We had a great day and a great outing today--and believe me, we were WAY overdue. During the week it has seemed to get harder and harder to get out of the house to explore someplace new. But things just went along well today... and things went clickity clack... things just snapping into place.
We left as soon as Phoebe woke up from her morning nap, planning on having lunch at our destination. Our destination was (drumroll please) the National Gallery--- ambitious, very ambitious. I had been there childless when my friend Leigh was in town, and they have a great exhibit going on right now called Manet to Picasso. It is a small and managable collection but chock full of some big famous works, and I thought it would be the perfect exhibit for the kids. When I was there earlier with Leigh, I picked up about 10 or so postcard of my favorite works from their outstanding Renaissance collection and from the exhibit we were headed to. Mary-Mae was really into the postcards... looking at them, painting them, coloring picture to look like them.. etc. A REALLY cool thing happened! We had FUN, real FUN at the museum. You need to "cut through" some of the Renaissance rooms to get to the wing where the exhibit was. My plan was to quickly go through and not overwhelm them and even look or talk about them... but Mary-Mae asked,
"Can we see the painting that you brought home on the postcards?"
.......UM YEAH!
We would walk into a room, and she would instantly recognize a work of art, and say "THERE!" and go over!!!
George as a whole, actually enjoys looking at art as he is more mellow, and will just occasionaly point to things and say "I LIKE that one, Thats cool. Do you like it?"
She did a really great "copy" of Jan Van Eyck's "Man with Red Turban", I said would you like to see the Man with the red turban. She nodded eagerly. We headed from the Italian rooms to the German, they have the Van Eycks in a small room that has one entrance/exhit.. so it tends to be a bit crowded and jumbled in there... but it was cool to see the crowd mobbed around The Arnolfini Portrait, and explain to here why they were all there. The crowd I think helped her to get that it was a big deal.
We headed to the exhibit, and at lunch we had talked about how we were going to pick out some of our favorite painting... I told them that some people like works because of thier colors, the subject, or the way they make you feel. When I was in college, I was OBSESSED with the drama and beauty of the Italian Renaissance, so feeling a biggie for me.... George and Mary-Mae both picked out ones they liked... big props to my Dad here.. AND to George for noticing the similarities, he thought the piece by Seurat called The Channel of Gravelines looked a lot like the painting my Dad was working on last summer.....

We ended up buying the brochure of the entire exhibit, some paper and some water colors, and have been painting this afternoon.

The weather was great today and after the gallery we headed out to trafalger square and let Phoebe and the kids run around in the sun, after that we headed home....

Click clack.. I LOVE days like this!

I am in LOVE. In love with a town called Henley.
We had a fantastic day today! We rode the train out to Henley which took about 45 minutes, and was a lovely train ride. Once we got there we walked over to the Rowing Museum, which was our main purpose of going. I mentioned before that they have a Wind in the Willows exhibit, and Gabe has been reading it to the kids. We are waiting in line, and I hear the museum lady say to the lovely family in front of us, whom I shall get back to in a minute, that the Wind in the WIllows exhibit is CLOSED. What?! Yikes!!! Turns out a bit of water ran throught the exhibit... blah blah, will be open soon. All of this is fine and dandy, a quick explanation to the kids that we will come back another day, and things are fine. NOW! That family we were waiting behind.. it was Liam Gallagher from Oasis! How fantastic is that!? Since I got here I have been wanting to see someone, someone famous and "Londony", to complete my London experience.. and there he was. The ironic thing is, I had to LEAVE London to see someone!
Anywho! The museum was totally fun, there was an interactive cox exhibit, that Mary-Mae loved. We then walked down the river, stopping to play on a playground. We walked to the center of town, and saw the Oxford Men's crew team running, which was cool. As, they were running in a line, all with their jackets on. The town itself, is just beautiful and charming, and LOTS of famalies about. We were able to go into a family friendly pub and have a pint, and then a bit of shopping, and then back on the train and back to London. By far, one of my favorite places.

Phoebe is ONE! What a day! I can't believe she is one..
We headed out to Kings Road today to walk and shop around for some birthday goodies, we followed the road up to Sloane Square going in shops here and there. Then we hopped on the tube and went to Notting Hill, and we walked up Portobello Road to The Hummingbird Bakery, and bought some of the best cupcakes ever! After that we actually walked all the way back to Kensington Gardens, and caught a bus back to Glouster Road. Came home and had tacos, and cupcakes. A pretty great day, laid back but fun..

