Swim meet

Regan participated in another swim meet today. She continues to impress us with her abilities and brings tears to our eyes as we watch her. All 4 grandparents were able to make it to this meet and helped cheer her on. This meet, she was moved up to the 6-8 year old bracket which was much more challenging. Despite this, she managed to finish 2nd in the backstroke and 4th in the freestyle.

 Little sister Sidney might be her biggest fan; and like a true fan, gave her a giant huge, dripping wet suit and all!

 After several unsuccessful pictures, I begged her "please open your eyes so I can get a decent picture".

This is what i got:

Congrats Regan! We are all so proud of you!
We love you!!

Friendships

The girls have become increasingly busy with their social calendars, and keeping everything straight is a full time job. I must admit  though, it's a lot of fun to help foster friendships and enjoy their ability to learn to share, play and grow outside of school and siblings. We were on playdate #3 of the weekend today and Sidney got to spend some time with her BFF while I and BFF's mom got to enjoy catching up. We took a break and busted out the cameras to watch them play with the Dora car and laughed as we thought about this scene in 13 years when they started to drive.....

First it was Sidney navigating while Ava drove

Sidney then took over and managed to get them hung up in a pine tree; what you can't see is Sidney on the left literally stuck in the tree!

 Then it was Ava to the rescue as they started their getaway!!

Vehicle fair 2011

The calendar shows it is Saturday April 28th....but it feels more like March 1st. It's cold, rainy and dreary. Despite that, the girls and I headed to a local shopping mall for the annual vehicle fair. Half dressed in winter gear and half dressed in rain gear, we set out for some fun.

They climbed in and on dump trucks, school buses, charter buses, SWAT vans, sand trucks, fire trucks and more.

 At the end of the morning as we headed home, Regan said "mom,that was SO fun!". It was music to my ears to know she appreciated my efforts, in the cold, to take them on a fun adventure! I too thought it was SO fun!

Star of the Week

Sidney was given the honor of being "Star of the Week" this week. The picture below speaks a thousand words, she was so proud of herself! There were pictures and comments all about Sidney on display for the entire week in her classroom. She thought it was pretty cool; expcept she scolded me when I brought in pictures with her AND Regan together.....let's just say she wasn't thrilled to be sharing the spotlight this week.

WE LOVE YOU OUR LITTLE STAR!

Spring nights

Ryan is on "close week" at work which translates into "just me and the girls" all evening. We have all sorts of crazy fun. And last night, with the weather so amazing, we did everything imaginable outside, starting with dinner on the deck. We moved to the front and did a little bowling which happens to collide well with Regan's gym class as they are working on bowling. 

Then we headed out for a long walk to soak up all the sun. Regan brought her scooter and I had to laugh as she kept complaining of her right leg being sore. I'd suggest she switch but she just couldn't figure out the coordination part. In due time....

The night ended with a lot of rolling down the ever so slight hill in our front yard. I laughed as I thought back to my brother and I doing the same thing so many years ago. In fact, I remember finding an old barrel and climbing inside as he gave me a shove down the hill! Round and round I went until I reached the bottom. I'm waiting for the day for the girls to discover something similar!



Stories by Regan

One of Regan's favorite things to do is write stories. So when they had an 'ocean' theme recently in school and got to write a story about all she learned, I'm pretty sure she was in her glory. 

Below is her short story of facts, complete with something called brave spelling (the children sound out the letters and do the best they can without asking for help). Repeatedly, her teacher says "we don't have to be perfect every time, we just have to try". 

This little girl impresses me so much!

Making her family proud

I'm pretty sure daddy, Grandma Jan and Papa are going to be glowing as they see this picture.

She lacks form....so you all have your work cut out for you.
But the important thing is: she's interested and she loves to hit that little white ball!

What you can't see in this picture is Sidney, standing about 4 feet to the left....yep, the target for this ball. I will claim my Mother-Of-The-Year award now.

This little girl

packs a lot of punch into our days.

She loves to pick out her own outfit and dress herself. Head. to. toe.

Back up an hour, she insists on washing her own hair / body during her SHOWER (yes, our 3 year old prefers showers).

She tells it like it is. There's no sugar coating for this sweet girl. If she's sad, she'll tell you, if she's mad, she'll yell at tell you, and if she's tired, well, you WILL know!

And if she has an opinion about something, her attitude shines. She puts her hands on her hips, pushing out her hip to the side and speaks very matter-of-factly. Boy can that make us laugh. Frankly, it makes everyone around her laugh.

Oh and she's quick to dish out a hug, and an "I love you" for no reason at all.
And she still gives the best hugs ever.

Love you my sweet Sidney!

Notice what's different?

Oh this little girl looks so grown up now

(Thankfully she still sports some Hello Kitty pajamas)!

Dance pictures

Last fall, Regan started dancing at a new (to us) studio, well, technically the dance company moved to a different space so I guess it IS a new studio! It's definitely a more flashy-stage style of dancing and she's learning tap, ballet and jazz. Her retention is incredible for the new language of steps, positions and combinations. I'm thoroughly impressed! 

Tonight we headed to pictures and she was able to put on her very colorful costume; she LOVES it!

Go Logie Go!

