Finale

Emma's dance season has come to an end . . . here are some photos from last night's recital.

Bad to the Bone (tap) - Emma is in the back center

Lollipop (jazz) - Emma is in the front (right)

Sleeping Beauty (ballet) - Emma is on the right

There was one green costume and she was so excited to get it since green is her favorite color.  Speaking of green, last night Emma said, "I love you more than the color green, and you know that's a lot because I LOVE green!"  (Then she wondered why I had tears in my eyes)

Red Revival

Emma's dance company performed at a retirement center last night for their first performance of the season. The girls were so cute and so excited. The required lipstick is Red Revival. It works on stage but up close, wow! Here is Emma with proud papa, and also with her BFF, Kiana.

Happy Birthday, Little Monkeys!

Alex and Emma turned six years old on December 16th. Time is flying by! These days, Emma is very cooperative with pictures and Alex is not. He does not want to stand next to his sister.

It has been a busy, exciting year. Kindergarten--yahoo! Lots of soccer, swimming, dance, reading, playing, bike riding, scooting and a million other things. Happy, happy birthday to my little monkeys!

Catching My Breath

The past few weeks have been kind of a blur! There were many moments I will never forget but it helps that I captured some memories with pictures:

Ethan's first day of third grade . . .

One arch of a double rainbow after a fast and furious rainstorm . . .

Emma lost her second tooth (one week after losing the first) . . .

My littlest munchkins started Kindergarten!

Alex and Emma's first day of school will always be remembered by the wild weather. An intense hailstorm woke us all up, then it continued to rain all morning. Last December they begged for umbrellas for their birthday. They had never really used them until that morning. That was almost as exciting as riding the bus and going to school with Ethan!

On Tuesday night (second night of school) the kids were dressed in their pjs and heading to bed when Alex announced that he wanted to write a story. He found some index cards and a marker and started to work on it. He was tired so I suggested he wait until the next day. Oh no, his mind was made up. He would start to write, then make a mistake and since he was tired he would get upset, crumble up the card and want to start over. Oh my goodness, it was like a flashback of Ethan at that age! I knew he wouldn't rest until his story was complete. So here it is, with a little help from me, when he was just too tired to write anymore.

Ethan lost tooth #9. It was kind of a bloody mess. Gross, I know. Ethan's teeth have never come out very easily and he has only pulled one out by himself. Since Emma pulled out her first two teeth without me even knowing it, Ethan's competitive side kicked in. He worked on this tooth for two days and finally pulled it out. With all these teeth coming out I think I should invite the tooth fairy to stay in our guest room.

Speaking of competitive or maybe just strong-willed and determined, here is Emma who can now tie her own shoes. We went shoe shopping a few days ago and she LOVED the Nike sneakers with the purple swoosh. They have laces and I told her I wouldn't buy them unless she could tie her own shoes. She said, "Okay, show me. RIGHT NOW." So I did and she did it. Just. Like. That. I'm pretty sure that girl will do whatever she sets her mind to!

Among all these fun milestones, we were saddened by the loss of David's grandmother, Elvira McWilliams, who passed away on August 25, 2010. She was 99 years old! We were fortunate to visit and spend time with her this past spring in Los Angeles. We have said many prayers for her to rest in peace and for Grandpa Stan, his siblings and the rest of the McWilliams family to feel comforted by their memories of her. It is always hard to say goodbye. We love you, Grandma.

#2 for Emma

Emma lost tooth #2 today, a week and a day after she lost the first one. She said she feels good because now she's going to get two big teeth like Ethan.

A First for Emma (and almost a second)

This morning Emma said, "My mouth feels kind of weird." To my surprise, she had a very loose tooth! She has been asking for months when she will lose a tooth like Ethan and I have said "sometime during Kindergarten." She kept wiggling it and then during Ethan's soccer game she came to me with her tooth in her hand. I didn't expect this for a while longer! Then she had me feel another tooth and it is also loose. I hope the Tooth Fairy has plenty of cash on hand!

