5/16/15 - Dance Recital Day!

This past Saturday was the day that we have all been anxiously awaiting for quite some time now. Paige attends Misty's Dance Unlimited in Onalaska. They hold a spring recital every year and it was nothing short of amazing. I was actually concerned that we would spend the majority of time bored out of our skulls - but I was very pleasantly surprised. There are over 900 students at Misty's so there are actually a total of 7 shows during recital week. Paige was in Show 2. We had the pleasure of watching over 200 talented girls and guys dance their hearts out for us on stage and it was amazing. I even got teary eyed in parts. I couldn't help but imagine Paige growing up and being one of those older girls on stage. She loves it so much! She did such a wonderful job and we are so very proud of her. She performed in front of nearly 1000 people! She is lucky to have 2 of her best friends from school in the class with her so they got to enjoy this moment together. 

5/14/15 - Spring Concert

On the 14th, Paige had her annual spring concert with school. They are so fun to watch! I think back to the concerts of my childhood and they were extremely boring in comparison. Her music teacher sets them up like musicals. There is a story line. It's not just kids singing the same songs you have heard for the past several decades. It is fantastic!! There are 3 first grade classes - Paige's class dressed as elephants. I have a few pictures and a friend of mine recorded the entire program if you would like to watch it. 

https://youtu.be/1zFLaGudWdI

Mother's Day Weekend 2015

On Saturday, our local Girl Scout Service Unit put together a fun event called "Me & My Gal". They reserved a full theater for us and we all went and enjoyed some caffeine free soda, popcorn and the new Cinderella movie! It was so much fun! It was really great to spend some one on one time with Paige in that manner. We spend a lot of time together - but we don't usually get to do fun things like that together. 

On Sunday, the 3 of us drove over to Winona and caught a matinee. We saw the newest Avenger's movie which we have all been dying to see since we first saw previews for it quite awhile ago. Abe is working 6 days a week right now so having that little outing with our family was really nice. We rarely get that opportunity anymore! 

I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day! :) 

5/7/15

On the 7th, we had Paige's in studio dress rehearsal. The girls had to be in full costume, hair, and makeup. Super fun! Here are some pictures! This is the day that she officially graduated from her dance class too. She was in a combination ballet/jazz class called Kiddance. She can now move into a more dedicated class. She is looking at doing ballet and tap next year!

Rough Start to May

May came in like a bang - poor Paige had strep throat one week and then the next she had an ear infection. I also learned that I had a broken foot. It had actually occurred back on April 22nd, but I didn't know it was broken at the time. It was a work injury so that came with some drama - of course! Nothing can ever just be easy! Anyway - worker's comp is not something I ever want to have to deal with ever again! I had about 2 weeks of pretty heavy restrictions and I had a special walking boot that I had to wear, but I am back to normal now. My foot still swells on occasion and I still have some bruising, but in general, it is back to normal! 

Young Author's Night

Paige was given the opportunity to read her story in front of all of the parents at Young Author's Night. They have a wonderful program in place at her school called "Writer's Workshop" and they had been working on writing fiction stories. She was very nervous but she did such a wonderful job. You can listen to her story here :) 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIyOfvSQ6Bo

4/25/15 - Seed Savers Exchange Field Trip

I have mentioned it before, but Paige is in the garden club at school and it is one of the groups that I help out with on a routine basis. It is so much fun! This past Saturday we got to go down to Decorah Iowa to Seed Savers Exchange. All of their seeds are heirlooms. It is what they specialize in. They are doing what they can to preserve the seed industry by not using GMO seeds or even hybrid seeds. It is a wonderful organization! The kids had a lot of fun on this trip! 

4/18/15 - My 31st Birthday!

We had a really fun and relaxing day on my birthday! We went and joined my mom and dad for breakfast in La Crosse at Kramer's, which is always yummy. They have awesome breakfast burritos! It was a beautiful day so we went out on the river for a bit. Parked the boat on a beach and did some exploring. Paige was probably happier than anyone else to be out there - she is such a little river rat. She was pretty disappointed that she couldn't swim, but 55 degree water is BRRR! 

4/16/15 - Trempealeau Humane Society

Our Girl Scout meeting this month was the Trempealeau County Humane Society. This trip helped them earn another one of their Daisy Petals! The girls LOVED seeing all of the animals and they got to hold and play with most of them! Of course, this resulted in 14 girls begging to take animals home ;) Paige fell in love with a setter by the name of Zippy. His name is very fitting...that dog was super hyper! She tried really hard to win over Daddy so she could have him, but I'm afraid that will probably never happen! Abe is just not a dog person. She will keep working on him though :) 

4/11/15 - Learned to Ride a Bike!

After only 3 small sessions - Paige learned how to ride a bike with no training wheels! She is rocking it now! I wasn't sure that she was ready but she has done a great job with it, and we've only had one crash and burn! She is growing up too fast! 

