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!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

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!"