We decided not to enroll Nate into 3 year old preschool this year and instead do it at home. I should be capable of doing this, right? This summer I worked hard on creating a curriculum and lesson plans. We started last week, and although there were a couple of bumps and issues, I can say that that the kids are learning and we're having fun so it must be working. At least somewhat! Ha!
We do have to deal with interruptions that probably don't happen in a regular preschool setting. Like people coming to the door, taking time out for time-outs (not surprising that school at home does NOT prevent tantrums and melt-downs), and Maddie needing to use the potty every 10 minutes. And like their own mommy teaching them. I think kids are usually so much better behaved for other adults than their own parents. And also just getting used to the idea of it's "school" time not "do whatever you want to do" time. They seem to think they can just quit in the middle of an activity and go play with toys!
I am having to adjust and be flexible as I learn what works and what doesn't and how long certain activities take to do, but I am finding the kids like the structure and activities and even when we're not in school, they are asking to do some of the things we have done (usually the stuff on the computer, but hey, if they're learning while having fun, why not?).
Sunday, August 25, 2013
Thursday, August 15, 2013
End of Summer Blues
As the end of summer draws near, the kids (and I) are getting more restless with each day. We have had plenty of fun-filled days this summer, enjoying outside, play dates, parks, the zoo, the pool, just to name a few. When summer starts we are ready for lazy summer days with no schedules or set plans, but by the end of summer we are more than ready to get back into a routine.
This restlessness has easily translated into naughtiness the last couple of weeks. And I mean naughty. Big meltdowns, lots of fighting, and lots of defiance. Which has left me worn out! But, I will tell you how good God is. Because at that moment when you think you've had just as much as you can take for one day, He gives you a little glimmer of hope that says "hang in there, it's all going to be okay".
For me, this time, the glimmer of hope happened while I was cooking dinner. I sent the kids outside to get out of my hair, er, play. I kept stealing glances of them out the window. Expecting to see them fighting, instead I saw Nate pushing Maddie on the swing as she squealed with delight, shouting "higher". I saw them running around the yard chasing each other. I saw them playing together in the sandbox. I saw them play house and Maddie pour Nate a glass of "lemonade".
Seeing those smiles was exactly what I needed at that moment. Hearing that laughter makes it all better and all the fighting and screaming and tantrums worth it. Watching them play together just melts my heart. It's in those moments that I know all the hard work is worth and it WILL be okay.
Monday, August 5, 2013
Our Feisty Two-Year Old
Maddie is two!
And she's a feisty little girl. She has so much character and cracks us up that we'll take the naughty with the good.
She gets into everything. I mean EVERYTHING. We have locks on doors we never had with Nate-every door is locked and we also got locks for the oven and fridge (both of which have been broken already). She is always trying to climb up on the counters so she can get into the cabinets. She can open child-proof bottles (I have no clue how she does it). And we have two good stories just in the past couple weeks to paint a picture of our destructive little girl.
One afternoon the kids were playing upstairs while Michael and I were talking downstairs. We went up to check on them to find Maddie in her room with the bottle of bath bubbles (the bathroom door should have been locked). She had dumped out the entire contents and was rubbing it into the carpet. It probably took at least 2 hours to clean that mess up. At least her room smells bubble gum fresh!
The kids had a particular difficult time going down for their naps one Saturday recently. Tired of listening to their crying, I shut our bedroom door (we were trying to have a lazy afternoon watching tv in bed). Some time later, Maddie comes strolling in our room and climbs up in bed. Instantly I smell her and see she is messy all over her hands and face. I rush downstairs to find she got into the pantry (also usually locked) and there were chips and cheese balls all over the kitchen and living room floor.
Moral of the stories: make sure all doors are locked, even if it's nap time and you think your kids are securely in their rooms.
She loves to be girly. She loves wearing dresses and bows in her hair (when she actually keeps them in). Whenever we tell her she's so pretty she lifts up her toes because we call nail polish "pretties". She also loves to take care of everybody. We play house a lot and she makes sure everyone has something to eat and drink. She's always concerned that everyone has what they need.
She's not potty trained and hasn't gone on the potty since that first time. Not a concern for me. Of course having one potty trained I can get anxious to have the other one done too, but it can wait until she's ready. She sits on the potty and doesn't have a clue what to do. It might take some time.
