tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65270815686527259972024-03-13T06:04:29.473-04:00Life with LeahAmandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.comBlogger120125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-56163334974908521582013-07-23T15:08:00.002-04:002013-07-23T15:09:28.843-04:00Our Little Artist<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah's favorites: Paul, Cindy, Tiffany, & Benji</td></tr>
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Leah has always enjoyed coloring, drawing, painting, and nearly anything crafty. It's recently become clear that not only does she have a passionate interest in drawing, but she's <i>really</i> good at it. Her attention to detail astounds me. She will sit and draw movie, TV, or book characters completely from memory. She rarely ever refers to another picture or DVD cover; she knows the color of everyone's clothing or some random little detail that I never would've remembered had I tried to describe or draw the same characters. It's awesome to watch her create.<br />
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Our refrigerator has become a revolving door of Leah's artwork. Every so often, she changes out the pictures, putting up new ones that she especially likes or maybe ones that Dan or I have highly praised. Our dining room table has been covered in drawing paper and crayons. She's gone through most of the drawing paper that our homeschool curriculum sends us for the entire <i>year! </i><br />
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Last week, in an effort to uncover our table again, Leah & I made books of her pictures. Since there were so many, I ended up sorting them into categories: Benji (her current favorite movie/obsession), Clifford, Olivia, pictures she'd drawn specifically for Dan or myself, and pictures that I thought were her best work. There were still a ton left, so I placed the remaining drawings in an extra binder along with her homemade books. It's amazing how many she has amassed in just a couple months.<br />
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Another aspect that fascinates me is the fact that I engaged in the same behavior at her age. I would draw and draw and draw all of my favorite characters too: Annie, The Wizard of Oz, Mary Poppins. I drew specific scenes from those movies and when I saw Leah drawing scenes right out of "Benji", I nearly fell over. The similarity is mind-blowing. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">End scene of "Benji"</td></tr>
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I never told her I did that. It amazes me what is built into her genes, to see pieces of myself in her budding personality. For years, everyone in my family joked about how I would write, "Amanda, I am 5" on all my pictures. Leah hasn't done exactly that, though she does write her name and/or the name of whomever she intends to give the picture. If she starts writing "I am 5" or some variation, I don't think you'll be able to wipe my jaw off the floor! ;)<br />
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Some more examples of Leah's recent work:</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Wizard of Oz</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rapunzel, Flynn Ryder, & Pascal</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Minnie Mouse and her kitty Figaro</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Tinkerbell fairies</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peter Pan, Tink, the kids, & the dog Nana</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Superman & Supergirl</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah laying with Hud & Dodge :)</td></tr>
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Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-11978835767965661202013-06-02T19:25:00.001-04:002013-06-02T19:26:17.897-04:00OverheardFrom earlier in May:<div>Leah: What's that?</div><div>Me: Sauerkraut. It tastes really good on hot dogs.</div><div>Leah: Ooh, I want some.</div><div>Me: Really?</div><div>Leah: Yeah. I'm 5 years old now, I have to try a lot of things.</div><div><br></div><div>(Yup, she did like it!)</div><div><br></div><div>Upon seeing a dead, headless lizard by the car:</div><div>Me: Maybe an animal ate his head?</div><div>Leah: I'm going to find that animal and eat HIS head!</div><div><br></div><div>And excuse this one but Dan & I found it hilarious:</div><div>Leah: My belly hurts.</div><div>Me: Maybe you need to poop.</div><div>Leah: I don't poop in the morning! I poop at dinner time.</div><div><br></div><div>Haha! So matter of fact... and she is correct!</div>Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-53589059718283791052013-04-30T11:19:00.000-04:002013-04-30T11:22:25.747-04:00SnippetsKids say funny things. And sweet things. I might remember something that Leah has said long enough to tell Dan over dinner, or to post it on Facebook if I'm near the computer... but often, I forget. I'll <i>remember</i> that there was something notable I wanted to share, but then my mind draws a complete blank later. Darn.<br />
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However, a friend of mine has inspired me. She created a blog simply to document the funny things her kids say. They're one or two line posts and they're hilarious. On top of that, she gave me a great tip: many blog programs have iPhone apps to make it quick & easy to post. I did a quick search and sure enough, Blogger has one! (By the way, I have a new iPhone, thanks to a free upgrade and my mom's family plan - it is <i>awesome</i>.) So, while I'll still compose longer posts on various happenings here, you may also see more quick, short posts with just a silly quote from Leah or maybe a photo of something she's drawn, etc. The goal is get more of the everyday moments documented, as those will be invaluable to look back on in the future. :)</div>
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Two of those items before I forget:</div>
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<li>Earlier this month, when we had Leah's birthday party, we explained that she could put her blankie or any toys she did not want to share with friends in our bedroom. During the party, some of the kids were continually squeezing Dodge's favorite squeak toy (which of course got him all excited!). I noticed at some point that Leah picked up that squeak toy and put it in our bedroom, so Dodge didn't have to share his favorite thing either. ;)</li>
<li>Today is Leah's first dentist visit. When I reminded her last night, she complained that she didn't want to go. She's been with me before to observe and to see my teeth cleaned, and I explained that she'll get to watch me again before it's her turn. She said, "When it's my turn, I'm going to walk away!" Haha!</li>
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Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-22509470132354819902013-04-10T07:21:00.000-04:002013-04-10T08:12:16.813-04:00Five<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Leah is 5 years old! A whole hand. Like I<a href="http://lifewithleahblog.blogspot.com/2013/04/big-girl-bedroom-makeover.html" target="_blank"> mentioned last week</a>, this age feels like a big milestone. She's officially leaving the baby/toddler years behind and becoming a big kid. In just a few months, she'll begin her Kindergarten curriculum. She'll start her first full year of dance, culminating in a recital next May. She just had her <a href="http://lifewithleahblog.blogspot.com/2013/04/5th-birthday-party.html" target="_blank">first birthday party</a> with friends. This is such an exciting time in her life, one that fills us with pride and anticipation.<br />
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I read <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-tate/this-is-childhood-five_b_2695340.html?utm_hp_ref=fb&ir=Parents&ncid=edlinkusaolp00000009&src=sp&comm_ref=false" target="_blank">an article</a> a couple months ago, which was part of a series entitled, "<i>This is Childhood</i>". In the five-year-old piece, the author writes, "<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 20px;">After the slow, rickety, listen-to-every-click-of-the-wheels climb to the top of the rollercoaster that is the first four years of parenting, five lets you pause for just a moment at the apex. In the brief stillness, you suck your breath in as you look back on the journey that brought you there, anticipating the free fall and the loop-de-loops beneath you that will carry you toward adolescence and teenagerland and the great beyond. Five is both an end and a beginning." This perfectly captures how I feel about 5. There were times, especially during the first year or two, where time seemed to crawl, where we eagerly waited for Leah to learn to talk, to walk, to sleep through the night, and so on and so on. </span><br />
