Race Day

Here's some action video for you... Hannah, Paige and Maren on race day.

Hannah

Paige

Maren

Hannah - 1st Place in her age group (Go Hannah!)

Maren - 3rd place in her age group

Paige - Disqualified due to fall, but had the best first run time out of everyone!

Izzy leads everyone on the last run of the day...

Christmas Break - Week 2

On the second week of Christmas Break, my true love gave to me.... Holiday ski camp. 

The girls spent all week getting up at the crack of dawn (actually before dawn) and skiing with coaches.  They worked on tons of skills, did lots of free skiing all over the mountain and spent some time running gates.  I thought they would be wiped out after waking up early and skiing all day, every day but they often wanted to take an extra run or two after class ended. 

It was a great week for them and they really improved their skiing skills.  I love to be able to go anywhere on the mountain with them now.  In fact, they are often taking Kirk and I on runs that we didn't know existed or hadn't been on before. 

What a great week!

Hannah and Ally waiting to run the gates.

Maren still smiling after a long day.

Hannah in the gates.

Paige having fun on the bunny hill.

School Begins

School has begun.  It actually started a few weeks ago and we are getting into the groove although it has been a hard transition from a fun summer.  I just found my camera, so this post is a little delayed. None of the girls were very excited to get their picture taken.  Paige was the least excited, can you tell?

Maren is in 1st grade with Mrs. Vanhorn. Going a full day is tiring and has been a transition for her.  She likes riding the bus home with the big kids.  She reports that 'there is too much math' but likes school otherwise.  I just realized that this is the year when I will need to sit with her EVERYDAY as she sounds out each and every letter in each and every word in each and every book she brings home.  This is tough for me. I am hoping that her learning curve is short and she can be a smooth reader soon.

Paige is in 4th grade with Ms. Litven.  Her group of friends got split up this year.  She is a little sad about this, but I am hoping this will give her an opportunity to expand her pool of friends.  She is in advanced reading and math.  This is the year she gets to go skiing for one of her field trips.  I have already signed up as the parent volunteer for that one.

Hannah is in 6th grade with Mrs. Roget.  Her first pile of math homework (she is in advanced math) was more than she has ever gotten before.  I have a feeling that this is the year when she learns how to balance homework and free time.  No more finishing homework on the bus. This is her last year in grade school.  I am already nervous to send her off to Junior High next year.  Is she that old already?

Horse Camp

Grandma Johnson's neighbor graciously puts on a horse camp for my girls and cousin Natalie every summer.  Mornings are for the horses - including grooming, saddling, riding.  And afternoons are for crafts and swimming.  Isn't that every girls dream for summer vacation?

 Hannah and Natalie in the arena.

 Paige and Rufus are quite well acquainted after three summers together.

On the last day of camp, Maren chose to drive the buggy instead of ride.

And for those of you wondering, NO we are not getting a horse.  One week of horse camp and horses on all sides of our new property is just going to have to be enough.

Happy Birtyday Paige!

Happy Birthday Paige!  Except... Paige's birthday is in April.  For her birthday she received earrings and the promise of pierced ears.  But - because of getting the house ready for sale, soccer (didn't want to get those new earrings ripped out), school, a generally busy life and the fact that there isn't anywhere in Sandpoint (that I could find) that pierces ears - we haven't been able to get her ears pierced until this week.  Paige and I made a day of it and went to lunch, then some shopping, then to the mall for the big event.  It's a birthday gift that keeps giving!

Before

Getting it just right

Both ears at once

After.  It wasn't so bad after all.

Summer is OVER

Summer officially ended today! It's turned cold - I don't think it's gotten above 60F today - and rainy. On top of that, today was the first day of school.

Summer is over!!

But we drug out summer as long as possible. We pulled in the driveway late last night from a wonderful rafting trip (I will post on that sometime soon). The girls showered, picked out their first day outfits and went to bed. This morning it was busy, but not to chaotic as we woke early, tried to re-start early morning scripture study, made lunches and drove to school in time to drop of each child to their new classroom with a VERY LARGE bag of school supplies.

I did not have time to take photos before school, but I did manage to get one as everyone arrived home. Just picture the girls with less messy hair and you can imagine what they looked like as the walked out to their new classes.

Maren started Kindergarten today. She was a little nervous and kept telling me she wasn't going to go. But she did fine and even made a new friend. We are sad that our favorite Kindergarten teacher retired, but Maren has a new teacher that is very excited and we hope she has a good year.