Just Like Mama

When I am out at a restaurant, store or some other public place and go to the restroom I have the following routine when washing my hands: water, soap, rinse, flick water off hands, wipe hands on hair to calm the frizzies, dry hands on towel. On Saturday we were at a soccer game where Emma and I went to the restroom. We were washing our hands, I did my routine and in the mirror I caught a glimpse of Emma smoothing her hair with her wet hands. She saw me looking at her and grinned shyly then shrugged her shoulders. It was such a heart-warming feeling, catching that secret little moment of her wanting to be like me. What role models we are as parents/adults, at times we don't even realize!

Last month when we were in California, Alex and Emma got to meet their Uncle Michael and Aunt Haruna for the first time. They have been living in Japan and London for many years and have recently moved to Los Angeles. Yeah! We enjoyed an evening with them at dinner. Alex and Ethan had to sit by Michael and Emma insisted on sitting by Haruna. They quickly became bffs! We can't wait to see them again later this month.

A Penelope

Alex and Emma were playing outside as I was making dinner and I heard Emma yell, "Alex! I found a penelope! Get the bug container!" Then Alex yelled back, "Hurry, Emma! Get the thing to pick it up [plastic tweezers]!"

When Ethan got home Alex excitedly told him about their find/capture. He said, "Emma found a penelope and we put it in that thing that bugs go in! Then Emma threw it in the grass so the penelope isn't in there anymore!"

Ethan smiled and looked at me with his "they are so young, aren't they funny" look.

You Don't Have to Like Everyone

I never imagined I'd be giving Emma advice about girl stuff (the emotional stuff) at the young age of five, but tonight I found myself saying (in response to a looong conversation and one hundred questions), "you don't have to like everyone but you need to be polite and use nice manners." She thought that was alright and gave me a big hug and said, "Thank you, Mommy. You always help me figure things out." I told her that's what moms are for (and hoped I had given her good advice). She said Daddy is good for that too and said I can tell him about our conversation, because he wants to know, but I can't tell anyone else. So shhh, it's our little secret . . .

Just Something New

I'm not feeling any creative juices about a name for this post but I like the way Emma is snuggled up to Ethan in this picture while Alex is trying to pull one of his silly poses. That's harder to do while sitting down since he usually squats down a little and sticks his butt out, while pulling a silly face.

Grandma G

Here is Emma with my mom/Grandma Gillies. I love it.

Considering Myself Lucky

My babies turned five today!

We have been celebrating Alex and Emma's birthday for a few days now, starting with their birthday party on Saturday. It was held at a gymnastics gym where the kids got to play on all the equipment, including a 35-foot trampoline, a bounce house and a foam pit for jumping. One mom called it the "Pink Eye Pit." I agree--it gave me the heebie jeebies but the kids loved it so I endured and had the hand sanitizer ready to go.

They loved playing with their friends and received many fun gifts, including backpacks from us. On Monday they proudly wore their backpacks to school.

I visited their class on Monday for their birthday spotlight and they were proudly wearing their birthday crowns. Turning five is very exciting!

Happy Birthday, Alex & Emma! Lots of love from Dad, Mom and Ethan

The Sweeter Side

My friend, Kim, snapped this picture of Emma on Sunday and when I saw it my heart swelled. This is an expression I have never been able to capture on film but it is one I dearly love.

I imagine that when I am older I will look at this picture and be reminded of my sweet four-year-old Emma who says things like, "Kiss my lovely lips, Mama", "Mama, you're my best girl", "Mama, your hair looks pretty. When I am a grown up will my hair look like yours?", "Daddy is silly and he sings funny songs" and "You make my heart feel super happy."

In the Company of Greatness

My friend, Kim, hired a photographer named Jamie Sampson a few years ago and I have been following Jamie's website and blog ever since. She takes amazing photos of children and dogs. She recently put out a call for child models for her fall advertising campaign. I sent some pictures to her and she selected Emma to be her little model! We met her last night for the photo session and she is absolutely adorable (she's a grown up but I can still say that since she is younger than me). She is also Emma's new best friend. Click here to see a sneak peak of the photos, or click on the link on the right for Jamie's blog. I can't wait to see more!

