Happy Birthday Claudia! It seems like just yesterday you were a little baby.

Claudia has had a very enjoyable Christmas season. Currently we are snowed in and she is enjoying playing with her toys with Aunt Susannah and Mimi. Claudia is surrounded by lots of generous people (you know who you are...) and will be opening boxes for a long time.

Claudia got ice skates, a drawing/craft table, lots and lots of toys. Tomorrow--birthday.

This has been a very busy week! The excitement for Christmas and Claudia's 5th birthday is in full swing. She says at least once a day - "Oh Mommy, I REALLY want Christmas to be today, I CAN'T wait" :))) I love seeing the sparkle in her eye. We got a beautiful Christmas tree and made some delicious cookies. We have been having a lot of fun with Christmas carols and making crafts. Santa will be here soon!

Claudia had fun playing Old Maid with Uncle Mark. They played lots of games. Uncle Mark seemed to almost always end up with the Old Maid.

Claudia did lots of drawing, taking care of horses, and hanging out with Mimi. She got to go to Uncle Tyler's restaurant and even got a tour of the kitchen. She thought that was "really cool!"

"i went to tylers restaurant" -- Claudia typed that.

Claudia has had a week without fever and seems to be fully recovered. Now Molly is sick...

We had her first parent conference and everything went well. She is hitting all her marks and is at least at grade level for everything which is good since she is the youngest in the class. School still wears her out. She is pretty grumpy after school and sometimes it takes until Sunday before the regular Claudia comes back.

Right now she is practicing piano with Kasey. She is doing really well, but she is too young to really work on it by herself. She can pretty much read the notes and rhythms. Miss Eileen is her teacher and she has a lesson every couple of weeks.

Still sick with fever. Threw up this morning for the first time ever. Hoping to head to doctors this morning.

Claudia has a fever. She rarely gets sick. She rarely complains when sick either. She just kind of curled up on the couch for awhile. No school for her tomorrow. We are heading to NYC for Radio City show on Thursday. Cross your fingers....

We had to take Claudia to the dentist. Something seems to be wrong with her teeth.

Claudia spent a good 2-3 hours raking leaves today with her Cousin Riley. They are a really good team and Claudia loves working with him. When she starts working on something she is very focussed and works hard.

She got a medal today for soccer (one more game) and has been playing very well. I love that she runs on and off the field all the time when the coach substitutes. Hustles at every play.

Claudia is getting mileage out of her costume. I think we are up to seven Halloween parades or activities. This is her kindergarten class.

Mimi is here for the annual Halloween activities. Everyone is very excited. She will watch piano lesson tomorrow, put Claudia on the bus, get her off the bus and do plenty of fun stuff. Mimi also gets to watch soccer on Saturday.

Today was our first trick-or-treating as we went to the Nonnewaug High School event. They do an amazing job as they transform about 15 classrooms into theme rooms overnight. Mulan, Wizard of Oz, Candyland, etc... Some of the rooms are truly amazing.

Claudia is a ladybug.

Claudia is doing pretty well. She is learning a lot in kindergarten and seems to be enjoying herself. She is keeping up, despite being the youngest. It probably helps she is as tall as everybody.

But, she certainly has some moments. She is having a tough time when things don't go her way and sometimes we have some crying moments. School has definitely changed her routine and added a bit of stress.

Right now she is making mazes for me.

Claudia made the front page of Voices!

Claudia is in pink. She ran so very good and hard. She was very proud.

Claudia was very proud to read for Grandma today after soccer. Smart cookie!

See Pip Point.

Claudia is very proud that she is reading her own book with just a little help. Going upstairs she tells Molly "Maybe I will read you stories tonight!"

First week of kindergarten has gone quite well. She is also starting gymnastics and I think we convinced her to take the Jazz dance class.

First day of kindergarten. Bus picked her up at 12:30. She was really ready to go. She got right on and sat with Noah.

Today at Quassy Claudia was stepping into the Tilt-A-Whirl and she tripped and banged her head real hard against the seat. Much blood ensued.

She was a trooper. The medic there cleaned her up a bit. As we finished Claudia turned to me with her sad face and said "When can we go back on the Tilt-A-Whirl?" So we rode before we headed for the hospital.

We just got back from the hospital and she got four stitches. She was really brave the whole time. No big deal at all. She will look a little banged up for her first day tomorrow.

She also rode many other rides there for the first time and was having a great time.

Claudia had her kindergarten orientation today. She was a bit overwhelmed but she did real well. As we know, she is both introverted and a bit nervous. But she fully participated and had a good time. She had no trouble getting on the bus for their "first ride". Mommy, however, was having a "heart attack".

