Sunday, September 23, 2012
Super Soccer Tykes
Tablerock
A few weeks ago Johnny and I hiked up Tablerock with the kids. Both kids did great. We did bring backpacks in case they didn't want to walk. I think we had to carry them about half of the hike. Piper wanted to run down the hill which was really fun. Below is a picture of the family at the top of Tablerock.
Two on One Bike
I took this video of the kids last week. I think it is a great depiction of how much they love each other. Enjoy!
Apple Picking
K'tanim started up a few weeks ago. This year the theme is Shabbat and so K'tamin has moved from Monday morning to Friday morning. This last Friday we took a trip out to Kuna to go Apple Picking. Rosh Hashanah is a Jewish holiday that is celebrated this time of year. Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year and one of the things we do is eat apples and honey which symbolizes a sweet new year.
We went to Cabalo's Orchard & Gardens in Kuna. Cabalo's grows pesticide free tree fruit and vegetables. I was really impressed with the Orchard. It is family owned and they have tons of apples,
We went to Cabalo's Orchard & Gardens in Kuna. Cabalo's grows pesticide free tree fruit and vegetables. I was really impressed with the Orchard. It is family owned and they have tons of apples,
a variety of vegetables and they even raise turkeys. The kids had a great time. They were able to eat apples right off the tree. I think we might make this a yearly event. Below are some pictures of our trip to go apple picking.    |
Sunday, September 9, 2012
First Week at Parkcenter Montessori
Montessori Home is closing at the end of September so we needed to find a new place for the kids. Pennington turned 3 in August which meant that his time at Montessori Home had come to an end. Piper could have stayed at Montessori Home for another year but it was sort of a blessing in disguise that it was closing so they could both move onto Parkcenter Montessori together. The kids started Preschool at Parkcenter Montessori last week. The week before I had taken both kids to visit their new school so they could meet Miss Rose (Piper's teacher) and Miss Emily (Pennington's teacher).
Miss Rose is like a 50/60 year old toddler whisperer. All the 2/3 year olds are soooo quiet and well behaved. It is crazy to be in a toddler class room and feel totally relaxed. When Piper and I went to visit Miss Rose I noticed that Piper is very independent. More so than her brother. She is very interested in doing her work, practicing going on the potty, and washing her hands. I think she washed her hands like 5 times when we visited. Piper's class is 2 and 3 year olds.
Miss Emily is about my age. She has two children that are close to my children's ages. She is upbeat and full of energy. A few of the children from Montessori Home are in Pennington's class, Vivienne and Lucy. I think it is nice for Pennington to see some familiar faces. As far as I know Pennington hasn't been taking naps at school. I have to say I am actually happy about that since the kids have been staying up way to late this summer. It will be nice to get back to a 8:30 bedtime. Pennington has started to talk about the older kids in his class. Pennington's class has 3-5 year olds. The thing I love about the Montessori theory is mixing ages. I really think it is a brilliant idea. When Pennington was the oldest he was able to teach the other children. Now he is the youngest and he is able to learn from the older children. I just love it and I am so happy to know that the Montessori teaching method is something that works well for my children.
Nonni texted me to see how dropping off the kids at school went. Lets just say my text back explains it all. "Good. No tears. Basically they ran to class." That about sums it up. The kids LOVE their new school. From what their teachers have said so far it sounds like they are doing really well. Miss Rose said that Piper acts as if she had been their for ever. She is totally comfortable with the Montessori program and is fitting in really well. Miss Emily said everything is going well for Pennington and he had a great first week.
Overall, I am really happy with our decision to have the kids go to Parkcenter Montessori. I am really happy with the teaching method and the fact that my children seem to be fitting in really well. I couldn't be happier right now when it comes to my children's education.
Below are a few pictures of Piper at school. Yes I am a bad parent and only have pictures of Piper. Pictures of Pennington will come soon.
Miss Rose is like a 50/60 year old toddler whisperer. All the 2/3 year olds are soooo quiet and well behaved. It is crazy to be in a toddler class room and feel totally relaxed. When Piper and I went to visit Miss Rose I noticed that Piper is very independent. More so than her brother. She is very interested in doing her work, practicing going on the potty, and washing her hands. I think she washed her hands like 5 times when we visited. Piper's class is 2 and 3 year olds.
Miss Emily is about my age. She has two children that are close to my children's ages. She is upbeat and full of energy. A few of the children from Montessori Home are in Pennington's class, Vivienne and Lucy. I think it is nice for Pennington to see some familiar faces. As far as I know Pennington hasn't been taking naps at school. I have to say I am actually happy about that since the kids have been staying up way to late this summer. It will be nice to get back to a 8:30 bedtime. Pennington has started to talk about the older kids in his class. Pennington's class has 3-5 year olds. The thing I love about the Montessori theory is mixing ages. I really think it is a brilliant idea. When Pennington was the oldest he was able to teach the other children. Now he is the youngest and he is able to learn from the older children. I just love it and I am so happy to know that the Montessori teaching method is something that works well for my children.
