Letters to Santa . . .

Then I said something to Grace about having something for Caden, something for me, but nothing for Chris. Here is what she did - So FUNNY!!!

Merry Christmas!!

Here's a new pic of the family :)

Survived Camp!!

Woo Hoo!! Last week I went to Collin County Adventure Camp with my 5th graders. I was really dreading going, but we had a great time. The cold weather on Wednesday was not favorable . . . especially sitting in a canoe on the lake when you can't feel your fingers or toes and praying that the 3 kids in the canoe with you stay balanced and don't splash you!! I was very glad to be home and we had a weekend full of Christmas parties. I still have a to do list from you know where to do, but I am looking forward to the last day of school on Friday!!

Scattergories . . .

A much needed break!!

SCATTERGORIES. ..it's harder than it looks! Erase my answers, enter yours, send it on to 10 people including the one that sent this to you.

Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following. They have to be real places, names, things.. nothing made up!




WHAT IS YOUR NAME:
Kristin

BOY NAME
Keith

4 LETTER WORD:
Keys

GIRL NAME:
Kaitlyn

OCCUPATION:
Kitchen worker

A COLOR:
Killer red lipstick

SOMETHING YOU WEAR:
Kerchief

BEVERAGE:
Kahula

FOOD:
Ketchup

SOMETHING FOUND IN A BATHROOM:
Kotex

A PLACE :
Kauaii

REASON FOR BEING LATE:
Knife dropped on your toe.

SOMETHING YOU SHOUT:
Keep Away from that!

Where has this month gone?!?

I can't believe that it's Thanksgiving and then Christmas. I have NOT.ONE.PRESENT.PURCHASED!!!! Thank heaven for online shopping!! We've had a crazy last couple of weeks . . . Grace got the worst stomach flu of her life. She was sick literally every 10 minutes and ended up popping blood vessels in her eye because she was so sick. As of right now I'm home with Caden and he also has the stomach flu. Poor little baby.

We were supposed to go to the ranch for Thanksgiving, but that fell through yesterday. One of my dad and Chris's hunting buddies passed away down at the ranch yesterday. The funeral will be some time this week so I know that we will be attending that one. Richard used to teach with Phil and one was one of the hunters that I've know for as long as I can remember. He will be missed. There are only two of the original hunters left on the lease now. Very sad.

School PIcs . . .

Grace is getting retakes because I don't like the gap in the front. I'm not quite sure why the photographer had her lean so far forward, but I LOVE the smile on Caden :)

Thomas at Love and War . . .

We went to go hear our friend Thomas Michael Riley sing last night at Love and War in Texas with some of our friends. He is such an awesome performer!! This is him in the middle. Chris uploaded a video on his face book of our favorite song, "Tommy".

Halloween 2008

We had a great time this Halloween. We went to the Ross's house for a fun adult party which Chris and I dressed up as Chucky and The Bride of Chucky. For those of you who know Chris well, you should be able to understand the "Chuck" pun :)

We ordered Grace and Caden's costumes online this year in the full-time working mommy way of doing things :) Grace's costume was titled "Garden Fairy" and Caden's was a "Warrior Knight". Perfect . . . until the costumes came in the mail. Grace's is adorable, but a bare midriff for an 8 year old?!? I think not. I was scared that Caden would be scared of the warrior part of his costume (teeth on hat, skull and crossbones, etc.) but he loved it. Ha!

So As Not To Question . . .

I finished reading this book on my trip to Denver. There were three other people reading the same book on my return flight. It's a thought provoking story about a man and his struggle with his faith because of a tragic event in his life. I am still thinking about the book which is usually an indicator to me that it was a good read :)

Unfortunately, I do question the events that happen in my life and the lives of people that I care deeply for. I know that it is not my place to question and that I need to have faith in the way that events play out. I just hate that bad things happen to good people.

Denver

It was really hard to say goodbye to the kids this time. We've spent the last couple of months in school together, running around in the afternoons, and at soccer games all weekend. It makes for a much needed break from one another, but it also makes it hard to let go.

We talked to the kids everyday that they were gone. They had an absolute blast, but who wouldn't . . . a week out of school, Disney Magic Kingdom, MGM, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, etc. Swimming almost every day, etc., etc., etc.!!!

