Fancy Nancy : On the town with Gracie

Gracie girl loves Fancy Nancy. The books, the accessories, the vocabulary - she loves it all. So we got tickets to the play and made a day of it.

We picked up our tickets and had a bit of time, so we went for sushi. Well, I had sushi, Grace had shrimp tempura and a great miso soup. We're not usually fans, but it was delicious. It had lotus root.

They had crafts at the theater where the kids could make themselves a tiara out of a paper plate, and there was a table where they sold all the Fancy Nancy fanciness. Grace just had to have the multi-colored tutu and sparkly sunglasses and feathered boa and...you get the idea.

She loved the play. It was fun and funny, and the kids were encouraged to dance and sing. She said it was a Fancy Nancy party. So cute.

The Giver :: On the town with Bayley

Whenever we can, we try to do things one-on-one with the kiddos. It's nice to get them alone, and they tend to be more talkative. Plus, you can do things they'd like and the others might not. The local children's theater had a production of The Giver, which Bayley read in school last year, so I thought taking in the play would be a great way to spend time together.

We got into town a bit early, so we walked over to Cacao where Bayley enjoyed his first drinking chocolate. No surprise that he loved it.

The play was great and afterwards I took him to Shigezo, my favorite Japanese restaurant downtown. He had his first bowl of traditional ramen, and even tried some of my sushi.

It's so nice to have him be old enough to appreciate experiences and be willing to expand his palate. I love this kid.

Monkey King

What better way to celebrate Chinese New Year than with a puppet theater performance of Monkey King. We hadn't been to Tear of Joy since they moved from downtown. I never know where I am once I cross the river. We found it easy enough, and the parking is free. That's always a perk in Portland.

They had puppet making in the lobby before the show, but Bayley and Hayden decided they were a little too old for that. One of the staff noticed them and came over to talk to them about the history of puppets in China. Who knew Communism dictated the puppets be larger so more people could see them? I really appreciated that.


The performance was very artistic, great for the boys but it didn't really hold Grace's attention. She was good though, just cuddled on my lap.

Since we were already over the river, I decided to try something fun for lunch -- food carts! We've seen them on TV, but Jeff's not into getting his food from a truck. But he was home, so we found one we'd been wanting to try - The Grilled Cheese Grill!

They make their fun grilled cheese sandwiches in an Airstream, but there is a double decker bus that you can sit in to eat. The boys went upstairs, where neither of them could stand up, and Grace stayed on the lower deck. We really enjoyed the novelty of it.

Grace had the Elvis -- grilled bananas, peanut butter and bacon. Hayden had the Cheesus -- a burger with grilled cheese sandwiches instead of a bun. Bayley made his own concoction -- All-American Double Decker with Bacon. Did I mention Hayden put bacon on his Cheesus? My kids love them some bacon!

Charlotte's Web

Hayden has always like the movie Charlotte's Web ever since he saw it in preschool. When I saw that Oregon Children's Theater was doing a production, I knew he had to see it live. He was so excited that he watched the movie the night before!

We arrived early because at OCT they always od a kids activity before a performance. This time, they had the kids list the qualities of a good friend and hang them on a web.

I expected something quaint and cute. And then, there were aerial silks! Charlotte used the silks!

I was so impressed and enthralled. The characters were great, and everything came together beautifully. But the highlight for me was that Hayden would lean over everything Charlotte would write something (using aerial acrobatics) and tell me what she was about to write. Adorable!

After the play we went for sushi. Hayden had never been to a sushi place without the conveyor belt, and he'd never had udon. He loved udon, but wasn't so sure about ordering sushi rolls he hadn't seen first. We did discover the best calamari either of us had ever had. So good!

Peter Pan

One of my resolutions this year is to have more one-on-one time with the kids. Especially the boys. I also want them to develop an appreciation for the arts, so I'm hoping to expose them to theater, music, maybe even dance.

The magazine I review for hooked us up with free tickets to Peter Pan. The showing was a little late for Gracie, and Bayley wasn't interested. Thank goodness Hayden is game for anything!

We made a night of it and went out for BBQ at Smokehouse 21. So delish! Hayden wasn't sure about trying a restaurant that doesn't advertise on TV, but he came around as soon as I said BBQ. The hogs head on the wall helped too.


Northwest Children's Theater did a great job with Peter Pan. It was just campy enough, and Smee made the show. Hayden loved that the kids got to fly.

After the show he was excited to chat with the actors. He asked Smee how much they ad-lib (a lot), Peter Pan if he was afraid to fly (no), and the actor who played Hook and Mr. Darling which character he liked best (Hook).

We had such a great time together. I'm excited to do it again!