It's all fun and teeth till someone gets hurt

While Scott was brushing Mollie's teeth two nights ago her loose tooth came out. She likes to say that her dad knocked her tooth out.

Tonight Scott was brushing Mollie's teeth again. He threatened to knock another tooth out and asked her which tooth was her least favorite.

Mollie looked at him and scowled. Then she points at him and replies, "Yours!"

ZING!

Snow in Campbell

We met up with some friends and had so much fun enjoying a winter carnival for kids in downtown Campbell. This is probably my favorite festival Campbell does.

A hill of snow was set up and monitored by the boy scouts. There was a nice little run for sledding and a small area for playing with that the boys kept soft by turning it with shovels.

Pony riders were delighted with ponies and donkeys walking in a circle. (shh! Don't tell Allie she was on a donkey!)

While mom's away...

Patti was out of the house with her sister leaving me at home with the kids and Kevin (Patti's brother in law). So we undertook a project I've been thinking about for awhile. It requires a little set-up.

Since Kindergarten, Mollie has had an odd fascination with Star Wars (suits me just fine). Her friends at school had been talking about Star Wars and the Clone Wars, so last summer we watched the original films. This year, she could converse on the topic from an informed position. She also received a Clone Wars themed game for her Leapster 2, which quickly became her favorite.

More recently, she has twice asked me to go to the drugstore next to her ballet class to look at the toy lightsabers. She has also taken to playing 'lightsaber training' with a plastic pipe from her T-ball set (so much for the future of baseball).

That got me thinking we needed a fun, safe lightsaber toy for her. Plastic was out because, well, she's six and her sister (who must have the same thing) is 3... So here's what we decided to do, and it was a whole lot cheaper and more creative than slipping $15 into George Lucas' already amply padded pocket.

We took a trip to Home Depot and the pool supply store and all our dreams came true ;)

Parts list:
3 foam pool noodles - cut in half
1 roll black duck tape
1 roll silver duck tape

total cost: $15 and I got six sabers and plenty of duck tape for more!

The kids were as excited about making these babies as they were about playing with them! They had a great time and they were the perfect fit for them. Safe, soft and a great deal of fun... yes. Even for me.

To show you how excited Mollie got, I present to you her homemade Lightsaber license... Now she can conceal and carry without worry.

And a special thanks to Uncle Kevin. He was a great help and a great sport. The girls had a great time playing games and having lightsaber fights! Thanks again!

Leaf Jumping!

The girls raked up leaves to make their own pile to jump in.

Few days later Allie had more fun with Grandma and Grandpa jumping in their leaves.

October Fun

Time to update!

Scott took Allie on a class field trip to Casa de Fruta.

I took pictures of a birthday party for a friend. The girls rocked out in their fun.

smile!

Off to get pumpkins at our favorite little farm.

Allie enjoyed the cool goo of the pumpkin guts.

Mollie didn't want to stick her hand in. Scott kindly scraped the inside lose so all she needed to do is pull it out.

Day before Halloween was busier than Halloween itself! Started with getting to watch Allie in her gymnastics class instead of through a window. Each week is a different theme; this week was pajama day.

Later on we got to observe in Mollie's dance class and they performed "Thriller." Mollie's Firecat costume was perfect for this dance.
Trick or Treat! Scott painted up the girls' faces. Allie dressed up as a pink kitty. Mollie wanted to be a black cat until she found a set of ears and tail with flames in them and became a Firecat; throwing fire at bad guys. Fun, full weekend.

A few weeks ago friends of the family invited us and my parents to spend a long weekend at their beach condo. The first day was sunny and beautiful. After that it stayed cool and foggy. Typical. One day we headed inland for a couple warm hours to a local farm for apple picking.


I brought along a couple magnifying glasses for the girls to explore with. They have been to the beach several times and I thought this would be a good chance to see it a little differently.

At one point I caught Allie making sand angels.

Scott found some charcoal and showed the girls how to use it for drawing on the big white rocks.

Even though I was wrapped in jeans and sweatshirt and wishing I had a jacket, the girls could NOT stay out of the water. The last day I gave up and let them wear their swimsuits in the cold. They were going to go in the water dressed or not. At least their cover ups were on.