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With each milestone, with each month and year in her development, we found something to love, to appreciate, to hold onto. Now, we look back and we look at the little girl she's become and it's pretty awesome. There were challenges, struggles, and tantrums to overcome. There are different challenges and struggles (and maybe tantrums?) that await us in the future. Still, this feels like a sweet spot of childhood. I don't feel sadness that we've closed the chapter on the first five years, that Leah is growing and changing. I am thrilled for her, for the experiences that await her, for the skills she'll soon learn, and to be able to observe it all.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 20px;">At 5 years old, Leah is smart, curious, and creative. She loves to draw, to color, to paint, to use scissors and glue and puffballs and any type of craft supply you put in front of her. Leah adores animals. She seeks out every dog and cat she comes across, wanting to befriend them all. She enjoys watching the birds that come to our feeder and wants to learn and talk about wild animals. Leah appreciates nature and being outdoors. She plays on swings and slides, likes taking walks, collects varieties of flowers and leaves, and practices archery with her dad.</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><br />
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Leah is a dancer. She looks forward to her ballet classes and loves choosing a different tutu each week. She comes home and demonstrates the positions she's learned. She is attentive in class, looks up to older dancers and is a role model for younger ones. Leah is finishing up Pre-Kindergarten. She knows her letters and numbers 1-10, she is learning letter sounds, and she is aware and curious about what things say: street signs, word bubbles, posters. She enjoys matching, figuring out which item doesn't belong to a group, and navigating mazes. She appears to be a visual, tactile learner.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 20px;">Leah is silly, thoughtful, and energetic. Leah knows what she likes and what she wants. Leah can be shy and cautious at times, or independent and friendly at others. Leah has an active imagination, which she exercises daily. Leah is the best little girl I know. Certainly, I am biased, yes. Still, I look at her, 5 years old, and I cannot help but beam with pride. She impresses me and teaches me regularly. Her future is bright. To the moon and back, my lovebug. xoxo</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span>Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-32259479216737807312013-04-08T09:22:00.000-04:002013-04-08T09:22:54.844-04:005th Birthday Party<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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On Saturday, Leah had her very first birthday party with friends. She was soooo excited all week long; on Saturday morning, she kept asking, "Are my friends driving yet? What time is it?"<br />
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Months ago, she chose a Mickey & Minnie Mouse party theme for her 5th birthday. I found and ordered the custom-made dress Leah is wearing in the photo, which we gave her on Saturday morning. Last summer, Leah had a red and white polka-dotted dress that she referred to as her "Minnie dress". Suspecting that it probably wouldn't fit this year, and knowing how much she loved it, I couldn't resist ordering a new Minnie-inspired dress not only for the party, but for the rest of the season. A friend of mine makes hair bows, so I also ordered some Minnie sequin clips to match!<br />
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Leah & I had a lot of fun with the Mickey & Minnie theme. We were thrilled to find red & white polka-dotted streamers at Hobby Lobby and we spent probably a good hour or more in Party City gathering items for goody bags, a pinata, Mickey Mouse party hats, and other coordinating party supplies. We also displayed her plush Mickey & Minnie as well as a matching cookie jar I've had for years.<br />
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A total of 10 children, including Leah, attended the party. We invited a couple homeschooling families that we've become friends with over the past year as well as a couple girls she met through dance class. Everyone seemed to play really well together and enjoyed a good time! Even Dodge made us proud and behaved very well around all the kids. He especially loved the one-year-old brother of one of Leah's friends, whom he "kissed" many times. ;)<br />
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During the party, each child colored a bow for Minnie, which we later used in a blindfolded "Stick the Bow on Minnie" game. Shortly thereafter, we handed out cupcakes - Minnie was the hands-down favorite among the mostly female crowd! <br />
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Then, we rounded up the kids to take a whack at the unicorn pinata. Yes, despite the Micky & Minnie theme, Leah was adamant about a unicorn pinata. Haha. We lined the kids up by height, allowing the youngest to go first, figuring the older ones would be able to take down the pinata. The unicorn was successfully beheaded by Averlin, age 6! The unicorn itself didn't break open so I ripped it and showered the candy on the ground for the kids to collect. Great fun!<br />
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All in all, the party was a success! We are grateful that we've met some awesome families with such sweet kids over the past year. Leah truly loved that everyone came to celebrate with her.Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-90275440027932729142013-04-04T09:43:00.000-04:002013-04-04T09:48:38.583-04:00Big Girl Bedroom Makeover<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Finally managed to take some photos of Leah's updated bedroom yesterday! When it was initially complete last month, I held off on taking pictures figuring I would take some once we hung things on the walls. Haha. Though we have ideas of what we'd like to put on the walls, our room budget has been spent... so, we'll get around to it eventually! For now, we still have the letters to her name (that Dan repainted to match and will probably re-hang this weekend) and the bow holder I made. Leah adores her new room, whether it has wall decor or not, so there is no rush.<br />
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Truly, Dan deserves all the credit for this room. Not only did he complete all the painting as well as install the chair rail & crown molding, he came up with the inspiration for the color scheme: Sleeping Beauty's dress. <br />
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Leah told us she wanted pink, so Dan suggested the two tones separated by a chair rail, which is painted silver (with added silver paint crystals that sparkle!). We gathered a TON of pink paint samples from Home Depot and the three of us sat in Leah's bedroom to narrow down which ones looked best. The darker tone is called "Ballerina Pink", which seems so appropriate for our little dancer! Dan also suggested bamboo flooring, which we all ended up loving (so smooth!), and he found the furniture on Raymour & Flanigan's website. I found the bedding from Macy's and the curtains (which have white polka dots) & hardware from Pottery Barn Kids. Leah is completely in love with her room and her new full-size bed. She plays or lounges in there far more often than before.<br />
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I think one of the things Leah enjoys the most is having the larger bed to share with her favorite stuffed dogs and cats. There is a certain group of them that are almost always there. Even if she plays with them elsewhere during the day, she always returns them to the bed at night. I love how much she loves and feels comforted by her animals. :)<br />
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Another nice feature is the addition of the nightstand. It's a great spot to place her cup of water that she likes to have at night, as well as the remote control to her new ceiling fan/light. The bottom shelf fits a ton of her favorite books, more than I thought it would, which is great for bedtime too. Leah says she'd like a clock, which we hope to eventually add along with a bedside lamp. She also claims to want her own telephone so she can call her grandparents whenever she wants. HA!<br />
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Next week, Leah turns 5 and she's finally got her big girl room to match what feels like an important milestone. No longer a baby or toddler by any means, but truly in the midst of childhood and blossoming into an awesome little girl. </div>
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<br />Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-34889673708167860902013-03-06T14:44:00.000-05:002013-03-06T14:44:26.531-05:00Homeschool Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We're roughly 75% through our Pre-K lessons, so I thought I'd update a little about our first school year. Leah often grumbles when I say it's time to do school, yet once we're in the middle of things she seems to really enjoy herself. When I tell her we're done for the day, she then grumbles that we're finished and asks for more. I'll take that as a good sign!<br />
