Happy Mudder's Day

"What did you get Mommy for Mother's Day?"

"Letters"

JP and the kids got me these letter disks from Sundance which I had requested. Each one came in its own gift box so I had three little presents; one from each! It was a great Mother's Day that started with a three-year-old voice - "Happy Mudder's Day" and ended with dinner at Oregano's with the kids and our friends, Cathy and Kris. They are both like surrogate moms to our kids so it was a nice celebration. It was also new kid's 1st birthday which made the day extra special. We took a family hike and played games and generally just lounged about . . . very relaxing.

Happy 1st Birthday New Kid

New Kid celebrated her 1st birthday like the others . . . going to Oregano's. We had her party last weekend when Dad was here and we were treated to fried fish, boiled shrimp, and other good food! The 1st birthday party is more for the parents, right? To me it is a celebration that we survived; at least it was for the first kid. By the third one the year just flew by rather quickly especially with this one who has been easy from day one.

 One of our birthday traditions . . . getting to share a beer with The Jer.

Since today was also Mother's Day we got to enjoy our day together. After opening presents, eating breakfast, and watching the Giro (JP more than us); we went for a hike. All the kids enjoyed themselves and we tired out the Birthday Girl. She proceeded to nap for about 4 1/2 hours during the middle of the day. Sleeping has been her priority pretty much since the beginning.

Another Bump on the Head

Almost exactly one year to the day since the last head wound incident Pickle decided to try and mar up her lovely forehead once again. On Sunday afternoon Pickle had just served me and JP each a bowl of baby carrots on which to snack when her grandparents returned to the house with Bubba. In her excitement to reach the front door she tripped and fell headfirst into the brick halfwall that defines our entryway. JP saw it happen and was on his feet scooping her up before she even had a chance to cry. Luckily no skin was split or skull viewable so a little ice and TLC is all she needed.

Last year's scar has faded nicely just as that sweet doctor said it would and with this new scab you hardly notice the old scar at all.

They Grow Up So Fast - Part 2

Pickle has started Word Building and as this picture shows, she is very excited. The reading process in the Montessori program begins by learning the phonetic sounds of each letter - we are not allowed to "name" the letters - and then they move to putting these sounds together. JP got to see her in word building action last week during his observation visit. The teacher tells her a word and then she uses the letters to build the word on her mat. Once she completes all of the words she then gets to write them which at this point is simply tracing the word. You can also see that she uses cursive letters instead of block print which is another aspect of the Montessori classroom. Cursive letters are actually easier for children to learn because they do not have to pick up their pencil. Pickle loves to write and is anxious to learn to actually read. It won't be long now.

How we entertain ourselves at the Egg Hunt

Pickle - 4 months

New Kid - 11 months

Hunting Eggs

The kids were treated to 3 different egg hunts this year starting with the a rainy afternoon at Cee-Cee's

Listening intently to instructions

The Human Crane

The Annual Easter Luncheon and Egg Hunt at the kids' Montessori school is always one of our favorite events.

Bubba and his friend from school whose brother also attends CMS.

 
Finally the Easter Bunny visited our house and the kids did some hunting among the broken concrete and backyard project.

 

They Grow Up So Fast - Part 1

New Kid had a fabulous time in the backyard by herself the other day and I was able to catch her glee on video. I don't think she was ever going to tire of this activity.

She has been full of energy lately and loves to be chased and to attack whoever is on the floor. It is a great game to her to pretend to escape and then she will stop and turn back to make sure you are watching or coming after her. She just squeals and giggles.