I've Moved!

Please join me over at Hey Pretty Mama!

We're Back in Texas

New York House Hunt

And, our time in Texas is rapidly coming to an end. The next five or six days promise to be busy as we attend to all the details of leaving one home for another.

New York is beautiful, by the way. We feel really blessed to have found such a nice house and look forward to getting to know our new town.

If you're interested, I've posted pictures from our house hunting trip in a web album (click on the photo). You might notice that there aren't any pictures from the inside of the house; I think we were so excited to have a big backyard that we completely forgot to use the camera INSIDE the house.

This is what a happy 4 year old looks like.

We're taking a break from frantic packing and cleaning to have a little tickle competition.

By the way,

...this blog will continue since I'm rather addicted to blogging by now. Though there won't be so much information about Kindermusik in Laredo now I'll do my best to keep you entertained with stories about living with a preschooler and, eventually, a new baby. Oh, and pictures from New York, land of snow, wild turkeys that stand in the middle of the road, and huge Victorian houses that probably need some updating (my dream house!).

New Beginnings: Fall Schedule Information

Hello! My name is Clair Herrera, and I am going to be taking over the registration process for Sarah Flack. As you may know, Sarah is going to be moving away to New York, but Kindermusik will stay. It will change to Kindermusik by Clair Herrera, taught by Clair Herrera, Nicole Arias, and Sarah Beth Sobek. The new website is http://clairherrera.kindermusik.net , and you can find the fall schedule, a description of the classes and prices, and the registration form. If you have any questions, my e-mail address is kmbyclair@gmail.com. Please feel free to write me with any questions or comments you have for us. Thank you so much!

Clair Herrera

Goodbye!

Dear Kindermusik Friends,

Back in late 2004, I had the privilege of taking over the Laredo Kindermusik program from your former educator, the wonderful Pat Hudson. Since then we've increased the size of the program from 17 students to nearly 200 students. For the last two years, our Laredo program has been named a Maestro Award program, ranking us in the top 100 of over 5000 programs worldwide. Our staff has increased to include three other talented Kindermusik educators. Thank you, families--you have been very good to us!

Now has come the time for me to announce that my husband has been offered a transfer to upstate New York. We accepted with mixed feelings--happiness because it will put us ten hours closer to our families, sadness because we truly will miss our friends here in Laredo.

The Kindermusik tradition of musical fun and learning will continue for you. I have handed the business over to our educators, Clair, Nicole, and Sarah. Clair will be spearheading the business end of things (registration, schedules, etc.) and all three will be teaching classes. The new name will be Kindermusik by Clair, but I'll let her tell you all the details. The important thing is that she will be running morning, afternoon, and evening classes for all ages (up to seven)--mostly the same class times that you are used to. All classes will still be hosted at First Baptist Church (the same location).

I will really miss all of you but I feel like I'm leaving the program in good hands. Clair, Nicole, and Sarah are very excited to be working with you. Please feel free to e-mail me at this address--it won't change when we move--if you have any questions, or just want to say hello.

With love,

Sarah Flack
Kindermusik by Sarah Flack

Princess Movie Marathon at the Library

The Laredo Public Library is hosting a Princess Movie Marathon starting today through Friday at 3 PM in the library's multipurpose room. They will be showing "classic Disney Princess movies."

Free popcorn and juice for attendees.

Blowing Bubbles

"Bubble time" is always a favorite activity in class. But did you know that bubble-blowing has important developmental benefits? Some of the benefits are:

• By reaching for (and popping) bubbles, children strengthen motor skills.
• Eye-hand coordination is also developed by reaching for bubbles.
• Practicing blowing bubbles helps strengthen oral motor skills and control of the breath.
• Watching bubbles as they float to the floor or the sky helps strengthen the eye muscles.
• The concentration needed to blow bubbles can also help build attention skills.
• The rhythm of blowing bubbles and watching them float can also be very relaxing.

For more great ideas for simple "old-fashioned" ways to spend time together, visit Success Through Play.

Bargains, Preschool-Style

Preschoolers have bargaining skills that would put a Hutt to shame. Case in point:

Noah and I went out on the porch to watch the rain earlier today. Noah likes to run out and stand in the rain until he is soaking wet. Sometimes I allow him to do this--if we don't have to be somewhere or I don't mind giving him a bath right away. Today was not a "standing in the rain" day.

Noah: How about I just put my shoes in the rain? Okay, I could just put my arm a little in the rain. How about I put your bottle of water in the rain? I could dump your water out and fill it with rain water. You could drink the rain water. How about I just put the cap in the rain? Okay, I'm just going to put my head in the rain a little bit. Why, mama? I could take a bath in the rain. I would be nice and clean. What if we jumped in the rain? Just a little bit? Or maybe just our fingers? And so forth....

So, anyway...

This week wasn't exactly what I envisioned. Ended up on bed rest for part of the week, under the influence of some heavy duty anti-nausea medicine. I don't remember pregnancy being this difficult last time. Of course, I was a little bit younger.

Since I'm feeling somewhat better now, I seized the opportunity to update my iPod. Believe it or not, I DO listen to some non-Kindermusik recordings (occasionally). Here is a portion of my new playlist:

• Rickie Lee Jones, We Belong Together
• Karl Jenkins, Dies Irae, Mare Australis
• The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, I Shall Not Be Moved

and, because I just really like this movie for some reason, the soundtrack to Labyrinth--David Bowie in all his glory.