Candler Park, June 10, 2009

Breakfast in the house. Got the girls dressed, suncreened and ready. We dropped Gudrun off at her North Decatur office then returned to Starbucks for coffee and snacks. Emory village Starbucks, where I will one day earn the coveted gold card. The girls shared a doughnut but Elise wasn't crazy about it. They are still in banana bread withdrawal. They don't have it here. I, too, am suffering. But we soldier on. They sat in their favourite spot. The big leather armchairs. They were very proud of themselves to be in these comfy chairs. It is a rare occasion they are free. These are prime seats for the Emory students and faculty that make up most of the customers here. They shot us nasty looks and went sit on the rock-hard wooden chairs, setting up their cool sticker-covered MAC notebooks. Soon the "numb bum" set in as they pretended to work but actually just whiled away time on facebook. Maybe they weren't really pretending to work. Meanwhile, Georgie and Elise had the time of their lives, drunk on sugar and leather upholstery. I sat at the next table and pretended they weren't with me. I tried to read the paper but my cover was blown when Elise asked for more treats.

We left the Emory crowd to their Twitter feeds and drove down lovely Clifton Road to Candler Park and the playground. A great morning of playing. Not too busy. We walked down to the golf course. Georgie wanted to know exactly where you hit the ball to and from. Then we climbed (both girls up the cargo net), swung, slid, teetered, tottered, and ran around until all the fun that was there to be had was had. Georgie really warmed up to the place. We also played hide and seek. (Elise now directs the game by saying, "Say one two free!") We stopped for a snack of cantaloupe and rice crispy bars. Both girls were hot and sweaty, as was I. It was 85 and humid.

Next was a shopping trip to Publix. They rode in the cart made to look like a car. They each had a seat and a steering wheel but still fight over personal space.

After lunch Georgie and I watched her "Melody movie" She enjoyed seeing it on the big screen. I liked sitting next to her on the couch. She always likes it when we watch with her.

We ended the day with a trip to the Eagle for a swim. The pool was closed for a while due to lightning but eventually they 'released the hounds' and all the parents and kids stampeded into the compound. It rained. I had Georgie and Gudrun had Elise. They had a great time in their inner tubes. The pool is quite warm but not as warm as it will be in a few weeks.