Here are pictures from Easter.
Columbia Baptist Church Easter Party:
Easter Sunday:
Monday, April 30, 2012
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Note: If You Were Planning to Visit the Mendez B&B, You Better Read This . . .
This should be filed in the "If Life Gives You Lemons" category.
If you were planning to visit Madrid and stay with us, you might want to check your plans. You could still go, of course, but you wouldn't be staying with us.
Mainly, because we won't be there.
This past Wednesday, after one thing and another, the wonderful US Government changed their minds, and decided that they want Joel to stay and work here in DC instead.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. We had that little freak-out and "What the . . ." moment, too. But, as it is, we serve where they tell us to serve and go where they tell us to go, and that's that.
No, we're not thrilled with the change of plans. Mainly, because they changed our (ahem, let's be honest, my) plans. And yes, that is a bit of leftover bad attitude there. I do not do well with change, and I especially do not do well when my plans are messed with.
Oh well, se la vie. Deep breath, move on, and all that.
And yet, we ARE thrilled with the change of plans. We like our little life here. We enjoy our friends, our church, our bit of America. Many of our past Embassy-world friends have returned to the DC area as well. In fact, for the past two months, I've been saying, "Wouldn't it be nice if we could stay? Oh well." and "I wish we didn't have to leave." You know, those things you say when you don't actually think they will ever happen. Except it did.
The girls are actually ECSTATIC about staying. They are in love with the few friends they've made so far, the church, etc. Lily is especially in love with her Sunday School teacher. I've taken to threatening her that if she doesn't _______, that I will tell on her, and it works. So, the girls are excited. Now we get to do VBS and summer programs and all of that. They are going to have a total blast.
We would have appreciated a bit more warning, though. Cause, well, I could have planned. I could have been prepared.
Since Wednesday, we've been "home hunting" nonstop. Trying to find something bigger than a shoebox that isn't "living on Main Street in Disney World" prices. And today we finally found it.
We'll be in Annandale, for those of you that know the area.
We found a great apartment, in very good condition (which is a miracle in itself, really), with a pool on the complex and multiple playgrounds, and lots of natural light, and new carpets and decent cabinets. (What is DC's obsession with carpet, by the way? We saw a billion apartments and they have carpet everywhere, even in the dining room area. One of them we saw had carpet in the bathroom!) Pretty good commute for Joel and close enough for us to still attend our church and be active there. The neighborhood isn't the ritziest, but it's safe and full of families and has security and all that. And walking distance to a Safeway grocery store. All in all, we're very happy with our new home.
I've already ordered a bunk bed and dining room table online from Walmart, and have my list ready to go purchase at IKEA tomorrow. Add a couple of mattresses, and as soon as all of that is delivered and assembled (by someone else, because we all know Joel and I aren't the least bit handy) we can have our stuff delivered back to us and we can move out of this hotel.
The hotel has been very good to us, but we are very ready to move the heck on.
Obviously, you guys are still more than welcome to visit here, and if sleeping on the floor is not really your style, our complex has a furnished guest suite you can rent by the night at a price that is MUCH LESS than anything you will pay at a hotel. We can still provide the Mendez B&B experience, it just won't be the international version!
So, that's our update and our life recently in a nutshell. I hope you are all living a much less eventful life, and I look forward to regaling you all with our tales of pure boredom very very soon.
If you were planning to visit Madrid and stay with us, you might want to check your plans. You could still go, of course, but you wouldn't be staying with us.
Mainly, because we won't be there.
This past Wednesday, after one thing and another, the wonderful US Government changed their minds, and decided that they want Joel to stay and work here in DC instead.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. We had that little freak-out and "What the . . ." moment, too. But, as it is, we serve where they tell us to serve and go where they tell us to go, and that's that.
No, we're not thrilled with the change of plans. Mainly, because they changed our (ahem, let's be honest, my) plans. And yes, that is a bit of leftover bad attitude there. I do not do well with change, and I especially do not do well when my plans are messed with.
