Shadows and Scooters

Simone finally got her very first scooter. It's a pink Radio Flyer that I applaud for being cute, stable, and easy for toddlers to handle. She adores it. The first night she rode it around the house and now asks to go outside every day to practice on it. She's getting much faster, but steering is still a little challenging for her. With the learning curve we've observed, however, she'll be flying around everywhere in a couple of weeks.

Here's just one of her many laps in the cul de sac.

And finally, here's the craziest bit... After she finished on her scooter, Simone thought it was HILLARIOUS to dance with her shadow in the street.

So Much for the Super Bowl

So Simone and I put on our black, gold, and white (Tony of course refused), and we had a few friends over to watch the Super Bowl. We served up all the requisite football foods and even sought out some seasonal cupcakes for the occasion.

We took a quick picture before the game started, while our hopes and spirits were still high. And then...

... they started to lose. And they didn't stop. And that was the end of the pictures. A disappointment, I know. But really the only fitting way to document the night. But well, hey, there's always next season. GO STEELERS!!

The Show Must Go On!

So what, you ask, does the Dotson family do on cold Sunday afternoons? Well, it doesn't get better than this. Simone decided that she was going to put on a dress up show for mommy and daddy. We may have a singer on our hands yet...

And for the grand finale...

A Snowman At LAST!

Simone has been dying to make a snowman since before Christmas but we haven't had a big enough snowfall of wet packable snow.... UNTIL NOW! Last night's storm dropped about 10 inches of perfect snowman snow. The sun and mild temps had it melting fast today, but not before we were able to get outside and build this beauty. Officially, Simone's very first snowman. Her name(yes, it's a girl), as christened by Simone, is... Madeline
.

On the path right behind our yard Simone spotted instantly this snowman that other kids had built and knocked down. I guess you can think of it as snowman roadkill.

Absolutely Pinkalicious!

On the very last day of our Christmas break we trekked into New York City to see Pinkalicious the Musical -- based on Simone's ULTIMATE favorite book in the whole world. She has every word of the story memorized and she loved the show. I don't think she even blinked the entire time. Afterwards we got to meet the cast for pictures and autographs -- a real treat!
Simone with her Pinkalicious magic wand. It was like real gold to her.








After the show, we ate with the whole gang at a great little French bistro in midtown -- La Bonne Soupe. We enjoyed a very cozy, scrumptious dinner which included, of course, French onion soup. Simone napped the whole time. She was completely wiped out from all the excitement.

Blue Mountain Snow Tubing

After two days in the house we decided to take advantage of the new snow and take Simone snow tubing with her cousins. The family tubes were a real treat to be ablet to come down all together, although we also tested the single tubes. It was great fun and, of course, Simone preferred the fastest spinning runs possible.

Christmas Eve 2010

We continued our Christmas traditions this year with Simone appreciating more and more of all the holiday happenings. Everything about Christmas is magical when you are three years old.

Dressed for Mass on Christmas Eve.

Simone fell asleep on the drive to church and slept on the pew through the entire Mass.

Afterwards, we visited baby Jesus in the Nativity scene.

Opening her gifts Christmas morning.

This year Simone asked Santa for a red kitchen, some toy food and a Pillow pet. Needless to say, she did in fact receive them all for being such a good girl.

This year Simone was finally old enough to officially join the kids table for Christmas Eve dinner.

Simone with her cousins, sporting their Christmas hats.

And for the grand finale, a Christmas chorus...