Spring Breakers.

This past week the girls have spent spring break at my parents.  They truly live by the motto that "What happens at Grandma and Papa's stays at Grandma and Papa's."  One thing is for certain, they always have a good time and come home very tired. 

 

My sister took a day off to spend with the girls.  She took them shopping and to lunch.  She let each of the girls pick out a pair of shoes.  Of course, they picked the craziest shoes in the store.  The only thing I could think is "Holy Laces".  My mom informed me that the shoes actually have zippers on the sides.  Thank goodness!  I thought certainly Stephanie was paying me back for all of the obnoxiously loud toys I used to seek out for her kids.

After that, she took them to Claire's to pick out an accessory of their choice.  Sidney picked out a Justin Bieber necklace.  Seriously?  We are going to have a long talk about judgement of character:)  Kendall sported some new shades.  Aunt Stephie certainly does spoil them!

They went non-stop.  However, my mom was smart and stockpiled crafts for a bit of downtime between activities.

One of the days my parents took the girls and Hallie swimming at Stoneridge. 

Sid informed me that she did not swim very long, "Only for a minute and an hour."  The real story is that they swam for nearly 3 hours.  Needless to say she fell asleep on the way home. 

For the Grand Finale, my parents took all four grand kids to Triple Play with unlimited fun passes.  They played laser tag and miniature golf, rode go-karts, bowled and rock climbed.  It was a great way to end spring break.  They even ran into cousin Kami there.

Though I am glad they had fun, I will be glad to have them home.  The mornings have been way to quiet!!!

Sid and the Good Life.

This year Sidney has had the good fortune to hang out with Grandma Terrell for some one on one time every day.  It has been so great for both of them.  A few weeks back, they visited the new mall.  Sidney has dubbed it "her" mall and requests that no one go there without her. 

Grandma has been taking her to the parks and the library to play.

Terrell has started attending a women's bible study.  Sidney has been going with her.  The church offers childcare, but instead Sidney sits right next to Grandma and listens in.  All of the ladies love her.  Sidney comes home telling us all about Dot, Ruth, Joyce and the many other ladies she meets.  Every once in a while she spouts off something interesting she has learned, so at least she is listening.  I think they are both going to miss their special time when next fall rolls around.

Sporty Girls.

For those of you who have not heard...Cal Poly made it to the NCAA tournament.  They played-in and won.  Next, they played a first seed team.  They were not so fortunate to win that game.  This was their first ever bid to the NCAA tournament in school history.  Their journey to the tournament is a pretty remarkable one.  Go Poly!
cal-poly-wins-big-west-tourney-as-7th-seed

The girls have long since outgrown their Cal Poly gear.  They have even outgrown the University of Montana outfits that Grandma Terrell got for them (Kevin is grateful for that).  Inspired by March Madness, the girls each got a new cheerleader outfit complete with kick pants that say Boise State on them.

 

Kendall has been learning to play basketball in PE class.  She was even able to follow along with the Cal Poly game.  She has become a bit obsessed with "shooting hoops" as she calls it.  A couple of weeks ago, she woke up at 7am on Sunday morning and headed out the door to shoot hoops.

 

Sidney has been asking for roller skates for several months now.  We found a pair at the local second hand store that were in mint condition.  We got them for her on the condition that she would share them with her sister (the skates are adjustable).  So far, so good.  There has been very minimal fighting.

 

Here is Kendall taking her turn on the skates.

 

The weather has been so nice lately.  I have spring fever and cannot wait for all of the planting to begin.  We have started to clean up the yard, and our tulips are almost ready to bloom.  The girls have been outside most days.  I need to be patient though.  Sometimes I get a little over zealous.  Last Saturday was a perfect example.  I went for a walk with a short sleeve shirt and thin zip up sweatshirt.  I froze my rear off.  It was so cold, I actually debated turning around.  Instead, I tried running to warm up.  It had minimal effect.  When I got back to the house, the thermometer said 34 degrees.  Dressing appropriately would have been prudent!

 

Not sure if anyone else watches The Good Wife, but this weeks show was a total shocker.  I did not see that one coming!

Living Life to the Fullest.

Kendall has been having the time of her life lately.  She works very hard and plays equally as hard.  She decided to participate in the county wide Awana games.  She spent 3 weeks attending practices.  Her team was made up of kids from several churches in the valley.  The competition was held at one of the local high schools.  She is the one in the yellow shirt leading her team onto the floor.

 

They played hard and had a good time.  She is raising her arms in victory. 

