GROUP DANCE

 Dance resumed this week with a "meet your instructor and get reacquainted with your dance friends" class this afternoon, which combined two 4-year-old and two 5-year-old combo classes into one big session. It was totally chaotic for the parents in the small (hot!) waiting room (RiverPointe is in the process of moving to a new studio space, but with contractors running behind, August classes are taking place at the old studio, which does not accommodate their growing group of ballerinas very well), but the girls absolutely loved it! Cora was thrilled to see her dance friends, some friends from Agape that she's been missing over the summer, and even some new faces that will surely become new buddies. Her class was led by Ms. Bridgett, but we don't know yet whether she'll have her or Ms. Holly this semester. Either way, she knows and loves them both, so we're good. Now to just get her excited about the return to dance... 

Don't be fooled by those smiley photos up there - getting ready was a battle. She picked out some new (larger) leotards for this fall, thankfully, because they were the only thing that convinced her to get ready to go. Her 5-year-old attitude this week has included laments about "hating" dance and soccer, even though she personally requested we sign her up and pay the registration fees... therefore, she goes. It's a lesson in commitment that she is plenty old enough to learn, in my opinion. I've explained to her that she signed a contract and is obligated to fulfill it. If she decides in December that she no longer wants to dance or do soccer in the spring, that is fine, but for now she goes. I think she'll be fine once she's there each week (as evidenced by her happiness once we got to the studio this afternoon and her exuberance after class to show me her "good behavior" sticker and tell me about seeing all her friends), but if we have to battle with her every Wednesday (her assigned day for normal classes this semester), it's gonna get old fast! The only saving grace is that due to the location of school this year and the new dance studio both being close to our house, we can swing by home to get her dressed and do her hair. Why, you ask? Because our little dancing queen screams bloody murder while getting her hair brushed, no matter what we try, which can be quite embarrassing in the waiting room of the dance studio. No buns this semester, since her decision to cut her hair shorter than usual resulted in my inability to easily get it into a ballet bun (and certainly daddy won't even attempt it). Luckily, ponytails are allowed for her age group. If she decides to dance through spring semester though, we might have to grow it out for the recital...

 I couldn't believe how much these little beauties have grown over the summer months...

 Easy to spot Cora in that mint green leotard! (4- and 5-year-old combo classes in the upper photo, 6-year-olds and Pre-ballet in the bottom photo)

THE FOREST IS FALLING...

We had a much needed, lengthy thunderstorm this morning. The driveway was clear when we left the house, but we came home from school to find quite a few large branches had fallen, including one that is too big/heavy for either Jay or I to move solo. Stinkin' thing busted yet another of our post toppers too. (At least it wasn't one of the light up ones!)

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL: 2015

Both kids reported having good first days. They made new friends (Cora befriended a little boy who was upset and crying when his mom and sister had to say goodbye, and James has Gabriel and a soccer buddy in his adjoining classes), ate their lunches, and came home with their only complaint being about the excessive heat warning (meaning, they couldn't go outside for recess, and instead had to stay inside and sing/dance and do exercise videos). Day one is in the books - now we just pray for good relationships with their new teachers and loads of learning and fun this year!

Patiently waiting to get her day started after a cafeteria roll call and walk to class.

Getting right to work. Barely a kiss for mama and daddy!

QUICK TURN FOR CORA

Poor Sissy took a turn for the worse last night as we were finishing up school supply shopping (I don't recommend last minute shopping in small towns, by the way...) and heading to dinner. She'd been sniffling and sneezing and coughing a bit all week, since about the time it hit James last weekend, but she hadn't run fever or seemed too put out by it (allergies, cold, whatever it was). Then right before our eyes she drooped into her seat and her eyes started gooping up like crazy and her nose started to run and bubble. She wouldn't eat, her eyes itched, and she was slightly warm. We rushed her home, inundated her with eye drops and ear drops and allergy meds and James' antibiotics... and checked her temperature (warm, but not feverish). She awoke at 4:30am in hysterics because her eyes were basically swollen and glued shut. Still no fever. We couldn't get the goop out with a warm rag, so we stuck her in the shower and she went from bawling to giggling like a maniac (so much fun to be showering at o-dark-thirty?) By then, it made more sense for me to just stay up and go for my long run, so we tucked her into bed with Jay and hoped for the best. When I got home a couple hours later, everyone was still asleep. By 9:30am she was awake and happy and clear-eyed (though they were still swollen and almost bruised from where she'd been rubbing them). We prayed all day that the fever would stay away and the eye goop wouldn't return... we didn't want her to have to miss the first day of school tomorrow! Luckily, our onslaught of meds and the enforcement of a very quiet and relaxing day had her back to slightly sniffling by bedtime.

