Preschool with Daddy

Makenna was WAY excited that Daddy got to go to preschool with her today and be the "Parent Helper." She's been asking all year if he could go with her, and he thought today would be a good day to go. He got off work at noon and spent 2 1/2 hours at her little preschool - and then took Makenna for ice cream afterword. She kept thanking him over and over for being with her today. I was also glad that he had the opportunity to see how the preschool "functions," especially since I'll be teaching soon! Fun, fun!

Random Pics

What a weekend. Kiera had Monday off for a "Quality Teaching Day," I think they call it. Whatever that is. It has been a pretty quiet weekend, but though we didn't have much planned, we found plenty to do. The girls found my old sponge curlers and wanted them in their hair. Quentin (being the awesome daddy he is) put them in their hair and Kiera was thrilled with the results the next morning. Makenna was not so thrilled. She had a hard time sleeping in them and wanted us to take them out just on one side so she could sleep. I guess I can't blame her. I always hated sleeping in those things as a kid. But when she saw her curly hair, she was worried that her straight hair had gone away forever. She braved it for one day but was relieved after her bath that her hair was back to normal.

On Monday my mom had Kiera and Makenna over for a "playdate." They've been planning this for weeks and the girls couldn't wait. There's just something about having Granny to themselves and having snacks and crafts and cartoons. My mom's just way too nice. The girls made "Pom Pom Bugs" and played with them all day yesterday, slept with them last night, and Makenna is still playing with hers. She likes to put them on my plant and let them "hang out."

Hats....

Well, in addition to being many different things and wearing many different hats, I guess it's finally "official" that I will soon be wearing the "hat" of preschool teacher! I have always loved the process of learning and was specifically drawn to child development when I was completing my psychology degree. In junior high, I used to have the neighborhood kids come over in the summer for a little preschool, just for the fun of it. And I guess in the back of my mind, I've always thought that maybe I would do it "for real" someday.

When Kiera started preschool a few years ago, I have to admit that I wasn't sure what to expect. In a lot of ways, I thought preschool was just a glorified playgroup and I was unsure of the benefits. In fact, I was hesitant to even enroll Kiera. But during my first time as a "Parent Helper" at preschool, I was enthralled - I was impressed with how professional it seemed and it's focus on acadmics - and making learning fun. Even though the preschool was just held in our neighbor's home, each month when I went to help, I got more and more excited. I just kept thinking, "I love this" - the cute kids, so intent on learning, the fun environment, etc.

So about 6 months ago, Makenna's preschool teacher (the same one Kiera had 2 years before), mentioned that she is going to be going back to school and wondered if I would be interested in teaching a class just once a week. I jumped at the chance! It's taken a few months to get everything settled (her husband was changing jobs and she needed to make sure they could afford hiring out one of the 3 classes, etc.) but I guess it's official - so starting this Fall I will be teaching the Mozart Math class at the preschool. I went today to observe how the class functions and view the lesson plans - and I'm stoked!!

And what's even more, I guess in a year and a half (so Fall 2011), the one teacher wants to quit teaching so she can focus on going back to school - and she won't be able to continue having it in her home. The other teaching partner doesn't have enough space in her home, so she and I have been chatting over the last few months, and I offered to do it here. Quentin and I discussed it and decided we could finish his shop area (he's so supportive in what I want to do, plus I think he's motivated to finish the space because then it can also be used as a future theater room!). So that's the plan - and our goal is to become a licensed preschool. I'm learning so much and feel this is a good opportunity not only for me, but also my family and those cute little preschool kids!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

So it's St. Patrick's Day. Kind of a strange holiday, don't you think? But to kids it's a pretty big deal. Kiera slept in her green clothes "just in case," and she put green stickers on her stuffed animals so they wouldn't get pinched. Makenna was concerned that her eyes are blue, not green, and that her hair isn't green either. This morning we made Shamrock waffles (they're green, but it's hard to tell), but the girls freaked out when I wanted to color their milk green. Oh well. There's not much else I can think of doing!

