Treetop Sisters promo picture

Just when I start to think that summer is ticking along nicely my kids throw me a curve ball. This summer I am working fulltime and Terry, when home is the children’s activities director. I have gone to  what I think is the extra mile to schedule play dates and Church camps, Dance Camps, swimming and all other kinds of super-duper fun things to do, yesterday when I asked how summer was going I got the reply of OK a little boring though! I don’t know about you but when I hear the B word it makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I then had to go into my “when I was a girl in England there wasn’t any camp and even swimming pool blah, blah, blah and if they were bored then I could find many more things for them to do ex. Chores, chores chores. I want them to find that inner self that never lets them feel bored. But how as a society  do we foster that!   After that  there is a need in me to just overschedule everything and I get out my  markers and just go crazy, scheduling everything down to snacks and bathroom breaks ( well maybe not that bad). Do you let them be bored and see if that inner sense kicks in and they become interested in something or do you have to have more of a schedule to things? Most of the time I am able to answer my own questions when I can take a step back and give it a little time, switching off the electronics and have some books or paper and pencils available. Then given a few minutes we are into being detectives or scoring gymnastics at the Olympics that is when I am amazed at the creatively in children. I also  try to make a mental note not to have a knee jerk reaction to  the next thing to come out of my children’s mouths.  

Creative moment !!

 As I have mentioned before, I like awards when all my girls get them but think that they are not a terrible idea when one of them does not receive the accolade. We once again did not have to cross that bridge as all girls got a chance to get a pat on the back at their school. A & B students got to stand up and in front of their school and parents be told that they had done a good job. Daddy got to go this time as I was working, and I am glad that he got this opportunity.  But as with last time I don’t know where the certificates are after a week or so and know we are onto another 9 weeks! 

Jade getting her A's & B's Award

Pearl Getting her A's and B's Award

Ruby  doing a great job

 

 Still struggling with that balance of school and homework and dance and practicing instruments. Yet I know that we are not as heavily scheduled as friends. I cannot tell you the last time that I posted on Facebook and forget about Twitter…… if it were not for the camera on the phone I do not know if I would take any photos of the girls, but I do love to look at the camera sometimes as Jade gets hold of it and starts taking random photos of herself and her sisters some are just the funniest things that you have ever seen and once again I remember, that the most important thing is too be able to laugh at yourself, ha ha ha.

Christmas Cheer

The Christmas Season flew upon us and as ever I am not ready to enjoy the season! We have Ruby's Birthday which she decided that she wanted to have a sleep over with good friends from school. This is something that we survived , the girls where great and hopefully they had a good time and I know that Ruby enjoyed her Birthday experience and felt that 9 is a great age to be.I hope that she keeps this great feeling the whole way through the year.
 We then had our Christmas production at Church... this is something that I have been in charge of the for the last couple of years and it  so much fun to see the kids have a great experience on stage. We picked a musical  called Back to the Manager and has the kids traveling through time to experience all different musical era's. They traveled to the 1940's and also the 60's it was a hoot seeing their reaction to all the different costumes and styles of music.

Jade wanted to have nothing to do with any of the rehearsals but when it came time to get on stage and put on a costume then suddenly she was present and starstruck. Which so  nice for mom who was in charge and her own little one did not want to toe the line!
In the end everyone had a great time and the kids where wonderful. Ruby had one of the lead roles and Pearl got to sing a solo, Jade I think thought all the solo's should be hers.
But the best of all was the fact that we managed to surprise Terry's family and turn up on Christmas eve and I think that was the best present of all. We had  opened up gifts before we got to Grandma's  and so the girls got a chance to let others open presents and enjoy what others had been given rather than focusing on themselves. It was a wonderful teachable moment and something that money and Christmas presents could not buy!.

The one gift that the  girls got that has been keeping us busy since we got home is the Wii, "Just dance" is  the most fun, and we even got Terry to try his hand. This was funny beyond words and I don't think that I have laughed this much in a long time.
I just looked back at last Christmases blog page and the girls have grown so much. where did the year go and does this mean that I have gotten older also. No way!