Final soccer game

On Columbus Day weekend Helaina played her final soccer game of the year.  Thankfully it was a beautiful sunny day.  Helaina ran her little butt off trying to get a goal but was unfortunately unsuccessful.  She really didn't care though - better luck next year.  After the game her coaches presented the kids with their trophys.  Helaina was absolutely thrilled to get her first trophy.

In hot pursuit of the blue team.

Get to that ball no matter what!

I think the theme from "Rocky" should be playing in the background with this picture.

Presented with her trophy.

It's actually really cute - appropriate for the 6 and under teams.

Green, green, green, green plus green equals ... candy!

All those green days in a row at school means only one thing on Friday:  Skittles!  Helaina had such a good week at school that her teacher called to let me know.  Miss S said that Helaina had been great all week, polite, helpful, mindful of the rules, walking and not running, keeping her hands to herself (which is tough for Helaina because she loves to hug and hold hands with her friends).  She even said that Helaina caught herself a few times doing something she's not supposed to do and corrected herself. 

Helaina got off the bus today beaming and yelling "Mom, I had another green day so I got SKITTLES!!!"  I told her that her teacher already called me with a "happy face" phone call and told me all about her great week.

Helaina's "kiki" skirt outfit she wore to school today.  The girl's got a style all her own.  She wore hearts on the skirt, heart earrings, heart piggy-tail ties and her favorite Belle t-shirt.

Last weekend we headed out to the country to celebrate a trio of family birthdays.  Uncle Gerd had the tractor all set up for rides around the acres of land looking for deer and turkeys.

Helaina and Anna were both looking down for this picture.  Must have been a bug in the trailor that they were keeping their eyes on.

Oh this face, this adorable amazing little face.  Sweet Sophia smiled so big when Helania bent down to say hi.  Helaina was just thrilled with Sophia's reaction to her.

Dedicated (and cold and wet) soccer parents

Last weekend's soccer session felt like a winter game instead of a Fall game.  It started out Friday night sitting through a very cold, dark, windy practice.  Saturday morning we awoke to more cold, grey skies with drizzling rain.  We layered Helaina in long clothing underneath her uniform, which she hates.  "Why can't I just wear my uniform?"  Because you'll be blue like a smurf from the frigid weather, that's why.  We layered ourselves too.  We got to the field carrying the usual stuff we drag with us (chairs, drinks, snacks, etc) and a few extras (blankets, umbrellas, heavy jackets, towels for rain and mud clean up - should have brought gloves too).

We've been very happy with Helaina's 2 coaches.  They set up a tarp and brought blankets so that the kids could stay out of the rain while waiting for the game to begin.  They've been great  - very encouraging with the kids, not at all negative with the many mishaps, mistakes or distractions that the team puts them through!

Umbrella, blanket, boots for wet and muddy fields, plastic bag to keep things dry.  Ugh.  And to think that this weekend the weathermen have predicted temperatures in the high 70's or even low 80's.  Yup,
Central New York at it's Fall finest.  Freeze one weekend, sweat the next.

Waterproof apparel is a must.

A break-away from the pack.  Still no goal yet this year for Helaina, but there's always next year.

Sometimes Helaina's favorite part:  after the game kicking her soccer ball back to us while holding her team snack and drink.  Juice box and rice krispie bar this time.

Good thing we started off the morning with a good breakfast.  Helaina's school had it's first PTO fundraiser - a pancake breakfast at Applebee's.  Helaina was a little social butterfly at the breakfast.  Lots of her friends and classmates were there, along with her teacher who she promptly ran up to and gave a big hug.  Pancakes, bacon, juice, milk and coffee served by volunteer parents and students.  It was fun.  Believe me, we needed a hearty breakfast to get us through the cold chilly morning outside.  One more game to go, along with a trophy.  Squeal!  Her first trophy!!!

Sentence writing

Helaina continues to learn new things on a daily basis at school.  I'm amazed at what she's learned in such a short amount of time.  Fortunately her teacher is very organized and crams lots of learning into less than 3 hours per day.  Her school actually cut out Kindergarten snack time last year because it would take too much time out of their already-short day.  I think that's the hardest thing Helaina has had to deal with in school - no mid-morning snack!  She comes home RAVENOUS every day, ready to take a bite out of the door if lunch isn't ready and waiting.  They get 2 new sight words every week to practice.  Last week's words were "I" and "am", hence the sentence "I am Helaina."  Cute, but this child definately needs a line to write on or her sentences take on a downward slant.  She said that the picture is of her, the blue blob is the sky and the grey is rain.  I love the way she draws fingers and toes at this point in time - as many as she fit on the hand or foot, usually in a circular pattern.

Helaina floored Jim and I one evening last week when she suddenly put her right hand across her chest (and up around her neck!) then started reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.  WISH I had the video camera handy but she caught us offguard with her recitation.  I haven't laughed that hard in a long time.  Here are the words that came out of our little darling's mouth:

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.  And to the republic for which it stands, one nation, and one dalmation, invisible, and thank you God.  Amen."

She was so serious too.  Talk about laughing til you cry.  With more practice recently she's got it down correctly almost to the end - our patriotic little gal.

Mid-Autumn Moon Festival, or our Kite Festival

Last weekend we headed to Fair Haven Beach to celebrate the Chinese holiday of the Harvest Moon Festival with our Families with Children from China friends.  It's a holiday that honors the female goddess of the moon and is celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month (which is September by the Chinese New Year calendar) when the moon appears its brightest and is said to be the most round.  We celebrated with home-made mooncakes, a picnic barbeque and kite flying on the beach.  I think it's Helaina's favorite event because she loves the beach and the water. 

Flying the kite she decorated on the windy beach at Fair Haven.

The kite amused her for a while then she got down to what she really came here for.

A romp in the water.  It was cool with a brisk wind but thankfully the sun came out later in the afternoon for the brave kids who wanted to frolick in the cold water.

Writing her name in the sand with a stick.

With her buddy Maddie.

Splish splash.

Thank goodness the playground had monkey bars.  Helaina loved these ring-style "bars" because she had to get momentum and swing from handle to handle.  She made it across many times like a pro.

Tunnel of fun.

How many little princesses can one tire swing hold?  Apparently four.

Home-made mooncakes (made by some of the FCC families).  They were quite yummy.  Maybe next year I'll get adventurous and order some mooncake molds and try making on our own cakes.  From what we understand, though, it's rare that people in China make the cakes themselves.  They are mostly purchased from bakeries for the celebration.

Off the bus at home, first day of Kindergarten

This clip is of Helaina getting off the bus at home after her first morning of Kindergarten.  I was so paranoid that she would be put on the wrong bus that I couldn't function that entire morning.  I didn't relax until I saw her face looking out the window.  She was so excited about school and riding the bus - still is.  Too bad most kids don't carry that same enthusiasm all the way through high school!

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First Day of Kindergarten, getting off the bus at school

Here's a clip of Helaina getting off the bus at school on her first day of Kindergarten.  She looks a little leary until she sees me and yells "Mommy!", then she grabs her friend and they skip off together into school.  I took pictures and Jim recorded the mayhem.

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