Lussi's First Recital

Today Lussi mastered Row Row Row Your Boat on the piano and she got so excited that she invited all her neighborhood friends and Grandma and Grandpa Salmela over for a recital (that's what she called it!) She gave out tickets to the kids and cleaned up the sunroom and put out chairs for all to sit on. She also made these signs by herself and put them up for her concert guests. (Hi! I am Lussi. I have a concert for you. Yes! I have a concert for you. I love you.) It was the shortest recital on record... 22 seconds.

Row-Row-Row Your Boat

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Sofia play...(she doesn't know I'm there)

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Itsy bitsy spider

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Neighborhood Egg Hunt

Mega Mall... once every 6 years is enough :)

6 years old!!!

Another year has rolled around and this one has been filled with giant leaps physically and mentally. Last summer Lussi learned to ride her bike, in school she learned to read and write and now spell some common words as well as add and subtract, and recently she has become comfortable with going under water for 10 to 15seconds. Everyone told us that the years would pass faster and faster... well now we know first hand that it's true!

Kindergarten

It is so hard to believe the whole year of Kindergarten has almost passed! What a busy year it has been but so much fun. Lussi loves school and when I asked her about school and whether or not she liked it she said, “I love school as much as I love you Mommy and that’s a lot!” She loves her teacher and really likes most of her classmates. She has had a few boy friends this year... Aaron first and now Aidan. Her best friends have been Maria then Gretta and now Lydia. On the academic side, she knows how to read now! She is reading at a first grade level already and she really wants to keep getting better so i know what we will be doing all summer! She is fun to listen to too, I can't believe how fast she went from barely writing all the letters to reading books all by herself. At our conference with her teacher we learned that Lussi is not emotional in school and the teacher had never seen her cry, unlike some of the other "emotional" girls in class. We were shocked, she is still pretty emotional with us but getting less so since Mrs. Rolfe blew her cover. We also learned that Lussi is not to be messed with on the playground or in class. Mrs. Rolfe says she stands her ground and that she personally would not want to cross her. Mrs Rolfe called her a confident, smart little cookie. Of course, as parents we are proud but mostly relieved that she is happy, challenged and maturing into a little adult.

Tea pot song- Sofia style!

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I love books!

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I can read book after book and now that my parents have read most of them to me a million times, I can usually recite part of the book as I am doing here. One night, my Mama thought I had gone to sleep because it was quiet in my room. She asked my Dada to check on me. He came in my room and noticed I wasn't in my bed, then he saw the light on in my closet so he peeked in. I looked up at him and yelled,"I readin' books Dada!" (It was 9:30pm at this point and I had been readin' books since 8 o'clock)

A view into Lussi's world...

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Great-Grandpa Helmer with a "Heytch"

We will miss you but our memories of you bring us happiness.

Little Singer

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Sofia is beginning to say most of her words correctly but the ABC song really points out those sounds that are still difficult for her.

Bo Diddily Beat

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It is apparent in this video how much both Dada and Lussi love music. Music is one of Lussi's favorite classes in school and she is constantly making up her own songs. Perhaps she'll be a song writer like Grandma Gladys or Uncle Chad.

The Chariot Train

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This was well liked by all the neighborhood kids. And the train is a great way to use the new biking trail that comes out to Lakeside from Canal Park.

Sisters & Leaves

Sofia and I have had sooo much fun playing in the big leaf piles and helping Mama and Dada drag the big tarp of leaves over to the neighbors gardens.

The real deal- Halloween!!!!!

I was so excited for this night! It felt like the day took forever and that the night would never come. Taavi stopped by during Sofia's nap. I kept saying "Isn't he sooo cute!" I chose to be a Vampire. I wanted to be something scary on Halloween because Halloween is scary! Sofia didn't quite get what halloween was so she just dressed up as a lion and willingly stayed home with Mama to hand out candy while I went with Dada and all the neighbors down our street. Unfortunately it was too dark to take pictures of the neighbors and this great adventure but I told Daddy on our way back home that "This was the best night of my life!"

Boo at the Zoo

Sofia and I got our first fill of candy at the zoo. It was my idea to both be lions even though my costume was a little small. We met Brinnon and Tae there but Mommy only took blurry pictures of our friends.

Lussi's first day of Kindergarten

As you can see in the picture, I am really nervous. On the first day we had to draw a picture of what we were worried about the most. I drew a picture of the bus! But after the first day, I realized it was fun to ride the bus and go to school too.

Farm Camp

Lussi had many chores at farm camp. Her favorites included counting the eggs and giving the weather report. She met a new friend, Lydia who will be in Kindergarten with her and hung out with her old pal Amelia. They looked for garden fairies, trolls under the bridge, read stories under the tree, held bunnies and chicks, tended to baby lambs and a fawn, and planted some seeds.