The Greatest Show On Earth

There is nothing like seeing the circus through the eyes of a child. Genevieve's Great-Aunt Rita (and I stress great) gave us two tickets to the circus. G went to the Big Apple Circus last year but I stayed home with Sophie. This time, I went to the circus and Carrie stayed home. I've never been to the Big Apple Circus but I don't believe they are known as "The Greatest Show on Earth" That title is reserved for The Ringling Brothers and they certainly put on a show.


We got there early to watch the clowns put on their makeup and see some extra performances by acrobats, magicians, jugglers and of course clowns.







Genevieve had been asking for cotton-candy and popcorn as soon as we walked in the door. I told her we could get some once we got to our seats. Consequently every time we finished seeing one act she would ask if we could go to our seats and get cotton candy. As soon as I pointed her to the next performer she was instantly mesmerized and forgot about treats until they finished. Rinse and Repeat.

We eventually did make it to our seats and got our cotton-candy. Genevieve was not able to fully process everything that was going on as there were quite a number of performers on stage at any given time. I tried to help her by pointing to things and asking, "Did you see that?" or "Can you believe that he just threw a dog twenty feet in the air through a flaming hoop?" At first I was hamming it up trying to get her into it but pretty quickly she was at the edge of her seat oohing and ahhing. I was swept up by her wonderment and became truly caught up in the show.

She had been taken in by every magic trick and slight of hand as only a child can but I will admit that there were quite a few tricks that I couldn't figure out. I knew it wasn't magic but I just couldn't see where the mirror/wire/tiger was hiding. When intermission came she was really annoyed that I told her we needed to take a potty-break but I assured her we wouldn't miss any of the show.

I guess mostly mothers take their kids to the bathroom because 1/2 of the men's bathrooms had been hastily converted into women's restrooms.

During intermission we got our popcorn and returned to our seats. The second half opened with a giant screen/flag (about 100' X 100') that dropped from vertically hanging to being draped across 1/4 of the arena. Stagehands were holding it from the sides and causing to undulate about 4 feet off the ground. Lights were flashing everywhere and then the flag was quickly retracted offstage. Underneath the flag were about 75 performers in Thai outfits as the Asian elephants came barreling into the ring. Genevieve looked at me with her jaw agape and said, "How did they all get there?" I couldn't help but laugh.

By the end of the show when the bad guy became good (her favorite part) she knew things were wrapping up. She looked at me sadly and said, "Daddy, I don't want it to be over." I told her it was time to go and we made our way to the train station. Some people in the station asked us directions to the circus. I'm not sure what tipped them off; perhaps it was the wizard hat or the big box of popcorn with an elephant on it. Either way Genevieve turned to me and said, "Daddy, they already missed it. The circus is over." I didn't have the heart to tell her there was another performance. Oh to be a kid.

Tea Party

Genevieve is a girly-girl and likes nothing better than to get dolled up, sit down with her favorite tea set, and have a good old fashioned tea party. She even drinks with her pinky sticking out. Here she is in her special tea time outfit. She designed the hat herself.

Before and After

Before Nap Time


After Nap Time

Please note: That is not a kilt. That is the article of clothing formerly known as her shirt.

Tats

Sophie loves to draw with markers. She particularly likes to pretend that she is being a good girl and drawing on the paper like she should... until I turn my back on her.



Thankfully there is a product called washable markers.

Snack Time

People regularly ask us if we fake the photos of our kids getting messy. I've trimmed down a 10 minute snack time to about 2 minutes. You can see for yourself how these kids get so messy.

This video is already a few weeks old so Sophie isn't talking as much as she would now but this video isn't about her language skills.

Is this thing on?

Sophie is the master of all things electronic. Give her any toy and within seconds she'll have it powered on and making noise. More incredible is that when she's finished she'll turn it off. I'm still pretty impressed by this feat but in the eyes of a toddler it makes sense. It is just one more button to press. When all your life is about mashing buttons to see what they'll do one button is as useful as any other.

Save Me

Carrie got to sleep in on Sunday and I had a quiet breakfast with the kids. Genevieve and I started talking about daylight savings time and how I had moved the clocks ahead one hour. "That'll be funny. Don't tell mommy." she said. Genevieve watches a cartoon called Caillou where on April first they set the clocks ahead an hour as a joke on the mother. "Mommy knows; we reset them last night." I told her. "But then it won't be a surprise." she replied disappointedly.

Obviously she didn't quite get the concept so I tried to explain it but she still seemed stymied. Monday morning rolls around and it is 7 AM (formerly known as 6 AM) and time for breakfast. I have to rouse a sleeping Genevieve from her bed. "Daddy, its not morning yet, why are you waking me up?" I tried to explain daylight savings one last time and finally gave up. She'll just have to wait another 6 months to try to figure it out, although I'm pretty sure the conversation will go the other way at that time. "Genevieve, go back to bed. It's only 6 AM."

Purim Interpretive Dancing

Sophie and Genevieve enjoyed dressing up in their costumes to celebrate Purim last night. Sophie went as Eeyore. Genevieve went as a cat queen (her idea, not mine). Both had a really good time as you can see from the pictures below. Sophie especially liked the singing.

Snowden

We got a little over a foot of snow on Monday. Thankfully someone called us a few days before to let us know it was coming. We would have been very surprised. Genevieve loved it. She had a snow day from school and got to go sledding with her Daddy. Sophie wanted to love it but couldn't walk because it was so deep. She would take one step, face plant, and then couldn't climb back out of it. She did not like this. Uncle Mark cleared a path in the snow by making a snow mountain. Sophie was then able to walk around and enjoy.

Break Me

A few weeks ago Genevieve was out of school for the whole week. I remember school breaks being the best thing in the world when I was younger. Now that I am a parent... not so much. So, I did what any sane person would do; I planned activities for every day so that she would be so busy that she couldn't annoy me, I mean, get bored. We had a cupcake decorating party. We went to the Children's Museum, Cradle of Aviation Museum, a Blue's Clues show, and the library (several times). Genevieve had a great time. I was exhausted and thankful when school started back.

First Ice Cream Cone

Sophie's first ice cream cone was a big hit. It was also a big mess.