I guess it was close to a month ago that Deacon was in a musical at church. He had a few lines, sang with the group and even participated in the choreography :)
The set was incredible
He was pretty pleased with the whole thing too!Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
Since January!
When I went on the schedule at work back in January, I had hopes of occasionally getting a shift off due to low need. People used to get them a lot. Over the last few months, however, due to a variety of circumstances, "holidays" are few and far between.
In fact, since January I have not gotten a single shift off. Until tonight, that is.
Tonight I picked up an extra 12 hours for a friend. They gave me my first 4 off, I went in for 4 and then they asked if I wanted to go home early! Yahoo! And since it was an extra shift my paycheck won't suffer, nor will I have to use PTO. (note to anyone who cares- if they offer to let you go home early, take it as a sign from the Almighty that things will be better for you if you leave- if you choose to stay under those circumstances, you have no one to blame but yourself when things go south).
I know you blog readers probably could care less- but my first holiday since January? Seriously, so excited!
Now, the big question is what to do now- it is 0430 and I am wide awake...the possibilities are endless!
In fact, since January I have not gotten a single shift off. Until tonight, that is.
Tonight I picked up an extra 12 hours for a friend. They gave me my first 4 off, I went in for 4 and then they asked if I wanted to go home early! Yahoo! And since it was an extra shift my paycheck won't suffer, nor will I have to use PTO. (note to anyone who cares- if they offer to let you go home early, take it as a sign from the Almighty that things will be better for you if you leave- if you choose to stay under those circumstances, you have no one to blame but yourself when things go south).
I know you blog readers probably could care less- but my first holiday since January? Seriously, so excited!
Now, the big question is what to do now- it is 0430 and I am wide awake...the possibilities are endless!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
I have a child...
I have a child who has suddenly caught on to reading, after what seemed like a very long struggle.
I have a child who plays Little League, but admits that when he is playing outfield he secretly just wants to sit in the grass and hang out.
I have a child who was talking about babies being born and said, "well, when the mom launches the baby out..."
I have a child who, when I started laughing at the above comment said, "ok, I know it doesn't launch out. It is more squeezed out."
I have a child who likes to help, but likes to talk more, and can not do both at the same time.
I have another child whose eyes twinkle when he sees his friends out playing.
I have a child who pretends he cannot read, but occasionally he will let something slip and I will know that he can.
I have a child who is learning to control his temper.
I have a child who is full of plans, dreams and his imagination.
I have a child who received a thankyou note in the mail and won't let us see it, because it is private.
I have a child who is full of enthusiasm and shakes when he is excited.
I have a child who today said, "I see a goose sitting on the pond", when last year at this time all he could say was "no" and "mom".
I have a child who copies everything his brothers do.
I have a child who loves to roll and play with his baby sister.
I have a child who has to have his cuddle time with his mom and dad.
I have a child who (when she saw her brother holding a towel to his chin) insisted on getting her own towel to hold to her face.
I have a child who loves to pretend to clean like me and unload the dishwasher.
I have a child that will calmly hang out next to me as I do tasks.
I have a child that now (appropriately) says "chicken", "hi", "bye", "sli dow" (slide down), "banana" and of course "mama", "dadda" and "Dee" for Deacon
I have a child who laughs and giggles with abandon.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Sump Pumps, Urgent Care and McDonald's Play Place
A few housekeeping notes before we get started: (mostly written on Sunday, finished and posted on Tuesday morning)
1. Happy 4th Birthday, Lincoln! You will get a proper post after your party tomorrow! At least, you should :)
2. I am having a bad house day. And a bad yard day. Everything is a disaster and I feel like it will never be put back together again! Ok, I feel slightly better by saying that. Now tomorrow I will work on it, inbetween the 40 million other things I need to be doing tomorrow.
---
This weekend was supposed to be Lincoln's fabulous birthday weekend/staycation. We had big and fun plans- and we were hoping to slip some yard work in too! But we have had tornados and thunderstorms and rain all weekend, and so it turned out to be rather less fabulous than the plan.
Lincoln didn't seem to mind too much, although he is disappointed that we were unable to go to the zoo today.
But we were grateful that we hadn't left for the zoo when the tornado sirens went off. Honestly, hunkering down at a zoo in some dank tornado shelter with all my children could have been the death of me.
Instead we went down to the basement where we were faced with a new problem. Water. a puddle along one well, some dampness along another. We have a poured concrete foundation and in the 7 years we have lived in this house we have never had the slightest hint of dampness in the basement. Now, there was standing water in our backyard and in the rocks around our house, but still- seeing water oozing in along the concrete floor was strange. Thankfully when we finished the room downstairs we didn't lay carpet!
