Edible Acorns

The girls and I did a fun project together in honor of the Fall season now being upon us.  We made edible acorns!  I saw this idea online and knew instantly that it would be something that each one of the girls could do together with me.

We set everything out in bowls in preparation for our project:

Then the girls set to work unwrapping all of the Hershey's Kisses:

Sophia took her role very seriously:

And she understood completely that she needed to put the kisses in the bowl once she was done unwrapping them:

Once the kisses were all unwrapped, Sam helped me to assemble the acorns.  We used a Hershey kiss for the base, a mini Nilla wafer for the cap and a butterscotch chip for the very top.  I just used melted candy between the layers to hold them together.

Lining them all up (and counting them) while the layers dried:

Perfection:

On display:

Sophia is 19 Months Old

Sophia seems to be adjusting now to the fact that Sam is in school three mornings a week.  At first, Sophia would fuss so much when we would leave her sister behind, but I think that she does like a little one-on-one time with me now.  We try to do puzzles and read books ... and she gets so excited when I tell her that it is time to go "pick Sam up from school."

She continues to want to do everything that Samantha is doing.  She doesn't really like sitting in her high chair too much anymore.  She makes it perfectly clear that she would rather sit in the booster seat (that used to be Sam's).

She also self-feeds as much as possible.  Of course, using a spoon is still a little tricky, but she seems to be mastering it a little better these days.  She has been using a fork by herself for quite some time now.

We brought Sam's old tricycle out of the basement a few weeks ago so that Sophia could use it in the driveway.  She's still a little bit small for it, but that doesn't seem to stop her!  She completely understands how to use it ... and definitely tries pretty hard.

Sometimes, she will just sit on the little ledge in the back:

Or, other times, we see this:

Sophia loves shoes!  She is constantly putting them and taking them off -- a million times a day.  I wonder if this is a little phase she is going through, or is this a sign that I have a little fashionista on my hands?  Either way, I encourage it now because I want her to wear shoes more now that the cooler days are coming.

Steve is training her early to like football.  Even though that ball is way to big for her now, she already has a couple of others that are just her size.

Sophia is becoming more and more vocal these days and she does a wonderful job of letting us know exactly what she wants.  Her fussiness is getting better now that she can communicate a little better (and since I have reverted back to letting her take a small snooze in the mornings, if she seems to be needing one).

Before I know it, her birthday will be here!

Sophia's Cowgirl Boots

Last year, at this exact same time, Samantha got her very first pair of cowgirl boots from her daddy.  She has wore those things right into the ground, and she eventually got a second pair earlier this year (when Steve travelled to Kentucky).  Because of Samantha's complete love for her boots and her cowgirl hat, we settled on a "Cowgirl" theme for her 4th birthday party in November.

In honor of the celebration, my mom and I decided that Sophia should get to have a pair too.  She will wear them at the party, of course, but she can also wear them this Fall. 

Here is the proud girl, sporting her new boots:

She can't stop looking at them!

Over and over, throughout the day, Sophia will bring them to me and say, "boots!"  She wears them constantly, and I am pretty sure that she would wear them to bed if I would let her!

End of the Week Randoms

Samantha has turned into quite the little helper.  As long as I give her {mostly} unlimited freedom with her tasks, she blossoms with them.  One such responsibility is emptying the clean dishes from the dishwasher.  She knows where everything goes, and for the dishes that she can't put away because the cupboard is too high ... well, she just lines them up on the counter for me.

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Sophia loves to play with crayons.  Sometimes, she finds pleasure in just carefully selecting certain ones out of the box.

Other times, she will make a valiant effort to actually try coloring with them.

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Sam was in desperate need of a new water bottle a couple of weeks ago, so when we were at the store, she chose one for herself.  Well, Sophia was feeling left-out (of course), so she got to pick one out too.  The girls LOVE them! 

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One of our neighbors came over to surprise Sam after her first day of school -- she brought her a flower all wrapped up just for her to celebrate the special occasion!  We have some of the best neighbors here!

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Samantha has always been pretty nice when it comes to letting her little sister play with her.  I think that she realizes, even at this young age, that it is more fun to have someone to play with -- even if it means that you can't play the games exactly as they are meant to be played.  Sometimes we have to change the playing rules to accomodate a little one that doesn't comprehend them yet.  One game that they can definitely play together is "Bed Bugs," and they have such a blast doing it!