Oh well, se la vie. Deep breath, move on, and all that.
And yet, we ARE thrilled with the change of plans. We like our little life here. We enjoy our friends, our church, our bit of America. Many of our past Embassy-world friends have returned to the DC area as well. In fact, for the past two months, I've been saying, "Wouldn't it be nice if we could stay? Oh well." and "I wish we didn't have to leave." You know, those things you say when you don't actually think they will ever happen. Except it did.
The girls are actually ECSTATIC about staying. They are in love with the few friends they've made so far, the church, etc. Lily is especially in love with her Sunday School teacher. I've taken to threatening her that if she doesn't _______, that I will tell on her, and it works. So, the girls are excited. Now we get to do VBS and summer programs and all of that. They are going to have a total blast.
We would have appreciated a bit more warning, though. Cause, well, I could have planned. I could have been prepared.
Since Wednesday, we've been "home hunting" nonstop. Trying to find something bigger than a shoebox that isn't "living on Main Street in Disney World" prices. And today we finally found it.
We'll be in Annandale, for those of you that know the area.
We found a great apartment, in very good condition (which is a miracle in itself, really), with a pool on the complex and multiple playgrounds, and lots of natural light, and new carpets and decent cabinets. (What is DC's obsession with carpet, by the way? We saw a billion apartments and they have carpet everywhere, even in the dining room area. One of them we saw had carpet in the bathroom!) Pretty good commute for Joel and close enough for us to still attend our church and be active there. The neighborhood isn't the ritziest, but it's safe and full of families and has security and all that. And walking distance to a Safeway grocery store. All in all, we're very happy with our new home.
I've already ordered a bunk bed and dining room table online from Walmart, and have my list ready to go purchase at IKEA tomorrow. Add a couple of mattresses, and as soon as all of that is delivered and assembled (by someone else, because we all know Joel and I aren't the least bit handy) we can have our stuff delivered back to us and we can move out of this hotel.
The hotel has been very good to us, but we are very ready to move the heck on.
Obviously, you guys are still more than welcome to visit here, and if sleeping on the floor is not really your style, our complex has a furnished guest suite you can rent by the night at a price that is MUCH LESS than anything you will pay at a hotel. We can still provide the Mendez B&B experience, it just won't be the international version!
So, that's our update and our life recently in a nutshell. I hope you are all living a much less eventful life, and I look forward to regaling you all with our tales of pure boredom very very soon.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Our Visit to the DC Cherry Blossom Festival
Yeay! We finally were in DC at the right time and were able to visit the Cherry Blossom Festival!
Too bad the weather didn't cooperate, though. I thought we could beat it, but the rain started about halfway through our visit.
If you have kids and get a chance to visit the Cherry Blossom Festival, be sure to see if the Park Rangers are doing a kids activity tent again! Our girls had a blast, and there were about twelve different activities to choose from.
First, we colored pictures of the four stages of the cherry blossom blossoming.
Then, because my girls love anything have to do with glue, we created our own "cherry blossoms." This is easy to replicate at home, you just need glue and pink tissue paper!
We also did a leaf rubbing and colored pictures on a "friendship mural."
My girls' ultimate favorite part? Once you completed four different activities, you could find a park ranger, who would then administer an "oath" (which consisted of promising not to pick the cherry blossoms, really), and then give them Junior Park Ranger Badges! You should have seen them; their eyes got so huge, and you could tell that they were taking their oath very seriously! They wore their badges with pride for the rest of the day!
If you would like more information about the Cherry Blossoms trees in DC or the Cherry Blossom Festival, be sure to visit the National Park Service's website. And if you're a homeschooler, and want to see more activities so you can have your own Cherry Blossom Festival to celebrate Spring at home, feel free to visit my personal website.
Too bad the weather didn't cooperate, though. I thought we could beat it, but the rain started about halfway through our visit.
