It's a Magical World

It is, indeed, a magical world being the mom of these two beautiful daughters. But today is about one in particular who I am so proud of I could just burst. Today was the long awaited day when the Third Grade sang Stella's song in chapel and Stella made an introductory speech in which she dedicated the song to Ms. Pressman. I was so nervous my hands were sweating and I could barely breathe even though I knew my girl was going to do an amazing job. She had worked so hard preparing her speech and the Third Grade had been learning and practicing the song for a long time. Finally after a pretty lengthy chapel, Ms. Jenkins introduced the grade and Stella in particular. Stella approached the microphone and delivered her speech with such poise and confidence. She smiled, spoke slowly, looked up and just seemed so relaxed. The class sang the song and got a standing ovation. It was one of the proudest moments of my life. Afterwards, Ms. Pressman made a thank you speech and she specifically thanked Stella and the Third Grade and mentioned how she loved the word 'magical' (a word that figures prominently in the song). There are no words to describe how happy and impressed I was. Stella worked hard. Practiced her speech frequently and pulled it off seemingly effortlessly. Following chapel, so many parents came up to compliment her. And she was gracious and appreciative. Seeing my daughter so proud of herself was an experience I will never ever forget and will always cherish. Also I was proud that Vivian was so accommodating as we needed Ranny to come early this morning to take her to school so I would definitely be on time. Vivian couldn't come to chapel, unfortunately, because there was a performance of the Rainbow Fish play for the caregivers. Vivian was totally fine with the setup and understanding of the need for me to be at chapel for Stella. Grandma and Grandpa also came, of course. In fact, in the taxi on the way to school (at around 8:15am) I got a text from Grandma saying they were already in chapel and saving seats. Only thirty minutes early! But that is how enthusiastic we all were. Congratulations Stella!

Shabbat Shalom

Today is Vivian's Red Room Shabbat and our last Shabbat at the Y. She has been asking for months about when it was going to be her turn and, at last, the day is here. 

We made Rice Krispie treats last night and, at first, Vivian wanted to do it all herself but she eventually, and with much pride, decided that Stella could help too.

You will observe from the clock on the wall that we were a little bit late on the whole bedtime thing. Nevertheless, it was so much fun baking together. I always think it's kind of worth staying up too late for a good time. Though no one (except me) woke up this morning until 7:45 and we had to have breakfast on the go.

After much deliberation, Vivian decided to read "Priscilla and the Pink Planet" which ended up being a perfect choice because there are three clear parts -- I am the Natrator, Vivian is Priscilla and Daddy is the Queen. Because Vivian is already such a strong reader, it's great that she has a fairly substantial part. We did rehearse it at home quite a bit. Last night Stella played The Queen and we went over it a lot of times. I'm feeling confident and super excited!

For Show and Tell, Viv decided to bring Monkey and Spot and Monkey and Spot and to tell the story of how she got Monkey when she was born and had slept with her every night of her life until she lost her (and Spot) in the Juice Press. And then eventually, happily, found them again. 

After Shabbat we have Viv's classroom visit to Trinity. So it is a big, exciting day. 

Egg Drop

I'm in an Uber racing from Stella's egg drop to Vivian's ballet recital. The egg drop was really fun. I asked Stella's science teacher if Stella's group could go first so I could see at least half of Viv's ballet as well and she kindly accommodated me. 

The Third Graders were so enthusiastic and adorable. Stella was the Carrier-Dropper and her group's result was "wet success" meaning the egg broke. Nevertheless, it was a really happy fun experience and I'm feeling a lot of love for Trinity right now.