CREATE

Being creative is who we are. It's what we do! I think it's in our blood. My mom was always into crafts and sewing and things and my brother was a fairly decent artist. I enjoyed art class when I was younger and then crafts as I got older. When Morgan was a baby I started scrapbooking, which then really got me interested into photography. Once again, I am pretty sure photography is in my blood. My dad use to dabble in photography (the old fashioned way) and actually learned how to develop film in a black room. My mom and brother also enjoy taking pictures (and do quite well). Of course we are all digital now and can do neat things with our photos on the computer! Morgan LOVES to create! She can spend hours sitting at the table just making things. She makes houses out of boxes for her stuffed animals, noise makers for her sister and wraps toys around the house in pretty paper for us to unwrap as presents. Below is the most recent drawing she did. Ava got a booklet of drawing paper for her birthday and on the book was a picture of a Macaw. Morgan decided to copy that picture on her own. Amazing how close it looks to the real thing! I am amazed at how talented she is!



And here is my beautiful girl - almost a first grader! Spring pictures were taken a few weeks ago. It's unbelievable how much she has grown over the year.

Some of you know that I have not been real happy with Kindergarten. Being an early childhood teacher I know what is developmentally appropriate for young children. The standards keep getting more and more difficult and the expectations higher and higher. Morgan has experienced some frustration throughout the year (and Mommy too) related to academics. First it started out with her writing and literacy skills. She wrote backwards most of the time. Now the teacher is concerned with her math skills and says she might need to go to summer school. How frustrating. Why would a Kindergartner need to go to summer school? Especially when her mom is a teacher. I know what to do to teach her these skills. So basically, what I have figured out is she needs to be able to correctly identify 11, 12 and 20 correctly (those are the hardest numbers) and then write her numbers from 1-20 without reversals. Based on what I have done with her she can do everything else - unless she is not showing her teacher she can do these things in school. Why would we send a child to summer school for 3 numbers and a few reversals, which really isn't a math skill at all, but a developmentally appropriate writing skill? We will always have our above average kids and our below average kids and our middle of the road kids and we don't know where Morgan is going to fall yet. Only time will tell. But why not just let our kids be kids? Being a teacher I know schools have standards to follow, but as a parent I have to take care of the emotional well being of my children and I am not sure that pushing them is the best choice either. BUT......I can say that Morgan HAS done more than I would have ever expected her as a Kindergartner. She is READING! And she can identify most of her numbers 0-100! So, my question for you is should we have high expectations and stress our kids out or should we let our kids be kids? How do we find that happy medium?

A Little Harsh

Ok, so I was a little harsh yesterday when I commented on Morgan not caring about anyone but herself. Maybe the wording was off a little. Yes, she is VERY egocentric and sees the value in having lots of things and wants more, more, more (which I take blame for). But, today she did several things (before noon) that showed me she does care about others. As we were walking into church today she held the door open for us without us asking. During church she wanted to put money in the offering plate (it was Daddy's money but she still wanted to help). And when we got home from church she showed me the little white box with the ants in it that she kept so they would have a home!! I guess this is a little girl that cares about everything - Big or small!!

Let There Be Eggs!

Easter is always a fun time for little kids! This Easter was especially special (and crazy) at our house this year. The girls were both baptized during the Easter Vigil service on Saturday night, so we had a house full of people this year. There were about 13 people in our house Friday and Saturday. For those of you who have been to our house, you know that it's not that big!! But....we managed and enjoyed the company! Morgan loves seeing her grandparents and playing with her cousins! And per my last post "The House of Ill", Friday was the time Dana started getting sick. He was in the chair most of the day Friday and all of the day Saturday. He made it to the baptism, sweating buckets due to fever. He was in bed again on Monday and Tuesday and attempted to go to work on Wednesday, but was back home in bed by 7:30 am. That was about the same time Morgan and I started to get a scratchy throat! She was sent home from school Thursday (Dana was still home) and I stayed home with her on Friday since he finally went back to work!!! OK.....so that was our week.....now back to Easter........


It's not Easter without an Easter Egg hunt! This was Ava's first hunt - although I don't think she really understood why we were walking around the yard picking up plastic eggs, she finally caught on to what she was suppose to do. Here she is with my mom.

