Got the Music In Me.....!!!

One day last week (time has been flying by, I can't think of which one it was), I picked up the kids from school and noticed J's sad face. As K got in the front seat, (she is actually tall enough to sit in front now) she hands me a note and said that J had to turn his "card" today and here's a note explaining why. At this, (still not sure why K handed me the note) J started bawling in the back seat moaning "ohhh.. I just don't want to talk about it".

Some of you may be asking what does it mean to turn a "card"? So I'm going to take a quick moment to explain before I continue with the story. Some teachers use the "card method" for class discipline. There is usually a large pocket holder poster that has each student's name on it and pockets for each one containing cards (green, yellow, red and blue). Each day everyone starts out on green and as the day progresses if there are behavior incidences the student has to turn the card. The yellow card gets a note home, the red card (I think gets a phone call), the blue card involves a visit to the principle's office. Not all teachers use this method and personally I think that there are other methods that are better (for example, with the card method, what if you have a student who is out of control and turns all cards by 10:00 am? Then what?) Anyway, back to the story.

Now, J has been very proud of the fact that he only has had to turn his card one time during his whole school career (pouring sand on a friends head in Kindergarten..). So this was a very devastating moment and he just couldn't tell me what happened. So I read the note which said, "Off-target, disruptive behavior". Now, that really helps me understand the situation.. hah!! Or as my cuzzy SeattleS says "sheesh" (I'm adapting that saying now by the way!).

So finally, about an hour after we arrived home, I began to ask again, explaining that he wasn't in trouble, I just needed to understand what happened so that we could problem solve and make sure that it didn't happen again.

He finally told me that at the end of the day, they were supposed to be coloring a page and Mrs. F put on some jungle music. Well, he wanted to make Carson (a very cute blonde who has an identical twin sister.. another story I'll tell at the end) laugh, so he got up and started dancing at his desk.

NOW COME ON.... you put jungle music on and I'll dance in a heartbeat.. who wouldn't.? Wanting to burst out laughing because I could just visualize it (he definitely has moves like his father that could make ya blush), I kept my composure and asked him what he thought his teacher expected them to be doing. Which he replied "color". I then explained that she was probably tired from a long day and wanted everyone to be calm and color until the bell rang. If all of the kids started to dance, then the class would be out of control.

But come on now, if the music is in you, it's in you and wants to be freed!!!

Birthday Party Crashers!!

Well, many of you have probably heard of the latest movie, which I have yet to see, entitled Wedding Crashers?? Well now let me introduce you to the one year old birthday party crashers. Yep... that's us. P asked me this past Saturday to go pick up a present for his partners son who turned one. He said that he told his partner that he wanted to drop a present off for his son. His partner apparantly told him that was fine. Now, it is not like their house is close by and it would make sense for us to just "drop by". Nope..their house is about 45 minutes away. Anyway, I ran and got a gift as P asked. I told P that if they were having a party that we weren't invited to on the same day, I would be really embarrassed dropping by. I really don't know them very well, only P does from working with his partner.

P said "no, don't worry.. their just having his parents over for a bbq.. it will be fine. We'll just drop off the gift, say hi real quick and then go to this yummy Mexican joint nearby for dinner". So we loaded the van with the whole "Varner Party of Five" and off we went. As we finally pull up to their house, I notice that the parking is limited and hmmm... look at the house that has a big stuffed monkey holding balloons. That couldn't be their house could it because THEIR NOT HAVING A PARTY... Sure enough we approach the front door (I'm hiding behind P at this point). P walks in and we are stared at by five long dinner tables full of people finishing up their dinner.

Oh My Goodness... My nightmare coming true! The house is completely decked out with decorations, picture of the one year old everywhere. The theme is jungle animals with stuffed animals holding balloons everywhere. Too cute... I'm sure the PARTY INVITATIONS were in the same theme.

So P continues saying "oh hi, we just wanted to drop off a gift". Which I'm sure was intrepreted as "oh, hi, see we weren't invited and want to make you feel really bad by looking at our faces longing to be included as we drop off this gift for your kid." I mean it seemed like the wife was still trying to figure out who we were!!!

