Crazy Outfit and Crazy Hair Day

Today was Crazy outfit/hair day to show school spirit. Claire began planning her outfit last night. The outfit is a mix of Halloween costumes, swimsuits, and nailpolish i.e., every finger has a different color. WOW!! It is crazy. She fixed her hair last night and slept in it. You can imagine the look it produced.

Braden decided at 8:30 PM last night that he might want to participate. He then chose his outfit at 8:15 AM today. True to Braden's personality, slow-paced, and easy-going he threw together an outfit.

I think they both produced CRAZY outfits and looked adorable!

Claire's Play

Claire's class performed a play this week entitled "Character Matters." (The teacher chose this play in an attempt to improve the dynamics of this class...scary, huh?) It really was a cute play, and the kids did very well. I was totally amazed by their confidence on stage. At ages eight and nine, they were completely unphased by performing in front of a large crowd.

Claire was Goldilocks from the fairy tale. She had a singing solo. I am not kidding (or bias) she did a GREAT job! Her tone and pitch were perfect. Again, she was completely confident on stage. You could tell by her expression how seriously she was taking her performance. She truly enjoys performing. (I guess we should have known this when she was two years old performing on the table, singing and dancing at the top of her lungs).

Justin and I were very proud of her! She did a GREAT job! Hollywood here she comes!!

Braden's field trip

Yesterday, Drew and I joined Braden and his class for a field trip. The location was the Botanic Gardens so we walked there from the school. Luckily, it was a beautiful day.

The kids were to take pictures of flowers and to choose a flower and sketch it. (The field trip was for art class). Braden and his friend Adam were busy completing their assignment. They were carefully studying each flower to choose the best subject for their designs. Before long, Drew was following their lead. He carefully chose his subject and diligently sketched it. I was quite impressed with his attentiveness. It actually gave me hope that he may be ok at school next year.

We really had a great time. Thank-you Braden for letting us join you and your class!

P.S. Claire had a field trip on the same day. I am in HUGE trouble with her that I went to Braden's trip and not to her trip. The issue is that Claire's teacher will not allow younger siblings. Oh well...I am constantly in trouble with someone.

Drew's Birthday!!!

It is difficult to believe that Drew Henry is four years old!! I can't believe how quickly these four years have passed. It has been very sentimental for me. Four has always seemed to be the point where there is a lot of change. He will start Pre-K, which really makes kids "grow-up."

We celebrated Drew's birthday a little early so Gee and Pops could be here for the celebration. After school one day, we had all of his friends come to our house for cake and pizza. It was such a fun time. We had a great group of kids. Most of the kids are friends of Claire and Braden, but they have grown to know and to love Drew. They all seem to get a "kick" out of his antics.

The kids decided to perform a talent show at the party. The girls were dancing and singing. It was very entertaining. When it was Drew's turn to perform, he and his friend Joe, re-enacted the light saber fight between Darth Vader and Luke...complete with "I'm your father." I have to say their performance was a crowd favorite.

Following the performances, we had cake and ice-cream. (SUGAR AND ALL!!! ha/ha) I wanted to point out the cake. Please notice the destroyed icing. This was a result of Drew "helping" to get ready for his party. He grabbed to cake from the counter and began carrying it. You know what happened next...yes, HE DROPPED IT!!! Luckily, the cake still had the lid on it, so we served it anyway. For previous parties, I probably wouldn't have served it, but by the third kid, I really didn't care. It was just a story to tell. It's amazing how much you learn with each kid!:)

The kids were so sweet to Drew. They clapped and cheered as he opened his gifts. You could tell by Drew's expression how pleased he was.

We concluded the party with our traditional pinata. We found a Darth Vader pinata, so it was perfect.

It really was a great party!! What a great day filled with great memories!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DREW!! WE LOVE YOU!!

Drew's Birthday Party

St. Patrick's Day

Since living in Colorado, I have gotten to be good friends with a lady from Ireland. She is such a funny person, and I truly enjoy visiting with her. She has a beautiful accent, and a lot of funny Irish lingo. (She uses wee little lad, etc...it is adorable). I have to admit that when people hear us talking, they wonder how we can communicate between the Irish accent and the Southern accent, but we manage.

Anyway, she has a wonderful group of friends that live here that are also from Ireland. We have joined them at the zoo and on other outings, and let me say...these girls are hilarious. They really know how to have fun! :)

Apparently, there is a larger Irish population in Denver. There are several Irish pubs and Denver has the third largest St. Patrick's Day parade in the USA. (We missed the parade because the kids didn't want to quit playing video games...another issue entirely!)

