Jolee's 1st Soccer Game

Today was Jolee's 1st soccer game. She played great and was sooo close to scoring her first goal! The fields were a little wet and it was funny watching her running and trying to miss the mud!...(probably because I'm always telling the girls to stay out of the mud in the backyard!). I did tell her it was OK to run through the mud when playing soccer! We could tell that she was having fun and after the game she said, "Soccer is the BEST game!". Great job, Jo!



It was pretty chilly and windy and we were all trying to stay warm. Can you spot Jolee under Daddy's sweatshirt?

April Fool's!

Macey has been talking about April Fool's Day for the past couple of days. So, last night, Grady and I came up with a plan to "fool" the girls. After their alarm clock went off this morning, Grady told them that we had just gotten emails from their teachers that said the heaters were not working in the schools, and that it was recommended that all students wear their snowsuits to school to keep warm. So, they dug out their suits and got dressed...but they were NOT happy about it. Grady and I had to go to the office and giggle before I grabbed my camera. Here they are brushing their teeth (you can't see Macey's face, but she was ticked!).And then we told them their teachers had ONE more thing to say, "APRIL FOOLS!". Here's how Jolee reacted...and Macey ran off to her closet and shut the door. Again, not the response we thought we'd get!
We FINALLY got smiles and laughs out of them!

Macey tried to play her own April Fool's trick on me after school. She told me that she had to write her name 300 times and go to the principal's office for punching someone. I asked her if she punched the student named April...last name Fools? You can't fool good ol' Mom! :)

It's a Twister!

It was WAY too windy for Emmy & Jolee to go outside and play today, so....they decided to stay inside and create a tornado of their own. Here are pictures of the aftermath (and one of the tornado-makers!).

I read a quote a while ago that said, "Cleaning your house while your kids are little is like shoveling the snow when it's still snowing!". Those are words I live by! :)

No More Training Wheels!

Here's a clip of Jolee riding her bike without training wheels. She got it on her first try!





Here she is decked out in all the "gear"! I wish we had elbow and knee pads when I was a kid!

Feelin' Good!

Last week, all of the 2nd graders at Macey's school performed in a program called, "Feelin' Good!...A Celebration of Health and Well-Being!". It was a great program with a fantastic message about being in charge of your body, making healthy food choices and exercizing. Macey signed up to have a speaking part. All of the kids who spoke had to memorize one or two lines. It was really cute watching them sing and dance...most of the kids, anyway. Macey was so nervous that it looked like her arms were glued to her sides! When it was over Grady said, "Macey, I thought you LIKED to dance" and she said, "Well, not in front of EVERYONE!". She did a great job!

A video clip of Macey saying her line..."And putting forth our best efforts!".

A video of one of Macey's best friends, Evan, and his cool dance moves. He is in the middle right behind the mic stand. Hmmm...where did he get his good dance moves? :)

Mommy is Smart!

This was the dialogue between Jolee and I when I picked her up from school this morning:

Me: "What did you do in school today?"
Jolee: "We did math. My teacher folded a piece of paper in half and on one side was subtraction and on the other side was....ummm..."
Me: "addition?"
Jolee: "ADDITION, YES!! Mommy, how'd you get so smart?!"

Jolee Loves Her Kitty

Jolee loves Max to pieces. She likes to carry him around (even though he weighs almost 1/2 of what she does!). You'd think that Max would become annoyed and want to avoid her, but they truly are buddies. At night, if Max isn't downstairs sleeping, he chooses to jump in bed with Jolee and snuggle with her. They are two peas in a pod... Poor Maxwell! Looking at a bird outside.

Gaschler Scores TWO!!!

Tonight was the last basketball game of the season. Macey learned a lot this season but seemed to struggle a bit at first. She hadn't gotten any fouls or scored any points. But tonight, EVERYTHING came together! Not only did she play aggressive defense (4 fouls...that's my girl!), but she snagged an offensive rebound and put it up for two! It bounced on the rim and went in!! I flew out of the bleachers and everything on my lap (jackets, purse) fell to the floor....Grady volunteered to keep score and he flew out of his chair, too! In fact, he was so excited that he wasn't paying attention to the clock and the girls played at least 2 minutes without the clock running! What a great way to end the season! Great job, Macey!! We are so proud of you for playing so hard! And yes, we WON the game!

Bunny Ears!

The original purpose for this posting was to show Emmy on her bed with the rails taken down. We removed them a couple of weeks ago and so far she hasn't fallen out (knock on wood)! While I was taking her picture, she was pulling on her piggy tails and calling them her "bunny ears". I think she looks like a "mini teenager" in the first picture.

My little Snuggle Bug

Typing? Already?

I'm continuously amazed at how much different elementary school is now compared to when I went to school. Today, Macey brought home a typing certificate! I didn't learn how to type until 6th grade and Grady didn't learn until he was a freshman! In Macey's computer class (nope, I didn't have computer class until high school), they go to a website in which they take typing "tests". Today, Macey completed level 1 which included the letters, a, s, d, f, g, h, j, k, l, ;, e, i, r and u. She was 1 of only 2 kids in her class that completed this level. Pretty soon she is going to be typing as fast as her Grandpa Rich!

Best Buds

Macey and Jolee coordinated their outfits today. They came downstairs decked out in Chief's jerseys. I'm sure it was Macey's idea since she is my little "tomboy". I can't figure out how she talked Jolee out of wearing a dress!

Up, Up She Goes!

It seems like Jolee grew several inches over the weekend! All of the sudden she looks taller to me and I even think her face is changing. I had her stand next to our growth chart, and she has grown 2 1/2 inches in the last 9 months. Jolee is already 1 1/2 inches taller than Macey was when she turned 5! Also, she no longer says she's "4 1/2 years old", she says she is "4 3/4"! I can't believe she will be 5 in 3 short months!

Parent/Teacher/Student Conference

Wow! Parent/Teacher conferences are so different now! Yesterday, Grady and I attended Macey's conference, which was led by her. The conference started with a Power Point presentation, which Macey prepared (she did all of the typing and chose all of the transitions). She pointed out her strengths as well as the things she wants to improve. Then, we moved to another station where she showed us the difference between narrative, technical, and expository writing. Finally, she showed us how fast she could complete math facts. She challenged Grady to a contest and although Daddy won, she did a great job. We are so proud of her!

What a Beautiful Day!

Last Saturday was such a beautiful day...70 degree weather, sunshine, the park, and Grandma! Tom & Judy came to visit this past weekend to watch Macey play basketball and to spend some time with us. On Saturday, Tom & Grady enjoyed the beautiful day relaxing at the golf course and Judy and I enjoyed the day at the park with the girls.

Oh, the Things Kids Say!

Emmy was wearing a pair of Kitty Cat ears around the house the other night. She would put them on, take them off, then put them back on again. Tom and Judy were here that night and the adults were having a conversation when all of the sudden we heard Emmy say, "I've got my boobies on", so we looked at her and this is what we saw:

A Masterpiece!

Macey's art teacher selected one of Macey's artworks to be shown at the Art Exhibit in our school district's District Office. The exhibit featured about 30-40 artworks by students in Macey's elementary school as well as neighboring schools in the district. We were so proud when we heard this news and couldn't wait to go see her art. Here is Macey's "Expressionist Animal" chalk portrait of a dog.

Emmy from the Block!

The other day Emmy wore this pink cap all day long. She wore it the right way most of the day, but that night she turned it around and put on her dress-up high heels (on the wrong feet, by the way). She reminded us of a mini hip-hop star! Yo, you gotta give props to my girl! Peace out homies.