Jack-o-lantern Update

So, the debate of pulling Maddi's teeth continues. She has had a front tooth hanging on by a thread and she won't let me or anyone touch it or look at it. I told Brett last night that I'm so tired of looking at a nasty tooth that I really wanted to pull that thing out while she was sleeping. Of course I didn't because I was afraid of her waking up and freaking out. But, someone upstairs is looking out for me and I got my way!! Last night (this morning?) at 3:30 in the morning she came running to my room that her tooth fell out. She was sleeping and pushed on her tooth with her tongue and it woke her up! Yeah! That nasty thing is out. But now she looks so big with her tooth gone. She's looking more and more like a jack-o-lantern just in time for Halloween!

DANCE!! Day 2

Warming up and stretching with Julianna and Malea. They were talking about their hair wraps they had done. Some girls got corn rows with beads, others got a wrap with a pattern and a charm. Maddi just got a braid with her hair and some yarn with it and a charm on the end. Her hair needs as little damage as possible. We need to take care of the few pieces of hair she was given!
Learning a pom routine. The teacher is an NBA dancer so it was pretty cute and sassy.
Taking a break and watching another group show off the dance.
One day I will read my camera book to learn how to take photos inside. Some of the girls went to a 9-12year old class (they usually went toa 6-9 year old) to learn a hip hop dance from Geo. He is a very well known dancer and choreographer. They performed in age groups and Maddi's group had about 8 girls in it. All the older girls were going wild for the little girls and "Geo" loved them too. It was so cute and the girls LOVED the attention!

DANCE!!! Day 1

So I'm posting these in backwards order, I guess. Here are some pics of dancing during the weekend at the Dells. Maddi and Daddy before the day got started.
Maddi got picked to dance on stage in one class. 3 girls get to dance on stage at a time and then they do it in age groups. It was a jazz class and the song was from Hairspray.
Maddi, Em and the teacher Charrisa.
Some of the kids from Maddi's dance company with the hip hop teacher. Maddi is on the front left with her fingers by her eye again. I see the teacher is doing it too, but not by her eye. I guess this is where she got that pose she keeps doing. The kids had a great time in this class doing a hip hop dance to "Daddy mack will make you Jump-Jump".

Playing in the Water Park

After a whole day of dancing, they still had energy for the water park. Maddi, Emily, and Bailey B. stop to strike a pose.
Cade had spent a good part of the day in the water park and at this point he was in "melt down mode". We had to get a picture to remember it which made him even more mad.
Bailey B., Maddi and Emily on the floating monkey bars. The kids loved this and did it about 10-15 times.
Striking another pose. Apparently putting your fingers by your eyes is the cool thing to do.
Brett and Cade playing a little b-ball. Cade starts basketball next week, so he wanted to get some practice in. We rode several of the water slides too and they were a lot of fun. It's fun now that the kids are old enough to do some of the bigger rides, but it's also nice that they can swim and do things alone and we can sit and relax.

Fall Festival at Kalahari

Another activity at the resort was a fall festival with a hayride, bounce houses, pumpkin painting, crafts, snacks, face paint, balloons ,etc.Maddi only had a 45 minute break for lunch, so she had to eat on the hayride to the pumpkin patch. It was a nice break for her to get outside and get some fresh air.
You can tell it was a nice sunny day, we are having a hard time keeping our eyes open for the picture!
Cade with his long and skinny pumpkin and Maddi with one of the smallest she could find.
Our little pumpkin with her painted pumpkin. Cade painted one too, but he wouldn't take a picture because he wanted to get in the bounce houses.

Wisonsin Dells

We went to the Wisconsin Dells this weekend and stayed at the Kalahari Resort for Maddi's dance convention. It was a really cool resort with the world's largest indoor water park. They had all kinds of activities planned during the day for kids like manicures for girls, making bracelets with beads, cookie decorating, candy bingo, x-box tournament, a bonfire at night with smores, story time by the fireplace, movie night, etc. Cade got to do more than Maddi since she was in dance classes all day, but mainly Cade and Brett hung out in the water park.
This is Kenya the Elephant. The whole Kalahari is an African jungle theme.

This pic is from our first night. We checked in and went straight to the water park. Cade and Maddi met up with some friends from dance. Even though the water was heated, it was pretty cold so they just played at the kids area this night since Brett and I didn't want to get in.

Jack-o-lantern

Our little "pumpkin" (because she was born hours before Halloween) is turning into a jack-o-lantern. She has had 3 loose teeth. The top two, and the bottom side. She is stubborn as a rock and refuses to let me pull her teeth or even come near them. I don't like gross things and as gross as it sound to pull a tooth, I find pulling it less gross than a tooth dangling around in a kids mouth. I don't like to look at loose teeth so I become a little obsessive about getting loose teeth out. I begged and pleaded with Maddi to let me pull her tooth out yesterday morning. She refused and then when she was brushing her teeth she came running to my room crying and giggling at the same time that her tooth came out while brushing. I was thrilled because I got my way and that creepy tooth is out!!! So she now has a hole in her mouth which she has been dying to have. Soon the other two teeth will come out too and she'll look like a little jack-o-lantern! So the tooth fairy came and she got her High School Musical singing toothbrush and a dollar.

Because of Cade and his sleeping or lack there of, I am about to turn into a pumpkin myself. It is the strangest thing, but every year it seems that right before a time change Cade starts waking up before the crack of dawn. The past two mornings he woke up at 5:45 and 5:15 am. We told him if the first number on his clock is not a 6, he needs to stay in bed and try to go back to sleep. This morning he woke up at 4:57. He came in my room as happy as can be because there wasn't a 6 on his clock, it was a 4 so that meant he could wake up! He even wakes up and makes his bed at these early hours! He is the happiest little guy in the mornings, but I just can't wake up this early to enjoy him. He verifies the schedule for the day and then I take him downstairs and turn the tv on for him so I can go back to bed. He gives me "lovins" and says have a good sleep mommy. He's so stinkin sweet and so happy to start his day. By the time the rest of the house wakes up around 7, he's bored, hungry, and a little grumpy. What happens in a few weeks when 5:00 falls back to 4:00?!? I stress about this every time change and it always works itself out. Why and how does this happen? He'll make a good farmer one day and he'll even beat the rooster waking up! A few more days of this and I'll surely be a pumpkin!