The next thing we noticed was that the sump pump hole was full of water and the sump pump wasn't running. Not that we have ever seen the sump pump run. Ever. Noah did some troubleshooting with that, but still it wouldn't run.
Our handy friend suggested Noah go by a new one at Fleet Farm and install it. So he did. It was awesome. He just went to Fleet Farm, came home and installed it and it is now functioning perfectly. Quick project, little drama. (I am kind of proud of him! :)
That situation being taken care of, we moved on to the next. Roman had been outside playing in the puddles and he came in, slipped on the kitchen floor and came chin down on the table. The gash in his chin was pretty wide, so it was off to urgent care next.
Thankfully, the PA suggested that we do steri-strips instead of stitches. He said if it was on the face, he would do stitches, but because it was in a more hidden location he felt even if there was a little more scarring it wouldn't matter as much. He said he would do stitches if I wanted them. I didn't want them, and neither did Roman, so about 3 minutes later his "stickers" were in place and we were off.
We got home and decided to go out to eat for Lincoln's birthday. McDonald's play place was the location of choice (besides, I had coupons!).
Disgusting.
Everytime I go there I swear I will never go again, but then some little sweet boy's birthday comes around and they ask, and we go.
We are 36 hours past that germ fest and no one is vomiting or sneezing yet...maybe we escaped unscathed? Not sure yet...I will give it until hour 48 before I will no longer blame McDonalds for any sickness that befalls us.
Birthday party is now complete as well, and it is time to do some yardwork before the next downpour. *sigh*
1. Happy 4th Birthday, Lincoln! You will get a proper post after your party tomorrow! At least, you should :)
2. I am having a bad house day. And a bad yard day. Everything is a disaster and I feel like it will never be put back together again! Ok, I feel slightly better by saying that. Now tomorrow I will work on it, inbetween the 40 million other things I need to be doing tomorrow.
---
This weekend was supposed to be Lincoln's fabulous birthday weekend/staycation. We had big and fun plans- and we were hoping to slip some yard work in too! But we have had tornados and thunderstorms and rain all weekend, and so it turned out to be rather less fabulous than the plan.
Lincoln didn't seem to mind too much, although he is disappointed that we were unable to go to the zoo today.
But we were grateful that we hadn't left for the zoo when the tornado sirens went off. Honestly, hunkering down at a zoo in some dank tornado shelter with all my children could have been the death of me.
Instead we went down to the basement where we were faced with a new problem. Water. a puddle along one well, some dampness along another. We have a poured concrete foundation and in the 7 years we have lived in this house we have never had the slightest hint of dampness in the basement. Now, there was standing water in our backyard and in the rocks around our house, but still- seeing water oozing in along the concrete floor was strange. Thankfully when we finished the room downstairs we didn't lay carpet!
The next thing we noticed was that the sump pump hole was full of water and the sump pump wasn't running. Not that we have ever seen the sump pump run. Ever. Noah did some troubleshooting with that, but still it wouldn't run.
Our handy friend suggested Noah go by a new one at Fleet Farm and install it. So he did. It was awesome. He just went to Fleet Farm, came home and installed it and it is now functioning perfectly. Quick project, little drama. (I am kind of proud of him! :)
That situation being taken care of, we moved on to the next. Roman had been outside playing in the puddles and he came in, slipped on the kitchen floor and came chin down on the table. The gash in his chin was pretty wide, so it was off to urgent care next.
Thankfully, the PA suggested that we do steri-strips instead of stitches. He said if it was on the face, he would do stitches, but because it was in a more hidden location he felt even if there was a little more scarring it wouldn't matter as much. He said he would do stitches if I wanted them. I didn't want them, and neither did Roman, so about 3 minutes later his "stickers" were in place and we were off.
We got home and decided to go out to eat for Lincoln's birthday. McDonald's play place was the location of choice (besides, I had coupons!).
Disgusting.
Everytime I go there I swear I will never go again, but then some little sweet boy's birthday comes around and they ask, and we go.
We are 36 hours past that germ fest and no one is vomiting or sneezing yet...maybe we escaped unscathed? Not sure yet...I will give it until hour 48 before I will no longer blame McDonalds for any sickness that befalls us.
Birthday party is now complete as well, and it is time to do some yardwork before the next downpour. *sigh*
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Disturbing? Or is it just me?
