First day of fourth grade

How can it be that my wee little Maisie Miao Miao started fourth grade today? Just a few months ago she was my sweet little cue ball cutie. Each year when the school year begins I look back through the blog and after seeing all her first day of school pictures I’m just going to have to accept that my little Maisie Miao Miao is growing up…much faster than I’d like. Oh and yes, she’s wearing the exact same skirt that she wore for the fist day of second grade and the coordinating one to the skirt worn on the first day of third grade!

Maisie had a wonderful first day and like previous years was super excited to tell me all about it when I picked her up from school. As soon as we got home she immediately sat at the counter and completed her homework. Fourth grade is going to be an awesome school year for my girl.

Just like past years, here’s a trip down first-day-of-school-pictures memory lane.

First day of third grade.

First day of second grade.

First day of first grade.

First day of Kindergarten.

Last year on Maisie’s first day of school I posted a new recipe over on Cook Lisa Cook for Thai Curry Shrimp with Shirataki Noodles so I thought since it’s one of Maisie’s faves, I would post it again today. This recipe is super simple to make, has great flavors, is safe for Maisie’s allergies, is low carb and delicious eaten as cold leftovers for breakfast…my favorite way to enjoy it. Click on the link or the picture to be taken to Cook Lisa Cook the recipe.

Enjoy!

Summer Fun Meet 2013

Saturday morning Maisie competed at a home meet, Summer Fun Fest.  Maisie competed as a “new” USA level 5.  Maisie was the only level 5 from her gym and she competed against three other (and much older) girls from another gym.  Maisie was quite stressed during warm-up but when it came time to compete she did an A-Maisie-ing job.

This was a score out meet for Maisie and she easily got her score so she’s finished with level 5 and compulsories and is now a USA level 6 optional!  Yay Maisie!!

 

Maisie won first all-around with first place finishes on vault, bar & beam and a second place finish on floor.   

Obligatory scores and hands-in-the-air pictures:

Vault:  first place  9.15

Bar:  First place  8.85

Beam:  First place  8.1

Floor:  Second place 7.95

All-Around:  First place  34.05

Maisie was happy that her friend Alyssa competed and also had a wonderful meet.

She was also thrilled that her teammate Sarah attended the meet to cheer her on!

After the meet Sarah came home with Maisie so that the two of them could play.  First up, lunch and a bit of make-up.

And even though the entire morning was spent doing gymnastics, there’s always time and energy for more!

Maisie had an all around A-Maisie-ing day.  Now to train for the next level and her next competitive season which will begin in December and should be awesome as we just received her meet schedule.  In addition to some home and relatively local meets, she’ll also be competing in Athens, GA, Savannah, GA and Las Vegas, NV!!  Talk about an amazing away meet!! So much to look forward to in the coming year.

Since this post is all about my A-Maisie-ing Maisie I’m featuring one of her favorite recipes, Easy White Corn Tortilla Pizza.  Maisie not only loves eating these but she also enjoys helping to make them.  Her favorite toppings are vegan cheese and mini pepperoni but they can be made to suit any favorite toppings.  Click on the link or the picture to be taken to Cook Lisa Cook and the recipe.

Enjoy!

Fourth grade open house

After three full months away from school, Thursday morning Maisie returned, but just for open house...she doesn't begin class until Monday. Maisie was happy to see all her pals again, especially her classmate Rose.

 

Maisie was also excited to see her new (yet old as it's the same room she was in for second grade) classroom and to finally be in Miss. Vicki's class. Maisie loves school and is looking forward to another wonderful year.

 

We have been doing some landscaping in our yard and the geese seem to really like it. Not happy is an understatement. I'm hoping once everything fills in along the water, the geese will be less inclined to come up on our lawn.

 

I posted a new recipe over on Cook Lisa Cook for my Improv Cooking Challenge. This month the two required ingredients were vanilla & chocolate. I chose to make Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Rice Krispy Treats with Vanilla Coconut Frosting. Maisie and her friends thought they were awesome and did a great job devouring them...a true indicator of a great recipe. Click on the link to be taken to Cook Lisa Cook and the recipe.

 

 

Enjoy!

