by Amy
We love our kids' new kindergarten for many reasons (it's close, all my kids can be together, 3:1 kid:teacher ratio, etc...). But the one thing that I don't like about it is that there are no other kids Savannah's age. She's the oldest one in the class. So, even after living here for 1.5 years, Savannah still does not have a good, local friend her age. She has never complained about it, but I wish it wasn't this way....
One of the things that has helped Savannah not feel lonely is Adventures in Odyssey, a radio theater production put on by Focus on the Family. She LOVES to listen to Odyssey! She talks about the characters a lot -- quoting them and laughing at their experiences. Eugene, Connie, and Whit have become her best friends. Although, they are not real people, I'm so thankful that Savannah has them! And, she has really taken to heart many of the lessons/values the stories try to teach. They have led to many good conversations!
Monday, October 27, 2008
Saturday, October 18, 2008
All I Want For Christmas
By Amy
This post is long overdue... the grandparents have been hearing about the new smile for a couple of weeks now, but I haven't had a chance to post pics. About 3 weeks ago Savannah's dangling front left tooth finally fell out. We had been anticipating that for close to a month! She liked to wiggle it (and gross her mother out!) but didn't want to pull it. Finally she was eating and it couldn't stay put any longer!
Soon after that first tooth came out she began talking about her other front tooth being loose. Then, when playing on an inflatable moonwalk-type toy, Peter accidentally kicked her in the mouth and made it a bit looser! Sure enough, about a week ago when biting into a sandwich, Savannah's other front tooth fell out! So, now our sweet girl has a new smile!
Saturday, October 11, 2008
The Farm
By Amy
Last week in school we had a farm theme. So, we made tractors using different shapes I had cut out. We used this activity to teach us how to say circle, square, triangle, and rectangle in the local language. We sang all 9 verses of The Farmer and the Dell when some friends came over. Then, we studied how to say the names of different farm animals in the local language.
But, the most fun thing we did was make a farm-puzzle-cookie. In the morning for our first school activity, we made sugar cookie dough. Then we rolled it out on to my cookie sheet. After that we created a farm scene with cookie cutters and a knife. Later that night, we had fun icing it. They kids had to tell me how to say tree, fish, bird, cow, horse, and duck in our local language before I let them eat any! That was a pretty strong motivator! They all did great!
Last week in school we had a farm theme. So, we made tractors using different shapes I had cut out. We used this activity to teach us how to say circle, square, triangle, and rectangle in the local language. We sang all 9 verses of The Farmer and the Dell when some friends came over. Then, we studied how to say the names of different farm animals in the local language.
But, the most fun thing we did was make a farm-puzzle-cookie. In the morning for our first school activity, we made sugar cookie dough. Then we rolled it out on to my cookie sheet. After that we created a farm scene with cookie cutters and a knife. Later that night, we had fun icing it. They kids had to tell me how to say tree, fish, bird, cow, horse, and duck in our local language before I let them eat any! That was a pretty strong motivator! They all did great!
Clearly, Brad found the cookie and took a bite before I could take the picture! He said he wanted the fishy to swim away!
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Up Close and Personal
by Amy
When Sue came to visit, one of the things she really wanted to do was see the main venues for those big games last month. It just so happened that while paraolympics were going on, we were able to get tickets. The day we had tickets for didn't turn out to be a very pretty day, but at least it didn't rain on us, and it was a little cooler than normal. We had a great time. The grounds/greens were really well done, with tons of flowers and water fountains. And at night all the lights on the different buildings were really beautiful.
We had tickets to go into the bird's nest. That place was huge!! It was fun to be there and to be able to watch several different events going on at one time. One of the most interesting was the blind 100m dash. Most of the runners had a guide who ran with them. And, I assume because there are varying degrees of blindness, all of the competitors had to wear a mask over their eyes.
Can you find Sue, Brad and the boys? Savannah and I walked to the other side of the stadium to check out the long jump, and we took their pic. They're over there somewhere! I was so surprised at how full the stadium was.
