a day at the orchard

The girls week in prek is all about apples so I decided it would be an excellent day to take them to an apple orchard just south of us here. It was a beautiful day, sunny and almost 80! We really had a great time together.



Unfortunately our day was cut short when I received phone calls and text messages alerting me that my Mother-in-law, Debi, was diagnosed with cancer and hospitalized. We are just starting to find out whats going on with her but prayers and good thoughts are definitely appreciated.

lots going on!

I realize I've seriously neglected this blog and I really have a lot I want to get in here because the girls have been busy, busy, busy!

We had our last ECFE class last week. The girls gained so much from this class and I did too. They loved their teachers and made a lot of friends that we have really gotten to know. We had lots and lots of playdates outside of school during the session and we're so happy we've got so many new and wonderful friends all within Richfield and Bloomington! The girls just blossomed in school and have really enjoyed having friends over to our home and going to their houses too. What an incredible blessing to all of us!

Here's a picture of the girls class that Daddy took when he brought them to school a couple weeks ago so I could work.


So a group of us decided we should put the kids in summer preschool! It's through the school district in the same school ecfe was in (only 3 miles away), two days a week for 2.5 hours......yeah, that's right, two and half hours alone twice a week!!! Woohoo!!
The girls best friend, Amelia, is in class, their friend, Adam and another friend Hayden. They LOVE it!! Rasa wakes up on school days before Royce even gets up and is dressed and ready to go before 7 am! I couldn't be happier with the teachers and what they spend their time doing. Its wonderful!

We are still getting together Wednesday's with the old class because we all got so close we want to see each other all summer. This morning we spent the morning with them at a really fantastic park in Bloomington and took the kids for a nature walk to a wading stream. The kids loved it. They loved finding snails and throwing rocks in the water. We're excited to go back again with Daddy.

Amelia's Mom, Kaitlin and I have become friends (after all between ecfe, preschool and playdates we were seeing each other four plus times a week!). They live super close and we all love hanging out together during the day. Kaitlin has a one year old boy who Rasa is in love with and everyone gets together so well it's almost like a break spending the days together. We plan on seeing each other a lot all summer!

Along with Kaitlin, Hayden and Adam's Mom's, Shelly and Amy and all are all having girls night out next week. We all have a lot of fun together and it's nice to have their friendships. We really couldn't be happier in this place right now. It was an adjustment, for sure, but things have really been one blessing after another this past year and the best part is being able to watch the girls build new relationships with new kids and their parents and have a community of people they enjoy to be around.

We've really gotten to know our neighbors as well and both sides love their visits from the girls. It feels like home....FINALLY!

On a business note: I landed a commercial photography gig for a company called Gibout Toy's. I had a lot of fun shooting this project and while it was a ton of work it was amazing to work with the girls in the studio and wrap this thing up. I love that they can watch me work and run my business and part of me hopes it will plant a seed for them to know that they can make what they want out of their lives and do whatever feels good to them. It doesn't have to be a cookie cutter job or something that isn't fufilling to them. It's always going to be tons of work but it is possible to balance it all.
Here's one of the final images this company used to do an 8x8 foot banner of for the 2013 hollywood celebrity and vip only toy fair!

Bright Prospects here we come!

We just got notified today that both girls got into our first choice preK program! We are SO excited! The school is a mix of Montessori and Waldorf learning and the two classroom teachers are fantastic. I knew when I toured the school it was the perfect place for them! Aside from having two teachers there is also a parent volunteer in class everyday. With class size of 15 kids the student teacher ratio is better than any other school we looked at and I love that the girls will get to know their classmates parents and that I'll have the opportunity to get to know their peers as I volunteer in class twice a month.

They start in August and will attend Monday's, Wednesday's and Friday's. The really fun part for me is going to be school clothes shopping ;)

Rasa, Rasa, Rasa.....

Two different mom's of boys in the girls class let me know today that their boys have been talking quite a lot about how much they like Rasa. This was funny to me because Rasa and I have been having discussions on how you need to be nice to boys and that they are NOT stupid or yucky. Apparently these two little ones like a challenge ;)

school talk....and a mix of feelings...

Time seemed to sit still for me for about a year. The girls were getting bigger but our lives seemed to stay the same. Staying home with them hasn't been easy. Some days are just plain painful.

From toddlerhood to preschool aged brings new challenges more frustrating than ever before and once again Royce and I find ourselves clueless, trying to create new ways to deal with behavior and also trying to continue to live in the moment and enjoy the girls at every age and stage.

I've been fighting feelings of really wanting to work more and have the girls in daycare part time. Working from home and staying home full time during the week made things harder. I felt less of a Mom and more frustrated trying to balance out getting work done and prioritizing my families needs. I kept thinking to myself, I can't wait for school to start. I feel a little guilty that this fall passed us by with me having too much work and not enough time to spend cherishing the excitement of new experiences that has always recharged my mommmy battery.

