Sunday, May 31, 2009

graduate




i would imagine that every parent that has their child graduate from kindergarten must think the same thought; that in an instant they are going to see the same small child as a young adult walking across a graduation stage to receive their highschool diploma. i just so hope it goes slow and not in a flash. i hope that the days are long and happy. hope my baby stays my baby for a long, long time.

Saturday, May 30, 2009

beauty




i am not sure if it is the make-up or the spotlight, but hadley always looks so beautiful at her school performances. after each show, she always runs out to find us and is so excited to see her family! great job had!

bee for me!


i have always LOVED the spelling bee. i missed it last night for the first time in quite awhile. if you go on http://spellingbee.com/ you can take a "qualifying" test. guess i am not as good of a speller as i thought...only 14 out of 25 correct. so upsetting!

Friday, May 29, 2009

mission statement

when i took on the "job" of being a mother, i set out to write a mission statement. i typed it up and hung it on the wall. today it still is framed and hung, but now a picture owen drew when he was 3 years old has slid in in front of it. even though the words are hidden, i still know my mission. today my two boys boys graduate...owen from kindergarten and wyatt moving up from 3rd grade. it is sure to be an emotional day. 9 years later, my mission is still the same...


We hope to provide a safe home for our children that will enable them to be happy in life and develop the following qualities. Our Love Forever, Mommy and Daddy
~honesty and integrity
~ability to form and keep meaningful relationships
~sensitivity to differences in others and compassion for those in need
~curiosity and desire to learn and explore
~self-worth and confidence to make positive choices and except responsibility for faults
~desire to try your hardest to solve problems
~wisdom to lead others
~intimacy
~sense of humor
~respect for life and nature

Today is yet another milestone of the many that are in store for my children. I hope I can always remember the feeling I have today. Remember the feeling of still being able to have Owen sit on my lap and snuggle. The feeling of having Wyatt still grab my hand as we walk across a street. I love my sons.

Thursday, May 28, 2009

class parties







okay as room mom for both wyatt and owen's classes, it does get a little overwhelming to have to plan 2 parties at one time, however this year they both were successes. wyatt's group had a day long pool party with lunch buffet and ice cream bar! too much fun. owen's class party was at a bounce place and was perfect for the little ones to just be able to run and play and laugh! for gifts for the graduating kindergarteners, we got them each a little trophy. needless to say, they were SO excited!!! we are now home and FINALLY school is out for SUMMER!!!!!!!!

orff concert







wyatt did a great job at his orff concert at school tuesday evening. next year as a 4th grader he is able to chose whether he would like to remain in orff or if he would like to join band. all year he has said he wanted to play drums in band, but the other night he said he wanted to stick with the orff group. the sounds of the wooden instruments are amazing!! so excited!

Sunday, May 24, 2009

vision

i have saved pictures of this one kitchen i loved for years now. the pages of the article i ripped out of a kitchen magazine are worn and crinkled, but i knew this was exactly the kitchen i wanted to have in our house. when we needed to tear out our kitchen, i went searching in the drawers for my article. i love the simplicity of these cabinets and the shelving. the built in is beautiful and we have always dreamed of having a glass-doored refrigerator. our budget is very minimal compared to the needs of a kitchen like this one(no new frig for now), however we are going to try our best. it must be meant to be...i was in the grocery store check out line this week and this month's featured kitchen was this very same one...same article, same pictures, same everything from the one i had saved from years ago. how often does that happen...a magazine reprinting an article! love this kitchen!!!

Saturday, May 23, 2009

for tracey...


here is our kitchen as we now know it. in case it does not show in picture, between the beams on the floor...yes that goes straight down to dirt!

Friday, May 22, 2009

it's back!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Wednesday, May 20, 2009

3285...


days together...happy anniversary heather and chris!!
thanks for always and forever standing by our sides!

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

making a masterpiece



Monday, May 18, 2009

lady grace











today was grace's first gymnastics recital. the theme of medieval times was perfect for her. her teacher was dressed in a medieval princess gown and grace was mesmerized! she was a little apprehensive to go out by herself, but was happy to go as long as i sat near her! she received 4 medals--one for each area she completed. she was so adorable waving to the crowd and to her family in the audience. thanks to cappy bobby and gommy for a lunch celebration after.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

go picnic


i needed to look something up on costco.com and came across the go picnic brand. when i went to their website, i found that they offer prepackaged, "go anywhere" healthy alternatives. their kids "mighty munch meals" are on sale today for only $2.99 and contain everything for a great fun lunch including silverware. they offer gluten free and vegetarian alternatives with no artificial flavors or colors. finally!! online they offer 10% off first purchase and free shipping for orders over $99---may be good to have stocked for summer outings.

