All I want for Hanukkah is my two front teeth

Megan finally let me pull her loose tooth. She said I could, because it was ready to come out, and she wants to be able to sing the song, “All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth”.

Classroom Parties

For the last day of school before the start of winter break, each of the girls’ classrooms had a party. The theme of Jenna’s class party was New Year’s Eve. The kids had fun counting down to “midnight”, and playing with a karaoke machine.

Alyssa’s and Megan’s classrooms didn’t have a theme. They just enjoyed eating sweets, and doing crafts.

D.A.R.E. Graduation

Jenna graduated from the D.A.R.E. program last week. D.A.R.E. stands for drug abuse resistance education. It was the 20th anniversary of the Hilliard chapter, so everyone was especially proud of this group.

Jenna received a certificate of honorable mention for the essay that she wrote.

Jenna getting congratulated by her school principal:

Jenna holding her classroom’s D.A.R.E. mascot which she won by random draw, and her friends:

Jenna with her best friend, and Officer Blevins, their D.A.R.E. instructor:

Jenna and her certificates:

Early Hanukkah gift

The girls arrived home from school on Thursday to find their first night’s Hanukkah gift, a basketball hoop, being installed. They were very excited, both for the gift, and for the fact that they were receiving it 5 days early.

Build-A-Bear Workshop

The girls visited Build-A-Bear Workshop recently and Broxie was created, the latest bear in our family.

Designing Mustangs

The girls and I each had fun designing our dream Mustangs with the Mustang customizer on the Ford website. Here, Megan is customizing hers, followed by photos of each completed car.

Megan’s Mustang:

Alyssa’s Mustang:

Jenna’s Mustang:

And finally, my Mustang:

Girl Scouts

Jenna’s girl scout troop making cookies at our house (and a mess of our kitchen). The project involved making 100 cookies for the 100th anniversary of the girl scouts.

Fortune Cookie

Upon reading her fortune, Alyssa replied, “Great, I only have bad dreams.”

Dana’s birthday dinner at P.F. Chang’s

Dana decided she wanted to go to P.F. Chang’s for her birthday, even though there was a very good chance that there wouldn’t be anything on the menu that Megan would be willing to eat. Jenna and Alyssa each ordered the kid’s portions of honey chicken. Megan waited for their meals to be served, so she could first see what it looked like, and then try a piece, if it met her approval. She ended up ordering her own portion, and actually eating most of it (minus the rice, of course). The girls also enjoyed trying to eat with chopsticks for the first time. Alyssa seemed to be most at ease in using them.

Megan’s consecration

Megan recently had her religious school consecration. This is the ceremony which marks the beginning of her formal Jewish education. It basically consists of the kindergartners standing on the pulpit, and singing Jewish songs throughout the Shabbat service.

Megan receiving her gift from the rabbis, which is a small replica of a torah:

We had dinner after the service. On each of the tables were centerpieces that the consecrants designed themselves during Sunday school.