Heart Love

Last night Macy helped me make dinner while Kennedy was at her ballet/tap/jazz class -although maybe kept me company in the kitchen is a better way to describe it. She snacked on pickles and olives while I mixed up the meatloaf. Then she pulled her stool over to the sink and washed dishes until dousing herself with the sprayer.

By the time Jake and Kennedy got home, the house smelled amazing! Macy and I had been listening to the Swan Lake Pandora radio station, playing with the ballerina magnet dolls, and dancing around the living room. We all sat down to the table, and Macy started eating her sweet potato biscuit. When this girl eats, she makes a huge mess. Crumbs go flying everywhere. She nibbles like a squirrel until her mouth is stuffed - lucky she has those big cheeks! Then she announced that she didn't like the "heart love" and wouldn't eat any of it - before even taking a bite. After some coaxing, Macy did try it, and of course liked it. I think meatloaf will be forever renamed heart love in our family. It's the perfect name for the dish. If meatloaf doesn't say family style-comfort food-made with love (aka heart love), I don't know what does.   

Foodies

Last night when I put dinner on the table, Macy got an excited smile on her face and said, "Mom, this looks like it won't taste horrible to me!" Thanks, sweetie. I know what she was talking about, though. It was a very kid looking meal - cubes of roast chicken, mandarin oranges, ants on a log, roasted broccoli, a cinnamon-sugar pretzel cracker thing - on one of those plates with all the different compartments. She was very happy with all of the choices and ate really well, something that doesn't usually happen at dinner. She was also happy to help me make, and eat, a microwave mock-pumpkin pie.

Macy's comment was also in reference to the dinner I fixed the night before: (which I must defend because it was delicious) 50/50 grass-fed beef & bison hamburger on a bed of spinach with oven baked Cajun sweet potato fries (OK, they were really spicy), and I even made fry sauce with homemade mayo! Why did we have homemade mayo? Because I made it the day before when I was fixing crab cakes with mustard sauce, and yeah the girls didn't like that one either.

Kennedy asked me in the car on the way home from school on Thursday, "Mom, have you ever been to McDonald's?" I told her yes, but it's not very good. As far as I know, she's never been. I think Grandma Sue has taken her to Wendy's and we sometimes go to Olympus Burger, Woody's, or Greek City Grill, but I'd prefer that the girls get an appreciation for home cooked meals with lots of variety, plenty of good nutrition, and a little experimentation thrown in to keep things fun. I don't remember ever cooking with my parents, so this is something I'm excited to share with my girls. Hopefully with time, they will be just as excited to eat as they are to help out in the kitchen.

Playing in the dirt

Saturday I did the Kiss Me Dirty mud run/obstacle course race with some friends from work. We were supposed to dress up like Rosie the Riveter to go with our team name, the Grubby Girls. A trip to Goodwill netted some lovely pieces that I didn't feel bad about getting all dirty, and all for under $5.

We started in the first wave, and Janine and Jen were ready to walk before we hit the first obstacle; Janine's speedy step-daughters had already taken off, so I kept going at my own pace. After running about four miles around the equestrian park, through tires, under cargo nets, over walls, through pipes, over a big climbing net, through a couple of mud pits, and then running through the bubbles at the end, my shoes were really the only things covered in mud.

I loved having Jake and the girls along the course to cheer for me!

Jake's been doing a lot of yard work lately. He built a huge new garden in back to expand our vegetable patch. This year we only planted carrots, beans, and peppers, and only the carrots have been worth eating. I'm hoping we can get some greens started now to have a fall harvest, but next summer we should have a much bigger selection. Yesterday we had two big bags of dirt delivered to fill it all in. Jake suggested that we bury something in the garden and draw a treasure map for Kennedy and Macy to follow. They love to play pirates and digging for buried treasure would be a most exciting adventure for them!

Since we decided not to sleep over at the camp out this year, we borrowed Grandpa Brent's tent and spent the last three nights camping in our own backyard. The girls loved it! Jake and I enjoyed it more after we borrowed some pads from my parents. We also got a new fire pit and made s'mores to add authenticity to the whole experience. Kennedy and Macy loved being able to stay up extra late so they could try to tell the stars from the planets and listen to the crickets.

