Halloween Favorites

Long story made short: Here are my favorite pictures of my ninja (Will), IronMan (Ben), Spiderman (Jon), and ballerina (Maddie... in the tutu I wore when I was six). Busy week, fun night, too much candy, tummy aches and late bedtime. Just like every year at Halloween.

 And, ever the joker, Will ended the night with a punch-line, "Mama, I have SUCH a sweet tooth!"

PS: See what pretty front teeth he has? You can't even tell the right one is about 1/3rd fake. He broke it the week before when he was swimming with his eyes closed and ran into a ladder.

Proud (10/5/12)

Another day of presentations. Look how proud and excited Will is!

The School Year's First Field Trip (9/21/12)

A bit of background (since I haven't finished the post on where my kids are going to school)... Will attends a charter school that is all project-based small-group learning from about 8 to 12 each day. I pick him up, and usually we come home for lunch, then do about an hour or two of at-home school work. We love this school model, but all that is for another post, too. What is important to THIS post, is that the afternoons are open -- not at school -- and parents work together and with the teachers to plan field trips for the students to enrich their at-school projects and at-home lessons. The first outing was during a science project about recycling and a math project to design an outdoor classroom. One of the parents arranged a tour of the at the fairgrounds to explore the Secret Garden, learn more about country life, explore the wonders of the great outdoors, and learn more about the people involved in agriculture in our community.

I took Ben, Maddie, and Jon out of school a bit early so they could go learn, also. ... and because that was the only way I could pick them up before evening while Will was on the tour. Unfortunately, the tour guide didn't show up because there was some confusion about the date, but we had a good time, and I KNOW the kids learned at least a little bit. It was nice to meet some of the kids Will often tells me about, and I was appreciative that the mom of one of Will's best new friends in his class helped me keep track of Will so I could keep an eye on my ever-exploring kindergartners.

After a few hours at the fair, the kids were begging me to get them the junk food. Though I remember liking all the fried treats when I was younger, I can't even smell it now without getting a bit of a tummy ache. Somehow, I convinced them that Sonic's happy hour would be a better use of our money, so we headed out for slushes and one order of cheese sticks (5 stubby sticks for 5 of us -- perfect!). We took our treats to the park so the kids could run off some of the sugar, then we headed home. The three younger ones fell asleep in the car, but Will waited a few minutes longer.

Sick Little One (10/2/12)

Jon came home with a headache Wednesday. His teacher met me at the car to tell me it had been hurting him, and that several kids in the class had had a virus that started with a headache, then fever, then sickness. By the time we got home, he was asleep in the car. When I checked his temperature a bit later, it was 103*F. Thursday and Friday, he had fever off an on all day. Ibuprofen knocked the fever out for a few hours, but then it kept coming back. The poor kiddo would go from acting perfectly fine then thirty minutes later, he would be sound asleep in strange places.

Saturday, Jon still was running a fever, and I headed to the store since Allen was about to leave town. Sunday, Jon was fever-free all day, but then the tummy-ache started. Thankfully, he was back to being silly by that evening, and we were back on schedule for Monday.

July and August - Summer-ized

What a busy summer! So much as been going on that I haven't had a chance to keep up with the blog. When I did have a few moments, I had picture-problems. Now, I am faced with the daunting task of trying to write about a busy 6-week gap while trying to write about all the new things going on now, too! Here is the quick summary of most of July and the first half of August -- some are Facebook status updates, some are from my calendar or photo collections:

July 2 - The kids started swim lessons today. I guess we will be at the pool for the next two weeks.

July 2 - Maddie asked me if George Washington was grounded... My response was "????" she continued, "after he died, did his family ground him like we did to Grandma Rose?" ... So, my five year old(s) believes someone buried has been grounded. That meaning actually makes more sense to me than what my definition of "grounded" is.

July 4 - Bluebirds hatch in the nest with the video camera. The kids and I watched them a lot on the computer screen.

