I've been working on entering new MOPS registrations into my mega excel database for about an hour. I'm about halfway through, so I'm taking a break. My son was playing very nicely with his tractors and cars, but he was starting to get bored with it. He is currently watching Cars. I can hopefully finish my MOPS work. We kick off MOPS this Wednesday. I'd like to start a MOPS Facebook Group for our group. I hope to get it going by Wednesday.
But before I return to the world of MOPS, I'll share a couple of antidotes. Yesterday was my son's first day of gymnastics. We signed him up last Saturday at a gym near our house. We'd been thinking about signing him up, but didn't realize that the classes followed the school calendar. We went and visited the gym on Saturday and signed on the dotted line. He is enrolled for this semester. There are five kids in his class. They stretch before class, then they have time on giant trampolines, then they go through this little course that has a single parallel bar, a small trampoline, an incline to climb over, and a mat where they are teaching them the beginning steps to a round off. At the end, they go play in the foam bricks. My Mom went with me to class. It was hysterical to watch him in class. We had the best time watching him. I'm bringing the video camera next week so that I can tape some of it and post a video. During the stretching, he was trying so hard to follow along, but kept falling over. After the stretching, they were organizing the kids to go to the trampolines. My son took off across the gym to where the teenagers were working out. I guess he figured it was time to get on the pommel horse. His teacher caught up with him before he got too far. On the large trampolines, he would bounce once and then get off and watch. His teacher would get him to come back on and he would bounce once and get off. His teacher told me after class that he complained his legs were tired. I think he was scared he would get bounced on by another child. There were two kids on each huge rectangular trampoline. When they went to the course, my son was on the bar first. He could hang from it. His teacher helped him get his legs up to hang or turn a flip. After she left, he kept trying. Once he had one leg almost up and then fell down. Good thing there is lots of padding. Next, he went to the single trampoline and jumped and jumped. I guess his legs weren't hurting then. :) They finished class off with jumping into the pits with foam bricks. He had a blast doing this. I think this was his favorite part of class.
After class I asked, "Did you like gymnastics?"
He replied enthusiastically, "Yes!"
I asked, "Are you ready to come back next week?"
"NO!"
Me laughing, "Sorry buddy you are signed up for the long haul."
I heard Jason ask him this morning if he wanted to go back next week and he said yes. So we'll see how this goes.
A story from my daughter’s school. In my daughter's class, each child has a pocket on the wall with different colored cards in it. The kids move their card for misbehavior. The cards are as follows: green for excellent, yellow for good, orange for warning, and red for a phone call home. They can also redeem their card for good behavior. If a child moves to yellow and then does everything fine then they can move back to green. At the end of the week we get a progress report on behavior. Jason and my daughter were talking about moving her card. She is very proud that she has not done that yet. Jason asked what might cause her to move her card. My daughter told him whispering at nap time was not allowed. Then my daughter mentioned that she naps on the tile where she can slide around. Jason asked if that would cause her to move her card. She said yes, but the teacher can't see her on the tile. Sounds like it is only a matter of time before her card moves...
I am going to the Living Proof Live Simulcast at my church tonight and tomorrow. I'm very excited. The last Living Proof Live I attended was in Atlanta with my friend Becky and her Mom. I am very excited to get a dose of Beth. Tuesday night bible study also starts soon!
Friday, August 28, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
My Daughter's First Day
My daughter started her first day of Kindergarten yesterday. We were lucky enough to be able to walk her into the classroom. I kept waiting for the school officials to tell us, that we couldn't go any farther, but they never did. I took tons of pictures along the way.
I won a gift card at MOPS Bunco, I decided this was a good occasion to use it.
I also went to Michael's to get something for my son's school work, and back home.
Once we got home, I home schooled my son. He enjoyed it for the most part. He kept telling me no when I asked him to do something. I gently reminded him that he is doing school and doesn't have a choice. Here are some of his materials. He tried telling me no again today. He'll figure out sooner or later he is not getting off the hook.
Then we had lunch, went to the grocery store, came home, put away groceries, and went back to the school to pick up my daughter. I learned how the car pool lined worked. I spent 30 minutes in the car entertaining my son and was nowhere near the front of the line. I watched a woman almost invoke road rage among the 30 something drivers lined up behind me when she tried to cut in line. She finally gave up when she realized that no one was going to let her in.