The second first day

Macy was up early today, as usual. I thought she'd be excited about her first day of school and want to start getting ready first thing. No, she wanted to play plants vs. zombies on the computer together. We had enough time for that, plus making pancakes for breakfast. It was a good morning. In the car, Kennedy tried to give Macy some helpful information about what to expect from her first full day. It was very cute, things like: don't eat other kids' lunches, make sure you ask your teacher where the potty is, and be quiet at rest time. When we dropped Macy off in her classroom, I think she was a bit confused about why we were leaving her there alone - not sad, just unsure of what the plan was. When I picked her up at the end of the day, she wanted to know if Kennedy had really been downstairs all day.

Macy's thoughts on her first day in the Blue Class: I played with the dinosaurs and I find lots of works like the berry trees. We had circle time and other things. I like my teachers Ms. Anna, Ms. Cinthia, and Ms. Evie.

Kennedy's thoughts on being a third year and meeting all the new first years in the Purple Class: I think it's nice because I get to help them. I introduced myself to a new girl named Penelope today and there is a first year named Macy in my class. I like our class. There are a few changes, but that's ok.

After school we went for a quick swim. Both girls have made some great progress in the pool this summer. Kennedy started out the season in her floating suit, and would want to take it off for the last five or so minutes of our swims to practice real swimming. Luckily my parents' pool is quite private, so the neighbors didn't see her naked. After the first few times like this, she was ready to switch to her new swimsuit, and she's practically a fish now (although, maybe she would prefer mermaid.) Kennedy can do a pretty darn good dive off the side of the pool (which has progressed from her original belly flops), swim down to touch the bottom of the pool in the shallow end, do forward and backward somersaults in the water, and swim two lengths of the pool. She's really good at floating on her back, and her freestyle and backstroke are looking better and better. Macy jumps right in off the side, puts her face in the water to blow bubbles, and paddles all over in her floating suit. If she sees Kennedy do it, she most likely wants to try it, too. Macy even got a chance for a naked swim today. It is funny that both girls have huge grins on their faces while trying to keep their heads out of the water. Maybe next year we'll have to find a team for them to join.

After the swim, Kennedy told me that sometimes there are people in her head that she has meetings with. They talk about hard stuff like math. Not real people, just imaginary ones.

Bland

Macy is a funny girl. Over the summer her new thing to say was, "I don't like it. This tastes bland to me." She's said this about a yogurt Popsicle, macaroon, and pretzels. She also insists that she doesn't like cucumber, peppers, and zucchini, but I'm sure she'd eat them if she could dip them in fry sauce or ketchup!

The other day she asked me for a little snack before breakfast. What did she want? A pickle sandwich and chocolate milk in a glass with a blue straw. I had to ask her what goes on a pickle sandwich. Duh, mom! Turkey, cheese, and pickles on buttered bread. Oh, of course. Coming right up.

One night, Jake made a vegetable omelet for our dinner. The girls had already asked for peanut butter sandwiches, but when they saw what was on our plates they wanted a taste. Jake couldn't resist giving them each a bite of a hot pepper. Seeing the looks on their faces from the spice was pretty funny. It cracked him up so much that he had to do it to Macy again when she asked for another bite. After that she learned to be specific about what she was asking for.

Back to school

Today is Kennedy's first day of kindergarten! She made a countdown chart about a month ago and has been crossing out the days before she goes to bed. I think she's pretty excited to be back in school. She was up early today to shower, get dressed, pack her school bag, and help make her lunch. I know seeing your kid go off to kindergarten is a hard time for some moms, but luckily for me, this is just like the last two years! I expect my tears will come at the end of the year when Kennedy finishes her time in the Purple Class.

So, how did her first day go? Kennedy reported that it was great to be back! She enjoyed doing jobs, playing outside, eating snack and lunch, and playing with her friends Amelia, Mae Mae, and Mason. Tomorrow the class size will double when all the first years start. Both girls are in big classes - 31 kids in each, but with three teachers per room. As a special back to school treat, I stopped to get them these giant apple cookies, which were obviously a big hit!