And Morgan trying to get as many eggs as she can so she can tell her cousin "I have more than you have."
And of course it's not Easter without dying eggs. Ava had fun playing with the egg and banging it on the table! Now, as you all know the Easter Bunny comes every year! Our Easter Bunny is a little too generous. With all those grandma and grandpa bunnies and Aunt and Uncle bunnies we tend to go a little overboard every year and the kids end up with WAY TOO MUCH STUFF!!!! Of course we always appreciate the kindness and generosity of our bunnies - I'm not sure the kids are always learning the true reason we celebrate Easter! They just want the STUFF. Here is a picture of part of what was given to my 2 kids and my niece and nephew.

And Morgan all excited over one of her gifts from her basket.

Here is Ava snuggled in to one of her bunnies. Notice the chocolate egg in her hand that she later figured out how to open!

Now, I have to admit, Easter is a great time for photo opportunities and excitement, but after this year I realized that next year I think we need to focus more on giving, rather than receiving. Why, do you ask? Well, during a shopping trip to Wal-Mart with Morgan a couple days before Easter, she and I got into an argument which ended in me calling her "GREEDY". You see, Morgan is all about getting, getting and getting more. She has no concept of money and doesn't really care about anybody but herself. Yeah, I know part of that is her age, but MOST of it is that we have given her so much. Basically, what Morgan wants, Morgan gets. It has always been that way. So, we are shopping in the craft section at Wal-Mart looking for supplies to make our Easter Egg tree when she asked if she could have silk flowers. I told her no, not today, because we were picking up things for Easter. She starting whining and carrying on and saying how it wasn't fair and I never buy her anything and she went on and on and on about it. Of course I had about all I could take and called her greedy and tried to explain to her that we were shopping together for supplies to make this pretty Easter Egg tree and that it shouldn't be about the STUFF we get, but the time we spend together playing, doing crafts, etc. And then I asked her if she thought if MORE was better and she said "yes". I was absolutely devastated. What have I been teaching her all these years? At age six, she doesn't realize that spending time with family, having fun together is more important than STUFF. So.....now it is my job (and your job as our family and friends) to help teach my children about the value in giving rather than receiving and about understanding what Easter is really about. So my challenge for you from this point forward is to try to find ways to teach your kids to care about others and enjoy spending time with each other as a family without all of the STUFF. And for all our grandma and grandpa bunnies and Aunt and Uncle bunnies, I challenge you to find ways to make Easter (and other holidays) special without spending so much money and buying so much stuff! Not that we don't appreciate all that has been given to our kids over the years (because we do), I think now is the time to think more creatively about what we give and how we give to our kids. We have a year to think about it (or a little less if we start for Christmas) so let's get creative! OH, and one more thing, Let's go GREEN next year! No more plastic eggs, no more plastic grass, and no more chemically made Easter egg dye! Let's be kind to our Earth and teach our kids how to be kind to our Earth too. I hope this time next year I will no longer have to call my children Greedy and they will want to give as much to others in need as they enjoy receiving STUFF this year!

The House of Ill

Just wanted you all to know that I promise to get more photos up soon. We have been hit by Influenza, sinus infections, coughs, snotty noses, etc, etc......so you can understand how our week has gone. For all of you that were at our house over Easter I sure hope you are healthy and didn't take home any of our germs!! As soon as we are all feeling better (me included) I will get Easter pics up!!

12 Weeks to Better Photos - Lesson 1

Ok - if you remember in one of my very first posts I said I wanted to take more time to learn how to really use my camera well. One of my favorite web-sites, http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/ , has 12 weeks of photography lessons. Lesson 1 is on Aperture or f/stops. The basic idea is that the smaller the f/stop the more blurry the background will be. The higher the f/stop the less blurry. So here are my attempts:

f/stop 2.8 - notice how the background is blurry

f/stop 8 - see how the background is in more foucs

Same photo as the first - just digitally altered

Morgan's "still life" of the same Easter Egg Tree!!