Of course what followed was "Oh hi.. no it's okay.. come on in.. we have lots of food left.. help yourself. " Which I was then sure that P would quickly jump in and explain "Oh no, we can only stay for a minute, we are heading out to eat at this Mexican joint down the street (that we always like to travel for 45 MINUTES to get to). But no, P looked around with a look like "Cool, tri-tip.. looks good to me... let's dig in".

Needless to say, we ended up staying and enjoyed dinner... cake... present-opening.. the whole works! The kids had a blast (they were really the entertaining part of the party) and we got to know the LARGE family real well.

So if you know of any birthday parties around, just let me know because we might be available regardless of how far away it is. Hee hee... too much!

Where Has The Time Gone?

Boy oh boy.. Have I been a busy bee. I can't believe that it has almost been two weeks since my fabulous trip to MI. What a nice freedom to have no cares and worries while I was there. I have some great pictures to post but don't have the computer here to post them so I will have to do that another time.

The trip there was thankfully uneventful since I have a bit of a fear of flying. Was picked up by me sis who I was able to spot from a distance which saved time I'm sure. We had a wonderful chat home (poor thing had to drive a very long time roundtrip). But it was nice to catch up.

It was a short nights sleep due to the time difference but I felt great the next morning. We got up and went to see R and T play hockey. What a kick. The hockey gear that each kid wears is amazing. They even have kidney pad protection. They were so patient. Then what fun watching them go on the ice. Ice hockey is not very common here but seems to be the definite sport to play there. R sure gets a good workout and is smiling the whole time. T moves pretty good on those barrels and even scooted a few times to the barrel. Sometimes looking like he is having a blast and other times like he is a bit bored. Hee hee.

After hockey we had a yummy breakfast and then went to a fun session of Dream Dinners where S and I assembled six dinners that I pre-ordered as a birthday gift. How fun it was to order them from here and have the order go through without any problems.

After Dream Dinners we went to have hot fudge sundae cake at Bobs Big Boy... I miss that big guy. We don't have any of those anymore. Then we went home for a bit.

That night we went to dinner and saw a movie. Mr. & Mrs. Smith.. Don't recommend it but it was still worth it to be there with my sister and no worries.... oh yeah and with popcorn and Diet Coke. Can't go wrong there.

The next day we went to the corn maze as described on S's blog which was a lot of fun. REALLY good apple cider and two darling boys running around having a great time. After we went home from this outing M got out the grass cutting tractor and I was able to give it a whirl. That was pretty fun! A bit intimidating compared to a lawn mower. But lots of fun. I think the highlight of this day though was R teaching me how to play chess. Talk about being impressed! He knows all the moves of every piece and even knows some strategy. He was whipping me. I only had two pieces left and he kept moving in on my king. At one time he said "check" and then I moved and he moved in again and said "check" and this continued for quite awhile until he said "are you getting a little tired of me saying 'check'? Too funny. I ended up taking out his king which I felt a bit bad but it was a very obvious move. He even saw it. And what a great sport. He was soooo excited for me to win. He seemed even proud because he taught me. Such a mature lil youngster! (Doesn't take after his Auntie J with the good sportsmanship like conduct)

It was a very peaceful evening and then before you know it, it was Monday and time to come home. I was very sad to go and seeing the boys sad face made it very hard. BUT I wouldn't trade it for the world. What a fun time. Thanks for the trip and happy early birthday sis!

Plane ride home was also uneventful and was happy to see my smiling family pick me up. It is always good to come home!

School days..school days.. Good Ole' Golden rule Days!

It's that time of year again! The day went off smoothly. I told P that I didn't need to rehearse getting up early the week before school started. No, I was able to do it COLD TURKEY! I have been so used to not having an alarm clock that 6:45 felt sooo early. But I did it. Even made breakfast and packed lunches with time to spare. J woke his sister up saying "Come on, come on, time to get up..we have a big day today." He was up and dressed from head (even had his hair done before breakfast) to toe! K dragged a little bit. I guess the novelty of school has worn off some since she is a big 5th grader. Anyway, J came home from school with a little bit of a different attitude. When it came to homework time he didn't understand why the teacher wanted to copy down the whole sentence. HE felt that the sentence could be shortened somewhat. Ended in tears but he got through it.

