Meredith: "White is boring!"

I'm surprised she wanted to wear her white sweater this evening because earlier this week she declared "White is boring!".  Her (day) outfit today was much more colorful than this (evening) outfit.  We've taken to calling her Rainbow Bright when she wears her hoodie and/or rainbow terry shorts.  Today a cashier at Trader Joe's also called her Rainbow Bright.  I should have taken a photo of her "join friends for an animal show at the library and have lunch at the new kitchen in town" outfit.  It was quite the (oh, so colorful!!) sight!

Art Extravaganza

Meredith's preschool held their Art Extravaganza today and yesterday.  It's an annual fundraiser for the school.  All the kids have a piece in the show and parents can purchase their child's piece for $20.  Of course everyone buys their child's piece, because really, how could you not?  I really like Meredith's painting -- there's depth, texture, vivid colors and the enlarged, abstract flower is beautiful.  Of course, I'm biased but I thought it was the best in her class.  I'll probably move her name to the back when I frame it, but it'll be proudly displayed somewhere in our house.  She's so pleased with it, too! 

Thomas the Paleontologist

He says it all the time and whenever asked the question of what he wants to be when he grows up, this is the answer he gives.  We'll see if his interest in dinosaurs continues...

Science Camp today!

Thomas observed the dissection of a chicken today during his weekly Science Camp.  He was the most interested of the children and participated more than the others.  He just loves all this science stuff whether it's anatomy, physics, astronomy, paleontology, etc.  A few times during the dissection I had to suggest he move back an inch or two because he would get so close.  He was really very curious and enjoyed watching and listening to his teacher explain the different things they were looking at and what their functions are.  The chicken was very young and really quite small, but this afternoon he was able to see the skull, brain, heart, eyeballs, wings, spinal cord, intestines, liver...  This is the true beauty of Science Camp: he gets to do and see all this stuff -- and I don't have to! 

all dressed up

Meredith is very much interested in typical girl stuff like makeup, clothes, shoes, purses, jewelry, etc... and she's only four!  I laugh every time she asks me if I'm going to bring my purse because then she also wants to bring hers (the Hello Kitty purse above is always her first choice).  And she notices every little thing I do differently -- new earrings, different bracelet, something in my hair, clothes, etc.  It's fun to watch this little girl try so hard to be a big girl.   

learning to balance

Meredith has told us for several weeks (months?) now that she wants to remove the training wheels from her bicycle. She'll say that, but then soon after she'll change her mind. I've suggested that we remove the training wheels and the pedals so she can understand balance. She's such an amazing little person and so desperately wants to be a bigger person. Today she said again she wanted to take the training wheels off and when I suggested the pedals also be removed, she was game. And she did great! No surprises there.

Thomas' Spiderman/Superhero Party

birthday boy as Spiderman ~ little sister as a superhero

.

pinata craziness ~ YUMMY birthday cake (notice the mistake?)

.

singing Happy Birthday to You! to Thomas

.

The last few years we've celebrated Meredith's birthdays at home and Thomas' at another place outside the home.  It's fun to have them at home, but it's also a lot of work with all the cleaning beforehand, party setup, post-party cleanup, etc.  And with their birthdays less than 3 weeks apart, it's much easier to have one at home and one somewhere else.  However, this year Thomas really wanted his party to be at our house.  So we invited all our friends over for a BBQ, bounce house, pinata, superhero mask craft, birthday cake and hours and hours of fun.

.

superheroes

.

and more superheroes

.

and more superheroes

.

non-stop superhero action (for over 4 hours!)

Thomas is SIX years old!

Thomas' favorite breakfast - Daddy's Spectacular French Toast - topped with fresh strawberries and a whipped topping. What a great way to start his birthday and a fun birthday weekend. Happy Birthday, Thomas!

new swim center

Late this afternoon the kids started swim lessons at a new facility that just opened last week in our area. They were so excited that they got into their swimsuits and got all their stuff ready hours before the lesson -- like three hours before.

aquatic trivia

I love how these places that we frequent continue to change for these two. Today we dropped by the SeaLife Aquarium adjacent to Legoland for an hour. They've done this trivia card in the past, but it's always been more of the adults doing the work while they just run from one exhibit to another. And they were out of the trivia cards when we visited with Grandma last month so the kids were very happy to see the trivia cards today. Thomas and Meredith really didn't pay much attention to the exhibits today at all. Instead they were totally focused on the trivia and enjoyed seeking them out. Thomas would read the question and (3) possible answers and then together they'd decide which one was correct. It was fun to watch them work together and to be so into it today. And it was esp. fun for me to listen as Thomas read all the questions and answers himself. It's amazing how quickly these reading skills develop!

* Meredith had so much fun that when I tucked her into tonight she asked if we could go again after school tomorrow.

"Bela" by M

I rarely see this side of Bela. Maybe it's what she looks like to Meredith when she's grumbling or something?

Happy Mother's Day drawing from T

I got my hair cut yesterday and Thomas drew this of me today. Looks just like me with the shorter hair -- I'd say he captured me perfectly!

Happy Mother's Day card from M

party photos

g'night Thomas

Can you make out Thomas in this photo? He loves to read and has taken to reading in bed after they both go to bed for the night. He just takes one book into bed with him so he isn't awake too much longer, but I'd be curious to see when he eventually lulls off. He loves using the headlamp.

ch-ch-ch-changes at Legoland for us

We've been visiting Legoland for three years and it's still something new and different nearly every single time we go. Today we realized that Thomas is now old enough and tall enough for any and all rides without an adult accompanying him on the ride. This really changes the park experience for him! Meredith is now tall enough (and in one case, old enough) for a handful of new-to-her rides, too. I love how this favorite family park continues to change for us. We ran into our neighbors there this afternoon and all four kids had such a great time riding rides together and running crazy.

Meredith & Me

tonight's wishes

His: A pet dragon. ~~~~~~~~~~ Hers: A pretty pony.

cards for teachers

Last year for Teacher Appreciation Week Thomas and I made chipboard apples w/caterpillars (inspired by Eric Carle's book The Very Hungry Caterpillar) for cards to give to his teachers. This year we decided to do the same for Meredith's teachers since the cards are relatively quick, easy and we had 5 chipboard apples leftover from last year that were ready to be used. Meredith has two to give to her teachers tomorrow and Thomas also wanted to do one for his teacher. They worked on the note together, him spelling the words aloud so she could write them, too. I love seeing how differently they write at 4 and 5 years old.

90* day

We're experiencing unusually warm weather this week. It began Saturday and is expected to continue through tomorrow before cooling off a little. Living in a beach community, a mild and temperate 70*s is expected. A 90* day throws us all for a loop and has everyone clamoring for the beach, pool or spraygrounds. Today we passed on a pool invite and headed to the beach. The ocean is still cool, but a few hours on the beach playing in the sand in our swimsuits was perfect.