Check that Off the List

Had a successful evening shopping with SH - she might actually have more than 1 pair of shorts to wear for the cruise! I did have to do a bit of cajoling to get her to buy things she might have otherwise passed up - getting a little pickier as she gets older. But in the end she came home with enough shorts and shirts for the cruise. We think. If she has to borrow some of my t-shirts to make it through the 2 week jaunt through Florida with her Aunt and Cousin after the cruise, so be it. I might actually have to do laundry at the end of the cruise while still on board. Where's the justice in that?

We did have a lot of laughs, as we usually do while shopping. I tried on a pair of skull & crossbones shorts at Pac Sun. She declared them both "hideous" and "dorky." I explained that they were a joke for my pirate friends (BossMan says we're - my family included - going sailing at his place eventually this summer on his new, gorgeous 1927 wooden boat....), but she didn't care. Much to her glee, they were too big and didn't have my size...

We did manage to pick up another pair of shoes because, um, Imelda here doesn't seem to have enough of those. hey they were cute, black and white polka dots, high (I'm in a 4"+ heel phase at the moment, I hate being short), and on sale. I have picked up a lot of black and white garb this spring/summer and they'll be perfect. Sh has quickly learned the difference between "walking shoes" and "dinner shoes." She took one look at the heel and declared them "dinner shoes."

I've managed to learn what she likes and doesn't - we cruised through Aeropostle in 30 seconds declaring all the merchandise "pre-teen." And I picked up a few cute shirts in other stores that completely surprised her, as in, "Hey mom that's actually cute!" (yes she said that, more than once).

We ended the night at the book store, picking up their summer reading project for English. We called A, who said he needed my advice on which author to choose from the list. I declared F. Scott Fitzgerald perfect for him, so we'll be reading, "The Great Gatsby" together (second time around for me, but I feel the need to try again). Perhaps we'll go on a field trip to Rockville and see Fitzgerald's grave - something I did many years ago with a fellow literary fan.

One more thing off the "stress-o-meter." Now if I could just get some help reviewing the 45,000+ documents left in the review pile before next Friday, that would be a good thing....