We are doing a little "staycation" here this weekend. It has been fun, even though the weather situation has been a little unfortunate. The day has been filled with Lincoln singing, "rain, rain, go away, marching band wants to play, rain, rain, go away."
Wherever he got that from.
Anyway, yesterday we became members of the Children's Museum in our city. Well, it isn't our city- I don't want to claim it- but we are close enough. We became members because there are so many of us that it really seemed like a pretty good deal, especially since it will get us into some other museums as well.
We had a nice time hanging out all together, and then we split up so that Berean could go into the toddler area and Noah could take the boys to a station that wouldn't be as interesting to her.
So Berean and I hung out in the toddler room. And yes, I saw an O.I.M (overly involved mother) peer into her child's diaper and comment about her not having any "toodles" today and how she often doesn't go if she is excited. Ok, we all needed to know that. And "toodles"? really? Or maybe it is just me that thinks that is weird.
I noticed the nursing mother's room with the door standing open. Berean has been successfully weaned for 8 days now and so we didn't need to use it, but it did catch my attention.
Before I go on, let me say that I am fully supportive of breastfeeding. I don't use one of those weird wrappy coverup things and I nurse in public. I don't mind if other women do as well and I think that it is a completely natural process that doesn't need to be hidden or covered up or whatever.
But I did find it odd that there was a giant picture made up of many smaller pictures of people breastfeeding. Close up shots, clothing strictly optional.
As I said, I love breastfeeding but as I nurse my own child I just don't feel the need to stare at pictures of significant boobage.
But maybe it is just me.
Wherever he got that from.
Anyway, yesterday we became members of the Children's Museum in our city. Well, it isn't our city- I don't want to claim it- but we are close enough. We became members because there are so many of us that it really seemed like a pretty good deal, especially since it will get us into some other museums as well.
We had a nice time hanging out all together, and then we split up so that Berean could go into the toddler area and Noah could take the boys to a station that wouldn't be as interesting to her.
So Berean and I hung out in the toddler room. And yes, I saw an O.I.M (overly involved mother) peer into her child's diaper and comment about her not having any "toodles" today and how she often doesn't go if she is excited. Ok, we all needed to know that. And "toodles"? really? Or maybe it is just me that thinks that is weird.
I noticed the nursing mother's room with the door standing open. Berean has been successfully weaned for 8 days now and so we didn't need to use it, but it did catch my attention.
Before I go on, let me say that I am fully supportive of breastfeeding. I don't use one of those weird wrappy coverup things and I nurse in public. I don't mind if other women do as well and I think that it is a completely natural process that doesn't need to be hidden or covered up or whatever.
But I did find it odd that there was a giant picture made up of many smaller pictures of people breastfeeding. Close up shots, clothing strictly optional.
As I said, I love breastfeeding but as I nurse my own child I just don't feel the need to stare at pictures of significant boobage.
But maybe it is just me.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Over
Homeschool group is over.
Preschool is over.
Helping Noah cater the senior banquet is over.
Awana is over.
Choir is over.
Too bad work isn't over.
And that we are in the midst of Little League Season.
And VBS planning.
But, just must get through 8 hours of work and then,
I will have some time with the family,
and some time to plant my garden.
If the rain stays away.
Please.
Preschool is over.
Helping Noah cater the senior banquet is over.
Awana is over.
Choir is over.
Too bad work isn't over.
And that we are in the midst of Little League Season.
And VBS planning.
But, just must get through 8 hours of work and then,
I will have some time with the family,
and some time to plant my garden.
If the rain stays away.
Please.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
The Line
I worked the weekend and barely slept Monday. We had Little League after dinner last night and by 9:00 I was so tired I couldn't maintain an upright position. I fell asleep and got up at 8:00 this morning. I feel so much better! Yeah for sleep. Anyway, I figured I'd better write a post this morning in case my nightowlish tendencies get derailed again tonight.
Before I tell you this story, I need to tell you that we have been having a great deal of trouble recently with one of our children. Roman is smart and can be very charming, but he has a very strong sense of justice and he likes to be the enforcer. This, combined with a temper and impulse control issues can lead to a great deal of drama.
We were watching Deacon's Little League game last night and "the boy with the strange name" (as Roman calls him) came over to play. Lincoln refers to him as "the boy with the red shirt". Anyway, they played with the toys that we had along and then they started drawing with the boy's chalk. They were working their way down the sidewalk away from the field, but hadn't yet gotten anywhere near where I would have called them back. (I let them go as far as the point where I can no longer run them down in a quick fashion if it becomes necessary. Lucky for them, I am a good runner).
