Ingrid turned 10!

Best Friends

Halloween

The girls had Halloween parties last night. Ingrid and her friend, Kendra, enjoyed jumping hay bales all night. Astrid said all the girls got on her nerves. Apparently all they did was scream for no reason. Sigrid loved watching all the kids go in the haunted barn and then run out screaming.

First day of school Cuties

Everyone survived today. I took a picture this morning specifically for Aunt Helen. Notice Siggie has a blueberry muffin for her teacher. Astrid has family pictures in her hand. She wanted to put them in her locker to decorate it. She wallpapered her locker to look like the beach. She papered the back in sand and then the sides and door in blue with seashells. Ingrid just took her lunch box today. Tomorrow she has to take three things to represent herself. She picked a picture of her dancing, a book from a series she read this summer, and a sleep mask. She thought about taking her guitar picks, but then she decided she liked to sleep more than play the guitar.

Siggie's last Swim Meet

Siggie's First Swim Meet

Siggie competed in her first swim meet. She was nervous. After the first race, which her group was the only one competing, she got a first place metal and she was excited. Well the next two races she did not place and was loosing her ambition. The last race was another relay and there was only her group of girls again so they had them swim against the boys. She got another first place and is so excited to have beaten the boys. I wish they would have had the times posted from that last race so I could have taken a picture for her. She was so proud to beat those dirty boys!

Internet is too slow

It takes too long to load the pictures. You will have to wait til we get home to see the pics. There are some good ones. Erin, Greg and the kids left today. Siggie is sad and has cried all morning wanting to go home. I may have to bribe her for the remainder of the trip. I must say her attitude is a bit catching....It is making me want to go home too. We need to stay so Eric can go and stay the weekend with his Aunt.

I miss my Mommy and Daddy. I don't know what Siggie's excuse is....I guess she just misses HOME.

Fun in the Sun!

Trying to upload pictures. Taking too long this morning. Will try again tonight.

Fun Times

Ingrid had her dance recital last weekend. She had three solos and they were fabulous. Her friend from school came to watch. Her name is Michaella. Sigrid's friend from school was also in the recital. I took Sigrid and her picture together but then forgot to upload it. The girls have swam all weekend. What fun they are having. When they are not swimming, they hafe drawn a four square court on the concrete and they play that. It is Astrid's favorite recess game and now she can play it at home with her sisters. On Saturday morning we picked strawberries at Clarksville. I made freezer jam yesterday. It was Eric's birthday yesterday so his cake was strawberry shortcake. I made a yellow sponge cake and I made pie crust for me and Astrid 'cause we like that instead of cake. Before we picked strawberries we went and watched the "Angel's" play baseball. It is a league for kids with special needs and the two girls in the picture running the bases are my favorites. Gilliah and Zoe. Both were abandoned at birth and adopted by a family here in Russellville who adopt many special needs children. These two girls brighten my day everyday. The shorter one has down syndrome and the taller one has another syndrome which the name of has left my brain right now. The girls and I had a blast watching them play ball. Every few minutes they would yell "Mrs. Laura, Look at me!" Except it came out of there mouths more like "Mrs. WaWa". I love it.

Week in Review

The girls have had Benchmark testing all week so we have been going to bed early and getting up early to eat a good breakfast. I am all "cooked" out for a few days. Astrid wanted red velvet cake for her birthday. She had the idea for the cherry pie filling and I must say it was delicous. Her and her friend Alyssa's birthdays are both in April so we rented the pool at Arkansas Tech and had a big time friday night. Good way to end testing week too.

Soccer season has started back up so weekends are full of games. Ingrid is getting ready for her big dance recital which will be at the end of May. She has three solo dances this year. She is also making up a dance to do in the talent show this year. Astrid promptly threw away her talent show entry form. Astrid goes to 5th grade camp on Tuesday. Hope she has fun. Sigrid does not have much going on these days. She is just busy going to Pops to play. She does have plants growing. She planted birdhouse gourds, sunflowers and watermelons. Everything is coming up and now we have to figure out where we are going to transplant it.

Two weeks til I head to Phoenix.

Sigrid is turning 6!!!

My baby girl turns six tomorrow. She loves frogs. Ingrid and I made this cake for the celebration tomorrow after school with Pop and Gigi. She has asked for an apron, cooking utensils, a bubble gum machine, and the movie Percy Jackson Lightning Thief. She wants to be awakened at midnight to open them but I don't think that will happen. She sent 5 invitations to little girls in her class to come and have a play date Saturday afternoon. She wants so bad to have a sleepover like her sisters but she will have to wait another couple of years. Astrid gets braces tomorrow. I will post a picture after she gets them. Ingrid has no big news. She is just my good, sweet, intelligent girl. Tonight at Astrid's volleyball practice. Ingrid was playing with some of the other little sisters. I heard one of the little girls say 5 boys in my class like me to which Ingrid responed "all the boys in my class like me". Top that one little girl. She is definitely a quick thinker.

Our weekend

BUSY BUSY BUSY!! We had soccer, volleyball, and the Little Rock marathon this weekend.

Good Manners Tea

At the 5th grade they have a good manners tea each year. The children practice there manners and how to small talk all month and then the parents dress up in white shirts and black pants and serve the children. The kids go two classrooms at a time and get to spend the first half with their friends and the last half they must introduce theirselves and small talk with children from the other class. The kids get really excited about the clothes they are going to wear and what their friends will be wearing. I took Astrid and let her pick out a whole new outfit and Erin thought it was a waste. But I had taken her other dress clothes to school for the counselor to let the girls who did not have any have to wear to the tea. It was all in good fun and I enjoyed it.

Gigi came and visited Astrid while she was there.

The blonde with Astrid is Eleanor and her mom is Astrid's pediatrician. Very sweet girl and she thinks it is such an adventure to come to our house. The dark headed girl is Alyssa, Astrid's closest friend and she is BIG time tomboy. This was such a stretch for her to wear pants and a sweater. She would not let her ponytail down though.

What we did in the snow

Ingrid and Sigrid spent friday building quilt tents and then playing in them. They also have slept in them the last two nights. I made them take them down today since we have school tomorrow.

Girls

Had to leave work today at 9:30. Astrid has a stomach bug and is very sick. Thought I would update what we have been doing. Astrid has started volleyball and I am glad as I was getting sick of soccer. She is really enjoying herself and the assistant coach from Tech is coaching and he is excellent.

Sigrid got all the POWELL genes I have decided. She was called to the principal's office yesterday. Turns out she was innocent. A girl accused her of punching her in the mouth. But as Siggie pointed out to the counselor, the girls mouth wasn't even bleeding and if she punched her she would have bled.

On Friday nights, Eric plays cards with a group of guys so the girls sleep with me. I took the above shot of Ingrid when I woke up. I don't know how she sleeps with all that hair. She has 3 solos in her dance recital this year and is very excited. She is ready for point shoes but we have decided in researching that it could effect her growth plates, so I am going to make her wait another year.

I wish I had time to get on here daily and type but I don't. I do read my Aunts blogs daily and love them.

Greta Ann