Last night John went to Curriculum Night at Mary's school. John signed up for bringing cups and peppermints to the future winter activities, signed up for the winter parent/teacher conference, and then got to talk to the teacher for a bit about Mary. The teacher told John that Mary is making the transition to the new school wonderfully (she's apparently well-liked by the other kids in her class). The teacher also said that she was "blown away" by Mary's reading and drawing skills. John and I know that the kid reads well--she moved on to reading Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein with no problems last year--and we even know she's pretty artistic. The fridge is constantly filled with her drawings and colorings, and she's always arranging her toys in little "dioramas" on her dresser or in the play room. But I guess it just doesn't hit you until you compare her little drawings to all the other kids in the class that wow--she really IS advanced for her age. She can draw horses, unicorns, whales, dolphins, lions, etc.--and she puts immense detail into them. Mrs. W. mentioned that Mary must have had a great kindergarten teacher. And yes, she did! And not to knock Mrs. G. (who was great, indeed), but I think a chunk of the credit needs to go to the day care provider Mary had since she was six months old. No way I could ever find anyone to measure up to Leona, and that's the reason why I'm willing to drive an extra half hour out of my way every day to keep Keith and Izzy there. She's irreplaceable; she's the best!
But let's not take credit away from our girl. Mary definitely is a good, quick learner. I hope she can keep up the drive in the many, many years of schooling to come!
You go, girl!
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Monday, September 25, 2006
Update
Keith's room is still not painted.
The garage is still full of crap.
BUT, we did manage to get a ton of yard work done. John did most of it, but the kids and I helped when we could. We're pulling weeds and cutting down annuals and raking up leaves (already? aw, man!) and trying to figure out how to shape the yard for the spring. It's blatantly obvious that the previous owners only mowed and that was it. We've gotten confirmation on that from the neighbors on both sides. Apparently, the previous owner used to set his mower on the lowest possible setting so that he wouldn't have to mow as often. The poor tree roots have taken quite a beating--but so did his mower. One neighbor told us that the guy had to take his mower in to be fixed a few times for running over those tree roots! It's exhausting, but I'd still rather be outside doing all the yard work than inside doing laundry or dishes (or painting!) or whatever.
Mary Anne is going to take violin lessons! The school offers them free of charge and encourages kids to start this young, as it's apparently easier to teach them at a younger age. We have no idea if Mary will take to the violin any better than dance, but she seems interested, and it's worth a shot. We're taking her tonight to get her fitted and rent her "new" violin.
I may not get to be a Girl Scout leader this year! Absolutely no one showed up for recruitment night. It's getting tough. The schools no longer allow the Girl/Boy Scouts to advertise via flyers going home, so they have to depend on posted signs, advertisements in the papers, and word-of-mouth to get kids in. In fact, I didn't even know about recruitment night. We don't get a newspaper, and since Mary is bussed, we never drive by the school to see the signs. If I hadn't been so diligent about contacting council every other day about the status of a troop for Mary and me, I would never have known about it. I may have to stick Mary in an already existing troop in Penfield or possibly lead last year's Scottsville troop. Those poor girls still don't have a leader, so I am definitely needed there. We'll see how things unfold....
The garage is still full of crap.
BUT, we did manage to get a ton of yard work done. John did most of it, but the kids and I helped when we could. We're pulling weeds and cutting down annuals and raking up leaves (already? aw, man!) and trying to figure out how to shape the yard for the spring. It's blatantly obvious that the previous owners only mowed and that was it. We've gotten confirmation on that from the neighbors on both sides. Apparently, the previous owner used to set his mower on the lowest possible setting so that he wouldn't have to mow as often. The poor tree roots have taken quite a beating--but so did his mower. One neighbor told us that the guy had to take his mower in to be fixed a few times for running over those tree roots! It's exhausting, but I'd still rather be outside doing all the yard work than inside doing laundry or dishes (or painting!) or whatever.
Mary Anne is going to take violin lessons! The school offers them free of charge and encourages kids to start this young, as it's apparently easier to teach them at a younger age. We have no idea if Mary will take to the violin any better than dance, but she seems interested, and it's worth a shot. We're taking her tonight to get her fitted and rent her "new" violin.
