Camp BBQ

This year Gillian is going to Camp Briar Hill with John this summer.  She is super excited.  For the younger grades, they do pre-camp barbecue.  It gives the kids a chance to meet the other kids in their group and check out the camp.  Gillian was very excited.  And John was too.  He couldn't wait to show her around. 

We arrived, met Gillian's group counselors, heard the camp owner talk, and then we were allowed to explore. Gillian wanted to go to the arts and crafts barn, but it was packed with people. We headed to the pirate ship jungle gym. The kids played and then Gillian wanted to try the zip line. She didn't hesitate. She jumped right on.

The kids also checked out a bouncy house and a train (they were brought in just for the BBQ). Next we went to the art barn and the kids made sand art. We had some Rita's water ice. Gillian couldn't leave until she rode the zip line a second time. 

She is super excited for camp tomorrow!

The Zip Line

I took Gillian to a birthday party yesterday at My Gym.  Basically it is an indoor gym for little kids.  They have a trampoline and a ball pit.  They play a few games with the kids and at the end all the kids get to go on a zip line.  Gillian was the fourth kid to go.  She wasn't afraid and couldn't wait to tell John all about it when we got home.  

 
John was very impressed with Gillian.  But he of course had to make a big deal out of the zip line he went on last summer.  Don't worry Beansy, you will get to do the big zip line soon enough.

Owls and Sharks

Yesterday Gillian told us "We learned about owls today. And did you know owls sleep during the day and are awake at the night time?" I asked her "Do you know what that is called?" She said "Ummm, I think so." But before she could think of it John shouted "Nocturnal. It's nocturnal, Gill." She got mad at him. "I know John. And we heard the noises the owls make. Some of my friends were scared but not me!" She told us more about owls and showed us the awesome owl puppet she made. 

Tonight I asked Gillian "Did you learn about owls again today?" She smiled and said "No. We talked about sharks! You know what? I want to swim with sharks." I was a little surprised to hear that. But she was smiling and so excited. I said "You should talk to Daddy, because Daddy knows how to scuba dive and would love to take you." So she walked across the room and says "Daddy, I want to swim with the sharks." 

Pierced Ears

Gillian graduated from Preschool today.  To celebrate, we decided to take her to get her ears pierced.  Well, I wanted to get her ears pierced.  She was a little nervous about it, but felt better when I told her that I would get matching earrings. 

She was very brave when we went to the store.  She sat in the chair and picked out her earrings (pink sparkly hearts).  

She waited patiently while we filled out paperwork, figured out the best position for the holes and cleaned her ears. 

Then it was time, she sat up tall. And the lady pierced her first ear. Gillian had no reaction. She just sat there, completely stunned. But when it was time for the next ear she grimaced and a few tears came out. 

Aunt Betty captured the whole thing on video. Don't mind Daddy walking past the camera to check on Gillian. 

She cried for a little bit, and told us that it hurt. I have to say that I am very impressed with how brave and strong she was. There was potential for way more drama. 

Here she is showing off her new earrings. And yes, I am wearing mine too. I promised!

Exhausted

I brought Gillian to work with me today. She was due for her annual physical and I figured it was easier to bring her to work instead of dropping her off at school after her appointment. Plus then her teachers didn't get stuck dealing with a cranky little girl. 

We went to work first and I tried to get some stuff done before heading to the doctor. Gillian set up on John's desk and worked on a picture and her "un-pewter" (her leapfrog laptop). Then it was time to go to the doctor. She was amazing in the doctors office. While we were waiting for the doctor to arrive, I said "I hope you have your listening ears." She smiled and said "Nope. I left them at home." Luckily for me, she was teasing because she listened to the doctor and didn't even cry when she got her shots. 

Since she was so good at the doctors, I let her pick whatever pastry she wanted from Starbucks. She picked a chocolate chip cookie. And then said "But I need something to drink." She really can work the system. She had her snack when we went back to the office. And before I realized it she was eating goldfish. She told Mimi "I like to eat!" 

Having Gillian at the office is different than John. John entertains himself, while Gillian needs constant contact. "Mama, can I use your stamp?" "Mommy, do you have any markers?" "Mommy, can I sit with you?" "Mama, what does that say?" 

It was a long day for Mommy, but Gillian feels special. 

Underwater

John's camp is not far from my office and I get the pleasure of dropping and picking him up everyday. Most days when I pick up he gives me the run down of what happened at camp. Today, I asked "How was camp today?" He said "I don't want to talk now. I'll tell you at dinner." I said "Okay. Just tell me, was it a good day or a bad day?" He said "Good." He was really quiet for about half the car ride. I couldn't take it. So I asked him about a blow up dome that they had a camp today. He said "It was for color wars. We had to get all the balls on the other side of the dome. And you had to throw them. You couldn't cross a line." And that's all it took. So he started to tell me about his day. He said "Mom. You know what? I can spin underwater!" Let me sidetrack for a moment, swimming lessons are included in John's camp. At the beginning of the summer he was afraid to put his face underwater. When we met his swim instructor at the camp barbecue, he said the same thing. John has been getting more and more comfortable putting his head underwater over the past few weeks. So when he says he can spin underwater, I was very impressed. He then followed it up with, "I opened my eyes underwater today! I couldn't see good." I am so proud. Not only is he getting over his fear of putting his face in the water, but he opened his eyes too!