(Nothing gets your kids to play with 'old' toys more than deep cleaning their closets. Amazing what they can find to play with when things are organized!... I had been considering selling her play kitchen, since she didn't seem to play with it much anymore, but when I asked her she refused and told me she needs to keep it for when Lauren comes over to play.)

MINECRAFT MAGNETS

We decided they finally outgrew the farm animal magnets, so we replaced them with MineCraft blocks for imaginative building. They're a hit, of course. James immediately built a tree on fire, on an island surrounded by a lake, and Cora got down to the business of stacking and organizing by type... She has that Bacon OCD in her blood....

WEIRD WORDS AND READING AT HOME

Today was the last official day of summer vacation. The kids will start Kindergarten and 1st Grade TOMORROW! They are ready and excited, but we're all going to miss the laid-back aspects of summer... no homework, no dance class or soccer practice, no need to be as strict about bedtime or occasional mid-week TV watching, and carpooling most days (meaning we got to spend the morning hour all together and the afternoon all together, which has been so very nice). While it's been mostly fun and games this summer, we have made an effort to keep the kids' minds engaged in activities other than swimming and kickball and Legos and movies. There has been some workbook activities (mostly by Cora, because she truly likes "seatwork") and lots of reading. LOTS of reading.

Other than our Disney vacation, we have been working (semi) diligently with the kids on their reading skills this summer (having them each read 10-15 minutes with us at night, then reading to them for 10-15 minutes, sporadically doing flashcards that we got from Gramma, randomly quizzing them while out and about town when we see signs or labels that we know they can read, and leaving messages for them to decipher on their easel chalkboard).

James has been doing so very well with reading! He reads to us and to Cora, and to Buster. He stands at the chalkboard to write random sentences or leave us messages or help him spell certain words that he's trying to figure out. When we first started helping him learn to read, I had no idea how teachers did it... I mean, when you think about it, it's sort of an obscure lesson to learn (at least at first). There are so many rules. And they contradict each other at every turn! The English language is tricky!! So in the spirit of the tricks, I have to post a few of the things that James has written or read lately that have made us pause for a second, trying to figure him out!

was does not sound like has

(even though they look the same to a new reader)

mouse is not pronounced as mosey

(he knows that an e at the end makes a long vowel in the middle, but that 'ou' blend threw him off)

pink is not spelled peock

There are more, of course, but I can never recall these things when I sit down to actually type them out and record them for posterity...

(Practicing computer skills, and enjoying that more than reading...)

 While James has been reading a variety of short Step 1 and Step 2 books, Cora has been focusing on his little paper kindergarten weekly booklets, trying her darndest with her Hello Kitty and Curious George phonics books, and doing very well with the Set 1 BOB books. She's become more confident each week, and while we haven't been teaching her the tricks and rules quite like they will at school, we're pretty impressed with her ability to sound out words (she sounds out every syllable, just like Ms. Katy taught her, then blends them together to say the full word - whereas James will just stare silently at a word until he figures it out in his head, then say it aloud). She has pretty good word recognition (if the same word is written multiple times on the same page, or within a page or two, she doesn't need to sound it out again, she just shouts it out - whereas James has to think about it every single time, even though his memory is awesome). And her patience in general is incredible, taking the time to learn each word and not getting frustrated if she doesn't figure it out on the first try or two (she has far more patience for reading than James does - he just wants to KNOW all the words, not have to learn them).

We think they're both going to do great at school this year and feel we've prepared them as best we can, without being too intense (we wanted reading this summer to be FUN, not work). Only time will tell, and I'll admit I'm anxious to start getting notes home from teachers, but I have a lot of confidence in these smart little firecrackers of ours!

TREEFALL

Between this tree and the other two that fell back behind the house recently (we had a strong wind storm not too long ago), we should be all set for firewood this winter!

DAYCAMP KUDOS

 Today was their last day of Daycamp. They are both really disappointed that camp has ended (they're going to miss their new friends!), but are at the same time very excited to be starting a new school next week, with new teachers and plenty of new friends to make. They celebrated the end of Daycamp with a party today (which basically just means lots of treats thrown into their normal day of play), so the kids brought their favorites to share - Pirate's Booty and Oreos.

