Mothers' Day and Kindergarten Circus

Nathan painted my nails purple and dried them with a purple fan.

I got royal treatment for Mothers' Day, and you'll never guess who pampered me -- Nathan! All kindergartners at Nathan's school invited their Moms to come for a "Mothers' Day tea party" last Friday afternoon. We rotated through each kindergarten classroom, and Nathan applied my lipstick, gave me a massage, painted my nails, and made a bracelet and photo frame for me. I enjoyed having Nathan do this more than any professional pampering because he was so sweet the whole time and happy to have me at his school. They ended the event with punch and cookies in the cafeteria, and we each got a silhouette of our child and a cute card where Nathan had to write about his Mom. He thinks my favorite TV show is "Dora."

Dan's parents visited for Mothers' Day weekend, and we went to see "Star Trek" in the IMAX theater as an early Fathers' Day gift -- not really, we all wanted to see it. We all enjoyed the movie, and while Dan's family are Trekkies, I've barely seen any of the Original episodes and thought the film was a fun ride. One reason why I wanted to see this Star Trek movie more than some in the past is because J. J. Abrams directed it, and he also created "Lost," which I think is the most compelling fictional television series of all time (one season left to FINALLY get all the answers). I'm amazed that Abrams got it so spot on considering he never paid attention to Star Trek until he made this movie. Go see it -- you won't be disappointed.

We went to a water park with the kids, and Grandma and Grandpa Rogers brought some cascarones or confetti eggs from San Antonio. This Mexican tradition is usually used around Easter. The kids had fun breaking the eggs on Daddy's head and scattering confetti over him, which I read is supposed to bring good luck.

The kids hold their cracked eggs before they throw the confetti.

Nathan's school presented the 19th Annual Kindergarten Circus on Thursday evening. Nathan chose to be a dog. His best friend at school was a "strong man." He wanted to wear black, and he wanted a white spot on his tummy. I didn't want to do anything permanent to his black shirt, so I just used construction paper on his tummy and for his ears. He looked cute. The day before the performance, he told me that he got to scratch his head with his foot. It was great to see all the performers, from the clowns to the hula hoopers. Sophia liked the ribbon dancers and twirlers. Nathan performed well as a dog; you can see his act below!

Nate's elementary school has a reputation as the best one in the district. At first it was hard to adjust to the long day and some of the expectations that were different from Utah, such as having good handwriting. Nathan has risen to the occasion, however, and has improved in his handwriting and usually gets 100% on his spelling tests. Now I'm glad he's in a school that encourages excellence rather than caters to the average student. It's fun to see his progress; he is doing some addition and subtraction now too and likes it. He's reading a book about Amelia Bedelia, which is pretty advanced for his age.
I like how his school has a separate gym teacher, music teacher, and art teacher. He does have long days, but I'm reassured that he's getting a quality education. The school events are fun too. Now I want to buy a home next year that's within this school's boundaries -- but I'm not sure if that will happen. The kids all got to watch a rocket launch on Friday. Go Austin Astronauts!

Quotes of the week

"I have to stay in the lines so you don't look like a clown." -- Nathan to me as he applied my red lipstick. His teacher taught him well!

"Wing, wing!" -- Sophia wants to swing whenever one is in sight.

Grateful moment

I'm thankful to live in a country where education is guaranteed for every child and in an area that strives for academic excellence. I'm thankful for the school events that help us parents remember how lucky we are to have these children.

Change of plans

My Relief Society (church group) planned to see the Golden Dragon Acrobats of China for our Enrichment activity. I was intrigued by just the name of the group. It was set for Friday, April 24, so Dan had a night with the kids and I had a night out with ladies from my ward. They even made up sack lunches for us; I was excited for it.

However, this is what I saw instead -- "17 Again." I would've chosen the acrobats over the film (no offense Zac Efron), but circumstances prevented it. Here's what happened.

Our car (I was a passenger) took a different route than the other cars. It started to rain like crazy, and we took the Southwest Freeway toward downtown Houston. The traffic was practically at a standstill. We assumed there was a major accident ahead of us. We noted the time and realized we wouldn't make it before the seats were given away. So we decided to do something else. HERE'S WHERE IT GETS INTERESTING. As we approached the police cars, there was no accident -- just police escorting a truck off of the freeway. We decided to take the same exit. The truck was taken to the left, and others in my car noticed it was unmarked and there were buses pulling in by the truck. A couple of the girls said the truck was probably filled with illegal immigrants, and the buses were there to ship them back south of the border. The driver got out, and he was wearing a sombrero. We didn't stay to see them open the back of the truck, but I think there was something illegal going on.
It was pouring rain, and the access roads to the freeway were becoming a river. We headed back on the freeway and caught the movie. We got there after it just started and had to sit on the front row. We had a good time anyway, and the movie had a good message. I wouldn't really wish to go back to high school -- college was much better -- but if I did, I'd make the most of it and have more fun and get over my shyness.
Even though our group missed out on the acrobats, we got to know each other and had quite an adventure for the evening.

My ward is great. They have a calendar of events every month to allow the women to get involved in different groups. I like to take Sophia to the play group on Fridays. I love this picture of the kids all hanging out on a hammock. What an adorable bunch of kids! Sophia's smack dab in the middle, and it looks like she's eying another girl's ice cream cone.

Quotes of the month

"Sophia, eat it, or you're going to die!" -- Nathan, after I scared him into trying a clementine by saying people who don't eat fruits and veggies won't live as long as those who do. Sophia refused to bite her wedge, and Nathan burst into tears.

"Meow!" -- Sophia, who thinks she's a kitten.

Grateful moment

I'm grateful to have landed in such a great area. I'm glad the women at church have been so friendly and helpful. It makes the transition so much easier. I'm thankful for friends, old and new.