Seeking Imperfection

Welcome Kaden

2011-04-09T08:32:00.003-04:00

On March 24, 2011, two weeks early, we welcomed a new member to our family, Kaden Alexander. He came fast and furious - I started having contractions at home around 2:30 in the afternoon. I had a scheduled OBG appointment at 4:30, so my friend took me, even though the contractions were getting worse. At that point I was already 5 cm dilated, and the doctor sent me on to the hospital. I got there around 5:45, and Kaden was born at 7:37 pm. I barely got my epidural - at a little after 7, so that helped a little at the end, but most of the labor was painful and intense, and a little scarey since it was all happening so fast.

Not long after Kaden was born, Roland called his mother, who had Paige, to tell them he was here. The first thing Paige said was, "Can I talk to him?" So we put her on speaker phone and she told him she loved him, and he turned and cried at the phone a little. It was so cute. She also told me she loved me and to "get good rest Momma," which made all the hospital staff in the room say, "awww..." :)

When we were trying to find a name for him, Paige only liked two of our choices, and Kaden was one of them (I have since found out it was her 2nd favorite though!) She'd asked me randomly once if we could name the baby Alexander. Roland didn't really like it, but every once in awhile Paige would ask me again, and tell me that Daddy could "just get used to it." LOL So in the hospital, Roland suggested Kaden Alexander for the name - and Paige was thrilled when she found out.

The next day Paige came to meet him. She's doing really well becoming a big sister - much better than I thought she would. She doesn't like it when he's crying and I can't get him to stop, or when she's got my full attention and I have to go check on him, but for the most part she seems happy with her new brother. She's learned how to make a bottle and helps pick out his clothes, etc. So far, so good. :)

So, two weeks into this we are doing ok becoming a family of 4...or 5, since "Aunt Michelle" lives with us too. :)

Catching Up

2011-01-25T09:27:00.004-05:00

So apparently I'm terrible at blogging. Lurking and reading blogs, I'm great at. Writing my own, not so great. Oh well.

Not too much new here - I'm still pregnant. I'll be 30 weeks this Thursday. It's a boy! We were all hoping for another girl, (especially Paige), but we are getting used to the idea of having a little guy join us in a matter of weeks now. He is much "rougher" than I remember Paige being - kind of like being pregnant with the karate kid. He's always moving, and sometimes his kicks are almost painful. But at least I know he must be doing ok in there!

I'm still unemployed, and can't imagine finding a teaching job in January at 7 months pregnant, so although I keep looking, I'm not expecting much right now. I've started to think that for whatever reason, having this baby is what I'm meant to be doing right now, and the job will come after he does.

Paige is very excited (and a little scared) because she has her first loose tooth. She has been telling everyone she meets about it. :) Her birthday is next week and she'll be 6. I can't believe it.

The other thing going on lately is we are getting a ton of snow. Paige has already had 4 snow days in the last two weeks, and there's more snow in the forecast for this week. Yesterday morning we woke to negative temps, and her school called mid-morning to say the boiler wasn't working and they had no heat there. They were able to take care of the kids, but it is just showing how brutal this winter is. I'm so grateful that I have a home with heat and a roof over my head, warm clothes, a warm bed, and food to eat. I keep thinking how difficult it must be to survive in this weather if you don't have those basic things.

We got Paige a kid's sized shovel - turns out it's been great for this winter. She was excited to "help out." :)

Boo!

2010-11-01T10:25:00.003-04:00

Dear Blog:

I didn't really mean to abandon you for over three months. Life just got in the way, and I got a little depressed toward the end of the summer.

We had a big "surprise" in our household - I am pregnant with baby #2! We did not plan to have another child, and that coupled with the fact that I am still out of work kind of put me into a depression. I got very worried that a) I have no job, so money is extra tight, b) that I don't know when or how I'm going to get a teaching job when I'm going to need to go out on maternity leave, and c) I had (and still do have) all kinds of worries about being able to love this baby as much as I love Paige, and being able to find time for both of them.

So here we are now in November. I'm 17 weeks pregnant and have an appointment in three weeks to find out the sex of the baby. Paige (and her parents, to be honest) are hoping for a girl. I asked Paige if she would love the baby even if it was a boy, and she said, "I'll think about it." :)

I am feeling a little better about the baby coming...Roland and I always said that we wouldn't try for another, but if one came, it was "meant to be," so I keep telling myself it's meant to be. I'm still freaking out about money and not having a job and having time and energy for all of this as I'm no spring chicken, but I'm still trying to learn to take this one day at a time.

And to end on a happy note, here's Miss Paige as Rapunzel:

I love this picture, but I couldn't totally crop that guy on tv out of it...I'm going to have to get Roland to edit it.

Happy Belated Halloween!

Another Friday List

2010-07-16T09:56:00.002-04:00

I am just no good at regular posting! I find I think about posting more than actually posting...now if I could just think a post and have it show up here, that'd be something!

This has been a very crazy week - lots of errands, physicals for Paige and a check-up for me, trips to the RMV, etc. It's amazing how exhausting doing things like that can be!

So here I am with another list of links on the wrong day. Guess learning to post it even if it is on the "wrong" day is progress in embracing imperfection, right?

I like this 30 Sucks birthday gift idea.

I also like this simple Stay Cool gift idea. Might be a good end of the school year idea (if I were to ever remember it.)

I thought this garland made out of napkins was neat.

Having many teenage neices and nephews, I liked this post on Finding Deals on Gifts for Teenagers.

And for anyone interested in special education ideas, I like this post on Adapting the Responsive Classroom Morning Meeting.

Thursday...er, Friday List

2010-07-09T07:23:00.003-04:00

I am behind this week...so, better late than never, here are some links that may interest you:

I think S'Mores On A Stick look like fun.

I've seen lots of different versions of ice cream cakes made with ice cream sandwiches lately - like these Frozen Banana Split Squares.

Paige was sick recently, and I can never remember what time I last gave her medicine to her, so this post on organizing sick kids was interesting to me.

I keep meaning to make a foamerator with Paige. Maybe if I stick the link here I'll remember?

Summer Bowling

2010-07-07T12:02:00.008-04:00

In the interest of imperfection (and due to the fact that I had a heat induced migraine yesterday) I am posting my Summer Tuesday Tip on a Wednesday. Better late than never, right?

Have you heard of Kids Bowl Free? This program gives kids coupons for two free games of bowling every day - although you do have to pay for shoe rentals.

Mother-Daughter Fashion Statement

This summer and last summer I signed us up for the family pass, which allows up to 4 adult family members the same two free games a day for one payment of $24. We tried this last year for the first time, and my daughter seemed to enjoy it. I was actually surprised when this summer rolled around and she started asking, "When can we go bowling?" So I guess she liked it more than I thought.

It's not something we do every day, or even every week, but it is kind of a nice option to have in your bag of tricks for a rainy day, or a really hot one.

For more summer fun ideas, be sure to check out Mommy Topics Summer Family Blog Hop.

Thursday List

2010-07-01T07:56:00.003-04:00

Some links to check out this week:

How about a strawberry-watermelon slushie?

And while you have your strawberries out, how about checking out Little Cooks With Books Strawberry Jam with the kids?

Painted Light Switch Covers looks like a fun activity too.

I've been wanting to do some more simple science experiments with Paige.

Painting ceramic trivets looks like fun too.

I like these cute little accordian albums.

I think these exercise blocks would be a cute little gift.

Summer Family Fun Blog Hop Tuesday

2010-06-29T14:16:00.007-04:00

I really was planning to post more often...and then the strep/mouth blister/infection disaster of 2010 hit our home, and has been wreaking havoc with my little girlie.

But on a brighter note, I came across this new little blog hop last week:

and was determined that I would join in today. So here I am!

Do you have an A.C. Moore near you? It turns out that A.C. Moore hosts a free craft for kids, ages 4 and up, every Wednesday from 3-5 all summer. I would however double check that your store is participating and that they have the same hours.

The first week I went with Paige they were making crowns, using these sticky mosaic squares. They gave each child a crown, some sticky squares in different colors, and a grid that assigned each color a number. It was kind of like a paint by number, but using these little squares.

Although my daughter loves crowns, I didn't think she'd last too long doing this as her attention span and her patience often leave little to be desired...much like her mom. However, I was amazed when she spent all TWO HOURS working on this project, and did the whole thing herself!

I was SO PROUD of her - and was tempted to go find and buy every sticky mosaic thing I could find...but who knows if she'd ever be interested in this again?

Last week, the kids made "buttons" - which I would call "pins." They had a cardstock circle that they could decorate, and then stick into a plastic pin cover. I do have a few pictures of this, but they are still on my camera, and in the interest of being imperfect, I am not going to wait until I'm not feeling too lazy to download them, or this will never be posted.

Paige wasn't as enthralled with this craft, although this was about when she was getting sick. She told the lady teaching the craft, "my mouth is full of boo boos." I dismissed it then...but turns out she was right. :(

Tomorrow they are making "Silly Bands Holders" whatever that entails, who knows.

So if you have a kid who likes to craft, this might be a fun, free, air conditioned activity for you - all things I enjoy in a good activity. :)

Thursday List

2010-06-24T08:01:00.002-04:00

Let's see what's hiding in my starred items...

Some ideas for teaching kids to tell time. Something I've been wanting to work on with Paige.

Some tips on useful html code.

Some very fun looking ceral kabobs.

A sample cleaning routine - something I'm trying to figure out for myself.

Rainbow Pudding Pops. I've actually bought the pudding for this - now to just get some milk and do it!!

Some summer reading programs for special needs students.

A recipe for frozen fruit roll-ups.

And finally, this really adorable Tinkerbell Birthday Party.

A Super But Imperfect Father's Day

2010-06-23T13:01:00.011-04:00

So many times I have a great idea for something, but never follow through. I've even gone so far as to say that I am an "idea person" or am "great at brainstorming." I love all kinds of wonderful ideas I find online, and I often think, "I could do that," and yet I never do. My perfectionism tends to keep me from going forward. "If I can't do it perfectly, then why bother?" Lately I've been having to tell myself over and over that doing something is better than doing nothing. For example, isn't it better to have an imperfect present for your husband for Father's Day, then none at all?

A couple of weeks before Father's Day, I saw this great idea for a present at Alpha Mom - a super hero kit. There were fun labels to download and adhere to favorite snacks that turn them into "hero snacks."

I thought how much my super hero comic loving husband would enjoy this gift. Then I thought about how the wonderful free label downloads are in color, and I don't have any color ink. I thought about how they used a fancy wooden photograph box to package everything, and how it was highly unlikely that I would get around to finding something similar (or want to pay for it). I thought about how all the snacks are in beautiful little glassine envelopes, and how I probably wouldn't manage to find those either.

But I knew that my husband would really love this idea, and I "forced" myself to print out the labels in black and white and just go to the store, by some of his favorite snacks, and stick the labels on the fronts with scotch tape. I then hunted around for a box that all the stuff would fit in, and ended up with a big cardboard box that had held chemicals for the pool in it, and shoved them all in there. I also added a new beach towel (super hero cape) and almost let myself freak out about not having a cute tag for it that would match everything else. Instead I put Paige to work making a tag for it that we stuck to it. I also was able to snag a superhero shirt to add in.

(speaking of imperfection, why the heck is this picture sideways?!? Oh well, better something than nothing...)

I got Paige to help me stick everything in the box and tape the box closed, and then had her add a couple of star stickers to it. She fully enjoyed the process and was so excited to give the gift to him, and isn't that really what it's all about?

Catching Up

2010-06-18T15:19:00.004-04:00

The last few weeks were kind of rough, and so, of course, the blog got neglected.

I really should learn that it is therapeutic to write.

April ended with Roland working extra hours, Michelle having issues with kidney stones that ended with her needing 4 trips to the ER, two day surgeries, a trip in an ambulance, and a perscription for an EpiPen. Trying to distract Paige from all of that craziness, I took her to an indoor playground, and sprained my ankle while playing with her! Add in some family drama that had my mom calling and venting every day or two, and I ended the month feeling stressed.

May seems to have kind of flown by...some days have been better than others. Some days I find myself being really depressed about being out of work and having such a hard time finding a job. Other days I enjoy being at home, and like having extra time with Paige. I was driving her to her last day of preschool a couple of weeks ago, and the thought hit me that this "free time" was actually a gift. Paige had some rough times in preschool, and we were all just really looking forward to the end of it all. I am so happy that I was able to be around for her when she needed me. Also, if I had been at work, I wouldn't have been able to enjoy things like taking her to her last day of preschool. I suddenly felt calm, and felt like, "now I can get a job. Everything I've needed to do for my family is wrapped up, and I can move on now." That afternoon I had an email asking me if I'd like to interview for a job! It was such weird timing.

So Paige had her preschool graduation, and then the first weekend in June she had her dance recital. This year she was in two different classes, and had two tap routines. This year the dance school decided to do two shows on the same day instead of one long show, so of course, Paige ended up with a routine in each show. It made for a really long day for all of us, but she did great. She really has stage presence, and you can tell she just loves what she's doing.

Now that she's out of school, I've made a list of some fun things I'd like to do with her, and she's alternating having some fun time with me, and some with Grandma. I don't want her to get too used to being with me full time as she'll be headed to Kindergarten in the fall, and hopefully I'll be headed to school somewhere too, and when she spends too much time alone with me, she becomes very clingy and her seperation anxiety increases. So, it'll be fun for her to have some time with me, and some with Grandma. Hopefully I can get myself motivated to use my "free" summer time to do some fun things for myself too, and keep those depressed feelings away...and maybe get some blogging in there too. :)

Parenting and Messy Buns

2010-04-20T20:07:00.004-04:00

As I'm sure many people know, this parenting gig is hard.

I think sometimes it is hard for me because since I don't have any friends with kids Paige's age, I parent in kind of a "vacuum," never having anyone else to compare to. I also tend to constantly doubt myself.

Paige has been having a bit of a hard time at school - I think she's getting bored with it. To tell you the truth, I'm about ready for preschool to be over too. I really think she's going to be a kid that around this time of the year we just try to get her through to the end. Luckily for us this year, her preschool ends right before Memorial Day weekend, so we only have a little over a month to go.

Paige has a bit of a temper, and seems to be dealing with some anxiety issues. This is also her first experience with school, and as my mother-in-law is my daycare provider, this is her first experience spending time with adults that aren't family, and with a bunch of kids where she's expected to share and wait her turn, etc, many things that she doesn't have to do at home as an only child.

One of the nice things about being unemployed right now is that I can spend a little more time with her. I've been able to take her to school and pick her up, talk a little with the other mothers, and see how she interacts with the other kids. I think this has been good for both of us.

