Mermaids

Carmen and I took our first canvas painting class with friends.  It was a blast.  We were taught how to paint a mermaid.  Carmen loved mixing all of the colors and adding her own 'Carmen flare' to the painting (which didn't call for a crab, three fish or a mermaid tattoo...).  All and all, a painting success!

Ready to paint.

A blank canvas ready for a Carmen creation.

Mermaid in the making.

The final master piece!

Spring

Welcome Spring.  We are glad you are finally here.  We are more than ready for a bit warmer weather, longer days and more sunshine.  We are anxious for blooming flowers, play time outside, bike rides and spending time at the park.  We are looking forward to walks, getting rid of winter hats and gloves and pulling out short-sleeve shirts and lighter jackets.  We welcome the birds starting to chirp and the smell of flowers in the air.  Hooray for this wonderful time of year.

4 1/2

Closer to 5 than 4 now.  Not sure how I feel about that.  I love that you are growing and learning and gaining more and more independence but part of me is hanging on to the 'little' boy that is quickly becoming oh so big.

You are nothing short of funny.

Your expressions, your eye rolls, your dance moves, the silly things you say.

You are a ham.

You continue to be obsessed with sports.  And obsessed is not an understatement.

You want everything to do with any sport, but soccer and hockey are your current favorites.

I must play indoor 'goalie on goalie' soccer at least 10 times a day. 

Our formal living room is no longer formal; it's the main event, the field for all of our soccer games.  Forget 'no playing ball in the house'...that's all we do. 

Play ball in the house.  Everyday.  All the time. 

Besides playing soccer, indoors and out, you insist on playing it on the iPad too. 

It appears your dream in life is to become a goalie. 

You insist on wearing 'goalie gloves' all of the time.  These stretch gloves go everywhere with you.  You wear them to school, at home, in the car.  For some reason, you won't leave home without them.  While you love these gloves, you don't take very good care of them.  They are scattered around the house and I always find one glove on the floor at school or in the lost and found basket.  Miraculously, it always seems to be found!

You also seem to have an interest in hockey.  You insist on watching hockey on television and instead of requesting a cartoon show you want to watch Hockey highlights (8 minute segments) every chance you can get.  Your sister is not a fan.

You are branching out, making friends and even embracing learning.

What!? Numbers and Letter and drawing and coloring willingly... who would have thought!

Its amazing to see your interests and skills develop.

You get excited about counting objects, identifying letters and asking for more.

While sometimes I feel like we are going through the 'Terrible 4's' the good certainly outweigh the bad.

You have a short fuse, are quick to get upset and still have a powerful set of lungs.

While the rough and tumble is there, the soft, sweet, sensitive side exists too.

You love everything that's soft--blankets, sweatshirts, soft pants, stuffies.

You still like to cuddle and snuggle and everyday when I drop you off from school, you ask for 22 hugs.

I love every single one.

Here's to being 4.5 and blazing one heck of trail towards 5.

We love you!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day from our little leprechauns to yours...

Cinderella Ballet

Tonight Carmen and her friend Mia went to see the Evergreen Ballet's production of Cinderella.  It was a special dress rehearsal for Girl Scouts only.  The costumes were exquisite and the dancing was magical.  It was fun to see such talent in girls and boys ranging from 6 - high school age.  Certainly a fun evening!

What would a Cinderella ballet be without a Cinderella dress...

and accessories of course.

A picture with the Fairy Godmother.

Two princesses striking a pose. 

Kauai

We just returned from an amazing family vacation in Kauai.  Seven full days of sand, sun and surf.  We took full advantage of the beautiful weather and scenery and enjoyed every minute.

Hanalei was our hang-out and beach hot spot for boogie boarding, watching the waves, building sandcastles and soaking up the sun.  We were there almost every day.  The kids absolutely loved boogie boarding and it quickly became their favorite part of the trip. Carmen surprised us all by having absolutely no fear of the water or waves and went headfirst running into the water any chance she got.

We took in a luau and were treated to a delicious meal and great entertainment.  Fire throwers, hula dancers, great food and even a taste of poi.  What's not to love?

We frequented the swimming pool; we were there every day.  After a day at the beach, what's better than the pool?!  The kids loved the water, diving for rockets, swimming like fish and using the hot tub.

We had some animal sightings along the way.  Of course the Iniki Roosters where everywhere and Carmen tried to name each one--snowflake, bluey, brownie, blue feather, brown tree where the ones found most often on our lanai.  Besides the roosters, the kids enjoyed counting geckos.  We also saw a few sea turtles and the biggest hit was the monk seal.  This guy literally swam right by the kiddos and then decided it needed some sun time so took a little snooze in the sunshine.  Because they are endangered, we had to give him some space.

Of course the fish tacos were plentiful and Jimmy's favorite part.  We all ate our fair share.  Of course there was no shortage of shaved ice either.  The kids enjoyed every bite of the colorful, refreshing treat.

We took in the beautiful sunsets and enjoyed watching the powerful ocean waves crash into the beach.  Well, at least Jimmy and I enjoyed it.  The kids thought it was boring to wait so long just to look at the sky.  Oh, the tough life of a 4 and 6 year-old. 

It was truly a magical vacation.  We will be back.  Until then, Aloha!

Here are a few more pics from our week in paradise.