If you have kids and get a chance to visit the Cherry Blossom Festival, be sure to see if the Park Rangers are doing a kids activity tent again! Our girls had a blast, and there were about twelve different activities to choose from.
First, we colored pictures of the four stages of the cherry blossom blossoming.
Then, because my girls love anything have to do with glue, we created our own "cherry blossoms." This is easy to replicate at home, you just need glue and pink tissue paper!
We also did a leaf rubbing and colored pictures on a "friendship mural."
My girls' ultimate favorite part? Once you completed four different activities, you could find a park ranger, who would then administer an "oath" (which consisted of promising not to pick the cherry blossoms, really), and then give them Junior Park Ranger Badges! You should have seen them; their eyes got so huge, and you could tell that they were taking their oath very seriously! They wore their badges with pride for the rest of the day!
If you would like more information about the Cherry Blossoms trees in DC or the Cherry Blossom Festival, be sure to visit the National Park Service's website. And if you're a homeschooler, and want to see more activities so you can have your own Cherry Blossom Festival to celebrate Spring at home, feel free to visit my personal website.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Review: Ballet Magnificat!
What It Is:
"Ballet Magnificat! was founded in 1986. Magnificat is Latin for "to magnify Him." It's derived from "Mary's Song" of praise in the 1st Chapter of the Gospel of Luke when she first learned she was to be the mother of the Messiah. Ballet Magnificat! is an arts organization dedicated to presenting the good news of Jesus Christ to the whole world. Our professional touring companies perform nationally and internationally, ministering to audiences in the United States as well as Canada, Belgium, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Greece, Singapore, Costa Rica and Puerto Rico." (from Facebook fan page)
My Review:
In short: I LOVED it!
We happened upon a poster for Ballet Magnificat! recently, and I jumped at the chance to take my girls. First, they both love ballet and have not yet been to a professional performance. Second, they were performing "Deliver Us" the story of Exodus, set to the music from the movie, "Prince of Egypt." That will fit in with our homeschool curriculum, which is reviewing the major stories of the Bible this year. Third, Easter and Passover are in less than two weeks! What perfect timing!
I honestly had no idea what to expect, or if my girls would be able be still long enough to watch. But they were mesmerized, and thankfully there was a child-friendly audience and very patient people around us that put up with the sound of the million questions my girls asked during the show.
I expected to enjoy the dancing and the music. I did not expect to fall in love with the story all over again, or spend a night just praising God while watching these wonderful dancers worship through music. Really. Even the local groups, who performed two different preludes to the second act, filled the auditorium with just pure joy.
And it wasn't just that the Ballet Magnificat! troupe was technically proficient and did complicated and awe-inspiring dancing and lifts (though they did). It was that these performers FELT their performances. And they made you feel it too. Really, when was the last time you went to a ballet that wasn't, well, . . . cold? Ballet Magnificat wasn't. Honestly, warmth and their love of performing just exuded from every fiber of their being.
Frankly, it made me wish I was younger, in better shape, and could just join them up onstage myself. I wish I had known about this fabulous group when I was younger and still performing (though, I honestly would never have been good enough to fit in with these extremely talented dancers).
With all that said, some parts were a little graphic for my crew, ages three and five. The scene with the slave-driver with a whip "beating" the Jewish slaves prompted a ton of questions from both, and my three-year-old is still asking, "But why were they beating the other? That was mean." And I had no idea that the crucifixion was worked into the end of the story and would be so realistic. It's not that I had a problem with either scene, but I do wish I had known and could have prepared my girls ahead of time. Nevertheless, we have been able to have very good discussions about it since. Which means the show left quite an impression, even beyond my daughters' love of dance.
Here is their tour schedule, and if you're one of my international buddies, be sure to check it out as well; they are touring internationally in the next few months!
