I had my friend's bridal shower in Baltimore this weekend. I took Julie along with me, but we left Scott and Johnny at home. I think Julie was actually a little excited to be having a girls-only trip, though she was sad to leave Scott because he had been gone all week in Chicago. Initially, I thought about just going by myself and leaving both kids with Scott, but my sister Kelly wanted to have a special day with Julie. Maybe she was feeling guilty about not making it to Julie's birthday party. Regardless, Julie was thrilled to be spending the weekend with her Aunt Kelly. It was really cute too because Kelly planned a special day for just the two of them. She took Julie to a local farm where there were fall festivities. Julie pet and fed the farm animals, rode a train and carved a pumpkin. They also made an adult-sized scarecrow, which actually is pretty scary looking. The thing cost $15 to make! Julie named the scarecrow "Cockadoo" and of course it had to ride home to Altoona with us, so our car smelled like a farm the whole way home. Poor Cockadoo was left out by the trash this morning. Scott wanted no part of him!  Kelly also took Julie to the mall, and let her pick out some birthday presents at the Disney Store. Surprise. Surprise. Julie picked out some Ariel dolls. When they came back to the house, Kelly painted Julie's toenails and put about 10 Disney tattoos all over her legs. Then, they watched Sleeping Beauty. When I came back to the house after the bridal shower, Julie was so excited to tell me everything she and Aunt Kelly did together. It was so nice to see them spending a day together. Usually, Julie is so attached to Meme that Kelly doesn't get a chance to spend quality time with Julie. Growing up, my Aunt Jeanne, my dad's twin sister, was so special to me. She always took me to baseball games, dinner theaters and on special little trips. She really treated me like a daughter and I'll never forget that. I hope Kelly and Julie end up having a similar relationship. It's nice to have someone to turn to and spend time with other than parents and grandparents.