Summer solstices long past

I love this photo. I don't know who took it but I found it here. It is aptly titled "Summer Secret". I hate to get all sentimental on you but it brings back memories of a time before parenthood, mortgage payments, 401ks, and life insurance. A time when I could walk the streets of any city, at any hour, seeing and doing anything that met my fancy. Eating dinner at any restaurant at 9PM carrying only a purse and staying to finish a bottle of wine. Back then it was all about me. And I loved it.

Lately, I walk only on sidewalks full of fear and trepidation my eyes firmly locked on to the back of Lucy's pig-tailed head checking the time to make sure a nap is not being missed. If we eat dinner at a restaurant it cannot be later than 7PM and a kid's menu is always desired. We do most of our drinking at home and we carry a diaper bag full of "just in case" items every where we go. Today it is all about the babe. And I love it.

The biggest difference between our upcoming road trip and any of our past road trips is this one is actually planned to some detail. We used to just get in our car and go. There was always a destination but everything in the middle was always just a bit hazy. When Bell and I did the Eurail thing we found ourselves more often then not hanging out in the train station and looking to see where the other trains were going. We'd open our Let's Go Europe and pick a spot. This time we reserved a hotel in Vegas MORE than a month before our trip. Campsites were reserved. A list was made--A LIST!--of things to bring, to do, to eat, to buy, and to have done before we go. Instead of Lonely Planet guides we have California with Kids, Bryce and Zion with Kids, and Having fun in Las Vegas with Kids.

Yes, life has changed but seeing Lucy experience the world is something to behold and if given the choice I will always pick that over my former carefree life. As it is, things are changing everyday, Lucy is bypassing those coveted naps, bedtime is becoming later, and we no longer have to bring a diaper bag with us (but I do sometimes keep it in the wagon -- just in case). And soon this summer solstice will just be a a memory too.

Forget the pony. I want a Vespa!

Lucy has been dressing herself for quite some time now. Today she selected this outfit because she wanted to be Italian. Earlier we were looking at a picture book about Venice. She really liked the gondoliers. But she especially liked the girls wearing capri pants standing next to their Vespas. That's my girl! Thanks to the Pizas, who went to Pisa, for the awesome shirt--not so much for the whistle.

Lucy takes great pride in her outfits and will readily scold you if you even suggest she wear something that does not remotely match. By matching she means every shade of blue on blue, every shade of pink on pink, stripes on stripes--it doesn't matter what color or which direction--as long as they are stripes, etc., etc. During potty-training, we would reward her with 2 jellybeans whenever she used the toilet. She would insist that those 2 jellybeans match whatever she was wearing at that moment. If she was wearing a brown shirt and blue jeans she had to have a blue one and a brown one. If that brown one was root beer she would usually gag and spit it out but would not ask for another. She was perfectly content with the fact that her jellybeans had matched, even if they tasted like ass.
Here are a few samples of the budding fashionista's selections.


"I plan to color-coordinate with the landscape for the rest of my life."


Accessories must always match.


The Elton John phase, but still matching!


She did have a few misses.


"Oy! What was I thinking?"


"Thank goodness for polka dots!" Lots and lots of polka dots.