My husband and I planned the morning carefully. I got up first to have my quiet time and coffee. It was hard to concentrate on the quiet time because I just thinking about how my baby wouldn't be spending the day with us anymore. Then he got up and we both dressed. Next, I started breakfast, pancakes. We have never really eaten breakfast as a family. I think this may be a new tradition in our new phase of life. He brought the kids down as I was mutilating one of the pancakes. That threw our breakfast a little behind schedule. Finally we all had pancakes and were eating. Here is my daughter enjoying her first day breakfast:
and my son:
and the cook:
Next, we brushed teeth and I did her hair, in two braids with bows attached. My husband got my son dressed while I threw my own hair together. Then my daughter and I started "the great photo shoot." This one was my favorite.
A daughter/daddy picture.
Here is one of me with the kids. I prefer to take the pictures.
I loved this picture of my son.
We jumped into the car and headed to the school. The parking around the school is pretty limited to we parked across the street. I had a blast taking pictures with the school sign in the background, outside the school, outside her classroom, with her teacher, and at her desk.
She sat down at her desk and started coloring a frog her teacher had set out for them to do.
and my son:
and the cook:
Next, we brushed teeth and I did her hair, in two braids with bows attached. My husband got my son dressed while I threw my own hair together. Then my daughter and I started "the great photo shoot." This one was my favorite.
A daughter/daddy picture.
Here is one of me with the kids. I prefer to take the pictures.
I loved this picture of my son.
We jumped into the car and headed to the school. The parking around the school is pretty limited to we parked across the street. I had a blast taking pictures with the school sign in the background, outside the school, outside her classroom, with her teacher, and at her desk.
She sat down at her desk and started coloring a frog her teacher had set out for them to do.
It looks like my son is wondering where his desk is going to go. Jason and I talked to her a little about her classroom. I scanned the classroom to see what was going on. They had a writing center, reading center, math center, word wall, group area, closets, a restroom (which I pointed out to my daughter), clusters of four desks, and a teacher desk. It was a cute cheery room, but markedly smaller than my classroom in Naperville. Both the classrooms I taught in Naperville were huge. This class was absolutely serviceable, just tighter. Jason and I finally realized that our daughter was doing better than us and we might as well go. It was about five minutes until they were going to kick us out anyway.
A few times in the walk down the hallway to the classroom, in the classroom, and the walk back to the car I teared up. Once we got to the car, I drove Jason to work, went to two different post offices, and Starbucks.
A few times in the walk down the hallway to the classroom, in the classroom, and the walk back to the car I teared up. Once we got to the car, I drove Jason to work, went to two different post offices, and Starbucks.
I won a gift card at MOPS Bunco, I decided this was a good occasion to use it.
I also went to Michael's to get something for my son's school work, and back home.
Once we got home, I home schooled my son. He enjoyed it for the most part. He kept telling me no when I asked him to do something. I gently reminded him that he is doing school and doesn't have a choice. Here are some of his materials. He tried telling me no again today. He'll figure out sooner or later he is not getting off the hook.
Then we had lunch, went to the grocery store, came home, put away groceries, and went back to the school to pick up my daughter. I learned how the car pool lined worked. I spent 30 minutes in the car entertaining my son and was nowhere near the front of the line. I watched a woman almost invoke road rage among the 30 something drivers lined up behind me when she tried to cut in line. She finally gave up when she realized that no one was going to let her in.
I was so excited when my daughter got into the car. I made the mistake of asking, "How was school?"
To which my daughter responded, "Good."
I realized my tactical error and changed the question. "What was your favorite part of the day?"
"Recess...and we got real wet because it was so hot outside."
To which my daughter responded, "Good."
I realized my tactical error and changed the question. "What was your favorite part of the day?"
"Recess...and we got real wet because it was so hot outside."
The following though ran through my mind, "oh, that is sweating. I hate to do that so we hibernate all summer dear, unless we are in the pool. What? Recess, ok, let's try again." I changed tactics again.