Little C and I are enjoying preschool. His teacher is great and very knowledgeable having a Masters in Early Childhood Development. It is such a great program and extremely reasonable cost-wise. I work in his class one day a week and we go on fieldtrips every Friday. This Friday, we went vegetable picking at a local Family Farm. VERY FUN. Went on a hayride and picked onions, and a variety of squash. All the kids received a coloring book and got to feed the farm animals. There was a mama pig who just gave birth to twelve piglets. They were all nursing when we arrived. OW! I'm glad I only had one at a time. That poor mama. When one piglet went for the mama's dry food, the mama put her snout under the baby and flung her in the air. I think it was payback for the nursing abuse.

Anyway, we are keeping a pretty busy schedule now but very satisfied.

All Smiles!!

Boy, has time been flying by. So much to blog about and so little time. Will get back regarding first days of school etc. BUT the big news in our household is that "K" is now wearing braces! She was so brave. No tears or nervousness. She even was able to pick out the colors she wanted in her braces (currently light and dark blue). It is so different than when I had braces. No big deal but big bucks! Whew!!

She was doing great for the first couple of days and then informed me that it felt like someone was trying to pull all of her teeth out. Soft foods only for the time being. Sent her to school with two fruit cups and one pudding cup. She is not allowed to have crunchy foods or carbonated drinks (carbonation (sp?) loosens the bond of the cement). She should only have them on for 18 months at the most. She is lucky to have all of her teeth in (including 12 year old molars) so that she can get this phase out of the way!

"No Donkey Tails?"

This morning, I actually woke up early... 7:30 (working towards the school schedule). I was drinking my coffee and reading the newspaper on my chair enjoying the morning wondering when little feet would inquire about the breakfast menu.

Big "K" walks in and asks what is for breakfast. Taking advantage of her age and ability, I told her that she could help herself to making waffles, bagels, juice, fruit etc. Off she trots.

My next moment of peace (which didn't last very long) was interrupted by smaller feet trotting in wearing fuzzy dinosaur zip-up pajamas (I told him last night to no avail that they would be way too hot in this weather).

Little "C' looks at me and asks what's for breakfast? I put down the newspaper and said "donkey tails, or tortoise shells, or squirrel whiskers". Expecting laughter, I was surprised by his serious expression. He asked in response to squirrel whiskers, "Do those taste good?". I couldn't contain my laughter. And then he asked "Are you just joking?" I said "yes, I'm just teasing". He then said (still serious.. no laughter has escaped him).. "So there's no donkey tails either?"

He actually appeared disappointed. I better work on my normal menu to make it sound more appealing.

So Sad...

Paul called me last night and told me that a fellow officer's son was in the PICU. His name is Jacob and he is ten year's old. When he was four years old he went on a family camping trip and somehow ended up with over fifty mosquito bites on the back of his neck in a very concentrated area. This caused an infection and his brain to swell and he has been having seizures ever since. He was swimming at a friends house yesterday and had a siezure while in the jacuzzi. They found him on the bottom of the jacuzzi and the length of time he was under is questionable but he has water in the lungs, Pulminary Edema (whatever that is) and is on a ventilator. The family is very distraught. Paul and his partner went to the hospital during their shift and Paul prayed over Jacob and with his father. Very raw emotions.

I, in turn, have had a wonderful day with the kids. We started out with breakfast with Paul, then some shopping/walking/playing at the mall. We even saw a movie, came home and had some ice cream. I really want to take advantage of the time that I have with the kids. You never really know what might happen or just how long we have.

Just Getting Started Now...

Okay, I actually have peace and quiet right now, so I'll see how long this lasts. J. or "mudboy" came to me this morning and said "only 10 more days"! I (reading the newspaper and only half paying attention) said "until what". He said "until school". Yep...summer is almost over. This one sure went by fast! I think we are almost ready. School supples bought? (check). School clothes purchased? (check). Backpacks? (check) Just a few more things for K. and we're good to go.

Now, I just need to get all of our sleep schedules in order (especially mine) This new house has better insulation or something because in the morning I can't hear the kids when they get up. I have been opening my eyes for the first time after 8:00 every morning. And since school starts at 8:00, I need to do something about this.

Here are a few highlights of the summer (photos telling the story..hooray!)

