Back to the Routine

Yesterday we finished our third week of school and we are now back in to a good routine. The first couple of weeks, it was a bit rough as the children were cranky and tired from adjusting to their long, 7 hour school days and doing homework in the afternoon. They were also very excited about making new friends and figuring out their daily class schedule. It didn't help that Derrick was traveling that second week and I had long days at work due to meetings and training and the first parent conference at school, but we made do. 

Amelia also lost her 6th tooth that week at her friend's house:

Luckily, both children LOVE their teachers and classmates and this year we good very lucky to have really great teachers. Here are some snapshots from their days at school (courtesy of Mrs. Chew and Mrs. Ingham): 

Elliot's Pre-K4 class:

Lunch time, which is one of Elliot's favorite times of the days:

Amelia's class hard at work. Her teacher does a lot of cool things from salt dough maps to mystery readers, Flashlight Friday's and some special pet visitors. But there is also lots of writing and math and definitely a lot more homework than last year.  

While Derrick was out of town this week again, my girlfriends came over to hang out on the deck. The weather was so nice for these past 3 days that it even got a bit chilly sitting there at night:

The children also enjoyed sitting out there doing play-doh while I finished my book one afternoon: 

Flying a kit when it is windy enough is also another favorite past-time: 

The boys are working hard on taking down the old deck and Elliot is Daddy's big helper:

My vegetable garden is still going strong. Currently, we are harvesting strawberries (yes, all summer long, they keep on growing), tomatoes, cucumbers, the last few carrots and bell peppers. Also, my pumpkin patch is taking over the yard:

I need to go thru and pick off the leaves that are wilting:

Last week, I took Elliot on a date to Build-a-Bear so that he could choose a new stuffed friend. But after looking thru their selection, he didn't find anything he truly wanted. I remembered that I had a couple of stuffed animals at home to be used for future gifts and offered those to him...he was the happiest boy on earth. He is so easy going and doesn't demand much and is easily satisfied with a cake pop while walking thru the mall for 2 hours. 

By the way, he now styles his own hair. Too cool for school:

Both of them are eager to feed the fish in the mornings. I'm just wondering what day the tank and fish will fall down:

I enjoyed those 2 days of cooler weather a lot. Fall was teasing us and I made the most of it by going for a 3 mile run in the park yesterday at noon and reading my book on the deck once the kids went to bed:

We finished the week off by hanging out with our neighbors last night after dinner. The motto: bring a chair and a drink and relax. The children raced around till it got too dark and the adults enjoyed chatting..perfect start to a relaxing weekend: 

Happy Weekend!

Birthday Celebration

On Friday, our little girl celebrated her 7th birthday with lots of excitement and joy. She was so excited, she hardly slept (woke up at 4:50 am).

Since it was a school day, we only had time for a few gifts to be opened in the morning. The boys went out and bought her a gift and she loved it...the Barbie doll was a great choice. 

She also received some great gifts from the grandparents and her godmother. Thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes and the gifts. 

For lunch, Elliot and I surprised Amelia at school with a special meal from McD (the kids love this rare treat). 

And we also brought some treats for her classmate, who sang Happy Birthday to her. 

Once home from school, our birthday girl waited "patiently" till daddy was home from work to open her remaining gifts: 

Costume and a microphone...she is ready to perform:

Elliot also received a little gift as his birthday is still months away. He is in to building Battlebots and with these screws and plates, he can work on his robot creations. 

The microphone was a hit for our vocalist: 

But the biggest surprise was her Playhouse, I have been working on it for the past few weeks. She always wanted one and after going to a Playhouse birthday party, she has been begging for one. I was lucky to purchase an used house fairly cheap and after power washing and spray painting it and some decorations, it looks like new. 

Brownies, Ice-cream and a birthday song for our 7 year old:

We are not big on birthday parties but instead we do something together as a family. Amelia chose to go to the movies on Saturday to see Incredibles 2. It was a fun movie we all enjoyed. 

And with that, we concluded the birthday celebrations. She was one happy girl and loved every gift and especially all the attention she received over the past week, making it a great 7th birthday. 

HAPPY 7th BIRTHDAY, AMELIA!

Dear Amelia,

Today on your 7th birthday I want you to know from your head to your toes, just how loved you are. Your daddy and I adore every part of you. Over these short 7 years, you blossomed from a tiny infant into a noisy toddler and now you are on the verge of becoming a big kid.  Time does not stay still and while I'm sad to see every stage of your life pass by so quickly, we can't wait to see all of who you will become! 

