Mommy Tales

Photo Card

2011-11-30T19:34:00.001-08:00

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One Month Old

2011-11-26T18:53:00.001-08:00

Chase is now one month old (a week ago)! He weighs about 10.5 lbs., wears size 1 diapers, and is completely out of Newborn clothes and in 0-3 month clothing. He eats every 2-2.5 hours, and is good about going right back to sleep after his midnight feedings. He is much more alert during the day, and is a pretty calm baby!

With his giraffe from Blake at about 1 week and 1 month!

Chase's Birth Story

2011-11-03T13:22:00.000-07:00

After a long, tiring pregnancy, I was induced on Oct. 19, 2011 at 39 weeks, 4 days. I was pregnant one week longer than I was with Blake.

I had been measuring big from early on, so we expected a big baby. At 36 weeks, Chase measured 7 lbs., but the doctor said he was closer to 8 1/2, so we scheduled induction. I was 3 cm dilated then, so we were both sure he would come before then.

The last few weeks were exhausting. I was so achy, tired, but couldn't sleep more than 4 hours at a time. I was just ready to be finished being pregnant.

We got to the hospital at 5:45 on Wednesday, Oct. 19, and waited. The nurses had it written down that I would be there at 7:30, so they waited until shift change to start anything. About 7 my nurse came in and tried to start the IV. After poking for 10 minutes, we switched hands and got it in right away. We started pitocin at 8, and the doctor came in about 8:30. She checked me and I was still 3 cm, 30% effaced, so it was a waiting game. Contractions started, very inconsistently, and at 1 the doctor came in to check me again and break my water. The contractions started picking up. By 2, I was ready for the epidural. Dr. Craig came in and gave me the epidural, and things were good to go by 2:35. I tried to rest, but Blake got to the hospital about 3:15, so no rest for me! I visited with Blake, but had to ask them all to leave at 4 because I was having super duper pressure, and needed a booster to the epidural. I got that and just hung out for a little. The pressure became stronger, and at about 5, the doctor came in to check me again. I was fully dilated and we did a practice push. My doctor asked me to wait for her to come back to push again since she had 2 other patients ready to deliver at the same time! We waited while they got every thing set up and at 5:15 she came back in. We did 3 sets of 3 pushes, and Chase was here! He weighed 7 lbs. 10.8 oz, and was measured 22" long. He was a lot smaller than we thought, but is absolutely perfect.

He is an exact copy of Blake at birth.

Chase

Blake

Things are going perfect, and I am really enjoying being home with my boys!

L&D visit #1

2011-10-03T16:12:00.000-07:00

Friday night, I went to bed late--after 11. I woke up at 12:45 when Joe came to bed, and then I couldn't go back to sleep. I was having contractions fairly regularly, so I got up at 3:30 to start timing. I timed contractions from 3:30 until about 5, took a bath, timed them again until 6:30, and finally called the doctor at 7ish. I was contracting every 5 minutes with them lasting about a minute long. I thought it was time! We took Blake to Joe's mom, and headed to the hospital. I got hooked up to the monitors, and the nurse with the biggest hands in the county checked me. I was still 3 cm, so we started walking. We walked the halls for an hour and got hooked up again to the monitors. I was contracting every 3 minutes and they were pretty strong. Not strong enough though. She-man checked me again, and I was still at 3 cm. I got sent home with a prescription for sleeping pills. Joe and I ran some errands, bought the last few things I wanted and got home about 3. We were both asleep by 4, and slept until 9 a.m. It was nice to rest that long, but I was super groggy yesterday.

No real contractions yesterday, and nothing today to speak of. I am crampy today though, and my pelvis is super sore. I went on 2 long walks in hopes to encourage this little guy to move on out. Since I was induced with Blake, I don't know how it starts, or what a natural contraction feels like. Keep your fingers crossed that he comes sooner, rather than later!

Maternity Leave

2011-09-29T06:48:00.000-07:00

I have begun my maternity leave. No, I am not due yet, but I really couldn't be fully functional at work anymore. My hips have been so sore, I was having tons of contractions, and to top it off, a C.R.A.Z.Y. parent screamed at me last week in the classroom because I asked her to get a tardy slip when they were 15 minutes late. Really??? Anyway, I am home now, and relaxing....or so I am supposed to be.

There's so much that needs to be done (not really) and I have been trying to chip away at it.

Yesterday I had an ultrasound, and our nameless baby weighs 7 lbs.

I am dilated to 3 cm and not effaced at all. He is still pretty high, and I have tons of fluid, just like with Blake. I started my walking routine this morning. I really don't know how far I went, but I was out of the house for 35 minutes. I was cramping a bit during the walk, and hope this means it's making him more ready to come.

We have a tenative induction scheduled for Oct. 19 (not soon enough) but hopefully he will come before then! We'll see!!

Why I love Kindergarten

2011-04-08T15:42:00.000-07:00

Some times I forget that 5 & 6 year olds take things literally. Today I laughed at something one of my babies said.

We were on the playground and someone had brought the un-mentionable to school. GUM. Yep, gum. Whoa! Serious offense. It was a kiddo in the other Kinder class. Another student came to me and said that Ed* was chewing some of that gum that Peter* had and then he swallowed it.

I called Ed over and said, "A little birdie came to me and said that you were chewing some of Peter's gum and swallowed it. Is that true?"

Ed looked at me like I had 2 heads and said, "What? A bird was talkin' to you?"

I almost fell off the chair I wasn't supposed to be sitting in! Hilarious! He has no concept that I was talking about gum. I love my babies!

Today I registered Blake for Kindergarten at our neighborhood campus. It was late, and at dismissal, so I rushed a little but we got everything filled out and he's all set for Kinder at Fuentes!

10 weeks

2011-03-30T16:14:00.000-07:00

I turned 10 weeks on Saturday. Only 30 to go! I am already starting to show, well, not starting, I am. No hiding it now!

We went to the doctor on Tuesday to have an ultrasound, and saw the baby moving all around. It was awesome and I was so excited to be able to share with Blake.

Today at school, I had the kids guess what I had growing in me that would need the doctor to check. I got bones, healthy food, carrots, flowers, a bean stalk, and a dragon. I told them they would find out at the end of the day, and I would share a picture of it. At the end of the day, I put the ultrasound picture up on the projector and one kiddo yelled out, "What!!! You have a rock growing in you?" The other kids kind of giggled and then said, "No, silly, it's a baby." I pointed out the body parts and they were excited. I am excited to share it with them. I contemplated waiting until someone noticed, but I know 5 year olds pretty well, and I don't think anyone would have guessed it. I did get some questions about how the baby got in there, and how it was going to come out. Anytime I get those type of questions, my response is, "Talk to your mom".

I have been feeling pretty good this week. Just tired, but I know its just my body telling me to relax! I had an emotionally stressful job with Blake, and this one is emotional and physically stressful. I have been coming home early, but Some days I can't...like today. I was at school until 4:45. YUCK!

Sicko

2011-02-22T15:08:00.001-08:00

I woke up yesterday morning, got ready for work, then looked at Blake. He looked miserable. Joe stayed home with him, and I took today off. He was acting fine, but looked HORRIBLE! At 10, his fever spiked again, so I called and made him an appointment. Turns out he has a double ear infection. Poor baby! I hate it when he's sick, and today was the 4th time THIS year he's been to the doctor. Last year, we went twice. Once for his well-check, and the other for his annual ear infection in December. We got some yummy Augmentin, and headed home. We both took a 2 hour nap, and feel great!

13 more school days until Spring Break!

Surprises

2011-02-16T15:18:00.000-08:00

Joe and I have been trying to make a baby for a long, long time (since Aug. 09). I know every weird detail about a girls cycle and when the best time to do the deed to get pregnant. But it just didn't happen. In Oct., I went to a new OB-GYN since my old one retired. I told her of our struggles and she said, "Well, great! Let's have blood work, blood work, and more blood work done, an HSG (weird, painful thing where they put a tube in your cervix, blow it up, and inject you with dye to see if your tubes are blocked), and then Clomid.

I took my first round of Clomid in December. They say there are some side effects and the most apparent ones were hot flashes--boy do I feel bad for pre-menopausal women, and mood swings. Boy were the mood swings CRAZY!!! At least it was over the 2 weeks I was off at christmas so only Joe got to experience them. January rolls around, and bam! I was pregnant. We were excited, set an appointment, and then one week later, Jan. 15, I started bleeding. We went to the Emergency Room, I was poked and prodded by a very loud, gum smacking tech, and found out that I had a "pregnant looking uterus" but there was nothing in it. My hormones levels were super low (11). I went home to a very heavy, long period.

I went into the doctor on the 18th. She says the same thing, a miscarriage. Actually a chemical pregnancy. You are actually pregnant, but the egg doesn't implant. There's nothing I could have done to prevent or cause it, and the doc says we are free to try our next cycle after this month.

