Back To School

It can be so difficult to find the opportunity to steal away some computer time for myself when the boys are all home. Everyone is back to school and adjusting well back into the routine.

Jordan did get shuffled on to ninth grade. I have mixed feeling about this; while I know he is more than capable of doing the work, his grades however did not reflect this. I irks me that every child gets pushed on to the next grade rather they are capable of the work or not. Jordan is enjoying his freshman year thus far. His elective classes are his favorite weight training and surprising Spanish. Until this year he's dreaded Spanish class, he says he only likes it because his teacher is so much fun. His grades last year did come with consequences, he was placed in pre-algebra which he despises because of the extremely slow pace for the class and he gets pulled from weight training twice a week for language arts remediation.


Joey has a wonderful teacher!! I have spoken with her a few times and she is very open to working with parents. Joey still qualifies for resource room assistance but has not needed to visit the resource room. He is keeping up with his classmates on his assignments with no modifications. To help prepare him for middle school I am not meeting him in his classroom at the end of the day. He is to fill out his agenda and the teacher double checks that he has all homework assignments before he meets me at the end of the hallway. He still digs in his heels about doing homework, but does it with little help from me. The grades he's been earning on his assignments are nothing lower than a B. Thank God Almighty he really enjoys his teacher, they seem to get along well.



  Jacob hit a hiccup before school even started when not even one of his friends were in his class. Jacob is Jacob though and within a week was okay with only seeing his buddies at lunch. He is looking forward to running for student council now that he's in 4th grade. He really likes this teacher, says she's really funny. Both Joey and Jacob have taken a new student under their wing. Both volunteered to be their locker partners and are still playing with their "new student" during recess.



Jordan is planning on trying out for the school's basketball team this year. He hasn't done much in the sense of conditioning but is hoping through his weigh training class he won't be at too much of a disadvantage. Jordan has recently become involved with the youth group through our church. The group consists of high school students, so majority of the kids are older than him. He prefers to hang out with people older than him, he is more comfortable in this group than he was in the middle school one. I'm not 100% sure what they do at the youth group meetings, but from the pictures they share they have way too much fun :) *Pictured is the outfit he chose for their "Thrift Store Homecoming Dance"




Joey has joined Jacob's soccer team and both are doing awesome. Jacob is the leader scorer for his team although most of his teammates have played for a couple of years. Jacob is still strong as a forward and Joey is getting the hang of things. There are two Joeys on their team, Joey asked the coach to call him "Bob" so he knew when he was talking to him...lol. It works well, but is so funny listening to everyone cheer for "Bob". He has been wonderful at being an encouragement to his teammates, it doesn't matter if someone is upset about letting a goal get past them or if someone was injured, "Bob" is right there to comfort and encourage.


Due to soccer games overlapping the time we spend helping at the pantry, we have to wait until the season is over before returning to volunteer. They boys really miss being at the pantry and are looking forward to being back and seeing everyone. I have compensated not being at the pantry by helping out the church one day a week. I do a little bit of everything, whatever they need the day I'm there I do. One of the best parts is I help assemble the programs we hand on before our services. I have meet some wonderful people. I really don't want to totally give up my time helping at the church once we return to the pantry, it's a lot of gas to head to the church 3 times a week. The boys have agreed to helping at the pantry every other week so on the off weeks I can still do my volunteering.



Jordan also has been ushering with me at church. We work in different areas so he can have a bit more independence, but I can still keep an eye on him. The boys are too young to usher, not to be excluded though every Sunday they help with taking down all the chairs after service. They are a huge help and great workers.




The changes I have seen in Joey the last couple months has me awestruck. He has been surprising me in so many little ways from trying new foods to joining a team sport. The newest one is he has decided he'd like to be in the beginner band through the school!! He had his heart set on playing the flute, but after he tested out what instrument best fit him; he's going to play the.... trombone!! "I'm going to be the best trombone player ever, Mom! And I only have to be to school and hour earlier for practice!!" So I guess I going to see about renting him a trombone.

What They Have School! How About We Have Another Snow Day (or 2)?

I know I said I would post about our last Christmas Around the World (Mexico) today, but I allowed myself to get very distracted today. I had set aside a time everyday for my to focus on things I enjoy doing and with the boys having an extra 3 days home from school, I let it slip that I needed to take that time for myself. Today I made sure to get in some time for myself and hauled out my scrapbook supplies. I started off doing very well and completed two pages and located 6-8 more pages I had finished before and just hadn't added to the book. I now have our family album for 2011 complete except for one side by side page. I dug out my 2012 pictures, not noticing how many there was until I had them all unboxed. I was literally surrounded by over 2000 photos, and they were not in order. I set about organizing them that's when I realized I was still missing prints for many outings. I spent three and a half hours re-downloading pictures so I could figure out dates and see what was missing. I ended up stacking them on a card table to rush to make it to Jordan's basketball game on time. I'm still in the process of figuring out what goes where, this may take me a couple days. The Christmas Around the World will be up soon though.

 As you probably already figured out the boys had to head back to school today. Nobody was looking forward to an early wake up after getting to sleep in for the past 20 days. Jacob asked for me to double check if it could be another cold/snow day. I know some parents were ready to drop their kiddos off after spending quality time cooped up in the house due to extreme temperatures, but I wouldn't have minded a couple more days hanging with my boys (you know just giving them the rest of this week off). Don't get me wrong I'm glad to have the house back to myself. There is a special kind of peace that comes from getting 3 boys out of the house after almost 3 weeks. Order has been restored, toys have been but back where they belong, there are no dishes piling up in the kitchen, and there is blissful silence (with the exception of the trickling water so we don't refreeze the pipes).

By the end of the day they were glad to be back and see friends and hear about how vacation time was. Today was planned as a jump back into routine with both feet day, but we were cut some slack by some other people who just weren't feeling like getting out of relaxing family mode yet.

Today was a home game for Jordan's basketball team and also a scout day for Jacob. I was prepared for it and prepped most of dinner ahead of time as time is usually tight on Thursdays. While at Jordan's game I get a email for the den leader that it is too cold and they were canceling the meeting for tonight. Which worked out because we go tout of Jordan's game later than normal and they had homework to complete. Having a more than planned relaxed evening worked out for the as they still had stiff muscles from the workout they had yesterday.