Just to be clear.... "Anna" from yesterday was actually George dressed up in Mary-Mae's clothing..

That aside... Today was such a beautiful day.. the weather is BEAUTIFUL!!! We headed back up to Holland Park today! It seriously is so beautiful... I am looking forward to exploring more of it then we have seen so far.. but for now, we head right for the adventure playground. Now, one of the cool things, if you have been reading ... you know that this playground is geared for 5-15 year olds.. now at 12 on a Tuesday.. that group is usually in school, so we had the place to ourselves!! No queue on the zip line. the kids were in HEAVEN! It was so fun, and Phoebe is feeling so much better and is back to her happy self. Love it!

One crappy thing that has been going on is that our local food store, Sainsbury has been closed due to renovations... UGH! So I had to stop at the other chain, Waitrose up on Kensington High Street... and carry the groceries all the way home from there....
Funny thing.. when my friend Leigh was here, she is a bit of a Cliff CLaven.. chock full of facts. Said that there was a problem with people consuming "expired" products in th UK, and that they have special lables that change color...Guess what? I carried a huge gallon of Skimmed milk home to look at it, and say.. "Why is there a big red X on this?" It is EXPIRED! I know, I know... my mother is yelling at me right now as she is reading this. If there is one thing she has taught me, and believe me.. there are MANY things she has taught me.. But looking at expiration dates is one of her favorites..
SO.. down the drain the milk went, and an email to Gabe to pick some up.. and we are now ready for the cereal and coffee hour in the morning.

Right now, Gabe is reading the kids the "Wind in the Willows" book. We are headed to Henley this weekend to the Rowing Museum, and they are suppose to have this great interactive exhibit for kids about the book.

Say Hello to Anna. She has been living in our flat for the past 2 hours. She has the cutest little falsetto voice, when she introduced herself she explained that her "Mommy, Daddy, and baby were lost." Could she live her forever? I said yes, and she said, still using her falsetto voice, "Great. Only problem is.. I'm allergic to butter."

Oh, my lord.. we are all going a little stir crazy.. Phoebe has an awful cold, and we are trapped in doors......

Holland Park in London. Hands down the most fabulous park I have been to, EVER! I LOVED it! For those of you who have read the "Something Borrowed" and "Something Blue" books, it is the park that is Ethan's favorite. Well, I agree with Ethan! It is so beautiful, and it has all these windy little paths, and beautiful flower beds, and formal gardens, there is also a Kyoto garden.. wild rabbit running around, peacocks, and the mother of all...an Adventure Playground. This is a playground with equipment geared to 5-15 year olds.. zip lines, simulated skateboards, spinning things, twisty things, you name it, and the kids loved it, and so did we! It was so fun to see the kids doing all this crazy stuff- and Gabe even got in on the tarzan rope action!!! All the spring bulbs are blooming in the parks, and the window boxes, and you can spell the hyacinths, and with that scent I feel spring, and the time of our departure from here coming. With the weather changing we are getting to enjoy the city in a new way, and I can already feel how much I am going to miss it. It will be good to be home... but we will miss it.

Yesterday, Mary-Mae turned 6! Wow! I always like to look at the pictures we have on our computer of when she was born, and think back to what I can remember of that day and moment. The thing that always sticks out, and I don't think I will ever forget is the moment she was born and they put her on me. I was struck and surprised by how warm and alive she was. Like most first time moms, during pregnancy I watched endless hours of TLC Birth Stories, and was pretty much prepared for the visual of how everythng was going to happen. But nothing had prepared me for how the warm, living, breathing body was going to feel against my skin. I remember it took my breath away, and I started to sob, because with the wieght of this little baby on me made me realize that there was now another person in the world, and I was her Mom.
Six years, seems like a lifetime ago in a way, but yet I can't believe she is half way to 12!!! YIKES!

We celebrated by going out to lunch and then to the Toy store where some wonderful toys and books were picked out. A quick tube ride home, and we broke into the toys, and played! Last night we had chinese for dinner, which is now her new favorite cuisine.

With the festivities behind me, I can now prepare for next week, when Phoebe turns 1!

My how the time flies.

