Hampton Hot Day

do you remember last week we had a heavy rainstorm?? and now hoping to hit 80 degrees, but i'll settle for 79. i pulled out the first dress on top in the spring&summer bin. it was the gap hampton one, ariana worn this on the first day of school. get this - it was too hot to wear the the matching blue shrug. i dug into her shoe cabinet to pull out the black saltwaters sandals.
the kinders had a busy schedule. first it was arts vista, the docent showed several paintings of houses. afterwards the kids were instructed to draw a dream house they would like to live in. they used pastel chalk and given a paper towel to smear it for the shaded-look. ariana drew a castle house with a tower. when she showed me her finished art work - "do you think the museum would like this?" the kids never get to take home their art vistas projects, as they will be auctioned off on gallery night in may. next on the agenda, they are still working on writing "how to" steps. todays lesson was "how to make chocolate chip pancakes". the 2 teachers acted it out, where the instructor had to give precise instructions or else. the children had a blast, very similar to mr noodle on sesame street. cant go wrong with yummy pancakes, and the entertainment. the children played grabbed the eraser tag, where some kids were left in tears. one her foot hurt in new shoes, another girl didnt feel like playing thinking it was not lady-like, and one because she tied with ariana and thought she lost. if you dont grab the eraser, then you tag the person who got it. well one kid (girl) knocked down a boy ending up crying (i think his elbow arm got hurt). by the time it was ready to line up, another boy started to. thank God the bell rung - spring break here we come.

Indigo Blue

awww finally SUNSHINE and made it to the 70's. and warm enough to wear sandals too. these are her "play" saltwaters that i never put away (size 10 strappys). i didnt get around to bringing out the spring/ summer dress bins in. this gap dress from indigo line was still hanging in her closet. the last time she wore this was when school started. she's wearing the headband that matches the top. i brought along the pink jacket with the blue print lining - just in case the wind picks up. and can't forget the sunglasses too, darling.

Spring Celery Green

i am in the process of putting away ariana's fall & winter wardrobe away. all sweater dresses are in one bin, hoping she will fit them at the end of the year. i am working on another bin of just dresses where most are fall-colored & xmas-sy looking. i always leave our favorite naartjie dress out that we have been wearing since 2009. i remember rolling up the sleeves at least 2 times, and loved the long ankle length look. now 3 years later, she has grown into this celery size 5 dress. wearing it with tcp army capri leggings & european bopy boots. its still too early (cold) to wear sandals. we reached 65 with 10 mph winds.
2009

Gap Polo

another kinder combined day (kcd) where all 5 classrooms start at 8:00. not do i have to wake & dress ariana up, i have to get myself up too. even tho there is no rain forecasted for the week with hopes to hit 75, i still have to dress her according to how cold it is in the morning. this is a gap polo i picked up last year, its a size S (6-7). a little long but goes well with tcp denim jeggings. and checkout ariana's big girl tooth - its coming up and she loves showing it off.
ariana isnt thrilled about kcd because theres a girl in the morning class who NEVER listens to the teacher. its like "oh no, everybody has to deal with xyz's drama!" when i picked her up, first thing she told me her day "guess what, it wasnt that bad because xyz behaved!" ariana is looking forward to the next kcd already.

College Day

all there is to watch is college basketball games one after another. march madness began with 64 games, then 32, sweet 16, elite 8, making it to the final four next week. luckily theres only 2 halves to play, but sometimes they go into overtime. teachers are encouraged to wear their favorite college apparel to promote higher education. there was probably something for the older kids, nothing for the kinders. ariana wore her cal poly hoodie and felt like a big girl, plus the fact she matched kuya joshua. she was the only kid in her class wearing one, guess not much 5-year olds have a sibling going to college. luckily she has one, cuz josh is going to pay for her college tuition with his good money making job he's going to get. we'll be on fixed income by the time ariana graduates from high school. at least thats the plan.

Got RAINboots?

with the heavy storm hitting us, i got a chance to wear my new rainboots. they are really cute with a black tartan plaid pattern on them from target. there was an online deal for kids rainboots too on another website. i had plans for ariana to wear these dav leopard-print ones next season. it looks like she has gone thru her whole rainboot collection. i'll have to take count in how many pairs she has. (correction: 5 pairs, havent worn the gap black ones.) byron was looking at just her bootrack alone and asked the stupid question "why does she have so many?" duh. you cant wear suede ones in the rain, so theres the patent ones. ankle or up to the knees. plus brown vs black. ariana is wearing one of our fav corduroy dress from gap himalaya line. i was able to get it in a bigger size 5T. tcp tights and gap legwarmers to fill in the boots.