Ballet Magnificat: Website, Facebook Page, and YouTube
Pics of the Girls:
Here are pictures of the girls at their first ballet:
And here are a few of my attempts to get a "sweet" picture of Lily. I'm sure Mom will appreciate the irony of that.
"Ballet Magnificat! was founded in 1986. Magnificat is Latin for "to magnify Him." It's derived from "Mary's Song" of praise in the 1st Chapter of the Gospel of Luke when she first learned she was to be the mother of the Messiah. Ballet Magnificat! is an arts organization dedicated to presenting the good news of Jesus Christ to the whole world. Our professional touring companies perform nationally and internationally, ministering to audiences in the United States as well as Canada, Belgium, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Greece, Singapore, Costa Rica and Puerto Rico." (from Facebook fan page)
My Review:
In short: I LOVED it!
We happened upon a poster for Ballet Magnificat! recently, and I jumped at the chance to take my girls. First, they both love ballet and have not yet been to a professional performance. Second, they were performing "Deliver Us" the story of Exodus, set to the music from the movie, "Prince of Egypt." That will fit in with our homeschool curriculum, which is reviewing the major stories of the Bible this year. Third, Easter and Passover are in less than two weeks! What perfect timing!
I honestly had no idea what to expect, or if my girls would be able be still long enough to watch. But they were mesmerized, and thankfully there was a child-friendly audience and very patient people around us that put up with the sound of the million questions my girls asked during the show.
I expected to enjoy the dancing and the music. I did not expect to fall in love with the story all over again, or spend a night just praising God while watching these wonderful dancers worship through music. Really. Even the local groups, who performed two different preludes to the second act, filled the auditorium with just pure joy.
And it wasn't just that the Ballet Magnificat! troupe was technically proficient and did complicated and awe-inspiring dancing and lifts (though they did). It was that these performers FELT their performances. And they made you feel it too. Really, when was the last time you went to a ballet that wasn't, well, . . . cold? Ballet Magnificat wasn't. Honestly, warmth and their love of performing just exuded from every fiber of their being.
Frankly, it made me wish I was younger, in better shape, and could just join them up onstage myself. I wish I had known about this fabulous group when I was younger and still performing (though, I honestly would never have been good enough to fit in with these extremely talented dancers).
With all that said, some parts were a little graphic for my crew, ages three and five. The scene with the slave-driver with a whip "beating" the Jewish slaves prompted a ton of questions from both, and my three-year-old is still asking, "But why were they beating the other? That was mean." And I had no idea that the crucifixion was worked into the end of the story and would be so realistic. It's not that I had a problem with either scene, but I do wish I had known and could have prepared my girls ahead of time. Nevertheless, we have been able to have very good discussions about it since. Which means the show left quite an impression, even beyond my daughters' love of dance.
Here is their tour schedule, and if you're one of my international buddies, be sure to check it out as well; they are touring internationally in the next few months!
Ballet Magnificat: Website, Facebook Page, and YouTube
Pics of the Girls:
Here are pictures of the girls at their first ballet:
And here are a few of my attempts to get a "sweet" picture of Lily. I'm sure Mom will appreciate the irony of that.
 |
| This is what Abby and I have started calling her "silly" face. |
 |
| "Hey, look at me! I'm a ballerina too!" |
Thursday, March 08, 2012
Our Visit to the US Capitol Building
Since we have such a "short" (Please note both my excitement for being here and my sarcasm. We're living here in a hotel for two months. But even still, I'm happy to be here.) time in DC, I was determined to take advantage of all the area has to offer!
If you're planning a trip to DC, the first thing you need to do (even before arriving) is contact your Congressman! My Representatives, Senator Shelby and Representative Bonner, are able to help get tour tickets. We were able to get tickets for a tour of the Capitol Building quite quickly, and so the girls and I headed into DC and got in line for our tour!
(Tip: When they say don't drive in because parking is horrible, BELIEVE THEM. Plus, the parking meters have a max of two hours, which is hardly enough time to do anything. Lesson learned. If you're dealing with little legs, take the metro and then get a taxi to drop you off. It's worth it.)
