My Little Graduate

The first thing I did when we arrived in Bradenton was to find a program for Maggie to attend. She loved her Children's Day Out program in Illinois and I knew that she would need the socialization. We signed her up at the YMCA for a parent's morning out program. The program was for 3 hours a day 2 days a week. She was one of the youngest in her class of 10 but she held her own for the most part. They learned their alphabet, practiced writing their names and had art and music time every class. She really enjoyed herself. I had no idea until a week ago that they do a graduation for her class. She was excited for the party. It was quite informal but she wore her little graduation cap that they decorated themselves. They sung 3 songs for us and then received their certificates. After the "ceremony" we had a pizza party with cookies and brownies. I was able to video tape the whole thing for Mike and Maggie can't wait to watch herself on TV tonight.

I want to be a singer when I grow up

I always try to talk to Maggie and Caleb about the different jobs that are out there as we go throughout our days. I want them to know that everyone has a valuable position in how our community and world works. So I point out the garbage man, mail man, plumber, cashier at the store, etc. The big interest lately has been firemen and paramedics since we see and hear a lot of them where we live (by the hospital and fire station). Today while we were doing out errands, Maggie announced to me from the backseat that Caleb can be a fireman when he grows up but she wants to be a singer. She said she wants to sing about Jesus and how he died on the cross because loves us. I am not sure that she will really be a singer when she grows up but she really does love to sing. Her favorite songs are; Mighty to Save, You raise me up, and Your Name (by Hillsong). She is especially great at the crescendos but goes overboard a little and starts screaming. I do love to hear her sing though and I love to hear Caleb sing with her. The childcare workers at the Y said that they spend a large portion of their time in there singing songs together and they are always songs about Jesus! Caleb's favorite song is the "daddy song", My Wish by Rascal Flatts and "Heaven come down". He also likes Mighty to Save. We have a blast in the van singing together but they always tell me to stop- I guess I can hear why ;) P.S. As I was typing post I got interrupted by Caleb pooping on the potty!! He is doing pretty good with this potty thing. I hope it sticks even through the move and can't wait to stop buying diapers again!

First Family Movie Night

For those of you who know me very well, you know that I don't really let my children watch much TV. Last night Mike and I decided to have a movie night and I decided that Maggie is getting old enough to experience these things too. I took her to Blockbuster (which is a whole different story) and allowed her to pick from the family section. She chose Lassie. As I type she is watching the movie with Mike, in the dark. I even let her have a bedtime snack with her milk. She is eating up this special big girl time with Mommy and Daddy. We have had to skip a few parts of the movie but she doesn't even seem to notice. She is focused on the dogs and the antique cars. I think she especially likes the dog because it reminds her of McKinley!

Caleb is growing up

We have had a few major "big boy" milestones this week with Caleb. The first was that on Monday night he kept saying "I don't like it" when we put him in his crib. We ignored him because we weren't really sure what he was talking about. Then at about 11pm he woke up screaming and when I went in he pointed to the big bed in his room and said "I sleep", "no like crib". Of course his language wasn't quite as clear as my typing but it was evident that he wanted to sleep in the full size bed in his room. After a few minutes of his screaming and not being consoled by anything I tried, I laid him in the bed and he rolled over and went straight to sleep! I was appalled and saddened. He is growing up too fast for me. Before Mike and I went to bed we put him back in the crib to sleep for the rest of the night and we haven't had that problem again. Thankfully he is not trying to get out of his crib yet. Maggie was in her toddler bed before she was two because she would climb in and out of her crib and the pack and play. I am just not ready for that yet with him. The second milestone is that he pooped on the potty tonight!! This is actually the second time he has done this but tonight he actually told me that he was going to do it versus the last time I could just see that he needed to by his facial expression. I am sure this will be a long process but it is a step in the right direction. He hates to have a wet diaper and always asks to have it changed at the first feeling of wetness but I am not sure how to teach a boy to do that business in the toilet without spraying it everywhere. The insert that we have for the little toilet pinches his thighs and he won't sit with it on there. So any tips in that area would help!

Unfortunately I do not have a picture to match the subject of this blog, but I am working on remembering to take one next time. Maggie is my child who refused to wear a coat in 10 degree weather and couldn't wait to move to Florida because, "you don't ever have to wear a coat in Florida" and "it is always warm in Florida." She has completely done a 180 on this subject and is now layering on the clothes in 75 degree weather and claiming that it is "chilly outside"??? The other day she had on tights, leggings, a t shirt, a long sleeved shirt, a sleeveless dress, and a sweater over the top of it all. She looked a little ridiculous but she sure was happy. I just don't understand the total change in her clothing choices. Now more often I am saying, "it's too hot for that today" instead of begging her to put on pants and socks. I promise to take a picture soon and post it for you all to see.

Florida

We are here! I think this week marks the 4th week that we have been here, but truthfully I have lost track of time because it seems to be going so quickly. Florida is a huge change from Illinois that is for sure. So far we are enjoying ourselves. We have joined the Y and the kids are taking swimming classes and Maggie is in a ballet class. We've been able to spend a few afternoons at the beach although I have decided that I should probably think of moving that excursion to the morning hours since it has been getting so much warmer now. Mike is in the full swing of spring training now which should be a hard thing, I have heard, but I actually think this is the closest that we have ever been to a "normal" schedule with him. He would disagree because his mornings have started so early and he does have long days but he is home here by 4 usually. I have been told this will soon change as they switch gears towards the end of the month and more meetings are being held. For now I have really enjoyed having him home in the evenings to eat dinner with us and to help with the nighttime routine. This schedule should hopefully last through June when he/ we will be headed to Pennsylvania for the season until September. In the meantime we will be enjoying the sunshine, sound of the waves and the palm trees! I will try to update more often.

I am blogging from my in-law's house in Georgia today. We are on our way to our new home in Florida and decided to take a break in the travel and rest for a few days. Our adventure in moving has not exactly been smooth and I can't wait for it to be over. To start with our U Haul truck was about 5 feet too short and I faced difficulty trying to decide what to dump. I think the amount of stuff that we are driving around with in our van must be illegal! We are packed in like sardines in there but at least most of it fit. Mike was a trooper and drove the U Haul truck, towing his car behind him, down last Friday and Saturday to Florida. He was able to get some help unloading everything into the storage unit and then caught a flight back to Illinois on Sunday morning. We were a little delayed on our departure due to my inability to fit everything in the van I thought we needed so we left late Sunday afternoon to drive to Kentucky. We spent the night just outside of Louisville in a hotel and Maggie was able to swim a little in the pool before we left. Now we are here in Georgia and Mike and his dad are at Sam's Club buying a new battery for the van. We have been having some issues with it but every time we had it tested they said the battery was fine. Apparently they didn't test it right- Mike's dad says that one of the cells is bad. Hopefully a new battery will fix the problem permanently so we don't have to keep jumping the car once or twice a month. We will be leaving here either tomorrow or Friday. I am excited to see our new place for the next four months. Mike was able to see it last week and he says it is nice. There is a fenced courtyard and a pool right out the back door. I cannot wait to be outside with the kids playing. I will post some pictures after we arrive.