Graduation

Well, it's really just graduating to TK in the fall, but a graduation none-the-less! Last Thursday was Miss C's last day of school. They had a cute little graduation ceremony for the kids and then her teacher put together a fantastic little slideshow of all the kids with pictures she had taken throughout the year. I don't think there was a dry eye in the house! I really got spoiled with preschool this year. Not only were her teachers great, but there were only 10 kids in the whole school in the afternoon. The small environment was exactly what Miss C needed to bloom this past year. I couldn't be happier with the whole experience and I'm happy that she'll have one more year there before "real school".

They did this little skit about how they can change the world. It was so cute! I love that they incorporate being responsible citizens. Miss C's was, "I can reach out to you and give you big hugs." They decorated the posters themselves and you probably can't see it, but the wrist has a bracelet that is bejeweled with "diamonds". Miss C loves those big jewel things that you can get at the craft stores and insists they are diamonds. I could only wish.....

Her class and the two teachers. One of those kiddos in the back left is Little J. You can't tell from this picture, but he took the opportunity when my attention was diverted to throw mulch in his hair.

10 today

Hmmm, what to blog about. At first I thought, "we haven't really been up to much" but then I realized, that's so not true. I feel like we've been go, go, go for the past couple of weeks. Doing what? I really can't say. But we have been busy. So much so, I'm actually going to try for a 10 on Thursday post :)

1. The kids started swimming lessons about 2 weeks ago and are doing great. It's such a dramatic change from last year. I remember last year signing them up and making, no forcing, them to go to the first two or three classes. It was a total disaster. I guess they just weren't ready. This year, it's a totally different story. I've really seen a big increase in Miss C's confidence over the past year or so and I'm really proud of her. That of course trickles down to her little brother. He pretty much will do anything as long as she is involved. My goal this year is to get Miss C off the life vest and swimming on her own. I think she can do it. Little J, he's probably still a little too young, but I bet he gets pretty close by the end of the summer. He's already getting the idea of the crawl stroke and is pretty fearless for a 3 year old in the water.

2. The pool opened the weekend of May 15th (weekends only) and we've been probably 5 or 6 times already. The kids love it and I suspect we are going to be poolside just about all summer long. That's fine with me! Miss C will now slide down the "big slide" all by herself. I wish I had a picture of it, but I'm a little scared to take the camera to the pool. This would be a great time to get a little point and shoot for such occasions. Anyway, we wait at the bottom for her just in case, but she has started to not need our help. It's kind of funny because she already has the eye roll and the, "but daaaaaaaaad, I don't need your help!". I guess put us in the category of lame parents who just get in the way.

3. Miss C also jumps off the side of the pool into the deep end all by herself. She can swim well with the life vest and is comfortable going under water. Little J will jump off the side, but still prefers that we catch him.

4. A couple of weeks ago I took Little J out for a mini photo shoot for his 3rd birthday. It was spur of the moment and the cooperation was a little lacking. Of course I pulled out all the bribes, but they don't seem to have the same effectiveness as they do with Miss C. I'm going to have to find a new tactic. But I'm happy with the ones that I did get. They are just so him.

This is so typical him with his hands on his hips. Little stinker. This is the pose right before you are going to be blasted with lasers like the enemy you are. Isn't that nice?!
Can you tell he is sooooo over this?! Sadly, this was about 5-10 minutes into the whole thing too.
5. It looks like Little J might have picked up an imaginary friend. I think Miss C was about the same age when she picked up Consurey (or however you spell it). I'm not sure if it will stick or not, but last night he was talking about his brother. His brothers name is Abley (pronounced Ah-blei). Why do my kids always pick these names that no one knows how to spell? Anyway, he is apparently 5 years old and goes to school. He also wasn't feeling well last night and had to go to the doctor and get a shot. The shot was of course orange in color. I hope he sticks around for awhile because he seems like a nice kid. I love that they both have the imagination to have imaginary friends!

6. I just checked a friend's blog and she has a shiny new look. I'm so jealous! I need to do something about this blog. I'm tired of complaining about it and saying I'm going to do something about it. Just sh*t or get off the pot already. I just don't think it suits me anymore. Plus the pictures on her look like crap-ola. Nothing at all how they look in print or how they look on the computer after I edit them. I suspect it's a color space issue, but talking color space is like talking greek to me. I just don't get it.

7. Miss C went to a birthday party last week (her first drop off party--and let me tell you, I can get used to that idea!) and needed to wear her "best" dress. After searching her closet, she selected this one. This dress is almost 30 years old and I wore it when I was about her age. The elastic looping for the buttons in the back is a little shot and it did "yellow" a little, but otherwise, it's in great shape. I had to get a few pictures of her in it. I only wish that I had pictures of me wearing it too. Maybe if it survives the next 30 years, we can have pictures of her little girl wearing it.

8. Miss C "graduates" from pre-k next Thursday. She won't be attending kindergarden in the fall due to her birthday, but it's still an exciting time. I think next year when she graduates T-K it will be a lot harder. But for now, I'm happy to have her stay little for a little while longer.

