Singing In The Rain

I'm singing in the rain,
Just singing in the rain.
What a glorious feelin',
I'm happy again!

Tres Amigos

Marissa and Kevin just returned from their cruise. They brought back some really cool stuff including matching tee-shirts for Kenny, Nathan, and Landan. Yesterday was Marissa's birthday so we had a little party- Texas style (bbq brisket). It was really good and we had fun. Anyway, we dressed the boys in navy shorts and their new shirts. They looked adorable together. Landan and Kenny have had a good time playing together. It's odd because Landan is only 6 months older than Nathan, but he plays more with Kenny. Kenny really loves his cousin and I'm glad he will have more chances to see him now that Marissa and Kevin are moving only 3 hours away.

Anyway, here is one the pictures of the cute boys in cute shirts (I played with the color and focus a bit).

Yard Work Part 3

We have been working on landscaping our front yard. We have already had two other installments in this process. To see stage one click here, To see stage two click here. The last and final installment has now arrived and we are very excited!

On Saturday my Dad and I went shopping and bought a bunch of different plants. We planted one of my favorite trees- a crepe myrtle. We also plants some Indian Hawthornes, holly bushes, junipers, and something purple that I can't remember.

I also planted the side yard with a ground cover called Asian Jasmine. It looks WONDERFUL! Kenny and my Dad cut down the cedar tree in the front. It was a nice tree, but it could not have been planted in a worse spot. I am so excited and very gratful to my dad for all he has done. Our house is really starting to shape up and look nice.

Even little Kenny helped. And when he wasn't, he had a great time playing in the window with Landan.





I don't have any pictures from the sidewalk across the front because it has been pouring rain. I post one later as well as the pictures of chopping down the tree.

School's Out for Summer!!

I gave out this poem to each of my students along with a book on the last day of school. I am always anxious for the school year to end. Everyone gets a little tired towards the end. I will admit, there are a few kids I will not miss, but most I will never forget. It's funny how well I know my kids each year. I can tell you what their reading level is and where there math skills are weak. I can identify a no name paper based on handwriting. I can also tell you how many siblings each has and their names. I know their favorite colors, who doesn't like cheese on their hamburger, who can tie a shoe, what their favorite cartoon character is, and who is afraid of the dark. I am always amazed at how much I learn about each student and his or her individual needs and personality. I also packed up my classroom. I have spent the last 4 years teaching 1st grade in this room. I realized I accumulated a lot of stuff over that time. It took about 2 hours to move my stuff and furniture to my new kindergarten room. I'm a little nervous about leaving my first grade comfort zone, but I am VERY excited about kinder next year.

I am Glad I was your Teacher!
I'm glad I was your teacher
I've come to love you so.
I can't believe the end is here.
I hate to see you go.

Remember all the fun we had
in all the things we did
But most of all remember...
You're a Very Special Kid!

For memories sake I have included a few pictures of my first grade classroom. These were taken during the last week of school, so I had already taken a few things down off the wall.

Invasion of the Bees

I went outside. I heard and noise buzzing above my ear. I looked up. Then I saw the newest addition to our home (see previous post about the raccoon.) A hive of bees have moved into the siding of our house. And I literally mean into the siding. Any thoughts on how to get rid of bees. You can't spray them like wasps or hornets. They have built a honey bee hive. If we kill of the bees the wax in the hive will melt, oozing wax and honey into the interior of the wall. This will attract every other manner of vermin and insects. So we have to have a professional remove the bees and the hive intact. This will require ripping off the side of the house. So after getting the bees removed, we will need a contractor to fix the house.

Oh the joys of home ownership.

The Anatomy of a Belly Flop

Just in case you had any doubts about the perfect execution of the ever-so-prestigious belly flop, I have decided to include a graphic step by step instruction guide. Thank you to my handsome hubby for volunteering to perform this semi-dangerous (and definitely painful) dive. (Actually, it was his idea. I simply took this as one of my finer photographic opportunities.) Remember, do not perform this jump without proper first-aid-trained adult supervision.

Begin with a clam and tranquil pool.