I really enjoyed being there. It was fun to understand people as they talked about us, then to turn around and answer the questions they are asking..."Yes, they are twins, No, she's only 6 years old. Americans are tall. I know he's cute -- he's MY husband!" -- OK, so that last one didn't' really happen.... It seemed to make people so happy to hear us -- especially the kids -- talk in their local language.
You cannot even begin guess how many people were standing around taking pictures of my kids (and me) climbing on this 'piece of art!' It was crazy how many camera were flashing! After this some dude ran chased us down and offered my kids some tattoos. Savannah loved hers and kept it on for as long as possible - hence the tattoo her model pics in the previous post. Peter didn't want his, so I got it! Alex and I had matching tattoos.
The Greens were especially beautiful at night... We really enjoyed waking around and seeing so many of the things we had seen only on TV. We obviously took A TON of pics! Sorry to overwhelm you with so many in this post.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Strike a Pose
by Amy
While Sue was here, she was constantly taking pictures of our kids (until she threw her camera into the pool, that is!). So, before she left, Brad and I went through all the pictures on her camera so we could copy them to our computer. We were laughing so hard at all the "model-type" pictures of our daughter. I'm not sure who taught her to strike a pose, and I promise she doesn't read teen magazines or watch questionable things on TV.... So, here's the fashion show!
Enjoy... (and try not to notice all the bruises on her legs! She loves to play outside!)
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
The Pasta Pot
by Amy
As we've probably mentioned before, our kids have recently begun attending a new kindergarten. This school is great for many reasons, one being that it's about a 2 min. walk from my building, and two being that it's really small so it has a great teacher:kid ratio. My kids love going and often ask why they aren't going able to go on the weekends.
Last week the teachers brought three turtles into the classroom. They vary in size, from a little bigger than a silver dollar to the size of a dinner plate, but, to quote Savannah, "They're all kids." Our kids have had a blast playing with those crazy turtles!
When asking the kids what they did at school one day last week, they all eagerly told us about taking the turtles to the "pasta pot." "Oh, really?!?" I tried to play along... "Where is this pasta pot? How big is this pasta pot?" But I never got any clues to what exactly they were refering to. When we got home and they told Sue all about it, she asked, "What's a pasta pot?" "Grandma, it's what you cook spaghetti in!"
Thanks, Savannah, that's helpful! Thanks to some pictures the teachers showed me, I discovered that the pasta pot is actually a shallow water fountain in our complex. Supposedly the turtles love to swim.
As we've probably mentioned before, our kids have recently begun attending a new kindergarten. This school is great for many reasons, one being that it's about a 2 min. walk from my building, and two being that it's really small so it has a great teacher:kid ratio. My kids love going and often ask why they aren't going able to go on the weekends.
Last week the teachers brought three turtles into the classroom. They vary in size, from a little bigger than a silver dollar to the size of a dinner plate, but, to quote Savannah, "They're all kids." Our kids have had a blast playing with those crazy turtles!
When asking the kids what they did at school one day last week, they all eagerly told us about taking the turtles to the "pasta pot." "Oh, really?!?" I tried to play along... "Where is this pasta pot? How big is this pasta pot?" But I never got any clues to what exactly they were refering to. When we got home and they told Sue all about it, she asked, "What's a pasta pot?" "Grandma, it's what you cook spaghetti in!"
Thanks, Savannah, that's helpful! Thanks to some pictures the teachers showed me, I discovered that the pasta pot is actually a shallow water fountain in our complex. Supposedly the turtles love to swim.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Home again!
by Amy
I'm home again and it's so great!! I can hardly remember a time feeling so loved as I did when I walked through that door on Saturday afternoon! The kids had made signs and cards, decorated the door (thanks to Grandma's help), and were full of hugs and kisses! Even Brad expressed numerous times that he was so glad I was back and asked me to never go away again!
My three day language class was great! I am so thankful that I was able to go and take it, but I was absolutely exhausted after it! Listening and speaking in another language for over 10 hours a day was way more than I'm used to! I have even been dreaming -- not in English -- every night since my first day of class. It's crazy!