Keep in mind that this is just practice!!! I do not have perfect lighting - so don't judge!! But I did learn what aperture meant and how to use it! Lesson 2 is on ISO and shutter speed! If you want to learn how to use your camera better I recommend you visit www.twopeasinabucket.com and click on photography or 12 Weeks to Better Photos!!

It's not perfect

It's not perfect & I was just playing around, but thought I would share.....

I just loves these pictures of the girls ~ what you don't know is I probably took over 200 photos to get the few good ones that I posted :-) Someday I will understand all my settings on my camera and be able to afford nice backdrops and lighting. Maybe I will even have a studio!!

Ask me......

Don't you just love those Friends Surveys that you get in your e-mail box at least a handful of times throughout the year?? I acutally do enjoy reading them when my friends send them back :-) I got one today from Dana, so thought I would post his responses and mine!! If you REALLY REALLY want to you can post a comment to this and copy/paste the questions and leave your responses too! It might be fun!

Dana's Responses

1. What time is it? - 7:31
2. What's your name? - Dana Paul
3. What are you most afraid of? - My kids/wife dying
4. What is the most recent movie that you have seen in a Theater? - Don't remember it has been so long!!
5. Place of birth - Belmond, IA
6. Favorite Food - Pork chops
7. What's your natural hair color? - dark brown
8. Ever been to Alaska? - No
9. Ever been toilet paper rolling? - Yes
10. Love someone so much it made you cry? - Yes
11. Been in a car accident? - Several times,not my fault
12.Croutons or bacon bits? - Croutons
13. Favorite day of the week? - Friday
14. Favorite restaurant? - Outback
15. Favorite Flower? - Sunflower
16. Favorite sport to watch? - NFL
17. Favorite drink? - Wiskey sour
18. Favorite ice cream? - Homemade vanilla
19.Disney or Warner Brothers? - Disney
20. Ever been on a ship? - Yes,but it was docked.
21.What color is your bedroom carpet? - Hardwood floors ,no carpet
22. How many times did you fail your driver's test? - none
23. Before this one, from whom did you get your last e-mail? - Chazwingnut
24. What do you do when you are bored? - that never happens with my 2 girls around and more work to do.
25. Bedtime? - Usually about a half hour-hour after the girls go down
26. Who will respond to this e-mail the quickest? - ?
27. Who is least likely to respond? - ?
28. Who is the person that you are most curious to see their responses? - Everyone
29. Favorite TV show (s) - Lost
30. Last person you went to dinner with - Nikki,Morgan, and Ava
31. Favorite time of year? - Fall
32. What are your favorite colors? - black
33. How many tattoos do you have? - none
34. How many pets do you have? - 1 dog
35. Which came first, the chicken or the egg? - Don't know
36. What do you want to do before you die? - Travel all fifty states and out of the country.
37. Have you ever been to Hawaii? - Not yet
38. Have you been to countries outside the U.S.? - no
39. How many people are you sending this e-mail to? - All the people that get it:)
40. What is your favorite quote? - Don't have one!
41. Time this survey ended - 7:39