Fast forward to last week. Blake and I were sick, and we were home on Monday and Wednesday. On Wednesday, we watched Cars, and I was eating one of my favorite snacks--Buffalo Chicken Dip. I couldn't eat it. I almost threw up just at the smell. Anyone who knows me knows I am sensitive to smells, so the vinegar in the Frank's Red Hot was too much. I was disappointed, but thought it was my illness.

Some friends of ours are moving back to Florida, and were having a going away bar-b-que and Ken makes the most delish margaritas I have ever had, so I wanted to be sure. Saturday morning I get up, pee on that wonderful stick and wait. I fully expected it to say "Not Pregnant", but this is what I got

WHAT!!!!! I wasn't due to start until Tuesday, and last month, I tested 3 days late and that was my first positive. I took another test on Monday afternoon...very dark positive line! I also had blood work done on Monday and when the nurse called on Tuesday, she said I was "very pregnant".

We are still cautious, and worried about miscarriage, but with great numbers and continual peeing on a stick should keep me occupied until Feb. 28th (my first appointment).

shhhhhhhh.....no comments on Facebook.

Week 5 Day 2

2010-11-07T14:26:00.000-08:00

Today, I participated in my 2nd workout of Week 5 of the C25K by completing a 5k run/walk benefiting the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. My great work friends and Joe were there to cheer me on. Carolyn is training for a Marathon, and decided to be my running buddy and we ran together. I ran as long as I could, stopped for a wonderful potty break behind an industrial dumpster, walked a bit, and sprinted (well, at least a sprint for me) to the finish line. It was a great feeling to run full stride the last 1/8 mile and hear my friends cheer for me to finish strong. My time was 45 minutes 11 seconds. I couldn't have asked for a better partner while running. She talked me through my pain, told me when to regulate my breathing, drop my shoulders and let me stop when I needed to. Who knew I could run 90% of it with only 13 "trainings" before hand? I am super excited and can't wait for the next one with no walking breaks or potty breaks!

And, yesterday, I turned 32.

My mother-in-law asked how my "telethon" went. Yesterday, we found out that dad-in-law has been using some horse cream for his muscle spasms, and taking the small, white pain killers he got from the same friend. Oh how I love them!

My mom, on the other hand, said she would come, but backed out last minute, then went to IKEA!

4 days to 5k

2010-11-03T16:41:00.000-07:00

My birthday is in 3 days. I will be 32. I am running a 5k on Sunday--it's just 4 days away. I planned on running at least 4 days this week, but Monday, I felt, well, pooped. Yesterday it was raining as I stepped outside, and today Joe has school. So here I am, 4 days away, and haven't run in as many. Tomorrow I am getting new shoes and I am super stoked. I WILL run tomorrow and at least on Saturday. I am going to try to do Friday also, but not sure.

When I decided to do the Susan G. Komen 5k with Fabuleslie I excitedly told my mom. She said, "Wow! That's the day after your birthday and I will be there." Tonight, I told her I was starting at 7:30 and she said, "Oh, I can't come that early." Unfortunately, Fabuleslie may not be able to run with me.

I tracked my Saturday run, and in about 31 minutes, I ran 2.53 miles. That came down to about a 12:14 minute mile. I should be done in under 4k minutes! Then, it's out to breakfast!

Running

2010-10-23T07:46:00.001-07:00

This morning I ran day 3 of week 3. I had a hard time finishing, but blame the head cold I am fighting right now.

I don't know if I should start Week 4 tomorrow or repeat week 3.

Disappointment

2010-10-22T16:15:00.000-07:00

The one person in the world who I should have been able to trust for my entire life has disappointed me once again. Webster (who is he anyway...) defines it "to fail to meet the hope of". Boy is that right on.

After more than 20 years of disappointment, I shouldn't be surprised, right? Nope, I still am.

This time it involves my kid.

How can you be constipated and have diarrhea at the same time? Um, don't you remember what you just told me 10 words ago?

All I can do is make sure I never do this to my baby!

No bueno

2010-10-07T17:47:00.000-07:00

I have been crabby for over 24 hours. I was feeling better, then I had to sit through traffic. Stupid traffic. Then we went to HEB. Stupid HEB. We got home and I forced myself to run. Felt good until I had to R.U.N. Knees hurt, ankles hurt, shins hurt, back hurt, feet hurt every flippin' thing on my body hurt. Something even happened to my sports bra. My boobs were feeling quite heavy. And to top it off. My right ear bud stopped working. Not fun to listen to lawn mowers on one side, and Britney on the other.

It's now 7:50 and I wanted to be in bed already. I give myself 15 mintues then I am there!

Good Feelin'

2010-10-06T17:08:00.000-07:00

On Monday, I went to a new OB-GYN. She is young, cute and so sweet. Joe and I have been trying to get pregnant for over a year, and she is really optimistic that we will get pregnant soon. We are starting basic testing now. I had a lovely trans-vaginal ultrasound yesterday and the doctor called today to say my uterus and ovaries look perfect. One thing down. Many more to go. I am having bloodwork next Monday, Friday and then again in about 3 weeks.

I just broke down a bit ago. I found out on Facebook that my sister in law is pregnant with #3. She and her "boyfriend" have 2 kids 16 months apart. The oldest is 6 months younger than Blake and about 18 months delayed from his chronological age. He has about 30 words, no other functional speech. It's not a disability though...it's parents and family who don't ever talk to him. They treat him like a little animal and don't interact with him. The youngest, same thing!

Anyway, I sat on my pity potty for a bit, and felt sorry for myself. Then I said to myself that God has a bigger plan for us. I just need to be patient. We need to be patient.

And the dog just farted. Whooo...that was ugly.

C25K

2010-10-03T18:07:00.000-07:00

Have you heard? I'm a runner. Yep, me! A runner! I officially started the Couch to 5K running program. I just finished week 2 day 1 and I feel great! Who knew that after 1 day of running (last week) I would be motivated to do it every day? Last week, I had to force myself a day off because I am so excited about running! Thanks to Fabuleslie, I am running! My first 5k is the day after my 32nd birthday. What a great way to start my uphill climb to 35.

This week's advice is to keep a journal of anything I want. So, here I am journaling about stuff.

We went to a wedding in Hunt, TX this weekend, and I drank too much. For some reason, I thought eating lunch and then 8 hours later drinking a whole bottle of wine and taking shots of 100% Agave Tequila was a good idea. It was fun, but whoa, I shouldn't drink like that. This morning our friends were telling me some of the amazing things I did and said in my drunken stupor. For example.....after leaving the door of the condo open, "Well, P--now you have 73 roaches under your bed. Yes, 73. I counted. I'm a kindergarten teacher and I practice counting to 100 every day and I'm real good at it." There were no roaches under the bed. We saw 1 water bug and P freaked out! Guess that's where I got that idea. Apparently when we left the reception, I yelled, "Hey! I didn't say goodbye to Heather", and ran over to her. I started to booty dance with her, grabbed the bottle of champagne out of her hand, and tipped it up and started chugging it. It wasn't until the fizz hit me that I stopped. I walked over to Joe and he wondered why I was wet. Well, duh--I stole champagne from the bride! Good times my friend!

Tonight it was cool and breezy. I went out to run a little later than normal, and it got dark on me pretty fast. I don't really like being outside after dark by myself, so I will just have to make sure I am out of the house earlier! I would really like to run in the mornings, but I already get up at 5 or so, and can't see getting up any earlier!

Phooey

2010-08-30T15:25:00.000-07:00

Today I got a notice that my compressor on the car was recalled....until 60k miles. I had it replaced (and paid a $100 deductible) at 65k. I called and tried to talk real sweet to the Mazda customer service center, but NOPE. Can't reimburse me. Oh-well, at least I tried, right?

Shhhhh...don't tell anyone. I bought Naturalizer shoes and I LOVE THEM! Who am I ????? I don't wear those "teacher" shoes, or "mom" shoes. Um...now I do! They are somewhat cute (for work) and oh.so.comfortable. After school today on the way to potty for the first time, I realized that I didn't even feel my feet aching. I will buy another pair when pay day rolls around.

Conversation with Cookoo bird today...

Me, "Do you math Teacher Editions?"

Her, "Yes, of course."

Me, "Where did you get them?"

Her, "I had them from last year."

Me, "Did you have them on Friday when I asked you about them?"

Her, "Yes."

Me, "Then why did you tell me you didn't have them."

Her, "Because I didn't."

could go on and on...I just left it at that.

Another conversation

Her, "OOOOh, I lost my lunch money."

Teacher #3, "Why don't you just put money on your account?"

Her, "Oh, no, I don't trust them and I can't eat that food anyway--you know I had cancer."

Me, "You don't trust the cafeteria ladies to put your money on an account for you."

Her, "No, I didn't say that...I can't eat the food, I had cancer."

Teacher #4, "I found $2 on the floor, is it yours?"

Her, "Oh, yes! Thank you so much!"

Then, she proceeds to buy a Diet Dr. Pepper, and a bag of Ghardettos.

Um...you can't eat the *somewhat* balanced food in the cafeteria, but DP and Ghardettos are OK???

