Peachy 4.5

This month Peachy turned 4 and a half. We are six months away from five years old! Peachy has really grown up lately. She looks much more mature to me and acts the same.

She is still as creative as ever, always having an idea for a project. Some of her art and projects truly amaze me. She really has a creative mind. We also do some preschool everyday. She knows all of her upper and lowercase letters and has started to do a little sounding out. (Although she is a bit hesitant.)

She is also grasping numbers and always asking me what this plus that equals. (Keeps me on my tows and my mind sharp, I tell you.) She loves attending our church's Sunday School and it is a true joy to watch her little faith grow and blossom. She recently sang with the other children in Sunday School in front of the church and she stood up there and sang her heart out.

Before bed each night she asks for a story from one of her children's Bibles and loves learning "Jesus" songs. We downloaded some children's Christian music onto her little mp3 boombox and it makes my heart so happy to hear her and Cream singing along with the truths of God's word.

We started both girls in gymnastics three weeks ago and she loves her class. (Unfortunately I am with Cream during her class time so I don't get to see much of what she is up to.) We still attend our parent and child class offered through our state and city. She is the oldest one in the class and it is fun watching her be a leader in there.

She is thoroughly excited to be a big sister again and will often hug and pat my tummy. (As well as marvel at how big it is getting. :o)

She is also being an excellent sister to Cream. It has been so much fun watching them bond more and more in the recent months. They will play and play some days. (And some days they will fight and fight. Ah, sisterly love.)

What a blessing and joy to watch this little girl grow and flourish in our home and family.

Around Here

I was just looking through pictures on the camera and found too many good ones not to share. So pardon the bit of a photo dump, I couldn't help myself.

One day Peachy decided to style Cream's hair, with the spray bottle we use to clean the floor. Thank goodness I clean with vinegar and water!

In an odd combination of events, the girls decided that Mr. Cherry should take them out one night after supper.

Peachy wanted help with her rollerblading.

And Cream wanted to test out our new-to-us carrier. They all enjoyed themselves and I went for a walk. We will just call him Super Dad!

One of the fro yo places in town had a special promo for the day. Since we were out around lunch time, I decided we would just go and have fro yo for lunch. Peachy decided it was okay as long as we had real food for dessert.

Cream was happy with the change of events and wishes it took place more often.

Peachy got the idea that she needed to set up a photo booth in the living room. She was very specific in her timing, that we needed to take the pictures once it was dark. So after supper we set up the tripod for a few selfies.

The girls and I headed to a harvest event at a very old farm property outside of town this past weekend. The bluegrass band asked if the girls wanted to join in on the rhythm section.

We also got to examine some pretty cool pumpkin and squash varieties.

Peachy's First Art Class

In the midst of our busy August, Peachy was able to go to a three day art class for 3-5 year olds through park and rec.

The artist with her 3 main projects. The fish is a piece of cardboard with spackling (or as Peachy told us, wall fixing stuff), painted, and then decorated with sequins. The picture on her left is water color with crayon resist. And the picture on the right is water color on artist board with salt and glue added.

It was for one hour each of the days. Both Peachy and I would have liked for it to have been a bit longer, but having worked with 3 year olds, I can see why they kept it at one hour. She really enjoyed going each day. They did talk about some simple art concepts and worked on projects each day. One project had three steps, so they completed a different part each day. I really enjoyed the two park programs that Peachy was able to participate in this summer. I only wish there were some more coming up in the fall and winter. I guess that is the price you pay when you live in a cold climate.

Swimming with Peachy

Mr. Cherry and I haven't had Peachy involved in many activities up to this point. It is just our own personal parenting philosophy. This summer, however, it worked out well to put her in swimming lessons. She ended up taking lessons at a college in town, just a few miles from our house.

One of her friends was in the class with her, which worked out really well. The class went for 2 weeks, half of an hour each day. I was very impressed with the program and will definitely be making use of it again.

Going into these lessons, Peachy wasn't super comfortable in the water. She loves playing in pools, but doesn't even like getting her face wet in the tub at home. I figured this class would help her feel more comfortable. Kind of be an introduction to swimming.

Up until the last day of classes, I figured we would be repeating the level. However, Peachy grew so much over the two weeks. She became so much more comfortable and confident in the water. By the last day, she was swimming around with her float belt on.

Happily putting her face in the water. And guess what?? She passed!!! Her teacher even told us that as of Wednesday she wasn't going to. I was so proud of her. She grew so much in those 10 days!! (I may have gotten a little chocked up when she got her certificate.)

Swim, Peachy, swim!
(And a big thanks to my friend, Lisa, for getting these pictures for me. My little point and shoot just didn't cut it!)

Peachy and Cream Together

My royal children

Lately these two have been having more and more success at playing together. This does not mean that they always play together nicely, but they are having longer and longer stretches of playing without a huge disagreement. I came home the other day to find them dressed like this.

Cream does make a cute Prince!

Peachy informed me that she wad the princess and Cream was her Prince. (Mr. Cherry informed me that Peachy had to tackle Cream to get all of the pieces of the costume in place. However, when I arrived they both seemed happy with the set up.)

I believe that the prince is rescuing his damsel in distress here.

Peachy is Four!

On Friday, this girl turned four years old!

