Teeth, Art and Cookies

Libby lost another tooth the other day at school. That seems to be the "fun" time of day to lose it so kids can brag in front of friends.

My budding artist also won 1st place in Visual Arts (K-2nd grade) for the PTA Reflections program. She was eager to participate and painted a great painting on the theme, "The World Would Be a Better Place If..."


Getting ready for Girl Scout Cookie Time! Last weekend was the area Cookie Rally. The girls got to sample all of the cookies and learn about the new Digital Cookie website.

Cookie exchange, Christmas, and Craftiness

Life has been busy.

We spent Thanksgiving at home this year. Dinner was at a neighbor's house. We had a really nice time with new friends.

Girl Scouts have been working on their Thinking Day projects - swap items, presentation, and learning about Brasil. Last week the girls made Christmas decorations and did a cookie exchange. It was nice.

Christmas this year will be a little different. We're going to The Bahamas instead of Jamaica thanks to a virus called Chikungunya.

Happy October 2014

The weeks are flying by now. October is half over and I feel like I should be saying Merry Christmas soon...

Pet Badge

Libby went on a tour of a vet clinic yesterday with her Brownie Troop. She earned her Pets Badge in the process. I'm so happy that she's enjoying Girl Scouts. 

She has another wiggly tooth - top right side of her mouth. It may take a few more weeks to pop out though. 

Parent Teacher Conferences were last week. Both girls are doing great. It's especially nice to hear with Libby as she gets older and has more demands on her. Mrs. B said she's a well-rounded student, doing well in both reading & math. I know she enjoys reading much more, though it may be due to the fact that it comes more naturally to her. She has to put more effort in with math and she gets frustrated when she doesn't get it perfect the first time. 

O is such a great big sister. She made a chart of colors to help S get dressed in the mornings. Each day has a different color(s) with Friday being "free choise." ;) 

S is a bit of a whining mess at times. I don't remember 4 being so difficult with O. Little sis always has an excuse for not doing something: "I'm too scared to brush my teeth alone." "I'm too scared to get dressed by myself." "I don't know what to wear." "I can't do it." "I'm too tired." UGH! 

I did manage to take the girls to a pumpkin patch over the weekend. We got 3 nice pumpkins. I guess we will carve them next week. It's been really warm lately and I don't want them to rot. 

Oh, and I forgot to mention that Libby started taking some art classes outside of school. A friend recommended the classes. They are for elementary aged kids (1st-5th grade), every other Saturday for 1.25 hrs. In her first class she learned about charcoal pencils and pastels, how to shade and blend colors, and how to add a 3-D look when drawing a pumpkin. 

Girl Scouts/Brownie troop

September is in full swing. Full weeks of school lead to tired little kids.
Libby joined the Girl Scouts this year. So, we have meetings once every 2 weeks or so after school. I appreciate the light pace as getting homework done can be a challenge. I don't know how other families manage multiple kids with multiple activities during the week. It's a tough job. Anyway, she seems happy. I finally got her vest and all of the badges put together yesterday. Yesterday was Making Games badge day (I was the parent volunteer). It was fun to see how the 2nd & 3rd grade girls interact. A little more wild than I imagined...aren't boys the wild ones?? lol. Little sis has a tough time sitting still and wants to know where her girl scouts are, but she's good for the 1.5 hr mtg.

Making Games badge

Time for your check-up, Little Sis!

I'm not sure why I'm surprised, but Little Sis has grown 3.5" in the past year. Back in the 90th percentile for height. She's such a bean pole. Love her. And she handled her vaccinations/boosters like a pro. I had to send Libby out of the room as she started freaking out and trying to transfer her anxiety on all of us. But barely a flinch from S and I forgot that the MMR/Chickenpox booster happened at age 4. It's a painful one, but the good news is that she's done until about age 11 now :) 

So, now we are ready for S to start preK. Class will be in the PM this year. We may have to add some AM nap time back in...but I think she's ready. 

Oh, and Libby & I went for our dental check-ups and cleanings a few weeks ago. She's so odd about flavors, hates mint, so the poor hygienist has to deal with that...but she does well, thankfully. No new cavities. Little sis will have her first check up this coming week. I'm a bit behind schedule with her, but she's much better about brushing her teeth than Libby ever has been. 

2nd Grade!

Libby's first day of 2nd grade was yesterday! She's like an old pro. She came home already making plans for play dates with a new classmate, "the new Brooke." I love this kid.

I bought her a small desk to give her some dedicated space to get school work done. Not sure what her work load will look like, but we need to set some good habits.

There have been lots of changes at the school, which is hard for Mommy, but it's still a great place. Libby's teacher is new to the school, but not to teaching, and her husband is a 5th grade teacher at the school.

Summer time, summer time! 2014

Well, my big girl is now a 2nd grader. *sigh* How's that possible? I still remember the crazy fog-dazed months of her arrival. She's grown up so much in the past few months - better behavior, learned to ride a bike without training wheels, and lost another tooth.

Daddy spear-headed the bike riding project. I think she was ready awhile ago. It only took a few launches down the hill one weekend, then some transitions to concrete the following weekend and she was done. Now, she's great! Can start up and stop on her own.

We've also noticed even better behavior in Libby. She always offers to help me do laundry now. Also, Libby will step in to help little sis if she is struggling. Of course, there are still struggles, but it's so nice to see progress and see a happy child. Wish I could say the same about Little Sis, but hey, she's 3...time will tell, right?