Sucker Drawing

Alyssa drew Richard and I a picture of some suckers yesterday while Nana was here. When we got home she said she wanted to give them to us. And then she said (while looking serious and moving her hand in a serious manner), "Those are suckers. Not like the 'You Suck' kind, but ones that you eat!" Nana, Richard, and I just all had to turn our backs to her and laugh.

You NEVER know what kids will say!

Riding Bikes and Eating Steaks

Today Jonathan learned to ride his bike, "Painkiller", without the training wheels. It took a while, and he was at first upset and wanted to give up. He even had his moments of just walking away from it, but we made him continue. And, by the end.......he was riding it himself and having a good time. Alyssa was a great cheerleader, and she kept yelling good things at her brother. She also rode her bike up and down the sidewalk........soon we'll get ride of her training wheels, too! To celebrate, we made miniature rootbeer floats and watched the video of him learning to ride. It was a great evening. My mom also came today for lunch, and she brought steaks that we grilled. It was a great visit and a great lunch.

Busy, but Great, Day!

Well, today was a busy day. I worked a while on updating my resume and reformatting it. I also typed a cover letter that I will deliver tomorrow. I hope the committee likes it and me enough to hire me. I'm excited about the possibilities, but nervous about the whole process, and anxious about waiting. But someone special told me that God was trying to teach me something through all this. And, this morning I was reading my Bible and God brought me to a verse that basically was a good reminder that we need to trust Him not only in the bad times, but also in the best of times. It was a good scripture, and reminded me that I have to trust Him with the situation......no matter what.

I also worked on what we will do for staff development the first week back, and I tried to call about our reservations.....which will have to be changed b/c of scheduling that week. No luck. I'll try again tomorrow.

Today also brought around some firsts. Jonathan and Alyssa had their first piano lessons with me! Alyssa sat still, listened, but is still a little young. She's eager, though, so we'll keep going as long as she wants to. Jonathan, however, about killed me. He could not sit still, and had trouble with it because he wasn't listening. Finally, I got onto him, and he listened better. Then, amazingly, he got it quickly! What a concept! Listening helps learning! LOL ;-) It's definitely harder to teach your own child. Thank goodness he has had music in school........he has learned a lot of good theory already, so it helped.

After we got done with piano lessons, I played for a bit. It was nice to just play.....haven't done that in a while. Alyssa came along soon, though, and wanted to bake with her little cooking set Mimi got her. So, we donned our aprons, got domestic, and made Nana's pie crust--just 1/2 a recipe. We put it in the tiny tart pans and saved the extra for cinnamon pie crackers. We took wild blueberries (they are really tiny) and some blackberries, coated them in flour, sugar, and cinnamon, and poured them in the shells. Then, we baked them and waited not so patiently for them to be done. I think we checked the oven 6 or 7 times. While waiting, we played Wii bowling and golf, and I lost at golf to my 7 year old.........it's just SAD! (He LOVED it by the way)

Anyway, once the tiny tarts were done, we enjoyed them as a family......and they were PERFECT! Alyssa did such a good job, and she smiled her blueberry covered smile of contentment when we told her! It was a good day!

Wailing and Weeping

Well, Alyssa has not been sleeping through the night at all since last week. I think it has something to do with my grandmother's passing. She is a lot more scared of things, especially the "darkness" as she calls it, and of being away from me. I keep reassuring her, but she's still so emotional. And, it's not like it is normal crying. It's the kind of gut-wrenching sobbing that comes from someone who is really, really upset or scared out of their wits---and don't even get me started about how she acted when the storms rolled through the other night! Let's just say I am really tired from her not wanting to go to sleep or from her coming into our room a trillion times a night. I may start crying soon myself! :-)

March Activities

March is always a busy month. This year we had Science Night at school, and Jonathan got to show us what he learned about slope. Of course, Alyssa had to get involved as well! We also had a Parent Breakfast at school, but Richard missed it because he was sick that day. So, Jonathan and I went extra early to school and had breakfast together. And, of course, March is also the month for two birthdays on my side of the family - Marisa and "Nana." We celebrated at Nana's house, but we cooked lunch. We had a special black forest cake in Nana's new blue dessert dishes. It was a good time with family.

First Haircut!!!!