First Week of School

2010-08-28T17:16:00.001-07:00

This week went great! Blake has been a trooper, just going along with what's happening, and learning the new routine. I have to say that I love, love, LOVE having him right down the hall. It has cut about 25 minutes off my morning commute, and about 35 in the afternoon. And, I am able to work a little later, not worrying that he's been away from me too long. Only con is that he wants to eat cafeteria lunches every day. He has a calendar, and wants to check it every morning to see what is for lunch. I got the letter today saying we were DENIED for free or reduced lunch, and I am really sad about it. $2.25 for lunch and $1.25 for breakfast get expensive pretty quick. I knew we wouldn't qualify for it, but didn't know he would enjoy eating from the cafe so much!

My class has been amazing. I have 14 little sweeties, and 1 little girl with big attitude. She tantrumed yesterday because she had an accident. I kind of lost it, and told her, "Everyone of us has peed in our pants before. Do you think I cry when it happens? You are 5 and in Kindergarten, we don't cry like that. Dry your eyes, and take care of your business and meet us in the cafeteria." I felt bad, but really? You think you can scream at me to go get your back pack??? Um...no...not how it works.

My days are long, but the only frustration I have had is with adults in our hall. There is a teacher who I will call Ms. Lippy--you know--from Billy Madison? OMG! I can see my self punching her in the face EVERY DAY!!!!! She called me a genius because--get this--I KNOW HOW TO PLUG A PHONE IN. She couldn't figure out how to put the cord into the back of the phone. She jammed it in sideways. Really???? I should just blog for a week all the wonderful things she does. Maybe I will do that next week. Should be interesting.

2010-08-11T14:22:00.000-07:00

Boy am I pooped!

I went to school for a meeting on Monday, and worked in my classroom for about 4 hours. I went back today and finished organizing an arranging! Blake and I were there for about 5 1/2 hours today. Everything is ready....except a little decorating. That can be done quick next week, though.

On the way to the Vital Statistics office (which, by the way, is hidden) to get Blake's birth certificate I noticed that the a/c is on #3, and I am still warm. Oh, great! My a/c is out on my car. I called Mazda, and they said it may or may not be covered by the extended warranty. We'll find out tomorrow.

I did some sneaky work, but Blake is coming to my school for Pre-K this year. He is excited and so am I!!! Tomorrow, we will buy all of his school supplies!

have you seen this video?

2010-08-05T15:04:00.001-07:00

Help! I am looking for a video for a friend. It is a woman bringing home a new husband and relating it to what it is like for a child who is getting a new sibling. It is hilarious! If you can find it, add the link to the comments.

My summer is slowly coming to an end. I HAVE to work on Monday, then will probably go in at least 1 more day to work before the official end. Professional development. Yay. It starts on the 16th.

This summer has been a long, relaxing time. Blake is definitely ready to go back to school. He gets to go to Pre-K at my school this year! I am so excited! It will cut my morning commute down by 30 minutes and save me at least 100 miles a week! Whoo-hoo!

What??? Only 5 weeks of vacay left??

2010-07-11T16:00:00.000-07:00

I apparently suck at adding pics. Let me know if these are cropped and I will try and fix them.

Yesterday, we went to Killeen to visit my new niece, Gabrielle Jean, and attend a wonderful 90th birthday party for my Great-Uncle Bob. Here's how we started.

Funny faces to make sure the batteries were working..

I will not smile again.

Ok, one more time.

Here she is!

Baby smiles

I don't think I have seen my mom that happy in a very long time.

Blake loves his newest cousin, Gaby...but quickly got tired of her. As soon as the pictures were done, he started to push her away and say he was finished. Of course, he was a nut at great-grandma's house, but what can you expect?

On another note, I was considering moving to a school closer to home so I didn't have to drive the hour each day. I put in about 14 applications, and just KNEW I would at least have 1 interview--considering I personally know the lady I was emailing my resume and cover letter to. Nope. Not.1.stinkin.call. I LOVE MY SCHOOL, but the long commute is really tiring. Now, it's too late even to get out of my contract. So, oh-well. Now to start stocking up on comp notebooks for twenty-five cents. Joe asked why I needed 40, and I kindly explained that I can pay $10 for 40 now or $40 in January when I need them...you pick. He said go ahead and get them now.

Only 5 more weeks of summer vacation.

Update

2010-07-09T16:06:00.001-07:00

Update coming soon.....

Happy 4th Birthday Blake!

2010-03-03T10:10:00.001-08:00

Today is Blake's 4th birthday!

He can ride his bike

Loves to shower by himself

Eat cupcakes for breakfast

We had his party on Saturday at the Jumpy Place in Kyle. He had a blast.

How quick time flies.

Newborn

1st birthday

2nd Birthday

3rd Birthday

4 year old!

stuff

2010-02-17T16:15:00.000-08:00

Every week, a new kid is the "super star" in my class. Part of being the super star is that the other kids get to ask you questions. One little guy raised his hand today and said "when I was at my aunts house, I saw Jeremy." I said, "Nate, let's think of a question. Remember that questions start with who, what, where, when, why or how." Nathaniel responded in a long drawn out voice "WHEN I was at my aunt's house, I saw Jeremy." I couldn't help but giggle. Not a question, but it did start with 'when' and he wanted to make sure I knew he understood what he was saying!

I have a student from UT who is studying to become a teacher that is in my class 2 days a week for a total of about 10 hours. She's great. I love having someone to bounce things off of and I think she's going to be a great teacher.

Blake's party is planned and underway. He is getting very excited and asks everyday if tomorrow is his party. Only 10 more days!

Oh, Happy Day!

2010-01-28T12:25:00.000-08:00

Blake still is running a low grade fever, but is feeling much better. Tomorrow we will go back to school.

I got a phone call from a teacher at my school saying that one of the kids in my class withdrew. It is a kid who was retained last year, a cry baby, a bully, just a pain in the butt. He pouts every day. He complains every day. He yells "you are the meanest teacher ever" every day. Now, he is going to a new school. I am a little bummed since I didn't get a chance to say good-bye to him, but not too upset.

Does that make me a bad teacher? No. Everyone has someone that they would like to not see anymore, and he happens to be mine! He can be super sweet, but it is a rarity. I will miss him.

Fever

2010-01-27T13:28:00.001-08:00

Fevers suck. Yesterday morning, I woke up, started the shower went to the restroom and in walked Blake. His ears and cheeks were bright red. I took his temperature and it was 101.7. I turned off the shower, gave him Motrin and put in for a sub. He did OK with Motrin and was great all day. After his shower before bed, his fever was 101. I gave him some Motrin and put him to bed. That was 7:30. At 9:45, I went in to check on him and his temp was 102.7! I looked in the medicine cabinet, and NO TYLENOL! What??? At 10:30, the temp was down to 101.9, but still 3 hours should be enough time for Motrin to work. I sent Joe to HEB and Blake slept with us last night. Finally his fever broke around 12:30 and we were set for the night. I set the alarm to check on him at 3 and he was still ok. But by 6:45, the fever was back to 102.9. Gave him tylenol and lots of water.

We went to the doctor and he has the beginnings of an ear infection. Sh gave me a prescription, but didn't want me to fill it unless he goes 2 more days with fever or complains of pain. I got the prescription filled just in case. He is acting normal but when that fever comes back, he is so lethargic. If he is still feeling bad in the morning, I am starting the meds.

3 year old bully

2010-01-19T17:52:00.000-08:00

Who knew a 3 year old could be a bully? Blake has been at this daycare since January 2009. He has been bitten 4 times or so, and within the last week, had 2 broken skin scratches. Today when I got there, he had a scratch on his cheek. I asked him what happened and he told me that T scratched him. I went to the director and just wanted to show her. I didn't want an explanation, I just wanted her to know. She said to me, "I wasn't outside so you need to talk to the teachers that are out there. You know last week when it happened, they were playing 'monsters' and I talked to Blake about it. He gets really defensive when A-L-L-I-E is involved or plays with someone else." (Allie is Blake's "girlfriend" at school. he does not like it when she plays with anyone else.) She also asked me if Blake told anyone that it happened. I told her no, because Blake said he didn't.

Joe emailed the director last spring when Blake had been bit 3 times in a 2 week period, and her response was, "the kids just don't have their language skills yet, so this is their way of communicating. This really is a good time for Blake to become empowered and use his words." Really???? Is it your 3 year old who is being bit multiple times by the same kid???

Last year, T's mom was a teacher at my school, and when I talked to her, she would say things like, "well, when I got there today, Blake was pretending to shoot T", and "I really can't do anything about it because he does it at school" or "I don't know what else to do, I can't even put the kids in the car by each other in the car because T starts hitting his baby (infant) sister as soon as I put them in".

Am I over-reacting? I love this daycare, but really don't like this kid. Who knew you could dis-like a 3 year old so much???

Holiday!

