Heidi's Latest

Heidi has been asking to take ballet for over a year. A lot of her friends have taken a ballet class at preschool. We recently found a great opportunity at one of our favorite places - Champion Kids. It's a ballet & jazz class. They do ballet for 30 minutes then jazz for 30 minutes. Heidi is really enjoying it. We did need to find a leotard - and she wanted to add the skirt.At the end of each session, the parents are invited in to see the dance they are working on. This is an action shot of the jazz dance they are learning. I hope to post a video once I get a good one.
Finally, Heidi is growing up too fast! She has already lost her two front bottom teeth!!! She lost the first one in mid-January and the second one last night! The adult teeth practically pushed the baby teeth out - in fact you can already see both in this picture.
She continues to enjoy preschool and is currently staying after one day a week for "Girl's Class" - all things girly! Soccer will start up again in March, so stay tuned for those pics.

Sock Hop

East Side's Annual Sock Hop was this past Saturday. I have continued to acquire poodle skirts from consignment sales, so everyone had one (except me)! I figure we'll be "Sock-Hopping" 'til 2021, so they'll get used! :-)It was a fun time! Heidi tried to hula hoop.Rachel was in a bit of a daze. I think the loud music and all the kids were a little overwhelming to her and she had not had a nap.She did not make it through the dance - she crashed hard in our neighbor's arms.

Emma danced some to a few of the songs they use in PE (I think). It's cute to watch.At last year's sock hop, Heidi made quick friends with one of Emma's classmates. When we told her the Sock Hop was coming up, she wanted to know if Lawson would be there. She decided to make several pictures to give to Lawson. Thankfully, Lawson was there and was very sweet to hang out with Heidi.Heidi watched Lawson and tried to copy all her dance moves. But she knew this one already - the Chicken Dance.It was interesting to watch Heidi. I've been thinking she's pretty ready for Kindergarten. But watching her roam around with all the elementary kids (K-2), made me realize she's still young. It'll be interesting to see how much she looks to her older sister once they are at the same school in the Fall. It's a BIG place!It was a fun family evening.

When I grow up...

The other night at dinner, Heidi said, "When I grow up, I want to be a race car driver!" And then Emma said, "When I grow up, I want to be a bus driver!"

Those two statements nail their different personalities perfectly!

We'll see what Rachel comes up with - I'm thinking she's headed the race car direction too.

Playing Outside

We have had a VERY mild winter so far (I'm predicting a blizzard - of the southern variety - in March). But the warm temps have allowed the girls to play outside a lot! They've been enjoying the swing set and trampoline. As you saw in an earlier post, Heidi is riding her bike without training wheels and she frequently asks if she can go ride in our cul-de-sac. A couple weeks ago, she and Rachel were "racing" in a variety of vehicles. I don't know who won, but they were both having fun!

Catching Up on Christmas

OK, so the Smuckers are having a difficult time keeping up with the Smuckers! (And we left our camera behind over the holidays, so I'm lacking in pictures - hope to get them soon.) But...

We had a fun Christmas morning and left that afternoon for Pennsylvania. We spent the night in NC and finished the drive on Monday. We had a special and meaningful time in PA. Jason's grandfather passed away on 12/20, so there were many more friends and family there than initially planned. The immediate family participated in a graveside service on Tuesday and then a God-honoring, celebration of his life was held on Wednesday. I only knew him for about 15 years, and generally only saw him once a year, but I'm SO thankful that I did get to know him. He was a Godly man with a generous, friendly and caring spirit. He will be missed, but we know he's in the presence of our Lord! Praise God!

On Thursday, our family went to the railroad museum we had visited the previous year. Except this time, we rode the train! I think it was about a 30-40 minute ride round trip. Heidi said she didn't want to ride it and Emma had a difficult time waiting for it to start, but I think they all enjoyed it in the end. After the ride we spent some time in the museum and the girls enjoyed playing with all the models and displays.

Friday we loaded up and drove back down to NC to Jason's sister's. The girls enjoyed the chance to play with their cousin Becca. They played Lego's, dolls, puzzles, books, etc. And we all had a really fun time at a playground 'cause the weather was super nice! Saturday evening we celebrated Christmas together and then we hit the road Sunday after lunch.

It was a really good trip. I'm so glad we were able to do it to celebrate Grandad and to see so many family members.