Sam's Dance Recital

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Dec. 26, 27, 28, 29th

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Christmas Day '09

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Christmas Eve '09

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Our first Christmas Celebration of '09

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Potty Training?

So I posted a few back about how Caleb had used the potty. Well apparently, he quite likes the idea! Last night when we got home I took his coat off & sat him down. He promptly went into the bathroom, put his little toilet seat on the toilet & tried to take his pants off! I couldn't resist that! I helped him out, sat him up there & there he went again! Today I thought I'd give it a go again & he knows exactly what to do when I put him up there!! I'm so surprised because he's still so small (17 months today). I guess we'll keep encouraging him & see how it goes! Merry Christmas mom?!

Pink Glove Dance

You absolutely must take the time to watch this video.

Our daughter-in-law, Emily (MacInnes) Somers, created, directed and choreographed this in Portland last week for her Medline glove division as a fundraiser for breast cancer awareness. This was all her idea to help promote their new pink gloves. I don't know how she got so many employees, doctors and patients to participate, but it started to really catch on and they all had a lot of fun doing it. When the video gets 1 million hits, Medline will be making a huge contribution to the hospital, as well as offering free mammograms for the community. Please check it out. It's an easy and great way to donate to a wonderful cause, and who hasn't been touched by breast cancer? Ann Somers > > > > > > > > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEdVfyt-mLw

Wow!

After dinner tonight I went into the bathroom to put Caleb into the bathtub. I have put him on the potty a time or two before (thanks to the inspiration of Rylee!). I didn't figure he'd do anything because he never has before. Much to my surprise (and delight!) he used the potty! I was really surprised, & actually, so was Caleb! I made a big deal out of it to him though & he thought that was great. Maybe he'll do it again soon??

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It's what we do

I keep telling myself that I need to post an update with pix. I got a new camera on black Friday (which I absolutely love). But, I haven't had the time to mess with unloading it all onto my computer yet!
What we've been up to:
-Trav has been home (yay!)
-Trav had a 24 hr flu bug while he was home.
-We went to Manti & cut down 5 Christmas trees.
-As we decorated the Christmas tree Caleb undecorated the Christmas tree (so helpful!).
-Nash got the 24 hr flu bug from his dad while we were in Manti.
-I finished a quilt I've been working on for 3 years! (Got to finish binding it on the ride there).
-Got my Christmas cards printed (now to mail them!)
-Have made HUGE strides towards my students' portfolios at school.
-Only have 2 more classes left for this session of my ESL endorsement.
-Learned how to make the beaded watch bands over Thanksgivng (thanks sis).
-Had lots of yummy food over Thanksgiving & a quick visit from our dad.
-Had Picasso visit my walls (I mean house) again (pix to come!).
-Caleb got his 8th tooth.
-Looking forward to Sam's dance recital Dec. 16th @ 6:50 @ LaShars (open invite to any interested parties - it's free & short in length!).
-Keep having people just barely notice I have pink in my hair (put it there the Monday before Halloween!).
-I have managed to stay out of trouble at school (well, mostly).
-Trav had to replace his windshield due to a massive crack. Now my winshield has a 16 inch crack in it. Guess my car felt left out!
-Bought Caleb a new carseat.
-Sam's tooth that she lost MONTHS ago (like June) is finally growing back in!
-Got around 3 inches of snow last night & today (so glad I don't have to go outside for recess!).

Nothing majorly exciting, but, that's what we do!

Slinkies

"Some people are like slinkies. They're only good for putting a smile on your face when you push them down the stairs."

Today, I was the slinky!

In honor...

Since Thanksgiving is on the 26th this year, here are 26 things I'm thankful for:

1-Insta Care, great pediatricians & amazing ENTs
2-Decent paying jobs
3-Cars that get nearly 40 mpg
4-Fantastic babysitters ;)
5-3 day weekends
6-My mom & her willingness to babysit on short notice & ability to supervise my sewing adventures!
7-My chiropractor
8-Ibuprofen 800
9-My kids' smiles
10-Tylenol & teething tablets
11-Cell phones & their texting ability
12-My family
13-All modern technology (including indoor plumbing!)
14-My kids' willingness to forgive me when I'm grouchy
15-My house
16-My husband who sacrifices much
17-Long hot baths
18-Warm summer nights
19-Fresh snow
20-Friends
21-The new tires on my car
22-My next door neighbors that regularly entertains Nash & Samantha
23-Dexamethazone & nebulizers
24-My dad's willingness to change the oil in my care & rotate my tires on the weekend!
25-Dead bugs - they provide much (cheap) entertainment for Nash!
26-They way I was raised - boy it could have been worse! ;)

I tag anyone that wants to play!

We love winter...

Took Caleb to Insta Care tonight. Ear infection of the right ear & the beginning signs of pnumonia (sp?)! Yay!! Thank goodness I only work 2 days this week!!

No more baby!

