Thursday, September 9, 2010

Changes

Yet again it's been way too long since I've posted.  A lot has been going on around here.  This summer was full of projects on the house (one is still going on and it's loud and dirty).  We've had another round of birthday week.  I am now the proud parent of two four year olds and one three year old (their birthdays are all 3 days apart).  I can't help but to think of Sweet and Sugar's birthmoms on their birthdays and wonder how they are doing.  I am sad when I think about all that they are missing, but so thankful that Sweet and Sugar are a part of our family.  They bring so much joy and laughter to our lives.  I can't believe it's been almost 4 years since I saw the first pictures and videos of them.  We've come along way, but each year brings new challenges and achievements.
Sweet and Sugar have begun their first year of preschool.  They go 4 days a week for a little over 3 hours a day.  They were so excited about school.  Sugar absolutely hands down loves it and everything about it.  I thought he would and am re-leaved to be right.  So far there haven't been any issues with fights or challenging authority, which were my only concerns. 
Sweet is not so sure.  She was very excited, but ran out of the classroom at pickup time the first day calling for me and saying that she was very worried about me during school.  She also had an extra drawing in her backpack for me.  Every night she tells me she doesn't want to go back to school.  She wants to stay home with me.  (This breaks my heart.)  I always remind her that she's a big girl now and that big kids go to school and learn all kinds of new things and make new friends, etc.  Thankfully she's always excited the next day when it's time to go to school.  I kind of figured that she was going to have more of an issue than Sugar.  She's more of a mommy's girl.  She's very independent in so many ways (she's always enjoyed doing things for herself) and yet clingy to me at times.  I think that she really needs this time away from me and that it will be good for her in the end. 
I was also scared that she would cling to Sugar since I was not there, but that doesn't seem to be the case.  I am thankful that they have different instructors assigned to them, even though they are in the same class their kindergarten prep time is with different people.  During the picnic the week prior to class starting the kids were read a story and then told to get into boy and girl groups to wash hands.  The kids did this, except Sweet who ran to me asking were Sugar was.  Thankfully I arrived early to pick them up on the first day just as they were heading on to the playground and witnessed them run to opposite sides of the playground to play.
Bam had another round of allergy testing this summer.  We got good and bad results.  He did get cleared for most nuts, but still no peanut or pistachios.  Peanuts cross-contaminate most popular commercial nuts (aka Planters).  It is nice that he's allowed to have coconut now since coconut oil is in virtually every product it seems.  But then there's the question of do we even introduce nuts when as it is he knows not to go near them.  I did break down the other day and let him have cereal with almonds in it (a scary moment for me).  It was purchased on accident and he found the box and asked for it so we had a trial run with one flake and no reaction after a few minutes so I let him have a piece of almond and again no reaction so I let him have it and he loves it.  I think it's still more scary for me than him.
We did lots of playing in the water this summer.  My parents filled in their pool last summer.  It was too much work, money and too many problems.  I have to be honest and say that I even though I totally understand why they did it, I was sad that my kids didn't have a chance to learn how to swim in it.  To replace the pool, my parents purchased a water slide, which proved to be a huge hit with the kids and parents (as it is much less nerve-racking to sit and watch them play on a water slide than run around and play in a pool which requires you to be in contact with them at every minute.  We also spent several days playing at our local splash park (free water park for small children is a wonderful invention).
We also made several trips to the zoos in the area, one has a wonderful jelly fish exhibit and the other has an amazing dinosaur exhibit every year (we're looking forward to the completing of the elephant renovation and return of the elephants next year).  We actually took the kids for a quick trip to the zoo after school today so that they could see the dinosaurs one last time this summer.

(I love this picture of the kids walking with my parents and Chuck.  Note: my mom has lost almost 60lbs since this photo and I couldn't be more proud of her!)
That along with lots of trips to the local parks hiking, biking, and playing on the playgrounds.  Plus a trip to a local museum that has a dinosaur exhibit.  I think that about sums up what we did this summer.

1 comment:

Mother Letter said...

Sent an email to the hotmail account. Do you still use that? I have a bit of an update on the Mother Letter Project from a few years back.