Career Day

The kids' had career day at school today!

They got to dress up in career clothes, which they loved!

I was a slacker mom, and didn't make them/put together any cute outfits for them, so they scrounged around this morning for whatever.

Grace went with cheerleader.

Adam went with Deseret Industries Job Coach.

They had an ambulance, fire truck, crane, and police cars outside.  Inside, there were CPAs, veterinarians, hairdressers, doctors, and a ton more... they each rotated through one of four groups, and didn't cross-over, so I know that they had to have had a ton of parent volunteers down there, teaching about their careers.  It was super cool!

They both got to learn about some fun careers.  Grace decided she either wants to be a teacher or a pony rider.  Adam is still pretty dead set on being an "airplane inventor during the day, and a Crime Scene Investigator at night."

He is going to be a busy guy someday.

;)

School's Out for Spring!

Wahoo!  We are FINALLY on spring break!

Yesterday was a half-day at school, so after I picked up the kids, I surprised them with lunch + play at the park.

We had a grand time playing, going on a nature walk, and talking about all of the fun things we are going to do this week.

Happy day!

I LOVE having my kiddos home with me!

P.S.  Ask me in a few days, after I have been whined to 1,543 times and stopped 2,345 fights, if I STILL feel that way.  ;)

Our Little Nurse Shark!

Adam and Grace's school participates in the Accelerated Reader book program.  They have to read certain "AR" books, take tests, and once they get so many 100% on the tests, they get to move up to the next reading level.  Their school mascot is the shark, so each level is assigned a different shark.

Grace was at the kindergarten reading level (a 'Cookie Cutter Shark.')  She read a lot of books, and reached the goal of  20 100% tests this week!  She was presented a certificate and a pencil at the morning assembly this morning, and got to have a pizza lunch with her teacher this afternoon!

She was SO excited!  She worked SO hard and is now a 'Nurse Shark', which means she reads books at the 1st grade level.  Wahoo!

Adam is really close, but he has to read more/longer books... he is only 4 away from graduating his level.

And, to make the assembly even more special, Adam's class presented the school motto, so we got to see him participate in that, too.  His class did a great job!

We are so proud of both of our shark readers!

Workin' It!

We hurried and did our chores this morning, grabbed some Lunchables at the store (it's amazing how the rare Lunchable makes me the coolest mom ever), and went to the park for some fun.

We went to a Las Vegas park this weekend, that we haven't been to in over a year.  We got to play with some kids from school, who happened to be there, too.  It was so fun!

When their friends left, my kiddos noticed the exercise area.

They played/worked out for over an hour!

Adam declared it even better than a playground.

And, yeah, she's still crazy flexible.

;)

Book-nic

Adam and Grace's school had a family "book-nic" during the school book fair this week.  The idea was to grab a book, and read it during a picnic lunch with the family.

We enjoyed the beautiful weather with some of Adam's friends and ate our lunch with him (I LOVE that he still thinks that we are cool enough to come to these things), and we were about to head inside to check out the book fair when...

... Adam put his hand down next to him in the grass, right on top of a bee.  He received his first-ever bee sting, on the palm of his hand.  Ouch!

It wasn't exactly the most perfect way to end a fun picnic, but he was fine after a few minutes.

Grace loved getting a look at what it was like to eat lunch at school (she is sooo excited to get to do that next year), and we all had a great time eating lunch with our Adam!

Frozen Yogurt with Dad

We told Grace that when she went happily to school for 5 days, that she would get to go out for a treat with Dad.

5 days doesn't seem like a lot, really.

But, when your baby girl suddenly hates school so much that she is late (because dragging her screaming body out of the car takes 10 minutes), has to be dragged upstairs to the office for a late pass, and then crumbles up and eats her said pass in the office in front of the secretary, thinking that if she doesn't have that pass, she can't go to school...

... then 5 days seems like F-O-R-E-V-E-R.

;)

(I'm serious.  She ate it.  That's how committed she was to not going to school)

Anyway, her goal in mind (and a special blessing from Dad), helped her get back on track.

She chose "U-Swirl" frozen yogurt, and she and Mike had a really fun time!

Yeah, under all of those cookies and sugared cereal there is a little frozen yogurt.

;)

She had fun, Mike had fun, and Grace is back to LOVING school again.

Yay!

Science Night

Adam and Grace's school had a super-fun science night last night.  We all went as a family and had a great time!

An astrological club was there with some major-cool telescopes... the kids saw Jupiter (and it's moons), Mercury, Mars, Mercury, Venus and the Orion Nebula.

 There was a paper airplane flying contest.  Adam looked forward to that for weeks!  He LOVES paper airplanes.  I can't keep our paper stocked quick enough with his love for paper airplanes.  ;)

Inside, parents and teachers had science booths set up, and the science teacher had displayed each grades' projects.  There was a lot of really fun stuff to see and do... which I enjoyed with Grace.  Adam, Josh, Mike and Adam's friends stayed outside most of the time looking at the telescopes and flying paper airplanes.

