Picnics

Imitation, imitation, imitation. After our picnic yesterday the girls have had to have almost every meal in this fashion, but at home. Apparently they loved it. Paige gets food out of the fridge and packs the ice chest for a picnic, just as I did on Tuesday morning before we headed out. Ahhhh...the simple things in life...picnics.

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Cute Tongue

Today we made pumpkin bread with chocolate chips for a play date we have tomorrow. Hailey wanted to lick the beater at the end. To me, this is one of the cutest tongues in the world! Yum.

Waldorf Playgroup

Today we had our first day at the local Waldorf School called Desert Marigold.  They did great getting out the door on time, however it was a huge awakening for me to get on the freeway at 8am.  Wow!  Traffic.  A very good reason to have kiddos is for the use of the HOV lane.  HaHa. 

Anyway, once we got there it was wonderful.  The teacher is a professional Opera singer and has an amazing voice.  She pretty much sings everything she says, it's nice and very calming.  We went on a nature walk around the 12 acres campus, feed the animals, came back and had circle time with songs, did a craft and communed for a snack.  This part was great because the girls really do need to work on table manners.   The craft we made is a Sun Wand and it came with a really pretty verse: 

Come bright butterfly, close to me

Your beautiful wings I should like to see

You fly like a bird, you sip like a bee

But you are really a flower the wind set free

It was interesting to see their Montessori teachings in that when they were playing they put each toy back on its shelf or in its place when they were done.  There was very little cleanup. 

Because Paige has Montessori in the afternoon I asked if it were ok to have a picnic on campus.  We found a great spot under a tree with a rope swing next to the pond for our picnic.  The girls loved it. 

It was a nice morning and we looking forward to our time in Waldorf.  It's full of imagination building. 

Leaving for Waldorf.  Hailey showed her 2's
by not wanting her picture taken.



Hailey in the chix coop


 





Paige looking at the hen nest



Feeding the goats the grass they picked on their nature walk

Craft:  Sun Wand

Hailey "chip chopping" apples



Picnic lunch



In Front of the school sign




Clothespins - simple

One of the simplest things...opening and closing close pins on the side of a bowl.  Another basic skill in the Practical Life section of the Montessori curriculum.  This skill helps to develop the finger muscles for writing.  Here they are performing it.  Amazing what a difference 20 months makes in a young life...Paige has it mastered.  Hailey clips them off the bowl fine, but replaces them upside down.  She'll get it!

Mothers & Daughters

http://diapersdaisies.blogspot.com/2012/01/rules-for-mothers-of-daughters.html

This blog was pinned on Pinterest yesterday and I pinned it too.  It made me smile and laugh and tear a little.  We pretty much do everything on this list.  It was just a nice reminder and neat to see these things written down in a list.  We do toes (I like the pic on the blog), make couch forts, they dress up in everything and change clothes constantly throughout the day, we talk, we touch, Brian and I both tell them how pretty they are (I think it's really important for them to hear that from him), we read probably 10 books a day, and the one I love most, is BE HOME.  It's so true.  They thrive on stay at home days, they are my favorite.  Like I said, it's just a fun list that made me smile and cry a bit. 

Too Fast

Me, oh my.  My babes are growing fast.  This weekend, Hailey has almost mastered the sport of swimming.  She is swimming long distances by herself to one of us and also she is jumping off the edge, at the deep end, into the water and popping right back up.  It's amazing.  I suppose, if you do something everyday, of course, you are going to be good at it, but it's soooo fast!  She is also almost fully potty trained in just going potty.  She still manages to wait for a diaper to do poopy, but for potty, she recognizes that she needs to go and runs to "the duck." 

Paige is doing really well in school and with the homeschool work we are doing.  She is learning her teens (11-15) and using the golden bead materials to recognize the numbers.  She has also mastered quite a few sounds.  According to her teacher she knows, a s t h m o b c p r d and is working on i n g.  I'm working on those with her too.  Paige is also able to play by herself for quite a while now too.  Which is nice, but after about a half hour, I begin to miss her.  I'm so used to needing entertain her or find something to focus her attention to every 15 minutes.  She's also showing interest in new things as well, like doing laundry, peddling her trike, etc.  Her imagination is HUGE.  It's hard for me to keep up with that sometimes.  It really can be exhausting mentally.  But it is definitely getting her to learn to think on her own. 

