Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Back to School Wednesday



Look at my awesome kids! Can you believe how big they are getting?!?!

The first day of school always makes me feel somewhat like Sybil the schizophrenic.

I am so happy and excited that I will finally get some time back to myself and that I won't have to hear as much fighting or as many "I'm bored"s. But then, the house seems eerily quiet and I don't really know what to do with myself and now it's me saying to myself that I'm bored.

I'm so excited for them to meet their teachers and meet new friends and learn new things. But then, I am nervous because what if those teachers aren't nice and supportive and what if they are bullied or worse, no one talks to them, what if the new things they learn don't come out of an approved text book and are things I's rather not have them know.

I'm looking forward to having more of a routine and a schedule and seeing what sorts of fun projects the kids will be doinig this year. But, I dread the rush, rush, rush of school, homework, sports...school, homework, sports. And, I dread the piles and piles of paper that will invade my house starting this afternoon.

I am proud of myself for surviving another summer without a)going insane b)anyone being seriously injured. But then, I feel bad for even thinking that having all of that time with my children is anything other than a blessing.

I am thankful for how well they are growing up, for the characteristics I see in them that I enjoy. Oh sure, they have weaknesses as we all do, but I love seeing their strengths emerge as well. I am starting to get a little glimpse of who/what they might be like as adults and that is really cool. And, at the same time I can't believe how fast time goes and how I feel like I am running out of time to instill values in them before they start looking to their peers more than they look to me. It scares me.

So, to my children: Know that I am thinking of you and praying for you today and always. My prayer is that this year will be the best ever for each of you. That your teachers will adore you and that God will raise up friends who encourage you to do and be your best. I pray most of all that you will know how totally awesome I think each of you are and that you would be secure in the person God created you to be. Thanks for a great summer!

Monday, August 25, 2008

Vaccinations

Oops! I just noticed that one of the advertisements from BlogHer is about vaccinations. I just wanted to say that my personal views are that each and every parent needs to decide for themselves how they feel about vaccinations and not just go with the "approved" schedule because someone told you to do it. We did vaccinate the four older children on schedule, we DO NOT vaccinate Hayleigh according to the "approved" schedule, for a variety of reasons which have been heavily debated. Anyways....

Back to School Shopping-Tween Style

So, yesterday Trisha and I went back-to-school shopping. You see, the boys couldn't really care less about clothes, yet. I asked them all if they would like to come and pick out some new clothes. Jonathan said no, but if I could pick him up a pack of underwear that would be great. Maybe some socks, too.

Our first stop was Kohls. Keep this a secret though, because unbeknownst to me and my credit card bills, apparently Kohls is not a cool place to shop. Nonetheless we did find a few cute items and I picked up some socks and underwear for the boys. Next, we went to that mecca of tweenaged fashion...Limited Too. Limited Too was, oh, how should I put this, an entire store that pays homage to Miley Cyrus. We truly, and I am not exaggerating here, spent two hours there. That was for one outfit. One $80 outfit, might I add. But, we all know that a girl has got to look nice, or at least as much like her BFF as possible, on the first day of school. Next stop: Claire's Accessories. Trisha had gotten $80 worth of gift cards for her birthday to spend there. I think she spent all but $11. DO you know how long it takes to spend $69 at Claire's. A long time. That's all I know. I also know that these stores really should put in like chairs, or maybe a latte bar for parents. I know that the decision whether to buy paper clip earrings or the stars with peace symbols on them is a huge one...but 1 1/2 hours?!?!?! Ugh.

So, after 4 hours of shopping, we were finished. I'm just waiting for the day she tells me she has nothing to wear.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

The Recurrent Nightmare

Lately I have been having this same nightmare. It involves Ryan and school. It's sort of different every time, but the main gist is that Ryan, on teh first day of school, wears sandals. The problem is that the first day of school is gym day. Apparently, we were supposed to know this and didn't, because Ryan is wearing sandals and he isn't wearing tennis shoes. This is very upsetting to his teacher, because his teacher loses it and kicks Ryan out of his class for not remembering to bring tennis shoes to school for gym.

