It's 4H Time!

Sunday was the first 4H horse project clinic that Alayna attended this year.  It was a safety clinic and also a clinic for beginning or intermediate riders.  She and Chloe did fantastic!  Last year, there were some issues with Chloe's behavior, which we eventually discovered were due to her feet having some problems.  This year, though, Chloe was on her best behavior.  Of course, Alayna is also doing so much better with her commands.  She is more confident in her abilities and what she needs to do, so she is giving clear commands that Chloe cannot confuse.  Together with strong feet and therefore no pain and a better attitude, Chloe and Alayna did amazing!  We are so proud of how far they've both come!

Let's Play Cinderella

What I didn't mention in my post about Lilly's foot was our guilt that night.  Not the guilt over Lilly getting hurt (though we felt badly) but the guilt over poor Alayna.  See, she was in a school play that night and it was her first time ever performing something like that.  And we missed it.  Thankfully, Alayna is old enough that she understood Lilly needed us more at that time.  And super thankfully, there was another performance the next night!

The play was "Cinderella", though it was adapted and set in the 1950's.  It was really cute--Cinderella was going to a sock-hop instead of a ball and she sang in a lip-sync contest instead of dancing with the prince.  Alayna was one of the Chicks, a group of girls that followed the cool guys around and were friends with Cinderella.  She did a great job and we were so glad that we caught the Saturday night show!

C-H-A-M-P-I-O-N

Alayna came home from school on Tuesday so excited that she was jumping out of her skin.  She could barely take off her snow boots, hat, mittens and coat fast enough to tell me what she was so excited about.

"MOM!!  We had the 4th grade spelling bee today and not only am I my class champion, but I'm the champion of the whole 4th grade!!!!"  She was a little excited, but so were we.  Last year, she was 2nd and so bummed, because she knew how to spell the last word correctly, just got ahead of herself and there's no going back to correct.  This year, she made sure to take her time.  I was so proud of her that she remembered to think it through, especially since I didn't even know it was time for the spelling bee (she kinda forgot to bring the study sheet home over the weekend)  She doesn't get to go on to competition at district until next year, in 5th grade, but it's still awesome.

I remember when I was in the spelling bee.  It was down to myself and my friend Sarah.  I got the word "diarrhea" and missed the second R.  She got the word "pneumonia" and spelled it correctly, so she won.  I was so frustrated because I knew her word.  But you know what?  I don't think I've ever misspelled either of those words ever again!

Great job, Alayna!  We're so proud of you!

Basketball--Part 2

Saturday was the start of Alayna's second round of basketball for the year.  Earlier, she played in "tournaments" with 3 games and 30 minutes of play but no score or fouls called.  It was simply to get them some experience and confidence with playing and handling the ball.  This past Saturday, however, was the start of real play--called fouls, scores, etc.  All the girls were so excited!

The tournament was about 45 minutes away, so we were there bright and early for a 10 am game.  Their first game ended up with a loss 14-18 (if I remember correctly), their second game was a win 20-4 (I think) and their last game was a loss 14-18 again.  All in all, it was a good showing for their first time!  They ended up third, and everyone got a ribbon.  They were pretty excited.  We now have basketball again for the next several Saturdays, but it's okay.  We like to watch and cheer the team on, and Alayna loves to play.  She's really doing a great job and has improved greatly!

Yesterday, a handful of the girls from the 4th and 5th grade teams went to a basketball clinic at a University about 2 hrs away.  They were able to do drills and stations with the coaches and players for the women's basketball team, plus got a signed t-shirt and poster.  Alayna came home so tired but with all sorts of stories of things she did and learned.  Yay for basketball!

Double-Digits!!

Alayna is now in the Double-Digit age club. It's crazy to think that Andy and I have been parents for 10 years now! I remember taking her home from the hospital and being so worried about everything. I remember just watching her sleep and not wanting to put her down. I remember how everything she did just enchanted us. She taught us how to be parents and I think she did a pretty good job.

*Knock Knock* Hello?!

