I can’t forget about Avery, who was also all smiles about her camp experience. (And notice who’s carrying the panda lunchbox now…)

-M

A bittersweet week for Zoe, as she said good-bye to two of her girlfriends…

-M

Today was Zoe’s last day of camp and, hence, the JCC. Drop-off and pick-up weren’t quite as difficult as I had imagined, but I’ve still had a lump in my throat most of the day. (And I did get teary when Zoe bear-hugged her beloved teacher, Erica, just before we left.) If you’re wondering why I’m so emotional over a preschool, it’s because Zoe has spent more than half her life there, and we’ve made lifelong friends and memories along the way. We basically handed the school our baby:

…and got this in return:

Just. Wow.

-M

Avery, as I’ve mentioned here many times, always keeps us on our toes – usually while laughing. She’s bubbly and wild and naughty and funny; not a day goes by that Q and I don’t look at each other and smile or shake our heads at her latest antics, facial expressions or sayings. (Some examples: her body-slamming of Zoe, who was innocently standing on a stool in our room, one day; her dramatic pouty face when Q told her to put her dishes in the sink the other night; her recent loud performance of a made-up song about roosters – while sitting on the toilet; her telling me almost daily these days, “I love you so much, Mama”). I chronicle her behavior and life here on the blog, but somehow it doesn’t feel enough: It’s like she has such a bright, big personality that it’s difficult to keep up with her and impossible to capture her essence on paper (er, computer).

And something else: While I used to feel guilty about Avery being the youngest and always on the sidelines, I’ve been thinking lately that perhaps it was Zoe – or more accurately, me and Q – who missed out on things because of her sibling. I absolutely do not remember Zoe being this funny and adorable at age 3 years, 1 month – but I’m sure she was. I imagine we were so busy caring for and cooing over Avery (and understandably so!) that we perhaps didn’t absorb as much of Zoe’s three-year-old wonderfulness as we otherwise would have. In the big scheme of things it doesn’t matter that much – we didn’t really know what we were missing, and Zoe was just happy being a big sister – but it’s something to think about. And it’s another reason I’ll continue to try to soak in the girls’ specialness now.

-M

I’m somewhat girlie. I like pink and ruffles, and I don’t think it’s a sign of weakness for parents to put their daughters in frilly dresses or to have them play with pink toys - two things that I do. But I have to admit that I swelled up with pride when Zoe wore her new, grey Star Wars shirt for the first time. We bought it earlier this summer (in the boys department), and I haven’t seen her this excited about a piece of clothing since her, ahem, pink cowboy boots.

Zoe marched happily into camp that day (and promptly told her buddy Lev that he should wear his Star Wars shirt the next day), and I loved that there was no weirdness about gender roles (i.e. Star Wars is “for boys”), no worries that someone might poke fun of her, no emotional baggage. She wore it with nothing but pride. And she’ll likely carry her Darth Vader lunchbox, which I bought for her first day of kindergarten, the same way too.

You go, girl.

-M

We had a pretty mellow past weekend (a nice change), with the highlights being some back-to-school shopping at the mall and the girls getting their faces painted at Trader Joe’s. Avery’s dog tongue rubbed off quickly, thanks to an ice-cream sample, but it was cute while it lasted!

-M

Zoe has been saying “Oh my goodness” a lot lately. Q heard me say it over the weekend and commented, “So that’s where she gets it from!” Indeed, the girls occasionally sound like Mini-Michelles - which is fun and flattering, but also a little frightening. Some other examples:

• Zoe saying of her sister’s behavior one afternoon: “That is unacceptable!”
• Avery reminding Zoe at dinner: “Dinner isn’t for playing, Zoe, it’s for eating.”
• Zoe saying over the weekend that she wanted to rest with me and get “comfy-cozy.”
• Zoe telling me at the beach last weekend, in response to my asking her to pose for a photo: “I can’t right now. I have too much to do.” (That’s the frightening one.)

And I had to laugh the other day when both girls finished a sentence for me. After taking a bite of something particularly tasty, I said,  “Holy -” and the girls cried out “Cannoli!” in unison. (Yes – that’s a favorite phrase of me. I blame Angela!)

-M

You may remember that when Zoe was younger she took classes (first Little Learners, then Animal Adventures) at the zoo. Now it’s Avery’s turn: She and her dad have taken two classes this summer and will certainly sign up for more.

(And a funny side note: The teacher, Suzanne, keeps telling Q how freaky it is how much Zoe and Avery look alike. She thinks Avery is a spitting image of Zoe at that age.)

-M

Shared this on Facebook, too, but couldn’t resist recording it here. I was on the elliptical this morning when Zoe came down to check on me. (Our machine is in the garage, and the girls typically visit me several times when I’m down there.) Zoe agreed to get me some water and headed upstairs; a few minutes later she innocently called down, “Mommy, can I bring down a croissant for you, too?”

(So sweet!)

-M

Avery came home from camp yesterday with her hair up – a look that I love. (She won’t let me do her hair, but she has always cooperated for her teachers and Elena.) She looks like such a big girl now!

-M

The four of us have been watching quite a bit of the Olympics (swimming is Zoe’s favorite), and there was much excitement leading up to the games. Last Friday, the girls’ camp had an Olympic-themed fair – and to start things off they took an “airplane” to London. Below is Zoe’s passport.

-M

The other day at camp, another mom saw Zoe and said to me, “Your older daughter looks so grown-up!” Zoe was standing in line with her campmates; indeed she towered over most of them.

The truth is that Zoe looks (and acts!) really big to me, too, and there have been times I’ve felt guilty about keeping her at the preschool for camp this summer. Most of the kids there are three or four; only a handful are kindergarteners-to-be like Zoe. And despite her special designation of junior camp counselor, I wondered if perhaps she would be happier at a camp with older children.

Q thinks I’m silly for thinking this, and as the end of camp rapidly approaches, I’ve concluded that he’s right. Aside from the convenience factor, there are some real benefits of Zoe being there: She has gotten to spend all summer with her sister (though in separate groups in the morning, they play together in the afternoon), and helping out the younger kids in her counselor role has to be good for her confidence and independence. (The teachers report that she loves being their helper.) Plus I know she’s having fun: Whenever I pick her up lately, she runs up to me and says, “Fifteen more minutes, Mommy! I need 15 more minutes to play.”

Perhaps most importantly though, Zoe will soon be a very small fish in a large pond. Why not keep her in the safe warm cocooon of preschool – where she has (literally) been the big girl on campus – for as long as we can?

-M