Saturday, November 22, 2008

Kindergarten Pow Wow and Feast

Yesterday Ethan's class had such a fun day at school being Indians!! A couple of weeks ago, a letter came home from Ethan's teacher asking us all to come up with an Indian name for our child that goes along with their personality. Since I don't have a creative bone in my body, I immediately called my sister. Without even thinking, she said "Deep Thinker." Then she rattled off several more, but we both agreed that Deep Thinker describes Ethan to a 'T'. Earlier in the week, they all decorated their Indian t-shirts and their Indian names were on them. They also earned feathers during the week for good behavior. Friday morning I got to go in to his school with him for some Pow Wow activities. We made Indian bracelets and necklaces and some other fun crafts (but I forgot my camera in the morning). I went home to have lunch and prepare my food for the afternoon feast.

The feast was incredible! One of the moms cooked a turkey, and we all brought something in. Along with turkey there was homemade dressing, corn, green beans, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, rolls, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. Everything was delicious!! Most of the moms dressed in black and white to resemble pilgrims and the kids looked adorable dressed as Indians! Ethan was so excited at the end of the day telling me that they didn't do any work at all that day!!

All 9 kindergarten classes ate out in the hall! It truly looked like the first Thanksgiving with all those Indians!!

Doesn't Ethan look thrilled to be at the end of the table and surrounded by girls?

Here he is looking thrilled again to be getting a hug from his brother!

All the Pilgrims and Indians!

Friday, November 21, 2008

Say No to Strangers!

Ethan's school PTA had a poster contest entitled Stranger Danger. He wanted to enter b/c there is a chance he could win a trophy!! We talked a little about why you shouldn't talk to strangers and some of the ways they might try to lure you over to them. So I went out and got him his posterboard and he immediately went to work. Of course Wal-Mart and Michael's were out of white posterboard, so that is why I got red, which happens to be Ethan's favorite color.

The idea was all his and the only thing he needed help with was spelling some of the words. You can click on the picture to make it larger. There is a picture of a stranger trying to get him to come over and get some candy. Both pictures of the boy are Ethan (in action!) The lines show him running over to me who is towering over my car!! I think he did a great job, but we won't find out the results until February.

Uncle Fudd's Farm

A couple of weeks ago, Uncle Fudd's Farm came to Carter's preschool. They brought chickens, cats, rabbits, and a horse. The kids even got to take a tractor ride around the school. Everyone got to take a ride on the horse if they wanted. I teach at Carter's school, and my class happened to be outside at recess when his class was at the "farm". Well, when they lined up to go in, Carter was crying hysterically, so I went over to him and he told me he wanted to ride the horse. At first I thought he just didn't speak up b/c he is so shy, and he never got a chance to ride the horse. The girl I teach with told me I should go in and let his teacher know he never had a chance to ride the horse. When I went in, he was still crying so hard that you couldn't make out what he was saying. His teacher told me she thought he was just upset b/c he saw me (which used to happen quite frequently). But when I told her why he was crying, she looked very puzzled and told me that she asked him twice if he wanted to ride the horse. He said no, and even as they were leaving, she asked him again and he still said no. I asked him why and he told me he was afraid the horse was going to bite him, but then after he saw everyone else ride, he wanted to. This is such a typical Carter thing to do! So I was standing there asking myself what I should do. His teacher told me I could take him out if I wanted, but since he was asked twice and said no, should I just let him learn a valuable lesson about saying what you mean? What to do, what to do?!?!

In the end, I decided to let him go out and ride the horse, b/c I don't want him to have a lifelong fear of horses, and I really don't think it was too much to ask for! He absolutely loved it and by the look on his face, I know I made the right decision!

Ethan's Soccer Trophy

I thought I better include a picture of Ethan getting his (4th) soccer trophy since I included Carter getting his trophy. On the day of Ethan's last game, one of the little girls on his team had a birthday party at a gym. That might explain why they are all so sweaty!! After the party, everyone on the team received their trophies.

Monday, November 10, 2008

Carter's First Trophy

Last week Carter had his last soccer game, and overall I would say he had a very good season. He scored a few goals and always went after the ball, but sometimes we had to coax him to go out and play. If we told him he only had to play for one minute, that would work and he would run out on the field. After the last game, the team went out to eat. After dinner his coach passed out the trophies, and Carter couldn't have been prouder!! He kept looking at it and never let it go. He hugged it and kissed it, and kept saying, "My very own trophy!" Ethan has played the last 3 seasons, so he has 3 of his own trophies, and Carter was so excited to finally have one of his own. On the way home he asked if he could sleep with it, and of course we said yes. And he did just that.

This is a picture of him throwing the ball in during his last game.

Monday, November 3, 2008

God Bless America

On the eve of this very important election, I thought it was fitting to show Ethan singing a patriotic song he learned at school last week. And for those who vote tomorrow, you can go to Starbucks and get a free coffee, Ben & Jerry's to get free ice cream (from 5-8), Chick Fil A to get a free chicken sandwich, and Krispy Kreme to get a free donut. You might want to call your local store(s) to make sure they are participating before going. All you have to do is wear your 'I Voted' sticker! Only in America!