Drew and I decided to join our Irish friends at the pub for lunch. It was a lot of fun, but I am not sure if Drew knew what to think about it. There were leprechauns and a lot of noise i.e. bagpipes, etc. He was quite reserved (SURPRISE!!). Eventually, as we were leaving, he began to join the festive spirit and posed for a picture outside. (I tried very hard to get a picture of him and the leprechaun.)

It was such a fun experience. I never knew St. Patrick's Day could be so much fun. In AR I am lucky if I remember to wear green.

Hey Party People!!!

Claire was invited to a slumber party for one of her friends. The party was for Remy. She is one of Claire's best friends here and is also part of "The Sisters." There are five sisters in Remy's family, so they are affectionately known at school as "The Sisters." With the five sisters that made the attendance at the party about 13 girls and 1 boy. WOW!! I think they had a blast, but needless to say, there were some grumpy girls today!! I don't think there was much sleep or slumber at the party.

From the looks of the pictures, I think they had a GREAT time!

San Francisco

Last week Justin and I got to go to San Francisco for his work. I have never been there, so it was a fun experience. We did all of the traditional tourist things, Golden Gate Bridge, etc. It was great to see a new place! I have to say that I did expect the weather to be warmer. I assumed everywhere in California was as sunny and warm as southern CA...but it is not.

The best part of the trip was getting to "catch up" with some of our friends that were there attending the same meeting. It really made me homesick, but it was great to see everyone.

The most fun thing we did was to rent bikes and ride across the Golden Gate bridge. We toured the small towns on the other side of the bridge. Thanks to our detour, i.e. we got lost, we ended up seeing most of the island. The guy from whom we rented the bikes said our loop was about 20 miles. We didn't intend to go that far, but since we were lost we had no choice. It was great fun! I highly recommend renting the bikes.

My last comment on San Francisco is that I think the song "I left my heart in San Francisco" is improperly titled. It should be "I left my wallet in San Francisco," or "I left my child's college fund in San Francisco." It is by far the MOST expensive place I have visited.

ZOO

Yesterday was the last of our good weather for a while. It was 76 degrees, so we (and everyone else in Denver) headed to the zoo. Our group kept expanding, and we ended up with four adults and eight kids. It was a blast!! The kids laughed, ate ice-cream, and were just plain silly all day. They were quick to go to bed last night, so I guess our mission was accomplished.

During the night, three inches of snow have fallen. I guess all good things must end. Hopefully, we will see the Spring sunshine again soon!

Drew's Playdate

Drew is always upset that Claire and Braden have "playdates." In his mind he is six years old, so he should have all of the privileges of a six year old. I finally "gave in" and let him invite his friend Roan to our house on Friday morning. They had a great time.

We walked to the park. One of Drew's favorite things to do is to start at the top of the hill and roll down. He giggles and laughs when he gets up and is dizzy. He really likes the dizzy/drunk feeling...should I be worried?

I also had another "Denver" experience on Friday. After Drew's playdate, I took him to get a haircut. My parents are coming next week, and my Dad does not like for the boys' hair to be over their ears...a true child of the fifties. Also, will I ever grow out of trying to please my parents...anyway. I took Drew to the place to cut his hair. When he was called, I could see the "thrill" of the girl's face that she got a kid. It was obvious she was not a fan of kids. I positioned him in the chair and then stepped away. He does much better without me "hovering." I went around the curtain, and a second later she came out with a look of horror and disgust. She said I HAVE to come here!! She pointed to Drew's scalp and asked (imagine a snarled, ugly face) "What is this? Does this kid have lice?" I looked and pointed to the different colors, i.e. white, brown, black. I also showed her that it was in the hood of his sweatshirt. It is only sand from the playground. She didn't seem ok with that, but possibly more disgusted by dirt. WHATEVER!! How embarassing to be pulled from the seats where business men were sitting, to be loudly asked if my kid has lice! I hope that girl has ten kids someday, and Kharma kicks her where she needs it! ha/ha

Drew at the Zoo

Thursday was a BEAUTIFUL day. Drew and I walked around the neighborhood, and then we decided to go to the zoo. The animals were very active. I guess they are like us humans with the first signs of spring...they get moving!

We ended up meeting some friends, so Drew greatly enjoyed showing them around the place. We have been there so often he feels like a tour guide. I made the mistake of calling him "tour-guide Barbie," (remember in the movie Toy Story). I was quickly reminded that he is NOT a girl!

It really was a great day!!