I may not get to be a Girl Scout leader this year! Absolutely no one showed up for recruitment night. It's getting tough. The schools no longer allow the Girl/Boy Scouts to advertise via flyers going home, so they have to depend on posted signs, advertisements in the papers, and word-of-mouth to get kids in. In fact, I didn't even know about recruitment night. We don't get a newspaper, and since Mary is bussed, we never drive by the school to see the signs. If I hadn't been so diligent about contacting council every other day about the status of a troop for Mary and me, I would never have known about it. I may have to stick Mary in an already existing troop in Penfield or possibly lead last year's Scottsville troop. Those poor girls still don't have a leader, so I am definitely needed there. We'll see how things unfold....
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Like thieves in the night--or the plain sight of day
Izzy being somewhat unresponsive to the Sesame Street and Spongebob stickers I bought her after the first day of potty training, I made the bold switch to Hershey's Kissables. I blame my day care provider--that was all SHE had around the house when Izzy decided to suddenly try becoming a "big girl". I don't know that many girls who will respond to stickers after having chocolate as an inducement.
Anyway, I bought two little bags: one for the kitchen for potty #1, one for the upstairs bathroom, for potty #2. Izzy is doing much better for me at home, but there are still times here and there where I'm changing more diapers than I'm handing out candy. No big deal. But yesterday I happened to notice that the package of Kissables looked suspiciously "flat." Hmmm.... Sure enough, it was completely empty.
Any time candy goes missing in the house, I immediately know who the big culprit is. "MARY!" Sure enough, she shamefacedly admitting to eating all of Izzy's potty candy AND even sneaking some of the candy out of the bathroom. Well, now I know why Mary kept jumping up and wanting to cheer Izzy and give Izzy the little reward every time she used the potty. Little sneak.
At dinner, John and I made her feel bad enough about stealing from her little sister and told her that (once again) she won't be getting any candy for awhile (maybe we need to try something else, 'cause the little thief never seems to learn her lesson). And just to make sure, we asked Keith if he happened to be taking any of Izzy's candy. Nope. Not that there was any doubt. Keith is so happy-go-lucky you can't even imagine the thought even entering his head.
Fast forward to two hours later. It's way past bedtime, and I'm trying frantically to get Mary and Keith to bed. They've got their jammies on, they've brushed their teeth, and I'm trying to corral them onto the couch for their bedtime story. I hear rustling in the bathroom as I walk by. Sure enough, there is a little thief sneaking a piece of candy. But no! Not the properly shamed child #1 (still too soon for even that expert thief to try again). No! It's the innocent! The middle child who apparently realized what his life of innocence was costing him--no candy! Cripes! If we hadn't discussed it at the dinner table, he never would have been the wiser!
WHAT HAVE WE CREATED?!
Anyway, I bought two little bags: one for the kitchen for potty #1, one for the upstairs bathroom, for potty #2. Izzy is doing much better for me at home, but there are still times here and there where I'm changing more diapers than I'm handing out candy. No big deal. But yesterday I happened to notice that the package of Kissables looked suspiciously "flat." Hmmm.... Sure enough, it was completely empty.
Any time candy goes missing in the house, I immediately know who the big culprit is. "MARY!" Sure enough, she shamefacedly admitting to eating all of Izzy's potty candy AND even sneaking some of the candy out of the bathroom. Well, now I know why Mary kept jumping up and wanting to cheer Izzy and give Izzy the little reward every time she used the potty. Little sneak.
At dinner, John and I made her feel bad enough about stealing from her little sister and told her that (once again) she won't be getting any candy for awhile (maybe we need to try something else, 'cause the little thief never seems to learn her lesson). And just to make sure, we asked Keith if he happened to be taking any of Izzy's candy. Nope. Not that there was any doubt. Keith is so happy-go-lucky you can't even imagine the thought even entering his head.
Fast forward to two hours later. It's way past bedtime, and I'm trying frantically to get Mary and Keith to bed. They've got their jammies on, they've brushed their teeth, and I'm trying to corral them onto the couch for their bedtime story. I hear rustling in the bathroom as I walk by. Sure enough, there is a little thief sneaking a piece of candy. But no! Not the properly shamed child #1 (still too soon for even that expert thief to try again). No! It's the innocent! The middle child who apparently realized what his life of innocence was costing him--no candy! Cripes! If we hadn't discussed it at the dinner table, he never would have been the wiser!
