Preschool 2011-2012

May 22 was Olivia's last day of preschool at St. Ben's.  The year was a definite success, and it's been really fun to watch Olivia grow in her skills with writing, numbers, coloring, painting, cutting, following directions (at least for her teachers), and lots of other stuff too.  In the evening her class, along with the 4-5 year old class put on a little concert for the parents.

While Olivia didn't sing, I'm going to call the night a success as she didn't have her fingers in her mouth like at her Christmas concert, and this time she actually smiled!  :)  Maybe next year, she'll actually sing a few songs at the concert instead of only at home where she's apparently more comfortable showing off her skills!  The first picture is of Olivia during the processional - I was actually impressed that she was willing to walk by herself down the aisle!  The theme of their classroom was frogs - that explains the hat!

 

Okay, so the fingers did make a brief appearance.

  

No actions or singing, but at least smiling!

 

It's probably safe to say that Grace will have no problem participating despite having a huge audience watching her when she enters preschool.  She did fine while waiting for the program to start, but once she spotted Olivia during the opening processional, she threw an absolute fit because she wanted to be up there too!  We distracted her with a phone for a bit, but when it came time to sing the "Itsy Bitsy Spider," she had fit number two.  Grandpa Roger took her out of the building where the fit continued despite the distraction of a great playground.  Thankfully when they re-entered, Olivia's part was done.  Grace rejoiced in their togetherness and was super excited to have cookies and juice when all was over.  Little stinker - she'll be the one singing the loudest at her future concerts!

A pre-preschool picture of Grace!

FYI - Grace also cried when we left Liv in her 

preschool room and she didn't get to stay too.

Near the end of the year, I exchanged an email with Olivia's teachers.  They reported that Olivia is progressing just as she should!  She's a great listener, but they continue to work with her on speaking up and talking loudly - Mom, was I like this when I was little?  They thought the summer activities Liv is involved in (Bible Camp next week, Tot Day Camp in July, and swimming lessons) will help her work on her comfort with separating from Mom and Dad and also feeling more comfortable in new situations where there's a lot of activity.  I'm very happy that Olivia had such a good experience - nothing can make you happier than when your daughter pouts because school is over!  I wonder if my high school students ever feel that way?  :)

 

Mrs. Kane, Olivia, and Mrs. Bohr

Next year Olivia will be in the 4-5 year old group.  She'll go Monday, Wednesday, Thursday for the entire day.  We have the option of just doing 1/2 days, but with my school schedule picking her up would be really challenging.  Her teachers said they thought she'd do just fine at the all-day program, and she'll be able to ride the bus over to the high school when the days are done to hang out with me until we go pick up Grace.  The thought of my little Livy riding the bus is so bittersweet.

A Visit to the Farm

A couple of weekends ago (and the weekend before that too), we took the girls out to a friend's farm to see and feed the baby lambs and calves.  When we arrived and opened the car doors to hear the baby lambs bleating, the look on the girls' faces was priceless.

The first time we went to the farm, while totally fired up all day and on the way out there, of course, the moment the lambs were brought over for feeding, both girls got a little hesitant.  I was still on crutches, so Brian was holding both girls and definitely got a workout as they climbed as high up on him as possible!  The next time we went out, the hesitation was a lot less and they got a lot more involved in the feeding.  Of course, I didn't bring my camera the second time around.

 This picture makes me laugh...

It definitely sums up Olivia's personality!

Besides bottle feeding the lambs, we feed the calves, checked out the very-pregnant sows, watched the horses in their pasture, took a ride across the pasture in the gator, and played in the hay in the barn.  The girls absolutely loved it; and while Olivia especially had many initial hesitations, it was fun to see her relax and broaden her horizons and get a little more actively involved.  Very typical behavior from my sweet, shy, little Liv to have to check everything out before diving in herself.  Grace was all around a bit braver than Livy; she wasn't a fan of the Gator either time, but otherwise was quite brave feeding the lambs and even petting them.