9. Little J and Miss C will be attending a couple of camps this summer. I'm a little nervous about sending Little J. He wants so badly to go to school and the summer camp will be a good introduction, but I'm a little worried about how he is going to do. I'm sure it will be fine and I'm glad he will have a few little week long introductions before he stars in the fall.

10. We had Little J's birthday party two weekends ago and it was a huge success. I'll try to motivate and get some pictures up soon!

Mother's Day

I'm slowing getting all of this stuff blogged. I have a whole backlog of stuff that I need to get to. Maybe a monster 10 on Tuesday next week? I know, I know. I kind of laughed a little at the thought myself. Who am I kidding?! I'd have to start the post today to be done by Tuesday :)

Anyway, I had a great Mother's day this year. The kids brought me coffee in bed (with a flower cut and put in a shot glass) and gave me my presents. Some of it wasn't really a surprise since Miss C can't really keep secrets these days. For the week leading up to Mother's day, she kept saying that they made my gifts and that she couldn't tell me what it was but she would give me a hint. Well, a hint to a 4 year old is pretty much the same as telling me what my gift was :). They picked out and painted pottery for me. Little J chose a ring holder and Miss C chose a butterfly. I just love them. Everything was all them, from the selection of what to paint, to the colors to paint, everything. How does it get any better than that?! Well, throw in a spa gift certificate from J and I was in heaven.

After that, we had brunch at a French bakery. Yummy. I ate so much that I wasn't even hungry at dinner. At the bakery, J took this pic. Here we are. Me and my babies :)

Dance Recital

On Mother's Day weekend, Miss C had her first dance recital. I was kind of holding my breath on whether or not she would actually get out on stage, but in the end, she did it and it was a successful show. The dance studio had an American Idol themed recital, and Miss C's class did their ballet routine to What a Wonderful World and the tap number was to Sign Sealed and Delivered. I haven't watched American Idol since Season 1, so I'm not sure what those two songs have to do with it, but it was cute none-the-less. She really seems to like dance and was so excited about the show. The following pics are from the day of the dress rehearsal.

Some of the family before the show

Our star ballerina!

Edited to add:

Earlier in the day of the rehearsal, I had Miss C try on her costume just to make sure. Little J got a little jealous and wanted to dress up too. This was the best we could do but he was happy :). Love that he accessorized with cowboy boots!

Gettin' ready for the weekend

So Miss C asked to play with her makeup this afternoon. I don't *love* when she wants to play with it, because it generally results in a big mess all over her face. Plus, Little J always wants to get involved and you know how that is going to go. But I reluctantly agreed.

As I was sitting with them reading a magazine, you know "supervising", I hear Miss C blurt out:

"I'm putting on my makeup to get ready for the weekend"

Hahahahaha! I swear, I have no idea where she gets that from :)

And a shot of Little J getting handsome

Have a great weekend!

Awkward family photos

Ever heard of that website? If not, it's www.awkwardfamilyphotos.com. Run, don't walk and go check it out. You won't be disappointed. Get ready for some serious laugh so hard you will cry fun. Gotta be one of my favorite websites of all time. I swear I could sit for hours and just look at this stuff. In fact, I went over to take a peek to make sure I had the website info right and I'm still laughing.

Just for kicks and a good belly laugh, I thought I would post this little gem from this past weekend. Doesn't it look like we are all having fun? I didn't even edit it because I didn't want to waste my time :)

Haaaaaapy Birthday!

My little guy is now a 3 year old! I can't believe it. So much has changed over the past year, and I'll admit, I'm going to miss the 2's (because let's face it, the whining didn't magically stop this morning). The 2's were so much fun with Little J. It started off with him starting to talk up a storm and he hasn't let up since. He's such a loving little boy, more so than Miss C was at this age. He loves to cuddle and be held and to hug and kiss. He fights his naps even though I know he needs one. His favorite movie is Toy Story 2 and asks to see it just about everyday. He loves trucks and cars and Star Wars and just about everything boy. He idolizes his sister and often mimics what she says and does. He's obsessed with basketball and is generally good at sports. He loves to be chased and will sometimes provoke Miss C (by taking something from her) in order to get her to chase him. He's clever and funny. I predict he's going to be class clown one day. He makes me laugh and always has me on my toes. He desperately wants to go to school with his sister and unfortunately for me he has to wait until September. I hate breaking his heart. He's good at keeping himself entertained and pretty much turns any toy into a light saber these days. He's an all around good little boy but can have a pretty feisty temper sometimes. He's a creature of habit and doesn't like haven't his routine shaken up too much. He loves to be tickled, especially under his chin. Gets him every time. But most of all, he's an absolute joy to be around and we can't imagine having a better son.

I had to beg, and I do mean beg, to get him outside to get at least one official picture. This was about it before he started goofing off. He does this thing now when I tell him to smile he repeats, "smiiiiiiiiile". I think he thinks that's what I want him to do. No buddy, just keep quite and actually smile :). So here he is, my big 3 year old. Happy Birthday!