Kindergarten Parent Meeting

Tonight was the parent meeting for the kindergarten class for this fall.  There's a lot of us-so far there's 46 children enrolled.  You'd think after hearing the first person's phone ring that the rest of the group would make sure theirs was off for the rest of the meeting, but no, I swear, a good 8 other phones went off-and mind you, this was a 45 minute meeting!

Other than that annoyance, I know a lot of the parents and the drill for Kindergarten, since I just went through this 2 years ago.

Hard to believe my girl's going already-although she's more than ready and pretty excited.

Next Friday is round up day-should be fun for her.  In less than a month she graduates from preschool and then all the summer stuff begins.  And before you know it, it will be fall and she'll be in the big leagues-Kindergarten, Girl Scouts, and from there, it will snowball.

Time is just so quick.

Dino Girl

Hard to believe this cute little girl in her brother's old dinosaur/dragon suit can come up with the worst thing to say-a swear word!  Ugh!

So much for innocence.

Game Day

What do you do on your last day of vacation and it's rainy and cold outside?


Play computer, do crafts, play DS, have books read to you on mom's nook, and basically drive each other crazy!

Yesterday was nasty outside, so we had to make due inside with activities and yes, it did get boring after awhile.

The only good thing about the rain was that it allowed JJ to come inside in time to watch IC and E bunny while I took Miss A to dance rehearsal at the theater.

Happy Easter!

 Three good lookin' kids!

 Getting home from church and S.S. and discovering that the Easter bunny had been there to visit.

 Of course, Grandma had a few things for the kids, too.  They did fairly well this Easter!

Easter Sunday was a little cloudy and chilly, but it warmed up some by the mid-day and turned out pretty nice.

Sunday School and church was good, although, there was a rather loud debate between 2 of my Kindergarteners over whether there's such thing as an Easter bunny or not.  I didn't want to get in trouble with any parents, so I just stated that some people believe in the Easter bunny and some do not.

After that, we went home and the kids got to check out their Easter baskets before we headed to Grandma K's house for dinner.  My mom hadn't done Easter dinner before, but it was nice to not be the only ones at my in-laws, which would have been the case otherwise.  The kids all got something from Grandma and Grandpa, also, as well as a surprise rather large supply from one of my aunts.  She doesn't really hardly give anything to my kids, but every once in a while she sends something.

We got home mid-afternoon and JJ went out to plant some trees in the tree line and I managed to plant my strawberry plants and a few carrots and radishes.  A pretty good day, I'd say.

Saturday's Fun

So Saturday started with a quick trip to town to get a few groceries and then we were able to stay home the rest of the day.

We tie dyed a few more eggs for Easter and then the kids got to paint some ceramic spring figurines-so we had a small art session.  They enjoyed painting.

In the afternoon, it was nice outside and although my energy was low, I managed to plant a 3/4 row of onion, 1/4 row of lettuce and 3 rows of potatoes.

The kids ended the day watching a movie and I put off folding my laundry for the rest of the evening.

Since planting had officially gotten good and started the past week, we were without JJ-he didn't get home until late.

Egg-Dyeing Fun

 On our first day of Easter vacation, we went to an egg-dyeing playdate at the pastor's house.  The kids dyed eggs first and then they were off to jump on the trampoline, ride scooters, etc.

The kids had a really good time.  We were there from 11-2:30 and Miss A shed a few tears when it was time to leave.

Same Ol' Thing

Yep, you guessed it.  It was a day at home, but I wasn't at home.

IC only had a 1/2 day today, so he was home by 2:30 and the girls and I did beat him home.

By 1 1/2 hour.

Really.

The girls and I headed to York (AGAIN!!) this morning to get the oil changed on the van, find a handle for a shovel for JJ at Orschelin's and get a couple of things for mom (and a few for me!) at you guessed right again, Walmart.

After dinner, the girls and I headed toward home, stopping in town for trees for JJ, who'd ordered conservation ones and they'd finally come in.

Since the girls didn't behave really well today, I was pretty relieved to get home.  The thing was, they weren't terribly naughty at home at home, so why they didn't wait until then to be in trouble instead of being difficult all morning is beyond me.