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Halloween was fun. We carved pumpkins before Trav left last time. The kids modeled their costumes for him before he left too. I took the kids to trick or treat in downtown Logan during the day. Caleb was really good. He just sat in the stroller and was quite mellow. Of course, he didn't feel too great. That night I left Caleb with my mom & took the other 2 to my aunt Nikki's house to trick or treat with her kids. The kids had a lot of fun. Nash's legs pooped out after about a block. He got to the point that he wouldn't even get out of the wagon at each house! Stinker. We still had fun though.

My baby is no longer a baby! Travis said this morning he was out watching TV when all of a sudden here comes Caleb. Little stink climbed out of his crib! So, tonight we took his crib down to a toddler bed. I think he was tired enough when I put him to bed that is the reason why he has stayed! Tomorrow may be a different story!!

Trav came home on Tuesday (yay). It was perfect timing because Nash got really sick Wednesday night. Trav's scheduled to go read to Sam's class Tue. morning. Sam's pretty stoked about that. He didn't shave the entire 2 weeks he was gone and he really needed a haircut before he left last time. So, he came home looking like a homeless mountain man. We'll have to get him cleaned up before he goes this time. During the last 2 weeks when he was at work, he managed to work a mere 183 hours. We are bummed he won't be home for Thanksgiving, but would much rather have him home for Christmas (which he will be) so we won't complain too much.

Nash is still loving preschool. He's getting really good at writing his name and numbers. It's funny to watch him because he's noticing letters in everything now and likes to point out "Hey, that's in my name. Look Sam!" It's really cute. The other thing he's doing lately is when we're watching TV or looking at magazines he'll tell me "Mom! I want that SOOO bad!" It's pretty funny to hear him because he totally makes it sound like he is the only kid on the planet that doesn't already have one and he absolutely needs to have it NOW.

Sam's dance recital is coming up on Dec. 16th at LaShars. I got to watch her dance for 15 min. about 2 weeks ago. Their dances are coming along pretty good. I'm sure glad she likes it. The girl has got rhythm!

Update on Sam: Met with her teacher, their school reading specialist and the principal today. Apparently the lady that is their reading specialist works with the teachers at the school where she went last year, so she was familiar with Sam and her data. She said that they place the kids at the beginning of the school year in the same level that they tested at at the end of the previous year, so she was placed in a group that was the level she was at at the end of Kindergarten. They went ahead and tested her. Come to find out, she tested out of the group she had been placed in (surprise). Apparently they do 2 different reading groups every day for 30 minutes. Beginning Monday Samantha will be in a higher level reading group for both reading groups. Yay. I find it very interesting that the reading specialist told us that because there was concern about Sam that after they looked at her data, they went back and looked at the data of other kids. As a result, they were able to move 22 additional students up in their reading level groups. I wanted to know why the data wasn't re-examined earlier but didn't ask because I didn't want to come across as a beast. Her teacher told me that she is scoring at the top of the class in language arts, but not out of what their doing (I say give her time ;) ). She is scoring in about the middle for math so since they do math centers during the day, her teacher feels like she's getting the differentiation that she needs. I'm still going to do more with her at home in that area. She'll be finished reading the phonics readers by Monday and will get to start reading AR books and taking tests. That should be interesting.

Help wanted!

Alright...I need help.

Poor Samantha is getting so bored at school lately that she doesn't even want to go to school. When I try to get her to do her homework, she just rolls her eyes and sighs as me as if to say, "Why? I've already done this and know how to do it. You're beating a dead horse here.".

Last night on the way to dance class she came right out and said, "Mom...when I go to school, it's boring. I already know what the teacher is teaching. She only calls on the first person to raise their hand and I always have my hand up first so she calls on me, and I'm BORED!". How does a mother answer this without getting mad at the teacher? How does a mother, who also happens to be a teacher, answer this without getting REALLY mad at the teacher?

I started to talk to her (I've actually been worried this is what was happening for about 2 or so weeks - maybe longer). When I ask her to tell me what she learned in school that day, she can't tell me anything. For example, today I told her "Tell me one thing you learned in school today." I'm thinking she'll give me something profound, right? Nope. She comes out with, "I went to pe and learned to dribble a ball." Wow. Earth shattering!

So, at school today I spoke with one of the first grade teachers and asked her if she had some formal assessments I could copy to give to Sam. She's going to get me a copy of the last block test we just took. Tonight I gave her the primary spelling inventory (QSI from Words Their Way). She scored about 52/84 (that's higher than some of my third graders scored at the beginning of last year people!). After speaking with our instructional coach, I'm going to have Trav check her out of school early next Wednesday and bring her down to take the STAR and 4-Sight tests (reading tests) to see how she scores there. I'm going to update her DIBELS test (last one was first of Sept. and she scored 72 cwpm). I've emailed her teacher and asked if Trav and I can come and meet with her next Friday. I'm hoping she'll agree. I'm going to take all my data (teacher dna coming out). I will ask her to explain their reading program to me (it sounds like it's a basal but not being taught in a very interactive way). I'll then present the concern I have and my data. If she can't figure out a way to differentiate, I will move her to my school. The teachers at my school all worked on differentiation last year so they're pretty good at it. I just don't want her to hate school & right now, she really doesn't like it much!