Is anyone still out there? I know, I know...It's been a long time since I updated. Over a month and a half. Ouch. We have been busy and while that's not an excuse, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

But I've been informed that people have missed our little family. And I've missed blogging. So I'm going to make a bigger effort to keep this thing caught up again. But in doing so, I'm going to do one update post right now, with some pics, and then we'll be off again on the daily what-nots.

So what's been happening since Lilly turned 6? Well, she had her friends over for a friend party. And she was able to officially join 4H as a Cloverbud. Alayna started basketball, which has kept us running at least 3x a week for after school practices and 5 Saturdays in a row for tournaments. We celebrated Halloween, where we dressed up as the 3 Blind Mice, the farmer and the farmer's wife (complete with a cardboard and aluminum foil carving knife) Mid-November brought us our first snowfall of the year--10" worth--and a great day in the snow. The snow is still around and today we are dealing with freezing rain on top of it. I started watching a new little girl for daycare and last week interviewed a new little boy who will start after Thanksgiving. I also found out one of my families has a brother who will need childcare for his son come January--so I feel very blessed to be keeping busy. Andy shot a very nice buck on opening day of deer season, and the head is in my freezer. Yes, I'm told it will get mounted. I can't really fight him much because he lets me do just about anything when it comes to decorating the house...

That's the last month in a nut-shell. Now here are some pics and we'll hopefully see you soon, same place and whatever time is convenient for you.

Alayna zooming by with the ball

Lilly wanted a big brownie instead of cake for her party

Halloween 2010

Snow!

No More 4K, but 4 & K!

The girls started school this week, Alayna in 4th grade and Lilly in Kindergarten. They were both very ready to go back, and honestly, so was I. By the end of the summer, it's been a little too much time with everyone together and the bickering is more often and louder and everything not good. We were all ready for it to be back to school time!



Alayna has had quite the change over the summer! Her teeth have moved considerably with her braces. They are not only straight, but almost lined up and touching like 2 front teeth should be. She also had quite a growth spurt and grew about 2.5" since the end of school. It made for a huge wardrobe change, but we made it work. She's now 4'9" and quickly creeping up on her Gramma for height!



Lilly also had a huge summer and she's more than ready for Kindergarten! She's 4 foot even now and continues to color and do art whenever she can. Her lost tooth and broken arm add lots of fun questions for people to ask when we meet them in the store or at the school for Open House. Her most anticipated part of starting school is getting to go every day!

Mikayla looks a little upset in this picture, but she's not. She's actually in the middle of making a silly face at me (go figure, right?)

She was quite fine with sending the girls off, only needing her "bap-cack" for the picture. As soon as the big girls were on the bus, she clapped her hands and said, "Mommy, let's go eat some brefast, just us two! Then we can play a game!"

Fair-ly Late Post

Finally! I have some fair pictures! This year, Alayna was an Explorer, which is kind of like being in 4H Junior High. She was able to bring more projects, including 1 animal besides Little Britches, and had to fill out a record book, but she still had some limitations on what she could do. Next year, she's a full-fledged 4H'er and can do what she wants. This year, she brought a plate of 3 cookies that she baked herself (she was so proud!), a sequence of 3 pictures of our crab apple tree in various stages of bloom, a birdhouse she built with my dad's help, and an informational book about Manatees. I neglected to get a picture of her with her items, but she did a great job. This is the first year she also gets ribbons for placing, instead of just participating and she got all Blues! Great job, Alayna!


Alayna also was able to show her horse, Chloe, for the first time. She showed in Showmanship, Equitation, Western Pleasure and Horse Judging. Chloe was a little anxious with all the horses and not listening too well, but they did a great job. She got one red, 2 white and 1 pink ribbon. Alayna was very pleased with her first year showing horse, and we were so proud of her!






Both Lilly & Alayna showed a calf for Little Britches on Sunday morning. They worked with their calves over the summer and spent a lot of time getting them to lead, being used to getting handled and washed, etc. Lilly's calf was Crash and Alayna's was Eddie, both named after the crazy possum duo from Ice Age 2 & 3, which are favorite movies in our household.