We partied it up four year old style. I will share more on the party later. It was a lot of fun, though. Today I feel like staying in my pajamas all day long and relaxing. :o) Maybe that can be a late Mother's Day gift to myself.
An interview with four year old Peachy:

1. What is your favorite color? Pink

2. What is your favorite toy? Princesses

3. What is your favorite fruit? Apples

4. What is your favorite tv show? Super Why

5. What is your favorite movie? Cinderella

6. What is your favorite thing to wear? Dresses (because I like princesses)

7. What is your favorite animal? MoMo (her stuffed dog)

8. What is your favorite song? Jesus Loves Me

9. What is your favorite book? The Bible

10. Who is your best friend? Annabel

11. What is your favorite snack? Crackers

12. What is your favorite drink? Lemonade

13. What is your favorite breakfast? Sandwich

14. What is your favorite lunch? Peanut Butter Sandwich

15. What is your favorite dinner? Spaghetti

16. What is your favorite game? Uno

17. What is your favorite thing to play outside? Jump Rope (Although she hasn't ever done this.)

18. What is your favorite holiday?  Christmas

19. What do you sleep with at night? MoMo and Eeyore

20. What do you want to be when you grow up? A Doctor

Peachyisms

Peachy is quite the talker. She can carry on a conversation, express her feelings, and has a very good vocabulary. Here are some of the things that have come out of her mouth as of late.
-After biting into a pickle, she said, "That spiced my ears."

-While explaining why she is shy around boys she said, "But I am not shy with my friends, daddy, and grandpa and grandpa. Oh, and my cousins, they are my best players."

-She was recently singing, "Hosanna, don't you cry for me." And "Sha la la la, what did you say?"

Two Clowns

I have been having a very hard time getting pictures of the girls these days.

Peachy seems to be in a stage where she either hams it up or avoids the camera all together.

And Cream is just a constant ball of motion.

Getting a good picture of either of them is hard, but one of both of them together is down right impossible.

Here are some shots I recently took while they were both sitting in a chair together.

Fail!

A Little of the Peachster

This little girl that came into our hearts and lives over three years ago is growing up. A parent's job is a funny thing when you think about it. You are given these helpless creatures that you are entirely responsible for and asked to make them completely independent. All the while caring for every aspect of their life. If you do your job well, they will need you less and less every year and eventually you will essentially lose your job.

My "little girl" is growing up so fast and becoming such a fun girl. (But don't worry, when she is "ascared" or hurt, she still needs her momma.) She is utterly creative. It is so much fun to see the little drawings that she creates and watch her add more and more detail. She loves to sing and dance as well as play dress up. I love some of the outfits she comes up with out of the dress up bins. (I really need to get better at having a camera around to grab a picture of some of those fabulous frocks.)

She is also a dreamer. This has its pluses and minuses. There are so many times in the day that I have to encourage her to focus on the task at hand like getting ready to head out the door. However, she can  wile away the entire day in her own creative world of play.

We are currently taking a community family play class once a week and she absolutely loves it and looks forward to going to class all week long. She also is in Sunday School this year at our church. It is so enjoyable for Mr. Cherry and I to watch her faith grow along with her understanding of the Bible. No greater joy.

And one last Peachy story to close out this entry. The other night Mr. Cherry and I were debating whether Cream needed a diaper change. Peachy walked up to Cream, sniffed her bottom, and said, "Nope, she isn't stinky. She smells like marshmallows."

Away in a Manger

This weekend Peachy participated in her first Sunday school Christmas service. It is hard for me to even express the joy this brought to my heart. Watching my little lamb proudly sharing her faith with everyone in attendance brought tears to my eyes. (Unfortunately we were not able to see her where we were sitting. But I am thinking this is maybe a good thing, because then I would have really lost it. Thankfully we will be able to get a copy of a dvd that was made.) Cream sat and stood on my lap entranced with the children up in front of the church and even joined in "singing" on a couple of the songs.
I have been involved in more Christmas services than I can count. I was a participant every year from kindergarten through the end of college in either a children's service or sacred concert and then I was a director until I had Peachy and "retired" from teaching. Even without my child participating the impact of all of those young voices uniting in the familiar Christmas story and those often sung Christmas hymns and songs has always touched my heart. And this year it was a double whammy. There was my child, grown up enough to be up front with the other kids, adding her voice to Away in a Manger and Go Tell It on the Mountain. And then there was the recent shooting in Connecticut also weighing heavily on my heart.
What a wonderful privilege to see my little one expressing the faith that is in her heart and allowing us all to take time and focus on the true reason we celebrate Christmas, that little Lord Jesus in the manger bed.

What Peachy AND Cream Wore This Week: Winter Accessories

Winter is now completely upon us here in the northern portion of the country. We have a nice ground cover of snow and the temps have all dipped well below the freezing mark. Peachy is having a hard time figuring out why the snow just isn't melting on the sunny days we have been having. But what the girl can figure out is how to rock the winter accessories.
Here she is modeling her new winter boots for us all to admire.

You heard it here first, people, layering your princess dresses with your winter snow boots is going to be the latest trend. (At least among those under 4 years of age.)

Isn't this a fierce pose? I am telling you, this girl has modeling down. Watch out LA, Peachy is coming to town.

However, Peachy isn't the only one who is able to pull off the winter gear this year. She had better watch out because Cream is all about accessorizing as well. Check out how well she pulls of the stocking hat.

It appears Cream is leaning toward the gangster look in her approach to the cold and fashion. One last look at a complete ensemble by Cream.

The snotty nose and cheesy grin all add an air of candidness to the snowsuit look, wouldn't you say? Now go out there, stay warm, and look good doing it!

The Christmas Cow

I have no excuse for the lack of posts this week other than Christmas business. We have been partying it up this week and now we all seem to have colds. Go figure! Here is hoping that they are gone before Christmas. (Oh, and we don't get another before then.)

Last weekend we got most of our Christmas decorations up. Peachy just loved it all. She even wore her Christmas cow costume! And helped Mr. Cherry with a dress-up outfit as well. Maybe a new Christmas tradition for our house? :o)

I will get more pictures up of the other decorations in our house once I get the mess taken care of today. When you are busy and your kiddos aren't feeling 100%, it is hard to stay on top of the clutter. I have big plans for taking it on today and winning!