WHAT HAVE WE CREATED?!
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Locke siting at Myrtle Beach
My step-father has an uncanny resemblance to a certain, strange character on a popular TV show....
I'm so "tarred"
...as my Grandma would say.
Due to the belief that I'm over-worked (and let's not forget under-appreciated!), I'm forcing myself to go to bed early every night. I've noticed my work skills depreciate as my stress levels go up and my sleep quotient goes down. So, I've done absolutely NOTHING this week (How could I? I've been nodding off on the couch before I even get the kids put to bed!). Meanwhile, John has finally officially finished all the paint, trim, and touch-ups on the girls' room. I'm supposed to mop the floors tonight, but unless I suddenly get a burst of energy before 8:30 tonight (when the kids go to bed, and I'm free) then that floor will just have to WAIT.
We start Keith's room this weekend. Wonder if that will also take another month? And possibly a trip to some sort of shrink for some high quality meds?
Due to the belief that I'm over-worked (and let's not forget under-appreciated!), I'm forcing myself to go to bed early every night. I've noticed my work skills depreciate as my stress levels go up and my sleep quotient goes down. So, I've done absolutely NOTHING this week (How could I? I've been nodding off on the couch before I even get the kids put to bed!). Meanwhile, John has finally officially finished all the paint, trim, and touch-ups on the girls' room. I'm supposed to mop the floors tonight, but unless I suddenly get a burst of energy before 8:30 tonight (when the kids go to bed, and I'm free) then that floor will just have to WAIT.
We start Keith's room this weekend. Wonder if that will also take another month? And possibly a trip to some sort of shrink for some high quality meds?
Monday, September 11, 2006
The Perils of Potty Training
Nope. Izzy is NOT one of those kids. The little stinker is using the potty about 50% of the time. And usually it's the 50% of the time that she's NOT with me. She's basically been staying dry all day at the day care, but when I'm home with her, it's hit or miss. Kids are so frustruating! But it's encouraging that she's showing any interest at all. She's about a year ahead of both her siblings on this count. Go, Izzy!
Other than the potty predicament, the weekend was pretty boring. John still painting trim, me still cleaning walls. Why am I so tired when I didn't get as much done this weekend as the previous?
Other than the potty predicament, the weekend was pretty boring. John still painting trim, me still cleaning walls. Why am I so tired when I didn't get as much done this weekend as the previous?
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
A Momentous Day
Yesterday was Mary's first day at her new school. First off, the bus was about 10 minutes early. John was just calling me asking me where her jacket was, when he noticed the bus outside the garage door (yikes!). The driver said the schedules were a bit off and that he'd be there that early every day.
For the return trip, we have Mary going to a day care provider around the corner from our house. Unfortunately, the bus won't drop off right in front of the house, so Mary has quite a little jaunt from her stop to the house. The provider sends one of her older kids down the street to pick up the little kids, but since it was the first day, and we're the over-protective type of parents, John decided to take off work early and meet the bus, too. Well, John got there in plenty of time, the bus stopped, no Mary came off...and then it started rolling again. John, "Uh, excuse me!?" and stops the bus. Then Mary apparently saw John and headed to the front of the bus. Mary of course didn't recognize her stop and claims she didn't hear the driver call her name. Anyway, she made it off and got the thrill of being picked up early by Daddy.
It's hard to get out of a 6 year old what goes on when you're not around. You can ask all kinds of open-ended questions, but you're never 100% sure if what she's telling you is what really happened. The only things we could get out of her about her first day was that she "had a blast", she went to the library, and she couldn't play on the playground equipment because she didn't have sneakers on (uh, why didn't anyone tell THE PARENTS about that little rule?). I'm not sure what else happened during the day, but at least she seems to like it so far and was very eager to go back this morning.
Keith started his "preschool" yesterday. His day care provider covers preschool basics with the kids, but took most of the summer "off" from teaching since they were basically outside all day every day. Well, the little kids were jealous about their older siblings starting school yesterday, so she picked yesterday for them to have their "own school" and start their lessons again. She gave them all an alphabet puzzle. My goodness, you'd think the thing was gilded in 24 karat gold with the way Keith handles it. Since Keith is now the oldest, he's the most advanced. Leona quickly learned that he just needs to work more on his handwriting, 'cause he's got the alphabet down pat.
