Adobe Fall Fling

Paige's school does a fun Fall Fling each year where they have a few carnival games, crafts, food and one big event.  Along with wearing your favorite fall attire (no costumes) it was also Crazy Hair Day.  I found a cute idea of putting the plastic spider rings in their hair on Pinterest.  Me, being my sometimes frugal self, had kept the rings that they gathered Trick or Treating last year and used them.  It turned out really cute.  Last year the big event it was a Reptile display.  This year it was a fire truck!  Very cool.  Both girls got to attend along with me.  We had a really nice morning.  I feel so lucky that their schools do something special for holidays.  I have a few friends who have said their children's schools don't or can't celebrate.  That makes me feel sad for them.  We have had such fun at all our events.  Here are a few pics of the girls at Adobe. 

Hailey's hair 'do

Paige's 'do

Hailey face painting

 

Paige face painting

Paige playing games with her school friends

Hailey playing games and eating popcorn

Paige with her new teacher, Mrs. Hart

Both with Paige's current teacher, Mrs Hamilton who is
 due to go out on maternity leave any day!

Firefighter Paige

Mama in the picture putting out the fire

Holding the fire hose

October Swimming

We put a cover on the pool in order to extend our swim time.  We can usually swim through the end of October.  This was last Friday, Oct 22 and the girls were swimming at 5pm.  Yes, life in Arizona is awesome....and....they are two very lucky girls.

DZ Founder's Day

 

I will admit, I enjoy entertaining.  This is one interest that I inherited from my mom.  She does an over the top job of hosting parties.  We love Christmas time at her house.  Her decorations are BEAUTIFUL.  So I volunteered to host my sorority alumnae group at my house for our Founder's Day reception.  Ok, so I forgot that in October we reseed our lawn.  Which makes everything smell like manure and you can't walk on it.  Luckily my mom, does not do this to her lawn, so she allowed me to host the party at here house!  Yippee!  We had a ton of fun getting things organized and planning the event together.  She was a lot of help to me.  We had fresh flowers on all the tables and little touches of DZ throughout the house that I found on Pinterest.  It was a lovely party with several alum getting awards for 25, 35 and 75 years of membership.  The 75 year one was given to a woman who was 98 years old!  Wow. 

 

Pool side tables

Desset table

Pinterest

Pi Zetas from ASU reciting ceremony

The group!

US Presidential Debates

In the tent

I think I've mentioned that the girls don't get much screen time in their lives.  We feel that TV puts an imprint on their minds and does not allow their own imaginations to think.  Instead it stamps them with what they've seen on TV.   For example, if they watch a show about a horse, they will pretend to be a horse for the day.  Where as if they don't see a TV show, they imagine all sorts of things to be with huge stories behind it.  With this, they thought of it themselves and are learning to think on thier own and develop thier own methods for thinking.  But anyway, that's my convoluted explanation of one reason why they have little screen time. 

 

However, Brian and I find it important and very interesting to know about politics and the goings on the world.  So we really wanted to watch the US Presidential Debates over the last few weeks.  Thus, I succumbed to screen time and allowed them to watch, Barney Halloween and a couple Calliou shows while we watched the debates.  For the first one, I set up a tent with popcorn.  (Then I was picking up popcorn everywhere the next day).  And for another I set them up in their play area with blankets & pillows (no food this time) and they loved it.  As parents, we had to do, what we had to do.  So screen time it was! 

In the play area.  Geez, their eyes are GLUED!

 

A Moment

 

 

The girls come into the house and immediately take off their shoes.  The shoes usually lie in the hall between the laundry room and the family room.  However, this day they actually made it to the family room before taking them off (along with all their clothes).  I at first got frustrated that they had left them in the middle of the floor.  Then actually looked at them and saw how cute the tiny shoes were and was more than happy to scoop them up to take upstairs.  They are growing so fast.  

 

 

PS...I have had them in the brand called "Squeakers" since they started walking.  Theya re fantastic shoes with a big toe box, all leather inside and out and so soft for walking and holding thier precious feet.  

Peddling!

Paige has finally mastered how to peddle her trike.  I think I've mentioned that this is one of the gross motor skills that she hadn't mastered yet.  However she was swimming at the age of 2 1/2 years.  I think she just spends much of her time in the pool and not out to try the trike.  The other day she just got on and started peddling!  She was really excited and now rides it all over the patio.  She steers really well too in order to avoid falling in the pool!  Yay Paige!

(This was a day when the Princesses needed to wear gloves.)

Crafts

 

In our BOOed! box that we received, it included these cute wooden pumpkins that came with markers and wiggly eyes for the girls to craft.  They had a bunch of fun with it.  Hailey's is on the left and Paige's is on the right.  I think they both did a terrific job...but I"m just the Mama.  :)  I put them in my jewelry box and will treasure them forever.  I'll probably wear them when they are 25 yo and don't want to do Halloween with me anymore.   

 

Knowing how much fun we had with the pumpkin pin craft, when we were at the craft store on Saturday I saw these necklaces in the $1 bin so I picked them up.  Very good nurturing of fine motor skills and I had Paige do an ABCD pattern with her beads.  They enjoyed it.  It was also a good lead into learning time. 

Crafting

Hailey

Paige

Oh Bats!

 

Monday we made paperbag puppet bats to get learning time started.  I first read the book, Stellaluna by Janell Cannon.  It's about a bat who is raised by birds adn learns to sleep right side up instead of upside down.  The project was fun and successful.  The girls loved it.  It also transistioned really well into learning time.  I might be starting to get the hang of this learning time stuff.  Whew!