Horse Camp

We are so lucky that my parent's neighbor gives the girls a private horse camp every summer. Amy and her daughters spend mornings teaching the girls how to ride. Then Amy does crafts with them in the afternoon. Add a little swimming in the canal and it makes for a fun day. It was Maren's first year at horse camp. She loved to ride Addy. Best of all... she became a real cowgirl with a trophy and everything. Amy awarded it to her for falling off the horse for the first time. Don't worry - she didn't hit the ground and Amy caught her quickly. Cousin Natalie got horse camp started for us... Hannah on her horse, Peppy...

Isabelle even got a chance to ride... Definitely a good week at horse camp! Thanks Amy!

School's Out!

Maren graduated from Mrs. Barbara's preschool in May. She had a great year exploring and being a bit more independent. Mrs. Barbara is a special teacher and we have been lucky enough to have her for all three girls. Hopefully, she won't retire before Izzy is old enough to attend her class also. We love you Mrs. Barbara! Great job Maren! Paige loved having Mrs. Stevens this year. In fact, when we were driving away from school today she asked if she could have Mrs. Stevens again next year. Sadly, she will be moving onto 3rd grade and Mrs. Stevens will be staying behind. But we are glad it was such a good year for Paige. Paige and best friend, Kiley. You've got to love the teeth on 2nd graders! Hannah excelled this year with Ms. Litven. It was her first year to receive letter grades and she was on the Honor Roll all four quarters. Way to go Hannah! Ms. Litven is an excellent teacher and we felt lucky to have Hannah in her class this year.

Hannah's big project for the end of the year was a presentation on Idaho History - which has been a big focus for them this year. They displayed pictures, reports and items from Idaho and spent the afternoon telling parents and other students about what they've learned this year. Hannah got extra points for her great costume - Thanks for loaning us the dress Campbell's!

Now... let SUMMER begin!

(and please send us some warm sunshine - we are ready to go to the beach!)

Allowance Dollars at Work II

Do you remember this post from last summer? Paige saved and saved and saved her allowance money to purchase an electric quad. Initially, it was a big hit. Paige loved it. Her sisters loved it. The whole neighborhood loved it. But, eventually, the excitement cooled and it was used less and less. This Spring Paige decided she wanted a 'real' bike. Not the 'peddle in reverse to break, one speed, tassels on the handle bars and basket on the front' type bike. She wanted a real bike. So Kirk, in a great parenting moment, planted the seed of an idea by telling Paige a story of how he earned money for his first bike. Paige then comes up with the brilliant plan of selling her little used quad and putting that money toward a 'real' bike. With the idea in mind and a few hints from Mom and Dad as to how to accomplish it, Paige sold her quad at a garage sale and combined that money with some saved allowance, birthday and Christmas money. Kirk took her shopping and she is now the proud new owner of her very first real bike. Best of all - she earned the money for it herself.

It will probably have tassels and a basket on the front for a while longer, but now she can keep up with Mom & Dad. Great job Paige!

Paige's Baptism Weekend

As the last of our company pulled out of the driveway this morning we wrapped up one big marathon weekend.

...deep breath...

I've spent the day cleaning and putting away and now the house seems unusually quiet with everyone gone. My parents and Kirk's parents, Kirk's sister and husband as well as two nieces all came up for Paige's Baptism this past Saturday. It was a great weekend and we seemed to fit just about everything we could into it.

My parents were the first to arrive and we got my Dad started right away on making us some amazing bread. He has perfected his recipe and we enjoy artisan bread baked right in my own oven. The girls love helping him by kneading dough and shaping loaves. Everyone else enjoyed the eating part. Thanks Dad!

We started Saturday off with a beautiful Baptism. Paige was glowing and everything went so smoothly. Thanks Grandma for your great talk and everyone else who helped! She has been excited for months now and was really ready for this day. Congratulations Paige!

By Saturday afternoon we were off to soccer games. Maren and Paige are playing for the first time this year. I only have photos of Paige's game, since I was coaching and refereeing Maren's. Both girls did great and had lots of fun, despite intermittent downpours, hail, sunshine and wind.

To celebrate Paige's baptism we had a Sunday afternoon Tea Party (more like pink punch party) complete with little crust-less sandwiches, fruit kabobs, Frito's & Cheetos (Paige's special request - I never buy chips), vegetable tray and sparkling punch. We finished it up with some brownies and macadamia bars. Yummy!