On another note, since I now have time in the morning, I've been trying to learn to do some hairstyles for Paige. Usually Grandma does her hair, and she does all these cute styles. I am basically "hair challenged" and Paige was disappointed that I didn't even know how to do a french braid. So I started looking at blogs about girls hair, and I'm addicted! Tonight after her bath I "practiced" doing a few different braids on her. LOL

One of my first hairdos was inspired by Adopt A 'Do - Cute Girl's Hairstyles. Sadly though, it was considered a "Daddy Do" (so easy a Dad could do it) and said it took about 5 minutes. Well, it took me about a half hour to do, but Paige and I were both happy with the results, and she's asked me to do it again since.

Now premiering the "Messy Buns."

The hard part is I struggle with these hair do's not being perfect...I want to keep taking them out and trying again until they are, but that makes us both crazy. So, I'm learning new styles and learning to let go of perfection a little too. :)

Struggling With Behavior

2010-03-31T22:06:00.006-04:00

Life has been challenging around here the last week or so.

About two weeks ago, I got a call from Paige's preschool about "behavior issues." Roland and I have joked her whole life that she's going to be a challenge and that we would "get calls" from school, but it caught me off guard.

After a long conversation with her teachers, we decided on making some changes in Paige's schedule. Since I have been out of work, I tried to keep her schedule as normal as possible, having my mother-in-law continue to take her to school and pick her up, even though I was at home. I am pretty sure though that although I never told Paige about losing my job, she picked up on my worries and anxieties, and it is coming out in her behavior.

Recently, Paige's sleeping issues have resurfaced as well, and I think not sleeping well is also tied into this, as well as several other issues, such as our family cat dying in January. In any event, Roland and I decided to try having me alternate days with Grandma for who took Paige to school. Paige has a close relationship with her Grandmother, and lately when she's with me she tends to cry and say, "I miss Grandma" and when she's with Grandma she says, "I miss mom." Therefore we decided that if we stopped her spending days with Grandma altogether it'd be too hard for her.

So last weekend I told her about my job, and tried to explain it to her the best she could. I also told her that two days a week I'd be taking her to school and she'd spend the day with me. Paige is a child that has a difficult time with changes in her routine, and she kept crying and asking why everything had to change. She then proceeded to test her limits with both myself and Grandma last week.

By Friday I was exhausted! So, once again, this blog took the back burner while I used all my energy battling bad behaviors, trying to figure out what is going on with her. She's not acting like herself, and I'm worried about her.

I'm trying hard to make sure she knows that everything is ok, that she is loved, and that it will all work out. In the meantime, it is going to be a difficult process getting her behavior back on track.

Thursday List

2010-03-18T20:32:00.002-04:00

(Hopefully) better late than never...some of my most recent "starred" items.

I like this picture frame gift wrap idea.

I might actually have to try making a birthday wreath.

Tie Dying handkerchiefs looks like fun - as do the other rainbow birthday party ideas.

This "scrappy canvas frame" is neat.

Here's a yummy looking cookie recipe.

Project Life Tuesday

2010-03-16T11:30:00.014-04:00

Here's my second entry for Project Life Tuesday at The Mom Creative. I will say that making myself post these did mean that I had to get them off the camera, get them organized, and jot down something that can be used as journaling later on, if I need it. Now I also have the pictures ready to print next time I find a good deal on photos.

Sunday, March 7, 2010

This picture is just so Paige right now. She loves to play outside. She wants to wear her sparkly shoes with everything. She wants to pick out her own clothes and insists that they match, when they don't. She often makes that little face she's making in this photo. She's enjoying Tinkerbell fruit snacks.

Monday, March 8, 2010

This is looking down at our front door. I finally realized that keeping this area looking neat made affects how I feel, because if I come in the front door and everything looks messy, it puts me in a bad mood right away. I decided that instead of the Flylady's kitchen sink, I need to "shine" my entryway every day.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

This picture is a little dark, but these are the books Paige has out of the library that I've been reading to her - The Berenstain Bears. She's been enjoying the books and the cartoon recently, and it amuses me, since I remember reading Berenstain Bears when I was a kid.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Oddly enough, I'm having trouble deciding between the picture from my walk in the park,

and one of my toes. Paige painted them tonight. She wanted to paint them in a "pattern." She says it so it sounds more like, "pattren."

Thursday, March 11, 2010

I really don't like pictures of myself, but it feels weird that I don't think my Project Life has any photos of me in it, and we are in March. So I took this one as I was getting ready for a job interview.

Friday, March 12, 2010

One of our foster kittens, Neko, has a hurt leg, and has had to spend some time in a crate in our bathroom to rest his leg. The other day Paige decided he needed something in there to keep him company, and moved some of her birthday/Valentine's Day balloons in there with him.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

Today Michelle and I went shopping at Target, and she bought a Leapfrog birthday cake toy for her twin niece and nephew, who will be one in June. Paige saw it in the bag and told us, "I like frog toys" and wanted to play with it. She played with it in the box for some time, and was upset it wasn't for her, even though I told her it was a "baby toy." Here she's blowing out the candles. I like this picture even though it's a little blurry.

Well, that's my week! Thanks for stopping by.

Thursday List

2010-03-11T17:36:00.005-05:00

I'm a little late today with this. I had a job interview today (number 7) and they want me to come back tomorrow for a second round, so this week how about education related links? Some homeschool, some special ed, etc. Let's see what I've got starred...

I actually should print this out - I want to make this Leprechaun Book with Paige.

An interesting sound related Montessori inspired activity.

For anyone like me who is involved with severe special education, here's a post I found interesting about eye gaze communication.

Not quite education, but still sort of school related, lunch box love notes.

A homeschool preschool "curriculum" of sorts, Read to Me and ABC. I really liked how one of the things this mom did while teaching each letter was a part called, "Making A Memory."

A list of websites that teach reading.

Project Life Tuesday

2010-03-09T18:04:00.018-05:00

This year I am having fun with Becky Higgin's Project Life. It is a scrapbook/photo album kit that is made for you to take a picture every day for a year. There are many different ways to use the kit, and I've had fun looking at what others are doing with it.

The Mom Creative hosts "Project Life Tuesdays" where you share how you are doing with your Project Life. I've been wanting to join in, but I keep forgetting. As it is, I'm posting this late on Tuesday...but better late than never!

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Paige's first "friend's" birthday party. We had the party at a plaster painting place. Paige painted a butterfly. I have a ton of great pictures from the party. This is her cake, which is a cupcake cake. Each guest got a cupcake, a Hoodsie, and a juice box.

Monday, March 1, 2010

Paige's preschool class was studying dinosaurs in February. Today Paige brought home a dinosaur "diorama." I didn't even know that kids still did dioramas!

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Paige has been having trouble sleeping again. She doesn't want to go to bed and often wakes up several times a night. Lately she's been very hot when she wakes up, as she likes to burrow under a lot of blankets but also overheats easily. She didn't want to change into something cooler...but we convinced her to when she got to wear one of Aunt Michelle's shelter shirts, just like her.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

An after dinner snack for me...one of Paige's cupcakes and a Hoodsie.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Paige worked on thank you cards for her birthday party. She wrote the names of her friends on the envelopes and used a couple of her stamps to decorate the envelopes. She's in her new green nightgown again.

Friday, March 5, 2010

Roland's Christmas Darth Vader is still lurking on top of the refrigerator, next to a "porcupine" that Paige made in preschool in the fall, and some junk that has accumulated up there. Time to clean the top of the fridge.

Saturday, March 6, 2010

One of Paige's cousin gave her a kid sized pizza making kit for her birthday. Today Paige and Daddy made pizzas.

So that about wraps up last week here. Thanks for visiting.

Thursday List

2010-03-04T11:45:00.003-05:00

Once again...a few fun links from my "starred" items...

My brother and his girlfriend are expecting their second child in June. Maybe I'll try making a diaper wreath.

I keep meaning to try this action game with Paige, since she is always moving!

A yummy looking recipe for skillet lasagna.

I was actually just thinking about this one last night. Need to print this out and try it with Paige - counting the house.

Another recipe I've been meaning to try - apple brownies.

So many of my starred posts are for holidays. I scrolled through and found Valentine's...then Christmas...then Halloween. LOL

So, the last one is the first thing I bookmarked, this cool castle cake that I toyed with trying for Paige's birthday.

What I'm Listening To...

2010-03-03T07:56:00.006-05:00

A little over a year ago, I started listening to audio books in my car on the way to and from work. Before that, I'd never really listened to an audio book, preferring to read books "the old fashioned way." I quickly became addicted to listening to the books in the car, and now I get a little cranky if I don't have a story to listen to!

I found that I really enjoyed listening to stories for children and young adults. The stories were entertaining, but not too distracting. One of the women I worked with started listening to books with her children when they were in the car, and found that they enjoyed listening to stories as a family. It is a great way to squeeze in a little educational time...and have it be enjoyable too!

Even though I'm not working with her right now, she's asked that I continue to send her the names of good books. So I started thinking, why not share them here too? Maybe someone else would be interested in listening to a good story. Last year, I started writing down all the names and authors of the books I listened to throughout the year. I was going to keep track of how many stories I listened to. Toward the end of the year I started to forget to write them down...but I've started again this year.

I just finished listening to: "Project Mulberry" by Linda Sue Park.

In Project Mulberry, the main character, Julia, and her friend, Patrick, raise silk worms as a project for a school club. At first, Julia, who is Korean, doesn't want to do the project, as she thinks it is too "foreign," and wants to do something more American.

In between the chapters on the audiobook, the author has "conversations" with the main character, Julia, in which they discuss how the story was written. At the end of the story, there is an interview with the author.

I really enjoyed this story and would recommend it. :)

Thursday List

2010-02-25T06:16:00.002-05:00

I used to really enjoy making my "Thursday List" of items that I wanted to keep track of that I'd found on other blogs. Once I started using Google Reader, I stopped making the lists and started just "starring" things in the reader. However, I've been thinking that I kind of miss making my list and sharing all the wonderful ideas I find online. Also, I tend to forget about all the fun things I've starred! So, I think I'm going to start "trying" to share what I've been starring lately. Hope you all find something fun too.

My last five starred posts are:

I am toying with trying out this Courage Jar with Paige.

I'm intrigued with this recipe for Root Beer Cake.

These Valentine's Day flowerpots are adorable, and I think you could do the same idea for different holidays, events, etc.

Scrapbooker Stacey Julian has a section on her blog where she shares what she calls, "sprinkles" which are basically little happy ideas to remind you that it is the little things that make life great. I liked what her family did with their construction paper hearts.

I love the birthday banner on the bedroom door! I also think the balls are a cute favor.

Not Waiting For Perfection

2010-02-08T10:26:00.004-05:00

For the past year or so, I've wanted to give a little treat to Roland every day, starting on February 1st, and leading to Valentine's Day. I've seen so many cute little ideas online, and I have all the scrapbooking supplies to make beautiful things, but I just never get my act together to get it all "perfect."

This year, since I'm out of work, I figured I couldn't use "I don't have enough time" as an excuse not to do this. However, the first was fast approaching, and I had bought some candy for him, but hadn't sat down to make the beautiful, perfect cards. So, on the first I ended up handing him a chocolate Dove heart. He asked what it was for, and I told him "Valentine's Day." He said, "but it isn't Valentine's Day yet." So, I told him that I was going to give him a little surprise every day. Not the perfect, romantic, surprise I had wanted, but I told myself it is better than doing nothing, and letting the idea of surprising him with something sit another year. Truth be told, he seemed to enjoy the idea, and didn't once ask me where the beautiful card that should go with it was.

I've only managed to put hearts with cute sayings on a handful of the treats - most of which I put on the arm of the couch where he's sitting when we watch TV in the evening.

This cute idea I found here.

Sorry for the poor photo quality. It is a box of Junior Mints in heart shapes with a construction paper heart that says, "We were mint to be together!" taped on it. Turns out he doesn't even like Junior Mints, so I ate them!

The point being, I've enjoyed picking out little treats for him, and I think he's enjoyed getting them, even if they aren't "perfect" in my mind. I keep telling myself lately that doing something is better than doing nothing. Maybe in the future I'll get the fancy cards done too. Maybe not. But at least I've done something in the meantime.

Impossible

2010-02-03T20:01:00.002-05:00

I'm not sure how it happened.

How - and when - did she go from this:

to this?

Happy 5th Birthday, Paige Girlie!

Oh, and note her "5 Shirt" - one of the things I've wanted to "try" for a long time. I had a hard time with it and needed some help with the sewing, but it's a beginning, and she LOVED it. :)

Trying

2010-01-27T10:55:00.005-05:00

Thank you for your nice comments on my last post. And thanks to Ashley for the kick in the pants and the reminder that it has been over a week since my last post, and it is time to get on with the therapeutic writing.

So here I am. I still don't have a job. It is a bad time of year to look for a teaching job. I am running out of things to apply for. I turned 37 on the 22nd, and at least I got to have my birthday off. :) Paige is turning 5 next week, and I can't believe it. Life goes on.

I am learning about myself. I am learning that I am not good with long periods of "free" time. I may not love getting up to go to work every day, but I need the routine and the schedule of it all to know what I'm "supposed" to be doing. I've realized that sometimes I even have a hard time with weekends because there is no schedule. So now I'm trying to figure out how to make a routine for myself when I'm home all the time. I'm trying to find all of those "if I only had time" projects, and get working on them, but it is still a process.

Ali Edwards has done a cool little One Little Word project for the past few years. You pick one word to focus on for the year. Last year I chose "good" but forgot about the whole process half way through the year. This year the word that popped right into my head is "try." I find I'm often afraid to try. I read a lot of blogs and books, I see projects I think I can do, but I don't try them. I am having a hard time learning to take one day at a time now, and I keep reminding myself just to "try." You get the idea.

I thought about seeing if I could try one new thing each week. I thought about a new thing each day, but that's surely setting myself up to fail. I don't even know if I can do one thing a week, but I can "try."

One thing I am trying this year is the old Project 365, taking one picture a day. I have been afraid to try this one as I've been afraid I'd beat myself up a lot if I forgot to take a picture. So far I've missed two days, and I'm trying to just let it go. Actually, one day I forgot, and on the day I lost Fidget, I was too sad. I had a gift certificate to Amazon and I ordered Project Life from Becky Higgins. I'm excited to get it. I'm going to try to get myself on some sort of schedule with it so that I still do it when I go back to work.

Here's the picture I took for January 2nd, playing with Paige in her room.

And then of course Paige needed to take one too.

And here's Fidget on January 4th.

Most of January's pictures are still on the camera. I'll have to try and upload them soon.

Stressed

2010-01-19T07:22:00.002-05:00

I've discovered that when I'm stressed or unhappy, that I don't like to post much. I've also discovered that the longer you go without posting, the harder it is to get back into it again.