The time really does go fast.  I'm so proud of my girls and hope that I am making a difference in their daily life and adding something to their brains each day for them to carry on with through life. 

An "Off" Day

I usually write about what great days we have, and we usually do, but today was just an "off" day.  They have been waking up early than usual, around 6:30am.  I don't know what is causing that...perhaps the humid weather and the rain?  So when they do that, I bring them into bed with us and turn on a show for them while I go back to sleep to catch another half hour of zzzz's.  This obviously adds to TV time.  Grrrr.  Once we got up we had a normal morning, except my mom came over.  But that was actually fine.  The girls played while we chatted.  It was nice to see her.  Then I discovered Brian was going to work from home.  Which I LOVE.  Even though he's locked in the office, it's just nice to have him here for backup.  We had a bit of learning time this morning too.  Then nap time came and Paige really needed to nap.  She was whinny and tired.  But she would NOT go down.  I tired so many things, even to the point where I told her I would be angry if she didn't nap.  All that did was make her whine more.  So we pushed through and by the afternoon Brian was done working so he spent time with them.  But it was still a weird day.  So weird that I forgot to plan dinner.  By 6:55pm I was ready for them to GO TO BED.  Luckily both were down by 8:15pm.  I really dislike days where we are "off."  Nothing got accomplished except whining and nagging.  I hope tomorrow goes better. 

Next week we start the Waldorf playgroup which will get us out more and then the next week we add in gymnastics one morning too.  I hope getting out helps a bit.  Perhaps it's staring at the same walls that is making us all irritable?  We shall see!

Learning Time

Today Hailey had "a go" at the pouring activity.  She did very well pouring but did not stop at the marked line.  She really likes the activity so we'll keep practicing!




                   

Paige did the Mystery Bag activity where items are placed in a bag and she needs to feel them to determine what they are.  I put a comb, barrette, water bottle, cotton balls, hair tie, battery and a spoon in it.  She determined them all. 

Hailey tried the Mystery Bag too, but I think is a bit to young for it yet.  At least she is showing interest.

After Hailey went down for her nap I coaxed Paige into working on her sounds.  I'm having a really hard time getting her interested in doing this activity.  We are working on H, C, R, A & T.  She's knows the sounds for sure.  When I put them into a word, RAT, she's not quite getting it yet.  Try, try, try!

Pouring

A basic skill in the Practical Life section is pouring in the Montessori curriculum.  We have been practicing this in the bathtub for years with both girls, but I decided to go ahead and do the lesson from our home school kit.  It requires using glass pitchers and glass cups.  Paige practiced the skill today and did very well.  I drew lines on the glasses showing how far to fill the cups.  She was able to stop pouring at the line on the first try.  I haven't had Hailey do it yet, so she gets "a go" tomorrow.  ("A go" is a British term that the girls use all the time that they got from the show Kipper. Gotta love TV.)

pouring

making sure it's at the line

success!

4 year Well Check

Paige had her 4 year well check today.  This check includes booster immunizations for all the big ones, DTaP, IPV, MMR and Varicella (chicken pox).  Plus we did the mist for the flu vaccine this year.  Paige is definitely the type of child who likes to be prepared and told before hand about plans and procedures.  So I looked up as to if I should tell her about the shots before we go.  The advice I found definitely suggested she be told.  So yesterday I mentioned that she had the appointment to see Dr. Suhdato show her how healthy she was.  She actually asked if she would get a shot.  I told her she might and that they are important to get to stay healthy.  She got it.  Then last night we read a book about going to the doctor which spells out exactly what they do, weigh, measure, temp, BP, exam and of course immunizations.  She absolutely understood.  Today in the car on the way she said she would not cry for shots.  I told her to do what felt best for her.  That it was ok to cry but also ok to be brave.  We waited about a half hour for the doctor to come in and she was fine the whole time.  She loves Dr. Sudha and gave her big hugs and loved getting her exam.  Paige is very interested in medical stuff.  Then the nurse came in with the shots.  Paige did great for the first two, in fact, even watched them be injected.  But the third one, which was two immunizations in one shot, she started to cry.  I can imagine that one did hurt.  But she recovered quickly.  She came home and told Brian all about it and even got a little teary when she told him about her shots.  So far, she's fine...no side effects.