Enchanted Tales with Belle

On our first day in the Magic Kingdom, we ended up in Fantasyland.  We came across an attraction Enchanted Tales with Belle.  We had no idea what kind of experience we were in for.  We only knew that the line was short and it had something to do with Belle.  After waiting forever (well it seems like forever with impatient little kids), we made it inside Belle's cottage.  Once inside, we were instructed to move the kids to the front of the room towards a big mirror.  We were told that the mirror was magical and that we were going to be transported to the night that Belle and the Beast fell in love.  The mirror then got big and we all walked thru it into another room.  In that room was the wardrobe and she and a cast member told us that we were going to help Belle and that they needed helpers.  They asked for volunteers and my John raised his hand immediately.  The cast member started to select people from our group for different roles.  The first gentlemen selected were suits of armor.  Uncle T got to be a suit of armor!  Next the cast member asked us to roar!  And she picked John to be the Beast!  She also selected someone to be Belle's father, Phillipe (Belle's horse), a wolf, and Mrs. Potts & Chip.  Then the cast member asked "Did everyone get a role that wanted a role?"  Once again, I was surprised to see Gillian raise her hand.  She was given the role of a pepper shaker (which is perfect for Gillian - she likes to shake her booty).

Now that everyone had their roles, we moved to the next room where Lumiere told us that Belle would be arriving shortly and told us that we would be helping Belle prepare for her big night with the Beast.  And then she arrived!  

Belle was dressed in her beautiful yellow gown.  John looked really nervous, and Gillian was a little scared.  She gave her pepper shaker over to a cast member and came and sat with me.  The kids started to reenact when Belle first met the Beast.  She was searching for her father and that's how she got to Beast's castle.  John played his part well and he jumped out at roared at Belle.  Belle was scared, but stayed at the castle so that the Beast would release her father.  Then Belle and the Beast became friends and they danced!

      
 

 

 

After John (aka the Beast) and Belle danced, Belle gave each of the kids (and adults) a bookmark to thank them for participating.  The cast members that were assisting Belle made sure that Gillian got to meet Belle as well. 

 

 

 

I am so glad that we stopped at this attraction.  It was worth the wait in line and we have such wonderful memories of how we met Belle and John got to be the Beast!

Gillian well visit

Gillian had her annual checkup scheduled for yesterday.  Yesterday morning, Gillian and I waited with John at the bus stop.  She cried when he got on the bus, "Where they taking my Johnny?"  I explained to her that he was going to school and we would see him later.  She didn't understand.  But we got in the car and headed to the doctor's office.  In the car, I explained to her that we were going to see the doctor and that she would need to listen to the doctor.  Gillian said "But I not sick!" 

We were the first appointment of the day.  Gillian still was a little nervous about seeing the doctor.  But luckily the nurse was super sweet and set the tone for the appointment.  She asked Gillian to get on the scale.  Gillian stood really still to get weighed and measured.  Gillian is 39 inches tall.  She grew 4 inches in a year!  After the scale, Gillian had her blood pressure taken.  She sat really still and giggled as the nurse put on the blood pressure cuff.  Next, the nurse asked me to get a urine sample.  I won't go into detail about this, but I will say it was hilarious.  We then went into the exam room and waited for Dr. Yee.  While we waited, Gillian again told me "But I not sick!"  I explained to her that we were just getting a check up.  Dr. Yee arrived and started the exam.  Gillian was great.  She listened to the doctor and did everything that was requested of her. 

Finally it was time for the shots.  Gillian only needed two shots, but Dr. Yee called in the nurse.  "MaryAnn, I need some help in here.  She's feisty!"  I held Gillian, while MaryAnn held Gillian's hands, and Dr. Yee did the shots.  Dr. Yee is fast.  Gillian whimpered for a second and was done.  She immediately asked "I get lollipop?"  She actually got two lollipops for herself and somehow conned Dr. Yee into getting two lollipops for John too.

In the car on our way to school, I told Gillian, "I am so proud of you.  You were such a big, brave girl!"  She said "But her hurt my tushy and I got band-dids."  Kids never remember the good parts, only the shots that took all of 30 seconds and didn't even hurt her.          

First day of First Grade

Today was John's first day of First Grade.  John woke up early and we told him to get dressed.  I had a collared shirt and khaki shorts picked out for John to wear for his first day.  John got dressed and I went to help him find socks and he was wearing a completely different outfit than what I had picked out.  John told Daddy that he felt more comfortable in his outfit.  It's hard to argue with that.

The kids ate breakfast while I packed lunches.  John ate his breakfast fast and was ready to wait for the bus.  But it was too early to go to the bus stop, so every 2 minutes he would ask "Is it time now?"
 