We had a great night together.  I am so grateful for the wonderful school they go to, and the great teachers and staff there who make fun nights like this possible!

Josh at 2 Years

28 lbs

34 inches

Favorite Songs: I am a Child of God, Wheels on the Bus, I am Like a Star Shining Brightly,

Favorite Foods: pasta, meat (he calls everything "chicken"), cheese, milk, juice, apples, carrots, oranges, grapes, dried mangos, raisins, peanut butter and honey sandwiches

Favorite Books: Dora, Where is Baby's Pumpkin, Counting Kisses

He also loves dogs (he squeals around them), reading, singing coloring (he's getting better at sticking to paper), throwing everything (he's still got a great arm), running and jumping, climbing, keeping his hands clean, playing with cars, dressing up, and doing anything that his big brother/sister are doing.

He and Grace are still the best of friends, and he and Adam are starting to buddy around more, too.  He loves his brother and sister.

***

I wish I could absolutely describe how sweet and darling this boy is.  Don't get me wrong; he is a total rascal who is into anything and everything.  But, it's all done because he's curious.  He rarely throws a tantrum, and when he does, he ends it pretty quick.  He knows what he wants and has such a determination to get it.  I love it.

Most of all, he's just sweet.  He is always doing little things to make the rest of us happy... helping clean or getting someone a toy or towel.

The other day, I sat down to dinner, and said, "Man!  I forgot my fork."

Josh immediately popped up and ran to get one for me.

He is like that all of the time, and it just melts my heart.

He has also always thought that he is just as big as Adam and Grace.  He doesn't like things done for him (from having his food cut up to putting his shoes on.... he wants to do it).

I love that, too.

Most of all I love him, and I am so thankful for the past 2 years with him.

Tea Time

I am so in love with the little tea party that I caught Grace and Josh playing with the other day.

I think Josh liked it, too.

Grace put him in charge of "helping " the animals eat their snacks.

Allergies Stink!

I've always had allergies, but until we moved to Las Vegas, I didn't understand why allergies made people so darn miserable.

Now I know.

As soon as March hits, my eyes insanely itch and water; my skin itches; my throat swells and itches; I sneeze and cough uncontrollably; and it all triggers asthma attacks.

I pretty much live like a grumpy hermit for a few weeks, while the world looks like this:

Can you see the yellow pollen?

It's everywhere.

Unfortunately, this year, Grace joined me in my miserable allergies, poor thing.

Her staying home from school for a few days while we got her allergies under control, triggered some major separation anxiety when she went back to school.  And that led to a week of her screaming when I brought her to school each day, while her teacher pried her off of me.

Horrible.

It made me hate allergies and pollen even more.

And then it rained.

The pollen was washed away, and slowly we are feeling better.

Wahoo!

It's no fun being stuck inside when the weather is soooo nice outside!

(Also a reward chart that promised an ice cream date with Dad, an idea from my sister-in-law, helped us get Grace back to loving school again).

St. Patick's Day Fun

The fun started yesterday, when Grace's class was visited by a leprechaun!  He decorated the room in green streamers, left confetti everywhere, and turned over chairs!  After the kids all cleaned it up, they found some gold treats and Lucky Charms.  Her teacher is SO cute!

Last night, they worked with Mike to make the leprechaun trap that they've been planning for weeks.  They took a box, made a green pipe cleaner ladder, that led to a bunch of "gold coins" on top.  Underneath the coins, though, there were holes.  So, once they stepped on a gold coin, they would fall in.

We were SURE we would get one this year but...

... they escaped out of the side.

Luckily, they left us some gold and fun cereal to eat, too.  They also colored the milk and toilet again, like last year.  Little stinkers!

We were supposed to go to an outdoor parade, but our allergies were all so terrible, we were dying.

Instead, we went to the library for a FUN storytime!

They made shamrock sticks and "pots of gold" from paper plates.

Then they took their pots and went for a hunt throughout the library for gold coins.  Too fun!  They LOVED this!

At our traditional Friday movie night tonight, we had a green-themed dinner and added some green minty shamrock shakes for dessert.  Yum!

In a Tiny Waiting Room...

I had to take Adam to the doctor today (he wasn't sick, I just had some concerns about his growth).

The doctor ended up being stuck at the hospital, and then took a good amount of time examining Adam, so we were in the tiny room for almost 2 hours.

During the 2 hours in a tiny waiting room, they:

- ripped the "exam table" paper in half 4 times... the first 2 times, I re-covered it with paper.

After that, I gave up.

- colored on coloring pages, the wall, and themselves (and dropped the colored pencils on the ground approximately 3,240 times)

- jumped off the table and stool... over and over again... but what better place to be if you sprain/break an ankle, right?

- sat on the dirty floor, which at one point Josh flat-out licked, and I found I didn't have the strength/patience to care

After all that, Adam has to go to a specialist, to make sure he's growing okay.

Definitely going to do THAT one on a day that Mike can wrangle the other 2 punks.

;)