July 5 - Three baby bluebirds, one day old

July 7 - We traded in our 2000 Toyota Sienna and replaced with with a 2011 Sienna. While Allen and I shopped, the kids went to see Brave with Nana and Papa.

July 9 -

July 12 - 8 days old. Eyes are open all the way.

July 15 - The bluebirds are 11 days old. Last photo like this because if I open house at 12+ days, they may fledge too early. And Sialia was mad at me for opening it too take the picture... Not sure why since she usually let's me do it.

July 16-20 - Will attended zoo camp this week. The little kids and I ran errands most days, but spent two days at the zoo. Other than the aviary (which they always love), the kids had a blast "playing" with the otter who enjoyed racing the little kids.

July 22 - Our family has been practicing the dance (choreographed, with videoed instruction) we are doing for the kids great-grandparents 60th wedding anniversary.

July 23 - I checked on the bluebirds today and cried. The babies are all dead :( I'm not sure why, but I'm guessing it is because it got so hot this week. The birdhouse is in a sunny spot. Broken-hearted over the birds... again.
July 23-25 - All four kids went to VBS at the church we have been attending. I used the time to get a haircut, grocery shop, and enjoy the little bit of quiet.

July 25 - Heading to Waco for a few days of Camp Gramma and Granddad
July 25 - August 12 - Allen took two and half weeks off from work!

July 26-28 - Allen and I met Casey and Christina in New Braunfels. We all had a great time catching up as adults, having left all 8 kids at grandparents'. We tubed the Comal River the first afternoon. Friday morning, Christina and I hit a few shops in San Marcos, while the guys canoed. We enjoyed plenty of tasty food, did some wine-tasting, and watched the Olympics opening ceremonies at a brewery. We were up late both nights playing games, but the few days "off" were so much fun! I really enjoyed the quiet road-time with Allen, too. Sadly, I didn't get any pictures.

July 31 - I took Maddie for her first professional pedicure. Too much too early? Maybe, but it was worth it to have some special time with my daughter.

August 1 - Wishing I could visit Santorini again, but until then, I'll settle for around-the-world vacations via DrawSomething...

August 2-6 - We had a fantastic time at a family reunion in California. It was the little kids' first times on an airplane, and we did fly out at o'dark thirty, but the trip was a blast! We hiked among sequioas, had our own family-style Olympic crazy-games, danced flash-mob style, celebrated a special wedding anniversary, ate lots of good food, played outside constantly, and even had a bit of down time. I hope to blog about it all soon!

August 9-10 - Will had Innovation Camp both days, and I went for a parent orientation on the second day. This camp was set up by the teachers to introduce the kids at his new school, but also to let the teachers do some assessments without interrupting and wasting school time. Will enjoyed it, and I learned enough about some of his up-coming assignments to be really excited!

Double Features

We had another busy weekend, but I managed to get enough photos to tell most of the stories. Saturday, we had a Cub Scout double outing: the Cotton Belt Depot Museum and Camp Ford Civil War Historic Site, with a picnic lunch between the tours. With our two outings, we had two guest -- Nana and Papa came to enjoy the outings with us, and we returned to our house early afternoon. Ben, Maddie, and Jon opened a few more birthday gifts, then we all spent the afternoon "playing." Maddie and Nana worked on some crafts; Daddy and Papa helped Ben and Jon assemble new Lego sets. I took pictures and tried to soak up the rare bit of quiet that the afternoon with new toys and grandparents.

... and I may have finally figured out who taught Jon his unique way of sitting to do floor projects. ;)

Three little punkins - 10/18

 The day after these three turned six, I helped chaperone the kindergarten field trip to the pumpkin patch. Will wasn't too bummed since I did bring him a pumpkin AND he got to spend the afternoon with his buddy. I was technically WITH Jon's class, but he was the only one I actually lost (and found) that day. I tried to keep an eye on all the fun the three were having with their friends, but it was tough. It was a fun day, but very busy with so many people -- lots of other school were there, so it was a bit stressful for me since I really hate being in crowds. These three kiddos had a great time, and that's really all that matters to me.