For a Kid Who's Always Been Generous, Patricia is a Real Scrooge

Well, the Downs girls are anything if not theatrical. Patricia came home from school yesterday all excited and wanted to tell me something "in private." I shooed Margaret away and stood, waiting. "Well," she says, "I was sitting in my classroom and Mr. Fortin tapped me on the shoulder and motioned for me to go out in the hall. I worried, 'Oh, no, what did I do?' We went in the hall and he shut the door and said, 'Would you mind playing Scrooge in the play?' I said, 'You couldn't find a boy?' He said, 'Not one who can sing solo.'" She is SO excited, and so are we, and proud, too. But the drama with which she told the story is so cute. The other thing that's cute is the way Margaret came bounding out of the school yesterday afternoon after having gone to her first drama club meeting. She was also very excited and said she really likes the advisers and what they did (some warm-up exercises and other theatrical exercises). She said they weren't going to do a big play this year but a series of 10-minute readings, which Margaret is happy with. She said the advisers said there are opportunities for acting, directing and other behind-the-scenes work, but she said to me, "I'm interested in acting." That's a far cry from St. Peter's, when she first said she didn't want to act, she wanted to work on sets. She then moved on to be the narrator in the same Christmas Carol adaptation that Patricia is doing with Mr. Fortin's class this year. Things have a way of coming full circle.

And as for our Baby B, she had a great nap yesterday afternoon and was in fine form throughout the rest of the night. She sat in her exer-saucer for a while and really (I mean REALLY) enjoyed some mac and cheese (cooked very plump and soft). Daddy worries I'm introducing too much too soon, but I am, afterall, the Mom, and it's pasta. She's had pasta. She LOVES pasta. But you don't want them getting too much too soon. Next, I'm going to give her raisins, un-cut grapes, hot dog nickels and popcorn.