Lilly in the show-ring
Alayna in the show-ring

Next year, we'll be even busier because Lilly will be a Cloverbud and able to bring some projects to the fair, and Alayna will be a regular 4H participant. She's already thinking about things she wants to bring! As for me, I usually bring a photo or two for the Open class, not because I want to win but because an exhibitor's pass is cheaper than a traditional season pass. Scandalous, I know. But, this year I actually got third place with this photo!

Horse Camp

Last week, my mom watched the girls and did daycare for me while Alayna and I went to Horse Camp. It was through the 4H and such a great experience for Alayna! She was able to ride for several hours a day, with sessions including Trail Class (getting your horse familiar with various "scary" things they may encounter on a trail-ride) showmanship, games, etc. Mixed in with the riding sessions were horseless sessions about caring for your horse, judging horses, general veterinary care, etc. She had a blast. While she was doing all that, I was relaxing in our borrowed camper, helping prepare meals for 100+ people and watching what I could of her riding sessions. We both had a great time and are ready for next year!

Alayna and her horse, Chloe

Trying to get Chloe to walk over a tarp. They circled several times before she finally did it!
Coming off the bridge in the trail class

Alayna during Horse Bowl (quiz bowl with horsey questions)

Alayna got 2nd place and a silver medal for her age group (23 kids) in horse judging!

**I have posted more today in a bit of blog-keeping, so look below for more of what's been happening!

Brace-Face

Alayna got two brackets put on her front teeth a few weeks ago. This picture is even old compared to how she looks now. It's amazing how quickly things can change. Her expander (the pink things you see on her molars) was turned nightly for a month, slowly expanding her upper jaw to make room for all her teeth. The expander is now just holding space for a little while longer, to make sure that her jaw doesn't move right back. She has the two front brackets to pull her front teeth together in order to allow room for her missing tooth to finally move in. Well, it has and is now peeking through her gum...9+ months after she lost it.

She's no longer our Snaggle Tooth! The snaggleness is gone and she's really looking great with her teeth in some semblance of order. Like I've mentioned before, I know what she's going through and how much better it feels in the long run to have nice, straight teeth. And I keep reminding her of that when she complains of not being able to eat caramels, or chew gum, or have chewy candy. I can't wait to show the completion pics!

Singing in the Spring

Alayna's spring program was this past week. The kids all sang various songs that represented spring or other countries. It was a very cute program, from the little Kindergartners up to the 4th graders who were almost too cool for what they had to do. Alayna was part of an international choir, that sang a song called "Go For the Gold" during the school's closing ceremonies for the Olympics. She also had a narration part before the first grade sang, then sang 2 songs with her third grade class. She did a great job with her singing, but especially her reading. She read loud and clear, which some of the other students did not. She has such poise. She's in the picture below, pretty much center.

In other concert news, Mikayla almost stole the show from all the kids performing. It started before we were even in the school. We were walking up to the door, with two little old ladies in front of us. Mikayla heard a little scream and immediately asked what that noise was. I told her I didn't know and she goes, "I fink it was a child, or a kid!" The ladies started laughing and had to turn around to see who made such an observation! Then during the program, one of the Special Education students was making some throat noises. Mikayla heard the noise and again, asked what it was. When I said it was just someone making a noise, she piped up with, "I fink there's a sheep in here!" (and she's right, it sounded like a sheep baa'ing) Then the student made the noise again and Mikayla commented, "Or maybe it's a coyote...or fox!" All the people around us were laughing, as Mikayla is ever so quiet. A few minutes went by without incident, then a baby started crying. Almost as loud as her "only talking, not yet yelling" voice can go, she proclaimed, "Someone's crabby!" Ah, always fun with that little girl.

"BRACE" Yourselves!

I was really trying to find a more recent picture of Alayna's smile that shows her teeth. She has a fantastic snaggle-smile right now. Some of those gaps have been filled with huge, crooked teeth. Teeth in front of teeth, some sideways, some only partially in because there simply isn't room for them to grow any further. I had almost the exact same smile and tooth configuration as Alayna does now--it's all because of me. And it's all about to change.