2010-01-18T15:54:00.000-08:00

This weekend, Blake did not nap. He seemed OK. Went to bed early-ish (for the weekend). Woke up early. Today we headed out about 11:45 for lunch and then to Wal-Mart. It was crazy! Blake was so exhausted that he melted down in Wal-Mart. He wanted a toy, which I usually don't let him choose one, but I told him he could get one. Everything he picked out was over ten bucks. Sorry kid. I tried the usual distractions, but nothing worked. Poor thing had hives around his eyes (like mommy) from crying. He was asleep within 3 minutes in the car. I got home and tried to just put him to bed, but he cried and cried that he wanted me to stay with him. I stayed for a few minutes and he passed out! I got the house cleaned while he was napping and now I am just relaxing until I have to get up to start dinner.

Tomorrow, I go back to work. I am certainly ready for a real work week and ready to get back into the swing of things with the kids. I was out of the room 3 days last week and the kids really suffered. Blake had pink eye on Monday, I tested kids on Tuesday, and then Blake had a dentist appointment on Wednesday. Thursday was rough on all of us at school, and Friday was a bit better. We'll see how it goes this week.

Pink Eye

2010-01-11T09:59:00.000-08:00

This morning was running so smooth. I got up and in the shower and was ready by 5:30--which is about 20 minutes earlier than usual. I go in, wake up Blake, get his clothes out and head to the kitchen to start his lunch. About 5 minutes later I go in and his right eye is crusted shut and the left is gooey. Gross. I got him up and cleaned his eyes thinking I would be able to still go to work. I got the drops out, put them in and then really get a good look at his eyes. No way will daycare let me leave him, so at 5:45, I put in for a sub and called the Kinder lead. I hate it. I am going to be out of the room tomorrow for testing and Blake has a dentist appointment on Wednesday, so Thursday should be very interesting! I am not looking forward to it, but I also am not canceling his appointment since I have had it over a month.

A Long Time a-comin'

2009-12-22T18:46:00.001-08:00

I have been so super busy with work, that I haven't had time to update...whoopsy!

Blake made his first gingerbread house yesterday. He really wants to eat it, but it was one of those pre-packaged ones from Target. The "gingerbread", AKA cardboard, is super hard, and smells stale. The icing tastes kind of like Elmer's school glue. Here is the completed project! He is so proud!!!

I made 11 dozed sugar cookies for school. For some reason, I felt the need to make Gingerbread Sugar Men for the ENTIRE Kindergarten. I was really dreading it on Wednesday night when I was still not finished at 10. That really stunk! The kids really enjoyed it, and I don't have pictures at home. I saved them to my computer at school and deleted. They had a blast though.

This week, I made 2 batches of sugar cookies for home. One for my mom's house and one for the kids to all decorate on Friday. Here are some of our finished ones.

I lost the charger to our small camera, so I have been using the big one. When I loaded the pictures, I found these from August of '08. He's changed so much!

Safety Saturday

2009-09-26T17:06:00.000-07:00

Today at Lowe's it was Safety Saturday. The firemen, police dept., and ambulance were all in the Lowe's parking lot. It was lots of fun!

Down came the rain...

2009-09-14T17:45:00.000-07:00

I love all the rain we got the last 4 days! It is really helping my yard (whats left of it), and I even had some blooms some bedding plants.

But, it brought a head cold to me. I started getting a sore throat Thursday afternoon, and still have it today. It is more sinus-y today than the other days, but I still have a scratchy throat, nose and eyes.

My class is still at 26. This week, 4 kids are being moved out. It will be a relief, but I will miss my babies! I have really gotten to know them well, and will miss them, but am anxious to get started into the hard core teaching.

I've also been struggling keeping in touch with people. It has been a busy summer, and early fall for all of us.

Week 2

2009-08-31T16:52:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow, I get kid 27. She is Autistic, which means she will struggle in my room without support, but I will kill the supporting teacher she has if she is there with her the whole day. The teacher came today, and decided to comment on everything I was asking the kids to comment on. For example, "Boys & Girls, how do we sit on the carpet?" Ms. F "criss-cross applesauce, hands in our laps, mouths quiet, eyes on you." I felt like yelling "NO SHIT SHERLOCK! YOU ARE 50 FUCKING YEARS OLD AND I HATE YOU. GET OUT OF MY ROOM AND DONT COME BACK" Instead, I said, "Thanks, Ms. F, but I really want the kids to answer." I guess that was more diplomatic, right?

I was asked in an interview once how I would promote diplomacy in my position, and had no clue what it meant, but I totally get it now!

I still have no patience to post pics. Maybe this weekend.

First Day of School

2009-08-25T17:34:00.000-07:00

Today was the first day of school. Last night was "Meet the Teacher" night. Only one momma stuck around a long time. She got there at 5:45, and I had to walk her out at 7! She told me everything about her daughter...her favorite # is 13, color purple, and lots of other things! I have to remind myself that this is her oldest kiddo, and she's never been to school or daycare. Today she was great, but I think she may have gotten lost in the sea of my 25 kids!

Yep, you read that right! TWENTY FIVE kindergarten students. 17 returned from last year, so only 8 newbies but still, 25!!! We survived. I only lost 2 kids all day -- they were both in the bathroom and I forgot I sent them in from recess to go. Only one accident -- but his mom told me has have been having bowel problems all summer. She gave me lots of info on his BMs, and honestly, I did not want to know! One kid spilled her cereal first thing, and another dropped his mashed potatoes at lunch. Other than that, it was great! I only threatened to call 1 mom, and didn't follow through on that.

Apparently, I am known around campus for being quite capable of my job, and noone came to check in on me after 8:45. The teacher across the hall from me, who has taught Kinder for 5 or so years, had 22 kids and the librarian with her all day and STILL cried at the end of the day.

My room is right next to the 3 year old Pre-K class, so we heard lots of crying, and I cried once too trying to explain why this kid is screaming like something out of a horror film to my kids.

The day went so quick, and I am so excited about this year! I took some pics of the room, but am too exhausted to get the camera and wait, so I will do that soon!

Big Boy Bed

2009-08-09T11:24:00.000-07:00

In September 2007, I converted Blake's crib to his toddler bed, and this is how he felt about it.

He wasn't quite sure he could get out by himself, so he just sat there until I came for him.

Yesterday, we bought a twin bed to replace his toddler bed. He is almost 42" tall, and his crib mattress is really tired. He loves the new bed. This morning when I went in to check on him at 7, his eyes popped open and said, "Mommy, I LOVE my new big boy bed. Thank you for buying it." All day he has been saying thank you, and is excited about his new bed. We chose this neutral blanket and he chose the red sheets. It is perfect!

I went back to work this week, and it has been great to be back on a schedule. I got into my new classroom and started organizing stuff, and found out that I don't have much of anything. I hope I can get some new things soon! I did get my room arranged and 3 bulletin boards up. I will take pics this week and share.

stuff

2009-07-16T16:59:00.000-07:00

Grandma's surgery went well. She fainted this morning (like she does every time after a surgery), and then she was anemic (which the DR said was normal in 80 year old patients) this afternoon and had a blood transfusion. I have never cared, or thought about a blood transfusion, but when mom said she had one, I started thinking. I am not against it, but wish I was there so I could have donated and they could have given her mine.

I got a haircut today. Went to JR Salon on 49th & Burnet. It's a no gratuity salon, so no tipping is allowed. I have gone to my other stylist, Megan, for 5 years. I have never walked out disappointed, but wanted to save $20 so I went to this place. It was decent. Got a nice head massage, but the cut left something more to desire. Megan always was such a perfectionist to make sure it didn't look like I just got my hair cut. I feel like I could have cut my hair myself and made it look like this. She did it way too poofy, and did not texturize. just straight cut. blah. At least it will grow out, right?

Part 2

2009-07-14T16:00:00.000-07:00

I posted a vent about a big blow up with my brother, then decided to delete it just in case someone in my family reads my blog. Basically, I told him he was disrespecting our mother and he told me to f* off and hung up on my 3 times in 15 minutes. I talked to my mom after, and, of course, he told her bits and pieces, and the truth was not part of that. I explained what I was doing, and what he said to me (censoring it), and why I was no longer speaking to him. He called and apologized on Sunday, and I treated him the same way he treats me on the phone. Very short answers to questions and no conversation. We hung up and haven't talked since.

My grandma is having hip replacement surgery tomorrow. She has been in a lot of pain for many years, and finally a doctor listened enough to do something about it. It was supposed to happen 2 weeks ago, but the doctor was sick on the day of surgery, and then took vacation. So tomorrow it is. She checks in at 10:30.

Blake had a fever yesterday of 100.6, and since he never gets sick, all of his meds were expired. We ran to Wal-Mart, and came home. He took a nap, woke up fine, and no fever since. I did give him a 2nd dose of Motrin before bed, just in case.

I will post pictures of Blake's sports class later. We signed up for a class at the Y that covers soccer, baseball and basketball. Last week was soccer. He is a nut, and a little too young still for organized sports. At least there are only 6 kids and the coach is fun to look at ;)

What a Wednesday!