Chris and I had a great time in Denver. We knew it was going to be cold, and Denver certainly didn't disappoint in that regard. It was a high in the 40's and lows in the 30's. The game on Sunday was a bit chilly. It kind of decided to spritz on us during the 3rd quarter, but by that time we were so involved in a great game that we didn't notice. I put an ad on Denver's craigslist to text me with available lower level tickets. We ended up with tickets on the 10 yard line 3 rows up. They were the best seats that we have had by far EVER at a Bronco game. The guy who sold me the tickets gave them to a buddy to sell b/c he was in Mexico for the weekend. The tickets have been in his family since the 60's. We definitely lucked out :)

We also were able to hang out with a lot of friends this weekend too. Stacey and Geoff Danheiser, my friend from middle and high school Erin, and Shiela, Jason, and their boys. So good to see and hangout with everyone :)

The rest of the week was spent getting to school early or staying late for parent/teacher conferences all week. This work thing definitely put a kink in my shopping excursions I usually take when the kids are gone. I'm glad that they had a great time and I am also glad that they are home. They are tan, Grace's hair is really blond, and they seem like they grew an inch last week :)

M-I-C. . . K-E-Y . . . M-O-U-S-E!!!

Can't you just hear the song in your head?!? The kids leave on Friday for a week in Disney with Gma and Gdad. This will be the last year that they will be able to go. A week of unexcused absences means that grades cannot be made up. The teacher in me wouldn't be able to handle a week of zeros in the gradeboook. It has been great bribery for the last couple of weeks with the kids. "If you don't (fill in the blank) you're not going to Disney." HA!

Chris and I are flying to Denver on Saturday and we will be back on Monday. I am looking forward to a mental health day :) We're planning on getting tickets to the Broncos for Sunday. My kids at school are excited for me to be gone for a day I found out today that it's supposed to be COLD there this weekend with a possibility of SNOW!!! Thank goodness we'll fly away from it and come back to Texas. Snow is fun to play in when you don't live up north, but day after day with snow would be a whole different ball game :) Have a good couple of days and I'll update when we get back from Denver!

After Tut . . .

Our friend, Thomas Michael Riley, was playing at Love and War in Texas. We did the museum with a 5pm entry time (we got in some naps after the soccer games in the am) and knew that we were going to make an evening of it. We left the museum at about 6:30 and arrived at Love and War about 7:15pm. We figured that we would eat dinner and listen to Thomas for a bit and then head home around 10pm. We had a great time hanging out. The kids played with a cool game that they have there. It's a ring toss game, but the hook is attached to the fence and you have to swing the hook (or release it above your head) so that it attaches the ring to the hook. Grace was definitely the pro in our family with Chris close behind her. Here are some pics from the evening . . .Some serious concentration .. .I see you ...
Oh My Goodness ...
Chris and Thomas Michael Riley
Grace in the hat
Grace the photographer

King Tut. . .

Yesterday we took the kids to the Dallas Museum of Art to see the King Tut exhibit. It was the first time that they had been to a museum and they were genuinely interested in the exhibit and learning about ancient Egypt. All of the gold was pretty appealing too. It was a fun family outing where we all learned a bit about history :)

Happy Anniversary . . .

11 years married - Love you Babe! :)

Nitty Gritty . . .

So . . . I know that blogs are supposed to be about the fun stuff, but I think that it should also be a forum to talk about the not so fun stuff too. Full time work with a family kicked my rear end the first 3 weeks. I was completely overwhelmed, felt like everything I did was wrong, and that I was like a sinking ship. Last week was much better . . . thanks to Memrie for taking the kids every afternoon so that I was able to get my stuff done!! Here are some of the highlights of the last few weeks:

1) Started school - had to learn: lunch room procedures, recess procedures, bought a whistle for recess duty, still don't have an e-z grader (gave ALL supplies like that away), bought rest room passes (again, gave away), etc. etc. etc.

2) Gpa is still in ICU after having his colon removed on Thursday. Very stressful.

3) Caden had stomach virus and luckily Memrie came to the rescue again - so not ready for a sub in my disorganized room!!

4) Mom had to have procedure last week. Has Gall Bladder stones and just told me tonight that she is going to contact surgeon tomorrow and discuss options. Dad is Iowa . . . sub for my classroom is looking like it might happen sooner than later -

5) FORGOT Grace's birthday treats. She reminded me the Friday morning that we were to have the treats. No worries - I'll have my planning to do it - ha!! Not getting any mom of the year awards on my end any time soon!

6)Grace's bday party at my house.

7) Mom's 70th bday and all involvement with that!

8) Caden's trip to Pediatric after hours with 102 temp -sinus infection - showed up at 24 hour pharmacy that all of the sudden isn't 24 hours any more - ENOUGH - TOTAL NERVOUS BREAKDOWN!!

