House of Kerrs

5.06.2016

5.05.2016

Olive went to kindergarten round up! She has been at the school many times to help me volunteer in the classrooms, library, and special activities, so she is very familiar with everything. She is also well known by a lot of the teachers and students. So I was surprised when I dropped her off in the kindergarten classroom and she got nervous and didn't want me to leave. But it was the first time she was doing anything at school without me in the same room. I gave her some hugs and told her she would do great. Then they passed out a coloring sheet and she got right to work.

Olive is super excited about kindergarten now! Before we left I took her picture with the fish tank because I remembered I took Hannah's picture there at her round up. Although it looks like it is a different tank now.

Also, notice Olive's arm. About 10 minutes before we left she put ALL of her birthday tattoos on her arm. I didn't want to try to scrub them all off even though showing up to kindergarten with tats isn't exactly the first impression we were going for.

5.04.2016

Leavenworth

Steve is training for the Dirty Kanza in June so that means lots of biking and races on the weekends. He biked the Cool Hand Luke Gravel Grinder in Leavenworth and we tagged along. Of course we had to see the prison. It was pretty impressive. But then I had to field questions from the girls about what people do to get into prison...

The main reason we were there: hotel pool. I can not explain how excited the girls were to go to a hotel pool. They looked forward to it all week. Then when we actually went swimming it was like Christmas morning.

Swimming can really wear you out.

After Steve's race (he placed 5th), we did a family bike ride on the Three Mile Creek Trail. It was short, but Olive can't do much biking before she starts complaining about "tired legs." There were lots of stops to play in the creek and look at trains.

Then we checked out the C. W. Parker Carousel Museum.

Olive started out on the mini horses that didn't really move. She wanted me to ride beside her even though my horse is clearly upset by hauling all that weight.

Eventually she got on a big horse next to Hannah and loved it! This was her first time riding a carousel without me. And it was the fastest carousel I've ever seen!

4.29.2016

Olive Stats- 5 Years

Olive is now 37 pounds (30th percentile) and 43.5 inches tall (70th percentile). She gained 4 pounds and grew almost 3 inches this year. Here are her stats from year one, two, three, and four.

The biggest change for Olive is attending preschool 3 days a week from 12:00-2:30. She LOVES it! There have been a few Fridays when Hannah didn't have school, but Olive did and she still wanted to go instead of staying home with Hannah. That says a lot. She had a little trouble adjusting to Hannah going to school all day (especially missing her at lunch), but having her own school, teacher, and friends almost makes up for it. Olive is super friendly with all of her classmates. The first thing her teacher said in conferences was "Olive is a leader" which is funny because that is the same way they described her at the daycare center when she was one!

Olive is a smart kiddo. She has gained phonemic awareness thanks to the preschool letter curriculum and she is reading simple books! She can count to 100 and she knows her doubles facts, although she doesn't have much interest in math. She loves listening to books and making up her own stories. Her teacher said Olive has excellent fine motor skills and great handwriting. She started drawing when she was little and never stopped. She is always creating something with paper, cardboard, tape, and string.

When I was in junior high a girl told me, "I bet when you have kids they are going to be really boring and just sit there." I think about that because 1) it is a really strange way to insult someone and be a mean girl and 2) God gave me Olive. Olive was an easy baby, but became much more difficult as she got older. I think the "terrible twos" lasted from ages 1 to 4 1/2 with her. She really put all my mothering and teacher skills to the test! But I have noticed lots of changes lately. She still has the temper, but without the tantrums. She is usually cheerful and chatty. She talks to me just about non-stop all day long. We have become buddies since we spend so many days just the two of us. She is a great helper and fun to be around.

What I love about Olive:
I love how cute she is with her chubby cheeks and big eyes. She is super sweet and cuddly. She is an amazing sister. She is always willing to give something up to make Hannah happy. But she is definitely not a push-over. She is never afraid to speak up for herself and others. She is strong and confident. I love seeing her so happy going to school and excited to share what she learned. I can't wait to see what she will achieve when she puts her mind to it.

What Steve loves about Olive:
Olive is sweet, compassionate, fierce, funny and smart. I can't wait to see what she chooses for her life. She will crush it.

What Hannah loves about Olive:
She's nice. She's an awesome sister. She's really good at sharing. She's also artistic.

What Olive thinks about herself:
I'm nice and kind. I'm brave. I help everyone when they need help.

Olive's Favorites:
colors: purple and yellow
animal: owl
foods: taco casserole, salsa, ham, macaroni, raspberries, strawberries
drink: apple juice
restaurant: McDonald's
place: Crown Center
song: Bad Blood by Taylor Swift
books: Berenstain Bears, Clifford
TV shows: Barbie Life in the Dreamhouse, Tumble Leaf
toys: dolls, play dough, blocks, ipad
activities: swinging in the backyard, nature walks, swimming, riding bikes, making things out of cardboard/paper/string, reading
game: Go Fish
jobs when she grows up: painter, ballerina, person that teaches about nature, and super hero

dislikes: having her hair brushed, big dogs

4.28.2016

Olive's 5th Birthday

Olive opened her presents from us first thing in the morning on her actual birthday. She got a new swimsuit, flip flops, microphone, super hero masks and lunchbox, and drum set.

She spent most of the day in her swimsuit. And she chose to eat at McDonalds and go to Crown Center for her special birthday activities.

Then we had a family party on Sunday. She chose a superhero theme. We never watched any movies or read books or talked about them, but all of a sudden she started liking superheroes. So I checked out some books from the library to learn their names and backstories since I didn't know anything about them either. Olive liked Captain America the best. When I asked her why she said (in a condescending tone), "Because I like AMERICA."