Notice the left side of this picture.

Make sure to leap off the side of the pool. To maximize your momentum swing your arms as shown below.

After initial jump, curl up as you hurl forward.

This is the most vital step in a proper belly flop. As you inch towards the water, quickly uncurl your body and sprawl out in order to maximize belly to water ratio.

Perfect!

And don't forget the after-splash...the entire reason for doing a belly flop in the first place.

And there you have it. A pictoral guide to the perfect belly flop. I know you have been on pins and needles waiting for someone to compose such a guide. Now you can enjoy a great summer full of belly flop fun!

What A Cutie!

His preschool teacher, Mrs. Amy, made this for him for the last day of school.

Pool Party

My sister and her husband are in town with their little boy. They are leaving for a cruise today and leaving Landan in Eppie and Papa's care. We had a little pool party yesterday. It was the first time using the pool for the season. I did not subject the family to the sight of me in a bathing suit, but the rest of my clan did. Nathan took right to the water without the least bit of hesitation. Kenny did his annual freak out about the water. We have to coax him into the water and show him that he will be fine. After swimming we grilled hamburgers and sat around talking and watching the children run and play. The weather was perfect. It was very warm, but not hot, with a slight breeze. I am very excited for the summer to begin and to be able to be home and enjoy my days.
My super cute nephew Landan was a little scared of the water. He was determined no one was going to get him into the water.

Prowlers at Night

Setting: 9:30 pm on a warm, balmy early summer night. We are sitting on the couch watching one of those CSI shows that we probably shouldn't watch. The action and suspense is at the highest point of the show.

Scene: Suddenly, from the far corner of the room a noise is heard. The occupants of the room jump slightly at the noise. What's that?!? A turn of the head towards the direction the noise is coming from reveals not one, but two small boys standing on the stairs. One is glaring with his hands on his hips, the other is grinning with his little baby belly hanging out of his jammies.

Glaring boy: "I'm angry to you about my Book of Mormon not to bed." (Glaring boy pauses, and notices the adult CSI-watchers have a donut bag sitting on the couch between them.) "And I need a donut! TWO donuts."

Grinning boy: "Donut!"

Female Parental Unit: "They look cute. Let me get a picture."

Two Grinning Boys (in unison): "Cheese!!!!"

Male Parental Unit: "Your book of Mormon is in the toy room. No donuts tonight, you can have some in the morning. Go back to bed."

End Scene

Crazy Days

The end of the school year is a crazy time in the elementary school setting. One of my co-workers sent this email around and it offered a little relief during a hectic time. It's teacher humor, but maybe you'll see the fun in it as well.

YOU MIGHT BE (or have been) A SCHOOL EMPLOYEE IF......

1. You believe the playground should be equipped with a Ritalin salt lick.

2. You want to slap the next person who says, "Must be nice to work 8 to 3:20 and have summers free."

3. You can tell if it's a full moon without looking outside.
4. You believe "shallow gene pool" should have its own check box on a report card.
5. You believe that unspeakable evils will befall you if anyone says "Boy, the kids sure are mellow today."

6. When out in public you feel the urge to snap your fingers at children you do not know and correct their behavior.
7. You have no social life between August and June.
8. Marking all A's on report cards would make your life SO easy.
9. You think people should be required to get a government permit before being allowed to reproduce.
10. You wonder how some parents ever MANAGED to reproduce.
11. You laugh uncontrollably when people refer to the staff room as the "lounge."
12. You encourage an obnoxious parent to check into charter schools or Home schooling.
13. You can't have children because there's no name you could give a child that wouldn't bring on high blood pressure the moment you heard it.
14. You think caffeine should be available in intravenous form.
15. You know you are in for a major project when a parent says, "I have a great idea I'd like to discuss. I think it would be such fun."
16. Meeting a child's parent instantly answers the question, "Why is this kid like this?"

Boys in Boxes

Boys and boxes...they just go together. Maybe that's why they both start with B! (I'm sorry. I don't know where that came from. It's been a stressful week.)

Anyway, these two critters had a great time.