Therefore I'm sure you can tell that I've been a bit stressed the last few months. I was having a hard time at work with a very critical, sarcastic supervisor, who kept belittling me, and who was doing a number on my very small amount of self confidence. Nothing I ever did was good enough, and I started feeling like I was losing ground on trying to lose the perfectionist tendencies because of it. Then in what is probably a blessing in disguise, I found out in December that I was being laid off. My last day was December 23rd. So, that coupled with the holiday season meant I was a feeling a little (ok, a lot) stressed and depressed and just a little crazy.

Trying to get signed up for unemployment was another stress - there are so many people out of work right now, I couldn't even get through to file my claim. When I finally did, they said, "why didn't you call sooner?" Grr... and then told me it would be 4-6 weeks to file the claim! So, now I'm looking for a job and I've been on a few interviews, but I'm running out of things to apply for.

To top it all off, I took my 14 year old cat to the vet last week because she was not acting right...turns out she'd had renal failure, and the most humane thing to do was to put her to sleep. I've had her longer than my husband and daughter, so it's been very hard to lose one of my best friends.

So, that's my sob story. I've been telling myself that it might be therapeutic to do some blogging, so now that I've made the first step back, maybe I can do some more soon.

Thanks for "listening."

October Recap

2009-11-05T17:01:00.002-05:00

Seeing as I was missing in action most of October, here's a quick recap:

October was spent playing in Puppa's yard (my dad) at my nephew's birthday party.

Then there was the trip to the pumpkin patch and the hayride the next morning. That's Paige in the purple coat and my nephew, Justin, in the red coat.

Then we made our yearly trip to King Richard's Faire, where Paige and her cousin, Evan, became knights and ladies of the king's court.

There was also Paige's first "friend's" birthday party for a friend from preschool. Then that afternoon we made Halloween cupcakes and decorated them with all kinds of candy and sprinkles.

Then of course was Halloween, where my little girl was her favorite mermaid, Ariel.

I hope everyone had a great October.

Still Alive

2009-11-04T20:40:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to pop in and let everyone know I'm still alive.

My job has been VERY stressful the past month or so, and I'm finding that I'm quite wiped both physically and emotionally by the end of the day, and just haven't had the "oomph" to post lately. Does anyone have any tips on how to beat chronic stress? I could really use it at this point.

Hope everyone had a great Halloween. :)

My dear blog...

2009-10-15T19:29:00.002-04:00

Dear Blog:

I had no idea it had been over a month since I last visited you. You poor neglected thing, you!

I can only say I'm sorry - I have been very stressed since school began, and have been a little bit depressed by the way my year is progressing so far. It has been very difficult for me to find the time and energy to write.

I first got into a slump in mid-August when I lost my wedding rings. Then, as school began and I've been having all kinds of work related problems, I have just slumped even more.

I am almost embarrassed to admit, my dear blog, that I have been seeing other people's blogs, but not you! I tend to think that other people are more interesting and have more and better things to share with their blogs, than I have to share with you. Seems like I have a problem with perfectionism or something! Then the more I stay away, the harder it is to come back to you. I start to feel like I need to have an even more interesting thing to post, to explain to you where I've been.

I'm going to try to visit you more often, my dear blog, and try my hardest to come back out of my slump. Thanks for waiting for me this past month.

Your friend,
Michie

Checking In

2009-09-02T22:08:00.003-04:00

I haven't been very good at posting lately - I was in a bit of a funk due to losing my rings and the camera, and was trying to get a lot done before school started. I am back at school, and hopefully I can get back into a posting groove soon.

My friend Michelle is involved in raising money for the animal shelter that she does fostering for. They are having a fundraising walk in a couple of weeks, and she's asked me to post a link to her fundraising page. So if you are interested, please check here.

Thank You Paige

2009-08-21T12:40:00.004-04:00

Dear Paige:

Just when I'm starting to feel a little better about my perfectionism, and am not calling myself stupid all the time, I go and do something extremely stupid.

On Wednesday you and I went down to the Cape (Cape Cod) for a visit for Nana's birthday. We all went for a late evening swim. I had a beach bag that had our clothes, my watch, my camera, and my wedding rings with us. As we were leaving the beach, I believe I must have put the bag on the ground, put you in the car, and then gotten in myself, forgetting about the bag, as when we got home, I couldn't find the bag anywhere. We jumped back in the car and went right back to the beach, but the bag was gone.

When you realized that your new star shoes were in the bag, you started to get teary. I knew my wedding rings were in the bag and felt sick. Then you hugged me and told me you were sorry because it was all your fault.

"How was it your fault, honey?" I asked you.
"Because I wanted to go swimming." You replied.

Oh, my poor little girlie. I kept telling you it wasn't your fault. You realized my rings were gone, and told me on our way back to Nana's that when you grow up and get married, you're going to give me your rings. I started to really cry then. Then you told me, "except for one...I might want to keep one," and you gave me a smile.

You were absolutely wonderful for the rest of our little trip. You told me that you would keep me calm and I could keep you calm. We talked about how we could replace things, but the important thing was that nothing had happened to either of us, that I couldn't ever replace you, and that I loved you so much. You told me the same thing, that you couldn't get a new Momma and that you loved me.

If someone would have told me that when I was going through a very emotionally trying time that the person who would comfort me the most was only four and a half, I don't know if I would have believed them. And to think, just last week I was thinking about writing a post about how incredibly difficult the four year old stage has been. And now here I am, so grateful for this little girl, this little person who helped me keep my head together when I was feeling anxious, guilty, and heartbroken.

Part of my sadness came in that I was hoping one day to leave the rings to you, and I was thinking, "now I don't have anything to leave her." Isn't that stupid? This morning my therapist (Dr. Diane) was nice enough to fit me in, as I knew I was going to keep mentally beating myself up all weekend, and she told me, "you don't know that." I realized after talking to her, that the one thing I can always leave for you is stories like these - stories that show that it is the people in life that matter, not the things. I can document how much you helped me these past couple of days, and let you know how much I love and appreciate you.

I was originally thinking that I wouldn't ever want to write about this, or tell anyone about it. That I'd done something so awful that I needed to hide it. But, I'm thinking more and more that maybe I need to write about these things, to let them out, to try and figure out how to let go of the physical things, and how to hold onto the "things" in life that really do matter. I need to realize that Daddy still loves me, and that we still have a wonderful marriage, even if I don't have the physical rings. We also have a beautiful, wonderful, wise beyond her years, (although sometimes very trying) little girl.

So Paige Girlie, this one is for you. You'll never know how much you've helped your Momma over the past few days. Turns out you can learn from anyone, no matter their age. Keep that in mind my girlie. Always keep learning and growing.

I love you,
Mom

A Week In Photos - Week Six

2009-08-15T10:12:00.000-04:00

Saturday, June 27, 2009

When all else fails, and I don't know what to take a picture of, I end up with one of Paige. Good thing she's so cute. She's wearing a pair of her favorite jammies. Even though it is summer, she keeps insisting on wearing comfy "fuzzy" jammies. She's very sensory. Good thing we have AC.

Sunday, June 28, 2009

I signed us up for the free kids bowling program. Today Michelle and I took Paige bowling for the first time. She seemed to have fun, even though she would get a little frustrated with gutter balls because her mom is too cheap to pay for the bumpers which aren't free.

Monday, June 29, 2009

This picture pretty much sums up the month of June.

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

My other stand-by for a photo if Paige is unavailable is one of the cats. This is Michelle's cat, Doyle. And really, what's better than a cat in a basket?

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Paige took swimming lessons for the first time this summer, at a lake in New Hampshire. You wouldn't know it from this picture or the date, but it was COLD. I was ready to take her home for hot cocoa in front of the fire after this picture.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

I took Paige for some more bowling on my own. That was tricky because she was apt to wander away while I tried to bowl. She actually got a little better this time. To try to keep her from getting too frustrated, I would keep telling her, "just keep trying" a la Dory from "Finding Nemo"..."just keep swimming." Her outfit indicates just how wonderful and July like the temperature was.

Friday, July 3, 2009

Finally, the sun came back. This is a cute tree in our yard. Turns out we have two little fruit trees in our yard. We also don't own a lawn mower.

Super Summer Swap

2009-08-14T08:45:00.004-04:00

Paige and I took part in the Super Summer Swap hosted by Super Heroes and Princesses and Life of a Dairy Queen. Paige was matched with a four year old girl in Oregon named Mason.

Paige was so excited to get her package which consisted of a Pez dispenser, four princess card games, a kindergarten workbook, a sticker book, and a small Ariel doll. Paige has had me read the letter to her from Mason several times. I'm going to have to get a map to try and get her to understand the distance between Oregon and Massachusetts though. She really wants to go visit Mason and can't seem to understand why we aren't just heading over there!

This was a lot of fun, even though I sent our package out late. I hope Mason forgives us! You know, I've only participated in two blog swaps, and they've both been for Paige!!! I'll have to find one for me sometime - it looks like fun!

For some reason, Blogger is insisting on putting this photo in upside down...but you get the idea.

Paige has learned how to play Go Fish and Old Maid thanks to Mason!

Thursday List

2009-08-06T08:00:00.000-04:00

Yummy looking cake.

I love this first day of school
book gift idea. Paige is starting preschool this year. Perfect time to start a tradition!

A Week In Pictures - from way back in June!

2009-07-28T21:02:00.005-04:00

I'm trying to get back into the swing of things here...which means making myself post about anything at this point.

I've been doing a good job at taking my photo a day - I've only forgotten one day, and I'm trying not to beat myself up too much about that day. Anyone have any suggestions about what I can put in my summer album for that day besides the big, glaring words I FORGOT that is my current idea?

Anyway, I've been doing a good job on taking the photos, but not editing them or printing them or putting them in an album. I'm not sure how to motivate myself to get back into that part of things. So, on the last day in July, here I am trying to get caught up with June. :)

Saturday, June 13, 2009

This was a nice sunny Saturday - little did we know at the time it would be our last sunny day for some time. June was very, very rainy. We were trying to work on the pool, and in an attempt to keep Paige busy, I tried to set up a little clubhouse atmosphere for her on his swing set play structure. Even though she looks quite happy here, it didn't keep her entertained for very long. Not much does....

Sunday, June 14, 2009

I found some Martha Stewart puppet making kits on clearance at Walmart. They were pretty cool as they had everything you needed to make the puppet in the kit, and most of it was just peel off the sticky section and stick it on. This turned out to be something that really entertained Paige. She made a bird and a monkey and then immediately got under the table to put on a puppet show. I don't think we've ever played with puppets before, but she really seemed to enjoy them.

Monday, June 15, 2009

There are two pictures from this day...and I had a hard time just limiting it to two! Paige finished her first year of dance school in June. She LOVES to dance. Lately she dances more than she walks...she dances down the aisles at stores, etc. She was so excited that she was going to be dancing on a stage for her recital. These are two of the pictures I took at her dress rehearsal.

She looks so "grown up" in this one to me for some reason. I really love it.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

The gray kitty is my 13 year old cat, Fidget. The tiger kitten is Michelle's former foster, now adopted cat, Doyle. Since the beginning, Doyle has loved Fidget. She's always been a very timid cat, so it has been interesting for us to see how she's become kind of a foster mother to all of the kittens that Michelle brings home to foster. Most of them seem to love her, and she follows them around and keeps an eye on them. She's turned into a good foster mom herself. :)

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

This evening I stayed at work late for the sixth grade celebration - an event where the sixth graders are celebrated before leaving for middle school. There was presentation of yearbooks, a slide show, etc. Two of my students were in sixth grade, and I got to present their yearbooks to them (and cry a lot). I was so proud to be a part of it with them. On my way home I drove past an area where I'm always thinking, "I wish I had my camera" and actually pulled over to the side of the road and took several shots since I did have my camera with me. I'm finding I really enjoy nature photography, but I don't really know what to "do" with the pictures.

Thursday June 18, 2009

When I don't know what else to take a picture of, I always seem to fall back on Paige sleeping. But come on, she always looks so cute, I can't help it!

Friday, June 19, 2009

After several rainy days in a row, when I didn't know what else to take a picture of, I wandered outside and took some random rainy flower/grass photos.

Ok, one more week in June caught up with...now to just send them to Walmart to print.

Does anyone who enjoys doing lots of projects have any tips on how you keep up with all the projects you want to do? I love scrapbooking, taking pictures, and even editing them, but if I let it seem like something I "have to" do, I start to lose interest. I'd love to hear how you accomplish projects/goals you've set for yourselves.

Random Ramblings

2009-07-15T06:36:00.003-04:00

I haven't meant to be away for so long.

I'm again struggling with what is "good enough" or "interesting enough" to post about. Yes, I know it is my blog, but sometimes I get into these funks. I've been feeling funky the last couple of weeks, and not in a good way, either. I'm realizing more and more that I have a double standard when it comes to being perfect - I don't expect it out of anyone but myself. I am not sure how to relax when it comes to my standards for myself.

My classroom has moved from the elementary school I've worked at the past two years to the middle school. It is a bittersweet move for me. It's hard to say goodbye, but there are a lot of fun new things coming our way too.

I've started working the school's summer program, which had a very bumpy start, and I'm feeling a little run down and stressed.

I've been taking my photos every day, but have gotten behind in editing them and posting them. Yesterday on my way to work I realized that I forgot to take a picture on Monday - first day I haven't taken a picture since Memorial Day weekend - and I was a little bummed.

We currently have eleven cats in our house - eight foster kittens and our three regular cats. Tomorrow Michelle's sister brings her dog to stay with us while she goes away for the weekend. Should be interesting!

I didn't write this post just to whine...honest. Just felt it was time to let everyone know I'm still alive, just have a bit of writer's block. Thanks for continuing to visit. :)

Just For Fun

2009-07-04T09:31:00.002-04:00

Happy Fourth!

Thursday List

2009-07-02T08:00:00.002-04:00

I like the patriotic mobile, but I really like the tip for cleaning up glitter!

I love the pictures in this post - beautiful! But I really like the red, white, and blue "snack flag." What a cute idea!

I really love this neighborhood love.

Thursday List

2009-06-25T08:00:00.002-04:00

These cookies look so yummy!

I really like these Chalkboard Fridge Magnets.

I love this wishing tree idea.

A Week In Pictures - Week Three

2009-06-14T20:09:00.011-04:00

I'm running behind posting my week in pictures. I've been taking them, just haven't gotten a chance to post this week. Monday is my last day of school, so there's been a lot going on over the last week or so trying to finish up the school year. So here's last week's pictures.

