Emelle

1. Ramona was cuddly and sweet this morning. She told me, “Mommy, you fill my heart with love. I will stay with you all the days of my life.” She also said, “Mommy, I might not be available for school today. I have a concert performance.” It turned out that she was available.

2. I watched some “Mad Men” while working out. Oh, that Don Draper.

3. Ramona had her first drop-off play date, with her friend L. She was nervous about it, but she did fine and had a great time. She’s such a big kid!

4. Angel hair with creamy tomato sauce and whole wheat bread. Simple and everybody liked it!

1. Ramona was so glad to be home. She and A played with Polly Pockets and ponies nearly all day. Very sweet. I loved eavesdropping on them.

2. P and I watched some “Lost” (5th season). I got some knitting time in, and it’s nice to review last season.

3. I made a new dish from the Moosewood Cooking for Health cookbook, and it was a hit with everyone, even though it seemed kind of unlikely to me. It was polenta with sauteed spinach and eggs. I added some feta cheese to the eggs, and it was good stuff. I also made my first batch of scones, and they were surprisingly tasty. I’ll be making those again!

I stopped writing down my three things daily while we were in Disney World, and now I’m all confused about what happened on which day. I’m just going to put some highlights here.

1. The Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster is still my favorite ride. We all (except Ramona) got to ride it twice this year, as well as Expedition Everest and Tower of Terror. I love those rides. And Ramona got to ride “It’s a Small World” about 4-5 times, and the Peter Pan ride twice.

2. We saw some great shows. The Lion King show has to be my favorite. The singing and gymnastics are incredible. I also love the Finding Nemo musical and the Voyage of the Little Mermaid.

3. Ramona enjoyed both of the character breakfasts we did: the one with Lilo, Stitch, Mickey and Pluto, and the one with the princesses. Interestingly, both Ariels that she met (the one at the Grotto and the one at the princess breakfast) called her a jumping jellyfish.

4. We had some great food on this trip. Boma and Jiko, both at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, were big highlights. P and I went to Jiko on a date, just the two of us, and that was a lot of fun. So quiet without the kids!

5. Everybody got fun souvenirs. P never gets souvenirs, but he got a WDW sweatshirt because he hadn’t brought a sweatshirt and we had some chilly days. I got a book about the creation of Walt Disney World. M got an Aerosmith shirt from the Rock n Roller Coaster. A got a Mickey Mouse hoodie. M and A both got whistles shaped like duck bills that quack when you blow on them. Ramona got pink Mickey ears with a crown and a veil and a very soft stuffed Simba wrapped in a leaf blanket.

6. As always, it was great coming home even though we had a wonderful time. We came home to our cuddly kitty, ate take-out from Noodles, and slept in our own beds.