crazy days

September has been crazy! I started this blog as a way to document what's going on in our family but I've been too busy to even write posts! All of that changes next week.  We are slowing down.  For some reason, September was the month of visiting friends.  It felt like summer, but instead of just having lazy days to play, we had school to contend with (among 50 other things). We LOVED seeing so many friends though, and the girls are already asking when we get to see them all again. :)

I haven't downloaded pics yet, but promise to soon.  Here is a random recap of the last few weeks for us:

The girls are loving the new school (and we are too!).  We successfully completed a few "homeschool" days, and they are quickly becoming our favorites.

Skylar's teacher used to be Belle at Disneyland so it took her a while to remember her first name.  It's so much easier to just say "Belle." :)

Reagan was nervous about starting at a new school because she was worried about all the other kids already having friends and not including her.  So we prayed that she would meet someone on the first day and make a friend.  We were in her classroom less than a minute when a mom said to me, "Are you guys new here too?" Our girls ended up being at the same table and became fast friends.  Now they are in separable and so sweet to watch.  It was neat for Reagan to see how God answers prayer.  The best part is that her new friend loves Jesus, just like Reagan.  Her mom and I are starting a mother's prayer group and hoping to see some great things happen at our little school.

I thought Bailey would miss her sisters, but she is loving the extra attention.  Of course she's still happy each day to go get Skylar.  We've used the time to do some "school" of our own and her writing skills are improving fast!  She sounded out her first word last week so she tells everyone that she can read now.  :)

I participated in my first consignment sale.  I finally parted with the rest of the baby clothes. (sniff. sniff.).  It felt good to get some bins out of the garage but the smell of the baby clothes took me right back to when they were tiny.  Don't worry, I still have two bins of "keepsake" stuff that I plan to make into a quilt for each of them.  But the rest needed to go.  I'm officially hooked on this consignment sale.  It's only twice a year, so I can save up my items and make a nice profit.

Last weekend we had a snake in the house.  Granted, it was tiny and not too scary, but still.  A snake.  In the house! Thankful for my wonderful husband that took care of it quickly.  Don't worry, it wasn't a rattlesnake, but still....a snake.

I have full laundry baskets calling my name.  Right after we go swimming, that is. :) It's HOT today!

Firsts

Yesterday was a first for us.

It was the first day of school.  At a new school.  And it was Skylar's first day of kindergarten.

We had prepared her the best way we knew how.  She can write her name, read short books, and knows how to count to 100.  More importantly, she knows when to say 'please' and 'thank you', how to raise her hand, how to follow directions, and how to be a friend.

We picked out an outfit, packed her backpack with 30 pounds of supplies, and made a snack.

The night before school started, she was getting misty-eyed.  When I asked what was wrong, she said, "I'm excited to start school, but I'm sad to grow up."

Me too baby....me too.

Yesterday was Reagan's first day of third grade.  She made a friend in the first five minutes and after school she said, "I have a feeling we're going to be best friends.  She's very polite and sweet and she loves God!"

My girls are growing up.

Lord give us the strength and wisdom to continue raising them in the way they should go.

celebrating with frozen yogurt after school!

Pretty much...

This is how I feel today:

One weekend.

Having just finished the Easter weekend, I can't help but be introspective about it.  It's humbling to remember that He did it for me.  That kind of love is just unfathomable.

I've been thinking a lot about what that Friday must have been like.  I know it didn't feel like a "Good Friday" to those that loved and followed Jesus back then.  What sorrow they must have felt. What defeat.

That Saturday could not have been any better.  Even though the "worst" was over, they were still reeling from the tragedy of the day before.  They didn't know that Sunday was coming.  But it did!

That weekend continues to play out in our daily lives.  Maybe you've just endured a Friday.  The sky is black and you feel hopeless.  Or maybe you're in the midst of a Saturday.  Reality is sinking in and you're desperate for good news.  Rest assured, Sunday is coming.

"Sorrow may last for a night, but joy comes in the morning." Psalm 30:5

We do all the baskets and eggs and chocolate bunnies and pretty dresses, but our girls know why we celebrate Easter (in the most age appropriate way of course).  As a child I used to wonder why we didn't get a bunch of gifts on Easter, like we did on Christmas.  They were both "Jesus" holidays, so why does one get more attention and hoopla than the other?