 

 

The bats needed to hang upside down.

Sewing...or pull & tug

Shapes/Geometry

Delta Zeta -- Ice Cream!

 

I am partially active in my sorority alumnae group here in the Phoenix area.  I can't do all the activities because I have a family and want to spend time with them.  But when they do things with the local active chapter at ASU I try to participate.  Tonight we sponsored an ice cream social for the New Members (pledges) at the sorority dorms.  ASU doesn't allow houses so they have an all Greek dorm.  It's super nice!  I took Paige partly as a learning experience for her and for her to have fun too.  I want to expose them both to college so they know how important it is to Brian and me, to encourage attendance and also so they can see how FUN it is.  Both girls are legacies so they will automatically get into Delta Zeta if they choose.  Paige LOVED all the girls and I think the affection was likewise.  She had fun looking at all the turtles, eating ice cream with the girls at their table, giving hugs and talking to them.  Her outfit was a hit, which was a Gymboree hand-me-down from my dear friend.  My sorority colors are pink & green and the mascot turtles.  Can't get much better than that!  We both had a nice time.  It was fun for me too in that I got to talk with some of the alum and the actives.  Adult conversation!  

 

Will be submitted at Rush when it's her time. :)




A Mama pic!



 

The New Members with the Alums. 

Eating ice cream with the ladies.

Learning Time

 

Just a few pics of our learning time activities today.  I've found if we start off with something extra fun like an art or color activity they transition into doing actual learning activities much better.  Today it was decorating a pumpkin with foam stickers. 

 

Hailey tracing her metal insets.  She's doing very well.

Hailey sorting and counting her colored bears.  (1-5)

Mama in the Picture

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-tate/mom-pictures-with-kids_b_1926073.html

A dear friend of mine posted this link on her Facebook page last week and it really hit home for me.  I definitely have been shying away from pictures or put the girls in front of me to hide the extra weight I have "acquired" since having babies.  But after reading the blog, this week I made it a point to get in a few pictures.  Yes, my gut hangs over in a few, my hair is ALWAYS in a ponytail, I NEVER wear makeup (heck, I'm lucky some days to get a shower!), my toenail polish gets chips in it, but I'm a mama.  I want my girls to know that loving, caring and providing for them is my most important priority right now.  Yes, I desire health for myself so that I can continue to love, care and provide for them, but I just haven't carved out the time to make it to the gym or go for a walk in my days yet.  And yes, I desire to be beautiful for their Dada so that he still desires me, however, I am comfortable with myself and our relationship for that to be a lower priority in our life, right now.  I will work out and spend more time on myself as things get easier and easier because I do enjoy the feeling after a work out and looking pretty too.  More importantly, for their future, if they desire to be mama's I hope they know they should be comfortable with however the look because really loving and caring for their family for me is much more rewarding than making sure my makeup is on or my hair is done.  And frankly, as they will learn too when/if their time comes to be a mama, there is no time!  I'd rather plan a lesson to learn, arrange an outing, make cookies, play outside, etc...ANYTHING with them!

PS...even my wardrobe needs help...these are two different shirts that look exactly the same!  Sheesh. 

Star gazing on the back patio.

Pumpkin patch visit.

Pumpkin Patch visit

 

On Friday we went to a local pumpkin patch with our playgroup.  It was fun to be there with other kids and moms we knew.  The girls were able to pick pumpkins, play in bounce houses, see animals, go on a hayride and then decorate their pumpkins.  It's a great farm that is very clean and well organized.  It will probably be our "regular" farm/patch we go to annually now.  

 

Picked their pumpkins...so heavy!

Our sweet girls.

Decorating the pumpkins with foam stickers.

Going for a hayride

I found it interesting that they were not as excited to see the farm animals as they were last year.
 I'm hoping it's because they are around them weekly at Waldorf and it is becoming their norm. 

Growing! 

Here is link to last years visit at this farm.  They certainly have grown!
http://bandkstwogirls.blogspot.com/2011/10/2nd-pumpkin-patch.html
 

Stay at Home Day

 

I know I repeat myself all the time, but I LOVE stay at home days.  Today was one and the rhythm of the day was perfect.  They played, had learning time, ate all of their food (this is rare and a constant battle), napped, enjoyed quiet time, etc.  It was wonderful.  

Breakfast Al Fresco

Learning time





 



Paige got so into the decorating she even
dressed the part.

Making pumpkin cookies.





 

When Hailey woke up from her nap, Paige was super
excited to show Hailey all the decorations and toys.

 

 

Pretending to Trick or Treat. 
They knocked on each other's bedroom doors.

Hailey's Turn!

 

Hailey has been super good about staying in her crib up until about a week ago.  At that point, she was only climbing out in the morning when she woke up, which was fine.  Well, the other day she did it about a half hour into her nap.  She is almost potty trained but not yet.  So, in order to avoid learning two new big things at once, she got the crib tent.  Plus, I am NOT ready to give up naps yet.  She is a super napper too, she sleeps from about 11:30am to 3:30 or 4pm and goes back to bed by 8pm.  I'm not willing to give that up at all.  She's fine with it.  She keeps saying that she likes her white tent.  So hopefully it's only a few months and she's potty trained.  Perhaps Santa will bring her a new big bed??  

 

Here's the link to Paige's first experience.  Much the same as Hailey's.

 http://bandkstwogirls.blogspot.com/2011/02/crib-tent.html