Yesterday we were able to spend some time outside it had actually been above 20 degrees. We were invited back to help out the family that allowed us to rake their leaves earlier in the fall, with moving some snow for them. We packed up 3 shovels (two of which were for the younger boys) and our broom. Jordan used a shovel they had there and we set to work. We worked for an hour and a half pushing snow this way and that. Jordan tried to pass on the wisdom he just learned about shoveling building muscle and character. The younger ones helped out a bit, but were more of characters themselves than building any character. At least they we were outside getting some exercise and fresh air. There was a lot of snow to clear, it took the four of use an hour and a half. While it wasn't as snow-free as I would have liked (I'm kind of OCD about shoveling, which is why I sweep the snow also) it was a lot better than it was before we got there Again when we were finished we were invited in for some hot cocoa. I love when I can teach my boys by example the importance of being there for others when they may need you.

When we got home after shoveling snow the boys stayed outside for an additional hour and a half playing in the mounds of snow stacked near our house. The mounds are taller than I am and about just as wide as they are tall!! They had hoped to go back to the snow hill, but your front yard was good enough as it was to get dark soon. We plan to hopefully get back out to the hill sometime this week. They received new sleds from Grandma over the weekend and can't wait to try them out.

With extended break now behind us, it is time to get back to routine. We can get back to out regularly scheduled program.

Back to Brown Bagging Lunches

As you can see from the multiple pictures I share of my boys, none of them are by any means fat. Those who know me personally know I often worry that they are too thin. However since the beginning of the school all 3 have been packing on the pounds. For my older two this is great (Jordan was almost 13 before he finally reached 100 lbs.) but I don't think they are gaining weight in a positive way. My Jacob has recently had to switch over to husky for his pants sizes. I know part of his gain is from his CVS. He is also a lot like me and craves sodium rich foods. They aren't big eaters and have (mostly) healthy snacks. I think the culprit is their school lunches. I have noticed most of their classmates are also on the "huskier side".

I know Michele Obama has set in place for healthier school lunches, but are they really that healthy. I do love that the junk foods are not in the vending machines and that students can no longer buy pop during school hours. What is really in our kids' lunches. The fruit they get comes out of huge cans, it's not fresh fruit and it's overly processed. Same with the cooked veggies; out of the can, warmed up , and handed out. Having worked as a lunch lady I can reassure you your child is not eating the cooked veggies they are served. The number of times pizza is served amazes me, for my younger guys the 3 weeks of school this month there'll be pizza 4 times; Jordan has the option to have pizza everyday for lunch. Looking at their menu, it's high starch, loaded with sugars and dyes. Three days this month the hot lunchers get an "extra" treat of a cookie or a bag of chips (I have seen last June's menu where they received cotton candy). The "extra treats" are not on days kids most likely would pass on the lunch; they're on pizza day, chocolate chip Eggo waffle day, and Chef Boyardee ravioli day.

Our elementary school does have alternatives, the students can get yogurt or salad as their main dish. Jacob has done this a few times when the main dish was something he couldn't eat. I like that there is an option. The salads vary day to day, chicken, taco, turkey, etc. but who want to eat salad everyday (I've tried it, it gets old fast). My boys don't like that everything is mixed together, on taco salad day Jacob can't get it unless he want to risk eating the cheese. The yogurt sound like a good option except its a 4 ounce sized Danimal yogurt; that's it, their main part of lunch is basically sugar.

Point being; while hot lunch is a great option for some, it does not work for us. After really looking at the menu and looking at what my kids are really eating, no wonder it is effecting their weight. No wonder all these kid seem like they are bouncing off the walls; they consume so much junk then crash, with the crash comes the moodiness and not wanting to do their work.

We have opted for brown bagging it everyday again. My boys LOVE pizza so once or twice a month they'll grab a pizza lunch from school. This way I know what they are eating and that they will have things in their lunch that they will actually eat. When they have "fresh" fruit/veggies it will be fresh from the produce department, not a can. Also they will get a larger variety of food, the hot lunch menu consist of rotating pizza (and Bosco sticks) , waffles and variations chicken (chicken rings, chicken nuggets, chicken tenders, popcorn chicken, southern chicken) with the occasional hot dog or corn dog tossed in there once or twice.

I am not one of those all organic only eat healthy foods kind of mom, although I try most of the time.
I try to teach to boys to be aware of what they put in their bodies. Not that I want them counting calories or anything like that. Just to understand which food help their bodies work more efficiently and what will bog them down. We read labels, try to keep things in moderation, and try to keep active after some "not so good for you foods". We eat food that's not good for our bodies, Heck we've even had pizza twice in one week due to crazy schedules. I love cookies and sweets (as do the boys), and don't deprive us of them. I think the key to teach balance between which fatty unhealthy foods you eat, how much, and how often.

*While the younger ones are taking lunches everyday, Jordan has chose to continue getting hot lunches. I have to trust that he's making the right choices, I can't always be there to tell him to take carrot sticks instead of two cookies.

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Living Like an Orange Rhino

T'was the night before my son's first game. Every creature was scurrying about. All were trying to get tomorrows school clothes laid out. Every child should have been in bed; and Mama was trying to remember her Orange Rhino and not lose her head.

This night has the makings for a really bad bedtime story and I'm sure if I wasn't so frazzled I could finish the whole thing in rhyme. This is how our evening after 5 days of relaxing has been going. The whole 5 days has been great, until we left Grandma's house late. This weeks laundry stacks were larger than usual (How my boys had gone through more clothes lounging around than they do going to school all week is beyond me.) so not everything had time to be dried and we left later than I would have otherwise liked. Okay not sounding too bad yet, it happens and we've managed through it.