As an adult, I've realized that Easter IS the biggest gift.  There's no way we could top it.  We need to just accept it, and be grateful.  How can you compete with grace?

In college as an RA, I had a student that had a plaque over her dorm room door.  It read:

"Good morning! This is God.  

Don't worry, I've already taken care of today.  

Please don't go messing it up by trying to do things yourself."

I imagine that God would add to that by saying, "By the way....I've got tomorrow covered too."

It's a good reminder for each of us. Don't worry.  But I still do.

I was worried about the girls getting into the charter school we wanted.  The week before the lottery I called to find out the exact date we would hear anything and they informed me that there were absolutely no openings in third grade.  That meant Reagan would be wait-listed regardless of the lottery.

We discussed a bunch of different scenarios if Skylar got in and Reagan did not: homeschooling, two different schools next year, taking her out mid-year if there was an opening, etc. etc. etc.  Then we prayed.

The day of the lottery we got a phone call from the school administrator.  She said "Just calling to let you know that we have a spot for Skylar in the Fall!" I started screaming and jumping up and down (in true girl fashion).  Then she went on to say, "And we've decided to make room for Reagan and increase the class size by one so that she can come here too." That's when I lost it.  Tears of joy.

God knew.  He had already taken care of it.

Why do we worry?

I know, I know...we're human.  We try but we fail again and again.  But that's ok.  God knows that too.

 Today, I'm just thankful for grace and the promise of Sunday.

Holly-Days!

This lil' old blog has been quiet for a while.  But that just means we've been having lots of fun! Well, mostly.  Brian had surgery three days before Christmas but he's recovering well and already back to work.

The girls had a fantastic Christmas and now we are working to put things away (toys, laundry, Christmas decorations, etc.).  I haven't run in WAY too long and I'm starting to feel the effects, so I'm starting that back up again soon too! I don't know what it is about post-Christmas, but it always makes me want to purge, organize, clean, and decorate.  You can bet there will be plenty of that going on here as well.  Meanwhile we're enjoying the rain (and we've had plenty!!) and just staying inside.

I've been trying to jot down a few of the funny things the girls have said so I can revive the Friday Funnies, (look for a new year's edition soon)!

I can tell you all we've been up to, but I know you'd much rather see it!

 Reagan's classroom Christmas party:

 Mom's birthday a few days before Christmas (and a delicious chocolate cake made by my sis-in-law):

Walking "Christmas Card Lane" (and a rare family pic):

Delivering cookies to daddy's office:

Reagan and my nephew Dylan (best buddies). He was teaching her all about something called a "Nintendo DS" :)

 Christmas Eve at my mom and dad's house:

Christmas morning at our house. The girls all got a giant dollhouse to share.  Love Reagan's face (and the fact that she's throwing paper in her baby sister's face). :)

 Reagan REALLY wanted a globe for Christmas (something that's easy to find for cheap in August.  In December, not so much).  Thank you Craigslist!!

Skylar with her new Princess bike (complete with a baby seat on back)!

Skylar and Bailey wearing the slings that Reagan made for them!

Mom opening the quilt I made.  She's going to hate this picture, but I just love it!

The girls playing with their new dollhouse:

Matching Christmas jammies!

Our tree on Christmas night.  We have some crazy LED lights!

 

We hope your Christmas was blessed and your home is filled with warm memories! We are gearing up for a busy January (with every week/weekend already booked!), my return to teaching, and squeezing in some playtime too! :) 

Happy New Year!!

Big Sis

I've been remiss in blogging.  I feel like a broken record.
We've been busy.
We've been busy.
We've been busy.

There are a number of days where my heart wants to blog, but my head knows that the sink full of dishes takes precedence (especially to keep the great ant invasion of 2010 at bay!).

I could do a looooong blog post to update you, but there are so many times that my girls get lumped into one group that I thought it would be fun to highlight each one individually this week.

Reagan's had an eventful couple of weeks.

She's been losing teeth.

And winning awards at school

Making us proud....and getting her ears pierced.

