Mother/Daughter Retreat with Claire

One on one time with each one of my kiddos!?! What's that? It's almost non-existent for us, but I know how important it is for each of them... So, I decided I am going to try and take them each on a trip by themselves once a year. I'll start this when they turn 6. So, I started with Claire and we went on a Mother Daughter Retreat at Sky Ranch (long long drive that I'll probably never make again). We had such an amazing weekend though. It seemed super short, but hopefully Claire will remember the fun activities - let's see.... the things that stick out in my head are:

1.) Claire is so competitive! She volunteered to get up on stage and tell everyone why she was having so much fun with her mom on the trip. Her answer "The Zipline...."
She wanted to race to be the first in line at everything. She entered the crazy hair contest and was runner up. Matter of fact she entered every contest she could. She was runner up also for the hoola hoop contest. I had no idea she even knew how to use a hoola hoop! My mouth was on the floor because we don't even own one single hoola hoop. She fell asleep Saturday night brainstorming how she could win next years big hair contest. I actually won the "biggest bubble contest." I had no idea not everyone could blow big bubbles like I :) Claire hugged me and was very proud when I won. It was cute.

2.) She is very independent... this part I already knew but still makes me a little sad. Right when we got there the kids broke away from the mom's and went outside to the campfire while the mom's stayed in to chat. Now, Claire was the youngest one there. Most of the girls were between 8 and 12. While many of the girls were clinging to their moms not wanting to seperate to the campfire, here is what happened between Claire and I.
Claire: So, I get to go without you to eat smores at the campfire?
Me: Yes, is that ok?
Claire: YES!!!! (while swinging her arms as if she had just hit the jackpot...
oh, sigh for me....)
She has also been hounding me to go to camp at Sky Ranch this summer (knowing that it is 7 whole nights away from mommy and daddy). Let's see.... ummmmm, nope I'm not ready for that yet! :)

3.) When she gets tired she has a serious attitude. Everything and the whole world is against her. It's pretty funny! Since she goes to bed so early every night, it was a bit of a shock for her to go to bed at 10, 11 and 12 at night. At about 8:30every night it was "I'm mad at you" or "You're mean mommy" or "Why didn't I get to do that?" or "Why didn't they call us first to get in the buffet line?" All of this was really funny to me because I knew she was just tired. And the more I told her she was just tired the more attitude I got. Ok, so I am a bit of an instigator. :)

4.) Claire is a little dare devil. She went on the Zip Line, a Pendulum Swing, one of the ropes course poles that you crawl all the way up and then jump off of and she wasn't scared of any of them. I couldn't believe it. We went on the zipline first and she didn't even wait for me. She took off and swung down before the other 3 of us even left.

5.) She was a little young and didn't quite get the sentimental parts of it. We had speakers who talked about the struggles we go through as mom's and of course I cried at nearly every speaker. She thought I was just weird. We sat down at private table for dinner on Saturday night and there was a card we were suppose to read off questions to our daughters. The intent was to get our daughters to open up to us. Clearly it was intended for an older age group. Here is an excerpt from one of the questions:

Me: Claire, has there ever been a time when you felt left out of the crowd - where you didn't feel like you fit in?
Claire: What does that mean?
Me: Well, have you ever felt like you didn't belong or felt weird around friends or with certain people or in a certain situation - say at school?
Claire: UH HELLO, NO MOM - why would I ever feel like that? I always feel like I belong to everything (insert the attitude that I was talking about earlier).

I got such a kick out of that but it's true that Claire is so secure in herself and her surroundings and her environment. I hope this continues through her life, because I must say that I was never that secure in my surroundings. Especially when the friend I thought was my best friend as a young child really was not. It's tough and little girls can be so mean. I pray that she never treats anyone with a mean heart. This so badly I want for all of my girls. I know she will run into some of that and I do know from personal experience that these things only make you stronger. I am prepared to help all of my little chickies along. :)

Halloween 09

I just love Halloween!!! Candy, Dress-up, Fun with friends, carving pumpkins with daddy.... love love it. Matter of fact, the older I get the more I appreciate our family traditions. This year we had the cutest Bumble Bee I have ever seen, the most beautiful Sassy Seniorita (whom I've decided looks absolutely fantastic in red) and a Rockin RockStar with a serious attitude. Yes, I am talking about Claire. :) Not sure where she gets the attitude from :)...

On the Friday before Halloween we went to Eliza's Halloween party and dressed up as the Magill's. Ummmmmm, I was Penny and Dan was shoot.... I can't even remember his name. The guy from "Oh Brother Where Art Thou." I think this is one of Dan's all time favorite movies so of course this was his idea. We looked hideous. Matter of fact, no one knew who we were. I knew this would be the case. We had a great time at the party though...

Saturday, we dressed the girls up and took them trick or treating. This year was a little more stressful as Claire was running door to door leaving her sisters behind and trying to be the first to ring every door bell. The girl is so competitive I can't even begin to tell you.

