Now He Can Clap

I am way behind on blogging, but I thought I would at least post a photo of DS#3 that I took today. He started sticking out his tongue a while ago, but it seems like he has rediscovered this trick lately. On top of his usual drooliness, he sticks out his tongue all the time. This means, of course, that he leaves little pools of drool wherever he goes. He has also started clapping his hands. He's not all that great at it yet, but in this photo he at least has his hands somewhat open.

I would say that he is adorable, but he just put DH and I through the ringer. He went to sleep at around 7:30PM, but DS#2 left the light on in the gameroom (where the baby sleeps) so DS#3 woke up at 10PM and just would not go back to sleep. He seems like he is finally asleep in his crib now. *SIGH* Okay, he IS adorable anyway. :)

Christmas Day

This was my "Christmas Day" prompt:

Make a list of the events at your house on Christmas morning. Make this a “Day in the Life of” type of journaling. What time did your family members wake up/get up? Did you open Christmas presents today or last night? How long did it take everyone to open their gifts? Did you go to church or did you go to someone else’s house today?

DS#3 woke DH and me up at 6:30AM. We didn't hear anyone up at that time, but we did hear kids get up soon after. I fed the baby and he went back to sleep. I went downstairs at around 7AM. I saw DS#1 getting ready to have his Fruit Loops (a ready-to-serve container that was in all of the kids' stockings). I heard the muffled voices of the other two, and I had to look around, but I finally found them in their bathroom! DS#2 had received a magnetic hangman game in his stocking and they were playing in the bathroom. Apparently, he was trying to be quiet and DD met up with him in the bathroom when she went there. I just laughed because DD can't really read yet and the word they were playing was "universe".

I went downstairs again and starting making cinnamon crescent rolls. Meanwhile, the kids had their Fruit Loops. They were talking excitedly about the presents under the tree and the Santa gifts next to the fireplace. DD had the "biggest" gift and DS#2 was saying that he had the "next biggest" gift from Santa. I let them watch some TV while we waited for DH and DS#3. Finally, at around 9AM, they came downstairs. Apparently, DS#3 was still sleeping, but DH knew that the other kids were anxious about opening presents so he finally awakened the baby at 9AM or he would have slept longer.

I made them pose for photos first (see above) then the chaos began. DD and DS#2 looked the most excited, especially when they opened their Santa gifts (that post will be later). DS#3 was still in wake-up mode and was still hesitant about ripping off the wrapping paper. He really enjoyed his toys, though, and DS#1 also seemed excited, but in his own understated way.

We had lunch sometime after 11AM. We had Honey-Baked Ham, mashed potatoes, and green beans. We gave the baby bits of ham and green beans for the first time. He is more than ready for table food! We didn't have anything elaborate for dessert because the kids were anxious to go outside and play.

DH put DD's bike together and she rode it outside while DS#2 played with his new gigantic Nerf gun. DS#3 and I were napping then and we slept for a couple of hours. He was in a much better mood after that. The rest of the day was filled with video games for the whole family. I even got to play with the Wii this time!

The only other remarkable event was that I attempted to make DH's favorite dessert, Dark Chocolate Souffle Cake. Just before I started mixing things together, I realized that I had run out of sugar when I made pancakes on Saturday. So, I made some ready-to-bake chocolate chip cookies instead. Oh well! DD was a hoot because she had on her Santa Hat and she was eagerly watching the oven. All in all it was a relaxing family day! :)

Christmas Eve

I postponed this prompt until now since it has to do with Christmas Eve.

List any Christmas Eve traditions you might have. Do you do some last minute shopping? Do you go to church on Christmas Eve instead of Christmas Day? Do you exchange gifts on Christmas Eve instead of Christmas Day? If you have children, do you do anything special for them on this day?

We don't really have a Christmas Eve routine, mostly because it depends on my schedule. I had to work yesterday/last night, so I came home this morning a little tired and not wanting to really do anything except take a shower. We had to get one last minute present for the son of a family friend, and we had to pick up our Honey-Baked Ham. That was all that was a must-do on the agenda, so DH and I lounged around for a bit until after lunch. He went out to do those two things. I got to go to Coldstone Creamery with the kids.

I got a coupon for a free "Love It" size ice-cream for my birthday, and it expired today, so I didn't want that to go to waste. I actually got a coffee ice cream shake like I always do, and DS#2 got a shake (the flavor changes) like he always does. My oldest son got the big ice cream cone that was free with the coupon--he's a growing boy, after all. DD insisted on a chocolate shake this time, which she didn't finish as usual. That meant that DH got the rest of her shake when we got home.

It was late enough by then that we went ahead and got ready for church. We wanted to go to the 5PM Christmas Eve mass this year so we could be free to lounge around and play with our new toys on Christmas Day. At mass, we saw our good friends (DS#3's godfather and his family) who invited us to their house for some hors d'oeuvres. That was perfect since we hadn't planned on anything much for dinner and this way we wouldn't have to cook! We only stayed for about an hour and a half, but it was really nice to socialize for a bit and have some good food.

At home, everyone took their baths/showers and the little ones went to bed. I'm on the computer and DH is wrapping presents. I think I'd better go help now. I'm a little behind on the photos on this blog. I'll try to post some tomorrow!

Merry Christmas, Everyone!!!

The Wonder of Christmas

Ask your kids what Christmas means to them. I would suggest that you ask them separately and then maybe get them together with their answers. My kids tend to mimic each other when they’re together, but sometimes that will enable the younger ones to think of an answer they wouldn’t normally think of. If you don’t have children, then you may want to reminisce about your own childhood or you might want to write about the nieces or nephews or other young family members.

DD - "To get presents"
DS#2 - "We give gifts and it’s Jesus’ birthday"
DS#1 - "The birth of Jesus Christ and peace, I guess"

It's interesting the five-year old is all about the presents, the twelve-year old understands the more abstract meaning, and the eight-year old is smack dab in between. Oh, and the eight-month old just grinned and babbled a little. ;)

Christmas Traditions

List your Christmas Season traditions. (Christmas Eve and Day traditions will be covered later.) Select one to describe in more detail, and take some photos to match. Do you have to get a family photo at this time, or do you have to get a photo of your kids with Santa? Do you have any special preparations at this time of year, whether it’s a cookie exchange or giving to some needy family?

We used to get a family photo every year at this time. This gave us a picture to use for our Christmas photo card plus a yearly glimpse at our growing family. When we had DD, she simply would not smile for strangers. We had such a tough time keeping her from frowning that it just wasn't worth the hassle. I started taking photos of just the kids from then on.

We've never really gotten photos of the kids with Santa. Neither DH nor I were ever willing to get in the long lines at the mall plus with the age differences in the children, there was almost always one that wouldn't tolerate sitting on a stranger's lap, even if it was Santa.