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I've learned that she's very much a visual and hands-on type of learner. Auditory, not so much. She has to be able to see a picture of whatever we're talking about, or do a crafty project, or manipulate an object in some way. This is especially noticeable when I read a story or poem aloud. If there aren't any illustrations to go along, she zones out and can rarely tell me what the story was about. When there are pictures to match, she comprehends much better. Or, sometimes I wonder if she simply needs a few days to let something sink in. Awhile back, we talked about rhyming words. At the time, I thought she wasn't paying attention but a few days later, something triggered in her mind and she said, "Dog and frog, they rhyme! And cat and fat, they rhyme!" Just the other night, we were reading "Green Eggs and Ham" and she was pointing out the rhyming words without any prompting. Amazing.<br />
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Leah loves, loves, loves to draw, color, paint, and complete any sort of art project. So, I've incorporated crafts into the curriculum where there may not have been any assigned. For instance, the curriculum instructed her to work on a <a href="http://lifewithleahblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/yes-were-still-here.html" target="_blank">mural of wild animals</a> each day for a week, as we discussed various types. She loved that project so much that I chose to do the same for a unit we did on farms. It wasn't part of the curriculum, but it completely enhanced her learning experience that week. I also added in those paper plate farm animals (thank you, Pinterest!) that are pictured above.<br />
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Another thing I've noticed over the past month or so is that Leah really enjoys unit studies - meaning she likes to talk about a particular subject for several days in a row. Since the New Year, our curriculum has given us, in addition to wild animals and farms, units on transportation, weather, and community helpers. We made a book for that particular unit, which Leah was SO proud of once it was put together. Each day, we discussed and colored pictures of two helpers, people such as doctors, lifeguards, librarians, repairmen, postal workers, and of course, policemen and firemen.<br />
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Leah has an eye for detail, or maybe it's simply an inherited OCD tendency, because she was always asking me what color the uniforms were. I told her or pulled up an image from Google, though I mentioned a couple times, "But this is your book and you can make them whatever color you like." Nope. Not Leah. It had to be realistic. Haha.<br />
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Overall, I really like <a href="http://homeschool.calvertschool.org/" target="_blank">our curriculum</a>. We already ordered their Kindergarten level, since they had a decent sale for current families back in January. It's on the expensive side, though still substantially less than we might have paid had we sent Leah to private school. Mostly, I love that everything is laid out for me. Sure, I can include additional arts & crafts or skip over something that feels redundant, but all in all, I am very comfortable with it. I appreciate how gradual it is too. This year felt very relaxed, casual, and like an introduction to learning. While there are already many more activity and instruction books included in our Kindergarten box, none of it seems overwhelming or rushed. It appears to be a gradual extension of what we did this year. It's exciting!Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-26345729828663500102013-01-25T13:57:00.000-05:002013-01-25T13:57:00.646-05:00Yes, we're still here!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's nearly the end of January (already!), so let's play catch-up! The blog often slips my mind in the day-to-day routine... add in the holidays and it was completely forgotten. Oops!<br />
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Leah had another wonderful Christmas. I probably say this every year, but each year does get more fun. She remembers more about the previous holiday season and looks forward to so many of the traditions. She loved decorating the Christmas trees, especially the artificial one with all of her character ornaments. We even got to play my extended family's annual game "I'm Thinking of an Ornament" for the first time this year. :) Leah looked forward to making and decorating cookies, especially spritz. She did a beautiful job, as always! Leah also experienced a first this holiday season - she chose to meet and sit with Santa.<br />
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Additionally, a new tradition began with the Elf on the Shelf this year. Leah was a bit apprehensive at first when she discovered that the elf seemed to enjoy playing with her toys. Still, she grew to love the elf, looking for her everyday, and becoming sad when Dorothy had to leave for the North Pole on Christmas Eve. Leah asks about her from time to time and looks forward to seeing her again next December. Anything that adds to the magic of the season is alright by me!<br />
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Santa, of course, visited our house yet chose to change things up a bit this year... rather than leave the gifts by the tree in the living room, they were placed by the tree in the family room. It made sense since the Fraser Fir always has family gifts around it, yet the artificial tree gets ignored. I don't think Santa wanted to risk waking Leah either. ;)<br />
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Leah's big gift was a dress-up rack for all her princess and fairy outfits, along with some new ones! Leah changed her dress so many times on Christmas Day, you'd think she was hosting an awards show. Haha! I think, by far, her favorite dress was the Dorothy one that her great-aunt Donna sent. Between that, the stuffed Toto & basket that Santa left, and the red sparkly shoes Grammy had given her awhile back, she looked the part and spent the day on cloud nine.<br />
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In other news, homeschooling is going well. We recently finished up two units that Leah really enjoyed: transportation and wild animals. Last week, she worked on a wild animal mural a little bit each day. All week long, she was SO excited to "do school" so that she could spend time on her picture. Leah loves drawing, coloring, painting, gluing - pretty much anything crafty - and she very much loves anything to do with animals. So, the project was like homeschool gold for her. You know she's proud of her work when she willingly poses for a photo with it!<br />
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Leah is thriving in her dance class as well. She did a 6 week class in the fall and we're currently in the midst of another 6 week class. These classes have been without parent participation and it's amazing to see how much she's grown up. When we tried this a year ago, she bawled her eyes out and wouldn't separate from neither Dan nor I. Now, she's like a pro. I am so glad we didn't push her, we just waited, did another round of the parent/child class, and let her show us when she was ready. Watching her now through the one-way mirror, Leah impresses me with her maturity, how well she listens and follows directions, and how much she clearly enjoys herself. She's made a couple friends too, and has introduced herself to every other little girl in the class. What a big girl!<br />
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Speaking of which, we're working on a "big girl" room in time for Leah's 5th birthday. It's time to say goodbye to Winnie the Pooh and the toddler bed that Leah is <i>very</i> close to outgrowing! Dan began earlier this week by tearing out the closets and patching up the walls. The room is getting a complete makeover from top to bottom - paint, floors, furniture, you name it. Exciting stuff for the new year!Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-75366874133220728482012-10-25T13:54:00.000-04:002012-10-25T13:54:01.835-04:00Dreams Come True<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Last week marked Leah's first trip to Walt Disney World! After <a href="http://lifewithleahblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/at-sandcastle.html">talking about</a> and planning our trip for well over a year, it was so exciting to finally have it realized. Leah met so many of her favorite characters, rode several rides, trick-or-treated in the Magic Kingdom, watched an amazing firework display, enjoyed a few nighttime swims in the resort pool, and generally had the time of her life!<br />
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The day prior to our trip, we picked up a rental car... what was supposed to be a SUV turned into a minivan, since the rental place didn't have a vehicle to give us. It worked in our favor because there was SO MUCH ROOM! The seats collapsed into the floor, which worked out perfectly since we wanted plenty of space for Dodge to move around and lay down. Yes, he came to Disney World too! Amazingly, pet care & boarding was right across the street from our resort. It's like it was meant to be. Dan & I so appreciated being able to visit him each day, as I know Dodge did too.<br />