Then it hit me: this is my last year full time with my kids. Free to do as we please whatever day we want to. Knowing that school is just around the corner and it will be so much different as we shift from home life to school life. I have regret. A lot of it. I wish I would have had endless amounts of patience and creativity. Why didn't I do more of this or that with them when I had the chance, etc. Why can't I be perfect. They deserve that. I know it's not real but it doesn't make me want it any less.

We did kindergarten screening two weeks ago and then decided one day a week school would be good for them. It would give them the opportunity to be away from me. To experience new things, new kids, new learning experiences. To grow and be confident, to push them a little outside of their comfort zones and in return fill them with the confidence they need right now to know they can do it. I'm so happy we are doing this. Rasa, especially, has just shined and we've watched her in two weeks turn from a timid little mouse to an outgoing happy girl that is even more eager than ever to show us what she's capable of. Adia has been a little reluctant. Wanting to be held more. Wanting to talk more about when she was a baby. I'm watching her closely, picking her up more and telling her how proud I am of her.

Today the girls, my Mom and I toured our first choice for PreK. It's a wonderful wonderful school in the Seward neighborhood with two amazing teachers and a classroom that's both Montessori and has a warm Waldorf feel and practices. Exactly what we dreamed of for the girls. Such an easy transition from the home to school. Originally I thought we would do two days a week but after talking to the teachers today they think they should do three days minimum because of their age (because of them having winter birthday's they'll be some of the older kids in the class when in school). Whoa. Three days of school a week huh. They're not my babies anymore. They're going to be school kids.

We have selected our first choice for Kindergarten and it's five days a week so it makes sense to have them in PreK three days. My mind can't even wrap around the thought of shipping them off to school every day of the week but I have a feeling they'll be ready for it, and if they're not we'll find a place that suites them better.

I'm excited for them! I really am but maybe the overwhelming feeling I'm having is a loss for myself. I'm not a helicopter parent. I don't want to hold my kids hands in college or anything like that. I just didn't expect time to go this quickly. I truly believed that if I forced myself to live in the moment with them I wouldn't feel a loss for them as they grew. I do though. You never dream the things that drive you crazy and seem so painful are the things that you're going to miss. I hated having to rock the girls to sleep every night until they were 2. I wanted them to go to bed, lay down and just sleep! Every night we spent two hours getting them to sleep! Now I cry a little every time I think about it because I would do just about anything to sit in their room in the quiet night and hold them, sing and rock them safely and sweetly off to sleep.

first day of SCHOOL!!

It's been a crazy past couple of days!

Kindergarten screening went well. It was funny to hear the girls answer some questions to things with their spin on them ie "have you ever been to the zoo?" "No!" or "what animals do you see on a farm?""baby piggies...I want a baby piggie...a real one" lol!

Both girls passed with flying colors (even Adia who got bored and refused to continue on with half of the test!). Rasa's chart says she's developing wonderfully and was enthusiastic. Adia's said she seems to be developing normally (stubborn little turkey!).After talking to the screener we decided putting the girls in school right away would help them feel more independent and brave when it comes to interacting with new people and playing with other kids comfortably. We start PreK next year so we agreed getting them used to a school setting would only help to ease them into PreK. So.....

TODAY we started school! The girls preschool teacher Anne is wonderful and sweet. The teachers aid was warm and loving (she's older so the girls call her Gramma teacher). There are 13 kids in their class, mostly boys but two other girls. They were happy to have more girls in the class! The really nice thing is all of the other kids seem to be respectful of each others space and right in the middle of the energy spectrum which works well for my quiet kids.


It was all a little overwhelming to ME. We walk in, found the classroom, took coats off and washed hands and then I had to leave. Kids are expected to find their names on the desk place mats and sit and wait for instruction. Anne greats each child individually and children are expected to greet her.

We read Llama Llama Misses Momma before we went so we could talk about how I would be leaving them in class without me. Both girls did really well with me leaving. Rasa apparently got sad after I left but recovered quickly according to her teacher. I left them sitting at their desk with playdoh and walked away. I teared up but held it together. I was worried my babies would cry for me and that I wouldn't be there for them as I always had to hug them and tell them everything would be ok. They've grown and they did just fine.

When I came back to their class Rasa was bouncing on the floor with her hand on the teachers shoulder laughing at a book the teacher was reading her. Adia sat in between two other kids reading a book. They looked so happy, so big! My heart smiled. They're so ready for this. Good for them.

time playing tricks.....

Three years ago I was pulling coats and hats off of my 12 month olds at ECFE playtime and a lady sat in the lobby with her four year old daughter. She smiled and said to me, "pretty soon you're going to be sitting where I am waiting for their kindergarten screening" I balked and said "not for a while!"....all of the sudden I'm the lady sitting with her almost four year olds for kindergarten screening. How did this happen so fast?!