Nikki's responses

1. What time is it? - 9:01
2. What's your name? - Nicole Kristina
3. What are you most afraid of? - Losing my family
4. What is the most recent movie that you have seen in a Theater? - Horton Hears a Who!
5. Place of birth - Britt, IA
6. Favorite Food - Pizza
7. What's your natural hair color? - Strawberry Blonde
8. Ever been to Alaska? - No
9. Ever been toilet paper rolling? - Yes
10. Love someone so much it made you cry? - Yes
11. Been in a car accident? - Yep, not my fault - Principal's son in high school & rear ended as an adult
12.Croutons or bacon bits? - Croutons
13. Favorite day of the week? - Saturday
14. Favorite restaurant? - Outback, Olive Garden, anything that doesn't have McDonald's in it!15. Favorite Flower? - Gerber Daisy
16. Favorite sport to watch? - Morgan swimming
17. Favorite drink? - Dt. Coke & Strawberry Margarita
18. Favorite ice cream? - Coldstone Creamery - Chocolate w/ Brownies in a waffle bowl
19.Disney or Warner Brothers? - Disney
20. Ever been on a ship? - Yes, but it was docked
21.What color is your bedroom carpet? - Hardwood floors - no carpet - Cream area rugs
22. How many times did you fail your driver's test? - none - suprisingly!!!!
23. Before this one, from whom did you get your last e-mail? - Loni
24. What do you do when you are bored? - I am rarely board with 2 young girls, but I do make time for photography, playing with my kids and sometimes scrapbooking
25. Bedtime? - To my room after the girls go down and to sleep after the 10:00 news
26. Who will respond to this e-mail the quickest? - If I say a name will you feel obligated? - Christi???
27. Who is least likely to respond? - Probably my family members since I know most of this stuff already
28. Who is the person that you are most curious to see their responses? - Everyone
29. Favorite TV show (s) - Lost, Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Men In Trees
30. Last person you went to dinner with - Since DINNER is a meaningless term to me and I really don't know what time of day a person eats dinner - I had lunch with Linda and Angie a couple days ago and supper out with Dana, the girls and his parents in February when they came for a visit - And if you understand DINNER and want to explain it to me please feel free!!!!31. Favorite time of year? - Fall
32. What are your favorite colors? - RED
33. How many tattoos do you have? - One - Purple Daisy on my big toe
34. How many pets do you have? - 1 Basett Hound - Izzy - almost 13 years old
35. Which came first, the chicken or the egg? - Does anyone really care?
36. What do you want to do before you die? - Travel all fifty states and out of the country
37. Have you ever been to Hawaii? - Nope - Dana wanted to take me for our 10 year anniversary, but I got pregnant instead and Ava was only a few months old during our anniversary - so of course we stayed home
38. Have you been to countries outside the U.S.? - no
39. How many people are you sending this e-mail to? - As many people that read my blog
40. What is your favorite quote? - Work like you don't need money, Love like you've never been hurt and Dance like no one's watching
41. Time this survey ended - 9:24

Walking

Yeah! She's finally doing it! Ava is walking! Not just taking one step here and there, but actually walking! Of course she is doing it when she wants to and most of the time she still crawls, but it won't be long before she is all over the place. No more walking on her knees, no more holes in the knees and no more dirty knees (which shows how dirty my floors are)! OK ~ I know that is hopeful thinking, but a girl can dream can't she!! Even my 6 year old still has those problems!!

Trampoline Fun

It was a little chilly outside today, but cold weather has never stopped Morgan from going outside. Today, she begged for Ava to go outside too. They always have fun playing together and I love watching how Morgan can make Ava so happy and get her to giggle so much!

Horton Hears a Who

If you have not seen this movie yet - YOU NEED TO GO! I love Dr. Seuss! His books are a little long for young children, but they are fun to read! I especially like the books that have been made into movies. Now, some people either like Dr. Seuss or they don't. The same goes for Jim Carey. Some like him and some don't. I happen to like him. I think he is hilarious! Annoying at times, but hilarious! And who couldn't use a good laugh once in a while. And of course in every good kid flick there are funny things that only adults will pick up on! Morgan did have a favorite part of the movie that needs a little explanation before I share. If you have never read the book, Horton, the elephant finds a speck of dust that holds a city of small people. He carries them around on a pink clover and tries to get them to safety. As you can imagine, his friends think he is CRAZY! The young children, however think it's pretty neat and find their own clover with pretend worlds. Which leads to Morgan's favorite part. One of the little girls had a world on her flower where the people ate rainbows and pooped butterflies!!! How fun would that be :-) As a Mommy of a little one still in diapers I am thinking that would make my life a heck of a lot easier. What a happy place it would be!!

Technology

For those of you that have tried and tried to access Morgan's video - I am sooooo sorry if it is not working! Apparently you need to be smarter than You Tube to figure this technology out. Because I have chosen to add it as a private video it makes sharing it a little more complicated. I guess I didn't feel right posting it for everyone and their dog to view.......so if you are dying to see the video I will have to invite you from my You Tube account and then you will have to go through the long tedious process of accepting my invite and subscribing to my videos. Then I will have to add you to the list to view this particular video. And keep in mind that I can only have 25 people listed as "friends" on my account - so listen up people - this is a long awaited for video and will be first come first serve - if you are number 26 on the list you are OUT OF LUCK!!! Unfortunately I can only upload REALLY SMALL files using the blogger video so that is why I went though You Tube!!! And that is why you are able to view Ava and NOT Morgan!!

