Playground Incident

Yesterday, when I went to pick Lexi up from school, her teacher pulled me to the side to let me know there had been an incident on the playground. Apparently, Lexi's class got to go to the big kids' playground. Some older girls (3 - 4 year olds) wanted to play house and decided Lexi would make a great baby and they would be her mommies. When Lexi tried to leave the club house, they blocked her. She suddenly began screaming hysterically. The teacher was about 10 feet away and was able to get the story out of Lexi once she stopped hyperventilating/sobbing. The girls were shocked and were quick to apologize as well as hug Lexi, but she wanted nothing to do with them.

Of course, Lexi told me the story many times yesterday afternoon and evening. Her eyes would tear up and she said “the girls scared me.” She also told me that they wanted her to be a baby, but that she is a “big girl.” We’ve talked about how people don’t like to be “blocked” from going places, which is something she constantly does to Jordan. We have also talked about how the girls just wanted to play with her and that they were sorry for scaring her.

This is her first playground incident. I am sure there will be more. There are two things that I am rather pleased about:

1. That her first incident wasn’t a malicious act just a silly misunderstanding.
2. That she screamed bloody murder when she was uncomfortable with a situation. I hope that she has the same reaction if an adult ever tries something with her.

Lexi Prepares for Halloween

Red Hair

Big changes in a kid’s life often cause them to regress a little. For Lexi, school has been something she looks forward to, but has also seemed to cause two side-effects. One is baby talk. She jabbers and talks like a baby at times, which really annoys Steve. I think that is why she does it more in the evenings and on the weekends. It is a way to get extra attention from him. The other negative side-effect is annoying mostly me - she is having #2 accidents in her panties. She has done it twice at school and many times at home. I've tried reasoning, praising, etc. Now, I am going with bribing. I took her to the store to buy a special doll that she can play with after going "caca in the potty."

We looked at lots of different dolls. She decided she wanted Tinker Bell. I picked up the blonde one, but she said no. She pointed at the red haired one and said "Grandma Margie." The funny thing is that for the last few weeks she has been calling her Raggedy Ann Doll Grandma Margie too. At first, I thought she was trying to say it was Grandma Margie that gave her the doll. I kept telling her that Granny Lou gave it to her, but she insisted on saying Grandma Margie. Then, I realized that she was talking about the red hair. I guess she is going through a red hair doll phase.

Back to School

When you go to school for one week and then have a week off for the hurricane, going back is like starting all over again. Lexi is back in school this week.

Canes Fans

Daddy's Little Canes

Fans Coming Together


We were lucky enough to be invited to a friend's house to watch the Texas A&M and University of Miami game on Saturday. Of course, our friends (Amy & Lee) are huge A&M fans and Steve is a huge UM fan. Even though I hope our kids go to Texas A&M, I dressed them in UM gear to support their dad. Lucky for him, it must have worked because UM stomped them. We were just happy to have a fun football party with friends.

Day at the Park

With school being out this week, all the kids seem to be going a bit stir crazy. I decided to call up some friends & invite them to meet us a George Bush Park today. For extra fun, I snapped a few photos.

Avery, Lexi & Camden

Savanah & Jordan

Avery

Camden

Neighbors: Isabella & Eric

Lexi

Hurricane Dress-Up

The day after Hurricane Ike hit, we were stuck sitting around without any power. I figured it was the perfect time to get out the dance costumes Aunt Carol had given Lexi. She had fun dressing up and we enjoyed watching her. Here are pictures of two of the costumes she received.

Second Day of School

I promise that I will not be posting pictures everday that Lexi is in school. I just thought it would be fun this first week. Plus, since most of the kids go either Monday/Tuesday or Wednesday/ Thursday, this is the first day for most of her classmates. In addition to that, she just loves posing. Can you tell?

Good First Day

Lexi's first day of school went well. According to her, she played on the purple dinosaur, counted in Spanish, painted the apple, and was told shhh during nap time. I asked her about meeting new friends and she told me they were all named Lexi just like her. I saw their names posted on the board though & there was an Alex, but that was the closest.

According to the teacher's report, she was very chatty, participated in classroom activities, ate all her lunch, and went to the bathroom by herself. The teacher also mentioned to me that Lexi must not take naps. I can only imagine how difficult it will be to keep her quiet during that time. Hahaha.

