Where Aliens Go

Our conversation at dinner tonight went something like this.

"Momma, where do aliens live?"

"Outer Space. Lily, eat your meat"

"Momma, where aliens go when they're out ter? Why don't they stay here?"

"Good question."

SUPERSTAR!

"Momma, I want to be a Rock Star. And a teacher, a mouse detective, ballerina, and a Barbie!"
And she's going to bring her Pokey Little Puppy with her all the time. Somehow, I think Addie just might do it.

School is going really well so far. We solved the breakfast dillemna. Addie wasn't hungry in the morning before going to school and food is not allowed on the school bus. I emailed her teacher and we decided to have Addie get breakfast at school every morning. The school district provides a (mostly) hot breakfast every morning free. Addie loves everything they've served so far, I think she really likes picking out what she gets to eat from the line. So far the other big hits of being in 4 Year Old Kindergarten seem to be that there are numbers on the wall and that they sometimes get to play Freeze Dance.

Darla & Co.

We had a great time with Darla and Thomas at the cabin this last weekend. It was good to get away and just have time to hang out. In fact, Grandma and Grandpa even took the girls so that I could theoretically sleep in for my birthday! The weather was crummy but the kids didn't seem to mind.

As usual, the cake and the present wrapping/unwrapping were the biggest hits with the girls. The girls around presents makes sharks in a feeding frenzy look calm and in control. In fact, at one point, the wrapping paper was flying so fast that I thought Adam had given yarn to Darla for her birthday. Um, no. That was to me from Darla. :) That makes a lot more sense!

The only downside to the weekend was that I got sick. There's something nasty going around. I've been running a fever for 5 days and have a cough that just won't quit and a tight chest. It's miserable being sick when you're supposed to be having fun. Last night Lily snuggled up in my lap and said, "you sick Momma?" Yes, honey, I'm sick. A couple of minutes later she said, "You still sick Momma?" Yes, I'm still sick. "Daddy fix you. Daddy is de best Daddy in the whole world and he can fix anyting. Daddy fix you so you no sick." What a sweetie she is!

Four Year Old Kindergarten Here We Come!

This week was the start of 4K (4 year old kindergarten) for Addie. 4K is a Wisconsin preschool program. One of the most exciting parts for Addie is that because she is attending one of the public schools, she gets to ride the bus. It was traumatic for Momma and Daddy but very exciting for Addie. She kept saying, "I'm so excited!" Unfortunately we didn't think much about the camera the night before other than to say that we needed to take some pictures of her that morning. In a series of small disasters, none of our cameras was working that day. Instead, Adam had to take the pictures with his cell phone.

Lily was upset that Addie got to go to school but she didn't. Of course, Lily was also upset that Momma went to work right away in the morning instead of snuggling. Then, Lily was upset because she accidentally got hit in the head with a camera. It was a rough day to be Lily!!

Then it was a mad dash for the bus! (This photo brings back traumatic childhood memories of running for the bus)

There she is, off to her first day of 4 Year Old Kindergarten! She gets to ride a big yellow bus with just the 4 year olds. They have 5 point harnesses for each kid which makes me feel a lot better about the whole thing. I'm a little worried because we don't have the communication with the teacher that I am used to getting from daycare, but Addie is all smiles when she comes home. It sounds like they have a great routine at school and Addie is enjoying herself. The very first day she told me her teacher let her dance. I asked if the other kids danced. "No." I asked if the other kids were singing songs when she did this. "No. They just listen to the songs." Hmmm... was she dancing during quiet time? How did that all come about?

The only problem we're having is that Addie refuses to eat breakfast first thing in the morning. I get her up and get her dressed, but she needs to be at the corner waiting for the bus by 7:50. We tried sending food for her to eat on the bus, but the bus driver doesn't allow it. The big kids eat breakfast at school, but the 4 yr old program starts later so they don't eat breakfast there. By the time snack time rolls around, Addie is starved. I'm not sure what to do!

Lily is having the hardest time with all the changes. Between Addie going to school and Momma working full time, she's feeling left out. It's been a rough series of mornings around our house. I'm confident she'll get used to it, but I feel bad.

Random Sunday

Tip: Oxi Clean and lots of elbow grease gets crayon off of wallpaper.

The Story: I was trying to impress upon my children the importance of Mommy being able to have a little privacy at some point in the day. After having slept in Lily's room for most of the night, then spending parts of the wee hours in Addie's room, I was pretty wiped out. I just needed to use the bathroom alone, without an audience. Both children took offense at this and proceded to throw temper tantrums. Addie got put in a time out in her room over this one as she was screaming red-faced and shaking her finger at me. Sorry kiddo, we don't talk to Momma that way. Somehow I managed to move Lily outside the room and have 3 seconds to myself. In that amount of time Lily took a red crayon and was creating a masterpiece on the wall in the hallway. Addie of course ratted her out and I was able to get there before it became an entire mural. Each child and I got a damp washcloth and started scrubbing the crayon off. No pictures, I was too annoyed to think of getting the camera. The Oxi Clean really saved the day... it made clean up a little bit easier. It still took a lot of elbow grease, but at least I wasn't smearing the crayon around once I used it.

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I just discovered Living Crafts magazine at our Whole Foods Co-op. This issue is all about wool. There's some knitting but there's also wool felting (which anyone can do right off the bat - without special tools) and some neat projects with felt. I might try to make some felt crowns for Christmas for all the kids. Hand sewing is not my specialty, but these are so cute they are very tempting. It looks like everything in the magazine can be made by beginners or children of varying ages. In the issue I have, there are felted hedgehogs and a felted pumpkin that would be easy for the girls to help me with.

Happy Birthday Addie!

We did the traditional birthday extravaganza again this year. I didn't actually do a head count, but we had somewhere close to 30 people come. It was a lot of fun for all of us. We ate (a lot) of corn on the cob, brats, hot dogs, fresh veggies straight from a local farm and my mom's garden, deviled eggs, chips and DF dip, fresh fruit salsa and of course, cake. My Mom came up and helped the day before the party so everything was done early and done smoothly. The kids played outside, picking apples and chasing each other around. I love summer birthdays because I don't have to do anything structured to keep people entertained. The parents hung out outside with the kids and the grandparents or older friends stayed inside where it was quieter. We even had fantastic weather this year - perfect 70's temps and sunny after a cold wet morning.

We went with a Barbie cake this year (instead of the almost identical Princess Cake that was last year's treat). Next year I'm hoping we can break the doll cycle. :) Maybe I can convince Lily to do a Strawberry Shortcake birthday or something like that. Addie loved it though - she thought the Barbie was beautiful!

Make a wish sweetie! I hope all your dreams come true - or at least most of them!

And yes, our friend AJ did eat 3 pieces of cake again this time around. That kid likes his cake! :) Although I have to say he wasn't as enthralled with the Barbie cake as he was with the bunny cake. He's such a cute kid - he had his first 2 pieces scarfed down so fast his mom didn't realize he was onto the 3rd until I gave her the heads up. Better watch out for him Dana, he's quick!

In case anyone cares, Kool-Aid Jammers are disgusting. I caved tonight when the girls were asking for juice boxes in the grocery store. Since the Jammers were on sale (the ones with only 2 g of sugar) I decided they wouldn't be too bad. Yuck. They have a very plasticy taste to them. I really don't know that the kids will even drink them.