It's Almost Christmas!

Well the last time I posted was the first day of school. And now we are only 3 school days away from Christmas Break.  My how time has flown.  So what have we been up to?

AJ started junior high this year.  She is absolutely loving it!  I have never seen her so full of stories of her day and excited.  Volleyball started the first day of school, as well, so she was a little tired making the adjustment to junior high homework & 2 hr practices.  However, she survived (or rather WE all survived) and I think she'll be ready to tackle basketball here soon.  T will be her coach so that will be nice.

AD is the only child at the brand new elementary school.  I think she is enjoying that fact, but I know when her brother joins her next year, she will be helpful to him.  (It's just in her nature.)  She is loving 3rd grade and doing really well.  She starts tap dance in January and can't wait.  She did play soccer this year and really enjoyed it.  She also had a role in our elementary school's play this year.  She was a little sick (not sure if it was stage fright or viral) but managed to pull out the final performance.

AT is in two different preschool classes and doing really well with both.  He is always drawing inventions, building forts, and playing with his buddies (and aggravating his sisters!).  He is keeping a pretty busy schedule this year which is good because he should be ready for Kinder next year then.

T is still teaching math at the high school and was recently hired to be the head baseball coach.  It is something I know he will do well at and he is excited.  With AJ being in jr high softball, I am not sure how many of his games I will be able to make, but he knows we are always cheering him on!

I am still job-sharing with my MIL one day a week at the jr high and teaching at the local correctional facility as well.  Between that and running after the kids (of all ages!), I am keeping busy.  At the start of November, I had my gall bladder removed and while it cost me a couple of weeks of normalcy, I have felt great since then!  (Gave my mom a good reason to get off work and come up and visit/help.)  I have fallen behind in my quilting & reading, but hey, that's what Christmas break is for, right?

I wish for you all safe travels this holiday season and a great New Year in store for you.

Merry Christmas!!

1st Day of School 2011-12

Just like always, the 1st day of school ritual is to take the kids' picture in front of the frig.  It is always amazing to see the changes from one year to another. 

AJ 2010

It is hard to believe we have lived here this long, but AJ starts 7th grade today.  We moved here for her to start Kinder and now here she is in junior high.  The junior high is "camping out" at the old elementary school because they are going to remodel the junior high.

AJ 2011

AD gets to start at a brand new elementary school this year.  She is really excited and it is hard to believe she is in 3rd grade already.

AD 2010

AD 2011

AT starts next week so we will get his pictures then.  My how they've grown!

Enjoy your day!!

Unplugged at FH

After we got back from visiting Mom & Dad, we headed out for the west coast for some crabbing & beachcombing.  While we were riding the ferry, we ran across this boat.  AT was so excited because he immediately started yelling "Pirate Ship!!"  (Most everyone knows he loves anything pirate!)

We laughed and reassured him it wasn't a real pirate ship.  Little did we know there was actually a pirate convention (I guess) at FH that weekend.  He could have got a chance to see "real pirates" walking around the town.  When I was bummed that he could have seen them, he gave me a hug and said "It's okay Mommy, I still love you."  Sweet but it didn't make me feel any less guilty for missing that opportunity.

The weather was beautiful at FH.  Not one day of rain and tons of sunshine! 

The kids took advantage of the weather by kayaking & swimming in the pool.  We saw three deer & a fox in our own backyard.  There was a seal swimming around our little inlet all week and we caught lots of crab. 

Again, I was so amazed at how beautiful the weather was.  We had clear skies during the day & at night which gave us beautiful views of the nearby mountains and evening shots.

Boys being boys!

AJ, Gma K, AD, & AT

We had a such a relaxing week.  No tv, no internet, no cell phones (unless you stand by the flagpole like the Statue of Liberty).  It was definitely an unplugged week.  Gma K looked good and we got to see the cousins before some of them head off for college.  We went book shopping at a great used book store by the ferry landing and even hit some yard sales (loved it!!).  We certainly did not go home lighter for some reason . .. .hmmm ;-)

Enjoy your day!!