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Saturday's picture is a picture of a scrapbook page that I worked on that morning. I had the idea early in the year to make little scrapbooks of Paige with different family members as birthday gifts for this year. I also thought it'd be great if I could make an album with the same pictures for Paige to have too. Of course, my perfectionism got in the way, as I had a hard time picking the "perfect" album, etc. I finally realized that I just had to start, and forced myself to start the book for my grandmother, who's birthday was back in February! So I took a picture of the scrapbook because I was proud that I'd made myself just start a project that I had been thinking about for a long time. The picture in the picture is of Paige's first Christmas, at my grandmother's house for their annual Christmas Eve open house.

Sunday, June 7, 2009

The two little yellow pots are plants from seeds that Paige and I planted. They are part of a Christmas present my dad gave Paige. Of course, I can't remember what plant is what. Ooops. Whatever was planted in third pot has never grown, so I didn't include that one one in the shot. :) The little flower Paige brought home from Grandma's the day before. It is part of a bouquet that my sister-in-law had. I thought the colors all looked so pretty with the sun coming in, and I took a bunch of pictures of them that morning.

Sunday, June 7, 2009 - #2

Our sleep saga continues around here, and I'm sleeping in Paige's room about every other night now. Sometimes while she's asleep, she shifts so she's lying across her bed. Sunday morning around 12:30 I had some little feet hanging over onto my couch cushion bed.

Monday, June 8, 2009

I like many elements of this picture. It amuses me because Doyle (who started his journey with us as a foster kitty, but who has since been adopted by Michelle) appears to be playing Chutes and Ladders with Paige. He kept chasing the spinner and knocking over the pawns with his paw. About halfway through the game, Paige knocked the pieces off the board and climbed on it, proclaiming that she was a kitty. I also like that in this picture you can see an Ariel band-aid on Paige's knee. The Thursday before this picture was taken, Paige fell at the library on their rug and skinned her knee. She told me that her leg was "broken" and that she might need a wheelchair. When Grandma put the Ariel band-aid on it, she wouldn't let anyone touch it. We had to wait for it eventually to fall off of her.

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Besides Ariel, Paige also likes Hello Kitty. Paige wasn't sure how to go about drawing a picture of herself, but I told her to try. She also wrote her name under her picture. You can kind of see a couple of flowers from the picture on the next page. I kept those in the shot because she cracked me up by asking me to help her color the "baseball flowers" on that Paige. When I looked closely I realized they do kind of resemble a baseball!

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

I took a couple of pictures of Paige cuddled on Roland's lap. Roland hates having his picture taken and often makes faces when I take the pictures. So, here's another picture of Paige with her grouchy camera shy daddy cropped out. She's holding his baseball cap that does have a skull on it, if you can see it in the picture. Daddy always wears a hat when he goes out.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Paige spent the day with Michelle, who took this picture. They apparently picked out a "rock star outfit" for her to wear, and she did some rock star poses for Michelle. There's something about this picture...she's starting to look more and more grown up to me.

Friday, June 12, 2009

Michelle and I had been talking about my wanting to spend some time this summer decorating my room, and how I would like it to look. I love the show Dress My Nest on the Style Network, where host, Thom Filicia takes a person's three favorite personal items and three favorite style items and uses them for inspiration to design their room. The mermaid in the picture is something that I thought would be a great inspiration item for me. It is a Christmas ornament I bought for my mother a couple of years ago, that never actually made it to her because it fit in with our beach bathroom. It is currently hanging up in my new "shell" bathroom. That night I also fell in love with all the pictures on this post about a screened in porch, that I'd also like to use as inspiration for my bedroom.

Ok, so now I think I'm up to date with my pictures! Hopefully once I'm done packing up my classroom I'll have a little more time for blogging. :)

Nameless Kitty

2009-06-14T06:38:00.005-04:00

When we have foster kitties in our house, we get to name them. We have been having fun coming up with names for them - although Paige wants to name all of them Ariel. We currently have one foster however, who was a stray and is very scared of humans. Because he is so scared of us it is hard to "get to know him" enough to pick a name. We've come up with a few ideas though, and my friend Michelle has created a poll on her blog. She's asked me several times now to invite everyone to her blog to participate in the poll. Here's her post about "Nameless Kitty" and the poll. We'd appreciate it if you could help us out.

Thanks. :)

Thursday List

2009-06-11T08:00:00.007-04:00

I love this pancake birthday tradition. Too cute.

I am intrigued by the weekly photo inspiration,
It begins with a colour.

Look at these cute fairy cookie wands. Paige and I might have to try this.

I'm interested in checking out this new blog carnival, Kid's In The Kitchen starting next week.

I absolutely LOVE this doorway into summer.

I also like this summer list of things to go, read, make and do.

Watermelon Lemonade might be something to try!

A Week In Pictures - Week Two

2009-06-06T21:43:00.010-04:00

Saturday, May 30, 2009

A few weeks ago, my mother came and saw our new house. She walked around the yard and pointed out plants she knew as she went. She happened to notice that we have a bunch of strawberry plants around the side of the pool. Paige has been very interested in these, and we have been checking them, looking at the green strawberries, waiting to see if any turned red. Saturday we found one red strawberry and she picked it.

Sunday, May 31, 2009

On Sunday, Michelle went to volunteer at an event at the shelter. When she came home she had a shelter name tag on. She changed out her name for Paige's, and let her put it on. She was so excited. What a great prop for when she asks to play "Animal Shelter."

Also from Sunday:

The day before, Saturday, Michelle had taken Paige to the shelter with her. Paige convinced Michelle to buy her a small blue lamb. It is a dog toy, but Paige finally told Michelle that it was for her stuffed dog that Michelle had bought her at the shelter on a different visit. Michelle decided she couldn't deny that kind of logic and got it for her. Paige has fallen in love with Lambie, who she brought outside to swing with her. I stuck her up on the swing set to watch, and Paige loved it.

Monday, June 1, 2009

There's no real significance to this picture, other than I thought she looked cute eating her "circle bread" as we call it, and it happened to be the only picture I took that day. So there you go.

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Tuesday gives us two pictures, as I decided to document our current "sleeping plan" before I went to bed in her room. First a quick picture of Paige sleeping. She's wearing new Hello Kitty jammies I'd bought that day. She loves Hello Kitty and they are red, which is her favorite color, so I had to get them. I also like that in this picture you can see, from left to right, Taggie, Brown Bear, Douglas (the panda) and Dolphin. These four go everywhere with her right now, and there's a little song that goes with getting them ready for bed. She sings as she places them in order, "Taggie in the front, Brown Bear in the middle, Douglas in the back, and Dolphin in the back too." Then I'm allowed to join in for the chorus of "la, la, la, la." There are always four las, which she counts out on her fingers. Then I say, "and everybody schooch, to make room for Paige." You can also see her new friend Lambie on the other side.

Second, here's my current sleeping arrangement - the cushions from the couch on the floor of her room. I have sleep apnea and need to wear a CPAP when I sleep, so that's the funny looking contraption on my pillows. You can also get a glimpse of the Ariel curtains that I made for her - my first sewing project on my sewing machine, and, well, pretty much ever.

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Roland brings us Wednesday's photo. We have a squirrel that will come up on our deck, and walk right up to the screen, even if our cats are sitting there. At one point we had a Rubbermaid bin with birdseed in it, and he lifted the top and was eating out of it. Roland has named him "Ballsy," and now everyone, including my four year old, says, "Hi Ballsy" when he's on the deck. For some reason on this day, he jumped up on the screen of the slider, just to further torment the cats, I guess. I came home and Roland told me to check out the last couple of pictures on the camera, and this is what I found.

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Wednesday night, Michelle and Roland had discovered some Powerpuff Girls cartoons that are offered in the "extras" stuff we can access "On Demand" from our cable company. Paige loved them. One of the episodes was about bad dreams, and the Girls eventually beat up their dreams. Michelle taught her "Powerpuff Paige" kicks and punches so she could beat up her dreams too. That night was the first night she slept through the night, in her own room, by herself, without waking up at all or needing to get one of us. Thursday morning, Michelle asked her to pose with her super punch pose.

Friday, June 5, 2009

For Christmas, Roland gave me twelve envelopes, one for each month. In each envelope was a piece of paper telling me, "Date Night Tonight. Dinner at..." and then there's a picture of the restaurant logo. Well, I've been opening them each month, but we haven't actually gotten a chance to go on our date night until Friday. I opened the envelope and it was for Chili's. When our dinner arrived, I surprised him by pulling out my camera to take a picture of it. He asked me what I was doing and told me I was crazy. Then I convinced him to share the Chocolate Chip Cookie Molten Cake with me. I told him, "you know I'm going to take a picture of that too?" and I did. He thought I was crazy, and I reminded him that crazy is one of the things he loves about me.

So that rounds out week two. I've noticed that most of my pictures from this week are of Paige, and I don't necessarily want this to become an all Paige album - but she's my favorite model. I guess I'll have to see how it goes, as I'm sure all weeks will be different.

Anyone else take any good pictures of the day this week?

Thursday List

2009-06-04T08:00:00.001-04:00

Paige loves watermelon, and likes making Jell-O too. We might need to try this Wiggly Watermelon.

I LOVE this "recycled" puzzle.

Awards

2009-06-02T22:02:00.014-04:00

I have received a couple of awards over the past couple of months, and am finally getting around to passing the first one along. I just checked and this first one was given to me back in February! Gasp. I didn't know it was that long ago! The problem I've been having is that most of the blogs that I'd like to pass the awards along to have already received these!

The award was:

passed along to me from: Forever Daisies

and the rules are:

"When you receive the prize, you must write a post showing it, together with the name of who has given it to you, and link them back. Choose a minimum of 7 blogs that you find brilliant in their content or design. Show their names and links and leave them a comment informing that they were prized with 'Honest Weblog'. List [if you can and/or dare] at least ten honest things about yourself. Then, pass it on!"

So my blogs I'm passing it to are:

1.Mom and Kiddo
2.Bare Baby Feet
3.Our Eastern Journey
4.Be Different, Act Normal
5.Our Crafts N Things
6.Scott Chris Cori Cassie Cali
7.The Write Start
8.SER.EN.DIP.I.TY

And 10 honest things about myself are:

1. I snore. A lot. And loudly.
2. I procrastinate quite a bit.
3. I am kind of a loner and a homebody. I get excited on the rare occasion when I have the house to myself.
4. I take better care of my daughter than I do of myself.
5. I get overwhelmed very easily.
6. My husband is the cook in our house, which I'm grateful for, but I get mad when people insinuate that I'm not doing my "job" because I don't cook dinner.
7. My husband also does the grocery shopping - another thing I don't like people giving me a hard time about.
8. I dislike "fake" people.
9. Respect for other people is important to me.
10. I've always been honest almost to a fault. I've often said I have Jiminy Cricket for a conscience.

Ok, there's one award down. Hopefully I can pass the second one along soon. Please don't think I'm not grateful - I'm just a big time procrastinator!

A Week In Pictures

2009-05-30T09:56:00.010-04:00

I've been intrigued for awhile by the idea of any one of the versions of Project 365 in which you take a picture a day for a year. Knowing my perfectionist tendencies though, I've been afraid to commit to doing this, as I'm afraid I'll beat myself up if I say I'll do this and then forget or start slacking.

Then a couple of weeks ago I had an idea - I'll start slowly by trying to take a picture every day of the summer, as identified as Memorial Day to Labor Day. The problem is now trying not to be a perfectionist about what album I choose, or picking just one photo for the day, or even about the photos themselves. This is going to be a challenge for me.

Even though I'd planned to start on Memorial Day, I have a couple of cute ones from Saturday and Sunday too, so I think I'll start there.

Saturday, May 23, 2009.
Playing on the deck in a bucket of water.

Sunday, May 24, 2009
Being artsy in my backyard.

and here's where I already have trouble choosing one photo to represent the day. So here's picture number two - Paige and her quarters (she's been getting a quarter every day she feeds the cats in the morning) that she used to go buy a beta fish. She got a red fish, named it Ariel, and insists it is a girl (even though it is not.) Poor gender confused fishie.

Monday, May 25, 2009
I've already posted this one, but I love it. New sandals, and she's wearing pajamas too, by the way, to go out and play.

Tuesday, May 24, 2009
Only a couple days in and I didn't have a picture! I knew this would happen. So I had Roland take one of us.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Paige has been having trouble with constipation, and thus is scared to poop on the potty. She tried on Wednesday, so we made a big deal out of it and made Pillsbury Cinnabon Cookies. "I tried to poop on the potty cookies" didn't sound so appetizing, so Michelle suggested "Courage Cookies." I like that and think it might be something to do every time we do something courageous around here. We'll see.

Thursday, May 28, 2009
I took Paige to story time at the library. The local library is having a story night every Thursday for a few weeks, and the stories are being read by "local leaders." Tonight's story was read by a fireman. To explain the first picture - last summer, I think it was, Paige fell down in the library parking lot. To stop her crying, I brought her over to these flowers outside the library door, and told her they were "Feel Better Flowers." They've been the Feel Better Flowers to her ever since - she tells me all the time she wants to smell the Feel Better Flowers. Tonight she wanted to smell each one, and helped me to take this picture.

Picture number two:
The fireman read two books about dragons (as they breathe fire) and then a book about firemen. Then the kids did a craft, making a really cute fire breathing dragon.

Friday, May 29, 2009
I had a bad day at work, and didn't have a picture yet, so I asked Roland if we could go get ice cream and took this blurry photo there. I'm thinking I don't want all of the pictures to be of people or events, I want some to be objects or items that represent the day.

So I've actually followed through for one week! Wish me luck for week two.

"Momma, Let's play animal shelter."

2009-05-25T20:14:00.010-04:00

Many kids like to pretend, and take part in dramatic play. Many kids want to play house, or school or the like. My daughter? She asked me on Monday if we could play "animal shelter."

I believe that's probably because since her birthday in February we've been a foster family for the local animal shelter and have had many cuties come visit us, such as these:

Left to right: Nirvana, Dora, and Doyle. Doyle is actually now our kitty. Michelle couldn't part with him.

The kitties come to us and we take care of them until they can go back to the shelter to be fixed and to go to their "forever homes" as we call them. So far we've had eight kitties in and out for various amounts of time.

If you'd like to read more about our fostering adventures, Michelle's started her own blog:

The Animal House - Adventures in Fostering.

Here's Paige riding the "horse" at the animal shelter.

Of course all of this is even more fun if you can play it outside and in your pajamas.

Getting to Know You...

2009-05-25T11:52:00.002-04:00

Paige: "My new shoes are a little bit afraid."

Momma: "Why?"

Paige: "Because they don't know me yet."

Fair enough. :)

Happy Memorial Day Weekend.

Our Sleeping Story - Part Two

2009-05-23T08:15:00.001-04:00

I was nervous about having to take Paige to a branch of Boston's Children Hospital, to go to their sleep clinic. As much as I hate to admit it, hospitals make me a little nervous. My friend Michelle went with us, which was great, because I was anxious and our directions weren't great.

