Volunteering, Vomit & Vanquishing Tornadoes

This week I got to volunteer in Steven's classroom. He was more puzzled by my prescence then excited but I enjoyed being there. It made me miss subbing. Not all subbing was fun but a lot of times it was. Just hanging out with kids, reading books and basking in their joy of having someone new to teach them. Plus kids generally are good for my self esteem--I had several of Steven's classmates tell me how pretty I am ;)

Also this week, my 3 kids were bathing together when Ben decided to bite Lucy's bum. I know with all those adorable rolls it does look pretty delicious but really? Oh my children!

On Friday night Tyler had a scout camp out and Ben decided to choose that night to throw up all over himself and his bed. It was awful! Usually Tyler cleans up the mess and it's my job to love on the poor sickly child...I do not do well with cleaning puke. Ugh. Thankfully, he was totally fine after that incident. And thankfully, all the craziness didn't wake Steven up. The next day when Steven learned what happened he informed me that God put stuff in his ears so he didn't hear Ben crying & that's why he didn't wake up. That kid and his stories!

Yesterday the Halloween costume box was brought out & now Ben wants to wear his Spiderman costume everywhere. He wore it to bed & was extremely upset that he couldn't wear it to church. On our way home from church he informed me that due to the dark clouds a tornado was coming but not to worry, he would put on his costume and then be able to catch the tornado with his spider web. Too cute!

And to end with my favorite little girl, Lucy's new goals in life are 1) to destroy my office and 2) get up the stairs unnoticed. Anytime I leave my office door open or forget to close the gate on the stairs, there is trouble to be had.She now also refuses to wear girly hair bows and has a strong dislike for dresses because they get in the way of her crawling. She is growing too fast!

Another Post

This week we got spoiled and had 2 date nights. Friday night we went to the temple with Tyler's family so that we could see the new Endowment video. It was wonderful! All the words are the same so the message hasn't changed- only the presentation of the message. And it's amazing the difference new presenters can make. Afterwards we all went out to dinner to Mi Amigo's. Delicious food and good company :) 

Then Saturday night we had our date night swap so we went to visit Josh & Mary in the hospital. Tyler has known Josh since high school and just a few weeks ago he was in a motorcycle accident. In the accident he broke his trachea, arm, leg, and was basically just one big mess and blessed to have made it out alive. He is recovering well and can now talk which is miraculous in itself. His wife (due with baby #3 late October) has been a champ throughout. While we were there she relayed a story that a doctor had told her about when Josh had arrived at the hospital. Apparently they had no idea about his broken trachea and doctors were busy attending to a few people with gun shot wounds that had come in at the same time. But this doctor had a feeling she should go check on Josh. She took of the plastic brace they had put on his neck and discovered his broken trachea. She immediately put a trach? in and the doctor told Mary that he wouldn't have lasted 5 more minutes without it. Somebody was certainly looking out for Josh that day and we are so grateful that he's still here and will be able to meet his new baby in October.

Other news from this past week---- Ben won the battle against walking to school. After he cried the entire walk home Friday, I caved today and took our double stroller. Oh how I hate this double stroller- it's a pain to steer- but I think it was worth it. We got to school and home SO much faster and there were no tears. Lazy Ben wins the battle!...But maybe when the weather cools down the battle can begin again. 

If you ever ask Ben who his best friend is, he will usually say Boston. Today I got to watch Boston and Broden so Ben was in heaven. Here he is with his BF:

Lucy is already a social butterfly, she loves the walks to school. She gives great smiles to everyone and now she waves and says "Hi" to everyone too. It's super cute!

Since I had 2 extra kids today I wasn't the bestest mom ever and Lucy-- who will stick everything and anything into her mouth---decided to chew on some wooden thing that Steven had colored with red marker. Apparently the marker came off on her face... I'm sure that was healthy ;)

Steven is still loving school but I am not so sure school loves having him. Today his teacher said he did much better--- he only went to time out twice. Ugh! No time outs would be a better day but that might be asking for too much. He is having a really rough time at school (and at home) with keeping his hands to himself. He also apparently likes to blurt out and not raise his hands. He has been coming home with a major stubborn attitude. It has not been making our time together too fun. He is in need an attitude adjustment.