Macy starts tomorrow, and I know she's looking forward to it. The school held an open house yesterday so the kids could meet their teachers, see friends, and get comfortable in the classroom. Although we really wanted the girls to be in the same class, Macy will be in the Blue Class for the next three years. She made herself right at home when we visited, so I don't think the transition will be tough on her at all. I love that both of our girls are so adaptable to new situations (and so darn cute!)

After the open house, I took the girls to Red Butte Garden. It was fun to spend some time with them to wrap up the summer. I wish we could do this more often. I love these girls so much, and spending the day with them is just about the best thing in the world. If only Jake could have been there, too...

I thought we'd also go to lunch before I had to go to a doctor's appointment, but we were having to much fun playing in the children's garden - well, at least Macy and I played together, but Kennedy joined in with another group of kids to do her own thing. When my mom brought the girls back home later in the afternoon, we recovered their headboard. Kennedy has been asking Grammie for her help with this for months. It's been a project on our to-do list for a while. No more stained satin (from Mimi's red hair dye, ha!) - now it's cute pink and purple flowers! Next we have to figure out what to hang over the bed - it would be fun to do some type of canopy, but I think the kittens would use it as a climbing gym. Maybe not a good idea!

I'll miss summer, but to get back in the swing of things I'm giving myself a homework assignment: get caught up on the blog! I have lots of things written, and they may just have to go up without pictures. I also have lots of things still to get down in words. This hasn't been the most exciting summer ever, but there are memories to capture! Jake's broken nose, our new job chart, my trip to Minneapolis, Jake's trip to Iowa, Pamp's hip replacement surgery, Grammie's retirement, swimming, soccer, dance...just a hint of what's to come (and a reminder to myself) - plus the new stuff!

Spring break and Easter weekend

The girls were out of school last week, which worked out perfectly with our trip to Oregon and with Grandma Sue's return from Las Vegas. I don't know who was the most excited - Grandma Sue or Kennedy and Macy - when they got to spend Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday together. I understand there was lots of play time with the baby dolls, making peanut butter pine cone bird feeders, playing mailman, and no naps!

Friday night we took some things to the DI to give away - the crib, changing table, bouncer seat, jumper, boppy, crib bumper and skirt, bottles, drying rack... It's just stuff, but I was sad to see it go. Even Macy wondered why dad was giving away her baby things. No more babies. I don't know why that thought brings tears to my eyes, when just before dropping it all off I'd been crying in frustration from dealing with Macy. Maybe part of me will always wonder if we should have had one more, but certainly not the practical part!

Saturday Kennedy and I took Macy to ballet to make up for the class she missed while we were on vacation (Kennedy did a back-to-back class before we left, which she said was just too much dancing). We dropped her off and walked around the corner to the candy store and toy store to pick out a few treats for Easter and a special surprise for Kennedy for cleaning her room all by herself, an outfit for Pink Baby. While I'm on the subject of Pink Baby, I have been instructed to never, ever give her away and never, ever throw her away because she is very, very special to Kennedy. The Easter Bunny won't be coming to our house this year - just mom, which is fine with me.

We didn't do anything fancy with our eggs this year, but the girls probably had more fun using the extra dye to make colorful designs on paper towels with medicine droppers!

Sunday morning Kennedy hid some eggs in her room for us to find, then the girls came downstairs to search for their baskets. The tiny cats and dogs for the dollhouse seemed to be a big hit!

We went to brunch with my family at the Cottonwood Club, and I must say that Kennedy and Macy were by far the cutest kids there. Lots of people commented on their hats. I had been joking (kind of) about getting them Easter bonnets because I remember being jealous of the other girls in their fancy, frilly dresses when I was a kid at the Country Club's Easter buffet.

Well, when we saw those hats at Babies R Us (and a few other things we really don't need, like the glamourous sunglasses), I just had to get them! That meant a last minute change in Kennedy's dress, but with all of Eliza's cute hand-me-downs, we have plenty to choose from.

