graduations, vacations and dance recitals

There is only one word to sum up the past month or so...busy! We have been on the go from the moment school wrapped up for Olivia. Packing as much as we can into our short but sweet summer, my girls have loved every moment so far.

A few days before closing the book on her kindergarten year Olivia's school held a special ceremony for the kids that were moving up into the Lower Elementary classroom next year. This is a big deal for these kids as many of them have spent the past 3-4 years in their current classroom with the same teacher.

The coolest part for me was seeing so many of these kids, that have been together from the very beginning, celebrating their accomplishments together! Good gracious, I was proud of my Olivia that day!

A few days later Olivia said goodbye to her friends for the summer and to the teacher that has taught her more than I could have ever imagined over the past 4 years. Ms. Laura will be moving to Florida later this summer, so Cecilia won't be lucky enough to receive 4 years of education from Ms. Laura. I am pretty devastated. The good news is that Olivia has been able to spend a few more weeks with Ms. Laura during her school's summer camp. The time to say good-bye is approaching. This Friday will be the last day Olivia will spend with Ms. Laura as her teacher. I can only imagine how hard that good bye is going to be. 

Within a few days of school being out for the summer the girls and I hopped on a plane to California. This was Olivia's annual trip to visit Aunt Sue Sue...her 8th I believe, but Cecilia's first. We all flew out with my Mom. Cece and I spent one week in California before returning, while Olivia stayed a few extra days with my Mom.

I think we hit the beach on one of our first days. That's usually our first stop during our visits. It was a tad chilly, but that did not stop the girls from having a fabulous time! It was a great day!

Each day we took the girls to do something fun. We enjoyed some nice lunches overlooking the ocean, explored a few oceanic museums, and rode a few rides on the Santa Cruz boardwalk.

We tried to take the girls out on the boat to see some sea life but the weather was not cooperating. There is no denying that Cece looked simply adorable in her life jacket, but she was not thrilled about wearing it. Luckily for her she did not have it on very long. We may not have had the chance to see dolphins and whales up close, but we did make sure Cecilia saw some seals. She loved them and spent the rest of the week calling for, "seals, seals!".

The area in which my Aunt lives in California is surrounded by many beautiful wineries. My idea of the perfect day would be wine tasting, but when you are traveling with two small children they tend to have different activities in mind. When given the choice between wineries and the park, can you guess which one they chose? We took a trip to a beautiful playground minutes down the road from my Aunt. Cece was a very happy camper that day...Olivia too!

One of the things Olivia looks forward to the most during her California visits is reuniting with her buddy Peter. Peter is the neighbor dog and Olivia simply adores him. I think the feeling is mutual as Peter seems to really like Olivia as well. The neighbors not only have two wonderful full sized poodles but they also have the most beautiful coy pond, filled with some of the largest fish I have ever seen. Cecilia was simply fascinated with these fish and I think she would have jumped right in if I didn't stop her. Olivia, being the older sister gets the privilege of feeding them.

Cecilia was on her best behavior (most of the time) during our trip. We were on the go each day and were often on the go during nap time. There were times when the poor girl just needed to crash...and so she did!

With our week winding down we made sure to get Cece to the beach one more time. Olivia would have more chances to get to the beach during her extra days, but Cece and I were getting ready to head home. My girls would spend every day, all day at the beach if they could. Getting them to pack up and head home was no easy task.

We had tons of memorable experiences during our trip to California. Many of them were firsts for Cece but just another annual visit for Olivia. When we weren't running all over the place doing fun things, the girls were just perfectly happy playing with their Aunt Sue Sue. Both of my girls adore my Aunt and I think the feeling is pretty mutual! We are very grateful to her and my Uncle Ron (Uncle Biggie) for showing us such a great time.

As soon as Olivia returned from California she had to prep for her annual dance recital. This year she was in three dances as well a a special dance with me, her Mom. Cecilia even got a taste of the big stage when she joined Olivia and I, along with all of the other dance teachers and their kids, for a little dance at the end of the show.

Olivia did an amazing job in all of her dances. She remembered her routines, and most importantly...enjoyed herself. I had a handful of people come up to me after the recital and tell me how she just lit up the stage. I simply could not get over how grown up she looked in all of her costumes.! I am proud of her hard work this year and excited to watch her grow as a dancer.

As much as I want to continue this blog post and talk all about Cecilia's 2nd birthday I think it I need to wrap it up and save it for next time. Let me tell you this...the party was a huge success. I officially have a two year old running around our house, and she definitely lives up to the everything they say to expect with a two year old. It challenging and rewarding all at once. Gotta love that face though!

no rest for the weary

Let me start by saying that anyone out there with more than two kids...kuddos to you! I have no idea how you do it. I find it hard to get through the week, keeping up with my two. I've got to hand it to those Mom's with more than two children, because I am pretty confident that I would not be able to handle it.