Well, Alyssa finally got her first haircut. We went with a bob that is slightly longer than shoulder length. I was going to cut it to her shoulders, but she said she wanted it a bit longer. We went to a kids salon near our house, and she even got her nails done. She was so excited! She got to sit in a Barbie Jeep to get her hair cut, watched Dora, and then picked out her own finger nail polish color - hot pink! She felt really pampered, and it was good Mom and daughter time.

More on JC.......

Well, I met with Jonathan's IEP committee yesterday to see how his progress in speech was going. He has mastered all his objectives in words and sentences, so now they are working on the phonemes /s/, /th/, and posterior consonants in conversation only with no more than 2 mistakes in a 5 minute conversation (I'm sure this means more to Mimi than anyone else, but thought you might want to know anyway). I'm so excited with his progress.

Alyssa is doing well, too, but this week has been hard on her. She's been a bit clingy in the mornings when it comes time to drop her off. It will be a hard decision about whether or not to send her to kindergarten this fall. She's still so little in some ways, but she's so bright. Pray that we make the right decision for her in the long run. She's got to be emotionally mature enough to handle the environment and other aspects of school, not just the curriculum. Decisions! Decisions!

Reading!!!

Alyssa read her first word on Thursday night! We sat in the floor and worked on her letters - which is one of her favorite things to do. So, I made a sound, she told me what letter made the sound, and then she wrote it on a big piece of poster board (which she loved b/c I let her use markers). Then we got out our little letter tiles, and we put three letters together......c a t.
She said the sound of each one. I pushed them a bit closer, she said the sounds faster, etc., etc., and finally she yelled, "Mom! Does that say CAT?!?!?!" I yelled, "It sure does!" And her face was all aglow! It was a great moment, and one that I am glad I got to share with her. She is really trying to write words and read, so I think she'll be reading a few basic words soon, and definitely before she goes to kindergarten! Woo hoo!

Now if we could only get her to NOT practice her letters in church, that would be a positive thing! Two Sundays ago, we took her to big church with us and right as the sermon started she began saying her letters and sounds VERY loudly----tuh, tuh, tuh, T! puh, puh, puh, P! duh, duh, duh, D! Now, granted, our church is huge, and the preacher probably didn't hear it. But, the people in the back left section certainly did. Then, when we got onto her and asked her to be quiet, she started a very emotional crying fit. She said, in the most pathetic voice you've ever heard, and quite loudly, "You don't want me to learn my LETTERS!!!!! WAHHHHH!!!!" The grandparents behind us just laughed, and I had to take her out. IT was embarrassing, but funny now that we look back on it.

So, I guess God took pity on her and rushed her education along, because now she feels like she can read! Maybe she'll be quiet in church in the future! :-)

Jonathan, I am proud to announce, is in the middle of reading his first chapter book! Nate the Great, and the Tardy Tortoise! HE is loving it. He has to read on a DRA level 18 to get out of first grade, and he is already reading an 18 easily and working on 20-22 with me at home. HE is really taking off! I am so proud. And, he is currently making all A's in class--after a minor adjustment about actually reading the sign in his math problems, he is doing much better. I am so proud of our little guy. He's wiggly in class, but he has come home with no color changes in a long time, and he has even gotten several super stars in the last week or two. I will upload Walkathon pictures later today or this weekend for you. We had a great time yesterday!

Something Fishy!

We finally got the tank ready for fish, got the water tested (it was perfect), and then we got three sacrificial fish that cost us 12 cents each. But I think we forgot to tell them they were the ones we bought to get the tank ready for future fish, because they are still swimming strong..........and they go nuts like dogs when they see us walk into the room. It's pretty funny for the kids to see. Anyway, they are enjoying their fishies.