As for other activities at this time of year, I can't really think of any except for basketball games and soccer practices that are ongoing. We do usually get an angel from the angel tree at church and give presents to some needy family. I'm afraid that I'm skipping that this year just because I can't bear to do any more shopping! I promise I'll do better with that next year. :)

January 2008 Scrapaddict Kits

I finished my assignments this week with the upcoming Scrapaddict.com kits. I can't believe I finished these so quickly. I didn't even add that much to them this time. The first two below are from the Yellowstone Kit using Pebbles, Inc. Theodore papers. The bottom two below are from the Time For Recess Kit/OD using the A2Z Essentials What's New Club papers. Thanks for looking!

Weather

Describe the weather during the holidays in your part of the world. Does the type of affect your “Christmas spirit”? Is there anything you do to make up for the weather?

The weather in my part of the world ranges from warm and sunny to wet and chilly. The weather this year has been very variable. It is warm and sunny one day and wet and chilly the next (instead of a few days each, which is more typical). I have to admit that it's difficult to get going on Christmas activities when it is warm and sunny outside. Wet and chilly makes me want to curl up in bed inside instead of doing Christmas shopping or decorating.

There isn't really anything much that I do to get in the Christmas spirit, but it never hurts to listen to Christmas music. I love Christmas music, and this year, a couple of radio stations in town are playing only Christmas music. I wouldn't want to trade the warm and sunny days at this time of year just to get in the "Christmas spirit". The best weather here is in the winter!

Wrapping Gifts

Today's prompt:

Describe how you wrap your presents. Do you go very simple with just plain wrapping paper or gift bags or do you go all out with bows and handmade tags, etc.? Do you wrap your gifts before sending them in the mail? When do you wrap your gifts—right away or at the last minute?

I used to wrap up presents with this elaborate wrapping paper folding on top of the present combined with ribbon. I still will wrap some adult presents like that, but for the kids, they really don't seem to care. It takes a while to do, so it's not worth the time to do this for the kids' gifts. If the presents were going to be under the tree for a while, then I might want everything to look "prettier", but wrapping is usually done close to Christmas, so the presents really don't stay under the tree for that long. We do it this way so the boxes will be out of sight (and out of reach) for curious little hands. Of course this year, Eric's favorite thing is paper, so those presents won't be placed under the tree until Christmas Eve.

Holiday Shopping

Today's prompt deals with shopping, one of my favorite activities!

List some stores that you always seem to go to for your holiday shopping. Why those stores? Do you like to “one-stop shop” or do you like to go to different stores to find exactly what you want? Do you use online versus bricks-and-mortar stores? Why one versus the other?

This year, I started my shopping on the day before Thanksgiving. I stopped at the toy store down the street first. It's family owned and a wonderful place to find unique toys. The owner is always there and makes personal recommendations that really helps speed my shopping along. The only time I've seen them have a sale is the week before Thanksgiving when everything in the store is 15% off. The other great thing about this store is that the owner will wrap my gifts for me for no extra charge. Believe me, that is one perk that I like to fully take advantage of!

My next stop this year was Toys 'R Us. They were having some pre-holiday sales and I had wish lists in hand from my kids and from my nieces and nephew. Between the two stores, I finished the biggest bulk of my Christmas shopping within about two hours, despite carrying around a baby that didn't want to sit in the shopping cart. That's the way I like to get things done--not exactly "one-stop shop" but close! Another plus was that almost everything I bought was on sale!

For toys, I tend to buy at the bricks-and-mortar places because it's easier for me to find out if that's the toy I want to get when I can read and see the packaging. I do some online shopping as well, but not as much as I used to since I have such a big selection of stores here in town. What I might do is shop online to narrow down my choices then go to the store to get the item. The exception is usually my nephew (DH's sister's son). Since I have to ship it anyway, I tend to shop for him entirely online.

Christmas Carols

Today's prompt is about Christmas carols:

List your favorite Christmas carols. Pick a favorite Christmas Carol and describe what makes it your favorite. If you don't have a favorite Christmas carol, then describe why you don't like them or why you have too many favorites.

I love Christmas carols so much that I like to sing them year-round. My kids love them so much that they each request at least one Christmas song every night before they go to bed. I have many favorites, but I love O Holy Night and The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire) the most.

O Holy Night has such a powerful melody, and I find myself wanting to sing it at the top of my lungs with all of the emotion of a Diva. My voice hardly equal to a Diva's, however, so I am always disappointed that the sound I hear is not what I feel.

The Christmas Song has the opposite effect. I find it very calming, especially the version sung by Nat King Cole. I can just picture my family gathered around a warm fire in the fireplace when I hear this song.

I could go on and on, and tomorrow I might find some new favorites. There is a radio station in town that is playing Christmas Music all the time during the Holidays. I think even I would tire of hearing Christmas songs on the radio year-round, but for now, I enjoy listening to that station on my way to and from work.

Holiday Eating

Here is the prompt from my Scrapaddict.com challenges.

What are your favorite things to eat during this time of year? List some reasons why each particular dish is one of your favorites. Does it evoke special memories? Is it only offered during the Christmas Holidays? Describe in more detail how to prepare your favorite dish or treat.

I don't think I have any one particular thing that I like to eat at this time of year. I just like that there are lots of goodies around to eat. That doesn't help me as far as losing weight, but it makes life fun. :)

Oh wait, I just remembered that I love those Danish cookies that come in a tin. It's a little silly, I know, because those are available year round and no one has to bake them especially for me, but I always associate those with this time of year. I remember when my mom's boss used to give her a gift certificate to Neiman Marcus every year. Everything there was usually too expensive, but they had those Danish cookies and they were affordable and we enjoyed them, so we always got them. I never realized until much later that you could buy them for much cheaper elsewhere.

I also fondly remember the Walker's Shortbread cookies that come in a red plaid tin. I remember the apartment where DH and I lived when we first got married. The landlord lived in that building too, and she gave us those shortbread cookies every year for Christmas. That was such a stressful time in our lives, and I remember how kind she was to us. We moved away soon after she passed away. She passed away so suddenly that I am still sad whenever I think of her.

Maybe as the holidays roll around, I'll remember some more. Food is one of those things that can really trigger memories for me!

Christmas Cards

This is a preview of our Christmas Card photo this year (for those of you lucky enough to get one *WINK*). We're sending a photo card again this year. We've been doing photo cards ever since we started having children, because everyone always asks us about how big the kids are. We usually also send a Christmas letter, just because we send cards to friends and family that we don't see more than every few years. Some of my friends I have seen in many, many years, but I still enjoy keeping up with them and vice versa, even if it's only once a year.

We usually send about 80 or so of these. I entertained the idea of making my own Christmas Cards, but time is short, and these will suit our purpose. My overachiever sister made all 90 of her cards all by herself. You go, girl! :)

Holiday Parties

We try to get in the spirit and go to my work Christmas Party every year. I work at one location in the training program, and I don't see the people that work at the other location in the training program except for this party and the Graduation Party at the end of the "school year". Last year, one of my colleagues, who is apparently very good at breakdancing, did his thing at the party. It WAS pretty impressive, I was disappointed that it was too dark to get a good photo. The boys would have loved seeing it. That won't happen this year, because my colleague injured his knee at the annual soccer game and is recovering from surgery. It's too bad that we have to get old!

