Sofia's Tea Party

My Hannukah gifts to the family last year was a tea party for Sofia, a slumber party for Samantha and for Daddy to be gone for both of them.  Samantha went with Dad up north (past Duluth along the North Shore) biking and hiking while Sofia and I stayed home.  We went to the school carnival Friday night and somehow managed to watch movies both nights!  It was a nice snuggling time for Sofia and I!

Sofia was all about the goody bags for the party.  I tried to talk her out of it, but it was the part that she was focused on!  We spent most of Saturday shopping and then Antie She for lunch.  Antie She also helped me with the "tea party without tea".  Many thanks to her again!

2014 So far...

We've been busy, but no complaining allowed here!  We are healthy and employed with wonderful kids!  Daddy is loving his new job in Training and that has had a positive effect on everyone! 

Samantha learned a hard lesson when a treasured friendship ended.  She made some mistakes, but the important thing is that she learned to not make the same mistakes again.  We have struggled with her teacher this year which has brought more anxiety to Sam, though I've said her teacher just isn't as awesome as other teachers she's had.  I tried to turn it into a "teachable moment"/life lesson.  Time will tell if I succeeded.  Samantha has been loving dance lessons and now does ballet, tap, jazz and hip hop.  We won't be adding any other activities any time soon because it's a lot with Hebrew School!  I keep working on her with nutrition and finding her inner calm.  I love the discussions we have!  Samantha has a kind and friendly soul who is willing to help anyone anytime.

Sofia has made huge strides with her social skills.  (Really?  I'm talking about a six year old here!)  She isn't excluding kids or being mean at school anymore.  It seems like we nipped that bad habit in the bud.  Sofia is vivacious, energetic and makes her own magical world.  It's always fun when she shares it!

The winter weather was HARD.  School was cancelled so many days due to the cold.  I had intended to take the girls cross-country skiing with me, or take up snowshoeing, but all we got to do outside was ice skating a few times.  Thankfully it is officially spring and soon the weather will be a memory!

We've had plenty of adventures so far this year and we have plenty of plans for the upcoming year.  We'll go camping for a few weekends and visit St. Louis.  Our family has started looking for another dog (Ely's choice) so that will bring plenty of adjustments too.

Some winter highlights:

Sledding with our neighbors... Ely enjoyed running down the hill with the sled, but refused to ride in the sled!

A night out with Dad at a water park.

Winter Holidays delivering goodies to neighbors and seeing family:

We made it out to ice skate a few times.

Coding with Scratch:

Birthdays!

Sofia's 6th Birthday

Our last birthday at Pump It Up... 

We celebrated with lots of kids and presents!  Sofia has come a long way this year and we are grateful that so many could join us!

Adventures with my daughters and their friends

I was gone for a business trip all of last week.  Daddy did great single-parenting all week and there were no problems.  The grandparents all helped out too.  We really are blessed to have all the support we do.  I missed my family so much travelling, but it was good to know they're fine without me.  It was wonderful to have everyone pick me up from the airport, so thanks for making that happen!

I was so happy to be home... I forgot how lonely the road can be.

Yesterday we rode our bikes for a picnic at a park.  It was cold and windy, but we still made it fun playing games.  Then I took Samantha to the library and out to a bookstore.  We spent the rest of the day simply relaxing.

Today we began the day with some relaxation and a bike ride to tire Ely out.  Then I took the girls and their friends to a nearby zoo.  There were 5 girls total and they were all fantastic.  After we dropped the last friend off, the girls and I talked about the challenges and what we'll do differently next time.  I was really impressed with everyone's behavior as well as my own.  We ran out of time, but we all had fun and got plenty of exercise walking around.

Sofia's Consecration

It's tradition for Jews to celebrate a child beginning her Jewish education and we celebrated Sofia's today.  She was very proud of herself and it was special.  Sofia just shines.

First Day of School (Sofia's off to Kindergarten!)

Sofia went on the bus today with Samantha to her first day of Kindergarten!  I'm filled with emotion and pride thinking about her waving from the bus.  Yes, everyone is right when they say our children grow up too fast.  I understand it's one of those "Circle of Life" things and it's not that I want her to stay young forever.  I consider it one of the greatest privileges to watch my children grow and I love the fact that I truly enjoy the people my kids are.  They are going out into the world equipped with as much wisdom as we can give them and are both incredible girls.

Daddy and I are so lucky!

Wizard of Oz Summer Performance

Last night the grandparents joined us to watch Samantha and Sofia perform "The Wizard of Oz" with their dance studio.  It was outdoors at a local park with an amphitheater and even though it was a little hot, it was a great night to watch them.

Sofia and her group began the performance.  She smiled and performed her routine beautifully.  Sofia said that she was nervous to dance in front of people, but practice was fun.  We helped her work through it and by the day of the show, Sofia wasn't nervous at all.

Samantha had 4 dances to perform and she was wonderful.