The rest of the afternoon was busy with laundry and various chores-inside and out.  It was cloudy all day until right before sunset, and THEN the sun came out.  It would have been nice to see it sooner today!

Easter Egg Hunt

 The whole gang.

 IC was very considerate and got some things for his sisters.

 Grandma helped E bunny.  Miss A did very well by herself.

 Of course, we had a play a little bit afterward-it is, after all, a park!

A Hard Day

I could cry tonight, but I'm too tired for the effort.  What was supposed to be a slow week, has turned into a mess-a mess of running here and there like a chicken with her head cut off!

Both Monday and Tuesday I was home, if you could call it that.  We are talking about multiple errand-running both days.  This including taking the car to Exeter AGAIN to be worked on (I feared it would leave me stranded in the middle of an intersection somewhere), doing stuff for S.S. and kids' packs, taking camp fees in so we get registered, plus numerous odds and ends.

Enter this morning.  I was called Tuesday afternoon and asked to work just in the afternoon today and thought, yes, I can handle it.  Plus, it was in TYKE, with a GREAT teacher. 

No sweat.

Um, yeah, right.

First, I took the girls and JJ to Exeter to go pick up the car, which was fixed and is running well, although they forgot to change the oil, so that needs to be done (it's a tad bit past time-oops!).  We then went to my mom's to take E bunny there for the afternoon and take mom's car back to her that we were borrowing.

This got us back home around 10, and I FINALLY got the rest of the groceries put away from Saturday! 

Then, Miss A and I had another lunch date and we went out to eat at Jill's.  Yum!

On to school for me to work and her to class.  It went fairly well, except for the difficult child who refused to acknowledge me ANYTIME I spoke to him (reminded me WAY too much of how I feel at home sometimes-although my kids aren't quite THAT bad-yet.)

Then, it was take my 2 and head off to mom's to pick her and E up for the Easter Egg Hunt in my old hometown (of whom I have no love for, but they do have a GREAT Easter Egg Hunt).  I wasn't sociable-honestly, I was getting a hummer of a headache and honestly, there were a few people I just didn't want to be around for personal reasons.  I just didn't have to energy to rise above myself.  I feel bad about, but sometimes there's only so much a person can take in a day.

The kids did well and had fun and it was the nicest day we'd had all week.  It was breezy and chilly, but the sun shone for the first time in forever, so it was good.

Home, after dropped mom off, and the kids soon headed outside to play.  I came out as soon as I could manage and we checked on our 4 babies, which are doing well in their box.  Amazingly, scaredy momma has not moved them yet, so the kids can see them.

Bouncing B made an appearance in the yard, which brings some strife and conflict.  I took E bunny on a 4 wheeler ride when B and Miss A didn't want E to be around them.  They eventually let her be with them for awhile, at least.

After making supper and getting the kids cleaned up, I headed to choir practice-our last one for the year.  We had 1/2 hour of practice and an hour of eating and a spiritual jeopardy-type game of alto-tenors vs. bass-soprano.

Then it was home to crash-it's been a hard day.

Not Working, But Not at Home

It's another grey day today.  Ugh.  It's supposed to be chilly, rainy and blucky all week long. 

This could make Easter Egg hunting in my old hometown kinda not as fun on Thursday, but hopefully, the weatherman is wrong.  (That almost NEVER happens, right?)

This morning, JJ and I (with the girls) took our van to get worked on at the dealership where we got it, for the 2nd time in about 3 weeks.  The van seems to work fine for them when it's over there, and not when I'm driving it.  We think the transmission is sticking in 2nd gear on and off.

Hopefully, they can get it fixed this time.  In the meantime, I am driving my mom and dad's SUV which is ok, but I think I like my van better.

This afternoon after I drop Miss A off at school, E bunny and I are headed back to York for my back doctor appointment and a couple of errands before heading back to town for MORE errands before the kids get out of school.

Just another day where I don't work, but I'm still not at home.

Imagine that!

Our Newest Babies!

3 boys and a girl . . . . .

the new momma

the soon-to-be other momma-she's huge!

Whoops, forgot to turn the picture! IC sitting on the barn gate.