While working on the garden she told me she was pretty nervous. She thought she was going to get lost. I told her Mrs. Rosa would be there when the bus got to school and would show her where to go. I think that helped a bit. During our conversation Claudia proceeded to tell me all the rules (no juice, what to do on the playground, etc...). She certainly soaks everything in.

She is definitely the youngest there (by a few months maybe) but she fit right in. First official day is on Monday. Bus should be here 12:05 or so.

Barn Buddies. Claudia worked really hard in the barn this week.

Kindergarten (!!) orientation is Monday. So far we know:

1. Claudia will be the youngest in her class, but one of the tallest.

2. She has 13 kids in her afternoon session with 2 aides in the room (yeah, Southbury!!).

3. She will ride the bus with Noah (our neighbor) and she is in class with Taylor.

4. Her teacher will be on leave soon for baby stuff.

We expect to keep on with soccer, dance, and piano. Swimming lessons might take a break.

Claudia has been having lots of fun at Mimi's. She has been brushing and taking care of the horses and she feels real important doing that. Mimi and Claudia sleep in the same room and I can hear Claudia giggling. Perhaps I should tell them to quiet down!

Claudia is telling these stories about her week. Daddy is typing.

We went to Lake Compounce. We went in the water and on rides.

We went blueberry picking.

We went to New York City and we saw a movie and a mouse was on our car! I had a good time with Nore and Huib.

Trying to catch up on pictures.

Claudia did the freestyle and sidestroke yesterday while she was swimming. She also did a good five second float. She can't lift her head out of the water to breathe yet but she is getting better fast. I think the swim lessons this year really helped as she feels really comfortable in the water.

Claudia has been going to camp the past week. It is a dance/singing camp. Our impression is that it isn't exactly "intense". Claudia had a better time the second day. The first day she thought they "did a lot of sitting".

We are certain Claudia will keep her teachers on their toes. She remembers everything and wants to work.

Claudia picked a ton of berries with Aunt Tootie yesterday. We also started to learn a little chess.

Great times in Vermont the past week. Mimi joined us again and this was Claudia's fourth trip to VT. A certain routine has certainly been established. We always go to American Flatbread on Saturday (great, great place). We always go to Two Brothers Tavern. We always get ice cream in Brandon. We always go to the Morgan Horse Farm.

Its neat that she is kind of becoming a big girl. She is a great sister as well.

Julie came over on Monday. Big fun. Claudia thinks Julie is really, really cool.

Claudia had a good time in Pennsylvania. She was definitely Mimi's assistant and helped all over the farm. She was eager to help in the barn and to go on gator rides.

Claudia rode Wendy with just a lead line; nobody walking next to her, and she did good. We also saw Toy Story 3 and both girls enjoyed it, although Molly fell asleep right at the end.

We head to Vermont soon. Claudia's fourth trip.

Claudia's new bed.

We are so proud of Claudia. She had her preschool show tonight and she was Mother Rabbit. She closed the show with a big solo. The teachers were all very proud of her! She had a huge crowd there to cheer her on--Grandma, Aunt Tootie, Mr. Jeff, the Shays, and us. Videos and pictures will be up on flickr soon.

She is a such a pro at this.



It was also the last swim class of the session. Claudia is actually kind of swimming now. She feels really comfortable in the water.

Claudia had her fourth dance performance yesterday.

Enjoy.

Daddy finally was able to take a day and go to preschool with Claudia. It was fascinating to watch her for 2.5 hours. She is a very good listener and certainly follows the rules. She had a lot of fun with Jackie, Zainab, and Sydney. I was very impressed by her teachers. They are very, very good at what they do.

Preschool ends in a week. Amazing.

Claudia was so excited to march in the parade this year. She marched with Charlotte and they led the whole soccer group. Claudia was awake about 3:30am this morning she was so excited.

The other blue kids behind her are on another team!

Claudia is really starting to swim. She can swim 2-3 yards a time. She is getting much better at soccer as well.

Whacking moles with Zainab

Claudia asked Zainab to go to Quassy with her tomorrow. We have a season pass and she is allowed to bring a "buddy". Zainab seems to be pretty cool.

