Cars anyone?

No, we're not in the market for a new car--I wish. I'm actually talking about Disney Pixar Animations newest full-length animated movie---CARS!
Caitlin had been anticipating Cars' arrival to the big screen since seeing a preview on her Toy Story 2 DVD. She kept saying, "Pixar Animations presents Cars" and stating that it was coming out pretty soon. Well, we decided to treat Caitlin to her first movie at the theatre where she could see Cars on the big screen. On opening night, the Ogoe-McLean clan piled into the trusty Trail Blazer to catch the 7:00 show at the Chinese theatre in Aurora. Having a genius moment, I decided to purchase our tickets online so that we were promised seats. It was probably a good thing that I did because there were only a few empty seats in the stadium style theatre.
Anyway, Caitlin ran inside and made a bee line for the concession stand. Once there, she decided to get some candy and a Sierra Mist. Mommy had pretzel bites and Daddy got popcorn. Armed with our goodies, we entered the theatre to claim our seats. Caitlin was afraid to go into the dark theatre at first, but when Daddy picked her up and she saw other kids go in, she got over her fear.
We were concerned that she wouldn't sit still or would be really loud during the movie. We had to remind her to use her quiet voice a few times and she got restless towards the end (a 90+ minute movie) but, I for one, was so impressed with how good she did...she was totally into the movie! Everyone was telling me that I was nuts to take a not even 3 year old to the movie theatre well...poo on them! We had a blast and plan to do it again soon, when another cool kid movie comes to town. I think we're also going to try the circus and Disney on Ice. Having a big girl is so much fun!

A new identity

I've seen this posted on a lot of blogs and it is hilarious. I decided that I needed a laugh today so here goes...

1. YOUR MOVIE STAR NAME: (grandfather/grandmother on your father's side, your favorite candy): Florence Reeses

2. YOUR "FLY GIRL/GUY" NAME: (first initial of first name followed by izzle", first two or three letters of your last name follwowed by "dizzle"): Lizzle McDizzle

3. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal): Blue Horse

4. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (first 3 letters of your name- last 3 letters of mother's maiden name, first 3 letters of your pet's name repeated twice): Launds Win Win


5. SUPERHERO NAME: ("The", your favorite color, the automobile you drive): The Blue Trailblazer (I cheated and used my husband's car; blue GrandAm just didn't sound good)

For those Kodak (or Canon) moments

I took Caitlin to Barnes & Noble today (on the way, we had to play in the water fountain out front) to look for a baby book. Books stores are one of her favorite places to go and she makes a bee line for the children's section. Watching her brings back memories of going to the library and book store with my mom as a child.
Anyway...getting the point of my post...as we were in the store, Caitlin did some of the cutest things like read a Toy Story 2 book to me, play with a Thomas the Tank train set and dance on the little story time stage they had. Each time, I found myself thinking...gee, it would be way cool to have a little portable digital camera that I could just throw in my purse and have handy when one of the girls (thinking ahead) does something cute. We have a digital camera already but it is a bit bulky. Granted, it takes crystal clear photos, but it's not something that you'd just casually lug around. So, when we got home, after missing several post-worthy photo ops, I went onto trusty amazon.com and came across this. It only weighs 2.6 pounds but has 5MP and a 3x optical zoom. Perfect for stashing in the purse or diaper bag and pulling out at a moment's notice. So, months ahead of time, I know what I want for Christmas!

So proud...

Okay, get ready for a proud mommy post...yes, I'm going to brag about my preschooler...I'm allowed to once in awhile, right?
I'm a little late in posting this, but as the saying goes, better late than never--
Caitlin's learning center hosted parent-teacher conferences last week. Since we just started in May, this was our first opportunity to attend. We booked our appointment for Thursday morning with Ms. Maryls, Caitlin's teacher.
We must be doing something right as parents because Ms. Maryls sang Caitlin's praises. She told us how Cait is the "little mommy" of her class, making sure that the other kids are okay, urging them along and things like that. Apparently, she is also a natural born leader and her enthusiasm is contagious with the other kids. My child, a social butterfuly? Could we have a future world leader on our hands?
We also talked about how advanced Cait is for her age, especially in her oral communications skills. I continue to be amazed by some of the words that I hear her say and the way that she constructs sentences and tells stories. Ms. Maryls told us that Caitlin has the cutest imagination and that she gets a kick out of watching her play pretend with the other children or "read" a book. Caitlin will make up a story to go along with the pictures that she sees. She also has an incredible memory. Like at home, Ms. Maryls will read a book a few times and if they read it again, even weeks later, she will notice that Caitlin is mouthing the words to the book. Here at home, we have a bedtime ritual where we read the same books just about every night. Currently on her reading list are: Knuffle Bunny, an adorable story about a little girl who leaves her favorite bunny at the laundry mat; What Do You Do With A Kangaroo?, this book, my mom used to read to me when I was little, and Why The Banana Split. What simply amazes me is that if you ask her questions from these books, she can answer them. For example, if you ask her what the basketball players did in Why the Banana Split, without missing a beat, that "They went traveling". I can barely remember where I put my keys most days, much less the storyline of a book I just read.
About 6 months ago, I took Caitlin to the school district to have her evaluated because, I'd though that she was "advanced" for her age but wanted to see if it was true of if I was just another proud mom bragging about her child. Well, it turned out that our suspicions were correct. Caitlin tested at just shy of a 4 year old intellect level. They wanted us to place her in preschool then, but we didn't feel that she was developmentally ready. Now however, she is, at least for junior preschool. Ms. Maryls assured us that she was blossoming and that she was going to recommend that Caitlin to promoted to full-blown preschool in the fall! My 3 year old, in preschool! I'm so proud of her.
There are days when I wonder how I'm doing as a parent...those days when I loose my cool or I just want to be left alone. It takes a few days like this parent-teacher conference to reassure me that I'm doing a good job. Now, if only we could nail the potty-training!
Thanks for letting me brag...I truly am so proud of the smart and whitty little girl that my daughter has become. She is a firecracker and it has been a joy & a challenge raising her so far.