2009-07-01T12:34:00.000-07:00

My niece and nephew, Bianca & Michael, are in San Marcos for the month of July, and today I went and picked them up to go to the library. Bianca is going into 6th, Michael into 3rd. Bianca is growing up so much, and I forget that she is not the 6 year old she was just a few years ago! She's taking care of her hair, dressing appropriately, becoming a young lady. Michael, well, he's a 7 year old boy. If you don't know a 7 year old boy, think of a 3 year old boy, but bigger and with a larger vocabulary. Just plain silly. Blake loves both of them and just giggled all morning.

We went to the library for their Arts & Crafts project. Bianca was not interested, but Blake and Michael were. I will take a pic of his fan and post in a bit. After that, we went to lunch at McDonald's. Bianca played for about 5 minutes, and then she was finished, so we just chatted at the table. Blake, well, he racked himself for the first time today. He was running up to me and ran full speed into the corner of the bench. He stopped for about 3 seconds, then started screaming that he needed to go potty. Poor baby. That's not exactly a spot that mommy can kiss and make better. We ran to the restroom and he peed, and then he thought he was better. I called Joe because I didn't know what to do for him and he basically said the pain would go away.

I emailed my principal with some caution today to tell her I was interested in a Kindergarten position. I have thought about this for a long time, and all that keeps coming into my head is one student who is going into Kinder next year. She has struggled the last 6 months. She was expelled from Head Start (don't get me started on that), suspended from school 3 times, finally kicked out of head start. She's a big girl (comes to my arm pits weighs 110 lbs.), and can be aggressive. The last 3 weeks of school, I made it a point to make her feel special and give her special tasks with me. Her mom stopped me one of the last days of school and told me how much she had been talking about me at home and how she was excited to come to school now. Long story short, I emailed my principal, and she replied that she would love me to be in Kinder and wants to put me where I feel most comfortable. I am super excited. I cannot believe how easy that was. One reason I didn't tell her earlier that I wanted to move was because a friend of mine interviewed for a PK or K position and I really wanted her at our school. She got another offer, and accepted so she is off the market. I didn't want to take up a spot that could have potentially been hers.

I was planning on taking a nap, but I am on cloud 9 right now! I don't think I can sleep.

For Today

2009-06-29T08:45:00.000-07:00

Thanks Jenny!
FOR TODAY
June 29, 2009

Outside my window... is only one vehicle in the driveway. I finally sold the Focus!

I am thinking...about how to tell my principal that I want out of Special Ed if something in Kinder comes up. I love my SpEd kids, but there's something about Kindergarten that I can't get enough of!

I am thankful for... having the summer off to spend time with Blake. He is growing into a big boy, and I love it!

From the kitchen... there's a big mess...not too big, but just a mess that needs to be cleaned.

I am wearing... shorts and a t-shirt. It's too hot for anything else.

I am creating... some fun 4th of July crafts with Blake. I will post pictures soon.

I am going... to the bank to deposit the cash from the sale of the car, then to HEB and finally the library.

I am reading... nothing right now, but going to check out "My Sister's Keeper" today from the library.

I am hoping... for rain. Lots of rain. My grass is crunchy, even though we do our once a week watering.

I am hearing... Blake playing in the play room...FINALLY!

Around the house... is an organized mess. I know were everything is, and don't want anyone to touch it.

One of my favorite things... is taking naps in the cool A/C.

A few plans for the rest of the week... we are going to play in the pool in the backyard every day...twice a day. And pray for a healthy, and safe recovery of my Grandma. She is having hip replacement surgery tomorrow.

A picture to share... one of my favorite pictures of Blake from 3 years ago today!

San Antonio Zoo

2009-06-24T15:37:00.000-07:00

We bought a family membership to the San Antonio zoo in March. I figured blake and I would make a few trips this summer. And, the zoo opens at 7:30 for members. We got there at 8:05 and there were less than 10 cars in the parking lot! It was amazing. We walked around until 12.

Here are some of Blake's favorite things there.

Feeding the squirrels. They are tame. We stopped to have a quick graham cracker snack, and these 2 squirrels came running out. We threw them a few small pieces of the cracker and they entertained us for a few minutes.

Another snack time.

He loved the bird house, and looking at all the eggs.

Last time, he was terrified of the Lory Landing, but this time, he really got into feeding them the nectar.

Walking on the "clams". "No, mommy, those are not lily pads, they are CLAMS".

Feeding and brushing the goats.

STOP TAKING MY PICTURE

Happy Father's Day

2009-06-21T15:31:00.001-07:00

Blake & Daddy on Father's Day

2006--Napping together

2007--Staying up way past bedtime

2008--Helping Dad with the yard

2009--Just bein' silly

Southpark Meadows

2009-06-17T12:44:00.000-07:00

"Take my picture with all the leaves"

Today, we met my good friend, Emily at Southpark Meadows for some shopping and some park fun. I intended on getting there about 9 so we could eat about 11:30 and be done playing by 1, but that didn't happen. I left the house at 10, so we got there, did our shopping and all of a sudden it was 12:45. Whoopsy! That's why Blake was melting down! We went to lunch and then Blake wanted to play at their wonderul playground. He saw the water and wanted to play there. I took his shoes, socks and shirt off and told him to go, but he was very upset about getting his shorts wet, and tried, many times, to take off his shorts. Luckily I had some swim trunks in the car. I ran to the car while he stayed with Emily, then he changed and had a blast!

We got home, and he did not want to take a nap. I coerced him into laying down with me and he was out in 6 minutes. I love his afternoon naps! I can't get myself too hooked on them, or I will be a bear at 12:30 in August!

Friday Fun

2009-06-12T10:57:00.000-07:00

We made cupcakes yesterday. Between batches in the oven, I went to the restroom, and this is what I came back to. Stinker! His whole hand was sticky from cupcake batter!

Today we ventured out to Lowe's, and wouldn't you know they had Diego gardening gloves and trowels. Blake got one of each, and while I vacuumed the living room, he was outside digging up rocks. He, of course, saw me with the camera, and stopped. We came in to get a popsicle, and he sat in his favorite chair and watched a bit of Wall-E. Poor thing, his face gets just as red as mine in the heat!

This picture is him in this same chair in August of 06 at 5 months old!! He was so tiny! Not really, this is when he started getting chubby. I love it!

I already told you for 3 days

2009-06-09T16:40:00.000-07:00

Blake has been saying the funniest things lately. I love it! I have been counting to get him to hurry and do what I want him to, and if he can reach my mouth, he covers it and say either, "Stop counting numbers", or "I already told you for 3 days to stop". It is hilarious! I have no clue where he got that from.

We went to Cabela's today. Blake loves that place!

I did something silly today. At Walmart, they had these cute little girl outfits on the clearance rack for $1. I bought 4. They are all in the size range of 0-6 months. I couldn't resist. I am not pregnant, and don't want to be for a few months, but really, one dollar? (I guess this is where I say we are going to start trying in August) The yellow one is a newborn size onesie, and the rest are little dresses with bloomers.

Monday

2009-06-08T17:46:00.000-07:00

So, today was my first Monday off this summer. Blake woke us up about 15 minutes before the alarm went off. I got up and the two of us made breakfast for Daddy. Then we got dressed and walked to the park. It was nice and cool out this morning so we stayed extra long at the park.

Last summer, I was off with Blake, but I was also burdened with being fired from my job and trying to find a teaching job. I was not a good mommy last summer. Blake did lots of TV watching while I browsed every single school district website looking for the perfect job. When I got the call to come and interview at my school, I was excited, but not confident. Then my principal was 30 minutes late. I decided in the car, on that wet, rainy July afternoon, that I did not want to work at the place I love now. She offered me my job on the spot. I, of course, accepted since I didn't have anything else going my way.

The drive to work has been long, but with my new car, it is not as painful. I am not checking my temp guage every 10 minutes, not listening for funny noises. Just driving. Blake has only puked 2 times in the car. Once, we were in stop and go traffic for over an hour, the last time, I gave him a huge cup of milk. NOT a good judgement call.

This summer will be better. We had a blast today, just being silly with the laundry basket. Tomorrow, I think we will venture out to the free movie at 10 a.m. I will pack my large purse with snacks! Who knows what the rest of the week looks like. All I know is that I am happy that I get to spend the time with my one and only!

Pictures

2009-06-02T17:24:00.001-07:00

OK, so before you start this blog....just please understand that I am just now using the 'add image' button, and cant figure it all the way out...

Can you believe I got this whole outfit for less than $7???

Blake loves to take pictures with my camera. He turns it on and just runs around taking pictures of everything...

Here are some silly ones of the 2 of us!

The final days

2009-06-02T09:24:00.000-07:00

Today is my last Tuesday. That means my afternoon kids go home at 2:30 and I don't see them until August. Tomorrow my morning kids will leave me at 11. Its kinda bitter-sweet. I have spent so much time getting to know them, and I really do love them. One of my parents called yesterday and said they are moving, so his daughter will be in RRISD next year. This is the child who makes me the maddest, makes me cry, makes me laugh, makes me want to pull my hair out. You get the idea. But, she has grown and made such great progress this year. I can't believe she won't be here. Part of me did cart-wheels, part of me cried (for a minute).

