Aw...

This was taken a recent weekend day where we picked up food and headed to a park for a picnic and playtime... it was a fun day! We try to make the most of our family time. We don't need to do special things all the time, but I am the most relaxed when we are all together!

Last day of preschool!

Wow, already a school year has gone by! Samantha's preschool program was today and it was time to say good-bye to her teachers and friends. We put a note into her classmates folders with our family's contact information so if they want to call us over the summer, they can. There is also the chance that Sam may go to preschool occasionally too.

In her program today, Sam's part was the jumbuck (a.k.a. what they call sheep in Australia). We put her costume on at the last minute to shorten the time. She shed cotton balls wherever she went, the ears (cotton balls glued to a headband) was top-heavy and kept falling down, but it was funny and everyone remembered the context of preschool program and isn't it great that the kids are mostly following along? Following the performance, we headed out to the playground for the Moomba festival. The kids played and enjoyed themselves while the parents were able to mingle and talk. Sam's favorite teachers, Ms. K and Mrs. N will not be back next year, so I expressed our appreciation to them.

Say what?

Yesterday I took Sam to Target for supplies to make her jumbuck (a.k.a. sheep) costume. (The preschool program is Friday.) We crossed paths with a man who had noticeably longer hair than she is used to seeing. Sam pointed and said, "Look Mommy, it's a Daddy-Mommy!" I acknowledged what she said, stifled giggles and averted my eyes.

This morning Daddy asked Sam about it, specifically why she thought the man was a "Daddy-Mommy". She replied, "Because he wasn't bald like you". Daddy took it well and started naming uncles who have less hair than he does before leaving the room.

Also at Target... I was selecting a shirt for her when she came up to me holding a girl's bra on the hanger. She asked me when she would get to wear one. I casually replied that she would get one when she fits into one. Then I noticed a clerk standing nearby grinning. I asked her if that was the strangest thing she has ever heard. She just smirked and giggled, so I let it go. All in all, it was very cute!

You gotta love her!

Joyful day

Today was a good day...

It started off with a few shenanigans... I went in early to finish work on a presentation that I gave today... Sam didn't wake up when I said goodbye to Sam and then Daddy forgot to call on his way with the girls so I had to wait all afternoon to talk to her! Daddy said she expressed her displeasure with the situation, but they got through it and out of the house eventually!

I left work early to pick up Sofie and headed to Sam's final gymnastics show. I had a ball watching her! Sofie was able to run around in the gym a bit and run on the air track with Samantha, so that was hilarious! Here's a picture of her class:

It was a girl's night for us, so we grabbed dinner (Chicken nuggets, fries, chocolate milk please!) and headed to a favorite park for a picnic. Sam almost made it across the monkey bars by herself! (Sofie is way too daring... she is no longer satisfied with going up the ladders and has decided she wants to climb down too. I am actively discouraging that at this point because can't she wait until she's at least 2 to start that?) Sam did the same stuff though and we survived. This particular park has a beach so of course I took the girls there! We had a ball wading in the water and playing in the sand. Once we got home, the girls got a bath and were exhausted after a full day.

Sam's class was invitational, meaning that she was chosen to attend because she was so well-behaved and exhibited an aptitude for gymnastics. Samantha is confident in her abilities and looks forward to every class. (Sam loves gymnastics, but we're going to take a break this summer and start swimming lessons instead. She has politely informed me that this fall she would like ballet classes.) You can view the evidence below...

So hard to say goodbye

Oh, how I miss my kids during the workday. I love playing with my girls, teaching them and watching them navigate the world. It is wonderful to experience the world through a child's eyes, maybe even more so when it's your child.

I knew how lucky I was to have the schedule I did in my previous job and I am still grieving that loss after 5+ weeks of working this job. Believe me, I'm not complaining about having a job right now! There are so many honest and hard-working people struggling in this time. I am grateful for my job and the career opportunities it represents. Right now it's not so much the job or even the commute that is overly stressful - it's really the 10 hours I am away every weekday. I'm staying with my commitment to give it 6 months because that will give us time to transition and adjust. I know there are proposals to implement flex-time here so for now I will just get through the day and appreciate the time I have with my family.

However, when I heard that Sam recently told a teacher that she was sad I didn't take her to preschool anymore I cried because I am incredibly sad too! I spoke with her teacher (Ms. Nielsen is a wonderful teacher) and she did her best to comfort Sam.

I'm grateful that I have a husband, 2 smart and sweet kids, a supportive extended family, a dog, friends, a home, career and especially grateful that we are all relatively healthy!

International Children's Festival

Today we headed to the International Children's Festival in downtown St. Paul. It was a beautiful day and we met some friends there too! Nicki, Dan, Naamah and Kian kept us company while we explored. We did crafts, went through a butterfly tent, watched performances of African, Asian and Spanish origins. All of us watched the parade and had some ice cream. Sam is still talking about all the people we saw walking around on stilts. She keeps asking why they were on stilts. I finally suggested that the next time we see someone on stilts, we should ask them why they opted for stilts and how long they had to practice to stay up there.

Sam and I opted for some quiet time which usually ends up with one or both of us sleeping as was the case today. Daddy kept up with Sofie who was overly active from her catnap on the way home from the festival. Fonz got a stroll and as a treat for being so good the entire day, Daddy took Sam to a park she chose for a little extra time. Sofie was in no shape to be out so I got to have some cuddling and playing time with her.

Here are the kids putting flowers in the singing garden and showing off the jewelry they made...

Here is a shot of them dancing during a performance...

It was a great family day!

Sammy's got a crush

Well, maybe it's not a true crush.

This week she has talked about a boy at her preschool quite a bit. I won't say his name because I'm sworn to secrecy. Tonight when we were picking out clothes for her to wear tomorrow she insisted that the outfit be cute. I asked her if it was because she thought this boy would think it's cute and she shyly smiled and said yes. I would have fainted if it weren't for the fact that my head decided it would be better to go catatonic and stand there with my mouth agape instead. She's 4! How did we get to this already!?! After I regained my ability to speak I asked a lot of questions. She does like other boys too, so there is some relief. (I hope.) The boy in question always wants to sit by her and invited her to his birthday party. We will see what happens with this.

In any case, it was an interesting day at our house. Daddy took Sam out to breakfast before school this morning. They cherish their time together. Sofie had her 18 month check today and all is well except for throwing up in Daddy's car just as he was pulling into the driveway tonight. In addition to Sam's boy bombshell, we went shopping in vain for a costume to wear in her upcoming program at preschool, but somehow ended up with a sucker and some plastic lei necklaces. We are returning tomorrow for a hula hoop. It is now way past their bedtime and I'm praying they sleep soon!


Here is a recent family shot... we are so lucky to have each other!