Saturday, May 28, 2011

Butterflies




The last day of school at Maya's preschool is always "Splash Day!" I was so grateful this year. The day is so fun for the kids. They run around in sprinklers and play in wading pools. This year, one sprinkler was aimed at the slide on the playground and the kids had a great time sliding really fast down the wet slide. The teacher set up tubs with babies for kids to wash them, had shaving cream so the students could paint the windows and set up a car wash near a line of three Little Tyke cars. Maya and her friends dug up the mulch and built a river. Then, they chased Tommy Cat, a boy in her class who likes to pretend he is a kitty, just like most of the class.

The school had an end-of-the-year celebration for the whole school and parents last week. The teachers said goodbye and handed out books they made for each student. The books had a page for every month the kids had been in school, along with a photo and an example of their artwork. These books are treasures.

The night before Maya's last day, a friend's facebook status said this: "If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies." I decided that would have to be my motto for the day, if I was going to get by with no tears. I dropped Maya off at school, watched her play for a bit in the water, and then headed to work. That was as far as I got without tears, but at least I didn't let Maya see me cry.

After school, I waited eagerly for Maya and her classmates to step off the elevator. I told myself to be strong, and I was. I expected to see a big smile on Maya's face, but instead, she bit her lip, walked over to me pretty slowly and then started crying. I just hugged her. After a bit, she said "I just don't want to leave this school." I took several deep breaths, tried to keep my composure and helped dry her tears. When we walked out of the school, she was beaming, excited about a giant playdate we had planned. My eyes were red with tears. Oh, I'm going to miss that place!

Magical Night


Guillermo picked up his medal for completing the Principal's Challenge the other night, and was as proud as he could be. He completed 25 projects about magic and wizardry, a topic he choose, since the start of school. One of the projects: Sewing a wizard's cloak. He helped sew a lot of it, and despite the uneven hem and a few other problems, we are quite proud of the finished result since neither of us know how to sew.

He also made the hat and the wand. And, at the Challenge event, he performed a magic trick that widened the eyes of his peers and his principal! In the trick, he asks someone to pick any color crayon from a box and place it in his hands behind his back. Without looking at the crayon or the crayon box, he is able to guess what color he was holding. It is pretty amazing ;)

On the night of the challenge event, we set up a table to show off some of the things Guillermo made for the challenge. And, we handed out exploding chocolate frogs and stars. I mistakenly thought that Harry Potter ate exploding chocolate frogs in one of the books. It turns out, Harry does eat chocolate frogs, but they don't explode. I thought adding the exploding part was a nice touch and the kids loved them. Recipe: melt chocolate, add pop rocks and then set in a frog-shaped molds, or whatever kind of molds you like. Eat after the chocolate has set.

Fast Cars





Will took Guillermo to a race track in Virginia. I wish I could give you some details, but I can't even tell you what track they are at. Look for an update here when Will has a chance to post.

Zany Day




Her class made it all the way to the letter Z, and celebrated with "Zany Week." Maya's outfit was for "Zany Day." She wants you to know that her shirt is on inside out.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Maya Graduates!



Maya has one more week of preschool! Tonight, her school hosted its end-of-the-school-year celebration. She was so proud!

Bugs


A typical question from Guillermo:

"Mom, do you know any bugs with transporting power?"

Friday, May 13, 2011

Mother's Day

Cutest Mother's Day Notes:




I had a wonderful day that included sleeping in, baking with Maya, reading with Guillermo, reading all by myself and ice cream with the whole family! Guillermo made me a Lego universe and Maya made a special card for me. Plus, they gave me these cute notes. So happy to be their mom!

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Brotherly Concern


"Mom, I'm a littlenervous about kindergarten," Maya said from the backseat yesterday.

"What makes you nervous? I asked.

"Maya," Guillermo politely interrupted. "Most kids in kindergarten aren't nervous by the time they are in second grade."

I choked back a laugh. In second grade, two whole years away. As kind as he was being, that's a long time to go, especially for that a 4 1/2 year old.

"Do you still get nervous at school," I asked Guillermo.

"No," he said. "The only time I was nervous was during the fire drills."

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Brotherly Love


Maya was getting ready for bed, snuggling with beary, one of her stuffed animals.

"I love this bear so much!" she said. "Guillermo gave it to me, on Valentine's Day."

"He did?" I asked.

"Yes, he said if I went in the house, he would give it to me," she answered.

"Oh, I don't remember that."

"You and Guillermo wanted to come inside and I didn't want to so he gave me the bear to come inside," she said.

"Oh," I answered and started to read her book.

"Mom," she interrupted. "I know I can't marry Guillermo, but I really really want to."

"You love your brother, don't you," I said to her.

"Yes," she answered and snuggled her bear some more.

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Soccer Saturday

Maya shoots, scores and
celebrates!

Pirate Day



Ahoy there matey! This is from "Dress Like a Pirate Day" at Maya's school. She was so excited about the costume, not even the Royal wedding could distract her. Well, maybe it did just a little, but mostly she was just glad to be a pirate for the day because it involved finding the treasure chest at her school.

Friday, May 6, 2011

"I can read your mind"


Maya is starting to catch on to her brother's trickery.

Most nights at dinner start with this:

"Guillermo, is it 'first the worst' or 'zero the hero?'" Maya asks.

She is referring to a game Guillermo learned at school or made up. In the case of dinner, it goes like this:

The first person to sit down at the table is "First the Worst."
Second is "Second the Best"
Third is "Third is the one with the treasure chest" or "Third is the one with the polka dot dress" or "Third is the one with the hairy chest," depending on who sits down and who is making the rules and their mood.

However, sometimes, the first person to sit down is "zero the hero" and the second person is "first the worst," and so on. It all depends on Guillermo, who makes the rules because Maya lets him and Will and I don't really participate.

After she washed her hands one night last week, Maya asked him before she sat down: "Is it "first the worst?" or "zero the hero?"
"I'm not going to tell you until you sit down," he taunted.

She sat.
"First the worst!" he yelled.

"Guillermo!" she shouted at him. "I don't like this game. I can read your mind now. Every time I sit down first, it's 'first the worst.' When you sit down first, it's 'zero the hero.' I'm not playing anymore!"

And that's the last we've played of that game, for now.

Star Wars Soccer


I love taking Guillermo to soccer, not just because I love watching him play. I love hearing the conversations on the field because they remind me of my own 7-year-old son.

After a recent Saturday afternoon game, one family handed out popsicles. 'The red popsicles are Darth Vader's light saber," I heard one kid say as he and another boy engaged in a quick light saber duel.

Yesterday at practice, one kid referred to the goal as the Millennium Falcon. "Kick the ball to blow up the Millennium Falcon," one killed yelled. In this case, I hoped the Imperial Forces won because Guillermo was goalie. He didn't mind. He likes to be the bad guy, sometimes.