We finally found our way to where we were supposed to be. Paige got weighted (35 pounds) and measured. Finally we went into a room and met with a nurse practitioner who asked us lots and lots of questions. Paige was really good, although she wanted to chat with the nurse practitioner, and before too long told me she was bored and thirsty. But all and all she was really good while the lady talked about our family history, sleeping habits, all kinds of stuff. Then she went to talk to the doctor. Of course, we'd mentioned that Paige had a dream where Daddy had a sword at Mommy's throat, so when the doctor came in, he had to ask if Paige was seeing violence in the home. Um, no.

Anyway, the doctor told me that I (or Daddy) am a "sleep association" for Paige. She's associating needing me to go to sleep. She wants me to stay in her room until she falls asleep, so when she wakes up in the middle of the night and I'm not there, she wakes up and is upset because she thinks she needs me to go back to sleep.

The doctor went on to set us up with a "plan" that includes no more naps for her, and no more radio. (On our car ride home she heard me mention that and started crying, saying, "but I can't sleep without my radio" and I started to feel really bad.)

So the doctor talked a little more and then left us with the nurse practitioner to make a "plan" with Paige. Basically, I'm going to bed with Paige for a couple of weeks, and sleeping in her room (on the floor next to her bed) all night. If she sleeps in her bed all night, she gets a sticker. Then we move to that I'm allowed to do "chores" outside of the room while she's falling asleep and then I'll come in and sleep in the room all night with her. For a successful night then she gets two stickers. Then we move to her spending nights alone - possibly starting with every other night. Then she gets three stickers. We go back to the hospital in August.

So, I haven't been around as much because I'm on Paige's sleep schedule now. We wake up together, and we get put to bed together, with Roland tucking us both in. :) Paige is thrilled...and I think in the next couple of days we'll be ready to move to me doing some "chores" while she falls asleep. I think that step is going to be hard, because she's really enjoying us being roommates.

The other issue is that Paige's sleep cycle is off - she wasn't normally falling asleep until after 9, sometimes much later. So the first few nights we kept her up until 9:30 or so, so she'd be exhausted and fall right asleep. That is working, but a four year old who is being kept up later and no longer takes a nap can get a little cranky, let me tell you!

Aloha Friday #5

2009-05-22T05:10:00.003-04:00

I am an intensive needs special education teacher. I work with students with multiple physical and cognitive challenges. I'm finishing my second year working in an elementary school, and next year they are moving my program to the middle school. There are several people - custodians, secretaries, cafeteria staff, teacher's aides, specialists (the gym teacher, the art teacher), classroom teachers, etc, who have been very accepting of my students and have also helped me out during my first two years working in public school. I'd like to give out some little thank yous to these people, but, obviously, I don't have a lot of money to spend.

My question is, what is the most memorable/thoughtful thank you note/gift that someone gave you?

I know you don't have to spend a lot of money to do something nice. I tell people all the time that a simple "thank you" goes a long way. But I wouldn't mind some ideas on maybe how I could add a little extra touch to my thank yous.

For more Aloha Friday, go to An Island Life.

Our Sleeping Story - Part One

2009-05-17T11:19:00.003-04:00

I've spent LOTS of time online researching sleep issues with children, and looking for sleeping tips for Paige. Nothing seemed to be helping. We recently saw a specialist, and so I thought I'd keep track of our journey here, in case it might help someone else.

Two months ago, after several restless nights, I called Paige's pediatrician about her sleeping (or lack there of.) I knew there were several things that could be causing anxiety, leading to her not wanting to go to sleep. We have recently moved into a new home, she has a "big girl bed" for the first time, and she's in her own room for the first time. However, once we got her to sleep, we had trouble keeping her asleep. She woke with night terrors and nightmares. She would often end up needing to move to our room in the middle of the night, sleeping on a little foam Ariel sofa beside our bed. She has been having issues with constipation, which I thought might bother her more at night. She turned four, and monsters became prominent. There was so much going on, I wasn't sure what I was battling any more - getting her into the bed, keeping her there, getting her to fall asleep, getting her to stay asleep, getting myself some sleep?

We tried soothing bedtime routines. We tried having music on, the fan on, special stuffed animals that watched over her, dream catchers, nightlights, pictures of us on the nightstand next to her. We had just bought some walkie-talkies after I read a suggestion about having her have some so she feels she could contact us at any time. The ones we got didn't work so well, so we didn't get too far with that.

I read A LOT online about nightmares, night terrors, bedtime anxiety, monsters, etc. Most recently, all that seemed to work was Super Nanny's Sleep Separation Technique. The idea here was that one of us would sit on what became known as the "sleeping pillow." We would not talk to Paige, but we would sit there, on the pillow, near the bed, until she fell asleep. We would then move the pillow a little bit further away from the bed each night. According to Super Nanny, eventually you can move the pillow to the door, and then out the door. Paige would only let us get just so far away with the pillow, before she'd ask us to move it closer to the bed again. But this seemed the only way to get her to go to sleep, accompanied with a children's benedryl tablet each night to help her wind down.

This still wasn't perfect, however. Paige would often take a long time to settle down, and I could be sitting in her room for over an hour trying to get her to sleep. If I thought she was asleep and tried to sneak out when she wasn't asleep, she would cry and call out for me to come back. One night I talked to her about trying to go to sleep, and she told me, "I don't know how." My poor girlie was exhausted, as was the rest of the household - and cranky too. Many nights she'd go to sleep, only to wake up in the middle of the night looking for me, or for whoever had sat with her that evening to go to sleep. Some night's she'd want me to sit in her room in the middle of the night to get back to sleep. Other nights she'd end up in my room for the rest of the night.

Then, last Monday, we finally had our appointment at the Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders.

Aloha Friday #4

2009-05-15T07:46:00.005-04:00

I've been tired this week - we took Paige to a branch of Boston's Children's Hospital on Monday to try and get to the heart of her sleeping issues. The result is a plan that starts with me going to bed with her and spending the night in her room. I've been meaning to blog about it, but right now most of my time without Paige is when I'm at work.

In the meantime, I thought I'd take it easy today (I'm home sick) and participate in Aloha Friday.

My question this week is stems from the fact that I look at a lot of blogs, books, and magazines, and being a visual person, I come up with tons of crafty projects I want to try, or things I'd like to do with Paige, or recipes to make. However, I don't know how to best organize what I want to do, and then I can't figure out how to make time for any of it, or how to decide what to do when. Does anyone see my perfectionism sneaking in here?

So my question is, How do you keep track of all the projects you'd like to try, and how do you decide what to try when? I've been trying to decide if I should have some sort of "To Do" list or something. I guess I could use your organizational help here!

For more Aloha Friday, go to An Island Life.

Thursday List

2009-05-14T08:00:00.001-04:00

I really like treasure box idea.

This fruit salad looks like a fun idea.

What Does This Say About Me As A Mother?

2009-05-10T17:20:00.005-04:00

I wanted to post this last week, but last week was crazy. I suppose a Mother post is ok for Mother's Day though, huh?

Last Friday when I got home from work, I got out of the car and looked around. There were dandylions everywhere. My first thought? "Look at all the dandies! Paige will be so excited to pick them!"

Paige spends most Friday nights at Grandma's, and then Grandma takes her to dance class Saturday morning. So Paige didn't see all the dandies that afternoon.

The next day, Saturday, was a "watch day" at Paige's dance school. After watching Paige's class, we were getting ready to leave when the next class was lining up to go in. One of the girls in the line for the next class had a dandylion, and I thought, "that's so cute, she brought that in for the teacher." The teacher oohed and aahed and told the little girl how beautiful it was. Her mother then looked at the teacher and told her, "She tried to give it to me. I told her it was a weed and to throw it away. So she said she was going to give it to you."

Maybe I was experiencing some PMS, but I started to feel very sad about this. Didn't everyone know that when little kids pick dandylions for you, you take them, say how beautiful they are, and when the kids aren't looking, then you toss them? Isn't that just what you do?? Somehow this lady didn't get what I thought was one of the unwritten rules of parenthood.

Later, as Roland and I were out running errands, I asked him, "what does this say about me as a mother?" and told him the story. In response he produced a couple of wilted dandylions from his side of the car and told me Paige had given them to him. To which I said, "that's right! When your child gives them to you, you keep them, and then throw them away later. That's just what you do!"

I find it sad that the mother of that little girl didn't appreciate the thought behind the "weed." But maybe that's just me.

Aloha # 3.

2009-05-08T17:02:00.003-04:00

Just when I was getting pretty regular about posting, I had an exhausting week at work, full of IEP Meetings, parent meetings, and finishing state alternate assessment portfolios. I was exhausted every day. So, hopefully after I get a little rest, I can have a little more blog time. I'm trying not to feel "guilty" about not posting on my own blog. But we all know how much of a struggle that can be, right?

In any event, it is time for Aloha Friday.

In honor of Mother's Day, my question is: What is your favorite memory of you and your mother?

Happy Mother's Day to all. :)

For more Aloha Friday, go to An Island Life.

Aloha Friday #2

2009-05-01T06:58:00.004-04:00

I have a four year old daughter who is an only child, and who has TONS of energy. That usually makes me her BFF, and I generally do not have a lot of energy. Most days I try to be a "good" mom and take her outside to let her run around (I often compare raising Paige to having a large St. Bernard puppy - she needs lots of room to run) or to do "projects" or play games, etc. with her. But some days I am doing all I can just to survive the hours between getting home from work and putting her to bed. When I'm really exhausted or not feeling well, that's when I find myself suggesting a video or tv show to her. Although I'm not against her watching (appropriate) TV, I sometimes feel bad that I'm the one suggesting she watch it, just because it'll keep her busy and I can sit still for a bit.

So my question is this: What are your best tips for entertaining energetic children when you are sick, exhausted, feeling brain dead, (all of the above?) or just want a minute to breathe?

For more Aloha Friday, go to An Island Life.

Unplugged Yellow

2009-04-27T08:00:00.005-04:00

This weekend was unseasonably HOT. So, my outdoor loving girlie got into the Unplugged theme of yellow by picking dandelions, which she often calls, "dandies."

Then we went to check out the neighbor's yellow daffodils.

Then more "dandy" picking.

And there was swinging on her yellow swing.

And back to the "dandies."

Then Paige wanted to take a turn taking the pictures. Here I am holding the "dandies."

And I checked out a tulip that is growing in our yard that bloomed today - and turned out to be yellow!

Finding the Fun in Imperfection

2009-04-25T08:00:00.000-04:00

Sometimes being imperfect is just plain fun. As a perfectionist, this is hard for me to accept, but I must. My daughter, for one, seems to love my imperfect ideas more than my "perfect" ones.

One day, over a year ago, Roland and I needed to run out and do an errand unexpectedly in the early evening. Paige was already in her pajamas, and was saying something about how could we go out when she was in her jammies already. So, I started using my excited Momma voice, and told her she was going to do something extra special - go on a "jammie car ride!" Paige thought this was the coolest thing, and asks to go on jammie car rides all the time. As she's not in school yet and spends the day with my mother-in-law, it even works out when she wants to go on a "jammie car ride" every morning.

One of Paige's other favorite activities came from a moment of frustration on my part. Before we moved, our house was always very disorganized and chaotic (working on this in the new house). One day, when trying to get us ready and out the door, I was going through piles of laundry and could not find two matching socks for her to save my life. So, I finally grabbed two random socks, and told Paige it was "silly sock day." She LOVED it! Along with being a perfectionist, I can be a bit OCD, and it did bug me a little that the socks didn't match, but it was bugging me more that we needed to get out of the house. From then on, we had many silly sock days.

Oddly enough, since we've moved, Paige has always had matching socks, and I haven't really thought of silly sock day. The other day when we were getting ready to go outside, she asked if we could have silly sock day, and before I knew it, she was purposely unballing (I think I just made that word up) two different sets of socks, and picked one from each. She was thrilled to do silly sock day again, and asked me again this morning if I could put on silly socks with her jammies as she got ready to go to Grandma's.

Apparently sometimes being perfect and having matching socks isn't all it's cracked up to be.

My First Aloha

2009-04-24T07:22:00.000-04:00

This is my first time participating in Aloha Friday at An Island Life. My understanding is it is a place where I can ask a question and see if I can get some input, and maybe meet some new friends too. I thought I'd give it a try to see if anyone has an idea for me. Couldn't hurt, right?

We moved into our new house in mid December, after staying with my inlaws for about six months. Prior to moving out of our old house, my now four year old shared a room with my husband and me, and was in a crib. Now she's in her own room, in a big girl bed, in a new house, and she's having a lot of anxiety. A couple of days ago she told me that she misses the old house because she misses her room with her crib with Momma and Daddy. I know she misses sleeping in our room because that's all she's ever known. We've tried all kinds of things to make her feel more comfortable in her own room...nightlights, dream catchers, special stuffed animals to watch over her, the fan and the radio on for white noise...you name it, but she would still prefer to sleep in our room. Someone suggested to me that I try finding a book about moving to read to her.

So after all of that wordiness, my question is, does anyone know any good children's books about moving, or getting your own room?

Thursday List

2009-04-23T08:00:00.000-04:00

I like this little Round Robin Event for posting fun crafts, activities, memes, etc.

I will have to try making this cake for my husband.

I've been seeing banners everywhere and want to make one. I finally found a tutorial.

I like this list of quick and easy distractions for the little ones.

Tissue Paper Lessons

2009-04-22T08:00:00.000-04:00

Dear Paige,

I am beginning to think you are in my life to help me mend my perfectionist ways. Someday you may know about all the blogs, websites, and books that I read, looking for activities for us to do together. You may or may not eventually realize that you almost never complete a project the way these resources tell me you will. You do not care much about how I've presented a project to you, but instead care about what you want to do with the resources in front of you. I dearly do not want you to inherit my perfectionism, so I sit on my hands and bite my tongue to keep myself from telling you how something is "supposed to be done."

For example, on Sunday I was showing you how to glue little scraps of tissue paper onto a pickle jar to create a candle holder. You seemed to be enjoying the activity, but you didn't just want the little pieces of tissue I had cut for you. You wanted to cut your own pieces, with your scissors. You didn't just want the bowl of watered down glue I'd given you, you wanted me to hand you the glue bottle so that you could squeeze increasing amounts into the bowl. Then you wanted me to cut long strips that you could wind around the jar, instead of just using the little squares that I had provided.

Try as I might not to, on these occasions I always think how no one on the blogs, websites, or books I've read talk about children who won't want to follow the directions or use your materials as they've been provided...and really, what does it matter? So I listen to you, and cut a long, slim piece of red tissue paper for you (your favorite color) and you wind it all the way around the glass and paint it on. Afterward, you look at what you've done, smile, and say, "Look how beautiful it is." Would you have reacted like that if I'd forced you to only use my sad little squares of paper? If I'd told you that my way was the only way? Probably not.

