planting seeds

I'm not much of a gardener. Wish I was. We picked up these seed packets a while back and just got around to planting them. Each of the girls had their own flower pot and planted the seed of their choice. It was a fun science lesson - comparing each of the different types of seeds. I actually remembered to grab the camera.


Maybe we'll have an update later in the summer.

the melodrama

The girls had such a blast in the talent show last year, they decided to try out again this year. They got a bunch of their friends, including brothers and sisters, and put on a skit we picked up at our church family retreat.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

By the way, the teachers asked me to head up the decorating committee. The theme was "A Midsummer Night's Dream". I had never done anything like that before, but I think it turned out pretty good. I was very proud of myself!


A special thanks to all the parents who helped, to our awesome music teachers, to the Browns for sharing the script and props with us, and to all our friends and family who came to watch!

hannah montana!!!

One of Anna's Kinder pals had a Hannah Montana themed birthday party. Little did we know, the superstar herself would be there! The girls were quite impressed (Anna figured out it was an impersonator pretty quick, Bethany was mesmerized.) She put on a pretty good show, including a lesson in how to do the haystack shuffle (or whatever it's called). And autographs to boot!

Gruene

Shayne's brother lives on the North side of Austin, and we don't get together nearly enough. A few times a year, we try to pick a central location, and meet for a meal. This time, the estination of choice was Gruene. The date, Memorial Day (ugh). The weather, HOT (double ugh).







The girls had a blast taking turns entertaining their cousin.











After dining at the Gristmill, we walked down to the river and waded for a bit. I'll say it again - it was HOT! So, the water felt good. Next time, we're taking the swimsuits.

dress up

My girls have always loved playing dress up, and I've always tried to offer a variety of costumes for them to play with. We were at a friends house recently, when what should appear at the top of the stairs? we definitely don't have any of these at home...

preschool traditions

Bethany is in preschool at the same place where Anna went for the 3 previous years. We love the consistency and traditions they have carried over from year to year, yet they still manage to add something new and fun every year.

She had a wonderful teacher this year, and together we overcame several hurdles. We had a rough start, but everything turned out great.

There is no question in my mind that Bethany is living the stereotypical 3rd child entertainer role. She enjoys being on stage and has no hesitation being in the spotlight. She knows all the words and motions to the songs. Now if we could just teach her to stand like a lady, instead of lifting her dress and scratching her bottom!

Simple water play is so much fun... kiddie pools, bubbles, painting, and of course, ice cream!
Bethany has been really been good about wearing her hat. I told her the sun would burn her head if she didn't wear it. Fortunately, it's pink, so she doesn't mind.

battle of the books

Katie is an avid reader. I've never had to make her read anything. Usually I have to make her put the book down because she's supposed to be doing something else.

She was selected along with some classmates to participate in a quiz show type competition based on a specific list of books. Half of the questions were based on story comprehension - either a direct quote or a description of something within the story was read and the correct title had to be guessed. The other half were based on ability to match the author with the book - either a direct quote or a description of something within the story was read and the correct author had to be guessed. Tricky! Different point values were given for each type of questions, and points were taken away for answering correctly.

She and her team had about a week to prepare. They narrowed down the list of 20 books first by figuring out who had read what book, then dividing the remaining books needed to be read. The librarian also had study questions for them to practice with. I think Katie actually enjoyed the cramming. She knocked out several chapter books in a matter of days. I made author/title flash cards for her team. She didn't go anywhere without a book or handful of study questions.

I missed the first half, but from what I heard, they blew their competition away, particularly on the author section. Katie's class won the school meet and went on to represent the school at the district level. She was a bundle of nerves. The team who won the semi-final level all but swept it because they were fast on the draw - they had their hands on the buzzer and would hit it even if they didn't know the answer immediately. It was an exciting night. Even though it was disappointing not to advance to the finals, it was a thrill to have gone as far as they did!












A big thank you to Miss Becky for coming to cheer her on! Your passion for books is a great example to her!