 

Final weekend before school begins

Summer seems to have flown by, I can't believe that this coming Monday my wee little Maisie will start fourth grade! Maisie's looking forward to returning to school and seeing her friends again, three months away from them is a long time.

 

Last week and this week Maisie has had a crazy schedule at the gym. Monday, Wednesday & Friday were 6 hours per day spilt between morning and afternoon practices and Tuesday was her easy day with just a four hour afternoon practice. Seven practices spread over only four days is rough and we are both looking forward to next week when those seven practices will be spread over 6 days and Mondays will be the only day she'll have both morning and afternoon practices. With such an intense schedule, Maisie was pretty tired by Friday so between her morning and afternoon practice, without any prompting from me, she happily crawled into bed and took a nice long nap.

 

Our weekends have been very busy with double play dates and activities and I knew that we all just needed a day off so I only planned only one thing for the weekend and intended to spend Sunday just chilling and relaxing. Our big plan for the weekend was to have Lisa, Dough & Briana over for dinner Saturday night. It had been a loooong time since we last spent an evening together and we always have such a nice time together it's too bad that it's so long between gatherings but we all seem to have such busy schedules.

 

Maisie and Briana of course were off playing as soon as Bri walked through the door.

 

Make-up was of course part of the fun.

 

The girls stopped their playing just long enough to eat their dinner at their requested private table.

 

A rare quiet moment of rest in the hammock.

 

At just past 11PM the adults called it a night and the girls finished their Wii game before hugs goodbye. It was a totally enjoyable evening, the girls played and the adults enjoyed a beautiful evening outside chatting by the flickering lights of the tiki torches and listening to the sound of nature and the laughter of two happy girls. Both girls were worn out by the end of the night and it wasn't even ten minutes after Briana left that Maisie was fast asleep.

 

Sunday I had planned to sleep late, maybe get a little laundry done but basically I just wanted to be a lump on the sofa. Unfortunately that wasn't to be the case. I had been nursing our dishwasher along for close to a year and Saturday just hours before our dinner party it decided to wash it's final dish and die...after a mere 11 years. So Saturday I had asked my Facebook friends about their love and hate dishwasher info and armed with that, I did some research. By Sunday, one day without my dishwasher was enough so I spent most of the day visiting all the local appliance stores viewing and comparing dishwashers. By late afternoon I settled on the one I wanted and made my purchase. Monday morning it was delivered & installed and I don't think the installers truck was off my street by the time I ran my first load. Thus far I've run two loads and I'm quite pleased with my purchase even though I didn't get my restful Sunday.

 

Even after a relatively relaxed weekend for my Maisie, she was still tired Monday and on the way to her afternoon practice she completely conked out in the car. A little 20 minute power nap does a girl good.

 

Saturday night I joked with Lisa saying that between everyone's diets and Maisie's allergies, I would b serving air and water! Instead of such a drastic and tasteless meal I served instead my Chicken Burgers with Spinach & Mushrooms which satisfied the dietary needs of everyone and were delicious to boot. Click on the link to be taken to Cook Lisa Cook and the recipe.

 

 

Enjoy!

 

Friends and giants

Just when I thought that Maisie's back-to-back play dates were over, we managed to sneak another set. Monday morning after Maisie's gymnastics practice her friend Sarah picked her up at the gym and the girls got to play for a few hours. When I picked Maisie up mid-day, the girls were out on the driveway drawing a chalk gym. Do you think they like gymnastics much?

 

Tuesday we met some new friends when Krista and her girls Becca & Emma came over for lunch and to play. Krista and I have "known" one another for years through our blogs and Facebook but this was our first time meeting in person and for the girls, it took mere minutes before they were off and playing like old friends. They started off in Maisie's bedroom gabbing like teenagers on the bed.

 

The gymnastics mats came out and they played on Maisie's bar for a while and then the Make-up came out and the girls subtly painted their faces.

 

The afternoon ended with a movie and popcorn. After so many years of following one another's adoption and seeing the pictures of the children growing up, it was wonderful to meet in person and spend a nice afternoon together.

 

 

At the gym Maisie's been working on getting her giants on the strap bar. The last time I saw her working on them, Hardy was assisting her around the bar but this morning he was just spotting her and she was tapping and going round and around herself. Soon she'll be doing them on the regular bar...oh my!

