Чечётка/Tap Dance & piano update.

For your enjoyment.  Don't get a headache!

Tap tap from Ksenia on Vimeo.

Tappitap from Ksenia on Vimeo.

Piano update.  Lessons are going incredibly well!  Here is a short video of what G learned on Saturday.

We couldn't be more pleased with the Yamaha approach!  He LOVES his class!

Piano from Ksenia on Vimeo.

Dancey-dance!

Pictures were taken from behind glass wall, so they are pretty horrible, but OH SO CUTE!
And now she wants tap shoes!

Soccer & Piano

It's the beginning of the school year and I feel pretty overwhelmed with everything.  My head is spinning.
At the same time, everything is falling into place and routines are being establish.
And, hey, I am a room mom this year at G's school!  I have no idea what that means yet, but I hope I will do okay.

Annika's first day of school was last week and she already had a "show & tell" this week.  She was supposed to bring something yellow, so she brought her Princess Belle.
She will be Belle for Halloween this year and you don't want to know how much money we spent on her dress, shoes and tiara at the Disney store....

Outside of school, both kids started soccer and equestrianism.  G also started drawing classes and piano, and Annika started gymnastics and ballet.
Coming up: swimming lessons for G at the end of September.  I also have to stuff martial arts into the schedule somewhere.
At least, we decided on what type of martial arts we want to do, I just need to find a minute to schedule a trial lesson.

Soccer has been going great for G.  Annika isn't into it too much.  She is upset because she has a "boy teacher".  However, she has a male coach in her gymnastics class now, and she loves him because "he is a silly teacher". We will see what happens.

Piano started last week and G loves it.  He now has to practice 10 minutes a day.  Can't wait to see his progress in the next couple of months.  (He already knows where all the "do" keys are.)

Annika - First day of preschool 2013

Annika is attending an all-girls school this year!  All because there were hardly any boys born in 2009. Her class has 13 girls.

Vaccination Refusal Letter - Massachusetts

At the beginning of August we received a letter from the school district with a bunch of legal mumbo jumbo saying that, according to MA law, G cannot attend Kindergarten because he is not up to date with his vaccinations, missing his 3rd HepB shot.  Ugh!  Annoying!

So, I typed up a letter back to them with my own legal mumbo jumbo (found a great sample letter on mothering.com). 

It is a very simple letter that will satisfy any public school.  In MA you cannot refuse vaccines based on philosophical reasons, so my letter was based on religious reasons.  Exemption does not require the objecting persons to be a member of a recognized church or religious denomination (source). 

In reality, we are just on a different vaccination schedule.  G will be fully vaccinated and up to date later this year.

Annika still hasn't received any HepB shots.

August 8^th, 2013

Dear Betty ***:

Our child, G*** *****, will be attending ****  Elementary School for the 2013-2014 school year. We are providing you with this statement in order to satisfy state immunization requirements:

In accordance with Massachusetts Law 105 CMR 220.000 and M.G.L.c.76, ss.15C., the administration of 3^rd dose of Hepatitis B conflicts with our sincerely held religious belief.

Thank you,

Joseph ***                                          Ksenia ****

First Day of Kindergarten

How did this happen?  Where did the time go?
He is excited.
I feel sad.  So, so sad!
Yesterday I asked G what he wanted to be when he grows up and he said: "Can I just stay home and be yours all the time?"  Of course, I said "YES!"
Today he told me he wants to be a doctor.
Counting the minutes until I can pick him up from school.

Update:  He said his day was "super-duper-super-duper-super fun!"

New beds.

The kids got their new beds!  Finally!  We waited for 6 long weeks for them to get here (they were on back order).

After much research, I got G a new non-toxic mattress (or maybe I should say "much less toxic than other mattresses" mattress) without the Boric acid (roach killer) and (brominated) PBDE fire retardants (a chemical that disrupts human thyroid hormone functioning).  
And, we also got an organic, fire retardants-free mattress cover for him.

For Annika, we got a mattress that has no fire retardants at all!  Instead, it has a wool cover, a completely natural fire retardant! Wool is also self extinguishing.

Researching non-toxic mattresses gave me a massive headache!  Why is everything so poisonous and complicated?  Why is it that more natural products are more expensive?
I have a lot more planned for re-doing their rooms.  Next, we need to get new dressers and nightstands, lamps and rugs.

Want to know more about toxic mattresses?  Start your research here!
Bedding: Target and Pottery Barn Kids.
Mattress cover: Naturepedic.  Available on Amazon.

Beds: Crate and Barrel's Land of Nod, Full Chocolate Walden Bed and Twin White Walden Bed.
I absolutely love Crate & Barrel furniture!  It is worth every penny!