Mrs. Martinez's Birthday

Last Thursday, I pulled all of Mrs. Martinez's homeroom kids from Mrs. Padilla's class to have them put their handprints on a huge birthday card for Mrs. Martinez. It turned out so cute!

So, on Monday afternoon, Leo's mom (Eva) and I had the office call down Mrs. Martinez so that Eva and I could sneak into the classroom. We passed out roses to each of the children and had them stand together, so that when she came back a couple of minutes later, the kids surrounded her to give her her birthday bouquet and the card. It couldn't have been more perfect!

I am so happy that we parents get along so well and enjoy creating lasting memories for our kids and their teachers!

(Thanks to Eva for the pictures. I totally forgot to bring my camera along.)

12th Annual Wiener Dog Races in Buda

Even though this was its twelfth year, this was our first year to attend this popular festival, celebrating those lengthy little doggies.

I have never been around so many people, so (disturbingly/obsessively) crazy about their dachsunds! It was as if I had a sign on my forehead that read: "Yes please, please tell me everything there is to know about this breed, you crazy wiener-dog person!"

Enlightening, if nothing else... Plus, the boys got to see the Oscar Meyer Wienermobile up close and personal! Unfortunately, we missed the opportunity to have their picture taken in a hot dog and for them to receive a wiener whistle--we were over at the Buda Bee at that time.

The Buda Bee

Aidan participated in the Kindergarten part of the "Buda Bee," a spelling bee that occured during the Buda Wiener Dog Races this weekend.

These are the best pictures I was able to get with the horrible backlighting, no flash, and the short lens I had with me. Not to mention my lack of attention to detail because I was so excited about the whole event! So, I apologize for the poor quality.

I was very proud of Aidan! He made it through the first round, but then missed the word 'said' given to him in the second round. But hey, it is a tough word--phonetically speaking--for a Kindergartener! Unfortunately, he was a bit humiliated by that and shed a few tears... that absolutely broke my heart! He's just fine now now and I'm sure he'll be excited to participate in next year's spelling bee. :)

Wild Connections

The Kindergarteners all had a spring field trip to Wild Connections Butterfly Farm/Nature Center in Austin. The kids got to hike through the woods, visit the enclosed butterfly farm and let butterflies taste the fruit they were holding, eat lunch under giant oak trees, and watch a video of the cycle of butterflies.

It was fun and informative for the kids!

Easter 2009

The boys awoke to find that the Easter Bunny left them several Star Wars toys. They were THRILLED! Right now, they are completely obsessed with everything Star Wars, so GOOD JOB, EB!

After eating breakfast and letting them play awhile with their new treats, we headed to Grandma/Grandpa Frohock's house in Lockhart for lunch and an egg hunt with the cousins.

Bluebonnet Bliss... NOT!

The bluebonnet session from hell! "The sun is too bright!" (It was behind them.) "Brendan, don't!" "Aidan stop it!" (Uncontrollable picking of our state flower continually commencing this entire time, with my constant threats falling on deaf ears.) This is probably one of the better of the 50+ photos I ended up taking of them in the bluebonnets. I was thrilled to find a good little patch of these Texas wildflowers; unfortunately, I didn't find any cooperative children to take pictures of! Good times. Maybe someone will let me borrow theirs next year...

Other so-so bluebonnet pics and several outtake pictures to come soon... I have plenty to share!

First Sleepover

Seems this blog is turning into a report of all my children's "firsts" now...

The boys helped celebrate one of Aidan's classmate's (and the boy's brother's) birthdays this weekend, which also included a sleepover. This was their very first sleepover--probably my fault, because it's so tough for me to be away from them very much. They had such a great time, though! Roasting marshmallows over an open campfire was a big hit (and gave me a heart attack a few times, as well). Don compared the site of all these boys gathered around a fire with the "Lord of the Flies" movie.

Don slept in the tent with all the kids and I stayed and chatted with other parents until about midnight, then left to enjoy the comforts of sleeping in my own bed.

The next morning, they called at 7am and were ready to come home. It had gotten very cold overnight... gotta love Texas weather!

Bouncing for Box Tops

Aidan's class won the Kindergarten portion of the Box Tops for Education contest by collecting more than 700 of the over 6700 total box tops collected by Blanco Vista Elementary students and faculty. They got to spend their recess jumping in the two different bounce houses, which were sponsored by Blanco Vista's PTA.

ALL of the kids had such a blast together!

Gummy bear!

Puhleeease! What's up with all the teeth coming out at once?!? Aidan just lost his second bottom tooth tonight, right before bedtime. It's so strange to just see GUMS where his two bottom teeth were less than a month ago!

The Tooth Fairy probably already has our address programmed into her GPS. =oP

Update on the boys' accomplishments

Brendan tested and qualified for the dual-language immersion program this afternoon. He had a perfect score on every section, according to the Principal! I'm so proud of him!

And, to make a great afternoon even better, Aidan did his "weekly" reading evaluation with his teacher (even though it's been 3 weeks since she last tested him) and his reading level went from 6 to 12 on the DRA Benchmarks! I cannot believe how far he has gone in such a short time... Aidan wasn't even reading at all when he started Kinder and now he's reading at nearly a 2nd grade level. Obviously, I'm very proud of him, as well!

Things are happy in the Frohock household tonight! =o)

Brendan has an important test tomorrow

And I am the one who is nervous! Brendan tests for entry into the dual-language immersion program tomorrow afternoon with the school Principal. It is the same program Aidan is currently in, so it is incredibly important that he be accepted... or it could potentially create some emotional turmoil in the household.

Please send some positive thoughts and prayers our way, if you can.