(NOTE: Apologies for the unexplained absence! I was in Portland, Oregon, soaking up the cold air and the cool vibe. Posts to come on related subjects, including a highlight: meeting the artist who drew the girl in the party hat.)

Hot on the trail of the perfect puppy, today our path led us to PetsMart, a mall pet store (forgive me, lord) and the pound. Nada.

After that, it seemed like a good time for a bath, after all that puppying, so we tossed the girls in the tub.

I gave them a bath bomb from Lush (we’re completely addicted to their products) and since I usually drop in a slice of a bubble bar, this was a treat. Particularly since the bomb was a post-Christmas purchase, and disintegrates to reveal dozens of tiny metal (harmless, I’m sure — I hope) stars.

The girls turned that into a game, collecting the stars and “pasting” them to the batthub wall. At the end, Annabelle tallied hers: 21. Sophie had 6, including several Annabelle gave her.

This drew unsolicited praise from the older sister, in a form I’d never heard but expect to hear a lot, from now on: “Not bad for a 5-year-old with Down syndrome!”