Please send prayers my way ... for patience, for my gpa, for my gma, for my mother,etc. CRAZY!!!

Caden and His Girlfriend . . .

We went to lunch with Ashli and Pat a few weeks ago. Caden and Abbi got out of the car and were walking to the restaurant in front of us. Caden grabbed her hand and they just kept walking. It was absolutely adorable!! They were really excited to see each other and kept comparing notes about how kindergarten was going - BFF's for sure!

Happy Birthday Mom!!

Steve and Liz
Tom and Char
Mom and Dad
Chris and Me
Mike
The Whole Group
My mom had a milestone birthday on the 14th. We had a great weekend with family, fun, and cake! Ann came in town to celebrate with us and so did my oldest brother Tom and his wife Char. We had a room on Saturday night at Brio Italian Restaurant where we all ate dinner and celebrated her birthday - adults only. Unfortunately Emily started running a fever and Amy was not able to attend. We missed her! My mom is such a special person to me and I'm so thankful for her love and support. One lesson I have learned this month is that no matter how old you are . . . when things go wrong or are difficult - you just want your mom! Somehow they always have the magic to make it all better :)

A Few Fun Facts about Grace . . .

1) Miley Cyrus is her idol. She loves to watch Hannah Montana and even has Caden watching it with her!
2) She knows who all of the Jonas brothers are and can even tell you fun facts about each one of them.
3) Her favorite color used to be pink. Then purple. Now it is blue.
4) She likes to pick out her own clothes in the morning.
5) She is very opinionated - can't imagine where that came from?!?
6) Grace is a great big sister. She watches out for Caden most of the time and let's him play with her even when she has a friend over.
7) She loves to be the center of attention. Dance recitals.
8) She also loves to be a goof. Acting silly and calling people silly names. I think that it goes back to #7.
9) She loves to sing and has a beautiful voice.
10) She's 8 years old!!

Happy Birthday, my sweet little girl!

Grace's 8th Birthday Party . . .

Background:

I absolutely loathe doing birthday parties at my house. It's okay when they are one, maybe even two, but as they get older they are just a beating. No other explanation. So ... this year when Grace told me that she wanted her birthday at home, you can imagine how I tried to bribe her to do something different. How about ice skating? No. How about Pump it up? No. I figured that I had it with, "How about if you take a few friends and we go to Great Wolf Lodge." She did think about it, but still a negative. So birthday party at home it was - after all it is her party :)

It was a great success!! We did a pajama party with 12 of her closest friends. Crazy, I know! They decorated pillow cases that I had embellished and they made a cute sleep mask. It was a lot of fun, and that's what it's all about. I do still hear squealing voices in my head though - the wine is helping :)
Making the masks
Grace and her pillowcase
The whole group of girls
Can't leave out Caden with a whole room full of girls :)

Poor Caden . . .

1) He has the stomach flu - saying a prayer now that the rest of us don't get it. Never under estimate the power of a can of Lysol . . .

2) A little boy in his kindergarten class told him that his last name was funny. I didn't even know what to say other than, "You're going to hear this for the rest of your life." Poor little man :(

Not Ready . . .

My 92 year old gpa (dad's dad) is in ICU right now. He's in need of some prayers. I know that I am lucky to be 34 years old and to still have him in my life, but how can you ever be ready to say goodbye. I'm just not ready.

School Update . . .

We've all had a great week! Caden was still a bit "clingy" in the morning, but who wouldn't be with 100 parents packed in a small hallway trying to help their children unpack?!? Next week no parents are allowed to escort their kindergarteners so it should be interesting. . .I don't know if I qualify under that category or not - ha!

I have been trying to get Caden to agree to have Grace drop him off and help him unpack, but he wants to do it all by himself. . .Until we actually leave my classroom in the morning to start walking him to kindergarten then he wants me to help. Overall, it's been a great week.

One thing that this week has reminded me of is how much I enjoy teaching. Not taking care of a teacher that doesn't have good classroom management or delivery of a lesson, not sitting in on planning sessions discussing lessons that I'm never going to teach, not planning for inservices that I have to deliver, just teaching children. All. day. long. It's wonderful!!