Lil' C. saying goodbye to our old house as we get ready to move. He really misses the green carpet (I think he is the only one!) Notice his fancy haircut with red gel on one side and purple gel on the other side.



J. having his first playdate in our new house with his best buddy!



Okay..I have time for one more because my troops are starting to get restless. So let's just finish with a cute one of all three.




Things that make you go ahhhhh!!!

Testing..testing..1.2.3...

Well, P. just got a new computer and I'm playing around with it to see if I can successfully add pictures to my blog. So here goes:

Last night when I was aimlessly writing my last blog, little C. came into the office/hang-out/craft room and told me that he wasn't feeling very good. I told him to go lie down on my bed and I'm sure he was sleep walking or extremely drowsy when he went to lie down because he didn't have a pillow or or his "beloved blankie". I took a picture of him because he looked so peaceful. If this "upload" is successful, I'll add more photos because they make the blogs more fun. Wish me luck!




Yahooey!! Looks like I did it!

Random Thoughts!

I'm stealing the title from my sister because the idea of random thoughts has been on my mind lately.

I actually asked P. the other day if we were to record the random thoughts in our heads and compare them .. what would they look like.

For example, has he ever had the thought "uh oh.. I left the chicken defrosted in the microwave for three hours.. I wonder if it is still ok?"

No.. I don't think so.

Or how about "I need to deadhead these pansies so that more can grow"..

Again, negative ghost rider.

Or how about, "let's look up on Ebay to see there are any counted cross-stitch kits to send to mom-in-law."

I'm not even sure if he knows what counted cross-stitch means.

Or what about.. "why am I feeling so grumpy.. could it be that time of month?"

Again, no.

So what kinds of random thoughts run through his head?

Hmmm... not sure if I want to know. Maybe it's better to keep the mind recorder put away.

Can you tell it's late at night??

The Chicken Man...

So P. and I are having a lazy Sunday afternoon sitting on the couches watching Comedy Central. We keep having to tell the kids to go play in the other room because the material on T.V. was not very appropriate. We were watching the "You Know Your a Redneck when..." movie with Jeff Foxworthy and his other hilarious friends. We were cracking up so hard at some of these jokes (actually relating to some of them as well..) when the phone rang. I told P. that I didn't feel like answering and he said he didn't really feel like answering either so it just rang four times and went to voicemail. Well on a commercial, I got my lazy self up to hear the message (curiousity got the better of me).

On the message was this truck driver friend of P.'s who is from Mississippi (his dad fought in Vietnam with P's dad) and has this incredibly slow southern drawl (very much like the comedian's we were watching). He said (in a very slow southern way) "Do ya'll like chicken? I have a bunch of chicken that Ralph's won't take because they said that they didn't order that much. I can't take it back with me so I have to get rid of it..call me if you want some chicken?"

I looked around me feeling like I was on Candid Camera.. I mean the timing of watching the Redneck comedy show and hearing this message was too much. I told P. that he had to call him back. And he said that he didn't feel like it because the guy is a really draining sort of fellow. I said are you crazy... it's free chicken. I mean you can't get a better deal than that.

So after the guy tried P. on his cell phone and he wouldn't answer it, I kept the phone close by and sure enough he called back which I answered quickly and handed it over to P. Ah hah!! We set up a time and place to meet him and off we went. The kids had a blast, of course we had to play the "Convoy" trucker song on the C.D. player as we drove there and then he pulled up in a very impressive purple cab eighteen wheeler. It was like a field trip, the boys were able to look inside and see what the life of a trucker is like. AND I have 33 lbs. of boneless, skinless chicken thighs in my freezer. Yee haw!! He told us that he tried calling a month ago because he had 250 lbs. of boneless/skinless chicken BREASTS that he had to get rid of. Can you imagine??

But..I'm in the Show!

As you may have read on a previous blog, I'm having tons of fun this summer taking the kids "outside of our smaller town" on different outings. We had a lot of fun at the Hollywood Bowl Summer Sounds for kids program with the fieldtrip class, that I decided to go back on my own. This week the Sailboat traveled to Mexico visiting a Native American Indian (Aztec..I believe) tribe.