She had been asking to get her ears pierced for a while but her reasoning was always "because my friends have theirs done." We didn't want to set a precedence for "when everyone else has something.." so when she came to us and asked to get her ears pierced because she felt like she was old enough to take care of them herself, we told her we would consider it.  Then we found out she was getting student of the month in the first month of school, for the second year in a row.  So we rewarded her with getting her ears pierced.  Her teacher said the nicest things about her at the awards assembly.  Her award was for academic achievement because she breezes through everything.  

Unfortunately the fact that things are too easy has been an issue lately.  Reagan started to say that school was too easy and boring.  She said she was frustrated that the other kids were not grasping the concepts and that she had to spend "so much time" on things that she already knew.  I know this is part of being in a classroom setting, so we have actually had to deal with this every year.   Last year's teacher was not as willing to challenge Reagan.  Instead she offered her more homework.  More of the same stuff she already knew.  Two hours of homework is not a challenge....it's a burden.  We are so thankful that after talking to her teacher this year that she was SO receptive to changing things up for Reagan.  

We talked about homeschool and after talking to Reagan about it, she said "I think I'd rather be bored at school." I should have saved that one for Friday Funnies, but I just had to share!! The girls are so different.  Skylar would LOVE to homeschool.  Reagan, not so much.  

Thankfully for now things are good and she is being challenged.  We're praying about next year.  I'm learning that we are going to have to just take it one year at a time, pray for the best teachers, and stay super involved.  

There could be worse things than being a smart girl! :) 

Really?

Unfortunately I find myself asking this question more and more.  "Really?" Usually followed by "Seriously?" Maybe it's my age (and the wisdom that comes with being mid-30's), or maybe there truly are more and more ridiculous things in the world.  Maybe it's because I took a critical thinking course in college.  Or maybe it's the fact that I was blessed with common sense.  Either way, I'm sure I'm not alone.

Two weeks ago I had to fill out paperwork for Reagan's school.  Again.  The same information they asked for last year.  Again.  Part of me wanted to write on the information card "nothing has changed..." but I know that they probably already chucked last year's info card so it would have been futile.  I dutifully filled out our address, phone numbers, places of employment (I'm COO of Homefront Enterprises in case you were wondering), allergies, blood type, social security numbers, ebay and paypal login names, and pets living at home.  Ok, so maybe I am exaggerating a bit but you get the idea.  Then, I got to the Disaster Emergency Preparedness sheet.
 It said, "In the event of a disaster (i.e. fire, flood, terrorist attack, etc.), please provide FIVE in state family members/friends and THREE out of state family members/friends that we could release your child to."

Really?
Seriously?

If you think about it for a minute (it really doesn't take much longer), IF something has happened to both parents, and all FIVE of our in state relatives and friends,....I'm fairly certain that the elementary school won't be the only building left standing in all of Southern California.  And if something DID happen to our entire state, and somehow the school was left standing, I'm sure it wouldn't be really easy for my aunt in Kentucky to come pick up my daughter.

Who makes these forms?
I don't know what's worse...the fact that they have to ask these questions, or the fact that I filled it out.

Let's all just roll our eyes and shake our heads.

First and Second

Our summer is over.

It's the first day of school.  First day of second grade for Reagan.
She's growing so fast!

This morning she said "This year is going to be different from last year." I said, "Of course.  It's good to have change.  Different teachers do things in different ways, but I think you'll like having a new class and a new teacher." Then she was quiet for a few seconds and then said, "Yah, it's good when school changes.  But if next summer is just like this one, that would be ok with me."

My thoughts exactly.  We had an awesome summer.  

At the beginning of the summer, I had Reagan make a list of all the things she wanted to do before going back to school.  With only eight weeks, I wasn't sure we would fit it all in.  We only missed one thing.  Not too bad for a list with 18 things on it.  Reagan also managed to read 32 chapter books.  Thank the Lord for the library!

She has matured so much in the past year.  She's asking more mature questions, becoming even more helpful, and independent.  

And even more beautiful.  Inside and out.  Only 4 more hours until we go pick her up and hear all about her first day (over our traditional first day of school ice cream of course). 

Random Wednesday

Why does the week before Spring Break always feel chaotic?  Is it because I know that there are days of sleeping-in? It's like the weeks before you have a baby; you know it's coming but seems like it takes forever to get here.