My students are fabulous!! This group of students that we have are "the" group that has moved up through the school. Either we're still in the honeymoon phase or they've matured over the summer, but we're off to a great start. Of course, it could also have been the 20 minutes of practicing following directions that they didn't enjoy either . . . "Put your d.o.l. folder on your desk. Now put it in your desk. Get out your agenda. Open it to page 10. Close your agenda. Now open it to page 18." Not too much fun for a 5th grader :)

It reminds me of one of the suggestions that my 5th grade group of PACE kids wrote for me as a going away gift last spring,"Send children who are misbehaving to the strictest teacher on the grade level. If that isn't already you." Ha!! I don't know that I am necessarily really strict, but if you set the expectations early, they will follow them. With three groups of 25 kids each day I don't have time to deal with behavior issues because we need to get our content lessons completed. That's right - I see 75 children a day :)

I intend to enjoy my day off tomorrow. We will be planning Grace's birthday party which she is so excited about. She is having it at our house and we are doing a pajama party. Not a sleepover party, but a pajama party. I'm going to rotate the girls through 3 stations . .. games,craft, and nailpolish. I pretty much offered Grace anything to not do it at our house, but this is what she really wanted to do. I even offered to take two of her friends to Great Wolf Lodge, but she wasn't biting. I can't believe that she's about to be 8!! Enjoy your long weekend!

WE DID IT!!!

Oh my goodness!! All that anticipation for nothing. Caden did GREAT!! Chris had to drop him off because of all of his attachment issues with me lately, but Caden did better than Chris did - ha! I love this picture of the kids walking down the sidewalk holding hands with their Mickey and Minnie backpacks. I'm going to blow this one up as big as I can and frame it!
Grace and Caden standing in front of the school getting ready to cross the street and go in.
Grace's new bangs. She told the hair dresser that she wanted them . . . I think that they are going to drive us both nuts!
The big kindergartener!!

On a side note: I was really worried that Caden was going to cry. He did get a little attached to Chris, but I think that was because Chris wasn't letting go of Caden. Had to have that one last hug a couple of times - my sweet husband!

It was definitely different being back in the classroom today. I don't think that I sat down all day, had a 15 minute lunch, and never made it to the bathroom . . . and I LOVED every minute of it. I forgot how much I liked being in charge of myself. My kids are polite and fun and I can't wait to get to know them better. I know that the "honeymoon" period will be over soon, but I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts :) Whew . . . going to bed now!

Ode To Caden . . .

First Day Of School

~Author Unknown~

He started school this morning,
And he seemed so very small.
As I walked there beside him
In the Kindergarten hall.

And as he took his place beside
the others in the class,
I realized how all too soon
Those first few years can pass.

Remembering, I saw him as
He first learned how to walk.
The words that we alone made out
When he began to talk.

This little boy so much absorbed
In learning how to write.
It seems as though he must have grown
To boyhood overnight.

My eyes were blurred as hastily
I brushed the tears away
Lest by some word or sign of mine
I mar his first big day.

Oh how I longed to stay with him
And keep him by the hand
To lead him through the places
That he couldn't understand.

And something closely kin to fear
Was mingled with my pride.
I knew he would no longer be
A baby by my side.

But he must have his chance to live,
To work his problems out,
The privilege to grow and learn
What life is all about.

And I must share my little boy
With friends and work and play;
He's not a baby anymore --
He's in Kindergarten today.

Back to Work . . .

I'll write more when I have a chance. It's good. I'm good. I'm dreading Caden going to kindergarten on Monday. Not for any other reason than he's my baby and I'm not ready for him to be that grown up.

Needed to learn how to use the new camera before Vegas . . .

Chris with Brice and Dondi's nephew . . .
Brice, Dondi, and Chris
Add Cameron . . .
At dinner the last night . . .


I had a lot more pictures that did not show up. They were either too light, too dark, or blurry. Time to read the manual :)We had a blast in Vegas. Too much fun, in fact! It was great seeing Brice, Dondi, and Cameron . . . and all of Dondi's family. I had someone to hang out with while Chris was playing poker and we definitely made some memories and inside jokes!

Graceisms . . .

I don't get to do these type of blog entries very often . . .

Two funny things she's said this week:

1) We pulled out of the driveway last weekend and the house across the street from us was completely covered in toilet paper. Grace said, "I'm glad that wasn't our house." Chris told her that he felt pretty sure that someday in the future middle school years our house might get TP'd. To which Grace said, "Our house has already been teen-agered. Don't you remember the Christmas lights?" Ha! What a great verb "teen-agered" I would still like to catch whoever unscrewed all of those light bulbs and took them!

2) She told Caden today in full Hannah Montana fashion . . . "I wish that you had an on/off switch." HA - there are a lot of days that I wish he did too, but I explained to Grace that it was probably not the nicest way to get her message across to him. She replied, "Well he does talk too much AND he talks all the time." Can't argue with her there . . . so instead I focused on the delivery of her words. Teenage years are going to be so fun - can't wait!!

