1) My mom is awesome - she flew down here for two days when the kids' daycare/preschool was closed just to take care of them and then turned around and flew home.
2) I'm looking forward to seeing Straight No Chaser in concert in two weeks - my Mother's Day gift from Matt and the kids.
3) The end of school is bittersweet. I LOVE my job. I do not love waking up at 5:45 or rushing around with the kids in the evening.
4) There are more books I want to read than I could possibly hope to finish in ten lifetimes. And yet I persist in watching television.
5) I would like to give up caffeine, or at least drinking pop.
6) Kids smell nice after a bath.
7) Our dog is rather neglected these days.
8) I love my friends.
9) I have a lot to be thankful for.
10) I might work next year or I might not - either way is probably okay.
11) I have failed in spectacular fashion when it comes to blogging three times a week in May.
12) I will try again in June.
What do you know?
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
Look at That!
I cheated and I still didn't get three posts in last week! Oops!
Here's another quick one for tonight - a couple of shots of a sleeping Harper from last week. All I can say is that she is a girl after my own heart:
I think that's pretty much how I fall asleep most nights, though my books don't usually feature Mickey Mouse.
Here's another quick one for tonight - a couple of shots of a sleeping Harper from last week. All I can say is that she is a girl after my own heart:
I think that's pretty much how I fall asleep most nights, though my books don't usually feature Mickey Mouse.
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Cheat
Okay, so, if I'm going to get three posts in this week I have to do two tonight. Which means one of them is going to be a cheat of sorts. Here is Michael dressed up in some of Harper's gear, right down to the sandals...
He really does love his sister, especially when she isn't touching his stuff.
He really does love his sister, especially when she isn't touching his stuff.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Little Miss Harper
One of the very hardest things about this full-time gig is that I don't have flexibility to shift my schedule around. That means I haven't gone on a single field trip or attended any special event at the kids' preschool/daycare. There are lots of great things about working on a school schedule, but flexibility isn't one of them.
On Tuesday they had a "Farewell to Fours" event/breakfast during which the children sang, there was a slide show of photos, and there was a short presentation of each child's "All About Me" poster. I know this because Matt attended and was a good sport about video taping the Harper-centric portions.
The above picture features Harper with her poster, as well as with several pieces of work from her "Clay Creations" enrichment class. I love how proud she is - never been a problem for Harper.
The poster includes details like her name, a self-portrait, a family drawing, a photo of her dressed up like a dentist (I think it's possible she just wanted to be able to stick a tongue depressor in another kid's mouth for the photo op.), and a list of wishes and favorite things.
Harper's wishes were:
Here are another couple of Harper-isms from today:
When Matt went to wake her up for school this morning she said to him, while her eyes remained closed, "I'm not finished with my dream yet, but it's almost done."
As I walked into the kitchen on my way to the car Harper looked at my outfit and exclaimed, "Mommy those clothes DO NOT match!"
"That's good," I said, "Because it's mismatched day at school."
"Your school has mismatched day?"
"Yes, it's a special day."
"Well," Harper scoffed, "It isn't as special as someone's birthday."
Then as I was leaving she came to the back door and whispered to me, "Mom, what if it was mismatched day and someone's birthday?"
Man, spirit week is really gonna blow her mind in a year or two.
On Tuesday they had a "Farewell to Fours" event/breakfast during which the children sang, there was a slide show of photos, and there was a short presentation of each child's "All About Me" poster. I know this because Matt attended and was a good sport about video taping the Harper-centric portions.
The above picture features Harper with her poster, as well as with several pieces of work from her "Clay Creations" enrichment class. I love how proud she is - never been a problem for Harper.The poster includes details like her name, a self-portrait, a family drawing, a photo of her dressed up like a dentist (I think it's possible she just wanted to be able to stick a tongue depressor in another kid's mouth for the photo op.), and a list of wishes and favorite things.
Harper's wishes were:
- That she was Ariel
- That no one would throw trash on the ground
- That no one would die
- Ariel
- Reading a book to Mommy
- Going to Magic Castle (a birthday party/pizza/game/mini-golf place)
Here are another couple of Harper-isms from today:
When Matt went to wake her up for school this morning she said to him, while her eyes remained closed, "I'm not finished with my dream yet, but it's almost done."
As I walked into the kitchen on my way to the car Harper looked at my outfit and exclaimed, "Mommy those clothes DO NOT match!"
"That's good," I said, "Because it's mismatched day at school."
"Your school has mismatched day?"
"Yes, it's a special day."
"Well," Harper scoffed, "It isn't as special as someone's birthday."
Then as I was leaving she came to the back door and whispered to me, "Mom, what if it was mismatched day and someone's birthday?"
Man, spirit week is really gonna blow her mind in a year or two.
Saturday, May 08, 2010
A Mother's Day Message
What I hope all of your children are saying to you this weekend:
In case you can't read the toy writing, I'll break it down for you (and, er, please ignore the dirty carpet). That would be:
"Love"
Hey, if the kids aren't going to pick up the toys, at least they can spell something nice with them!