My sister about died last night when I told her that I'm very seriously considering pulling my daughter out of a Cache County school & putting her in an inner city Ogden school. But, Ogden City has really high standards and expectations, so they have some really amazing teachers. At least I'd know her teacher & could have easier access to how she was doing, right?

What suggestions do you have? The instructional coach at my school told me, "You need to go in there as a parent, not a teacher." But, I think that if I go in as a parent I have a lot more emotional ties to it and the likelyhood of me getting upset is much higher. If I go in with a teacher mindset, I can pull the emotion out of it a bit more and just look at the data and lessen the liklyhood of me wanting to smack her teacher!

Help!

Update

Well, he's been sick for a week & so far no stays in the hospital - so, that's good news, right?
Here's a review/update for you!

Last Wednesday night...went to Urgent Care at Specialty Hospital & told he had croup. By some miracle the doctore actually gave him Dexamethazone!

Thursday I stayed home with Caleb...guilty mother syndrome kicked in.

Friday...Caleb went to daycare & did so-so.

Saturday (Halloween)...he still didn't feel too hot. Since the weather was nice I took him & the other 2 into Logan to trick or treat in downtown. Caleb just sat in his stroller & played the part of Yoda quite well (pix later!). I left Caleb with my mom Saturday night and took the other two monsters trick or treating in Nibley with the Snyders. We had lots of fun & got a good share of candy.

Sunday...Duleb still didn't feel too hot so I left Nash & Sam with my mom & went back to Urgent Care at the Specialty Hospital. Randomly enough we saw the same dr. that we had seen Wednesday night. Now we get told it sounds more like Bronchitis than croup. We finally got antibiotics.

Monday...I only went to work for 1/2 a day & my mom kept Caleb that morning until I got back. He seemed to be feeling better but still didn't act like himself. When I changed his diaper he had these weird spots on his inner thighs. Yes, I was now freaked out because my mind thought "allergic reaction to Zythromax." All three kids are allergic to Penicillan & the boys are allergic to Omnicef too. So, here I am thinking he's having an allergic reaction to Zythromax & if that's the case we're in BIG trouble when the kid gets sick! I put my mom on daycare standby with all the dr. names, numbers & a list of drugs he's been taking.

Today...I sent Caleb to daycare for the whole day. He did ok. Laura never could see the weird spots I was talking about on his inner thighs. When I changed his diaper tonight I could see them still, but only just faintly. I'm thinking it's just some weird coincidence...ok, HOPING it's just a weird coincidence!

So, we are surviving. Some days I think "Just barely!" & other days go well. Tomorrow we endure dance class & a short day at school for me! When I flipped the calendar the other day I realized there's only about 3 weeks until Thanksgiving....HOLY COW! I'm sure you'll never guess what my first thought was at that realization -- yep, YAY long weekend! ;)

We are anxiously awaiting this weekend when we get to make a trip south to Manti. Sam is so excited she can barely contain herself! And who can blame her? We get to visit Grandma & Grandpa Butter!

Caleb

I am the not so happy mother of a: fever running, non-stop croup coughing, throwing up, ear draining, take me to the urgent care at 10 pm & stay until after 11 before we go home, rash on the bum 1 year old!
Good times...

Toothless Ninnie

Well, my daugher is getting to be more of a toothless wonder every day! She pulled (much to my amazement) another one of her own teeth last night. Of course there was the usual drama surrounding and leading up to the actual tooth pulling, but she stayed the course & got it out herself! She's now missing 2 teeth on top & 1 on the bottom!
She wrote a very cute letter to the Tooth Fairy to leave with her tooth as well. The Tooth Fairy was kind enough to take time out of her busy schedule & reply to her cute letter. Sam asked her what her real name was and the Tooth Fairy told her that she's been called The Tooth Fairy for so long she can't remember her own name! Sam thinks that's pretty dang funny!
Unfortunately, she's home with a cough and a fever today. I seriously hope it doesn't turn into something major...

What you been doin?

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Another Week!

Well, it has not been a slow week at our house!

I had parent teacher conferences this week - blah. That was a fun filled 2 days with an extra 8 hrs of daycare to pay for! At least Friday was a 1/2 day for my kids at school!

A bunch of my students have been out with Swine Flu & one of our teachers has been as well. Yes, I am crossing my fingers & using a lot of germ-x & lysol!

We got word that Trav's uncle is getting married in just a few short weeks. We are excited for him and are looking forward to visiting in Manti over the Nov. 7th weekend.

Caleb has learned how to pull a chair out, climb on it & then get onto my table. Yeah, not so sure I'm thrilled about this trick!

Today Nash has met his 2 injury a day quota. I just love it when I get to call my mother for 1st aid assistance 2 times in a day!! At least no er visit was required for either injury! I swear, that kid is going to give me GRAY hairs!!! Unfortunately, his little brother is following suit!

I got to celebrate my 29th bday by doing parent teacher conferences. Not exactly my idea of fun. On Friday we had dinner/presents with Trav's family. Last night we had dinner/presents with my parents. Caleb sure does like the chocolate cake & cream cheese frosting Grandma Terri made me!