Nonni texted me to see how dropping off the kids at school went. Lets just say my text back explains it all. "Good. No tears. Basically they ran to class." That about sums it up. The kids LOVE their new school. From what their teachers have said so far it sounds like they are doing really well. Miss Rose said that Piper acts as if she had been their for ever. She is totally comfortable with the Montessori program and is fitting in really well. Miss Emily said everything is going well for Pennington and he had a great first week.
Overall, I am really happy with our decision to have the kids go to Parkcenter Montessori. I am really happy with the teaching method and the fact that my children seem to be fitting in really well. I couldn't be happier right now when it comes to my children's education.
Below are a few pictures of Piper at school. Yes I am a bad parent and only have pictures of Piper. Pictures of Pennington will come soon.
August 2012 Trip to the Cabin II
We ended up being able to find a few more times to get up to the cabin in August. We spend the August 26 -29 up at the cabin. It was just the Luangaphay Family. We spent most of our time hiking and playing on the beach at the cabin. We hiked to Goose Creek Falls and Blue Lake. Both hikes are pretty short which was good for the kids. Pennington did a great job hiking to Goose Creek Falls. The hike is about 3 miles round trip and he was able to hike all they way to the falls by himself. The elevation drop was about 850 feet which made it easy for Pennington to hike by himself and a lot of fun for Johnny and I when we hiked out. Caring an extra 30 pounds is definitely a good workout.
The hike to Blue Lake is about 2 miles round trip. Piper was our super hiker on the hike to Blue Lake. I think she walked about 1 mile of it by herself. Pennington on the other hand wanted to be in the backpack the whole time.We later figured out that Pennington wasn't feeling well (he was running a slight fever) which made him not want to hike at all.
The kids also had a great time playing in the sand on the beach at the cabin. They also loved jumping off the dock and swimming back to the beach. We also spent some time fishing off the dock. We taught Pennington the Fishin' In the Dark song which he loved singing. Overall, we had a wondering time hanging out as a family at the cabin.
Below are some pictures of the kids hanging out at the cabin, on the beach or in the lake.
The hike to Blue Lake is about 2 miles round trip. Piper was our super hiker on the hike to Blue Lake. I think she walked about 1 mile of it by herself. Pennington on the other hand wanted to be in the backpack the whole time.We later figured out that Pennington wasn't feeling well (he was running a slight fever) which made him not want to hike at all.
The kids also had a great time playing in the sand on the beach at the cabin. They also loved jumping off the dock and swimming back to the beach. We also spent some time fishing off the dock. We taught Pennington the Fishin' In the Dark song which he loved singing. Overall, we had a wondering time hanging out as a family at the cabin.
Below are some pictures of the kids hanging out at the cabin, on the beach or in the lake.
Below are some pictures of the family on the hike to Goose Creek Falls.
Below are some photos of the family on the hike to Blue Lake.
Bug Days
A few weeks ago the Botanical Gardens put on Bug Days. Johnny was at work that morning so I decided to venture out by myself. I decided we should ride bikes to Bug Days. It is probably 2.5 miles from our house. Bug Days consisted of looking at bugs, touching bugs, creating bug art, etc. Of course the kids just HAD to have bug nets and boxes. Or was it me that convinced myself they needed it. I just love how every time I take my children somewhere I end up deciding that they really need a souvenir. Johnny is actually worse at this than I am. Overall, Bug Days is really fun and we will definitely make this an annual event that we attend. Below are some pictures of the kids painting at Bug Days.
Train Set
For the kids birthdays we got them a train set. The train set is in Pennington's room. So far I think the kids really enjoy it. I think the train set will definitely come in handy during the colder months when we will not be able to get outside as much. Below is a picture of the train set.
Side note: I came home the other day from work to find that one of my children had taken the entire train set apart and every single one of the pieces (100+) were on the floor. I'm still not really sure how Johnny had NO idea that the train set was being taken apart. Needless to say I was really upset. I spent a lot of time putting that train set together. After a few minutes Johnny was able to calm me down. The good thing about all this is that they can build their own train set now. At some point I will probably put it all back together.
Side note: I came home the other day from work to find that one of my children had taken the entire train set apart and every single one of the pieces (100+) were on the floor. I'm still not really sure how Johnny had NO idea that the train set was being taken apart. Needless to say I was really upset. I spent a lot of time putting that train set together. After a few minutes Johnny was able to calm me down. The good thing about all this is that they can build their own train set now. At some point I will probably put it all back together.
Piper Big Girl Bed
A few weeks ago we set up Piper's Big Girl Bed. The bedroom set was actually my old bedroom set from when I was around 12 years old. Piper did a great job sleeping in her new big bed. From what I have heard I am really lucky that neither of my kids fall out of their beds. The nice thing about them having big beds is that if we have to sleep with them a normal 2 person bed makes it much easier. Many of Piper's paintings from school are hanging up in her room. She also has her Princess Piper letters on her door. Below are some pictures of Piper's Big Girl bedroom.
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