It took a couple days before Allie wanted to get in the water. Mollie loves jumping in the waves.

Such a fun trip! We all loved the play time on the beach. My mom enjoyed celebrating her birthday. We saw several dolphins and a few sea lions. Fed the ducks at the pond. Thank you Zaki and Betty for giving us the opportunity to vacation as a family!

The Tooth Fairy Cometh

It's been weeks in the making. That little front tooth beginning to wiggle seems like so long ago. A few weeks later it was swaying and a little sore. Yesterday, she was giving it little pushes with her tongue and little tugs with her fingers.
Today I got the excited phone cal just after school, "Guess what, Daddy! I lost my first tooth in a peanut butter (budda) and Jelly Sandwich!"
I couldn't help but smile. And neither could she.

So into the cute little Tooth Fairy holder (thank you, Aunt Becky) the little tooth goes.

Awaiting the visit of the tooth fairy... I wonder what she's going to bring? I wonder what the tooth fairy does with all those teeth?
What does the tooth fairy bring your kids? What do they do with the teeth?

Message from Mollie

My school's annual fundraiser with Innisbrook has begun. Innisbrook Wraps has beautifully designed gift wrap printed on quality recycled paper, coordinating gift wrap accessories,
gourmet foods and fine Helen Grace Chocolates that make great gifts, Time Inc. magazine subscriptions, and more.

For every item that is purchased, Innisbrook donates up to 50% of the purchase price to my school. I also earn a prize credit for every item purchased except school supplies. The more prize credits I earn, the more prizes I win!

Please consider visiting the Innisbrook website and making a purchase on my behalf. A link is included below. Our sale will be over soon, so don't wait. Place your order today.

Thanks for your help!

Seller: MOLLIE Seller ID# R105275E
School: HACIENDA ELEMENTARY
School Number: 103845

Click the link below to visit Innisbrook.com and they will recognize me and my school automatically.

http://www.innisbrook.com/index_students.cfm?id1=R105275E&id2=&id3=

If the above link does not work:
1. Click below
2. Enter the Seller ID# R105275E

www.innisbrook.com/id.cfm

First Days

We started school last week here. Mollie made the transition into 1st grade. Long, full, 6 hour days at school with a lunch recess and everything. Into the real schooling now!
Allie started preschool for the first time the following day. She did so good! I took her into the classroom where we looked around for a few minutes with the teacher, then the teacher took her out into the play yard with the other kids until school was ready to start. She just ran off and started playing without a second glance to me. I guess she was ready!

Celebrating 6

All the girls seemed to enjoy Mollie's art birthday party! Glue, feathers, jewels and sequins, boxes, masks, beading necklaces, paint, face paint and tattoos. Lots of mess and lots of fun. I'm willing to help anyone with party planning ideas if you are interested!

Who says tattoos are only for kids?

Fierce Tiger with an attitude

Uncle Dave helping Allie paint a figurine.

The big art table for masks, butterflies and treasure boxes to decorate.

Mollie asked a chocolate mousse instead of a birthday cake this year. Turns out mousse doesn't support birthday candles like cake does.

Monterey Day

We took a family vacation day and headed to Monterey Bay Aquarium. We spent most of a day there, and so did a ton of people. I took the time to research the place a bit before going over, read about what days has light traffic, feeding times, etc. When we got there it looked like everyone else read the same thing I did (go figure) and it was crowded!

Girls making their best fish faces.

The Sea Dragon seahorse
Picture spot up in one of the kids' areas.
Getting up close

Mollie making a dolphin rubbing for grandma.
The aquarium has some wonderful volunteers that rotate all over the place. They are so good at helping people understand what they are look at. This lady showed Allie how to pick up the sea star. After that, Allie displayed her new talent several times. Hope that sea star got a rest after she left!

My parents spent teh day with us. On the way back to the car they took us to this great tiny beach along the street where we could get our feet wet for a bit.
Mollie got more than just her feet wet. We decided to call it a day when she fell in the water adn soaked her whole front. Couldn't pass up this grumpy picutre.