Yesterday was kind of exciting. We have one KNOWN, confirmed case of swine flu in our neighborhood and several others that are either suspected or rumored to be. We have a couple doctors in our ward, who were apparently concerned about it, so we got church cancelled. This was actually the second time in about a month -- when we were in San Francisco they cancelled due to a power outage, but we were around for this one. All church activities have been cancelled for the week, which was a little discouraging because I had just spent the day getting all my visiting teaching appointments set up. Darn it! And the girls had a primary activity (frowny face). The good news is that Brandon doesn't have to go to any appointments, so his evenings are all free! I don't know how long our quarantine is going to last, because I've heard the virus will linger for 18-24 months but I just can't see them cancelling church that long. We'll probably be back next week with the same infected people (well, hopefully those that are sick will stay home), but who knows how many carriers there will be.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Friday, June 5, 2009
End of School Year
What a fun, busy week we've had. I don't know why they try to cram all the fun things into the very last week of school. Seriously, can't they space field trips and parties throughout the year? Anyhow, I'm sure the kids love it. On Tuesday I got to go help with a water party Sophie's class was having -- it was actually for all the first graders. I was in charge of the "duck, duck, goose" game. We just rotated through the classes. They had so much fun, and are so easy to make happy at this age. Afterwards we got popsicles. I got a red one (which I usually prefer), but as I ate it I realized it wasn't the typical red cherry. It was pina colada! What a nice surprise. The other helper mom even came and asked me if I noticed -- of course! I wonder what brand they were. So, back to the party, Sophie came home a little damp. She really wasn't all that wet, especially by the time we got home, but she wanted me to take a picture of her for Brandon to see. Now you all can see.
The next day was field day and talent show for Sophie's class. Chloe had a talent show a couple weeks ago. She played her one and only song she's learned on the piano. She messed up a bit at the start, which threw her off, but she just walked over to her teacher and told her, so her teacher asked me to come up and help her. I thought she handled the situation very well. I'm proud of Chloe and ALL her talents. Parents were not invited to Sophie's talent show, due to a space issue (they combined with another class). She took her crafts she loves to make as her talent. Since it was Wednesday (my volunteer day), Sophie's teacher still wanted me to help, but Chloe's teacher was fine. That left me with a little time to kill before going to Sophie's class, so I just went and hung out with Chloe. She's always happy to have me around. After school I got pictures of the girls with their teachers. Wasn't that so smart of me not to wait until the last day of school when everything gets so hectic?
I got to babysit Eli this morning and since his parents weren't back by the time school got out he got to surprise the girls as they came out of school. We let Eli play on the slides for a bit before walking home with our friends (and getting caught in the rain!) It sure will be nice to start our summer vacation and have the girls back home with me, but since this is my little soapbox I need to rant for a minute (you may stop here if you don't appreciate my rantings). How on earth are we supposed to teach our kids to love learning and value their education when they are fed so much "excitement" about being OUT of school? Everybody acts like it's such a great day, and makes absurd comments to my children about how happy they should be to be done with school. Hmmm, and we wonder why they start to hate school after so many years. Luckily, right now, my kids are still praying for 10-15 more weeks of school. Good thing I have a lot of books and worksheets planned for the summer.
And just in case you didn't know, my kids aren't going back to that school next year. I got them enrolled in a charter school, and we are getting more and more excited about it each day. I found an old VT partner from Cheyenne who is going to be attending (well, her son is!), and I have a 2ND cousin who is sending her two boys there -- who happen to be in the same grades as Chloe and Sophie! So, we're really happy to know some people that will be joining us.
One more note: We've started a new system for bedtime. It's so hard for the kids to go to sleep when it's still light outside, so Brandon printed off a calendar with the sunset time on each day. That is our new bedtime. We're hoping to teach the girls a little about the earth's rotation and possibly phases of the moon by doing so, and as summer progresses bedtime will get earlier and earlier preparing us for school in the fall. Yes, we can already hear the cries in December when they have to go to bed at 5:00. He He -- that is a joke (kind of). Our first night seems to have worked great. The girls crashed as soon as they hit their pillows. I'm sure that won't last, but it was a nice start.