My other 3 in the morning are going to the CRAZY Kinder Life Skills teacher. This lady is a nut and I am scared for my babies! I know they will do fine, but there is still that feeling of uncertainty.

But, I will get to spend tons of time with my favorite person in the whole, wide world--Blake! We are going to go to the park, zoo, children's museum, pool, bouncy house, anywhere we can go in a day! His personality has really blossomed and I can't believe what a person he is.

I will also try to blog more often this summer, with the hopes of being able to blog for my class parents next year. I found this great PPCD teacher in Austin who blogs EVERY SINGLE DAY! It really is the same format, but I am sure her parents love it!

Pink Eye

2009-05-27T08:47:00.001-07:00

I woke up this morning with my right eye crusted shut. Gross I know. I thought, oh, it can't be that bad, I will just wear my glasses to work. It's my aid's birthday, and how can I honestly call in on her birthday. Well, I got up, went to the bathroom, turned on the shower, and looked in the mirror. There was no way I could go to work. My eye was bright red, and all gooey. So, I went to the new clinic in Kyle (very nice, by the way), and he told me I had pink eye. I don't know why there is not some OTC meds I can buy for this. I knew exactly what it was, and what he was going to prescribe. Oh well, guess this week will be super short!

Next week is the last week of school. I am stoked! It is amazing that this school year has come to an end so quickly. I will miss the kids, but am already thinking about next school year! I have started packing and organizing my room, and am ready to run out of the door after the buses leave!

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T16:27:00.000-07:00

Blake over the years!

2006

2007

2008

2009

I can't believe how big my baby has gotten. Every day he amazes me!

New Tires

2009-03-16T13:37:00.000-07:00

So, we were hearing this noise when driving and I took the CX-7 into the service department this morning. The guy said it would take about an hour, so I got a loaner and Blake and I went to a few stores. At 3, I called to find out the status, and they said it wasn't ready. Blake and I came home since he had not had a nap yet. As soon as I got home, and put Blake to bed, the phone rang. It was Mazda saying the car was ready. Turns out all 4 tires were worn really bad from the previous owner not rotating the tires. They replace all 4 with BRAND SPANKING NEW TIRES!!! I can't believe it. So, now I am not worried at all about anything on this car. It keeps getting better and better!

2009-03-15T15:29:00.000-07:00

So, I guess I freaked out last time about all the new kids for no reason. Monday the 23rd, the twins are starting, so I will have 8 kids. Not a big deal. We have adjusted pretty well. And, I am on spring break so I feel great!

Thursday morning in the rain, my Focus decided to play tricks on me. It began sputtering between Buda and South Austin. Yes, it was pouring and 45 degrees outside. Luckily, Joe left the house about 10 minutes after me and rescued me and Blake. We brought my car home on Thursday and parked it in the driveway. It has not moved since. My car is 9 1/2 years old with 141,000 miles on it. The trunk doesn't latch anymore, so we have it held down with bungee cords on the inside. The plastic wheel covers crumbled about 4 years ago, so all I have had are the black hubs on my tires. Someone with a hitch backed into me at HEB about 4 years ago, and of course just took off so I have a hole in my bumper. The hood doesn't pop when I try to open it unless you pull the lever then go outside and bang the top of the hood. It has been a great car, but she is going into retirement.

We were planning on saving a big, fat down payment for a newer car this summer, but after this last bump, we decided to make the jump now. We found an Edge, but Ford was pretty difficult to work with and we walked out. Saturday morning, we went to CarMax and found an 05 Murano I liked, but I wasn't 100% sold on it. We drove next door to the Mazda dealer at 12:30 and saw a CX-7 and took a look at it. We test drove it and decided that we LOVED this car. We went inside and did all that sitting, but this time it went as smooth as I ever could imagine. We got payments where we wanted, put down what we had, and drove off the lot with my new vehicle at 2:45. I can't believe how quick it was and how wonderful the sales person and finance guy were. This is the best car-buying experience I've had!

Ok, so here are the pictures.

Front Seats

Nice, unexpected surprise

Back Seat

Cargo Area

Blake did not nap, so I put on a movie for him in our room and went to check on him...this is what I found.

O...M...G...

2009-02-19T18:01:00.000-08:00

So, my first year of teaching has been a piece of cake so far. I had 4 kids in the morning, 3 left at 11, and 1 stayed with my aide until 2:30. Wonderful! I had planning time from 11-when ever. I was leaving at 3:30 on the dot because everything was finished. I even VOLUNTEERED for 3rd grade math tutoring.

All of that is changing. . .

I still have my 4 kids in the morning and 1 of those that stays until 2:30. I have added another 3 year old on Tuesday (her 3rd bday), will get a 3 year old on Tuesday, a 4 year old on Thursday and twin 3 year olds in the next week. That does not include the 3 new kiddos that they are currently evaluating (2 of which will definately come). Without the new ones that are being evaluating, that makes 9! I am freaking out! I can handle it, but it is definately stressing me out!

Conversation with a 4 year old.

2009-02-17T15:28:00.000-08:00

Today, I was in a PK classroom playing with the kids in the home center. One kiddo told me I was the mom, so I was sitting rocking the doll. Another boy comes up, and we have this conversation:

Child: You can be the Grandma now!
Me: What? I don't want to be the Grandma. Why should I be the Grandma?
Child: No, no, it's OK, you will be the skinny Grandma.
Me: Well, as long as I am the skinny one, I will be Grandma.

Love it.

New Hair

2009-02-12T19:04:00.000-08:00

I have been wanting a new haircut since my last one in November. I hadn't made up my mind in November, so I had her trim my hair, and I was disappointed right away. I went tonight, and gave her some so-so ideas, and it turned out GREAT!!! I love it. It is exactly what I wanted! If you need a great person, let me know!

2009-01-27T15:38:00.000-08:00

I am sorry about the christmas pics. Hopefully you got the gist of it.

Work has been fine. Kids came back crazy, and my lovely, wonderful, parent of a child with Autism is pissed again. Whatever. I understand that you don't want your child to have a disability, especially Autism, but at some point, you do have to understand that after many diagnosis' and professionals telling you something is not right, something is not right. I have a home visit tomorrow because this kiddo has been having some behavioral issues. I called Dad and he flipped out on me saying he wants her in all gen ed. It is not going to happen...at least not this calendar year. I won't recommend it and since I have her in my room most, I get the final say in where she goes. Dad did threaten again to pull her out and put her in private school, and I am about to say THEN FREAKING DO IT!!!!

Rant over.

So Blake has a new day care and he loves it. He has been doing great.

On another note, I can't find my camera....hopefully it will turn up soon.

Christmas 2008

2008-12-27T15:02:00.000-08:00

What a crazy week we've had. My sister-in-law and her 4 kids came on Saturday the 20th, and left Christmas afternoon. They were pretty good, but the kids got bored pretty quick, and I don't have things to occupy an 11 and 7 year old. Oh-well.

I had fever from Sunday until Wednesday. And it didn't help that I was up until 2 every night and awake by 8. I am feeling better now though.

We went to my grandma's house on Wednesday, left cookies out for Santa before going to church and then opened presents after church. Blake was way too spoiled there! We drove home and a cranky Blake put out his cookie for Santa at home and went to bed. Kristina and I stayed up until about 3 getting the tree stocked and ready for 7 excited kids on Christmas morning.

All in all it was a great time, and Blake was the greatest! Christmas morning he went to the cookie plate and said, "MAMA!!! SANTA CAME AND ATE ALL THE COOKIES!!!"

I am off until January 5. I love being home, but also miss my kiddos at school!

Here are some pics of the week.

Blake made Christmas cookies

All of Great Grandma C's great grand kids

Santa came on the firetruck

The little cousins take a bath together

On the way to Great Nana's house

Cookies for Santa at Great Nana's house

Cookies for Santa at home. He was not very interested.

4 of the 7 kids were waiting.

Blake and Gabryel waiting patiently

Our living room!
Blake at 5:30 on Christmas night!

Advent Calendar

2008-11-30T10:02:00.000-08:00

I have wanted to get an Advent Calendar for Blake, but didn't want a cheap-o one, so I googled "advent calendar" and came across a blog that is very crafty. I found what I thought was an easy, quick calendar. I bought the materials and got started yesterday while Blake napped. I worked on it for almost 6 hours last night, and have been working on it an hour today. I am more than half way finished, but still have about 8 pockets left to do. I HAVE to have it finished by tomorrow. It will be done, and I will post pictures.

Thanksgiving was nice. We went to my grandma's in Killeen, and I forgot the camera. Poki took some family pictures, and we'll see if I get them before Blake turns 5. I still don't have all of our wedding pictures.

***Here is the finished project! I only need the buttons.

2 months is too long?

