Sunday, September 30, 2012

Sunday in the Country

Sunday in the fall around here for Stephanie can only mean one thing....football.  At least, when the Seahawks are playing.

Sundays in the fall around here for me?  Finding little things to do to keep me occupied while the football game is on.  :)

Lucky you - today, that means blogging.  :)

Both Kaylen and Andrew had soccer games yesterday so we spent the morning driving into Vancouver to be at Andrew's game at 9am and then racing out to Battleground for Kaylen's 11am game.  Due to Andrew's game running over by...a lot....we missed Kaylen's warm up time and the first couple minutes of her game.  Oh the life of multi-kid sport season.  Next week, we have a game close to home and then another one an hour north.  Since the kids are all at other parent's houses next weekend, we have time to get to both because we don't have to factor in warm up time.  Only 4 more weeks for Kaylen's games and then her season is over.  I think Andrew's schedule is the same but he might have two weeks longer.

Then we can go back to not rushing out of the door first thing Saturday morning.

Yesterday, at Andrew's game, I took a few pictures of the kids with me. Check them out:

I really like this one!



 Yep....silly kids.  :)

So today.  Let's see....what might today hold, you know.....AFTER the football game.  We have the dishwasher that needs to be reinstalled from when we did the kitchen floor a few weeks back.  We had tried to install it a couple times but as it turned out, we needed to replace a part which meant we had to order it and then wait for it to arrive.  It's here now so hopefully, it will be a quick job to get it back in.  Trust me - the novelty of washing dishes by hand for a family of 5 wore off a good long time ago.  The kids, however, have had a good taste of doing dishes which I think can only benefit them in the long run.

Oh - did I tell you that I went to a PWT (People Working Together) meeting at the new school?  It's their equivalent to a PTA or PTO.  Anyway - I volunteered to be on the book fair committee for the October book fair.  I am determined to keep my involvement down this year because I was so burned out by the end of last year....my 4th year running the PTO at Crestline.  It's nice to see a higher number of parent volunteers at the new school but I heard the same thing from many people:  it's always the same group volunteering.  Same issue, different school.  I suppose that's how it is everywhere, though.

Being back in the school means background check reports, which because I knew I was going to get involved on some level, I completed back in June.  Maybe at the next open house, there should be a station set up for easy processing of the background checks.  It could have a banner that reads:  FREE SERVICE:  check background checks here!!  And then, once people have their checks run, you snag them for volunteering.  :)

You know how people can't resist free things.  Two birds, one stone.  I'm all about that. :)

Okee doke - it's half time.  Maybe we can work on the dishwasher and see if we can get it in before the second half of the same.

Friday, September 28, 2012

All Up In My Grill

Who is all up in my grill?  My sister.  For two days running now I have gotten emails and phone calls saying "Your blog is boring."  "You could blog about getting stung by a bee, ya know."  "When are you going to blog?"

Ok ok ok.  I get it.  What can I say?  I've been busy....and...most importantly....happily living life.  When I get all happy, there isn't much need for blogging and getting all my thoughts out.  Besides, if I did blog about all the ridiculously happy things, you all would start complaining that I'm pooping rainbows and unicorns.  I can't win, can I?  :)

So what's new.......we have two new kittens.  They have yet to be named because we have yet to get to spend much time with them.  They huddle together, sleep the day away, play all night, and hang out with Zip (the 2 year old cat) as they all try to avoid coming into contact with Cody and Maddie, the dogs.  They have been with us two weeks today.  As anti-social as they are, they have come a long, long way.  If we catch them, we can hold them.  Last night they let us pet them for a few minutes and one even snuggled with Kelton for a brief moment in time.  They were from a wild litter, so really?  We are making progress.  Slow but steady.

Yesterday I got stung by a bee.  Three times.  That was fun.  Not.  I am still achy and sore but doing ok.

Life with Stephanie is going amazingly well.  I'm happy, she's happy, the kids are happy......so life is good there.  :)

I ruined a small section of the new floor which now needs to be replaced.  Let's say dropping a bottle of carpet cleaner solution and not noticing the lid broke off of it isn't a good thing.  It was only about 4 minutes of time but it was long enough to ruin about 4 boards.  Stephanie, upon seeing my panic, assured me it was no big deal and she would fix it...and would, in fact, replace the entire house full of floors for me if she needed to.  *swoon*  She loves me, what can I say?  All I could think of was "All those hours and hours of hard work she put in laying the flooring!  Not even 6 weeks later, I go and wreck a patch.  *sigh*

Life happens, though, right?

Let's see...what else...what else?

Kids are doing well in school.  Kelton seems to be happier at the new school then he was at the old one.  Kaylen misses her old friends (especially Ella) and familiar teachers but is doing ok.  She hates the bus so I am peppering the week with running out to pick them up (I already take them every morning) while still having them ride the bus home some days.  The school counselor will be working with Kaylen to introduce her to come of the girls who ride her bus (no one from her class rides her bus) so she won't feel quite so lost on the 40 minute ride home.

