Father Daughter Hoedown

Tonight was the Father Daughter Dance for school and this year's theme was a Western Hoedown. Zoe was excited to get dressed up! I didn't get too many pictures this time because I had to help set up and work the event, so Joe wasn't ready before I had to leave, but they sure did look cute.

(I got Zoe ready early!)

(The background sure was cute for these photos!)

The had a great time learning a few line dances, but mostly just hanging out with each other and their friends. Zoe's favorite part of the night was drinking all the root beer floats. (I think she ended up having 3 of them!) That is definitely a trait she gets from her daddy.

Cooper turns 100 years old!

Today was the 100th day of school! To celebrate this milestone, the first graders all dressed up as 100 year old men and women. So we found Cooper an "old man" sweater, some too short pants, socks with flip flops, and of course silver gray hair with wrinkles on the face. At first he was embarrassed and didn't want anyone to see him. He even wanted me to drive to school instead of walk so people wouldn't see him! But once he got to school and saw a bunch of his friends dressed up too, he was a happy guy.

During the Friday morning assembly, all the first grade teachers (who also turned 100 today!) got up and did a little dance...

The school day was full of activities all related to the number 100. They did tally marks, decorated paper glasses with 100 stickers, made trail mix with 100 pieces of 10 different food items, drew and painted pictures of themselves, and said what they would do when they were 100 years old. Cooper said he would snore!

Today was also Jersey day for the rest of the school. Zoe was excited to finally wear her NY Jets (Brett Favre) jersey to school.
Cooper was sad he didn't get to wear his jersey all day, but he brought him with him to school and made the switch at lunch. He is so excited that the Steelers are in the Super Bowl this weekend and was proud to wear his #7 Roethlisberger jersey!

Day Trip

We decided to head down to San Diego today. I was just feeling the need to get out of the house and out of town for a little while. We started out in Old Town San Diego. We walked in and out of the little shops and museums. The kids liked seeing the pictures of what the town looked like back in the 1800's and to see the original schoolhouse of the first public school in San Diego. We also saw one of the original Wells Fargo stagecoaches.
Next we went down to Seaport Village for some food and a little more window shopping. The skies were a beautiful mix of puffy white clouds and dark grey ones. Every time I'm there I just love it even more. Why don't we spend more time here?

There was also an interesting art display to look at. There was a long row of about 20 big globes. Each one was decorated by a different person or group with a theme related to saving the earth and/or living green. Each one also had a different tip that each of us can do to help make the world a little "greener." I wish I'd gotten a picture of the whole row...they really were neat!

(Throwing stones in the ocean while looking at all the boats pass by)

After leaving Seaport Village we headed back to Old Town to pick up a doll that Zoe had seen earlier in the day. I had told her she could get it, but then we forgot before we had left. So being the good parents that we are (most of the time!) we went back for it. While there Cooper had found a wrestling mask that he was begging for. Definitely not my favorite souvenir, but he was thrilled!
I love spur of the moment day trips!

Word Club Award

Cooper was called up during Friday Assembly today for knowing all of his Sundae Words. He's worked so hard each week going over and over his word lists. Good job Coop!

A New Era

Today was the Inauguration of the 44th President of the United States. With a record number of people watching in Washington D.C., and on the television and internet, Barack Obama was sworn in and gave a powerful speech. I was able to watch the broadcast at school while working in a classroom of kindergartners. I don't think any of them knew what exactly they were watching, but I couldn't help but think about how their lives will be changed because of this man and this day.
Here is one of my favorite lines from his speech:
"We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness."

Although I know that change takes time, I hope that this is the beginning of good times to come!

stressful week, but what a trooper...

What a week it has been, and it is only Wednesday! With getting estimates on my car and dealing with insurance companies for hours, Joe having his liver biopsy, teaching PE for 7 hours, and Cooper getting a ton of dental work done, I'm ready for a break!