2008-11-02T07:26:00.000-08:00

I guess if I said not much has happened in the last 2 months I would be telling a story. School is going great, Blake is great, things at home are fine. Our washer is on the fritz. First, it would not run cold water, and then it stopped spinning. Joe replaced the part to make the water run, and now we are "helping" the washer spin. When it gets to the spin cycle, we start spinning it and eventually the pulley takes over. It's not fun. But it beats going to the washateria. We will probably get a new washer in the next 2 months or so, but we can't get one right now.

Trick or treating was so much fun on Friday. Joe and I agree that there was something missing, so we have begun to have a bit of baby fever again. Maybe we will start trying again in the spring.

We have been inconsistently putting Blake in underwear on the weekends. Friday night in the tub, he jumped up and said he had to pee. I put him on the toilet, and he peed. So, yesterday, I put him in underwear all day! He was dry from 8:45-2:30, had a poop accident, then napped, and was dry from 5 until 9. He actually peed on the potty last night too! This morning after breakfast, I put him on the toilet and told him to go pee-pee, and he did it! I am so excited! He is growing up so fast!!!

Blake has been dressing himself, putting socks and trying to put shoes on. He asked to go in the backyard jsut a few minutes ago, so I told him he needed to get dressed and he came out in shorts, a shirt, socks and shoes in hand. He is trying to get the shoe on now. He has just started, within the month or so, being really interested in dressing himself. He is very serious about it now!

First 2 weeks

2008-09-05T17:39:00.000-07:00

Well, the first 2 weeks of school are over. I only cried one day, which Joe lovingly said, "don't show them weakness". Long story short, after 2 days of tantrums, a parent walked in and freaked out at what he saw. He wanted to pull his daughter from my class. We had a meeting and my administrators and I talked to him and explained why he saw what he saw, and how I was just as freaked out as he was at that particular moment. Anyway, he ended up keeping her in my class, and things are slowly falling into place. I now know why we start school the week before Labor day.....so the teachers have a mini=vaca so they come back to work. Otherwise, no first year teacher would ever come back!

I got to school on Tuesday, and decided that I was completely changing my schedule. BAD idea! We quickly found out that we needed to go back to the way we did it the first week and it was fine. One of the kids had the stomach bug on Wednesday and came on Thursday, but left early. He was out today. I feel really bad, but today was super easy! It's amazing how one kid can completely change the dynamics of a classroom.

We moved Blake back to the daycare he was in earlier this year. We tried a corporate daycare thinking it would be fine, but it didn't work out. We both felt like we were imposing on the teacher when we would drop off or pick up, and Blake got bitten for the 2nd time in the 3 weeks, and we were not notified. Both times he was bit, he had huge bruises in the shape of teeth. Not cool. I know kids bite, but they need to at least let us know. So, he is at the Kid Ranch here in Kyle, and has not cried 1 morning, and quickly fell back into the routine. He is completely back to his normal, silly self. I love this place!

Last week, I was in bed every night by 8, and this week I have been staying up a little later (9:00). It's really hard to get up at 5 every morning. I am not necessarily a late riser, but I don't like to get up before 6:30 or 7. Lucky for me (and my students), I have a 40 minute drive to help wake me up!

Cleaning

2008-08-08T09:34:00.000-07:00

I am giving house the final "once over" before I go back to work. I feel like I just did this...oh-yeah, I did...about a week ago! It is so frustrating! I just finished Blake's playroom. He doesn't really play in there except when friends are over. A week ago Sunday, his cousin came to play and they DESTROYED it! Blake is good about keeping stuff organized, but R does not know how to play with stuff. He just dumps. Here they are just hanging out on my bed watching a movie. It is re-organized now, and I am about to tackle the other disaster areas. I am not very good at staying on track. As long as it gets done, right?

Tomorrow is my last class for a few weeks, and I go back to work on Monday. I am really excited, except my classroom is a mess too. I met with the previous teacher this week, and she was clearing out all her stuff, so by my first official day in the room, I will know what I have.

First Day Back

2008-08-04T14:16:00.000-07:00

Today was my first day back in the "work" routine. I rolled out of bed at 6, and was ready to leave by 6:50 or so. This included getting Blake dressed and a light morning snack before we left. We were on the road at 7:02. I dropped Blake off at daycare, and went to my conference. At 7:40, I called a collegue that was coming also, and asked if I was at the right spot, because, NOONE was there. She said, "are you there already? I am not even out of bed yet!" What??? Our conference wasn't scheduled to start until 9. OOPS!!! So, I went to Chic-Fil-A and got breakfast, and spent an hour in the car just chillin'.

The conference was great, except we were sitting on kid sized chairs. If you have not done that for 4 hours, you should try it. I have gotten so much free stuff, that it totally makes up for the fee to get in! I am glad I was able to go.

I got my official offer from HR today. I go tomorrow and sign my contract! I am hoping to have access to my room on Wednesday!

I called at lunch to check on Blake, and she said he was doing great! I got there to pick him up, and he was happily walking throughout the room stopping every few seconds to check something out. The teachers said that he did WONDERFUL, and that he is a good listner, helper, and clean-up helper. I'm so proud of my big boy!!!

Finally!

2008-07-30T18:32:00.000-07:00

So, this afternoon, I just called principal from interview 5 and left a voicemail asking what the status was. I explained that I had not heard from HR and that there is a workshop that I would like to attend on Monday, but won't pay for it if I don't know 100% that I got the job, and that I need to make daycare arrangements. That was at 1.

At 4:30, right in the middle of Oprah I might add, the phone rang. It was the principal. She said that she is glad that I called her because she was certain that HR had contacted me already. She said that I am definately the one she wants, and will get on the ball and make sure HR calls by the end of the week. I told her about the workshop and asked if the district was able to pay for it, or if I needed to pay out of pocket, and she said she would pay for it! I can't believe it! I got a job, and got the principal to pay for a $250 workshop!!!

Joe is out of town on a business trip, so Blake and I celebrated by going to the city pool! I know, we're wild! He scared the crap out of me. He got out of the pool, and I was right behind him. I looked away for about .003 seconds, and heard a splash, and he jumped in! I quickly got in and pulled him up and he thought it was HILARIOUS!!! The next 10 times, I was in the pool, and he jumped in with out any coercing at all! Now we really have to be careful around water!

Blake will start daycare on Monday, and I will have 3 days next week to get our house in order before the real chaos starts! Yay! I am so excited!!!

Update

2008-07-28T14:33:00.000-07:00

Well, there is not an update to update you on.

Searching for a job really takes a toll on your mental health. I guess if I still had a job it really would not be that bad, but I don't.

I emailed interview 3 this morning, and just left a voicemail asking about the position. It has been pulled from the website.

I will call interview 5 tomorrow afternoon if I don't hear anything before then. You would think that if the principal was really interested (as she told one of my references and me) she would be on HR's tails to make an offer.

Blake and I went to check out a day care today. I like it. It is convienent for Joe, who will be taking him in the mornings, and convienent for me in the afternoons. And, on the nights I have school, he will be able to pick him up with no problem. I put a deposit down and have him tenatively starting on the 11th. I can up it if I need to (which I hope to need to do), and he can have a "free" day before starting. So, that helps for the day that I need to go to HR to fill out paperwork.

After the daycare, we went to Wal-Mart, which disappointed Blake since it wasn't the circle store. We managed though. We ate lunch at McD's and then browsed around until I realized it was nap time. We got in the car and started driving, Blake passed out. I tried to keep him awake, but it did not work. Usually we will get home and I can change him and lay him down and he will nap. Not today. After 90 minutes of putting him back to bed, I let him come out, put on Little Einsteins and took a quick catnap. He is exhausted, so I guess it will be an early evening! :)

Interviews 4 & 5 Summary

2008-07-24T20:04:00.000-07:00

Interview 4--it was super far. I spent more time in the parking lot than actually in the interview. They asked the questions, I answered them, and they said they would let me know either way...that's it.

Interview 5--It started crappy. The principal said they were doing construction on the building, so I needed to call her before trying to come in. I began calling at 1:50--ten minutes before the interview. It went straight to voicemail. I tried the side door, and it was open, so I started to wander the halls trying to find someone, anyone who could help me. I found 2 custodians who did not speak English. Finally, I found some office staff, and I asked them about the principal. They didn't know where she was, and did not think she was coming back to the campus. One very nice lady walked me to the office, and I left a note on the door saying I was there at 2, and missed her. Please call me back to reschedule. I went back outside and was pissed. I called Joe, and started crying. A white VW pulled up and it was the principal. We went in and I had the attitude that I really did not want the job, but would interview for the practice. We talked for about 20 minutes, and then she took me to the classroom. It was nice. She asked if I wanted a tour of the building, but I told her no because I had already wandered and gave myself a self-tour. We went back to the office, and she asked me a few more questions, and then said that she thought I would be a great asset to her campus and would fit in perfectly. She said that she is not able to officially offer a job, but could recommend me to HR and then they call to offer. She asked about my references, and I explained who they were. She kept saying over and over that she wanted me there.