Of course, they knocked themselves over. And being the loving and devoted mother that I am I took their picture instead of helping them up. Kids have to learn to take care of themselves at some point, right?!?Maybe he is doing an interpretive dance...the life cycle of a butterfly perhaps.
Naturally, only one box for two boys was not enough. I was able to find anther box and the boys colored them to make them blue houses. Cute!The following pictures were taken on an entirely different occasion. It just goes to show you can't keep a boy out of a box.

Happy Mother's Day

A Hundred years from now

....it will not matter what my
bank account was, the sort of
house I lived in or the kind of
car I drove
.....but the world may be
different because I was
important in the life of a
CHILD

Preschool Program

Last night was Kenny' preschool program. The theme was "What a Wonderful World!" Everything started out with a fried chicken dinner and potato salad dinner. Several friends of ours (including Kenny's girlfriend) from church attend this preschool, so we had great company. After dinner was an auction. That part was incredibly boring because it took a long time and the kids (ages 1-5) were all running laps around the hall. Kenny's in the Kinderskills class and he had to dress up in his Sunday best.


We moved into the program part of the evening. It started with the song A Wonderful World and the Kinderskills kids coming out carrying props from the song. Kenny carried the picture of children from around the world.


The other classes performed. It was so sweet to see the little 2 year olds and babies. Then they had a photo/video program of the Kinderskills class. They had a close up picture of each kid and then another photo. All the kids had their heads on their hands and innocent expressions on their faces. Kenny's picture was different than the others. He was resting his head on his hands with the biggest grin on his face. It was so perfect for my larger than life little man. I loved it! After the video, the kids walked in one at a time and march to the stage.

Then they had a skit. The title was Are You Smarter Than A Kinderskill? Each kid was asked a complicated question. Kenny answered the first one- what is the Pythagorean Theorem? He stood up and confidently said "A squared plus B squared equals C squared." He was darling!!!


There was a little ceremony and each kiddo received a diploma and a very cute picture Bible.
A good time was had by all- even little Nathan. He kept cheering for his "Tenny."

Sick...again

This morning Kenny woke and went downstairs to play the Cars X-box game. He was sitting on the couch with Nathan a cushion over next to him. Suddenly, he pukes all over the couch cushion between the two of them, narrowly missing Nathan. Nathan looks down and says, "Ewww. Stinky, yucky, poopy." It was cute. Anyway, we cleaned the couch up and now Kenny is playing the Cars game- occasionally pausing it to throw up. Nathan has been running a fever off and on for a few days. He doesn't have any other symptoms except crankiness so we don't know what the problem is. I woke up this morning with a sore throat- which is absolutely rotten timing. This is one of the worst times of year for me.

Which is why I am so behind on this blog. I really am sorry. The end of the school year as well as the beginning are times of total chaos. There is so much to do to finish out the year and I have to pack up to move classrooms. We have had family in town and been busy spending time with them. I promise to do better when this crazy time blows over.

Ice cream torture...explained.

Wow... What a way to start my first post. My wife's been prodding me to do this for some time now, and I've delayed. I guess it takes an act like ice cream torture to knock me out of complacency and type a few words...

So here's what really happened...

I ordered everyone's ice cream and went back to the table where everyone else was waiting. Thinking I could be silly, I explained to my son that the ice cream store had run out of ice cream (like my wife explained). He was a little perplexed, and questioned me (also like my wife said). I then proceeded to tell him that they ran out of ice cream just before they started making his (once again, as my wife said). Now here's where things get different. I had it planned out in my mind that as soon as I said those words I would IMMEDIATELY follow up that statement with a big, "Nawwwww... Daddy's just being silly! They're making you a SPECIAL ice cream cone with chocolate on it!" Unfortuneately things snowballed right before I could say this. Faster than it takes for nuclear fission to take place at the core of an atomic bomb, I saw my son go from gleeful-on-top-of-the-world happiness, to grave concern, all the way to the depths-of-despair-my-life-no-longer-has-meaning-please-let-me-die hopelessness and sorrow. To add to this, he tried sooooo hard to be soooo brave through this huge moment of cruelty. He began rubbing his eyes and fought as hard as he could to stay happy and hold back the tears. I was stunned. This silly little moment wasn't supposed to end with me driving a locomotive over my son's bare soul! I was stupefied, dumbfounded, and I felt horrible. To make matters even worse, before I could open my mouth to finish what I wanted to say to keep my son from withering away into nothing, both Grandmama and my dear sweet wife -in unison, pointed out that what I had just done was akin to me playing lawn darts with a couped-up, white dove, with a broken wing, or drowning a litter of kittens (if you're a cat person), or drowning a litter of puppies (if you're a dog person).

