It feels like...

When I have to go back...

It feels like I have to return my kids

to the rental agency I borrowed them from.

Can't I be a little sad about that?

:-(

STOP IT!

I am going back to school tomorrow. Am I happy about it...no! DO I have to be ...NO! Who on earth would be happy about leaving their children after getting paid to stay at home and play with them during the best part of the year. ( If you are one of those people who are going to complain that I get to stay at home and "get paid for it"...shut it! You could have too...you just made a different choice. Don't fault me for it.)

Anywho when I say I am not "happy" to go back I typically get one of two responses. Here they are along with the rebuttals I would LOVE to give.

1. You know you have to go back so why complain. Duh! And P.S. When did it become illegal to complain about things that had to be done? Anybody here "happy" to clean toilets?

2. You have a good job, why don't you want to go back? Anybody ever go on vacation and not want to go home? Guess what? Me too! And I am happy taking my vacation here at home. You feel the need to travel away.

So, if you are going to say one of these to a teacher any time soon...please don't! Vacation is what helps us stay sane while teaching YOUR children. Remember who is spending time with them when you are happy to be sending them back.

My fair entries

1. Crocheted Preemie booties
2. Crocheted Preemie hat
3. Crocheted sweater for Geetle
4. Crocheted hat for Geetle
5. Crocheted hat for Nay-Nay
6. Crocheted sweater for Nay-Nay
7. Crocheted hat for Taco Supreme
8. Crocheted bibs for Taco Supreme
9. Crocheted booties for Taco Supreme
10. Crocheted sweater for Taco Supreme
11. Crocheted blanket for Taco Supreme
12. Crocheted blanket for my house
13. Watermelon Picture of my T
14. Black and White Picture of my Nay-Nay
15. 2 Color Pictures of T
16. 4 Color Pictures of Nay-Nay
17. 4 Black and White Pictures of Nay-Nay
18. Color Picture of our bull

Whew! I've been busy!

Big Things for Me

There hadn't been very big things going on for me recently, so I chose not to bore you. However, now times they are a-changing.

Here are the big things that are happening to me (in ascending order of excitement.)

3. School starts tomorrow. Don't get me wrong, I'm excited, not "yippee christmas morning" excited, but excited.

2. I have finished my classes for my Alternative Education Certification and ...dum da da dum... received all As. (Pssst...it doesn't hurt that those will move me up the pay scale either :-))

1. I have all of the items I am entering in the fair ready to go. It is the first time I am entering things so I am a little nervous. I have to drop them off tomorrow after school.

I will post what I am entering and update it after it has been judged. Stay tuned.

Slide down a slide

What can we say...we love to slide.

My kids love to slide so much,

that when Grandma and Grandpa
had to put their bed on an incline...
Nay-Nay climbed up and tried to slide down.

That's dedication to the art!

Today's Hot New Game

The Swimming Nuk!

My son and daughter sit in close proximity in my Chevy HHR; this seating situation has its ups and downs. Today they invented and started playing a game. It quickly escalated to high fun and then ballooned into absolute chaos. Nay-Nay would hand the nuk to T and T would "splash" it down into the shared toy bin between them. When it resurfaced, Nay-Nay would grab it, put it in her mouth and the game would begin again.

Very fun...cue much laughter.

The mood quickly turned sinister when, instead of letting his sister grab the nuk, T would do the "quick pull" out of her grasp. He then let it float mere centimeters out of her reach and commenced laughing.

Very frustrating...cue screaming demon.

Ahh, the joys of being in a car with children...how did anyone EVER do it without a DVD player???

Things they didn’t tell you that you would end up saying as a parent

Take that out of your underwear!

Here, T is pretending to be Papa.

Papa owns his own business and conducts most of his business on his cell phone.

THE CREATION OF THE TEACHER

The Good Lord was creating teachers. It was His sixth day of 'overtime' and He knew that this was a tremendous responsibility for teachers would touch the lives of so many impressionable young children.

An angel appeared to Him and said, "You are taking a long time to figure this one out."
"Yes," said the Lord, " but have you read the specs on this order?"

TEACHER:
…must stand above all students, yet be on their level... must be able to do 180 things not connected with the subject being taught... must run on coffee and leftovers,... must communicate vital knowledge to all students daily and be right most of the time... must have more time for others than for herself/himself... must have a smile that can endure through pay cuts, problematic children, and worried parents... must go on teaching when parents question every move and others are not supportive... must have 6 pair of hands.

"Six pair of hands, " said the angel, "that's impossible"

"Well, " said the Lord, " it is not the hands that are the problem. It is the three pairs of eyes that are presenting the most difficulty!"

The angel looked incredulous, " Three pairs of eyes...on a standard model?"

The Lord nodded His head, " One pair can see a student for what he is and not what others have labeled him as. Another pair of eyes is in the back of the teacher's head to see what should not be seen, but what must be known. The eyes in the front are only to look at the child as he/she 'acts out' in order to reflect, " I understand and I still believe in you", without so much as saying a word to the child."

"Lord, " said the angel, " this is a very large project and I think you should work on it tomorrow".

"I can't," said the Lord, " for I have come very close to creating something much like Myself. I have one that comes to work when he/she is sick.....teaches a class of children that do not want to learn....has a special place in his/her heart for children who are not his/her own.....understands the struggles of those who have difficulty....never takes the students for granted..."

The angel looked closely at the model the Lord was creating. "It is too soft-hearted, " said the angel.

"Yes," said the Lord, " but also tough, You can not imagine what this teacher can endure or do, if necessary".

"Can this teacher think?" asked the angel.

"Not only think," said the Lord,. "but reason and compromise."

The angel came closer to have a better look at the model and ran his finger over the teacher's cheek. "Well, Lord, " said the angel, your job looks fine but there is a leak. I told you that you were putting too much into this model. You can not imagine the stress that will be placed upon the teacher."

The Lord moved in closer and lifted the drop of moisture from the teacher's cheek. It shone and glistened in the light.

"It is not a leak," He said, "It is a tear."

"A tear? What is that?" asked the angel, "What is a tear for?"

The Lord replied with great thought, " It is for the joy and pride of seeing a child accomplish even the smallest task. It is for the loneliness of children who have a hard time to fit in and it is for compassion for the feelings of their parents. It comes from the pain of not being able to reach some children and the disappointment those children feel in themselves. It comes often when a teacher has been with a class for a year and must say good-bye to those students and get ready to welcome a new class."

"My, " said the angel, " The tear thing is a great idea...You are a genius!!

"The Lord looked somber, "I didn't put it there."

Great Books to Read

These are a few great books I turn to when I need ideas on how to deal with T and Nay. I don't recommend or feel that anyone's plan will work in total for anyone else's child, or even your own second child, but I am not opposed to picking anyone's brain and using it as a springboard to create my own plans of attack.

• Supernanny – Jo Frost


• Attachment Parenting – Sears


• What to Expect…all of them

T is into taking pictures.

He is not very good yet so most of them come out looking like crime scene photos or those weird grainy pictures people supposedly take just before they are being murglerized. Here are a couple representing his latest work...

I have two sensational kidlets!

Look at these two!

We have a stunning little man we call "T"

and a beautiful little girl we call "Nay-Nay."

I challenge you to look at this pic

and deny my claims!

Well, I guess I'm bloggin about nuthin

I am starting a blog because...well...everyone else has one. I am hoping that it will be a fun way to chronicle the ridiculousness of my life. Keep checking back to see what happens.