And Tyler starts what will hopefully be his last semester this Thursday. I'm saying lots of prayers for him because he has two tough labs and I REALLY need this to be his last semester.

Girl Time

On Thursday I turned 28. My birthday was pretty calm and uneventful which is exactly what I wanted. I am not huge on having a big bash where all eyes are on me while I blow out candles and open presents- although I'm not gonna lie, I do like presents :) That morning, I walked Steven (& only Steven) to school which was nice. Tyler watched the other 2. Then I met Karen and Ashley for a yummy breakfast. After that I spent lots of time just chilling at home with the kids. Later I had dinner at Texas Roadhouse with my family and then Tyler showered me with gifts (as always). Just a perfectly, perfect day.

Friday is when I did the "real" partying. I went on a girl's getaway to the AZ Grand Resort in Phoenix. I went with a few women from the ward (Karen, Kristen, MaChel), with my sister-in-law Rebecca and with a few ladies from another ward (Ashley, Breanna, Kyla). We checked in and then had dinner at Claim Jumper (of course I'm the only one who can't keep her eyes open):

At dinner me and 2 other girls that had birthdays that week got a free red velvet cupcake, along with a "happy birthday" song. I loved that I got to share the moment and all eyes weren't on me. 

After dinner we hung out in the hot tub/pool where an awkward teenage boy seemed to enjoy sitting (hovering) near us a little too much- he later became known as "The Creeper." Then we stayed up late playing some fun games- one of which I almost won and one of which I lost horribly. As the loser I was supposed to go jump in the fountain in front of the hotel, some of the women even offered to hoist me up there- but you know that was not really going to happen with lame ol' me ;)

The next day I slept in until 9am (unlike the girls in the other room who woke up at 6am). After getting ready Rebekka & I went and had some Jamba Juice, then we went back to the resort where we hung out in the Lazy River with everyone--- and once again we came in contact with "The Creeper." He was several tubes behind us but I was sure he was going to pop up like a fish at any moment in a nearby tube.

After getting our fill of the Lazy River, Rebecca and I parted ways with the rest of them and did some major shopping at Az Mills Malls. I LOVE shopping without kids and Rebecca was a good shopping buddy. About dinner time we headed home, back to our responsibilities :( But at least are responsibilities are super cute ;)

And Sunday Tyler insisted we do the birthday cake thing at his parent's house--- although he didn't tell anyone about it and he didn't make me my much desired "Despicable Me" Minion cake. So...it was pretty lame, which is ok I suppose. However, he did almost set the house on fire by insisting on lighting all 28 candles. Man my cakes are getting bright! And we did discover that Lucy is going to have fun when she turns one- that girl kept trying to smash into that cake. 

And that concludes the celebrating of me :)

First Day

Yesterday we spent Steven's last day of summer with Oliver & Rebecca at a splash pad that is near their home. All the kids had a blast! Then later we went back to Rebecca's house to officially celebrate Oliver's first birthday. It was fun to watch Oliver totally destroy his birthday cake and the boys had way too much fun playing with balloons. Afterwards we rented "Wreck it Ralph" and snuggled together on the couch. It was a perfect end to summer.

This morning,  Steven was up (on his own) at 6:30- me, I was up much earlier. School is going to kick my butt in gear- no more lazy, sleeping in until 7 for me. For breakfast, Steven requested cereal and donuts. Now that they only get cereal once a week it has become a much desired luxury :) 

After a father's blessing and getting everyone else ready it was time to walk to school but first--- photos! Mine are not nearly as cute as all the ones I'm seeing on Facebook- lighting is bad, not close up enough & no cute chalkboard with the grade he is in- but still they show off Steven's new favorite color & his attitude perfectly...