Seeing the new babies.

I opened the barn door this afternoon to find 4 new baby kittens in the main alleyway. Scared Kitty had what appears to be 3 boys and a girl. We found her a box and moved them out of the alleyway, but she'll probably move them anyway. The kids were thrilled.

I'm hoping they will stay alive. We warned the kids about the dangers of farm kitties and that she would probably hide them somewhere (at least, we'd think so, but she did have them directly in the alleyway-she's new to being a momma, so she didn't know what she was doing!)

With this new litter and the other cat ready to have kittens, too, we could have quite the kitty managerie before too long!

Palm Sunday

The kids got to sing for Palm Sunday today after they waved the palms down the aisles while our chancel choir sang.

Too bad IC's been getting an attitude about singing in public lately-he was naughty on stage.

Miss A was naughty during children's sermon.

Sigh.

They DO know how to embarass a person!

E bunny's First Visit to the Dentist

So, yesterday, my mom came along with me and the kids to York for the kids' dentist appointments and of course, a visit to Wal-mart.

Both of the older kids' teeth look good. Both of them have a big muscle in the front that will be monitored so that they don't end up with gaps in their teeth when the permanent ones come in.

E bunny, on the other hand, has a different problem. Apparently, when her teeth were being formed, something didn't go quite right and the enamel on her teeth is not like it should be. It's very thin, making her susceptible to tooth decay, at least in her baby teeth. So, she has to use a special flouride toothpaste once a week, flouride rinses daily if possible, and brush her teeth really well daily.

Other than that news, she did great. The flouride treatment and the polishing and the moving dental chair made her a little nervous, but she was a super-trooper.

The kids did pretty well during the rest of the day, although it was 4 before we got home, making it a long day.

Although I usually get things put away the same day, since I had to catch up on S.S. lesson plans and play outside, it's going to take probably part of the week to get it done!

Ah well.

Home for the Day

Already it's the end of the week and this is one of the first times I've had time to sit at the computer-and I really don't have time to do it today, either. This is the first time in quite awhile that the girls and I are home-I don't have to run into town to pick up IC or Miss A, I don't have to run errands or go somewhere or work. It's pretty nice. Considering that it's crummy today outside, I really don't mind not having to go outside. Our beautiful weather we had at the beginning of the week has turned to yuckiness yesterday and today. It started raining last night for awhile, then repeated itself this morning, except the rain turned to snow at 10 am! Luckily, it's not sticking, but it's soppy outside and we've been in a wind advisory since yesterday, which is miserable. Typical April, though, as it's supposed to be nicer tomorrow, which I am hoping, since I am headed to York in the morning to take all 3 kids to the dentist for regular checkups. (And of course, Wal-mart!) This week has been a little busy, but not too bad, with dance and cub scouts on Monday, working a 1/2 day on Tuesday, working a full day on Thursday and the pack scout meeting Thursday night. Tuesday was nice because I dropped E bunny off at mom's in the morning, then took Miss A out to eat at the coffee shop before taking her to school and then soon after, going to school to work. I am trying to spend a little more time with her when I can, she seems to be having a major middle child syndrome going on. Since we are home today, the girls are currently playing with water using their kitchen set toys. I don't let them do if very often, as it gets messy and water often spills all over the chairs or on the carpet, but they are having a nice time playing. This is good, because they've been fighting for about 1/2 of the day already! I did get some yard work done this week before the crummy stuff set in and that was to trim up the raspberry bushes, reset the fences around 3 areas where the dog tries to dig in my flowers, and mowed the back yard. Today, I need to work on the girls' skirts/dresses for the warmer weather and bake cookies. BUT, it's hard to do that with 2 little girls around, always wanting you to play with them or wanting to "help." So, I haven't gotten anywhere on my want-to's. Actually, with the crummy weather, I would LOVE to sit on the couch and read a good book, but I probably won't get to do that, either. I'll just make do, I guess and get a little here or there done before IC gets home on the bus. THAT will add a whole another element to the picture, but at least, I am enjoying staying home (minus the fighting) for the day.