My class ended on Friday night at 5:45 pm. I was scheduled to leave town on an 8:35 pm flight. I asked a friend who lives in that city what time I should leave the hotel to catch my flight. He recommended leaving at 7pm. So, instead, I decided to take my luggage with me to dinner at a restaurant halfway between my hotel and the airport. I got my dinner to go and was outside at 7:15 waiting for a taxi. At 7:35, after moving down the street to a huge intersection, I call Brad and ask him to pray that I get a taxi right away! I assume the big suitcase I had sitting next to me told all the taxi drivers where I was heading, and since many of them were getting off work, they wouldn't take me to the airport. I told several drivers that stopped near me, "I'll pay you a lot of money, just take me to the airport!!" I didn't work. At 7:45 I call my friend who lives in that city and ask him what I should do. He said that if I could catch a taxi right then, I should get there before the check-in counter closed -- 30 minutes before the flight takes off --8:05. But, I did not catch a taxi right then....
So, I called my husband and told him I would not be coming home that night. I wasn't' sure what to do, but I'd try to get a ticket for Saturday. He was clearly just as disappointed as I was. Then, my wonderful husband, said, "I'll take care of it. You go to you hotel and read a book and relax. Keep your phone on and I'll call you and let you know what to do." Whew! What a relief that was to me. I was already exhausted and over my limit, so I was happy to have him handle that for me. Sure enough, at about 9:00 Brad called. He had figured out how to get a partial refund for my unused ticket and had purchased a new one for me. So, I hopped on a plane at 8:15 Saturday morning. "(FYI - It took me 20 minutes to get from my hotel to the airport on Saturday morning.)
Oh, it was sooo good to be home. I was exhausted! I slept for almost 3 hours on Saturday afternoon and was still ready to go back to bed at 9:30 that night. Wow! What a trip! I'm so thankful for the things I learned from my class and for the wonderful family I got to come home to!
I'm home again and it's so great!! I can hardly remember a time feeling so loved as I did when I walked through that door on Saturday afternoon! The kids had made signs and cards, decorated the door (thanks to Grandma's help), and were full of hugs and kisses! Even Brad expressed numerous times that he was so glad I was back and asked me to never go away again!
My three day language class was great! I am so thankful that I was able to go and take it, but I was absolutely exhausted after it! Listening and speaking in another language for over 10 hours a day was way more than I'm used to! I have even been dreaming -- not in English -- every night since my first day of class. It's crazy!
My class ended on Friday night at 5:45 pm. I was scheduled to leave town on an 8:35 pm flight. I asked a friend who lives in that city what time I should leave the hotel to catch my flight. He recommended leaving at 7pm. So, instead, I decided to take my luggage with me to dinner at a restaurant halfway between my hotel and the airport. I got my dinner to go and was outside at 7:15 waiting for a taxi. At 7:35, after moving down the street to a huge intersection, I call Brad and ask him to pray that I get a taxi right away! I assume the big suitcase I had sitting next to me told all the taxi drivers where I was heading, and since many of them were getting off work, they wouldn't take me to the airport. I told several drivers that stopped near me, "I'll pay you a lot of money, just take me to the airport!!" I didn't work. At 7:45 I call my friend who lives in that city and ask him what I should do. He said that if I could catch a taxi right then, I should get there before the check-in counter closed -- 30 minutes before the flight takes off --8:05. But, I did not catch a taxi right then....
So, I called my husband and told him I would not be coming home that night. I wasn't' sure what to do, but I'd try to get a ticket for Saturday. He was clearly just as disappointed as I was. Then, my wonderful husband, said, "I'll take care of it. You go to you hotel and read a book and relax. Keep your phone on and I'll call you and let you know what to do." Whew! What a relief that was to me. I was already exhausted and over my limit, so I was happy to have him handle that for me. Sure enough, at about 9:00 Brad called. He had figured out how to get a partial refund for my unused ticket and had purchased a new one for me. So, I hopped on a plane at 8:15 Saturday morning. "(FYI - It took me 20 minutes to get from my hotel to the airport on Saturday morning.)
Oh, it was sooo good to be home. I was exhausted! I slept for almost 3 hours on Saturday afternoon and was still ready to go back to bed at 9:30 that night. Wow! What a trip! I'm so thankful for the things I learned from my class and for the wonderful family I got to come home to!
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