Today was less sunny than normal but a bit humid so we still got a bit sweaty on our 20 minute walk to school. When we got there Steven was grouchy with me and didn't want to take pictures in front of the school....so we didn't. Then he stood in his line looking nervous until he saw his best buddy, Colin. As soon as he saw Colin he was off having fun on the playground. But when the bell rang it was time for them to part ways and he seemed nervous again. 

Upon entering the classroom he had no qualms finding a seat and once in it he set to work coloring and again his nerves seemed to pass. So much so that he posed for this silly picture- such a Hatch! And so much so that when the teacher said it was time for parents to go, he told me to go so he could get to work.  

The walk home was rough--- for me & my emotionalness and for Ben & his emotionalness. It's a long walk for my lazy 3 year old apparently. I think the walk will be good to get both Ben & me more active.

Once home it was SO weird. Our house was so quiet- no brother to fight with or run around and giggle with. No need to constant entertain, Ben quite likes playing alone. Lucy even took a 2.5 hour morning nap as though to celebrate the quietness. And when she woke up she further celebrated by pigging out her first PB&J sandwich. This baby of mine refuses to eat baby food now and only wants to make a mess of the real stuff. So fun ;)

I wish I could say my day continued on smoothly but Ben did not wake up a happy camper from his nap. And unfortunately I couldn't try to get him to sleep some more because we had to pick up Steven from school. This time we drove and parked but it wasn't quite close enough for Ben. And he cried, not a whimper but more like a wail, the entire time we waited for Steven. And the entire time we walked back to the car. And the entire way home. So there was no fun greeting for Steven, no chance to check in with the teacher and I was completely ostracized by annoyed parents (who I couldn't blame in the least). Ok and for those few kind parents who tried to cheer  Ben up, they were only rewarded with louder wailing and they would quickly regret their attempts. So awful. And to top it off Steven refused to say bye to his teacher because the sun was making his hair hot....Parenthood is so fantastic.

On the Other Side

6 years ago I embarked on my teaching journey. I was young, pregnant, overwhelmed, and unsure of myself as a teacher. I spent weeks getting my classroom together, days in meetings and before I knew it was time to meet the parents & my kids. My nerves were through the roof, I had no idea what I was going to say to these people who were about to entrust me with their children for 7 hours a day, 5 days a week- that's a huge chunk of the week people. And then the parents arrived and I attempted to feign confidence as I spoke to them. Tried to act like I had done this a million times. But I was young and new and it showed. And when one parent found out just how new I was they began to rant. They did not like first year teachers and were not pleased about their child being in my class. And I was so hurt because I had to start somewhere and I judged those parent's for the way they treated me.

And now fast forward 6 years. That baby that was in my tummy is now starting Kindergarten. And it's embarrassing to admit but I was nervous to be on the other side, to be meeting the person who would be with my child 7 hours a day, 5 hours a week. The person my child might accidentally call mom when beckoning them over for help tying a shoe lace. The person that will comfort my child when he cries over an owie or hurt feelings. The person who will determine if my child is really sick or just wanting a break from class time. The person who will discipline my child when he talks out of turn or says a potty word (believe me, it's bound to happen). 

And when I met his teacher, I saw the newness in her eyes. Standing behind a desk at the front door, unsure of what she was supposed to be doing, unsure of where to put supplies some parents had brought but sure that she was not going to leave that spot of comfort. Handing out scavenger hunts that didn't include pictures but words that only parents could read. Not trying to extend conversations with parents but just trying to explain papers and look professional. Trying to look like she knew what she was doing but she was young and she was new. And I wanted to cry out, "Not a first year teacher!" I was not pleased. I had been there. I had struggled through that first year constantly gasping for air and feeling like I had no idea what I was doing. And I had ruined 21 students... Hadn't I?

But I hadn't. It was a tough year but my students progressed and learned. And I still remember how one mom had told me that I was exactly the teacher her child needed that year. Me! A first year teacher! So now it's time to stop judging and put my confidence in this teacher. It's been awhile since I have worn my teacher hat and that's ok. I get the mom hat now and it's pretty fabulous. And this mom is determined to be a helpful, non yellow dot parent. And who knows, maybe she will be just what my child needs.