Hip, Hip, I got a new camera! HOORAY!!! Finally-- I have been out one for so long, ours broke.... and now.. I am snapping away! We went down to the "City of London" where Gabe's office is this afternoon, picked up a new camera, and then had lunch with him. We ate at a place called Fuzzy's Grub, which makes wonderful sandwhiches and salads. Technically we didn't eat there, we got it to go and went to the Lane Powell office here in London, and we ate lunch with Gill who is their secretary here, and she is just such a lovely woman. She hid chocolate eggs around the office, and after lunch the kids had an easter egg hunt. Needless to say, they can't wait for our next visit down there to the office!

Let's see what else is new? Yesterday we went to the Natural History Museum, and I coughed up the admission fee into the "Dino Jaws" exhibit. The museum itself is free, and we have been there so much... I think we were all looking for something to do. George spent the entire time scrunched into the basket of the stroller he was so scared. Wish I had the camera yesterday-- that was a sight to see. We practically needed the jaws of life to remove him. Mary-Mae liked it, and I though it was pretty cool. They had huge robotic replicas... complete with growling, tail swooshing, eye blinking...

My other new british hobby is Nigella Lawson, from the show Nigella Bites. Being a Londoner herself, it seems the city is quite taken with her.. not only her cooking, but her wit and charm. So, far I have bought her Feast and her How to Eat cookbooks. All the measurments are in kg, ml, g, etc.. which is great for her.. but I am going to go mad at home. I am trying to pick out recipes without too many ingrediants.. as I don't want to stockpile the kitchen with a bunch of ingrediants when we are leaving in 7 weeks!!! Can you believe it? We most likely are leaving around May 17. Back to Nigella, everything I have made is yum yummy...

stay tune for some fabulous pictures from our new camera!

Last night, I had a wonderful evening! My friend Leigh, who is here visiting treated us treated me and her to the show Mary Poppins. Gabe stayed home with the kids, and we were able to get out the door in time to grab a quick drink and snack at a bar across the street from the Theather. I can't tell you how lovely it was to be in a bar. It was dark, and full of adults all dressed nicely, and I got to have a drink and an adult conversation. Even better then that was the show. It was SO wonderful.... did I mention we were sitting 8th row center. WOW! It was fantastic! The sets were amazing, absolutley AMAZING, and the actors, costumes..I loved it all. The highlight was the "supercalifrgilisticexpialidocious" song and dance---- ahhhhhh, I loved it so much, I cried. Seriously!! It was so fun.

It was also fun to watch the little girl and boy who played Jane and Michael Banks. They were so good, and their little relationship just made me think of George and Mary-Mae. I have enjoyed so much watching them grow up and be friends. This whole experience has just made them closer... and that is so sweet to see. The other day we were walking in Kensington Gardens, and they were running and chasing each other, and George was being his goofy self, and making Mary-Mae laugh.. and this went on for some time, until finally Mary-Mae draped her arm around his shoulder and fell into him laughing, his response was to lace his arm around her waist and the walked like that the rest of the way. Walking right in front of me, fitting perfectly together... brother and sister. It made my heart flutter, and I wished I had a camera..

Yesterday we took the bus to Battersea. It is just over the Thames, and it was a really nice area. They have a park there, Battersea Park which is where we were headed. Inside the park is a Children's zoo, that we wanted to check out. It was a little less then thrilling. It was more of a petting zoo, which maybe I am a bad Mom, but they kinda just gross me out.... Gerbils, chickens, goats... you name it... There was a playground in the zoo, which was fun and kids had a great time on. Phoebe loves to go the swing, and it is just adorable, and the kids go nuts watching her... and then they fight over who's turn it is to ride down the slide with her.
The park itself was really pretty, and I loved that it was right on the water, and riding the bus is always an adventure, and a dissapointment to Mary-Mae when I say, "No, we can't sit up top...I can't carry Phoebe AND the stroller up the stairs." She never stops asking, everytime.. she thinks MAY-BE she grew an extra set of arms last night and can do it!!!

This morning we are hanging about the flat waiting to go meet Leigh at the Tube stop.

My friend Leigh was suppose to arrive today, but slipped under our door was note saying she would arrive tomorrow. Thinking she got some amazing "bump" offer at the airport she chose to delay her travel. Checked my email, and turns out she MISSED her flight.... knowing Leigh like I do... this was a very traumatic experience for her. We will all have to be extra nice when she gets here. I promise not to let George attack her with his Tower of London sword, and yoda light saber at the same time.