Our food was delicious, and it was hard to not have a little bit of everything! At noon, we headed out to the golf course to line the girls up for the egg hunt. They both seemed really excited to get out there and collect eggs...until the whistle blew. Macy started first with the kids under four, but had to back-track when her hat blew off. After that she wasn't as interested in heading up the hill. Kennedy took about five steps and then burst into tears and ran over to me sobbing, "I don't want to do it, Mama!" So we just walked to catch up to Macy and Jake, but one of the organizers pointed out a nice, untouched bunch of eggs in a pocket of trees. With a little help, Kennedy was happy to pick a few up, and somehow ended up with a basket full while Macy got none. Macy was pleased to find the Halloween-themed erasers all over the grass and put some bats, spiders, and pumpkins in her bucket (must have been left-over from another club party). Both girls ended up with plenty of candy and goodies because Grammie and Pamp also brought them some Easter treats!

We had dinner with the Nelsons at Beth's and another egg hunt for the kids. Macy was especially interested in the money she found in her eggs. Not that she has anything she wants to spend it on...she just likes to walk around with quarters between her toes! 

Famous at five

I have so much to write about Kennedy's fantastic fifth birthday. We had such a great time celebrating all last week. More on that later...

The day after her birthday, the Purple Class went on a field trip to the State Capitol. They got to see our legislature in action. Kennedy was aware they were making laws, and she said her law was "you have to use quiet voices." Nice one. The world would be a happier place if people used quiet voices more often. I'm not sure that she was too impressed by Sandy Tenney, chief clerk in the House of Representatives, and her knowledge of the details in the murals painted above the kids' heads.

This photo appeared twice in the Salt Lake Tribune - the day after the field trip on the front page and then again on Sunday (this time even bigger but in black and white) for a recap of the week's stories. I love that Kennedy (right in the middle) is the only kid looking at her with a face that says "Really, you expect me to believe that?!"

Finished with four

Kennedy told me the other day that she is sad that she's the last one of her friends to have a birthday. Well, the big day is tomorrow, and she's so excited to be turning five! She's been counting down for weeks.

 

Last night we went out to dinner at the Country Club to celebrate the March babies. It was a lovely night, complete with a table-side hello and how do you do by Jon Huntsman, Sr. He and my parents had a nice chat about his son's failed presidential campaign (even though he was clearly the BEST Republican candidate), general U.S. politics, cancer research, and all the famous people he gets to work with, including Senator Harry Reid and TV anchor/host Glenn Beck. After dinner we went back to Grandpa Ray's for cake and ice cream and presents for Kennedy, Pamp, and Kathy. There's nothing like taking a full week to celebrate a birthday! Kennedy was especially excited for her new infant carrier for Pink Baby, princesses to live in my old doll house (once we make room to bring it over), and the Puss in Boots movie.

 

Today I asked Kennedy to reflect on her last day of being four-years-old:

 

What has been the best thing about being four?

"Playing with my sister."

 

What is something new you learned that you didn't know when you were three?

"Ballet and tap dancing."

 

What will you miss about being four?

"My Hello Kitty shirt because I will be too big for it."

 

What is the most exciting thing about turning five?

"Opening my presents."

 

What do you want to learn before you are six?

"How to read."

 

What special birthday wish will you make when you blow out the candles on your cake?

"That it will be Macy's birthday soon."

This has definitely been a good year. Kennedy is so sweet and helpful. She can be silly, fun, and crazy, but also incredibly thoughtful and insightful. It will be fun to see what new things she amazes us with over the next year.

An extra day

Today is Leap Day, which got me to thinking...what would I do with a totally free, extra day? Right now I'd probably use it to clean the house, maybe bake something, read random news stories (nothing too serious) on the iPad, watch an episode or two of LOST, play with the kids, make some sort of art project, do an Insanity workout, take a long shower...what can I say, I'm a homebody. Maybe we'd venture out to Whole Foods, the library, the zoo, or take a walk to the farm. But, here I am at work. Just like any other day.

 

Last night I made turkey noodle soup. I made the noodles. I made the broth from a turkey breast that I roasted last week (I would have also used the meat if we'd had any left, but instead I had to pick up a few slices from the Dan's deli). I did not use a recipe, consult a cookbook, or open a single culinary-related web page. It was a two day production, but totally worth it. Our house smelled so good and the girls loved it (and Macy is pretty much an expert on chicken noodle soup.)

