Monday, January 28, 2013

Hockey Night in Fresno

It's very weird for me that my kids don't know a whole lot about hockey. As a Canadian, I grew up during the "Oilers Dynasty," knew every stat, kept up with players' lives both on and off the ice, and even kept a hockey scrapbook! Our kids got to go to their first hockey game a few nights ago.  Grace's school gave away tickets to the students, and we were able to get tickets for a dollar each to see the Fresno Monsters play Fairbanks.  We met up with Randy and their kids, and we also brought Charlotte along.  We enjoyed the game (despite the Monsters losing), but what made the game memorable was how the girls didn't even make it through the first period before Grace and Charlotte took out their books and began reading.  I thought this was just hilarious!

Saturday, January 26, 2013

High Honor Roll

I am a proud mama!  I can't help but think back to last year when Jason and I were trying to figure out what to do about Grace's schooling.  It was actually this time of year last year when we found out that she qualified to go to Manchester GATE.  I was worried about how she'd do with increased rigor and expectations in the midst of a class full of high achievers... Well, 1st semester just ended and we are so proud to know that not only is Grace doing well, her teacher says she is one of the kids setting the bar in her class.  She earned High Honor Roll with a 4.0 (straight As).  Things seem to have fallen into place- she's loving her school, her teacher, learning, and her friends- thank goodness!
    She earned a Manchester GATE pin (and supposedly will receive a certificate at a later date).

Bee of the Week

Jeremy was his class' Bee of the Week this past week, and he was so excited!  He got extra attention all week- he was the special helper, got to bring a special treat for his classmates, and bring a "Show and Share" item.
He also got to bring home their class "pet," Buzz, and take him everywhere we went.  We had to document his adventures with Buzz.  Here are some pictures:
 Playing outside at church
 Playing the Wii (Jeremy is just starting to learn how to play some of the games.  We most recently got Star Wars, which is more appropriate for Grace's age, but he's really eager to play, too)

 Hanging out with friends
On MLK Day, we joined some friends at Skywalk, a trampoline arena. 
 That particular day was so beautiful outside, we walked out to Fig Garden Village for lunch.  Grace rode her scooter and Jeremy rode his bike.  Loved the family time we had that day!

In addition to the usual privileges, there was more excitement because his class also celebrated the 100th Day of School.   
Such a fun week in preschool!

Monday, January 7, 2013

Happy New Year!

We welcomed the new year with some of our closest friends at the family's cabin at Shaver Lake.  We've been celebrating with this same group of friends for many years, but this is our 3rd year staying at the cabin with all of our families.  We had 10 kids and 8 adults- that's a lot of people in one cabin!  We had an awesome time!

On New Year's Eve, our kids are still young enough that it wasn't a big deal for them to stay up until midnight.  We simulated a countdown, and celebrated with kid-made hats, poppers, glow-in-the-dark necklaces/bracelets, and horns (amazingly, Gabriel and Annelise didn't wake up with all of our noise)!

 After the kids went to bed, the guys had their annual blind test beer tasting.  Altogether, there were 12 beers.  Each bottle was covered up and the guys scored the beers according to taste, aroma, appearance, and overall drinkability. In the end, the Coney Island Lager won 1st place.  The girls chatted, drank wine, and snacked on appetizers and Jill's New Year's fritters. 
There was a lot of snow this year!  The kids (and adults) had a blast building, playing, and sledding!







I hope we can keep this tradition for many more years to come!