Twins & a Toddler

Does a Mother(s) Proud

Today our little man was honored as the student of the month for his classroom.  The notice came home a few weeks ago and you can imagine the surprise when we found it in his backpack.  Even he didn't know it was in his folder!  He was so proud of himself and just beaming.  Cuppie was boarderline furious that she was not selected but she quickly calmed down.  Pete was excited for her brother. 

According to his teacher, "Linus was selected for his positive attitude.  He is always using encouraging words in class. And he is a great role model for his peers and the students love his uplifting comments."

Some people were surprised that our little man was selected but not me.  He may be the youngest in the family (by 5 mintues), and he is usually the goofiest, but he is also the most caring and sensitive boy and he really cares about his family, friends and classmates and wants to be everyone's friend.  Good job buddy.  Mommy and Mama are very proud of you and someday you'll make a wonderful president....of your fraternity.

Eight is Enough

When I was trying to figure out what to write about for Pete's Eighth Birthday post (which is today by
the  way), I came across this article from Parents Magazine listing 44 things every kid should do before they turn eight.  I'm not sure when it was first posted but they rounded up a variety of people and asked them to share the greatest moments of childhood.  I thought it would be neat to see how many Pete has checked off the list on her way to turning eight. 

1. Learn to manage your allowance, and think of the best ways to use it.
    Check - while she doesn't get an allowance each week, she does manage her money she has received for birthdays and holidays and spends it wisely, at the dollar bin at Target and for other assorted treasures!

2. Run in the sprinklers. And make sure at least one of your parents runs with you.
    Check - and I have photos to prove it

3. Take part in a march for peace. Or something else you believe in. I recommend making a colorful sign to march with.
    Semi-Check - Pete probably doesn't remember doing it as she was 2!

4. Ride a roller coaster.
    Check - many, many times!

5. Play tag in the rain.
    Need to work on this, hard to believe but she does not like to play in the rain.

6. Watch tadpoles hatch into frogs.
    Check, and praying manthias too.

7. Catch and eat your own fish.
    Half-check - Pete has caught many fish but never eaten any and I doubt she would.

8. Learn a bit about astronomy and observe the stars.
    Check - each year Pete and I get up in the middle of the night and try to catch the Perseid Meteor Shower.  We have seen a few falling stars but this past year it was too cloudy.

9. Go to one -- or more -- major-league ball games.
    Semi-check - Pete has been to countless minor leage baseball games.  We'll need to try and catch a major league game soon.

10. Read at least one chapter book from start to finish.
    Check - Captain Underpants and The Fairly Odd School books are a big favorite around here and she often finishes one or two a day if she has the time.

11. Suffer a major disappointment and learn to live with it.
    Hmm...I'm going to guess that she might feel like not being an only child is a major disappointment and she is learning to live with it!

12. Experiment to find out how many different ways you can squirt water out of your mouth.
    Check - I'm pretty sure this one has been covered and will be covered again and again.

13. Learn how to ride a bike. I'm talking a two-wheeler without training wheels and extra points for gears.
    Check on riding a bike, no extra points yet.

14. Travel to the moon. Nothing is impossible before you're 8.
    Pete tells me that she hasn't yet, but she would like to and she read a book about it at school.

15. Get exactly the haircut you want -- not the one your parents want.
    Check - she usually tells our hair dresser how she wants her hair cut.

16. Make a yarn pom-pom. It's very zen and very soothing.
    Not yet

17. earnLay igPay atinLay.
    No, but she tells me she would like to learn how

18. Make up a recipe, cook it, and name it. (Bad example: "Anchovy Peanut Butter Surprise.")
    No, but she would really like to do this one!

19. Write a song, then sing it for three people and one animal. It could be a stuffed animal. But they tend to be more critical than live ones are.
    She says no but I think she has as we make up songs all the time.

20. Raise money for something or someone you care about.
    Check - on her 5th birthday Pete collected donations for the animals at a local nature center.

21. Befriend a kid whom others are making fun of.
    Yes and she told me that sometimes she is the kid whom others are making fun of and this just breaks my heart. When I get the name of the kids, I'm going to go beat them up.