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We stayed at Port Orleans Riverside in their new royal rooms. Beautiful, picturesque resort! The rooms were super fun with lots of cute details: characters in the wallpaper border, Aladdin's magic carpet woven right into the rug, faucets that looked like the magic lamp, a "note" from Princess Tiana on the table, etc. One of the highlights for Leah was the firework display that lit up over the beds!<br />
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Our first evening was spent in Downtown Disney for dinner and a little shopping. Both Port Orleans Riverside and French Quarter have special ferryboat rides to Downtown Disney, as opposed to taking one of the Disney buses. We all loved that and it was such a relaxing way to travel back and forth.<br />
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Magic Kingdom was on the agenda for our first full day. The look on Leah's face when she first laid eyes on Cinderella's Castle was priceless! That day was magical for her. More than anything, Leah has talked about meeting and hugging different characters. So, I made that my goal: to find as many as I could! Throughout the day, Leah met Tiana, Ariel, Pluto, Marie (from Aristocats), and Merida. We had dinner reservations at the castle, where Leah met her beloved Cinderella as well as Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Rapunzel. By the time dinner was over, Leah was on top of the world!<br />
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Leah's jaw dropped when she first saw Cinderella, Snow White, & Sleeping Beauty during a show in front of the castle. :)</div>
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Getting ready to ride Dumbo with Popel!</div>
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The main reason we planned this trip for October was to attend Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. This occurred on our third evening at Disney. We had a blast! Leah dressed as Tinkerbell and we trick-or-treated around the Magic Kingdom. Everyone is given a treat bag as you enter the event, so by the end of the night, Leah's big bucket of candy was FULL, since we adults dumped our collections into hers. Between that, the parade, the incredible fireworks, and meeting a few more characters, it was a success. Dan's goal was to give Leah a good Halloween and that goal was certainly met. We're all ready to go back and do it again next year!</div>
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Tinkerbell & Tinkerbell :)</div>
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During our stay, we visited all of the major parks (Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and Epcot). Unfortunately, our Animal Kingdom day was cut short due to the Halloween party that night, so we've already discussed spending a full day there next time we visit. The safari was awesome, we found a great character meetup spot, and it was a beautiful park to walk around. Hollywood Studios seems like it may be a better fit when Leah is older and more interested in rides or movie-related shows. She loved the Beauty & the Beast stage show there, the Pixar parade, and meeting a few more characters, though I do think we can skip those next time in favor of exploring more at Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. Epcot was a favorite of Dan & I, thanks to the Food & Wine Festival. We had so much fun sampling goodies from different countries. It was there, too, that Leah met her final two princesses and even caught a glimpse of Bolt, her first favorite character! </div>
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It was a wonderful vacation, full of awesome memories and magical moments for the most special little girl in our lives. I am so glad that so many of her dreams came true. </div>
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Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-86009349209522817042012-09-19T16:26:00.001-04:002012-09-19T16:31:41.402-04:00Life Lessons<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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As we began homeschooling last month, I never thought Leah would end up learning a serious life lesson only a couple weeks in: how to understand and cope with death. As most of our followers know, we had to say goodbye to our beloved dog and family member, Hud.<br />
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We made the decision to end his suffering less than one week after being diagnosed with kidney failure, only six weeks away from his sixth birthday. Hud hadn't been himself for awhile, though we attributed much of that to anxiety over going outside after a nasty run-in with a yellow jacket nest in early July. Little did we know. I brought him to the vet in mid-late August, after a week-long bout of vomiting, where it was believed he had a case of acid reflux or an ulcer. Less than a week after that appointment, he was barely eating and became extremely weak when he walked or got up and down. Something still wasn't right. I brought him back to the vet, where blood was taken and it was determined that he was in kidney failure.<br />
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His decline was rapid after that. He spent a couple days on fluids at the animal hospital and was returned home to us for Labor Day weekend. He didn't eat a bite of food, barely drank any water, and was clearly in pain. We returned to the vet that Tuesday morning where they ran a few more tests, administered additional fluids, and referred us to an ultrasound at another veterinary clinic. The news there was what we had feared: it was a chronic condition and he had, at best, a 20% chance of survival with additional treatment. We knew what we had to do. We brought Hud home for one final night with us before our vet made a house call the following morning.<br />
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I talk about this here, on Leah's blog, because, well, he's always been a part of her life. Hud was slow to warm up to our new baby girl, this loud little creature who "stole" our attention. He was never mean to her, never nipped at her or stole her toys. He oftentimes simply left the room to nap in a quieter place, especially if she did throw a tantrum or have a crying outburst. Yet as the years went on, he gave in. He sat patiently while she pet him and hugged him, he began giving her "kisses", and of course, he benefited from her excitement to give her buddies some treats. :) If we were playing outside and Leah took his soccer ball to play with, he let her have it. He was always gentle, always a gentleman. This past spring and summer, Leah showed off what a good arm she had in throwing tennis balls, which Hud loved to catch as Leah bounced them off the side of the garage.<br />
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When we received the initial diagnosis of kidney failure, Dan & I tried our best to prepare Leah for what was coming. We explained that Hud was very sick, that his body was hurting, and that the doctors may not be able to make him better. We used the words death and dying, as opposed to him "going to sleep" because I read that kids can get confused, thinking that if they go to sleep, they won't return either. Leah listened to what we were saying, repeated things back to us, and seemed to have an understanding. Still, she didn't truly grasp the emotional weight of what was happening until that day. Dan explained to her, "After today, we won't see Hud anymore." Then, it clicked. Once our vet arrived and events got in motion, Leah ran to her playroom bawling. I ran after her and she sadly exclaimed, "I don't want to say goodbye to Hud! I don't want to lose him!" My sweetie. I hugged her and held her in my arms, telling her to let it out, that it was OK to be sad and to cry. Dan was with Hud during his final moments while I consoled Leah. What an awful day, what a heavy lesson I hadn't wanted her to learn and to experience so young. Still, she has handled it remarkably well and I am proud of her.<br />
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Not surprisingly, she's grown much more lovey and attached to Dodge. She's always loved both dogs but for the longest time, she seemed to favor Hud, the "bad boy" who paid no attention to her. Ha. Dodge has always been an easygoing, loving soul and I think she always knew she could have his attention if she wanted it. Hud was the challenge. Well, now, Dodge is making up for lost time. Leah is always hugging and petting him, talking about how much she loves him. We took Dodge to bath day at the vet last week; when we arrived to pick him up, Leah said, "I just want my boy back." So sweet! Dodge is helping us all through this, I think, and we're trying to aid him with the loss of his friend as well.<br />
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It's been exactly two weeks to the day that we said our final goodbyes to Hud. We miss him terribly, though we appreciate every moment we had with him. I, for one, will be eternally grateful that he showed me how to love unconditionally and how to be a parent. He was the first living creature I ever cared for, one who depended on me, and who allowed me to make many mistakes. Though Dan & I became a family the moment we said, "I Do", Hud really solidified that and showed us what that meant. He was our first friend here in Georgia and he will always be a founding member of our little family. Hud Buddy, we love you and we thank you.<br />