Wrapping up July

To finish out July, we headed south to visit Mom & Dad and attend my 20 year class reunion.  It is hard to believe it's been 20 years already.  It was a lot of fun to see everyone.  Some I hadn't seen since right after graduation. 

AD, AJ, & AT

The next day we headed across to the east of the state to visit a zoo we hadn't seen before, enjoy some Godfather's taco pizza (which is really hard to find out west anymore), and have some fun.  The zoo was a great little zoo.  AT was so excited to see the crocodile, but then we got there he stood about 2 feet back from the glass partition.  He appeared to not be sure about it.  Gpa walked up behind him and scared him and he jumped probably 2 feet in the air!

AT feeding the goats

 Right next to the zoo was a little amusement park with mini golf.  It was so funny watching us all hit the ball everywhere except the hole!  Gpa & T of course were pros at it, but since we weren't keeping score, the rest of us did what it took to get the ball in the hole ;-)

Afterwards, Mom & Dad took us to see this amazing sculpture in a business district.  It is so huge and the picture really does not do it justice.  It is beautiful.

My aunt & uncle from MN came out to visit on Mon, so we stayed to see them and celebrate Mom's bday.  Tues we headed home.  It is so nice to visit, but there is nothing like getting home.

In other news, my cousin's daughter, Sophie, is having eye surgery in a couple of weeks.  She is only 4 and has awful headaches and cannot see very well.  They are having a benefit and silent auction for her this coming Friday.  Because I could not attend, I decided to send this for the silent auction:

I decided early this summer that I needed some more hand sewing projects so I wasn't always trapped in my sewing room downstairs.  So I chose to try my hand at embroidery.  I found this cute pattern for flip flops and couldn't resist trying them.  I wasn't sure where I was going to use them until I dug up this fabric from my stash.  Usually I don't make things this bright, but it just all seemed to go together.

I hope it does well.  If you are my MN friends & family and are reading this, check out Sophie's benefit on Aug 12th.  (See my facebook page for the info.)

Enjoy your day!!

It's Almost August!

I cannot believe the summer is flying by so fast.  The first half seemed to drag and the kids were so bored.  The last half we have been so busy that it is hard to imagine we are a month away from school starting.

The girls went to 4H camp with Gma L this year for the first time.  T & I took them over to the west side for camp and then went to a MLB game.  T's Babe Ruth parents couldn't believe we had not seen a game in the new (I know, not so new anymore) stadium so they gave us tickets to a game as a gift.  AT went to stay at a friend's house and we had the weekend to ourselves.  We had great seats and even saw some friends from home!

 This was the view from our seats!

 After the game, we headed home.  We stopped to see some sights we hadn't stopped and seen before.

The boat is finally running again.  Once we got the girls back from camp, we thought we would spend the hottest day of the year (so far) on the river.  The water was like glass and other than AT getting sunscreen in his eyes and being miserable, we had a great time.  Who knew sunscreen could double as hair gel?

Today some good friends stopped by.  These two below have been friends since they were babies.  We have so many pictures of them as little cute babies that it is hard to believe they are now 12!  Can't believe how gorgeous they are growing up to be, (but I do miss their cute little baby faces sometimes).

Enjoy your day!!

Some Picture Updates from the Month's I Missed Posting

 Gma & Gpa visiting about in May 2011

Kids at the circus in April

AJ at DARE graduation, AT at PS Graduation, AJ at 6th grade Graduation 

The family at AP's HS graduation

Double ATMs

AP with her graduation quilt

Welcome Summer

Wow!  There are just no excuses for how long it's been since my last post (March??).  There's no possible way to try to update everything that has happened in that amount of time, so I won't try.  So moving on to the present . . .  It's Summer Time!!

