This last week really flew by. The kids were out of school for the first two days of the week. Teacher work days scheduled in for snow make up days. This year has been sadly bereft of snow, but we did manage to get some last weekend. It snowed here and in Hickory. We were in Hickory and the kids had a blast running around while it snowed on them and slinging snowballs at each other. Caleb built a snowman all by himself, but the snow wouldn't pack well and there wasn't much of it, so it was about a foot high.
Then by Wednesday is was in the 70s. The boys wore shorts to school, and I didn't feel like a bad mom sending them out the door in the morning either. overall the kids had a fairly good week. Beth had a sleepover, and didn't come too cranky the next day, which was definitely a bonus. Caleb and jacob stayed up late playing video games with Rob, which was great. i got to read an entire novel and not feel the least bit guilty.
We had a great stake conference. I was so edified and inspired by both of the sessions. It was something I really needed to hear. I'm blessed by all the people I have in my life. I have great friends, that I'm not so great at keeping in touch with. This isn't much of an update, and I need to add pictures or something, but I do want to start posting every week. I hope you all have a great week!
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Sunday, February 12, 2012
A Quiet Weekend
We had a fairly quiet weekend. We went to a ward activity, which we don't normally do, and made valentines for people. Actually the kids ran around the building, and Beth made some valentines, Jacob made one for Caleb, and I cut hearts for a heart attack for people in our ward. It was a pretty mellow activity, but I did get a chance to talk to some people, whom I've not been able to lately.
On Saturday we went and cleaned the church building, and the boys went to a birthday party. I'd been dreading our turn to clean the building, but it wasn't that bad. And we were done in just over an hour. It was satisfying to know that we had helped, even if the kids did end up running crazy by the time we were done. The boys had fun at their birthday party, and Beth read some books. She found a series (Franny K Stein) that she actually likes. I worry that the reading level is a bit young for her, but she is tearing through them. Right now I just want to get her reading.
Caleb is having a tough school year this year. I've got another meeting set up with the teacher, this time about him being bullied. My poor sweet boy. He doesn't stand up for himself, and I'm so tempted to just pull him out of school for the rest of the year. I really wish I could do it. He is losing his spark, and he is so down all of the time. I want him to love learning and it just isn't happening this year.
Jacob is doing well. He's super excited for his Valentine's Day party this year. He has started to love school, and I'm not fighting to get him out the door in the mornings. he is obsessed with video games, and often calls Rob in the afternoon to ask him to come home so he can play Ratchet and Clank, so Jacob can watch. Unfortunately for him, I'm not a video game playin' momma. I'll do board games, but I don't have the skills necessary to jump from spot to spot on the screen.
Rob is hanging in there. There is a lot of change going on at his work, which I think is motivating him to look around at other jobs. But he wants to apply for a good job that he'll be happy at. I'm still keeping busy with writing, and working, and being a mom. Right now I've gota bit of a cold that won't go away. it's not bad yet, and I'm hoping it won't get there.
I hope you all have a good week!
On Saturday we went and cleaned the church building, and the boys went to a birthday party. I'd been dreading our turn to clean the building, but it wasn't that bad. And we were done in just over an hour. It was satisfying to know that we had helped, even if the kids did end up running crazy by the time we were done. The boys had fun at their birthday party, and Beth read some books. She found a series (Franny K Stein) that she actually likes. I worry that the reading level is a bit young for her, but she is tearing through them. Right now I just want to get her reading.
Caleb is having a tough school year this year. I've got another meeting set up with the teacher, this time about him being bullied. My poor sweet boy. He doesn't stand up for himself, and I'm so tempted to just pull him out of school for the rest of the year. I really wish I could do it. He is losing his spark, and he is so down all of the time. I want him to love learning and it just isn't happening this year.
Jacob is doing well. He's super excited for his Valentine's Day party this year. He has started to love school, and I'm not fighting to get him out the door in the mornings. he is obsessed with video games, and often calls Rob in the afternoon to ask him to come home so he can play Ratchet and Clank, so Jacob can watch. Unfortunately for him, I'm not a video game playin' momma. I'll do board games, but I don't have the skills necessary to jump from spot to spot on the screen.
Rob is hanging in there. There is a lot of change going on at his work, which I think is motivating him to look around at other jobs. But he wants to apply for a good job that he'll be happy at. I'm still keeping busy with writing, and working, and being a mom. Right now I've gota bit of a cold that won't go away. it's not bad yet, and I'm hoping it won't get there.
