Rain, rain

It's raining. It's pouring. The old man is snoring....

Rain, rain, go away. Come again some other day. We want to play! And Mommy won't let us go outside if it's cold and raining! Mommy says I (Belle) have to be more careful when I go out because I had an allergic reaction to grass (or something outside) after I rolled down our hill Friday. I had a bad rash and my eye swelled real big on Saturday. I sneezed a lot and was just down right miserable.

Daddy bought some special lotion for me to stop the itching. He put it on my rash after I had a bath Sunday night. But my legs still itched. So I climed up on my changing table, opened the tube of cream and smeared it all over both of my legs. I couldn't figure out how to get back down from the changing table though, so I had to yell for Mommy to come and get me. Daddy was pretty angry with me for making a mess and climbing up there. He said I could have fallen and broken another bone. I think Mommy was snickering under her breath, but she told me not to do it again and to ask for help next time!

Circus & a birthday party

Grandpa turns 55 tomorrow. We're happy that we were able to celebrate his birthday with him this weekend with a trip to the circus. Belle enjoyed the elephants and the tigers. I especially liked the trapeze artists. And who could resist all the great food? Sno-cones and popcorn. Mmm. Mommy, Aunt Sara and Belle showed off their sno-cone tongues. The elephants were amazing at how they can stand on their noses. The small dogs that jump and do turns were pretty funny as well. At times, we were scared at the trapeze artists would fall. Belle kept saying he's going to fall, Mommy. I think she actually got scared a bit.

Later we celebrated Grandpa's birthday with a special dinner at Soho's and of course I had to ham it up a bit!

It was so much fun to see Grandma, Grandpa and Aunt Sara. Aunt Sara was so much fun. She taught us how to roll down the hill. I then helped clean up by brushing the grass of her back. I'm helpful that way!

New Heights

Purpose in Play

Another fascinating lesson I (Rachelle) learned while visiting San Diego is the importance of play. I'll wait while you finish laughing. Yes, I know that you find it difficult for me -- the girl who was born an adult -- to truly appreciate play. I have to admit that I cringed when this wonderful speaker, Kevin Carroll, told us -- an audience of more than 500 fundraisers -- that we need to learn how to play! But play is essential to our creativity, energy and enthusiasm for life. Play taught Mr. Carroll to never give up on his dreams.

Mr. Carroll's love for play (and sports in particular) led to a successful career in the NBA, at Nike and now as an author and speaker who travels the world. During his presentation, Mr. Carroll presented to us various soccer balls he has collected from around the world. They were pathetic -- a ball of grocery bags held together with string or threads of rubber from an old tire. He traveled the world, promoting play and took with him new soccer balls to give to children in third world countries who were thrilled to play soccer with a bundle of grocery bags!

The lesson to take away from Kevin Carroll's speech (and his book The Rules of the Red Rubber Ball -- hence the photo) is this: Each day find time to play. Play to you may mean planting some flowers, or riding a bike, or going for a run. And so whether your play is taking your first turn down a slide (Lilly) or swinging upside down (Belle), take time to play each day.

To learn more about Mr. Carroll (also known as littlefastkid) and/or receive more of his insights visit: http://www.katalystatlarge.com/

A lesson in motherhood from Jane Goodall

Until I decide to create my own blog, I'm going to share with Belle & Lilly.

It's funny how life lessons are presented to you in the strangest places. Many of you know that I recently attended a fundraising conference in San Diego, California. Dr. Jane Goodall (yes, the one who studied chimpanzees) was a plenary session speaker. While the conference's focus was on fundraising, Ms. Goodall shared her life story with us. And rather than picking up new ideas for how to ask for money from Jane, I learned a lesson in motherhood.

See, Jane shared stories about where her childhood and how her mother is the reason why she is where she is today. As a young girl, poor and living in the country in England, Jane loved to play outside. One evening, she brought four earthworms with her to bed. Did her mother go balistic when she discovered Slimey and his friends were camping out with Jane for the night? No! She didn't strip the bed, throw the sheets in the wash and all the while fuming about the mess. Jane's mother simply explained to her that if she kept the earthworms with her in bed they would die because they needed the soil to live. So Jane toddled back downstairs, outside to deposit her friends back into the garden.

Jump ahead a couple of decades, Jane's mother encouraged her to save her money to make her first trip to Africa to study the chimpanzees and when the British government said they wouldn't let Jane sit out in the jungle to study chimps without an escort her mother gladly volunteered to join her for four months in the African jungle.

Now I'm not jumping at the chance to sit in the woods and study deer poopies (as Belle likes to refer to them) but I realized one important lesson that day. Rather than squashing my daughter's natural curiosities, I could encourage them. I could not jump off the deep end when she wants to jump into a mud puddle or collect caterpillars in her jacket pocket. I could, instead, jump in that puddle with her and help her identify which type of caterpillar she has found. Who knows? Maybe one day, she will become a Jane Goodall.

(to learn more about Dr. Goodall's work today, visit http://www.rootsandshoots.org/)