The younger two were to be getting ready for bed and preparing for school the next day while I unloaded the van. Jordan was to bring me his dress clothes so they could be pressed. I quickly ran the last load up to the dryer at our laundry room (were I was eyed by a skunk about 6 feet away from me), to return to the two younger ones laughing and chasing each other through the house half in pajamas (honest I was literally gone for 3 minutes) and the cat following me through the house meowing at me for who knows why. Jordan brings me a pair of dress pants that are a size too small with 4 dress shirts he claims barely reach his wrists and every brightly color tie he owns. I like to plan ahead and had him look early last week to make sure he had dress clothes that would fit; he confirmed that he did and he was all set for game day. Now he tells me this is all he has, mind you its 9:30 on a Sunday night. Being determined that I know he has clothes that fit after all I had just bought them a few months back. Hallelujah! There in the back of the closet is his dress slacks. Okay the shirts barely fit but aren't that short and will get him through the day (this kid grows like a weed). The ties on the other hand would not match any of the shirts by anyone stretched imagination, so off to his little brothers room to find a tie. We find a tie although he is not happy about it being "a little kid's tie" opposed to having to tie it yourself; but it matches and is long enough. That's one crisis averted; and I did not yell :)

Next I ask about his shorts that need to be red per the school colors that he has reassured me for the past couple weeks that he does in fact own a pair, so there was no need to go shopping. I asked for him to get them out and have them with his school things so he wouldn't forget them. He was not able to locate them in his drawer where he thought they would be and had suggested they may be in his gym locker at school. Now I have not seen any red shorts for any of my boys since the beginning of September. I inquired how they "may be" in his locker, doesn't he know. I asked if he worn them within the past few weeks, his reply "Um, NO". So why would they be in the locker if he has not taken them to school? "Um, I don't know. They're not in my drawer. I thought I had a pair" UGH!! So then it was back into his brother's room to go through the box of off season clothes and finally finding one single pair of red shorts that just reach his knees in with Joeys' summer clothes. Someone from up above sure is looking out for us tonight. Second crisis averted, and still I did not yell. Although I could feel it right there waiting to be released upon my disorganized child.

Next was to wrangle the now dressed for bed younger two boys. While my attention had been on Jordan they thought it was a great time to pick a game to spread out on the floor and start playing. While I cleaned up the game one was sent to brush his teeth while the other laid out his school clothes. As luck would have it, tonight the toothpaste was empty and instead of saying anything he just hung out in the bathroom styling his hair. Toothpaste tube replaced and now two little guys fighting over the sink at the same time. *Sigh* Everyone is finally dressed and brushed and lead into bed but wait...the child with the very stylish hair never laid out his clothes. I volunteered to pick his outfit, but he was not going to allow that after all I had told them they were responsible for picking their own clothes. After a couple really mismatched choices he came up with one that matched close enough that I would allow it for wear at school. Third crisis (although it was a mini one) averted, and still I did not yell.  I could feel the yell bubbling over ready to fly out of my mouth from my building frustration this evening, but I controlled it.

After minimal trips to the bathroom for needs that were "forgotten" before being tucked in, I am proud to say all were sound asleep and finally prepared for their days tomorrow. I headed over to the Orange Rhino Facebook page to toot my horn for keeping my cool when before I would have let my angry words fly without a second thought. TOOT! TOOT!

This morning we wake feeling like we can take on the day. Jordan finally makes his way to me 10 minutes before we are to leave the house and says I think these pants are too short too. Sure enough about 2 inches of his ankles are showing. He stays to watch his still slumbering little brothers and finish gathering together what he forgot to last night, as I run to the store down the street. A was very blessed that there was one single pair of kaki pants in his size. I race back so he can change and get him off to school late. Not exactly how I planned my too early on a Monday morning after a long weekend. That makes another crisis averted and I still have not yelled (although we definitely had a nice talk the whole way to school). Just to play it safe, I hunted down another couple pairs of red basketball shorts at the thrift store after taking the other two to school and will drop off a pair with him at school; the way things have been going the ones he took to school will end up being too short.

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A Second Turkey Day

The down side to spending Thanksgiving at someone else is house is now leftovers, I love leftovers and cold turkey sandwiches. We remedied that by having the boys make a turkey dinner as our "Boys cook dinner" from our bucket list. They seem to have mastered breakfast for dinner and I thought they were ready for more of a challenge.

Joey wrote up the list of what we were going to have and who was in charge of which item. Jordan would get the turkey, deviled eggs. and the cranberries. Jacob would handle "Pink Stuff" (a fruity, whipped dish Grandma makes), mashed potatoes, and the rolls. Joey took the stuffing (it's his favorite), gravy, and corn. I was given set the table and make the Jell-O.

Jordan being in charge of the turkey also meant he was in charge of taking the "extras" out of it. He thought I was messing with him when I told him he had to stick his hand in it and pull out what was left. He was a trooper and fished all the goodies out. We kept things simple and just buttered the bird and put it in a turkey bag to cook. The hand mixer is a favorite cooking tool for my boys and Jacob was excited that it got to use it twice. They were totally in charge of their items, the located all the ingredients, did all the measuring and mixing; I oversaw just for safety reasons.

We had arranged for Papa and Grandma to come over and enjoy the wonderful meal the boys were preparing. They brought a pumpkin pie we devoured after mass.

After a fabulous dinner we headed to church for a special night for Jordan and Jacob. Our church gives the children who will be making the First Holy Communion a necklace with a wood cross for them to wear when attending church. Also the students who will be making their conformation receive a necklace with a wooden dove. The boys received their during last nights mass. The purpose of the necklaces is for the congregation to be able to recognize these students are at an important point in their journey with Christ and to pray for them.



We had also completed our activity of keeping a thankful jar for one month. We started on October 28th and continued adding to it daily until November 28th (Thanksgiving). On the 28th just before bed we went back through and read all the things we were thankful for. Our jar was so full we had to squish down the papers to fit more in by the end of the month. We had a wide variety of things from God, Jesus, and Mom, to colors, paper, electricity, and toilet paper. I'm proud that my boys are thankful for even the little things, because our lives would be really different without them.

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Thankful to be able to Give

We have had a couple opportunities this season to help out those who are less fortunate then ourselves. While we don't have much, I feel it is important for my boys to realize there are people with less than we have. Also that there are many ways we can help out even though we can't give a monetary donation.

The boys participated in Scouting for Food through the cub scouts and handed out donation bags to approximately 300 house, which the families of those houses could donate food items and the scouts would come pick up from their porches the following weekend. We were going to help collected whichever bags that had been placed upon the porches, but thought we'd give the other scouts who hadn't passed out bags the chance to help out.

Again through the scouts, they were able to participate with Operation Christmas Child, bringing in some items to be added to the "shoeboxes". While I  wanted to take the lead and tell them what to donate, I stepped back and allowed them to choose what they thought the children would like to receive. They were very thoughtful about their choices and had thought of some things that I had not. Last night they attempted to help with the "shoebox" filling. I goofed what time we needed to there to help; they were only there for the tail end of project but folded some shoeboxes and made some cards to donate to the senior living center.