Last year, I was pregnant and still getting very tired very easily, so we left before 10PM. The party is scheduled for next Friday, so I can take some photos then.

There is also a work Christmas Party next Friday during the day. This one is for the whole department rather than just my section. There is usually way too much food, and that's what makes it very enjoyable. I'll report back on that next Friday, too.

Outdoor Decorations

We usually don't have too many outdoor decorations either, because DH is the one that puts them up, and they do take quite a while. This year we will have the clear net lights on the bushes out front, and some clear lights wound up on the trees next to the fountain. New this year will be a decoration I bought at Target of a lighted holographic Santa and three reindeer. DD helped pick it out and the older boys murmured their approval. DS#2 even said, "Cool!" DS#3 just wanted to eat the box. ;-)

Again, I'll get some photos up when I catch up on my backlog of holiday stuff.

Indoor Decorations

We don't have too many indoor decorations, but I would love to have more. There's just something about young children and curious hands...

We do have several Santas. I haven't bought any new ones lately, but I have more than a handful of standing Santas and a couple of sitting ones. My favorite one is the 36-inch tall one because I remember buying it when Alex was 2 years old and 36 inches tall. He got such a kick out of looking at that Santa eye-to-eye, or actually, he was taller than the Santa by Christmas time.

The Nativity scene was a present from my in-laws. There are three Wise Men included and we place them closer and closer to the stable as January 6 approaches. That's one reason why we don't put away our decorations until January 6. My MIL believes that we should exchange gifts on January 6 instead of Christmas, since that is when the Three Wise Men gave the baby Jesus their gifts. I agree, and that would be a better time to shop, but while the kids are young, I guess we should conform with everyone else.

That's pretty much it, except for the tree which was discussed in an earlier post. We used to have a garland for the stairs, but I think we accidently left the batteries in and DH threw them away. If I do end up buying a new one this year, I'll take a photo as well as photos of my Santas. :)

Decorating the Tree

Here's the Scrapaddict.com journaling prompt for December 4:

Describe how your tree is decorated.
Do you have a certain color scheme or a certain theme? Do you have colored versus clear lights? What types of ornaments do you hang on your tree? You might want to expand this to describing what certain ornaments mean to you or what type of ornaments you like to buy.

We have a collection of ornaments that we've gathered over the years. I'm partial to wooden (or at least wooden-looking ornaments. I also love Santa ornaments. A few years ago, someone told me that every year, they took their kids to pick out their own Hallmark ornaments. I started doing this soon after that, so we have a collection of Hallmark ornaments, too. This year, DS#1 was going to pick the Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End ornament, but then he saw the soccer goal/soccerball and video game controller ornaments. Ultimately, he picked the video game controller one and the DS#2 picked out the soccer one. DD picked out the Barbie as the Island Princess ornament--very fitting since she is all about the girly sparkle right now.

The boys' ornaments are also very fitting to what they're interested in right now. DS#1 is very much into the video games. he got a Nintendo DS for his birthday in October, and he has accumulated about four or five games for it since then. He also loves to play this online role-playing game called Runescape. Some of this friends from school play it, too, so sometimes he'll "see" them there. DS#2 is all about soccer this fall. This was his first season playing in a more competitive league on a team that is not affiliated with his school. He has made new friends and learned some new skills from their professional coach. The ornament itself provides some insight into DS#2's tastes because whenever the attached soccer ball goes into the goal, a recording comes on that says "Gooooooooallll!!!" or "Score! Way to go!" or "What a kick! That is In there!" DS#2 is all about the sound-making devices. :)

I'll have to take photos of the ornaments tomorrow.

Putting Up the Tree

Here's today's Scrapaddict.com journaling prompt:

Do you have a live or an artificial tree? Why do you have one versus the other type? You might want to expand this into talking about why you’ve chosen a live versus an artificial tree.

I'll have to ask my parents to be sure, but for as long as I can remember, we've always had an artificial tree. Artificial trees are convenient (easier to put up and take down), they're neater, they're cheaper in the long run, and they last longer. Especially since we've lived in warm climates for most of my life, artificial trees last the whole season, from Thanksgiving in November to Little Christmas in January. Since we've had children, there is the additional reason that the small children are not in danger from swallowing the needles from the tree.

That being said, I love the smell and look of live trees. One Christmas, we were at my in-laws condo in Colorado, and they had a live flocked tree outside on their balcony. I thought that was the coolest idea to have it outside, and I would love to plant live trees outside that we could decorate. I haven't pursued this since, but maybe in the future, we'll have multiple "Christmas trees" decorating our yard. :)

Picking Your Tree

Here I am continuing my Scrapaddict.com challenges. This is today's journaling prompt:

Describe what you feel is the perfect tree.

If you have a live tree, how describe how you choose which one to get? When do you like to go get a tree? Does one person in your family have the final word?

If you have an artificial tree, then describe how and why you picked the tree. Is it flocked, or plain? Is it a prelit tree or do you still have to string the lights? We just got a new artificial tree. DH and I had talked about how big a tree we wanted. He saw this one at Costco and there were huge crowds just before Thanksgiving already, so he decided to go ahead and get it. There isn’t much to the story, but years from now, even simple journaling like that gives some insight to what type of person my DH is (practical—very practical).

DH and I feel like the perfect tree for us is one that is the biggest we can get in our living room, one that is easy to put together and to maintain, and one that is easy to take down. Oh, and it has to look good too, of course. This year, as it states above, we got a 7.5 foot prelit tree. I took the kids out shopping while DH put it together. Apparently, except for the fact that the bottom two of the three pieces were heavy, it was very easy to put together. He didn't have to mess around with untangling lights from last year, and therefore, he won't have to worry about trying to put away these lights for next year. We would both love a taller tree, but this is one is just tall enough to allow for a topper without scraping the ceiling. I love how bright the lights are and how many there are. The tree looks pretty full, too--almost real, since a "real" tree really isn't practical for us.

The Reason for the Season

I know I'll be busy with all of the holiday stuff this month and I won't have much time to scrap. I'm running this challenge on the Scrapaddict MB this month. I want to take a photo and do some journaling daily. This way, I hope I will have the makings for a Holiday Memories 2007 album after the hustle and bustle of the holiday season is over. The first journaling prompt is below:

What special types of holiday worship, if any, do you engage in? Do you do something every week (or every day) or do you just go to church on Christmas Day? Does this have a special meaning for you? This isn’t meant to be a guilt trip for whether or not you do anything at all, but merely an account of what and why you do what you do. Remember to take a photo that symbolizes what this season means for you, too.

