Monday, November 26, 2012
Catching Up, Coming Soon
We got back last night from our week long trip to North Carolina. We started off with three days at the Outer Banks and then spent the rest of the week at Brian's parents' house in Cary. I've managed to unpack today and put up some Christmas decorations (Carter was so excited that he couldn't wait any longer), but I haven't had time to go through my pictures yet. I'll try to start catching up tomorrow!
Friday, November 23, 2012
Thanksgiving Crafts
The boys had cute Thanksgiving crafts that they brought home last week from school.
Carter made this placemat. Even though the turkey stickers were probably meant to fill the empty spaces on the sides, Carter clusters them all on the top of the handprint. This is very Carter :)
Carter's class made an Indian costume (last year, his class used pillowcases).
Rylan's class also made placemats.
And a handprint craft.
And these are the two things from our lunch with Rylan last Thursday.
Carter made this placemat. Even though the turkey stickers were probably meant to fill the empty spaces on the sides, Carter clusters them all on the top of the handprint. This is very Carter :)
Carter's class made an Indian costume (last year, his class used pillowcases).
Rylan's class also made placemats.
And a handprint craft.
And these are the two things from our lunch with Rylan last Thursday.
Rolling
Last Friday, Missy and I took the kids to Aspen Grove Park to play. After playing on the playground for a bit, we walked the loop around the park. We stopped at this big hill and the boys had a blast rolling down. I love Luke's "method"!
Rylan didn't participate much though and got REALLY upset when I rolled down once (it took him a few minutes to stop crying). I'm not sure what was up with that!
Rylan didn't participate much though and got REALLY upset when I rolled down once (it took him a few minutes to stop crying). I'm not sure what was up with that!
Lunch with Rylan
On the last day of school before Thanksgiving break (Thursday, November 15th), Rylan's teachers invited the parents to the class for lunch and a craft. Rylan's teachers still grab the kids at the door and hand them out to us at the end of the day, never letting us step foot into the room, so it was nice to FINALLY get to really see where Rylan spends his Tuesdays and Thursdays. (I have been in the room once before to quickly see a picture Ms. Jayne had on her phone of Rylan falling asleep in his chair during lunch while talking to her.)
When the parents started arriving on Thursday, the kids were still on the playground so we all got to peek at them playing together without them knowing we were there. Rylan was pretty independent but did play a little with one of the other little boys.
When the kids went into their room, they were supposed to sit on their assigned squares and wait to have their jackets taken off. A lot of the kids were distracted with the parents there, but Rylan did just what he was supposed to and waited patiently!
Maddox is in front of Rylan in this picture ...
More of the class (Ms. Karen is taking off one of the kid's jackets on the left and Ms. Jayne is in the middle back)...
Next the teachers set out the kids' lunches that we had packed for them at a long table. They sat Rylan next to Radnor, his BEST BUDDY!
I wish I knew all the kids' names like I did quickly with Carter's class the last two years but a lot of the moms of these kids work and a few of them just had babies so a lot of different people drop off and pick up the kids and I just haven't gotten to meet a lot of moms. And it doesn't help with the teachers never letting us in the room!
The teachers hung up a bunch of pictures they had taken this year on the back wall. There were three of Rylan.
During nap with his Mickey (he sleeps right next to the door) ...
Both of Rylan's teachers told us how Radnor and Rylan always use the fireman dressup clothes. If one gets to it earlier than the other, he will hold the other outfit and give it to his buddy. They apparently play with this stuff everyday.
Rylan doing an apple craft ...
Once the kids were done eating, they did a Thanksgiving craft. They made turkeys and on each feather, had to write what they are thankful for. Rylan offered up firetrucks and two kids in his class (Radnor and Lucas). We had to do some prompting for the remaining three feathers (Mommy & Daddy, Carter, and Charlotte).
And last the kids got to fill baggies with Blessing Mix that the teachers had mixed up before we got there. The kids got to wear super big gloves to grab the food and fill their bags.
Some of the kids went home with their parents after this but we left Rylan there to take his nap (since it would be longer than if I took him home and then had to get him up early to pick up Carter). It was great to see Rylan in his classroom environment and I hope the teachers are now a little more willing to let us in the room!
When the parents started arriving on Thursday, the kids were still on the playground so we all got to peek at them playing together without them knowing we were there. Rylan was pretty independent but did play a little with one of the other little boys.
When the kids went into their room, they were supposed to sit on their assigned squares and wait to have their jackets taken off. A lot of the kids were distracted with the parents there, but Rylan did just what he was supposed to and waited patiently!
Maddox is in front of Rylan in this picture ...
More of the class (Ms. Karen is taking off one of the kid's jackets on the left and Ms. Jayne is in the middle back)...