Here we are in the Welcome Center. This is where you will find water fountains, bathrooms, lots of people standing in lines, and a lot of statues.
And this is by the exit of the tour. The girls were quite tired of walking and of me taking pictures by this time.
Okay, the coolest part of the tour for us, were the headphones! They were connected to a microphone our tour guide had, so that we could hear her clearly and she didn't have to yell. This was great, because the echo was crazy.
Here are pictures of the inside of the dome.
This room was the "original" location for Congress. Honestly? There was very little to see in here and was kinda boring.
 |
| Plaques on the floor note where certain representatives (the famous ones) sat. |
 |
| Entrance to "traditional" office of the Speaker of the House. Not sure how much it actually is used, though. |
Beyond that, there was very little to see in this tour. (I did not opt to do the viewing of Congress in session. Figured it wouldn't be appropriate for preschoolers.) The entire tour, including a fifteen minute video, lasted 45 minutes. My overall impression was, "Meh."
But, if your kids were slightly older, and you had been studying US geography, you could make a scavenger hunt game looking at the statues. Each state has donated a statue to the Capitol Building, and they are all kept in the areas you'll visit during the tour. In fact, sometimes they are jam-packed and shoved practically on top of each other.
 |
| Here is Helen Keller's statue, donated by Alabama |
 |
| Just FYI, this is the guy you need to thank for air conditioning. |
So, that was our trip to the Capitol Building. We can at least say we did it, but the girls were uninterested, and I was underimpressed.
PS. I forgot to mention that I was able to use this trip to introduce the girls to Schoolhouse Rock!
Go on, you know you want to sing along!
Thursday, March 01, 2012
Mendez Valentine's Day
Okay, I know this is a million years late, but I am finally getting around to uploading pictures and attempting to catch up on all my backlog of blog posts! Here are pictures from our Valentine's Day unit (homeschooling stuff)!
Some of the activities I found were heavily Cupid-themed. Since the girls don't know who he is, I decided not to introduce this mythological character right now. I also avoided a lot of the activities and events that I felt promoted the give me-itis. And I tried to downplay the candy focus of Valentine's Day, though that didn't last very long with my girls. Joel also didn't help in that regard, since he decided the girls needed little heart boxes of chocolate!
First, we practiced our cutting skills by teaching the girls how to make hearts by folding the paper in half.
Then, using a full back of the candy hearts, I had Lily sort them by color.
Abby's job was to count the sorted piles and create a graph so we could figure out which color had the most.
What I sadly don't have pictures of was my favorite activity! (I forgot.) I went to dollar store and found packets of those lace doilies like we used to use to make valentines in school. The girls decorated them with coloring and stickers, and we took them up to a local assisted living facility.
This was the same facility that my grandmother stayed in for many years, and so when I told them who I was and my girls had some Valentines to pass out, the director was thrilled to show me the activity room and interrupt the weekly bingo game. Many of the ladies there remembered my grandmother and were completely charmed by the girls and their homemade valentines. And I must say how sweet and loving the girls were to these ladies they didn't even know. They walked right up to each of them, handed them a decorated heart and told them Happy Valentine's Day, even my shy three-year-old! I don't know why their sweet spirits surprise me, but I am so thankful for them! My hope is that we can continue this tradition in the future, to reinforce the concept of showing and sharing our love to others, instead of our society's "What's in it for me" disease.
Some of the activities I found were heavily Cupid-themed. Since the girls don't know who he is, I decided not to introduce this mythological character right now. I also avoided a lot of the activities and events that I felt promoted the give me-itis. And I tried to downplay the candy focus of Valentine's Day, though that didn't last very long with my girls. Joel also didn't help in that regard, since he decided the girls needed little heart boxes of chocolate!