I hope you will continue to challenge me, little one. Help me to see outside the lines. Help me to see that some things do not need to be done the way the directions say, or be the way I feel it it is "supposed" to be. I warn you, I may be resistant at first, but I want you to know I'm trying. I want to learn not to let the little things matter so much to me, and to see the beauty in my own ideas and creations, as I do in you.

I love you,
Momma

Unplugged Science

2009-04-20T12:33:00.014-04:00

This week we were pretty unstructured and didn't really do anything that could be considered a science (the most recent Unplugged theme) project. However, over the past week I've noticed Paige starting to make some interesting observations about her environment. I've always thought it was fun to watch her learn and develop.

One night last week in the bath tub, she was playing with a plastic cup and requested a plastic spoon. She then noted on her own that when she looked at the cup, the spoon looked bigger than it is. A few minutes later she told me how the spoon is the right size when you look straight down at it in the cup. This led to a tired Momma trying to explain how the water works as a magnifying glass. Then, an even more tired Momma trying to explain what a magnifying glass is. I think I may need to get one for her.

I know the spoon isn't actually in this picture...I just thought this one was cute.

Then on Sunday, I was showing Paige how to use diluted glue to paint tissue paper onto an old pickle jar to make a candle holder. As she was painting on the glue, she said, "Momma, when I paint on the jar, it makes a very beautiful sound." I decided there was probably some science related reason for that too, although I couldn't begin to explain it to her. Instead, I jotted down the cute comment and noted how she's beginning to make more and more observations like this, and how children really do learn the best through play. Don't we all?

Stuck In A Perfectionist Rut

2009-04-14T20:48:00.002-04:00

I'm falling back into my perfectionist ways.

If I don't feel like I have anything "interesting" to post (which is most of the time), I don't post.

If I don't feel like I can get a post written the way I want it to be (interesting with just the right amount of wit, of course), I don't post.

If I don't have a chance to get the picture just right for the post, I don't post. (Case in point, I have had a post in draft for a couple of weeks waiting for me to get around to putting in a picture.)

If I'm exhausted (which has been the case lately) or lazy or bored or any number of other things, I read all kinds of blogs, but I don't post.

Needless to say, I'm not posting. I'm in a perfectionist rut, and I need help to get out. My motto for my students and my daughter is that what is important is "the process, not the product."

Now if only I could figure out how to practice what I preach.

Thursday List

2009-04-09T08:00:00.000-04:00

I like this post about decorating with words. I love quotes and such, so I really like these ideas.

Thursday List

2009-03-26T08:00:00.001-04:00

I love this idea for a book of the month club gift.

I like doing crafts and activities with Paige, but sometimes she wants to do a "project" and I just have no ideas. So I'm really liking this new series called Slacker Saturdays - quick and easy ideas for slacker parents!

Thursday List

2009-03-19T08:00:00.002-04:00

I think the idea of a word of the week sounds like fun!

I LOVE Dr. Seuss, and I LOVE these cupcakes!

Slow

2009-03-15T12:21:00.002-04:00

I know things have been a bit slow around here lately. Heck, things have more or less ground to a halt.

Well, I'm still alive - just finished a hellish week. Some sort of stomach bug came into my classroom last week, and took out almost all of the staff and students, and then we all brought it home to our families. So it has been a wonderful week full of unhappy stomachs around here, which cut into my desire to post, and wiped out plans for fun things like Unplugged Projects.

We've also had some sleeping issues with Paige - among the nightmares and night terrors she was already experiencing, she now seems terrified to go to bed, and we've had several nights with screaming and general unhappiness that ends up with a completely tired household. I called her pediatrician on Friday and they referred me to the Children's Hospital's sleep clinic. She now has an appointment in May. I'm kind of hoping things will just settle down and I can cancel the appointment. Although, realistically, we'll probably be a family of insomniacs by May.

Hopefully things will start to pick up around here as our tummies go back to normal.

Thursday List

2009-03-12T08:00:00.000-04:00

I love the system for filing activities torn from magazines. I have a ton of these too.

Thursday List

2009-03-05T08:00:00.000-05:00

I love this little round-up of blog memes and carnivals.

Paigeisms

2009-03-03T20:45:00.004-05:00

After a lot of, "I want, I want..." at the beginning of dinner tonight, Roland asked Paige, "what's the magic word?"

Paige's answer?

"Bippity boppity boo."

He decided that was close enough, after we stopped laughing.

Unplugged Project

2009-03-02T16:23:00.009-05:00

After a few months of packing, moving, unpacking, figuring out a new camera, getting the computer set up, holidays, etc, etc, I'm hoping to get back into the swing of the weekly Unplugged Project.

This week's theme was "bottle" and Paige and I did a simple painting project that I found at Just For Fun - painting flowers with a soda bottle.

Basically, you dip the bottom of the bottle in the paint, and then use it to stamp onto the paper, to make the flower petals.

Then you dip the cover into a different color, and use that for the center of the flower.

Here Paige told me she was adding stems! I thought it was so cute that she did that on her own.

Her first finished piece, which for some reason Blogger wants oriented this way. Oh well.

The only difficulty I had with this activity was that sometimes I'd end up with too much paint on the bottom of the bottle. If there's a lot of paint on the bottom in the middle, I'd end up with an odd looking print. Too much paint on the cover also made for some goopy flower middles, as you can see. Overall though, this was fun and easy, and Paige seemed to enjoy it much more than I'd thought. She enjoys painting, but often quickly abandons "techniques" for finger/body painting.

Paigeisms

2009-02-28T21:12:00.004-05:00

In an effort to start keeping track of all the cute (to me, anyway) things Paige says, here are a few outtakes from today:

Daddy: "Paige, how many donuts did you eat today?"

Paige: "Oh, I don't know. About a million or so."

After seeing the tail end of a horse out the window today:

Paige: "I saw the horse's booty."

After a chat with Aunt Michelle about how some people might not like having their "bum" called a "booty," Paige said, "I like booty. I have a booty. I'm sittin' on it."

Thursday List

2009-02-26T16:31:00.003-05:00

These are so cute.

I love this idea for having a Hawaiian Luau on a snowy President's Day!

I love this little preschool cocoa gift and I'm thinking it might be a cute little thing to hand out to co-workers next year too! I love cocoa gifts, but I'm always wary of giving mugs - I know I usually end up with way too many!

I love the paper crown and felt birthday signs in this post!

Thursday List

2009-02-19T08:00:00.002-05:00

I haven't been feeling very good this week, so there's not much of a list today.

I did want to mention Freebie Friday from The Motherload, if you haven't seen it already. Since buying my first house and barely squeaking by every month, I find I'm learning more about being frugal and finding deals. I find I get excited now on Fridays - "oh, it's Freebie Friday!

Also, I love all the beautiful Valentine's Day pictures here. I LOVE the hearts cut out of cucumber for the salad!

Making Friends A Few Days Late...

2009-02-17T21:34:00.004-05:00

Ok, I'm more than a day late and a dollar short here, but I thought this Making Friends Monday This or That Game sounded like fun, and it gave me something to try and jog this bloggy writer's block, so here goes nothing:

1. jog or walk: walk
2. coffee or tea: tea
3. pepsi or coca cola: Coke!!! (I have my husband to thank for that one.)
4. flats or heels: flats
5. fries or onion rings: fries (especially if they are from McDonalds. :)
6. cats or dogs: cats
7. skim or whole: skim
8. small purses or large: small
9. van or suv: Do I have to pick one? I've never driven either, so I have no idea - I do like the look of the SUVs better, if that counts for anything...
10. winter or summer: winter
11. 1 piece bathing suit or 2: 1!!!
12. sit down restaurant or fast food: sit down
13. McDonalds or Burger King: McDonalds
14. White Gold or Yellow: Um, I'm not sure what the difference is? Guess I don't own a lot of gold...
15. Fish or Chicken: Chicken
16. Edward or Jacob: Jacob
17. Pizza or Burger: Pizza
18. apple or orange: orange
19. Spend or save: save
20. 1 story or 2 story house: 2 story

Thursday List

2009-02-12T08:07:00.005-05:00

Aren't these conversation pebbles cute? My grandmother has a Christmas Eve party every year. These might be fun on the table.

I saw some tutu T-shirts like these somewhere before and thought Paige would love them, so I'm saving this tutorial for someday.

These little chocolate cups just look too yummy not to share!

All of the recipes here look yummy! Thank you to Lorie for the link!

I've often thought of coming up with a list of things to do with Paige during her childhood. I like this list of 162 things to do before Kindergarten.

These chocolate chip cookie dough truffles sound yummy!

They Wii'd Me!

2009-02-11T17:42:00.005-05:00

As a special education teacher, I get to spend some time in the regular education classrooms with my students. When I get to know my students classmates, I have the benefit of sometimes being "cool." I often sit in groups with the kids, so as to be able to help my students. Often, when they talk amongst themselves, I think they forget that I'm an adult and a teacher - same goes for the nurses who accompany my students to class. It is kind of an interesting position to be in, and it is funny what we get to talk about or overhear when we are in that position. Sometimes I feel like I'm taking the class too. (I actually learned a lot in fifth grade math last year - the number one thing being that I am NOT smarter than a fifth grader.)

This year I've been enjoying working with one of the fourth grade teachers in my school. She's really helped my students and myself be part of the class. I do her read aloud every day, and I'm really enjoying it. The kids all seem to get excited when I come in to read - probably because I'm someone new and different from their regular teacher. They've been giving me hugs, and at Christmas I got homemade cards and notes. It has really made me smile to be this "big sister" kind of person.

Today, one of the girls came over to tell me that she's made me a character on her Wii. Then another one said casually, "Oh, I did that too." This was new and interesting, and caught me a little off guard. However, I'm choosing to think of it as a compliment. I wonder what kind of games the Wii version of me likes?

Valentine's Day Book Suggestions

2009-02-09T20:51:00.016-05:00

I've seen a few blog posts over the last week or so mentioning the lack of decent Valentine's books. Well, since I love children's books (and I'm even a bit of a children's book snob) and because I do enjoy reading aloud, I thought I'd mention a couple I enjoy.

The first is The Valentine Bears by Eve Bunting. This is a cute book about how Mrs. Bear prepares for Valentine's Day, and sets her alarm to wake her up from hibernation so she can celebrate with Mr. Bear.

The next book is Love Ruby Valentine by Laurie Friedman Ruby's favorite holiday is Valentine's Day. She spends the days leading up to the big day preparing gifts and Valentines for everyone in town to show them how much she loves them. This makes her so tired that she lies down for just a little bit - and sleeps right through the big day! Will anyone want her Valentines on February 15th?

Then there's Valentine Express by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace. In this book, a brother and sister bunny team up to make Valentine's for all of their neighbors. I enjoy books by Wallace as her pictures are all paper art - beautiful.

Finally, there's The Night Before Valentine's Day by Natasha Wing. Wing has a "Night Before" book for just about every holiday - similar in idea to the classic Night Before Christmas. I have a couple of these, and, like to read them the night/day before, or as close as I can to the holiday if I'm reading it to my class.

I hope that gives you a few new ideas for a Valentine's themed Read-Aloud. I'll be sure to post if I think of any others. I actually don't have that many Valentine's books in my collection. I seem to have more for the fall holidays and Christmas. If you have a favorite, I'd love to hear about it!

Thursday List

2009-02-05T08:00:00.004-05:00

My Mom is very into feeding the birds, and I've been wanting to put together a little gift of homemade bird foodie things for her. I like these birdseed hearts.

I really need to make some friends who like pudding so that I have an excuse to make yummy trifles like this mint chocolate one. I like pudding, but I don't need to eat a whole trifle! Hmmm...do you think you can freeze trifle?

This Sunday Guest Recipe idea looks like fun - and there's even a downloadable recipe card for each recipe!

I like this idea for packaging snacks.

This little Valentine's craft made me smile.

Thursday List

2009-01-29T08:00:00.004-05:00

I love this little story about a canvas given as a New Year's Day present.

I love this painted frame gift idea.

I'm picturing one of these paper cones on Paige's door knob on Valentine's Day Morning.

I may need to do this to her door too.

Take a look at the cute picture on this post. I think the idea of having a birthday celebration on the day a baby is born is so cute. I love the zero candle!

A Comforting Voice

2009-01-27T17:27:00.006-05:00

Roland said something I found sweet the other night, and I want to remember it. He told me that he found my voice comforting.

Earlier we'd been discussing how I enjoy reading out loud. I do a lot of that in my job working with medically fragile students. Often we have "medical days" where their bodies don't seem to be cooperating, but I never know if they are listening, so sometimes when I'm not sure what else to do, I read to them. Sometimes I worry that I don't do enough "active, hands-on" teaching with them. Sometimes I worry that reading to them all the time is too passive. But when I talked to one of the nurses the other day, she mentioned that it is meaningful to have someone who wants to sit and read with you - and after all, we all know the benefits of reading to our children.

I've wanted to read out loud to Roland for some time, but have never been sure that we could agree on a book. Then Friday night, he took me out to see Inkheart for my birthday. I'd wanted to see it because I'd loved the book. We'd talked again about my reading to him, and over the previews for Angels and Demons, I suggested maybe we could read books that were also movies, and then we could see the movie for a "date" after. So, we've now started our first book, The Da Vinci Code. I've read two chapters so far, one a night before bed. Lately I've found after a day of dealing with students and staff, and then a spirited preschooler, I'm often too tired to spend time with Roland, and I've worried about this. I'm hoping that reading and talking about a book will help us fit a little "us" time in.

I've told him that I've gotten compliments at work about my reading, and asked him if I really did read "that well" and he told me that I did. He told me that he enjoyed listening to me, and found my voice comforting. I found that to be so sweet, that the next night I told him how much that meant to me. I've been thinking about it over the past few days, hoping that maybe that's what it means to my students, too. Maybe when all the medical things get in the way, maybe the act of coming together and sharing a story is comforting.

Sniffing My Wrists

2009-01-26T20:54:00.007-05:00

I have been in a bit of a funk lately. I tend to get seasonal depression, and I think that might be playing a role in it. I am also feeling a little burnt out, and blah.

I tend to not know what to blog about - always thinking I need some big, wonderful thing to blog about, even though I've got that cute little "Blog Guilt Free" icon over there on the right. The point of that little button, if I remember correctly, is to remind me to blog for me, about what interests me.

So today I bring you a little post about Cotton Candy Body Spray .

Last Thursday, I kept thinking I smelled cotton candy in my classroom. I kept smelling it all day, and I couldn't figure out why. Finally, when one of the nurses walked by, I realized it must be her, and it was! She had a cotton candy fragrance on, and gave me a squirt of it. Oddly enough, I spent the rest of the day sniffing my wrists and feeling happy. (Boy, it doesn't take much to make me happy, does it?)

