St. Pat's Parade

We went to the Brookside St. Pat's Parade for the first time ever.  We stood on a little hill that had a great view, but it wasn't close enough to get candy.  Olive abandoned us to get right on the street.  She even scored us a Jimmy John's sandwich!

Olive with us.

Olive in the crowd.

Auction

 I volunteered to be in charge of donations for the school auction.  I started working on it in August and it consumed most of my free time in January/February.  We had over 300 items to bid on, including signed Royals items for the live auction!  We raised over $40,000 for the school to pay for all the field trips, assemblies, class parties, teacher stipends for classroom supplies, and community events like Science Night, Dads and Doughnuts, and Moms and Muffins.

Even though it was a ton of work, I definitely had fun.  Everyone on the auction committee was a friend so meetings were more like girls' nights.  And of course auction is always a blast.  Our theme was "Homegrown" and it was held in the new Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center. 

The bid paddles had our principal's and secretary's faces on the back.

Steve helped with set-up and put up this display with all the art.  He was so proud of it, he took a picture. :)

I'm working the balloon pop.  You paid $5 and got to pop a balloon that had a number inside.  Some numbers were gift cards and some were just school pencils/bumper stickers, but everyone was a winner!

The angel wings (in school colors) were a take on a famous KC mural.

Cards from Olive

I gave Olive some blank greeting cards for Christmas and she filled them up in no time.  She loves writing and creating and she is super sweet, too.  She made these for me and Steve "just because."

Hannah's Pinball Machine

Hannah studied forces of motion at school and they were assigned to make a cardboard pinball machine that demonstrated at least three forces.  I really prefer school projects that are done at school, but I suppose there is some learning that can happen with parent projects.  I say parent project because isn't that what it becomes if it is done at home?  What 3rd grader can make a pinball machine out of cardboard by herself??  Steve did most of the mechanical stuff and I helped with cutting and the hot glue gun, but the design was all Hannah.  It did turn out cool.  It was ocean themed complete with fish flippers, seaweed, a wave, a crab, and real shells.

If you landed it in the hole above the crab, the marble came out the side and Hannah gave the winners prizes.

PTA Reflections Contest

Last year both girls entered the PTA Reflections contest and Hannah won the visual arts category for our school and advanced to the district level.  This year she decided not to do it, but Olive entered in the choreography category and won both the school and district and then advanced to the state level! You can see a little of her dance in this video of all the district winners.

The theme was "Within Reach" and Olive wrote: My dance was about reaching every way to can to get the thing you want to get.  I did the circles in the dance because sometimes when you think you walk in circles.  When I reached up it is like when you are reaching for a high goal.

She is showing off a still from her video.

So excited she was jumping up and down!

Since she was a district winner we went to a reception at a board meeting and she got to shake the superintendent's hand.  She was very proud.

The littlest girl is also a first grader at Olive's school.  She won the literature division.

Olive's journal after the reception: "I won the Reflections.  I got a prize.  I got to shake the superintendent's hand.  I'm famous."

Valentine's Day

The girls made their own valentine boxes this year!  I helped look up ideas and cut the heart, but Hannah did the rest on her own.  I covered Olive's box, but she did all the markings herself.  She taped on signs that said "Olive's tiger.  Feed me!"

Shooting cupid's arrows.

 Making valentines for nursing home residents.

Perfection.

Trying to put a "ring around the roses."

I'm the only room mom in Hannah's class so I planned all the parties this year and ran them.  Unfortunately that means I didn't get to see Olive's party. :(

The weekend after Valentine's Day we made a Chillicothe trip to visit the great-grandmas.  

Girl Scout International Fair

Hannah missed last year's fair because she was sick, so she was very excited to attend this year.  Our troop researched Kenya and made paper bead necklaces and bookmarks to sell.  Olive shopped with our troop since her troop didn't have a booth.

Chinese New Year

Zoo

Family trip to the zoo in the winter.  It's been awhile since we were at the zoo and even longer since we went with Steve.  Our main objectives were to see tigers and pandas.  Check and check.  The girls wanted their pictures taken EVERYWHERE, so we have a lot.  

The tigers were more active than we've ever seen at the zoo.

A tiger and a tiger.

A panda and a panda.

Baby penguin!