Birthday Celebration at Magic Kingdom

Ellie enjoyed celebrating her 10th birthday in Florida at the Magic Kingdom this year. It wasn't a traditional birthday and she didn't have a friend or separate family party this year. However, it was full of energy and excitement for our birthday girl.

We spent the day in Magic kingdom, which was Ellie's selection for her birthday. She road rides all day, including a favorite - space mountain. She got to have dinner with the characters and the Palace and she enjoyed a special delicious chocolate cake as well.

We stayed all evening and ended watching the fireworks while eating lollipops. I believe it was a magical day for her.

Where is the nearest medical school

This morning Clair asked me how do doctors know if you are sick with a cold or something else? I provided what I thought was a very suitable expiration, the doctor looks at your ears and nose and throat, and then listen to your chest to decide.

She responds with what are they looking for? At that point I was in trouble because I knew she wanted more details than I could really give her, so I told her that mommy wasn’t a doctor and didn’t know the details. I told her that people go to medical school to learn this. She asked how will I get to the nearest medical school? I explained there are some in Washington and Baltimore which are about an hour away. She wanted to if she could get there herself because she doesn’t know how to drive. I told her that when she was old enough she would be able to get there herself. She asked where their schools closer. I told her they were not but there were schools in New York City that were really good too. She said she didn’t want to go to New York City, she wanted to go nearby and learn to be a doctor. She asked what age do you go to medical school.

She was really sitting there processing all of this and thinking. This conversation went on for about five minutes before I change the subject. I was truly amazed at the detail and thought she was putting into all of this. She is only 4 1/2.

Later in the afternoon it came back up. She told me that when she goes to medical school in a few years I will need to show her how to drive there the first time and then she will be able to drive herself. But she will come home to live with me every night.

So Much Love

We were sitting at dinner on our anniversary and Clair reached across the table, grabbed my hands with a big smile and tells me, "I just love to hug you so much because you are so warm, and so soft, and so cuddly, and you make me so happy!"

This just makes me so happy and pleased.

This comes after she spent the night snuggling me and snuggling me back as close as she could get, sometimes on top of me, all night long.

She is such as special little girl who knows my love language. She is a sunshine!

I will never sing again

This evening during dinner prep time Clair was very mad at me because I wouldn't let her watch Peppa Pig or play a device. She thinks she should do this at every meal prep and I don't want that to be a given or her prime memory of childhood. I said No. She was not happy.

I tried to woo her to come up to the counter and listen to her toddler music and keep me company by drawing or something while i cooked. We can have a very nice evening when she does this. She loves to sing to her music!

Clair decided to be stubborn. When I turned the music on and started singing, she announced she will "Never sing again.Ever."

i suggested to her that perhaps kids sometimes make decisions like this that are not the best and maybe need to change.

3 songs in her favorite song comes on. The song is Skinny Marinky Dinky Dink. She loves this song. They sang it at school last year and it talks about love, it is a song that just makes Clair happy. We often sing it together for one another.

So I start singing away, waiting for her to join. I'm chopping sweet potatoes. Next thing I know Clair is crying, loudly, sobbing with pure sadness into a pillow on the couch. I stop what I'm doing, go over, pick her up and ask what's wrong. She's still sobbing uncontrollably. "I want to sing my favorite song, but i can't ever sing again."

I try to explain that she has the power to change her mind and cancel out that promise. I console her and keep singing to her, hoping to woo her into song with me. That doesn't work, but I ask her to remind me the hand movements that go with the song. At the very end she starts in. I can see she's getting into it, but the song ends. Here come the tears, again. "I didn't get to sing my favorite song and now it's over!" .... tears, tears, tears....

I explain again, this decision was hers and can easily be undone. It's not permanent. She can sing and love music and she will.

She is so sad that her favorite song is over.

Fast forward about 5 minutes, and I end up buying her favorite song on itunes so I can play it over and over. We sing through almost the whole dinner prep. She is smiling. She is happy. She is my Clair bear.

I Am A Sucker!

I love this girl so much. She is so full of emotion, thought and drama. She is going to be some force in this world as she spreads her wings to fly!

Ellie's Lemonade Stand give toys to shelter cats

Ellie and Erin did a couple of lemonade stands this summer. It was part fun and part a financial endeavor for Ellie I think. They made a total of about $16. Originally they were going to donate a third to charity and in the end decided to use it all to buy materials to make toys for cats to bring to the animal shelter. They spent a full day making these toys. Friday they took them and personally delivered them. Ellie was proud as she should be. They loved seeing the animals and wanted us to go adopt the little one below. 

 

Max has worked hard on his writing skills this summer

This summer I decided  to really have Max focus on his writing. The one skill he most needed to catch up on. Since start of the summer I think he has come a really long way. I hope he can keep it up and his second grade teacher will be proud. mommy sure is proud. He spend about half an hour 4-5 days a week writing. His handwriting is much neater and he's getting sentence form correct.

Fridays letter was one of his best ever; although he did strike a chord close to my heart with this one. I wish I was able to give him what he asks for here. I love my buddy. 

Clair Vonita: you have mail

A couple days ago Max and Clair started creating envelopes and putting little notes or pictures in them. Then they are hand delivered. The first lot were Peppa Pig of course. Today's lot was letters I was instructed  to read to her, only after she secretly slipped them to me under a closed door so they could be "surprise mail."

Here's a photos of some of what I was lucky enough to receive from my creative determined and driven Clair bear.