Skating

We decided to take the skates/roller blades out on the open road the other night after dinner. The girls had fun, but it was harder than anticipated.

Go Boo go!

Buggy did better on her roller blades. T got my old roller blades out of the garage attic space and I took Buggy for a…roll? a few days later. It’s harder than it looks! There were very few surfaces we found in our two miles that were good. The wheels lock up at every little rock and pebble. I nearly fell about 50 times, but somehow I managed to stay on my feet. Haha :)

I think we need to start wearing helmets! :)

Funny Friday

This is not a problem for my own clothes, but I totally do this with the girl’s clothes!

So true.

I love this quote.

Happy Friday!

The B-I-B-L-E

Peanut does this every once in a while. She grabs a bible from the back of the pew during church and sits there “reading” it. It’s so cute!

She is very meticulous about where she reads too. She finds the exact spot that she wants.

And then moves her little finger along the words.

Love it!

Wordless Wednesday

It’s hard to see but that very exciting print dress is paired with black tights with pastel hearts, red reindeer socks, and purple Rapunzel tennis shoes. :)

AWANA

Okay, let’s see if I can get back on track…

We had our end of the year AWANA celebration a few weeks ago. It was another great year of serving and learning for our family!

Noni was SO helpful to take Peanut for me even though she isn’t technically old enough to be a Cubbie. Being a Secretary is MUCH easier without a mini-sidekick. :)

Noni always makes up cute little treats for the kids at the end of the year awards ceremony. She and Miss Sparky passed them out. All the kids LOVE Miss Sparky. She’s like a second Grandma to most of them!

Here’s Peanut getting her award. Next year she’ll be an official Cubbie although she did a pretty good job this year! She said lots of verses!

And sweet Boo! She will be our big Sparky next year! She’s had three years of Cubbies (she went early also, they’re only supposed to have two). I can’t believe how big she’s getting!

We are so blessed to have Noni as the Cubbie leader! Everyone loves her, and she always does SUCH a great job with the little ones! She is organized and efficient, and loves on each one of those little balls of energy! She keeps 15ish 3 and 4 year olds running smooth in a little room for two hours each Wednesday. I don’t know how she does it!

Our grown-up Buggy girl is going to be in TNT next year! The 3rd through 6th grade segregate so she’ll have all girls in her group next year. She did great at step-up night so I think she’ll love it!

And she earned a Sparky plaque! To earn it you have to complete the book all three years, K-2. Only she and one other boy got the award. We’re so proud of our Buggy girl! She has so learned SO many verses in order to earn this award. Love it.

I love working at AWANA but it’s always nice when it’s done for the year and we can reclaim our Wednesday evenings. We’re planning to enjoy our summer off but we’re already looking forward to next year!

Testing

Testing testing one two three!

We’re back in business! Now I just have to figure out how to use the new computer and get caught up on all my blogging. I feel all discombobulated. :P

"I larious!" - Part 8

February 19th

I walked into the dark nursery to get Peanut out of bed and tripped over a little wagon. A: "You knock it?" Me: "Yes I tripped on that since your room is a little messy." She pulls on my arm to get out of the crib and says, "It's ok! I did not break your arm!" Then she squeezes my neck really tight in a big hug. "I did not break your head!"

February 27th

Peanut points to my neck and asks, "What that called?" Me: "A mole." A: "Oh! Ok! Like a polka dot afro?!"

February 28th

The sun set and I hadn't shut the blinds yet. Peanut looked outside and pointed, "Look! The lights off! It's not morning."

March 2nd

We were at dance class (you can stay and observe once a month) watching her sister's and she looked outside and saw it was getting dark. She came over to me and put her hands on both sides of my face and looked at me intently. "You forget you need make dinner Mama?"  

April 11th

I looked over at her as she was grabbing at the back of her pants. "I'm just touching my booty!" she informs me. "Why?" I asked. A: "I don't know. For no reason!"

April 21st

T and the girls had seen a hawk swooping over the backyard the night before and he made the mistake of saying it was looking for Cocoa. They were quite upset, but apparently Peanut didn't pick up on the implications because the next day she was playing and happily asked us, "How bout the Seahawk swoop down and grab Cocoa and dey go swimmin'?!"

:)

P.S. Hopefully we'll get a computer soon and I can get back to regular blogging!

And Another One Bites the Dust

Well, we got the news that our computer is terminal. Bummer. :( The Geek Squad apparently tried all sorts of things, and came to the official conclusion that "this machine needs to be replaced". :P

It seems like we are SO hard on computers! Does everyone else have to replace their computer every 2-3 years?? Because that's about how often we do. T's IT guy at work told him that is normal, but I sure wish it wasn't.

It's kind of funny, but somehow I expect things to last longer, or get better or improve. I guess that is just my soul longing for heaven, where things aren't going to start deteriorating the minute you get them. Where things WILL get better and better. It reminds me of the verses in Matthew 6:19-21 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." 