First Day of School

Today is Lexi’s first day of school. We call it school, but it is really Mother’s Day Out.

We have both been pretty excited about this, but yesterday I could tell she was starting to get a little nervous. She even had two accidents. I have to admit I felt a little sad last night thinking about it. This morning, on the way to school, she wasn’t quite herself. She was a bit whiney and told me that she wanted Aunt Paige. I explained that Aunt Paige lives in California and is going to school today. Then, Lexi asked for Grandma Margie. I told her that she is also in California and has to work today. Finally, she asked for Zak. I couldn’t help but chuckle. He is her 8 year old cousin that lives in Montana and will also be in school today.

I decided it was time to pump her up again. I talked to her about her teachers and told her that they were already at school. I told her that they have fun activities planned and that she would get to play on the playground, eat snacks and lunch, meet lots of kids, sing songs, do crafts, etc. She perked right up.

When we pulled into the parking lot, she saw other kids and wanted her backpack on right away. She also wanted to carry her lunch box. I carried Jordan and her nap pad. We walked into the classroom and she sat right down at a table with play dough. She messed with it a little and then ran over to the other kids playing with toys. I watched for a few minutes. Another little boy started crying his eyes out. That got me choked up a little. I called Lexi over for a hug and kiss before saying goodbye. I headed to the office to pay our tuition and then walked by again. Lexi was playing happily with a girl.

I’ll update later to let you know how it went.


Posing with her Backpack



Sitting in the Classroom

Happy Birthday Grandma Margie!

Last Sunday, Aunt Paige had her 21st birthday. I called her so that Lexi could wish her a happy birthday. Lexi was so disappointed the whole day that she could not eat a piece of her cake.

Today is Grandma Margie's birthday and Lexi is once again disappointed. She thinks Grandma Margie should have a strawberry and chocolate cake. She also wants to go to her party despite the fact that she isn't having one. She sang to her the whole day, so I got out the camera:

Saterday Night Switcharoo

We have made a deal with a couple to take care of each others' kids once a month in order have date night. Last night, it was our turn to have fun with the kids. Lexi and Jordan really enjoyed entertaining the kids. I couldn't believe how much they both got into it. Perhaps, once a month is not enough. We'll have to make plans with other couples.

Labor Day Fun

We got to hang out with one of my old high school friends & his family on Labor Day. They live close to us and have twins that are only 2 months older than Lexi. She loves playing with them. We had a great dinner and lots of fun.

Kacy, Lexi & Cole

The Twins in the Sprinkler

Dads & Daughters

Meeting Her Teachers

Today, we had our "home visit." The teachers from Lexi's school try to meet all of their students in their own home before school starts. I know it helps the kids get comfortable with the teachers, but I also think the teachers get a good look into the kids' lives. Our visit went well. Lexi met Ms. Lydia (teacher) & Ms. Mary (assistant teacher). They were both very friendly and gave her stickers, so she liked them right away. I have not been worried about her liking school or them, because she isn't shy at all. We found out that she'll have 10 kids in her class (5 boys & 5 girls) and their theme is ladybugs. Next week, we have an orientation on Thursday and a find-your-classroom on Friday.

Lexi and I are both so excited that we want school to start already. One of my good friends has been crying all week about her daughter starting kindergarten. Fortunately, her daughter has been loving it. To be honest, I am not at all sad about Lexi going to Mother's Day Out. I just know that she'll love it. Plus, I think putting her in daycare at 6 months was so difficult that anything less is easy. In this program, she'll get to play with lots of kids, do art projects, and have fun. I'll have a chance to work without trying to entertain her and then we can have our fun in the afternoons and on the days she has off.

My whole purpose for sending her is for the playtime and the art projects. The one thing that I am not expecting is for her to learn very much. She already knows her colors, all the upper case letters, most of the lower case letters, numbers, and she can count to 20 in English and 10 in Spanish. These are the things that the other kids will probably just begin to learn this year. I am hoping she learns a little more Spanish from Ms. Lydia, but I am not expecting it. Really, this school year for her is all about socializing while I work.