The boys Grandma, however, wasn't so spry and so she went over and told the boy that he couldn't go that far. He said, "I will draw a line with chalk so that I will remember how far I can go". She showed him where to draw the line, and he drew it and the play continued.
A little while later I heard Roman's loud voice. "You aren't supposed to cross this line!!" I looked back and Roman's toes were on that line. The boy and Lincoln were across it. Roman was distraught and kept telling them to come back- very panicky. (This is odd to me because even though Roman does like justice, he is not big into following rules himself). Positive Reinforcement time. As I made my way over, The Boy said to Roman, "Oh, it is no big deal. I will just draw a new line." And so he did.
Wow. And we wonder how the world is so screwed up.
Even 3 year olds are drawing "new lines" for themselves.
I got there and congratulated Roman on doing the right thing and for gently reminding his friend (without hitting or dragging) to do the right thing too. Roman beamed with pride. Lincoln ran back over and placed his toes squarely on the line too.
It was an encouraging moment in a week of parenting stress.
*In other Little League news, Roman was wearing a reverseable outfit and kept going into the portapotty to change it back and forth. R and L love portapotties. Yuck.
*Berean was in a baby swing and I was pushing her. A mom and her little girl came over and started a conversation with us. I won't bore you with the whole convo, but the girl is 2 1/2 but was 6 weeks early. The mom told me that she would be 6 weeks behind (per the Md's) "mentally" but that she is not and she is very smart. (pretty sure that 6 weeks doesn't matter a whole lot once you are 2 1/2, but what do I know?) She then proceeded to tell the little girl to sing her abcs. Then twinkle twinkle, then count and on and on. Really? Is this some sort of show? Why are you trying to prove to strangers that your daughter is so smart?
*Noah is the pitcher for the coach pitch Little League. It is very stressful and he was nervous and I was nervous for him. The kids only get 6 pitches, whether they are bad or good, so if you don't make them good the parents will start getting angry. The problem is, you have a clueless 7 year old catcher behind the plate and a batter that has about a 20% chance of getting a hit. Not only are you trying to get it over the plate slowly and in decent position, but you also can not kill the catcher. It is a sticky situation. Noah didn't hit any batters, though, nor did he get attacked by any parents, so I guess we can call that a success.
*Deacon likes to be catcher and hold up fingers for how many outs there are. He is pretty clueless out there and looks a little scared, but hopefully he will become a little more aware soon.
It is breakfast time! Have a good day, everyone!
Before I tell you this story, I need to tell you that we have been having a great deal of trouble recently with one of our children. Roman is smart and can be very charming, but he has a very strong sense of justice and he likes to be the enforcer. This, combined with a temper and impulse control issues can lead to a great deal of drama.
We were watching Deacon's Little League game last night and "the boy with the strange name" (as Roman calls him) came over to play. Lincoln refers to him as "the boy with the red shirt". Anyway, they played with the toys that we had along and then they started drawing with the boy's chalk. They were working their way down the sidewalk away from the field, but hadn't yet gotten anywhere near where I would have called them back. (I let them go as far as the point where I can no longer run them down in a quick fashion if it becomes necessary. Lucky for them, I am a good runner).
The boys Grandma, however, wasn't so spry and so she went over and told the boy that he couldn't go that far. He said, "I will draw a line with chalk so that I will remember how far I can go". She showed him where to draw the line, and he drew it and the play continued.
A little while later I heard Roman's loud voice. "You aren't supposed to cross this line!!" I looked back and Roman's toes were on that line. The boy and Lincoln were across it. Roman was distraught and kept telling them to come back- very panicky. (This is odd to me because even though Roman does like justice, he is not big into following rules himself). Positive Reinforcement time. As I made my way over, The Boy said to Roman, "Oh, it is no big deal. I will just draw a new line." And so he did.
Wow. And we wonder how the world is so screwed up.
Even 3 year olds are drawing "new lines" for themselves.
I got there and congratulated Roman on doing the right thing and for gently reminding his friend (without hitting or dragging) to do the right thing too. Roman beamed with pride. Lincoln ran back over and placed his toes squarely on the line too.
It was an encouraging moment in a week of parenting stress.
*In other Little League news, Roman was wearing a reverseable outfit and kept going into the portapotty to change it back and forth. R and L love portapotties. Yuck.