 

My wrist is healing pretty well, but I'm convinced that the cyst is back. I was told that one out of 20 will reappear, and with my luck (which isn't always good, despite what some people think) I'll be that one. It may just be scar tissue, but it's a pretty suspicious looking bump right where the old one was.

 

And speaking of luck, I won the Oscar pool at work. It's funny because I'd only seen one of the movies nominated - Puss In Boots. Kennedy and Macy were very excited by the basket of treats I brought home. Macy kept sneaking Whoppers out of the box while we were doing our workout. She came downstairs with her cheeks stuffed full of them, looking like a guilty chipmunk. 

An unpleasant surprise

Our weekend was off to a nice start. I made chocolate chip banana bread while the girls played together. We did some serious cleaning and organizing in the living room, dining room, and kitchen. Jake was working, so he missed out on our adventures to the playground, library, and grocery store, but he made it home in time to join us as we finished dinner - a pasta salad made from leftover peas, roasted tomatoes, fresh mozzarella balls, and salami (Kennedy, Jake, and I liked it, but Macy insisted on eating her noodles plain.)

 

Sunday we woke up to snow...finally! The girls were so excited to go out and build a snowman. Jake headed off to the other house to do some work and we had plans for a lazy morning. Then Jake called to say that someone had broken in and stolen most of our tools (and some of Grandpa Brent's, too.) The police came over, and we got a report filed. There were footprints leading to one of the basement windows in the back and tire tracks in the driveway. It also appeared that the thief hit the house next door, which is also vacant. Jake was so frustrated and angry! Clearly this is someone who has been watching the house and knows what's going on in there and when. We talked to our insurance company and have also taken some additional protective measures to make sure this doesn't happen again - the basement windows are now boarded up. Jake was so convinced that the person would be back, he spent the next night camped out with Ben, armed and waiting, hoping to catch someone, but no luck. In addition to feeling totally violated and out some significant money, we lost two days of work while we figured out what all was missing and started the process of replacing everything. Grrr!

Week in review

Monday, February 13 - Macy had a fun day running around in the gym and dancing.

 

Tuesday, February 14 - Macy had a great day. She enjoyed passing out her valentines and loved dancing at circle time.

 

Wednesday, February 15 - Macy had a fun day working with her friend Elias doing the spraying job. They worked together to clean the mirror in the classroom.

 

Thursday, February 16 - Macy had a good morning. She worked on the dot painting job and made a beautiful picture.

 

My mom organized a brown bag lunch today at work where everyone could come and share their experiences and memories from the 2002 Olympics - has it really been ten years already? It was fun to hear stories from people who both volunteered and worked for the organizing committee. Jake and I were fortunate to be able to attend qualifying rounds for speed skating, a hockey game, bobsled, and paralympic cross country and sledge hockey. We also got to spend an afternoon in the athlete's village when my mom got special passes through the office from her friend Toni. The facilities were amazing, and it was so much fun the see the athletes trading pins and hanging out between competitions. We also got the inside scoop on what exactly Mitt Romney did to turn the games around after the bid bribery scandal...apparently not a thing.

 

Friday, February 17 - Macy is so cute at ballet! She loves being able to go to class, and although she's still working on mastering the steps, she sure tries her best. After she finishes, it's Kennedy's turn. Kennedy is picking up the new steps quickly. She loves doing the barre and learning her Cheshire Cat tap dance for the spring performance. To keep the one not dancing occupied, we play games or draw on the iPad, read books, or play with little toys I pull from my purse. I miss having 45 minutes of me time, but it's better that they are in different classes now.

 

Tomorrow Jake has to work, so the girls and I will be hanging out at home and hopefully doing some cleaning and organizing. I'm still debating about whether or not to push the potty training again. Macy is just so darn stubborn. It's very frustrating cleaning up accident after accident, and even worse when she says, "mom, I spilled on my nightgown!" Does she not recognize that it's her own PEE? We checked out two books from the library about the potty, and she loves to read them. It just isn't translating to real life yet. Patience.

End of the week

There were no comments about Macy's day on Monday, but she said "I did jobs" and seemed to have had a nice time at school.