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A few weeks ago, I bought a box of individual little packaged cereals for the girls.  They are the perfect size, and Sam was thrilled with the assortment.  Sophia has since discovered the box in the pantry and will often sneak in there and steal a box.  Knowing very well that I don't approve of her "helping herself" to snacks, she snuck off to the corner of the living room and this is what I found:

Yes, she was hiding and trying desperately to get the sealed bag open ... all by herself.  Busted!

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We have been trying to let the girls help as much in the kitchen as they would like.  Samantha started doing it at a young age, and Sophia seems to have the same interest in it.  Samantha was learning how to peel a carrot.  Of course, we are always close-by to supervise ...

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Samantha's First Dance Class

To my heart's delight, Samantha has expressed a real interest in dancing.  So, earlier this summer, I signed her up for a beginner's class ... and it started last week.  She attends her class on Thursday nights for 45 minutes -- just the perfect amount of time for a little one her age.  I bought her her first leotard (and some tights) and she has been so excited about it.

Here she is before her very first night of dance class:

Striking yet another pose for the camera:

Taken at the dance studio, while modeling her white dance/acobatic shoes:

I was able to stand outside the studio door for a few minutes to watch her while she met her teacher and the helpers.  While a few of the girls were shy and nervous, Samantha's was "all ears" and ready to learn.  She was in her element.

Her only disappointment is that she only goes once a week ...

Aunt Minnie's Birthday

My sister's 25th birthday was on Monday this week.  Steve was in Mexico, so we made plans to have a "girls' night " -- My mom came to my house in the afternoon and Min came over when she was done with work. 

I asked Min what kind of birthday cake she would like, and she chose strawberry.  So, I set to work that day (while Sam was in pre-school) constructing the strawberry masterpiece.  It turned out so nice, and Min loved it.

We ordered pizza for dinner and had it delivered.  We just wanted a low-key event, where the girls could feel free to be themselves and could be as rowdy with Aunt Minnie as they wanted!

Sam loves her aunt SO much ...

Sophia was pretty excited about the cake -- she was ready to dive right in!

The girls helped blow out the candles, of course ...

We gave Aunt Minnie a new bag for carrying all of her teaching supplies, a couple of candles and a special framed picture of me with the two girls.  Sam and Sophia even made their own cards for her.

Sophia recognized herself on the front of the card:

Sophia smelling one of the candles:

The framed picture:

Happy Birthday, Aunt Minnie!

The Pencil Box

One of the items that Samantha needed in preparation for pre-school was a pencil box with her name on it.  Inside, her teacher asked us to place a box of crayons and a couple of sharpened pencils.  This box would be kept at school and used whenever the students did any projects that required coloring or writing.

Sam set to work decorating her pencil box with stickers:

When it was finished (to her liking), we put it in her backpack so that she could take it to school with her on Wednesday.  I thought that she completely understood that this pencil box would STAY at school and be there every day for her.

When I walked into the classroom to pick her up on Wednesday, she came running over to me ... in tears.  I shot a quick glance to Mrs. Hicks, her teacher, silently questioning why Sam was SO upset.  Afterall, her exact words to me on the way to school that very morning were: "Mom, thanks for driving me to school.  I love school."

Through choked up words, I was able to figure out what the problem was -- she loved her pencil box so much that she wanted to take it home.  She was angry at her teacher for telling her that it had to stay at school. 

After much deliberation, we reached a compromise: Her pink one could come home with us, and we would go buy a green one (I saw green pencil boxes -- her favorite color -- at Meijer for 0.89), and decorate that one to take, AND LEAVE, at school. 

As she retreived her pink box from the teacher, she hugged it to her chest and said, "I just love it so much."  Mrs. Hicks was totally understanding and told me that "it's Sam's first pencil box, and that's a big deal."  Yes, I love this teacher so much.  She completely "gets" my kid.

And so here it is:

The pink one is already nestled away in her desk at home, and the green one is in her backpack ... hopefully ready to make its debut in the preschool classroom.  And Sam understands now (I hope) that the green one must stay at school so that she has crayons and pencils to use when she is doing her schoolwork.