During this holiday season, we plan on going to church at 9AM on Sundays just like we do the rest of the year. We'll plan on going to Mass on Christmas Day also. Especially when Christmas has gotten so commercialized, I want the kids to be reminded what the true "reason for the season" is. The reason for Christmas is to celebrate Christ's birth, not to exchange presents. The reason for the special decorating we do is to make this a special time, just as Christ's birth is special and not because we agree with all of the commercialization. The reason why we go to church on every weekend throughout the year and not just at Christmas time is because we want to be able to thank God year round for all of these wonderful gifts that we get year round. My family and I are all truly blessed. :)

First Day Report

DS#3 did fine today at daycare, of course. He was in the 6-12 month room. I joked about how he had "skipped a grade" since he had skipped over the 0-6 month room. *WINK* DH asked the teacher about whether or not DS had taken any naps. The teacher said that he had taken a 20 minute nap in the morning and a 5 minute one in the afternoon. DH told her, "That's why he's here." How does that baby survive on such little sleep?!!

Going to Day Care

DS#3 is going to daycare for the first time tomorrow. I have mixed feelings about it. DH and I wanted him to get used to kids his age. Kids his age won't wait on him hand and foot like his siblings do. He is very needy, too, and DH can't get anything done at home while watching him. What I'm not sure about is that women outside of the family will be caring for him for the first time. I not crazy about sharing him! :)

Thanksgiving 2007

Wow, I think this is the longest I've gone between blog posts! It's been quite a busy week. I'll just touch on a few highlights.

--I worked the night before Thanksgiving.
--We left to visit my family after I got home from work.
--DS#3 did not sleep during the whole car trip, but luckily didn't fuss too much either.
--We went directly to my sister's house. Her in-laws were also visiting.
--My sister's father-in-law got down on the floor and army crawled toward DS#3 who in turn started army crawling straight to him. It was so cute!
--DS#1 and DS#2 started playing Guitar Hero II on the PS2 with my nephew. That was their obsession for the rest of the trip.
--DD started playing dress-up with my niece. My sister could smell the lip gloss when they got near. They were such a contrast to the boys.
--DS#3 took a couple of short naps and that's it. He had a little trouble getting to sleep in the "new" crib and surroundings but did okay the rest of the night.

--On Black Friday, all of the kids got up early, so DH decided to go out to one of the local electronics stores (around 5AM). The checkout line was so long that he decided just to look around.
--We went to my youngest sister's house and "hung out".
--They had bought a tent and my BIL had already put it together in the living room when we first got there. Our boys stayed over there that night and they "camped" in the backyard in the tent. The temps overnight got into the 40s with thunderstorms. I still cannot believe that my scrapping sister failed to get photos of the three boys camping out for me!
--In the evening, we went to my younger sister's house because her DD was coming home from being with her father for Thanksgiving. DD spent the night there with her two girl cousins.
--DH and I were left with only DS#3 that night but he woke up at 3:30AM and kept waking up at least every hour or so. I sent DH to sleep in the other room since he was going to be driving.

We drove home yesterday. It was miserable, cold, wet day, and it wasn't a fun drive, but it was nice to be home. :)

My Oldest Son

I shouldn't forget my oldest son. I talk a lot about his siblings here because they're at a point where they're changing more quickly. I forget that he's changing, too. Today, I noticed in church that he was singing with a lower voice than I remember. He is still in the middle school choir because his voice hasn't changed yet. Tonight, I asked him if he noticed that his voice was getting lower. He said that he could still hit the higher notes but that he found the lower notes easier to reach now. Thank goodness that he can at least hit those notes, as compared to his father who always seems to miss those notes. *WINK*

I still sing to my oldest son before he goes to sleep. I'm happy that he still wants me to sing to him and he still even wants me to rub his back when I sing. I was doing that tonight and I was struck with an odd feeling. Here I was looking up to him as I lay in the bed with him. I found myself wondering if his feet were beyond where my feet were. He is taller than me now, of course, and it was weird rubbing the back of a boy who is bigger than me!

His face is changing too, as are other parts of his body that are not visible to me, I'm sure. He cares more about his hair. He'll ask to get a haircut instead of waiting for us to tell him it is time. His little brother made a comment the other day about how he is growing a mustache. Well, not really, and DS#2 IS prone to exaggeration, but DS#1's facial hair IS getting a little darker.

DS#1 spent the night at a friend's house last Friday. I really missed him. I saw him on Thursday night, and then I left for work before he woke up on Friday. We didn't see him again until Saturday afternoon. I caught a glimpse of myself in a few years, when DS#1 is off at college. I know my kids have to grow up and eventually leave my house, but I hope I can learn to cope with it better by then!

November Kit Layouts

I forgot to post these pages earlier. I posted one in October--Bobbing For Apples. Here's another one using the same Cast A Spell Kit for November from Scrapaddict. This uses photos from our recent Disney World trip.

This next one uses the White Picket Fence SDJ and photos from last fall's soccer season, during DS#1's game. DD was happily playing in dirt with the sister of another player. Her hands were filthy! She wanted to take home the dirt she was playing with. DH told her that we had our own dirt! :)

This one also uses the White Picket Fence SDJ and photos from last year. DD got this outfit as a hand-me-down from her second cousin. She was all giggly that her tummy was showing. I was just a proud Mama who was thinking of how beautiful her daughter was!

Last Soccer Game!

DS#2's soccer team played in a tournament this weekend. They played three games today--at 8AM, Noon, and 4PM. They won one game and lost the other two. What a long day! We left the house before 7AM and didn't get back until after 530PM. At least poor DS#3 was able to nap here and there, but he wanted to crawl around so badly that he would look at the ground when we were carrying him. We didn't make it to the next round, but DH and I are secretly thinking that isn't a bad thing because otherwise, we would have one and maybe even two games tomorrow, too!! I enjoy watching my kids play soccer, but enough is enough. I want my free time back!

The Search Is Over

The search is over. I wanted the elusive Nintendo Wii for Christmas, and DH found one today and bought it. He didn't even have to stand in line waiting for one. That would have been too much trouble. Now, I can't wait to play with it!

On a slightly different subject, I finally got a photo of DS#3's two bottom front teeth. Isn't he adorable?

Girls' Night Out

My friend Jen gets together with some other military wives once a year. It was her turn to host this year, and she invited me along. I have known all of them except for one through the ScrapAddict.com Message Board, and it was really cool to finally meet them face-to-face. Even though they had all known each other for a while, and I was the new one, they all made me very welcome. Thanks to Jen for inviting me, and thanks to DH for encouraging me to go and for watching the kids. :)

Good and Bad

Today was the awards ceremony at the kids' school. My oldest got a "Golden Arrow" for this quarter and DS#2 got an award for the first time--a "Silver Arrow"! Only students from the third grade on up can win those awards. "Golden Arrow" means an average of 94 in the core subjects. "Silver Arrow" means an average of 90 and above (I think). DS#2 actually only fell short about TWO points in ONE class or he would have qualified for a "Golden Arrow". DH and I were a little bummed for him, but he was still happy, thankfully.

Both boys also got the Reader Awards for their respective classes. That award is for the child with the highest number of Accelerated Reader points (from reading a certain amount of books worth a certain amount of points) in their class. We're so proud of our children!