VERTIGO & uuuhhhh car show too!

I got Vertigo on Friday. Go ahead and google it. Ever heard of it? Yeah, me either... barely. The only reason I had heard of it was because my aunt recently got it post surgery a few months back. It was the strangest thing every. I went to my Pilates class on Friday morning (the trainer can kick some serious you know what).... and as soon as I was walking out of the class I told my friend I felt dizzy. For the next 3 hours I thought I was possibly on my death bed. Came home, ate a banana and drank some water - still didn't do the trick. Long story short - my doc was able to see me and she diagnosed me with vertigo. You feel as if the room around you is spinning and moving in circles. I could barely walk without feeling like I was going to topple over. Anxiety and nauseau took over at this point. Dan and I had our weekend getaway all planned out. Perfect timing. Capital Grille reservations at 6:15 and I couldn't even see straight. Come to find out - the doc thinks that putting my body (head) in those weird Pilates positions may have dislodged a calcium deposit in my ear. When this happens your equillibrium is all off balance. I thought I was either having a heart attack or stroke. Thank goodness it all ended about a day later. We stayed at the Doubletree by Galleria this weekend and slept and ate all weekend long.

Headed to the car show on Saturday night to debut Dan's new truck. I am so happy for him it is all finished. Goodness, this is the project he had just started when I first met him. So this has been going on our whole marriage. He swears he's not taking on any more project that are over a weekend long. We'll see how that lasts... :) The truck is beautiful.

Before



Putting it all together



Ta Da

Pics from Claire's Birthday Party

So many cute pictures, not enough space on here to post. See the link below to check out all the cute pics from the birthday party and pics of our new pool. Yipee!

The ups and downs of it all

So, I have absolutely everything to be grateful for. A healthy family by far is the most important and really all it boils down to. But I guess it's only nature to almost lose it at times. Yeah - that was me last week. I think kindegarten coupled with trying to finish out the construction in the house and backyard almost put me over the edge. Or shall I say it put me in an "overwhelmed" state. On Wednesday of last week, I forgot to meet Claire at lunch for our Wednesday lunch date (along with several other smaller things I had forgotten). She eats at 10:40am and I just totally forgot to show up. Later that day, I got a voice message saying it was 11:00 and Claire was still waiting on me. They were going to let her go through the lunch line if I didn't come soon. Ummmm.... that means she had probably 5 minutes to stuff her face. I could just imagine her sitting there by herself with no food watching all her classmates eat. I beat myself up for 3 hours. When I picked her up from school that day my eyes were all puffy and red and tears were streaming down my face. She said "no big deal mom - I'm so excited because I got to buy my lunch for 2 DAYS IN A ROW!" She was thrilled and I was relieved. The girl doesn't forget ANYTHING so I figured she would be scarred for life. She is so grounded and resilliant which makes me so happy. I am in a much better mental state now. I am happy to report that all we have left to do is a little landscaping and the sealing of our pool deck. At this very moment I have no camera. Mine got chunked in the pool by one of my friends little boy... needless to say the warranty I bought on the camera from Best Buy does not cover water damage... shoot! I won't ever waste my money on one of their warranties anymore.... matter of fact, I don't think there is any reason to buy from Best Buy anymore.

Once my mom sends me pictures from Claire's birthday party I will update with pics. She had a great time. The weather had been horrible the whole week before. It was a little chilly and rainy. I couldn't believe the morning of her birthday party the sun came out and the kids were able to swim. We had a Sponge Bob Pinata which Claire loved... it was a great time.

Happy 6th Birthday to Claire Bear!!!

I can not believe she is SIX! Time really flies.... Happy Birthday sweet pea - I love you!

Claire started Kindegarten and she loves it. The first couple weeks were a bit rough. I think emotionally draining for her. I imagine it's a lot like starting a new job. You try so hard because you want to get it right. It's just draining. She had a couple big melt downs the first week but overall we are starting to get the hang of it. Claire loves getting a green dot every day and she loves to be the first one in her class room. The girl is so competitive she wants to race everyone in the building in the mornings. We walk her up to the building and we all scream out our "i love u's" but she is gone. Sometimes, I make her stop and come back for more kisses just because I know she hates it! Ha! Hmmmm..... I definitely love to agitate my girls. Is that normal? I think it builds character. :) Claire loves Tuesdays and Thursdays because we've worked out an agreement that she can buy her lunch on those days. She promises me she is eating her fruits and veggies... :) Claire and I have our own scheduled day where mamma comes to eat lunch at the school. I, however, haven't figured out whether she wants to see me or if it's that she likes the suprise food I bring her each Wednesday. Either way - I'll take what I can get. The lunches are such a nice little suprise that I didn't realize I would be getting. It's pretty much the only time each week we have for just the two of us. It just melts my heart to watch her at school. I'll sneak in and peek and watch her interact with her new school friends. Priceless. She loves the independance of it all.

