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Leah, Maddie and your favorite editr waiting for "Junie B. Jones" to start. |
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Maddie poses with Junie B. Jones, post-production. |
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Maddie with actress Stevie Holcomb. |
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Us, looking gorgeous. |
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A touch of glamor in the afternoon. |
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Glamor girls at the Hotel Roanoke. |
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Leah reads 'Maddie the Marvelous'. |
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Pampa's turn to read from the book he wrote Mads for Christmas. Two books for one kid. Lucky girl. |
This was officially Madeline Christmas Day and, boy, was it a dandy. Christmas has devolved into a competitive exercise in gift over-giving the past few years with the kids drowning in stuff they don't want or need, so we figured we'd do it a little differently at Pampa's house this year.
Leah and I dressed to the nines took Mads in her pretty new dress to see the delightful Roanoke Children's Theater production of "Junie B. Jones: Jingle Bells, Batman Smells," then brought her to my house for dinner of her choosing and Leah's preparation (chicken noodle soup and chocolate mousse) and a few presents we made or otherwise had some direct involvement in.
Leah and I each put together books. Leah wrote the wonderful "Madeline the Magnificent," about a little girl who conquers a dragon by being kind. I threw together a picture book of Mads' adventures with the Roanoke Vikings. We took the time to read both to her. She loved them.
We went through a few trinkets and wound up the evening giving her a baby doll she immediately named Lucille (I have no idea where that came from). This was a doll made by a group of poor women and sold through Charity Cottage in Vinton, which was founded by Maddie's swimming coach and my much-admired friend Annette Patterson. All this meant something to Madeline and she had time to absorb it, which means it will stick with all of us.
I love Christmas like this.
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