We also started part one of our bucket list item -Donate to a local pantry- and went shopping. Again I wanted the boys to be the center of this activity and hung back so they could make their own choices. I was just there to supervise in the store and to pay the bill. They all grabbed their own shopping carts and were given a set amount they could spend. They were thrifty looking for sale items, so they could purchase more things. Jordan remember that a few years back when we received help from the pantry that there weren't many of things geared toward children and there were no "treats". All the boys made a point of grabbing the kid cereal or fruit snacks. They also added a "treat" either brownie mix, hot chocolate packets, or a bag of cookies. Joey had a valid point that every one likes to have a snack, and they usually only get just the healthy stuff they need. They were thoughtful about what they put in their carts, if it wasn't something they would eat, they weren't going to give it to someone else. (Comment from Jordan "How many people really eat canned creamed corn?"). They made a point of either picking things that would go together to make a complete meal or choosing things that could be stretched for more than one meal. Once they thought they were close to there total, we headed to the checkouts where they rang up and bagged their own orders. They found out pretty quickly that $25 isn't much money even if you buy things on sale. They had to think about which items they really wanted to keep and what needed to be put back on the shelves.


Part two- Donate to a local pantry- dropping off the food items. We set up an appointment with our pantry to drop off the items. After school and practice we meet up with some people to drop off our items. The boys unloaded their donations and carried them to the back room where they'll get sorted and stocked on the shelves. The gentlemen thanked the boys for their generous contributions and my by glowed with pride. When we were in the van, Jacob said he didn't feel like he did enough to help, all he did was bring some food. We talked about how every little bit helps and someone will love receiving the item the brought in.

A few years back, I had just lost my job a month after we moved, and we needed help to make it through a week or two. While the younger ones were too little to remember Jordan does. I am blessed with a very supportive family, but at the time of my need they had just left on a much needed and well deserved vacation out of state. We were grateful that our pantry was able to help us out, after being turned away from a nearby church. It's not one of my proudest moments, but I had a 1.5 year old, 3 year old, and 6 year old I needed to provide for. My cupboards were not completely bare, but we didn't have enough to throw together to make decent meals.We were able to get help with a little more than  bare essentials. The point Joey made about there not being any extras is corrected. My main goal was to get what we absolutely needed until my money ran out, which meant no snacks. When we received a couple packages for fruit snacks it was a wonderful feeling to see their faces light up the little extra they were given. I know from experience what it feels like when you realize you'll barely be able to provide for your family, it was a scary and humbling experience. The people we mainly help through our local pantries are not lazy, unwilling to work people, or people looking for a hand out; they are people who fell on hard times and need a helping hand for a while. Many people never would have suspected that my little family receive help through a pantry, as we have been back on our feet for a while since then.

50.1 million Americans struggle to put food on their tables. While everyone seems to get caught up in the season of giving around the holidays, the needs of other people are there year round. 20 million children receive free or reduced lunch each day at school, when the summer months come it can be very difficult for these families.

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Precious Memories

This isn't really my thing, but today I'm doing a "Throw Back Thursday". I finished cleaning the boys' room and the house is completely ready for our fresh start to get everyone back on track. I started working on the scrapbooks that are in need of some serious updating and got distracted by just how adorable my boys are. Today I'm sharing a handful of memories from when they were younger and before they started posing every time they seen a camera.

Enjoy :)

Joey and Jacob
3 years & 23 months

Blankie Brothers

These two were the only ones who had to have a "Lovey" that they carted with them everywhere. They had similar blankets except for the tiny picture on one of the corners, but they could some how always just know which one was theirs. Here they are sporting their new bathrobes Grandma had just made for them.

Jordan
20 months

Trouble Maker

When Jordan was really young he was very adventurous. If there was a way to climb up something or ride on something, he would give it a go. This picture was a common thing with him. All those toys were neatly lined on the shelves, he would toss them onto the floor and clamber up then holler for help to get back down.

Joey
20 months

Sudsy Fun

This is a rare photo, Joey didn't like his hair wet. While he didn't like water near his hair wet, he loved playing with bubbles in his bath. There was no way to get this one out of the tub until after his little fingers and toes were all wrinkly.

Jacob
10 months

Santa Baby

Poor Jacob, as my last baby usually got stuck wearing the goofy theme outfits, but they were just too cute not have one of my boys wear them. His 1/2 inch of fuzzy hair always seemed to add the outfit. I'm sure when he's older he'll question why would I did this to him :)

Exploring Nature

I try to get my boys outside and encouraged them to explore. Sometimes things got a bit messes and other times they would take the time to smell the flowers.

Left: Jacob (16 mos)
Right: Joey (3 yrs)









Lil' Cowboys

I didn't even realize how similar these picture were until I uploaded, they we taken about 2 years apart. The one of Jordan (28 mos) was taken on our first visit to Missouri and Joey's (14 mos) was taken in Michigan at the fair.

 

 

 

 

Goofiness

We spend a lot of time goofing around and being silly. There is no better sound than that of laughter.

Left: Jacob (3 yrs)
Right: Jordan (3 yrs)

 

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Do As I Say, Not as I Did

Since it's the time most parents are receiving report cards and attending parent/teacher conferences I thought this was fitting.

Yesterday, while at my parents my mom came across a file with all my school records. She saved everything progress reports, report cards, and disciplinary notices. I know I was beyond rotten when I was in middle school, that's why I wouldn't tell Jordan about my middle school experience (well, not until he was in high school). Time has changed my memories of what I really was like. I could have swore that I got my act together before high school, my file says differently. Jordan was really intrigued by my report cards since I'm a stickler about their grades. He couldn't believe that every year I had barely squeaked by to pass. He told me (bless his heart), "Mom, I' m really disappointed with you. You really needed to apply yourself." I was shocked by how often I spent time in the principal's office and in school suspension, after seeing the notices I remember. I also forgot about attending summer school, because I was too cool to actually go to class during the school year. It was neat and somewhat embarrassing to share my adolescent school experience with my boys. They were shocked both at how I behaved and what my grades were. They pointed out that if I had been my kid, I would have been in SO MUCH trouble (LOL).