Reading Corner

Ever since the girls got their bunk beds, we've been doing our nightly bedtime stories on the floor. There's not much room on Makenna's bottom bunk, and it gets crazy if we're all up on Kiera's top bunk. So I've been trying to figure out a little Reading Corner in the girls' room. We bought a bed canopy thing from Ikea about 6 months ago but needed something to sit on underneath.... Then lo and behold, my mom mentioned that she was wanting to get rid of a little rocking bench that she has had for 30-plus years. It's the little bench that I used to take naps on as a baby and the bench that Quentin borrowed from my parents when he proposed to me. So in addition to the sentimental value, it's a perfect little bench for our Reading Corner. I'm still trying to decide how to update it - paint it white? Find new cushions and cute pillows? We'll see - but we're just so happy to have it just the way it is (thanks Mom!)

12 of 12

A few weeks ago on my friend Katie's blog (http://mkgreen.blogspot.com/2009/02/12-of-12-challenge.html), she referenced another blog (http://www.twelve-of-twelve.blogspot.com/) where the challenge is to take 12 random pictures on the 12th day of every month - for, you guessed it, 12 months. It's pictures of everyday life. I like the idea because it makes you notice the "small things," which someday when you look back will be good memories. Okay, so I'm a couple of months late, and I don't know how to do a fancy digital scrapbook page like Katie, but I'm excited for the challenge and invite you to join in too!

Sunlight streaming into my living room...

Enjoying a steaming cup of Stephen's Wassail...

Makenna and Kasidee singing and dancing while I get ready for the day...

Running to the store for bread and milk and coming home $38 poorer...

Listening to Chris Botti and John Mayer (my fave!) on YouTube...

Kiera and Makenna are at school and Kasidee takes a 2-hour nap...

I finally finished reorganizing my scrapbook/craft closet...

Makenna dressed herself...

My little helper...

Saying hi to the horses and donkeys on our way to school...

Picking Kiera up from school...

Going to my yoga class...

Fancy Carriage

So Quentin and I were watching a show together this evening and were relieved that all 3 girls were content, happily playing in the bathroom next to the family room. They were in there a long time and when we checked on them, this is what we found:


They had raided the dress-up box, got into their princess costumes and were pretending that the bathtub was their carriage. So cute! They sure know how to entertain themselves - thank goodness!

Another New Bed

Since we moved into this house 2 years ago, we've had lots of "bed changes." We had our queen-size bed, a bassinet for Kasidee in our room, and Kiera and Makenna each had a toddler bed in their room. Since then, Kiera has traded her toddler bed for the twin bed I used as a kid, and then she and Makenna both graduated to the bunk beds we bought for them. Kasidee's bassinet didn't last too long, but she wasn't keen on the crib we put in her room either. So most nights she would end up spending part of the night in the bed with Quentin and me. Time for a change!! Although we had a white metal toddler bed that Kiera had used and a wooden toddler bed that Quentin's mom let us borrow for Makenna, we couldn't pass up a cute little toddler bed that Mischelle and Eric offered us. So we bought the little bed, brought it home and got Kasidee a new sheet and comforter set. And she loves it! She points to it and says, "Baby Bed." Awww.... The only problem is that Makenna has been crying that she misses her old toddler bed, so we may have to dig that one out again too!

Nursery

Kasidee's First Official Day of Nursery was yesterday. Can you believe she's that old already? It's been hard having her "sit" with me while I'm in Primary or "sit" with Quentin while he's in Elder's Quorum, so we've been kind of looking forward to the time when she could just go have fun in nursery. But once she was in there and my arms were free, I really started missing her! But I am SO thankful for such awesome nursery leaders - they go above and beyond their calling and want to make sure nursery provides a foundation of loving to learn the gospel for the kids (as opposed to feeling like it's just babysitting time). Kasidee did great - Quentin stayed with her for the first little while then left and she was fine. Sister Weaver said every once in awhile Kasidee would go over to her, tap on her legs and say, "Mama? Mama?" But she didn't cry. And when we picked her up at the end, she dropped everything, smiled SO big, and ran to us with outstretched arms....

And speaking of my baby getting big.... Yesterday evening we went to see my cousin Aaron's newborn little boy, Beau. My "baby" looked HUGE compared to him! Oh, he's just a cute little peanut. It's so fun seeing Aaron and Lisa as new parents. And little Beau is just so darn cute. It's just amazing how wonderful life is and how quickly time goes. It reminds me to be more aware and more mindful of the little things!!