Even at ages 5 and 6, kids can change significantly in a short period of time. In the past 11 weeks their skin has tanned, their muscles have strengthened (so much swimming and running around the track!), their height has increased, and their hair has shortened. They look older to me, and ready to conquer Kindergarten and First Grade next week! 

 They can't wait to go back to Daycamp next summer, and we will certainly be returning - the leaders were attentive and actually played with the kids, they kept them MOVING, they provided them with games and crafts and extra special snacks (like KoolAid and PopTarts...), they had dance parties and built forts, they watched mama- and daddy-approved movies when it was too hot or the kids were too tired to do anything else at the end of the day, and overall it ended up being a great environment for our social and energetic kids. Kudos to the Y for providing such a great service for it's members!

CORA'S 20 QUESTIONS: 2015, AGE 5

(End of summer haircut to remove the crunchy, chlorinated ends before school starts. She chose the length herself and LOVES it, surprisingly, since she usually complains about even the slightest trims to her "Rapunzel hair". She went a little shorter than I'd have asked for had I been able to see around the corner from the dryer I was under, but if she's happy, I'm happy. Maybe I'll get lucky and it will be easier/less-dramatic to brush into a ponytail/bun at dance class...)

I'm posting Cora's 20 Questions today, but I did indeed ask her these closer to her 5th birthday (early July). I was just waiting for a good picture for the top of the post (and tonight I grabbed 3 good pictures of our little queen!) As usual, I recorded these verbatim. Her answers to 9 and 10 had me laughing, 14 is just... and I can't even explain 15 (since she has never seen a zombie outside of MineCraft). And since we're not outgrowing Elsa anytime soon (as evidenced by numbers 2, 5, 8, and 19), you can expect a room redo in the near future (she has requested BLUE walls, so we're rolling with it...)

1. What is your favorite color?  Light Blue and Pink
2. What is your favorite toy?  Elsa
3. What is your favorite thing to eat?  Pancakes
4. What is your favorite thing to drink?  Um... water
5. What is your favorite thing to wear?  My Elsa costume
6. What is your favorite game?  Skylanders Trap Team
7. What is your favorite animal?  Cats and kitties. Baby cats.
8. What is your favorite song?  Let it go!
9. What is your favorite book?  The Book of Life! Ha ha! OK, the I Spy books.
10. Who is your best friend?  James! James, my boy!
11. What is your favorite thing to do with James?  Play with him a the pool
12. What is your favorite thing to do with mama?  Kiss with you!
13. What is your favorite thing to do with daddy?  Kiss him and play Legos with him!
14. What do you want to be when you grow up?  A firefighter. I mean, a princess too, OK?
15. What are you afraid of?  Zombies! (said with creepy hands for emphasis) But not skeletons.
16. What is your favorite type of adventure?  Going to Disney and going on all the rides!
17. What makes you happy?  Kissing you and hugging you!
18. What makes you sad?  When Cannon scratches me
19. What is your favorite movie?  Frozen (but answered by breaking into song... "Let it go! Let it go!" and on and on and on, so I finally asked if Frozen was her favorite.)
20. What is your favorite TV show?  Teen Titans

BEST KIDS EVER

I've had a frustrating/stressful/sorta-scary few weeks (I know I still need to blog about it, but I don't yet have the answers I need, so I'm holding off), and today was just one of those bad days that come along once in a while, which topped it all off and caused me to break. It's not often I cry in front of my kids (I can only think of 3 other times), but it was unstoppable tonight. I was seriously floored by how the kids responded though (through all 20 minutes of it... and it was ugly) - consoling me, patting my back, hugging me and kissing me, bringing me tissues for my eyes, telling me everything was going to be fine. After I'd calmed down, James brought me a picture he drew of me smiling in a field of flowers. Boy am I ever grateful that our kids have grown up to be sensitive to other's feelings and show such compassion - I am more proud of that than I am of many of their other talents. Now to get it together and know that tomorrow will surely be a better day!

SOUTHPARK ELEMENTARY

The kids will be attending public school this year (and hopefully for at least the next 2-3 years while we pay off debt) and tonight was orientation night. We all got haircuts, put on clean clothes, and showed up a few minutes late (oops). And the school is barely 5 minutes down the road from our house... It's summer still though - surely we'll have our act together by Monday...