 

Tuesday, January 24 - Macy enjoyed playing in the loft, reading books, the playdough, and painting. She had a good morning. (We all went over to the other house to help get the living room ready to paint. The girls loved squirting and scraping the bathroom walls with me and holding parts for Jake while he put light fixtures back up. They were up way too late and had a very sad dinner of toast. I did offer to make sandwiches, pancakes, or eggs but I had no takers.)

 

Wednesday, January 25 - Macy really enjoyed working in the loft today. She sometimes forgets to use her walking feet in the classroom. She enjoyed circle time as well. (After school Macy was surprised to see my bandaged arm, but she gave it a kiss to help me feel better. Jake took Kennedy to ballet, and Macy and I played with the magnet dolls and she did a dance performance for me while I iced and elevated my arm.)

 

Thursday, January 26 - Macy had a nice day. She was happy to go outside and play out in the snow with her Winnie the Pooh mittens. She enjoyed the princess story Caitrin brought for circle time. (The girls and I ate some frozen, but homemade, noodles for dinner and then I gave them a bath. I must have looked strange to them with a rubber glove and saran wrap over my arm so that I could help wash their hair. Jake was over at the other house painting and trying to get ready for the carpet to be installed.)

 

Friday, today - I'm at work. The girls are at Grammie and Pamp's. Jake is sick, but is at the other house with the carpet installer. I don't know if I see the light at the end of the tunnel with this project, but we're getting closer. The girls wanted to dress like cowgirls today. They both looked so cute in their plaid shirts, jeans, boots, and hats. Later this afternoon they have ballet - always a highlight of the week. Last week Kennedy started in her new class, and loved it even though she was nervous about moving up. There are supposed to be five girls, but she was the only one there. It was fun for her to have a private lesson, and she learned lots of new ballet and tap steps. Macy loves her class, and seems to be doing a better job listening to Ms. Jacqueline. It might help now that Kennedy isn't in the class to distract her. Tonight we have gymnastics, but maybe just the girls and I will be going. Jake looked pretty tired this morning.

What a treat

Last night Kennedy treated me to a special surprise...a visit to her beauty spa! She had pulled some chairs together to serve as the salon and had laid out a brush, de-tangling spray, lotion, a necklace, and a pencil and paper. First she did my hair. Then I got a hand and arm massage, followed by a foot massage. It was some serious pampering. She was also kind enough to let me interrupt the treatments with a few quick dashes into the kitchen to stir the dinner. When Macy saw what was going on, she had to come over and help style my hair. While I was in the chair, I wrote Kennedy a little love note. She's always doing this for us - making cards, notes, and pictures saying how much she loves us all. They go something like this:

To Mom I love you mom oh and I love you too dad and oh I love you Macy From Kennedy

Kennedy told me that I'm her very favorite person in the whole world, that I'm the best mom ever, and that she loves me more than one billion, zillion, quatillion, million times! When I told her that I hope she always feels this way about me, she looked at me like I was crazy. Like, why wouldn't I, mom? Well, someday you'll probably be angry at me and say that you don't like me, and someday you'll meet a boy that you will love even more than me. Kennedy was nearly in tears at the unimaginable thought of me not being the most important person in her life. I don't want to think of that either, but there might come a day when she's a teenager who wants nothing to do with me, and I'll want to look back and remember these times. But for now, she just may be the sweetest girl ever!

I'm hoping that some of this will rub off a bit on Macy because lately she's been hissing or sticking out her tongue at us - a lot - definitely not so sweet. Macy does give me an occasional spontaneous "I love you, mom!" which always makes me so happy to hear. She also gives amazing melt into your arms hugs and butterfly kisses with her extra long eyelashes or Eskimo nose rubs. She's also loves to put her tiny hand in mine, even just when we are walking around the house. Macy is figuring out how to delay bedtime, and although I don't want to encourage this, it has the upside of an extra snuggle and a few more songs or stories for me.

Last night the two girls took turns reading to each other. Kennedy really is reading some of the words, but they are both pretty good at memorizing their favorite books! I don't know how I got so lucky, but being a mom to these two wonderful girls is the most amazing experience! I'm glad to know that they think I'm doing a good job because I admit, there are times when I seriously wonder.