Cooper did great today though. Poor little guy, he had to have 2 teeth pulled, a filling done, and 4 sealants done. So 5 shots later he was numbed up and ready to go. He really was brave and didn't make a sound or move a muscle. I felt so bad for him! After almost an hour in the chair he was finally out of there. When we got in the car he said, "Mom, what was that they used to pull out my teeth?" I responded with, "oh, those were pliers." He couldn't believe it and thought that was pretty cool. He didn't like the feeling of his face being all swelled up though. So he was happy when that finally went away and he could enjoy his cookies and cream milkshake! Tonight the Tooth Fairy gets to make her first visit to Cooper's room!

Another crazy day...

We had an eventful Saturday and of course I didn't have my camera with me, so no pictures. We got up at 5:45am (actually Zoe set her alarm for 6:05 so she could have a few extra minutes!) to head up to Big Bear. We were meeting my brother and nephew up there to spend the day snowboarding for Cole's 14th Birthday. Unfortunately on the way up there we got in a car accident when a truck behind us didn't stop in time and rear-ended us. Thankfully no one was hurt, but now I have to deal getting estimates, a rental car, and getting it fixed...ugh! We finally made it to the slopes after sitting in a ton of mountain traffic.
We started the day on the bunny slopes again, but after 2 hours of that, the kids and I had had enough. So we grabbed a quick lunch and went to the top of the mountain. I was very nervous about taking them up there, but they did fantastic! We took Summit Run all the way down and we all had so much fun. Cooper improved so much from last time and now the 2 of them are better than me! We spent the rest of the day going up and down the mountain, trying new courses, falling down, and having a great time. By the last run we were all beat!! I really do feel my age when I spend all day on the slopes!
On the way home we stopped at Starbucks for some hot cocoa and snacks. We had a fun day and it was a great day to spend celebrating. Happy Birthday Cole!! You are the best nephew and cousin ever!

Enjoying our break

We really have been enjoying the last few days of our break. We've had sunny days and rainy days, spent even more time in jammies. We've played lots of games, watched movies, started our new year organization, etc. Here are a few our fun things...

Our neighbor works for an electric company, so while taking down his Christmas lights, he took the kids for a ride in the cherry picker. I was a bit nervous watching them go higher and higher, but they loved every minute of it!


Zoe learned out to cook her own cheese omelets. Not sure how much time this actually saves me, but she was excited to be able to do it all herself...

And even though the weather was cool, the kids just couldn't resist playing in the pool...or actually ON the pool. They floated across on the raft, but kept getting stuck in the middle and having to paddle to the sides. There was a lot of laughter going on!

Tomorrow is back to school, back to volunteering and work, back to the crazy schedule of activities. I really do wish we had a little bit longer to enjoy our time together!

Welcome 2009!

Happy New Year to All!

As is tradition for us, we stayed home and had a quiet New Year's celebration. Since the weather was cool I decided to make some homemade potato cheese soup and some beer bread (one of our favorites!). Of course we had to follow it up with some dark chocolate brownies! We spent the evening hanging out, playing games, watching all the different countdowns on tv, and finally watching the ball drop. Since we get the New York stations on our satellite we start celebrating at 9pm our time. The kids look forward to their sparkling cider toast and confetti poppers!

(Playing Rummikub, waiting for the 9 o'clock celebration!)

(First round of celebration...happy new year)

(Confetti time)

This year Zoe and Cooper were determined to stay awake until midnight. I honestly didn't think they would make it. Joe went to bed about 9:30 and I figured someone had to try to stay awake with them, so the kids and I played cards, watched a little tv, ate popcorn, and started gathering up Christmas decorations so that tomorrow's job won't be quite as big. Poor Cooper, he started falling asleep at 11:30. He just couldn't keep those little eyes open.
Zoe was a trooper...she was doing everything possible just to stay awake!
Joe came running downstairs at midnight. I picked up Cooper and he could barely open his eyes.
Zoe was ready though...here she is at 12:59:59

(The ball dropped!)

2008 has been an interesting year with many highs and lows. I know 2009 will have its own set of challenges and joys, but I hope that whatever comes our way we push on through and just enjoy life and each other! So, to all of our family and friends, we wish you a very HAPPY NEW YEAR!!