She talks like crazy and loves to learn. She is learning colors and shapes. She can count to two. But my favorite recent story about her learning is the Bible story lesson. At church last week, the lesson was about being kind to others. They had a picture of a bear and were taught to say sorry and give big bear hugs when they hurt someone or do something naughty. We put the lesson up on the fridge and work on it that week. So, every time we do something wrong, we hug the other person and say the memory verse, "love is kind". By Tuesday she had it down. She said "sorry" and came and gave me a bear hug and then without prompting said, "love kind".
So even though she's rotten, she's so stinkin' adorable and sweet.
And she's a feisty little girl. She has so much character and cracks us up that we'll take the naughty with the good.
She gets into everything. I mean EVERYTHING. We have locks on doors we never had with Nate-every door is locked and we also got locks for the oven and fridge (both of which have been broken already). She is always trying to climb up on the counters so she can get into the cabinets. She can open child-proof bottles (I have no clue how she does it). And we have two good stories just in the past couple weeks to paint a picture of our destructive little girl. One afternoon the kids were playing upstairs while Michael and I were talking downstairs. We went up to check on them to find Maddie in her room with the bottle of bath bubbles (the bathroom door should have been locked). She had dumped out the entire contents and was rubbing it into the carpet. It probably took at least 2 hours to clean that mess up. At least her room smells bubble gum fresh!
The kids had a particular difficult time going down for their naps one Saturday recently. Tired of listening to their crying, I shut our bedroom door (we were trying to have a lazy afternoon watching tv in bed). Some time later, Maddie comes strolling in our room and climbs up in bed. Instantly I smell her and see she is messy all over her hands and face. I rush downstairs to find she got into the pantry (also usually locked) and there were chips and cheese balls all over the kitchen and living room floor.
Moral of the stories: make sure all doors are locked, even if it's nap time and you think your kids are securely in their rooms.
She loves to be girly. She loves wearing dresses and bows in her hair (when she actually keeps them in). Whenever we tell her she's so pretty she lifts up her toes because we call nail polish "pretties". She also loves to take care of everybody. We play house a lot and she makes sure everyone has something to eat and drink. She's always concerned that everyone has what they need.
She's not potty trained and hasn't gone on the potty since that first time. Not a concern for me. Of course having one potty trained I can get anxious to have the other one done too, but it can wait until she's ready. She sits on the potty and doesn't have a clue what to do. It might take some time.
She talks like crazy and loves to learn. She is learning colors and shapes. She can count to two. But my favorite recent story about her learning is the Bible story lesson. At church last week, the lesson was about being kind to others. They had a picture of a bear and were taught to say sorry and give big bear hugs when they hurt someone or do something naughty. We put the lesson up on the fridge and work on it that week. So, every time we do something wrong, we hug the other person and say the memory verse, "love is kind". By Tuesday she had it down. She said "sorry" and came and gave me a bear hug and then without prompting said, "love kind".
So even though she's rotten, she's so stinkin' adorable and sweet.
Monday, July 15, 2013
County Fair 2013
We haven't been to a fair in a couple of years (I was preggo with Maddie the last time). I don't know why, but we usually don't go. It's usually super hot and up until this point we had babies that weren't at a fun age to take. But we decided to go last night. The weather was perfect and the kids were excited to see what it was all about. We have never been to the Bartholomew County Fair and I must say we had a really good time.
We started with the animal exhibits. Nate said the bunnies were his favorite but it was hard to tell. He had to touch every single one he saw. Surprisingly none of the animals bit either of them. We saw a baby cow drinking from the mother. The kids were in awe and thought it was so neat.
We went on one ride--the carousel. Thought it'd be the best ride for both of them since we were only doing one ride. Maddie didn't like it and as soon as it started wanted off the horse, so we sat on the bench. Nate didn't even want us near him on the ride and told us to go away. So I'm pretty sure he would have done fine on a ride by himself. Oh well, next year I guess.
No games for us. We tried to find one that has a winner every time but the only one like that was throwing darts at a balloon, which I didn't think Nate could handle so we just skipped the games, enjoyed a funnel cake, and headed home. It was so much fun we will definitely be going every year now.
