Pancake Breakfast

What could be better?  It's still cold outside, snow all over the place, so a pancake breakfast with Anthony's kindergarten class sounded like just the thing.  Here's Mr. Berns, the chef with the cakes sizzling on the griddle behind him.

Mommy was not feeling well, so I brought Anthony and Lucy to school for the delicious pancakes and fruit salad.  Anthony brought Mom's camera so he could document it for her!  And, of course, I can't be restrained - have I ever mentioned how much I love my Canon G11?  Anthony and his friend Nick had fun taking pictures of everything.

On a funny note, Lucy, who is such a determined, happy and busy girl, started a very tall tower which Anthony, at the very end, stood up to top off!  How typical is that???  I'm not sure he would have been so pleased to have her finish it for HIM.  Luckily, she still thinks he's just the greatest possible brother and, naturally, he is!

Two Big Breakthroughs!

WOW!  What a day at swimming lessons!

Remember the day you learned you could swim?  Or ride your bike?  No training wheels in my memory, but I clearly remember my Dad letting go and realizing I was riding alone.  Well, Anthony got that thrill on Saturday when he went from a floatie back pack and holding his nose under the water to...TA DA!  Freestyle with hands free!  Once he "got it" we could hardly get him out of the pool!

And Lucy!  She's been stoic in the water, but not her usual daring and confident self.  She, too, seemed to "get it", relaxing with Annie, rather than clinging to her like a monkey when in the water.  She even learned to put her head under.  It was so much fun and amazing to watch.

I have been so impressed with Annie Cooper's teaching style - she is endlessly patient and encouraging, funny and full of energy.  The kids just loved their lesson and went home pooped out and proud of themselves.

Signs of Spring? Maybe Not!

 Well, it's snowing again.  But YESTERDAY was gorgeous.  Rufus, Arlo and I went down to Oakledge Park on the Burlington waterfront for a fabulous walk (well, they ran, I walked) along the bike path.  It was about 35° and sunny ~ perfect weather.

Before the park opens officially later in the year, there are not many people around, mostly those with dogs.  Everybody was off leash, so I let the boys run and explore.  Rufus fell through some thin ice, but was only up to his tummy, so getting out was not too hard.  We met lots of lovely dogs and owners, got all out of breath, it was great.  Once again I am so thrilled to live along Lake Chaplain and the beautiful bike path.

Later Patrica, Robin and I went to a concert by The Hinesburg Artist Series that we all agreed was a great way to welcome Spring.   Thanks to Rufus Patrick and the wonderful performers at St. Jude Church for a varied, but uniformly spectacular program.  The three Handel pieces at the end sent us out into the light (still light at 6:30 PM!) simply elated.  (Photo courtesy of the HAS web site.)

Happy Birthday, Julie!

I haven't seen Julie is ages, so it was such a treat to be invited to her surprise birthday party!  Julie has been 39 for a while, but honestly only looks 38!

Many thanks to her friends in Hartland, who thought of me.  It was a great gathering and Jack and Cynthia opened their beautiful hillside home for dinner and cake.  TWO angel food cakes, in fact!  My low carb good intentions went right out the window, alas.

I had a wonderful time with Julie's friends, then spent the night (thanks to my friend Kathy who hosted Arlo and Rufus for a doggie sleepover).

We had time for coffee/tea and catching up in the morning before I drove home.  As you know, I love to have my photograph taken.  Partly, this is because I want to keep the experience fresh in my mind so I can inflict as little pain as possible on my clients, but second, I am a big camera hog and just like it.  I have Thom Randall to thank for that, I guess, since he took the first good photographs of me (that I paid attention to, anyway) back in 1966.  That experience also pointed me in the direction of photography as a career, kind of clarifying my somewhat muddled idea of doing something "arsty".

Julie took some great shots and here are a few.  I can't wait to see them all!  Thank you, sister.  XOXO

Anthony's New Hat

Elizabeth is turning into a knitter extraordinaire.  Hats, scarves, slippers ~ she's making sure everyone is warm and toasty.  Here's Anthony having fun with his wonderful new hat!

So, that was yesterday...

 So, that was yesterday...rain in Woodstock, kind of a sign of impending Spring in Vermont, right? N-o-o-o!

This morning Arlo and Rufus were ready to go outside before breakfast, as usual.  Things did not look good - you can see the snow piled up against the door.  Outside?  24" and still pouring down!  There was a lot more on the porch, because of the wind.

Well, they weren't sure what to do and I pooped out after shoveling  just a few feet of the very wet, heavy snow.  Todd the plow guy came by about half an hour later, but he got stuck at the bottom of the driveway for about half an hour - this after having dug  a family in an SUV out of a giant snowbank earlier this morning.  State offices closed along with all the schools up north, of course, and my guess is the rally for Health Care Is A Human Right scheduled for tonight in Williston will be postponed, alas.

Luckily for me, the cavalry showed up in the form of Jon Davis (The Best Neighbor In The World) and his sidekick, Wolfie.  They made a BIG dent in my piles of snow.  Thank you, thank you!  Ed owes you, me and Todd a big turkey dinner when he gets back in April.

Al and Di - you picked a good week to get out of Dodge!

VPP March meeting

Patricia, Robin and I set out in the pre-dawn hours on our journey to The Woodstock Inn for a photography business and marketing seminar presented by Ann Monteith, and sponsored by Marathon Press.  This was a two day meeting put on by The Vermont Professional Photographers, the great group of pros I've hung out with for over 25 years.  It's always exciting and there's nothing better than bouncing ideas around with other photographers.

 We learned so much about how to stay profitable in the current economy and how to adapt to the realities of a digital photography world.

It's not for sissies!

After the Saturday program we all headed down to Bentley's in Woodstock, one of Vermont's prettiest towns, for food and fun.

For some reason our group separated into boys' and girls' tables - I will not speculate on why that happened, except to say they must like not having as much fun as we did...

Maybe they wanted to talk shop?  I know they weren't showing off their iPhone cameras like we were!

Lucy's Swim Lesson

I got to take Lucy to her swim lesson with Annie (Essex Swim) at the beautiful pool at the Essex.  She had a great time and it was such fun to watch!  Lucy is athletic and fearless.  She'll excel at some sport in her life, I'm sure.  Annie was just great - she had all those little kids under her spell the whole time.

After that we went to the Bagel Market for a yummy treat before meeting Grandma who takes Lucy to yoga on Wednesdays.

The I had a lovely lunch at Leunig's Bistro on Church Street with Megan and her mom Sue who's been visiting from Pennsylvania.  Thanks to the host who took our picture - have I ever mentioned how much I love my Canon G11 camera, the one I can carry around in my pocket?  Megan's off to Germany today for a Classics and philosophy conference.  I think she'll have a wonderful time and maybe even relax!