Anyway, on Friday I asked her what kind it was again, because I thought I might like to buy some, and she gave hers to me! I was so excited. I am not normally a "scent" person, but I kept spritzing myself this weekend and feeling happy.

While looking for an image of the Cotton Candy Body Fantasy stuff, I noticed that they have other products with the same scent. I might have to go to the drugstore and indulge. Wow, I'm getting wild in my old age.

Even though it might be a little silly, I want to try and remember my 2009 theme of GOOD and think of the good little things in life that make me happy. I'm hoping to be more mindful of these little things.

What little thing is making you happy today?

Thursday List

2009-01-22T06:00:00.003-05:00

This looks yummy.

If I can find some money in the next month (I'm new home broke!) I'd like to make something like this or this.

I wish I'd seen this before I threw away our Christmas tree. I wonder if I have enough needles still on the rug?

A Paige-ism

2009-01-19T08:46:00.003-05:00

I may have mentioned before that Paige loves Ariel, the Little Mermaid.

Yesterday she was coloring a picture of Ariel, and Roland was asking her something about it, and she was telling him how she'd already started coloring her, "her...um, her boob holder," while pointing to Ariel's strategically placed seashells.

I laughed so hard she came over to ask me if I was ok.

Thursday List

2009-01-15T17:00:00.001-05:00

I got a little carried away with the exclamation points this week, but here goes:

Look how cute these confetti pancakes are!

I like this idea for gingerbread houses for birds!

I love this hidden painter's tape playground!

Check out these really cool giant pick-up sticks!

Thursday List

2009-01-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

I got a little sidetracked with my Thursday lists. This post was orginally started in October! So there's a couple of "dated" ideas on here, but I still like them!! Hopefully I'll be "good" about keeping up with my lists this year. :)

I actually tried some of these for dinner in October.

What a cute kid's gift idea!

I love the idea of this rainy day closet.

Glue Batik looks so cool - I want to try it sometime.

I wanted to make this for Thanksgiving breakfast, but wasn't that organized. Maybe next year.

Another link a little late, but still fun to look at. The I can make it party.

These marshmallow treats and these look cool!

I'd like to remember this for next year - eggnog pie!

Happy With Good

2009-01-07T09:02:00.000-05:00

Last year around this time, I was reading this book about what Flylady calls "Body Clutter." The book really spoke to me. I realized I have a lot of body clutter. I also realized for the first time just how much my all or nothing perfectionist attitude was hurting me. I realized that I needed to try and work on the perfectionism. To learn to let go, and to learn that sometimes good enough is good enough.

Around the same time, I discovered blogs for the first time. I stumbled across Boo Mama's Tour of Homes and was immediately enthralled. I soon began to think that I wanted a blog too. I began to think that maybe I could blog about my goal of trying to curb my perfectionism. And so I began to blog.

2008 then did not turn out at all as expected. In fact, it turned out to be a pretty sucky year, one that I was very excited to see leave at midnight on December 31st. Now I will admit that buying my first home was a wonderful thing, and I also managed to graduate from grad school and finally get my teacher's license, and those are wonderful things that 2008 gave me. However, there was so much struggle in 2008 - I'm ready to stop struggling. I'm tired.

I'm not very good at resolutions. I often feel like I'm setting myself up to fail, probably because almost every year of my life I've wanted it to be the year that "I lose weight." I've struggled with my weight my whole life, and so that's always the resolution. But that isn't really a resolution. That's kind of just a demand I'm putting on myself when I look at it - one that I then tell myself that I've "failed" at. So this year I'm not going to resolve.

Last year I came across some blogs that talked about learning new skills or setting goals for the new year. I like that idea much better. I thought that this year I might actually try and make some of the recipes I tend to collect but never do anything with. I thought about setting a goal of creating one new recipe a week to take part in my friends' venture. But I am pretty sure that I won't actually do one a week, and that is again setting myself up for failure. So if I'm more honest, I think maybe I just need to try to do some at all. Maybe one a month?

I also decided that what I really need to do this year is to forgive myself more, and give myself permission to fail. I think part of why it is hard for me to try new things, (although I really do enjoy learning) is I'm afraid of failing at them. I often tell myself that if I'm not perfect at it right away, not a "natural" at it, that I shouldn't do it. So I decided this year I need to try to work on easing up on myself a little. Give myself permission to try and fail, and then try again.

I came across Ali's One Little Word concept for a new year. Basically, you pick one word to inspire you for the year. I, of course, came up with a list of several, and have had a hard time narrowing it down. Enjoy, Relax, Breathe, Simplify, Release, Median, Allow, Home, Grow, Mindful, Moment, Dare, and Focus all made my list.

I finally decided to choose Good. I thought it fit in with curbing my perfectionism - learning that sometimes good enough is good enough. Also, I want to be good to myself and take good care of myself. I want to look for the good in others and take time to enjoy the good things in life. 2008 was a sucky year, and overall I'm hoping that 2009 will be a good one. It doesn't have to be perfect, wonderful or great.

Right now, I'll just be happy with good.

One down...a million to go.

2008-12-27T10:24:00.003-05:00

I paid my first mortgage payment today. I'm excited to be able to have made the first payment - due January 1st, of course. Happy New Year. LOL

I'm excited that 2008 is almost over. It has been a very challenging year, and I'm looking forward to starting the next chapter in my life, as a home owner.

I know the next year is bound to be full of challenging times as well, but it is an amazing feeling knowing that I was able to get us to this point.

I realized the other day that I should be proud of me. I don't often let myself be proud of myself or my accomplishments, but this feels like a big one, and maybe I should acknowledge that I did a good job.

Now who wants to help me unpack???

Hiatus

2008-12-19T13:53:00.002-05:00

I haven't meant to be on hiatus for the last month. The last month has just been very crazy. We've only been actually living in our new house (meaning mattresses in and we are sleeping here) for a little over a week. Before that we were half here and half at my in-laws, while we painted and whatnot here. Living in two places can be a little overwhelming. Add into that painting, turning utilities on, emptying a POD, having a POD picked up (this morning - yay!), buying appliances, having appliances delivered, having plumber come to install appliances, having someone come out to figure out why the gas is on but there's no heat, an ice storm that knocks your power out for 24 hours, an IEP to write, all kinds of craziness at work, Christmas shopping, a sick 3 year old who is having trouble sleeping through the night, and getting a cold, and possibly some little other things I'm forgetting, well, sometimes you don't get a chance to blog.

I'm hoping that after Christmas I'll be able to set up my computer, take some time uploading photos, get the boxes unpacked, and be able to blog again. I also wanted to mention that for the past six months I've been checking on all of your blogs using a loaner Mac laptop. I am not used to Macs, and for some reason I am unable to comment on some of your blogs. I have no idea why. One of my favorite blogs won't even load correctly. So anyway, I'm hoping to get back to as normal as I ever am soon. Thank you for your well wishes on my new home. I hope you are all enjoying a wonderful holiday season.

Home Sweet Home

2008-11-19T21:11:00.003-05:00

Well, as of about 11:30 this morning, I am officially a home owner!!!

We had planned to go for a final walk through with the real estate agent before the closing. First, we had to stop at the bank to get a certified check for the closing costs. When we got back in the car, Roland looked at me and said, "let's go home." He turned on the radio, and the song that was playing was, "There's No Place Like Home For The Holidays." Roland and I couldn't believe it. I decided that must be a good sign.

We went over to the house and waited for our agent. While we were waiting, he called my cell phone and told us that the selling agents had supposedly left us a key, maybe in the mailbox, or taped inside the front door. So we looked, but couldn't find a key. Our agent showed up, and we all searched for the key, but no one could find it! Our agent called the selling agent, and would you believe the selling agents couldn't find a key??? Apparently they'd gone over to check the fire alarms and whatnot, and had duct taped the key to the inside of the screen door when they left, but when we got there there was duct tape, but no key. No one from the seller's office could seem to find a key. They gave our real estate agent a key code for us to go have one made! So after closing, we had to go to two different places to find a place that could make us a key, then we got to go to our house.

Late this afternoon we took Paige over. We told her we were going to see a surprise. When we pulled in the driveway, she said, "Who's house is this?" and we told her it was ours, and she said, "no way!" :)

I am so happy to have finally been able to bring my baby home. :)

Showing Signs Of Stress

2008-11-11T20:13:00.002-05:00

Today my therapist said I'm starting to show signs of stress. Ha, you think? She said I need to really listen to my body, and that when the house stuff finally ends, I'm really going to crash. Woo Hoo. My body wants to sleep all the time right now, as I'm not sleeping really well at night and I'm just worn out from all of the stress.

The good news is that there was no school today due to Veteran's Day. It was a nice little break in the week, even though it was weird to have school for one day, and then have a day off. I'm going to be messed up for the rest of the week. :) Michelle and I took Paige to Old Navy and got her a new winter coat, hat, and mittens. She has a coat in the POD, but I'm not sure if it'll fit her at this point. She was excited because I found a red coat, and red is her favorite color. They are having a sale on their outerwear right now, so the coat was half off. That makes Paige's mom excited. :) Last year we waited until actual winter to look for gloves/mittens for her and we couldn't find any. So we wanted to make sure to get on that right away for her. She looked so cute bundled up.

Then we went to lunch at Chili's. She told me she needed to use the potty, which didn't surprise me as she's in the "I need to check out every public restroom I come across" stage, but I was excited that she actually used the potty when we got in there. Usually she just kind of visits it. We are a little behind in potty training - she totally gets it, but refuses to do it. I think it is because her life is so out of control right now. The doctor told me at her check up in June that she wasn't worried, as it is something Paige has control of when everything else is out of control. I'm hoping she'll be happy enough in a new home soon to use the potty all the time. Today she was happy enough to annouce loudly to the dining population of Chili's that she'd used the potty, so that's a start.

I liked the baked french toast. Paige took a nibble, but that's all she'd eat. She told me she liked making it better than eating it. Roland ate a piece, but I don't think he was all that excited by it. Michelle didn't really like it, but I wasn't really expecting her to, as she doesn't like eggs, and the bread had to sit in the "custard" overnight. I'm not really that versed in custard, but I guess the fact that the recipe used three eggs made it too eggy. Oh well. Roland said he thought that my grandparents would like it - probably because it had kind of a bread pudding consistancy out of the oven. I had a leftover piece this morning and liked it better today, as it had kind of set.

In parting, I ask, anyone have any good, simple stress relievers they'd like to suggest?

Hopeful

2008-11-08T20:24:00.003-05:00

Well, after the 24th, we were on for a short period of time on the 31st. Then we were delayed again, but it looks like we might actually be on for this upcoming week. I am trying to be "cautiously optimistic" at this point. I would really like to be able to move before we are moving in snow!

Work has been VERY stressful, and home has been VERY stressful. I am exhausted from the emotional roller coaster I've been riding for the last few weeks.

In other news, I'm trying to learn how to make better use of my time by scheduling activities that I want to do and/or need to do. I've always been a bit resistant to calendars and scheduling systems, thinking they'd make me dull and would suck any spontaneity out of my life. However, I'm also learning more and more that the things I'd like to do "someday" will never actually get done if I don't determine when "someday" is. This week, I scheduled in time to make a recipe I've been wanting to try - baked French Toast. Paige, Michelle and I made it tonight and it sits in the refrigerator until tomorrow morning, then we'll see how it is. I like a breakfast recipe that I can make on Saturday night when I am coherent, and not have to try to figure out in the morning, when I'm not. If this works out, I might have to look for other recipes like it. Suggestions are always welcome. :)

Next thing to schedule is some time to play around with moving photos from my new camera onto the computer and sizing them, so that I can go back to posting pictures from all of my Unplugged Projects, Halloween, etc. I did much better with pictures when I could just stick the photo card in the computer and access all of my pictures. For some reason it seems much more time consuming to get the cord to hook the camera to the computer, and then to have to resize the pictures to post them here. I think maybe I just need to dedicate some time to it.

Life Gets In The Way

2008-10-25T10:25:00.004-04:00

Sometimes life gets in the way of blogging.

The past few weeks have been difficult. Our closing date keeps changing. It went from the 17th to the 24th, and then we found out earlier this week that we didn't have all the paperwork we needed to be able to close on the 24th. As of this minute, I don't know when we are closing, and it is depressing me.

Meanwhile work has been very stressful over the past week or so. In my position I am have to be both an administrator, as I am considered to be "head of the program," and also the teacher. I am finding more and more that these are two different jobs and sometimes it is difficult for me to manage the program and try to function as the teacher - especially when I'm also trying to manage buying a house, being a mom, being a wife, and living my own life.

Over the last week I've had a lot of hard administrator-ish issues to deal with, and I find that sort of thing to be very trying and tiring. Add that to the emotional roller coaster of trying to get out of my inlaws and into our new house, and I'm finding I'm pretty wiped out at the end of the day. So, I think my blog posts will be sporadic for the time being. I'm still trying to squeeze in Unplugged Projects and fun things like that, but I don't always get the chance to blog about them. I hope I can find more balance soon!

Thursday List

2008-10-02T20:30:00.000-04:00

I'm having a hard time getting this link to work right, but there's an apple bread recipe on this blog that looks yummy. You might need to scroll down to find it.

I love this orange peel wreath. I might have to try one!

Two new blogs that I think look like fun, and are giving me some great ideas for projects to do with the kids who are coming down to my classroom at lunch to visit with my students: Great Solutions to Team Challenges and Think. I found the Think blog courtesy of this post. Thanks for the fun link, Julie!

Time flies...

2008-10-01T20:24:00.004-04:00

Sometimes it seems very hard to work, raise a child, and take care of a blog. To top it all off, we are (finally) in the process of buying a house, and some days over the last week or so, it's seemed like I have several full time jobs.

I do the Unplugged Project every week, but I've had a hard time getting around to posting about them. Hopefully I'll be able to catch up and post HARD and FRUIT soon. I know, dear reader, that you are dying with curiousity about what Paige and I were up to for these projects. LOL

To top it all off, I've got a new camera, which I love. Although that part is great, it is hard because now instead of a memory card, I have to hook the camera to the computer to upload (or download?) the pictures onto the computer. Then, because the photos are really big, I have to size them before I put them on my blog. Lately it seems I haven't had the time to do all of this photo stuff in a timely manner.

Over the past few weeks I've read several blog posts about how to get more readers to your blog. They suggest reliable posting, for one. I don't know when I can ever promise that! They also suggest that your blog have a specific purpose. For example, you wouldn't expect car repair tips on a craft blog. I realize that I'm not sure that my blog has a specific purpose. I started it when I began to realize that perfectionism was ruling my life, but I know that that's not all I blog about, when I find the time to blog.

