Yesterday, we had nine kids running around the museum in a pack

Should have been 10, but one of the older ones left her baby sister at home with Dad. This irritated me, because I'd count heads and come up one short and worry.

At the end of the day, we're playing with one of the kids, whose name is *very* unusual and which I won't bother spelling out for you, let's call her C. (I don't mind using names when they're fairly common, but this one isn't even remotely.)

And Ana at one point goes up to C's mother and tells her "C just hit me in the stomach".

Now, I have to ask - why C's mother and not me? Just because? Or because I'm going to ask "Why did C hit you in the stomach?" before even getting up?

So C's mother goes over to talk to her, and Angelique is sitting next to her, and she does ask why she'd do such a thing, but C is only three and all she could get from her is "Ana was being a bad person" and after hearing that twice she gives C a time-out.

And I wait until C is safely time-outted (no sense interrupting the proceedings) and then ask Angelique the question I'm dying to know the answer to... "Why did she hit you?"

"Oh. I was just playing! See, I told C that I didn't like her and she wasn't my friend anymore, but, Connie, I was just pretending!"

....

I told Angelique she should say sorry the second C was out of time-out, that C probably didn't think she was pretending and even then it's not very nice, and then informed C's mother, who immediately let her off time-out. And all was good again. For now.

Today is Jenn's birthday

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

We went out to a roller rink, and Jenn and 'dul and the kids had a lot of fun. I enjoyed myself well enough, but I rapidly realized that I could either A. try to remember how to skate* or B. deal with the 20 zillion disco balls and lights and strobe effects and LOUD music with heavy bass. So I sat on the side and watched the kids when they took their breaks and watched the skate guards totally not do their jobs (unless, of course, their jobs consist of smiling at each other, holding hands, and giggling together, in which case I'd like to know where to sign up, thanks) and, after Evangeline fell asleep, taking the baby and everything out into the main lobby where it was somewhat less light-tastic and reading.

The walk there and back consisted of a long trek on a deserted road with no sidewalks. NOT FUN in the cold, especially not when it's dark. I am suddenly rock solid in my newfound conviction that the kids and I need jackets that have reflectors on them, and I'll be remedying this situation shortly. In order to keep the kids from fussing *quite* as much about the cold, and because it's fun, I picked them (and me) strands of the long grass that grows in the wet areas here - lizziey will know what I mean. It's taller than any of us, and very fun for tickling necks with :)

On the way home, I stopped by the ETG and picked up a book on waffles for Jenn, which she seems to be thrilled about. The ETG has ceiling fans. Here's what's interesting - I don't like fluorescent lights too much, but I can certainly deal with them. The ones that plug into regular sockets don't bother me at all. But a ceiling fan that's very shiny and reflective, or that's *over* the light? That, I can't handle. I mean, if I'm in and out, sure, but I try to do it fast, even when in a place I like, like the book cafe. On top of the whole day, you can imagine I didn't dawdle that much.

*_{Part of what irritated me about the skating is that I used to be able to skate. Not, y'know, like Michelle Kwan, or even my sister, but quite competently. I was skating as a very young child, younger than Angelique is now (not well at all then, but I could stay upright on the ice), and now I can't. Right now I'm actually *trying* to learn the Dvorak keyboard, which I've been interested in but haven't ever learned, and it's the same feeling. Something that *should* be simple inexplicably isn't, and that makes it even harder than if it were simply difficult to begin with. Except that I'm not finding Dvorak that hard, and skating on wheels definitely was.}