i stand corrected

Apparently, it doesn't matter that I was scrambling to put away Monday night's homework (Word Sort) so that I could get everyone bathed and in bed by a decent hour. R's should look like R's and not V's.

 

Thank goodness E was able to remind me.

the neglected second child turns four

Sweet Baby A turned four (4!) on Saturday. I had every intention of writing a sentimental post about how much she has grown (as I've done when she turned one, two and three), but we were so busy celebrating that I didn't get a chance. And, though I feel bad about it, I know that she doesn't mind. She is such an easy going kid that she was just happy to get some presents and a Hannah Montana cake (that she picked out all by herself).
Dear Sweet Baby A,

Happy 4th Birthday! Turning 4 was a big deal to you, if only because it means you are one year closer to Kindergarten. Oh, how you want to be a big kid so badly. You want to ride the bus and go to the same school as your big sister, E. You like to say that you are "almost in kindergarten", even though "almost" is 11 months away.

There was a time when you were a loner when you played outside. You are the youngest on our street, and you were too young to keep up with the other kids. Not anymore. When the neighbor kids come to our door, they are asking if both of you can come out and play. And, off you go on your bike, pedaling as fast as your little legs can go!

But, for all that big kid stuff you do, you still are my baby. You fell off you bike yesterday, and while E and the rest of the kids stayed outside, you were happy to come snuggle with me and your beloved Taggie, who at 4 is looking much much much worse for wear.

This year is going to be so exciting! I can't wait to see how much you grow and change. So, happy belated birthday, Sweet Baby A. And, remember, no matter how old you get you will always be my baby.

stifiling e's creativity

My girls can spend hours playing together. A big portion of this is role-playing, where E is the mommy and A is the daughter. Or E is the teacher and A is the student. Never vice versa.

Often, I'm drawn into their games...not as the mommy, mind you, but as the grandma or the teacher or dance teacher. And, most times, I'll play along without a problem.

But, yesterday was not one of those days. We were playing on the swingset, and E was handing out the roles.

E: Okay, Mommy, you be A's mommy. And, I'll be the girl who is too old to have a mommy....
Me: What do you mean "too old to have a mommy?" I'm old, and I have a mommy! Daddy has a mommy, too! Besides, you'll always be my baby. So you'll always have a mommy!
E: Okay...how about you be A's mommy. And, I'll be the girl who lives far away from her mommy so that's why she's not here.
Me: I. Beg. Your. Pardon. You will never, EVER live far away from your mommy, do you hear? You will live close to your mommy forever, so I can come and visit you!
E: Okay. How about you be A's mommy? And, I'll be the teacher.
Me: Sounds good to me.

bullet points

It's been crazy round these parts the week or so with the beginning of school and football season. Here's what's rattling around in my head, in my [NERD ALERT} favorite format...the bulleted list.

• First grade seems to be going well. E hasn't been bitching about SAC, either! Yay! And, if you need healthy ideas to pack for your kids' lunches...I highly recommend you hop on over to Sweet Pea Chef, where she has compiled a kick-ass list of things that DON'T include Lunchables!


• Yesterday was John's birthday. We have celebrate 13 of those together. The first one I took him to a really fancy French restaurant. Last night the girls and I took him to a pizza joint. My, how the mighty have fallen. We did, however, bake from scratch buy him a cake with "Happy Birthday, John!" in orange.
  


• On a related note, every member of my immediate family would prefer vanilla cake with vanilla frosting over chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. What kind of freakshows are they?!?!?!?


• We are catsitting my parents' cat, Frank, again. Hopefully, he won't run away this time. Now that the girls are older, he's actually letting them pet him. Either that, or he has early onset Stockholm Syndrome.
  


• The Slackers are California Dreaming. Well, actually, we aren't just dreaming...we are doing! All four of us are headed out to visit Baby AJ and her family before her little sister arrives! We are so excited!

first day of school

Yesterday was E's first day of first grade! Last week, we went to her Meet the Teacher. It was so funny to see that she was no longer a newbie...she was waving at kids left and right as she walked down the hall, and had to show me where the 1st grade rooms were located. Her teacher was nice, and she was excited to see that two friends from her Kindergarten class and one friend from her summer camp were in her class.

It should be noted now that my mother-in-law (Grandmom) came to our house on E's birthday with presents for E *and* all of E's school supplies. She was buying school supplies for needy kids at home...and downloaded and purchased E's list to spare us having to run all over. It was awesome...and I can't thank her enough!

Anyway, after a fun weekend that involved going to UVA for a football game, running into DC to meet a new baby, eating dinner with my parents, and hanging out with the neighbors, the day finally arrived. The family all hung out in the morning and ate breakfast together (a rarity during the week), and then we took the obligatory first day of school pictures.



Then, we piled in the car to drop E off at SAC.

I was a little worried that E would pull some of her shenanigans from last year...but no. She was so happy to see all her friends that she ran off without even a kiss good-bye (or the opportunity to take one more picture)!

From what we gathered last night, she had a good day. She had fun, likes her class,and is excited to go back. What she did at schoo, however, still remains a mystery. Whatever it was certainly wore her out...but she and A were asleep pretty quickly last night.

it's that time of the year again

It's football time, yet again.

 

And, in case you were wondering what life is like around these parts during the fall, here are the FAQs about Football Chez Slacker.

I'm not going to lie, the enthusiasm is a bit tempered around these parts this year because...well...UVA and UT are both supposed to suck. Luckily, the Cincinatti Reds are 1st in their division (and 7 1/2 games ahead of the Cards)...making it likely that they'll make the playoffs this year!

Can you just *feel* the enthusiasm that I have for watching inning after endless inning of baseball this fall? Maybe I need to write the GM for the Reds a letter.