First, we practiced our cutting skills by teaching the girls how to make hearts by folding the paper in half.
 |
| (This was right after one of our Upward cheer events. She refused to take her uniform off.) |
Then, using a full back of the candy hearts, I had Lily sort them by color.
Abby's job was to count the sorted piles and create a graph so we could figure out which color had the most.
What I sadly don't have pictures of was my favorite activity! (I forgot.) I went to dollar store and found packets of those lace doilies like we used to use to make valentines in school. The girls decorated them with coloring and stickers, and we took them up to a local assisted living facility.
This was the same facility that my grandmother stayed in for many years, and so when I told them who I was and my girls had some Valentines to pass out, the director was thrilled to show me the activity room and interrupt the weekly bingo game. Many of the ladies there remembered my grandmother and were completely charmed by the girls and their homemade valentines. And I must say how sweet and loving the girls were to these ladies they didn't even know. They walked right up to each of them, handed them a decorated heart and told them Happy Valentine's Day, even my shy three-year-old! I don't know why their sweet spirits surprise me, but I am so thankful for them! My hope is that we can continue this tradition in the future, to reinforce the concept of showing and sharing our love to others, instead of our society's "What's in it for me" disease.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Joel's First Mardi Gras
Okay, for some of you guys that might not sound like such a big deal. But for me? I can't even remember my first Mardi Gras (and not because I was too hungover either! Ha!) I can't even imagine life without Mardi Gras! My goodness, what in the world do you do with your time between New Year's and Easter?
Here in Fairhope we have Mardi Gras.
For the Yank friends out there, here is a mini-history lesson for you! Mardi Gras did not originate in New Orleans, but in Mobile, Alabama! Really! (Read more here!) And our little town of Fairhope is just across the Bay from Mobile, so we have Mardi Gras too - a bit safer and more family friendly than either Mobile or New Orleans, thank goodness.
Well, we tried to explain to Joel what Mardi Gras would be like. And he was skeptical - what? People are throwing stuff at us? This is fun? But he went along with it because he knew the girls would like it.
It didn't take very long for Joel to have a complete blast with Mardi Gras and really get into it! And man, did our girls rack up an amazing haul! I don't know what it was - a combination of the right street corner, cute little girls, their pleading puppy dog eyes, or what. But all of the sudden, we were getting pelted with stuff - cups, bead necklaces, little footballs, and stuffed animals. Tons of stuff. And some of those stuffed animals were HUGE!
Oh, and the MOONPIES. Last year, we didn't even get moonpies. I had to go buy some in the store. This year we got a nice little stash of them! Oh, and I tested a few. They passed the "yummy" test, LOL.
We had a massively HUGE garbage filled with stuff that I bagged up to donate (to someone going to be on a float next weekend!) and yet the girls still had a good-size mountain of things they apparently can't bear to live without. I hope it all fits in the car!
So Joel is now converted to a full believer in Mardi Gras fun. It sure is a shame that we are leaving before we can get to any more parades! At least in Spain we can check out Carnival!
Here in Fairhope we have Mardi Gras.
For the Yank friends out there, here is a mini-history lesson for you! Mardi Gras did not originate in New Orleans, but in Mobile, Alabama! Really! (Read more here!) And our little town of Fairhope is just across the Bay from Mobile, so we have Mardi Gras too - a bit safer and more family friendly than either Mobile or New Orleans, thank goodness.
Well, we tried to explain to Joel what Mardi Gras would be like. And he was skeptical - what? People are throwing stuff at us? This is fun? But he went along with it because he knew the girls would like it.
It didn't take very long for Joel to have a complete blast with Mardi Gras and really get into it! And man, did our girls rack up an amazing haul! I don't know what it was - a combination of the right street corner, cute little girls, their pleading puppy dog eyes, or what. But all of the sudden, we were getting pelted with stuff - cups, bead necklaces, little footballs, and stuffed animals. Tons of stuff. And some of those stuffed animals were HUGE!