"What was the book your teacher read about?" Then, I got some real answers. She talked a little about music. That was her other favorite part of the day. She told the music teacher she played the violin. We had a fun snack together while I went through the mountain of paperwork in her "take home folder." She laughed and told me that I had a lot of homework instead of her. Another funny thing that happened is that she told my Mom how she had to walk around the school a lot. I asked about that and she said, "We would get to the classroom, then have to get up and leave again." She told my husband the same thing when we picked him up from work. This sounded crazy until she mentioned at dinner that she had a fire drill, intruder drill, and a weather drill. I thought that was impressive and much needed for the first day. She also had music, lunch, and nap. As far as the nap...she hated it. No shocker. I hope they stop doing it quickly. I think it is a big waste of time, but nice for the teacher. :) My daughter would love to take a book and read, but I am sure her teacher doesn't want that headache. Then all the kids would all want to read books, which would be disruptive. My daughter told me today that everyone goes to the bathroom during nap. Yes, they are smart kids to find that flaw in the system so quickly.
So, we have Day 1 and Day 2 down of the new school year. My son was noticeably crankier today than yesterday. He really missed my daughter. I had a mountain of laundry and some mopping to do, that interrupted his all day play time with me. Tomorrow, I have a leadership meeting for MOPS in the morning. I hope that will help to distract him from my daughter's absence by playing with some friends from church.
"What was the book your teacher read about?" Then, I got some real answers. She talked a little about music. That was her other favorite part of the day. She told the music teacher she played the violin. We had a fun snack together while I went through the mountain of paperwork in her "take home folder." She laughed and told me that I had a lot of homework instead of her. Another funny thing that happened is that she told my Mom how she had to walk around the school a lot. I asked about that and she said, "We would get to the classroom, then have to get up and leave again." She told my husband the same thing when we picked him up from work. This sounded crazy until she mentioned at dinner that she had a fire drill, intruder drill, and a weather drill. I thought that was impressive and much needed for the first day. She also had music, lunch, and nap. As far as the nap...she hated it. No shocker. I hope they stop doing it quickly. I think it is a big waste of time, but nice for the teacher. :) My daughter would love to take a book and read, but I am sure her teacher doesn't want that headache. Then all the kids would all want to read books, which would be disruptive. My daughter told me today that everyone goes to the bathroom during nap. Yes, they are smart kids to find that flaw in the system so quickly.
So, we have Day 1 and Day 2 down of the new school year. My son was noticeably crankier today than yesterday. He really missed my daughter. I had a mountain of laundry and some mopping to do, that interrupted his all day play time with me. Tomorrow, I have a leadership meeting for MOPS in the morning. I hope that will help to distract him from my daughter's absence by playing with some friends from church.
Congratulations, you made it to the end of the post. My daughter may thank me one day that I chronicled her first day of Kinder.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Praise Departs From Our Lips
Today was a big day for us. We are praising the Lord for all of his goodness. My husband took the CFA level 3 exam in June and he passed! Today was the day he found out if he passed or not. He spent about 9 months prior to the test preparing for it. We have been facing the CFA for four years now. There are three levels to pass. He failed Level 2 the first time he took it. He was graduating from Duke, we were moving and he didn't get to study adequately. He needs a few more months of service and he has met all the requirements to become a CFA (Chartered Financial Analysis.) This is huge. Right behind his MBA, this has been the most intensive part of his career path.
The second praise is that our daughter got a really good Kindergarten teacher. I was encouraged by another Mom in my Sunday school class to pray for my daughter's teacher and class. She was the district's teacher of the year last year. She is young, but has several years of experience. This was balm to us after we found out she would not get into our first choice school. Her teacher seems really nice. She is extremely excited to start the school year. The upside of our 2nd choice school is that is very close to our house. We won't have to worry about being stuck in traffic.
We are praying that my daughter gets well soon. She picked up a stomach virus from my son. She hasn't felt well the past few days. Today, she was complaining of dizziness and a stomach ache. I think the dizziness was due to not eating enough. She started eating this afternoon and I think she ate off and on most of the afternoon. She also ate dinner. I hope she has turned the corner. She seems to be back to her old self.
I need to catch up on my MOPS Bible study, but I wanted to send a quick post to report good news.
