where her shirt ends and his sweatshirt begins!

After buying 3 new Cam Jansen books for Kate, we decided that dessert was just what the doctor ordered! Kate and I both shared a booth and enjoyed our sweets at Camille's Sidewalk Cafe. It's so much fun for me to have this one-on-one time with Kate. I find that her little voice can sometimes get lost---drowned out really, by the incessant chatter of a certain rambunctious younger brother. She got the spotlight that night. And she enjoyed it thoroughly. We both did.

After dessert, we ended the night with....shoe shopping at Target. Believe it or not, Kate got really excited about it. She looked over all the shoes and wanted to try on almost all of them. We finally selected some new gym shoes (white & hot pink of course), and a pair of very girly, white dress shoes for Easter. Yay for girl bonding over shoe shopping! Gotta love having a daughter.

Since it was a school night, Kate needed to get to bed, so we headed home. As we were pulling in the garage, Kate said, "this was the best night, mom". I completely agreed.

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On our last day of track out, God blessed us with a gorgeous, sunny day. After church, we decided to treat the kids to lunch out at McAlister's Deli. I brought my camera along, and wanted to share some cute photos of the kids:

Aaron getting some love from Daddy.

How could you not want to kiss this sweet face?

I love this picture because it shows off two of my favorite things: Kate's freckles and her dimples!

I'm having fun, Mommy!

Aaron couldn't wait to get his hands on, I mean--IN the fountain!

Two similar shots of the kids throwing pennies in the fountain. I love the angle of these pics.

They are getting too big. Growing up so fast...

My sweet girl and me!

Satellite shot.

A rare shot of both kids looking straight at the camera and BOTH wearing sweet expressions.

No parking on the dance floor, Aaron! Time to go home and enjoy the rest of our day.

Thankfully, even though our first part of track out was unpleasant, the last week allowed us a chance to relax and enjoy spending time together as a family. Spring is here, and we can't wait for many more days of soaking up the sun and playing outdoors. I've started planting some new flowers in my urns, and I've enjoyed watering them each day. Hope you guys are enjoying this beautiful time of year!!