HAPPY NEW YEAR

From Geo to all, pictured here at the post-Children's Museum Ring in the New Year at Noon Party.

WASHINGTON PARK IN THE WINTERTIME

It doesn't really matter to kids how cold the weather is when faced with a jackpot playground like the by the rose garden at Washington Park. But parents take note: the elevation of the place, coupled with the dense shade that side of the mountain during prime playtime makes for one very frigid adventure. It also makes the wooden ramps slick as snot. Did Georgia care? Not one whit. Did it keep Ruth from digging up frozen sand around the elephant? Not for a second. Did it prompt their parents from delaying the hot chocolate break? Just long enough to think of a back-up treat in case the hot chocolate wasn't reason enough to get Ruth to go cheerfully back to the car.

FIVE FRIENDS FROM JAPAN (AT THE PORTLAND CHILDREN'S MUSEUM)

Yes, you too can make friends in Japan without a passport. After the totally cool reproduction of Sesame Street in the exhibit side of the Children's Museum (CM), we didn't know what would come next. When Five Friends From Japan opened, we frankly didn't know what to think. It was unusual -- a seemingly accurate reproduction of various rooms (a class room, a tofu kitchen, various kids' rooms) in Japanese society, with video introdutions to the kids who "live" there. But, it's really cool. The exhibit is really well thought out and the place is packed with detail. Ruth was able to climb all over the groovy Japanese furnature, looking at anime kids' books while Georgia rolled around on a futon, wrestling the Cat Bus from My Neighbor Totoro. The shadowbox Tai Chi instructor in the bamboo garden defies description.

Meanwhile: The camera is still on the fritz (I'm on it!), Georgia is so close to crawling it's keeping her up nights and Ruth's owie is all better to the relief of all. Regular posting will start this very week. Right ... now.