I hope you all have a good week!
Sunday, February 5, 2012
A Little News and a Trip to the Beach
Well, I haven't updated in a long, long time. And a lost has happened in the months since I've posted anything. Everyone's gotten a little bit older, and aged up a year. The holidays are a crazy time with all the kids birthdays tacked onto either side of Christmas, but we managed to make it through the months with everything still in tact.
Beth is ten and growing up so fast. She's funny and happy most of the time, and loves to connect with people. Right now she's absolutely convinced that she wants to be a surgeon, and has begun taking her school work even more seriously as a result. She wants to take Gross Anatomy, the sooner the better, and I think she is really set on it. Right now she still has steady hands, so it's a viable option for her in the future.
Caleb is having a rough run of first grade. He's smart, and is doing well, but doesn't like to sit still or pay attention in class. He's got so much energy, and he likes to go, go go all of the time. I wish the classrooms were set up in a way that allowed boys time to move around more. But overall he is doing really well, and growing up fast.
Jacob is finally ready to start kindergarten. He kept telling me he wasn't going to go, because he didn't want his kindergarten shots. But once we got those over with he is much more open to the idea of going. he loves to play board games with Rob, and he's really good at figuring out puzzle games. He is also officially too big to snuggle up with in my lap while watching as how together. It happened today, and I almost cried. My baby can't be getting too big to snuggle. What will I do?
We haven't had a chance for any real family weekends lately, and we were positively convinced that we needed one yesterday. The plan was to to go to the zoo, since it wasn't going to be too hot, but it ended up being a rainy weekend there, so we drove away from the storm instead and went to the beach. We visited a Fort, looked for ghosts, and hit up an aquarium. Then we took a walk on the beach, since it was too cold to swim, but it was warm enough that we didn't need jackets most of the day. overall it was a great day. Sorry there were no pictures. But the kids did get to touch a moon jellyfish at the aquarium, which was pretty cool, and Jacob is now covered in shark tattoos. He looks like a biker with a shark obsession.
We haven't had much of a winter here. Maybe two or three days when we actually had a day that stayed in the 30s. And my tulips are up and ready to bloom already. The kids and I keep hoping for some crazy winter storm, but I'm almost convinced it isn't going to happen. This will be my first winter ever, with absolutely no winter storms. Talk about weird. The grass is green outside in February, because we've had rain, but no snow, and not enough cold days to warrant getting the winter coats out of the closet. jacket weather all year round is an adjustment for this Utah girl. It's strange not to have at least one day when you can go outside and throw snowballs at each other.
On a side note, I've recently decided to put my first novel up on Amazon, as an e-book. I am excited to share it with everyone, and I'll let you guys know when it is up and ready to go. It's funny because I'd never thought I do something like this, but as I've thought and prayed about my situation, I know absolutely that it's the right thing for this book for right now. Anyway, you can all read it when it comes out, sometime in the next month. I'm aiming for the end of February.
Beth is ten and growing up so fast. She's funny and happy most of the time, and loves to connect with people. Right now she's absolutely convinced that she wants to be a surgeon, and has begun taking her school work even more seriously as a result. She wants to take Gross Anatomy, the sooner the better, and I think she is really set on it. Right now she still has steady hands, so it's a viable option for her in the future.
Caleb is having a rough run of first grade. He's smart, and is doing well, but doesn't like to sit still or pay attention in class. He's got so much energy, and he likes to go, go go all of the time. I wish the classrooms were set up in a way that allowed boys time to move around more. But overall he is doing really well, and growing up fast.
Jacob is finally ready to start kindergarten. He kept telling me he wasn't going to go, because he didn't want his kindergarten shots. But once we got those over with he is much more open to the idea of going. he loves to play board games with Rob, and he's really good at figuring out puzzle games. He is also officially too big to snuggle up with in my lap while watching as how together. It happened today, and I almost cried. My baby can't be getting too big to snuggle. What will I do?
We haven't had a chance for any real family weekends lately, and we were positively convinced that we needed one yesterday. The plan was to to go to the zoo, since it wasn't going to be too hot, but it ended up being a rainy weekend there, so we drove away from the storm instead and went to the beach. We visited a Fort, looked for ghosts, and hit up an aquarium. Then we took a walk on the beach, since it was too cold to swim, but it was warm enough that we didn't need jackets most of the day. overall it was a great day. Sorry there were no pictures. But the kids did get to touch a moon jellyfish at the aquarium, which was pretty cool, and Jacob is now covered in shark tattoos. He looks like a biker with a shark obsession.