The next day was field day and talent show for Sophie's class. Chloe had a talent show a couple weeks ago. She played her one and only song she's learned on the piano. She messed up a bit at the start, which threw her off, but she just walked over to her teacher and told her, so her teacher asked me to come up and help her. I thought she handled the situation very well. I'm proud of Chloe and ALL her talents. Parents were not invited to Sophie's talent show, due to a space issue (they combined with another class). She took her crafts she loves to make as her talent. Since it was Wednesday (my volunteer day), Sophie's teacher still wanted me to help, but Chloe's teacher was fine. That left me with a little time to kill before going to Sophie's class, so I just went and hung out with Chloe. She's always happy to have me around. After school I got pictures of the girls with their teachers. Wasn't that so smart of me not to wait until the last day of school when everything gets so hectic?
I got to babysit Eli this morning and since his parents weren't back by the time school got out he got to surprise the girls as they came out of school. We let Eli play on the slides for a bit before walking home with our friends (and getting caught in the rain!) It sure will be nice to start our summer vacation and have the girls back home with me, but since this is my little soapbox I need to rant for a minute (you may stop here if you don't appreciate my rantings). How on earth are we supposed to teach our kids to love learning and value their education when they are fed so much "excitement" about being OUT of school? Everybody acts like it's such a great day, and makes absurd comments to my children about how happy they should be to be done with school. Hmmm, and we wonder why they start to hate school after so many years. Luckily, right now, my kids are still praying for 10-15 more weeks of school. Good thing I have a lot of books and worksheets planned for the summer.
And just in case you didn't know, my kids aren't going back to that school next year. I got them enrolled in a charter school, and we are getting more and more excited about it each day. I found an old VT partner from Cheyenne who is going to be attending (well, her son is!), and I have a 2ND cousin who is sending her two boys there -- who happen to be in the same grades as Chloe and Sophie! So, we're really happy to know some people that will be joining us.
One more note: We've started a new system for bedtime. It's so hard for the kids to go to sleep when it's still light outside, so Brandon printed off a calendar with the sunset time on each day. That is our new bedtime. We're hoping to teach the girls a little about the earth's rotation and possibly phases of the moon by doing so, and as summer progresses bedtime will get earlier and earlier preparing us for school in the fall. Yes, we can already hear the cries in December when they have to go to bed at 5:00. He He -- that is a joke (kind of). Our first night seems to have worked great. The girls crashed as soon as they hit their pillows. I'm sure that won't last, but it was a nice start.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Running Club
I promised you a post about running club, and here it is. Back in March the school started a running club. If you know me and extra-curricular activites, you know the two don't mesh. I won't ever stop my kids from doing something that interests them, but I'm certainly not going to push -- and so far they've had very few interests. Well, when I saw the poster for running club I put all my ideas aside and TOLD them (not asked) that we would be signing up for it. They were coming home from school every day so cranky and being mean to each other that I thought running a few laps would do them some good. I really hated the idea that they'd be away from home even longer than usual, but something needed to change. They met twice a week after school. It was so good for them. Chloe didn't really enjoy it, but Sophie had a blast. She's a good little runner, and she would beg for running club. Hopefully we can keep it up this summer and they can come run the track with me at the park.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Lava Hot Springs
Dallas and fam had a few weeks off of school and work so they decided to take a tour of their families. We had our turn last week (Tues-Fri). There's not a whole lot to see around Centerville, so I took them on a little hike. Jessica spent Wednesday evening with her sister in Bountiful, so we just got to hang out with Dallas. Thursday I had volunteered to accompany Chloe's class on a little "field trip" (aka teacher needs a day off). Again, Jessica had to go visit her dad so Dallas and Evan got to go on the field trip with us. The class just walked over to a park and played in the creek, then we ate a picnic lunch, and then they just played on the playground until Sister Packer (and Trent) showed up with her snow cone machine. I do believe it's Trent's snow cone machine, but Sister Packer runs that thing more than he does. Anyhow, that was our afternoon. Instead of walking back to the school, I took Chloe home with us about an hour early and then I took her back to school for her last day of running club (hmmm, I still need to post about that). Thursday evening we went back to Smoot Park for the THIRD time since their visit, for a family photo shoot. Then they moved on to their next stop Friday morning. It was good to see you guys!