Trav comes home on Tuesday - YAY! Of course, we all know that week is going to FLY by way too quickly.

Ordinary Things

This picture pretty well sums up the day! Jack & Jade came to play for awhile. My basement is a disaster (nothing new) but the kids had a great time & grandma got a break!

We drove to Orem on Saturday to go to Prestin's 7th birthday party at Pirate Island. Long story short - 2 hr drive turned to 3 hr drive, Sam puked in the parking lot b/c she was car sick, my car started smoking, & it was after 9 pm when we got home. Kids had fun though. Pirate Island is basically a smaller Chuck E Cheese with a Pirate theme. Nash had 253 tickets & Sam won about 105.

My cute matching boys riding one of the rides at Pirate Island.

Caleb has found a new place to play....Apparently, he & his brother fit in here at the same time (at least when Dad's babysitting they do!)

'Tis the season....Again!

I finished out the month of September by spending UEA weekend sitting in the Megaplex Theatre in Ogden for 2 days attending the Gang & Youth Violence Conference. That was SO interesting! I learned a lot and am really glad I had the opportunity to go.

We jump started the month of October on Friday night by dipping cinnamon bears, strawberries & raspberries in chocolate. Then, we made caramel apples with apples from my parent's apple trees...yummy.

Saturday I proceeded to smash my pinkie finger in the lid to my washing machine. On Saturday Nash also decided he was going to get croup - let the good times begin! Saturday night we went & saw the new Transformers movie with Nash & Sam & Trav's parents kept Caleb.

Sunday night all 3 of the monsters decided they weren't feeling too good. My parents came up & ate dinner with us & then we watched Race to Witch Mountain. After my parents left I put poor Caleb to bed. You could just tell he felt crappy, not to mention the temperature he had! After that I called in for a sub on Monday (the sub story alone is enough to make one pull their hair out - long story short...REALLY bad sub!).

Monday I called the pediatrician's office at 8 because I had it in my head that there were people in the office at that hour. Nope. Called back at 9 & had to wait 15 minutes for someone to take me off hold. By then, the only appointment left was at 4:20...sure glad I took the whole day off! I hauled all 3 kids to the dr. that afternoon to have Nash's croup confirmed, Caleb diagnosed with a sinus infection (no wonder his boogers haven't gone away for a month - poor kid, I kept thinking it was teeth!), and Sam's strep test came back negative (a smidgen of sunshine). Funny enough, after the nurse walked out of the room Sam asks "Mom, are they going to stick that big Q-tip down my throat? Because I feel a lot better now." Of course she did! It's amazing how quickly kids recover, isn't it?

Well, lets hope we've had our share for a day or two. Anyone else scoffing at this idea? I wouldn't be if Sam wasn't "sleeping" on the couch with a croup cough right now!

Make a Smilebox slideshow Oh the things we have been keeping ourselves busy with! As you can see, we got Sam's school pictures back. I wish I could zoom out b/c the pink shirt she has on in it makes the green super cute. I'm really happy with the way her pictures turned out so we're not doing retakes. Caleb is cruising around like a wild man! That boy climbs/scales the walls lately! He's figured out how to climb out of the bathtub even! My mom came over a few nights ago & when Caleb heard Sam say "Hi grandma." he stood up, slid out of the tub & took off running for the living room stark naked before I could catch him! Thank goodness Nash was paying attention! I was just notified that Caleb was climbing the ladder up to Nash's bed! I got in the bedroom just in time to see him reach for the bed (he was standing on the last rung!). I think this one is going to turn my hair gray!!! Samantha is still loving school. She is such a smartie. For those that know what I'm talking about, I DIBELS tested her a few weeks ago & she was at 72 correct words a minute (that's mid second grade reading level). Her comprehension of what she reads is really good too. I can't believe how fast she's growing & learning! It seems like just yesterday I was sending her to her first day of preschool! She is quite the fashion diva lately as well. She has become quite particular about what she will & will not wear out in public. She has yet to become particular about how her hair looks, however (much to her mother's dismay). Her first round of parent teacher conferences is next week. I'm a bit irritated though because of the way her school is doing conferences. Rather than scheduling every child a conference, they are only scheduling conferences with parents of those kids who have some kind of current problem. The rest of the conference time is an open house. This means I get to go to the school between 6-7 pm & HOPE I get the chance to talk to her teacher. Yeah, not so sure I'm going to bother to even try that one! Nash, well, Nash is a wild man as always! He was playing on a skateboard ramp at preschool on Wednesday & nose dived. He now has a scab on his nose & his forehead as well as a scratch on his belly. Last night his scab was flaking off so I yanked it. This morning he looked in the mirror & then said, "Mom...my forehead looks hideous!" I stiffled my giggles and asked him where he learned the word hideous. His reply? "I didn't learned it mom, I just knowed it." Yep, more giggles! He's getting better at writing his letters but we're still practicing. He enjoys listening to his sister read to him & is still excited about school (how long will this last?). Lately though, he's turned into a bit of a bully. This past week he was in time out once a day every day for 3 days in a row at daycare! As a result of these bad choices, he's now experiencing being grounded from his LEGOs & his bike for a week. Aren't I mean?? I have been working my guts out at school. Friday was our school carnival, which I stayed and worked at from 4:30-7:30. It was fun to watch the kids & see their reaction when they realized I was there. We got to go to an author's assembly on Friday. We had the author that wrote the book Far World come & talk to the 3rd - 6th graders. That was a nice unexpected surprise! I have fall break coming up next week but am going to spend it at a Gang Conference. I thought it sounded like it would be a good training, so I signed up! I have parent teacher conferences coming up on Oct. 14th & 15th. That should be interesting! Next week will be a bit of a nice break for me. I'll teach Monday & am spending all day Tuesday observing other teachers in our building, so I'll have a sub. Wednesday is our short day & it's also my team's day to have our "prep" time so I only see the kids for about an hour that day. Then Thursday & Friday there's no school! We did just finish our school wide lice checks last week & I'm glad to have that over with! My school pictures are coming up on Oct. 13th - hope mine turn out as cute as Sam's, but I'm not holding my breath! Travis is leaving work on Monday morning to head to Manti to go hunting. He's just been itching to get there for a week! I think it's killed him to know everyone else has been down there for a week & he has had to miss out on that. I hope he gets to kill something in his 4 days of hunting. On the other hand, I won't feel too bad if he doesn't! He's still working for Halliburton in Rock Springs, WY. He's SO ready to quit & come home. Much to his dismay I've told him he can't until we have insurance through my job! He did just tell me that when my insurance kicks in he's going to start looking for a job closer to home. Not sure he'll have much luck, but we're crossing our fingers that something worthwhile might be available Well, Sam & Nash just headed to the corn maze with their little friend Jolie from next door & Caleb is laying back down for a nap (getting teeth so he's a bit grouchy). I guess I'll go work on school work...or maybe think about working on school work! Have a great week!

