Little Dancer

I had mentioned before how I want the girls to take ballet lessons. They have every right to say they don't like it, but at least they will have the opportunity to experience dance while they are young and flexible. I didn't take my first dance classes until I was 27, and I really wish I hadn't waited so long. Dance gives you a confidence... in what your body can do, what limits you can stretch. A movement or task that seemed so hard last month suddenly comes together after all of the practice you put into it: perseverance. I could have used those traits when I was a child.




I hesitated about enrolling Rosemary in ballet due to her hypermobility (the reason she wears orthotics on her feet). Our pediatrician thought dance was a great idea for strengthening her leg muscles and improving her condition. I still had doubts about the negative repercussions of dance, so I waited to ask the neurologist what her thoughts were, and surprise! the neurologist liked the idea, too. Rosemary loved seeing the other girls dance at an open house for the studio I had chosen, so all of the checkmarks were in place. We signed her up for the 6 week summer session.




At this age, the dance class is a half hour of tap followed by a half hour of ballet. We didn't have tap shoes for Rosemary's first class, and while the teacher didn't care (the dance studio had even recommended not jumping into buying shoes in the event that Rosemary wouldn't like it), it definitely held Rosemary back to not have her feet make the same noise as the other girls. She kept slamming her slippered foot into the ground, trying to get the same effect, and she was seriously confused as to why her footfalls were silent. I took her shoe shopping the next day.


First tap class... shoeless.


Trying out her new tap shoes in the practice space Daddy made for her.


Giving the mirror some sass.


Next tap class... rocking it!


The ballet part is taught by another teacher. She is a highly competent dancer who could use a hand wrangling five 3 and 4 year olds. I was thrilled when the tap teacher got an aide later in the season.


Ballet's half hour is mostly spent stretching.


Learning first position.


Once again, stretching.


The summer session is over now; tonight was the last class. We had some bumps along the way, but Rosemary still loves to go to dance class, and I love watching her abilities blossom. I can't wait to sign her up for the fall session.

Walking and Tying

Poppy Walks!

She started taking steps at the beginning of July. Then she interchanged walking and crawling. Now she zips everywhere on her two little legs.


Ms. Sue saw her at Storytime and said she couldn't believe her eyes. Poppy is walking!


I thought to myself that I didn't remember Rosemary looking like this when she learned how to walk. And then it occurred to me that Rosemary was a full two months older. Poppy started walking at 14 months, the age when Rosemary first got her orthotics. Poppy still has some of her babyish charm, where, at 16 months, Rosemary was starting to look more like a toddler.



Growing Up

Rosemary is intent on learning how to tie her shoes. She leans over the laces and proclaims, "I do it!" Until she has trouble, and, instead of accepting my help, says, "No, Mommy, YOU do it."

She can lace the straps on her orthotics through the buckles. Mommy still needs to tighten them down.


When I was a kid, I was given a shoebox prop that had holes poked through the top and shoestrings laced through just like a sneaker. I made one for Rosemary. She could spend a whole hour knotting this thing up.


She'll bring it to me and say, "Look, Mommy! I made a present for you!" It was cute the first couple of times. The laces will be all knotted up over and under themselves. I'm not sure how to redirect her back to trying to tie an actual bow. I'll ask where her granny knot is, where her bunny ears are, and, "will this knot help you keep your shoes on?" She just takes it away to play with it some more. I can't blame her. I spent a good deal of my childhood knotting string all across my room, until it looked like a drunk spider had tried to spin a web. I meticulously knotted it all up, and then spent equal time undoing it all.

There's no wonder where Rosemary gets her focus from.


Just look at that smile.

Play

The girls are starting to play together.







Poppy is always interested in whatever Rosemary is doing. Rosemary tries not to be annoyed about it, but you just know she so totally is.









They do well playing side by side until Poppy knocks over Rosemary's block tower.
R is all about her block towers.



They both love the swings.



And here they are providing some after-dinner entertainment. (warning: turn down your volume)

Looking forward to seeing their relationship continue to develop.

Preschool Prep.... ha.

This was the week it all fell apart.

Poppy is teething. She's had the same two bottom teeth out since February, and now her top canines are trying to join the party. I can feel the bumps protruding, but nothing has broken the surface of the gums yet. I wish they'd hurry up and come out already so we all can sleep again. She has been feverish and unhappy. She desperately needs sleep, but she does not stay down for a nap when I try to walk away. It has been very hard to do anything but pay attention to her. That being the case, Rosemary's studies have been pushed to the wayside.


Midnight munchies for a miserable, teething baby.

Senpai reminded me that we have money allocated toward daycare that needs to be used before July 1st. I scheduled Rosemary to go back to the daycare she had been at before, starting next week. It's a good daycare; the reason we took her out was because she wasn't handling the separation well. She is more sociable and outgoing now, so hopefully she will like the experience better. We told her that she will go there to play with other kids and she sounds happy about the idea. The daycare does crafts and lessons everyday. I will gladly let them teach Rosemary while Poppy's gums are under attack from sharp, pointy teeth. Once I can sleep and think again, I will check in and see where Rosemary's studies may need supplementing at home.



I'm looking forward to seeing this happy face again...


So I can enjoy more of this.