A Windy Wedding and Sunday Party

So, yesterday, the kids, my parents, and I headed to an OUTDOOR wedding yesterday afternoon. It was wet and foggy in the morning, but then the sun came out (not fully, just enough to be fairly bright) and the wind picked up. Did I mentioned it was windy? Did I mention this was an outdoor wedding? I drove to Lincoln, amid difficult children-IC and Miss A fought on and off all the way while E bunny slept. JJ, unfortunately, was not feeling very good, so he didn't go. We get there with 20 minutes to spare and immediately the kids were bored. (So was I, by the way.) It was a nice service-pastor was a little long winded, and by the time the service was over after 1/2 hour, the kids were REALLY bored. They hung in there as best as they could, though. 3 rows back I couldn't see the bride and groom hardly at all and definately didn't hear them repeat their vows, but it was ok. It was a simple service, as this was my cousin's second wedding. So, after that was the reception. In the wind outside. It wasn't uncomfortably warm, but it was humid, which just didn't help at all. The meal was so/so, not really great, not totally horrible. After eating, the kids were bored, again. IC had out his DS, trying to entertain himself. Above our table was a small upstairs area, where some of the 2nd cousins were able to throw skittles down on him (those were the party favors on the tables). Later on, IC went with my dad and the girls to the van to get something. He came back by himself and those boys were at it again, throwing something else at him. Poor IC, those boys never include him when the family is together and now they pick on him! After that, and being in the wind for what felt like forever, and kids bored to near tears-we went home early. We even decided to miss the cake, it was just too much. We did decide to stop in Milford on the way home at the Dairy Queen and the kids (and my parents!) had ice cream. When we got home, it was afte 8 pm (we had left at 2:40), and it had been a long day. After an extended period of time, we finally got the older 2 in bed. By then, I had a headache and was definately done for the day! Today, was busy with S.S. I was tired from yesterday, but went to teach anyway. The gal that I co-teach with had been in the hospital all week, so I made a card for the kids to sign to give to her. After that, I played in the bell choir today-I actually did very well, even hitting all my notes! Pretty good for me :) After church, we went to Pizza Hut and the older 2 were at it again! They were fairly embarassing with making a rather loud scene-we just about walked out without eating. IC had a birthday party of a classmate this afternoon and luckily, it's just right down the road a few miles. This girl invited her whole class to the party. I am glad I didn't do that-ugh! 30 kids is WAY too many for me! He'll be gone from 1:30-4, so the girls get to do what they want! Miss A got to play some Dora Wii for a little while (with Daddy's help) and now the girls are watching "Wow, Wow, Wubzy"-fun, fun! It's still windy today, but not as warm and I've only seen the sun a couple of times. It looks like I will have to break out the lawn mower this week-the grass has grown quite a bit in a few places. I am down only for working 1 1/2 days this week and I REALLY hope that's all I have-I need to get several things done and caught up. There's just never enough hours in the day.

Quite the Argument

On the way home from the wedding today, we passed the high school, and E bunny proceeded to say that "that's where IC lives." To which I replied that that was the high school and IC goes to the elementary school. Then the conversation started an argument between IC and Miss A. I distinctly heard the statement by IC that "you don't have to go to high school until you're 18." Then the conversation must have turned to IC telling Miss A that she can't go to high school yet because she doesn't even know anything, like what 2 X 2 is. To which she replied that "yes, I do, it's 4." Then IC said," well, you don't know what 8 X 8 is, oh wait, I don't know what that is!" So, you don't know what 0 + 1 is," To which Miss A replied, "yes, I do, it's 10!" My parents, by the way, were cracking up by this time!

Unproductivity Is Me

Earlier this week, the narcissis and daffodils were quite pretty . . . . . .

IC and Miss A did very well at the fun run. IC was far up in the first wave of kids to cross the finish line.

Jack and Jill went up the hill . . . . ..

And Miss Muffet found a spider sitting down besider her . . . . . . . .

A nursery rhyme song to finish the skit-the kids did a great job!

Wow, I didn't realize it's been basically a week since I'd last posted. I'd love to say that I'd been so busy getting so much done that I didn't have time to blog.

Um, well, the busy part's true. Getting things done, well, not so much.