We have been keeping busy since school got out with packing classrooms up (the jr high is moving down to the old elementary school while the jr high is renovated), baseball (T's coaching summer ball again), swimming lessons for the younger two, and Daycamp.  We also are excited because we bought a travel trailer this spring and we went out last weekend to test it out.  It was so much fun!  I have missed camping like crazy and can't wait to go again.  T has a few baseball tourneys on the weekends so we thought it would be fun to take the camper and make a fun weekend some time out of it.

Now that I have broken this long chain of not writing, hopefully I can have some recent posts of our adventures this summer.  I will also try to play a little catch up as I load pics on my computer.  There are probably some good ones there and I can update what has been missed in the last few months that way. 

Enjoy your day!!

Visitors: Welcome and Unwelcome

The Welcome visitors were Mom and Dad who were able to come up and visit last weekend due to a business trip.  Yeah for business trips!!!  It was a lot of fun to see them except for the Unwelcome visitors that were already here (sickness!!).  AD and AT were both sick Thurs and Fri.  Sadly it wasn't much of a super fun weekend due to taking care of the kids.  However, while Mom and Dad were here, we were able to put the final touches on bathroom downstairs. I wish we had Dad's handyman skills, but we are slowly learning.  AD rebounded to return to school on Mon, but AJ then stayed home.  Then to top it all off, they gave it all to me!  I think I'm dealing with a sinus infection.  And since I refuse to go to Urgent Care and sit there for 4 hrs with all the other sick people, I will just have to ride it out until Tues when I can get into the doctor. 

So this week's welcome visitor, (although visitor isn't really the right word because she is now a family member who is staying), is Ellie.  She came home last night.  She did really well with Jake and the kids.  She played outside for 2 hrs and came in and crashed for over an hour.  She slept in a crate down in the garage with Jake (not in a crate).  AJ was really good about getting up at 2 am to take her out to the bathroom.  I think Jake wanted to escape from her; he wanted in the house something bad.  However, back in the garage they both went.  About 3:30 I heard her yelping and crying so I went down there and let her out, gave her some love, and shoved her back in her crate.  AJ & AD got up with her around 7 and let her out again.  It's like having a baby in the house again.  She seems to be a quick learner so I hope we will get into a good routine soon.  Once the weather gets warmer and she gets bigger, it's outside with Jake she will go.

AJ and I had our first vball games this week.  The girls played really well.  I am so excited that they are learning the game early instead of in junior high.  It is a commitment right now on top of everything else but it is worth it.  I'm glad I was able to help.  Besides, it's done by March 24 so that's not so bad.  T also started baseball this week.  I am excited because I love watching baseball!

Started my last class this week.  As of Mon, I will already be in Wk 2.  Can't believe it's going by so fast but with being this busy I think the time will fly even faster.  Someone always told me you get more done when you are busy and I certainly believe it.  I am starting loads of laundry as soon as I'm out of the shower in the morning since my time during the day is uncertain.  I would be lying if I said I can handle it all right now, but I am adjusting just like with anything.  (About the time I get it all figured out, I will be done with my Master's most likely!)  There's days I want to pull my hair out and I get upset with everyone because I am tired of being expected to do it all by myself.  I am not sure how the moms that work full time do it, since I am only part time.  I blame some of my grumpiness on not being able to take time for myself due to my Masters.  I think that is another reason I can't wait to be done.  I have not read a book for leisure or quilted hardly in the last year.  It's driving me crazy.  So sorry if I constantly am counting down for this Master's to be over, but I realize I gain my hobbies and more freedom once it is.  Therefore it's a big goal looming ahead of me.  I guess the good news is that at least I have enjoyed my Master's.  I picked a good program and feel I have learned a lot and gotten my money's worth.  Thank goodness or I'd be in the running for the Wicked Witch of the West!

Well, I imagine Ellie's naptime is almost over.  The kids can't handle her being immobile for too long and so they usually end up waking her up.  Oh well, this too shall pass.  Off to craziness I go . . .

Enjoy your day!