Preschool Prep, Week 3

This week, we fell away from using the envelopes. I didn't like feeling restricted by what was on them, especially if it said "Play at the park" on a rainy, miserable day. Why should Rosemary be denied a sticker for a silly reason like that? And Rosemary fought against them, too. She started off Monday by looking at the list and saying, "No." I reiterated that she wouldn't get a sticker if she didn't do everything on the list, and she was quite okay with that. So the lists are gone. I still made the clear intention to myself that we would do a worksheet and projects every day as if they had been written down on a list.

In spite of the sass against Monday's list, Rosemary was still open enough to learn our phone number! I was so proud of my teaching abilities; I felt like a rock star. There was also Storytime on Monday morning. Senpai was able to come join us. It was awesome seeing him there since we hadn't seen him much during the weekend.


I bought a Melissa and Doug bead block set at Barnes & Noble. Both Rosemary and Poppy enjoy it.



Alright, we are branching into a photo-free zone here. I had taken a few pictures but they are on my old cell phone, which is acting buggy and will no longer sync with my computer. It also refuses to charge its battery which just died, so the pictures are being held hostage. Enter new cell phone! We're still waiting for the phone number to switch over, but I am the brand new owner of an iPhone 5. It's my first ever iPhone. I'm looking forward to it not giving me the same issues my old phone did. 

Tuesday, we baked cookies. As the single-serving cookie idea was never going to work, we made a whole batch of oatmeal raisin cookies. They are dairy-free, so Poppy can enjoy them, too! Going by the Letter Roundup we had done last Friday, I wanted to reinforce the letters she wasn't sure about. I thought I'd start at the top with A. On Tuesday she traced a capital and lowercase A onto drafting paper with my help. She held the marker and I moved her hand. I'm going to keep trying to get her to do it all by herself.

We continued learning A on Wednesday by gluing pom pom balls onto a piece of paper. I drew the line with glue and Rosemary put the pom poms on. She was so excited by the pom poms that we glued them on B and C on Thursday and Friday, as well. This morning, Friday, I tested her knowledge of the alphabet with the Letter Roundup worksheet again. She got 9 more letters today for a total of 18! 8 more to go! Once all of the letters on this worksheet are highlighted, I think I'll print out a new one and start over, just to really make sure she knows her letters.

Another project we did this week was a worksheet from her Preschool book. It was a cutting and gluing project. We started on Wednesday by doing the cutting part. I helped her line the scissors up on the paper and she snipped away, cutting pictures of foods out. On Thursday, there was a paper with three different colored shopping carts, red, yellow, and green, and Rosemary was supposed to glue the foods in the appropriate basket. I helped her with the glue stick. This was a lesson to me to remember that bananas are sometimes green, apples and cherries are sometimes yellow, and corn is sometimes red. I love how kids remind adults to stretch their imaginations.

That was our week. There was some craziness thrown in with the cell phones and the Spring rains, but we survived. On to next week!

Preschool Prep, Week 2

Well, we've got another week of lists and stickers under our belt. As much as I want to just wing it as we go, I find that our days go so much more smoothly when I pre-plan the night before.

For Monday, I looked up what the Storytime book would be about and then planned our activities around that. The book was "The Red Boat" by Hannah Cumming. So when we got home I folded a red origami canoe for Rosemary and let her paint a lake for the boat to float on with some of her toys inside.



On Tuesday, we voted! I carried Poppy on my back and pushed Rosemary in the stroller to our polling place. Rosemary got a sticker, seen on her hand below. A fire truck was in the parking lot and Rosemary talked to a fireman and sat in his seat in the fire truck. She declined putting his helmet on her head. We then went home and voted on what we would eat for lunch. I voted for leftover hamburgers, but Rosemary and Poppy won the vote for PB&J sandwiches.

Decorating the voting box.

Tallying votes.


We also played Chutes & Ladders. Rosemary won!


On Wednesday we went to the craft store to pick up supplies to make a "calm down jar." I call it a Sparkle Jar. I had seen the tutorial on Pinterest and wanted to give it a go.

Making the jar.

Giving it a good shake!

This is what it looks like at rest.

Falling stars.

I won't lie; we made this jar for me. I'll often shake it up when I'm stressed and then instantly feel my blood pressure drop along with the sparkles.


Poppy wanted to get in on the tong transfer activity that day.

We also went outside. Man, Wednesday was a great day!


Thursday wasn't as productive. It was obviously a "let's not plan ahead the night before and see what happens" day. Well, nothing much happened. It was also too cold to play outside. Fail. Too be fair, we were in the basement for an hour waiting out a tornado warning on Wednesday evening, so that got in the way of planning time. That's my story.

I at least have some cute pics from Storytime.



Today, Friday, I started the morning by testing Rosemary's knowledge of the alphabet. She can recognize 9 capital letters!

I also decided to try a sensory bin. It's like an indoor sandbox! It kept Rosemary entertained for at least 20 minutes, which Mommy really needed. It was a rough day.

Sensory bin with white rice, barley, chickpeas, and measuring cups.


Poppy is enjoying her new-found mobility. Here she is exploring the toy area.


That's it for this week. Tune in next Friday to see what else we put on our lists!