We went to San Francisco for the Pride parade and festival the weekend before last.  It was Charlie’s first time at Pride and our first time back in about 8 years (and our tenth anniversary!).   Charlie loved looking at all the people (especially the very colorfully costumed people), playing in the kids area and listening to music.  But her favorite thing about Pride was the “man-beads.”  Charlie was listening to some drumming and dancing to the beat when one of the guys giving out plastic beads gave her a couple strands in appreciation of her dancing.  Later in BART, another Pride goer gave Charlie her third string of beads.  Thus began Charlie’s affection for, and fascination with, the “man-beads.”

Charlie didn’t start calling them “man-beads” right away. At first they were just beads. But then out of the blue she starts using the word “man” and identifying men on the street. Like the “nice man with the sticks” who directed our plane out of the gate. A couple days after we got back from SF, Charlie decides to give a shout-out to the men who gave her her lovely shiny beads by calling them “man-beads.” Yes, she did tell us that is why they are man-beads.

She likes to wear the man-beads on her wrists. For about an hour each day, the man-bead wearing goes like this:

Charlie: Where’s the man-beads?
Me (or Papi): They’re over here, i’ll get them for you.
Charlie: Wanna wear them.
Me (or Papi): O.k. i’ll put them on you

I then wrap the beads on her wrist one strand at a time. I now have an exact method and location for each strand, because if they are not wrapped correctly and are too loose and dangly:
Charlie: (crying) No, no! I don’t yike it, I don’t yike it! Mama, fix the man-beads! Mama, fix it!

I then fix the man-beads, she wears them around for a while and then:
Charlie: Wanna take them off.
Mama (or Papi): O.k. I’ll take them off. (takes off the man-beads)
Charlie: Wanna put the man-beads back on.

And the whole thing starts over again.

Thanks, Man.

………………………………………………………

Click here for new pics of Charlie eating her new favorite, grilled corn on the cob, playing with her ponies (and doggie) and walking in our shoes.

Technical note: I am trying to better organize the flickr photos. To that end, I am grouping uploads by subject and then dropping those into a collection organized by month. I welcome feedback on whether this is easier to use/find the photos you want to see. You will only see collections on the main page but can click on “sets” at the top of the page (right under the words “lifeofcharlie’s photostream”) to see all of the old sets.