22. Realize your parents are just some old kids trying to act grown up.
    She says we are not kids!

23. Learn how to pour a bowl of cereal and turn on the TV. (So your parents can sleep an extra 30 minutes on weekends.)
    Check, Check, Check!  We love this about our Pete!

24. Realize that you should never outgrow hugging your parents.
    Check

25. Figure out how to tell a joke that doesn't involve poo, pee, or butts.
    Check - oh yea, she can do this!  What is red, white and black?  A sunburned penguin!

26. Discover that bleeding owies can make you look tough even though they hurt briefly.
    No, she is not so sure about this one.

27. Learn to give a good handshake. No bone crushers or limp fish.
    Check

28. Hold the door for someone at the mall.
    Check - she does this a lot.

29. Clean up your own room.
    Check

30. Learn how to make lemonade -- from real lemons.
    Not yet, but she would like to learn how and so would her sister.  Although I doubt Pete would drink it.

31. Experience the strange and wonderful feeling of wandering around one's house alone, very late at night.
    Check - although Pete says no, she is often our late night wanderer and comes to our room at night!

32. Break up a fight between two younger children.
    Check

33. Find the perfect hiding place in your bedroom for a secret object. This might not be so handy at age 8 but will be very important later, so it's best to find it now.
    Check - and she will not tell me where it is!

34. Eavesdrop and take notes. Tip: Pressing the rim of an empty glass against the wall will help you hear what is going on in the neighboring room.
    Check - she just informed me she has done this before at school and she liked what she heard.

35. Start a collection of something. It could be anything -- model cars, baseball cards, sand from different areas.
    Check - all those poor butterflies...

36. Try at least five different types of food -- Chinese, Greek, Mexican -- you pick the other two.
    Chinese - check, Mexican - check, Italian - check, Greek - no, American - yes!

37. Make a good paper airplane. Then fly it 20 feet or more.
    Check

38. Read a newspaper with a parent.
    Check

39. Look through a microscope and a telescope.
    Check, check.

40. Help serve or deliver food to the needy on Thanksgiving or Christmas.
    Not yet, but she wants to do that next year.

41. Hand-write thank-you notes for birthday and holiday gifts.
    Check

42. Open a savings account.
    Check

43. When greeting an adult, learn to look him in the eye and introduce yourself.
    Check

44. Make sure you've had enough piggy-back rides.
    Not nearly enough yet!

I think it is safe to say that our Pete is off to a great start for year eight.  I still can't believe that the baby girl who started us on this adventure is now eight.  Eight seems so old.  And while Pete totally gives us a run for our money at times, she is the kindest, sweetest kid who loves nature, animals and still wants to cuddle up with her Moms.  Love you lots kid.

For those who want to take a look back at previous birthdays, I have links below to birthdays three through seven (one and two are archived away in a word document). 

Seven

Six

Five

Four

Three

 

And that's a wrap

Hard to believe that 2011 is coming to a close.  Where did the time go?  The year certainly went by in a blur.  Last year A and I rang in the new year in San Antonio, TX, this year we will ring it in with friends and the kids.  This will be their first time staying up for New Year's Eve and they are very exicted.  I'm not sure they totally get why we are celebrating but Cuppie knows that at midnight the ball drops and she needs to find someone to kiss for good luck.  When I asked her who she is going to kiss, she walked away and said "everyone".  Linus is not so sure about the kissing part and would like to just kiss his own hand but he may kiss his friend M, if she'll let him.  Not sure about Pete yet.

As I looked back through the photos of 2011, I see that we were quite busy as usual.  The kids participated in karate, basketball and cheerleading.  We went snow tubing for Pete's birthday and took a mini-vacation to Chicago.  We tried to catch a leprechaun on St. Patrick's day but were foiled and left with a bunch of tricks that he played on us.  A and I decided to start exercising but A ended up with a  stress fracture on her femur and I suffered through a number of back problems.  A spent a few weeks on cruches and we all survived just fine.  The kids hunted easter eggs in the spring and I hunted down some monster morrel mushrooms.  We also hatched a praying mantis pod and released them after a few weeks (we found a new one near the house and already have it ready for next spring).  The end of the school year brought us to the end of our preschool journey and the end of Pete's time at the Montessori school.  The Littles participated in their tap recital and Pete had her first piano recital in the spring as well.