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Hud</div>
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Oct 20, 2006 - Sept 5, 2012</div>
Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-71613898782577457182012-08-21T14:56:00.000-04:002012-08-21T14:56:13.595-04:00First Day of Homeschool<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Leah began Pre-K yesterday! We decided to start earlier than Labor Day since we were both ready to go. After the curriculum was delivered and some of the supplies were stocked on shelves in her playroom, Leah was ready to start and see what homeschool was all about. I spent last week putting together a bulletin board and got myself mostly organized and prepped.<br />
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When I reviewed the first lesson, the manual suggested having some type of introduction each day, to signal the start of school. The suggestions included a poem, a pledge to the flag, a prayer, or a song. None of those really appealed to me, so after thinking back on my Kindergarten teaching assistant days and scouring a few homeschool blogs, I decided to begin our day with Calendar Time. Talking about what day and season it is, as well as the weather outside, seemed like a natural way to start our day. Though it may be awhile until Leah truly understands the passage of time, the months of the year, and how to tell the date, being exposed to it will only aid her comprehension. There is also a section to label "Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow" so that she begins to understand those terms as well. Leah certainly grasps the concepts of whether an event has happened in the past or will in the future, but she'll sometimes refer to something that happened a few weeks ago as happening "last night". So, this will hopefully introduce her to some proper terms. Leah very much enjoyed Calendar Time both yesterday and today!<br />
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Afterward, we moved onto our first lesson. We spent some time talking about school (some kids go to a specific school with other kids while some stay home with their parents), talking about our new supplies, where they're located, and the importance of putting things away when school is complete. We read a story together, discussed the concepts of "in" and "out", and listened to a short song that tied into our lesson. Interestingly, I thought the in & out lesson would be too easy for Leah and we'd be through it in no time. But I got to witness firsthand how you can understand a concept one way but need help when it's translated to another context. For example, we began by placing various objects "in" and "out" of a basket or small box. Leah whizzed through that, knowing what that meant, saying things like, "The crayons are IN the basket" when she placed them there. After this exercise, I presented her with an activity sheet of different animals that were either in an object (a bird in a cage) or out of one (a dog standing beside his doghouse). I asked her to point out a picture that showed "in". She pointed to the dog by his house and said something about how he goes in there. I understood what she meant, though she was skipping over the fact that right then, in that particular picture, he was not in there currently. So interesting how her mind worked. After some explanation, she quickly picked up what we were looking for and completed highlighting the various pictures, underlining the "in" pictures with one color crayon and the "out" pictures with another. She then colored the pictures however she wanted. When she was done, I asked her again to show me the picture where the dog was "in" or the cat was "out", etc and she completed it with no problem. Awesome. She learned!<br />
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There are certain objectives in this curriculum she does know. For instance, today we were supposed to introduce the color red. Leah already knows her colors, so I modified the lesson somewhat. Instead of presenting her with red objects to illustrate what color they are, I asked her to look around the room and find red objects herself. Then, I gave her a couple old magazines and asked her to cut out red pictures that she would then glue on a separate sheet of paper. She's still a scissor newbie, so this helped her work on those motor skills instead, while still sticking to the red theme.<br />
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One thing that I'm not quite sure of is how to modify our storytime. The curriculum provides a storybook in order to promote good listening and comprehension skills, that we read from at least once a day. Leah is used to picture storybooks while these stories I'm reading contain only a couple tiny illustrations in order to condense the curriculum material. She's claiming the stories are "boring" and I think it's because she doesn't have that visual to follow. Not quite sure how to remedy that one, or maybe it will just come with more maturity.<br />
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Otherwise, things are going well thus far. I am already enjoying the new routine and the extra quality time we're experiencing. I think this will be a really interesting adventure. :)<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Leah created this red clay guy with no prompting from me. I love it!</span></div>
Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-41756849072332462532012-08-09T11:23:00.003-04:002012-08-09T11:23:47.896-04:00Homeschooling<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yup. We are <i>that</i> family.<br />
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As many children Leah's age prepare to start Pre-Kindergarten or to attend preschool, we have chosen to homeschool. Dan & I made the decision a year ago, and as we draw closer to the beginning of our journey, it seemed like the right time to post about it.<br />
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When we first began discussing school options, public schools here did not thrill us. We considered private school, though the tuition of the one secular private school in our area is astronomical. That was out. All the affordable options were Christian-based private schools, and while we entertained that notion for a short time, ultimately, that felt very disingenuous to me. Dan and I are not religious; the most you could call us is agnostic. To be fair to our family and to the school, we felt it was better that we not pretend to be people we are not.<br />
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So, on a whim, I mentioned homeschooling as an option. Since joining a mommy message board years ago as well as following a few money-saving blogs, I found that homeschooling was more popular than I ever realized. In the following days, as I did some research and Dan & I discussed the pros and cons, we discovered that homeschooling was the only thing that got us <i>both</i> excited.<br />
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What we're looking forward to:<br />
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<li>Discovering Leah's learning style and teaching her in a way that suits her best</li>
<li>Choosing our curriculum and following Leah's interests and curiosities</li>
<li>Being able to take breaks or vacations whenever we want, working at Leah's most alert time of day, and having free time during the day for lessons, sports, or whatever she wants to explore</li>
<li>Providing her with a safe, supportive environment to begin learning and building her self-esteem</li>
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I know the biggest hangup regarding homeschooling is the socialization issue. That was our first concern as well. But after talking to other homeschooling moms and reading various articles and blog posts on the topic, it's really not an issue unless you live in a cave. There are local homeschool groups to join. Leah will meet other kids in whatever activities she gets involved in (dance, gymnastics, etc). Not to mention the other interactions she has in a typical week - meeting and talking to people at the grocery store, the pet store, the bank, etc. We hope to involve her in volunteer projects down the line as well. "Socialization" is not just about making friends with a bunch of other kids who are the exact same age; it's about learning to interact with others in a productive manner.</div>
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The three of us attended our first Homeschool Expo in Atlanta during the last weekend of July. It was so helpful, as I was able to see the various curriculum options right in front of me and learned about several programs that I wouldn't have previously thought of. After deliberation and research, I chose our Pre-K curriculum last week (<a href="http://homeschool.calvertschool.org/">Calvert</a>) and it arrived in the mail on Tuesday. I am super excited to begin! There are a lot of homeschooling folks who say that you don't really need to shell out the money for a boxed curriculum for Pre-K or K... but being as this is our first year doing something we never thought we would do, I want the advantage of guidance and structure. Maybe in a year or two, I'll have more confidence to pull from different resources and put something together myself. But for now, I love that everything is laid out for me.</div>