Last week I had conferences for my boys and received their report cards. I keep pretty good tabs on both their behavior and their grades, so not much the teachers tell me isn't something I wasn't expecting. We have a practice that the boys tell me what they think their teachers will be telling me once I see them, which helps me prepare for any other surprises the teachers might drop on me. Also gives me the chance to address any issues the boys' had expressed. All my boys are doing good so far (some more than others). Most of the teachers' comments I expect, and can relate to what my boys are doing in class.

After seeing my report cards it was ironic to hear the same comments from my kids' teacher as my mother heard about me. I must not have mastered those skills well enough to pass them on to my boys. All four of us got comments such as: Very talkative (For those who know me, know how true this is), disrupts other students (how else are we suppose to get them to listen to us talk), does not turn in assignments on time (we do them, just forget to turn them in), shows eagerness to learn, very help, helpful to other students, positive attitude (except for mine in middle school), participates in class discussions.

I want better for my kids, than I gave myself. They are right middle school Me would have been in so much trouble if I was my child. I expect a lot of my boys, but they always reach (and sometimes exceed) my expectations.  I took discovering my old school records as a teachable moment to explain how they do in school and how they act now is so important. That I want them to learn to care about their own grades and attitudes, because I didn't when I was younger and it reflects in those reports. Do as I say, not as I did. I wish I had done better when I was younger, cared more, fought everyone less; but it is what is. Now it's up to me for help my kiddos learned the skills they need to be successful in school.

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Slacking Off Saturday

This morning started off a little bumpy. We were suppose to pick up the boys' friends to take to catechism with us while their mom worked at a mom2 mom sale, then they would come back to play for about an hour at our house. We were up and out of the house and went to get our friends who would be with their mom at our old school. We were there at the agreed upon time and didn't see their van, thinking they may have taking a different vehicle to accommodate all the stuff for the sale, we went into the school to search. Almost instantly the assistant principal noticed us and gave us the stink eye while we located our friends table. They weren't there either, so stopped home to grab my phone and check for a missed call or text saying they would be late, no missed calls or texts. Thinking I had misunderstood our arrangement we headed to catechism not wanting to risk being late. Later my friend sent a message and we were able to sort things out and have her boys still come over after catechism, that she had dropped them off at after I had left (somehow we passed in crossing near the church). My boys were excited to have their friends over whom we don't see too often anymore and after a short hour it was time to return them to their mom. We dropped them off at the sale and helped their mom box and load up what was left. She even gave me some clothes that would fit Jake and some to take to my brother for my his son and his girlfriend's son.

Later in the afternoon Jordan had catechism (he only goes once a month) after dropping him off the other boys and I set about searching for some not too dried leaves for two of  our fall bucket list projects. Lack of planning on my part we are doing these projects at the end of the season when most of the leaves are brittle. We had to check a couple parks before we found one with enough leaves still in the trees and on the ground (the park maintenance guys sure are on top of all the fallen leaves around here). While we were searching for the leaves, we were not going to start the project until Jordan was with us. Part of the idea of our bucket list as to do things as a family. We figured we'd just get a jump start on collecting the supplies. Once we thought we had enough leaves the boys took off to race and roll down a hill we usually go sledding on.

When it was time to pick up Jordan, we hung around the church waiting for mass to start. They have a soccer field next to the church so we spent some time playing while we waited. Jacob and I took turns as goalie and practiced our shooting skills, then Joey and I played with a scoop catch game. Jordan decided it was too chilly and sat in the van, I think he just wanted to play on his IPod. (I'm not sure I like this whole teenage I want to hang by myself thing.) It seems this is the easiest way for us to make it to mass, just to hang out on Saturday after Jordan's class.

We actually attend 3 different churches, everyone has a different church they prefer so we alternate which one we go to. Sunday mornings are rough for us because it's the only day we sleep in passed 7:30, and I try to allow the boys to do that (and myself too).

Saturday service at this church works well for us usually, today however after all the fresh air a 5:00 mass was too much for Jake and he slept through 80% of it. Today's mass was a children's mass and after service there was pizza and a craft for the kids. We were unable to stay for the activity because it was a $4 donation per person and I didn't have enough money on me. The nice gentleman looked at us with pity and told us we could just go ahead and stay, I can't stand when we people pity us for not having enough money and thanked him as we left. Joey was sure to voice his disapproval about leaving and carried on all the way out the door about 'how they had food there and he was starving, couldn't we just please stay and get some food, he was so hunger.' I'm thinking great now these people think were poor AND don't have enough food; which is not the case, Joey just really wanted the pizza.

Once we were home and he had a couple turkey hot dogs in his tummy he forgot all about the pizza. We spent the rest of the evening cleaning up the mess from having friends over and just relaxing. We were slacking today and didn't really get much done, but that's what Saturday's are for right :)

We did just complete our sixth week as part of the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge and our total is up to 106 hours now (only 894 more to go). The freezing cold, windy days had us inside more than we had planned, as did Jacob's breathing issues this week.

Crazy Day

All the boys having activities means a lot of shuttling around. This is the first time they have all been involved in different activities. While Jordan's practice/games schedule fits almost perfectly in our weekly schedule, it fills most of our empty time slots. We have been working on finding better ways to get everyone where they need to be and still get their other stuff done, as well as making sure we still sit together to for dinner.

Yesterday was one of our busier days, with only a few hours of down time for me. It started with the typical multiple trips dropping them off at school, allowing just enough time for me to grab a quick shower and a piece of toast while making some phone calls, before heading to help in Joey's class. Which I love doing. I often forget how much I enjoy being in a classroom teaching and helping the students. (I really have to finish my teaching degree.) After helping with some reading lessons, I had a few hours to get some thing done around the house and prepare for dinner on the run. (I packed a blanket, plates, cups, and pop so we could have a picnic dinner in the van later that evening.) Then it was time to pick Jordan up from school. We made a run to the bank, post office (Yes, I still use snail mail), and Jordan helped me move the seats from the middle of the van to the trunk so we could have more room later for dinner.

