Kindergarten

It is raining this morning and it is Kate's first day of kindergarten. She is anxious and excited at the same time. Of course, all of the parents walk their kindergartners in to school on the first day, so the halls were packed with people, raincoats, and cameras. She seemed right at home as we walked away. I think she is too sleepy to be upset. Charlie kept us up all night with fever and a croupy cough, so we dropped him at Nanny's house on the way to school. Thank goodness for family. I guess now I'm off to the pediatrician with number two.

A Day at the Lake

Yesterday, we spent the day at the lake with some dear friends. Kate watched their four year old learn to ski and determined that she, too, would try. She was so brave! I snapped a quick picture just before she lost her balance. After a few tears, with pride slightly bruised - she was convinced that she wouldn't fall - she got in the boat and watched everyone else take a turn. After she saw everyone else take fall after fall, she now wants to give it another try - next time.

Happy 5th Birthday, Kate!

Kate turned five today. As I was putting her to bed tonight she said, "I still feel like I'm four." I give her points for honesty. She had a great day and a fun time at Pump it Up - a party place where kids can jump freely for two hours on large inflatables. By the end of the "jump time" most of the kids were lying on the floor, begging for drinks and food. It is fun to see them absolutely wear themselves out. I think they all passed out in their cars on the drive home.

Seagrove

We just returned from a week at the beach with cousins, grandmothers, and aunts and uncles. While we were there we celebrated Mimi's birthday - she is now a beautiful 82 years old. Kate and Charlie enjoyed time with cousin Lola, the Toms got plenty of beach time, and the ladies put together three big puzzles. Swimming skills improved for all three children - Lola learned to putt around the pool in her inner tube, Charlie mastered going under water, and Kate practiced her snorkling skills around the pool. See Katherine and Tom's blog for pool pictures - Tom used his underwater camera to capture the kids in action. We sorely missed Uncle Michael and Aunt Sara, but expect they will join us next year - same time, same place.

Kate's First Ballet Recital

Kate is taking ballet this year from the same teacher who taught me as a little girl - Ms. Claire. She is fabulous and the girls just love her. I am amazed at how she coordinated about a hundred little preschoolers in a recital last night for family and friends. The theme was Broadway musicals. Kate loved every minute of her 1 1/2 minutes of stage time. Her group performed a dance to Beauty and the Beast. Our cousin, Libby, was also in the recital - she was in Hello Dolly - and performed beautifully. There were no tears and not much stage fright - lots of waving to family and twirling to the beat of their own little drums. Just precious.

Disney World

We just returned from 3 days at Walt Disney World with Kate. She is the perfect age right now where the line between reality and fantasy is a blur. We stayed at the Polynesian resort - Kate now loves Hawaii. Our pool had a volcano waterfall with a water slide right through it. We rode the monorail to the Magic Kindgom and back at least twice a day. We met the real Peter Pan - Kate's favorite by far - and all of the Princesses signed her autograph book. Parents stand in lines for hours waiting for these characters to appear and pose for photos with their children. We knocked out several autographs at a Breakfast with Cinderella and friends - by far the best Disney strategy out there. We spent the rest of our time riding Thunder Mountain Railroad, Peter Pan's flight, and Snow White's Scary adventures. We are home now, recovering from all the magic - and explaining to Charlie that he gets to go when he is five.

Happy Easter!

Charlie's Lip

Charlie gave everyone a scare last night. Around 11 o'clock we heard a loud "thud" and ran to Charlie's room to see what happened. He was lying on the floor at the end of his bed in a pool of blood. He had rolled off the end of the bed onto the wooden floor - thoroughly busting his nose and upper lip. The next few hours were spent drying blood and tears and checking for damage to teeth. We saw the dentist this morning who said no fractures, just a lot of bruising to the gum line. Hopefully, we won't end up with two black front teeth! Lots of mashed potatoes and milk shakes to look forward to this week!

Nanny's Little Helper

Charlie and Kate spent the night with Nanny last week-end. Charlie helped her water her plants and cook supper.

Climbing Mimi's Tree

Kate has been asking to climb a tree for a week now. We went to see Mimi last weekend and she was elated to discover the twisy crepe myrtle in Mimi's back yard - perfect for a first climb.

Rock Star Party

Kate went to a Rock Star Party last night. "What is a rock star?" she asked. We transformed a princess costume into perfect rock star attire. Thanks, Aunt Collins, for the pink and purple hair for Christmas. The party was lots of fun with dancing, games, and additional dress up accessories - glitter hair spray, tattoos, and plastic guitars. I still don't think Kate knows exactly what the theme was, but she had tons of fun.

Nativity Play

Kate was a perfect little angel for her 4 year old nativity play this week. Mrs. Nella read a Christmas story poem and the children acted it out. Kate lifted her arms to heaven right on cue. The class topped off their performance with "Away in a Manger." The whole thing lasted about 2 minutes, but every parent was there with cameras and video recorders to capture the moment.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We spent this Thanksgiving with Nancy in her new house. It was a wonderful first big meal out of her new kitchen. Tom got up early (after a busy night of moonlighting) to start smoking the turkey. Needless to say, after a big meal he passed out. CeCe and I walked the kids to Overton park to play, but it was too cold to stay for long. When we got home, Charlie did his best to wake his daddy up - not happening. While Daddy slept, Kate and Charlie helped CeCe make the whipped cream for the pumpkin pie. To finish the day, we watched Charlie Brown's Thanksgiving special and ate pumpkin pie for dessert.

Peter and the Wolf

Nanny and I took Kate and her friend Summer to see the Children's Theater production of Peter and the Wolf. They loved it. The Alabama Symphony orchestra played and there were refreshments afterward. Kate had her picture made with a few of the characters. The wolf was a bit intimidating, but showed her how the costume snapped on and how the hat attached. Now she wants a wolf costume.

Happy Halloween

Kate and Charlie dressed up this morning for their school Halloween parties. Charlie happily played in his superman costume all morning. Just as we were walking out the door he grabbed the cape and said, "Cape - off" as he wriggled out of the whole suit. The fireman worked out a little better for him and he actually kept up with the hat all day. Kate did not make it through the day as a lion. I picked her up from school in pink floweredy overalls with her whiskers still painted on. It is a little toasty in there on a warm day. Tonight will be great fun as we head out for some candy collection. Happy Halloween!

Bedtime Woes

Happy Birthday, Charlie!

Charlie turned two today! We celebrated at Triangle Park with a few close friends and family this morning. Charlie enjoyed digging in the dirt with his new excavators and diggers. The girls climbed the jungle gym and played "soccer." We had cake and ice cream and an all around great time. Now everyone has passed out from the activity and the sugar high. I think I am going to join them!

Kate's First Barbie

Kate loves for Mom to go up in the attic and bring down my old toys. Last week, she brought down the barbie suitcase. This is the barbie Kate chose for her own. She carries around one pink shoe to go on the foot. I love it that she has no concept of the barbie world of fashion. She loves this one-legged, no arms, frizzy-headed barbie like it was the most beautiful thing in the world.

Charlie at the Park

I took Charlie to the park yesterday while Kate was at school. I've been feeling guilty lately for not having as many pictures of him as I do of Kate, so I followed him around with the camera. I think I got some pretty good ones. Can you tell he takes his playtime pretty seriously:) Thought I'd share.

God is so Good!