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I am aiming to start after Labor Day, though it could potentially be earlier if I feel we're ready to go. I want to go through the curriculum a little more closely and I am also in the process of getting myself organized in various aspects of home management as well. Really trying to streamline my days and weeks, so I can truly devote the time necessary to educating my daughter.</div>
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This is an exciting time! It's funny, Dan and I have joked that we are that "crazy", no-cable-TV-let's-bake-our-own-bread-homeschooling-family. Couple of hippies. *wink* If you asked me 5 years ago if we would be doing these things, I would've told you that was ridiculous. Ha. Life can take you places you never imagined and oftentimes, those are the best journeys. One of my favorite quotes is: "I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." Yup. Here's to a new challenge, a new journey!</div>Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-3564092887138659122012-08-01T15:21:00.000-04:002012-08-01T15:23:23.201-04:00I'm not Leah, I'm Dorothy!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Most of you who read the blog already know this, but I still wanted to write about it so that it's in the record books.<br />
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Sometime in June, I believe, I introduced Leah to "The Wizard of Oz". Dan had recently shown her "E.T." to which she responded favorably and without anything really scaring her. So, I figured I'd give Oz a try. Needless to say, she loved it. I should have known; the main character is a female who wears sparkly shoes and has a cute little dog. That spoke to her!<br />
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Leah soon began acting out scenes from the movie. Naturally, she was Dorothy and she assigned roles to Dan (Scarecrow) and I (sometimes the Tin Man, sometimes the Cowardly Lion) and she had us skipping around the yard while she sang, "We're off to the see the wizard..." We have one of those crabapple trees in the backyard and she even pretended to pick apples off while the tree got upset. It was very dramatic.<br />
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Do you ever see pieces of yourself and your childhood in your own children? Um, yeah, this one's a whole chunk of mine. I also used to watch "The Wizard of Oz" constantly and assigned roles to my family members. I never suggested anything to Leah about acting out scenes or making each of us a particular character or what-have-you, but boy, it is uncanny how Leah is doing the exact same things I used to. Is that kind of stuff passed along in your genetic makeup? She does seem a bit more forceful in reminding family members that she is Dorothy, not Leah. I don't quite remember carrying that out to such an extent but hey, who knows. Maybe I needed the shoes to truly feel the part. And unfortunately, when I was a kid, Target wasn't around to make super cute ruby slipper lookalikes. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't the least bit jealous. ;)<br />
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Yesterday, when Leah received those awesome red shoes in the mail from Grammy, she was talking about how we don't have the Dorothy dress but that we could look for it around Halloween. I agreed, then glanced in her closet and realized we could put together a Dorothy outfit that was a close enough match. She has been ecstatic ever since. She wore it for the rest of the day and is wearing it again today. She took Toto and her basket to the pet supply store today and yesterday, she even told the Trader Joe's cashier that her daddy is the Scarecrow. Ha!Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-79498980058330237692012-05-29T14:21:00.000-04:002012-05-29T14:21:22.612-04:00Steps to Learning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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On Saturday night, Leah very proudly wrote her name all by herself! YAY!!! She had been writing each of the letters just moments earlier, so I grabbed some chalk and wrote them in order to spell "Leah", talking about which one came next. She said, "I can do it, I can do it!" and promptly wrote what you see here. I am so proud! Yesterday, I saw her playing with the alphabet magnets on the fridge and she correctly spelled out her name again. This is a great step! Mostly, I'm so glad she has an interest in trying to write her letters and figure this stuff out.<br />
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Leah has also developed a love of books, which really makes me happy! We used to read books together sporadically, and at random times of day. So, a few months ago, I decided we really needed to incorporate a story before bedtime. Leah caught on after one night and was asking to read a book! Partly, I think she loved the excuse to delay bedtime a few more minutes but hey, it worked. ;) She is now familiar with lots of books, loves a few certain characters that we read over & over, quotes lines from some of the stories, and gets excited about bringing different books home from the library. I am so thrilled!Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-12592054459896224192012-05-21T14:14:00.000-04:002012-05-21T14:14:24.658-04:004th BirthdayOnce again, the blog has escaped me. Whoops. I wanted to provide a summary on Leah's 4th birthday... but now it's over a month later. Seems like old news, eh? Oh well, let me just get a little recap out of the way so we have something to look back on in twenty years. ;)<br />
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Other than the day she was born, this was the first year Leah's birthday did not fall on a weekend... so it was the first time we got to celebrate with Leah on her big day just the three of us. Began the morning with cake batter pancakes for breakfast, followed by a visit to one of Leah's favorite parks where she played for nearly two hours. Even Dan was able to stop by for a few minutes on his lunch break - yay! Afterward, we picked up a dozen cupcakes from our <a href="http://www.gigiscupcakesusa.com/">favorite cupcake shop</a>. Leah spent the rest of the afternoon playing at home, while I prepared a favorite dinner - homemade chicken nuggets, homemade mac & cheese, and carrot sticks.<br />
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After dinner, Leah opened her gifts from us: a Jane doll (from Disney's Tarzan - thank you, Ebay!), a Lady & the Tramp nightgown, and... what she's been waiting for... Cinderella's dress and accessories!<br />
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The following weekend, the grandparents arrived for Leah's annual party! This year, Leah chose a ballerina bear cake, so we went with an overall pink, ballet theme. Again, we went with Leah's favorite for our meal - Peppino's pizza. :) She's got good taste! Leah had a great time showing off her new playroom to her grandparents, getting pushed on her swings, opening her gifts, and leading everyone down a favorite trail at the Botanical Gardens the following day. As always, a very fun weekend.<br />
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The first year Leah could blow out her candle without help!</div>
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I already have a few ideas for upcoming blog posts, so let's hope I can get them up this week. :)Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-40698723661374150562012-03-21T13:31:00.000-04:002012-03-21T13:31:18.904-04:00Playroom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/leah/file-146-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/leah/file-146-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Leah's new playroom is, for the most part, complete! Dan finished the painting and installation of the new ceiling fans a couple weeks ago. We spent a couple days moving most of her toys upstairs and organizing/setting them up. Then, this past weekend, we flip-flopped the layout of the room again! Seems to flow better now.<br />
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We still have a few items to add: a kid-size table & chairs for coloring/crafts, some additional posters or decor for the walls, a small TV stand, and a large chair for the far corner (underneath the Pooh poster) for an adult to sit. Maybe one of those nets you can string up in a corner to hold stuffed animals. I also bought a corkboard for displaying Leah's "masterpieces" that still needs to be hung on the wall.<br />