Speaking of George.. so last weekend we went to Hamley's which is this HUGE 7 story toy store. We decide before we go in, which by the way we had to "queue in line" to do. We would let each of the kids pick something out. Before we even get in the store George decides he wants a Ben 10 watch. Ben 10 is this super hero kid that uses his watch to turn into differnt things. We go to the boy section, he finds the Ben 10 section, and grabs to watch and does his little "woohoo" dance. DOwn to the girl floor, Mary-Mae agonizes for 20 minutes "WHAT TO CHOOSE?"... alot of , "ooooh, if only I could choose 2 things..." later she decides on a Barbie Diaries diary. We then spot Gabe and George headed twords us.
"George would now like the Hungry Hungry Hippos Game. I had to explain to him that the watch was not actually going to turn him into things."
.....bless his little heart. He was standing there holding this watch that he was so excited for.. now looking like.. "what is this crap?" what is the point.... I think his optimistic dreamer ways are going to lead to lots of dissapointments like that---But lucky me, now I have 36 little white marbles to try and keep off the floor and out of Phoebe's mouth.

Word on the street is my computer comes home tomorrow!!! Oh-My-God- I am so excited... I cannot tell you.
We had a pretty great weekend. Yesterday Gabe took the kids to a recreational center, where they went swimming in a pool, with a wave machine, and had a fantastic time. Phoebe and I hung out, with plans to go out and about, but with the quiet flat.. Phoebe decided to sleep the whole time. So, I had a lot of down time.. took a lingering shower, and put in some good Nintendo Gameboy Advance time. SOme how I have become addicted to Super Mario WOrld. Good news is, I almost have it beat, and then I can stop.
Today we all headed to to Regent Street and Carnaby Street, for some walking and SHOPPING! It was a nice day and we had a great time walking around, and we all came home with a goody or two!

In other news I am currently OBSESSED with Marks and Spencer (M&S) SImply Foods. It is the most amazing store with fresh pre made ready meals... everything is so yummy and pretty. I no longer even obsess about the fact that my fruit cup cost two and half pounds.. I buy it and LOVE it.

Looking ahead, my friend Leigh arrives on Thursday, and I am excited excited excited!!!

I adore London, I love being over here and having this incredible opportunity! I love living in this fabulous neighborhood, and being able to walk to all these fabulous places. I love living in a hotel, and feeling like I get to start everyday fresh. Fresh towels, fresh sheets, yesterdays garbage gone. It is like a new day, everyday, a fresh beginning. I love it all.... yet today I was hit with the biggest most sudden pang of homesickness. The kind that makes you feel like you have a hole in your gut. The feeling like, you are floating in some sort or never never land, and there is nothing to tether you down and connect you... no schedule, no commitments, no home, and worst of all.. no friends and family!
My parents and sister and niece were here and we had such a wonderful time, and then they left yesterday, and then my dear friend Sally called today, and just the glimpse of my family and friend and such a short span, left me wanting more!!!!
boo hoo boo hoo...

ok,that's enough feeling sorry for myself...

Some great highlights of my family being here were... riding the London Eye, boat ride up the Thames, lots of great walks around the city...

The kids and I went to the Natural History Museum and saw this great talk on .the Chinese New Year and learned about the Chinese Zodiac, Gabe and I are both Rats, MM is snake, George is Horse and Miss Phoebe is a Dog.. totally fun!

Happy Valentines to everyone! I must admit, it is a little strange to have not been up last night making out all our little Valentines for the kids to take to school today, and the excitment of the party at school. The past couple years Valentines has become a busy day!
Gabe returned from NYC yesterday, all is well.
The kids and I are going to venture out for some Valentine goodies to share! It is pouring rain, but hopefully that will let up. The weather is a lot like Seattle in that it changes.

Phoebe can walk! We had a great day yesterday! We were lucky to be invited to some people Gabe works with, house in the country. The house was huge and beautiful, they had 22 mo old triplets, and an 11 year old girl, that plus 2 fantastic playrooms...I think the kids had the best day they have had since arriving! We all did. It was so nice to have other adults to talk to, and everyone was lovely and dinner was fantastic. ...and while we were there, Phoebe walked for the first time. A pretty great day!
Gabe has off and left for NYC this morning... so we are hoping the weather holds up and no travel delays are incurred!

