A Late Afternoon Playdate

We've been so busy doing school things and getting into the swing of afternoon kindergarten (staying up late, sleeping late) that we haven't had time for much else. Fortunately, we were able to squeeze in a late afternoon playdate with some dear friends who just returned from a long vacation in England. It was so nice to catch up, do a Halloween craft and eat warm chocolate chip cookies!

Kindergarten Prep

I always get excited around this time of year. As a "former" teacher, seeing all of the school supplies on sale in stores, the Back to School clothing sales and thinking about the start of the new school year is always exciting. Of course, I always mourn the end of summer, but the start of the school year is something I've experienced my whole life in different capacities. First, as a student myself and later as a teacher. This year, with Claire starting kindergarten, it's been a whole new experience as a parent. I can't put it into words, it's just been a different experience than any other year.

We received a letter from the elementary school explaining who Claire's teacher is and inviting us to visit the school to see her classroom. We eagerly waited until the day arrived, then headed to the school enthusiastically. Mrs. C. was there to greet us and tell us a few things about kindergarten. Claire looked around the classroom and found her cubby. I was able to tell the teacher a few things I needed to tell her about Claire. It was a great visit and it only made Claire more excited to start kindergarten.

The day before school started was the perfect time to take Claire for a pre-kindergarten mani-pedi. She chose purple nail polish for her fingers (to match her first day of school dress) and pink nail polish for her toes. She loved being pampered before her stressful school life was about to begin! : )

We finished our pre-kindergarten activities by going out to dinner with friends. 

Kindergarten, here we come!

Party! Party! Party!

We had three birthday parties this weekend!

On Saturday, Claire helped her friend Hannah celebrate her fifth birthday. It was a very fancy spa party where all of the girls dressed up in costumes, got manicures and pedicures, had their hair styled and glittered (!) and had their makeup done (I even scheduled a pedicure for myself!).

This was the fanciest party we've been to! Pizza, juice and cupcakes were served and the girls had several opportunities to dance together. Claire had a fabulous time!!! In the car on the way home, Claire said that she wanted to have her next birthday party there. If we end up going with a "girls only" sixth birthday party, this may be a possibility.

After getting all dolled up, it was off to Michael's first birthday party at his house. The kids played with all of the toys and jumped and bounced in the bounce house. The weather was perfect for an outdoor party -- they really lucked out! We enjoyed some delicious food and desserts. The highlight of the party was when Michael ate his monkey cake. He loved every second of it, taking handful after handful and attempting to get it in his mouth. So sweet!

Arriving at Frog Falls with Thomas

On Sunday we headed to Frog Falls for Dylan's fourth birthday party. It was another gorgeously perfect day! Dylan's mommy planned an airplane theme for the party which was awesome -- boarding pass invitations, airplane cookies, airplane-shaped watermelon fruit salad, airplane cake, etc. So creative! We had so much fun swimming and cooling off in the water with the birthday boy and many friends.

Dylan with his gorgeous (and delicious) cake that my cousin made.

Claire's 5th Birthday Party

After nearly two months of anticipation (from the day we booked the party), today was Claire's 5th birthday party!

Claire was joined by 22 of her friends and a few family members at Imagine That! children's museum for a Barbie-themed party. We had been to Imagine That! several times before for a birthday party, Princess Breakfast and playdates. Given the choice of several party venues, Claire chose Imagine That!

Our guests ate bagels and fruit for breakfast followed by vanilla cupcakes with vanilla and chocolate frosting. Claire loved when everyone sang Happy Birthday to her and she effortlessly blew out all five candles.

We also saw a cute little Three Little Pigs puppet show that made all of the kids laugh. Of course, there was ample time to saunter around the museum playing and exploring. I'm not sure who had the most fun -- the mommies, the daddies, Claire's grandparents or Mimi!

After the big party, my parents, brother, sister in law, nephews and grandmother came back to our house for a little family party. Claire opened all of her wonderful gifts including clothes, Polly Pockets, a Lala Loopsy set, Teacup Piggies, a Leapster game, Strawberry Shortcake dolls, a Crayola Glow Station and, of course, tons of Barbies and Barbie-related toys! She absolutely loved everything!!! If you gave Claire a gift and are reading this...THANK YOU!!!!

We also ate lamb chops for an appetizer, which were delicious, and had hamburgers and cheeseburgers for a late lunch. Our family celebration wouldn't have been complete without cake, so we sang Happy Birthday to Claire again and enjoyed a scrumptious DQ ice cream cake.

It was a perfect day of celebrating with our friends and family!!!

Madelyn's Birthday Party

Today we celebrated Madelyn's 2nd birthday! Lots of our little friends were at Madelyn's house for the party. The kids had fun playing downstairs and upstairs in the playroom while all of the mommies and daddies chatted. Madelyn's mommy made adorable Elmo cupcakes for the kids! We had such a nice time.