So I guess I can be thankful for crashing computers and kid's clothes that get ruined with one wearing, and food that spoils before we can eat it, and frayed edges, and torn pages and the HUNDRED'S of items our little dog chews up in a week. They're all a reminder to store up my treasures in heaven, because all this stuff on Earth is just temporary. We can't take any of it with us, and I really wouldn't want to.

Computer

Well, our computer is currently residing with the Geek Squad in town. They've had it for about a week now so hopefully it will be coming home soon.

Papa loaned us his lap top so I've been able to post the girls funny sayings, so if it doesn't come back soon I guess I'll post some more...

"Laugh With Me!" - Part 28

Wow, I haven't posted one of these for K since last June! I guess she's getting to the age where she doesn't have funny slip-ups very often anymore. Here are the last of the ones I have written down for her.

July 6th

Passing a Petco (back when we still had Lottie). K: "Petco! Let's stop and get another hamster!" Me: "No!" She shakes her head, like I'm being silly, "Not for US for Grandma and Grandpa!" (that would have truly been funny!) :)

August 6th

She saw a quail run out across the road, and must have been imagining miniature forest creatures because she called out, "Mama! Don't hit that wee little deer!"

September 9th

We live in a VERY un-diverse town. There are literally only a couple of darker skinned people. We were out in the back yard when Daddy asked, "Bug, what are you doing?" She was rubbing sand/dirt all over Boo's back. K: shrugs, "She said she wanted to look like B". (a girl from church with darker skin).


October 18th

I was shopping for some...personal items...and was going to run into the mall quickly on my own while T took everyone else to a different store. T: "Mommy is going into the mall for a minute on her own. K: "I want to go!" T: "No. Not until you are...14. Then you and Mommy can go shopping together for big girl things. K: "But Mommy will be TOO OLD by then!"

October 22nd

We were in the plane heading to Auntie Katherine's wedding. Bug was looking out the window at the peaks of the mountains. "NO one could live in those mountains because their house would be tipped!"

November 27th

K: "I really like my little sister right now." Me: "What do you mean?" K: "Right this second! I really like her!" Me: "But she's not even in the room." K: "I know! She's nice and quiet!"

:)

"Dat Funny?" -Part 18

January 10th

We were at Lowe's and T was tying down stuff in the back. His tie downs are under the back seat and he left the door open while he was going back and forth to get them. It was snowing and starting to blow in. Boo yelled, "Daddy! Close my door! You want to leave your CHILD out in the snow?!?"

January 29th

Conversation between Boo and Noni. S: You know what Noni? We [K&S] can't have a sleepover in in each others rooms until I'm 9 because we woke everybody up. Noni: Wow four years. S: We were a lot loud.

February 25th

Bug came down the stairs. "Mommy! Can you tell Boo to stop it!? She just stuck her naked bum in my face and said 'baby orangutangs like to play!'!"

March 7th

We had some people over and Cocoa came running in. Boo: "That is Cocoa. Her middle name is Bean." I guess she's heard me calling her Cocoa Bean and came to that reasonable conclusion. :)

March 16th

I can tell when the girls have been listening to country music with Daddy in the garage. This conversation happened at the dinner table. S: I know where Daddy's from...Idaho! And Mommy's from Washington! K: No Mommy's from Texas! S: IF YOU WANT TO PLAY IN TEXAS, YOU'VE GOTTA HAVE A FIDDLE IN THE BAND!

:)

"I larious!" - Part 7

February 4th

I had put the Weeble House, bus, and people away in a toy box for a while. Peanut discovered it one day and happily played with it for about a week. One day she came running in, "I can't find my wobbly wobbly guys!"

February 6th

We were leaving to pick up Daddy for lunch. I was getting my shoes on and thought I heard the girls all run out to the garage to get in the car. I headed that way but Peanut wasn't there so I went back in the house. I heard frantic footsteps coming towards me and found her nearly in tears. She frowned at me accusingly, "You LEFT me! I was LOST!"

February 7th

I got this text from Noni. The girls were spending the night there: Oh goodness. After bath the girls were all putting on their matching pjs. K was pulling on Boo's pants. Boo had on Peanut's shirt. I was trying to help them get situated and we looked over to see Peanut in distress trying to hold up K's pants. We got tickled till our sides hurt! 

February 12th

After hearing us encourage Boo's reading practice, T started reading a book to Peanut. After every few words she would interrupt. "Good job Daddy!" and "Nice reading Daddy!" and "You can do it Daddy!"

February 16th

We were driving up to the indoor water park when we passed the biggest lake in our area (it's huge). Peanut got so excited, "Look Mommy look! A big water pool!"

February 18th

K and I were doing school work when A comes into the kitchen. "Spi-dah! Dere's a spi-dah in my coat! We gotta shoo it! Shoo it away!" I came over and sure enough there was a spider so I grabbed a shoe and smashed it. "It's gone." I said. A: "Whew. Sanks!"

:)

Wordless Wednesday

Starting Summer!

Boo didn’t have preschool the Friday after K and I finished school so we headed into town to celebrate the start of our summer!

