Caitlin at the barre

I had to take this photo of Caitlin warming up for her Lyrical Dance class.  She takes to dancing like a duck to water.  I just love that it makes her so happy, especially the lyrical style dance class.

Finally, a snow day

We finally had a snow day today.  The girls have been dying for one.  When they heard the news they spent all morning just giggling and horsing around.

And I had a list of things I wanted to do on our first snow day.  Here it is:

Sleep in - check
Do the wind generator science kit with Gwen - check
Play in the snow - check (sort of, it wasn't snow but ice which turned our driveway into the most awesome sledding ramp ever)
Try a new recipe for 100% whole wheat bread - check
Make homemade yougurt - check
Teach Gwen and Cait a new math skills game - check
Watch Ramona & Beezus with the girls - check
Knit - check (got a good bit done on a sleeve for the sweater I'm making)
Laundry - check
Prepare a nice gift bag and cards for Caitlin's friend's birthday party - check

Bonus: found some of the bathroom accessories we need for the bathroom remodel - check

And, now I can sleep.  Because, I'm tired. Check.

Fun today

Today, Gwen and I finally broke out the game of jacks that she'd gotten for Christmas.  I was surprised how quickly she picked it up.  She really can do it well.  This new game happily gives me a little break from getting creamed in Uno.  How is it that she always wins?  It is kind of uncanny, not to mention improbable.

Caitlin, however, had quite a rough day.   She had a meltdown when she couldn't play a piano piece the way she wanted to.  There was absolutely zero pressure on her from either myself or the teacher.  She was just frustrated.  Then she had a meltdown when she lost a teeny-tiny sticker of a shoe for princess Jasmine.  I pretended that another princess offered to share her shoes, but she was having none of it.  She totally broke down.  Later, we all watched the end of "Anne of Green Gables" together.  Matthew dies near the end and Caitlin totally went to pieces.  Tears, wailing, the works. Fortunately, handsome Gilbert Blythe had a few scenes after that and she likes that sort of thing, so that perked her back up.  Before bedtime, we played the "Guess what song I'm humming" game which put her to sleep on a high note.  I hope tomorrow is a better day for Cait.

Awaking to a snowy world

This is what the world looked like this morning.  It was so gorgeous.  This was the prettiest snow I've ever seen, very glimmery and sparkly.  It looked like it was straight out of a Disney movie.  Gwen and I headed out first thing to shovel the driveway together.  

Shoveling the snow was easy and fun.  However, I did need a chisel to get the ice off my car.  It was encased in a sturdy 1/4 inch of solid ice.  When I was finally done, I got to go inside for hot coffee and homemade waffles.  (Thank you Jeff!)  I kind of wish every morning went like this.  If only we had gotten a real snow day from school instead a just a two hour delay.  

Hot Chocolate for Homework

Caitlin's writing assignment for the day is to tell why she likes or doesn't like hot chocolate. In order to really do a good job, we had to make some.  

Do you think she liked it?

Considering it.....

We have a winner!

Playing with Matches

Tonight, I helped Gwen play with matches.  Poor Gwen has a pathological fear of matches.  She doesn't like the "fwoosh" of fire when they first light.  She doesn't have the hand strength to get the "child-proof" candle lighters to work either.  This is now a serious problem because she has to prepare, light and tend a campfire in order to earn her FireTender badge in scouts.  So, we have been playing with matches.  Over a sink of water, Gwen and I together have lit match after match to help familiarize her with the whole match lighting process.  She has even transferred the flame to a nearby candle and calmly blown out the match.  We are making real progress and I think she'll be ready to demonstrate her fire-tending skills at the next scout meeting.

Caitlin has absolutely no fear of matches or fire and I think I'd like her to get some, actually.

So sick

I have a nasty cold.  Jeff bought me a chocolate mousse for dessert on my return home from Kentucky.   And I don't want to eat it.  That is how sick I am.