At the house before school on her 1st day:



Really tired of me taking pictures at this point:



Off she goes:






Today was Claire's 6th birthday. We woke up and daddy had made brownies so we could have Brownie Sundaes in bed. Claire's breakfast of choice of course. We went to ITZ and nearly lost our sanity, but that is over and we are still alive so hey - it's a good day! Nana and Pappa and Mamo came along for the fun. This morning before we left we were outside as Claire was trying out her new skate board and Meg said "listen mommy, the birds are singing." I swear, that was Pappa Smith. He was there wishing Claire a happy birthday. Call me weird, but I believe it. Never has Meggie ever mentioned the birds singing. We all stopped to listen. It's moments like these that remind me there is more to life than what we are living here on earth. It gives me hope for our future....

After ITZ, mamo and I took Claire shopping and she bought her first trashy outfit at "Justice." Ok, so it's not really trashy, but it was our first trip to the store and I was regretting it as soon as we walked in the door. $62 dollars later and we got 1 dress, 1 hoodie and 2 hair pieces. Shoot, I'm going to start gluing a few sequins on her shirts and we'll just call it a day. Never AGAIN. OR shall I say, never again until her next birthday when she tells me that is where she wants to go. :)

Claire got her own room for her birthday. We haven't really been using our upstairs for all that much, but she's been really wanting her own space. So, I suprised her and decorated the room and got it all ready. She was so suprised and loved it. She has been up there quite a bit today. She took her own bath and is even sleeping up there tonight. She is thrilled.

On to my sweet Meggie Moo. She is really thriving having Claire in Kindegarten. She loves being the big sis in the house and has now taken over Claire's role she held last year. Not having to take a nap that is. I'll lay her down on the couch and she let's me work which is great. Meggie now has no competition which is so nice for her. She started ballet and seems to be loving it. Her teacher at Pre-school told me she was a "perfectionist" and was "ready for Kindegarten." Hmmmmm....






Emmie is something else. She is a little sneaky and loves to eat. She runs to me with a Z Bar every morning while I'm in bed trying to waken my tired eyes (they are wonderful by the way if you are looking for a good snack/breakfast bar for the kids). But, she would eat 3 a day if I would let her. She can throw down some nachies (her word for nachos) and tells us on Friday nights that she doesn't want to eat at home - she wants to go out to eat. She will sit and comb her hair for what seems to be 30 minutes. She can bath herself better than Claire or Meg and she is 3.... she laughs and snorts (and toots all at the same time) and has the best manners of any 3 year old I've ever met. She will tell you too that she always laughs and toots when daddy tickles her. She STILL caresses me in the mornings. She rubs my face and my arms. Sometimes, I still sneak into her room at night so I can hear the sound of her sucking on her thumb. She has the strongest sense of smell and is forever asking us if we've brushed our teeth or telling mamo she smells like coffee. If your teeth are not freshly brushed she will not take any kisses from you! She will go outside and then tell you she is just way too hot to be outside and she'll come inside, pour herself a glass of juice and plop herself in front of the tv. She's 3. My sweet Emmie.

Meet the Teacher

Tomorrow is meet the teacher for Claire - kindegarten starts for her on Monday - yup a measly 3 days from now. I'm really not sure how I feel about this. Here was our conversation tonight at dinner:

Me: Claire, I'm thinking about maybe signing up to be home room Mom. What do you think about that?

Claire: Nu uh.

Me: What?!?

Claire: Nu uh.

Me: Why? This means I would ge to spend lots more time with you and your new friends...

Claire: No mom, the kids will make fun of you!

Me: Why?!? I thought I was a pretty cool mom. I mean, I am cool right?!? Why wouldn't you want me to be there? I'm upset by this. Will you please re think this? I mean, if it's not me then it's going to be someone else's mom. Is that what you want?

Claire: Well.... you don't know what to do.

Me: Well, I'll figure it out (daddy adds in his few choice of words as well)

Claire: I don't know mom...(trying so hard at this point not to hurt my feelings)

Me: Well, if you don't want me there maybe I should go and get a job!?!

Claire: Yeah! OK! But, MAKE SURE you get off early cuz you have to pick me up - you can't be late!

Ok, I'm just not really sure how I feel about all this. Claire wants to wear her "most fancy" outfit tomorrow and she is going to pick out my "most fancy" outfit too. Tonight, she looks in the mirror at herself and smiles and says "i look soooo beautiful" and "i am so cool." This makes me smile inside. More than anything in this world I want my girls to KNOW they are beautiful inside and out and to be comfortable in their own skin. I never knew being a mommy would be so emotional!!! Arggghhhh...

Oh, pic of Claire & Dan at the Klein Bearkadette dance camp this summer. She won STAR DANCER of the whole Kindegarten class. There were approximately 25 kids in her class. Seriously, mamma was so proud. Uh huh.... I cried when they called her name.