May in Review: Recital and Preschool Graduation

A quick review of some of the May happenings...

Sparkle had her first dance recital. Here she is dancing to "Red Robin"...




Then Sparkle "graduated" from preschool. Both Sugar and Sparkle performed in the end of the year program.

Our little letter "G"...



Getting three-year-olds to perform is a bit like herding cats. Sugar is in the polka-dot shirt in the middle of the edge of mayhem...



Our graduate...



A girl and her Dad...

Back to School

Getting Back Into Routine

I guess I have disappeared from the blogosphere for a while. I haven't really meant to...I just get distracted easily or maybe not so easily. It has a lot to do with the summer break and three kids home constantly. Since Sugar is slowly growing out of naptime, this summer felt significantly different than the summers of the past. We were free to stay out until later afternoon, or spend the whole day on a fun outing. We bought a membership to a neighborhood pool for the first time. Many days of quiet mornings, lunch and afternoon at the pool or play dates at parks with friends, or letterboxing, walking, going to the library. Full days to go to the mountains or to some fun kid destination. A wonderful summer in many ways...but my particular pursuits...like blogging... have taken a back seat to the new summer routine.

Now here we are in September and school has started for the older two kids. Slugger is a 3rd grader and Sparkle is now in kindergarten (half-day). After almost 3 weeks of school, we are beginning to settle into the new routine. Sugar will be in preschool soon, but that doesn't start for another week. So...as the routine settles in I am finding a bit more time for some other pursuits again, including blogging. Hopefully, I will be around a bit more....

April in Review: The YMCA.

In Colorado, April was the snowiest month of this past winter. Well... April is not really winter, technically. Seasonal debate aside, April is not normally the snowiest month here in Colorado. However, this past April almost every weekend brought a new storm and more snow. In the midst of this snowiness, what is a Coloradan to do but make a break for the mountains? Just what we did. Not just anyplace in the Rockies, but the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park. This is one massive YMCA. Seriously, it is humongous...and gorgeous. It's a superb destination...beautiful setting coupled with multiple activities for kids and grown-ups alike. In a short two night trip, we managed to go sledding, play board games endlessly, go hiking, make crafts in the incredible craft room, go roller skating, enjoy the indoor pool, check out the game room and gym, and eat and sleep (at least a little). It was a fabulous weekend getaway. We went with dear friends who have kids all the same ages as ours. The kids got to bunk together and the grown-ups didn't have to be the entertainment all the time. An excellent combination.

The beautiful scene out our window after the snow storm that arrived just after we unpacked...



The sledding gets serious...







A little of the board game obsession...



Some good old fashioned roller skating...



A cute little ending to a great weekend...

April in Review: Slugger Turns 8!

My oldest is eight. I am still in awe even though this new age has had a few months to settle in at this point. He is reaching a new level of independence and "young man" status. I can tell him to go take a shower, and he will. I can tell him to get his own food out of the fridge, and he will. I can let him take the dog for a walk around our cul-de-sac, and he will. So many little moments and previews of the man to come. Striving for more independence and learning to handle progressively more responsibility, yet, still my little man with a kind heart and love for his parents, his sisters and his friends. Amazing.

This year Slugger opted for the non-"party" option and decided instead to invite three friends to come with him to his favorite entertainment place, Mr. Biggs. We ate pizza and cupcakes then hit the "Foam Factory" and shot balls out of cannons, threw balls at every one in our near vicinity, and generally ran around in an exhausting fashion. That coupled with laser tag, mini-golf, and lots of video games made for a full, loud, and very fabulous celebration. Slugger declared the "non-party" a hit. Mission accomplished.

A great example of the eight-year-old boy craziness...



A boy and his sister, who happily joined in the craziness....



The whole crew. Boys really can fashion some type of weapon out of most anything...

Slacking on the Bloggin'

I've been distracted by many things....letterboxing, facebooking, painting almost every room in our house, and generally being busy. Pretty much anything but blogging lately. After several strong hints or not so much hints but kindly reminders from Grandparents and even a couple friends, I am going to attempt to re-enter the blogging world. So, get ready for some catch-up!

