Frances took this photo on her new camera. It cracks me up!
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Frances is TEN?!
Frances had her birthday party at her favorite place (the gym) with her favorite person (her coach) acting as hostess! She invited some team mates and other friends, and a good time was had by all. After the kids had played in the gym for about 90 minutes, they were ready for some pizza and cupcakes! I had made cupcakes for the event, letting Frances decorate them with a variety of colored sprinkles. The nice thing about this party was that I didn't have to worry about my house - cleaning it up before or after the party! And the weather wasn't a factor, and I was not running the activities. Several parents expressed gratitude that their children were tired out and would certainly sleep well that night!
And kudos to Fran's friends; as we approached the time that the party was supposed to end, we hadn't done gifts yet. Fran's coach told me not to worry, that we could stay on for as long as we liked. She said that this group of kids was great! She hadn't had to act like the policeman during play time in the gym, and no one was rowdy or messy in the party room, so she was happy to let us stay a little longer than our allotted time!
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Movie preview?
Tonight I was going through Fran's closet to try and find some school uniform pieces that are not stained (Fran is in the big spelling bee for all the Calvary Chapel schools, this Friday), so I asked Frances to help Abigail get into pajamas. The two of them were having a great time, getting along beautifully, and giggling like crazy. What a blessing! They came to find me, and Frances asked, "Mom, do you want to see Gnomeo?" Apparently, she was having some difficulty getting Abigail's shirt to come up over her head. The shirt was stuck, but Frances was pulling up on it. It made Abigail's almond eyes big and round, her eyebrows raised, and with Ab's goofy grin, she did indeed look like a yard gnome! Sorry- no photo of Gnomeo. Frances decided that she was Juliet, and I was Momeo. I love it when the girls get along so well. It doesn't happen often, so these times are precious!
Thursday, January 20, 2011
I couldn't have said it better myself!
"By adopting a child and helping them reach their potential, they help us reach ours. An adopted child is not an unwanted child; to the contrary. They are a child who was searched for, prayed for, cried for, begged for; received by arms that ached, making empty hearts full. Love is meant to be shared." -Author unknown
I totally pirated this quote from the blog of a single mom who adopted her daughter (with a life-threatening heart condition) from China. Whoever penned this was able to put into words what so many of us know in our hearts. I get so frustrated when people tell me how lucky my children are, or what a great thing I did. It's not about me! I'm not any more special than the next average Joe. And I am the one who is lucky (blessed!). Two other women made an incredibly difficult and sacrificial choice, so that I could have my little family. I could not love my girls any more had they come from my womb. I am grateful and thankful for them, and for the women who chose to give them life.
Serious post - gotta have those now and again!
I totally pirated this quote from the blog of a single mom who adopted her daughter (with a life-threatening heart condition) from China. Whoever penned this was able to put into words what so many of us know in our hearts. I get so frustrated when people tell me how lucky my children are, or what a great thing I did. It's not about me! I'm not any more special than the next average Joe. And I am the one who is lucky (blessed!). Two other women made an incredibly difficult and sacrificial choice, so that I could have my little family. I could not love my girls any more had they come from my womb. I am grateful and thankful for them, and for the women who chose to give them life.
Serious post - gotta have those now and again!
Thursday, January 6, 2011
A date with Abigail
Today, Abigail and I went to Knott's Berry Farm, just the two of us. Frances had to return to school on January 3rd, but Abby and I are off until the 10th. This really messes me up at the end of the school year (Fran is off about a week and a half before I am, and we have to do the child-care hokey pokey) but I decided that Abigail should have some fun alone with Mommy, since Frances had that for seven years!
We got to the park when it opened, and went on Abigail's favorite rides: the airplanes, the stage coach, and the balloons (or as she says, "bloons"). I introduced her to a few new rides there in Camp Snoopy, and we even used one of those photo booths that print out a strip of four little pictures. She was fascinated by that.
We had brought our lunch into the park, and had a makeshift picnic on a bench in front of the stagecoach, while waiting for that ride to open. We were glad that we waited; we got to sit on top of the stagecoach, right behind the driver! We only stayed for three hours, because Abigail needed to nap before we picked up Frances and went to piano lessons. But the park was so empty that we had a great time, and never had to wait in line more than about a minute. It was a really fun trip, and I hope that Abby and I can do more things with just the two of us once in a while.
We got to the park when it opened, and went on Abigail's favorite rides: the airplanes, the stage coach, and the balloons (or as she says, "bloons"). I introduced her to a few new rides there in Camp Snoopy, and we even used one of those photo booths that print out a strip of four little pictures. She was fascinated by that.
We had brought our lunch into the park, and had a makeshift picnic on a bench in front of the stagecoach, while waiting for that ride to open. We were glad that we waited; we got to sit on top of the stagecoach, right behind the driver! We only stayed for three hours, because Abigail needed to nap before we picked up Frances and went to piano lessons. But the park was so empty that we had a great time, and never had to wait in line more than about a minute. It was a really fun trip, and I hope that Abby and I can do more things with just the two of us once in a while.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Snow play with the Waites
We had been having lots of rain and cold temperatures during Christmas break, so we loaded up the car and went to Mt. Baldy. The snow was dry and powdery, so it was really hard to make a snowball, forget about a snowman! Abigail and I found a pre-existing lump of snow, and used acorns and twigs to make his face.