Last year, we were able to watch multiple college softball games during Logan's freshman year. Unfortunately, we haven't been so lucky this year. With the girls getting involved in more activities, it's been a challenge to get to Bethel to watch Logan play.
But last night we headed over to Macalaster and were fortunate to see quite the softball game! 

 Of course, my night isn't complete if I don't help this one with a bathroom break....in a minibiff. 

 And once we broke out the sunflower seeds, the girls were pleased as punch to take a break of playing in the bleachers. They really enjoyed watching Logan at bat and cheered quite loudly along with the rest of us! 

Congrats on a great game Logan! Hope we get to another one soon!

Spring has sprung

And my allergies, along with this beautiful tree, are in full bloom! 

 Our old house had a similar white tree in the front yard; we were able to sit in the tree for our pictures. Doesn't work so well with this tree given the sheer size of it. It smells amazing and looks beautiful. 

Adding these two cuties in front makes it even more special. 

Sleepover

Regan hosted her very first sleepover last night. I'd like to say that it went completely smooth and everyone behaved but with a 3 year old in the mix, things can get a little difficult. Poor Sidney just wanted to be included. And as you can see, Regan's BFF, Katie stands no taller than Sidney so of course she feels like she should be a part of the fun! 

 We had a "movie theater" night with popcorn and Alvin/Chipmunks Chipwrecked because Katie was so excited to see it and the girls didn't mind watching it for the 3rd time since Easter. 

 The next morning we played a little Wii Just Dance to distract from the imagination play, toys and crafts that were only causing Sidney to get frustrated and her big sister to shed some tears. Watching those 3 dance themselves silly was so much fun! 

I"m happy to announce, as a whole, it was a successful sleepover. Maybe next time we'll have to think of something for Sidney to do for a few hours outside of the house so she too can feel extra special. 

Happy Easter!

We woke up to baskets full of treats from Mr. E.B. this morning. The girls were tickled to dig through their new trinkets and waited patiently until after church for the big egg hunt. 

 Their anticipation for the hunt was priceless. The way they stood next to the door, waiting for everyone to get ready and watch the fun. And before we knew it, they were off!

 Regan quickly realized that she was grabbing plastic eggs at a faster rate than Sidney. So in an effort to be the kind, gentle big sister that she can be, she proceeded to walk next to Sidney and point out all sorts of eggs for her little sister to grab and place into her basket. 

Melt a mama's heart moment :) 

 With 80 eggs hidden among the grass, flowers, playsets, etc, the girls needed to empty their baskets into shopping bags on two occasions! 

 We were able to catch a few pictures before the girls got too terribly messy, out of sorts. 

 Playing games, watching movies and hanging out with aunt Amy is one of the girls TOP things to do. I think she enjoyed her built in blanket during the movie too. She was a sandwich between those two!

 Just as the previous Easter, we uncovered the pool to let the tarp dry in the warm sunlight. This week, a very cold week I might add, is the one we have picked to have someone officially open our pool. Brrrr!

 More games with aunt Amy. Miss Regan was pretty good at Twister and was able to win most of the games. 

Happy Easter!!

We hope you had a wonderful day!

Easter Egg Hunt '12

It's been a tradition for us to attend a local Easter egg hunt and despite this morning's drizzle, we happily ventured to the beautiful park and had a great time. 

 Eventually the rain cleared and although it was a bit chilly, it didn't stop these two excited little girls from skipping along the path to the clearing where we discovered all the fun :) 

 They chatted along the way about all things Easter and asking how many eggs they might find. 

 Regan was brave enough to pose with Mr E.B., but Sidney gave a "high-five" and that was plenty. Later Regan asked, "he's not the real bunny, is he mom?". I quickly realized he had talked to her, which the usual bunny at the mall never does and thus, prompted her to think he's not the "real deal". In an effort to spare her  the truth, I pointed out how busy the "real" EB must be today, the day before Easter, filling and hiding eggs and therefore, he must have asked for some help. 

She bought it without batting an eye :) Whew! 

 In 3 separate areas roped off by age group, there were 9,000 eggs scattered about! 

9,000! 

 And our girls came home with a haul of jelly beans and they each scored a "special" egg that afforded them each a stuffed chick and Regan also a stuffed bunny!

HAPPY DAY BEFORE EASTER!

Sky Zone

I'm fortunate enough to get to spend some time with Regan (and Sidney) during Regan's spring break. And today, I wanted them to take a good nap, so in doing what any good mother would do, I knew I needed to wear them out! So we ventured to a (new to us) indoor trampoline place called Sky Zone. We lucked out and it was "Toddler Time" which meant anyone 5 and under, along with parents, could jump for a great price. So I did a not-so-honest thing and lied about Regan's age :) Shhhh. 

We jumped for over and hour in this wild place!! 

 Taking a few breaks in the pit (gross, I know)

Where's Regan? 

Sidney is a wee bit crabby the past several days after receiving a derm treatment so she was slightly out of sorts. But she had fun and tried her darndest to run and bounce of the tramps against the wall. She didn't succeed but she got tired while trying! 

See? 

Slightly out of her element. 

Poor girl :( 

 Click below to see a couple second video. 

 And guess what: all is quiet around here during this lovely nap time of ours :)