Some things going on for Claudia:

1. She is starting to swim. She puts her head under and swims a few feet. She likes her swimming class.

2. She had a piano lesson with Miss Eileen.

3. We heard kindergarten classes next year might be very small--under 15. Waiting to see where she gets placed.

4. She is dancing really well. Her performance is in a few weeks.

5. We have tried to get her to do "big girl" stuff at bedtime. As many of you know, she is very easy to put to bed, except we need to stay with her for 5-10 minutes while she falls asleep. We almost got her to use a flashlight instead. Yes, we put Molly down and leave the room.

6. She got a new bike.

7. Claudia likes American Idol a lot. She is a Crystal fan now. So does Molly. Kasey likes Lee. I'd be happy if they stopped singing.

Claudia works very hard at soccer. She runs real hard and is a good teammate.

Claudia loves to put on her shows right about now. We have four or five performances each night. These performances are eclectic with dance, costumes, singing, instruments and her trusty sidekick Molly. Last night was singing and playing the piano. Claudia was really proud she played Twinkle, Twinkle with Mommy's help.

Florida was a big hit with Claudia. She really enjoyed spending time with some of the family. It was a great vacation!

Claudia is here with me (mommy) to tell about her vacation! My favorite thing was the parade at the Magic Kingdom. I saw Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Ariel, Cinderella, and Belle!
I also loved Sea World. I loved the whales, dolphins and getting caught in the rain. I had a great time in Mark & Joan's pool learning to swim with a noodle!! I liked the hotel, pirate pool and my room. I also had lots of fun with Grandma :)

Return

Claudia is in the air and returning from Florida. I will leave soon to pick her up. Can't wait. I will post pictures and video over the next few days.

Claudia had her first soccer practice today. She had a big crowd come and watch (4 out of 5 Kopecs?).

Mimi and Aunt Susannah are here. Claudia is very excited. She prepared a ritual welcoming ceremony.

I continue to be impressed by Claudia. She is starting to put on shows a lot. Definitely doing something this summer, probably at NMS in New Haven.

We had our first parent conference today at Claudia's preschool. The teacher was very complimentary about Claudia which was nice to hear. She always listens, participates, and helps clean up. She is very happy that Claudia is there.

She thinks she is absolutely ready for kindergarten. We are off to orientation on that tomorrow. No final decision yet, but it is definitely rolling in that direction.

Claudia is currently enjoying watching American Idol. There is a girl on there from Middlebury (where she goes to preschool). Claudia also loves watching the basketball. She figured out how to find the score on the screen. She knows when the game is tied, but we are still working on figuring out who is winning.

Claudia and I (Mommy) had a wonderful night out at a March of Dimes fundraiser. It was a Bridgeport Soundtiger Hockey game. There was an open skate before. Claudia did super and actually made it out to the middle.(With a little help) She enjoyed the cotton candy a lot too!

Claudia and I went to New Haven tonight. It was a fun night. We went to Kitchen Zinc for pizza. She really likes that pizza. We then went to Claire's for dessert. She had a really big chocolate chip cookie.

We then went to the Yale Band Concert. Well, we tried to, but the concert was actually last week. Oops. So we went next door to the Yale Chamber Orchestra concert. Nice to be at Yale. Free concert just waiting to be seen. She sat through a whole Stravinsky symphony, but was pretty tired so we hit the road after that. She does very well at concerts.

Claudia said the best part was walking back and forth. She loved trying to catch snowflakes in her mouth as she walked. I have to agree that was my favorite part too.

Claudia and Mommy had fun making a snow fort and spent the past hour having a snowball fight. This massive snowstorm closed most of the state (almost every school cancelled LAST NIGHT). It has snowed almost 3 inches so far.

Claudia's friend Taylor has spent the day with us. Taylor's parents are on FEMAs dog search team and there is a big explosion in Middletown. Currently Taylor is getting ready for the sleepover. Claudia has never had a sleepover, we aren't sure about Taylor. Lets see how this goes....

Over the monitor:

Claudia: What story do you went to tell? We can only tell ONE story.

Taylor is currently telling that story....

Claudia had her "kids" birthday party with kids from pre-school on Saturday. It got really crowded at Monkey Business but we all had a fun time. I'll get pictures up soon.

Claudia and I attended a benefit concert for Haiti on Monday at Yale. Claudia has lots of questions about earthquakes and Haiti. She wants to make sure we give money so they can have playgrounds. She was very good at the concert and we had lots of fun going for pizza at Kitchen Zinc (fabulous place). She is becoming a big girl so very fast.

Claudia has her big birthday party at Monkey Business this Saturday. Lots of kids from preschool are coming. It will be quite a crowd.

Claudia saw Erin McDermott in Vermont last summer and sings her music in the car all of the time. She "learned" all the lyrics herself.