Letterboxing

Ok, I admit it...I am probably more hooked on Letterboxing than my kids. I love maps. I love treasures. I love puzzles. I love being outdoors. Thus, I love letterboxing. The kids like it too..but they are mainly just a good excuse for my new hobby.

What is letterboxing? A letterbox is a "box" that is hidden somewhere, really anywhere, mostly on public land. However, a letterbox can be located other places...a store, private land or someone's yard...just as long as permission is given to place it. The box usually contains a handmade rubber-stamp and a notebook. Sometimes the stamps are storebought...but I am yet to find one that isn't a handmade original. To find the letterbox, you follow clues, sometimes complicated, sometimes simple, sometimes like following a written treasure map. The boxes are planted to remember pets, favorite artists, birthdays, trips...really anything the letterbox creator can imagine. When you find a box, you stamp your letterboxing book with the stamp you find and stamp your "signature stamp" in the book found in the letterbox. Letterboxes can be tupperware boxes, film canisters, pouches...just about anything that is waterproof and hard to find. The first time I found a "box" I wasn't completely sure that I hadn't found something else... like a drug stash... except that I was in the place I was led to by the clues. Thankfully, we were on the right track! I have since come to understand that letterboxing is really a culture all to itself. It's own lingo, types of boxes, and even gatherings of letterboxers around the world. I'm still a novice, but the kids and I have had lots of fun hiking, exploring and discovering new places around the city. If you are interesting in trying it out or learning more, check out www.letterboxing.org. There are letterboxes all over around the country and around the world!



Here's a picture of a letterbox we found on one our recent excursions...




The kids and I have really enjoyed the excuse to get out of the house and the sense of adventure added to exploring the parks and open spaces in our area. Although, I have learned that what may seem like a short "walk" to me still needs the full preparation of water bottles, rest breaks, and even a snack if needed. No slacking for mom!

A Believing Dress

Definition: A dress that is magic, but nobody believes in it.

Used in a sentence: "Can I wear my believing dress to school today?"

Rodeo Days

January is Stock Show Time in Colorado. In celebration, the girl's school hosts it's own Rodeo Days. Here's some of the fun.

Cowboy Grub...beans and biscuits...



Milking cows...





Riding horses... Sugar's horse is "Sparkle". Sparkle's horse is "Chocolate". They learned how to ride their horses. How to say, "Giddyup" and "Whoo". How not to run their horses into other riders...



These cowgirls had a mighty good time.

BUGZ

Slugger finally performed in the long awaited "show" (I am NOT allowed to call it a play), BUGZ, that his second grade class has been working on for months. Slugger was an Army Ant and had to go into school early several times to work on his choreography with the other Army Ants. The "show" was a musical performance with all types of bugz...ladybugs, caterpillars, butterflies, cockroaches...and many more. And as Slugger's line in the production concluded, "Except for those stinkbugs we are nice". The whole collection of various bugz goes on a picnic excursion together and learns how to include the stinkbugs (whose outfits were covered with "stinky" socks) in their little bug party...after many musical numbers and such. It really was an incredible performance. Three full classes were in the production and every kid had one line. Sixty-five or more kids getting to the microphones, in the right order, at the right time, and remembering their lines. Plus all the singing and dancing. I truly am seriously impressed.

Here is a small (and a little dark) picture of the Army Ant performance with Army Ant Slugger right in the middle...

A Little Bit of Sisterly Love

A Little Bit of Christmas

Some fun pictures from Christmas....

Sparkle got to be Mary in her preschool Christmas program. She was beyond excited.



Sugar's first Christmas program at preschool. I love this age! A little bit like herding cats. In this picture, they are singing, "Jingle Bells". In a later number, a little boy next to Sugar started blowing on her ear. After he wouldn't stop, she abandoned her post and started running around the stage. Truly entertaining.



Auntie Jessica came out to join us for Christmas. We sure enjoyed having her. The kids loved having a fun Auntie around to play games, read books, and make cute messy crafts with them.



My kids favorite Christmas tradition, our "Happy Birthday, Jesus!" cake. (I didn't say it was pretty...although, I did get a cake decorating kit from Nana this year...so next year, the pressure's on!)



Apparently, the cake was good enough to lick off the table...



Merry Christmas 2008 and Happy New Year 2009 from our family!