Vandalism

Several times over the last few months, Miss Lexi has taken it upon herself to decorate our walls. A friend’s child who is slightly older than Lexi is doing the same thing. She called him a Picasso. To me, that implies not only great creativity but a priceless master piece that should never be removed. It also means that the child should be encouraged rather than punished. I’ve decided to call Lexi's wall artwork vandalism. Smiley faces just don’t fit our décor even in her room.

Since, reasoning and timeouts are not working, I’ve moved on to manual labor. She had to scrub the walls today. Perhaps, that will inspire her to stick to paper for a while.

Afternoon Bliss

See the picture above? ...I captured a rare moment - my non-napping toddler actually sleeping during the day! I simply went up stairs to put Jordan down for his nap & when I returned she was zonked out on the couch.

I wish I could follow the pattern that lead to this blissful moment, but I have to give credit to the two birthday parties we attended this weekend and a back-to-school birthday breakfast bash we had this morning. Besides the gymnastics party, we went to a backyard bbq party for a one year old's birthday yesterday. It was HOT and there was a pool. Lexi played & played & played. She didn't eat much and fell asleep on the way home. We actually had her in bed by 7pm (instead of 8pm). This morning, she was starving. Fortunately, we had been invited to meet up with a bunch of moms at Cracker Barrel to celebrate/cry about back-to-school. Lexi doesn't start for 2 more weeks, so we were just there to have fun & eat. I ordered 2 pancakes with apples & whipped cream for her. I had no idea that she would or even could eat 3/4 of it, but she did. She definitely got a full tummy.

Now, I've had a quiet afternoon ...I wish I could have used it for something other than work.

Gymnastics Birthday Party

Rope Swing

Rock Wall

Today, we were lucky enough to go to a birthday party for Joshua (my friend Amy's son). They had it at a gymnastic place. Lexi has been excited about it for weeks, especially with the Olympics on. She has been showing us her gymnastic moves every time she sees anything about the Olympics on tv. Lexi was the youngest participant there, but she loved it.

The teacher/leader asked us if she was in gymnastics already and then asked us her age. She said that Lexi is really brave for her age (yep - like we don't know). We found out that most 3 year olds are afraid to climb the rock wall or ride the rope swing, but being true to herself our little dare devil was anxious to do them both. Of course, the teacher said they LOVE kids like that. I have been thinking about enrolling her in something, so I'll check into it. As you can tell, the party was a blast.

Yummy Cake

Birthday Boy ~ Joshua

School Prep

These pictures were taken this morning before we headed off for a day filled with school prep. Actually, just the morning was. Since we had to drop off her doctor forms/shot records and it is a rainy day, I decided that it was a good day to head to the mall for a little school clothes shopping. We had fun and found some good deals.

We got back in time for lunch and I made a peanut butter & jelly sandwich for her. I've been trying to get her interested in them all summer. She'll be taking lunches to school and they seem like the easiest choice. Unfortunately, she has always turned her nose up at them. I ended up coaxing, bribing, and forcing her to eat it, which means that if I send them to school with her they will NOT get eaten. What can I pack for school lunches that don't need to be kept cold?

Princess Nightgown

Who knew when I bought this nightgown that it would be so loved (by her) and so hated (by me)? Perhaps, I should have seen this coming. One of my close friends has a daughter who is five that is very similar to Lexi. For the past year, her daughter has been driving her crazy over a beloved dress. She wants to wear it ALL the time. She even gets it out of the hamper. Finally, the dress vanished (hidden in the attic).

I wondered if I would have a similar battle with Lexi. She prefers dresses and nightgowns to other items of clothing, but hasn’t been too bad…until she got this one. The nightgown had been in the hamper for the past few days. She got it out a few times, but I explained to her that it was dirty. Last night, I put on her second favorite nightgown (ballerina one). This morning, when I got her out of bed guess which one she was wearing… the attic is looking like a good idea. At the very least, I'll be moving her hamper out of her bedroom.

Smiley Faces

Lexi is into drawing smiley faces EVERYWHERE. We even have a few on our walls in Jordan's room (her old room) and one in her current room. I try to get her to only draw on paper, but it just isn't as exciting. Sunday, when Steve was out working in the garage, it was the perfect time to get her out of the house and drawing on a different surface - the driveway. As you can see, she enjoyed it.