So anyway, just thought I'd let you know that I'm still out here, your totally unreliable, randomly posting, time-challenged, lazy photo uploading, blogger. Thanks for checking in on me.

Thursday List

2008-09-25T18:20:00.000-04:00

I love the idea of this hand quilt. Very cute!

I love the idea of a Halloween Advent calendar! Oddly enough, I saw one at Target today for the first time and thought it was such a cute idea. It had a piece of gummy candy in each little box - that part didn't excite me that much, but I was toying with the idea of hiding other things in it.

I want to make some pumpkin rocks!

Very yummy looking - baked French Toast.

I'd also like to try these Faux French Fries.

I like this color mixing activity - it looks a lot like some of the Montessori type water transfer activities I've seen online, but also has a color mixing lesson!

Look at these cool juice box crayons!

Here's to simple evenings.

2008-09-21T20:50:00.002-04:00

Tonight was good.

No elaborate plans tonight or anything, but the evening made me happy nonetheless.

Roland made dinner (he's the cook in our home) and we gathered around the table to eat. This isn't a habit we had at our old house, and I've really enjoyed our dinners together, for the most part. Paige often complains about sitting and doesn't eat, but tonight she slurped up her "yummy noodles" (aka Ramaan Pride) and was pleasant.

After dinner, we cleaned up the table, and all of us, Momma, Daddy, Paige-Girlie, and Aunt Michelle worked on our Unplugged Project. I really enjoyed having a family project.

Then I gave Paige a bath and we used out this new cup thing that Michelle bought to help keep the soapy water out of her eyes. It worked wonderfully and it is the first bath in a long time with out screaming and/or tears about soap in her eyes.

Then she got in her Ariel jammies, watched Charlie and Lola and ate goldfish while I combed her hair.

Sometimes simple is so good.

Sometimes simple makes me smile.

100 Things

2008-09-17T19:20:00.002-04:00

Well, this post is a few posts late, but I started it and kept it in draft, adding to it here and there for a week or so! I'm not sure how interesting it is, but here's my list of 100 Things About Me.

1. I was born in Burlington, VT, but I grew up on Cape Cod, MA.
2. I am a big sister to one younger brother.
3. I was the third generation to graduate from my high school. My mom and grandmother graduated from the same school, although it was a different building when my grandmother went there.
4. I do not like hot dogs.
5. I do not like potato chips, although I will eat them with onion dip, which I do like.
6. I don't really like pie, because I don't like crust. I do like most pies that are made in a graham cracker crust, though.
7. I met my husband on AOL. My best friend, Michelle, "saw" him in a chat room and thought I'd like him, so she talked to him a bit. At the time we used to "talk" to all the same people online.
8. My favorite place to be is at the ocean. I always have this sense of "coming home" when I'm at the ocean. It is very relaxing and peaceful to me.
9. I love to swim - in the ocean, in a lake, in a pool, whatever.
10. I took swimming lessons as a kid and there was a picture of me during a swimming lesson in the paper. I think my family still has a cut out of it somewhere.
11. However, one of my biggest fears is drowning - or dying in any way that involves not being able to breathe.
12. I was a girl scout for many years - up through 8th grade.
13. I had braces for several years.
14. I am afraid of spiders, even though I know it isn't logical. They just creep me out.
15. My friend Michelle and I have been friends since we were in high school - 17 years ago.
16. My favorite color is blue, although as a kid I would say my favorite color was gold just to be different from everyone else.
17. I HATE the sound of fingernails on a chalkboard.
18. I love office supplies. I like to browse stores like Staples.
19. I used to think that since I like office supplies, I'd like working in an office.
20. I didn't. I worked for seven years doing data entry for a health insurance company, and I hated it.
21. I LOVE working in an elementary school. I love school assemblies, book fairs, and things like that.
22. I love to read out loud.
23. I love calendars - I enjoy picking out new calendars, and love turning the pages each month.
24. I've had a problem with car sickness since I was pregnant with Paige.
25. I don't drink coffee - I've never liked it.
26. The summer before my senior year of college I was in a bad car accident and my car was totaled. I was told that the seat belt saved my life.
27. I always wear my seat belt and am a seat belt advocate.
28. I have no tolerance for drunk drivers. Roland was hit by a drunk driver when he was a teenager, and to make a long story short, his left arm is paralyzed and he's lucky to be alive.
29. I once saw Jack Wagner in concert.
30. I went to middle school in the 80's, but I was very into 60's music and culture at the time.
31. I used to love the Monkees and recorded every episode.
32. I remember being made fun of for wearing my Mom's peace symbol earrings to school.
33. I could never tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi until I met Roland, who had strong preferences!
34. Now I'm a Coca-Cola girl. :)
35. I found my engagement ring in the refrigerator tied to a bottle of Coke.
36. Dolphins are my favorite animal.
37. My wedding ring is a dolphin - it is made out of a dolphin charm.
38. My main requirement for our honeymoon was that I got to swim with the dolphins.
39. I got to be in the water with the dolphins in Mexico, and then swim with them in the Florida Keys.
40. I drove (well, actually rode) across the country from Boston, MA - San Diego, CA with Michelle's mother in a week.
41 I want to drive cross country again - I'd love to do it sometime when I can take as long as I want and stop wherever I want.
42. I dream of going to Hawaii and Australia.
43. I love to travel.
44. I have gone on two cruises. One with Michelle, and one with Roland on our honeymoon.
45. I learned to type in typing class in high school - on an electric typewriter, even.
46. People get annoyed with me because I can type one thing while looking at someone and having a conversation with them about something completly different.
47. One of my favorite TV shows is Friends. I have all of the seasons on DVD.
48. I have been compared to Chandler Bing more than once.
49. We took the Friends season where Rachel was giving birth to the hospital with us when I was having Paige, to play on the laptop. We thought that since the show always makes me laugh, it might distract me from being in pain/uncomfortable.
50. I have always loved to read.
51. As a kid, I used to spend a lot of time in the library during the summer. I used to enter contests to see who would read the most books, and I remember winning at least once.
52. Summer is probably my least favorite season because I hate heat and humidity.
53. Ironically, I have seasonal affective disorder. I hate daylight savings time because I miss the sun.
54. Fall is my favorite season.
55. October is my favorite month.
56. I love the smell of sunscreen.
57. I dehydrate very easily, and often.
58. My wallet has Tigger on it.
59. I've had the wallet longer than I've had Roland.
60. Roland and I have been together for 11 years.
61. Roland and I just celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary on September 7th.
62. I have a cat named Fidget.
63. For my undergraduate degree I went to a small college in New Hampshire that since has closed.
64. I double majored in English and Communications.
65. I interned at a radio station in NH.
66. I got into a car accident in Boston while driving the radio station's van. I had to call them and have them send a tow truck and bring me back to NH.
67. When I was in college, I had a radio show with a friend.
68. I have always wanted to be a stand up comedian, but am too scared to try.
69. When I was in college, I used to read my poetry at a coffee house some weeks.
70. I was the copy editor of the college newspaper for awhile.
71. I love to read and collect recipes, but I rarely try to cook anything.
72. I scrapbook.
73. I like to do yoga. I mostly enjoy the yoga class at my gym, but I have a hard time motivating myself to go.
74. I often have months that I pay for my gym membership but have not been to the actual gym once.
75. I like to do suduko puzzles.
76. I have been a bridesmaid at a wedding at Walt Disney World.
77. I have never been very good with math, and math and money easily cause me anxiety.
78. I love learning about different religions and cultures.
79. I love the show, The Amazing Race. I wish I could travel around the world.
80. I have sprained both of my ankles before.
81. I fell down the stairs at my mother's house and sprained them both at the same time. We speculate that one may actually have been broken, although I never went to the doctor. As a result, my right ankle bothers me sometimes.
82. I didn't get the chicken pox until I was in middle school.
83. I didn't get my driver's license until I was a freshman in college.
84. I used to do a lot more writing. Growing up, I wanted to be an author. I haven't written anything in a long time, and I miss it, although I've had a hard time coming up with something (other than blogging) to write.
85. I take my showers at night, before bed.
86. Roland and Michelle tease me about how fast I shower, which is ironic, because I used to have a college roommate who would give me a hard time about how long I was in the shower.
87. Christmas is my favorite holiday, although Halloween is a close second.
88. I think my favorite thing about Christmas is the Christmas tree.
89. I am a pack rat, although we got rid of lots of stuff when we had to put our stuff in storage. I am trying hard to learn not to keep every little thing.
90. I have what I consider to be "OCD Tendencies." Sometimes I'll have to check and recheck things, sometimes several times in a row, like if I turned off a light, or turned off the stove.
91. Weird, quirky things happen to me. Roland and Michelle call it the "Only You Factor."
92. My first job was working at a movie theater.
93. I like video games, although I don't often have time for them - I have played almost all of the Spyro the Dragon games. I even have a stuffed Spyro.
94. I love the Scholastic catalog. One of my favorite things about becoming a teacher was being able to order books through Scholastic. I send the fliers home, but often I'm the only one who buys books every month.
95. I have just started Eclipse, the third book in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series.
96. I tend to be great at brainstorming and coming up with ideas for things, but I'm not always great at following through.
97. I have had migraines (and headaches of other varieties) as long as I can remember. I remember having them in elementary school.
98. I have a Happy Bunny watch and sweatshirt that says, "Cute But Psycho. Things Even Out. (When I was pregnant with Paige, I bought her a onsie at Hot Topic that said, "Cute But Stinky. Things Even Out.") I use cute but psycho to describe myself a lot. Roland usually calls me a "Cute Butt Psycho." I was wearing this watch every day up until we moved to my in laws...I think the watch must have ended up in the POD.
99. The watch I'm using right now has Jack from Nightmare Before Christmas on it, and has a couple of little skulls that move around inside it. Nightmare is one of my favorite movies.
100. I hate moving.

Unplugged Sand

2008-09-16T21:00:00.005-04:00

Last week's unplugged theme was sand. Paige loves sand, so I knew she'd enjoy pretty much whatever we did. We actually didn't do much of a project - I just used it as an excuse to try a new product that I thought she'd like, Moonsand. Turns out a little container of it is just over $3, and it comes in a color called Rocket Red. Red is her favorite color and the color of Rocket on Little Einsteins, whom she loves, so that was good enough.

I gave her the container of sand on Saturday morning and she went to town with it. She asked for it several times over the weekend. She seemed to like dumping the container upside down so the sand would come out molded, like a sand castle. She said it was a cake, and then she'd cut the cake with one of her knives from her play kitchen. She loved this game.

I also got a new camera this week, so I played a lot with my new toy while she played with hers. :)

Unplugged Soft

2008-09-08T21:00:00.004-04:00

This week's Unplugged Theme was soft. I decided I'd like to try a project that I've been wanting to do with Paige - make soft pretzels. Paige loves playing with any kind of dough, so I thought that she'd enjoy doing that. However, I didn't get my act together early enough to find a recipe and ingredients. However, Roland had some pizza dough, so we made fried dough instead.

The perfectionist in me kept thinking - Fried Dough is a silly project for "soft," but I had to convince myself to let it go - after all, weren't we going to be using dough either way??

Roland helped me with this project. He opened some premade pizza dough - Pillsbury, I think. He gave Paige a piece to play with and told her to flatten it out.

First she made it into a ball, but we eventually got her to roll it out. We don't have a rolling pin here and I couldn't find a can, so I gave her a jar of peanut butter to help her roll it out. :) Then Roland put some sugar and cinnamon in an old spice container and let her mix it up, while he fried the dough. When it came out and was cool, we sprinkled the cinnamon sugar on and enjoyed them!

Not a huge project, but it was fun, and yummy!

Thursday List

2008-09-04T20:00:00.000-04:00

This is a project I've been wanting to try with Paige - but it has been rainy and yucky for the past few weeks. I love the idea of how to prepare and display these Frozen Paint Paintings.

I don't remember if I've mentioned Make Something Monday before, but I really like the idea of setting aside a little creative time each week, and I really like this idea too!

These french toast kabobs look like fun!

Unplugged Insect

2008-09-01T20:36:00.015-04:00

I've been following along with the Unplugged Projects, just not posting them during my little bloggy hiatus. I'll have to post what we were up to for rough, hot, and cylinder later. This past week the theme was insect.

Paige is like her mom and isn't too keen on lots of bugs. So we went more of the cutsie route, and made a caterpillar project I saw on No Time for Flashcards. Paige seemed to really enjoy this. She helped me use a cup to trace the circles, and tried doing that for the first time. She also tried to help me cut out the circles, although I generally had to finish the cutting for her. She was able to make the P for her name, and then her A came out like an H, so I made a little curve on the top to turn it into an A. She made the I, and together we made the G. She made the line down for the E, and then I told her where to put the the other lines to finish the E. She also drew the smilie face on the caterpillar. She helped me put the glue on the backs and place the circles on the background. I do admit to a little bit of perfectionism, turning the circles the right way so you could read the letters - but I tried not to put in too much more of my input! LOL She also picked out the different colors for the different circles. My pictures of this project came out pretty bad - I'll have to try and take a better picture of the finished project, maybe in some natural light.

Later, I pushed past my perfectionism to try my hand at making a game. It is more or less my idea, but with a little inspiration from this fishing game and a paper plate alphabet caterpillar from here. I cut out a lot more circles, and made an alphabet and number game. I made a caterpillar face on one circle, and then made a capital letter of the alphabet on each circle, so you could make a giant alphabet caterpillar. Then I made another one, using the lowercase letters of the alphabet. I made the uppercase and lowercase letters the same color, so that she could match the uppercase and lowercase ones, and it would be sort of "self-correcting" that way because the colors would match, as would the letters.

For the number caterpillars, I made one that had a number 1-10 on each circle, and then one that had the number word one - ten on each circle. I also made sure the number word that matched the number were the same color, just like the letters. Then I showed her what I'd made, and how the letters and numbers matched, etc. So far she's enjoyed playing with the uppercase letter caterpillar. She likes to put out the letters and we come up with words that start with the different letters. Last time she put them away she made sure the P was on top - for Paige, of course. It'll be interesting to see how she likes these games as time goes on.

A few pictures of the uppercase game:

I was thinking that maybe someday I could make this into a magnetic game with a fishing pole too - we'll see if I ever get that far.

Amusingly enough, as I've been typing this, Paige has been watching Charlie and Lola on DVD. She started yelling, "Mom, there's a ladybug on the tv!" She showed me, and sure enough, an actual ladybug was crawling around the tv screen, so we took a peek at it. It nearly gave Paige a heart attack when it spread it's wings and flew off - I don't think she was expecting that! So much for being completely unplugged around here - apparently even our insects are plugged in!