DI 2013

What up G? 

Bingham had his first year in DI and he had a "staring" role as a star named G. Gangsta jokes never get old when you hear them from a group of Kindergarteners. His play actually had nothing to do with gangsters of any type, but thinking outside the box is what DI is all about. His teacher was their team leader and she is amazing at communicating and working with these little ones. She makes me want to be a Kindergarten teacher when I grow up.

This being Colorado, I guess it wasn't strange that our worst storm of the season happened at the end of March, but it was a little unfortunate for many of kids who couldn't make it. For Sonya and Austin's team we were missing 3 out of 7. This definitely added another level of difficultly to presenting a play they had been working on for months without 2 of their key players. But again, in the spirit of DI this little team went to work rearranging their play, scrounging up impomptu costumes and even asking the cafeteria lady for some lettuce to replace our missing carrot. Austin, who originally only had a part at the end as a prince, played two other parts changing character as he went. His execution was impressive. He also did an excellent job answering the questions from the judges at the end and explaining all the changes they made from their original plan.

Soni played her part as a secret spy bunny to the T and had the judges rolling with her secret spy roll. In the end they placed 5th out of 13 teams, and got an award for their determination and resourcefulness. I was so proud of them and couldn't have asked for a better team.

Eve's group was small this year, but was by far the best group she's had so far. They've worked independently all year, taking responsibility for every aspect of their solution. This year's challenge was to present a play including a disguise, a morphing mask, and a decorative mask.....and only using non-verbal communication. Despite being a little shy, they qualified for the state competition in 3 weeks. This is an awesome bunch of girls and I'm looking forward to taking them up to Denver to show their stuff.

To be continued.....

Back to School!

I dread it, I welcome it, I panic as it gets closer and I anxiously count down til it's here. Who would be excited to have their kids gone all day five days a week? Who wouldn't? Count me in both groups. This year was even a little more difficult since I had already spent a week in teacher training (more on that later) and missed being with my kids horribly, but was so anxious to have a consistent place for them to go while I would be at work.

I took Eve to get her registered a week before school stated. We walked around the new to her building with all it's lockers and classrooms and different teachers and schedules. By the time we were done, she felt a lot better and I was completely freaked out. She looked so small as she got on the bus the first day...much smaller than even her first day of kindergarten, and I cried as I walked home from the bus stop alone.

 A month later, I think I'm getting used to the idea of my daughter being in middle school, and it has it's perks. I get to wake up early with her every school day and we get one on one time that I love. She still wants me to walk her to the bus (I guess she missed my cry baby display on the first day), and then she rides home with me in the afternoon. After I drop her off at the bus I have just enough time to go for a run before it's time to wake up the rest of the kids. And best of all, she got a cell phone (remember...freaked out mom) and she sends me funny texts all the time. I guess I can deal.

I missed dropping Soni and Austin off this year, but on the flip side, Phil got to. I missed there excitement as they got dressed and met up with old friends again.

Don't they look so excited? I have to believe their gloomy faces are because I wasn't there...also the reason Bingham is bare foot...sigh....

They all survived without me and now a month later they seem to have adjusted to the school schedule again. Austin is just pulling through his usual "back to school" rebellion and is finally making the connection (again) of self regulation and a happy teacher. Soni must not be getting enough homework because she has enough time after school to organize and create homework for Bingham and leaves us in the morning with strict instructions to make sure Bingham does his homework while she's gone.

Bingham goes to preschool in the afternoon and has met a new friend named Shark Boy and wants to be called Shark Boy too. I told him that we used to call him Laser Boy and maybe we could call him that again, but he wasn't impressed. For the Apple Day parade he was supposed to dress up as what he wanted to be when he grew up. He picked Spider Man. Honestly, I believe him.

Finding Summer Part II

This summer Soni and Bingham have been best friends. They play for hours in their own little world and really look out for each other. They make picnics for each other, build whole colonies for their polly pockets and trains, and take turns playing their made up games. For me it has been one of the highlights of the summer. I love it when my kids realize their best friends are each other.