 I'm fighting some serious disappointment tonight, since neither kid was placed with the teacher we requested (conflicting reports told us we SHOULD request certain teachers vs. we should NOT, so there's that...) I know that I need to give these teachers a fair shot, but it's hard when you've been planning on one scenario all summer... Cora's teacher is well educated (she basically read us her resume, which is very good), but seemed very nervous/by-the-book around the parents and wasn't too friendly with the kids. Luckily, her teacher's aid (who is there all day, every day - I asked!) seemed extremely friendly and helpful and just lovely (she's grandma-aged and she bent right down to Cora's level for welcome hugs). Her class has 16 kids (for now - apparently that could change in the next few weeks) and her classroom looked to be really well equipped to entertain and teach a room full of curious little 5-year-olds. When we left, I asked Cora if she liked her room and her teacher, and she said "Oh yes, and there are LOTS of books!" Fingers crossed Monday goes well and things just take off from there!

 As for James, by the time I arrived over at his classroom, it was just him and his daddy and his teacher (who also has a teacher's aid, but she was not present tonight). His teacher seemed very excited to be welcoming her students (this is her first year teaching 1st Grade, so we shall see how she feels in a few weeks!) and was very nice to us and to James (and Cora). James' room had an equal number of books, but was definitely geared toward an older crowd (fewer decorations = more focus on the front white board?) He has his own desk (just like in Ms. Tina's class), grouped into fours (and I failed to count desks, so I have no idea how many kids are in his class - maybe 20? maybe 24?) He loved seeing his name at his place, but was even more impressed with the computers (Cora's classroom has them as well, and there is a large computer lab elsewhere in the building too). He can't wait to use the computers to play learning games!

And that's it for tonight. It was quick, overwhelming (to me, not to the kids), and even though I'm excited for next week, I'm also terrified...

NINJACOF

Poor James has had a cough and SUPER runny nose since Saturday morning (and a low fever Saturday-Monday). We kept him home from camp because of it through Tuesday, then again today even though we knew he wasn't contagious (due to lack of fever). The last thing his buddies at Daycamp need during the last week before school starts is his germs... When ear pain cropped up as a new symptom last night though (even without fever), we knew we needed to take him to the doctor for a quick check. As expected, he has swimmer's ear (swimming almost every single day for 2+ months can do that to you), plus a middle and outer ear infection. Jay and I have taken turns (via half days) staying home with him (and Cora, until she begged today to be allowed to go back to Daycamp and leave the boring house where she was getting major cabin fever), and he has highly enjoyed his extended TV and movie viewing time, not to mention hours upon hours of video games... Oh well, he needed to rest, so the couch was the best place for him (when he wasn't napping). You know your kids are sick (Cora has had a runny nose and cough/sneeze too, just not nearly as bad, and without fever) when they willingly nap for FOUR DAYS IN A ROW at 5 and 6 years old! Craziness. Anyway, he has plenty of new meds now (antibiotics, an awesome cough/cold/antihistamine called NINJACOF - for real, and medicated ear drops), and felt well enough to walk around the pharmacy taking random photos and bring silly. Back to camp tomorrow!

CURIOUS CANNON



SICKNESS AND EARLY WAKE-UPS = NAPTIME

Yesterday, a 2+ hour nap for Cora on the couch and an hour nap for James in his bed (to help him heal from whatever sickness has him coughing and sneezing with a runny nose and matted eyes and a fever of 100-102), today an hour nap for James and an hour of "quiet time" for the queen who wouldn't sleep. She's coughing and sneezing too, but no fever, and her nose isn't a faucet. Since James' fever never let up today, he'll be home tomorrow. Can't risk getting other kids at Daycamp sick, especially with school starting in a week!

POOTATOES

When I texted Jenny to see whether these were in fact edible potatoes from our garden or simply buried cat turds, she told me they were obviously pootatoes... Who wants to come over for dinner?!

WE'RE IN TROUBLE...