Here's her stats:
Weight = 37.7 lbs (70%)
Height = 40 1/2 inches (70%)
BP= = 103/66 (normal is 99/60-70 for children her age)

We are so proud of how much Paige has grown.  She has especially matured in the last 2 months.  I think school is helping lots with that and also the fact that we took away the pacifier.  She keeps saying she's a big girl.  I really couldn't relate when people told me time flies and to enjoy the baby time.  But now I see how right they are.  I cannot believe she is four years old and all the things she is doing and what she comprehends.  We love her so much and treasure every moment with her. 

At home ready to leave

In the waiting room

Playing Babies

The normal bedtime routine includes bath, watching 2 Kipper shows and 2 stories each.  Tonight, after Kipper, we went into their rooms (their rooms are joined by a Jack & Jill bathroom) and they got out the baby dolls.  They were so sweet in caring for them.  They laid out beds, gave them bottles & pacifiers and read them stories.  It was super cute.  However, it extended bedtime greatly and now Mama is tired! 

Hailey

Paige

 

Lesson Success

The girls were excited to have a new activity to do this morning.  Paige was successful in using the vegetable peeler to peel carrots and Hailey did very well spreading peanut butter on bread with a knife.  Paige put the final products on plates and in the fridge.  Later that afternoon while Hailey napped, she went to the fridge for her snack.  Montessori definitely creates independence and self reliance. 

Lesson Plans

For Paige's birthday we bought the North American Montessori Center's Homeschool Kit.  It's to supplement at home on the days she doesn't go to school and to get Hailey started before she actually attends.  We've formally been doing for about a week and informally for about 2 weeks.  Tomorrow I plan to do two of the Practical Skills lesson plans.  Hailey will do How to Butter Bread (but I'm using peanut butter instead) and Paige will do How to Peel a Carrot. The lesson plans are really, really nice.  They are spelled out word for word, step by step.  The kit will take them through age 6.  I'm excited.  It's a nice challenge for me, I get to spend more time with them, they love the structure and routine and we are saving a ton of money by not having to send them to school everyday. 

Woolly B & Barrettes

This is just an example of how good Woolly is with the girls.  He is laying nicely while Paige clips barrettes on him.  Right now, a favorite past time is to hold food in their hand and get him to chase them all around the house.  They pull his tail, tug his ears and he happily keeps following them.  He's such a good boy.

A Monday

These are just some pics that I took last Monday.  We had a stay at home day until 4pm when we met playgroup for yogurt.  It was a great Montessori learning day with folding laundry and a tea party and even some rain puddles mixed in. 

School Work

Paige came home having completed this work today at school.  She is tracing her name and it appears she started her Golden Bead Material to learn about numbers, counting and eventually math.  When I saw her work, she was watching me and she got a huge smile.  She was also very proud to show Brian.  I have a feeling she liked numbers (this scares me a bit...are we creating another engineer for the house?).  She also did some nutrients which include air, water, & food.  There is also a perfectly traced metal inset of a circle...it appears she made it a face.  I can hardly believe how much she is taking in during her short time at school.  Very exciting to see her grow and learn. 

Mermaid Birthday Party

Today we celebrated Paige's 4th birthday with a party.  We had just family attend and it included all day swimming, dinner, cake and presents.  They both had a ton of fun.  The theme this year was mermaids, because she is swimming just like she has a fin.  She is awesome!  Diving, swimming above and below water with no worries at all this year.  I'll let the pics tell the story of the day.

Underwater Mermaid Oasis

Swimming at 8am, because it was already well above 100.

Mermaid cake.  Chocolate with buttercream frosting

Nanny made them both Mermaid tails using towels. 
Super cute!

Dinner with the Fam.

Loves to have Happy Birthday sung to her.

Uncle GUM helping with new toy

Mermaid Pinata

Open!  Open!

Candy!

Uncle GUM "helping" to eat the candy

Lucky Girls to have loving Auntie, Nanny and GUM