Where Has the Time Gone?

Our little Kindergartener continues to blow us away with her outlook on life, analytical ability and complete love of her brother!  Peyton started Gifted and Talented in january after the teacher returned from maternity leave.  She tested in the 99%!  She loves it and I receive email from her GT teacher talking about how much she loves having Peyton in class and what she brings to the learning environment.

Peyton has chosen to participate in the reading olympics at Roosevelt and so far has read 113 books since the end of August.  I should add that most of these are chapter books and not the ones typically given to kids her age.  Besides being a terrific reader she is showing signs of being able to do advanced math quickly in her head.  Even better is her continued love for learning and her creativity.

Peyton is such an amazing big sister.  Her brother is absolutely lost when she is not around!

Kindergarten At Last!

What an Amazing year with Peyton!

August 20, 2014

Peyton began "big kid" school at Roosevelt Elementary with her Teacher Mrs. Dykes.  Her best friend's name is Rowan and overall she has adapted nicely.  Peyton's teacher told us at our first conference that Peyton is a leader in the class and is well-ahead of schedule with her knowledge base.  She was tested for Gifted and Talented January 5th, 2015 and was thrilled she answered a few questions that for meant for 12 year olds (though she was disappointed she didn't answer any of the questions for 13 & 14 year olds).  Mrs. Brown, the G&T teacher sent us this email about Peyton,

 

"Peyton was such a joy to test and I was secretly hoping she'd qualify because I enjoyed her so much! Her responses were very impressive and her love of learning truly shines.  I am very much looking forward to working with her over the next three years."

 

 

Happy 4th Birthday Uncka Pluncka!!

For Peyton's 4th birthday we decided on a carnival in our backyard. Mother Nature decided we would have an abnormal weather day so it was over 90 degrees and 30 mile an hour winds. This did hamper our decorating, but we remained flexible and continued with what we could make work. Peyton had a wondrful time and we hope her friends did as well! The games included Duck Match, Spill the Milk, Bean Bag toss, Dart/Balloon toss (rubber-tipped darts of course), Cup Pong, and Carnival Tattoos by Aunt Jacque. The prizes seemed to be a big hit with the girls but boy were the horns loud! To top the day off everyone got balloon hats, bracelets and animals from John Pansze. He was wonderful and even entertained the guests while we cut cake.

Fall is in the air

It hard to believe it is half-way through October and our baby is almost 4 years old.  We have been having so much fun that the time has gotten away from me when it comes to updating the blog.

Peyton loves her school (though she would rather stay home with mommy - mommy would prefer this as well but we all know how that goes).  We have recently gone to a camp themed birthday party for twins at her school and will soon be hosting a carnival themed party in our backyard for Peyton.

Peyton still loves puzzles, singing, dancing, telling everyone the correct way to do things and of course playing outside.  She is extremely into taking pictures and as you can see from the slideshow I often find numerous pictures of her on my phone. 

We just got back from the Texas State Fair and a huge win by our OU Sooners!  Peyton once again loved the giant ferris wheel and all the fair had to offer.  She tried caramel popcorn for the first time and was a fan as well as the rainbow pop (popsicle) she finished in its entirety.

Peyton is involved once again in a Music and Math Connection program and has added Tumblebus to her activities.  One thing is for sure - if she puts her mind to it, she excels.  She loves her baby cousins Blakely and Alex and is learning how to behave with newborns.  When they aren't around, she occupies her love for babies by taking great care of her own baby doll.

Earlier this month we took family pictures on the campus on The University of Oklahoma since it plays such a large role in our lives.  Not only was it the first time we had taken family pictures outside but it was our first opportunity to take pictures with my brother and his family.

Peyton continues to challenge and amaze us.  She holds story time for us and even "reads" her books to herself when we are busy.  It is amazing to hear the stories she comes up with.  Last week one Dora book she read out loud was very dramatic in plot and even contained 5 words in Spanish!

Peyton still loves to sing and for the last month has been going to "big people church" as she likes to call it.  Her favorite song comes right after the offering and instead of belting out Alleluia, she passionately sings, "AlleUla!"  It is so cute and she gets so into singing that I don't have the heart to correct her pronunciation right now.

Since our neighborhood has a pool, we have been spending quite a few hours there.  Peyton is coming along in her comfort level in the big pool and her swimming skills.  She doesn't want to take formal lessons this summer so instead she is not allowed to get into the pool without her arm floaties, her flower ring floaty and of course mom or dad.  The progress she has made in a month is encouraging.  Her P.A. lives down the road form us so Peyton loves seeing Doctor Amanda outside of the office setting.  We also suspect Peyton has a crush on the pool guy that tests the water.

Peyton now has a pet.  She is the proud owner of "Rose" the fish.  She talks to her everyday and even tries to help me change her water twice a week.  We take turns feeding her and Rose is the perfect pet for us since she doesn't bother our allergies!

Spring Time Fun!

Spring in Oklahoma is one of my favorite things!  Plenty of sun and warm days make our days so much fun.  The last couple of months have been activity packed!  Peyton continues to excel in her Math and Music Connection class at Pumpkin Shell; she has taken an interest in writing and in a matter of a couple of weeks she is writing her name as well as roughly 10 other words without  us having to tell her how to spell them.  With our help she is asking and writing words like telescope and steeringwheel!  It is such a joy to watch her take an interest in a variety of learning milestones.  Her latest art interest is drawing pictures of her loved ones.  One thing is consistent.....everyone has a big smile when she draws them!

During Spring Break we visited the OKC zoo twice, the Sam Noble Art Museum and went as a family to see the Lorax.  Peyton's favorite part was the buttered popcorn!  With the help of Papa and Daddy we added a seat for Peyton to Mommy's bike and we love going for rides on the weekends or after work.  Our longest ride so far was over an hour and a half.  Peyton's school went to O'Connells for a special breakfast of Green Eggs and Ham on St. Patrick's Day.  Peyton and Daddy have been practicing golf together and we even pulled out the Wiggle-Worm once.

Easter was great as we had the opportunity for the first time to spend it with our extended family.  Peyton colored eggs more than once, went to a community egg hunt and on Easter collected nearly 100 all for herself!  Unfortunately, she came down with a stomach virus later that day but it didn't dampen the fun of the weekend.

Peyton loves playing card games and she is getting so good at playing that is she is beating us fair and square!  She also loves to play surgeon and prep us for surgery.  At her school they celebrated the Oklahoma Land run and she choose her OU dress for her pioneer clothing.  Her imagination is in full swing these days as well as her singing.  She puts such emotion into her singing that you can't help but want to join in and sing along with her.  Every night before we pray, we currently sing On Top of Spaghetti before going to sleep.  She also serenaded Grammy & Granddaddy with this song before our dinner at Othello's over Mother's Day weekend.  After our wonderful dinner she went to see the piano player and immediately begin to boogie to his music.  It was a priceless moment!

In April we bought a house in Norman.  We love our new house and look forward to getting fully settled.  Peyton is excited about the large play-set we now have and exclaimed, "we never have to go to the park again; I have my very own playground!"  Peyton is very sassy these days but also incredibly caring and loving.  Her hugs, snuggles and simply sitting close to her loved ones is such a blessing to us all.

Peyton's Specialty