Today it is a wet, freezing rainy day. UGH- it is going to be a challenging one. The one motivation, other then WANTING to experience this cool city, for getting out everyday is the reality that 3 kids and a mom DO not mix so well in a hotel apartment. The kids get a little loud and crazy, playing some game that involves Mary-Mae being the Mom and George being a frog. Phoebe just gets all around fussy and bored...oh well. I can't complain, the weather for the most part has been fantastic.
A funny thing that has occurred is Mary-Mae has made quick friends with the hotel desk staff and manager. SHe often will run up there to tell them something, ask for something, etc. She loves it, and they seem to love her. Gabe coming home from work the other night, walked in to see her behind the desk...she is our little Eloise.
My new obsession is PerezHilton.com. I still don't have my computer back or my email... and I miss my email so much--- that I have re directed all my energy into checking perzhilton every 10 minutes. Also, love the London newspaper. They publish births everyday, and list the brother and sisters names. I love reading names. In case you were wondering.. Amelia, Isabelle, and Lucy seem to be the girl faves. Alfie, William and James top the boys. Also Cosmo and Cosomina make more appearances then you would think....
Another side note...we stopped in this little gourmet market yesterday on the way home from the park to get some bread. They had a whole "import" section of American food.....Lucky charms, marsh mellows, oreos, fruit loops... all the hits.. the real piece de resistance for Mary-Mae, who was squealing at this point of the excitement was the box of Nilla wafers. I almost said yes, until I looked at the price 5 pounds... that is TEN DOLLARS!!!! No way, little girl.

This whole being alone with my kids for pretty much 24/7 has given me much reflection time. I am so amazed at how my babies are changing. Mary-Mae is this being, that I don't even know where she came from. I stare at her sometimes when she isn't looking, and just search, search for that little baby she use to be. I remember all the events so clearly, her being born, her starting to walk, her first birthday, her getting sick, her learning to re-walk. But sometimes I can't find the baby that all that stuff happened with inside this GIRL in front of me. She is becoming her own, and I catch more glimpses of the future with her then I do the past. I guess that is because she is my first born, and my trailblazer, and she is always moving forward at 100 MPH! She LOVES being in London and having a list of activities to choose from daily. Her energy never fails, I love that about her. SHe keeps me going.

Today we went to the DIana Playground, the kids rode their scooters, and the sun was warm but the air was cold when we were in the shade. We had a nice time, and then walked, rode scooters all the way back! George passed out when we got home, and took a nap. I know I will be paying for that later tonight as I struggle to get him to bed. Unlike Mary-Mae he, I think, is tiring of all the activity of being here. He prefers a nice balance of fun and down time. Heavy on the downtime!
Both kids are getting homesick. Which is tough, because it stirs up a whole range of emotions.

Tomorrow we are suppose to get snow, snow, snow! YIKES.
Gabe leaves for NYC on SUnday morning, and will be back on Tuesday. Kinda strange, that I will be alone in another country...... but not a big deal I guess in the scheme of things.

oooh, I have discovered Project Catwalk with is London's answer to Project Runway. It is hosted by Kelley Osborne, who interestingly enough is EXTREMELY popular over here. You get on the tube at any time of day and there is usually a gaggle of girls ... anyone could be a stand in for her.

In all my confusion of no computer and not blogging for that week or so, I totally forgot to mention that one night when I came out of the food store, I saw Prince Charles drive by!!! Gotta tell ya.. pretty exciting... I LOVE stuff like that-- and am an AVID Royal watcher. When I was little, I watched both weddings for Charles and Diana and Andrew and Sarah Ferguson. I remember writing letters to them and telling them how pretty I thought their weddings were. AND they wrote BACK! Well.. I am sure one of their aids wrote back. Anyways.. it was pretty exciting, I came out, and the intersection was blocked off and everyone on the street had stopped walking and was just standing there, and so I said. "what's going on?" ...and this guy looked at me like I had 8 heads a pointed..."It's Prince Charles!"

