Make-A-Wish 2008

The SHAPE community held its annual Make-A-Wish 24-hour fun run. There were 60 teams from various on-base organizations, national teams, and just "out to support the cause" teams. Things kicked off at 3pm Friday and went for 24 hours. We attended the first day's activities to cheer on the teams and see friends. The girls got their faces painted. Tori wanted to be Darth Maul and Emilie a Puppy Dog. Tori didn't realize why babies were crying when she went up to them. Of course Darth Maul scares her when watching Star Wars but it was a way that she could get the most face paint on herself. Emilie went up to a man and asked if she could run with his baton. He thought that she would just do a lap or two and then give it back. Well as she kept going and going and going and going he just said that she could keep it up. His team hadn't materialized the way it was supposed to and she was just doing her best. So after 2 hours straight of running (with only brief walking intervals) we figure she ran over 5 miles. So to say that she was a little pooped out in the end is an understatement. After that we hung out with close friends of ours and listened to Task Force 8 (the base Jazz octet). Then it was off to bed so that we could get up early for our time slot. Ed was running for "Team Sacked" from 7am to 8am. Well off he ran. His goal was to reach 7 miles in the hour. Buffy, Em and Tori all accompanied him at various stages and set up a cheering section. After the run we all just hung out and socialized with friends. Ed surpassed his goal and completed 7.9 miles in the hour. Overall it was a great couple of days supporting a really great cause. We'll see how we all did as a community when they tally the laps run and see how far from SHAPE we would have run. When we left we were approaching the Taj Mahal.

Double Tooth Fairy Visit

The last two days saw both girls loose teeth, a first for us here in Belgium. First Emilie had two loose teeth (front top incisors) for a week or so. The right hand one fell out two days ago. She wanted to show her classmates so she didn't put the tooth under her pillow that first night. After showing her class the next day she then put the tooth under the pillow in the hopes that the Tooth Fairy would arrive to exchange it for money. So we all went to bed last night wishing for the Tooth Fairy. At around 3:45 am, I repeat 3:45 AM Tori somehow lost her first tooth (front lower right middle). She had been wiggling it for the past three or four days. So miraculously at 3:45 am it fell out (I'm still waiting for the truth on that one). Now it was the mad scramble to find something to put it in to place under her pillow. Once accomplished she was tucked back in. She was still awake an hour later when she was told to go back to sleep. She finally did. At 6 am she noticed that the Tooth Fairy had in fact visited our home and wanted to wake Daddy up and tell him about it. Buffy cut her off at the foot of the bed and directed her not to wake Daddy this early in the morning (as if the 3:45 am wasn't early enough). Well unbeknownst to Mommy and Daddy, Emilie had written the Tooth Fairy asking her to wake her up and that way they could be best friends. So the busy Tooth Fairy took time to write a quick note to both Em and Tori saying congratulations and that they were indeed friends. This made two little girls' smiles light up. So overall the Tooth Fairy had visited and both girls received coins for their teeth and a personalized note. What a wonderful way to wake up.

Faire du Cheval

Since the beginning of 2008 the girls have been learning to ride horses. There is a local farm in Chievres that teaches English riding. Both Em and Tori love going riding and have really improved a lot over the past four months. Their instructor Flo can speak fairly good English and does both French and English during our girls' lessons. So they get some exposure to the French language (as it pertains to horseback riding). With the Spring weather turning sunny and beautiful the lessons have been able to occur in the outdoor arena. The lessons have covered basic riding techniques such as starting, stopping, and turning their mounts. They are currently working on trotting and occasionally intro to jumping (log laying on the ground). We look forward to continued improvement on the girls part and as long as they have fun we'll keep going.

More horse related stuff. One of our landlords owns a farm with around 25 horses. Recently he brought two horses over to the pasture behind our house. After mowing a path to the pasture (to avoid the nettles), Buffy has headed out there to care for the two horses. One of them is a bit playful and the other more reserve. So it has been a lot of fun going back to the pasture and seeing them. The girls have all gone to comb them and watch them. They really enjoy it. The first time Tori went back with Buffy she apparently got frightened when the younger horse jumped up and kicked its heels. So when she began to run for the fence the horse got scared too and began running in the opposite direction. Two fraidy-cats (one being on four legs and the other two) both afraid of the other and not realizing it. When Em first went back she was a bit scared of the horse frolicking around. Since then she has gotten used to it and really enjoys combing the one horse.