Clara and Emma Visit DC

This morning, Clara and Emma headed downtown to DC on the Metro - a first! Grandpa Frome, Aunt Alyssa, Uncle Adam, Aunt Christina and Lucas came along too!

The gang got to see the "big pencil" aka the monument and the capitol. And, they loved visiting Mommy's museum, The Air and Space Museum (what Mommy thought was her museum as a kid). They loved seeing the rockets and planes.

Clara and Emma napped on the way home and actually slept for a long time- Clara for about an hour and Emma an hour and half, in the car parked in the driveway with Grandpa sitting in the car (thanks Grandpa).

Tonite's seder featured dipping their fingers in the wine for the plagues and sticking in after to get all the grape juice off their fingers (traditional in the Frome family). They also got to do the Elijah's cup and opened the door for him.

Passover Seder 2010

The morning started off early when Emma rolled off the bed- thankfully, Mommy had cushioned it with comforters, so aside from the "Mommy, I fell off the bed. Get me. I'm okay," and waking Clara up around 6:15 ish, everyone slept last night.

The gang helped make gefilte fish - squeezing the lemons was a hit for the kids. Playtime featured trucks and Max and Ruby. Emma insisted on wearing her  "lelli kelli" shoes and Clara had to wear her crocs (with rainbow socks, of course). Clara and Emma fell asleep around 11 am on the way to the mall, and took an hour nap. They enjoyed lunch with Grandpa and Mommy at Nordstrom Cafe. They absolutely loved running through the mall saying "you can't catch me." Clara paused at the lingerie section and said "bra, I need one." They both enjoyed walking through the store and seeing all the clothes for tots, as so many featured tutus. Emma said "I need to try this on." That was Grandpa's favorite Emma line of the day.

This afternoon, the kids enjoyed riding their cars in the basement before heading outside for some muddy play in the park.

The kids all got their own haggadahs- a combination of the one from Clara and Emma's nursery school and some pages from one that Ariella sent Mommy. And, they each got crayons to color it with- a huge hit for the ladies.

Seder highlights included Clara, Emma and Lucas loving their little wine cups that Mommy brought from the seder at Clara and Emma's school. Grape juice galore! And, they liked the blue wine bottle so much that Aunt Christina and Aunt Alyssa had to figure out a way to make it look like they were getting the wine from that bottle!

The plagues were a hit with the puppets- the new frog puppets each kid got and the plague finger puppets that Grandpa shared with the group.

Matzah and jelly seemed to go over well. Clara and Emma both liked the soup (thanks to the ice cubes for cooling it down fast).

Searching for the afikomen was fun and Clara, Emma and Lucas loved their new books- Frog and Toad (get it, a frog theme).

While officially the shortest seder on the Frome record in memory (or as long as Mommy can remember), it was fun!

Lucas and Emma were excited to take a bath and after some whining, Clara joined them and had a blast!

Clara and Emma cried and cried again when they were told they couldn't sleep in the same bed. Grandma stayed with them and they went to sleep fairly fast- and Mommy put them down much later. They were super tired and Mommy is hoping for another nite of sleep!

Preparing for Passover in Maryland

Today, Daddy left early in the morning to head back to New York.

Clara and Emma headed with the rest of the family to Aunt Beth's house for cousin Logan's naming. It was nice to see all of the family together. Clara and Emma enjoyed playing with all the music toys- especially the flute and pull cow and dog toys that were 40 years old!

As predicted, the ladies fell asleep on the way home, so Mommy drove around with Auntie Alyssa.

This afternoon, everyone enjoyed making charoset (a traditional passover food made of apples, nuts and wine). Clara liked putting the wine in and wanted more.

Mommy, Clara and Emma joined Aunt Christina and Uncle Adam and Lucas for a walk in the park. After swings and see saws, the gang ran up the hill where Uncle Adam taught everyone to say "I'm on top of the hill." And, they got to run down and then roll down the hill.

And, in true Frome tradition, tonight's meal was pizza! After dinner, Grandpa Frome led the ceremony where you search for chametz (bread products). Using a flashlight (Mommy and Aunt Christina nixed the candle for safety reasons), Clara, Emma and Lucas walked aroud looking for the bread.

The kids went to sleep in their own beds tonight with bed rails.