It's a Small World After All

Today at Brayden and Sydneys school they had the Filipino equivalent to Halloween; Pretend Day. This year the theme at school was It's a Small World After All and every class was a different continents. Sydney was Australia and so she was able to dress up like and Australian animal, and Brayden was African and was assigned to dress up as an African. Other places were Asia, North America and Europe. Each class set up a booth which included a stamp for their passport, a game and prize for their completion of the game.
I was a parent volunteer for the Gummi Class (Sydney) and helped out at the booth during their 2 hour class with a couple of the other parents from Syd's class. We had to be their early this morning which meant that after I was done icing the cupcakes Ryan made the night before and the cookies I had cooked at 6:30am I was on my way to set up while Ryan was in charge of getting the kids ready and out the door to school. Sydney ended up being a great white shark which was an easy costume we bought a local department store and Brayden... well I have to say that Ryan really did quite the job with Brayden! When I say quite the job I mean Brayden really looked the part! It was perfect and of course I wouldn't expect anything less from Ryan.

The bonus to being a parent volunteer meant that I could follow the kids around a bit when there wasn't anyone at our booth and take some pictures of them playing their games! When the day was over they were able to accumulate quite the stash which defiantly makes up for the lack of trick or treating this year!!

Happy 4th Birthday Brayden!

So on Thursday Brayden felt he had decided he was a big boy now because he was 4 years old. In his birthday excitment we were all up at 5:30am which is 30 minutes earlier then normal, we usually sleep though the intial call from the roosters. Mom, not so excited to wake up so early! It was a good day and Brayden finally got a much needed haircut just in time for his party the next day!

Friday was party day. Again, so excited to have our friends come over we were up at 5:30am, again I was not so excited about this. We decided to invite a couple families from church who Brayden really enjoys playing with. The couple of days before were spent making fondant for the cake and the kids and I making a horrible mess on the floor in our attempt to make a pinata. Brayden decided that he wanted a Power Rangers birthday cake which was a shocker to me since I didn't even have a clue he knew what a Power Ranger was and I had no idea what they were other then fighting characters on TV. I guess it's the begininning of peer influence. So Brayden and I searched the internet for pictures of Power Ranger cakes until he found something that he was excited about. I did the best I could and I figure I've come along way since his first birthday cake of a smeared soccer ball.

The festivities included a treasure hunt, pinata beating, food and cake and the kids took care of the rest playing outside, running after eachother and burning off all the sugar they were eating. We were able to feed the 30ish guests with our assortment of goodies including 200 Lumpia (spring rolls) made a church member for her favorite customer, Ryan.

Unfortunately we don't have too many pictures since most of the party was recorded on video instead of camera but i've rounded up a couple of the kids playing outside. It was kind of a nut house with the 13 primary aged kids and then some of the older kids Brayden really loves but Brayden had a great time and I think Sydney felt the party was just as much for her as it was for Brayden.

Sydney's First Field Trip

This week Sydney, her classmates, Teacher Summer, Teacher Inah and Ms. Charms were able to go on a little adventure to the local SM (Super Mall). It gave them a chance to get out of the classroom and go to a indoor playground for a while. She was able to drive around in those big plastic cars, slides, have a tea party and of course her favorite thing: play with babies. She loves babies and the one she has (cabbage patch doll from Auntie Kait) has survived a fair amount of abuse in her young existance.

Here are some pictures of Sydney and classmates:

There is nothing a little girl likes more then to play with some domestic mini's like a kitchen, tea sets and shopping carts. Personally I don't see the attraction, I prefer to stay away from those things myself...

First Day of SY 2008-2009

Well June 10th marks the day of the new school year! The kids were all ready to head to school this morning in their uniforms and backpacks. Brayden is in the Panda Bear class which is equivalent to pre-kinder level (preschool) and Sydney is in Gummi Bears which is a pre-nursery level. Brayden was a little hesitant at first to go in but once his backpack was in his cubby hole he was fine! Sydney strolled right into the classroom and started playing with the toys.
Of course we had to take the "first day of school" pictures with the kids:

Here is the token picture ready for school at the front door shot with a super cute picture that Brayden our master photographer son took!