A Girl and Her Pig

Once a week, I head out to the orchard with the girls so that I can do a little bit of accounting "orchard work."  My mom watches the girls close-by while I spend some time handling the bills and payroll.  This is something that I have been doing for the last year now.  Sam really looks forward to Tuesdays (the day that I usually go) because she loves spending time there.

This week was really special because a new litter of baby pigs had been born and Sam was counting on being able to see them (and maybe hold one of them).  When we woke up to torrential rains on Tuesday morning, I feared that our plans had been foiled.

My mom and I knew that Samantha would be SO disappointed, so we made arrangements with my dad that they would go out to the barn together (in the rain) ... and bring one of the little pigs up to the store for Sophia to be able to see it also.

Sam claimed that the baby pig "was so heavy," but she was in 'hog heaven' holding it:

And Sophia even reached out to touch the little pig:

It was such a memorable experience for both of the girls ...

Samantha's First Day of Preschool

Today was Samantha's first day of preschool.  She had been counting down the days, and the excitement was definitely bubbling. 

The night before, we set out her backpack, light jacket and her shoes.

Then, we laid out her clothes so that she would be able to put them on as soon as she got up in the morning.  The morning went very smoothly -- everything went right on schedule.

Posing for the obligatory "first day of school photo:"

Taking a moment to pose with me; everyone says that she is my little "twin."

And here is Sophia, the "not-so-happy camper" because I had to wake her up a little earlier than normal this morning:

Steve went with us to take Sam to school this morning.  It worked out pretty well that he was able to do that (and I think that it started Sam's day off so nicely to have him here).  Normally, it would just be Sophia and myself taking her to school, but Steve was leaving on an afternoon flight to Mexico so he was with us in the morning.

Sam in her classroom, completely adjusted and at ease:

Having a tea party:

Three hours later, Sophia and I went to pick up our preschooler.  Samantha had the best time at school this morning, and was in such happy spirits when I picked her up.  She gave me a detailed run-down of every event, including exactly what they had for their snack (juice box and vegetables -- "Just celery and carrots for me, Mom.  I didn't care for any broccoli.")

Then, as soon as we walked in the back door, she pulled all of her papers out of her backpack to show me.  I asked her to pose for a picture ... and guess who wanted to be in there with her big sister? 

Sam said, "It's ok, Mom.  I want her to be in the picture."

Melt my heart.



She already worked on the letter "a" today -- writing it and knowing that it is a "vowel."  So exciting!

Forever Friends

When Sophia was born, my hope (like any other mother) was that the transition for Samantha would go smoothly.  We spent a lot of time preparing her for the birth of her sibling (we didn't know if the baby was a boy or girl), and I honestly expected that there would be jealousy at some point, especially because I would be nursing the baby and wouldn't be able to meet all of Samantha's needs as regularly as she was accustomed to having.

When the doctor pulled Sophia out, and Steve told me that it was a girl, I cried tears of happiness ... Samantha would have a sister. 

Any reservations that I had didn't matter.  They have loved each other from the beginning.  And watching them today, well, I just know that they will be "forever friends." 

Grandma's Birthday

Last weekend, we celebrated Steve's mom's birthday with her.  It was very exciting for Samantha because Grandma made a special request -- she asked that Samantha (and Sophia) pick out anything that they wanted to get her ... at the Dollar Store.  So I took the girls shopping and Sam did a fabulous job picking everything out.

We arrived at Steve's parents' house on Saturday and picked Grandma up to take her to dinner.  It's always questionable exactly how the girls are going to act in the restaurant; afterall, neither one likes to feel restrained or cooped up in their chair.  Luckily, there was a jute box nearby that entertained the girls for a little while.

After dinner, we headed back to Steve's parents' house for cake and ice cream ... and to open the much-anticipated gifts that Sam had chosen. 

Sam helped me make a mint-chocolate cake for Grandma, and she chose the candles while we were at the dollar store. 

Blowing out the candles:

And in true fashion, Sophia felt the need to reach for the candles.  Steve was reaching in to pull the cake away ...

Sam was SO proud of her gifts for Grandma!  She had chosen (among other things): a special "Princess" ribbon and a mirror with curlers.

And Grandma was such a good sport about it -- she even let Sam put the curlers in her hair!

Happy Birthday, Grandma!