Spring Picture Day

it sure doesnt feel like spring here - even tho sunday was the first day and we moved our clocks forward the weekend before. it seems the storm moves thru during the night, giving a break when its time to go to school. this is the photo with the spring outdoor background. they advice you to wear plain bright colors and long sleeves. last night i must have pulled out several tops, only to get "thumbs down" from josh. they were either going to clash with the background or didnt look spring-ish. and why on earth would i pay for pictures done in a plain colored top?? the closest thing we have are turtlenecks. half of ariana's spring-summer wardrobe are still in bins. i did narrow it down to 2 tops with jeans. but when it came time to dress her, i made my decision based on the weather. its the gymbo denim dress from cowgirls at heart line. its plain denim and long sleeves. i know it doesnt scream "spring", but we are not obligated to buy these nor are they used for school purposes.

Lelli Kellys

ariana has been wanting a pair of lelli kellys shoes for the longest time. the commercial got to her, just like the one for twinkle toes. lelli's are embellished with beads/sequins and embroidered flowers on a rubber sole. they are european shoes and usually run at nordstrom for $69. there was a $22 deal for them that me & my loopie ladies group grabbed. i bought a red pair size 29 (us 11) planning ahead for this fall - and they were huge. ariana probably wont be able to wear it til next year. i was able to buy these black ones size 28 off from a loopie who sized-up too. todays outfit was built-up based on the shoes. gymbo wild one polka dot dress & matching hoodie.

Kinder Match

it was bound to happen. ariana has a classmate that wears gymbo too. when i picked her up from school, ariana said "me and my friend match today". i was like "oh you guys are both in gray?" instead, they were wearing the same dress. its the cowl neck fleece one from gymbo dance team line. the pockets have sequins and i specifically bought these stripe tights from crazy8. hint - i put a safety pin for the collar to fall like that. a lesson i learned from the 80's.

SUNDAY, MARCH 20, 2001
First Day of Spring
with this heavy storm moving thru the bay area, there is no sign of spring. i was hoping for a call for filipino dance to be cancelled. luckily there was a break in the weather. i was THIS close in not going, but ariana was sick last weekend and theres only a couple more lessons in the workshop left. joshua is home from college. it was really nice to be home all together again. we set up the Wii for each one of us (Mii). josh was making us with big noses or different hairstyles, just making ariana crack up big time. the sound of her laughter was so genuine and made all of us laugh. guess it doesnt take much to entertain us. great family fun.

Ahoy Aden Birthday

for the past week at school, all the kids have been counting down to Aden's birthday party. arrrgh matey!! after going to the party with ariana, i go and take joshua to cache creek casino (indian). guess thats whats in store when you have kids 17 years apart. talkin about spreading my mommy bonding time.

RAINfall for Monkeys

gusty winds and heavy rain is pouring on us today, along with a tornado warning in the peninsula. yikes. can't believe all this is happening after the nice weather we had yesterday. ariana's wardrobe started out with the boots, they are from gymbo purrfect autumn/fall for monkeys line. the only thing close enough to match them was a dress from the same line. imagine wearing orange & brown in the middle of march, spring is in a few days. unfortunately i wasnt able to grab the raincoat on sale, so gaps warmest coat will do. its filled with 80% down which is more than enough to keep my little eskimo warm. not sure how it'll hold up in chicago's wintertime.

Happy St. Paddy's Day

aka Mommy's Birthday. Happy Birthday to me - THELMA!!! in honor of my birthday, ariana is wearing green. its a top from gymbo pop of daisies line. i rarely put her in jeans to school, they just dont fit her right. i had no choice, jeans or white pants (you pick?). even tho these have adjustable waist buttons, ariana had to keep pulling them up at recess. sportin her new pair of geox sneakers and her tinkerbell watch. there are numbers 5, 10, 15 and so on - by each number. i know hardly anybody wears a watch these days, but i still want her to learn how to tell time the "old-fashion" way. i havent worn one for 5 years, i either flip open my cellphone or look at the computer. i did warn ariana not to show the kids during class, or else the teacher might take it away. same rules apply to like those silly-bands. when i was looking for a jacket, i told byron "do you know i dont have a green coat for ariana?" he said "i'm not surprised!" i wonder if he just gave me the go-ahead to go out and buy one?? because you know they are all on sale after today.