Beauty & the Beast

This afternoon Quentin, Kiera, Makenna and I joined some of Quentin's family to see the play "Beauty and the Beast" at Woods Cross High School (thanks to Mom for watching Kasidee!). We all really enjoyed it - the costumes were incredible! It's fun doing something we all enjoy together and I hope the girls continue to develop a love of plays just like Quentin and I do! (P.S. Sorry for the red eyes - my photo fixer isn't working....)

Pretty Hair

Makenna was so nice to offer to do Kasidee's hair today - isn't it pretty? Oh, and yesterday in preschool they talked about what they want to be when they grow up. Makenna wrote on her paper, "When I grow up I want to be a little ladybug."

Happy Home Anniversary!

We moved into our home 2 years ago today. Happy Home Anniversary!! I'll tell ya, we LOVE it here. When we moved into our Farmington house in 2000 we planned on staying there forever, but then after 2 kids we realized it wasn't going to work for us forever. Through nearly 3 years of wondering, searching, and praying, we went through lots of ups and downs. We hated the thought of leaving our beloved house and the great neighborhood...we got excited about building in a couple different areas but it didn't pan out...we saw lots of homes that were nice but just didn't feel right.... Until we found this one. I knew it was "the one" pretty much the moment I walked in the door - I kept looking for something wrong but realized as I walked through it that it was perfect for us; everything we had been looking for. Quentin took a little more convincing (I prayed for comfort in being able to pass it up, but Quentin's mind started changing basically overnight and he's the one that said we needed to make an offer!) Anyway, I just am so happy that we "landed" in such a wonderful area and neighborhood, and we love our home. It's where our kids will grow up and we will grow old. Happy Anniversary, Home!!

Oh, and to make things even better, we were able to refinance and closed yesterday. Can you believe we got a 4.25% rate?! The ladies with the title company and the mortgage company said they've never seen anyone get a rate that low. Quentin just happened to call the mortgage company during a window of about 2 hours when the rate dipped lower than ever. Yahoo! So that new rate will save us over $250 a month. Awesome, eh?

Happy 94th!

Last night we went to Quentin's Grandma Stephens' 94th birthday party. I'll tell ya, she is just an amazing woman. So inspiring! She is always the life of the party, all dressed-up, with jewelry and high-heels. She's just so darn cute and makes whoever is around her feel good. She said she still feels young - it's everyone else that makes her feel old! She told everyone that she lives for us and that she wants to do things for us. In fact, she called Quentin's dad the other day and asked what he was doing. He said he was fixing himself some lunch since Barbara (his wife) was at work. Grandma Stephens told me, "I got off the phone with him and got to work. I made him some soup, some macaroni and cheese, and some potato salad." She handed us the bag and asked if we would take it to him. As I took the bag I thought, "Wait - this is what people should be doing for HER!" She's just so sweet. What an amazing example and an amazing life.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Hey there! Hope everyone had a fun Valentine's Day! We started the morning with pink heart-shaped waffles, then went to Lowe's to make cute little jewelry boxes (and to see our friends there!). Then we took Valentines to Granny and Nana. Then (as per Quentin's suggestion), we went swimming at the Rec Center. The girls LOVE to go swimming, and it was a fun, different activity for a cold, wintry day. After that, we spent a romantic afternoon as a family, helping clean the church! It really wasn't so bad (Quentin told the girls it was a way we could show Heavenly Father on Valentine's Day that we love Him), and we rewarded ourselves afterward by getting Bajio's to go. We brought it home and watched Steve Martin in "Roxanne." Hope everyone had a fun day!

Project: Completed

I'm sure most of you have seen those little "File Folder/Quiet Folder" games floating around sacrament meetings - little gospel-centered games to entertain and keep kids quiet. They're something I've seen before I even had kids and thought were neat. Last year when I was on the Enrichment Committee, I had a great idea to have an Enrichment activity to work on these little folders. We had a great turnout and I thought I would be motivated to get them done. I chose 10 to make copies of and began working on them. Then put them away. And kept looking at them and feeling guilty for not finishing them. Well, this weekend the girls and I worked hard and finally finished them - well, 5 of the 10. And I figured that's enough for now. Those little buggers take forever to copy, color, cut, laminate, cut again, put magnets on.... But they're worth it. All 3 girls sat like angels during sacrament meeting today, plus Kiera began learning how to calculate 10% tithing. It's good to finally have them done! Maybe I'll eventually get around to getting the other ones done - someday.

