Emery's First Christmas Concert!

Last week we attended E's Kindergarten Christmas Concert. It was a collection of the four JK classes at his school and each class did a presentation of three numbers. It was THE CUTEST.

 The teachers did a great job in coming up with fun ideas and then practicing with the classes so that they could perform in front of a large audience.  I was quite impressed!

The morning of the concert as we were getting ready to go out the door, I said to E 'have fun at your concert today', and he replied a little puzzled and said 'you and Daddy are gonna be there aren't you?' and I told that we would be, and then he said 'well don't panic if you don't see me, cause we have to come in, in the dark and then there gonna put the spot light on us (insert sound affect here.... pssssssh) and then you gonna see me'!

I was laughing! The spot light definitely did come on and E went all Hollywood on us with his hand in front of his face as if to say 'no pictures please'.  Eventually he adjusted to the lights and when we wasn't focused on something going on around him, he screamed sang and danced along with the class.

You will notice he is wearing his 'BLAZER' as he likes to call it. I had picked out another outfit for him to wear, but he insisted on wearing his 'BLAZER' and had to have it buttoned right up. After twenty minutes of trying to convince him that he should save that for his Christmas Eve outfit (as originally planned) I caved and let him wear it when I could see how important it was to him.

All in all, it was a very cute day, BLAZER and all. It these little moments that make me see how quickly my big boy is growing. Great job at the concert E, we love you!

If you are really interested in seeing the whole cuteness factor, you can watch the video.

If the video doesn't load you can go here to view directly on You Tube.

E's First Day of School

And he's off... to school - junior kindergarten, just like that!

What a sweet morning it was for our big boy. He grabbed his lunch, saddled up his over-sized backpack and boarded the bus like he's been doing it for years.  He didn't waiver at all... saw the bus, gave a kiss goodbye, and marched up the steps like it was his job!

PC and I arrived at the school to greet the bus and to get E to the proper room to get settled and meet his teacher.  He really didn't look back from the moment he jumped out of bed, proudly announcing, 'I'm going to school today'.  I am sure the excitement and the day's activities will exhaust him by supper time, but I can't wait to see what he has to say about his day.

I really could not be prouder of this little man. He did it, he really did it (and we did it too)! I got a little teary eyed driving to the school but I held it together on outside, even though I was sobbing on the inside.

What an exciting morning... our big boy is now a school boy!

Yay!

 

A couple of firsts!

The last 48 hours my big boy had a couple of firsts... just another glaring reminder that he's growing up way. too. fast.

Monday afternoon, my in-laws kept H for the afternoon so that PC and I could take E to his first movie at a movie theatre.  Not an overly huge deal unless of course you're three and a half and have never been to that 'big blue building with all the lights by the bookstore'.

PC scoped out Brave in 3D as a good movie for the first experience. At first I thought it might be a little too intense, but the 3D factor was a good call. I have to say, the last time I went to a 3D movie was well... the Muppets in Disney World, circa 1992. 3D movies have come a long way in 10 years!

There was a beary scary part midway through the movie where I thought E might not like it, but he actually laughed as we reminded him its not real, and just for pretend.  It turned out to be a really fun story and he's still talking about his favorite parts to anyone who will listen.

Great first experience at the movies... the traditional non-3D movie might be a bit of a let down the next time we go, given that E hasn't take off his plastic 3D glasses since it was over!

After the movie, we hit East Side's for a signature strawberry banana float and a bit of supper for the big kids! Then early the next morning, was E's first cleaning with the dentist.  I made mistake of telling him that he didn't have to tell the dentist about all the treats he had at the movies, and that it would just be 'our little secret', and since then, everything he talks about finishes with '...but that will just be our little secret right Mommy?' #parentingfail.

He's been to the dentist once before when he was two... but just to have his teeth counted. This was his first time going through the real deal with the cleaning and polishing, and he did fabulous.  I actually think he might be more tolerant than me with having someone clean his teeth - he literally just laid back and took it all in.  The hygienist was extremely patient and E seemed to appreciate her informing him of her every move.  On top of that he got a stellar report from the dentist (Dr. André Théorêt) and was rewarded with a bouncy ball and a bag of oral care treats, complete with his very own FLOSS (might as well have been a chocolate suckers by his reaction)!

 

All in all, a great first experience at the dentist... I have my doubts that it will be this easy with H, but ya never know!

 

We have a SOCCER player!

Last night was the first night of soccer for our little Tim Horton's soccer star (#8)!  We registered E for the soccer program a few months ago, and it has been a long wait for him to actually get on the soccer field.

I waited to tell him until Monday on the way home from the cottage that soccer was starting this week because I knew his excitement level would be through the roof. And it was! When Wednesday rolled around he groaned at the thought of having to go to daycare before he could go to soccer - he thought for that day we should just skip daycare and go right to the field! What a boy!

I have to say, I thought the program was well organized considering you're taking 60 some 3 to 4 year olds and putting them on a field with their own soccer ball. The organizers had it very well layed out for the first night to get all the kids in their uniforms, on the field, doing drills, and having fun within the allotted hour.

