Five Days of Preschool.....Five Dresses

As most of you know, prior to September 7th Miss Frances had a long standing boycott on wearing dresses unless forced to wear them for a special holiday.

That said, when we went preschool shopping, she choose a dress to wear the 1st day. I thought it was fluke. Five days later, she has worn a dress everyday to school.

My friend Brooke said it best -- it is like we have a WHOLE new wardrobe of clothes in the closet and we didn't have to go shopping.

Bowling to Escape the Heat

After a packed day of the festival, the Chinese Garden and Henry's soccer game, we dashed over to Grand Central bowl to escape the heat and get our "bowl" on with friends Anna and Brian and their three kids. In a nod to how old I am getting, Henry scored more points than I in both rounds of bowling. The decline has started...

Under the Harvest Moon

Chinatown had an "Under the Harvest Moon" celebration. The celebration itself was a bit on the cheeseball side...but if you went, the kids got a stamp to get into the Chinese Garden for free...which was MAGICAL. I don't think we brought much "zen" to the garden or to the people that had probably visited it for that reason, but we enjoyed every moment. They had a great guide that walked the kids through the experience and kept them focused on looking out for new things. Wish I could bring a piece of that tranquility home...

Pool Party

We went to our friends Dan and Emily's house for dinner. They had received a blow up pool from a neighbor that the packaging showed it to be huge and spacious. After filling it with with her own breath....it was discovered to be a bit smaller...but just as awesome for the kids. It had a basketball hoop...so it was pretty much Henry's (and therefore Frances's) dream. I couldn't get a good picture of my kids because they were running and dunking, but was able to get a great picture of Ellie squealing with joy. It was a lovely summer night.

Frances Goes to Preschool!!

Today was a very big day in our household. Frances had her first day of preschool. I knew it was going to be a phenomenal day of firsts when she actually wore the dress that SHE had picked out. Yes, a dress. She also wore the sweet jean jacket she picked out...even though it is in the mid 90s here. Joan Jett - eat your heart out. She also insisted on wearing a flower hair clip...and that I wear one too so that we were twins.

When we got to preschool she was a bit nervous and clingy. BUT...then she found the area with the babies in it and the play began. She also felt very comforted because a tree that Henry had made when he was a preschooler is in the classroom and she remembers it fondly and I think it makes her feel like a piece of him is in the room. Finally, I told her that in five minutes I would need to leave. Three minutes later she told me "Mom, it is time for you to go now". Seriously. I swallowed the lump in my throat and walked out with a equal dose of pride at her independence and sadness that my little girl is now more independent and won't be home with me all day.

When I picked her up,she so proud of herself...and EXHAUSTED. Her teachers said she was very talkative (wonder who she takes after?) and told MANY stories. One teacher said that during recess, she took a break and sat down next to her. After a moment or so Frances turned to her and said "I just LOVE everyone". Classic Frances.

Tonight when putting her to bed I hugged and kissed her and told her that I was so proud of her and how brave she was and that I knew she would be so happy in preschool.

As I reached her door she said "Thank you!". I asked her why she was saying Thank You and she said "For getting me preschool".

A top ten day as a parent.

First Day of First Grade

We officially have a child in grade school -- hello 1st grade! Henry is really excited about the new year and we are excited to see how much more he will grow and all that he will learn. In typical Colleen-fashion, we were running a bit behind, so we had to run up the hill to school -- me pushing the stroller - and so by the time we got to the classroom I, Henry and Frances were all sweating. Lovely first impression.

Labor Day in Manzanita

We went to Manzanita for Labor Day. On Saturday it was HOT....like a wear a bathing suit in the ocean hot.....which is pretty much unheard of in Oregon. As we were sitting on the beach, while our kids played in the water, Mark looked at me as said "By the way, we have been transported to the Jersey Shore". Brookie and Josh came down, which made it even more fun. We had our friends over on Saturday night that have a son that is going to preschool with Frances. After a bit of warm up time, Frances walked over to him and put her hands on his shoulders....and then his chest....and then she asked him to play upstairs. Oh boy.

Classic Frances

At the end of summer the Portland Symphony always hosts a free concert on the waterfront. It is a lovely way to close out summer....even if one is sad to see summer go. Frances, Maggie and I went with Brookie (Henry had soccer) and Frances entertained everyone (check out the guy smiling behind us). From chocolate on her face to sweet dancing moves, the girl cracks me up. On the walk down there, she told me that she has decided when she grows up she will be a teacher in the day, dentist at night, and a police officer on the weekend. Shoot high Frances.

Krugers Farm with Brookie & Josh

The Thursday night concerts at Krugers Farm on Sauvie's Island is another touchstone of summer for our family. This week we got to go with Brookie and Josh, who is visiting from NYC. Josh went to college with me and Mark. He moved to Portland with us after college and then moved to NYC the day after our wedding.I miss him terribly. It is interesting how we were nearly inseparable in college...and now we live very different lives. (Josh co-owns Russ and Daughters in NYC...if you go - it is a MUST visit). It was so fun to have a night out together. The pictures are a little blurry as we tried to not use the flash...but the happiness of the night comes out.

2 Months for Miss Maggie

Maggie turned two months. She is 45th percentile for weight and 85th for height...some would say perfect model materials.....my dad and I say that she is perfect basketball player material. She is really a wonderful baby who makes a wonderful addition to our family. Her smile is the best -- it is crooked and always starts with a big open mouth as if she is saying "Yahoo!". She is really talkative and seems to be most verbal at night with her daddy. Henry and Frances are still her favorite "toys" to look at and listen to. If you are wondering about the ADORABLE dress....present from Grandpa Gordon to Frances when she was little. Again...getting as much dress wearing in as possible before Miss Maggie has an opinion.

Above are pictures of Henry and Frances at 2 months (I wish I could figure out how to have the Maggie pictures at the top...any bloggers with tips?). Henry is with the green 2 and Frances with the blue shirt. It is interesting to see the similarities....and differences.