Blogging

OK, so I have been at this blogging thing for a few weeks now and it has been fun! I love the comments that my family and friends make (although there could be more - hint hint) and I love looking back at my previous entries as a reminder of what we have done. Blogging can be a challenge though. We are a busy family, but most of our days are the same - day in and day out. How many days in a row can I blog about swimming and Ava taking more steps? It's our life and it's exciting to us, but I am sure will get boring to the rest of you every day :-) I came across this image on someone else's blog that described how I was feeling today!!

So for you all today - Our Week In Review

Monday - School, Daycare, Work, Swimming

Tuesday - Daycare closed - sick child & Ava ended up sick too (stomach stuff - yippee!), Morgan school & swimming

Wednesday - Ava still home sick, Morgan school & swimming

Thursday - Nikki to Wichita to conference (sick most of the day at conference), Morgan to school & Ava back to daycare - Morgan music program at 7pm (I am working on getting video on blog), Ava throw up after music program (in bed without our knowledge)

Friday - Wake up to throw up in crib, Nikki home sick (suppose to be back in Wichita), Ava home sick, Morgan to school

Saturday - Hanging out with the girls & trip to Wal-mart

OK - so that is the condensed version & as you can tell it was an interesting week - maybe that's why I didn't have much time for blogging. :-) I promise I will try to get some video up of Morgan at her very first music program. I was going to stay in Wichita overnight on Thursday, but wanted to come back home for her program and drive back on Friday, which obviously didn't happen. I was suppose to help present at one of the sessions at the conference. Hopefully I wasn't missed much.

If you can think of any interesting blogging topics you would like to see in the future I welcome any suggestions in the COMMENTS part of my blog (or if you just want to say hi!)! More to come later....

Promised Videos - Morgan's First Music Program

Ava enjoying attention from friends at the music program

Morgan singing one of the songs from the program!

This program was so much fun! I wish you all could have been there. I remember programs as a kid, but now that I am a parent I enjoy them even more! What a feeling to sit there and watch your little girl stand up in front of a crowd with her friends and act silly!! At the end of the program, grandparents of Morgan's friend Rylee gave us a rose to give to Morgan! I think that was one of the highlights of the night. She felt so special getting that flower (and it's still sitting on our table in water)!! "Mom, is that for me?" "Yes it is, you did great tonight"

Enjoy the videos - If I have time I will try to post more!!

Let's get dirty!

Do any of you know those people that can't stand to let their kids get dirty? Maybe you are one of them? Does the idea of dirt under your nails (or your child's) drive you crazy? Do you know those people that tell their kids "don't get dirty" before they go outside? Well......we are not that family! Yes, I have to admit that I have tried to keep my kids clean, but it really isn't worth the hassle. Besides I think the dirtier they get the more fun they have and that is fun for me to watch! And as an Early Childhood teacher I have to consider the benefits and what is being learned during the process of getting dirty.

Today we had the great opportunity to play outside in piles of dirt! Daddy and Uncle Kevin were doing concrete work - fixing the steps and sidewalk. Dirt had to be dug to frame up the sidewalk! It was a warm, windy day - with storms expected. What a perfect day for exploration and discovery & getting dirty!



"I don't want Sundaes, they're too sweet, And Cheetos are too hard to eat! I've had my fill of jello too. But wait, I've tasted something new. Mom says ugh, and makes a face. But outdoors is my favorite place, To try all kinds of dirt-filled treats, Like soil, sand and bugs to eat. Hey, a little dirt never hurt!" Author UnknownMorgan ready for the rain and mixing concrete!

What did we learn today?

1. Digging dirt is fun (sensory exploration & fine motor development)

2. My sister is fun to play with (Social interaction)

3. Worms are slimy & when you break them in half you have 2 worms (math)

4. Grass can be dug up with a shovel (Gross motor development)

5. Concrete is mixed with powder and water (Science)

6. Mommy says "No, don't eat the dirt" (Communication)

6. We are tired and grouchy at the end of a long day (behavior)

What a wonderful day! (Dirt and all!)