Only Sonya

Bingham caught a grasshopper tonight and as we were putting it in a jar to add to his ongoing collection of bugs, Sonya shared some interesting personal thoughts. She said,

"I think grasshoppers are handsome. They are the most handsomest insect. If I was a insect, I would marry a grasshopper. They are especially handsome when they stand up on their hind legs."



Then when she saw my incredulous look she said,

"What, don't you thing they're handsome?"

I was speechless.

Patient Sonya

So Soni turned 7...um a few weeks ago...and although we celebrated it really felt lost in the craziness that is spring time. Yesterday she brought home a Mother's Day gift for me from school. It was a huge packet full of some of her best school work done over the year, what a gift.

A little late, but here's a little Soni celebration!

Soni's teacher took this one around to show other teachers, she was so impressed by it....those tricky little Irishmen :-)

A few years ago I bought Soni a doll house, which she loved....for a while. More often than not she will create her own doll house out of boxes or other random objects and use it until it wears out, then make a new one. The details of her projects are amazing. Time is no factor, she will work on something until it is what she wants it to be. (This has been something her teacher has been very supportive in, thank goodness.)

Recently she was invited over for a friend's birthday, last minute. We didn't have time to get a gift so Soni went to work and made a book with step by step instructions, with pictures, on how to make a paper airplane. Then she made an airplane and attached it with string to the book.  What a sweet friend she is.

Sonya is our official map checker on all our hikes. I always worry she might wander off the steep side of the trail while trying to figure out where we are.

Did I mention how patient she is? Being child #3, she is often provided with the opportunity to wait her turn, which she does....even if this took a month....

Happy Birthday sweet Sunshine!

Not so fresh

I  love the work of spring and it's almost instant gratification. Everything is so willing to grow after a season of rest. It makes me feel like an expert gardener and when Bingham asks if we're farmers I smile and say yes.

The downside is that everything happens so fast that before you can even get your camera out blossoms are fading and the heat and hard work of summer set in.

With that in mind...here's another attempt at a  little catch up.

A few months ago we found some new hiking trails. Really just strolling trails, but scenic and perfect for those days when strolling and holding hands is what is needed. Separated from the pleasant peaceful trails were some other trails reserved for bikes. Marked with signs like this....

and this....

So of course we made plans to return on a day when we were looking for a little more than a stroll.

I love my sweet quiet Eve, but I also love to see her put her reservations aside and go for it!

Bingham and Sonya stayed busy on the speed bumps at the bottom. Not bad for a kid just off training wheels.

Sonya did great on these little hills. She took her time, had just enough speed and still managed to make it all look like an easy day at the park.

Austin did achieve a little "airborne at high speeds."

Eve achieved some carefully approached high speeds.

Her caution paid off...

although she wasn't airborne as much, she didn't eat as much dirt as Austin did either....especially after this jump....the look on his face says he's aalready tasting a little.

He redeemed himself by doing the teeter totter thing. 

They did this teeter totter thing too...I think it felt good to keep their feet on the ground for a bit.

It was a good day, and we will be back...maybe I can put my camera down for a minute, step out of mommy mode and try out my rusty wheels.

All Creatures Great and Small

I killed a spider this morning in my kitchen and Bingham said,

"Sonya says spiders are God's wonderful creatures, but they really freak me out!"

Random things we've been up to when I forget to blog for weeks at a time

This is my favorite toy we got for Christmas. The fun to cost ratio is right up there with the big cardboard box, plus it gets the kids outside (even in the snow) for a little fresh air and exercise.

Friday night we had a culture night for the girls in Eve's Destination Imagination group. Their challenge this year is to study 6 different cultures and come up with a mythological creature from each and then use the information in an improv skit where they are judged for culture knowledge, creativity, and how well they work together. For our culture night they all brought some food from their culture to share with everyone else. We ended up with quite a spread of good food and a whole lot of giggles.  I'm so glad I was lucky enough to be their team manager. As a parent I have learned there are many ways to get involved and help out with my kids education and some of them can be not so fun, but I am really enjoying this one.

We've had a lot of snow this week and cold weather and I think it's about time. Now I can officially be ready for spring.