 

Today I published a new recipe over on Cook Lisa Cook for Tandoori Chicken Wings which are crispy delicious on the outside, moist and tender on the inside and flavorful throughout. Click on the link to be taken to the recipe.

 

 

Enjoy!

 

Running, partying & pool fun

Maisie has really enjoyed her Friday morning runs at the gym with the optional girls. This past Friday was the end of summer session so her last Friday morning run. Not all the girls are disappointed to see the end of summer runs but Maisie wishes they'd continue.

 

Friday morning my Angel Trumpet was almost in full bloom so Maisie checked out the flowers.

 

At one of Maisie's Wednesday play dates at Alyssa's house they did Shimmer glitter tattoos and Maisie loved them and wanted to do them again so I purchased a kit and Saturday morning I tattooed my girl.

Once Maisie was properly tattooed and glittery, Eammon took her to Briana's birthday party at Sky Zone where she had a blast jumping on the trampolines and being with friends.

Since I didn't go to the party and Eammon didn't take any pictures, I just have the ones that Lisa took.

 

Happy birthday Bri and thanks for including Maisie.

 

Sunday was a gorgeous summer day and Eammon and Maisie decided to go to the pool. Maisie wanted a friend to join them so a few back and forth texts and Sarah came over to play.

 

The girls played for a few hours at the pool and then on the Wii, a fun way to finish the weekend.

 

 

Today is my Secret Recipe Club reveal day and this month I made some wonderful Chicken Burgers with Spinach & Mushrooms. They were a huge hit with all of us, even my mushroom & spinach hating Maisie...and she put dibs in on the last burger so that she could enjoy it for lunch the following day! Maisie didn't even notice the mushrooms as they were minced and mixed into the burger and as for the spinach, well she loves salad so I told her it was salad mixed right into the burger...just didn't mention that it was spinach salad ;). Click on over to Cook Lisa Cook and check out the recipe, you won't be disappointed.

 

 

My previous Secret Recipe Club Recipe Posts: Andes Peppermint Snowball Cookies Paradise Mango Curried Shrimp Laura Goodenough’s Apple Coffee Cake Loaded Potato Soup Lemon Almond Biscotti Creamy MintsThai Peanut Noodles with Chicken Baked Buffalo Chicken Wings Fried Green Tomatoes Chicken Satay Noodle Salad Double Chocolate Mousse Cake Candied Popcorn Fruit, Nut & Poppy Seed Chicken Salad Broiled Sushi Health(ier) Peanut Brittle Crunchy Fudgy Heart Bites Texas Chicken with Lime ButterPork Belly Soup with Collard Greens Thin Mint Irish Coffee Levain Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies Welsh Cakes Nutella Crêpes Cilantro Lime Chicken Holy Guacamole and Home Style Chicken Curry

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Wednesdays with Alyssa

Summer here in Georgia is almost at an end, well summer break that is, I'm sure that the summer heat will continue well into September. Our county, as well as most of the surrounding ones, have the children already back in school or starting this coming week. Maisie doesn't resume school until August 19th so while most of her friends will be spending their days in class, she'll still enjoy a bit more of her summer break. Maisie has truly enjoyed summer break this year, spending it in her favorite place (the gym) and with so many of her friends. One of Maisie's favorite things this summer was her almost weekly, Wednesday play dates with Alyssa. Each Wednesday after Maisie's gymnastics practice I would either drop her at Alyssa's house or we'd pick Alyssa up and bring her to our home and the girls would spend hours together playing.

 

There was play time in our pool.

 

As well as play time at Alyssa's pool.

 

Water gun fights on the patio.

 

And relaxing time in the hammock.

 

The girls made themselves even more beautiful with make-up.

 

 

And spent lots of time doing hair design.

 

Lunches were shared.

 

As we're lots of hugs

Maisie loved her play dates with Alyssa and is sad to see their weekly date together come to an end but we will try to plan some weekend dates each month during the school year so that the girls can continue their fun days together.

Yesterday I posted a new recipe over on Cook Lisa Cook for Slow Cooker Whole Roasted Chicken & Gravy which is beyond simple to make and way beyond delicious to eat. Click on the link to be taken to Cook Lisa Cook and the recipe.

 

 

Enjoy!