Daddy and I are so proud of our girls... here they are pre-show.

 

 

We went out for ice cream afterwards.  The excitement of performing and the sugar rush kept the girls up late!

Summer Activities Wind Down

Throughout the summer, camp has been a big deal.

Many thanks to Nana and Papa for taking the girls for a day each week! 

Here are some highlights from the summer camps and programs...

 

Samantha was supposed to go to zoo camp with a friend of hers, but it didn't work out.  Since Sofia was sad that she didn't go to camp, Daddy took her to the zoo the last morning. 

 

Scary T-Rex!

You've got to love this one!

A note from Sofia to Sophia

"I like you Sophia, I want you to have a slumber party with me and my family."

Sofia created this and asked me how she could give it this to Sophia.  Daddy texted it to her dad.

So cute and sweet!

Camping at Kathio

Camping at Kathio

Antie She and I took the girls camping to try out our new tent with the girls.  We headed northwest to Kathio State Park right by Mille Lacs.  We left earlier than planned, didn't encounter too much traffic and made excellent time in getting to the park.  Checking in wasn't a problem and neither was finding our campsite.  As we backed the car into the site though, we noticed a bog and SWARMS of various insects.  

Uh-oh.

Both kids freaked and I fought the urge to panic.  Antie She's legs were covered in horse fly bites from before we got the DEET applied.  Once the repellent was applied, we settled in and got the tent set up.  The girls helped get things organized inside the tent, Antie She worked at the site and I attempted to kill the majority of bugs that had entered our vehicle.  Then it started to rain, which quickly accelerated to a downpour.  Unfortunately I didn't remember that I had opened a tent window right by Antie She's sleeping bag.  Whoops... she got my sleeping bag that night while I slept under towels.  

Due to the rain, we went to a nearby Dairy Queen for dinner and looked around the park.  Thankfully, the rain stopped long enough to get the girls showered and settled in their sleeping bags.  Sofia was the only one who slept through the overnight thunder storm, but it was fine.  

Saturday was our only full day at the park, so we made the most of it.  We went to a nature lecture on the archaeology of the area, climbed the fire tower, went canoeing, made snacks at the playground and beach (where Antie She showed off her fire-making skills) and ended the night with s'mores.  Everyone slept better without the rain and it was a beautiful day!

On Sunday, we headed home fairly early.  Daddy missed us and we needed to prepare for the upcoming week.  The girls told everyone they had a great time and I made notes on what to bring/do differently  next time.

 

 

Sofia's last days as a preschooler

Sofia's last week as a preschooler included a playdate at a friend's house (with good manners!) and her spring program at school.  Daddy had been out of town, but made it back to see his girl shine. Nana, Papa and Grammy came to watch her too.

Her smile has changed quite a bit since she lost a top tooth in a scooter wipeout last week.  Yesterday she pulled the other top tooth out herself (it had been hanging since the crash) and was very proud of herself.  I saw the fall and remained calm throughout - I was grateful it wasn't worse, but it was scary for me to watch.  Sofia refused to come home afterwards and insisted that we walk Ely.  It was obvious she was in pain, but she got right back on her scooter and moved on.  I think she enjoyed showing off the various cuts and scrapes too.

It's hard to believe that Sofia will start kindergarten already.  As I took her to school this morning, she said, "Two more days of preschool and then it's on to kindergarten at GH".  Wow... she really does understand!  I'm relieved she seems to be handling the transition well so far!

Grandparent's Birthday Party (and Sofia's 1/2 Birthday)

We started the day out with Samantha's last day of Sunday School, then went to Susie and Stu's house to see Ben, Ellen and their baby Micah.  It was nice to see Aunt Merrian again so soon since our visit Mother's Day and catch up a bit with Ben and Ellen.

Later in the afternoon, all the grandparents came to celebrate their birthdays.  Coincidentally, Sofia's 1/2 birthday falls right in the middle of the grandparent's birthdays.  We made jokes all day long about only singing half the song, getting half a piece of cake.  Sofia laughed at most of our humor.  It was another day filled with blessings for us.

Happy Birthday to Grammy, Nana and Papa!  We are lucky to have you close in our lives!

Update on Sofia

We had her last preschool conference this week!  All is good, though we need to focus some energy on being nice even when another kid isn't nice to you.  It's appropriate behavior, but it needs to be corrected.  Academically speaking, she is reading at a second grade level.  In any case, we love her and are incredibly proud.

Yesterday she lost another tooth at school.  This is what she said, "The tooth fell out and then it was on my tongue and then I swallowed it".  The tooth fairy visited last night in spite of not having "proof" and Sofia was excited once she remembered to check her bed.

We visited what will become her classroom once kindergarten begins this fall.  Sofia loved being able to ride the bus and explore the school.  She was a little shy with the principal, but I don't think that will last long.

And here we are enjoying a breakfast out of her own... While I'm not always proud of her table manners, it was a nice outing for us and I just love that kid.