Wild Mango

my original plans this week was for ariana to wear green in honor of st. patricks day. most of the outfits we have are for spring, and the weather isnt cooperating with her wardrobe. rain off & on everyday and barely 60 degrees, luckily the showers wait til late afternoon or at night. ariana is wearing this outfit from wild mango, a south african clothing brand. its a tad big on her, at least she could wear it again this coming fall. mjc oatmeal ruffle leggings and european bopy boots. the coat of da day - gymbo gray cord from little hearts line. when i gave byron the go ahead to put her in the car, i said "this is the best i could throw together". in kinder they are learning to write "how to". the teacher had a project of how to make lemonade, and then have the kids draw the steps.
1. squeeze the lemon
2. pour water
3. add sugar
4. mix (stir)

Red to Support Schools

forgive me - i got camera happy with ariana feeling better. its so nice to see her back being silly posing and smiling for the daily photoshoot. i picked out for ariana to wear the red kelly kid dress with matching tights. rain clogs are from gymbo happy rainbow line. encouraged to wear red to support the teachers in our school district and in california. its the deadline for districts to hand out preliminary pink slips that they could possibly loose their job. the state budget will effect california's education system if both a local tax measure and governor brown’s proposed tax extensions fail.

Sail Away Cold

why the school made a kinder combined day after daylights savings time?? we set the clocks forward and lost an hour. i usually wake ariana up at 7:00 for 8 o'clock class, which is really 6:00 in the morning. what were they thinking?? things like this makes byron want to go to the PTA meetings to address. the rain is back - off & on and going for the nautical sailor look. ariana is wearing my favorite sweater from gymbo outlet, with gap sailor jeans.

98 is the Magic Number

woohoo - no more fever!! we have been fighting this since tuesday night. ariana temperature is back to normal. now if we could just get rid of this cold cough. you know she is feeling better - she declared this morning a donut day and wants sushi for dinner. wearing the alligator stripe top from gymbo daisy day line. gap fleece nautical pants.

Publishing Party

my girl is such a trooper. the fever kicks in at night, plus she has a cold on top of it. we thought about keeping her at home for the day. "but what about the publishing party?" she was so worried, who is going to read her story. we made the exception again and let her go, plus i'm volunteering all day. each kid writes a 3 page story - beginning, middle and end. ariana story was "My Tooth Fell Out" when she lost her first tooth in class.

Arts Vista Fish

theres still a slight fever, but ariana feels well enough to go to school. its arts vista day, which she is always looking forward to do crafty. the only reason why dad gave the go-ahead is because i'm a helper. the docent shows the class paintings of boats & fishes. the kids learned about horizontal and vertical lines. you actually paint on live fishes, i stuffed tissue in the mouth so it'll stay open. place a cloth over it and get an imprint. presto!! ariana wore her favorite tracksuit from costco with gap tee.

Ash Wednesday

the fever is back and my baby girl is sick again. no school. her cold is still lingering on, but the docs think she's teething too. the big girl tooth cut through and the tooth next to it is wiggly loose. ariana said "can you ask God to make me well tonight?" i told her i could pray for her anytime.

Fat Tuesday

all ariana wanted to wear today was PINK, just so she could wear these pink hair accessory for her ponytail. luckily i scored this cord skirt at gymbo outlet last week. her outfit grew into wearing the argyle vest & trench from new york girl puppy school. (sorry didnt get a pick in the trench, but at least we can say we wore it). some light sprinkles this morning with the storm clearing out to hit 60 deg. ended up driving ariana to school since she still has a slight cold/cough. she said "i wish God made our noses turned up". so cute, this way we wouldnt have "runny" noses. i wish that too, as sometimes i walk around with a tissue stuck up mines - sinus (ugggh).

Monday Winds

this is crazy8 back-to-school line, altho i refer it to as janet jackson red military outfit. this time wearing with navy turtleneck and boots. its so really windy and wore a gap navy coat. look what arrived in the mail today - another gap coat. with all the hoopla about the royal wedding next month, there was a shot of kate wearing a white coat and wanted one for my princess. i remember i use to wear drop waist dresses like princess diana, a 80's thing.

Childrens Ethnic Dance Festival

LIKHA kids perform in the dance festival in San Francisco. Croatian American Cultural Center. Sunday March 6th - 2:00 pm. The dancers are from the Croatian, Indian, Polish, Hungarian and Filipino communities of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Miss X-ray

saturday mornings are suppose to be my turn to sleep in. ariana woke up before us again. usually she will call either one of us. either we didnt hear her or we were both sleeping. after going potty on her own, she hops into the middle of our bed. guess thats her way of telling us she's awake. then she'll scoot over to my side to snuggle up to me, and i assume (wishful thinking) ariana will go back to sleep. finally after 15 minutes, she gives up and says "i'm tired of just laying here".