Oops - I Did it Again

Hmmmm.... It seems like my hair and I go through a cycle: I let it grow out sort of long-ish, then get sick of it, cut it, hate it, let it grow out again, get sick of it, cut it, etc. etc. I guess I'm never really happy with how my hair is. Well, I did it again. I got my hair cut. I've been eyeing styles for a few months and chose the one I wanted - a shoulder-length "Bob" (yes, I know that totally sounds totally a mom-ish). Anyway, yesterday I took advantage of Quentin being able to watch the girls and I went to have it cut. Let me just say - whenever I get my hair cut, it always ends up shorter than I plan. I told the lady "Shoulder Length" - well, it's "Chin Length"...and the difference between shoulder and chin is quite big. Ugh. It's short. Shorter than I've probably ever had it. But whattaya do except wait till it grows out again?! I actually don't really mind the length as much as the fact that it's just so poofy (or fluffy as Kiera calls it) on the ends - it makes my hair look like a triangle. Notice I haven't posted a picture. I have to figure out a way to make it look halfway decent before I face everyone at church today. I've got 3 hours to work on it - wish me luck!

Draper Temple

This afternoon we got to go to the Draper Temple open house. We jumped at the chance for the girls to be able to go inside a temple. Since there weren't many good times left to choose from, we had to pick what we could and went this afternoon. Makenna skipped preschool, we got Kiera out of school 1/2 hour early, and Quentin took a half a day off work. It was a neat opportunity for us. The girls loved seeing the baptismal font, the bride's room and the celestial room. This will be something they won't forget.

Afterward, since we were already out that way, we stopped off at Ikea and had dinner at Sweet Tomatoes. Mmmmm! It felt like a vacation day!

Bragging Rights

Okay, so I have to brag. I just got off the phone with my mom and was telling her about Kiera's "Parent-Teacher Conference" (or whatever it's called nowdays) last night. I told my mom that I thought about writing about it on my blog but felt like I would sound like a proud mom bragging about my daughter - and my mom said I should! So here goes!

We are just so proud of Kiera! She receives lots of recognition for her politeness and genuine kindess toward others. And we're also thrilled at how much she enjoys learning, loves school, and just can't get enough of reading. She'll sit for literally hours at a time, devouring a book that she can't put down. Anyway, Kiera's teacher said that she is reading at a third grade level (remember - she's in FIRST grade) and is on a math level that is in the middle of second grade. Wow - I'm impressed. But it also makes me wonder - are all the kids doing this well; and if so, maybe the coursework needs to be stepped up a bit. On the other hand, if Kiera really is on a higher level, I worry that maybe she's not being stimulated enough at school. I'm thankful for the school's computer program and that each student can work at his/her own level, but still.... Whatever the case, we're just happy that Kiera loves learning and is just doing so well.

In other news, we have an announcement that probably no one else cares about but us - but we get to keep our trees!! A couple of months ago, Rocky Mountain Power came to our door and told us that they would have to remove the 3-4 flowering pear trees in our backyard - the trees next to our patio that are so beautiful during each season and which give us much-needed shade. They said they needed to remove them because of the power line overhead. We put in a refusal and have had 2 other representatives come to talk to us - and we got a little freaked out when we noticed our neighbor's 25-year-old weeping willow had vanished one day! But yesterday the forester for Rocky Mountain came out and told us that they reviewed our case and are willing to keep the trees trimmed (for free) and not have to remove them. I know it's silly, but I can't tell you how relieved I am! Yay!

Invention

Ever since she was just tiny, Makenna has always loved anything animal-related. But lately she's been fascinated with leashes. She'll find her stuffed animals, little lizards from the dollar store (one of which she named Pickle), little hampster erasers, you name it - and want to put a leash on it. Her leashes have ranged from bits of ribbon to my detachable purse strap to...straws that have been taped together. Hmmmm....

Sleepover - Part 2

A couple of months ago we had the girls' best friends Chloe and Sophie over for a sleepover, and Friday night they had Kiera and Makenna over there. I was a little nervous about the girls getting homesick when it came time to go to sleep, but I guess they did just fine - we didn't get any calls in the middle of the night!! The girls can't stop talking about it. They had so much fun! (And thanks to Chloe & Sophie's photographer-mom, we've got some great pictures!)