We arrived in the morning and the kids are supposed to sit on the floor up close to the stage and the moms if they choose (and I do choose because I like the seats with backs) sit in chairs behind the floor area. So all the kids in the line made a mad dash for the floor area. The boys sat together and K. could not quite make it with them sat about five feet behind them with some older kids. I found my way back to a front-row seat and made myself comfortable but always keeping a close-eye on my kids. Always mentally counting ..one..two..three..okay we're good. So next thing I know No.2 child J. gets up and starts heading towards the exit. Uh..no..this won't do, so I hurriedly get up and head the same way. I see him with two other kids sitting with one of the stage crew. I said "uh..what are you doing".. He said "but Mom, I'm going to be in the show". Well alrighty then..you go J"! So I make sure visually that C. is okay sitting by himself with K. sitting not too far behind him.

As the show begins the sailboat makes it's way all around the sitting area "really neat singing musical part of the show" and finds it's way to Mexico. I can see off stage these huge feathers of Indian Headresses offstage and I think to myself "I hope C doesn't freak out". Sure enough the big booming sounds of the drums start and the "Ayy yaayy yaay ing" singing starts with these incredible tribal costumes come dancing in." I quickly get up to get a closer visual to make sure that all is okay and see smiles all around.. we're all good!" The show was fantastic and at one point the Captain starts describing a dream he had about the Indian creation of man. The first boy that was created was made out of mud... Yep.. J. was "mudboy". He walks on-stage very seriously decked out in his "Jesus Rocks" red t-shirt from last years VBS. Too funny.. since the story is a Native American Creation story. ANYWAY he was soo cute on stage... very serious and the Captain went on pointing out the boy then smiles (he forces a smile on J.'s face with his hands which cracked J. up). He then described how the rain came and washed the boy away. J. pretended to melt and walked off stage. C. was cracking up at J. on stage the whole time. It was pretty cute. After the show, they went to the craft area, where K. made a Aztec Doll and the boys made warrior shields. OF COURSE that is what they picked out to make. In their minds they were real warrior shields and not decorated paper plates with taped handles on the back.

Afterwards, the kids wanted to go on Hollywood Blvd. So we found parking near the Chinese Theatre and ventured out. Too much.. we were truly "not in Kansas anymore". There were all sorts of people (homeless I think) dressed in costumes trying to make a few bucks to have their picture taken with tourists. The kids thought this was too cool. They saw, Batman, Spiderman, Dora, Spongebob, Stormtrooper etc. Even Marilyn Monroe (smelling a bit like alcohol) slurred out to J. "Praise the Lord little boy". Remember his shirt. Hmm...note to self, where something more subtle next week.

Anyway, the true highlight of the day (if there could be anymore) was having the kids picture taken at one of the vendors where they can superimpose their faces onto a chosen scene. They chose Star Wars of course. So we have the most incredible picture of K. as Padme, J. as Annakin, and C. as Obi. Their facial expressions are too much. They all really got into character.

Anyway, the sailboat goes to Russia next week followed by Scotland the week after. Then its' over. Will keep you posted if we can get tickets.

I'm So Proud.....

I was talking to P. the other night about a conversation I had with a good friend whom I previously worked with. You see, my friend, my sister, and I were all pregnant and eerily all had the same exact due date. My son was a bit anxious and decided to be born five weeks early and the other two were born a day apart.

So anyway, my friend often asks me questions regarding her son (he is her first, whereas my baby was my third..) development questions etc. She told me that he has been asking her questions (they are four years old now) which have been stumping her. I asked her what she meant. She told me that he announced in the car one day that there was snow up in the mountains. She said, uh-huh (as we often respond to our children when we are driving). He then asked "mom, why would there be snow on the mountain when the mountain is closer to the sun and the sun is burning fire?". She told me that she wasn't sure how to respond.

I told her to go have her son tested because if he is thinking like that then he is probably going to be the next Einstein. I mean what four year old thinks things through like that? She then told me that he asks goofy questions too, like do we have ear boogers? She explained to him that no, that is called ear wax. He then said.."oh, you mean waxy stuff, sort of like what crayons and candles are made of".

Later, I was curious and asked my son what crayons are made of and he said "colors". Hmmmm.

