Passing

Megan finally (after about 6 weeks) passed off a piece at piano lessons last night. She was very happy to be moving on to something else.

And yesterday at Gymnastics, Caitlyn passed off everything for Level two and is now on to level three. She even got a certificate. (Perhaps piano teachers should give out certificates for passing off songs??)

Happy Valentine's Day

For several years now we've been giving the girls a "heart attack" on Valentine's morning. They've come to expect it (I think Megan said once that she'd cry if we didn't do it!), and this morning it was Alison's turn to be amazed.

"Hearts! My room!"

"Meman's room! Caitlyn's room!"

And, on top of that, they got me gifts. They did a pretty good job of keeping them secret. Except for Alison, who, when they got home from the store on Saturday said, "Mommy cake now!" and was very upset when everyone else tried to shush her up. She was happy this morning ("Mommy see cake NOW!") and wanted to eat it before breakfast!

They're great girls!

Hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day.

Pinewood Derby

The ward's little cub pack ran the Pinewood Derby last night. And because it's a small pack -- only 4 boys -- they encouraged dads to make a car, too. So, since we don't have any boys, Russell, Megan and Caitlyn made a car. Some photos from the event:

Caitlyn with our car:






















Megan (and Rebecca Devereaux) cheering on the cars



One of the better wrecks of the evening (yes, that is our car):



















Caitlyn's favorite car (called "The Unclean Thing")


And, the final tally. Hey, at least we were perfect!!

What Obsessed Us This Week

Russell got it out for Family Home Evening on Monday (surprisingly; he's not a puzzle person). We sorted the pieces, set up a table and set to work. I did the outside and the ocean -- Alison "helped" (actually, she did find one piece for me). Russell and Megan did most of the land pieces last night. Caitlyn helped by keeping it from falling off the table.

Proud moments

Megan gave a book report in school yesterday. She read Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, and then gave an oral report (something her teacher called a "book report in a bag"). She chose five items and explained how they fit with the book. She chose: a bar of soap (because Rebecca made soap to sell), a parasol (Rebecca's most prized possession), a Bible (where Rebecca kept poetry she wrote), ice cream (a once-in-a-lifetime treat), and a nightgown (because, Rebecca said, "When you pack a nightgown, you're really traveling!"). Megan said she got a bit of stage fright, but she got over it by focusing in on her teacher. And, she got an A.

Caitlyn celebrated 100 day at school on Tuesday. She was very excited. We found clothes with 100 things on them (a pair of flower pants), and as a bonus, she got to be class leader that day. It was also neat because Alison and I went to help out with centers. At my center, they made a picture of "I wish I had 100..." Caitlyn said little sisters.

Alison found the Swiper the Fox doll on Tuesday, and has been carrying it around all week (sleeping with it, taking it to the stores, etc.). She says, "Swiper loves Alison." We've also been on a Dora kick this week. Maybe they're related?

I guess it runs in the family

Story by (can you guess?)

MAY’S JULY BIRTHDAY SURPRISE

Once upon a time, there lived a king with his wife, the queen. They lived together in Washington, D.C. They had a daughter who was named May. On Tuesday, for breakfast they had grape juice and nice, good, crunchy waffles. Today May had dancing lessons. On Wednesday, for breakfast they had orange juice, and yum-yum fruit salad. May had tea lessons. On Thursday, they had for breakfast, May’s birthday breakfast. Yum blueberry muffins with cheese on their crackers. May turned 17. Her birthday was on July 2nd. She got for a present from her mom and dad a beautiful crown that was silver with sapphires. May walked in the garden with her shiny new crown, her maid walking behind. Dinner that evening, they had tomato soup and lemonade. May chose the drink. That morning, May woke up wearing a silk, white, pink bow nightgown. She had shiny, light pink bows in her hair. She had a poodle with bows on her ears. Now May is 17, her aunt and uncle got her a shiny blue carriage with a snow-white horse named Elizabeth. May carried a bouquet of tulips and lilies-of-the-valley and roses. It was summer and she sang this little song. It went like this:
Twitter tweet
Twitter tweet
The bluebird is singing
Twitter tweet
Twitter tweet
The old wind is breezing
The grass is green
I see a stream filled with fish
I like to skip across these rocks
Oh, twitter tweet
I love to sing
This pretty song

May picked up a green pear. She took a bite. "Yum," she said. "This pear is good." She took another bite. "Yum," she said. "This pear is good." She ate it all up. Then she went home.

The End

It probably would have gone on for a while, but it's dinner time, and I made her stop.