4/10/15 National Sibling Day

Just wanted to share the pic I posted for this day! It was taken in August of 1997 :)

Humans of New York

Have you ever seen this Facebook page? It is truly amazing and a highlight of my day. It really makes you feel like you are not alone in your day to day struggles and that there are some amazing, unique, and wonderful people in our world. My faith in humanity is often restored after reading the owner's work. Basically - he stops people at random in NYC and does a short interview with them. Some of them have multiple parts of the story - the one I am about to share with you was one of those. 

This was the caption on a picture of a very ordinary looking businessman from NYC. 

“We’re all better people because Jackson is in our family. I’ve seen my other son choose his friends based on how they treated his brother. My daughter asked us if she could invite an entire special needs class to her tenth birthday party. My wife and I have become advocates and started charities. But we’ve all been tested too. Everyone is needy, and when you have a special needs child, it’s hard to give everyone the attention they deserve. I wish I could have given my other two children more parenting. And I wish my wife and I had more time to focus on each other. But sometimes we were too busy with Jackson. It could be like crisis mode all the time. I’d be fighting the school board. My wife would be up until 3 AM, every single night, watching videos of Jackson’s therapy, trying to decide what was working. In many ways, all of our worlds revolved around Jackson. And sometimes we didn’t have much left for each other.”

That alone touched me....and then I read one of the top comments underneath the picture. It was: 

"My little sister was born with Down Syndrome, and I completely understand this man's struggles and blessings. From the "older brother" perspective, I felt neglected at times, but as I matured I knew that it was for a good reason. My sister is an infinite well of overflowing love and my light in the dark because she was given a proper upbringing."

I was compelled to write this: 

That comment really struck a chord with me. My parents have said that they wished we hadn't needed to take a backseat so often in regards to my sister. I can honestly say that we wouldn't have had it any other way. My sister was also an infinite well of overflowing love and her hugs & smiles were definitely our lights in the dark. Our childhoods weren't easy, but I wouldn't trade a day. I know, without a doubt, that we are better people for having her in our lives. I love you, mom & dad.

I am only sharing this because of how much I could relate to this random person's statement. This is one of the instances when I felt that no matter what is going on in the world - there are people that are just like me and have the same struggles that I do. It is really humbling and brings you right back down to Earth. I don't know if I am really communicating this effectively. Hard to put those thoughts into words I guess. 

You are not alone - remember that! 

4/5/15 Easter Sunday

We had a quiet family day at home on Easter, which was pretty nice after the chaos of having 2 extra kids here! We aren't used to that! Paige is pretty quiet and that becomes pretty evident when there are more children around to up the noise factor haha! The Easter Bunny was able to sneak down and hide eggs while Paige cuddled in bed with Daddy. The bunny had hidden a basket in plain view in her bedroom but it took her a while to notice it...silly girl! All in all - a wonderful holiday!

4/4/15 Egg Hunt at Grandma and Grandpa's!

The next morning, we went over to Mom & Dad's for an egg hunt! The kids had a blast! Abe and I hid them..thankfully we remembered where they were and all eggs ended up being accounted for :) 

4/3/15 Egg Dying Fun

We had a surprise visit from our niece and nephew and they even got to spend the night. Paige was delighted! We opted to dye some eggs and I have to say - the fact that we made it through that venture with no tears and no stains on our carpet is something I am pretty proud of! The kids made some really great looking eggs! 

3/29 - Lost Another Tooth

This girl is losing teeth left and right...certainly keeping that tooth fairy busy! She lost her first upper tooth on the 29th and currently has 2 more loose! Unlike the last couple of teeth, she pulled this one on her own with ZERO tears! 

Dancing

This past week was the studio's Open House. We got to sit in the entire class time. I love it when we can do that. I got to a sneak peak of her dance recital dance. So cute! She didn't have her proper tights or ballet slippers on because she lost them! We will have to get some more in the next week or two. For now - she is off for spring break until April 6th! 

Courageous & Strong

During this month's Girl Scout Meeting, the girls had the opportunity to take a self-defense class at our local martial arts studio which happens to be right across the street from our house! Handy! They earned one of their last daisy petals with this class - it's called Courageous & Strong. 

This idea came about when there was a bully issue at school that was basically isolated to the 1st graders. This particular student has since been removed from the school, but hopefully the lessons they learned will stick with them. The girls all had an absolute blast and I am fairly certain that most of them now want to take karate lessons :) 

In House Gymnastics Meet 3/20/15

Paige had an informal In-House Meet this night. She did pretty well. She scored an 8.60 on the Vault, 7.95 on the Bars, 8.50 on the Beam, and 7.65 on the Floor for an all-around score of 32.7 which earned her 2nd place. She is in a bit of a tough spot right now because she was promoted to a Level 2 gymnast a few weeks ago. With the end of the competition season right around the corner, her coaches felt it would be difficult to learn a new routine in a short amount of time, and with just a couple of competitions left. So - she is practicing with Level 2's, but is competing at Level 1. She didn't get much opportunity to practice her level 1 routines as she is not in that class anymore. She's really taking to gymnastics and I see us being the parents of a gymnast for quite some time! 

