Where do you study?

I suspect....

It was K....in my bathroom....with the scissors!

Clueless

What my bed looks like when K is not home.

K comes home tomorrow and I can not wait. Neither can the kids. It's tough when he's gone. I wouldn't do very well as a single parent.

Here is my make up picture of Z on the second day of school.

Z-6th grade

The kids came home a little less energetic today. The days are really long and they aren't used to so many rules. Z, J and S all have teachers who yell alot and throw things at the students so I'm trying not to freak out over that. Is that something that is normal? I'll try it out for a couple more days. Then figure out what my options are. A has a wonderful teacher though.

Some older boys on the bus asked Z if he liked girls . Of course he gave the answer that his mother taught him which is "No way! Girls are gross!" Now he is trying to figure out how to get out of that mess as now no one wants much to do with him except to tease him. I am quickly remembering why I hated riding the school bus. He wants to try it again tomorrow though. I'm once again trying to not over react. I'm open to any suggestions on this one.

As I was headed to bed tonight, I went into my bathroom and there are some things that surprise me enough that I have to struggle to bite my tongue.

Obviously we will be going to the hair salon tomorrow! The thing that throws me off is that this is a lot of hair and it is long. How did I not notice that someone just scalped them self?

First Day of School

After being home schooled for the last 4 years, our family made the decision unanimously that this year the kids would go back to public school. K flew out at 6am to Houston for a couple of days and so I was left to face this big event on my own. I think I handled things pretty well. The older kids left for the bus at 6:50. And I...went back to bed. (Breakfast is free so I didn't even have to worry about that. Z thought it was great that he was able to have fruit loops with chocolate milk instead of white milk. Breakfast doesn't get much better than that.) I tried to tell the kids that most Mom's take their kids to school on the first day. They couldn't wait to ride the bus. I told them that it was too far to walk with all those heavy school supplies in their backpacks. (The bus stop for our subdivision is a half mile away!) They said they could handle it. I told them that they might get lost trying to find their classrooms. After all, it is a new school to all of them. J said that if it would make me feel better that I could go to the school later and check on them but that I needed to not bother them because they would be very busy learning new things. (Even little A rode the kindergarten bus all alone and she really was the only kid on the bus because obviously mom's really do take their kids to school on the first day.) After they had left for the bus I discovered that J had forgotten his Kleenex's on the table so I decided to drive over to the bus stop because it was very important not to forget your Kleenex's on the first day of school. Can you believe that he was so embarrassed. I told him that if he wanted to see embarrassed I'd just make him kiss me good bye in front of all those friends. He suddenly saw things my way but I guess mom's aren't supposed to go to the bus stop either. I told the principal about our situation when I registered them last week and I warned that there may be some attachment issues that would have to be addressed. I explained that if she received complaints of some crazy lady sitting outside in the parking lot crying, not to call the police, just tell me and I'll go home. Wow, writing this out, I'm seeing myself as being a little bit scary. No wonders my children are anxious to go to school. I think that maybe I need to get a hobby. Here's some cute pictures from this morning.S-2nd grade

J-4th grade

A-Kindergarten

K and H-home schooled

At this point, you may be wondering why there is not a picture of Z. Well, I thought that I would break things up a little and post a second day of school picture for him. Okay, actually...as I was getting the pictures for this blog, I discovered that, apparently, I forgot to take a picture of him. I'm not quite sure how that happened. Now I'm wondering what else I may have totally not done today. (K, no worries. I just checked and there are 6 kids in their beds asleep, all the doors are all locked and the garage is shut. Who left me in charge anyways?)

Job Perks

K's had a really "rough" week at work this past week. This week the National Gaurd out of the Dakota's came to help the Sheriff's office conduct their annual marijuana eradication. He jumped out of bed not able to get ready and leave fast enough and came skipping through the door each evening. He couldn't wipe his smile off his face. He made strange happy noises in his sleep. He even woke up drooling. He said he's fallen in love (again). I've put together a little slide show for you. Enjoy! I know K did!!! The main reason K wanted this job was because he loves to fly, especially in the helicopters. Here a few pictures that his team took while looking for marijuana that week.

Issues

Today I was trying to read something on the computer and I couldn't read it. I couldn't see the words! I kept thinking that it was probably the combination of colors that was straining my eyes. Finally, K did something to the screen and it made the words bigger. Physically I can see the screen better but emotionally I'm struggling with the idea that at the age of 20 something I should not have to have the font on the largest setting in order to read. I took the kids in to the eye doctor to have their eyes checked before school and I also had my eyes checked, since it had been 10 years since my last check up, and he said that my eyes are getting older and slowly beginning to not be able to switch back and forth between distances (blah, blah, blah!) and basically said go to the store and by some cheap reading glasses. So, here is me wearing my new "cheap reading glasses".