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Wow

Time flies when you're havin' fun! It's been about 2 weeks since my last post! I'll put pix up this weekend but words will have to do for now because it's 10:30 pm & I should be doing school work!
1-Trav came home over Labor Day (even though he didn't have it off & got in a bit of trouble). We went to the Logan Aquatic Center with the kids & Trav's sister & her little fam. The kids LOVED it. Trav's been promising to take them for a month now. This same night we ate at The Behive Grill. It was good but the wait was FOR EVER! We also went & saw Ice Age 3 that same night.
2-We went to Wellsville Founder's Day activities & got to meet Sadie Jiao for the first time. Sam was SO excited to meet her & was asking as soon as she left when she'd get to go play with her & Sara! It was the first time we'd taken the kids to Wellsville Founder's Day & they got a kick out of the Sham Battle. The parade was LONG & not much candy but enough to fill a pocket on the diaper bag for mom to carry (& sample).
3-Dad came home for his week off (just left today). While he was here we went camping & had another leaf spring on the trailer break. I swear, we cannot go anywhere or do anything without something major happening!
4-Speaking of something major happening, last Thursday when I left school to go to my ESL class my car had a flat tire. Luckily there was a parent right there that totally offered to change my tire & I made it to class on time still. Switched my car for my brother's & spent the last week driving that while my car got new tires on it (thanks for the bday present mom & dad).
5-Since we got back from camping Charlotte (the dog) has been sick. Fortunately, she hasn't puked on my carpet & it seems like she's doing better tonight...
6-I have my first cold of the season...yay. It's a sinus cold that I got from Nash & am hoping it will leave my presence soon! At least I've almost got the first one over, right??

Samantha-ism for the day:
We're on our way to dance class tonight & pass the Providence Maverick.
Sam: "Mom, what is that guy holding that sign for?"
Mom: "It's for the hot & ready $5 pizza at Little Ceasar's Pizza."
Sam: "But why is he carrying the sign?"
Mom: "He's pretty much a walking billboard."
Sam: "Oh, that's lame."
I couldn't help but laugh & just said, "Well, I'm glad somebody besides me thinks so too!"

Pictures

Sam's first day of school (1st grade).

I took the kids to Paradise Trout & Berry days this past weekend. The kids had a blast playing on all the rides...

Sam trying to put her bean bag thing farther than her opponent's....No such luck.

My niece & nephew went nuts in here beating to death the stand & bop things!

The kids loved this slide thing. It went pretty dang fast. Sam did get a "carpet" burn of sorts on one of her elbows.

He flew down like this almost every time he went down!

Climbing to the top of the slide!

Sam, Jade, Nash & Jack - waiting in line for the giant slide.

The girls climbing to the top - you can see Jack at the end of the slide.

Nash climbing to the top of the slide.

Caleb found a new chair!

5 days down...