How Quickly 2 Years Can Go

Sydney is now officially 2 years old, no matter where in the world you are! I can’t believe it. She is now the same age Brayden was when we first moved out here to the Philippines and she was just a chubby baby girl. Now she’s a little girl (or “Inday” as we say here) filled with attitude and personality, walking with a bounce in her step as her little ringlets bob up and down and you can see the giggle in her rich dark eyes.
We didn’t do too much for her birthday. We had mango crepes and whip cream for breakfast and cake after dinner but other then that it was an ordinary day other then the fact that Brayden kept saying “happy birthday Sydney!” Such a good big brother!! Helping her open her presents but only until it was open enough for her to finish the job, haha.
Well happy birthday Sydney!!!

School's Out For Summer

Today was Brayden and Sydneys 2007-2008 school year recognition. Brayden moved from the Teddy Bear class to the Panda Bear class and Sydney stays at the Gummi Bear age.
The best part of the recognition is the dances that each class does. Both Brayden and Sydney's classes performed 3 dance numbers before the finale which put every student in the School for Creative Beginners (SCB) on stage.
Here are a bunch of pictures with the kids dancing in their costumes:

Poor Sydney just didn't really know what to think up there and stood staring for the majority of the time with a little wiggle here and there. Brayden on the other hand has come a long way since the same time last year when his performance resembled that of Sydneys. This year he was dancing, do the moves and having a good time!

The theme for the school recognition was Disney so all the performances were to Disney remakes. For most of the kids the nannies were in charge of the costume changes but of course for us having no nanny it turned out to be quite the busy event for me. Running back and forth from watching one kid, changing them and racing back to watch the other. Thankfully I was able to watch everyone of their dances.

At the end of the performance the teachers handed out their report cards and Brayden was even happy to pose with Teacher Mia and Teacher Tina!

They Grow So Fast *sigh*

Well summer holidays are almost officially here as Brayden and Sydney had their last day of classes on Friday. After Wednesday's year end concert we will enjoy 2 months of 24/7 Beattie children!!
We have noticed such great changes with both our kids since being enrolled in school! Brayden loves his friends and playing with them. He is much more social and outgoing, will listen to other adults directions and has started to teach Sydney her letters, numbers and colours.
Just today Sydney was able to count to 10 as she took her 10 big steps. In the shower with her foam letters she was able to point out X,W,S,A, "B for Brayden" and ramble off half the alphabet.
I think our biggest accomplishment to date was our potty success. Although we aren't really trying to potty train Sydney yet she's starting to understand the different feelings that happen when you pee and has told us on a couple of occasions these last days and pee'd on the potty. Just this morning she was able to come to me and ask to use the potty to poo. Yay for one less stinky diaper to clean up.
I guess that she almost 2 so this is all just normal stuff but I'm a mom so I'm proud of my kids ;) I'm really enjoying the silly things they say and do, watching them try new things and seeing the sense of accomplishment on their faces when they get all the puzzle pieces together and see that big picture they created.

Back to School

This week Brayden was able to go back to The School For Creative Beginners after almost 3 months off from our vacation home to Canada. He was a little hesitant at first but once he was there everything was back to normal and on Tuesday he was again excited to see his classmates and Teachers. We also decided to enroll Sydney so she can work on the social skills, learn to share and have some time away from mommy. It worked out perfectly since her class goes the exact same time as Braydens and they are just down the hall from eachother.
They just look so cute in their little uniforms I couldn't help but post the picture:

Nothing Like Having Your Own Wheels!

For the past week I have been waking up to the noise of our front door slamming shut. The first time it really scared me since I was sure I had locked the door before going to bed and I couldn't figure out what was going on. I jumped out of bed and ran downstairs and peeked out the window and there was Brayden sitting on his brand new bike riding it around the driveway. Don't worry!! We have a gated property so he can't get out onto the road. Everymorning since that is how I have woken up, he unlocks the door and slams it shut on his way to the bike!
Every waking moment is spent wanting to ride his bicycle, the "L.A. Lady." He's become really good and starting and getting himself going pretty fast. We're still working on the brakes since it's hand brakes and his little hands can't exactly reach the brake from the handle. Ryan has taken him around the block a couple of times and he just loves it!!