But we didn't miss them for too long, since Saturday the family all met at Lava Hot Springs (in Idaho) for mom's birthday celebration. We tried to get a group photo taken at the sunken gardens before heading off to the pool. It was a nice day for swimming. We've signed up for two sessions of swimming lessons this summer, so this was a good kick off to start our summer. Unfortunately, we still have one more week of school. Then we can start MY schedule!
But we didn't miss them for too long, since Saturday the family all met at Lava Hot Springs (in Idaho) for mom's birthday celebration. We tried to get a group photo taken at the sunken gardens before heading off to the pool. It was a nice day for swimming. We've signed up for two sessions of swimming lessons this summer, so this was a good kick off to start our summer. Unfortunately, we still have one more week of school. Then we can start MY schedule!
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
San Francisco
I haven't been around since Moms & Muffins, but I've got lots to report on. That afternoon I got to go do a quick photo shoot with Eli. He just turned two, so new pictures were necessary. What a chore it was picking up that big rock, but he sure was proud of himself.
Shortly after the photo shoot Eli came to my house to visit. I took his parents to the airport the next morning, and then we got to hang out with Eli for four days. I used to think it was hard having two girls around that like to smother him -- until Monday when they went to school and I realized how much easier it was to watch him with their help. They are really good with him. Sophie seems to have a natural mothering instinct, but when I watch Chloe with little kids you can see how much she enjoys it. She can't wait until she's old enough to babysit on her own.
After four days I had to pass Eli off to his grandpa so I could head to San Francisco. Brandon flew out Monday morning, then I left Tuesday after school and drove the girls. We joined him for the last day of his conference. We really didn't spend that much time in San Francisco because there were so many other things we wanted to see -- like a mining town and the giant redwoods. I could sit and talk about the trip, but I think you can get more out of looking at the pictures.
Shortly after the photo shoot Eli came to my house to visit. I took his parents to the airport the next morning, and then we got to hang out with Eli for four days. I used to think it was hard having two girls around that like to smother him -- until Monday when they went to school and I realized how much easier it was to watch him with their help. They are really good with him. Sophie seems to have a natural mothering instinct, but when I watch Chloe with little kids you can see how much she enjoys it. She can't wait until she's old enough to babysit on her own.
After four days I had to pass Eli off to his grandpa so I could head to San Francisco. Brandon flew out Monday morning, then I left Tuesday after school and drove the girls. We joined him for the last day of his conference. We really didn't spend that much time in San Francisco because there were so many other things we wanted to see -- like a mining town and the giant redwoods. I could sit and talk about the trip, but I think you can get more out of looking at the pictures.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Moms and Muffins
I got to go to school with Sophie today for the first graders "Moms and Muffins." It was a treat! My scanner is in the graveyard, so I can't show you the cute picture of me she drew. She filled out a questionaire about me -- even I learned some things! Like, did you know I am 6 feet tall and I'm good at sewing? Me neither. Apparently, one of the other moms at Sophie's table is 9 feet tall, so at least I'm not a giant. Then we got to sit and interview each other before Sophie took me on a little tour of her classroom. They are growing all kinds of plants and butterflies, so there was a lot to see. Then then did a little performance for us, before serving the muffins and juice. This was my favorite song they sang us:
Thanks, Sophie, for the special morning. She is such a fun little girl.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Chloe's Baptism
Saturday was the big day -- Chloe got baptized! She has been preparing for this day for a long time. She had a lot of family come support her, and that made it pretty special. It rained the whole morning and part of the afternoon, which we decided was appropriate for a baptism day, even if it did make it hard to get good pictures. I took this first shot of her with her dad out on our porch.
And then here they are in front of the baptismal font. She is very lucky to have a dad who is worthy to baptize her. They have a special bond, which made it even that much sweeter.
As you know, Grandma bought her a special dress for her baptism, but Chloe didn't want to wear it in the water. That would get it all wet and then she couldn't wear it the rest of the day, so she wore the standard jumpsuit supplied by the stake.
And here she is all soaking wet right after the baptism. She was kind of silly in the dressing room because she was scared of the tile floor. This was killing her to stand there with her bare feet touching the tile!