I'm not sure what happened-really. I only worked Tuesday afternoon in TYKE (that one was not preplanned, by the way) and then Thursday, mostly in TYKE and Friday in SUCCESS (all at the elementary). Thursday, I was supposed to work in SUCCESS for the one para, who was doing the teaching (she's actually a retired teacher) because the 2 regular teachers were gone for a conference (and there was a sub teacher for the other teacher). Anyway, TYKE was suddenly short on Thursday when 2 paras in one of the rooms were absent, so I was called in at 10 to help finish the morning for that group and help with the afternoon group. I had to fake it a lot, but it went fairly well. There was just 1 child with a major meltdown in the morning group and no meltdowns in the afternoon-not bad, really.

So, with only those days I worked, I know I spent a lot of time doing laundry this week-I'm not sure why. Every time I turned around, there was piles of it! It was nice the first part of the week, so the kids were able to play outside more until Thursday, when it started raining.

There was dance like usual and the fun run was on Wednesday after school. Wednesday was also a dr. checkup day for IC (he's doing well, except for allergies that are over-active this week). I also had bell choir and regular choir practice, so I wasn't home much that evening after school.

And other than a wedding tomorrow in Lincoln, we've been home most of the rest of the time after school. So, I don't know what happened to the time or my productivity this past week.

Today, at 2 pm, Miss A's class (they had a make-up day today) had a nursery rhyme skit. It was so very cute! Miss A was Miss Muffet (of Little Miss Muffet) and because one of the other students was gone, she was also Jill (of Jack and Jill). She's been so excited to do this all week, and she had fun!

Well, maybe next week will be more productive.

Hopefully.

Busy Weekend

It's the 2nd day of a rather busy weekend. Yesterday, I worked like crazy to get the house cleaned before the girls and I picked IC up from school in order to run to York for a birthday party present for a friend and a few other necessities. 3/4 of the way through Wal-mart, IC starts complaining of a tummy ache and I'm thinking-don't throw up in the store! He didn't actually do that at all. After running to a couple of other things, he was feeling better and ate supper fine at Burger King. The girls were the pitts. They fed off each other's naughtiness and let's just say, I'd rather not take them to Wal-mart anytime soon! After that mess, we went home and it was so nice the kids played outside until the sun went down. They got to bed late, but the older 2 went to sleep fairly quickly after lights were out. Today, we had planned to go to IC's last wrestling tourney in Sandy Creek. He was tired, even after sleeping in until 8 today, and just not his normal rambuctious self. He didn't want to go, so we didn't make him. All 3 kids went to my mom's for awhile, which was what they really needed-a day of fun not far from home, but not at home (where they fight more). I went home and planned to do something fun, but that was not to be. I spent the remainder of the morning mixing laundry detergent (yes, I have been making my own), and getting the stuff from Wal-mart put away. After dinner, I spent the rest of my free time folding clothes-ugh, it was a HUGE mountain of a mess from yesterday and today. It took me all day to get the laundry caught up with washing and the dishes caught up, too. I made JJ a birthday cake (his day was Wednesday this past week), but it didn't really turn out great and I think I might have to bake another tomorrow. After I picked the kids up, I forced them outside-it was 70+ degrees today, but really windy. After playing with the kids awhile, I did get out my birdbath, one of the water hoses, and worked on the garden fence JJ got up earlier this week. We need a fence to keep the rabbits out of the strawberries, so we ended up putting a fence around the whole garden, it was just easier to do than 1 little oblong spot. Tomorrow is camp Sunday. IC gets to talk a small bit about what he likes about church camp during service and one of the directors from the camp will be talking to the S.S. kids and the church. Of course, the choir has to sing and there's a meal afterward, meaning getting home later than usual. At 4:30, my MIL has invited herself and my FIL, plus my parents, to MY house to have pizza for an early supper for celebrating both sets of parents' anniversaries (my parents is the 1st and my in-laws are the 3rd) and JJ's birthday. This is why I had to bust my behind to clean my house and catch up on laundry! Although, it's not like they haven't seen my messy house, but it's always the thought of it being a mess that bothers me. Ah well.