In case you can't read the toy writing, I'll break it down for you (and, er, please ignore the dirty carpet). That would be:
"I"
"Love"
"You"
Hey, if the kids aren't going to pick up the toys, at least they can spell something nice with them!
Thursday, May 06, 2010
???
Oh, I'm really having trouble putting things into words this evening, but I am so frustrated and discouraged right now.
We've been meeting with a new early intervention specialist to work on some of Michael's delays - mostly dealing with speech. This is a good thing, important, something I am totally behind in theory. And I really like the woman we're working with. I don't know her very well yet but I think she is good at her job and knows what she's talking about. And I don't know if it is just bad timing or me being hormonal or if Thursday night isn't a good time to meet because we're all so tired by the end of the week, but I have just felt awful after the last couple of meetings and I cannot figure out why. I can't pinpoint any specific comment or interaction or any reason at all that I should feel badly after these sessions. It doesn't make any sense and yet...
I really, really want to be on board with what she is trying to help us do with/for Michael.
This summer we are going to make some adjustments since our schedule will be much more open. Maybe some of those changes will help. It is entirely possible that it's just Thursday night and I'm tired.
I'm so in love with my children, I am just thrilled with how far Michael has come, so maybe I find these sessions discouraging because it requires focusing on all the things that need improvement rather than just celebrating who he is:
It is also possible that I'm channeling icky feelings about other things going on in our lives, in the world, etc. into this one circumstance... I don't know. I'm just glad that it's almost bedtime.
We've been meeting with a new early intervention specialist to work on some of Michael's delays - mostly dealing with speech. This is a good thing, important, something I am totally behind in theory. And I really like the woman we're working with. I don't know her very well yet but I think she is good at her job and knows what she's talking about. And I don't know if it is just bad timing or me being hormonal or if Thursday night isn't a good time to meet because we're all so tired by the end of the week, but I have just felt awful after the last couple of meetings and I cannot figure out why. I can't pinpoint any specific comment or interaction or any reason at all that I should feel badly after these sessions. It doesn't make any sense and yet...
I really, really want to be on board with what she is trying to help us do with/for Michael.
This summer we are going to make some adjustments since our schedule will be much more open. Maybe some of those changes will help. It is entirely possible that it's just Thursday night and I'm tired.
I'm so in love with my children, I am just thrilled with how far Michael has come, so maybe I find these sessions discouraging because it requires focusing on all the things that need improvement rather than just celebrating who he is:
It is also possible that I'm channeling icky feelings about other things going on in our lives, in the world, etc. into this one circumstance... I don't know. I'm just glad that it's almost bedtime.
Sunday, May 02, 2010
Proud Moment in a Geeky Parenthood
I don't think milestones get quite as much hype once children are past the potty-training stage. Harper has gone through a few things recently that have made me want to double-over with the shock of how old she is getting.
We hit up our local library for story time when I was on spring break and it occurred to me that Harper was probably old enough to get her very own library card. So we sat down together at a table and filled out the paperwork. Then she signed the back of her card, chose her password (for online business as well as using the self-checkout stations), and went back to the children's section to allow her to pick out books to check out with her very own card.
She even got to write her name on the back of her new library card all by herself. So proud!
We have plenty, PLENTY, of books in this house. There is no material reason that we have to visit the library. However, I feel that libraries are forces of good in the world and I want my children to grow up believing in their importance. (And then vote to support them when they are old enough to do so.) I believe by having her own library card Harper will feel, in a deeper way, that the library is there for her.
It wasn't something we did every week, but I have special memories of my dad taking us to our tiny public library in Pewaukee, Wisconsin, on Saturday mornings for Bluebug books and some quality time. I hope my children grow up with similar fond memories of our library visits.
*****
On a side-note, I think I'm going to accept Mommy Daisy's challenge to blog three times a week in May, attempting to get back in the habit before I'm off of work for the summer. Wanna join me?
We hit up our local library for story time when I was on spring break and it occurred to me that Harper was probably old enough to get her very own library card. So we sat down together at a table and filled out the paperwork. Then she signed the back of her card, chose her password (for online business as well as using the self-checkout stations), and went back to the children's section to allow her to pick out books to check out with her very own card.
She even got to write her name on the back of her new library card all by herself. So proud!
We have plenty, PLENTY, of books in this house. There is no material reason that we have to visit the library. However, I feel that libraries are forces of good in the world and I want my children to grow up believing in their importance. (And then vote to support them when they are old enough to do so.) I believe by having her own library card Harper will feel, in a deeper way, that the library is there for her.
It wasn't something we did every week, but I have special memories of my dad taking us to our tiny public library in Pewaukee, Wisconsin, on Saturday mornings for Bluebug books and some quality time. I hope my children grow up with similar fond memories of our library visits.
*****
On a side-note, I think I'm going to accept Mommy Daisy's challenge to blog three times a week in May, attempting to get back in the habit before I'm off of work for the summer. Wanna join me?
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