Spinning Madly On

My attention shifted back to family last week as I prepared for our oldest daughter’s 15th birthday on Friday.  I have a tradition with my kids where I take them out to lunch on their birthday . .. . the restaurant of their choosing.  This year, Kayla chose Pastis . . . a French bistro near our home.  They have this great second floor balcony/porch that you can eat out on . . .live music . .  wonderful place to share a bottle of wine when it is warm out.  This is her taste!  We enjoyed a very nice lunch out on the balcony  . . .  it is fun to consider my kids’birthday  restaurant choices . . . my son wants Burger King . .. and my middle daughter likes off the beaten path “holes in the wall” . . . 

We also got to “enjoy” the DMV experience on Friday  as she attempted to get her learners permit!  We arrived with an hour before closing (website said we had to be there 30 minutes before for her to take the exam).  We waited in line for 25 minutes in order to take a number . . . . while we were waiting, we chatted with another family who explained that after we wait in this line (for the number) , we will then wait in another line to have her documents checked (birth certificate, school attendance form, etc.) . . . then another line to have her vision tested . . .  another line for the written exam . . . . wait some more for the results of the exam . . . and then we wait in another line in another area to have her photo taken for the permit . . . and then we wait for it to be ready.  It took them 3 hours a year ago.   When we finally got to the man giving out numbers . . . he told us it was too late!  We had waited so long for the number that she was not even allowed to get into any of the other lines . . . even though we were still within the window that the website had noted.   So, we wasted a Friday afternoon . . .  they were closed on Saturday for Valentines Day (not Presidents Day . . . the website actually said Valentines Day!!!!) . . . so we will try again today.  This time, I am taking her out of school early . .  missing two classes, just to have three hours to get her learners permit.  (update:  took 4 hours to get it on Tuesday)

On a brighter note . . . I took my son to buy a kayak yesterday.  He has had this dream since seeing some whitewater kayakers plunging down an embankment into a fast moving creek up in the Smoky Mountains a year or two ago. . . . thought it looked like the most fun ever.  He has been saving his money and was finally ready.  We are fortunate to have a fantastic shop  Go With the Flow just a mile from our house. With the Chattahoochee River just a couple of miles away and the North Georgia Mountains beginning just an hour away,  we have a lot of kayaking in our area. . . the store is owned by two brothers, David and Barrett Schubert . . . who have an incredible  passion for this sport. They fixed my son up with a very lightweight boat that he can carry himself – no skirt until he feels totally comfortable getting in and out .  They sized him with a whitewater paddle which is shorter so he can manage it better (and it will serve him when he is ready for some rapids). . . .  a vest with some pockets for his cargo (maybe a walkie talkie . . . his ipod, whatever). No helmet until he learns to roll – I wonder how much time I have before that? (I think we will need the skirt before then). Anyway, they were pretty excited to sell this boat to him –   at age 10, they said he is their youngest customer!   I never saw a happier boy than the one on our lake yesterday . . . and . . .

 the view from my studio just got a little bit sweeter!