Paddling.

Took a row boat out. Central Park. I was the rower and Xavier said I reminded him of a frantic fraggle. I took that as a nice compliment. I think he meant that I had a spirited and eager style. Close, far and wide, I had great views. Straight in front of me was a princess in her crown (yes, Halloween may be over, but this dress is everlasting) and a charming young man. To my left, right and everywhere were scarlet, lime and mustard bursts.





It was enough to make a couple of girls sing. Following our Sound of Music sing-along last week (thank you, Stephen), we sang a lot of do-re-mi.





Xavier opted for a more spooky rendition of Willy Wonka's boat ride: faster faster, faster faster. There's no earthly way of knowing. Which direction we are going. There's no knowing where we're rowing. Or which way the river's flowing. He really got into it (his face, photographic proof). Marguerite remained calm.

Pizza & Marc.

While Marc was here, he made the most delicious pizza for us all. We are encouraging him to drop his art dreams completely and move on to 100% pizza. The pizza was that good (because Marc's art is killer).








Good health (art and gift by J. Derian).


Card tricks.




Entertainment for all.


Apple tricks.


Xavier tricks (a pizza peel can be used for so many other things: tennis racket, pendulum, hairbrush, paddle...)


And then Marc dances.

How I know she is French...

Marguerite, as evidenced in the photographs below, is extremely cute. Reason #1. But cute is not exclusive to children from la France.

"Prout prout camembert" is (fart, fart, close your mouth - literally, the cheese). She says this sassily.

Not liking orange goldfish snacks is. I bought a bag, thinking to myself that the little girl at my house was going to love these. "Berk," (with her scrunched up nose - yuck!) she said without any equivocation. What? How was this reaction possible? These are quality snacks.

Putting on perfume after your bath at 4.5 years old is decidedly French. My mouth dropped open when out of her Hello Kitty toiletries bag she produced a veritable glass bottle of perfume and she proceeded to tutor me in the art of applying perfume. "Là, là et là - et puis c'est tout! Sens! Je sens très très bon." (Here, here and here - and that's it! Smell! I smell very very good).

Listing black as a personal favorite color is. Jolina's favorite color is black - said with a nod of the head and very wide-open, insisting eyes.

Never having experienced Halloween at 4.5 years old is. Halloween in her mouth, first of all, is "Aloween". And the other: "treek an twreat" and the grateful reply: "szank yue." She was dazzled by the idea of halloween. Couldn't believe it. Being encouraged to prance around the streets of the city in her princess costumes, magic wands, little purses and all - with painted nails taboot? "I feel like a real woman," she said seriously while I was applying her red nail polish. I felt like a bad person at that moment. Out in the streets with her Halloween basket brimming and her eyes half the time squinting in wariness and the other half they were perfect round balls of wonder, I was comforted. This was a kid - 100%.