That's when things really started to pick up. I dropped Jordan off for practice and raced to get the other two from school. I collected some food I had ordered from a fundraiser and carted it to Jake's conference, then carted it to Joey's conference. I went over my allotted time slot talking to the teachers. (I don't know why they think they can give you an full update on the students within 15 minutes, especially if the child has been having issues in class.) We darted home so Jake could get his uniform and I could put the fundraiser food in the freezer, then we were off again. We stopped to grab some pizza on our way to scoop Jordan up from practice. We then had 20 minutes to get to where the scouts were meeting and eat dinner.


Once we were in the parking lot the boys helped me lay out the blanket and set up for dinner. We finished our meal with just minutes to spare before Jake's meeting was to start. I know I could have easily grabbed some happy meals and tossed them to the boys in route, but it's important to me that we sit and eat as a family. When it seems we're all just seeing each other in passing, I wanted to make sure we could sit and catch up. As far as picnics go, this was a good one; we ate and joked around with the heat, lights and radio on.

Once in scouts things finally slowed down and  all the boys participated in the making rubber band balls. I'm not sure which patch/badge they are working towards that has them make rubber band balls, but they were fun to make. At 8:30 were finally on our way home to prepare for school the next day and head to bed.

A bit of planning helped us survive a very hectic 2 1/2 hours in which we made seven stops at various places; make it to everything (on time) and still manage to eat as a family. I don't know how some parents manage to have multiple kids in 3-5 after school activities. I feel like I don't have enough time with my boys and they only have one activity a piece plus catechism.

Flippin' Fun!!

Yesterday there was no school for any of my boys, but that didn't mean they weren't learning. The other day while searching for Jordan's school pictures I found some workbooks the younger two hadn't finished. Jacob worked on a couple pages of math, a bit of writing, and started this week's book report. Joey was thrilled to practice his cursive writing; his classmates have not learned this skill yet and he is discouraged from cursive writing in class until they reach that lesson. He also worked on some multiplication flash cards and read a couple chapters of his book with me. Both younger boys worked on spelling/ vocabulary words and completed some of their cub scout requirements.  Jordan wrote yesterdays blog, so we're counting that as writing homework, spent some time on Khan Academy for math and read some more of our family book. Jacob also constructed a cool shoebox guitar as part of his music assignment. Jordan helped align different thicknesses of rubber bands to they produced low to high sounds like on a real guitar. My boys don't mind "schoolwork" on no school day, they do a lot of supplement work even on school days.

We spent part of the day visiting with friends, by the time we got home it was time for dinner. I forgot how early it get dark out and we weren't able to head out to play. To avoid conflicts that would occur from build up energy, we set about doing something new. The boys made a "soft place" using couch and bed pillows and a couple blankets, and set it up in the middle of the living room. Once making sure all things that could be broken were a safe distance away, we cranked up some music and they put on a tumbling show for me. They flipped around for about an hour.  They were under my watchful eye the whole time, and when they seemed to become tired I had them stop to prevent any injuries. They had an absolute blast, we plan to add this to our rainy day activities.

I really enjoyed reading Jordan's guest post yesterday, if you missed it you can read it here.  He told me he understands now why I complain about them being wild while I'm writing, he knew what he wanted to say until his brothers were being noisy and busy around him and his thought kept derailing. He does have a lot to say and has been working on his writing style, he really enjoyed sharing yesterday. I thought it was interesting to see what he thought to share about me. From looking at the list he compiled of my favorites he knows me pretty well. Also I was able to see, although he does not enjoy losing privileges that he understands why he loses them; that I do it not to be mean but to instill a lesson. I had to snicker when I read how I have even pulled him from practice and/or game, that only happened once and for only half a game; the lesson must have really stuck with him for him to bring it up a year later. It's nice to know he understands I only do things because I think its the best for him and his brothers.

It's Been A Very Long Week

What I've heard from many other parents this week, my kiddos aren't the only ones who have been "off". It has been a week filled with many melt downs, tons of attitude, and very little patience. We did have some brief moments at least once or twice a day when everyone was in a good mood. I managed to make it to Friday before I started having an attitude with all the attitude in and around our house. My many attempts to pull everyone out of their funk were short lived. We attempted our soda geysers again, and when they still didn't work correctly the boys were very vocal about their disappointment. It was a long week.

It has been a week full of the boys looking for reason to ague. A week full how unfair everything is. A week full of raised voices. A week of shoving. A week full of blaming everyone for everything that has gone wrong. Although there was no "major issues" this week, everything was seen as a major issue or injustice. It was a week were they all seemed to feel like the universe was out to get them (on Friday I was starting to feel like the boys were out to get me). It was a long week.

A week of spills on the freshly cleaned floor. A week of snack grounded into the carpet. A week when the garbage bag split. A week that every dish in the house was used every day. It was a long week.

Also it had been a week full of season illnesses. A week that was thrown out of routine. A week full of restless nights for most of us. A week with more assigned homework. 

Finally there is some peace in the house. Finally they are sharing. Finally the grumpy one for today is hiding out in his room reading and/or drawing. Finally the shoes are put where they belong. Finally the homework is completed. Finally everyone caught up on lost sleep. Finally it is Saturday. It was a long week.


How did everyone else's week fair for them? Did you also have a long week?

Would Anyone Like to Buy Some Popcorn!!

Let the popcorn pushing sales begin!! I now have two cub scouts. I'm the proud mama of a wolf scout and a bear scout! Last week Joey and Jacob brought home information on a scout sign up night and very enthusiastically expressed their interest to join. We went to the meeting and signed them up. I figured I like the life skills the boy scouts offer and it would be a good way to make better acquaintances with their schoolmates. As it turns out Jacob's den leader is the father of one of his new buddies from school. Joey will also have his best friend from our old school in his den. Jordan not being one to be left out is going to be a den/pack helper for both of his little brothers, seems he has to tag along anyways and it looks good on college applications (I love that he's planning about his future).

Jordan was a scout for about 3 years before deciding it wasn't really his thing anymore. Last night he dug out his old uniform and books and started explaining to the younger  two how to earn the patches, belt loops, and beads. Being much like their mother, my boys jumped into scouting with both feet; being technically a scout for a whole hour they got to work memorizing the Cub Scout Promise and the Laws of the Pack towards earning their Bobcat badge. Jacob even took Jordan's old wolf book to school today to "study up" before tonight's den meeting. They are SO EXCITED! I believe Jacob's den is constructing rockets tonight for next weeks pack meeting. Poor Joey has to wait over a week before he'll get to meet with his group. He did receive a rocket kit last night to work on at home for the pack meeting.