The Guest of Honor

Brooke and Claire enjoying their Elmo cupcakes (Hello, red frosting!).

Nick's Bowling Party

We had a great time at Nick's 5th birthday party today. The party was held at a local bowling alley and was so much fun! Claire's technique hadn't changed since her first attempts at bowling a few weeks ago. It involved me helping her roll/push the ball towards the pins. Her final score was 83.

We were so happy to be able to help celebrate Nick's birthday! We met him and his mommy years ago at a baby sign language class, then realized they lived in my brother and sister in law's neighborhood.

Build a Bear Birthday Party

We celebrated Claire's friend Ilana's birthday at Build a Bear this afternoon. The last time Claire was at Build a Bear she was less than a year old. We've managed to pass Build a Bear in the mall and wave to the big bears outside and call it "the bear store." But now she knows the truth! I think my credit card will get more use as a result.

Before the party, Claire was a little nervous, saying, "But, I don't know how to build a bear!" I assured her that we would help her and she would be able to do it and it would be FUN. Once the party got started, she relaxed a little and started enjoying the experience of building her own bear which she named Fantastic. She had so much fun with the other kids as they built, cleaned and dressed their bears. After everyone had their bears, they received a little home for their bear and then we headed to the food court for some treats and one of the best ice cream cakes we've ever had!

It was a great party and we were happy to be able to celebrate with Ilana -- one of Claire's oldest friends.

A Fairytale Princess Tea Party

This afternoon we went to A Fairytale Princess Tea Party at Pax Amicus Castle Theatre.

The description from the theatre's website read, "The Fairy Godmother, Tinker Belle, The Blue Fairy and Glinda Invite you to "A Fairy Tale Princess Tea Party" starring Cinderella, Belle, Snow White, The Little Mermaid, Jasmine, Rapunzel, The Frog Princess, Sleeping Beauty and Pochahantas. A New Play for Children written and directed by Stanley Barber."

In a word, the show was ADORABLE!!! Claire had so much fun wearing her Pocahontas costume and watching the show with some of her friends. One of the highlights of the show was when someone knocked on the door on stage, then a princess or fairy sang a little clue-filled rhyme and the audience had to yell out who they thought was at the door. All of the little princesses and princes in the audience yelled out their answers enthusiastically. Another highlight, without giving anything away, was the male characters that appeared in the show. Hysterical!!!

We had so much fun at this cute little theater. We will definitely attend more shows there in the future.

Meeting the Cast after the Show

Will the real Pocahontas please stand up?

Snow, Snow and More Snow!

Since Christmas we have had at least one snowstorm each week. I don't think Claire has even had a full (3 day) week of school since before the holidays! When life hands you lemons...

Sledding on Mommy's sled that Santa brought one Christmas when she was a child.

The Princess in the Snow

Snowball Fight with Ollie, Ryan and Addie

Pajama Day

Today was Pajama Day at Claire's preschool. Thanks to my friend, Gillian, posting about Pajama Day on Facebook, we didn't forget about it!! Claire was so excited to wear her "pajamas" to school. She thought it was hysterical when she woke up in the morning and I changed her from the nightgown she slept in to another clean nightgown for Pajama Day. At school, they read If You Give a Pig a Pancake by Laura Numeroff and made pancakes for snack. This year Claire didn't want to eat pancakes, but I distinctly remember that she ate them last year because I bought Claire-safe pancake mix for Pajama Day '10. It was a special day that I know Claire will remember for a long time.

Fun with Friends

We've gotten together with a few friends during the last couple of weeks. There will be many more indoor, warm playdates to come during these cold winter months!

 Claire and Elton John (aka Oliver)

Claire and Thomas playing with Barbie and Ken in Barbie's new pool. 

Riding the plasma car with Mikey

A Gymnastics Party

We had a really nice time celebrating Claire's friend Maya's birthday today! It was a gymnastics party. Claire had so much fun doing warm-up stretches, swinging on the rings (then jumping off), jumping into the foam pit, climbing up a giant blow-up slide, then sliding down and doing parachute activities. The center had a great viewing area for parents. After the kids were tired out from all of the gymnastics activities, they retreated to the party room for pizza and cake!

During dinner I asked Claire what her favorite part of the party was. She answered, "When we sang Happy Birthday to Maya!"

Horseshoe Lake

Our friends Antonella, Zach and Alex invited us to go to their beach club today. Aunt Celina, Ryan and Peter came too. Horseshoe Lake has a nice, sandy beach and a beautiful, clear, picturesque lake. A few small slides sit in the sand in the shallow part of the lake and they're perfect for our kiddies to navigate independently. We will definitely consider joining it next year.

The kids had a great time swimming, sliding, splashing, pouring water on each other and playing together. The mommies enjoyed talking and laughing. I even told Antonella the story about the time we went to lunch with Ron Jeremy (Ok, I'm totally kidding about that. Seriously. It's an inside joke!).

Hanging out on the beach.