I actually haven't even logged on to the computer since Sunday! I had over 25 blog entries to catch up with on my reader.  I have lots of blog post ideas but not the time to write them.  So today you get some random snippets about our home.

Reagan lost her first tooth!! She was so excited! It was VERY wiggly for a few days and I told her "why don't you just grab and pull it out?" So she did.  Easy peezy! The tooth fairy left her a gold dollar coin in her "tooth box" that was on her nightstand.  (It was also really dark and the tooth fairy almost woke her up by dropping the porcelain top to the box onto her nightstand and making a large crash!) The following morning, she asked if she could put her gold coin in her BGMC (mission fund for our church) box.  What a sweet and giving heart she has!

Since Reagan lost her tooth (and has been getting attention for it), Skylar has decided that she wants to lose a tooth too.  She eats apples almost daily to try and make her teeth wiggly.  I don't have the heart to tell her she has at least a year until her teeth start to fall out.

We finally got rid of the cold bug in our house...only to have it revisit us this week.  I'm praying it's just a short, last hoo-rah before spring finally sets in.

Speaking of spring, we are loving the warmer weather and spending more time outside (and the fact that it's lighter later).  I can almost smell summer.

I spent most of last weekend pulling weeds (and dead trees) out of our backyard.  It's no where near finished.  It's a much larger job than I ever imagined.  I had to stop because our trash can was full (and my back hurt like crazy!). After all the weeding is done, I still need to re-plant, and mulch.  *sigh*

I haven't forgotten about the "Ten Dollar Healthy Dinners".  I just want to do it for an entire week so look for it starting Monday.

After the week of recipes and ideas, I will host a giveaway in celebration of our one year blogiversary and over 100 posts! Woo hoo!

Tomorrow is Reagan's "Open House" at school.  She is so thrilled to show us what she's been working on.  It's no coincidence either that the Book Fair just "happens" to be going on.  I guess we will have to make a stop there to check it out on our way home.

I was able to find more peppermint mocha creamer so the crazy week has been a little easier to handle. :)

I hope your week has been going well!
Be blessed!

Am I Crazy?

Please forgive the blog appearance.  I'm in the process of renovating.
Now, on to my post:

It's all over facebook:
"kids go back to school tomorrow-hurray!"
"I'm so excited that we go back to our routine tomorrow!"
"The last two weeks went fast but I'm so glad I can send the kids off tomorrow and stop coming up with things for them to do!"

Our district is different.  The kids start the second week of August so they can have three weeks off at Christmas.  That means while everyone else goes back to school tomorrow, we have one more week.

I'M SO EXCITED!

Am I crazy? Why is everyone so excited for their kids to go back to school? I love having Reagan home.  I've made sure she has been doing her reading and practicing writing stories, but we've just been enjoying family time.  The week before Christmas is always a whirlwind.  Then last week my mom had her stroke, so it feels like it flew by as well.  This week we are going to have lots of fun (and sleeping in!).  I have a few things in mind, but mostly we're going to just hang out.

I've often wondered if I would enjoy home-schooling because I genuinely love having my kids at home, but what I've realized is that I love having them home without obligations.  I like the separation of school and home.  Plus, Reagan really likes school.  I'm open to the option later, but for now, she is thriving on the social part and really learning more than I ever imagined! (You may remember me expressing concern over the lack of challenge she was receiving.  Rest assured that has been remedied and she is thriving with the challenges!)

This week it's just us girls! I'm so excited!

Liar Liar pants on fire!

As a mother, it warms my heart to hear the words, "I have a new best friend!" I was worried that my little first grader would be shy and take a while to make new friends. She was so accustomed to the friends that she had made in kindergarten. We watched her class video (yes, the one I made), at least once a day the week before school started. She was mourning the loss of her friends. So, I was thrilled when she started making "new" friends. But one of these "new" friends in particular is beginning to cause some strife in our home.