Kelton and Kaylen have settled into the new house and we have found routines that work (for the most part). 

Other than that - I really don't think I have much to write about.  Weekends are filled with home projects, soccer games, and some much needed down time.  Life is busy and crazy and good.

(Lannon:  Does this win my any points?  I blogged just for you! *grin*)

Thursday, September 06, 2012

The House

We have spent the past few weeks workig on the outside of the house. New paint, new gutters, and needed roof repairs. I have to say, we are really enjoying the peaceful light green color. It's a subtle difference, but a good difference.

I wish I had before and after photos of the inside. It is truly amazing what a lot of sweat equity gets you. :)


Before:

After:

An Update

So - the kids have been in school for one week plus one day.  Today was the first day there were no comments about "I wish I didn't have to go to school."  or "I miss Crestline."  Today, both kiddos got up happily, took care of what they needed to take care of, and got themselves ready and into the car without so much as a cross word to each other, or me.

SCORE!

This week, I started driving them in the mornings.  It allows for a slower pace and, I believe, less stress and anxiety for Kaylen.  She HATES the school bus.  I can't say I blame her.  It is a 30 minute drive to school and a 45 minute ride home (I have NO idea why it takes so much longer.  They aren't the last stop in the morning but somehow, they end up being second to last at the end of the day.)  That's a long time to be on a hot, crowded, noisy bus.  I agreed to take them most mornings and then pick them up one day each week which seems to be going well.  (The pick up lane at the schools is a nightmare!  I picked them up yesterday and was sooo frustrated.  Plus I have to go through the lanes at both the school (Kaylen is in the primary school (K-2) and on the other end of the property is the intermediate school (3-5) for Kelton.  Different buildings, different rules, different picture days, different lunch rooms, different principals...etc.)

Last week we battled the "No one likes me.  I have no friends.  I hate that we moved.  I hate this school.  I want to go back to Crestline." with Kaylen.  Kelton seems to be rolling with it well and is making friends.  Apparently, being a new 5th grader is much easier than being the new kid in 2nd grade.  Or maybe it's the boy vs. girl thing.  Maybe it's just my high anxiety daughter.  I don't know.

This week, day by day, she is talking more and more of new friends, and today I heard the words "Best friend" in conjunction with someones name.  Yesterday I learned she eats lunch with "all the girls".  I walked her to her door the past couple mornings and I have watched as more of the girls flock to her side when she arrives.  It does this mommy's heart good to see that!

I won't lie.  Moving, and starting a new school, has been a hard transition.  Yesterday, our former district started back and I was hit a few times during the day with strong pangs of missing *my* friends at school, roaming around a building I know and had the ability to come and go from as I wanted.  I was at the house picking up a few boxes (yes - I still have stuff I am dealing with there - anyone want to come help me finish?  My back is slowing me down more than I want.) and the school bus drove by.  Apparently, no need to stop at the end of my driveway this year.  Last year, at the beginning of the school year, there were 7 kids.  By the end, there were three.  Those three (my two and another) moved over the summer.  So strange to have the bus filled with familiar faces drive by me without stopping to pick up my two.  So yes, this has been difficult, and continues to be, for all three of us.  But we are settling in and finding our place....bit by bit.

It's a good thing I don't smoke.  I'm pretty sure the stress would have me smoking a lot.  I would probably need to look into those electronic cigarette's with the famous smoke free shipping.  It's also a good thing I'm not a big drinker because seriously?  There are some days I would like to pour a big, stiff drink.  Instead, to deal with the stress, I put on my jammies, pull out a comfy blanket, turn on the TV, and curl up on the couch.  Come to think of it - that has become a routine every single night this week.  Stressed much?  Naaaaaah.  :)  Hey - at least I found a good way to deal with it, right?

Anyway.....things are moving along.  Step by step.  One day, sometimes one minute, at a time.

Check out this fancy schmancy Epiphone Limited Edition Joe Bonamassa Les Paul Electric Guitar.  And it can be yours for the teeny tiny asking price of $1165.00. 

*THUD*

Now I know guitars, good ones, are not inexpensive but holy heck - that is some price tag, dontcha think?

Good thing I'm not in the market for an electric guitar.  :)  If I were, I'd probably go for an affordable gibson copy because why not, right?  Copies are good.  It's not like I'm a professional musician.  If I were, I just might pony up the $1165.  :)

Why am I looking at guitars?  Good question.  Sucha  good question that I have no good answer except "because".  You know, that famous answer that drives parents INSANE when a child give it.  "Because is NOT an answer."  We all say in response.

But it's it?  I mean.  It IS an answer.  Just not a good one.  :)

So....because.  That's the answer.  Because I can.

:)