A Bit Overwhelmed. . .

So . . . this week I went up to my new school and started getting all of the "stuff" organized in my classroom. I have been trying to go up there several times before school starts to help get Caden acclimated to the school. I am hoping that it will make the dropoff easier on the 1st day of school. He has been a lot more excited about starting school so hopefully it is working! This weekend we got them each a new backpack. Neither one of them really needed one b/c they both got brand new ones about 6 months ago, but nevertheless if it makes him happy - so be it. He got a new Mickey Mouse one and Grace got the matching Minnie Mouse one. I'm not really big on characters, but it was really cute watching them negotiate in the Disney store. The fact that they match is pretty cute too. I can't believe that my baby is starting kindergarten. It just doesn't seem possible . . .

I am ready to go back to school. Scary. I didn't think those words would EVER come out of my mouth. I'm ready to start back with a routine, etc. I am not so ready for the full time teaching part. I'm pretty apprehensive about it all to be quite honest with you. I am hoping that it is a bit like riding a bike and the 5th graders don't end up chewing me up and spitting me out - ha!

Chris and I are leaving on Thursday for Vegas. It'll be nice to get away for a bit, but we come home on Sunday and inservice and meetings begin on MONDAY - EEK! Start sending a whole lot of prayers and good vibes my way - I have a feeling that I might need them :)

Caden's Sweet Letter . . .

You may or may not know that Caden has a friend, Abbi, that he has known since he was 2. They were in the same preschool class for 3 years and we get along really well with her parents also. We go to dinner with them as much as we can and the kids just love each other. It's fun. Well, we got this letter in the mail last week. Abbi's mom, Ashli, hadn't seen the letter because Abbi wrote it and then put it in the envelope before she could see it. When the kids were all playing at our house last week, Abbi was so proud of the letter. She asked Caden if he liked the frog on it - she knows him so well!
It's so sad that they are going to be going to different schools next year, but I know that we'll still see them a bunch :)

Another Caden Story . . .

I have been doing a lot of back to school shopping for the kids. It's so hard to walk into the stores and buy jeans, long sleeve shirts, etc. when it's 105 degrees outside, but they both have outgrown their clothes during the last 3 months of summer. At GapKids I saw a bunch of little boy boxers. Some were the regular boxers and some were the tightywhities but with legs. . . you know what I'm talking about. So, I decided to get some of both kinds and see if Caden likes them. Well he loves them because he is wearing the same kind as dad and his cousin Brandon (he's Grace's age). So last night he is brushing his teeth wearing his new boxers and he notices something.

"Hey, Mom. What's this hole for?"

So I explain to him how that hole in the underwear works . . . I still have imprinted on my heart the giggle that followed when I told him AND the complete face smile with both dimples as he tried "the hole" out.

Funniest Movie I've Seen in A Very Long Time . . .

Chris and I went to see Stepbrothers today. Gross, crude, completely inappropriate at times, but yet I found myself unable to keep from laughing. Chris and I both left the theatre giggling. Go see it, but don't say I didn't warn you :)

You may be asking yourself . . . How did they get to see a movie on a Sunday afternoon?!? Thanks to my wonderful in-laws for watching the kids!

Happy 90th Birthday Grandma Williams . . .

The whole reason we went to Iowa last weekend was to celebrate my Grandmother's 90th birthday. She and my grandfather have been married for 72 years and it is amazing that they have hit another milestone together. We had a great celebration of food, family, and lots of sharing time. We all wrote down questions that we wanted gma and gpa to answer and then we sat around and listened to all of the answers. Where they were born, how they met, the first car they bought after they were married (A model A - black), etc. Now we have it all on tape. We listened to my dad and his brother and sister all tell stories. I know that this is a day we will all remember.

Gpa getting a good laugh over something that my dad said.
Some of the kids playing on the merry go round at the park down the hill from the Methodist church where we held the celebration.There is a reason that teeter totters are no longer on the playgrounds at schools. This would be the "before" picture of Grace and Caden. The next would be a movie of Grace letting go and Caden flying forward and landing on the big metal arm and scraping the whole bottom of his chin. Leave it to my children to figure out how one of them can get hurt :)
In the afternoon we all played a game of softball. This is some of my cousins and my uncle Dean in the blue
My brother Mike at bat. My cousin Barry is the catcher.
Grace on 2nd.
Caden on 1st.
There was a little stream that separated the play park and the softball field. Of course, Caden managed to find two frogs. He carried them in this cup all afternoon. It was really cute. He had already put one back when I took this picture. My little frog boy :)