45 minutes later, I got a call from one of my references saying she just got off the phone with the principal, and that the principal told her she wanted to snatch me up before someone else did! Yay! I am so excited! I should hear something soon!

I have not heard anything from Interview 3 yet, but doubt I will get an offer from them. My references have not been checked yet.

...
...

and I got an awesome haircut today!

Interview #5

2008-07-23T07:28:00.000-07:00

Late yesterday afternoon, I received another call, and have a 5th interview on Thursday at 2! I can't believe I am getting all these calls! I really hope one falls through for me!

Interview #4

2008-07-22T08:47:00.000-07:00

While at HEB picking up cat food, I got a call, and have interview #4 scheduled tomorrow at 3:30 for a PPCD position. The only down side is that it is in Round Rock, which is a little far for me, but at this point, I will take anything!

Interview #3

2008-07-22T06:33:00.000-07:00

So, after feeling really down, and getting discouraged, I took a leap and emailed the Director of Special Ed for Hays CISD. I thought it wouldn't hurt. I didn't hear anything all week, which was OK since I know most of the district is on vacation now. Sunday night at 10, I checked my email, and had a message from a principal at a school in Buda. She said she had a position open, and thought I may be a good match for her campus, and wanted to know if I could come in at 11 to interview! Before I responded, I called a friend to see if she could watch Blake, and then emailed her back.

I dropped Blake off at my friend's house, and you would have thought he had been there a zillion times before. He walked in and got on the couch, took his shoes off and said, "bye, mommy!" I left and went to the interview. I got there about 5 minutes early, and went it. They were not quite finished de-briefing after the last interview, so the principal took me to the work room. That was totally fine with me. It allowed me to actually see what I looked like in a mirror rather than the reflection in my car window.

I was in the interview over an hour. My other 2 interviews were less than 30 minutes. I was asked some questions that once I came home thought of great answers to, but overall, I think I did great. I felt like they really wanted to get to know me, and let me explain myself even if I was talking in circles! About 5 minutes before the end of the interview, the principal told me about a training on Aug. 4 (which I took as a good thing), and asked me to resend my resume and a list of references when I got home.

The position is more perfect than I could have asked for. It is a co-teaching/inclusion position for Kinder through 2nd grade. There are a total of 14 SPED students on campus, with 3 (yes 3!!!) SPED teachers. That's roughly 5 kids per teacher! The best part is that it's co-teaching. I did that a few years ago in Prairie Lea, and it is wonderful!

I emailed the principal the things she asked for, and told her I was really excited about hte position, and looked forward to working with her. She responded this morning saying she would be in contact by the end of the week.

I am trying not to get too excited, but it's really hard. EEEK!!!

How time flies

2008-07-18T19:47:00.000-07:00

June has flown by, and I can't believe today is the 18th! Blake is definately missing daycare...as am I. I really don't know how women do it every day of the year. I miss working, talking to adults, using my brain. Today we went to Goin' Bananas in south Austin. It was great. Blake played for 2 1/2 hours and did not want to leave at all. It was almost 1:30 (the middle of nap time) and we had not even eaten lunch! He was a trooper though! We went to Wendy's for lunch and then to his favorite circle store, Target. Luckily they were out of popcorn.

Joe's birthday is Sunday. We are going downtown on Saturday night. It looks like just work friends are coming and he is a little bummed. He wanted to go to Lake Charles and do some gambling, but we just can't right now! Maybe for my birthday!

Here are some pictures from the month so far.

Helping Grandma feed the birds

My little dare-devil

I really don't know what he is doing

I'm a cowboy

Just plain ole silly

Job update

2008-06-28T09:07:00.001-07:00

Well, I did not get the job. A person in my co-hort (class at region 13) got the position. I kinda feel cheated. I have worked with 3-5 year olds for 6 years, and i can't get a job in a public school? I am very disappointed. I am a little turned off by the person who got it too. She texted me on Thursday to say they checked her references, then called me last night to tell me they offered and she accepted. Oh-well--maybe it's not meant to be. I have a mission next week to get as many resumes out there and get a job. I need to find something until school starts. I am not motivated to do any of it though.

Blake had a dentist visit yesterday, and it went great! She said we have done a great job at keeping his teeth clean, and we don't have to go back for a year! He got 2 toothbrushes, a plastic dinosaur and some stickers!

Joe went camping this weekend. I was originally supposed to go, but he told me early in the week that there were no other girls coming, so I backed out. Just what I want to do--spend the weekend with a bunch of drunk guys on the river. Turns out, there are some girls coming this afternoon. I guess I will just stay at home.

Interview

2008-06-24T12:16:00.000-07:00

I had an interview this afternoon for a PPCD position. I left not knowing how it went. I think I am a great candidate, but did they? One of the six (yes 6!!) people, I know and have worked with professionally for a few years, but it is still an unnerving feeling. I will know something by next Tuesday at 5 p.m. Keep your thoughts and prayers coming! I really need this!

Joe's family came over on Sunday. It was nice...for the most part. Here are all the kids. Bianca is going into 5th grade. She is holding Olivia & Adam, and Robbie is sitting on the floor in the front of her. Gabryel is on the floor in the middle, and Michael is trying really hard to hold Blake. Olivia just turned one, Adam is almost 7 months, Gabryel is 3, Robbie will be 2 next month, Michael is 6 and Blake is 2. It was really hard to get them all to sit still for this picture. We took 6 I think, and this was the best one.

Kung Fu Panda

2008-06-21T18:55:00.000-07:00

We took Blake to see Kung Fu Panda this afternoon! He loved it. It is a great movie for kids and there is enough funny stuff for the parents, too! We had attempted to take him once before to see Horton Hears a Who. We had to leave about 45 mintues into the movie! We were very proud of him!

My camera battery is kaput, and I am waiting patiently for the new one in the mail. We are having the in-laws over tomorrow, and I won't be able to take pictures of all the kids together. Maybe I will break out the big camera...

Unemployed

2008-06-20T15:22:00.000-07:00

I am officially unemployed! I don't think I like it. It wouldn't be so bad if I knew I were getting unemployment. It wouldn't be so bad if we had a savings! Nope, nothing! I know now that we have to get at least 2 months built up of ONE of our incomes in the savings. We haven't even started feeling the crunch, but I know it is coming. That is the worst part.

Blake has been running a fever since Tuesday afternoon. I made an appointment for him yesterday, and they say, "he has a virus". No ear infection, just a bug. Don't get me wrong, I am glad he doesn't have an ear infection, or anything serious, but I want to be able to treat him with something other than Motrin or Tylenol.

He did wake up happy this morning though! He slept in until about 8, and Joe & I were getting worried, because he was over an hour late waking us up. I walked out of our room just as he was coming in. He watched some cartoons while I got ready, and after breakfast, we went shopping. I know, shopping when you don't have the funds??? I only spent $4.32. Carter's was having a sale, and I found a cute fall jacket for $3.99! I couldn't pass it up. We went to Chic-Fil-A and got our free meal. Two weeks ago, Joe brought home dinner, and they forgot Blake's meal. We called, and got a free adult meal and kid's meal! Anyway, we ate, and then it was play time! Blake played for about 45 minutes. Lots of kids were coming in and out and then a cute little 3 year old came in. We should have left. He was being a little mean to Blake, but nothing too bad. He comes down the slide, gets up, and his pants are wet. Mom & Dad wisk him away and it's just Blake again. Then I hear, "OOOOOOOOOOOOHHH, pretty...Water!" And splashing with his hands and feet. Picture me, climbing up to the top of the playscape, trying to carry a screaming toddler down who is covered in someone else's urine!!! And, of course, it was through the tunnel the furthest away from the steps!

I came out and told this nice lady that someone else's kid peed in the playscape, and they needed to clean it, and all she said was, "oh-you want a refill". Granted, she didn't speak much English, but still. I said nothing about a refill! I told the manager, and he sent one of the high schoolers up there!

My First Blog

2008-02-17T14:40:00.000-08:00

Well, I thought I would join in on the bandwagon and create my very own blog! I am a 29 mommy of an almost 2 year old. I have been happily married for 5 years to Joe and we live in Kyle.

Right now, I am in the midst of going through the Educator Certification Program with Region XIII. I have two more online classes and then I start going to east Austin 3 days a week for a total of 12 hours. This is all happening in the evenings and Saturday! I can't wait! No, really, it should be fun and exciting. I never should have changed majors in college, or maybe I should have stayed that extra semester to get certified in the first place. You live, you learn.

Blake's birthday is coming up on March 3. No, I have not sent out his party invitations yet. I know I am slacking. I did give one to Jennifer yesterday. Almost everyone else knows about it though. So no surprises! The only thing I know is that we are having the party at the house and the time. I have not planned any further than that. I know it is 2 weeks away, but I have been so busy, that I just put it off. I actually woke up in a sweat last weekend because I hadn't gotten the invitations done and mailed. They will be at the Kyle Post Office bright and early on Tuesday!