Okay, so we have to have the good with the bad, right? Well, we also found out this morning that DS#2 earned a "mandatory" (which is basically an afterschool detention) for not having his math homework done. What a shock! That kid lives for math! He had even wanted to work ahead in math! He said that he forgot his book last night. That wasn't a very good excuse, but because of this, he has lost all of his privileges until next week. He didn't get to go out for a celebratory milkshake like his brother did because he was still at school!

DD doesn't qualify for any awards yet since she is only in PreK, but I would have bought her a shake. The only problem was that she was sent home form school after having thrown up her breakfast. DH said that she seemed to be feeling better at home, so she had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich--and promptly threw that up, too. She was very bouncy when I saw her at the awards ceremony, but she really only ate an apple this evening along with some water I made her drink. She went to bed at 6PM, and I'm hoping that tomorrow will be a better day for everyone!

Air Show

Today we went to the Air Force Base in town to watch the Air Show. Despite living here for five years, we've never been to one of these. DS#2's godfather was in town flying in the Air Show, so we made a point of going just to see him. These are some photos of the older kids with him and a photo of his plane. I guess when you're single with no kids you can have expensive hobbies like this one. It was great to see him again.

All Saints' Day

DS#2 was St. George, and DD was St. Michael the Archangel. DS got to read from index cards. DD can't read reliably enough yet, so she had to memorize her saint name and two facts. We started practicing daily last Sunday. I still had to prompt her, but I was proud of her. She said her lines loudly and clearly. Last year, she couldn't say a thing when she got in front of everyone. All she could do was give an embarrassed look and hide her face in her teacher's skirt.

I think they enjoyed dressing up more than anything else. :)

Costumes Part 2

This is the fourth year that my kids have been going to this Catholic school. That means that this is our fourth All Saints' Day at this school, too. On this day, all the elementary school kids dress up as saints and give reports about their chosen saint in front of their class. After they do that, they get to have a party. So, it's like Halloween all over again, except on the following day. This is the first time that I haven't had to "make" a costume. Do you know how difficult it is to find a ready-made costume of a saint?

The first year, DH and I totally freaked out when it came down to a week or so before the big day and we didn't have any saint costumes for the boys. Luckily, DH was able to find an adult monk costume that I cut down to fit DS#1. I had figured out that a monk costume could last a long time, and DS#1 wore that costume the following two years after that. This year he didn't have to dress up because he's in the middle school, and dressing in costume isn't required for them.

DS#2 wore a recycled wizard costume that first year. He was St. Patrick, so we tried to dye the dark blue costume green, but in the end, it still looked blue and we decided that it didn't matter. The following year, we again tried to find a monk costume (for DS#2 this time), but we had no luck at all. Again, we did this all at the last minute. Because of this, I spent about six hours the night before (which was Halloween) making a monk costume for DS#2. Sometime after I got home from work, I went out to the fabric store, bought a pattern, and the supplies to make a generic monk-type garment. I remember starting at about six and finishing at about midnight. That's with skipping dinner. That's with totally missing all of the Halloween festivities, including trick-or-treating. I actually haven't scrapped the Halloween pictures from that year yet because I still get upset thinking about missing all of it.

Last year, the boys already had their monk costumes, so we were set. I was so relieved! DD was only in PreK, so we chose a saint to match a ready-made costume. Target had these queen costumes last year, so she was a saint that was a queen. I can't seem to remember which one right now. More on this tomorrow.

Because of all of that past last-minute angst, last year and this year, I have requested call on the night before Halloween (so I would have Halloween day off) and a vacation day on All Saints' Day. That way, I can make a last minute costume if I have to. That way I won't miss Halloween again. That way, I can see my kids give their saint reports and help at their parties.

I'll have to share today's events tomorrow with the photos I took of their costumes.

Happy Halloween!

We had the usual neighborhood potluck dinner at the entrance to our culdesac tonight. We had chili, sausage, and hotdogs. We had veggies, fruit, and chips with dip. All of our candy containers were laid out on one table so trick-or-treaters to help themselves.

DD was in a cowgirl costume, and once again DS#2 was a Ninja--black this year, not red or white as in previous years. DS#3 was in a pumpkin outfit that Grandma bought for DS#1 about 12 years ago. DS#1 did not want to dress up in a costume, but he went with us to help with his siblings.

We ate first then set off (around 7PM) with the kids to the next block. The next block was having a block party also, so there was a one-stop shop there, too, except it was a long block, so some of the neighbors did stay at their own houses. The kids went door-to-door there. DD had a hard time keeping up with everyone as usual. One of our neighbors, an 8-year-old girl, was so sweet and stayed with DD and even helped carry her bag. We were on our way back the other side of that block when DD decided that she was ready to go home. That was fine with DH and me, so I headed home with three of the kids while he went on with DS#2 who seemed to be the only kid that was really excited about trick-or-treating this year.

It was over so quickly, but the best part as always was being able to socialize with our neighbors instead of staying cooped up in the house passing out candy!

Can You Believe...

Can you believe that the little man is trying to pull up already? He's made such great strides this week! Oh, and tooth #2 just popped out today, too. Too bad he's still not sleeping through the night...

Bobbing for Apples

DS#2 didn't have his two front teeth at this time, last year. His Den Leader had a Halloween party at his house complete with a bobbing for apples game. They had a rule that you couldn't use the stem to get the apple, but they made an exception for DS#2. He didn't seem to have any trouble getting the apples, rule or no rule, front teeth or no front teeth. That's what this layout is about. Tonight we went to that Halloween party again. We arrived late because DS#2 had a soccer game. We specifically requested that they hold off on the bobbing for apples until we got there. I didn't get any photos this time, but DS#2 was even faster at getting those apples. This time, he didn't even get his costume wet. He made bobbing for apples look easy. He had SO much fun! :)

More Random Facts

I don't really enjoy talking about myself, but since Catherine tagged me on her blog, I guess I'll come up with a few facts.

1--I'm very non-confrontational. I remembered this one after reading Catherine's facts. I don't like to admit it, but I run from fights or my mind goes blank and I come up with great comebacks after the fact.

2--I'm afraid of heights. I can go to the top of Eiffel Tower, but I get this weird tingly feeling all over that I don't like. The same goes for rollercoasters. I can go on one, but I don't think I should when I spend the whole time praying that I'll survive the ride. Not fun!

3--I would love to have another child. Shhh! Don't tell my DH. What's stopping us? The fact that I've had three miscarriages and I'm not getting any younger, so the risk keeps going up. Also, the fact that we don't want to sacrifice the time we have with our others. DS#3 is already getting shuttled to various soccer practices and games and other activities. We already have to split up going to different kid events. DH and I would each prefer to go to be able to go to ALL of the kid activities.

4--I would love to have family live close to me, the closer the better. I consider myself very lucky that I have a good enough relationship with my family to feel that way. When I pointed out to my MIL that there was a house for sale down the street from us, she told me not to worry and that they wouldn't move that close to us. I just thought, why not? We're so busy that we probably wouldn't be home anyway. That way, they could go to the kid activities too, if they want to. I want my kids to KNOW both sets of grandparents! :)

5--I'm very disorganized, or at least I always feel that way. People always think I'm organized. That's because I don't like clutter and I like to put it away out of sight. That means the closet is disorganized, as a result.