A little left over tid bits...
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For Bingham's birthday Soni made something for him and wrapped in stickers and paper she had designed herself. It was the first present Bingham wanted to open....it was a simple note that said, "You're 4! I hope you lose a tooth!" He loved it, and I wish I would have got a picture of it before it got lost.

The other night Soni and Bingham had been playing before bedtime. When I tucked Bingham in he sighed and said, "I love that girl named Sonya."  Really, that's all I need...I am a happy girl.

Sum, sum, summer time...

I think that after getting so far behind on my pictures this summer I just avoided my camera for a while. This last week it has slowly been making a reappearance in our lives and so...

Yep, Soni lost another tooth. It has been loose all summer and finally I just reached in and grabbed it. She thought it was extremely painful until she saw the tooth in my hand. Now I get such a kick out of her lisp. She is going to a surprise princess party next week and every time she asks about it I have to tease her a little bit.

Austin and Phil ran another 5K last Saturday, I was planning on running it too until my friend talked me into running a marathon this fall so we did 12 miles before the race. That's my friend's kid that's running with Austin. They're both so dang competitive, but they really worked together and planned a tie at the end. They came in at 26:42...speedy boys.

We went to the reservoir last week and took Sam and Joe. Their older sister was the one killed in the auto accident and they spent most of the week at our house. It was good to have them here and I just wanted to help anyway I could....the problem came when Eve and Sam floated away from the creek and out into the reservoir. They can both swim, but there was a pretty strong current and they both panicked. Phil and two other boys jumped in to get them back to the shore. It was a little scary there for a minute, but my biggest fear was telling the mom who had just lost a daughter that I just about drowned another. I mentioned it as casually as I could and I'm pretty sure she was so emotionally wiped out it didn't even click on her register...and she let me keep the kids several times since then, so I think we're all good.

So....next week school starts and again I ask myself..."why do I send my kids away all day?" Yes, they drive me crazy, but it's a good crazy and things are awful quiet when they're gone.

Soni's Graduation

All this talk of graduation is fun and exciting, but it comes with a small twinge of guilt. See, I have a graduate too, Sony is officially in first grade, but I have been putting off posting about her big day because although I made it to the ceremony, I forgot my camera.

 So, I missed capturing her as she walked out of the kindergarten room with her hat almost sliding down  to her nose. I probably wouldn't have taken a picture of the panicked look on her face as she scanned the crowd looking for me, but I would have loved to have caught the way her face lit up when she finally saw me. (I had to get up out of my seat and crawl over several people, with Bingham in tow, and move to the other side of the room so she could see me...completely worth the toes I stepped on and the dirty looks from the mom's that remembered their cameras and were trying to film as I bumped by). I also missed recording the fabulous performance of "Dinosaur Diddy" complete with arm actions and hip movements...and trust me, the girl can really shake 'em.

I am very proud of Soni and her attitude about school. Now she is home for the summer and already setting up her own "home school" for the summer, with plans of skipping first grade and going right to second...or high school if possible....that girl...

When two vowels go a walking....

We went for a little walk by the resavour. Soni designated me as her hiking buddy (since Becky and Grandpa weren't there). She was chattering away for a good twenty minutes before she made this observation:

"Hey Mom, we're like two vowels, you do the walking and I do the talking."

Killin' time til spring

Soni has been a little concerned about all the kids in her class losing teeth except her. Well, it finally happened. So why all the tears?

Because it scared her half to death! I guess she didn't even know it was loose, and was using her teeth to change the ink color on her pen (ya know...those fat pens that have 6 different colors in one) and out it came. She thought she had chipped her tooth off....broken it for good. It took several minutes for me to calm her down enough so that she could see that it was her WHOLE tooth that she was holding in her hand, and this was the moment she had been waiting for....

Then we had lots of smiles and giggles....and later, a little cash from the tooth fairy.

We've had a lot of consistent snow storms this year. As much as I'm looking for ward to spring, I love fresh snow on the ground...especially in the morning, I don't think I could make it to spring with out it. I'm not the only one who is tired of winter....I see this lady driving by almost every day.....

....see the 2 dogs chasing her car? Those are hers. This is how she walks her dogs....cracks me up every day.