We started with the animal exhibits. Nate said the bunnies were his favorite but it was hard to tell. He had to touch every single one he saw. Surprisingly none of the animals bit either of them. We saw a baby cow drinking from the mother. The kids were in awe and thought it was so neat.
We went on one ride--the carousel. Thought it'd be the best ride for both of them since we were only doing one ride. Maddie didn't like it and as soon as it started wanted off the horse, so we sat on the bench. Nate didn't even want us near him on the ride and told us to go away. So I'm pretty sure he would have done fine on a ride by himself. Oh well, next year I guess.
No games for us. We tried to find one that has a winner every time but the only one like that was throwing darts at a balloon, which I didn't think Nate could handle so we just skipped the games, enjoyed a funnel cake, and headed home. It was so much fun we will definitely be going every year now.
Playing in the Pool
I can't believe we are into the second week of July and it was our first trip of the summer to the pool, especially after practically living there last summer. But it has been a cooler summer, but even on those hotter days for some reason we just haven't gotten up there. With the ominous clouds we probably could have skipped it, but we went and it was fun even if just for an hour or so. We left before the storm rolled in, but the kids had so much fun-we will definitely be getting in more pool time before the summer ends!We went with a couple of my friends and their kids so lots of fun and kids to play with (7 kids!). Nate spent most of the time in the kiddie pool but a lot of the other kids were in the big pool and he wanted to give the slide a try. My friend Kim had a life jacket for him but I still wasn't sure if he was actually going to do it. He hesitated for a minute at the top of the slide and then went! Kim was in the pool to catch him. He stayed in the big pool for a little bit with her but soon wanted to go back to the kiddie pool. It was very exciting to see him in the big pool and hopefully we can spend some more time in there getting used to it.
I don't think she even put one foot in. She kept to the perimeter, watching everyone else and eating a snack. Maybe I can get her toes in the water next time...baby steps, haha!
Friday, July 5, 2013
Fireworks At Last
Our 4th of July festivities kicked off on the 3rd. We had Alex and Mi Kayla over for a cookout and then we went to the fireworks show. We haven't been in years together and I haven't been since I was pregnant with Nate. So I was pretty excited to get back to some traditional 4th of July activities! I had the kids nap late so they would make it until then (the show didn't start until 10pm), which worked out nicely. Our friend Wanda and her daughter Corry joined us there as well. Columbus fireworks are always done on the 3rd, which I like because Michael always has off on the 4th but works the day after. The local radio channel sets up the fireworks with music and it's an awesome show. Except this year. I hate to even complain because they were still beautiful, but just not quite what we remember. The music was off, the show was short and the finale was anticlimactic. BUT, it was fun, the kids loved it-no tears-and stayed awake the whole time, and it was awesome to have family and friends together and to restart this tradition that has been long overdue. 
On the 4th we had our friends, the Herters, over for a pitch-in dinner. We made pulled pork sandwiches, which I haven't done but maybe once a looong time ago. Dinner turned out great and the kids played outside afterwards so us adults could enjoy a visit. The weather was perfect too-the rain held out and it wasn't super hot. We did this last year but it was so hot that we stayed inside the entire time. Overall, a pretty good 4th of July!
Friday, June 28, 2013
A Couple of Funnies
I don't know if you'll find them funny, but I do and so here it is!
I heard Nate crying in his room. I went up to check on him and he was telling me "throw up". I heard "nose" in there too, but when I hear throw up I don't stand still for long. I quickly ushered him into the bathroom just for him to blow his nose into the toilet. "Whew, mommy, my nose throw up!"
I was making out the shopping list. I explained to Nate that I was writing down new underwear for him because his are too small. He replied, "cuz my butt's so big?".
He's constantly saying hilarious or random things. I should have a notebook handy because these are the only two I remember.
I heard Nate crying in his room. I went up to check on him and he was telling me "throw up". I heard "nose" in there too, but when I hear throw up I don't stand still for long. I quickly ushered him into the bathroom just for him to blow his nose into the toilet. "Whew, mommy, my nose throw up!"
I was making out the shopping list. I explained to Nate that I was writing down new underwear for him because his are too small. He replied, "cuz my butt's so big?".
He's constantly saying hilarious or random things. I should have a notebook handy because these are the only two I remember.
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