6--I prefer to be indoors. Today was beautiful weather here, and for a change, I wanted to be outside. Since the weather is rarely perfect, I usually prefer to be indoors--with central air conditioning and heat. My whole family is like that. My parents have consistently refused to go to any of their grandkids' games. They're even more indoor people than I am.

7--I have a hard time throwing anything away, especially scrapbook paper. The problem is that I don't always have time to do anything with it. Recently, I organized a file drawer with my scraps and told DD she could use any of it. The problem now is that she'll give me her creations and tell me that she made it just for me. Of course, there was the one time I caught her doing an "eeny meeny miny mo" with DH's desk and mine...

I hope I didn't bore anyone with these facts about me. I don't have anyone left to tag, so if you're reading this and you feel like sharing seven random facts about yourself, please do!

He's Crawling--No Kidding!

DS seemed close to crawling a few days ago, but we didn't realize he was this close. Today, his siblings were putting the TV remote control in front of him to see if he would move toward it. He scooched at first, and then, like a lightbulb turning on, he figured out how to coordinate his arm and leg movements and he was really moving. I wanted to take a video of this event, so I set my old red cell phone (this boy is drawn to red like his Mama) about a foot in front of him. In a matter of seconds, he was using the phone as a teething toy. Now, I have to figure out how to resize that video so I can post it here. He is growing up way too fast!

Avoiding Lectures

I'm supposed to be working on a lecture for tomorrow. It's one that I've given before, but I still need to practice it so I don't stumble over my words. I don't know why I can't shake this horrible nervous feeling every time I have to give a lecture. Meanwhile, I've distracted myself by making brownies to bring. Food always distracts everyone into thinking that I'm actually doing a good job of lecturing. *WINK*

I actually scrapped yesterday. It was my turn to host the Monday Sketch Challenge at ScrapAddict and I picked Annette's awesome sketch. Look how little DD and DS#2 were!

First Tooth

Today, we discovered a sharp edge along DS#3's bottom right gum. He's finally got a tooth! I know he's not technically behind, but the other kids had their first tooth by four months. I guess he just wants to emphasize that he's his own baby! I'll try to get a photo when you can actually see the tooth instead of just feel it.

This afternoon, I pressed down on his gum right beside his first tooth. He got VERY upset. I don't think tooth #2 is very far behind. I just hope he lets me sleep tonight more than last night. He woke up several times, and apparently I was coughing a lot, too. I was so tired that I barely remember any of it.

We're Not Tired

These were photos I took yesterday. The photo of DS#3 was at DS#1's soccer game yesterday afternoon. He only slept through half of that game. At DS#2's game yesterday morning, he slept through the whole thing. At least it wasn't hot yesterday, because I had this warm little body on my lap the whole time.

The photo of DD was taken after we got home after DS#1's game. We had just pulled into the garage and we realized that she was "toast". I couldn't believe that she was doubled over so much. Unfortunately, she awakened when DH removed her from the car. Oh well! That girl really needs more sleep than she gets.

I'm Moving...Temporarily

I decided that I like some of the features on this new site better...for now, gentle readers, please join me at Truly Blessed on Vox for the time being, and feel free to give me feedback as to which site you like better.

He's Crawling!

Well, okay, I don't want to call it "crawling" quite yet, but this baby is moving faster and faster while on the floor by himself. Last night DH put the TV remote control on the floor about a foot from DS#3's outstretched hand. He was bending and extending his legs until he got closer and closer. Then, because he was looking up at me taking a video of this (I wish I could figure out how to resize video so I can put this on the blog), he turned over and got pretty much within reach of the remote control.

This morning, the remote control was about six inches from his outstretched hand and with one newly coordinated move of his arms and legs, he was able to reach that remote control. Darn, I guess we need to clean out all that miscellaneous stuff in the living room--like the magazine basket!

Another Computer Junkie

Here he is--another computer junkie. With six computers in the house, including the two laptops, there will be plenty to go around... :)

Two Outfits

These are some photos of DD from this weekend. The Cowgirl outfit is a hand-me-down from my niece. I actually bought this outfit last year for my niece's birthday. With only one daughter, I can justify a purchase better when I can get my niece to wear it first.

The goalie outfit was from her soccer game on Saturday--before her mood turned pouty. She looks happy, doesn't she? :)

Airport Security

I forgot to tell everyone about what happened at the airport here before we went on our trip to Disney. After we had checked in at the curbside kiosk, DH went to park the van while I went to the security checkpoint with the four kids. We also had one stroller and two carry-on backpacks, one with the Game Boys and one with the camera and my Ipod. We had to take off our shoes, of course, and I realized that DD had her light-up sandals on. I knew from previous experience that those set off the alarm, so it was just as well that she removed them. Of course this meant that she would have to go barefoot. Ick!

I went through first with the baby. DD went after me. She set off the alarm. Great! Remember how she was all made up from Libby Lu the day before? Well, I was a little aggravated that I didn't think of this sooner, but I thought it was the tiara setting off the alarm, so I removed her tiara. Well, the pouting started, even though I told her I would put it right back on. Ugh! In the meantime, I'm trying to keep an eye out for our stuff to come out the other end. DD goes through again and again the alarm goes off. Then it dawns on me. What's setting the alarm of is the gazillion bobby pins in her hair!!! There was NO WAY that:

1) I was going to take off all of those bobby pins then and there,
2) DD was going to let me take her hair down after she already had her heart set on showing up at Disney with her hair up and her tiara in place
3) I could stay calm when DD is crying and while my other kids are barely visible on the other side of a plexiglass wall with our valuables and my oldest is getting all of our valuables off the security roller thingy while carrying the baby all by himself!!!

The security guard guy obviously did not have kids or had never traveled at the airport with kids, or he would not have told me to stay calm!!!

Luckily, in the end, a couple of security people brought all of our stuff over to where DD and I were standing, waiting to be checked individually with that hand gadget. It took forever, though! We had just sat down at our gate when DH arrived from parking the car. Next time I want to park the car...except that I'm more likely to forget where I parked the car...

Nursing Gymnastics

I wish I could take pictures or heck, even video. I'm lying in bed trying to nurse this baby, and he is either trying to push off by putting his feet on my belly and straightening out his legs, or he has his up leg raised straight up in the air. The only way I can settle him down is to shake or tap his bottom with my hand.

Okay, I guess he wasn't all that hungry. He is now downstairs playing. DH and I always worry that he doesn't eat enough, but he is still growing, so he must be eating enough, right?