Yesterday we had her first orthodontist consult. While examining her mouth, the doctor used phrases like "severe crowding" and "5mm off center" to describe the shape of her mouth. No surprises there. They recommended pulling a baby tooth to allow the other teeth to shift, and putting in spaces and a "space saver" on the bottom. On the top she'll get an expander, to slowly expand her jaw and hopefully help the teeth to shift into place somewhat on their own once there's some room. She'll also need top braces on the front four teeth to help them pull into line. All this is what they are calling "Phase 1" and hopefully we won't need a Phase 2, or at least not a real in depth Phase 2. That's what the doc said. Let's hope it's true.

Having lived through this myself, I know what my poor baby girl is going through. I know that she'll have days that it hurts to eat anything. I know that she'll want gum or taffy or caramel so bad some days that it just doesn't seem fair. But in the long run, it's so worth it. She'll thank us for giving her a nice smile that will only help her self confidence. But until then, when all it does is hurt...Wish us luck.

Does the H in 4H stand for Horse?

Alayna has anxiously been awaiting this year in 4H--the first year she can be involved in the horse project. She's been working with her horse, Chloe, at home 2-4 times a week and she's been doing so well. The first few times, she wasn't comfortable with me letting go of the lead-rope. Now, I don't even lead her at all. She and Chloe are both getting more comfortable with one another--Alayna's learning to properly tell Chloe what she wants, without confusing her or hurting her (even though that's all inadvertent) and Chloe's learning that she can't get away with things when Alayna's on her back. They are learning a mutual respect of one another, which is exactly what you want between a horse and rider.

This past Friday was the first beginner's clinic of the year. A stable that helps the 4H project devoted Friday to first- and second-year horse members, so they could have a dedicated time to get comfortable with their horses, the grounds, and riding without the presence of the more experienced riders. Alayna did a fantastic job. She was one of only two students who didn't need extra help during the night, and she also kept Chloe in control when another horse got spooked right in front of her. Alayna also did a great job of reminding Chloe who was boss when Chloe saw where the gate was at the end of the session--she decided she was done but Alayna kept her going past the gate 3 times before they left.

Andy and I couldn't be more proud of how well she did not only on Friday night, but how well she's done with all her work with Chloe. Together they are shaping up to be quite a team.

Alayna and Chloe go trotting by

9 Years Ago, We Became Parents

Nine years ago today, at just after 9am, Andy and I became parents to a beautiful little girl we named Alayna. Over the years, she has amazed us with her intelligence, compassion and beauty. Even now, 9 yrs later and with almost the same smile (teeth missing), she continues to amaze us with all those things and more. She taught us how to be parents. She's the oldest, the one that has life so unfair, but yet loves her little sisters and basks in the joys of things she gets to do that the others don't.

Happy Birthday, Alayna! We love you and are so very proud of the

person you are and the person you are becoming!

Alayna at about 6 months

Alayna at 2 yrs

Alayna at 6

Alayna at 8

Alayna at almost 9 on Christmas Eve

**I don't have as many pics of her on the computer for the earlier years, since there weren't much for everyday digital cameras back then. What I have has been scanned...

Tale as Old as Time

On Saturday, my mom, Alayna, Lilly and I went to see Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" musical. Alayna had gone to her first show, The Lion King, a few years ago and Lilly has been so excited for her first musical since that day. Well, B&B was it.

When we walked into the doors of The Ordway in St Paul, she was overwhelmed with all the people, the decorations, the size of the theater. We found our seats and both girls quickly started asking, "How much longer?" "When will it start?" Thankfully, it was only about 15 minutes.

Throughout the show, Alayna and Lilly were just enthralled. Alayna, being older, was a little more reserved. Lilly, however, was not. She clapped, she smiled, she jumped, she laughed! At the end of the show, when the castle inhabitants defeated the villagers, she exclaimed, "The castle WON!" and when the beast turned into a man, she was jumping up and down, clapping. I think her first major musical was a success.

School Programs!