Puppy Love

Well, we had a puppy visitation tonight.  Mom and Dad are in town and we wanted them to get to see the puppies. However, we didn't want to invade (all 7 of us) down at the momma's house so we brought four of them up to visit.  What a riot!!  Four puppies and Jake all being corralled onto our dining room floor (vinyl for accidents that happen) by 3 kids and 4 adults.  Too much fun and surprisingly only two accidents!

This sweet little girl is coming to live with us next weekend.  Her name is Ellie and she loved coming up and playing with her daddy (jake) and the kids.  Her tail never quits wagging and she is so friendly.  Can't wait!

Enjoy your day!

Catching Up

Where to begin?  Sad to say but when I went to type in the title of this post, it popped up as a common one.  Yikes!  It's been a LONG time since I posted and while there are a ton of things that have happened in that time, I am going to just update the most recent. 

AJ has been playing basketball and getting really good.  She is more aggressive about shooting and in her game on Mon scored 3 times!  Tomorrow is her last game and then she goes on to volleyball starting Mon.  I have said I would coach her team (what was I thinking?) so we'll see how that goes. She was freethrow champ again this year but will be unable to compete at the next competition.

AD just finished up a play that some of the elementary students were working on.  It was called the "Smartest Woman in the Kingdom."  She had a pretty major role in it and while we were worried about stage fright for her, she did great! 

The cast of "The Smartest Woman in the Kingdom"

AT is still plugging along through preschool and daycare.  We've had some regression in areas in the last month or so, but in talking with friends, it sounds like it is pretty normal.  Glad to hear someone's normal in this family!

Mom came up and we attended my Beta group's annual Crafter's Getaway.  We made super cute pouches (thanks to my friend MK for inspiring us!), shower curtains, a valance, and did some shopping.  I am so close to being done with my Master's that I had to spend some time working on that and Mom had to head home early.  Can't wait to see her again in a week or so!  My new job is going great; no complaints there.  Well, not true.  I miss being able to hit the alarm for half an hour or so.  I am SO NOT a morning person, but I am adjusting.  So are the kids.

AJ with her pencil pouch

T is finishing up jr high girls basketball today.  Hard to believe he will have AJ on his team next year.  Where did that time go?  He starts baseball in a week and a half.  However, they will probably be working on the field non-stop until then. 

We are grand-puppy parents again.  Jake fathered a litter of 7 puppies and they will be available soon to adopt.  They are so stinking cute and big and chubby.  Lots of yellows and a couple of black ones.  Let me know if you are interested ;-)

That's about what I know.  Here's to catching up, but not slowing down!  Woo hoo.

Enjoy your day!

A New Year

The old year went out with a sigh and we rang in the new year pretty mildly.  In fact, my kids asked if we were going to do "anything exciting" for New Year's.  I laughed.  Us?  Exciting?  I'm still laughing.  The girls did stay up until midnight and watched the ball drop.  However, the late nights have now caught up to us since school has started up again.  A two week break can get out of control if you stay up late and sleep in late!

I'm afraid to say that the new year has ushered in a wave of busy-ness at our household.  AJ starts basketball next week and volleyball as soon as bball is over. T started basketball this week and rolls into baseball as soon as his bball is over. AD is done with gymnastics for awhile but is looking forward to cheer camp and tball already.  AT has speech and preschool still and I have a retreat, a daycamp, a new temporary teaching job for the next three months, and 4 more months left on my Master's as well.  Say it with me:  is it summer yet? 

Everyone talks about new year's resolutions.  I have made so many over my lifetime and they never keep.  I know, I know they say that if you do something daily for 21 or 31 days it becomes a habit.  However, it only takes one day to lost that habit:  the day you don't do it for some uncontrollable reason.  That's why I was avoiding resolutions this year until I saw in someone else's blog (might have been this one: Apron Girls) some wise words:  Slow down, Simplify, and Focus on the Essentials.  I like that; a simple theme which is easy to remember.  Possibly harder to do given the craziness I just described that takes over our house this time of year, but nonetheless . . . it's worth a try.  So, here's to a new year of trying to:

Slow Down

Simplify

Focus on the Essentials

Enjoy your day!