It was great to have everyone over. We played games (Settlers), put together puzzles, went on exploring walks (the girls found a Hobo camp and abandoned, upside-down car with Grandma Rosemary), did craft projects, read books, shot bows and arrows, and did plenty of family wrestle. The girls quickly got used to having two sets of Grandparents. I think Izzy was in a little shock this afternoon when she didn't have more than me to choose from for stories and nap time.

Banana Split Birthday!

Happy Birthday Paige! We are so glad to have this special day to celebrate YOU. You are tender hearted and have a special ability to develop friendships with those around you - teachers, friends, sisters, cousins, etc. I love your special cheerfulness. Your giggles and smiles light up our house. It is so fun to watch you explore and challenge your abilities. Whether it is climbing trees, swinging from the ropes or skiing down black diamond runs, you have a giggle and a smile on your face as you do challenging things. It is equally fun to see your nose buried in a book as you expand your mind and understanding. Eight is such a great and important age and I'm enjoying watching you step through this milestone. Thanks for being such a great part of our family. I love you!

Birthdays around our house are all about favorite foods. For her birthday dinner, Paige chose gyoza, rice, edamame and frozen fruit salad. And instead of birthday cake, she requested banana splits. It was a fun departure from the norm.

With Paige, birthday month comes to an end. It has been lots of fun celebrating (almost) everyone in our family. I will be glad not to see cake for a while.

Rough Morning

Paige is learning about responsibility... the hard way. This morning she just couldn't seem to stop playing and start getting ready for school. I try not to nag (although sometimes it just comes out, no matter how hard I try not to), so I gave a gentle 10 minute reminder before her ride was due to pick her up for school. Then I bit my tongue - several times - while she played, and talked, and looked for clips for her hair, and talked to Izzy, and played some more, etc. When her ride showed up she wasn't even close to ready.

I pulled out some Love and Logic techniques and said 'Oh no, it looks like you will miss your ride to school today. How do you think you will get there? I hope you don't miss anything important. That will be so sad.'

First Paige reacted with excuses... 'I was hurrying as fast as I could', 'Izzy was in my way', 'I can't find my socks'

Then with rage... 'I'm going to miss school and it's all your fault', etc.

Finally with pleading... 'When can you take me?'

My reply... 'Well, I'm taking Maren to preschool in 45 min. I'd be happy to drop you off on my way'.

When she realized this would result in her being tardy and possibly missing some school, she was in tears for quite some time. By the time I dropped her off at school, she was meek and repentant. I can't wait to see how early she gets ready for school tomorrow.

The problem with parenting is that it's never cut and dried. One minute I want to yell at her for not doing exactly what I say. The next, I want to do everything for her so . Someday (before they are all grown up) I hope I find that happy middle ground where I teach them to be responsible for themselves and also let them know how much I love and support them.

Crazy Hair Day

Last Friday was Crazy Hair Day at school. Paige opted for the poofy curls while Hannah went with twisty loops.

Fonetiks

Paige is in 2nd grade and really becoming a great reader. She is also learning to spell, but most of the time she still spells phonetically. I love this stage. Last week I felt like a broken record as I told the kids (for the gazillionth time) what they could and couldn't have for after school snacks. I must also add that Halloween was not that long ago and candy is still on their little minds. Candy is not considered an appropriate after school snack at our house. Anyway, after repeating myself yet again, I asked Paige to make a list to post to the refrigerator door. Here is her list of Healthy After-School Snacks... The photo is poor, so if you can't read it well - here is what she wrote: gogurts frut mufins cand pars carits uplsos cereal penit butr tost bred ches stiks penit butr and selre left over school lunches (Hannah) homemade granola (Hannah) pears (Hannah) Can anyone guess all 11 of Paige's items correctly?

Summer on the Lake

We have a wonderful neighborhood beach on Lake Pend'Orielle. It is perfect for an evening swim or an afternoon of playing in the water and sand. This summer we have been teaching the kids to water ski. Our good friends, the Corbridges, have a great ski boat and we have our little Livingston boat. Between the two, the kids have had plenty of time on skis, the tube and knee board. They are all doing great. I hope they look back and have great summer memories with their friends and sisters.

Ally, Paige, Kiley, Gabi & Hannah

A view of our beach from the picnic area. Sometimes I look at the lake and realize what a beautiful place this is.

Beach House

L-R back row: Ben Corbridge, Lauren Elliot, Gabi Campbell, Hannah, Andrew Webster

L-R front row: Ally Corbridge, Kiley Webster, Maren, Ashlee Webster, Paige

Hannah and Gabi

Hot dogs for dinner. Yummy!

Hannah skiing out from shore.

Maren swimming in after her first successful ski.

Paige skiing behind the big boat.