We haven't had much of a winter here. Maybe two or three days when we actually had a day that stayed in the 30s. And my tulips are up and ready to bloom already. The kids and I keep hoping for some crazy winter storm, but I'm almost convinced it isn't going to happen. This will be my first winter ever, with absolutely no winter storms. Talk about weird. The grass is green outside in February, because we've had rain, but no snow, and not enough cold days to warrant getting the winter coats out of the closet. jacket weather all year round is an adjustment for this Utah girl. It's strange not to have at least one day when you can go outside and throw snowballs at each other.
On a side note, I've recently decided to put my first novel up on Amazon, as an e-book. I am excited to share it with everyone, and I'll let you guys know when it is up and ready to go. It's funny because I'd never thought I do something like this, but as I've thought and prayed about my situation, I know absolutely that it's the right thing for this book for right now. Anyway, you can all read it when it comes out, sometime in the next month. I'm aiming for the end of February.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Great Wolf Lodge Video
The kids had a great time at Great Wolf Lodge, swimming and playing MagiQuest (thanks to Julie for taking us all). This video features the swimming only. MagiQuest adventures to come ...
Monday, September 19, 2011
Busy Times
It's been busy. The rush of school, and homework, enforced bedtimes, and the need to push everyone out the door in the morning. Exciting stuff. For the most part everyone has been pretty happy. We took the kids to Great Wolf Lodge when my mom was in town. Correction: She took us all to Great Wolf Lodge when she was in town. Rob has video he wants to edit together and post at some wonderful point. He had fun with a new case that let him take the camera underwater. So it went down slides and did all kinds of things. The kids had a great time to, and fell in love with Magiquest as much as with the water slides.
Caleb and Beth loved the bigger inner tube slides, and something has happened to me as I've gotten older. I just don't love them. I don't, but I went so it counts. Jacob had a lot of fun doing the little kid slides and the wave pool. He's so confident in the water now. My mom's visit was a lot of fun and went really smoothly. It's nice to have her visit. Sometimes it's hard being so far away from my family. The visit was a perfect way to feel reconnected.
Beth has her first male teacher. And I have to say I'm super impressed. His attitude about teaching, and the way he runs his class is impressive. I've liked all of Beth's teachers. They've been good for her, but I can see why they need more male teachers in the classroom. She's been pretty good about doing her homework this year. And she's on track to keep doing well.
Caleb's having a difficult time with his teacher and his behavior this year. I know that she's pretty strict. Beth would get a few card flips a month when she had her, and she maybe got one a year in her other classes. But it's frustrating and wearing on his self esteem. So I'm facing a dilemma. I'm about ready to schedule a conference with the teacher, and it's not going to be easy. I hate to call people out on the situation, and I don't think that Caleb is a perfect little boy that never talks out of turn or sits perfectly still, but at the same time--he is a first grade boy who wiggles, and gets excited and moves around and likes to talk to people. I don't want him to get labeled as a troubled kid. He's super smart--it doesn't take him long to do work, and I'm sure he gets bored. Actually Beth's teacher put the whole thing into perspective for me, when he talked about how he wanted his fourth graders to learn to behave, but he also realizes that they are fourth graders and aren't going to be perfect all of the time. Any advice would be appreciated.
Jacob is really progressing on his speech, and enjoying preschool. He sees his friend Miles at school most days--they are not in the same class, but I think they have recess together. He is much happier now that he has busy time each day. He misses his brother and sister when they are at school. It's nice to know that he is in a structured environment where he can have fun.
We all went to Bugfest again this year. No camera in tow, so no pictures. The boys all ate chocolate covered worms. Caleb had two. Rob came home all paranoid, and flossed his teeth and used mouthwash just in case. It made me laugh, because if you're that paranoid why eat them at all? (I'm more than that paranoid--hence no bug eating from me.) The kids got to make an antenna headband, and compete in the bug olympics and win a gold medal each. Happy times.
Caleb and Beth loved the bigger inner tube slides, and something has happened to me as I've gotten older. I just don't love them. I don't, but I went so it counts. Jacob had a lot of fun doing the little kid slides and the wave pool. He's so confident in the water now. My mom's visit was a lot of fun and went really smoothly. It's nice to have her visit. Sometimes it's hard being so far away from my family. The visit was a perfect way to feel reconnected.
