Ice Skating

While we were visiting DH we were able to take in some of the sites with the kiddos.  There were many things on the to do list that we did get done.  (Craft shopping not one of them...)  We did get to enjoy Chuck E Cheese's.  The kids think that is the best place ever!  We also spent lots of time at the mall playing in the playground, riding the carousel and of course ice skating.  I kept the 2 little ones occupied while E got to spend some fun ice skating time with her Daddy.  She loved it and wants to take lessons now.  If we end up moving there I guess we'll be looking into skate school.

Veterans' Day Parade

E's school was in our town's Veterans' Day parade.  She was so excited she was going to ride in a float!  She was a little disappointed to find out the float was actually a trailer which she has ridden on numerous times.  The kids still had a great time waving flags and honoring all the men and women who have served Our Country.

The Smell of Money

E's class had a field trip to the dairy today.  Since P's job is in the dairy industry he made it a work trip and joined us for the outing.  The dairy we visited has around 12000 cows!  They milk about 4000 each day 3 times a day.  You might wonder how that would even seem possible.  Well, the cows are treated to a ride on the "carousel" while they are being milked. (Yes, I have pictures of that too.)  It is quite a production.  We toured the maternity ward too while there.  That turned out to be a VERY educational and vivid experience!  We helped welcome a new calf into the world. 

Thankfully the mother cow had no problems delivering but we were there for all the after birth experience as well while we waited for each of the kiddos to take turns feeding the other day old calves.  E chose stay near me and C.  K went in with P and got to pet some of the calves and help hold the bottle.  I think Mrs. S got pictures of all that. 
It was a VERY, VERY blustery day.  The hay ride that took the kids around was blowing hay everywhere!  If you remember the story of E and the wind you will realize this was not a good situation.  She was loaded on the trailer with her classmates but before they could leave she was in tears not wanting to go.  She has been on many hayrides and loved them all.  But that was before the wind trauma. Luckily we were able to ride in the SUV and still see the entire dairy.  If you want to know E's take of the place, and this is one of the cleaner dairies, just look at the picture...

Parties

Parties are a big production to E. It is not a real party if you don't have balloons, streamers, cake and games. Also, your attire must be fancy. This is the outfit she put together for Leslie's party. It was cold so she had to wear something underneath her mermaid outfit. (Leslie's favorite princess is Ariel so E picked this just for her.)

For P's birthday she wanted me to wear my wedding dress and P to wear his wedding suit. I told her I probably wouldn't get that fancy but she could wear whatever she wanted. Lucky for her a new dress arrived that day from dear Leslie and also a package from Grammie that had gloves, a necklace and a bracelet in it. She disappeared to her room for a bit then reappeared ready for the party. She said her tiaras didn't match so she chose the pink floral scarf and finished the outfit with her high heels.

Her next quest is a pair of Lelli Kelly shoes. Yes, I agree they are beautiful shoes but the price tag is not so pretty!

Blustery Day

You know it's windy when your daughter gets picked up and blown over by the wind! That's right, poor E was walking to PE and the wind literally picked her up and knocked her down...TWICE! The teacher said she had never seen anything like it. The assistant carried her back after PE since E said she didn't want to go out there again and blow away to Oklahoma. Her teacher has a plan though for the next time it is this windy. She is going to tie a string around E's ankle and give the other end to her buddy M. He said he wouldn't let E blow away!

Train time

Now that we are seeing some pretty days we dug out the toys. The kids love to ride the train but sometimes it is hard to take turns. K found a way that they can both play.



His second idea worked much better.




Now all he needs to figure out is how to give the train more power then we'll be in trouble!

Q and U wedding

Today was a big day in kinder-prep. Q and U got married! It was a beautiful ceremony. Queen Quilla looked so pretty in her long gold robe. Unfortunately Uncle Ugbee came dressed true to form... in his underwear! (I will have to get a better copy of the ceremony from Mrs. Starks. I let K play with the camera before the ceremony to keep him still and all the settings were changed.)

The reception was delicious. We had cake, cookies and punch. The kids even got to drink out of fancy glasses and also take them home as souvenirs. What a creative way to reinforce the concept that Q needs U by its side to make a sound. I don't think the kids will ever forget that now!

And the reading begins...

Ellaina is READING!!! I cannot begin to describe how proud my heart feels right now. My little girl has discovered a whole new world. She is so eager to read more books and words. Oh the fun yet in store for her...




Ellaina, I am SO proud of you! (By the way, she is only 4 years old!)