Rainy Friday

Another rainy day here, but no complaining from me! We need as much rain as we can get. I had planned to do some much-needed cleaning this morning but a headache and two little girls prevented that from happening.

We all began to get under each other's skin. Analese wanted to just play by herself, Mara wanted to play with Analese and I just wanted the yelling and crying to stop!

So, I came up with a solution: Outside time. It was raining pretty steadily, the perfect kind of rain to jump around in and look for puddles.

I announced my plan to the girls and their eyes just lit up. We got some sweaters and jackets on, rain boots and raincoats, Mara and her winter hat...we were set!

It was cold outside, but the girls didn't mind. Mara held her arms out slightly as she walked due to the bulge of her sweater and jacket, but her smile told me it really didn't matter.

We walked around looking for puddles, and ended up on the street to watch the water flowing down the curb. Analese suggested we follow it, so off we went. We got to splash and jump as we walked...my glasses were completely speckled with raindrops. Analese found a leaf and put it in the water, gently encouraging it to "swim".

We followed the water all the way down to the storm drain, where we listened to the echo that the water made as it flowed into it. Analese found her leaf and shoved it through the holes.

We walked back to the house and ran around out back for awhile. We were soaked. Once back inside, the girls had a nice warm bath before lunch.

Turned out to be a great day!

I couldn't take photos outside, as Greg would kill me to expose the camera to water and humidity! Here of some photos of the girls getting ready....Analese would make a silly face just as I took the picture :)

AHHH!!!

When you try to post a comment on a blog, you'll notice a new feature. You can now click on a feature which lets you receive by email any follow-up comments. In other words, if you want to know if someone responds to your comment, you click the box and it will email you...

Sounds simple enough, but when I first noticed it, I thought my email address was being displayed for everyone to see! I will admit to flipping out a bit, trying to figure out which setting I had messed up, trying not to think of all the spam I could get or the fact that my last name has been posted....

So, I thought I would spare you all the drama I just went through and let you know in advance.

Have a great day!

Our Busy Day

We have had a busy morning! Analese had a "formal assessment" done for her speech-a little more involved then the last one. We got to go to the elementary school that Analese will be attending if we decide to do public school. Analese was so excited! She woke up around 5 this morning, and when Greg went in there she told him she was ready for school :) She kept asking me if she could sit next to Ms. Renee (the therapist), and then wanted to know where I was going to sit. All morning she asked me this, over and over again. On the way to school, she suddenly got nervous, and told me she was scared. I kept telling her we were just going for a short meeting, Greg and I were not leaving her, etc. but she still had her "worry-face" on the whole time.

The assessment went well. Analese had to look at different pictures and just her what she saw. Simple enough. Analese sat on my lap and answered them all without hesitation. We now have to go back November 8th for a meeting to discuss the results from today's test. Once we have that meeting, we can then set up therapy. She discussed the possibility of either having her in a group session or individualized...so we'll see what she thinks about what would be best for her.

After the assessment was over, we had to hurry home and get ready for dance class. Today they were celebrating Halloween, so Analese got to wear her butterfly princess costume...boy, was she excited! She floated when she walked, she was just beaming. She had a heart wand that went with it, but the heart fell off on the way to class. So it was just a pink stick, but surprisingly she did not seem to mind! Class was full of princesses, fairies and witches. One little girl was a dinosaur-it was adorable! The class itself was chaotic, as the girls were too preoccupied with costumes to actually dance. Analese actually did very well, because she loved looking at herself in the mirror. (I had forgotten my camera again, so no photos to show just how cute they all were!)

Analese got a piece of candy at the end of class, which did not go over too well with Mara. We had been contemplating what to do about trick-or-treating this year. We do not give the girls candy, but do not completely restrict it either. I have seen way too many "restricted children" go completely nuts over it and become obsessed....when I taught preschool I had one little girl who would search everyone else's cubby looking for sweets! So in my opinion, moderation is better. Plus, this year Analese is older and will probably realize that candy is being put into her bag (we were able to get away with just taking the bag last year). So-I think we decided to put one of Mara's safe lollipops in her bag and pull it out as her treat to eat (they'll each get to eat one thing when we get home). I think that will work this year......our fingers are crossed that it will.

The Hat

Mara wanted to pick out her own clothes to wear today (like her big sis) so I told her to go ahead!

She brings me this hat.

She wore it for 2+ hours, until her head was so sweaty I insisted she take it off :)


Her sister, of course, chose the complete opposite, in her summer dress!

Recycled Slippers

In keeping with my post about environmentally safe things, I wanted to show you these great slippers that a friend of mine makes. She uses recycled wool from sweaters and things, and gets the soles from leftover leather pieces from factories and upholstery stores....very cool! The shoes are adorable too.

So check it out....Polliwogs Shop

Love Hurts....

So...while giving Mara a BIG bear hug, my zipper causes a nasty cut right below her eye.

I guess this is truly one of those times where love really does hurt
:(

Smile: Top Ten

I mentioned this before, but it has been a rough week. Midterm exams and crying, emotional children are tough to deal with at the same time!

But, rather then dwell on the things that are getting me down, I thought I would dedicate this post to the things that made me smile today.

1. Mara, waking up as usual, full of energy. She ran down the hall this morning and stops at the kitchen in this "ta da" pose, waiting for Daddy to notice her. She gives him a huge, toothy grin and runs into the living room to find Analese and do the same thing.
2. The girls were playing doctor this morning, with Mara being the doctor. I was cleaning up breakfast, and suddenly I heard Analese screaming and crying...I found her running around the room with Mara right behind her. Analese was screaming "NOT the tweezers!". Mara had a big grin on her face, and tweezers in her hand.
   
3. Analese began screaming and crying because she said Mara was thinking about taking her purse. Mara was standing in the doorway just watching her.
4. Driving to dance class, listening to Cat Stevens...."Peace Train" comes on and Analese screams "TURN IT UP!!" and begins to sing along.
   
5. While watching her sister dance, Mara suddenly turns around and gives me a big kiss on my mouth, and then turns back around to watch some more.
6. At the end of dance class, the girls sit around a circle and each one takes a turn in the middle, doing "heel, toe, heel, toe, clap, clap, clap"...Analese swung her toe out so far she came so close to hitting her teacher in the head. She then does this long bow, making all the parents giggle around me.
   
7. While trying to nurse, my super-sleepy Mara had the giggles and would laugh anytime I looked at her.
   
8. Watching Greg dance around the room with the girls while I made dinner.
   
9. My personal favorite: Today Analese came up with names for each hand..."Lucky" and "F*cky". What can you say to that? I smile every time. And last but not least.....
   
10. watching Greg's face when she told him these names!

So what made you smile today?