The second praise is that our daughter got a really good Kindergarten teacher. I was encouraged by another Mom in my Sunday school class to pray for my daughter's teacher and class. She was the district's teacher of the year last year. She is young, but has several years of experience. This was balm to us after we found out she would not get into our first choice school. Her teacher seems really nice. She is extremely excited to start the school year. The upside of our 2nd choice school is that is very close to our house. We won't have to worry about being stuck in traffic.
We are praying that my daughter gets well soon. She picked up a stomach virus from my son. She hasn't felt well the past few days. Today, she was complaining of dizziness and a stomach ache. I think the dizziness was due to not eating enough. She started eating this afternoon and I think she ate off and on most of the afternoon. She also ate dinner. I hope she has turned the corner. She seems to be back to her old self.
I need to catch up on my MOPS Bible study, but I wanted to send a quick post to report good news.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
The Rest of July
We went to Alabama for the Fourth of July and the week following.
We had a wonderful time with Jason's extended family at the reunion. I was playing with my camera settings while the kids swam. I caught one of the cousins midair jumping in the pool.
My daughter played with the girl cousins and swam while my son played with his scooter.
The kids got all the tractor time they could stand. My son prefers the lawn tractor to the actual tractor. I think it is because the adults were bush hogging with the big tractor and it was loud. He is not a fan of loud. Here are my daughter and Jason on the tractor.
We made a side trip this year to Chattanooga. We visited the Chattanooga Choo Choo and The Tennessee Valley Railroad. There is not much to see at the Chattanooga Choo Choo. Little man is sitting on the front.
We got to ride on the Tennessee Valley Railroad. That was a lot of fun. We rode in the narrated air conditioned car down the track and the non A/C car on the way back.
They turned the locomotive on a turntable. We posed for a photo right before they did.
We toured the machine shop. I loved this sign.
At the Chattanooga Choo Choo, my sweet daughter had to rescue this frog who was attempting to drown in the fountains.
Another day, we drove through Guntersville State Park. They kids could not resist getting in the lake. They were supposed to wade, but it turned into much more.
They went home to pull ups and a spare t-shirt that Granddaddy had in the van. We drove around the state park a bit before heading back to Grandma and Granddaddy's house.
Grandma and Grandaddy found this for my son.
He was very sad not to bring it home. He'll get to play with it lots the next time we visit. We had a really good visit. The weather was wonderful which was a nice break from the oppressive heat where I live. The kids picnicked outside for lunch at least one day. There were outside constantly. I enjoyed sitting on the porch. A couple times I worked on a hand quilting project and watched them play. I'm working on a paper pieced quilt for Jason. I started it in 2001 or 2002. I work on it during long car trips or when the mood strikes. I might be 1/8 of the way finished with piecing the top. I had NO IDEA it would take so long. Maybe I'll finish it one day.
The day before we left we went to the river/lake. My brother-in-law has a boat. His motor quit the week before, so he borrowed a friend's pontoon boat. The boat was a lot of fun. Everyone could be one the boat at once. We explored the river. We also pulled a tube. My son didn't like the tube his first time out because the water kept splashing him in the face. I convinced him to try again at a slower speed and he enjoyed it. My brother-in-law and I also knee boarded. My daughter wanted to as well. We decided to let her try. The first time the board just went underwater and didn't pop back up, so she had to fall off. My husband got on with her to weigh the back of the board down. Once she was up, he fell off. My brother-in-law also did it with her.
She loved it. I enjoyed the knee boarding as well.
We returned from Alabama with a bounty of veggies. Yes, we ate them all.
After we returned, we celebrated my son's birthday. We got him a glide bike. It is a bike that is small and has no petals or training wheels. He loves it. We let him ride it all over the house.
He borrowed sister's knee pads for the first ride, but he is now going without them. These bikes are very popular in Europe to teach kids how to ride a bike. It teaches them balance. Once they learn balance they can jump on a petal bike and ride. My daughter is riding it as well. We hope to take her training wheels off soon. My daughter finished July by taking a theater class.