As the Wind Blows

DD's mood changes as quickly as the wind blows. Today, she told DH (who is her soccer coach) that she was going to run as fast as she could during the game. She did okay at first, but then she "was pushed down". She was in tears! I'm sure it wasn't on purpose. After all, those five and six-year-olds are concentrating on the ball, and not each other. Well, her mood shifted and she started crying. I had to convince her to go back out on the field so one of her teammates could have a break. She did okay for a little while, and then she started crying when her shoes got untied. As he was tying her shoes, DH asked her why she was crying. She said that it was because her shoes were untied. He asked her why this was so upsetting and she said it was because she couldn't tie her own shoes. He replied that he was tying them, so she didn't have anything to cry about. *SIGH* I am SO not looking forward to the preteen/teen years!

A Hoot

Sometimes, DD is such a hoot! Tonight, DH took her with him to DS#1's soccer practice. She apparently was chatting away the whole time they were there. She saw some "big girls" playing soccer. DH asked her if she wanted to play soccer when she got "big". She told him "Maybe", so he told her that maybe she could play another sport instead. She told him, "I love skiiing." Of course she's NEVER been skiing before. She was too young to take lessons the last time we were in Colorado visiting my in-laws. DH told her that she had never been skiing, but she could learn to ski when we go to visit my in-laws next year. She apparently went on to talk to one of the soccer moms there about how she was going to be skiing. She's my little chatterbox, that one!

At home, I was getting her ready for bed. I was telling DS#2 how he shouldn't lock the bathroom door so we could still get in and get DD's stuff to get her washed up for bed. He said that he locked the door because DD would barge in on him without knocking. I told her not to do that and that she should knock before entering a closed room. I went on to tell her how she would demand privacy in the bathroom later. She insisted that wouldn't happen and that she would always let her brothers in. She said, "I love my brothers!" That girl is a hoot, I tell you! :)

6 months old

DS#3 is six months old today. He celebrated by getting three shots at his pediatrician's office. He was out of sorts starting last night to most of today. Here's to hoping he'll at least sleep well tonight.

We are a little worried about how small he seems and how slowly he seems to be growing (compared to his siblings), although we know he is growing. Well, he weighed in at 15 lbs. 10 oz. (20th percentile) and is 27 inches long (70th percentile). So maybe he'll be tall and skinny. I can handle that. :)

Yesterday, we didn't do a big celebration for DS#1's 12th birthday because he had school and then soccer practice in the evening. He did request a chocolate cake to snack on after school. I haven't baked a cake in a long while, but I dug out an old favorite, Coca-Cola Cake. I don't like icing, and this cake has marshmallows baked in for a nice sweet topping. Here is DS blowing out a candle on a piece of Coca-Cola Cake. (We only had one candle, so it seemed appropriate to cut a smaller piece of cake to put the candle on.) DD really seems like she wants to do the blowing, doesn't she? ;-)

Birthday #12

Tomorrow is DS#1's 12th birthday. The kids are in school tomorrow plus the boys have soccer practice tomorrow evening, so we celebrated his birthday tonight. We usually go out to eat, but he instead asked his Papa to grill some steaks and then for dessert, he asked to go to Brindles, his favorite ice cream shop. We also went ahead and opened his presents today.

He's been asking for a Nintendo DS forever, so he got a pretty red one today plus a couple of games. DS#2 picked out a Lego Bionicle to give him also. Of course, DS#2 was the first one who started playing this toy that he was giving to his older brother. DS#1 didn't seem to mind. He really is such a great big brother.

Next week will be his celebration with his friends. He and four of his friends will be going to Laser Quest and then out to dinner. I would love to go, but those boys seem more comfortable around DH. We'll get him the ice cream cake that he requested. Good choice, I think. ;-)

Yes, my baby boy is growing up. He is noticeably taller than me now. He looks like he'll be DH's height soon. What's even more important to me is that he is such a great kid. He has averages of 97-100 in all of his classes, despite skipping a grade last year. He is always asking DH and me if there is something he can do to help around the house, like folding the laundry or loading the dishwasher. He doesn't hesitate to pick up his baby brother when he gets fussy, especially at night. We don't know what we would do without his help with his siblings sometimes. Yes, he is growing up into someone I'm proud to call my son. :)

Spirit of Aloha

Tonight I'm going to describe the dinner show that we went to on our first night at Disney. The show is called The Spirit of Aloha and it is shown at the Polynesian Hotel. The show time was 8PM but even though we got there a half hour before the show, we still had to wait in this super-long line. The only thing that made it more fun was that we were in line with our friends. What was holding up the line was a "mandatory" photo. I already knew I didn't want the picture because DS#3 was asleep in his stroller and we didn't dare take him out of it. So, the family photo included the baby barely visible in his stroller.

We weren't able to sit with our friends, unfortunately, because we all had pre-assigned seating. We had made our reservations at different times. I must have made our reservation at a great time, because our table was right in front. This was great because, even though our kids were tired from the trip, they were right there in front of the action, so I think the show held their attention better. Unfortunately, DS#2 has this thing about "looking at girls". He had his back to the stage for most of the show! The only time we insisted that he look was when the act included the performer using fire as his prop. I took mostly video of this performer, but here's one I took of him twirling the stick with fire on each end.

Because we were so close to the stage, we caught DS#1 eyeing the dancing girl in her little costume. He noticed us looking at him and he smiled. We try not to tease him, but we're just trying to get used to our little boy growing up. I didn't get a great photo of him, though.

DD was being her shy self, and although she had talked about "learning how to dance" before the show started, she did NOT want to go on stage when they asked the kids to come up and learn how to do the hula. I walked with her up there, and she had the biggest frown on her face!

There was so much food--barbecue ribs and chicken. The dessert was this yummy dark chocolate mousse that was shaped like a volcano. We had a great waiter that kept the food coming. Our waiter also took one of the leis that they gave us and put it on the baby's head. He didn't seem to care, and I got this adorable photo!

The show ended past 10PM and we were all exhausted. I took the first shift back at our room and took a shower with DD while DH took the boys to the pool. DD was asleep within minutes of getting in bed, even with her brothers making noise in the room. We didn't all get into bed until almost midnight--tired but still very excited!

October Kits

I'm trying to get my November assignments done, so I'll have to hold off on more Disney pics for now. I almost forgot--it's a new month, so I can show my pages done with the new October Scrapaddict Kits.
These first two are from the Autumn Equinox Quick Fix Kit using the Daisy D's Autumn Collection papers.

The last two are from the City Slickers Quick Fix Kit and the City Slickers Overdose (OD) Kit using the Dream Street Jack Collection papers.

We're Back!!!

We're back from Disney! We all had so much fun! The older boys really enjoyed themselves on the rides. DD was in absolute heaven after meeting the princesses. The baby did very well on the plane (his first plane ride) and was so good most of the time, content to absorb the sights from his stroller. Of course, he did get carried a lot, but today he really just wanted to get out of that thing and play on the floor. We spent much of the time with another family who are really good friends of ours, so DH and I had fun being with them.