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Still, it is pretty much good to go! Leah loves playing up there, sometimes wanting one or both of us with her and other times telling us, "I'm going upstairs. Please don't check me." Yes, ma'am! Enjoy! I think it's one of the best rooms in the house!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/leah/file-149-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/leah/file-149-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-16805043076043265452012-03-20T15:45:00.000-04:002012-03-20T15:45:49.543-04:00Dress Up<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/file-129.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/file-129.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>Leah has a new obsession: dresses. She wants to wear a dress or a skirt everyday (unless they're all in the laundry basket and I tell her she has to choose something else) and often wears multiple dresses a day, thanks to all her costumes and tutus. We recently sold a bunch of baby items in a local consignment sale and at the preview sale, I bought her three dresses, one of which is pictured to the left. She calls this one her Minnie Mouse dress because of the red with white polka dots! I love how happy and proud she looks. :)<br />
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Leah is also obsessed with shoes. (She is <i>so</i> my child. Ha.) Or, maybe I should say, she's obsessed with ONE pair of shoes. We picked out some new shoes and sandals last week. Her favorite pair are pink & sparkly with little bows on the front - similar to the ruby slippers, only pink and flat - and Leah has worn them <i>constantly</i> since we got home. She puts them on with her dresses, wears them on errands, wears them outside, even wears them with her pajamas on occasion. The only time we can get her to wear sneakers is when we've gone to the Botanical Gardens or when it's wet/muddy outside after it's rained. And the new sandals I bought? They're sitting in her room, untouched. Oh boy.<br />
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Playing dress-up and role-playing her favorite Disney characters is currently her favorite thing to do, as you can probably guess. She impressed me recently with her creativity. She has the store-bought costumes for Snow White, Rapunzel, and Belle so, naturally, it's clear who she is when those outfits are on. But one day, while wearing a new yellow dress that we picked up at the consignment sale, she also added her white mittens and told me she was Jane.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/jane.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/jane.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Jane from Tarzan.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Awesome! We've watched that movie quite a bit recently (totally underrated Disney movie, by the way. Music by Phil Collins is amazing!) and Dan & I were rather excited that Leah chose to emulate such a cool, intelligent female character like Jane and that she put the outfit together herself. </div>Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-33695814823348667312012-02-07T10:11:00.000-05:002012-02-07T10:11:09.120-05:00Up to SpeedI've been a blog slacker. Oops. Let's update!<br />
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We're in the process of creating a playroom upstairs for Leah. Up until now, our upstairs rooms have mostly been used for storage. It was great to have a place to put things that was out of sight, out of mind... but it became a disaster. So, within the last month, we finally started going through everything, sorting it into categories of keep/donate/sell/trash. After pulling items I wanted to save for memory's sake, we now have a huge pile of Leah's old toys, clothes, and baby equipment that will either be sold in a consignment sale next month or will be donated. We even made $65 last week by bringing some needed items to a local baby consignment shop! Feels really good to get all this clutter out of our home and, in some cases, give them to someone else who can use them.<br />
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Dan has been working on scraping, sanding, and spackling the popcorn ceiling (ugh) and then he'll repaint the room white. We wanted to keep the walls basic while adding color with posters, new ceiling fans, curtains, fabric storage bins, and of course, Leah's toys. It's going to be exciting to see the finished product!<br />
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As for Leah herself, she's still as silly and bossy as ever. ;) Though she still prefers to be in my company, she is becoming more outgoing with other little kids. At the park recently, she went right up to a couple other little girls, said, "My name is Leah", and started playing with them! When they left and other girls arrived, she joined them as well. I was proud of her confidence and so glad to see her initiate play.<br />
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Leah is also learning how to subtract... sort of. Awhile back, in order to help her learn numbers, Dan showed her on one hand how many days he had left to work. Together, they counted down until the weekend. "Daddy has to go to work three more days" and Leah would hold up the correct number of fingers. Now, after he's completed a day, she knows to take a finger away and then she'll tell us how many days he has left. It's cute. She may not recognize numbers by sight, but she can do this! ;)Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-72705645018456078702012-01-09T09:22:00.000-05:002012-01-09T09:22:11.916-05:00Project 365I started a new blog for the New Year. A few of my friends are doing a Project 365 Challenge - where you take at least one photo everyday for a year - and I decided to join them. So, here's my shameless plug:<br />
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<a href="http://mandaproject365.blogspot.com/">Amanda's Project 365</a><br />
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Yes, I will continue to post here on Life with Leah. :) Still, since many of my photos will, I'm sure, feature Leah, I figured some of you may want to check out the other blog as well. I'll be updating that one more frequently.<br />
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Thanks and enjoy!Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-76292826200116877542012-01-04T21:08:00.001-05:002012-01-05T08:00:13.921-05:00Chocolate: noun, adjective, verbSunday afternoon.<br />
Dad: "What do you want to do tomorrow?"<br />
Leah: "Go see choo-choo and get donut."<br />
Dad: "Cool, we'll do that."<br />
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Monday afternoon.<br />
Dad: "That was a great train ride. Now what?"<br />
Leah: "Let's go get donuts."<br />
Dad: "Oh, yeah. I forgot about that."<br />
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The display case at Publix is looking a little sparse. Leah sees a large cookie with M&M's baked into the cookie. That's the choice. So, we tell the lady at the counter that we want one chocolate chip cookie with M&M's. Then Leah eyes the donuts. Only two types: one with a white glaze and one with a dark chocolate glaze.<br />
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Hmmmm. We now have one chocolate cookie and one chocolate donut.<br />
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Leah instructs that we will sit at the cafe-style tables in the front of Publix. Chocolate (noun) can go bad very quickly if not eaten at once. Leah sits down. Daddy removes her jacket.<br />
Dad: "Which one do you want?"<br />
Leah: "Chocolate."<br />
Dad: "The chocolate cookie or the chocolate donut?"<br />
*Notice, chocolate is now an adjective.<br />
Leah: "Choc-o-late!"<br />
Leah (still): "Chocolate, chocolate, CHOCOLATE!"<br />
Dad (uncharacteristically calm): "They're both chocolate [you pleasant angel]. Do you want the donut or the cookie?"<br />
Leah: "Yeah."<br />
Dad: "Uh, donut?"<br />
Leah: "Yeah."<br />
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Leah proceeded to eat the (chocolate) donut. I don't know how much chocolate actually made it in her mouth. For such a small donut, she had enough chocolate on her hands, mouth, chin, cheeks, coat sleeves, and tabletop to cover a donut. This is where chocolate becomes a verb. She chocolate herself. Other people in the cafe area seemed to exit as she chocolate herself. Fortunately, Publix stationed a water fountain near what must be an endless supply of napkins. After cleanup, Leah decided that she was up for more. She sampled the cookie. The chocolate cookie, it's the size of a frisbee. She had half of it.Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-76931889170580266932012-01-03T21:10:00.005-05:002012-01-04T07:22:04.083-05:00Trains, toys, and "Everyone Poops"A complete day for Leah includes a long ride around a shopping mall in the coal car of the kiddie-train, followed by a quick visit to the toy store. She played in the kitchen set-up towards the front of the store. She enjoyed the mini-sandboxes by the cash registers. She climbed over boxes to reach the little house for the animal figures. Then, she found the item we had to bring home.<br />
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"FINALLY! A book that says everything I find funny in life."<br />
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By Monday evening, we have read it from beginning to end three times. That may not sound like much, but it exceeds any other book Leah has been exposed to. The best part is that everything in the book is clearly making a strained face. The fish, the whale, the camels. Take a gander at those illustrations and see how you would read that to a child.<br />
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Best part:<br />