Here is the list of books from this year's competition:
A Bear Named Trouble by Marion Dane Bauer
Attack of the Mutant Underwear by Tom Birdseye
Clementine by Sara Pennypacker
Close Encounters of a Third World Kind by Jennifer Stewart
Escaping the Giant Wave by Peg Kehret
Gabriel’s Horses by Alison Hart
How to Steal a Dog by Barbara O’Connor
In The Middle of Somewhere by J.B. Cheaney
Just Grace by Cherise Mericle Harper
Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen
One-Handed Catch by Mary Jane Auch
Say What? by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Tall Tales by Karen Day
The Homework Machine by Dan Gutman
The President’s Daughter by Kimberley Brubaker Bradley
The Thing About Georgie by Lisa Graff
The Winner’s Walk by Nancy Ruth Patterson
The Year of the Rat by Grace Lin
Way Down Deep by Ruth White
Whittington by Alan Armstrong

Katie's goal for the summer is to read all the Bluebonnet books. Anna is joining her on her quest, as she can read about half of them based on her reading level. I'm sure Bethany will benefit from them as well!

field trips!

#1
The 4th graders spent a good part of the year studying Texas history. They also had numerous fundraisers and successfully collected more than $4000 to pay for a day trip to Austin. We toured the Bob Bullock State History Museum, including a film at the IMAX, then picnicked on the Capitol grounds. We went on a self-guided tour of all the monuments surrounding the Capitol, then did some hands on fun in the Capitol Visitor's Center, and finally a brief tour of the Capitol building. The legislature was in session, so it was a very abbreviated tour.














#2
Katie was given the opportunity to attend a special concert with a select number of other upper elementary students. We went to the Empire Theater to hear and see an internationally renowned flute player and storyteller. (Unfortunately, I can't remember his name.)

He played instruments of all different shapes and sizes, and at one point was accompanied by another artist who used different objects as drums. It was a special treat.




#3
The Kindergarteners went to the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch. They rode the school buses through the open animal park, then visited the petting zoo. There was a picnic in there at some point - I hope they washed their hands!



I couldn't go with Anna because of a scheduling conflict (Bethany's dance class), so Shayne took the day off and joined her. He was able to do this when Katie was in Kinder too. It's a nice treat for the girls.




This is a good one. It shows the difference in Shayne's and my photography styles. Itry to absorb the whole scene, whereas he just focuses on one object. In this shot, he was focusing on Anna. What's the second thing you notice though? It caught my eye immediately.

Hint: I'm surprised Anna didn't feel the splatters. Ewww!

roxaboxen

We L O V E D this story!

It totally reminded me of the imaginary fun my sister and I used to have when we were kids.
A big thanks to the Magik Theatre for introducing us to it. The play was great too!

We invited our special friend, Miss Tamra, to join us, and we bumped into our friends, the Davila's, while we were there.

fiesta farm fun

The girls helped their friend Karleigh celebrate her birthday at Fiesta Farm. It was sunny and hot, and there were lots of flies (that's mom's point of view). The girls had a blast! They got to meet lots of animals, including rides on ponies, and there was a sandbox and a hayride. And birthday cake, of course!

hula hula

Every other month or so, the school has "Rhythms Day". They come up with different themes and learn new songs and dances that feature that theme. I think it's a way for them to add a little extra fun to the year. It's not technically a party AND the kids get to dress up. They also learn a little about different cultures, and maybe even a little history!

The last Rhythms Day of the school year was luau-themed. Grass skirts and leis. Sunglasses and flip-flops. Easy, right?
Here's to Anna and the way she does the hula
Here's to Anna and the way she does the hula
the hula hula, the hula hula
Here's to Anna and the way she does the hula
Here's to Katie and the way she does the hula
Here's to Katie and the way she does the hula
the hula hula, the hula hula
Here's to Katie and the way she does the hula


(even Bethany got in on the action!)

For Katie, it was also Market Day. The 4th graders are expected to come up with a homemade product to sell. They have to purchase the supplies, assemble the items, price the items, create a display, and sell them. The kids in the school are invited to "shop". Katie had about a $15 profit. Not bad! She sold 2 different products - flower hair clips (artificial flowers taken apart, mixed up, then attached to metal clips) and fool's gold (rocks from the backyard spray-painted gold and wrapped in burlap). It was a good lesson on supply and demand, economics, etc.