Beth has her first male teacher. And I have to say I'm super impressed. His attitude about teaching, and the way he runs his class is impressive. I've liked all of Beth's teachers. They've been good for her, but I can see why they need more male teachers in the classroom. She's been pretty good about doing her homework this year. And she's on track to keep doing well.
Caleb's having a difficult time with his teacher and his behavior this year. I know that she's pretty strict. Beth would get a few card flips a month when she had her, and she maybe got one a year in her other classes. But it's frustrating and wearing on his self esteem. So I'm facing a dilemma. I'm about ready to schedule a conference with the teacher, and it's not going to be easy. I hate to call people out on the situation, and I don't think that Caleb is a perfect little boy that never talks out of turn or sits perfectly still, but at the same time--he is a first grade boy who wiggles, and gets excited and moves around and likes to talk to people. I don't want him to get labeled as a troubled kid. He's super smart--it doesn't take him long to do work, and I'm sure he gets bored. Actually Beth's teacher put the whole thing into perspective for me, when he talked about how he wanted his fourth graders to learn to behave, but he also realizes that they are fourth graders and aren't going to be perfect all of the time. Any advice would be appreciated.
Jacob is really progressing on his speech, and enjoying preschool. He sees his friend Miles at school most days--they are not in the same class, but I think they have recess together. He is much happier now that he has busy time each day. He misses his brother and sister when they are at school. It's nice to know that he is in a structured environment where he can have fun.
We all went to Bugfest again this year. No camera in tow, so no pictures. The boys all ate chocolate covered worms. Caleb had two. Rob came home all paranoid, and flossed his teeth and used mouthwash just in case. It made me laugh, because if you're that paranoid why eat them at all? (I'm more than that paranoid--hence no bug eating from me.) The kids got to make an antenna headband, and compete in the bug olympics and win a gold medal each. Happy times.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Overheard
This morning Rob went downstairs, and Caleb had already turned on a show. The kids have been anxiously waiting for the 3rd Ghostbuster movie, which is actually going to be made. Every day Jacob asks for me to turn it on.
Rob: What are you watching?
Caleb: Ghostbusters 3
Rob: That's not out yet. Let me see.
(he checked the show they were watching on Netflix.)
Rob: That's Stripes. It's rated R.
Caleb: But dad it has Peter Vankman in it. That's how we know it's Ghostbusters.
Rob: You do know that Peter Vankman is a character in the movie played by Bill Murray. He's in lots of movies.
Caleb: No this is Ghostbusters 3.
Rob: What are you watching?
Caleb: Ghostbusters 3
Rob: That's not out yet. Let me see.
(he checked the show they were watching on Netflix.)
Rob: That's Stripes. It's rated R.
Caleb: But dad it has Peter Vankman in it. That's how we know it's Ghostbusters.
Rob: You do know that Peter Vankman is a character in the movie played by Bill Murray. He's in lots of movies.
Caleb: No this is Ghostbusters 3.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Family Trip to the Mountains
I love nothing more than a trip to the North Carolina mountains. Things are just so much more peaceful there. I love the winding roads, the cool breeze, and all the mountain streams.
We recently drove up to Price Park with family for a simple picnic and to let the kids play in the creek. We saw a surprising number of water snakes, which the kids thought was thrilling (me, not so much). And the kids loved trying to catch little fish (which reminded them of the fish we have in our aquarium at home).
It was fun spending time with family. I was really glad my aunt Kay and Grandma could come with us.
My camera's battery ran out right as we pulled up to the Moses Cone Manor, near Boone, NC, so sadly, I missed videotaping lot of really pretty scenery. Hopefully, you'll enjoy what I was able to capture.
We recently drove up to Price Park with family for a simple picnic and to let the kids play in the creek. We saw a surprising number of water snakes, which the kids thought was thrilling (me, not so much). And the kids loved trying to catch little fish (which reminded them of the fish we have in our aquarium at home).
It was fun spending time with family. I was really glad my aunt Kay and Grandma could come with us.
My camera's battery ran out right as we pulled up to the Moses Cone Manor, near Boone, NC, so sadly, I missed videotaping lot of really pretty scenery. Hopefully, you'll enjoy what I was able to capture.