This is Chloe after she got changed back into her REAL baptism dress:
There were 10 baptisms at our church that morning, but the way our stake does it they let each ward conduct their own, and since Chloe was the only one in our ward getting baptized this day she got the whole program to herself. That made it very personal and I think more special for her. Chloe was very lucky to have a lot of family members willing to help out with her program -- or should I say I was the lucky one so I didn't have to do it all! Sophie volunteered to give the baptism talk. She was pretty cute. And they got their two friends (Kiera and Makenna) to sing a song with them. I was proud of all of them for having the courage to do that. I know it helped doing it in a group like that. They've wanted to perform for a long time, but I think people assume they are too shy and don't even bother to ask. They did a great job!
Here's the whole gang who came to celebrate with Chloe. It sure would have been nice to get an outdoor shot, but that rain just wouldn't stop!
Afterwards we all went back to our house for a luncheon. My wish was to eat at the park, but I knew rain was forecasted, so I didn't hold out too much hope. Instead we crammed 17 people into our home and it worked just fine. The kids all ate down in the basement. Do you like how they converted the window sill into a table and used the chaise as a bench? I thought it was pretty cute.
Lastly, Grandma brought some birthday presents along with her. Chloe's was a little late, and Sophie's was a little early, but it was a good opportunity to give them each their "My Twinn Doll." She had these special ordered, custom made to look like Chloe and Sophie. They each came with an extra outfit, a bag with their name embroidered on it, and they got a party/tea set to match. They've sure had a lot of fun with their new dolls the last few days.
Just for the fun of it, I had made this movie after Chloe's baptism photo shoot. There wasn't an appropriate time to play it AT the baptism. I tried to put it on my digital photo frame to play while the guests were at our house, but it wouldn't play the movie so I just had to do a slideshow. So, here is the movie as I intended it to be played (minus a little resolution, which I can't figure out how to improve!).
And then here they are in front of the baptismal font. She is very lucky to have a dad who is worthy to baptize her. They have a special bond, which made it even that much sweeter.
As you know, Grandma bought her a special dress for her baptism, but Chloe didn't want to wear it in the water. That would get it all wet and then she couldn't wear it the rest of the day, so she wore the standard jumpsuit supplied by the stake.
And here she is all soaking wet right after the baptism. She was kind of silly in the dressing room because she was scared of the tile floor. This was killing her to stand there with her bare feet touching the tile!
This is Chloe after she got changed back into her REAL baptism dress:
There were 10 baptisms at our church that morning, but the way our stake does it they let each ward conduct their own, and since Chloe was the only one in our ward getting baptized this day she got the whole program to herself. That made it very personal and I think more special for her. Chloe was very lucky to have a lot of family members willing to help out with her program -- or should I say I was the lucky one so I didn't have to do it all! Sophie volunteered to give the baptism talk. She was pretty cute. And they got their two friends (Kiera and Makenna) to sing a song with them. I was proud of all of them for having the courage to do that. I know it helped doing it in a group like that. They've wanted to perform for a long time, but I think people assume they are too shy and don't even bother to ask. They did a great job!
Here's the whole gang who came to celebrate with Chloe. It sure would have been nice to get an outdoor shot, but that rain just wouldn't stop!
Afterwards we all went back to our house for a luncheon. My wish was to eat at the park, but I knew rain was forecasted, so I didn't hold out too much hope. Instead we crammed 17 people into our home and it worked just fine. The kids all ate down in the basement. Do you like how they converted the window sill into a table and used the chaise as a bench? I thought it was pretty cute.
Lastly, Grandma brought some birthday presents along with her. Chloe's was a little late, and Sophie's was a little early, but it was a good opportunity to give them each their "My Twinn Doll." She had these special ordered, custom made to look like Chloe and Sophie. They each came with an extra outfit, a bag with their name embroidered on it, and they got a party/tea set to match. They've sure had a lot of fun with their new dolls the last few days.
Just for the fun of it, I had made this movie after Chloe's baptism photo shoot. There wasn't an appropriate time to play it AT the baptism. I tried to put it on my digital photo frame to play while the guests were at our house, but it wouldn't play the movie so I just had to do a slideshow. So, here is the movie as I intended it to be played (minus a little resolution, which I can't figure out how to improve!).
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