Higher & Higher!

This was a HUGE moment at gymnastics for her. She has always been really hesitant on the climbing rope and this time she blew her personal best out of the water. She just keeps getting stronger and more confident! I love it! 

Pinewood Derby 3/7/15

Once again, the Boy Scouts were nice enough to invite the Girl Scouts in to use their brand new track! It was a lot of fun! Paige took 3rd out of 6 girls :) 

Look Alikes

When I took this picture, it was because she was sleeping and she looks SO adorable when she sleeps. After going back and looking at the picture again, I realized something. She is the spitting image of my sister in this picture and it makes my heart melt. I am so happy that after all of these years, I can catch glimpses of my sister in my very own daughter. It means more to me than words can say. 

Has It Really Been A Month?

We have been so crazy busy this last 6 weeks with cookie season...wow! I will have a lot of updating to do with you all. Stay tuned! 

2/28/15 Weekend

This weekend is a desperately needed relaxing one. Friday night, Paige had a birthday party so a couple of us moms decided to go out for a little while to unwind a bit. I was only out for a couple of hours, but I felt human again! It was just what I needed. 

Today, Paige had another birthday party to go to. My best friend was taking her son to the same party so she took Paige too. I stayed home and had all the best intentions to get things done - but of course, I did not. The couch was too comfy. I will just have to do all of those things tomorrow :) 

Tomorrow, we were going to work a cookie booth but opted not to as we will be doing those for the next couple of weeks. Instead, we are going to head over to Mom and Dad's so that Abe and Paige can work on the pinewood derby car for the race that is happening on March 7th. Paige had a great time at that last year and even won a trophy so I know she has high hopes again this year. While Abe is using the power tools, Paige and I may take a walk around the neighborhood to see if anyone wants some girl scout cookies :) 

I hope that all of you are doing well and keeping warm in this nasty winter we've all had! 

*All She Wants To Do Is Dance*

Well, that is not entirely true, but she loves it just as much as she loves gymnastics. She currently does a class called "Kiddance." It focuses on both ballet and jazz. She is not old enough to be in a graded technique class, which is totally fine. She is loving this. Every month, during the last week of the month, parents are invited to come in and watch the very last 10 minutes. Parents are a HUGE distraction, so our only viewing opportunity is typically through gauzy yellow curtains that you can't really see through. Everyone always looks forward to these days because we get to actually see what our kids are up to! 

They changed things up for us this last week. Parents could participate! It was so much fun! Then, for the last 10 minutes, we were able to watch while all of the dancers showed us a little bit of the dance they will be performing for the spring recital in May. It was a lot of fun! 

Level 2!

We are so incredibly proud of Paige and the strides she has made as a gymnast. We signed her up in September after months and months of her begging. She had done a couple months of tumbling when she was 3, but that was the extent of her "training." Within weeks, she had caught on so quickly that her instructor suggested competition. We were hesitant because we didn't want this fun activity to turn into something she stressed about. We talked to her about it. We watched some videos on youtube of gymnastics competitions...she loved it and wanted to do it. So, we signed her up. She is an official competition gymnast. She's an active athlete in the AAU and everything! Pretty serious business for a 6 year old it would seem! 

So, let's fast forward 5 months. She is nailing her Level 1 skills. Her routines are still a little wobbly, but the skill is definitely there. Well, at practice this past Tuesday, she was on the bars and did a back hip circle all by herself. I won't attempt to explain it but suffice it to say that for a 6 year old, it's pretty awesome. It takes a lot of strength to complete it. She got it! 

She ran over to me with this excited look on her face and she said "Miss Savannah wanted me to tell you that I can go to Level 2 now!" Of course, I was super proud. She's been working so hard on the bar and she did it all by herself with just a spotter keeping an eye on her. As of that very night, she became a Level 2 gymnast. I completed the paperwork and voila! Her practices are the same nights (Tuesday) but they are 30 minutes longer. They also start at 4pm and go to 6 vs starting at 6 and going until 7:30. Those were late nights for her and I'm glad that those are done. 

She is very excited to start on this new journey. Her routines will get a little harder and she'll have to practice harder too but she's so looking forward to it. We went to open gym this morning and she surprised me by doing a back bend into a backward bridge. Before I know it, she'll be doing kick overs and then flips! 