Through all of the chaos of managing our household we manage to have quite a bit of fun. It is important to me that my kids get to experience as many things as we can possibly give them. One of those things recently included taking the girls to Disney on Ice. We went last year and just took Olivia. Cece wasn't even one at the time and we did not think she was old enough to enjoy it. So glad we choose to take her this year.

It was a given that Olivia would enjoy herself. I wasn't sure if Cece would have the patience to sit through the entire show, but she did great. She was fascinated by the skating characters and the Tinkerbell hat she was able to take home that night. I love when we can create fun family memories for the girls, and these Disney shows always deliver!

With the first signs of Spring we began counting down the days until the opening of our zoo. Each year we have a zoo pass that allows us to come and go as much as we wish during the summer. The weather did not cooperate with opening weekend of the zoo, but that didn't stop us. 

It was a chilly, drizzly day but turned out to be the prefect zoo day. All of the animals were very active and friendly. We stared into the eyes of Bill the Lion, Cece fed a giraffe for the first time, we got up close and personal with the oranatang, and of course had a ride on the carousel! There was hardly a soul there which made it even nicer. It was probably the best visit we have ever had at the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo. Note to self...the chilly, rainy days are the best times to go!

The girls have been keeping us very busy with their activities lately. Olivia has her dance classes two days a week. Her recital is coming up at the end of June and then she will have the summer off. She is also very involved with soccer. She has one practice and one game each week. She loves it and seems to be quite good. Cece realized that it was time to start keeping up with her big sister and started gymnastics lessons. 

She has been going for about a month now, and after a slow start she has begun to enjoy it. If nothing else, being a part of this class is helping her get used to organized activities. She will start taking a dance class in the fall, so this is perfect practice to get prepared for that. And she looks stinkin' adorable in her little leotard!

The first week of May included a few fun activities. The first was Cinco de Mayo. I like to celebrate this holiday because I LOVE Mexican food. We had our own little Mexican feast with margaritas and all. Olivia desperately wanted to try a margarita so we made her a virgin version. She loved it whcih of course made her sister jealous, so the whole family ended up enjoying a nice margarita with dinner that night.

I also celebrated my 35th birthday at the beginning of the month. I had the entire week off of work to get ready for our annual garage sale. On my birthday the whole family went out to dinner. In my opinion as you get older birthdays become less and less important. What is important is that I had my two sweet girls by my side. It was a good day!

As this school year comes to an end for Olivia she is faced with many changes. She has to say goodbye to the classroom where she has spent the past four years and the teacher with whom she has a very special bond. She will be moving into the Elementary classroom next year and things will be quite different. Many of her little friends will be moving up as well which should help to ease the transition. 

The end of the school year also means it time for some hard goodbyes. There are usually some friends that are moving onto other schools, or friends leaving town. In this case Olivia will be saying goodbye to someone she has grown incredibly close to in a very short amount of time. Her dear friend, Vicky. Vicky is from China and she spent the second half of the school year here while her father worked at one of our local colleges. When Vicky arrived at the school she could hardly speak a word of English. In a few short months she was able to speak very well, with the help of Olivia. 

Olivia took Vicky under her wing and taught her everything she needed to know to be successful in the Primary classroom. They have became dear friends and Vicky's impending return to China in a few short days is something Olivia is not ready to deal with. They have exchanged numerous gifts in the past months and have given each other many momentos in which to remember each other. I am not sure how Olivia will handle saying goodbye to hear dear friend, but I know it is going to be hard. Not just for her...but for me too. 

There are always some fun activities jammed into the last few weeks of school. One of my favorites is the Mother's Day luncheon. Each year the school hosts a lunch for the kids and their Moms. I always look forward to this, but not as much as Olivia does. The kids all work hard on their special gifts for us and you could just see how proud they were as they presented their creations!

It was nice to share lunch with Olivia, her friends and their Moms. Olivia has made some very special friends during her time at Peace Montessori and nothing makes me happier than to sit back and watch the special bond they have. Each year there are friends that move on and Olivia must say goodbye. It is never easy and as Olivia gets older I think it becomes more difficult for her. But there are also friends that she will continue her educational journey with for the next few years and that gives her comfort.

With school coming to an end we can start to get into full summer mode. A few weeks ago the temps were high so we busted out the baby pool and sprinkler for the girls. Olivia is a little big to splash around in the tiny pool but she is more than willing to play along with Cece. 

When Olivia was a baby we set up her tiny slide so that it fell into her baby pool. She loved it! Knowing Cecilia we thought she would love it as well. Judge for yourself...

I could have watched this girl play in her pool all afternoon. I had to force myself to put my camera down after catching numerous smiles, laughs and squeals. There is no greater joy than watching the joy in your child's eyes. Nothing compares to it!

The girls have been keeping us quite busy lately, but what else is new? I am not complaining. I love the fact that my girls are busy bees. All of these wonderful experiences will help to make them well rounded, happy kids. Things aren't slowing down anytime soon, either. We are getting ready to leave for California next week to visit my Aunt. It will be Cece's first tip out there, but Olivia's 8th, I think! Should be fun, but exhausting I'm sure! More to come...