They had their sign up night late, because the rest of the scouts have been meeting for about a month already which is why Jacob already has a meeting today. He's going to have to show up somewhat unprepared because between last night and today's meeting doesn't give me much time to get him his uniform and book. He's going to borrow Jordan's old one until I can get to the store to get all their gear they're going to need. Thankfully I have Jordan's old uniforms and can pass some of the things to the younger ones like the neckerchief, slide, and hat (I just have to remember where I stored them). Hopefully we'll get a chance this weekend to get them all scouting supplies.

Scouting has really filled up my schedule fast. Of course they meet on different days and in different locations and they meet every week, plus monthly pack meetings. Due to participating in scouting I have to switch their religious education classes, because they are the same days and times as scouts. Thankfully a good friend has helped get us connected with another church with class hours that will work for our new schedule. Things are going to get really interesting once Jordan's school sports start. (So much for finally getting an after school routine figured out)

Trying to Find Our Groove

We have naturally fallen into a nice school morning routine, everyone has their own time to wake up at their own pace and to get their morning needs taken care of without having to wait on each other. Mornings run pretty smoothly around here, you wouldn't be able to tell this was a new routine for us. After school is another story, in a word chaotic.  We don't get home until 4:30, so that puts us behind on when dinner can be started (I leave at 2:30 to pick up the first kid, so throwing something into the oven before leaving doesn't work). All 3 try to sit and do their homework, but with different study  habits they distract each other and spend more time complaining than getting homework done. Some of their assignments are on the computer, so after struggling to get through homework they argue over who gets to do the assignments on the computer first. I've tried splitting them up, having one on the computer hollering for help while the others are doing homework (and I'm attempting to throw together something for dinner). On top of what is sent home from school they have things to do for me, Easy-Peasy reading lesson, Khan Academy math lesson (or math flash cards with me), spelling/vocab word practice, and handwriting practice. Also I like to get them outside everyday for about an hour just to get some fresh air and run.

 The boys are awesome about getting both the school and mom work done, we just can't seem to  get the timing right this year. We have tried couple different routines, so far nothing has worked well enough to where we're not feeling rushed. So our goal for the week is to figure out an after school routine that will work for everyone.

As if Monday mornings aren't hard enough, I had the pleasure of starting my Monday at 3:36 a.m. (I went to bed at midnight). I just can't seem to catch a break, Jacob hasn't gotten sick at all over the weekend but now Joey's insomnia seems to be kicking in. He did let me doze off and on until about 6:30, when I finally started my day. Through the night when he'd wake me up, I'd work on some different rotations of our routine. I have a couple to try, but I think we may finally have a one that will work for us.

I rely on our routines as much as the boys do. I love for things to be organized and predictable (as organized and predictable as it can be with 3 boys). It's comforting to know that my kids know what needs to be done and have a set plan as how to go about accomplishing it, and to know that all things for that day will get attended to. They like knowing that after doing w, x, y, they can complete z without having to check with mom or have a brother underfoot. By having routine in place they are more independent and aren't following me around asking "when's dinner?" "Can we go outside?" "Who's turn on the computer?", and I can focus on the things I need to do like making the dinner and being available to help each kid one-on-one with any homework questions.

They help me come up with when things need to be done for two reasons 1) When your part of something its easier to claim it as yours. 2) They know what works for them better than anyone else. Example, Jacob likes to get everything done at once and not have to think about it again; whereas Joey needs to break things into smaller tasks and have mini breaks so things don't become overwhelming. (Jordan is fine with waiting to the last possible minute to do what needs to be done.) To help with getting use to the new routine everyone has their own (color-coded) list taped to the wall in the kitchen (I also love lists! I have them for everything!!!)

Why We Left the Charter School

I have been talking about our "new" school. I guess I should explain how this all came about. Six years ago we had moved to our community and Jordan was going into first grade. I had to choose a school and from everyone had told me our public school was no where near a good choice. I had a friend whose children attended a charter school that is very close to our home, and her kids loved it. Not knowing much at the time as to what to look for in a school, I enrolled Jordan. School has always come easily to Jordan so the higher expectations of the charter school were great for pushing him academically. A couple years later I enrolled Joey into kindergarten at the same school. That was the year the school suggested I have him tested for ADHD and he started getting his label as a "problem child".  First grade for Joey was rough because they had to keep switching out teachers therefor teaching styles, due to his teacher being diagnosed with breast cancer. His teachers diagnosis was difficult for Joey and so was the always changing teachers. Second grade wasn't much better; my child who has almost no organizational skills had a teacher he absolutely adored but the teacher was more disorganized then Joey. Joey started getting detentions more than I would have liked due to incomplete assignments or missing assignments (I honestly don't think this was solely because of Joey). Jacob had started at the school about this time, and he excelled in his class (another child that school comes easily to). There were a couple little hiccups but nothing that really go under my skin about the school, and halfway through the year I was hired in as a lunch aide.

Last year is when all the trouble started, mainly revolving around Joey. His label as a "problem child" had not only followed him but the list of reason had been added to. The school had switched their discipline policy and homework policy. So when a kid didn't complete all their assignments they would lose their lunch recess (their only recess). Lunch detention was now for making up assignments the children were sent to sit in the office for any behavioral discipline. Let me just say that Joey is a very active kid, so when he'd lose his recess he ended up with built up energy and had a hard time focusing in class. His not focusing in class lead to him distracting other student, and that landed him in the office for the day. I'm not saying that my child should not have been expected to sit quietly in class, but when my child spends more time in the office than the classroom there's a problem. It became a vicious cycle; Joey wasn't in the room to learn the material, the assignment was not completed, he'd lose recess, his built up energy distracted other students, he was sent to the office where he didn't have anyone teaching the class material. He tried extremely hard to do the assignments, but the school wasn't following his 504 plan; so if he wrote his 15 spelling words 3 times each but not the 5 times like they had asked he'd lose recess (in his 504 it states he needs shorten assignments). One day Joey was finally granted permission to go to recess and he had broken someone's snowball in the process of trying to help them make it smaller; he was given a 2 day in school suspension for destruction of property. I fought to have him placed back in class and the assistant principal literally yelled at me that I was raising my kids to be disrespectful brats. Later she called to apologize and ended up hanging up on me because I wouldn't back down on not having him suspended. I'm sorry, but snow isn't anyone's property (granted the students weren't allowed to make snowballs), and it had been an accident the student and Joey both had told her this.