I had taken the girls to this park when we were waiting for Noni and Auntie N the week before. We were only able to stay for a few minutes, and they were having so much fun, but when I told them it was time to leave they happily skipped to the car without a complaint.

Since they were so good about it I’d been wanting to take them back. We were able to stay for about an hour and half and they had a blast, making friends with several kids there.

Whee!

Bug’s arms were actually sore the next day from all the playing (plus the rest of the day’s activities).

Whoosh!

Swings!

After the park we headed to meet Noni and Mama for lunch. I didn’t tell the girls where we were going until we pulled in. They were thrilled to see Chuck E. Cheese! And since it was a school day there were only a few other people there…nice!

We got them a little cup of tokens and they went nuts!

Peanut loved this little cup of hot chocolate that spun around. She used three of her tokens to do it over and over.

Peanut was a little afraid to go into the hanging cage at the top of the tubes, but she finally came out for a picture. :)

Bug loves Skee Ball (sp?).

It was fun to sit and chat with Mama while the kids (and Noni!) played.

Boo has always been TERRIFIED of anyone in a costume, but when we got there K explained to her (about the 100th time she’s heard it) that Chuck E. was just one of the workers in a costume and she finally took it to heart because when he came out she went right along and danced with the other kids.

And even held Chuck E.’s hand! Amazing!

It was Peanut’s turn to be a little timid. She observed Chuck E. from a safe distance in the Bob the Builder tractor.

Another ride in the hot chocolate cup. :)

Before we left we tried to get a picture of the girls. It was not working out so well! Noni and I were in stiches! The first one they sat perfectly still for about two minutes and then as soon as they moved the picture took.

Then we tried to hold A’s head in the shot and she got mad.

And then we finally got one but Peanut was sinking down and looks a little weird! Haha :) It was SO funny!

The girls headed back to Noni’s while I did some grocery shopping and then I picked up K and A to head back home for K’s baseball game that night. Boo came later with Noni and Papa.

It was a BIG day and Peanut passed out quickly in the car on the way home. She’s starting to be old enough to handle some days without a nap (although she usually has a meltdown by the nights end when she doesn’t take one).

What a fun first day of “summer”!

LAST DAY!

Buggy’s last day of school was April 28th! I got a little overzealous in my pre-planning. Haha :) With K12 you have a “Progress” page which lists your percentage of lessons left for the year. You are supposed to get done with a certain percentage each month to stay on track and be finished in conjunction with their school calendar, although they don’t care how long it takes as long as you are done in time for the next calendar year.

Since this was the last year for Buggy and I to do school on our own (Boo is already registered for K12 Kindergarten) I thought it would be fun to see if we could get done before her birthday! I adjusted the percentages and we did at least one or two extra subjects each day (since September) so we could finish early.

It is SO nice to be done! Especially since the weather is starting to turn nice and we all want to be outside again after a cold winter!

Buggy had “Semester Assessments” (they never use the word test in K12) in each of her subjects so that was our big task for our last week. It was kind of fun to look back over the semester and review all we’d learned. Yes, I’m learning right along with her! Apparently I don’t have as good as a memory as I once thought. :)

Her Writing assessment was a two page report that we’d been working on for weeks. We went through the whole process of researching and writing a report. She chose Koala Bears and I thought she did a great job!

Here she is in the final piece of the writing process checklist: publishing.

And here is her report. We had lessons on writing introductions, paragraph bodies, conclusions, gathering information, citing resources, transitions, note taking, etc. It was quite a process!

I’ve been a little surprised by the math curriculum the past few months. We did what I would consider “normal” 2nd grade math for most of the year and then in the last couple of months we did two week units on multiplication, division, graphing, and fractions. It was a lot of information in a short amount of time, but I was really impressed with the way they presented it. They took some difficult concepts and really made them easy to understand.

Our History assessment was really fun. History is our favorite subject and it was great to go back and review. They had a game board for us to make and it had about 30 questions. We had to travel across the map from Scandinavia to England to Africa to the Arabian peninsula to India to China to Japan (all countries we learned about this semester) answering the questions to move forward. It was really fun and we played it about ten times! Auntie Karen, she’s saving it for you to see if she can beat you, the history teacher! :)

The Literature, Art, Spelling, and Vocab assessments were all pretty straightforward and simple for her.

Science was another big review and tests over the subjects we’ve covered. It was the last subject we had to finish and here she is after completing the last question…

SO HAPPY!

K is taking her state-required standardized tests in the next couple of weeks and we still have to attend her class connects twice a week till school is officially out, but other than that we are DONE!

Another successful year of K12! We love it! I’m already looking forward to next year (and hoping I’ll be able to manage two students successfully!)! I think it will work out fine. :)

We went to Mexican food with Daddy for lunch to celebrate, and let them order dessert (we only do this on special occasions). They ordered the Chimichanga de Manzana and they loved it. I forgot to get any pictures because we had some trauma when Boo slammed her finger in the car door while getting the mail just before we went. It actually looks way worse than this now. It’s a greenish color. :(

Other than that it was a wonderful day! On to THIRD grade!