Izzy had a pretty busy day, too. After day care, we all went to Pizza Hut and Target. We didn't get home until after 8:00. I started to put her into a clean diaper and her pajamas, when I noticed that her pull-up was dry. Hmmm.... "Hey, Iz, you wanna sit on the potty?" I sat her down then went to go get her a book to look at while she was sitting there. By the time I got back, she'd already peed in the potty! Wow! This kind of caught me off guard--I really thought she wasn't quite ready yet and hadn't been pushing her yet. I hadn't even bought her any rewards--stickers--yet. So Mary gave Izzy one of her stickers, and we all cheered her on.
This morning Izzy woke John and me up at 4:00 and would NOT go back to sleep. Not in her bed, not with us, no where, no how. I finally got up just before 6:00 and got in the shower (John had already given up, too and had gone downstairs to sleep on the couch). When I got out, Izzy started fussing again. Since it was basically time for her to get up anyway, I picked her up and took her into the bathroom. Sure enough, she was still dry from the night before! So, I put her on the potty and even through the tired tears she was still crying, she peed in the potty again! Wow. It's too soon to tell, but there is the glimmer of a hope that she will be one of those kids who practically train themselves. I haven't had one of those kids yet, so I doubt it'll be that easy, but one can hope.....
For the return trip, we have Mary going to a day care provider around the corner from our house. Unfortunately, the bus won't drop off right in front of the house, so Mary has quite a little jaunt from her stop to the house. The provider sends one of her older kids down the street to pick up the little kids, but since it was the first day, and we're the over-protective type of parents, John decided to take off work early and meet the bus, too. Well, John got there in plenty of time, the bus stopped, no Mary came off...and then it started rolling again. John, "Uh, excuse me!?" and stops the bus. Then Mary apparently saw John and headed to the front of the bus. Mary of course didn't recognize her stop and claims she didn't hear the driver call her name. Anyway, she made it off and got the thrill of being picked up early by Daddy.
It's hard to get out of a 6 year old what goes on when you're not around. You can ask all kinds of open-ended questions, but you're never 100% sure if what she's telling you is what really happened. The only things we could get out of her about her first day was that she "had a blast", she went to the library, and she couldn't play on the playground equipment because she didn't have sneakers on (uh, why didn't anyone tell THE PARENTS about that little rule?). I'm not sure what else happened during the day, but at least she seems to like it so far and was very eager to go back this morning.
Keith started his "preschool" yesterday. His day care provider covers preschool basics with the kids, but took most of the summer "off" from teaching since they were basically outside all day every day. Well, the little kids were jealous about their older siblings starting school yesterday, so she picked yesterday for them to have their "own school" and start their lessons again. She gave them all an alphabet puzzle. My goodness, you'd think the thing was gilded in 24 karat gold with the way Keith handles it. Since Keith is now the oldest, he's the most advanced. Leona quickly learned that he just needs to work more on his handwriting, 'cause he's got the alphabet down pat.
Izzy had a pretty busy day, too. After day care, we all went to Pizza Hut and Target. We didn't get home until after 8:00. I started to put her into a clean diaper and her pajamas, when I noticed that her pull-up was dry. Hmmm.... "Hey, Iz, you wanna sit on the potty?" I sat her down then went to go get her a book to look at while she was sitting there. By the time I got back, she'd already peed in the potty! Wow! This kind of caught me off guard--I really thought she wasn't quite ready yet and hadn't been pushing her yet. I hadn't even bought her any rewards--stickers--yet. So Mary gave Izzy one of her stickers, and we all cheered her on.
This morning Izzy woke John and me up at 4:00 and would NOT go back to sleep. Not in her bed, not with us, no where, no how. I finally got up just before 6:00 and got in the shower (John had already given up, too and had gone downstairs to sleep on the couch). When I got out, Izzy started fussing again. Since it was basically time for her to get up anyway, I picked her up and took her into the bathroom. Sure enough, she was still dry from the night before! So, I put her on the potty and even through the tired tears she was still crying, she peed in the potty again! Wow. It's too soon to tell, but there is the glimmer of a hope that she will be one of those kids who practically train themselves. I haven't had one of those kids yet, so I doubt it'll be that easy, but one can hope.....