After a 2+ hour impromptu couch nap this afternoon (too much partying with the Kennedy kids last night?... in bed too late last night and awake too early this morning, for sure), Cora woke up pleased as punch and didn't want to leave my side. Since I was (finally) putting away (many) baskets of clean clothes, she entertained herself by playing dress-up in my closet and kept me company (which I appreciated - she makes a pretty fun little side kick!) I was simultaneously clearing out unused items for donation and organizing shelves (long overdue), and when I came across this shiny tank top that I've had for almost 10 years and have never worn (because it's partially see through and I have no idea how to wear such an item - I think I originally planned to wear it UNDER a business jacket, but I haven't needed to wear a business jacket in approximately 7 years...), I told Cora she could have it for dress-up. She clutched it to her heart and told me it was SO beautiful and SO fancy and thank you SO MUCH mama! After I tied the straps back for her (so it wouldn't fall off), she promptly took off her pants, telling me that "they just don't go with this". As if that wasn't enough, I then turned around to find her pulling my highest heels off the shelf (which I also haven't worn in 7 or more years) and striking a pose. As amused as I was, I was also seeing my future flash scarily before my eyes... When I finished putting away clothes and organizing, it was my turn to get dressed up (she picked a blue dress for me), then we did hair and makeup (luckily, I was saved the agony of eyeliner and mascara myself, since I had to excuse myself to go cook dinner after I got her all dolled-up with sparkles and lipstick, just like we do for dance recitals). With my wedding tiara as her final touch, Cora told me she was "all ready". Ready for what, exactly, I don't know... and I was afraid to ask.

If she wasn't just 5 little years old, she'd totally pull this off. Maybe when she's 25 she'll be allowed to leave the house this fancy - if she can get past her daddy! The girl is far more glamorous at this age than I'll ever be, that's for sure...

HD KID CRAFT: HANGING CHALKBOARDS

"Giving it all she's got!" to get those nails into the boards...

(It's easier to knock the nails in on the hard concrete than on the wobbly plywood "tables")

Tongue out = intense concentration

Like always, James followed the directions all the way down to the suggested paint colors, while Cora (as usual) did her own thing. I kinda love that about them :-)

Our little engineer figured out a way to paint the edges hands-free...

Drawing pretty pictures after the paint dried in the sunshine (it was a beautiful morning to be outside - cool and low humidity, an extreme rarity in August here)

James told me his drawing is of he and I holding hands. I love the little heart above our heads. My boy is sweet as can be, always, and I'm not exaggerating! Cora wanted her chalkboard to have the same picture as James', but she added extra hearts. Little cuties, the both of them!

MISSING CHRISTOPHER

Today should have been Christopher's 4th birthday. I'll be singing a silent birthday song to him in my prayers this morning. There is no way for me to comprehend how very much he is missed by his parents and extended family, but I know that I miss receiving new photos of him for my fridge and new video texts full of his laughter and smiles, and it still hurts. I know Christopher's family is surrounded by his light, and I pray that memories of his beautiful smile, those enchanting blue eyes, and his happy laughter and 'happy feet' shine the strongest.

This is one of my most favorite photos of him - adorable little beach baby!

 Sending all my love out to Oregon today - you are loved and missed sweet boy!

BUSY BUDDIES

Will and Lauren came over to hang out with us for a few hours while Al and Christina attended a coworkers going away party, and James and Cora were so happy to have company! We ended up unintentionally breaking the night into 45 minute increments... Legos (boys in James' room, girls in the kitchen), dinner crossed with I Spy (to encourage kids to finish their ChickFilA nuggets - no taking a guess until you take a bite!), hide-and-seek (me against the kids - Jay "helped" me hide in obscure places while maintaining innocence to keep the kids off my trail - it was particularly funny listening to Lauren repeat every single phrase that another kid said, she did great all night in keeping up with the big kids!), and finally dancing to YouTube Lets Dance 4 video tutorials (thank you Auntie Taryn for that idea - I giggled so much watching them that my cheeks hurt!)

Cora threw in a few ballet moves here and there, and Lauren did her best to copy everything her big brother did, but the boys really stole the show. Those little wiggly booties were cracking me up! (Not to mention James' one-footed stomp/tap and side head bounce reminiscent of a couple of well known SNL characters...)

The videos I took are too long to post on Blogger, so click HERE to see Ghostbusters and HERE to see Gangnam Style. Don't mind the peanut gallery in the background (Jay didn't know I was filming). There was also many renditions of Let it Go and What Does the Fox Say, and one time through of each of Roar and Moves Like Jagger. I highly recommend this activity if your kids need to get some energy out and you want to just sit back and supervise...

CORA BABY

I just thought it was cute this morning that Cora brought Baby Joseph along for the ride to Daycamp (because she was cradling him and kissing him and being adorable). After I took her photo (I was the passenger, not the driver!), she asked me to hold him up front. Unfortunately, I had to decline, lest another motorist believe that I was holding a real baby out of a carseat...