Outdoor Art.

Taking cousin S.'s advice, A. and I trekked outdoors yesterday morning to enjoy part I of two hours of fresh air (we made it 35 minutes.  Not bad considering the cold temps and the occasional gusts of wind we encountered).  All we needed was a bit of snow and a stick (oh, and the occasional hand-holding, too), and A. was set for some outdoor drawing.

And along her way, she met this doggy, who stays at an around-the-corner drycleaner's shop. A. found the dog funny, laughing "puppy eat snow!" (She did.  That is, the dog ate snow.  And she had pink-painted nails, which leads me to believe she was indeed a she.  I could be wrong.) 

The proprietor of the store came out and gave A. a sucker (this was A.'s first piece of hard candy ever - no lie - only after many stern indoor warnings of "sit down with your sucker!"  To my joy (and I'm sure my dental-assistant mother's), she didn't finish it.  But she undoubtedly liked the block o' sugar (there were plenty exclamations of "YUMMY")and, honestly, it was a fun "first".  After that, I suspect A. will be taking her drycleaning to that particular shop.

And then it was home again, home again as signaled by A.'s sudden request to be carried.  Not bad for a cold, blustery winter day.  Day 2 of outdoor fun, here we come!