Both of the girls have had their Christmas programs in the past 2 weeks. Unfortunately, I was in such a hurry for Alayna's that I forgot my camera. I was so upset. But, she did a great job singing and dancing to the songs. She was also a line-leader for a certain part of their program and she did a great job keeping in time and doing what she was supposed to. It even earned her picture to be published in the local paper! Great job, Alayna!

Lilly's first school program was Thursday night, with just the 4K students. They sang several songs and did some finger plays. It was adorable to hear all the little ones singing their hearts out! After they sang, we went into the commons area of the school and Santa was there! The younger girls sat on his lap, while Alayna was helping get things ready for the other parts of the evening. After Santa, we ate snacks and decorated Gingerbread houses. It was a great night!

Our Little All-Stars

The Harlem Ambassadors, a professional show basketball team, was in a nearby town this past week.  We had won tickets to attend, and Alayna won a ticket at school, so off we went for a night of basketball and laughs.  Since Alayna won a ticket at school for answering some questions correctly, she was also able to sit on the bench with the players and be in on their huddles.  She thought that was really neat!

Between the first and second quarters, the team pulled the students sitting with them on the bench onto the court for a game of musical chairs.  They needed another child to complete the game, so they walked right over to Lilly, who was minding her business and dancing to the music, and asked her if she'd like to play!  So off she marched with Crystal, one of the players, onto the court for a game of musical chairs.  And guess what?  Lilly won.  She beat out Alayna, who came in fourth...

...and 6 other kids to win an autographed photo of Lade Majic, the team's coach and player.  She was so excited! 

Mikayla, on the other hand, was quite upset that both of her sister's were on the court and she wasn't.  It's so hard being the baby.

If the Harlem Ambassadors are in your area, I'd highly recommend going to watch the show.  They are family friendly, funny and talented with their basketball skills.  The girls had a blast, as did I, and the entire crowd was laughing through the whole game (which was played against local police officers, firefighters, business people, etc)

September and School

"It's the most wonderful time of the year..."

Are you singing with me? I love September for many reasons: it's the start of fall, my favorite season; Andy and I celebrate our wedding anniversary; school starts!

Yep, school started today and for the first time ever, I sent two girls on the bus. Alayna returned to school, this year as a third grader, and Lilly started 4K, or a preschool that's ingrained with the school system. They were both so excited and anxious to get on with the day!

Mikayla was convinced that she was going, too, so as you see, she has her backpack and shoes on. I was worried how she'd do when it came time for the girls to leave but she had to stay. Thankfully, she was happy to watch them go. Now, though, I can tell she's a little bored and she's asked about Alayna and Lilly a few times. Oh well, it will be good for her to have some separation.

When the bus drove by (we live on a dead-end, so it drives by and turns around after picking up the neighbor--perfect amount of time to walk to the end of the driveway) Lilly informed me that I could stay on the porch since she had Alayna to help her. *sigh*

The girls' bus-driver is awesome and I could hear her excitedly greet each of the girls, making a special comment on it being Lilly's first day. Even in previous years, she's made an effort to include the girls and sends treats home with Alayna for them, too. Now Lilly will get the treats herself.

Mikayla and I watched the bus leave and now, we wait. We go about our day, getting used to the unfamiliar quiet that comes after summer. Mikayla and I both are feeling a little lost, I think, but we'll manage. I know that both of the girls are probably having a super day and I can't wait until they come home so I can hear all about it. And until they do, we wait...

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

Alayna and Lilly have always had long, beautiful hair. Personally, I love long hair. There are so many things that you can do with it and it just seems so much more feminine. But, Alayna's 2 best friends have shorter hair and she's always wanted to get hers cut. We have debated it for some time, but after Karli's leukemia diagnosis, Alayna approached us about donating her hair. Of course, the idea was so sweet and giving, that I pulled out the tape measurer. The minimum to donate is 10" for Locks of Love, and she would have ended up with shoulder length hair. So I agreed. Then Lilly decided she wanted hers cut. So, off to the salon we went.

Mikayla was so patient and after the girls were done, she thought it was her turn to get her hair cut. So our sweet cosmetologist plunked Mikayla into the chair and she sat perfectly still while receiving 2 french braids. It was so cute and she was so proud of her pretty hair!