Next the teachers set out the kids' lunches that we had packed for them at a long table. They sat Rylan next to Radnor, his BEST BUDDY!
I wish I knew all the kids' names like I did quickly with Carter's class the last two years but a lot of the moms of these kids work and a few of them just had babies so a lot of different people drop off and pick up the kids and I just haven't gotten to meet a lot of moms. And it doesn't help with the teachers never letting us in the room!
During nap with his Mickey (he sleeps right next to the door) ...
Both of Rylan's teachers told us how Radnor and Rylan always use the fireman dressup clothes. If one gets to it earlier than the other, he will hold the other outfit and give it to his buddy. They apparently play with this stuff everyday.
Rylan doing an apple craft ...
Once the kids were done eating, they did a Thanksgiving craft. They made turkeys and on each feather, had to write what they are thankful for. Rylan offered up firetrucks and two kids in his class (Radnor and Lucas). We had to do some prompting for the remaining three feathers (Mommy & Daddy, Carter, and Charlotte).
And last the kids got to fill baggies with Blessing Mix that the teachers had mixed up before we got there. The kids got to wear super big gloves to grab the food and fill their bags.
Some of the kids went home with their parents after this but we left Rylan there to take his nap (since it would be longer than if I took him home and then had to get him up early to pick up Carter). It was great to see Rylan in his classroom environment and I hope the teachers are now a little more willing to let us in the room!
Friday, November 16, 2012
Dinosaurs
One of the little girls in Carter's class who was sick for his party gave him a gift card for Target on Tuesday. We needed to stop by there after school anyway so I let Carter go ahead and spend the money the day he got it. We didn't have much time so we started looking in the Dollar Spot that's by the entrance. He immediately found some toy dinosaurs he liked. He picked one out for him and then got another one and said it was for Rylan. SO SWEET. He had enough money to get one more so he picked out another one for himself.
I'm so proud of Carter for being so kind! However, there are PLENTY of times he is not!
I'm so proud of Carter for being so kind! However, there are PLENTY of times he is not!
NC State
We caught a good portion of an NC State basketball game this afternoon.
Look at our current ranking!!!
Look at our current ranking!!!
Duke is ranked 9th and Carolina is 11th. How long has it been since State is ranked higher than them?!? I know it's super early in the season and things will probably totally change, but WOW!
Thank You Meal
Carter had his Thanksgiving performance at school on Wednesday. Brian was able to take off of work and come watch it with Rylan and me. Carter did great! It was hard to tell how much or how loud he was singing but he was very good at doing all the choreography. Even though he knew it by heart, he did as he was supposed to and kept his eyes on the music teacher most of the performance.
Carter's class was on the front of the steps and we had front row seats to watch them.
Front - Carter, Lyla, Campbell
Middle - Sadie Mae, Hunt, Cooper
Back - Quinn, Madeline
Missing - Sarah Kate
I used our old Flip camera to film the whole performance. It's a first generation and not great but it did okay.
Here are the kids walking into the auditorium. Carter got a little lost once putting his donated clothing item on the table but eventually made is way to his "x" on the steps/stage.
The first song was "The Thank You Meal".
"The Recipe Song"
"Carrots and Peas"
"Together"
The kids had signs on the front and back of their shirts. The back was a food that they liked better than carrots, peas, broccoli, and beans (as sung in the song). On the front they had what they were thankful for. The back of Carter's shirt said pizza and the front said family. When the music teacher asked what the kids were thankful for (they were supposed to say what was on the front of their shirts), Carter immediately yelled out "Pizza!". The music teacher's response was "Family, oh, and pizza". I love how Carter seemed like he wasn't paying attention but yelled out a response right away.
"Give Thanks with a Happy Heart"
It was fun getting to watch Carter's first "formal" performance!!! He did great and we were so proud!
Carter's class was on the front of the steps and we had front row seats to watch them.
Front - Carter, Lyla, Campbell
Middle - Sadie Mae, Hunt, Cooper
Back - Quinn, Madeline
Missing - Sarah Kate
I used our old Flip camera to film the whole performance. It's a first generation and not great but it did okay.
Here are the kids walking into the auditorium. Carter got a little lost once putting his donated clothing item on the table but eventually made is way to his "x" on the steps/stage.
The first song was "The Thank You Meal".
"The Recipe Song"
"Carrots and Peas"
"Together"
The kids had signs on the front and back of their shirts. The back was a food that they liked better than carrots, peas, broccoli, and beans (as sung in the song). On the front they had what they were thankful for. The back of Carter's shirt said pizza and the front said family. When the music teacher asked what the kids were thankful for (they were supposed to say what was on the front of their shirts), Carter immediately yelled out "Pizza!". The music teacher's response was "Family, oh, and pizza". I love how Carter seemed like he wasn't paying attention but yelled out a response right away.
