I know that it has been a long time since I've updated my blog for various reasons, so I thought that I would go ahead and skip to present time instead of letting the gap grow larger. ☺ I plan on going back and filling in the holes eventually.
Today was a day of change for us. Mara started third grade, Jack moved up to the Pre-K1 class, and I went to work in our brand new building for the first time today. It was a lot of change all at once, but it seemed to go well (despite how Jack looks in his first picture).
John earned his second-degree green belt tonight. He has really taken to kung fu despite dislocating his kneecap during his first session almost two years ago.
We finally got around to getting Jack's big boy bed. We decided to put the mattress and box springs on the ground for now until he is used to it, and then we'll use Robert's old bed for a while.
We've been having issues getting him to sleep at night, so we hope that this helps solve that problem.
Mara has been begging Diane to teach her how to sew, and tonight we finally had the time for Diane to help Mara make a pillowcase. She even got to iron. She got tired toward the end, so Diane had to finish up, but I think they did a pretty good job, and the pattern on the material is perfect for Mara.
Today was Mara's first day of second grade. She's pretty excited about the new school year, but I think she was nervous too. She didn't eat much breakfast and didn't have too much to say to me when we got to her classroom.
While her backpack is a little big, I expect it to last her for the rest of elementary school at least since it's a Jansport.
Jack wasn't supposed to move to his new class at daycare until the end of summer, but there were some openings that allowed him to move up sooner. Today is his first official day in the Preschool II class. He's already pretty used to the class because he would spend time in it in there in the mornings when I drop him off. He didn't let me go without some tears (and really didn't want me to take a picture), but I know he will soon be fine at drop-off again.
Jack has been cutting his two-year molars the last week or so, and at least two of them are in. He'll be so much happier when he's not teething for a few years (and when I stop trying to get pictures of his teeth ☺).
For the past two months, Puck has been trying to get outside, and he has managed to do it a couple of times. He especially likes it when we have the ironing board set up by the front door because it gives him a high perch so he can be ready to jump outside.
Friday, June 15
Today was Jack's first splash day at daycare. He had a lot of fun, and his teachers took some pictures of him enjoying his time outside.
Tonight was a big night for Mara. She finally became a Brownie Girl Scout. This is something she's wanted since she joined Girl Scouts because she thought that Brownies got to eat brownies (her favorite dessert). We had the ceremony at a local park and used the bridge there. I'm really looking forward to the girls being Brownies because it means we have the opportunity to do a lot more things and have even more fun.
We had our annual Girl Scout Leadership dinner tonight, and I was surprised to be given an Outstanding Leader Award. I knew my fellow leader, Laura, was getting it because I nominated her, but I didn't realize that she remembered to nominate me. :)
As a reward for nominating Laura, I received a pin with the image of a Girl Scout on it. Laura also presented me with her end-of-year gift to me – part of the official adult volunteer uniform, including a scarf, a volunteer pin, and the insignia tab with the appropriate pins. Now we can be "official" at our Brownie bridging ceremony later this week.
Last month, the company that publishes the Octonauts books had a special offer where you could buy a book and have it autographed by the author. We surprised Mara and Jack by getting them both a book. They were thrilled to get them, and Mara keeps reading both of the books over and over.
Tuesday, May 15
The kids were being silly tonight and kept getting up to dance to the music on Disney Junior. Since the picture doesn't do it justice, I had to take a movie of them dancing as well. (You can even hear Jack talking/singing along with the TV.)
Wednesday, May 16
We bought Mara a tomato plant a couple of months ago, and it has produced several tomatoes so far. It looks really sad right now because it took a couple of spills thanks to some storms right after we got it, but it looks like it's finally starting to bounce back.
Thursday, May 17
Jack shares Mara's love for Little Einsteins. Even though he hasn't watched it nearly as much as she has, he has started singing along with the opening song and even does the "Pat, pat, pat. Blastoff!"
Friday, May 18
We stopped by Target tonight to get a few things and decided to get Jack a pair of big boy underpants. He's shown some interest in potty training, but we're not going to really try to train him until after our road trip this summer. He was so proud of them, though, and I think it helped that he picked them out himself.
Saturday, May 19
We celebrated Allie's fourth birthday today at Michael's. The kids had a blast making masks, and Jack hasn't wanted to put his down since making it. After the party, we went to visit John's parents.
Sunday, May 20
We stopped by Diane's house today to check on her cats. While we were outside, we found part of an eggshell. When we looked up, we found a dove sitting on her nest.
