We had a pretty good day today. Mom decided that time-outs are totally not a good idea for Ava. They seem to increase the negative behavior, not act as a deterrent. We have decided on a sticker system--earn 10 stickers, go to get ice-cream. Behave poorly, lose a sticker. Very simple. We will see how it goes. Carter had an exemplary nap this morning, and Ava got to paint to her heart's content. She painted a 'huge tall chimney' with a 'whale' next to it. When I asked her what was at the bottom, she said "dots" -- ah. Carter woke up and off we went to activities. We stopped at the airport, and were disappointed. So, we went to Lake Clear General Store and got sandwiches and drove to the bank. But not before the mylar balloon that I got for Mother's day floated out the back door while I was not looking. Ava started screaming something incomprehensible, and I looked up and saw it about 15 feet in the air. I felt so awful. She was DEVASTATED. So, after some inconsolable crying, I mentioned that we could get one at the grocery store, and don't you remember that we have to go to the bank? After trying one last time to come up with a means to get her balloon back by asking if the life flight (the 'hurt helicopter') helicopter could go get it (I was impressed by her resourcefulness) , she finally cheered up a bit. Ava has been waiting to go to the bank for WEEKS. She keeps asking me if I have any money to go to the bank, and when I say no, she tries to figure out how to get me some. The other week she said "I KNOW! You can use this! " and she pointed to the change in the ashtray in the car. Finally, I had some money to deposit, so Ava got her lollypop. She was a bit put out that she had to eat her sandwich first, but not that much. Then we went to Price Chopper and picked up a few staples--saw Chrissy and Adrian (Ava's age), and that was nice. They are, quite simply, nice human beings. Good people. And he is as cute as a button. We also got a new mylar balloon to the tune of $2.99 (?!?!). We went back out to the car where I clambered into the back seat with Ava and Carter and pulled out my impulse buy of the day: ReddiWhip. Oh, the fun we had. Mom scored super duper fun points for this one. I even let Carter have a little whipped cream squirt. He thought it was hysterical. So did Ava and so did I. We were laughing so hard. And we were a mess. After that we had tumbling, where I ran into another crew of nice moms and nice kids, and we had a bunch of fun running around. Carter loves tumbling. It is filled with soft things to crawl on, and is a blast for him. And then we all came home.