WELL DUUUUUHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

As soon as they were done pointing out the obvious, I got in a word edge-wise, and told Kenny that daddy was stupid and that he was getting his very own, very special ice cream cone.

Honestly, I don't know who is more scarred by this experience, my son, or me. Today after I picked the little guy up from school, we went to an ice cream store to get another very special ice cream just for him. I have plans for ice cream tomorrow, and the day after, and after that as well. I think Kenny might get sick of ice cream. So much for being 'silly'.

From now on, daddy is going to be nothing but serious when it comes to precious things like little boys' hearts, and of course, ice cream.

Go ahead, give it your best shot.

What do these pictures have in common?

Stumped. Try this one.

Alright, I'll tell you. But first you have to raise your right hand and swear on your favorite candy bar that you will not judge me.

Okay...here I go...these pictures represent the weight of the fat that has adhered itself to my waistline in the last month. Arghhh! It is so sad.

I used to have no trouble with weight. But two babies and a few years later it has become my arch enemy.

But I have a plan. And I vow here and now I am going to stick to that plan and lose the phone books on my hips. And the potatoes I added last Christmas. And then maybe the leftovers from Kenny- though that is getting a bit ambitious.

Wish me luck!

Ice Cream Torture

We went out for Mexican food and then to the good ole' DQ for ice cream. Ken and I ordered a blizzard, Nathan had a hot fudge sundae, and Kenny had a chocolate dipped cone. While waiting for our order my husband decided to have a little fun with our little man.

He said, "Now Kenny. The ice cream store is out of ice cream. They don't have anymore." Kenny got a quizzical look on his face and said, "So none of us get any ice cream." At this point my husband should have realized that Kenny was not getting the humor of the concept of an ice cream store not having ice cream. But he decided to push a little further. Daddy said, "Not exactly. They have enough ice cream for Nathan, and for Mommy's, and for mine. But they ran out when they made yours."

CRUEL! I still cannot believe he told him that. I watched poor Kenny's little face stare in disbelief at his Dad. The tears welled up in his eyes and he started sobbing. Grandmama and I both told Ken to please stop being mean. So, he explained to Kenny that he was kidding and things settled down.

Now don't be too hard on Ken. He has this thing about getting a reaction out of people. If he thinks he can get you to freak out...he will do it. The thing is that a four year old does not quite have the idea of sarcasm.

On the Boardwalk

We went down to the boardwalk for a little food and fun. The weather was perfect. We went on a week night and it was overcast. It was warm outside with a cool breeze.

We started by going to the crab house. We ate outside on the deck and enjoyed the water. I love crab legs. For how much you have to work for each bite, you have to love it. The boys had fried shrimp and enjoyed it. The train kept going by and the boys were so excited to watch it! After dinner we went over to the carnival rides. They are building a wood roller coaster! We rode the Merry-Go-Round a few times. I was holding onto Nathan and he had the biggest grin and was saying, "Whee!" Kenny rode the airplane ride by himself. Nathan wanted to ride as well, but he was too little to go alone. So I got to squeeze my ever expanding mid-section into the tiny little airplane. Ken and I rode a few other rides and then we all went on the ferris wheel. We rounded out the experience with a train ride. Of course, my little conductors LOVED the train! After a ride around the park, we wandered across the boardwalk. We had a great time. Margaret left the next morning so it was nice to have a nice night before she had to go. We loved having her here and really miss her.