You are still our free spirited, wild and stubborn child who loves nothing more than to go her own way. It does not matter that you are the youngest (and smallest) in class, your personality makes up for those shortcomings. You live life at full blast making joyful noises wherever you go. 

Amelia, you are our princess... but you are also so much more. You are Fierce. You are Intense. You are Strong. You are Determined. And as much as it can exhaust and exacerbate us, God made you this way for a great reason.  You are confident and know exactly what you want. Sometimes, this can cause a lot of tension at home since not everything can revolve around our little princess. But I do hope that you will always stand up for yourself and never back down from doing the right and kind thing.

You love to read and write and learning comes very easily to you. However, if you are not challenged enough, you only will give the minimum. We are working on that and I'm amazed of how quickly you excel in things you like to do such as singing, puzzles, spelling, word games, and drawing. While you always liked to draw, you have become quite the little artist over this past year. Any free minute you have, you can be found drawing cats, unicorns, people, mermaids and anything else that comes to your mind. You are trying out new techniques and there is no pen you have met that you didn't like. 

You are very inquisitive and have so many questions about the world, about the people and why certain things happen. You are full of questions and long for answers to figure out where you stand in this world. What if I fail? Was it me? What can I do? How many calories is in a snack? I see you looking at me for answers, but I don't always have an answer to give. The answers used to be easy. Now they can't be solved by going thru a multiple choice selection, they are more complex than that. 

You are full of love and you are a devoted animal lover. There is no animal big or small enough that can escape your hugs. You desperately want a guinea pig and if you keep asking, maybe next birthday your dream will come true. Until then, our cat will have to do. 

You are our star and have so many great talents and one day we will cheer you on from the stands or the side lines at your own concert/ fashion show or art exhibition. 

Amelia, you are our joy and bring such life and light to our family. And while you are eager to grow up, don't rush it. Enjoy each day and each year for what it has to offer to you and you will get the most out of life. We are so proud of you who you are and who you are becoming. So keep on singing. Keep on painting. Keep on writing. Keep on smiling. And keep on loving God, yourself and others. 

Happy 7th birthday, princess!

Love, 

Mommy and Daddy

Back to School 2018

Today, it is back to school for us here in Tennessee. We now have a 2nd grader and a K-4 (last year in preschool) student in our house. We started the day off with a sweet breakfast and a few goodies:

Both children were really excited to meet their new classmates and hear what school has in store for them this year. Pictures of my 2nd grader:

 My preschooler:

They both look so grown up. Definitely no babies/ toddler any longer. 

 Together, off they went. Next year, they both will be at the same school.

Proud mommy and her little ones:

Amelia is ready to learn:

Her teacher also took a picture of each student at the photo wall and sent it to the parents. So sweet!

Last week, both children got their hair cut in time for back to school:

Last Monday and Friday, respectively, Amelia and Elliot had Open House at each of their schools and met their teachers for this school year. Amelia is in Mrs. Ingham's class. She has been teaching for 33 years and we are looking forward to having her as Amelia's teacher. The classroom looked very inviting too with lots of books, some stuffed animals and two goldfish: 

Elliot visited his preschool on Friday evening and met his teacher, Ms. Chew. He was all excited to show me around his room and asked his teacher what they will be learning this year. 

 He even found his name on the wall:

For Amelia, we sat up a homework corner with her very own desk as she seemed annoyed doing her work in the kitchen, where it was too loud to concentrate. She already completed her first two homework assignment, writing about her favorite classroom jobs. She would like to be the caretaker of the fish, the class photographer or the mail person.  

We also started off with teaching Elliot how to read today. We used successfully the book Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons with Amelia when she was 3.5 years old and now she is an an avid reader. We waited a bit longer with Elliot as he seems more interested in engineering and math but now is showing signs that she is interested and ready. 

I'm including Amelia in this as I want her to teach him. The first lesson I taught mostly and he did very well. Actually, it seemed easy for him. Thus, tomorrow Amelia will start teaching him (there are very detailed instructions for each lesson). She is excited about teaching him, he is willing to learn and I can prepare dinner while they are working on the lesson.  It's a win-win for everyone. 

After a first successful day, we are ending the day with some laughs by watching AFV together.

Even though no one cried today as we sent them off to school, I still prayed over them and wrote a note to each them. My hopes are that they grow and flourish at school, each in their own ways, and to be always kind to others, share, help and always stay true to themselves. These values are so much more important than just learning how to read, write and do math.