We stayed at the Polynesian Resort. DH and I usually think that the hotel room doesn't matter, since you don't spend that much time there, but we would definitely stay there again. The view from our room was spectacular (see right). I spent a couple of "early" nights with the baby there, as well as one early afternoon, so it was nice to be able to look out onto the water or see the fireworks from my window (see below). It was also very convenient to be able to either take a boat or ride the monorail straight to the Magic Kingdom. We also had an upgrade. I'm not really sure how I booked it, and I'm sure we paid for it in the long run, but we had "free" daily continental breakfast, snacks and juice during the day (beer and wine were also available for "free"), heavy appetizers at night (like barbeque pork and vegetable egg rolls) and desserts and cordials later at night. This was great for the kids, because we would get back from a long day at one of the parks, and they would head straight to the lounge for cookies.

I have so much to say but so little time to say it. I had hoped to blog daily from Disney, but internet access would have cost me $10 a day, and that just wasn't worth it for just a few minutes. I didn't even have time to watch TV or read anything while I was there. On arriving home, I told DH that a meteor could have hit the US and I wouldn't have known it. He merely said, "Isn't that great?" :)This is my favorite photo of the almost 300 that I took at Disney. Aren't these two adorable? :)

Libby Lu

DD got a gift certificate to Libby Lu for a makeover for her birthday last year. I totally forgot about this until a month or so ago. I decided that this would be the perfect time to go since she doesn't have school this week and we're leaving for Disney tomorrow. She had such a blast! The expression on her face when the makeover started was just priceless. She also had that look when she realized that she was getting glitter on her fingernails and getting makeup put on. I don't think it will be as exciting the second time, because she'll know what to expect. Still, it was a fun thing to do together.

She kept saying over and over again afterwards, "I had a lot of fun at Libby Lu." or "Libby Lu was fun, right?" Now, we've promised her that she could sleep in this (minus the makeup) tonight so she could look like this on the plane to Disney. Yes, she IS a princess. :)

Sitting Up

DS#3 is sitting up! He's still a little unstable, but he can hold this position for a minute or so, even when he's waving a toy around. I just discovered the fact that he could sit up by himself this afternoon, although DH always makes it sound like he's been doing it forever. He's been scooching already for a while, so it's just a matter of time before his siblings run away in horror!

I Am Not A Teacher

I've never thought that I was patient enough to be a teacher. Of course, as anyone who is a mom knows, you become a teacher whether or not you like it. Well, I've been trying to help DD learn how to read. She has known the sounds of all of the individual letters for a long time. Tonight, she seemed to actually be putting the sounds together correctly--for the first time for me. (I think she's been doing it at school.) While I was excited about that, some of the consonant blends have been difficult for her ("th" and "sh" for example). I got a little frustrated with her tonight because after the 30th or so time we saw the "th" combination, she still kept trying to sound the letters out individually. I feel like such a bad mom for getting frustrated with her. Of course, the baby was fussing in my lap at the same time, so that most likely added to my frustration.

Ironically, one of the interns at work who I was working with today thanked me at the end of the day for teaching him. Me, being thanked for being a "teacher"? Go figure!

Clothes Horse

I've never been big on buying a lot of nice clothes for myself, at least not when compared to my younger sister. I remember her telling me that my spending would go up when I made more money, and it certainly has. With more money came less time, though, so I tend to get clothes from the same places, and those places can get pricey. Ann Taylor Loft, for example is my favorite place to get clothes. I love it because their clothes fit me, and I love that they're not too "old" or too "young".

On Saturday, I was invited to a friend's house for one of those home parties where you buy stuff from a catalog. This time it was clothes (CAbi or "Carol Anderson by Invitation"). I was a little skeptical at first, because I'm loyal to my Ann Taylor Loft. :) I went just to be social, and I had a lot of fun. It was like going shopping with a bunch of girlfriends. I tend to buy things just because they are on sale. This is great for my wallet, but I usually don't like those clothes as much in the end, and I don't wear them. So, what I do nowadays, is look at the price tag AFTER I choose what I like. This meant that I spent much more than I had expected to at the party. When I told my sweet DH how much I spent, he didn't even bat an eyelash. He tells me when I'm spending too much money, you see. ;)

Then, on Sunday afternoon, Ann Taylor Loft was having a sale plus I had these great little "savings cards" where if I spent $50, I would get $25 off. Whenever I tell DH that I "saved a lot of money" he always jokes, "How much money did you have to spend to 'save' money?" Well, I came home to tell him that I saved so much money that I saved more than I spent. ;)

The total for both purchases makes me gasp a little, but I had a lot of fun, and I have lots of new clothes to show for it. I guess all of a sudden I'm making up for all of that time when I didn't buy a lot of clothes. :)

More Soccer

I'm trying to be fair to my other children and showing a photo here of the middle two when they were actually getting along. I took this one last Saturday when we were watching DS#1 playing soccer. I think DS looks so amused because I had originally forgotten to turn on the camera. :)

If I thought last week was busy, this week was "almost" as busy. DS#1's soccer practices have been moved to Monday and Wednesdays instead of Tuesdays and Thursdays. Of course we only found out about this on Monday so they had practice on Tuesday and Wednesday this week instead. Our week shaped up like this:

Monday - nothing after school (My Mom and Dad were in town so we went out to the Outback Steakhouse)
Tuesday - DS#1 soccer practice, DS#2 goal keeper practice - same field/same time
Wednesday - DS#1 soccer practice at one field, DS#2 soccer practice at another field, DD with soccer practice at completely different field (needless to say, she missed practice on Wednesday this week)
Thursday - DD swimming lesson at 4PM
Friday - DS#2 soccer game, DS#2 Cub Scout Pack meeting (again, needless to say, he can't be at two places at once, so he's missing this meeting)

If you're still following this thread, we have two soccer games tomorrow and one birthday party. We have two birthday parties on Sunday. The only time we can go to church is Sunday evening. On the up side....WE'RE GOING TO DISNEY ON THURSDAY!!!

23 weeks

I'm a little behind with my weekly journaling about DS#3's milestones. He has definitely developed a little personality.

He gets mad when you put him down. He gets mad when you walk away from him. He gets the maddest when he is tired and you don't hold him.

He loves to play. He loves to play with his feet and hands--all in his mouth, of course. He loves to bounce in the exersaucer (see above) and looks too cute with his arms out as if to balance himself. He especially loves to play Peek-a-boo with his sister.

He does not like to lie down--he prefers to be upright. We used to put him in his bouncy chair the most often, but then he started leaning more and more forward--until his upper body is on the floor. Then he gets mad again (see above).

Last week he started rolling around--a lot. I can't keep him on his back anymore. He is always kicking up his legs and swinging them to the side so he can get on his tummy. I've stopped trying to get him to sleep on his side. This morning DH had to go to the bathroom, so he laid him on a blanket in the living room. He heard him from the bathroom suddenly start screaming at the top of his lungs. When he was able to go see what was up, he discovered DS wrapped up in the blanket with just his little legs showing. Apparently, he had been putting the blanket in his mouth or at least grabbing it with his hand, and then he rolled and rolled until he was all wrapped up. DH actually thought of taking a picture, but decided that the baby was too distressed to warrant taking the time.

I can probably go on, but I've run out of time. I'll try to post again soon.