"Give Thanks with a Happy Heart"
It was fun getting to watch Carter's first "formal" performance!!! He did great and we were so proud!
4 Years Old!
Carter turned 4 years old yesterday!!! We tried to make his day special all day.
I decorated the kitchen on Wednesday night by hanging balloon garland and putting up the "Happy Birthday" sign I had made for his party last year.
We put out Carter's presents too so he could open them when he got up. We got him a new bike (he still needs to get better at his balance bike because we are trying to not put the training wheels on this one), a Rescue Bots firehouse, and a Leap Frog Tag solar system book set (all from 70% off sales at Target). He also had presents from all the grandparents to open.
Carter woke up at 5 am complaining that his stomach hurt (he's had some tummy issues for about a week - nothing major but he's been complaining a bit). So we had him "cuddle" in bed with us (annoy us) and watch cartoons until Rylan got up not much later.
Carter loved all his gifts!
Next we made blueberry muffins (a favorite of the boys right now).
Please ignore my dreadful singing!!!
The boys had school on Thursday. They helped me make cookies on Wednesday afternoon for Carter to bring to his class. I have a recipe that holds the shape of the cookie cutters well but that means making the dough from scratch. It's fun but messy with the help of the kids!
We made "4"s.
When I picked Carter up from school, I brought in balloons for him. He loves Spiderman so I was really happy to have found a Spiderman balloon at Publix! He was really surprised and then everyone was telling him "happy birthday" as we walked out.
Ms. Anne put a sign outside the classroom announcing Carter's birthday and he also got to wear a crown!
I ordered pizza for dinner and Carter got another round of "Happy Birthday" sung to him with a candle to blow out!
And then left over cupcakes from Carter's party with one last round of singing! Again, please don't turn up the volume!
Today Carter kept telling me he could do things by himself because he's 4 now. That works for me and hopefully he keeps it up!
I decorated the kitchen on Wednesday night by hanging balloon garland and putting up the "Happy Birthday" sign I had made for his party last year.
We put out Carter's presents too so he could open them when he got up. We got him a new bike (he still needs to get better at his balance bike because we are trying to not put the training wheels on this one), a Rescue Bots firehouse, and a Leap Frog Tag solar system book set (all from 70% off sales at Target). He also had presents from all the grandparents to open.
Carter woke up at 5 am complaining that his stomach hurt (he's had some tummy issues for about a week - nothing major but he's been complaining a bit). So we had him "cuddle" in bed with us (annoy us) and watch cartoons until Rylan got up not much later.
Carter loved all his gifts!
Next we made blueberry muffins (a favorite of the boys right now).
Please ignore my dreadful singing!!!
The boys had school on Thursday. They helped me make cookies on Wednesday afternoon for Carter to bring to his class. I have a recipe that holds the shape of the cookie cutters well but that means making the dough from scratch. It's fun but messy with the help of the kids!
We made "4"s.
When I picked Carter up from school, I brought in balloons for him. He loves Spiderman so I was really happy to have found a Spiderman balloon at Publix! He was really surprised and then everyone was telling him "happy birthday" as we walked out.
Ms. Anne put a sign outside the classroom announcing Carter's birthday and he also got to wear a crown!
And then left over cupcakes from Carter's party with one last round of singing! Again, please don't turn up the volume!
Today Carter kept telling me he could do things by himself because he's 4 now. That works for me and hopefully he keeps it up!
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Monkey Joe's Playdate
I organized a playdate for both boys' classes at Monkey Joe's on Monday. Only Madeline from Carter's class came but Radnor, Lucas, and Maddox all came from Rylan's class. Also, Missy and Jen and their kids were there. So we had a huge crowd and I bounced around from mom to mom catching up. We figured out that Radnor's dad just got hired by Missy at Jen and Cliff's company (Cliff started the company and Missy is head of HR there - it's a smallish company, around 60 employees, I think).
Anyway, all the kids had fun, as always!
I finally got to see Rylan and Radnor play together. We met up for a playdate several weeks ago and the boys barely acknowledged one another. But since then, their teachers always talk about how inseparable they are.
I can see why these two get along so well - they play exactly the same way. They were bouncing all over one of the inflatables and falling down on purpose as they ran into things. I know that's what kids do in the inflatables, but there was just something about how they were doing it the exact same way and both cracking up at one another!
Anyway, all the kids had fun, as always!
I finally got to see Rylan and Radnor play together. We met up for a playdate several weeks ago and the boys barely acknowledged one another. But since then, their teachers always talk about how inseparable they are.
I can see why these two get along so well - they play exactly the same way. They were bouncing all over one of the inflatables and falling down on purpose as they ran into things. I know that's what kids do in the inflatables, but there was just something about how they were doing it the exact same way and both cracking up at one another!
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