A Good Life . . .

My Ringleader

You would think that a parent/teacher conference for a 2 and a half year old would be pretty bland.  Not when it comes to a parent/teacher conference for my ringleader.  For the record, they didn't refer to her as a "ringleader" - but they did describe her fulfilling the role.  Oh yes, she's very bright, very sweet, and she also knows how to test those boundaries.  Not all of the stories were of boundary testing (and getting her friends to do the same).  But, here are a few that I want to remember.

Her teachers tell the kids not to push their chairs away from the lunch table (presumably this causes the chairs to tip over).  Amelia evidently does this . . . and successfully encourages her friends to do the same.  I wish I had a picture of her face tonight as I casually told her while she was brushing her teeth, that she needed to listen to her teachers and not push her chair away from the table.  "How in the world do you know I do that?" was written all over that sweet face.

She love dramatic play and particularly loves to lead it.  She'll invite her friends to go on a train ride, or on a field trip.  One of her teachers described the "field trips" as the kids putting everything and anything they could get their hands on into backpacks and then "going on the field trip."  It looks like a bomb went off in the room.  Given how much Audrey loves to lead dramatic play at home, it shouldn't surprise us that Amelia likes to play that role at school.  And I was pleased to hear she is very comfortable sharing the spotlight and letting other join in the leading role.

And as with home, she knows how to push her sister's buttons at school.  One of Amelia's teacher said that just the other day Audrey yelled at Amelia on the playground and went off upset.  The teacher tried to get Amelia to explain what had happened and ended up asking Audrey to come back and explain herself.  Audrey, full of emotion, proceeded to say that Amelia had hurt her feelings, because she had a new knock-knock joke to share and Amelia wouldn't listen.  If that caused screaming on the playground, can you imagine what our home sounds like on weekends?

And finally, Amelia has excellent reading comprehension and enjoys predicting what is going to happen next in a story.  I know I'm biased, but she is one smart cookie . . . intellectually and socially.

 

Say "cheese"

I have taken countless photos with my phone, and for some reason I don't download and/or organize them like I do all of our other photos.  And while some may be a bit out of focus or oddly lit, they are still precious moments and cheesy smiles that I want to remember.  So, here are some of my favorites thus far from 2011 . .  .

A Father's Day Cheers

A Cool Kid

My dancer

I have no idea . . . perhaps just bribery.

Fourth of July

"I a princess."

Parents 1; Girls 0

Summer love

Sweet friends

Say "Cheese"

 

And now we return to our regular programming . . .

I was so proud when I read Amelia's classroom board earlier this week . . .

And then that same night, she swallowed a coin.  Yes, yes . . . she is just 2 1/2.

Double Princess Promise

Last night Audrey and I enjoyed some one-on-one time after her dance class.   And as is often the case when she has my undivided attention, she let me into her world.  We were talking about the fact that although she'll sleep for 3+ hours at home on the weekend, she hasn't been napping at school since she moved up to her new room. 

Audrey: "Only Izzie knows why I don't sleep."

Me: "You told Izzie, but you won't tell me?"

Audrey: "I'll tell you, but you can't tell Daddy.  You have to princess promise . . . double princess promise, not to tell Daddy."

Me, holding out my pinky fingers in order to execute our "double princess promise": "Okay, I double princess promise."

Audrey gets out of the booth, comes to my side of the table and loudly "whispers" in my ear: "Because . . . I DON'T WANT TO."

The year of "we tried"

We have rescheduled professional family photos FOUR times this fall.  Now, I can see one or two cancellations for sick kids . . . but four?!  I was sick, Amelia was sick, Amelia had FOUR mosquito bites on her face and then this weekend, we had 45 miles per hour gusts of wind.  I honestly called our photographer and apologized, because she had a day of families lined up yesterday and surely I cursed it. 

So, today the wind was just a bit calmer and I suggested to David that IF the girls got up from their naps in good moods, we should just put on their picture clothes and take a few photos outside.  We obviously wouldn't get a family picture, but what could it hurt? And while no one was truly hurt by the process . . . it did prove that the girls  . . . well, let's just say that they prefer a professional photographer.  This is when we suggested that they sit close to each together . . .

And then, there were the inappropriate poses . .

But my favorite just might be the GLAMOUR SHOT!  I laugh out loud every time I see this one.  And I'm pretty certain I have the same expression in one of my senior photos.  I really need to dig that out and do a side by side comparison.  Oh, and David assures me that she was not trying to be sexy.  She was just ticked off at him.

The entire "session" lasted about 10 - 15 minutes.  And so, we should be happy that we did get a few good shots as well . . .  individual ones, of course.

And for the record, I haven't officially given up on family photos for this year.  I'm pretty sure that "giving up" is not in my genes.

The quote . . . that broke my heart

Audrey told me tonight as she was going to bed, "You are my life." 

Followed by . . . .

"This is really important stuff, Mommy.  If I didn't have you, I would really miss you."

She is coming to grips with the death of a friend's father.  And she had me in tears.  She said it a number of times, and in various ways.  But the message was consistent . . . she can't imagine losing me. 

It's okay, Audrey.  I can't imagine losing you either, sweet girl.  And may we be so lucky as to not have to face that loss for decades . . . lots and lots of decades.

Amelia insisted . . .

Good Ol' Michigan

So, it's been a rough week around here (really, a rough couple of weeks).  We've had sinus infections, pneumonia, and the latest . . . an ear infection. Today I yelled "uncle" loud and clear, and I hope that life heard me.  And in an effort to take my mind off of this state of chaos that we are in . . . I thought I'd *finally* post some of our pictures from our trip to Michigan.

We almost forewent this annual trip (due to our upcoming vacation to Disney), and we are SO glad we made it work.  A short drive to a beautiful beach with hangouts that are quickly becoming a tradition . . . yes, we'll be back to the Holland/Saugatuck area.

This is my favorite picture.  It's from Tunnel Park in Holland.  In addition to beautifully capturing the tunnel through the sand dune that leads to the beach, it also captures so much of Audrey's and Ameila's personalities.   While Audrey is fearless, for some reason I think she'll always stay a bit closer to us than her sister (who won't ever look back).

And speaking of Little Miss Fearless . . . she discovered the thrill of a trampoline . . 

and high jumps into the sand . . .

These next two pictures are fun just as a means of comparison to last year. Those baby faces are quickly vanishing!

2011

2010

2011

2010

While in Saugatuck, we frequented our favorite playground, just hung out,

enjoyed some ice cream . . . 

and truly had a relaxing time (which as we all know, is kind of unheard of when vacationing with a 2 and 4 year old)!