World Thinking Day 2015

World Thinking Day was on Sunday, Feb 22nd. It is an event in which girl led groups from around the world learn about and celebrate countries from all over the world. Each year, troops choose a specific country and then set out on a mission to learn all there is to learn about it, and prepare to teach everyone else about that country. Each family prepares dishes related to the country their daughter's troop chose which then creates a really nice international potluck. 

This year, our girls chose Madagascar. As 1st grade Daisies, they have had a lot of focus on animals as part of their Journey this year. Madagascar fit in really well with this! They did a dance and had a lot of fun. Paige had been sick for the meeting that week so she didn'thave to opportunity to try and learn the dance they did, but she tried her best! They were able to sample foods from all around the world. We have some really great cooks in our area!  Part of attending was bring school supplies to donate. All donations, and there were a TON of them, went to support Youth Action Without Borders and specifically Dakar, Senegal. 

2/21/15 Flip For A Hero Meet

Paige had another gymnastics meet! She didn't really appear to be on her game at first, but I think she was tired. She ended up taking 2nd place on Beam and her Level 1 group took the 3rd place team trophy! She was so excited to have her hands on this big trophy! 

This particular meet is a charity fundraiser. All of the proceeds went to local emergency responder groups like the fire department, first responders, police, etc. 

My parents came up to watch the meet with us and they brought a surprise! They brought our nephew Tayden with them. Paige was SO excited to see him! It's becoming a regular thing to go out to breakfast/lunch when Mom and Dad come up so that's where we headed after the meet was over. The diner was pretty crowded so the adults sat in a booth while Paige and Tayden sat across the aisle from us at the counter. They loved it :) 

Ahhhh!!

Let me just say....I really underestimated the stress that comes along with being a "cookie mom." HOLY MACKEREL! Between that and both of us starting new jobs...in addition to everything else we normally have going on, it has been nothing short of crazy around here. Busy is good though - keeps us out of trouble :) 

Our first booth was at our local grocery store. It ended up being really fun! The girls were really well behaved and the employees even commented on it. That's always a great feeling! 

The night of the 20th, we had another booth at the Shopko in Onalaska. It has originally been scheduled at Wal-Mart, but they have a policy that doesn't allow the girls to sell cookies within the building...even in between the doors where the carts are. It was uh....REALLY cold that day and because of Wal-Marts seemingly unbendable policy, we cancelled with them and went to another store that was very happy to have us inside. Not just inside the doors, but actually inside the store next to the pharmacy. The traffic walking past was great and it has been our best booth to date. We definitely plan on doing more there! 

Cookie Sales Are On!

Cookie season has official kicked off as of the 13th. If you would like any cookies, please let us know. We will ship or deliver them! The kinds we have available are: 

Thin Mints

Carmel DeLites (Samoas)

Peanut Butter Patties (Tagalogs) 

Peanut Butter Sandwich (Do-Si-Dos) 

Cranberry Citrus Crisp - healthiest by far. Whole wheat and cranberries

Lemonades (Shortbread w/ a lemon icing)

Shortbread (Trefoils)

Thanks A Lots (Shortbread w/ chocolate layer) 

We also have a gluten free option this year, but in my opinion, they are not very good. I wish they had stuck with the ones from last year. Those were amazing! 

Boxes are $3.75 each! Please don't feel obligated to purchase any, but if you are interested, we will happily oblige :) 

2/10/15

The 10th was cookie delivery day. Not just to our troop, but to our entire service unit. Our service unit ordered about 3000 more boxes of cookies initially than they did last year. So, we hauled and stacked about 15000 boxes. They come in cases so this is equal to 1,250 cases of cookies! It was crazy! I assisted with this from 10:30 to 5 pm. I was ready for bed by the time I was done. Of course, blizzard like conditions had set in by that point so my typical 10 minute drive home from Trempealeau to Galesville was nearly 40 minutes. Figures, right! 

The first picture is of all the cookies stacked and organized by kind. The 2nd picture is of the cookies for our troop. Between booth sales and 14 girls participating, we ordered 309 cases of cookies! Do you need any cookies? :) 

2/8/15

 This particular Sunday was busy, busy! Paige attended a birthday party at the Best Western Hotel...they have a fun little water park inside. That was from 1-4, but we had to leave at 3 because there was a father/daughter bowling even that our Girl Scout troop hosted. The last time she had been at that pool was when Russ, Heather, Luke, and Jenna came to visit. That was in 2010. I found a picture of her coming off the slide. Surreal to see her on that same slide and be SO much bigger! 

She had just turned 2 the month before in this picture :)


The girls had a lot of fun! The girl's aunt was more than willing to take turns with all of these girls going down the big slide with them. The slide empties out into a 3 ft 8 inch deep area. Just a little to deep for Paige to feel comfortable navigating on her own, so she was especially thrilled with this!

Next up was the father/daughter bowling event put on by our Daisy Troop. It was a huge success! Abe and Paige had a lot of fun.