Jamie Sampson Photography Blog

Young Minds at Work

A few days ago Alex got dressed in the clothes I had set out for him--blue patterned shorts and a light blue polo shirt. Then he put on brown socks and pulled them up above his calves. Our conversation went as follows:

Me: "Alex, let's go pick some different socks that will match."
Alex: "No, I want to wear these!"
Me: "Let's pick some white ones. The brown ones don't match."
I was kneeling down in front of him so we were eye level; he looked at me, very seriously (and a little worried) with his soft brown eyes and said, "Is it against the law?" I said, "Only according to the fashion police." I was fine with the brown socks.

Here's a conversation with my feisty little Emma:
Emma: "How many days do we have left at KinderCare?"
Me: "Two--Thursday and Friday."
Emma: "Oh! I'll have to tell Ms. Ashley that Friday will be my last day! And Elijah."
Me: "Why Elijah?"
Emma: "Because he said he doesn't want me to go to that school anymore because he doesn't like me."
Me: "That wasn't very nice of him to say. It makes me mad that he said that to you."
Emma: "Why do you care? He's not your kid."
Me: "Well, I'm glad."
Emma: "Why are you glad? Because you don't want four kids? (No) How about five? (No) How about ten? No, not ten because then our house would be WAY TOO NOISY! Mommy, is three the perfect number?"
Me: "Yes, perfect."

No, not that word

A few nights ago Emma and I were driving home from her dance class. I asked her if she likes to dance and she said yes, just not when she has to do it by herself [in front of the teacher and other dancers]. I commented that it must make her feel nervous to do something new in front of everyone. She said, "No, not nervous. A different word. Shy." Here is my "shy" girl (not) whipping up a mud/stick/leaf/herb pie.

Emma, where is your _______ ?

Several times this week I found myself looking for items that had mysteriously "disappeared." A few examples: Emma's soccer shorts, headbands, sunglasses, swimsuit, cropped leggings and earrings. I asked Emma if she knew their whereabouts and without a hint of guilt she shrugged her shoulders and said, "I don't know."

A major discovery was made tonight. We know Emma likes to stuff things, such as stuffed animals and toys, in the crack between her bed and the wall. David told her to clean it up tonight then a few minutes later she asked me to pull the bed away from the wall. Shortly thereafter, I went to check on the progress and this is the pile I saw on her bed.

You can't get the full effect from the picture so I'll provide an inventory of the items she has stashed in the past two weeks:

soccer shorts, 10 headbands, 1 pair of sunglasses, 1 pair of cropped leggings, 1 bikini top, 3 pairs of earrings, 12 necklaces, 1 bracelet, 12 hair clips, 1 hair scrunchy, 6 tubes of lipgloss/chapstick, 2 toy ponies, 1 lego guy, 1 rock, 1 rubber band, 1 dirty pair of pajamas, 3 shirts, 2 dirty socks, 1 pair of leg warmers, 2 stretchy bugs, 1 flip flop, 1 "Emma/Utah" license plate, a box of push pins (emptied), 3 tubes of lotion, 1 hat, 5 sticks of unchewed gum, 4 wads of chewed gum, 2 rice bag/pillows, all the stuffing from a small pillow, the tag from a pillow, about a dozen stickers, chapstick tin, makeup bag, jewelry box, 1 hat, an empty Kleenex box, the wadded up Kleenex from the box, 3 pairs of clean underwear and a black Sharpie.

Emma knew she had been caught. Neither David nor I were angry but she still knew she had been naughty and apologized again and again (especially for the gum). She is a little stinker!

Lollipop Girl

On Saturday we attended Emma's dance recital where her class performed a tap dance to Lollipop. Emma and I arrived early to check in then the boys joined us later.

Make up - check
Costume - check
Snacks - check
Coloring books, stickers and movies - check
Now a long wait in the dressing room until performance time . . .

Afterwards Ethan and Alex presented her with beautiful flowers and said, "Good job, Emma!" So sweet!

We finished the day by going out to dinner. I think Emma's favorite part of the whole thing was having "lovely lips." She is now obsessed with lip gloss and holds her lips in a pout--so they won't get messed up and also so that others will notice her. We attended a birthday party today at Chuck E. Cheese and she made sure that Chuck got a good look at her sparkly lips!

Sleeping Beauty

Emma doesn't like to sleep and has officially renounced naps. Yesterday she had a fever and after quiet time (a.k.a. nap time for Alex) she crashed on the couch. That has NEVER happened before so it was definitely a picture moment.