 

When I asked her if they had won, she replied with excitement, "Yes.  We took third place."  I said, "That is awesome.  How many teams were there?"  She replied, "Three!"  I love it! 

 

Last week, Kevin and I received a letter from the school requesting our attendance at an award ceremony the following day.  We showed up and were very excited to see that Kendall had earned the reading award for First Grade.  She giggled the whole time.  We are so proud of her. She loves reading and writing.  It was great to see her passion and hard work being rewarded! 

Her best friend, Katenee received the leadership award.  Here they are posing for a picture with the rest of the award winners. 

Yes, that is my child screaming!

I am writing this story for the girls to read when they are mothers of young children.  I want them to know that we have all been there!  I want them to know that as wonderful as they are, they too have caused their mom to experience “that moment”.

We had an incident in the mall the other day.  However, it was not my first incident.  It was my second disastrous moment.  It was that dreaded moment that every mom encounters.  The moment when you wish a great sinkhole would open up and swallow you up.  The moment when you know that all eyes are turned on you.  Many of them thinking, “I am so glad my kid’s would never do that.”  But, alas, they all do!  Some are just more vocal than others, and my girls are vocal indeed!

I remember the first incident like it was yesterday.  I reminded Kendall of it the other day.  We laughed at it heartily.  After all, it was hindsight.  We have come very far since that dreadful day at the gift shop in Seely, Montana.  It was the day that I took Kendall in the bathroom, and she screamed like a mad woman.  After the screaming had subsided, I had to carry her out with my head held high through the store.  UGH!

Last weekend was Sidney’s turn, and I was so much calmer, so much more prepared.  I could actually make eye contact with other women as I carried her from the play land, through JCP, through the parking lot and into the van.  As I recall, her screaming stopped about halfway home and was replaced with a deep sleep. 

How did this happen you might be asking?  It all started off innocently enough.  Kevin took Kendall out to Vallivue to finish some work.  I decided to take Sidney to the mall play area.  We had been there for about 90 minutes.  She had met a few other girls her age.  They were a bit older than the rest of the kids, and their play had turned a bit rough.  They were pulling, swinging, running and generally acting a bit too wild for an indoor play area.  Like any responsible parent, I called Sidney over to sit and relax for a few minutes. 

It was at that moment that things went downhill in a hurry.  She crossed her arms and started to show serious attitude.  I calmly asked her to go put on her shoes.  She would not.  I then went to get her shoes.  She would not let me put them on either.  I explained to her that we would be going home.  If she would not put on her shoes, I would have to carry her out to the van.  She huffed, puffed and said no.  If I sound like a saint, I actually was on this day.  The universe was with me, because I actually felt calm and had compassion for my tired little girl.  I tossed her shoes in my backpack and picked her up gently. 

Approximately 3 feet out of the play area, the screaming began.  By screaming, I mean ear-piercing, top of her lungs, screaming.  It was just like a broken record.  “I want my shoes on.  I want my shoes on.”  What was a mom to do?  She was hysterical.  I just had to walk, and walk I did.  Quickly and calmly, out to the van.  Thank you to the many women that I passed that smiled at me warmly and knowingly.  Yes, at some point, if you are going to be a mom, you are going to have an experience that only other mom’s can appreciate.  I now have two (one for each child).  Lucky Me!

While the Cat is Away...

Kevin has had state tournaments for the past three weekends:  girls bball, wrestling and boys bball.  One thing about Kevin is his thoughtfulness.  He earned a few extra dollars for the tournaments.  He immediately encouraged me to take the girls out and do something special.  What better way to spend a Saturday than to get a mani or a pedi?  Kendall opted for the pedicure.  She was in heaven.  My at home pedicures have a lot to live up to now.

Sidney opted for the manicure.  The ladies at the spa were so nice to the girls.  They painted beautiful flowers with gemstone centers on their fingers.  I opted for the manicure - can you say cracked cuticles?  Wow, my skin is moisture starved.

Last Friday night, the girls picked out a craft to do while Kevin was away.  Once we had decided on a shadowbox, I mentioned that they may want to lay out their plans on paper before they start.  Sidney surprised me by saying, "Yes, we should make a blueprint."  I asked her to repeat herself, since I had no idea she knew that word.  When I asked her where she learned the word, she replied "My heart just told me."  Those girls and their hearts.  I only wish my heart was that smart!

The boxes turned out pretty cool.  The girls spent 3 hours working on them which, in and of itself, was pretty impressive.  The butterflies actually hang from pipe cleaners through the top of the box, so they can "fly".