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Stuff I got done this weekend
1. Touched-up the paint in the girls' room.
2. Mopped the kitchen floor.
3. Scraped the wallpaper off Keith's walls.
4. Painted the trim in the girls' room.
5. Worked 4 hours OT.
6. Finally cleared that one #$% level in Super Mario Sunshine.
7. Completely cleared out ALL the boxes of toys from the playroom then put them back--in an orderly manner. WOW.
8. Put a second coat of paint in the trim in the girls' room.
9. Cleaned the bathroom.
John and I are soooo sick of painting, we're not sure when Keith's room will ever get done. And my thumb and wrist hurt from all the painting and the Super Mario. Ouch.
2. Mopped the kitchen floor.
3. Scraped the wallpaper off Keith's walls.
4. Painted the trim in the girls' room.
5. Worked 4 hours OT.
6. Finally cleared that one #$% level in Super Mario Sunshine.
7. Completely cleared out ALL the boxes of toys from the playroom then put them back--in an orderly manner. WOW.
8. Put a second coat of paint in the trim in the girls' room.
9. Cleaned the bathroom.
John and I are soooo sick of painting, we're not sure when Keith's room will ever get done. And my thumb and wrist hurt from all the painting and the Super Mario. Ouch.
Friday, September 01, 2006
Look out, Trading Spaces! We're ready for you!
John and I took a couple days off this week and finally started painting the girls' room. John was a bit apprehensive about the two shades of blue we picked, but now that we've gotten two coats on and the paint has dried--it looks awesome! John and I are feeling proud of ourselves for the job we did since we're such amateurs and haven't painted anything in years. We still have to paint the inside of the closet and the trim, but so far, so good. I'll have to try to load some before/after pictures when it's done.
We took Mary to her new school yesterday for orientation where she got to meet her teacher. We walked around the school a bit and dropped off the ten tons of supplies we had to buy. After visiting five different stores (one of them being an office supplies store), we were still short one thing: the BROWN clipboard. What the freak? Where did all the brown clipboards go???? But I felt pretty good when I noticed that in all the mounds of supplies accumulating in the bins separated on the floor that there were only about THREE brown clipboards there. Obviously, we weren't the only family who couldn't find one. Whew! I was beginning to wonder about a conspiracy. "Hey, Mack! Here they come! Hide the brown clipboards, quick! Make sure you leave about 20 CLEAR ones out, though!" I am proud to announce that on my lunch hour today I did stop at yet ANOTHER office supplies store and finally found one! Ha! I fooled them with my diligence and easy access to multiple shopping choices!
The long weekend is yet another bummer for me. The biggest pain about doing payroll is that any time there is a three day weekend, it means I'll have to come in the Sunday to work. It's not too bad since I get paid double time and usually only work 2-4 hours, but it's quite an inconvenient break in what used to be a guaranteed three-day stretch of much-needed time off work. I'll just keep focusing on the extra dough I'll receive. Yay! Money for more paint!
Have a great weekend, everybody!
We took Mary to her new school yesterday for orientation where she got to meet her teacher. We walked around the school a bit and dropped off the ten tons of supplies we had to buy. After visiting five different stores (one of them being an office supplies store), we were still short one thing: the BROWN clipboard. What the freak? Where did all the brown clipboards go???? But I felt pretty good when I noticed that in all the mounds of supplies accumulating in the bins separated on the floor that there were only about THREE brown clipboards there. Obviously, we weren't the only family who couldn't find one. Whew! I was beginning to wonder about a conspiracy. "Hey, Mack! Here they come! Hide the brown clipboards, quick! Make sure you leave about 20 CLEAR ones out, though!" I am proud to announce that on my lunch hour today I did stop at yet ANOTHER office supplies store and finally found one! Ha! I fooled them with my diligence and easy access to multiple shopping choices!
The long weekend is yet another bummer for me. The biggest pain about doing payroll is that any time there is a three day weekend, it means I'll have to come in the Sunday to work. It's not too bad since I get paid double time and usually only work 2-4 hours, but it's quite an inconvenient break in what used to be a guaranteed three-day stretch of much-needed time off work. I'll just keep focusing on the extra dough I'll receive. Yay! Money for more paint!
Have a great weekend, everybody!
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