j-o-b

it has been 9 years since i last worked (and when i mean worked i mean performed a job that i was paid for). there have been several instances that i was asked to return to doing speech/language therapy or teaching jobs, but i never really even thought twice about declining. well, that has changed---just when i least expected it. yesterday, i received an email simply titled "opportunity." the body of the letter, written by an acquaintance of mine that i knew from the kids school and since grace has attended some of her mommy and me classes, read that i needed to call her yesterday to hear of an idea she had for me. i called, ready to listen, but equally as ready to politely decline any offer as i love being completely and entirely able to not "work" and focus on my kids and family. this was a bit different. she is starting a 3-year old program at one of my favorite nature centers next year, which just so happens to be down the street from the boys' school. her schedule is very full and she offered me a position co-teaching where i would teach the class 2 mornings a week to 10 children, one of which would be grace. hmmm, a little extra money, time to be with grace, and teach my favorite aged children science!???!! well, she just called me back and she said it is all set. i am not even sure i think i completely accepted, but i guess now it is official. come september 8th, the day before my baby turns 4 years old, i will re-enter the "work force." i am not panicking at this point. i know that truly it could not be a better opportunity. so it will be a nature-based early literacy program. guess i need to start brushing up on my insects, plant names, and wildlife!! okay, i may need some moral support on this one!!!

Saturday, May 16, 2009

a dali day







Tuesday, May 12, 2009

year for $15.

when my sister and i were young, my grandmother every year would give us as a gift a subscription to national geographic magazine. i am sure this began my love of other cultures. recently (though magazines arriving at my house stress me out as i know i will have a hard time finding a free moment to read them) i decided i wanted to "renew" that sense of cultural and world knowledge you get through reading the magazine. one subscription site listed a year for almost $60 so i knew it was out of my price range. however, laura found if you go on the national geographic site directly, you can get one year for only $15! what a great deal! cannot wait to receive my first one!!!!!

Monday, May 11, 2009

sweet surprises


every week, the job of shopping is made a special event as the kids each take turns coming with me. i am not sure why, but they each love to come and it gives me a nice (rare) chance to have them one-on-one. yesterday, after a yummy mother's day breakfast with everyone at our regular weekend spot, owen and i loaded up to get to shopping. as we walked in, they had a table set up that kids could decorate a cake especially for mom! owen loved it! he got to put on any color and shape of icing and then endless amounts of sprinkles and some fun plastic toppers. his design incorporated multiple hearts in an array of colors! perfect!

Saturday, May 9, 2009

celebration of WYATT'S learning


wyatt and his buddies

volume of a sphere

mother's day bird feeder










wyatt's portrait of mommy











animal cell parts






Friday, May 8, 2009

celebration of OWEN'S learning











come every may, school holds a beautiful event called "celebration of learning" highlighting each student's work over the course of the year. it truly is a celebration of each child and makes them feel so proud and treasured. owen is such a wonderful little boy and his work is so precise and thought out. he finds so much meaning in his work and takes all pieces of work seriously. it was cute...todd sat down to read owen's journal...every page of it from each day of the school year. we were waiting as we did not want to hurry him along. soon after, owen's teacher came up and said we get to take all the work home, of course todd was on the last page. here is a sample of owen's amazing work in celebration of him.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

bright colors


Tuesday, May 5, 2009

and "cute-iful"


Monday, May 4, 2009

beautiful


Sunday, May 3, 2009

enter to win...


hgtv's green house give-away.

weekend morning











with the kitchen demolished, end of year chaos, and lots of cleaning/working requirements lately, sometimes we just have to get out of the house for an escape. luckily, our busch gardens year passes allow us to do a fun-filled morning for free. we always have a blast. grace was not to keen on the speed and splashing of the flume ride, but besides that it was a well-deserved and much-needed break from the strains of life!

1 dalmatian and a boxer







the boys starred in the school production of "disney's 101 dalmatians" last week. owen was a cute little puppy and wyatt was a "boxer" dog. the highlight of the show was the "chacha slide" at the end...boy can owen boogie :) grace loved seeing her brothers and also the singing pink poodles!

Saturday, May 2, 2009

adjectives


the school task: write 8 adjectives describing your mother. here is what wyatt wrote:
1. caring
2. sweet
3. careful
4. nice
5. kind
6. funny
7. pretty
8. loving
My mom is: NICE.
She likes to: CLEAN.
She always: CLEANS.
Sometimes she: IS SAD.
But the best thing about my mom is: SHE'S MY MOM.