*Berean was in a baby swing and I was pushing her. A mom and her little girl came over and started a conversation with us. I won't bore you with the whole convo, but the girl is 2 1/2 but was 6 weeks early. The mom told me that she would be 6 weeks behind (per the Md's) "mentally" but that she is not and she is very smart. (pretty sure that 6 weeks doesn't matter a whole lot once you are 2 1/2, but what do I know?) She then proceeded to tell the little girl to sing her abcs. Then twinkle twinkle, then count and on and on. Really? Is this some sort of show? Why are you trying to prove to strangers that your daughter is so smart?
*Noah is the pitcher for the coach pitch Little League. It is very stressful and he was nervous and I was nervous for him. The kids only get 6 pitches, whether they are bad or good, so if you don't make them good the parents will start getting angry. The problem is, you have a clueless 7 year old catcher behind the plate and a batter that has about a 20% chance of getting a hit. Not only are you trying to get it over the plate slowly and in decent position, but you also can not kill the catcher. It is a sticky situation. Noah didn't hit any batters, though, nor did he get attacked by any parents, so I guess we can call that a success.
*Deacon likes to be catcher and hold up fingers for how many outs there are. He is pretty clueless out there and looks a little scared, but hopefully he will become a little more aware soon.
It is breakfast time! Have a good day, everyone!
Friday, May 13, 2011
Roman On Easter
For some reason, all my pictures are showing up blurry- but if you click on them, they will be clear.
It was a lot of work...
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Wondering
Why Berean only likes to read books to herself...
Which child put some baby plants into a dark closet...
How many months of their allowance will my children lose to pay for the screen they destroyed...
If, by not hiding all of the screwdrivers, Noah was giving his silent approval of my plan to dismantle the oven...
Will it ever stop raining long enough for my garden to be prepared and planted...
Why isn't there laffy taffy at Walgreens...
Will I ever get a handle on my housework...
What curriculum should I use for next year...
What other things should I put on my new closet shelves...
How many miles should I run today...
What is for lunch...
Which child put some baby plants into a dark closet...
How many months of their allowance will my children lose to pay for the screen they destroyed...
If, by not hiding all of the screwdrivers, Noah was giving his silent approval of my plan to dismantle the oven...
Will it ever stop raining long enough for my garden to be prepared and planted...
Why isn't there laffy taffy at Walgreens...
Will I ever get a handle on my housework...
What curriculum should I use for next year...
What other things should I put on my new closet shelves...
How many miles should I run today...
What is for lunch...
Monday, May 9, 2011
I Keep Saying It
I know that I keep saying that I have no idea why I can't keep up with my blog. I have plenty of ideas, and I write blogposts in my head constantly- but it seems like I can hardly post a facebook status, much less a real blog post.
This morning I was jotting down a rudimentary map of our yard and our lot. We really want to start using our space well so that we can actually save money at the grocery store by eating our own produce. Last year we did pretty well with our garden, but this year we are expanding the operation.
Our main garden plans include:
Beans
Tomatoes
Peas
Lettuce
Onions
Zucchini
Cucumbers
Peppers
Carrots
Herbs
Pumpkins?
Watermelons?
Some of those things will be planted in the main garden, and others will be in boxes around the garden.
In addition,we are planning to get apple, pear and cherry trees for the lot.
We have a strawberry patch in the back, raspberries and blackberries along the fence (they look a little sketchy, but I am hopeful) and are planning to put in asparagus against the other fence and blueberries in a variety of other places.
This morning I was jotting down a rudimentary map of our yard and our lot. We really want to start using our space well so that we can actually save money at the grocery store by eating our own produce. Last year we did pretty well with our garden, but this year we are expanding the operation.
Our main garden plans include:
Beans
Tomatoes
Peas
Lettuce
Onions
Zucchini
Cucumbers
Peppers
Carrots
Herbs
Pumpkins?
Watermelons?
Some of those things will be planted in the main garden, and others will be in boxes around the garden.
In addition,we are planning to get apple, pear and cherry trees for the lot.
We have a strawberry patch in the back, raspberries and blackberries along the fence (they look a little sketchy, but I am hopeful) and are planning to put in asparagus against the other fence and blueberries in a variety of other places.
This week is final decision and planning time, next weekend will be tilling the garden and making the boxes and then it will be time to plant!
In inside news, the closet is done and I am trying to put stuff in it and get my room back to normal. I have some plans for the office to aid in organization, but the more pressing project is the disaster that the boys made in the basement while I was working on the closet :)
Never fails...
But next week is the last week of normals and then we are off for a summer full of vacations, relaxation, water and fun! Oh, and mosquitoes, yard work...jobs...and running...
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Monday, May 2, 2011
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