And only 175 more to go! But who's counting? ;)

The first week of school has been good. Much better than I had anticipated anyway! I have a fairly good group of kids. I am excited to work with them this year. I think they will be awesome. I did get a fabulous bombshell dropped on me a day this week though....our ESL teacher is only part time. Yea...you know where this one is going, don't you! Well, apparently since she's only part time, she can't possibly get to the 6th grade ESl kids that are legally required to receive services. Convinently (is that how you spell that?) enough it just so happens that if you are in the PROCESS of getting your ESL endorsement you are ELIGIBLE to TEACH ESL. Yea...so, now in addition to teaching my regular group of 28 kids (yes, I said 28) I also get to teach ESL to all the 6th graders who are eligible to receive servies during the day! Yay!! How, might you ask, am I going to do this? Well, it only required that we completely rearrange the schedule we spent an entire day building so that when we rotate for core subjects (writing/language arts, history & science) I teach Language Arts instead of History AND we don't just rotate according to homeroom - no that would be MUCH too simple - instead, we ability group the kids & place all the ESL an special education kids in one group! Ta Da! Problem solved! The answer to your question is, YES, I AM INSANE. I have absolutely NO idea how this is going to turn out, but we're going to take it and run....starting Monday :) Like I told Travis, "It's a good resume builder, right?"

Samantha has been enjoying school. I'm not too impressed with what has been sent home by her teacher yet - her only homework has been 1 side of a phonics sheet 2 times this week. Now I know that as a teacher myself I shouldn't be so critical, right? Well, I can't help myself! I think Sam's teacher is a first year teacher & despite my knowing (and telling myself I know) better, I don't like it! I have to keep reminding myself that the letters this girl is sending home for parents were written for people who ARE NOT teachers. I also have to remember that this girl teaches FIRST GRADE and not 6th. Some of the letters she's sent home though just flat out make me crazy! I think it's the way she words them and not so much what it is that she's saying. I don't know for sure but I guess we'll tough it out this year & I'll learn a valuable lesson in patience (I really wish God woud quit sending me those lessons!). Samantha also started dance lessons back up this week. We had to buy new tap & ballet shoes, pay a costume deposit & pay for her first month's lesson all in one swoop...that was depressing! I seriously wish that girl's feet would QUIT growing! I have to buy new tap shoes 2 times a year!

Nash had his meet & greet with his preschool teacher, Teacher Barbara and absolutely CAN NOT wait for school to start. In fact, he's been itchin' all summer to go back! He just loves Teacher Barbara & can't hardly contain himself when he talks about school. It's so cute to watch him, I really need to get it on video. He's turning into quite the big boy & I can't believe that this time next year he'll be going to Kindergarten. I hope some of the schools get full day Kindergarten back by then! Not because I think he NEEDS it, but because I think he's going to WANT it!

Caleb is walking/running around here like a wild man! He was only taking about 5-8 steps right before Trav came home. As soon as Trav came home last week he was off & running! He loves to have Nash or Sam chase him. His squeal can be heard throughout the house as he takes off running from his big scary sibblings & tries to hide! He LOVES to play the "I don't want this so I'm going to throw it on the floor & feed it to the dog" game these days. He also really thinks it's funny to hit ME in the face. Great fun, let me tell ya! He loves it when his brother and sister pretend to get hurt or fall down. He thinks it's quite hilarious and I have to admit that watching from afar, it IS!

Trav went back to WY on Tue. this week. He's had to be at the shop at 2:30 AM every day this week and has been working about 18 hr days. That's good right, more money...uh sort of...he got a bunch of hours on his last pay check & we about died when we saw how much they held out & couldn't figure out why. Come to find out, his taxes almost DOUBLED! Yikes! Being the positive person that he is though, he says, "Well, if you're payin' taxes that means you're makin' money." So, I guess I will adopt that mindset & keep telling myself that it's true!

The Friday before school started (the 21st) Trav brought Caleb down to help load up what I didn't need & get it out of my classroom. His parents had offered to keep the other 2 kids so after we loaded up we went down to the New Gate mall to use a gift certificate one of my former students had given me at Christmas. We bought tickets to go see The Proposal (HILARIOUS) and then ventured over to the food court because we had an hour before the movie started. Much to our surprise, we watched a kid STAB a lady right there in the food court! I started to wish I had carried my gun with me that day! Ironically, Travis & I had a conversation on our way into the mall about how much Trav was wishing he had MY gun with him because it was going to be dark when we came out. I told him he was being ridiculous & we'd be fine so to quit whining about it. I hate it when he's RIGHT!

As you can see, we've had an eventful week or so. To top it off, my aunt & uncle are in CHINA right now, picking up their newly adopted daughter. FuJiao is the same age as Samantha (about a week older) & we have been following along on their adoption blog daily. Samantha is as excited as though FuJiao was her sister that was coming home & absolutely cannot wait to meet her new cousin!

I hope your week has been an eventful one & that unlike me, you LEARN TO SAY NO when someone asks you to do more than you bargained for! :)

Exciting Times...

I can't believe that summer is gone! It went much too fast for me!

Tomorrow is my first day of school (again!). I am anxious about working with big 6th graders! I think I'll manage fine, it's just new so it's out of my comfort zone!! I could still use at least another week getting ready for things, but I guess I'll have to make due! Luckily for me, the things I still want to prepare I don't need for a little while!

