Learning the Quiet Joys

Grace is learning how to do things more quietly. It has some to do with Caroline being gone some, I think.

She will lounge around and have her snacks. It is a little funny how obvious it is that she does not need to defend them with Caroline at school.

She has discovered books. She will read on her own or with her sister a lot more. It is so fun to watch her read. She studies the books and sometimes reads them out loud. It is so cute.

I was worried that she would not be able to entertain herself very well but she seems to like to have complete control over the toy room. I am not sure where she gets enjoyment from having complete control ;-).

It is fun to be a Little Girl

In the last few days, the girls have had a good time doing a few different things.

Last Friday, my Uncle Don had a party at his house celebrating the history (150 years) of the house. He had a horse drawn carriage available for people to ride on. We rode on it right away when we got there. They were both pretty taken by it. And they even got to pet the horse, Emma, after.

The girls (especially Caroline) have gotten their Dad's video game gene. Kris had gotten a Wii for Father's Day. The girls have always enjoyed watching us play. They even pretend to play when we are playing. But now Caroline can play by herself. It is really a hoot. And now Grace is pretending to play with her. I just love watching them.

Getting organized

I have recently found a need to get more organized. I was not a complete slob before but there was definite room for improvement.

The picture is a sample not my calendar ;-)

With Caroline involved in more things, I needed to have a better handle on my schedule. As it turns out, Google has a great calendar (Yahoo and others have similar functions). I really like it. Every member of the family has a color plus a color for all of us. It sends me reminders of things 2 days in advance to my email. And it gives me a pop up reminder 30 mins before it starts.

Not only can I manage the calendar but Kris can see it and manage it as well. It has helped a lot with any miscommunications regarding what we have going on. Plus, he now has a better idea of what we do during the day. It helps him talk to Caroline at dinner (she is not always forthright with information or may be a little inaccurate).

I has not only helped me keep everything straight, it helps me utilize my time better. I am able to plan my afternoons more so that I am more efficient. Instead of walking around figuring out what to do, I already have a plan.

It has also helped with meal planning. I am able to post it on the calendar so that Kris knows what we are having and can plan accordingly.

So, if you are looking for a way to get out from under your busy life, this may help. It helped me.

First Day of Preschool

What a big day!! Caroline had her first day of preschool today. It was really fun. She was so excited before we went. She was really looking forward to it. After the visits, things really started to click that this was a real place. Plus Daddy stayed home to take her too.

She got some new clothes. She looks so grown up.

Of course, she got a backpack. She picked out Tinkerbell (seems to be a favorite, there were 3 others though not exactly the same as hers).

Caroline put up with Mommy taking pictures. I did not get too carried away, but I had to mark the occasion, even right outside the church where she has school.

She has her own spaces for things. She likes being able to have her own spaces for things that she has control over.

The last picture is of Caroline going with her teachers. The first thing they do is go outside to the playground. Smart!!

She never cried. She was nervous but I think that I am the only one who really saw it. Mommy did OK until she walked away. I am not sad that she is going to school or that she is growing up. It is that she will not need me in the same way any more. I love my relationship with her and worry about the change will affect it.

But when she came out, she was the same girl. And later she was crying over dropped cookies. But it was really about that Mom did not stay at school too. She loves it but thinks that I should come too.

The first lesson of preschool sure is a big one. We are learning but it is a little hard.

The Week it all Began

This is the week that I will look back on as the week it all began.

Today Caroline had her first dance class in a studio. It is weekly for 9 months. She absolutely loved it and was really rather good. I have a feeling this is what she may be choosing to do as she gets older. It was a fun morning.

What girl does not loving being able to dance around in both tap shoes and then ballet slippers.

The only blip of sadness came from Grace. She did not like that Caroline went and did something without her. She really wanted to join right in.

Starting tomorrow, Caroline is going to preschool 2 days a week. For the next 20 or so years, we are going to have a kid in school. That seems really odd to me. But more about that tomorrow.

Then Wed., Mom's Group starts and I am looking forward to being around my peers again.

But I think about this week and am a little sad and a lot excited. I am sad that my babies are not really babies any more. But I am really excited because I am getting a glimpse of their future selves. And I must say that I really am excited by what I see.

Are we over protecting??

Kris gave me an article out of his Wall Street Journal yesterday. It was about how we have taught our children never to go to men if they need help. In our effort to make sure that they are safe, we have started alienating men from childhood activities.

This is a result of the fact that most child predators are male. And as a mother, I would completely agree to do whatever it took to never have to have my child go through that. But some interesting and unplanned consequences are resulting.

Men in major numbers are no longer volunteering for things. They are afraid of being falsely accused of inappropriate behavior. Kris even mentioned that he worries about what people think when he is out with Caroline and walking while holding her hand.

Now, you might think that he is overreacting. But in the same article, there was a man eating dinner in an airport restaurant with his 5 year old daughter when a policeman approached him. He was questioned about what he was doing with her and why he was there. It turned out that someone walking past had reported him because they felt it was inappropriate.

I also wonder what we are teaching our kids when we tell them not to trust such a large group of people. We do not profile that way in other things, it would be prejudice.

I do not want anything bad to ever happen to my girls. But I need to teach them the skill to avoid and escape bad situation. I want them to have healthy relationships with men as children and adults. I hope that we can work toward that for all kids.

Good Omens

It must be a great day ahead. When I picked up my iced tea, this was what was left behind.

Seriously, I did nothing to make it.

We had our annual Family trip to Duluth. We had a blast and stayed in a great house. (We rented a vacation home by owner off www.vrbo.com, it was great) Here are some hightlights.

Gracie and Mommy trying not to get blown away in the wind.



Daddies and Babies taking a stroll down the pier

Caroline and her Moe-Moe. Caroline loves spending time with her.

We rented Surry Bikes. It was so fun and the kids loved it. It was a little harder that I expected but worth it. (In all the pictures, Caroline and Jake were like this. I guess it was sunny)

This is the whole lot of us. The Rasmussons, Millers, Nelson and Ruth's boyfriend Carl.

Throwing rocks in the water was the biggest hit. If the kids could have done that the whole time they would have been perfectly happy.

This is Grace in Papa's hat. She wore it almost more than he did the Monday. Looks good.

We had a great holiday weekend. I hope you also enjoyed some family or friends.