July 3, 2010

• Bella Sara. 

  Shaeleigh is in love with Bella Sara.  Long about November, I was in Five and Below (a most excellent store) when I happened upon a small envelope that said it contained a miniature velvet horse.  I thought, "How cute.  Shaeleigh might like that."  Later, we discovered on the back of the package, a website address.  Lo and behold, who knew?  Bella Sara is an entire industry.  And so it began...  

  Shaeleigh (ever the collector) diligently began to collect teeny tiny ponies and check off the list that comes with them - marking the ones she has for each series (because the horse come out in series).  She loves the website where she can play games, collect golden horseshoes and use them to buy virtual knick knacks at the virtual bizarre so that she can decorate her virtual castle (when she's not busy feeding and cleaning the stalls of her virtual horses). 

  So last month we were in Five and Below and much to our dismay, they were no longer carrying the little velvet ponies!  Instead they had packages of cards (like baseball cards, but with Bella Sara horses on them).  I thought it would be a disappointment but bought a handful to use as incentives.  Well I guess I should have known better - Shaeleigh (did I mention how much she likes to collect things) - loves them.  She carefully opens the envelope so she can use it to keep the cards in.  She keeps track of them carefully - carries them about - reads them - memorizes their sometimes unpronounceable magical names, etc, etc, etc.  Each card has a picture of a Bella Sara horse (magical horses, unicorns, horses with mermaid tales) and inspirational sayings which, to quote the press release from 2007, "promote “inner beauty” and healthy self-image."  Stuff like, "Have the courage to trust yourself" and "Use your love to bring peace to the world."  Each card also has a special code which can be entered online and then you get a new horse for your virtual stable and of course...   more horseshoes. 

   

  Shaeleigh gets her money's worth out of these cards.  On top of everything else - she spends hours drawing pictures of them, writing their names, and talking Chance into games of, "I'm the horse and you're the owner and ......"

   

  But enough about horses....

   

  Shaeleigh graduated from Kindergarten.  She was completely thrilled about the whole thing.  She hadn't been that wound up since Christmas.  She was so proud to stand up with her class and sing the songs they'd been rehearsing and getting her final report card and graduation certificate.  To top it off, she had her name pulled out of hat earlier that week and won a gift card to Target and, much to our surprise, she won the music award for her class.  We talked to her music teacher at the graduation party and she shared the fact that Shaeleigh had guessed every single Christmas song she played during a game they were playing to "Name that Tune".  We do love Christmas around here.  Hohoho, that's my girl.

   

  Sadly Shaeleigh wasn't feeling her best on graduation day.  She told me before we left that she had a stomach ache.  I thought it was nerves but as the morning went on she was fading fast.  By the time we got home she had a 103 fever and not fifteen minutes after we got home she hurled all over the couch. 

   

  And so we kicked off the summer.....

   

  Chance, not to be without his graduations, moved on to the Bear class. It was a tough transition as he had quite a gang of little buddies in his old class.  He would go into school and walk outside his old room looking longingly in at his friends.  However, he had a few friends who had moved up ahead of him and now several more have joined him and he is now quite proud of himself and will say, "I'm bigger now.  I'm a bear."

   

  On that note - either he has started to notice his size or some of the other kids have commented because he has also said a few times, "I need to grow bigger, I'm small.  I'm not bigger like a bear." 

   

  In other transitions, Shaeleigh's transition to camp was a fiasco.  I will only say that the place was not particularly welcoming and given that Shaeleigh really doesn't do well in environments that don't reach out to help her get involved, it was a poor match.  We had two weeks of tears while we tried to assess if it was the place or Shaeleigh and what our options were.  She has since moved to a new camp (where one of her Kindergarten classmates attend) and while drop-offs have still been tearful, she seems to enjoy her days.  She's made several friends and comes home with a stack of drawings and word finds and other puzzles.  Her new camp goes on 3 field trips a week and all in all, things are looking up.

   

  And now.....  the photos...........

   

   

  

   

  If only she could have her own horse!

   

   

  

   

  This was Chance's first time on a pony ride.  He'd previously decided against sitting on horses but this day he was ready to go.

   

   

  

   

  I got this!

   

   

  

   

  Now me, I like turtles and tortoises. 

   

   

  

   

  This guy was awesome.  He was very friendly - let you pet him and everything.

   

   

  

   

  And then he made a break for it.  I kid you not, he "escaped."  Slow and steady he walked right out of the gate and because of his size, the animal farm people had quite a time getting him back in. 

   

   

   

  

   

  More birthday party fun - between the two of them we seem to have a party to go to at least every other week. 

   

   

  

   

  The hooligans.

   

   

  

   

  I'm not sure what's going on here. 

   

   

   

   

   

  Pixie Stix

   

   

   

   

  What's in this thing?  It's mighty tasty

   

   

  

   

  And one day they decided to set up an Art Gallery (complete with a guided tour).  I believe this was based on an episode of "Yo Gabba Gabba"  (a particularly weird show which neither Kenn nor I "get" but the kids seem to find entertaining. 

   

   

  

   

  The Art Gallery included this picture of our family.  The first picture (at least that I'm aware of) that Chance has drawn of the four of us.  I believe the above is:  Joanie, Chance, Kenn, and Shaeleigh.

   

   

  

   

  Shaeleigh did this one at school in art class. 

   

   

  

   

  Here she is absord in Bella Sara artwork.

   

   

  

   

  A close up of two of the cards (Kora and Snowdreamer) and her artwork.

   

   

  

   

  This horse is half influenced by Bella Sara and half by My Little Pony (Sweetie Pie Butterfly is a My Little Pony type name - Bella Sara would have named this horse something like Zepheria).

   

   

  

   

  Princess of the Stars

   

   

  

   

  Guess who's arm this is?  Need I say more? 

   

   

  

   

  It's hot.   

   

   

  

   

  So hot, Paint didn't bother to move when Chance covered him up.

   

  And that.................

   

       Brings us to today!

   

  Summer Adventure #1:

   

   

  

   

  I would say that "Educational Prehistoric Forest" is stretching it a bit but it was a good adventure.

   

   

  

   

  It's up north - just before Wincester - took us about 90 minutes to get there.  (I asked Kenn, "Was it about 90 minutes?"  He says, "yeah, to buy a horse" as that's what Shaeleigh came out of the gift shop with hahaha).

   

   

  

   

  The welcome tree.

   

   

   

  

   

  So when you first walk into the "Prehistoric Forest" called "Dinosaur Land" the first thing you have is is a shark and a giant octopus.

   

   

  

   

  Now we're getting somewhere.

   

   

   

  

   

  This is about the best shot I got of Chance near a dinosaur.  He didn't seem particularly afraid but he wouldn't stand next to them and smile either.

   

   

  

   

  Oh yeah.  King Kong lives there too.

   

   

  

   

  Kenn finally talked Chance to sit with him in King Kong's hand.

   

   

   

  

   

  It's really a wonder kids enjoy this place.

   

   

   

  

   

  Look out behind you!

   

   

  

   

  Wandering through the Prehistoric Forest.

   

   

   

  

   

  Yeah, nothing like wandering amongst giant dinosaurs dripping in blood and eating each other.

   

   

   

  

   

  TV violence may cause nightmares but this is "Educational"

   

   

   

   

  

   

  Whatcha learning Kenn????

   

   

  

   

  But let me give them SOME credit.  They did have these signs. 

   

   

  

   

  "You must read the signs if you want to learn about the prehistoric dinosaurs and their friends King Kong, a shark and a really really big octopus."

   

  Until our next adventure.....

   

       Happy Fourth of July!

   

  • 10:28 pm
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