So P. and I are discussing this and I'm trying not to compare the two and he is reassuring me that our children are smart as well,..when all of a sudden out comes our four year old wearing nothing except underpants..although on closer observation, he looks rather bulky like he is wearing football thigh pads. He excitedly exclaims...Mom..Dad.. I have 21 pairs of underpants on!! Followed quickly with... "betcha I can bounce!" He then proceeds to peel each pair off as he counts.. one, two, three etc. The timing of this was too much. A definite "you had to be there moment" Hmmmm so proud!

Count Me In!

There are a couple of ladies in my mothers bible study group at church who are currently going through breast cancer. One I know really well and the other just through passing. What is so shocking about this is that they are both a couple of years younger than me and both have very young children. The one mom who I know really well has a five year old and two year old daughters and the other mom has a four year old daughter and three year old son.

Women in the group volunteer to bring dinners to the family when the moms are going through chemotherapy or are just really needed. I agreed to be on the list. I received a call last Friday that I would be bringing a meal to the family of the mom that I don't know very well.

What I do know very well through email updates is that she is not doing well. The cancer spread through her lymph nodes and is now residing in her liver, brain, bone etc. and she is not responding well to chemo. I was feeling very shamefully intimidated about bringing the family dinner. I don't like admitting it, but part of me was hoping that she wouldn't return my phone call so I wouldn't have to go through with it.

Perhaps it is because of her prognosis, or perhaps it is facing her beautiful children and knowing that they may lose their mother at such a young age, or perhaps it is knowing that this could happen to anyone, myself included. ANYWAY, she called me back.. I put up a good front and told her that I really wanted to bring her a super yummy meal. Whatever sounded good to her at a restuarant of her choice (too hot to cook). I anticipated her response to be one that many mom's make who I have brought meals to in the past (never for sickness..usually a new baby)..being.."whatever is fine.." BUT no, she got very excited and was so positive and friendly and she told me that she was having a craving for hawaiian (sp?) bbq beef at a local food joint. I said "you got it!".

If a simple request like hawaiian bbq could bring an inkling of joy to someone who is going through this horrible ordeal with such positiveness...COUNT ME IN.

She was not available when I delivered her food to the family but I had a wonderful conversation with her husband (who was actually serving in Iraq when she first found out she had cancer..he missed her first year of going through chemo and being sick. He is home for now though.)

P. and I talked about it when I came home and have agreed that I am going to be on a permanent rotation to bring them meals at least once a month. Please keep these families in your prayers!

Murray May Be A Stud

Let's get it on...arr arr arruuuugh!! Let's get it on... arr arr arruuugh!!! Murray (our yellow labrador who is a "MANLY DOG") may be singing this song in a few months. READ ON:

I had a friend and her girls over for lunch and a swim last week and we were discussing our plans for our theatrical productions for VBS. When she arrived, she was "loving on" Murray with lots of hugs and pets and kept mentioning how she really wanted a lab. She asked me how it was going with his hyperness, and I explained that he has a very "laid back" disposition. She was surprised with that given his young age (he's two years old). And I said that we were pretty lucky that he was such a great dog. I explained that we hadn't had him fixed yet, because we were considering breeding him so my sister could have a puppy. Since moving to Michigan, they now have a beautiful Golden Retriever and have their hands full, so it was just a matter of time before we would have him fixed.

The next day, she approached me and told me that her husband agreed that she could have a big dog and she really wants to train it from a puppy. She seemed embarrassed to ask me if I would consider breeding Murray with her friend who has a Chocolate Lab. She said that he has many friends who would like a puppy and he wasn't interested in doing it for money but rather to give his friends gifts. I told her that I'm sure Murray would enjoy that (hee hee).

So, we will see what happens. Of course the kids want a puppy.. but I told them that they would have to be satisfied with taking a walk with Murray and his puppy.

Husbands Golf Trip

Somehow it slipped past me or perhaps it was just mentioned once in the middle of the moving chaos that he was going on a three day golf trip with his best buddy one hour north of Las Vegas. Since Kalynn was away at camp, the boys and I were here to hang out together.

I talked to him periodically during his trip and he seemed to be having a good time which is nice because he needed some down time after the move.