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That's right! A pipe! This book has levels! Once you get past the subject matter, and the drawings of strained animals in mid defecation, you get the absurdity of a man treating his toilet as his inner-sanctum. I guess his cup of coffee is on the other side of the porcelain throne.<br />
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Nevermind Kipling, Carroll, or Dickinson. All a three-year-old needs is a little-known author from Japan and the perverse illustrations of a freelance artist to come together in 1977. To compare this book to a mineral, it is gold. To liken it to film, it is Citizen Kane. To christen it a milestone, it is an enthusiastic trip to literature for a little girl, who finds nothing funnier than the fact that everyone poops.<br />
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(For those who may not be familiar with his sense of humor, this post was written by my fabulously witty husband. :) )Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-16320614508357697892011-11-22T10:49:00.001-05:002011-11-22T10:51:22.857-05:00I Can Do It Myself<div style="font: 12.0px Helvetica; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"></div><div style="font: 12.0px Helvetica; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"></div>This seems to be Leah's three year old mantra: "I can do it myself." She is very independent and tries her best to be self-sufficient. When we change into pajamas at bedtime, she wants to be the one to take off her clothes. If we're playing outside and she wants her sidewalk chalk, she'll go back inside and get it on her own. When we come inside, she refuses any help to take off her shoes. As long as her cup is on a shelf inside the fridge that she can reach, well, she can get it herself. And so on. It's really rather nice!<br />
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Leah is becoming a great helper as well. When she sees me unloading the dishwasher, she always comes over, grabs the utensils, and neatly puts them away in the drawer. She'll also set her plates, bowls, and cups on the counter. One day, a couple weeks ago, I shook out our small kitchen rug before washing it. Before I could sweep up the dirt that had fallen out, Leah grabbed her own broom and told me, "I can do it. You don't sweep." When she was done, she even grabbed her little dustpan and threw all the dirt in the trash! I could get used to this!Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-2975794182500943932011-11-17T14:12:00.000-05:002011-11-17T14:12:50.120-05:00At the Sandcastle<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/p249781-Orlando-Cinderella_Castle_-_2006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/p249781-Orlando-Cinderella_Castle_-_2006.jpg" width="251" /></a></div>A couple months ago, Dan & I were still figuring out what we should do for Halloween. Did we want to trick-or-treat in town (as we ended up doing), go to a church's trunk-or-treat, go the library for their activities? I told him that a friend of mine from my mommy board was going with her family to Disney World right around Halloween because apparently, they do a trick-or-treat type of event right in Magic Kingdom. We were curious, so we looked it up on their website. And yep, Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is held on select nights throughout September and October. It sounds spectacularly fun and age-appropriate for Leah...<br />
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So, that is what we're planning to do next Halloween. :D<br />
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However, we may have made the mistake of already telling Leah this. Naturally, she was curious about what we were looking at on the computer since we seemed rather excited by the whole thing. So, we showed her some pictures of Disney World, telling her it was "Mickey's House", and showed her Cinderella's castle. We told her we'd like to go there sometime, where we could see so many of the characters she knows and loves from her favorite movies.<br />
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And now, every single day, she talks about who we're going to see "at the sandcastle" (because, yes, ever since going to the beach, every castle is a sandcastle!). Here's a sampling of what we hear regularly:<br />
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<ul><li>"Are Bolt, kitty Mittens, and Rhino going to be at the sandcastle?"</li>
<li>"I want to hug Cinderella and Snow White."</li>
<li>"I want to sit next to Miss Piggy."</li>
<li>"The Wiggles won't be at the sandcastle. They're at their house."</li>
<li>"I don't want to see the mean ones, just the nice ones." (the mean ones are the villians - Scar, Jafar, the Wicked Queen, and so on)</li>
<li>"Simba, Pumba, and the meerkat - they'll be at the sandcastle?"</li>
<li>"Ariel, Sebastian, and Flounder - they'll be at the sandcastle?"</li>
<li>"Woody, Buzz, and Jessie - they'll be at the sandcastle? And Rex and Slinky Dog and..."</li>
</ul><div>You get the picture, I'm sure. ;) Whenever we put on a different movie or she remembers a different character, she asks about whether or not they'll be there and tells us if she wants to hug them or sit next to them. It's awesome she's so excited (and frankly, so are we!) yet it's obviously difficult to convey to her that it's going to be a loooooong time until we go. It may be a long year...</div><div><br />
</div><div>...but on the plus side, when I asked Leah if I could hug Flynn Ryder, she said yes. ;)</div>Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-2121687148004969982011-11-02T14:21:00.002-04:002011-11-02T14:23:08.691-04:00Family ArtOooh, posting two days in a row. ;)<br />
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Like I mentioned last month, Leah's drawings are getting better and better. Lately, she is all about drawing faces, people, and animals. I think we sit outside with the sidewalk chalk nearly everyday, unless it's raining. Dan and I usually draw too, as have other relatives when they come to visit. I tend to repeat the same objects - flowers, birds, trees - and I can sometimes sketch a decent drawing of an object that is in front of me. Dan is much more creative and artistic, able to draw various Disney characters and objects from memory.<br />
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This is best illustrated with pictures.<br />
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Here are a couple of Leah's recent drawings, a smiley face (which looks like it's in a lightbulb!):<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">and what she described to me as "a bear with sneakers":</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/file-43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/file-43.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Cute, right? :)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Here is a sketch I did of Mickey Mouse, while looking at a toy that Leah brought outside:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/file-40.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/file-40.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
And here is Dan's drawing, from memory with NO visual aids, of The Little Mermaid:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/file-42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/file-42.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
What a show-off. ;)Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6527081568652725997.post-5109728121537531952011-11-01T14:15:00.001-04:002011-11-01T14:16:55.968-04:00The Fairest of Them All<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/leah/file-192.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/leah/file-192.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>We had a really nice Halloween yesterday! As you can see, Leah dressed up as Snow White this year. Over the last month or two, she's been working her way through many of the classic Disney movies and really loves the princesses. So, it became inevitable that she would choose one for her Halloween costume. After looking through a few ads and going to the store, Snow White was the clear winner in her eyes. The sunglasses give her a modern twist, yeah?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/leah/file-194.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/ayoungwoman/leah/file-194.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Yesterday's trick-or-treating was the best one we've had yet. Since our neighborhood is too spread out and rural for traditional trick-or-treating, we went to a small town just north of us (same place that Leah's dance class is held). They do a trick-or-treat the local businesses type of event. It was more crowded than I expected, though it was very organized, with local police directing traffic and guiding all of the kids & parents in a clockwise direction for a decent flow. Such a pleasant experience compared to the high-end neighborhood we visited in the past. I also liked that it was held from 4-6pm, before it gets dark (which is great for young children) and before all the teenagers really come out. Then, we could relax at home for the rest of the evening!Amandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18133171635637821934noreply@blogger.com0