Giddy Up

When I was a little girl I had this great horse where I could bounce up and down and it was like I was galloping in the wind. My mom kept it and Brayden spotted it yesterday in the basement so she brought it up for the little kids. The only problem is that I'm a little too big for it now so I couldn't join in on the fun :(

Happy Halloween

This year for halloween my kids had these amazing costumes!! A friend of ours from the Philippines made these spectacular outfits for my kids. Her name is Maryanne Domingo and she just wipped these up with her sewing machine in a week. Soooo talented! Brayden was Batman and Sydney was a Fairy Princess. It was really difficult for me to get a decent picture of the two of them since they were so excited to finally be wearing them but I have more coming from Ryan's sister Jessica so you'll have to be patient:

Happy 3rd Birthday Brayden

Today was Braydens 3rd birthday and boy did he have a great day. He had phone calls in the morning of grandparents singing "happy birthday!" We had a birthday party at school, which was the best way to do it!! No cleaning, no decorating, come home to a clean house!! Brayden was lucky enough to have a Lightening McQueen cake with balloons especially dedicated to him! It seemed to be a great time and everyone who was there left happy.

After school as a family we decided to try out bowling. We've tried to go with Brayden a couple of times but both times the lanes were fully booked and he was really upset about it. This time we got lucky and Brayden was thrilled. Theres something about throwing a ball down a long aisle and knocking things down at the end of it that just got him excited. He actually didn't even mind throwing gutter balls most of the time, just being allowed to throw something that heavy was enough for him. It was a great time... for Brayden. Pretty slow moving for the rest waiting for Braydens balls to inch slowly down the aisle!!

Ecogarden Fieldtrip

Braydens class had a fieldtrip to the Ecogardens here in Bacolod this past week! The first attempt got rained out so he's been really excited about going for a while now. Sydney and dad stayed home to sleep so I got to go with Brayden. There were a bunch of different birds, monkeys, snakes, turtles, spotted deer, pigs and crocodiles. Brayden loved to touch the snake and was a little nervous about the turtles but there was no way he was touching the crocodiles.

They first showed the class the big crocs and started poking it with a big stick. Well this really mad it angry and it was snarling and trying to bite the stick and it sure would move fast!! After this friendly demonstration they brought out a smaller crocodile and asked the kids if anyone wanted to "pet" it. Well they were all terrified thinking it would attack their little hands, I can't remember any of Braydens classmates touching the little guy, even though it was missing the top half of its mouth!

One of the biggest changes we've noticed with Brayden since we've enrolled him in school is he's become a lot more outgoing. He was so shy and clingy, whimpering if someone just looked at him. He seems to make friends more easily now, especially with his classmates. His teachers have noticed he seems to have made a "best friend" shown here, Vance:

The fieldtrip ended with the kids having the oppertunity to paint a figurine, Brayden did an excellent job painting his little hippo orange! It was really nice to see Brayden interact with his classmates and to see the friends that he's making. He seems to really enjoy the time playing with his friends!

The School For Creative Beginners

Last week we enrolled Sydney at the same school Brayden attends, she starts in January when we get back from our Christmas holidays! I'm so excited since they'll be going to school at the same time, it gives me 2 hours a day to do whatever I want....
I was checking out the new school webpage when I noticed that Brayden and his daddy made it onto the pictures section of their page!! You'll have to browse through the pictures to see what Brayden has been up to so far this year but it's such a great school! My favorite of the 3 pictures Brayden is in has Ryan and Brayden painting his "My Kid Walks All Over Me" shirt.

Sunday Dinner

Sunday dinner's were always the best dinners of the week. We would go to one of the folks house and have the facier meal of the week and just hang out and relax. Since we moved away from all that family we've changed our Sunday style a bit, we still relax... it's just NOT the fanciest of meals: