Ian found a new toy this week. This is his new favorite place to be. It is supposed to hold his toys. Now he pulls all the toys out and sits in it and just laughs. He is so proud of himself. You have to love the simple joys of life.
3 months ago
Sunday, February 22, 2009
The Simple Joys of Life
Ian found a new toy this week. This is his new favorite place to be. It is supposed to hold his toys. Now he pulls all the toys out and sits in it and just laughs. He is so proud of himself. You have to love the simple joys of life.
Kennedy's Big Week
Kennedy had a very big week this week. She got to participate in a vocabulary parade. She had the assignment to collect words that she didn't know and write down the definitions. Then she picked one and dressed up like the word. It gets a little tricky and you have to be a little creative.
Kennedy decided to use the word "expand". So she stuffed a pillow under her dad's t-shirt and there you have it. I think that she does expand very well.
She was very excited to wear her costume on the bus and everything. I was quite a site to see and she smiled the whole way.
Later in the week, she had a cello lesson. She has been working on passing of her second Suzuki book. Her teacher has her play a recital when she gets to the end of a book. So she had to go back and review all the songs and be able to play them while she was being accompanied. That is a difficult thing to do when you are 7. She worked for almost 2 months and she finally got the okay for the recital on Wednesday. She gave us some options on days and times but our schedules didn't quite come together until Friday morning. She said she could do it that night. I said that would be alright. So here I went. It was crunch time. It was a good thing I had cleaned the carpet a couple of nights ago. So all I had to do was clean off the eternally cluttered counter tops, clean the kitchen, sweep the floor, vacuum, make sugar cookies with purple frosting, and a chocolate cake. My friend, Jean, helped me out and made the chocolate chip cookies. So Kennedy got off the bus at 4:30 and that is when she found out that she would be playing that night.
She did a great job. I was so proud of her. She stayed focused the whole time and that is not the easiest thing to do when you have an audience like she did.
Our good friends came and helped her to celebrate her accomplishment. She played for about 25 minutes and then we got to eat the treats. Everyone had a great time, especially Kennedy. It is really hard to be the middle girl. She doesn't get to shine as often as she should so it was good to see her get the spotlight that she deserved. Way to go Kennedy!
Kennedy decided to use the word "expand". So she stuffed a pillow under her dad's t-shirt and there you have it. I think that she does expand very well. 
She was very excited to wear her costume on the bus and everything. I was quite a site to see and she smiled the whole way.Later in the week, she had a cello lesson. She has been working on passing of her second Suzuki book. Her teacher has her play a recital when she gets to the end of a book. So she had to go back and review all the songs and be able to play them while she was being accompanied. That is a difficult thing to do when you are 7. She worked for almost 2 months and she finally got the okay for the recital on Wednesday. She gave us some options on days and times but our schedules didn't quite come together until Friday morning. She said she could do it that night. I said that would be alright. So here I went. It was crunch time. It was a good thing I had cleaned the carpet a couple of nights ago. So all I had to do was clean off the eternally cluttered counter tops, clean the kitchen, sweep the floor, vacuum, make sugar cookies with purple frosting, and a chocolate cake. My friend, Jean, helped me out and made the chocolate chip cookies. So Kennedy got off the bus at 4:30 and that is when she found out that she would be playing that night.
She did a great job. I was so proud of her. She stayed focused the whole time and that is not the easiest thing to do when you have an audience like she did.
Our good friends came and helped her to celebrate her accomplishment. She played for about 25 minutes and then we got to eat the treats. Everyone had a great time, especially Kennedy. It is really hard to be the middle girl. She doesn't get to shine as often as she should so it was good to see her get the spotlight that she deserved. Way to go Kennedy!
Surfside Half Marathon
So on Valentine's Day was the big day. I had been training for the last 6 months for this day and to tell the truth, I was a little scared. 13.1 miles is really a long way. Surfside, TX is a little beach town. I think it is the only official marathon/1/2 marathon to be run on hard pack sand. When I thought about running on the beach, I pictured, Chariots of Fire. I pictured the sun shining off the water, some white clouds in the sky, the surf lapping on the shore. I pictured a soft breeze coming off the water that kept me cool while I was running. That isn't exactly what I got.
My mom was in town and stayed in with kids so Scott and I could go down the night before the race. Scott works late so I went down with my 2 friends who were running with me, Rishelle and Melissa. We went down and picked up our packets and checked in. We had a good pasta dinner as well. It is amazing how much fun it is to go to dinner with a couple of friends without the pressure of having to pick up kids or get home to our husbands. We went to the hotel after that and Scott was waiting for me. We got a good nights sleep and then we woke up early and went down to the beach.
This is before we knew what we were really getting into. I have to admit it was pretty exciting as we waited for the race to start. 
Then the race started. The weather was pretty good. It was over cast and foggy. It was warm and I didn't think much of it. We ran 2 1/2 miles down the beach and then turned around and headed back. By the time we reached the spot where we started the wind started to really pick up. Then it started to sprinkle a little bit. I wasn't that worried. It sprinkles all the time in TX and doesn't do much else.
The scenery was beautiful. It looked like this the whole way. The only time I was not happy about running on the beach was when I came across a very potent smell. I couldn't figure out what it was. It smelled like death. Then a little while later I saw a dead dolphin washed up on the shore. That explained it. It was death. And I kept going. The wind got really hard to deal with and I was about to throw in the towel when I finally saw Melissa heading back the other way. She said the turn around was just a few hundred yard ahead. I was never so happy to see a bunch of cars in my life. After I the turn around, mile 9, it got a lot easier and I thought that I was going to actually make it. I did really well, mentally, until I hit about mile 12. Then the torrential down pour started. I couldn't believe it. I didn't want to run in the wind but the rain was horrible. The only good thing was the wind was at my back so the rain was hitting my back. At least it wasn't hitting me in my face. By the time I saw the tent at the finish, I was soaked through.
I was so happy to see Scott waiting there at the finish line, I almost started crying. I actually finished the 1/2 marathon. I can honestly say that I am glad that I did it but I don't think that I want to do that again.
I survived. I did it. It was painful but I did it. If it hadn't been for Rishelle and Melissa, there is no way that I would have been able to make it. We did it ladies.
My mom was in town and stayed in with kids so Scott and I could go down the night before the race. Scott works late so I went down with my 2 friends who were running with me, Rishelle and Melissa. We went down and picked up our packets and checked in. We had a good pasta dinner as well. It is amazing how much fun it is to go to dinner with a couple of friends without the pressure of having to pick up kids or get home to our husbands. We went to the hotel after that and Scott was waiting for me. We got a good nights sleep and then we woke up early and went down to the beach.
This is before we knew what we were really getting into. I have to admit it was pretty exciting as we waited for the race to start. 
Then the race started. The weather was pretty good. It was over cast and foggy. It was warm and I didn't think much of it. We ran 2 1/2 miles down the beach and then turned around and headed back. By the time we reached the spot where we started the wind started to really pick up. Then it started to sprinkle a little bit. I wasn't that worried. It sprinkles all the time in TX and doesn't do much else.
The scenery was beautiful. It looked like this the whole way. The only time I was not happy about running on the beach was when I came across a very potent smell. I couldn't figure out what it was. It smelled like death. Then a little while later I saw a dead dolphin washed up on the shore. That explained it. It was death. And I kept going. The wind got really hard to deal with and I was about to throw in the towel when I finally saw Melissa heading back the other way. She said the turn around was just a few hundred yard ahead. I was never so happy to see a bunch of cars in my life. After I the turn around, mile 9, it got a lot easier and I thought that I was going to actually make it. I did really well, mentally, until I hit about mile 12. Then the torrential down pour started. I couldn't believe it. I didn't want to run in the wind but the rain was horrible. The only good thing was the wind was at my back so the rain was hitting my back. At least it wasn't hitting me in my face. By the time I saw the tent at the finish, I was soaked through.
I was so happy to see Scott waiting there at the finish line, I almost started crying. I actually finished the 1/2 marathon. I can honestly say that I am glad that I did it but I don't think that I want to do that again. 
I survived. I did it. It was painful but I did it. If it hadn't been for Rishelle and Melissa, there is no way that I would have been able to make it. We did it ladies.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Houston's Best Kept Secret
For those of you who don't know, I am a huge fan of Parker Elementary School. For those of you who do know, bear with me. Houston has some very fabulous schools in the school district. They have magnet schools. Magnet schools have a particular focus, whether it is language, music, fine arts, vanguard (like gifted and talented turned up a notch) math, science, etc. You can apply to the different public schools you would like your child to go to.
When I moved here, Morgan was 3 years old and the only thing I really thought about was if there was an elementary school close by. About a year later, I was sitting at a playgroup with some friends from church and they were asking me if I had thought about what schools I would apply to for Morgan. That was so foreign to me they had to explain. They told me about the schools that were close by and I hear that there was a school around the corner that taught Suzuki violin starting in Kindergarten. I couldn't believe my ears.
Scott and I had always wanted out kids to learn music. It was always important to us. In fact, when I was pregnant with Morgan, Scott started worrying about when to get a piano. I figured we had a little time. So we happen to move to Houston and there happens to be a school about a mile away from our apartment that happens to teach Suzuki in the public school. So this is the deal. For the bargain price of $125 you child gets an instrument, insurance on that instrument, a private lesson every week and then in 1-5 grades, they have a group class everyday after school. So you can understand what a bargain this is, if you paid for this program privately, through the 6 years of elementary school, it would cost over $26,000. Oh, that also counts a workshop week where they fly different clinicians, people trained in Suzuki, from all over the country and they get a lesson with them for 3 days straight and then they have a concert at the end of the workshop. Oh, and did I mention that this is in a PUBLIC school?
I love Parker Elementary. I do have to say they don't just have violin and cello. They also have band, chorus, piano, and guitar. It is an amazing school.
So this past week was Suzuki workshop week. It is a great week but a very busy week. So Morgan and Kennedy both have lessons Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Of course, they were at different times during the day. One at 9:00 and the other at 1:35. Thankfully, my mother flew in to help me with the kids. That meant that I didn't have to try and find babysitters throughout the week. Anyway, she is a lifesaver. So she flew in on Tuesday and then I left her for the next few days. Wednesday I had the lessons and then I came home and proceeded to make 4 dozen rolls and 3 dozen cookies for a luncheon at the school the next day. Thursday I had to deliver the rolls and cookies and then the lessons again. That night, Morgan started complaining about a stomachache. I thought that it was just nerves for the concert the next night. Oh, no it wasn't. She started throwing up at about 10:30 and didn't stop until about 2 in the morning. She was so upset. She cried that she had worked so hard getting ready for the concert and if she was sick she wouldn't get to go to the concert. She didn't have a fever and didn't have any other symptoms so I told her if she could keep her food down and she rested, I would let her go to the concert. So Friday, I just went to Kennedy's cello lesson. She is doing so great. I am really happy with how hard she works.
That night we had the concert. I just have to tell you how amazing it is watching 160 children on the stage at the same time. They play songs of all different difficulties. I have to admit that after going to 4 of these concerts, my favorite is when they all play "twinkle twinkle little star" together. It just brings tears to my eyes. If you could just hear it. Oh, you can if you go to my friends blog, Raising Ebenezers. It is linked on my blog on the right hand side. She has a video link on her blog and you can see and hear how great it sounds. I just can't believe how good it sounds every year. It is just the twinkles but it is something else. I love Parker. Have I mentioned that?
Oh, did I forget to mention that this is the only school like it in the COUNTRY! Not the only public school, the only school. There is nothing like it out there. If you did it privately, you would be lucky to get a group class once a week. Some are only offered once every 2 weeks. I love Parker.
When I moved here, Morgan was 3 years old and the only thing I really thought about was if there was an elementary school close by. About a year later, I was sitting at a playgroup with some friends from church and they were asking me if I had thought about what schools I would apply to for Morgan. That was so foreign to me they had to explain. They told me about the schools that were close by and I hear that there was a school around the corner that taught Suzuki violin starting in Kindergarten. I couldn't believe my ears.
Scott and I had always wanted out kids to learn music. It was always important to us. In fact, when I was pregnant with Morgan, Scott started worrying about when to get a piano. I figured we had a little time. So we happen to move to Houston and there happens to be a school about a mile away from our apartment that happens to teach Suzuki in the public school. So this is the deal. For the bargain price of $125 you child gets an instrument, insurance on that instrument, a private lesson every week and then in 1-5 grades, they have a group class everyday after school. So you can understand what a bargain this is, if you paid for this program privately, through the 6 years of elementary school, it would cost over $26,000. Oh, that also counts a workshop week where they fly different clinicians, people trained in Suzuki, from all over the country and they get a lesson with them for 3 days straight and then they have a concert at the end of the workshop. Oh, and did I mention that this is in a PUBLIC school?
I love Parker Elementary. I do have to say they don't just have violin and cello. They also have band, chorus, piano, and guitar. It is an amazing school.
So this past week was Suzuki workshop week. It is a great week but a very busy week. So Morgan and Kennedy both have lessons Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Of course, they were at different times during the day. One at 9:00 and the other at 1:35. Thankfully, my mother flew in to help me with the kids. That meant that I didn't have to try and find babysitters throughout the week. Anyway, she is a lifesaver. So she flew in on Tuesday and then I left her for the next few days. Wednesday I had the lessons and then I came home and proceeded to make 4 dozen rolls and 3 dozen cookies for a luncheon at the school the next day. Thursday I had to deliver the rolls and cookies and then the lessons again. That night, Morgan started complaining about a stomachache. I thought that it was just nerves for the concert the next night. Oh, no it wasn't. She started throwing up at about 10:30 and didn't stop until about 2 in the morning. She was so upset. She cried that she had worked so hard getting ready for the concert and if she was sick she wouldn't get to go to the concert. She didn't have a fever and didn't have any other symptoms so I told her if she could keep her food down and she rested, I would let her go to the concert. So Friday, I just went to Kennedy's cello lesson. She is doing so great. I am really happy with how hard she works.
That night we had the concert. I just have to tell you how amazing it is watching 160 children on the stage at the same time. They play songs of all different difficulties. I have to admit that after going to 4 of these concerts, my favorite is when they all play "twinkle twinkle little star" together. It just brings tears to my eyes. If you could just hear it. Oh, you can if you go to my friends blog, Raising Ebenezers. It is linked on my blog on the right hand side. She has a video link on her blog and you can see and hear how great it sounds. I just can't believe how good it sounds every year. It is just the twinkles but it is something else. I love Parker. Have I mentioned that?
Oh, did I forget to mention that this is the only school like it in the COUNTRY! Not the only public school, the only school. There is nothing like it out there. If you did it privately, you would be lucky to get a group class once a week. Some are only offered once every 2 weeks. I love Parker.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
My Busy Day
Today was a pretty busy day. It was a good day but it was a busy one. It was so cold this morning that it was hard to get started. By the time we did get going we were running late. Well, not really but it felt like it. We were off to the most fun place in the whole world. Walmart. I am continually surprised at how fast you can spend money at walmart. We did our errands and then we were home. I realized at this point that Morgan had a recital this afternoon I had forgotten to find someone to watch Emmy and Ian. The last time I took them they were so loud that when they announced that Kennedy would be playing they also said that Ian would be singing a solo. I guess that was their nice way of saying he was a little loud. Anyway, after about 5 phone calls I finally got my friend Brekke to take the little ones. Emmy was excited to play with Audrey, her daughter and Ian didn't have a clue. By the time I dropped them off and got to the school, I was running late. I had Morgan's change of clothes with me and was a little upset that I was late, meaning I wasn't 30 minutes early. She did a fantastic job. Then it was a mad dash to get the little ones. The had a blast. One the way home I asked Emmy if she had fun. She told me all about it. "They had a lot of books and Audrey's mom read them to us. She is a lot of nice. You are a lot of mean." And that was her evaluation. I laughed pretty hard. I figure that means that I am doing something right. Since when is a mom thought of a nice when you are 3.
The rest of the night was spent cooking dinner, practicing and chasing Ian out of my cupboards and pantry. It is a pretty full time job and I am a little tired.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Finding Joy in the Journey
I have the "joy" of being a teacher in Relief Society. It really isn't that bad so I can't really complain. I get to teach the Teachings for our Times lesson at the end of the month. Sometimes that can be a real challenge because it is from a conference talk and not the lesson manual. This week I got to teach the talk by Pres. Monson "Finding Joy in the Journey." To be honest, I didn't remember the talk from conference but it was a fabulous talk. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend looking it up and reading it. I never talk like this for those of you who don't know me so well. Being spiritual isn't exactly high on my list of characteristics that I would give myself. I think this one just hit at the right time. You know how it goes. Anyway, it spoke of how important it is to live for today instead of waiting for tomorrow. Now that doesn't mean you don't have to plan for the future or go blow you life savings today. Just enjoy the moment. It really made me think about how blessed I am in my life. It is really easy to look at all the things that aren't exactly right with my life and dwell on those but a little harder to look for the right things. I gave the challenge to the class to look for things to enjoy about life and be happy. I am going to try to do a little of the same thing.
I love watching Ian discover things. I could be really angry when he drops things down the stairs but I am trying to remember that he is just discovering gravity. He is learning. I love Emmy's sense of humor. I am the luckiest person in the world to get to ride in the car with her and play I Spy. She is so smart. I especially love it when she tells me that she sees weird things on top of buildings like snails and squirrels and a stunk (this is a skunk and not a typo. I think the name is really appropriate) I live watching Kennedy's eyes light up when she gets a particularly naughty idea in her head. I love her laugh. She has the greatest laugh and she really loves life. I love Morgan's kind heart. She has so much compassion. She is sensitive to the feelings of those around her and always willing to help. I love Scott's willingness to serve. He works so hard whether at work or at church. I know he would rather be home but he never complains.
I am going to try to look at the good things and live for today. I am going to try to improve my current situation instead of just waiting for it to change. I will focus more on the people in my live than the things. I guess this is going to be one of my new year resolutions. I will be happy, not when the kids get older or when Scott gets a new job or when the house stays clean or when the laundry is done. I will be happy now.
I love watching Ian discover things. I could be really angry when he drops things down the stairs but I am trying to remember that he is just discovering gravity. He is learning. I love Emmy's sense of humor. I am the luckiest person in the world to get to ride in the car with her and play I Spy. She is so smart. I especially love it when she tells me that she sees weird things on top of buildings like snails and squirrels and a stunk (this is a skunk and not a typo. I think the name is really appropriate) I live watching Kennedy's eyes light up when she gets a particularly naughty idea in her head. I love her laugh. She has the greatest laugh and she really loves life. I love Morgan's kind heart. She has so much compassion. She is sensitive to the feelings of those around her and always willing to help. I love Scott's willingness to serve. He works so hard whether at work or at church. I know he would rather be home but he never complains.
I am going to try to look at the good things and live for today. I am going to try to improve my current situation instead of just waiting for it to change. I will focus more on the people in my live than the things. I guess this is going to be one of my new year resolutions. I will be happy, not when the kids get older or when Scott gets a new job or when the house stays clean or when the laundry is done. I will be happy now.
The Poor Family Dog
We have a dog, Ginger. I have to admit that she often gets a bad rap, not that it isn't deserved most of the time. As any of you know that also have a family dog, I have little time for her. I have a lot on my plate. I have 4 children and a husband and a house to try to keep sort of clean. I didn't really sign up for the dog thing as well. I just kind of got out numbered. I will admit that I didn't say no. How could I when the kids had been asking for a dog forever and Scott calls me on the phone and tells me to look at a picture of the dog on the Internet with the sound of longing in his voice. She really isn't a bad dog. She wasn't very hard to potty train at all. She is great with the kids. She is careful with the baby. She does chew things at times. We have lost a few pairs of shoes and some toys. I really can't complain when she chews up a Barbie that has been left on the living room floor as if it were placed on the sacrificial alter. The kids should pick up their toys and that is a great cause and effect lesson. Nevertheless, she is the first one to get blamed when something goes missing.
Last night was a prime example. Scott walked down the hall and found the insides of a diaper just sitting there in a pile. It wasn't a lot but enough to know what it was. My first response is, the dog did it. I honestly can't remember the last time that she chewed up a diaper, as disgusting as that is. So I made Kennedy and Morgan go looking for the rest of it. The shell had to be hidden somewhere. They looked and couldn't find it anywhere. Now when I say they looked, I wouldn't say that they really looked. So then I warn them that if I find it they are going to be in trouble. I'm sure I threatened them with some terrible punishment that I can't remember right now. They still couldn't find it. So I started looking. I looked everywhere. I looked under beds, in closets, behind couches and in the backyard. All the usual places that she likes to take her prizes. Nothing. I was sure she did it and I was going to find it in the middle of the night by stepping in it. Then we found some more diaper innards. It wasn't a lot. Just a few little piles leading down the hall. I couldn't figure it out. It wasn't there a minute ago. It took me about an hour for check the other diaper walking around the house. I found it. Ian had a blown out diaper, literally. It was loosing its stuffing by the second. I have to admit I felt a little sorry for Ginger. I had been giving her scary looks and asking where the diaper was and she just looked up at me with her big sad hound dog eyes as if to say, "I really didn't do it this time lady." I guess I just need to get it off my chest and say "Sorry Ginger."
Last night was a prime example. Scott walked down the hall and found the insides of a diaper just sitting there in a pile. It wasn't a lot but enough to know what it was. My first response is, the dog did it. I honestly can't remember the last time that she chewed up a diaper, as disgusting as that is. So I made Kennedy and Morgan go looking for the rest of it. The shell had to be hidden somewhere. They looked and couldn't find it anywhere. Now when I say they looked, I wouldn't say that they really looked. So then I warn them that if I find it they are going to be in trouble. I'm sure I threatened them with some terrible punishment that I can't remember right now. They still couldn't find it. So I started looking. I looked everywhere. I looked under beds, in closets, behind couches and in the backyard. All the usual places that she likes to take her prizes. Nothing. I was sure she did it and I was going to find it in the middle of the night by stepping in it. Then we found some more diaper innards. It wasn't a lot. Just a few little piles leading down the hall. I couldn't figure it out. It wasn't there a minute ago. It took me about an hour for check the other diaper walking around the house. I found it. Ian had a blown out diaper, literally. It was loosing its stuffing by the second. I have to admit I felt a little sorry for Ginger. I had been giving her scary looks and asking where the diaper was and she just looked up at me with her big sad hound dog eyes as if to say, "I really didn't do it this time lady." I guess I just need to get it off my chest and say "Sorry Ginger."
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