Llama Graduation

Well, we finally reached it; the end of preschool/daycare.   Alaina officially "graduated" from her preschool on Friday.   After graduation, we packed up her things, turned in our keys and waltzed out the door with a $2000/month pay raise.

Seriously though, I was a bit sentimental about her finishing.   We have been going to that school for 8 years.   We knew some of the teachers really well, and I think it was an excellent place for them to grow and learn.  

But we did limp to the finish line.   With the relocation of my hospital, it became more difficult for me to help with drop offs and pick ups.   Jason has also taken on new administrative responsibilities at work, and he was not so thrilled with this increased burden.   So we will be glad to have both of the kids in Marin with our au pair this summer.  Alaina will do a special camp at our elementary school for incoming kindergartners, so hopefully that will also help her transition into kindergarten for the fall.

The graduation ceremony, meanwhile, was very cute.   They prepared songs and a short video.  And afterwards there was a party complete with a Photo Booth.  

So, congrats to Alaina.   Our family's preschool chapter has ended.  Here's to upcoming kindergarten adventures!

Room Redo

We spend the better part of the day reorganizing Ethan's room.  
I should have taken a "before shot", but trust me, it was a disaster zone.   Piles of toys, furniture he had grown out of, old papers, trash, etc etc.  Time for a change.  

It was a big project, but worth the effort for sure.   The bed and dresser are in a new spot. And we moved a big bookcase from our office into his room to give him shelves for his his books and trinkets.  Here's the new look:

We are going to try to sell his old bookshelf, table, and air hockey set on craig's list, and will use the money to purchase a few new decorations....stay tuned!

Alaina the Ballerina

Alaina has recently taken up ballet.   We have this very cute ballet school for little kids near our house.  About a year ago,  she tried it out, but was overwhelmed and wouldn't participate.   But she still had an interest in ballet, and I think after seeing the movie "Leap", she asked to try again.

There were some nervous tears at the first class, but she got control of her emotions and completed it--and even seemed to really enjoy herself.
I have to say it is really cute and really sweet.

I hope that she sticks with it--it is cool for her to do something that her brother does not do!

One of Ethan's first texts

No, he does not have a phone.   He figured out how to do this from his ipad and sent it to me when I was out shopping.   So really a guilt trip rather than the sweet message it appears to be.   I thought it was cute though so I wanted to save.
He tells me, "Alaina is the crazy one, I am the cool one, and you and dad are the doctors".
LOL.   How technology is changing our youth.

Cherry Time

Well, it is the beginning of cherry season out here in California, and Alaina has been begging to go cherry picking again.   Since I am on call next weekend, it was either this weekend or never, so we headed out today.     I guess you could say that this has become an annual family event--though as Jason said, it is an awfully expensive trip to the grocery store.   Still the kids like it, and it is nice to take a drive to something not sports-related.

We  brought home 8 pounds of cherries, and probably consumed close to that in the orchard.   It has been a cooler than normal spring, so not too hot for picking.   The orchards were crowded though--not all farms were yet open, so the ones that were had lots of people.

Tonight for dinner we decided to do a little bake off--I made a cherry cobbler and a cherry crisp.   Jason has been asking for a cobbler for several years--though I prefer crisps--so we will see which gets the most votes and remember for next year.   They both smell pretty good!

Mother's Day

We celebrated Mother's Day today.   Jason's family came to our house for brunch.   Unfortunately, Jason was stuck working most of the night before at the hospital so was pretty groggy when our company arrived....and our weather was cold and windy--so no nice outdoor brunch.   But we made the most of it!

This year, Ethan bought home a "book" that he wrote at school.  It actually was a really cool present, and I have to type it out here to have a record of it!

"My Mom is the Best" By Ethan Greenberg

My mom is the best and you'll see once you look at the book.  My mom is to caring to me.
To start, my mom keeps me healthy.  She doesn't give me treats everyday.  Two, she likes me to do a lot of sports.   Lastly, she makes me sleep for a long time, so I have lots of energy for the day.   Next, my mom is kind because she spends time with me.   For example, she works but spends time with me.   This is important because if I didn't spend time with her I would feel sad.   Another reason she is kind is by spending money on stuff for me that's not for her.
Finally, my mom shows the six pillars of character.   She's respectful to others even if she doesn't like them.   For example, she doesn't become mean when she takes care of people she knows are bad.  She shows trustworthiness because she doesn't lie.   This is important because I wouldn't want a mom to lie to me everyday.   My mom shows citizenship a lot.   For example, she asks if I'm ok if I get hurt.   As you can see my mom is the best.

Quite a present!

Girls Weekend

Last weekend, I was able to go on a “girls getaway" with 6 of my medical school friends.  Although we graduated medical school almost 14 years ago, this is the first time that we were all able to get together (except at each other’s weddings) since then.   It has certainly been a busy 14 years completing residency and fellowship training, getting married, and having children (15 total amongst us!)  So now that all of our kids are a bit older, it was nice to be able to get together and reconnect.

Moms in a minivan:

We chose Phoenix for our destination.   On Saturday and Sunday mornings we got up early to beat the heat and went on hikes.  Saturday was to Tom’s Thumb, a 4.5 mile round trip hike up to a view point in Scottsdale.   

On Sunday, we took a shorter, but steeper and more challenging hike to the top of Camelback mountain—the train rose 1300 feet in 1.2 miles—really more of a rock scramble than a hike, and certainly a good, albeit anaerobic, work out!

We enjoyed relaxing by the pool in the afternoons, and even went to the spa as an early mother’s day treat to ourselves!   We are lucky to have such great husbands who allowed us to travel by watching the kids!

We made tentative plans to get together again in 2020—hope we can make it work!