The day before he was to come home, I got a phone call from him that started out "honey..I'm okay". I thought uh-oh what happened. He continued saying that they went golfing and he was driving the golf cart. The course was a bit "hilly" he explained that the brakes didn't work quite like the cars he is used to driving. He then explained that he rolled the golf cart and when they landed he was looking at the sky and his golf shoes sticking up in the air and his best buddy was on top of him. The clubs were thrown everywhere and he had a few cuts and bruises but other than that they were A.O.K. His friend was more embarrassed than anything and told him that given his profession why wasn't he able to drive a golf cart!! Although this could have been more serious, it struck me so funny...the visual of it was hilarious. I laughed for a solid five minutes and still get a chuckle when I think of it.

I'm glad he's home safe and sound. So..uh..when is my trip??

Who Would've Known These Places Exist?!?

Boy is this summer going by fast. As a stay at home mom who has a husband who sleeps during the day, it is always a challenge to find things for the kids to do during the day that will allow him to sleep peacefully. So this year it was announced in C.D.'s preschool that the Adult School was offering a Field Trip summer school every Wednesday's. Siblings could accompany. It only cost $25 bucks to join and you were able to buy tickets for different events at a group rate discount. The first week (we missed because of the move) was to the Huntington Library which has a newly developed water park for the kids to enjoy. Apparantly they had a blast at that one. Then the next week we were able to participate and met up at the IMAX theatre (downtown) and we saw the 3D Wild African Safari (VERY COOL) and then have lunch and walk around the Childrens Science Museum (ALSO VERY COOL) There was too much to see in one day at the museum but it was very kid friendly for all ages so my 10, 7 and 4 year old all enjoyed it. The museum was very hands-on and interactive. Loved it.

This week we were able to go to the Hollywood Bowl for a kids program. The performance was a bit of a musical with the story line being that there is this old sail boat called the Global Harmony that is delivering bells to six different countries. The country of Brazil (the show we saw) was the first country to receive the bell. The kids were able to choose a craft based on the country of Brazil and the rainforest and after the craft time, they saw an awesome show with samba and the excitement of the Carnival. The other countries they will visit in the weeks to come are Israel, Japan, Native America, Russia, and Scotland. Very cultural for the kids and very fun AND only four bucks each..>Can't beat those tickets! Hopefully we'll be able to catch some of the other shows.

It is amazing to me that I have lived in Southern California my entire life and have not been to alot of these places with the kids. Life is so busy that it takes an organized field trip class to show me to slow down a little and enjoy what is offered around town. Between this class, free Regal movies Tuesday mornings, VBS, and having a pool to go swimming anytime... I think there is enough entertainment for the summer.

Already Old Enough For Youth Group?

So on Sunday afternoon I actually had tears in my eyes as I was waving goodbye to my daughter getting on a HUGE bus with about 80 other 5th/6th graders going to Lake Arrowhead for a week. Can she really be old enough to be going away for a whole week? I remember what happened when I went to youth group...She has been so excited about this all summer but ...

Let's back up to about 30 minutes before she left on the bus. We arrived at the designated time for her to leave and she was greeted by a friend from school and church who was excited to see her when all of a sudden this other girl from school ran right in front of her and literally took the original friend away with conversation and body language that was excluding KaLynn. It was pretty obvious that Kalynn was being left out and I was very tempted to say something (very much feeling like a mama bear) especially since this one girl can be very snotty. I pulled Kalynn aside and reassured her that she was going to have a fun time and pointed out all of the other girls that she knew and she said very seriously and confidently to me.."I'm going to be fine mom".

I then realized that this is what life is about.. and that she is learning life lessons and how strong of a person she is. I am so proud of her. I know that my emotions were more raw and sensitive when I was her age. My mind has constantly been on her and what she might be doing right now. I can't wait to hear how it went.

What exactly is a Blog??

How odd to think that I am actually joining this Big Blog Club. Where did the "b" come from. Should it be just log? Or is it because you type all of your random thoughts where they become blah..blah..blah.. thus Blo (ah) g? Considering that I actually created a blog page six months ago and am just now creating a post..speaks volumes as to the procrastinator or perhaps just distracted person I have become. But I suppose this could be a fun form of communication and a way to journel current family..life..events, since I never seem to have time to keep a written journal these days. NOW..I have to figure out how to add pictures. That will be my next task. Will see how it goes since I have not kept up with all of the latest technology.. Like what exactly is an IPod.