Every once and awhile.. I am caught by the overwhelming fact of just how much HANDS on parenting I am doing over here...I miss my Mom's night out.. and my coffee with friends during school hours... and school!!! I try not to think about it too much-- because it makes me tired and overwhelmed. But, it is short lived and I am trying to enjoy and embrace this unique opportunity!This morning, I was dragging at the thought of getting all 4 of us ready and out the door, and then off to do whatever... but I dragged us all out, packed the diaper bag, and headed to the Lobby. Like an angel the manager, who is lovely, says "Your children are so lucky that you get out with them everyday. It must be a lot of work."
....ahhhh , just a simple pat on the back made me feel re energized!!! We went to the Victoria and Albert Museum today. It is filled with lots of beautiful and historical objects. The kids were interested in the British section, there was a whole section of tea time and dress back in the 1700's and that all reminded Mary-Mae of the American Girl Felicity, and so she like looking at all of that. George LOVED the suits of armor.
We are looking SO forwarded to our visit from my parents and sister and Miss Lainie is a week! Other then that... all is well!

Aside from the bird flu outbreak, and the letter bombs, we are still making out brilliantly here in London.
We had a nice weekend, on Saturday we all headed over to Marylebone to walk around the neighborhood. They have some fantastic shops, among my favorites was Cath Kidston, whom I adore, and have always wanted to go into one of her shops. So many beautiful things, and yet the terrible exchange rate always provides a damper and curbs my spending. I guess that is a good thing. So after some shops and a coffee and treat for the kiddos at a sidewalk cafe, the weather was SO nice this weekend, we walked over to Regents Park. I thought this park was so beautiful. The weather was fantastic and we just enjoyed a stroll through it as we made our way to the children's playground, which was a huge hit!
On Sunday, Mary-Mae and I made it out on our own to explore Covent Gardens. This was a really fun walk around because it is in an old fruit and veg market and there is just lots of space and stores everywhere, we got totally disoriented and lost walking around this area.. but found our way to a tube stop and made it home.

Today we are just taking it easy, as I am finding myself totally getting tired... I definitely need to find some sort of adult interaction during the day... aggh! We went to a little park close by, and there was one grandma and little girl there. Well turns out the grandma was from NJ and her friends have a summer place in Brigantine.. we had lots to chat about, and I was sad when she was like "OK, we have to go."
I was like please don't! Talk to me for a little while.. it is nice to talk to someone who isn't littering there conversation with demands for snack, drinks...etc.
Oh, well, we are back at the flat now, and the kids are watching Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I am enjoying the quiet!

I still do not have my computer, and am going CRAZY, loco, insane!! My apologies to all have emailed me, I have not had access to my email in weeks.. I am neither ignoring you or dead. I am posting this on Gabe's computer, which I hate using... but have wanted to post an update! Hopefully people are still reading... after not posting in a while..

We have been keeping really busy and have also settled into a nice routine. Our mornings are relaxing, and slow paced. When Phoebe goes down for her morning nap around 9:30, we sit down and do "school" and then when she wakes, we have lunch, and take off on an adventure!
Our favorite discovery has been the Science Museum which we have been to several times, and the kids just LOVE it. They are currently having a video game exhibit, where they basically have every game and gaming consoles of all time set up to play. George was mesmerized, and wants to go back every day. Mary-Mae was bored... ahhhh, the joys of personalities.
Also, we have become somewhat experts of the tube, and I LOVE it! SO easy to get around. Last weekend we made it out to the Children's museum with Gabe and that was really fun, and they were having a cool Miffy exhibit.

Today the kids and I took off for the Tate Museum of Modern Art. Which was ambitious and tough for me... my heart would skip a beat as we would walk into a room filled with Picasso works, quickly my eyes would scan the room eager to look at everything, and then my heart would drop and I would be pulled back to reality... I was in a museum with 3 young kids... looking at all the art.. not gonna happen. Oh, well.... someday!!! we did it at the kids pace.. (quickly) and I try to find something to slow them down. I taught them about the piece description found next to the art and showed them how to find the artist name, birthplace, name of piece and what it is made of and when. They thought that was neat. George in particular was curious about where the people were from and what it was made of. Mary-Mae was interested in the theatrical shock value art. No surprise there!

We are still LOVING LONDON! The weather the has been lovely and we have been going to some parks, and getting lots of outside time. On one of these visits Mary-Mae and George raced to the black iron gate when we were leaving, and Mary-Mae tripped and a black iron spoke cut open her chin! Poor thing, luckily no stiches. Also on bad news, poor Miss Phoebe is getting a moutful of teeth, and has been not very happy or sleeping well.