/a/

And so it begins. Luke is recognizing sounds in words and each day I ask, "Is this the day that I write on the calendar that he started to read?" He knows quite a few sounds in fact, and I am getting ready to make a nerdy chart about it. Today we were making A's in our playdough and I asked Luke what sound the A makes. His answer was, "Africa, Alligator, Alistair." The reading specialist in me was aflutter, so I had to add "Antelope and Alphabet." The fact that he could hear the /a/ sound at the beginning of the words, any sounds in fact, actually gives me a sigh of relief.  I have met so many kids in grades K-8 who could not recognize letter sounds that I had this fear that my child would be one of them. Now I just need to continue to remind myself that he's only 3 1/2. It's okay to just let him lead the way and support him as he goes. It's not a race for him to be reading, despite my total interest in sitting him down for a daily lesson. What can I say? I miss teaching and am so excited to see Luke getting closer and closer to the grade school days.

Perfect Mommy Monthly

If only EVERY day was like this one! We covered the floor with newspapers, we took off the clothes and we busted out all of our paints and paintbrushes. The boys went hog wild with trying out different sized brushes, mixing colors and filling page after page with paint designs. At the end, we pulled out the finger paints and they made hand prints on a big box and then hand prints on themselves. It was LOTS of fun, including the bath afterward. This is definitely a weekend activity if it is wintertime because it takes two people to keep the paint covered little one from running away and two people to carry the paint covered boys all the way upstairs to the bathtub....without getting too many walls and carpets hit with paint in the process.
Hopefully this memory will inspire me to do more art projects. They are by far the most fun way to spend a morning, but I need to get over my neatnick tendencies in order to do it.

Sister Weekend in San Francisco!

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Originally uploaded by fofanancy

Last weekend I had the pleasure of spending 3 days with my big sisters. We'd been planning a trip for years, but never actually did it...until now! We went to the spa, we shopped, we dined and danced to dueling pianos. It was a weekend of relaxation and a true vacation. I look forward to next year!!

Closure

During Christmas break we made the tough decision to move Luke from one preschool to another. He had been at his school for nearly two years, so, although starting him at a new preschool in January was a good time, he still needed to learn the lessons of closure. We felt strongly that he and his friends and teachers at his old school needed a chance to sort of wrap things up mentally and say a goodbye together.
Today we had a goodbye party. I picked Luke up from his new school and took him to his old school for lunch. The moment we arrived, the kids surrounded Luke and I think I heard about ten "I missed you's." It was so heartfelt and it honestly made me feel sort of guilty, like I was tearing Luke away from his true allies. They were like old friends, back from college, anxious to catch up on all that had happened while they were apart. I don't think I was quite aware of just how sentimental these little guys can be.
We took photos, ate lunch and cupcakes and played for what kept turning into "just a little bit longer mommy, ok?" All in all it was the best closure that I think I could model for a preschooler. We exchanged phone numbers with the other parents and Luke was ready to call his long lost friends on the phone the moment we got home. He was crushed when they didn't answer. This led us into a new life lesson about how sometimes you have to leave a message and wait for them to call back.

Here are some photos of Luke with his buddies and a special project that all the kids made for Luke. It is glittered hands waving to Luke, so pretty, that we hung it on the wall. It will allow us a little nostalgia for the love that literally poured out on Luke, the day he said goodbye.

Birthday Wishes

Today is my birthday, and I have had the rare opportunity to answer the phone most of the times that it rang today. I wasn't in a meeting, an interview or writing up something for a deadline, which gave me much more freedom to answer the phone when it rang. It was great to connect with some friends I don't see very often. Overall, it was the first birthday in awhile where I felt like had a chance to just take it all in and feel the love.
Speaking of feeling the love, I thought I'd drum up a photo of when I was tiny. It illustrates very well the age difference between myself and my older siblings and just how much love I have been getting all of these years.

New Year's Resolution number 44

It's 2010, a year that holds great hope for many, including me. Luckily, I've gotten a great start and think that if I can continue to take things one day at a time, I might just find myself in December looking back on 12 awesome months! In these first 6 days of the year I'm on a roll... feeling organized and not overwhelmed, happy and not impatient, and the most energetic I've felt in months. A big thanks goes to my almost 19 month old, who has slept through the night most nights this week, which is a great help. As a result, I've had a seamless few days of getting to the gym on time each day, walking the dog every day, having dinner planned and made without much trouble and have stayed on top of the chores! The greatest thing though is just how filled with joy I've been when I glance at my little boys. My husband and I are teaming up each day to make sure that everything flows and it all just feels so dreamy! So here I am documenting the wonderful that is 2010 and need to recognize that the rollercoaster still exists. To do this, I am making yet another resolution for this year, and that is to update this blog much more frequently. I think I don't really do much because I only have one follower (Chris) (Hi!), so in order to motivate, I think I'll share this blog in order to have an audience. They say in writing classes that your writing is so much more frequent and inspired when you have an audience. I promise to write, even when the rollercoaster starts to turn downhill. I hate rollercoasters, but it's the best analogy to describe my true highs and lows. Happy New Year - Cheers to an amazing 2010.