OK...fine...she's not 12

I talked with Alex's teacher today...I didn't want to.
She told me about Alex's trip to the office and the surrounding circumstances. Before I could tell her that Alex acts out when he gets bored, she said, "This happens with some GT kids. They are just thinking all the time. It's really hard for them to sit still, but every now and then, they have to."
Ok...fine...she's not 12.

Don didn't tell me what I did wrong...

Just to redeem my husband from my last blog entry. Don came in last night, and I told him my concerns. I told him I was feeling very responsible and down. He said, "You didn't break the baby."

Sent to the Principal's office

Alex was sent to the Principal’s office today for fighting! WHAT?!?!?!
He said he was aggravating another little boy by pretending he was going to bite him (chomping his teeth like a dinosaur). When Alex wouldn't stop, the little kid twisted Alex's arm and pulled his finger backwards. Alex retaliated and returned the arm-twisting. They both got in trouble.
I would like to say a formal thank you to the kid who has now taught my kid how to fight. Where do kids learn to fight at 5 years old?
Obviously, Alex is no angel. He is not listening at school; he has gotten time-out every day this week. Now, he comes home with this whole fighting thing! What have I done wrong? How come the other kids are not getting into this much trouble? Maybe I should just have gone on to work and left the kids in childcare, with professionals, because, apparently, I didn't do a very good job.
The best part about questioning myself is that I have been a 'single parent' for so long now, I feel solely responsible. I know Don is going to swoop in for 2 days and tell me how I could do things better. That's gunna feel great.
It doesn't help that Alex's teacher, Mrs. Rome, is like 12 years old! Seriously, she can't be more than 24. I have very little confidence in her range of knowledge concerning children's behavior. She probably knows a lot about book stuff, but how could she possibly have the wisdom or experience to know how to effectively deal with kids like Alex?
I am not feeling very optimistic. I have already talked myself into being OK with it if he gets kicked out.

I am so grumpy tonight. I have been yelling at all of the kids. If they are going to turn out like hooligans anyway, why bother trying to do the right thing?

No Rush?

These past two days have been full, but not rushed. I am not sure how to handle this slow down. I can actually sit down, read a page in my book or watch a cartoon with my kids. Crazy, I know!
I have been under so much pressure for so long that I have had to learn to constantly multi-task.
I had to watch the kids and cook dinner. I had to sing (with hand motions) while folding laundry. I had to break up fights while washing dishes. I had to make sure no one wondered away while reading labels in the grocery store. I had to schedule in play time and make phone calls on the way. I had read with the kids and make my schedule for the next day during picture breaks.
I didn't even know how much pressure I was under until now.
Get this, we went to the park yesterday simply because we didn't have anything more productive to do!
Isn't this great!?!?!?!

1st Day of School...Continued

I picked Alex up from school yesterday, and the first thing he said was, "Moooommm, I want to ride the bus. Can I please ride the bus next time?"
What? I hated the bus when I was little! It was hot, super un-cool and slow.
I told him I would check on it. (AKA: No)
Because he is in a special school, they will only drop him at the closest school to our house...not at our house. I would still have to get into the car. I don't see him riding the bus. I know, I know, I am depriving him of an experience. He'll be OK.

I asked him a million questions on the way home:

How was your day? Good.
Was your teacher nice? Yea.
Did you make any friends? No...not yet.
Did you play outside? Yes.
Was it fun? Yes.
What did you eat for lunch? Hey, Mom, I get to go through the line and pay for it with my own card!
Cool, did you like that? Yea. I got strawberry milk.
Were there any bad parts? No.
What was your favorite part? Science! I was really good in Science! (He followed up with an explanation of how magnates work.) I got time out in the regular part of class.
For what? touching things.
Do you think you can do better tomorrow? Yea, if I am not bored again.

So typical, huh?

Girl's Trip 2007

FINALLY...here are a few pictures from Girl's Weekend 2007.
We hung out on the beach, we wore no makeup, and we giggled our fool heads off.
Oh, and as you can see, we did a little shopping, too.

Alex's 1st Day of Kindergarden

I remember when Alex was 3, and Kindergarten couldn't come fast enough!
Well, here it is...the big day.
Alex was excited, but not overly so. I was happy for him, but not very emotional. He's a big boy. No tears on either side, until morning prayer. I said a little prayer to follow up Cole's thanks for "Hot Wheels" and "Cool movies." To my surprise, as I prayed for protection over my big Kindergartner, I teared up a little. I am just so very proud of Alex. He is a great kid with a sweet heart. I can't wait to see who he becomes.

We are back...

We had a great time in Gulf Shores, AL, this week, thanks to Nanna and Pappa.

As with most beach trips, we enjoyed the waves and the sand. We also enjoyed the great swimming pools!



It was really nice to spend some down time with the family, no time pressure, no need to run errands and no work for Don.
I really enjoyed my kids this week. I didn't want to put them to bed at night, but alas, it was the week before school. I put them down as early as possible, for a vacation.

This kids found this under their bed as they were getting dressed one morning.
No, it isn't real, but you should have the seen the way Alex bolted across the condo (pants around his ankles) on first sight!

Last, what trip would be complete without Cole going to the ER?
3 stitches in his lip, again. He simply fell down walking to the car.
That's my boy.