Long Time, No See

Well, it has been a long time since we posted anything, so here it goes.......a lightening speed update:
1. Jonathan got the stomach virus last Monday and missed 3 days of school. He got sick again today with a fever - it seems the first grade is learning to share.
2. We survived the first grade field trip to the orchard last Friday and had a blast - lots of learning and lots of fun.
3. Alyssa played soccer well on Saturday and had several assists - which is HUGE for age 4.
4. Jonathan is executing his football plays with extreme perfection........even if the team does something else, he will go to his spot, turn, and put his hands in the ready position - very cute video!
5. I have missed five days of work in the past two weeks for workshops (4) and field trip. I have been learning a lot at my workshop, and I even used my new coaching skills with a teacher and it brought about great results for her. That made me feel good.
6. Boy Scouts has been keeping us busy - mostly the boys.
7. We are now running two fund raisers at the same time - Walkathon (again) and Boy Scout Popcorn. Dust off your pocket books - we'll be calling soon! :-)
8. The church where I grew up (the early years) celebrated its 120th Anniversary last Sunday. Richard and the kiddos were very good sports about going with me and my family to the celebration. We left at 9:30 and didn't get back until almost 5:00. And they all behaved well!
9. We decorated my Dad's grave on the way to the church on Sunday and got it all pretty for the fall - I still miss him everyday, and I cried like a baby when I bought the flowers.
10. Alyssa has been snoring like a freight train lately, and her doctor said we need to see an ENT to see if her tonsils need to be removed.
11. I took the children for A's checkup, and decided to go ahead and get flu shots while we were there. Big Mistake!!! A family of four kids was apparently next door getting theirs, and when they gave the first shot, they all went nuts! It sounded like something from a horror movie, and the furniture in that room starting moving, too. I could hear it. And, unfortunately, my kids could as well. Their eyes got huge, and they both started crying and whining. I tried to distract them, but it was like distracting someone from an earthquake. It just didn't happen. So, the male nurse came in (thank God!), and we had to hold each kiddo down. Alyssa went first, and she got 4 shots. Jonathan hid behind a chair and had to be torn loose for his one shot. He screamed, turned red, and fought like a loon. But, it's done, I don't have to take them back, and they should stay healthy!
12. Alyssa failed her hearing test 4 times on one ear because she just wouldn't say "beep" - I don't know what was going on with her, but she finally did it correctly. The nurse says that happens often with first timers, but when I take her to the ENT, I will have them do it again, I think. I still have to make that appointment, but I need to talk to the cardiologist first to see who he would like us to use - in case we do have to yank those tonsils! Yikes!

And that's about it.......at least for now. I'm tired of typing. More another time - with pictures.

A Beary, Berry, Royally Good Birthday!

Alyssa has just finished her week long birthday celebration. We started in Tulsa with a Care Bears birthday hosted by her Aunt B. She had a really good time, and she LOVED being the center of attention! She got an aquarium from Beth and Scott that we need to get set up soon so we can buy some fish for it! We had a great time and enjoyed visiting everyone and seeing Beth's (and Scott's) beautiful house. It inspired Richard so much that he finally consented to painting our dining room! Go Beth!We also got to see Aunt J's new house that she is busy decorating. It is turning out really cute, and we got to enjoy a wine and cheese party with the family there. When we got back to Texas, we continued the celebration at her daycare with cupcakes at lunch. Alyssa picked out Disney Princess cupcakes, and we had a good time celebrating with her friends.

Yesterday, we had her Texas birthday party with my family and our friends. We had a Strawberry Shortcake party with a bounce house, and fun was had by all. I decorated the cake for her party, and it turned out okay. I had trouble with a few colors, but at least you could tell who it was! LOL

The was the year for independence for the birthday girl. She put the candles on her own cake, and she decided to put one in Strawberry Shortcake's nose! She also helped go shopping for her gifts. She said that she wanted to go shopping, and since we don't do that very often, I let her pick out three things for her birthday. We still wrapped them, and she even helped with that! But, she had a great time picking them out, wrapping them, and even opening them. It was funny to watch her be Miss Independent!

Jonathan got a Martian Maker from his Aunt J as a belated birthday present, and he has really enjoyed making the squishy little aliens. In fact, we have a few in the maker right now that should be finished soon!

Hairy Situation!

Well, all I can say is THANK GOD FOR PEANUT BUTTER! And, thank God Alyssa isn't allergic to it! :-) I could have baked two batches of peanut butter cookies with the amount it took to get the gum out of her hair, but the hair is saved! I'm not so sure about the tub and bathroom! I'll get to those again later.

GUM!!!!!!!!!!!

I just noticed Alyssa has a wad of gum in her hair about half and inch from her scalp. Off we go to try to save the hair! We'll let you know what happens.