Summer brought us family time at the lake, summer camps for the kids and fun at Kings Island.   For A and T, it brought us to the Warrior Dash where we did crazy obstacles with a group of amazing friends.  We are already signed up to do it again in 2012.  Summer also brought with it swim team for Pete, picking strawberries, triathalons for the kids and our extended summer vacation.  This included one hot steamy week at the lake and then a wonderful trip out west to visit our friends and their kids in Oregon.  So much fun was had with them as we tried to cram in all we could during our limited time with our west coast family.

The end of the summer had us getting ready for soccer season for the littles, horse back riding lessons for Pete and some last minute summer fun with the cousins from Michigan.  Then it was the start of a new school year for us all.  Kindergarten for the littles, 2nd grade for Pete and my second year of Rad Tech school.  We also had a surprise party for Nana, which all the family gathered for and Pete participated in the local children's theater. 

Fall rolled in with the kids taking some break dancing classes, our annual harvest activities of corn mazes, pumpkin carving and the 2nd annual spooky halloween party with friends.  Fall also brought us the start of a new sport for the kids and we've been hitting the ice rink for hockey ever since.  The kids celebrated Thanksgiving with their own special feast inspired by Charlie Brown.  December brought with it the usual craziness including a mischievous little elf and the Littles surprise 6th birthday party. 

Christmas this year was so much fun.  The kids made and decorated cookies for Santa, left carrots for the reindeer and were surprised to see that he visited us on Christmas eve while we were celebrating with Grammy and Grampy.  They checked out all the presents before going to bed.  Pete would not let anyone open their gifts until Christmas morning even though the Littles pleaded with her to let them open them that night!

We were all blessed this Christmas to be healthy and able to enjoy the company of friends and family.  2012 has a lot to live up to but I have a feeling it will be up to the challenge. 

Happy New Year to friends near and far. 

 

Wonder Twins Turn Six

Where did the time go?  Today Linus and Cuppie turned six years old.  No longer can they count their age on one hand, they have officially moved into two hands.  They are no longer our babies or even our "littles", they are turning into big kids before our eyes. 

For their birthday this year Cuppie decided she wanted a surprise party like we had for Nana this fall.  I'm pretty sure Linus just went along with what Cuppie said and that's all we could get out of them for party suggestions.  So we racked our brains to figure out how to do this and we came up with a Secret Agent Surprise Party.  With help from Lisa at Grass Roots Wellness Center, the party was planned.  I only wish I could have been on the other side to see your faces when you walked in and saw your friends and the room ready for a party.  I'm sure it was priceless. 

This past year our wonder twins have grown in so many ways.  Cuppie is reading very well and has her first loose tooth.  Linus is doing great in school and knows many of his sight words.  He is reading beginner books and getting better the more we work with him.  They come home with good behavior reports and high marks all around.  They really are each other's best friend.  I hope it stays this way for many years to come. 

Cuppie, when you read this years from now, Mama and I are sorry that we don't think more like girlie girls.  I know it was terribly upsetting that while your doll had a matching dress, we didn't think about her not having matching tights. 

Linus, I thank you for your honesty.  I appreciate you telling me how you felt about your birthday gifts this year.  Your words were that the Star Wars book was a good gift, but the clothes,  not so much.  I'll remember that your prefer toys next year. 

Santa Brought A Snake

For the past five years, we've taken the kids to breakfast with Santa with the twins club.  Everyone always had such a great time and we have such wonderful memories attending each year.  But this year we felt the kids had aged out of that event.  So we decided to try something different and we had breakfast with Woodland Santa at our local Audubon center.  The kids take quite a few classes at this center in the summer and winter and we'd also heard good things about the event.  Plus the outreach education guy Chris, puts on an awesome musical show. 

So who is this Woodland Santa? He is the Santa that takes care of all the animals and pets at Christmas.  He talked to the kids about making sure the birds had food and that our pets are well taken care of.  Totally up our kids alley.  Pete had a little chat with him but I'm not sure exactly what they talked about.  