Macy is sick

Macy was sick last night. She was acting very tired and clingy when we were over working on the house. On the way home she fell asleep in the car, and stayed asleep when I put her down on the couch. She even missed pizza. She woke up around 9:00, and we were downstairs watching Muppet Treasure Island. I got her ready for bed and grabbed a bowl, just in case. She watched the movie for a while, but actually asked to go up to her room. Kennedy came up shortly after, and then Mace threw up on the bed - I did get part of it in the bowl, but still had to change the sheets and her nightgown. I promised the girls I'd sleep with them to make sure Macy was ok. It was alright for a while, but sleeping sideways on a full bed doesn't give me much room to stretch out. Finally I headed back to my own bed. Soon Macy came to join me, saying she'd gotten sick again. I peeled off the towels I had spread out, and then found a new nightgown so Macy could get in bed with me. I don't think I got much sleep at all. Macy was wide awake, and in pretty good spirits. When Kennedy got up to go potty and refill her water bottle, she also climbed in bed with us. Luckily, Jake had decided to spend the night on the couch. This morning she was like new, even with a mild fever, and very hungry!

I don't know what got Macy sick, but I'm blaming some kid at school. Here's what she did this week:

Monday 1/9/12 - Macy enjoyed playing in the gym and pretending she was a kitty.

Tuesday 1/10/12 - Macy enjoyed working on the watering job where you transfer water from one bowl to another. She was excited to go play in the gym after snack time.

Wednesday 1/11/12 - Macy had a super day. She pretended to be a cat again, she looked at books, played in the loft, and enjoyed looking at the babies. (there are now two babies in her class)

Thursday 1/12/12 - Macy always likes circle time with us. She has enjoyed working with Bianca in the grocery store. She really had a good time working on water jobs today!

Luckily she was feeling well Friday afternoon because we had ballet class and a gymnastics meet!

Learning new things all the time

Today Kennedy made breakfast for Macy and me: chocolate milk and yogurt with raisins. She also wanted to eat half of my grapefruit, but was very concerned about getting a seed in her mouth. She was very excited that she can now make two things for breakfast - yogurt and cereal.

 

Pamp brought Macy by my office yesterday after school. I can't remember what I asked her, but her response was, "N-O!" I've never heard her spell "no" before, and she did it again a few minutes later when Grammie told her she could only take home two toys from the box in her office. She also came very close to spelling her name. It sounded like she had all the letters, but either there was an extra or she had them in the wrong order (I've forgotten already - this is why I need to write things down!)

 

Kennedy had parent observation week at ballet last night. I was worried that Macy would want to dance now that she's in a class, but she was content to draw on the iPad. She somehow figured out that she can add her own creative touches to pictures saved on the device. Turning Macy into a princess with long, long hair kept her busy for a long time. Kennedy was acting very silly, making faces at herself in the mirror, doing crazy little dances when she was supposed to be standing still, but she was certainly paying attention. She was the only student that answered all of her teacher's questions and could do all the steps after just hearing their names. I guess because of this, she was picked first as an example or line leader throughout the class. She sure practices a lot at home. Kennedy loves to teach ballet classes to Macy and me.

Break's over

The girls headed back to school on Tuesday after a nice holiday break. I'm not sure if they are excited to be back to the normal routine. They sure had fun playing with their grandparents all day for the last few weeks. They made lots of Christmas crafts with Grandma Sue and helped Grammie and Pamp bake cookies and decorate the tree. Both girls have quickly gotten out of the habit of actually getting ready to go in the mornings. It's been difficult to keep them focused on the task of getting dressed, eating breakfast, sitting still to have their hair brushed, and getting out the door on time. Neither one seemed especially overjoyed to walk into the classroom that first day back, but it has gotten better as the week went by.

Here's what Macy was up to:

Tuesday, January 3, 2012 - Macy had a good morning back. She was very quiet and explored the new things we have out.

Wednesday, January 4 - Macy had a great morning. She enjoyed being able to play outside today. (we're still having unseasonably warm temperatures, and no snow in sight!)

Kennedy has "outdoor classroom" on Wednesday afternoons. This seems to be one of her favorite things during the week. She also loves the music and dance sessions on Mondays. Tonight it was also back to ballet.)

Thursday, January 5 - Macy enjoyed playing outside today. She worked in the grocery store and played in the loft.