First day of preschool, 2013

Yesterday morning Buttercup started preschool for the last time! She's still pretty bummed that she' has to wait another year for kindergarten, so she was super excited about going back to preschool. :-)

I can't believe how big she looks in these pictures! My sweet girl. :-)  I hope she has a great year!  

A sweet note of apology

One morning this week, I took the kids to play at Bull Creek with some friends. We had to leave earlier than our friends since Theodore was ready for a nap, and Buttercup and Oliver were both very disappointed that we had to leave "so early" (although we had been there for over 2 hours) and both chose to disobey me instead of walking to the car when I asked them to. 

When we finally were all in the car, I told them that, as a consequence, I would not take them to the farm the next morning like we had planned to do, and instead we would stay home all morning. Buttercup screamed the rest of the way home (of course) while Oliver silently pouted. When we got home, Oliver stopped me in the kitchen and said, "Mom, I'm going to write you an 'I'm sorry' letter and I'm going to use my best handwriting." 

After I had gotten Theodore and Buttercup down for their naps, I went to the table to check on Oliver, and he handed me this note:

It reads: "I am sorry for not obbeying [sic] you. Can you forgive me. Thank you for taking me. I shood [sic] have been a better listener."  

I love his neat handwriting, curlicue letters, and heart punctuation!! My sweet boy. :-)

Cub Scout!

A couple of months ago, I (and all the other parents of kindergarten boys) received an e-mail asking if Oliver would be interested in joining Cub Scouts, which starts the summer before 1st grade. Well, anyone who knows Oliver knows that Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts are right up his alley! I asked him to be sure, and he said, "CAN I START TODAY?????!!!!!"  Ha ha ha.  :-)  

So far, we're just getting started. He hasn't gone to any scouting events yet (where they earn badges or belt loops), but last night he did go through the "bridge ceremony" where new cubs are presented with a neckerchief (don't call it a handkerchief! It's a neckerchief!) and clip, and welcomed into the pack. 

(These next photos are from before the ceremony, and, in case you're wondering, he's wearing a neckerchief and clip because I didn't realize he would be given one at the ceremony, so I bought him one at the store when I bought his uniform. So now he has two sets. Which is great, since we'll probably end up losing one anyway. :-)  

My baby is so big. :-( 

All 5 of us went to the ceremony, despite it starting at bedtime. Theodore lasted approximately 5 minutes before Dennis had to take him outside. :-)

Oliver being welcomed into the pack with a special handshake:

Walking across the bridge:  (Yes, they had a real bridge -- small, but a real one! -- for the cubs to walk across.)  

 Being presented with his neckerchief:

Standing with the rest of his friends:

 The rest of the ceremony took another 45 minutes, during which both Theodore and Buttercup spent their time outside, playing near the fountain:

It's so hard to realize that my first baby is old enough to be in Cub Scouts, and that in another year he's going to be old enough to go on scouting expeditions and events without having a parent along!  We are super proud of him, for growing up and being courageous and just being him. We love you, Oliver! 

Father-Daughter Dance!

Buttercup's preschool hosted a Father-Daughter dance on Friday, and surprisingly, Buttercup decided she wanted to go! At first she said no, but then I told her that her daddy would take her out to eat -- at the restaurant of her choice -- before the dance, and she changed her mind pretty quickly, ha ha.   

She knew immediately which tights and shoes she wanted to wear (pink polka dotted tights and sparkly purple shoes), but it took her a couple of days to decide on a dress. She ended up choosing a short-sleeved dress with a twirly red skirt. :-)  

I asked her if I could take a picture of her before they left for the dance, and she very happily posed and posed (and posed and posed) for pictures. She cracks me up!

This one is hilarious!!

As soon as Dennis got home from work, she ran outside and told him it was time to go! She was so excited and they had a great time!

 

Running with my big boy

Yesterday afternoon the weather was so nice (cool, sunny, light breeze, beautiful blue sky). I normally don't run on Sundays, but after a harrowing morning with the diva, I felt like I needed a short run to clear my head. Oliver had just gotten a new bike for his birthday and since he doesn't nap anymore, I thought he might like to go with me to the trail! 

I figured we would go about 3 or 4 miles at his pace, but we ended up going at my pace, with him zooming ahead at times, and ended up with a total of 5 miles. He wanted to go more, but my legs were definitely done after a hard run Friday and a long run Saturday, so we stopped at 5!  

The whole bike ride/run was such a blessing to me . . . we had so much fun talking and laughing while I was running and he was riding his bike, and I could tell that he felt so big, riding his bike next to me like that. I am so thankful for him, and I am so thankful for that sweet, precious time with the sweet big boy God has given to us. He is such a blessing. 

(And thankfully, our middle blessing had a good nap and was an absolute angel for the rest of the day. ;-)  

Here are some pictures of Oliver riding while I was running (I know you're jealous of my awesome photography skills, ha ha).

We had to stop and get him a sandwich after his ride, he was starving!