No Boys Allowed!

I drove to Katy on Friday and returned on Monday. Sandwiched between those two days, was the Best Girls' Weekend Ever!

Saturday was nearly non-stop, from morning until late night. Kelsey, Clara and I went to the American Girl Store so Clara could buy pajamas for herself that matched her doll, Julie's, pajamas. Clara has been saving money for this major purchase since Christmas. She also had enough left over to buy a little watch for Julie. The only down side to this leg of the adventure was that Julie actually lost one of her shoes somewhere between the American Girl Store and the Panera restaurant, which was just next door and where we had lunch. We searched for it and checked out the lost and found at both establishments. No shoe was found.  :-(

The American Girl Store . . . as much fun for Clara as the Apple Store is for Grandpa!

Checking the length of the pajamas.

A cute little watch with two bands for Julie.

Out for lunch at Panera.

After lunch we headed to a strip mall with a collectibles shop that was chock-full of dollhouse furniture. The shop was closed when we arrived. There was a note on the door saying the proprietor would be back soon. "Soon" stretched into a 30 or 40 minute wait, but what we could see through the windows was sufficiently enticing to keep us there until she finally showed up.

Selecting only a few pieces turned out to be a difficult task, considering the wonderful inventory of miniatures. We ended up choosing wallpaper, a living room set, a wood-burning kitchen stove, an ice box, and a kitchen sink.

Making the purchase.

After a little rest at home, we got ready for our evening activities.

Ready to go!

For dinner, our first choice restaurant was too crowded, and the wait would have been too long, so we ended up eating at a Mongolian grill place. Then we headed to downtown Houston for the highlight of our day - The Wizard of Oz. Some street closures close to the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts made parking a little tricky, but we were early enough that it wasn't a problem.

Clara and Dorothy's ruby slippers.

Photo taken from our very good seats.

Kelsey and I agreed that the production might not have been as spectacular as some other musical stage performances we'd seen in the past, but it was well-performed and a lot of fun. Clara was enchanted the entire time. Oh, and the little dog who played Toto was amazing!

By the time the performance was over, it was late. It had been raining nearly all day long, and was still sprinkling. The tops of the Houston skyscrapers were shrouded with fog and mist.

Clara fell asleep on the way home, and Kelsey and I went to bed as soon as we got there. It was a day I'll always remember.

On Sunday, after church and lunch, we started decorating the first floor of the interior of the dollhouse. The first step was to prime the walls in preparation for putting up wallpaper. Clara was disappointed that we couldn't hang the paper that same day, but a sealer had to be applied to the paper, and it had to dry over-night before it could be used. 

Putting primer onto the divider walls.

When I left on Monday morning, the house was still waiting for the wallpaper. But since then, Kelsey has papered that bottom floor - the living room, kitchen and dining area (dining room table not yet purchased). She posted pictures on her blog, and it looks fantastic! Please take a look here to see the papered bottom floor with the furniture we bought on Saturday.

Even though this was a girls' weekend, Robert and I had some good quality time together, as well. Here's a picture of him with the little Grandma-gift I brought. He and Chris did some "boy things" on Saturday, which included seeing the movie Mr. Peabody & Sherman. Robert has become a Class A communicator. He carries on long and involved conversations, and uses impressive words and quirky expressions. What I love most is his never-ending supply of hugs!