Samantha had her first day on Thursday. My mom got her ready that morning & took her picture so as soon as I have a picture of that, I will get it posted. She is going to Canyon Elementary this year instead of Lincoln. She really loved Lincoln last year but since my mom couldn't keep her before school this year, we had to figure out something different. At least this year she won't have to be at the school building until 5 every day! She'll get to go to daycare with the boys after school gets out, so that will be a nice change for her this year. Her teacher's name is Mrs. Kowalis and I think she's a first year teacher. Despite being a teacher myself, it really bugs me to think that my kid is in a first year teacher's class. Terrible, I know! I'm going to have to remind myself that I was a first year teacher once too & just be patient!! Patience is a virtue I'm still perfecting!

Nash has his preschool meet & greet tomorrow afternoon. He is so excited to be going back to Teacher Barbara. I think next year when he goes to Kindergarten & has a different teacher he's going to be completely bummed out! He calls preschool Kindergarten & when I try to tell him it isn't Kindergarten, it' preschool - well, you should just see/hear his reaction!

Caleb is quite the big boy these days. He was only taking about 8 steps (at most) a day or two before Trav came home last Tue. Now he's cruising all over the place like a maniac! He thinks he knows how to do stairs too so I have to be really careful to watch that the other 2 don't leave the doors open b/c I just know he'll goes nose first down the cement stairs & land on his head! Yes, he does in fact take after his big brother! Lucky me!!!

On Friday my aunt & uncle left for China. They went to pick up their new adopted daughter, FuJiao. They will be getting her at about 1:30 am Monday our time. We are SO excited to have a new member of our extended family, especially Samantha who can't wait for another girl! FuJiao is only about a week or so older than Samantha but will be a grade behind her in school. All I know is that Samantha is as excited as if it was HER sister that will be arriving soon!!

That's about all that's going on for now. I will have to get some pix of my classroom up soon. Oh, & Samantha starts dance class again on Wed. so I'm sure we'll have a new first day of dance picture up soon as well!

Have a great week!

Help them out!

I learned not too long ago that one of my cousins & his wife are trying to adopt a child. I'm putting their adoption blog website here so you can help me spread the word for their search! Thank you!!
http://jandjadoption.blogspot.com/

Quotable Quotes...

Sometimes my kids say the most random things!

I took the kids out to see Trav's parents tonight b/c we haven't been out there in almost 2 weeks & I'm not sure when we'll make it back out there again. Anyway, we were on our way home tonight & Caleb was being fussy. Mind you when we're in the Saturn & all 3 kids are in the back seat, we get kinda cozy & personal. Well, being the fabulous big sister that she is, Samantha started singing to Caleb to get him to calm down & go to sleep. This girl makes up some good songs if you take the time to just sit & listen. Tonight I just happened to be listening & I'm glad I was b/c it was a great laugh!.....

Samantha: "Little Miss Muffett sat on her tuffet, eating her turds away..."

Yep...I laughed so hard I nearly had to pull over! I finally got control of myself & asked Samantha what it was she had said (thinking maybe I heard her wrong). She repeated the above & I again broke out into the giggles. I finally stopped giggling & was able to correct her. Try as she might though, it kept coming out "eating her turds away..." Even after I explained what "Curds & whey" are!! She' not usually the type to keep saying something incorrect once she's been told what it should be. Guess we'll keep working on it!!

Good Bye Baby Mullett

Well, my mom cut Caleb's hair tonight. I wore the cape and Caleb fed me the hair pick - yes, I said he fed it to me. He definitely did not want to hold still (be glad you missed this one Nat!). There are still a few straggler hairs but they will have to wait for another day! The pix aren't fabulous, but they will have to do. You might notice in one that his eyes are kind of red - he took 1 (ONE) 30 minute nap today & was up from 8 am until 9:30 pm. GRRRRR......

ON THE BRIGHT SIDE - I had Caleb in the ENT's office today (don't say a WORD) & he said that Caleb's ear looks fantastic! Holy cow! It only took 1 year, a zillion trips to InstaCare & CV ENT, 2 sets of tubes & 3 visits to the chiropractor (with about 6 more to come in the next 2 weeks)! Pray that it lasts!!!!!

Check out the cute little curls going every which direction - makes for some killer bed head! Not to mention it is sticking straight out on its own because he rubs his food in his hair when he gets bored!

This is the one that you can tell he's super tired.

Like how boofy it is on top? It was too long to mohawk again but not sticking straight in the air like his brother's hair does.

Well, he had to taste it too you know! My handsome little man...no more boofy mop top.

Not the best tasting object in the world! Notice the cute curls are all gone... :( I hope they grow back but I don't think they will.

Not quite so much boofiness on top now! The back is still kinda long, but we couldn't get him to look at his toes!

Wow

Seriously - you have GOT to check out this site if you haven't already (thanks Tannie, I'll be addicted now!!).
http://giveawaytoday.blogspot.com/

Pictures

This first picture is just a random one. I saw this idea at school. This is just one of those plastic picture frames that holds 2 5x7 pictures in it that they made into a calendar! I took a picture so I can remember how to make them for Christmas!