Fried

Bingham has been sick all week...even sharing a little with me and finally Soni. It's been fun to have her home today, even sick, she's playing with Bingham and chattering...always chattering.

She came up and asked what I was doing on the computer. At the moment, I was listening to a tutorial on how to make fried chicken and it had just gotten to the part about heating 2 1/2 cups vegetable oil to 360...In my mind I was thinking, "..there's no way to do this healthy and economically.." so my answer to Soni was,

"I don't know."

She shook her head in frustration and went off to play...still chattering of course...
"Whenever I tell people 'what are you doing?' they should know what they are doing....I don't, I'm not the one doing it."

In the eyes of my daughter, my intelligence has just dropped another level.

Lazy Mom

I walked into the kitchen tonight to make dinner and there was Soni eating a bowl of oatmeal. She looks up and says, "Mom, your lazy."

I thought she was referring to the fact that she had to make her own oatmeal, and I thought to myself, maybe she's right, but just for kicks I asked her why she thought I was lazy.

Her comment, "Because you make us clean our own rooms....your just so lazy."

Yep, I'm lazy.

Dora Debunked

Last night I was reading a stack of Dora books to Bingham and Soni and we got to a part where Dora asks a question, like "Which way do we go?"

Soni stopped me and said, "Look at her smile, I think she already knows the answer."

Soni was completely serious, but me and Eve could hardly contain our giggles.

Back to school with a little warning

Since Soni started school she hasn't stopped bouncing off the walls for a second. You can tell it is quite an emotional/stimulating/slightly overwhelming ride she's on. Here's a little excerpt from her prayer the other night:

"I love school, it rocks (pause) and rolls. I miss my mom, but I like playing with that one boy; can you tell my mom to get a play date with him again?"

Don't know if I should be quoting prayer on my blog, but it cracked me up. I guess she didn't have a lot of faith that I would get the message from God because she reminded me with this little comment:

"Hey Mom, can we call up that one kid in my class and say 'Schools out, scream and shout, do you want to have a play date?'"

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, me and Bingham have been pretty tight buddies. He loves helping me with whatever I'm doing, and surprisingly for a 2 year old, he REALLY is quite helpful; he's quite a funny little kid too.

This is what Eve's been up too...learning to smile pretty with a little bling. I think she's pretty cute.

Austin and Soni have a little back to school warning to share....

Just because they are labeled "safety scissors" doesn't mean they won't cut your finger if your not careful. Seriously, these are scissors we've had around for years and have never been successful at cutting anything and now.....well, that's two band aids on Austin (because he didn't believe it really cut him the first time) and one on Soni (cause she didn't believe him either times)

Crazy Independence

It's Soni's Day! Not only did the girl start KINDERGARTEN this week (do you ever get used to that...sigh), but she has found independence in other areas as well.

I'll admit we haven't been riding our bikes much this summer.....really, I'm still wondering if we even had a summer....but now we're going to be hittin' the road because Soni is officially on TWO wheels! I think she's been capable for quite a while, just waiting on Phil and I to get out there and take her trainers off; that's just about all Phil did....that and convince her to stop turning around to look at him when she's riding down the road (ouch!).

Phil gets her started...she still prefers downhill.

YeeeAhhh! Away she goes!

Nightie and flip flops no less!

Of course, Austin had to get in on the action too, and stole the princess bike for a little covert operations....secret squirrel.

Kinda rough footage, but man the girl cracks me up.

The Tree

This tree has something for every age, from 1 to....well, I know Grandpa has enjoyed more than one nap in it's shade.
I love this tree.
I love seeing my kids (and neices and nephews) playing on it the same way I did when I was their age. Maybe one day they can lay in it's shade and take pictures of their kids......

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Sweet Soni Day

All morning as I worked in the yard, Soni was over by the club house singing "A Never Ending Chain" ......the primary song about the family being linked as a chain. I thought it was so cute. Then she told me she was making something for me so I couldn't look over there until she was done. She worked a long time, and this is the result...

It's Austin's old bicycle chain, and she decorated the whole thing (this is just a close up). It took her at least an hour, but that's our Soni.....making everything more beautiful.