The kids all sledded, on a two-person sled or a disc. Because we haven't done this for two years, we were a little rusty... the kids seemed to spend more time off the sleds than on them, but had a great time sliding down the hill. Even Karley and Abigail slid down a gentle slope, once I convinced Abigail that it was safe! She was not sure that she would enjoy going downhill on the plastic sled, but after a few very slow trial runs, she consented to short runs down the hill with Karley in front.
We played in the snow for about 90 minutes, and then it started to get really cold and a little dark, so we packed up and headed down the mountain. We did learn a few things that will help us next time. The moms realized that they need snow boots! Galoshes or sneakers are not enough. I need to put socks over Abby's gloves, to connect them to her jacket sleeves. About every 2 minutes, she was taking off her gloves to get the snow out from around her wrists. We should probably go early in the day, and maybe bring some thermoses of cocoa, to take a break in the car. But all in all, it was a successful snow play day. Hope we get to do it again in the next few weeks!
San Diego Wild Animal Park
We had been given some tickets to the the San Diego Wild Animal Park, and they were going to expire on 12/31, so the girls and I headed down there on a day that it was not raining. It was a great opportunity for Frances to try out her new digital camera (which, by the way, is an updated version of my camera, and is much nicer than mine!).
We took the tram ride first, since it has a long line later in the day, and it is a guaranteed way to see lots of wildlife. We learned a lot, especially when the tram broke down, and we sat in one spot for 15 minutes! Everyone was goodnatured about it, and we finally made it back to the station (the truck threw a belt and some other part into the road...). One of my favorite sights was the lion on top of the "abandoned" truck!
The Wild Animal Park is a cool place, because in addition to doing research and breeding programs for endangered species, they have lots of place in the park for children to experience what it's like to be an animal. Kids can leap across water on big (stabilized) lily pads, can crawl inside a big egg, and all sorts of fun stuff. Frances and Abigail both liked the gigantic hollow log. Frances climbed up on top of it easily, but Abby was too short! Frances considered pulling Abigail up through the hole, but that was going to be too difficult. Next, the girls decided that Frances could push Abigail up through the hole from below, but they never seem to remember that Fran is only 20 pounds heavier and 12 inches taller than Abigail.... they quickly realized that it was not going to happen!
There had been a baby elephant born the day before our visit, and we were able to get some photos of it. I think that Frances has better photos of it than I do; she has more patience, and was not trying to chase a three-year-old around on the observation platform!
Both girls remembered the playground from a previous visit, and we spent quite a while there. It was a dry day (amidst plenty of rainy ones) and the temps were in the 60s, so there was plenty of static electricity. Check out Abigail's hair as she exits the plastic slide! Frances was fascinated by the tents up on a hill. I explained that this is for the park's "Roar and Snore" program, in which people can spend the night in the park, learning more about animals, and seeing the animals at twilight and dawn. It's a little costly, but maybe someday we will do it as a birthday trip or something. We had to leave the park mid-afternoon to get home in time for gymnastics, but we had a great time.
We took the tram ride first, since it has a long line later in the day, and it is a guaranteed way to see lots of wildlife. We learned a lot, especially when the tram broke down, and we sat in one spot for 15 minutes! Everyone was goodnatured about it, and we finally made it back to the station (the truck threw a belt and some other part into the road...). One of my favorite sights was the lion on top of the "abandoned" truck!
The Wild Animal Park is a cool place, because in addition to doing research and breeding programs for endangered species, they have lots of place in the park for children to experience what it's like to be an animal. Kids can leap across water on big (stabilized) lily pads, can crawl inside a big egg, and all sorts of fun stuff. Frances and Abigail both liked the gigantic hollow log. Frances climbed up on top of it easily, but Abby was too short! Frances considered pulling Abigail up through the hole, but that was going to be too difficult. Next, the girls decided that Frances could push Abigail up through the hole from below, but they never seem to remember that Fran is only 20 pounds heavier and 12 inches taller than Abigail.... they quickly realized that it was not going to happen!
There had been a baby elephant born the day before our visit, and we were able to get some photos of it. I think that Frances has better photos of it than I do; she has more patience, and was not trying to chase a three-year-old around on the observation platform!
Both girls remembered the playground from a previous visit, and we spent quite a while there. It was a dry day (amidst plenty of rainy ones) and the temps were in the 60s, so there was plenty of static electricity. Check out Abigail's hair as she exits the plastic slide! Frances was fascinated by the tents up on a hill. I explained that this is for the park's "Roar and Snore" program, in which people can spend the night in the park, learning more about animals, and seeing the animals at twilight and dawn. It's a little costly, but maybe someday we will do it as a birthday trip or something. We had to leave the park mid-afternoon to get home in time for gymnastics, but we had a great time.
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