Now we are gearing up for the first day of school. We had the backpack and lunch box. We have the uniforms. I plan to buy the supply packet at school. Violin starts in another week when her teacher returns from teaching Suzuki Institute classes out of state. Tomorrow holds one more play date with friends. My daughter is very excited about going to Kindergarten. My son is excited about starting his Homeschooling. I am praying for my daughter's teacher and class. I'm excited to see what this year brings.
We had a wonderful time with Jason's extended family at the reunion. I was playing with my camera settings while the kids swam. I caught one of the cousins midair jumping in the pool.
 |
| From 20090715 |
My daughter played with the girl cousins and swam while my son played with his scooter.
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| From 20090715 |
The kids got all the tractor time they could stand. My son prefers the lawn tractor to the actual tractor. I think it is because the adults were bush hogging with the big tractor and it was loud. He is not a fan of loud. Here are my daughter and Jason on the tractor.
 |
| From 20090706 |
We made a side trip this year to Chattanooga. We visited the Chattanooga Choo Choo and The Tennessee Valley Railroad. There is not much to see at the Chattanooga Choo Choo. Little man is sitting on the front.
 |
| From 20090706 |
We got to ride on the Tennessee Valley Railroad. That was a lot of fun. We rode in the narrated air conditioned car down the track and the non A/C car on the way back.
 |
| From 20090706 |
They turned the locomotive on a turntable. We posed for a photo right before they did.
 |
| From 20090706 |
We toured the machine shop. I loved this sign.
 |
| From 20090715 |
At the Chattanooga Choo Choo, my sweet daughter had to rescue this frog who was attempting to drown in the fountains.
 |
| From 20090706 |
Another day, we drove through Guntersville State Park. They kids could not resist getting in the lake. They were supposed to wade, but it turned into much more.
 |
| From 20090711 |
They went home to pull ups and a spare t-shirt that Granddaddy had in the van. We drove around the state park a bit before heading back to Grandma and Granddaddy's house.
Grandma and Grandaddy found this for my son.
 |
| From 20090711 |
He was very sad not to bring it home. He'll get to play with it lots the next time we visit. We had a really good visit. The weather was wonderful which was a nice break from the oppressive heat where I live. The kids picnicked outside for lunch at least one day. There were outside constantly. I enjoyed sitting on the porch. A couple times I worked on a hand quilting project and watched them play. I'm working on a paper pieced quilt for Jason. I started it in 2001 or 2002. I work on it during long car trips or when the mood strikes. I might be 1/8 of the way finished with piecing the top. I had NO IDEA it would take so long. Maybe I'll finish it one day.
The day before we left we went to the river/lake. My brother-in-law has a boat. His motor quit the week before, so he borrowed a friend's pontoon boat. The boat was a lot of fun. Everyone could be one the boat at once. We explored the river. We also pulled a tube. My son didn't like the tube his first time out because the water kept splashing him in the face. I convinced him to try again at a slower speed and he enjoyed it. My brother-in-law and I also knee boarded. My daughter wanted to as well. We decided to let her try. The first time the board just went underwater and didn't pop back up, so she had to fall off. My husband got on with her to weigh the back of the board down. Once she was up, he fell off. My brother-in-law also did it with her.
 |
| From 20090715 |
She loved it. I enjoyed the knee boarding as well.
 |
| From 20090715 |
We returned from Alabama with a bounty of veggies. Yes, we ate them all.
 |
| From 20090715 |
After we returned, we celebrated my son's birthday. We got him a glide bike. It is a bike that is small and has no petals or training wheels. He loves it. We let him ride it all over the house.
 |
| From 20090806 |
He borrowed sister's knee pads for the first ride, but he is now going without them. These bikes are very popular in Europe to teach kids how to ride a bike. It teaches them balance. Once they learn balance they can jump on a petal bike and ride. My daughter is riding it as well. We hope to take her training wheels off soon. My daughter finished July by taking a theater class.
Now we are gearing up for the first day of school. We had the backpack and lunch box. We have the uniforms. I plan to buy the supply packet at school. Violin starts in another week when her teacher returns from teaching Suzuki Institute classes out of state. Tomorrow holds one more play date with friends. My daughter is very excited about going to Kindergarten. My son is excited about starting his Homeschooling. I am praying for my daughter's teacher and class. I'm excited to see what this year brings.
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