Real Simple Questions

1. Name one things you like and one thing you dislike about your name.
like: it is not too girly
dislike: when people think they can call me "Jo"

2. How do you beat the summer heat?
I stand under a tree with a frozen drink.

3. What are your favorite five items in your wardrobe?
jewelry
high heels
purses
belts
thigh highs

4. What are you most proud of?
my kids

5. Name one subject on which you could talk for hours.
vacation homes

6. In one word, describe your first kiss.
awkward

7. Finish the following sentence: "I can always find an excuse to _________".
buy something

8. The big decision I'm currently wrestling with is.....
how to better show my husband how much I love him.

Enough is Enough...

Today, I told Don I had had enough of his job. He agreed it was too much. He works EVERY DAY. He is always tired and doesn't enjoy it anymore. I miss my husband, and it is really hard to stay close to someone who is never here. Further, the kids have a dad for about 18 hours week, a frustrated and exhausted Dad. That's not good for anyone.
This is not the gig for which he signed up.
Now, we have to figure out how to get him a new job.
Wish us luck.

Off to the beach club again....thanks to Mom and Dad.
Be back next Sunday.

Splash Park

It was fun, but I can't tell you how many times I counted "1, 2, 3" trying to keep track of my kids!

Pay It Forward

I will send a (not handmade, since it's from me) gift to the first three people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange. You may not receive it tomorrow or next week, but you will receive it within 365 days! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog. (So, you must have a blog to participate.)

Good Luck!

Thanks for this idea, Leslie...I love it.

Wordless Wednesday

Cole's Year in Review

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Thanks, Emily...this was fun.

Swim Lessons

Cole is a good swimmer. He was scared at first. He said he didn't want to "sink like a rock."
As you can tell he got over it... thanks to a great swim coach. The only problem is that he gets time-out (sitting on the side of the pool) for not listening like 3 times per 1/2 hour class...no joke.












During the first few weeks, Alex was swimming better than Cole. Then, Alex was switched to another class. His new coach kind of sucks. He has regressed to splashing, walking and jumping around the pool. Bummer.

New School Schedule

I was out of bed this morning by 6am (normal time is 8am). The boys were up by 6:30am.
We started our new school day morning routine today. I need the practice as much as the kids. This is our first year of 7:45am school days.

Here is the good, the bad and the ugly of our first practise day:

Good:
I got up.
Alex got up without my prompting.
I washed a load of laundry, dressed myself and had quiet time before the kids woke.
I wasn't grouchy.

Bad:
I didn't get Randi up till 7:15am (that is our "out the door" time when school starts).
I didn't get the dishes done, toys picked up or kids dressed till after 7:15am.

The Ugly:
Even with getting up early, we were still late for our 9:30am swim lessons! AND, I forgot to bring the kids a change of dry clothes.


I hope this gets easier!!!

Cole's 4th Birthday!

I'm Not Around

Me: Cole, I like you. I am glad you are around.
Cole: Mom, I am not around. I am more like a rectangle with feet.

I Love the Pizza Guy

Me: I am sorry I didn't bring the coupon. I always forget. I promise I was much smarter before I had three kids.
Pizza Guy: (puzzled look) You have three kids?
Me: Yep.
Pizza Guy: I never would have guessed you have three kids. You look like your 25.


Did he say 25? I love you, Pizza Guy!!!

Wordless Wednesday

Hunny

Me: Only you, Alex and Randi can call me "Mom."
Do you know what my real name is?

Cole: Yep, it's Hunny.

(The spelling is a joke between my Hunny and me)

Wordless Wednesday

September Dawn

I find this disturbing.
It is a new movie about the Mountain Meadow Massacre.
I hope this is not what people think of us.
There is an official statement under the newsroom on LDS.org.
Poor Mit Romney...I want to see how he handles this one.

See the following for the trailer:
http://www.septemberdawn.net/

Would you go and see it?
I don't think I will on principle, but I do wonder.

Paw Paw McClure

My Paw Paw passed on last night. I think for the first time ever, I feel sad at someone's death.
He was so tired. He died in his sleep after a good 2 days nap.
I am actually happy that he is strong again. I am glad he is with my cousin, Laurie, who died when she was very young (she was always his favorite). He was old school, one that would build a house with his own hands and was not afraid to set a child straight.
His wife and family were the most important things in his life.
He was our Patriarch.
I hated to see him weakened with age. His failing body just didn't match his strong heart. He is truly himself again. I am grateful for that.
There are so many things I need to write about him.

Don's favorite: We tried to elope, but he found out. He came and told Don, "That's my Grand-daughter. You hurt her, I'll kill ya." Really, it was a good thing. He loved me.

Tidbits:
He grew the BEST tomatoes and strawberries EVER!
He was always jarring at his wife to get a rise out of her.
About meeting Maw Maw, "See looked so great in her volleyball shorts, I couldn't help but go over and talk to her. Really, she was lucky to have me."
He had everything in order for Maw Maw, and still does. She is well taken care of.
He loved his family unconditionally.
He stood up for us.
He worried about us.
He set boundaries for us, and punished us if we crossed them.
He was honorable in all his dealings.
He was more than generous.
He was ALWAYS playing with or teaching us something (all 64 of us).

I love you, Paw Paw, and I thank you for loving me.
I'll see you later.