Finally it was time to go to the bus stop.  John, Gillian, Daddy and I headed to the bus stop.  John was very excited and didn't want to wait.  He paced.  For awhile we played I Spy.  That entertained him.  Gillian got mad, because we didn't ask her to pick something. When we finally let Gillian have a turn, she picked something so obvious.  It was hilarious.  Before we realized it, the bus was arrived.  John didn't hesitate and climbed the stairs and sat in the seat behind the driver.  The bus was barely past our street, and Gillian started to cry.  "Where Johnny going?" She shed a few tears and I gave her a hug.  We walked back home and I explained to her that John was taking the bus to his new school.  She calmed down and I took her to school.  After I dropped off Gillian, I drove past John's new school (I know, I'm a little crazy.).  There were tons of buses and people dropping off kids.  I couldn't see John, but it made me feel better. 

MFA lets out at 3:20, so Daddy and I were waiting at the bus stop by 3:40.  And we waited and waited and waited.  HIs bus finally arrived around 4.  The bus pulled up and opened the doors, there was about 5 seconds of no movement, and I heard the bus driver say "Where's John? Oh, there he is! He's coming!"  And there he was. 

We asked him about his day.  He said "Not so good for me."  That sounds horrible, but after a million question we were able to get out of him that he had a pretty good day.  He made two friends. One is Trey (they sit next to each other in class) and the other is a boy that he met on the bus.  He had music today and learned that he is going to be in a concert in June.  He doesn't understand why they have to learn poems.  They had lunch in the cafeteria (where most people brought their lunch) and they only got to play outside for like a minute. He said "And we had to work.  You know I don' t like to do work!"  Daddy told him, "No one likes to do work, that's why its called work." 

Later at dinner, we heard that some kids got two strikes in music class.  "And you know what?  At three strikes you get a note sent home to your parents!"  Daddy asked him, "Did you get any strikes?"  He said "I didn't bring you home a note!"  He did tell us proudly that he didn't get any strikes, and that he got to sit next to a guitar in music class.  See?  Sounds like a pretty good day to me.       

  

St. Leo's Fair

We drive past St. Leo's church everyday on our way to school. Every year they have a fair in June. The kids have watched the rides slowly assemble and every morning as we drive past, I hear "Can we go tonight?" This week has been a little busy for us, so last night was the first night we were able to go.

We arrived around 6 o'clock. We were able to walk around and figure out what rides each of the kids could go on and which rides to avoid. The first ride the kids wanted to go on was the Dragon Wagon. The Dragon Wagon was a little roller coaster. Gillian was a little short to ride by herself so Daddy was going to go on with her.  But Daddy was a little too big. We just let John and Gillian ride together.  They loved it.  When the ride was done, Gillian said "Again!" 

 

Daddy took John to the Super Slide and I took Gillian to a small kiddie ride.  She was not too impressed.  

 

We met back up at the Elephants. John and Gillian went together. While waiting in line, John held Gillian's hand and made sure she gave the attendant the tickets. They climbed into a blue elephant and off they went.  Gillian was much happier on this ride, because it went higher in the air.  Next they went on the "Tub of Fun" (basically the wild teacups).  John was determined to spin their tub as fast as possible.  Gillian was loving it, until her head kept bouncing on the side of the tub.  Daddy and I would watch Gillian's face and then tell John to go fast or to slow it down.  Again, she loved it.

Our next stop was the Super Slide.  John was going to go by himself, but there was a last minute change, and Gillian and I went too.  We got to the top of the steps and climbed onto the slide.  John waited until I was settled with Gillian.  He held my hand and off we went.  Gillian giggled the entire trip.  Check out the video below.

We then let John go on a bunch of rides without Gillian.  He went in the fun house, on the elephants, and again in the fun house.  He loved the fun house.  I think it was just because there was a slide at the end.  While John was on the Elephants, Gillian said "No go on the Elephants.  I go on the crocodile."  She kept calling the Dragon Wagon, the crocodile. 

The kids went on the Crocodile, aka Dragon Wagon, two more times.  The last time, they got to ride up front.  Gillian says "The crocodile in the front." was her favorite ride of the night.  We ended up our trip to the fair with a cotton candy to share.  Overall a fun night out with the kids.

 

Faster than...

John told me tonight "I am faster than all the animals in the world! But you know what? There is one animal that I am not faster than. Do you know what animal? Come on, you know!" I insisted that I did not know what he was talking about. He said "Duncan. Duncan is faster than me! Duncan is so fast." I love his logic. He first says that he is faster than all the animals but contradicts himself by saying that his dog is faster than him. He also told me "I'm as strong as a lion! Well maybe a fire ant. You know why they call them fire ants? Because they are red!"

At bedtime tonight, he told me "I'm as brave as an ant. I don't like the dark and I get very scared." I explained to him that ants are very brave. They are so tiny but they still leave their house everyday to find food and shelter for their families. And that he should be proud to be brave like an ant! I hope our little talk helped him to be brave in the dark.