It started with, "Jade won't be in school tomorrow because she is going to Africa." Really? She's going to Africa? I don't think anyone would be surprised to hear that Jade was at school the next day. Apparently her dad told her she couldn't go. What a meanie. Then, I heard that Jade is taking piano lessons too. They just happen to be on the same day as Reagan. And wouldn't you know...apparently from the same teacher. It's odd that i have never seen her at Miss Barbara's house. I've also been told that Jade's mom kills animals to make fur coats (101 Dalmations anyone?), her brother (whose 11) goes parachuting, and her dad won a kajillion dollars on tv. Yesterday was Jade's birthday so today she told Reagan that EVERYONE else in the class already got her a present, so Reagan needed to get her one too. I explained, ever so gently, that we don't buy gifts for people unless we get an invitation to a birthday party.

Do you catch my drift? I'm beginning to think that miss Jade is a storyteller. I keep saying "she's only six," but this "only six" year old little girl is talking to my naive six year old and getting her to believe them too.

Any advice for this momma? Have your kids ever been friends with other kids that tend to stretch the truth? How do you explain discernment to a six year old?

So far, the best I've come up with is, "Jade makes stuff up." Oy vey!

Up to speed

I know...it's been a while.
I still haven't found my cable for my camera. I know it's in the garage somewhere, but I'm a scaredy-cat and don't like to be in there when I KNOW that there are mice in there. ICK! I will find it soon. And when I do...be prepared for a photo post dating back to June :D

I wanted to wait until I could post some photos to write a post, but I just couldn't stay away!

We were VERY SUCCESSFUL in having fun while our cousins were in town three weeks ago. We went to the zoo, seaworld, disney, outlet mall, mt. soledad, seaport village, and needed a few days to recover from the "fun."

Reagan started back to school last week. Part of me is mourning our summer because it feels like it just went way too fast. I loved having her home. In our pj's. Just hanging out. As the oldest, she and I don't get as much "one on one" time as I would like. So, I was trying to make an effort to get the two little ones down for naps at the same time so she and I could do "big girl" stuff. I miss that time now.

She seems to like first grade so far. I'm holding my opinion until the year gets going more. So far, I've been unimpressed with the homework. It seems like busy work to me. For example, Reagan is reading at nearly a second grade level. Her homework sheet this week has "sight words" on it that I'm PRAYING are just review. And the sentence she needs to "master" without help was "The cat sat." Seriously? Again, just praying it's review. If it continues to be too easy, we may have to ask for additional work for her that is actually a challenge. *sigh*

The saga as of lately has been our mice issue. I had one dart out from behind the trash cans about a month ago. I figured he was gone until I saw him (or another one) again later in the garage. We set some traps in the garage and caught two. Then I started seeing bits of drywall and wood shavings coming out from under our cabinets. Nesting in the cabinets. Fantastic. A few mornings I could even hear them "gnawing" on something next to the dishwasher. So we set traps under the sink. It took a few days but finally caught one there. Then, there was one dropping in the laundry room. Set a trap there and caught another one. Well, B set the traps. Not me. I really should stop reading all the stories online about people dealing with mice because it freaks me out. But I want to know where they are coming in so I can "plug" it up! Especially before Fall sets in and they REALLY try to find some warmth! I've read stories about people living with mice for years and years on end. I don't think my psyche can handle that! I don't want to be near the kitchen....or the laundry room...or the garage. Which tends to put a damper on cooking, cleaning, laundry, and unpacking :) I wonder when I will feel comfortable again. I wish I wasn't so allergic to cats :D

On to something more joyous! The baby has started talking a bunch! And cutting teeth. I prefer the talking. She got four molars in two weeks and now is working on those eye teeth. She says "mommy" and "daddy" clear as can be, as well as "more", "yaya", "uh-oh", "ball", "baby" and "bye bye". But last week she started saying "two three" and then jumping off of anything she can climb (ottoman, couch, chair, kitchen table)! Now, whenever I am doing anything, if I hear "two three" i have to stop and go running to catch her. It's a fun game. really. :) At least she gives fair warning. But I do love her unconditional trust that I am going to catch her. She just leaps. Puts her arms in the air and jumps. I wish I had that same unconditional trust in Christ. But I am guilty of questioning sometimes. I know it's a journey to becoming the person that God wants me to be. And I appreciate you all coming along with me!

I promise to post more frequently now that you all are up to speed. Really. I do. :)