This was the first group type activity that I have seen E jump right into without hesitation. He was gung-hoe before we went (which is common) but to my surprise his enthusiasm continued for the duration of the activity.  He had a good sweat on and was pretty pumped about the whole experience - even wanted to wear his soccer shoes to bed last night! E had a blast to say the least - and the fact that they gave out popsicles as a post game snack scored mega points with him!

Overall a great night of fun for everyone... when I asked E if he wanted to go back next week, his response was 'totally'! So we are 'totally' looking forward to it!

 

That's stupid, your stupid - who's stupid now?

So... I knew it would happen, but I wasn't sure when. And then it happened, my son said 'stupid' followed by 'you're stupid Mommy'.

Last Saturday as we were getting ready for skating, E promptly told me 'I don't want to go to skating, I want to go for pancakes' (which is our Saturday morning tradition post skating lessons). The conversation went like this:

Me: You have to go to skating first, before we can go the restaurant.
E: No we don't.
Me: Yes, we do.

E: But I don't want to do that. I just want to go for pancakes.
Me: Well maybe next week we can go before skating, but this week, we are going aftewards.
E: (mumbling to himself) That's stupid.
E: (even quieter) Your stupid Mommy.

Me: (silently freaking out but acting cool) Excuse me Emery, would you like to repeat that over here in front of me?
E: (with a surprised look) No thank you, Mommy.

Me: I heard what you said Emery, and we don't use that word, it is not nice, and you can use other words if your upset instead of that one.
E: (with a look of horror) Okay Mommmmmmeeeeeeey
E: (on the verge of tears) But I'm sorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry.

You can't win with this kid, he likes to assert himself at times, but the moment he thinks he's done something wrong, it turns to tears. He's a sensitive soul. Lately, we are in the battles of 'no I don't, yes you do' or 'yes I can, no you can't'. It's frustrating from a parenting perspective, but I can't help but remember my thirst for independence and defiance at a young age - he comes by that trait honestly!

Anyways... we had the mild discussion about stupid, and I mentioned it to PC just so he was aware of it. PC even reinforced not to talk like that... so we were all on the same page. I thought we moving on, until half an hour later, we are loaded and in the car for skating and driving to the rink. PC is in the front seat, and E is in the back with H. I am about to pull in the parking lot, when a van coming the other way decides to cross in front of me and beat me to the turn... PC is shaking his head but keeps his mouth shut, until this van decides to slam on its brakes to pull into a parking spot near the front door, but overshoots that turn, and has to reverse in front of us.  As this unfolds PC shakes his head in disgust and out flys  'what a stupid idiot'.

 Apple, tree... tree, apple.

And now we've introduced 'idiot' to the three-year old vocabulary list.

Awesome.  Totally awesome.

Munchkin Music Graduation Day

For the past few months, E has been participating in a little preschool program here in our small town of Embrun. The first phase of the program is called Munchkin Music and teaches the preschoolers all about the different instruments, musical sounds, and a variety of fun songs.

E has really enjoyed the program. He is always hesitant to go, but once he is there he really enjoys himself and is pretty proud of all of the crafts he has brought home. The teachers that work with the group are very energetic and really make it easy for the kids to enjoy themselves away from their parents.

Over the last 12 weeks the group has been preparing for Graduation Day (E always says 'its my celebration' instead of 'graduation'), which consisted of a little concert of all the songs they've learned - a special performance for the parents. I wasn't sure how E would react to the crowd, but he didn't miss a beat, he sang all of his songs proudly for the audience, and was very happy when he recieved his diploma.

PC, Hudson, and I attended the 'celebration' and we were very proud of our little man! Thanks to Miss Catherine and Miss Nathalie for a great little program! Can't wait for the second session which starts after Christmas.

Here a few pictures from the graduation, and a little video from part of the ceremony!

 

Old MacDonald had a farm... (an Experimental one)!

This past weekend we took advantage of an overcast and potentially rainy Saturday and decided to visit the Experimental Farm in Ottawa. It turned out to be the best day.

I knew E would love it before we entered the parking lot... but I didn't imagine he would talk about it for days on end afterwards! I think because the weather was so iffy lots of people decided to stay indoors which made the farm a dead zone.  There were maybe 20 people there in total... so we had a great time roaming our way through all the barns and stables at our own pace... and E really got a chance to explore the agriculture world.

The cows 'mooed', the horses 'neighed', the pigs 'oinked' and the sheep 'baa'd'! It was a live version of Old MacDonald and then some! The tractor exhibit was also a pretty exciting highlight of the day... E got to try out all types of different tractors, his favourite being the biggest one - similar to one he got to ride in at Farmer Logan's last summer!

H was a cool customer as well, didn't sleep the entire time we were there... and just loved watching his big bro describe all of the animals to him - and getting up close and personal with a few barn friends of his own!

All in all it was a great family day! If you are in need of something fun and cheap to do with your kids in the Ottawa area, I would highly suggest the Experimental Farm/Agriculture Museum - you will not be disappointed!