Thanksgiving 2012

This post is kind of late, but I forgot my camera at the girls' school and couldn't get it until today.  That's just the way things go.

Emma and Taylor's school had a Thanksgiving feast last week.  It was a BIG deal.  Parents donated, prepared, decorated, and served the kids.  Each grade had a responsibility for helping - the kindergarteners made place mats.

All the kids got to eat with their buddy.  I have great pictures of the girls with their third grade buddies, but I'm not posting them because I don't know or have permission from their parents.  Emma and Taylor absolutely adore their buddies.  I even caught Emma's cutting her meat for her.  How sweet.

The days leading up to Thanksgiving we spent time every night talking about one thing we were thankful for.  We wrote it on a "leaf" and glued it to a stick.  It was our tree of Thanksgiving.  It was good for the girls because they sometimes had a hard time thinking of things.

Here are our lists:

Will

getting off work

Mommy's good cooking

having dinner together

days off

weekends at home with the family

a wife who makes my lunch every day

T.V.

*I kind of think that maybe he likes us. :)

Emma 

Jesus

pumpkin pie

nature

blankie

snow

turkey

Taylor

bugs

colors

my mommy and daddy

my toys

my dogs

my sister

money

nature

Alisha

Jesus died for me

dishwasher

books 

coffee

getting to be a stay-at-home mom

getting mail that's not a bill

music

Happy Late Thanksgiving!

Just Cuteness

Here's some cuteness I'm thankful this year.

Emma calls fruit cocktail, fruit cottontail.

I was threaten the girls by saying, "If you continue to talk that way, I'm going to wash your mouth out with soap!"  They both looked at me in a shocked way then Taylor said, "I eat soap anyway, so that would be okay."

While watching a high school production of Bye Bye Birdie, there was a scene with a building and to the side was a phone booth.  A man was talking on the pay phone to a woman in the building.  Emma said, "They're very close to one another.  Why are they talking on the phone?  He just needs to look over there and he would see her!"

This was hat day at school.

I've really been trying to correct this one.  They both call Tootsie Rolls, Titsy Rolls.  Do you see why I want it corrected?

This was sports day at school.

 

Democracy

I ordered a mail-in ballot, but after a few days of consideration, I decided not to use it.  I wanted to take the girls.

While talking about it with the girls, I explained that in America, we have a democracy.  Knowing that they would not know that big word, I explained that in this particular election, we were voting for a new president.  One from each party.  I told them it wasn't really a party. 

Emma said, "its like a meeting". 
"Yes, kind of.  They have different ideas."
Taylor said, "its a boring meeting."

I know people get riled up about politics, but it feels so much worse this year.  I'm sure its just because I have a facebook account.  I'll be honest.  I did unfriend a few people.  These people weren't just expressing opinions.  They were making general statements that attacked the character of entire political parties.  That's what I can't handle.

I don't talk politics.  I don't tell people my affiliated party.  I don't tell people who I voted for.  I know some of you think you know.  I'm still not going to tell.  Even if I did, I'll admit, I don't always vote for my party.  I said it.  Its true.

It makes me sad that people get so hateful.  I know these are emotionally charged issues.  But I want my kids to learn about it in a respectful, God honoring way. 

Okay, anyway.  The girls didn't want to go with me at first to vote.  Once we were there though, they enjoyed it.  They whispered, "who are you voting for?"  the whole time and Taylor worked very hard to make sure the dividers were protecting my privacy.  She kept checking to make sure no one was looking at my votes.  Emma, on the other hand, tried to read the other people's answers.

It was a good lesson in democracy.

Halloween 2012

The girls had two opportunities to dress up this year.  The first was their school's Fall Fun Night.  It was an event filled with carnival style games, candy, and incredible balloon creations.  Taylor was a zebra.  My mom had this body suit, but it didn't have a head or tail.  I had to make those.  I was pretty impressed with myself.  She didn't like wearing it much.  It inhibited her ability to see.  Its a miracle we got any pictures of her in it.  Emma was a bride, which she decided on two days before.  Luckily, Will's mom had previously given us this beautiful white dress.  Thank goodness for grandmas.

I told you they were impressive!  Emma's was a bear hugging a heart.

Taylor's was a butterfly sitting on a flower.

We carved jack-o-lanterns a few nights before Halloween.  I encouraged the girls to just do plain ol' jack-o-lanters, knowing that we wouldn't do a pattern justice.  They chose patterns anyway.  Taylor chose Snow White and Emma chose Minnie Mouse.

I'm trying to teach Taylor that she doesn't have to be a ham in every picture.

Minnie looks pretty good, but Snow White looks more like a piece of modern art with block features.  Unfortunately, I was the artist of that one.

Halloween night we went trick or treating with good friends.  I couldn't get the camera to work right so we didn't get many pictures.  Turns out I didn't have the flash on.  Who would think to check a thing like that?

By the time we got to the end of the block, Taylor had taken off her hat and we'd forgotten her tail.  Emma had taken off her veil and we'd forgotten her flowers.  So, it turns out that they went trick or treating as a girl in a pretty dress and a girl in a leotard.  That's okay, no on seemed to care.

Leader of the Pride (Emma)

Yeah!   Last week Emma was chosen to be the leader of the pride for her classroom!  If you're not sure what leader of the pride is, you can read about it here.

Here she is receiving her certificate at the assembly.

Her teacher wrote, "Emma has spook-tacular kindergarten behavior and academics.  Emma is always ready for a new learning adventure and is always up for a challenge.  She always tries her best and is a super friend who always encourages those around her!"

She got to eat pizza with the principal and other leaders of the pride.  She also got to ring the school bell on top of the building.  She said she rang it four times, with the help of the principal because it was too heavy.

I can't really express how proud I am of Emma.  Entering kindergarten she was a child who refused to do anything herself, clung tightly to her sister, and was afraid that no one would like her.  She spent a lot of time in time-out and didn't want to learn anything new because someone else would eventually do it for her.

Now, she is thriving.  She has not gotten in trouble once at school.  She has a list of friends that are just hers, not Taylor's.  She is learning new things and has become pretty independent.  She's more thoughtful and is learning better how to control her emotions.  Its exciting to see the person she is becoming.