dream

I had this really weird dream that made me cry, and I am having a hard time getting it out of my head. I dreamed that I was in my Grandmother's old house with my daughter. My great-Grandmother was still alive and living in the house. I was showing my daughter this book that had an elephant's trunk attached to a squeeze bulb. It was like a board book with a squeeze bulb elephant head that inflated and extended the trunk. It was my favorite book when I was a kid, and I had given the book to my Great-Grandmother. Now my daughter was playing with it, squeezing the bulb and being as enchanted as I once was. Then my daughter claimed the book with a declarative, "I want it. I want to keep it." My Great-Grandmother said to me, "Go ahead and let her have the book. She can keep it." And this made me cry. I am not sure whether I was crying because my child is so possessive and insensitive to the boundaries of others or whether I was so sad because my Great-Grandmother didn't need the book anymore because she was going to die, and she knew it. It was a little of both.
Now in real life, my great-Gramma Lucile has been dead for twenty years, and I did name my daughter after her. It was my Grandmother who gave away possessions in her last months of life because her terminal lung cancer had been diagnosed. So why was I so conflicted about my daughter wanting to possess a little piece of them?

TinkerHell

Tinker Bell with a twist...

fall is passing by so fast

It should be obvious to most readers that I have given up the vacation blog. Oh, sure I could blather on, and probably will at some point. But right now I just need to spew about what is happening now in my life instead of what did happen six months ago.
B is learning to read. It is so cool watching her sound out words, take guesses at spelling and really enjoy herself when she gets something totally unexpected right. She really loves books, and now she is well into chapter books, and it is all about the Disney Fairies right now. She adores stories of "Vidia" the 'bad' fairy. TinkerBell seems tame by comparison. I worry that she will be as sarcastic and self-centered as Vidia some day, but for now she lives naughty vicariously, which is something she has done for years.
We went Day Camping yesterday at Suwannee River S.P. What is day camping? Well, you have hear of Day Hiking (where you hike during the day but sleep in your own home or hotel at night). Day Camping is everything you would do during camping, except you sleep in your own home or hotel at night. We cooked Mac 'n' cheese over the coleman propane stove, and had marshmallow, chocolate and candy corn smores (don't knock it til ya try it). Then we went hiking...Day Hiking. Put in about 2 miles total. Awesome day.
It has been all over the map weather-wise this autumn. Just a few days ago, I had to turn on the a/c again. It was soooo muggy in the house and I just couldn't take the heat. Now it is cold enough for the heat again. We rode the bike to school and it was 38 outside. I had to fight to get a jacket and mittens on my daughter, even so, and we were late. Many other parents were late too. Perhaps every kid was struggling with extra layers!
This fall just seems to be flying by. The march of the school calendar means that the weeks are no longer lazy. Now I have to bring in to school a meat dish two days before Thanksgiving. Am I actually going to roast two turkeys two days apart? I wouldn't mind doing it except for the sleep loss. In order to have a fully roasted turkey by 11 am, I would need to get the thing in the oven by what? six a.m.? Not sure I want to do that, but it would be easy, and a nice dry run for the big event.
I am quitting MOMS club in Gainesville. This is my last month. B. never enjoyed the activities, and I go to fewer and fewer each year. I also haven't been into reading as I have in the past, so book club is more of a chore than ever before.
Even minis are winding down. Which is good timing since my house really needed cleaning and I am able to get to it now.
And of course there is college football. Where would my hub and I be without that?!? We have been enjoying the games, especially since the Gators are doing so great. Of course we need a playoff system. But I actually enjoy the nasty catfighting over who is the current best college team. I also like seeing how the young men handle success and failure. Penn State totally shot themselves in the foot. Does anyone seriously believe Utah can run with the big dogs? And can Texas Tech go all the way? I'm Staying tuned!

more animals

and another

Capri pix

Capri

After a leisurely afternoon following the Sicilian tour, I was ready for something more adventurous and interesting and I got it in spades in Capri. First, we had to make sure Brianna was well-cared-for on the ship. Unfortunately, not all Holland America ships have their shit together (okay, I shouldn't use trite phrases when real English will do). . . Not all Holland America ships have well-organized port-day activities for the children that coordinate with actual off-shore excursion times. The Zuiderdam in particular had an all-new crew and had only been sailing the prior two weeks, with very few children. So this week, there were more kids for them to look after, but they seem to have this idea that parents should only take shore excursions that correspond to their posted work times (and it differs for each ship, so how would one know which tours to book ahead of time?!?). So I had to make special arrangements to drop off Brianna early to be able to go on my six hour tour. It did at least work out okay as I paid the caregiver an extra tip, and Brianna was just as happy not to go, although I think she might have liked this tour. We started out (Mom and me) on a jet powered catamaran, and from the port of Naples, got to the island of Capri in about 45 minutes. A note on Capri: since it is an Italian island, it is pronounced KA-pree instead of the more often heard French version ka-PREE, and it means "goat". It is very rocky, with its tallest peak lost in the clouds, very vertical, such that you start climbing uphill rather immediately, and gorgeous. Yes, this is one beautiful island, and only the Richest of the rich Italians actually live here. There are lovely hotels with manicured gardens. There are trendy stores and smaller, touristy shops. The road to Anacapri (the city with highest elevation) is absolutely hair-raising! I admit I was holding onto the seat of the bus with sweaty palms, looking straight down 800 feet to the incredible turquoise waters below, and praying to Jesus (which I really do not do unless vertical feet are involved) to keep the bus on the road and the outcropping of rock upon which the road is laid stable. After one thrilling ride, I was up for another. There is a chairlift in Anacapri which takes you up to the peak at the top, and was totally worth the scare and the chill to take. It did really get chilly at the top, but the views were breathtaking. My favorite view was when passing right over the top of a small private garden, obviously decorated by someone with whimsy. It had birds of paradise flowers next to urns decorated by seashells in a mosaic pattern. There was a manequin wearing clothes, purse, belt and necklaces next to a birdbath. There were little seats for resting. And the garden was built on several terraced levels. It was so perfect, I literally shed tears. This is a happy place.
Up at the top of the chairlift were a few gatti (cats) and clouds. In fact, the clouds were below us. I am sure there is a very scenic view off the back side of Capri, but I couldn't see it. It was really spooky to be high up on a cliff, looking down, hearing the gulls' cries echoing off the sheer cliffs, but not have a visual to go with it. I didn't linger, because, being afraid of heights, it was seriously freaking me out. But I did enjoy seeing some of the Roman architecture remaining. The Emporer Tiberius (yes, that one) ruled from Capri, and I could see why he preferred it to Rome. I only stayed a little at the top, and then I was back down to meet for lunch. We watched the local lizards as we waited and marveled at how familiar their actions seemed, not unlike our own lizards back in Florida. Lunch was at La Pigna (the pine) and was divinity Italian style. I love Italian food, and the way they do it. First course is pasta, second is meat. So you don't have to choose; you can have both. Yummy. Followed by tiramisu and real espresso. Exceptional. this is the experience that I wanted to have again, and would want to repeat any time I returned to Italy.
The next point of interest was a gardens with scenic views of the cliffs. This too was just so much beauty that the eyes were full to the brim. Its like everywhere I looked was one paintable scene after another. Now this is what vacation is about. Looking around and enjoying it all.