Now, I happen to have read a book or two on dream interpretation and this is what I think. I think I am panicked about the fact (OK...here it goes), that Ryan doesn't know how to tie his shoes. Ryan's going into 3rd grade. 3rd grade. And, he doesn't know how to tie his shoes. And, this colossal failure of parenting has seeped its way into my dreams. Good thing those tests he has to take this year to be measured for No Child Left Behind don't include skills like shoe-tying!

3 days left. I have 3 days to redeem myself and get him tying his own shoes. I hope it's enough time.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

1930s wife

I saw this little gem from Mommy Confessions and decided to take the quiz. If I were a wife in the 1930s, I would be.....


44

As a 1930s wife, I am
Average

Take the test!




I think average is pretty good. Sure I don't curl my hair and make myself pretty and dainty before Rob gets home from work. And, maybe I don't repair all the buttons or sew our own dishtowels. And, heck maybe I do buy take out food from the delicatessan more than I should. Apparently, though, I'm not all that bad. I think I got extra points for having lots of children and for talking positively about my husband and marriage in public.

Let me know how you do.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Nicknames

For wahtever reason, we use a lot of nicknames here in Kiddyland. I think that with each new child came more and more nicknames.

Trisha: Trisha Lee-Lu Who. We called her that so much that when she went to Kindergarten, she thought her middle name was Lee-Lu. Trishy, Sissy.

Jonathan: Johnny, Johnny Croc, (this is because, as we learned in a science project, crocodiles are much more aggressive than alligators, and we use this name to remind Jonthan to be a crocodile on the soccer field.) Juan-e-ton (?), Brother Jon.

Jaden: J-Dog, J.D. or Jadey

Ryan: Ry-Guy, or Super RY-Guy (Spinoff from a book series that he likes where the character is Super Fly Guy) Ryan-E.

Hayleigh: Hayleigh Bug, cutie bug, Buggers, Hayzers, Missy, Hayzey, Crazy Hayzey.

Probably when the other kids were babies they had more nicknames too, it's just that they didn't stick. I wonder which of Hayleigh's will stick!

Friday, August 08, 2008

Anyone remember this commercial?



I didn't really get it when it came out. But, now, I get it. Oh yes, I get it. 19 days until school starts. Part of me is so giddy I can't stand it. Part of me is sad. Today, since I have heard "I'm bored" and "What are we doing today" and "Ryan has his hands in his pants" more times that I care to think about...I'm giddy!

Thursday, August 07, 2008

The Field Trip (Or Why I am not the Sharpest Knife in the Drawer)

It's always at this point in the summer that I begin to feel guilty. With summer passing us by and school a mere three weeks away, I feel like I haven't done enough fun things with my children. I always have grand visions of going on fun field trips to the park and the museums and picnics and the pool and the movies and miniature golfing and amusement parks and, well, you get the picture. Unfortunately, it's been more of all-stars and cheerleading and working around my one-year-olds naptimes.

Anyways, no more excuses! It's time to get these things done. So, yesterday I took the kids to the movies. To see Prince Caspian. (oh, we don't go to see movies when they first come out, we have to wait until they come to those really cheap movie theaters...five kids, you know!) At 1:00.

I'm not really sure what in me made me think that taking a 1 year-old to a 3 hour movie in the middle of her nap time would work out OK. It must have been a momentary lapse of judgement or maybe I was just clouded by all of that guilt. But, suffice it to say, it was a disaster. At one point, I was feeding the girl licorice just to keep her quiet. I think this worked for about 10 minutes. I let her try walking around the theater, but she was just too noisy. In the end, the older children got to see their first movie without a parent in the theater and I got some exercise in by strolling Hayleigh up and down the hallways of the theater for 2 1/2 hours. I guess that isn't all bad.

Next week , we're going to try a baseball game and an amusement park before we leave for vacation. I better bring some licorice!