A little braver...Feeding the lambs with Jason.

 

Grace checking out the pigs.

Riding the gator...and despite the story this picture tells,

Olivia was a fan, Grace was neutral and turned down a second ride.

Touring the pasture.

What a fun experience for experience for the girls - and Brian and me too!  The girls still talk about the farm, and this morning during a little mini-show on Disney while they toured a farm, Grace was totally fired up - telling me that "She see that on farm."  Guess the experience sunk in!  Thanks Jen and Jason (and family) for a great couple of visits out to the farm.  Can we come again next year?  :)

Auntie Tara

Last Friday the girls were super excited to get to see their Auntie Tara for the first time since February - and really since Christmas since the February visit was a short one during Ivy's baptism.  Spirits were flying high as the girls raced around the backyard playing tag, duck-duck goose (also pictured being a good sport and playing his "favorite game" - Andrew Brown), and posing for pictures.  Olivia was super excited to show Tara a special card she had made for her, and Grace couldn't wait to show off in general!  It was great to spend time visiting over pizza and wine and listening to the happy chatter and screams of the girls.  I think these happy pictures speak clearly about how much the girls love spending time with their auntie!  Can't wait to see you again in a couple of weeks Auntie Tara!

Spring Preview

A couple of weeks ago, Auny Pole took spring pictures of the girls; she is just wonderful and the girls love her.  Because of these facts, the resulting pictures are perfect in my opinion with truly happy faces and smiles!  You'd think that as I sit here recovering from my surgery, I would have gotten around to ordering them to send to all of you, but unfortunately that hasn't happened yet.  So, instead, I thought I'd do a "Spring Preview" of some of my favorite pictures.  Enjoy...and don't worry, I'll order those pictures soon!  (Please let me know if you'd like to request any in particular.)

Randomness

1) For those of you who were wondering...Olivia and I did have a nice little cuddle the morning after our dramatic battle; she informed me that she got to watch Mickey because she "stayed in bed all night long!" Since then she's consistently gotten up once about 2 minutes after lying down and then never again - I'll call that success!

2) Grace is about 90% physically tougher than Olivia but is equally emotionally sensitive; when's she's had her feelings hurt she walks away from you, kneels down on the floor, and puts her face into her hands against the carpet - it either makes you chuckle or feel really bad; I'm guessing she's going for the latter.


3) The girls enjoyed some great bonding with Uncle Nate this weekend. We spent much time outside biking and walking around the block. It was pretty cute to see Nate carrying Grace around - and this speaks volumes because she is quite often a "mommy-only" girl - and holding hands with Olivia. REALLY wish I would have had the camera out!

4) Both the girls are suffering from some serious dry skin on their faces - Grace just because she has super-sensitive skin and Olivia because lately she's always got her hands in her mouth for one reason or another. Despite this fact, we managed to be all healthy looking for spring pictures this last week - can't wait to see the results!

5) The girls and their "third sister" Maggie are so darn cute. We had dinner at the Gavle's house last night and all four adults actually got to sit, eat dinner, and visit for over an hour while the kiddos played.

An Easter 2012 Run-Down

We had a great Easter weekend this year. To be honest, it was very nice not to travel; my parents were in the middle of a kitchen up-date, so we hung around and enjoyed the benefits of living down the street from Grandma and Grandpa's house. The Hoden family arrived Saturday morning, and the cousins were pretty much inseparable as they enjoyed two separate Easter hunts, two tasty meals, and lots of attention.

Here's a picture run-down.

Ready for Easter Egg Hunt #1

Miss Ivy

Grace and Max doing some serious bonding!

Tennis with Brian

Grace enjoying some alone time in the bath.

Easter baskets!

The girls not too interested in posing.

The best family pic we could get.

Brian and Max

Easter Egg Hunt #2

Check out Grace's left-handed forehand!
(Yes, she's right-handed - Brian is just determined to make her a lefty.)