A New Pre-school for Amelia

On September 5th, Amelia started a new pre-school.  She is now in the 4 year old pre-school, one of the older children, since she turned five in October. I am amazed at how grown up she is looking these days.  I have to admit, I miss that she doesn't wear a uniform at this school because it was so easy not having to think about what she should wear, but we found this cute outfit and it was perfect for her first day.

It was a pretty morning, so she posed for a few pictures out in the front garden.

When we got to school, Amelia was excited to find that she and Abby shared a cubby in which to put her coat and bag,  her name was on a green crayon label (she was excited that the label was green just like the color of daddy's Boston Celtics).  Amelia's backpack is the pink, purple and turquoise one, second from the left.

Whilst the parents attended a quick orientation, the children went into the indoor gym just across from her classroom.

She loved the "hop ball", it brought back fond memories of the one I had a kid, which was also orange.

Here's the sign outside Mrs. Brown's classroom showing all of Amelia's classmates.

I picked up Amelia and Abby after school (I am lucky to be able to be able to share car-pooling with Abby's parents/grandparents and Kelly, her daycare provider).  Both of these cuties were very excited about the fun they had on their first day!

A couple of months have past since this first day of school, and Matthew and I recently attended a parent/teacher conference with Mrs. Brown and I'm happy to report that our little girl is doing great, I'm such a proud momma!

Keep up the good work sweet girl.

A Girl and Her Bear

Although Amelia has never had just one teddy bear that she couldn't live without, there are definitely several very special soft toys that she adores, such as Scamp her dog that Nana gave to her.  Today, I want to introduce you to one of her favorite bears, Sweetie-Heart (although please note, this name may change tomorrow).  He recently had to undergo surgery to fix an open seam on his back. It made me so happy to see my girl's excitement as I carefully stitched him back together.

On this particular afternoon, a couple of weeks ago, I was quietly watching Amelia as she snuggled up with Sweetie-Heart whilst watching a movie (a rare quiet moment in our household).  My heart melted as I watched her hold her furry friend, even by the way she used him as a pillow.  Of course it was a memory I wanted to capture in pictures.

 

 

What a cute pair!

Pizza Night Fun!

Our pizza place just came up with a fantastic idea, a pizza kit you can buy for kids to build themselves.  Amelia was very excited to get one.  Everything you need comes inside the box, Amelia chose ham and cheese for her topping.  Here's what you do:

First spread the tomato sauce on the pizza base, being careful not to go to the very outside of the pizza.

Next sprinkle generous amounts of cheese over the sauce, using your fingers of course.

Don't leave any cheese in the container, we don't want to waste it now... 

Oh forgot one step, make sure your hands are clean before you start...

Use your ham to make a pretty design on top of the cheese, this is our attempt at a flower.

Once it's all done, place pizza back into the box so that your mum can take a photo of the uncooked masterpiece.

Place in a preheated oven at 425 degrees and watch it like a hawk as it turns golden brown and the cheese begins to bubble.

Pull out of the oven after about 10 - 12 minutes and let it cool for a couple of minutes.

Get special permission to eat it in front of the TV, just like dad does.

Give a thumbs up if it's a tasty pizza.

Clean up any crumbs from your mouth. 

That's all there is too it, pretty easy don't you think and so much fun!
Who knows, maybe Amelia will be a chef when she grows up.

Getting Hosed at Summerfest 2012

With the arrival of Summer, it was time for our town to celebrate with Summerfest 2012.  Although there are lots of things to do including a small parade, vendors, and a few carnival rides and such, our family's favourite event takes place on Friday night outside the fire station.  In the past, they have had cart races where the carts were propelled by the water shooting out of the hoses, this year however, was different and perhaps even more fun.  The aim of the game was to blast a yellow ball that hung in the middle of a wire, from two sides.  Two teams of fire fighters competed to propel the ball to the opposite side of the wire and whoever moved the ball to the opposite end of the wire from where they were standing was the winner.

Amelia was a little shy at first and hid behind her pet pig, a gift that her English cousin Hannah gave to her a couple of years ago.

The firefighters huddled together before taking their places on opposite sides...

and then...blast off, each team fired water at the yellow ball, it really is amazing to see the power of those hoses, and it was so interesting to watch the fire brigade supporting each other and working together.

 

 

 

 

Amelia soon warmed up and enjoyed watching the competition.

 

 

Now look at the photo below, is it cheating for one team to distract the other by blasting the leading firefighter instead of the ball?  Nah, it just added more excitement and giggles from the crowd.

After a while our girl got down from the wall and decided to get a front row seat on the curb.

We got quite wet, she loved it!

Before long she was cheering and asking the firefighters to blast the water in our direction.

 

We had a wonderful evening, the weather was perfect and we even enjoyed a hot dog and can of pop from the fire station.  It's times like these that I really enjoy living in a small town.  It was nice to be out in the sun, laughing together and seeing many of our friends out doing the same thing too, we really do have a great community!

Summer Picnic 2012

With the beginning of Summer, it was time for my work's second annual family picnic.  We just happened to pick one of the most glorious days for this fun event.  

Each year, Wendy-Lou (below) and I do all of the planning, shopping and collecting of funds (from our wonderful and generous managers) for this great few hours of fun and socializing.  It's nice to meet all of the family members of those who I work with.

My boss, Darren, was happy to help with the grilling again this year, he was particularly excited to use his new Oregon Ducks barbecue tools. 

I love watching the bugs on the flowers.

Just a few steps away from our covered picnic area, is the river, it was the perfect day for a paddle.  Here's Tom and his two adorable boys, watching some of the other children swim.

Amelia of course was excited to "skip" rocks...

...and when I say rocks, I mean the biggest she could find!

 

Now isn't that a beautiful sight?  Ah Oregon!

 

 

 

Eventually the leggings came off so that Amelia could really enjoy a good paddle by the water's edge. 

 

 

After the rocks, she got a  hold of this huge stick.

 

It truly was four hours of pure family fun and relaxation, we had a good turn out and I think all that attended had a great time.  I can't wait to plan next years picnic.

What are you doing this summertime?