 

I was not happy with the way things were being handled with Joey and know full well that there were other children who were not being held to the same disciplinary standards. My nephew was also label as a "problem child" until I brought in proof that he was autistic. Jordan had always been placed in the school's enrichment program, where he would have higher grade level work on top of his grade level work, just to help challenge him. The school started marking down his grades for wrong answers on his enrichment work. So my 6th grade honor roll student was now failing because he wasn't getting good grades on his 8th grade math. It started to feel like they were targeting my kids. I decided it was time to look into other schools.

The icing on the cake was 8 days before school was out for the summer, I had taken my boys for their summer hair cuts. This is the 3rd year they had mohawks for the last week of school. I was called into the principal's office and was told they were in noncompliance with the school dress code. Past years this had never been a problem, because technically they nether had carved or sculptured hair. I was told to either "fix" their hair or start our vacation early, that shaving them bald would work as "fixed". That basically left me with no options other to start our vacation. I told him that we'd start our vacation and I wouldn't be returning as a lunch aide. He informed me that he had just receive a request to transfer their records from the other school. He proceeded to inform me that even though I think I'm making the right choice by switching schools, that I'm really not. That my kids will still always be in trouble at their new school or any school I put them in. We had planned on leaving gracefully as of the last day of school, but that didn't look like it was going to happen. We started our vacation that day. I have no intentions of any of my boys being in trouble at any school and don't/won't label them as trouble makers. When he made that comment, I knew that me feeling of my boys being targeted were more founded than I had thought.

So, that's the reasoning behind why we switched. I have no ill feeling towards charter schools in general and I still won't talk poorly about the charter school we left, just the way my family had been treated there. The school does have very dedicated and fantastic teachers, but in my opinion the administration could do with updating.

Back to School

The first day of school looks a little bit differently to each family. Some are dressed in uniforms and some are not; some are returning to schools they know, new schools, or home school. No matter what your kids are wearing or which type of school they attend, the first day back is a big deal. They are excited about moving up in grades and making new memories.

This year for us, we have a lot of new. New school, new routine, new school dress code, and the opportunity for new friendships. In the past my boys have always had to wear uniforms and the only decision they had to make was do I wear the blue or maroon, this year they can wear pretty much whatever they want. Last night it was a process that took about 20 minutes for them to decide what would be the best First Day outfits. Times like these I'm thankful I have 3 boys instead of 3 girls.  :)

Our daily routine has changes due to the boys having different start times. It was just Jordan and I up and moving this morning, the other 2 get to enjoy an extra hour of sleep. After dropping him off and he's blending in much too quickly with the crowd, that I can home and woke the other 2 boys. It was a rather smooth morning, but then again it's the first day back and they were excited to get to school.

Once the younger two got to school, they quickly found their lockers and stored away their belongings and found their desks. Joey has a classmate that we know from our old school. I also bumped into one of Jacob's friend's mom in the hallway, so he'll have an familiar face in his grade too. I took as many pictures as I could without embarrassing them and headed back to my quiet house.

I have to admit, although I miss having them here it is kind of nice to enjoy the quiet. I'm actually sitting down and blogging before 11pm. I cleaned up the house the morning and 3 hours later I still don't have to re clean it yet. I  know myself well enough that sitting in a quiet house won't last long, soon I'll be volunteering in classroom or lunchrooms, looking for a job, or returning to school. While the idea of having the place all to myself is still new and exciting I'll probably try to catch up on some things I can't do when the boys are home like the boxes of pictures that still need to go into the scrapbooks.

New to our school year is also half days, today is one of them. Shortly, I'll have go back and get my boys. So I'm going to go relish my quiet time, hot cup of coffee, and book until its time for them to come home and I get to hear their tales of how the first day went.

Finally Skating!

We usually don't get to skate much, there isn't a rink anywhere close to our home. After attempting to go Monday the boys were really looking forward to going. We ventured back down there to skate, knowing for sure they would be open. When we pulled up there was only a handful of cars (again), this time knowing better than to assume we had the whole place almost to ourselves, my first thought was they closed today for some reason or another or I had gotten the times wrong. Thankfully when we pulled on the door handle they were open. Plus there was maybe 15 other people there. Halleluiah! We'd get to skate! After trying on many pairs of skates to find some that actually fit or didn't have the soles ripped out of them, we hit the stake floor. Jordan took off with out a backwards glance and Joey was right behind him. Jacob made his way to the partition wall and slowly worked his way around the rink. After locating and storing everyone shoes into an over priced locker, I set out to catch up with my boys. For about an hour and half I alternated between whipping around with Jordan to skate dancing with Joey, and keeping Jacob company as we made our way cautiously around. After a quick rehydration break, Jordan and Joey reluctantly  joined me in the Hokey Pokey and The bird dance. The DJ announce a girls only skate and I joined the other 6 females in looping around for the length of one really long song. My boys were kept entertained by waiting at the edge to slap me five as I came there way. Then it was boys only skating, all three got back out on the floor. Somehow remembering that wwwaaaayyy back in the day, that they used to do this right before a couples only song then it would be time to go; I got a jump on things and trade my wheels for my shoes and had the kids' shoes ready. Then a faster paced song came on and the DJ called everyone back to the floor; confused I looked at my clock, we still had an hour left. I thought my legs had already had enough skating, but the boys thought I could handle just one more hour. The nice lady who put my skates away allowed me to have them back and I headed back to my boys.

Slowly throughout our time there Jacob slowly started to inch his way away from the wall. During the last few songs he was rolling near the center of the rink. YAY, Jake!! I'm so proud. Joey learn to move with a little more speed and can sure put on a show with his "Skate dancing". Jordan made a couple attempts to learn to skate backwards, but preferred to whiz past everyone instead. We all had an absolute blast and plan on visiting again sooner. I'm so proud of all my boys for pushing themselves to try new things. (I'm proud of myself for staying out on the floor the whole time, and my legs for keeping me upright the while time)

 

Being close to Grandma's (again) we stopped by for my coffee and swimming for the boys. My kids sure do love hanging out at Grandma's and again we stayed way longer than planned.