My patient Nash - he does NOT look comfortable at all! He was completely exhausted...

The toothless grin....

Toothless...

Alright, I know, bad mother moment - I don't have a picture yet. But, to be fair, my camera is in my car waiting to go to school with me tomorrow!

On Monday night Travis got in the pool with the kids at my parents' house. Samantha had an incident & smashed her face against the edge of the pool. Crisis averted. (One mention of tooth pulling & you'd have thought I was slitting her throat!)
Skip forward to tonight. We'd been at my parents' house again & she'd been in the pool, again, but there was no face smashing incident. She ate dinner and everything was just peachy. Then....we got home. She decided she hadn't had enough dinner & wanted some toast & raspberry jam (the girl eats this by the truck load). I was off getting something for Nash when he comes & tells me "Mom, Sam got hurt." I go to the bathroom & find her with a mouth full of blood. She bit her toast & it must have bent her tooth funny because even though there was a bunch of blood, the stupid tooth was still in her mouth hanging on for dear life. After 45 min. of trying to convince her that she wasn't in fact dying and that she would feel much better if she'd just pull it, I told her I was just going to do it for her. Picture in your mind a child actually trying to climb the walls to get away from you and screaming like a wild banchee. I put my hand up NEAR her mouth & in her hysterics she swatted my hand away & hit herself in the face & knocked her own tooth out without me ever even touching it!
Meanwhile, Nash passed out in the hallway from exhaustion while waiting for me to help him put his pjs on. Now that the bleeding has ceased, & she has realized she is NOT dying, I think she might be able to eat her beloved toast again!

What We've Been Doing

He doesn't just blend into the woodchips...he likes to eat them too!

Well, our dad has been home for a week, so that's why I haven't been posting anything! (That & my computer has a virus & keeps wanting to DIE!!)

Here's a look at some of the things we've been doing while dad's been home.

Tuesday evening Trav decided we should go down to the park to play - I think he was procrastinating about getting ready to leave. Anyway, when we got there we saw a ton of people at the pavillion. Then I remembered "Ah, it's National Night Out Against Crime." So, we participated in the activities AND played at the park! Had some free dinner too! ;) Not to mention the pile of freebies we brought home. The Children's Justice Center was there & was just giving away free stuffed animals to all the kids (we LOVE the Teddy Bear Run!).

Life Flight flew in & we got to watch them land right on the baseball field. As soon as they got the all clear, kids piled into that helicopter faster than you can even imagine!

I decided to go to the Gang seminar & Trav took the kids too check out the ambulance, fire truck, etc.

If the girl would just let me do her hair...she wouldn't look like such an orphan all the time!!!

Call me crazy, but I think the kid is more the pyro type than the fireman type!


This is on the boat cop's boat.


We went to Willow Park on Wednesday...
Caleb discovered the art of going down the slide...head first....THANK YOU TRAVIS!

Caleb loved the swing & would have been content to sit in it all day long if we'd have let him!

Nash is a crazy man on the slides!

Samantha HAD to take her doll with us...

*I've also made several batches of jam & done 20 pints of green beans with my mom while Trav's been home.

*I've started making chair pockets for my chairs at school (my kids gets tables, not desks).

*I took the kids to the chiropractor - he thinks he can help with their ear "problems". I figure if he can fix it in a couple visits with a discounted co-pay, I'll try anything once! Travis is quite skeptical.

*The kids got to spend the night at Trav's parents on Friday while we went out & celebrated our wedding anniversary. We went & saw Angels & Demons - that was better than I thought it'd be. Then we went to dinner at Cafe Rio & stopped at Hastings. Trav's been telling me I need to watch "Yes Man." So, we rented that & then came home & watched that movie! It was nice to sleep in for the first time in forever!

*Trav took the kids out on his parent's boat on Sunday. I hear Sam got dumped off the tube, but she must have taken it like a trooper because she didn't say anything to me about it!

*Caleb has discovered the fun of corn on the cob & likes it quite a bit.

*Sam & Nash were swimming in my parent's pool with Trav & Caleb last night & Sam smashed her face on the edge of the pool. Didn't hit it hard enough to knock her loose tooth out, but she did make it bleed pretty good. I told her if she still has the bugger in there the next time her dad comes home he's going to pull it out!

*Only 2 weeks before I start back to work all day every day! I can't believe how fast the summer flew by! I should have expected it though. I'm bumed that it's over, but I'm also really excited to start working at my new school. We had a training on July 29th & the people I've met so far are great! I think I'm going to LOVE working with the other 2 girls teaching 6th grade. We still aren't sure what school Sam's going to be attending. She technically has paperwork at 3 different schools! She's enrolled at the same school she went to last year, but my mom can't keep her before school. So, I've filled out paperwork to transfer her to the other school in Hyrum that's just down the street from my daycare person. Waiting to hear if they have room to take her. If they don't, then she'll be going to school with me (much to Trav's dismay).

*Caleb's hair is in the baby mullet stage. I asked my mom if she'd cut it for me so watch for 1st haircut pix to come soon!

***Have a great week!***