Oh, and the MOONPIES. Last year, we didn't even get moonpies. I had to go buy some in the store. This year we got a nice little stash of them! Oh, and I tested a few. They passed the "yummy" test, LOL.
We had a massively HUGE garbage filled with stuff that I bagged up to donate (to someone going to be on a float next weekend!) and yet the girls still had a good-size mountain of things they apparently can't bear to live without. I hope it all fits in the car!
So Joel is now converted to a full believer in Mardi Gras fun. It sure is a shame that we are leaving before we can get to any more parades! At least in Spain we can check out Carnival!
Monday, February 13, 2012
Go Team Mendez! (or, Abby Starts Cheerleading)
These past two months, cheerleading has taken over the Mendez household. Abby started cheering with the Upward program at the Methodist Church.
Joel tried to talk her into doing basketball, and she gave him the "Are you crazy?" look. Apparently, we're much too prissy for that! :) (She did say she would do soccer in the future, though!)
I'd love to say that Abby was the best little cheerleader out there. It was obvious to me, though, she was the least "back-stage mom coached" one up there and probably one of the youngest of the kindergarten aged team. I purposely stood back and let her do it completely on her own and didn't practice the cheers for her at home, even though I second-guessed myself several times on that. I know she would have performed better if I had, but really - at age five, is that the point of cheerleading? And well, being one of the youngest in your age group is going to be one of the things she deals with for the next 18 years, so we might as well get used to that now, I guess. I think that if we did it again, I'd ask if she could be put back in a younger age group again, just to give her a bit of a leg up.
All in all, I think cheerleading was a positive influence on our family. Lily actually knows many of the cheers by heart since the girls "play" cheerleading now, and Abby and Lily understand the concept of "team" and really get into it. Lily, in fact, does a surprisingly good sports announcer impression, starting off really low and then going really high, "Let's go, Teaaaaaaaaammmmmm Mendez! Yeay!" And we've been continuing to work with Abby on her focus and concentration, and she is doing so much better at paying attention. Plus, she loves to talk about "her cheerleading friends." And I love the Upward program - where they focus on good sportsmanship and teamwork, and with the cheerleading - leadership and being an encourager. Great, great program.
And yes, I can totally see this former band nerd momma becoming a little "cheer" coach overseas, so Abby can continue with her love of cheering. The things we do for our kids, right?
Joel tried to talk her into doing basketball, and she gave him the "Are you crazy?" look. Apparently, we're much too prissy for that! :) (She did say she would do soccer in the future, though!)
I'd love to say that Abby was the best little cheerleader out there. It was obvious to me, though, she was the least "back-stage mom coached" one up there and probably one of the youngest of the kindergarten aged team. I purposely stood back and let her do it completely on her own and didn't practice the cheers for her at home, even though I second-guessed myself several times on that. I know she would have performed better if I had, but really - at age five, is that the point of cheerleading? And well, being one of the youngest in your age group is going to be one of the things she deals with for the next 18 years, so we might as well get used to that now, I guess. I think that if we did it again, I'd ask if she could be put back in a younger age group again, just to give her a bit of a leg up.
All in all, I think cheerleading was a positive influence on our family. Lily actually knows many of the cheers by heart since the girls "play" cheerleading now, and Abby and Lily understand the concept of "team" and really get into it. Lily, in fact, does a surprisingly good sports announcer impression, starting off really low and then going really high, "Let's go, Teaaaaaaaaammmmmm Mendez! Yeay!" And we've been continuing to work with Abby on her focus and concentration, and she is doing so much better at paying attention. Plus, she loves to talk about "her cheerleading friends." And I love the Upward program - where they focus on good sportsmanship and teamwork, and with the cheerleading - leadership and being an encourager. Great, great program.
And yes, I can totally see this former band nerd momma becoming a little "cheer" coach overseas, so Abby can continue with her love of cheering. The things we do for our kids, right?
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