After breakfast they had a couple activities for the kids to do and then Chris took the stage and we sang songs about reindeer, beavers (one of our favorites), skunks and more.  The kids joined him on stage for just about every song.  Towards the end of the show Woodland Santa came out with a black rat snake and a American Krestal.  He talked to the kids about each of the animals and really who doesn't love a Santa with live animals.

Following the breakfast, we all got to dip our own beeswax candles to finish out our morning.  All in all a great experiece with a new Santa. 

Thanksgiving Feast

During Thanksgiving at my parents, they played with their cousin and had a grand ole time.  At 7:30 pm  on Thanksgiving night, they started preparing their Thanksgiving Feast.  It's for these three (and A) that I am most thankful.  Hope your day was as filled with laughter, love and feasting on jelly beans as ours was.

Gobble Gobble Little Turkeys

Grammy asked us to bring down a dessert for Thanksgiving that our kids would eat.  Given this is probably the only thing they will eat during the meal, we decided to make it something fun.  A had all the ingredients to make cake pops for my birthday this year but due to schedules and such, they never got made.  This morning I found these cute cake pops on pinterest.  We had everything we needed but candy corn so Cuppie and I went out on a mission while A, Linus and Pete cooked up the cake and made the balls.  Later in the afternoon, all the girls worked on decorating the little gobblers (Linus decided to pass and play on the computer). 

We had a few mishaps along the way and although our turkeys do not look professionally done, they do have a lot of character!  Definitely a keeper project for next year...and they taste delish!!

And while our kids will not likely eat too much at Grammy's Thanksgiving meal, Cuppie picked up all the fixins for a kids feast tomorrow night.  On her list was popcorn, pretzels, jelly beans and toast.  She is so excited she can hardly stand it.  And yes, we'll watch Charlie Brown's special as they partake in their feast. 

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Playing Hockey with the Monkey

Today we took the kids to a try hockey for free event.  Pete has been ice skating for two years now at her old school and really enjoys it.  We thought this would be a great way to try it out and see if there is any interest for the kids.  One of the local youth hockey leagues hosted the event and all the kids had to do was show up.  They had all the necessary equipment for them including skates and a jersey that they got to keep afterwards.  There were plenty of coaches and older kids/young adults to help them out as well.  

Linus and Cuppie had never been on skates before and entered the ice with much caution.  Cuppie found a nice boy to help her out and he spent at least an hour with her.  Linus worked on staying upright on his own and quickly discovered the bucket method.  After pushing the bucket around for a bit, he was ready to give it a try solo.  The boy hit the ice a lot but he kept getting back up again and after awhile, he was shooting goals.  Cuppie and her boy worked on a variety of methods and before long she too was shooting goals.  At the end of the hour and a half on the rink, we had to pull her off! 

I'm not sure what the future holds for the kids and ice but we promised them we would look into it for them.  I believe the little two are gung ho about doing it again and Pete would probably join them as well.

Thankful

The littles brought home a class project where they listed everything they were thankful for.  Below are what they each listed.

First is Linus's

 

And then Cuppie's

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yup, that last item is Diamond.

Spookified

Besides Christmas, I think Halloween is this family's next favorite holiday.  As the kids have gotten older, we've been able to put out more decorations and now the kids even help pick out and decorate.  A  trip to the Halloween Store to check out the props is a guarenteed good time.  We've made one trip so far this year but I suspect there will be a few more before the end of the month.  A and the kids already have their eye on what they want to add to our collection when the "after sales" happen. 

Today the house really started getting spookified.  A and the littles decorated the mantle.  A was inspired last year by K of Role Playing With Kids  and how she decorated her mantle.  This year, A upped the ante a bit.  I'd say they did a pretty good job.  I especially like how they incorporated the "snow globes" the kids made with the babysitter last week. 

Earlier this week K inspired us yet once again with another one of her Halloween projects.  Once I saw what she did, I knew we had to do it as well.  We picked up the supplies at the school supply store and tonight after dinner we got to work.  The hardest part was keeping the kids from looking at the wall while we were tracing.  Surprisingly, George was the easiest!  Pete provided the bat and I believe it was free hand. Wonder how many times the new kids will scare us as we walk through the house.  Now I just have to find a way to store them so we can add to them each year.  We have a lot of windows in this house that we could fill up for future halloween's and what a great way to document them growing up.  Thanks for the idea K.