I bought the "coolest" pair I could find. They don't have a very good selection at Target I decided however neither did Fred Meyer or Rite Aid. I'm only allowed to wear them in the privacy of my own room because, you know, they look sorta dorky which is very damaging to my children's preteen social images. I tried to tell my kids that I bought the kind that make me look really smart and that's much more important then being cool but they didn't go for it. So now I'm trying to adjust with my newly discovered reality. Not only am I not "cool" but I also can't see well enough to know I'm not "cool".


I guess while I'm making adjustments (or confessions) it's time to start adjusting to that fact that I am also not "20 something". In fact in a few weeks I will not only have one 3 in my age but two. The only times I have been grateful for my age is when people find out that I have a son turning 12 and they doubt that I am old enough to have a child that age. I'm thankful I can proudly say,"Yes! I definitely am that old."






Oh!

P.S. Please don't tell anyone my real age. I'm dealing with my aging issues one at a time.

P.S.#2-Ashley, after your post about spell checking your blog I try to make sure I spell check mine. It takes too much effort to remember all the correct spellings and other grammar things I learned in school way back when. (I can't even remember if it's P.P.S. or P.S.S. so, in order to avoid looking really dumb, I just numbered them:))

P.S.#3-Does anyone know how to change the font size back to "normal"?

This is sweet!

Today's Sweet Memories

We were driving home this morning from swim lessons and A says to J, "J, You did very good today in swimming lessons. Mommy and I are very proud of you!"


I sent the boys out to pull this big weed that was covered in little white flowers. When they were finished, Justyn put a cereal bowl full of water and flowers on the kitchen table. He said, "These were on that weed that I pulled. I threw the weed away but I broke all these flowers off first. I thought you might enjoy looking at them for a few more days."

K is 3!

Yesterday was K's birthday. She wanted to have pizza in the mountains so after church we up into the South Hills to our favorite picnic spot. The kids ran all over the mountain. We ate cold pizza and lemonade. We had chocolate cake and ice cream cups. I didn't get her gifts wrapped so K hid them and then she went on a little present hunt. It was fun. We took K's cousin M and his wife A and thier 4 children. K was very happy with the afternoon. She said that it was the best day ever. She was so excited because she had waited her whole life to turn three.

K has lots of favorite things. Her favorite color is PINK. Her favorite song is ABCDEFG. Her favorite movie is HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL. Her favorite toy is DRESS UP SHOES. Her favorite person is EMILY. Someday she hopes to meet EMILY. If she could travel anywhere she would go to EMILY'S. Her favorite animal is A BABY. Her favorite thing to play is BARBIE'S. Her favorite computer game is ABCDEFG (Starfall.com). Her favorite food is PISTACHIOS and JUICE (that's what she was eating when I asked her these questions.) Her favorite memory is HER BIRTHDAY. When she grows up she wants to be PRETTY. Her names are TAFWIN LEA and CALLI.

Other favorites that made her list are: CHANAE, STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE, CHARPEY and RYAN, CHOCOLATE CHIPS, BUTTER, "I AM A CHILD OF GOD", NANCY'S BLANKET, and A's SHOES!

Funny story about K: She is always saying funny things. Yesterday morning we were getting ready for church and in her saddest voice she says, "Mom, I don't have a boyfriend." I said "That's okay but why do you need a boyfriend?" "So I can kiss him!"

Boys!

I would like to introduce you to:

My husband K, and my three sons, Big K (ie: Z), Middle K (ie: J), and Little K (ie: H).

Common interests are:

Watching Season One of "CHiPs"

(All the time! Did you know there are, like, 5 seasons of this show? We only have season 1!)

Playing PS2 Socom 1, 2, 3, and Combined Assault

(This is a navy seals game that is rated M because they kill people! The guy at Hastings said that the military uses games like these to train their soldiers. Great! We are in training!)

And making crude body noises.

(Poor S can't hardly stand this. It makes her so upset that she cries and is very insistant that they excuses themselves properly. That just makes them laugh and want to do it even more.)

I do not understand how the male brain works. I am doing my best to help them be civilized men but I feel like I'm not winning this battle. (Great...now I sound like the boys)

So, I was watching them play this Navy Seals game and K sneaks up on some guy and points his gun at him. In subtitles the guy said, "Don't shoot! I surrender." K kills him. I said, "K, He surrendered. Why did you kill him?" His reply, "He didn't say it in English." WHAT?

Last night K comes to bed after midnight. I mumbled "How was your game?" His reply "If you shoot them in the head they die instantly." HUH?

I spilled some sugar on the floor tonight and it landed next to Z's feet. J yells, "Quick Z! Retreat! To Alegasia!" OKAY!? (Where's Alegasia?)

I told the boys to get ready for church today. Z comes in to my room very distressed. He says that is impossible to do that right now as they are very busy. I said, "Doing what?" "Mom, some of our guys have been blown out of the sky and we have been sent in to rescue them. We have already found 2 of them and they are dead. We didn't get there soon enough. If we stop to get ready for church, they will all die." WHAT???

K's in the bathroom getting ready. He belches. Zh laughs. K says, "How was that one?" Z's giggles, "Good one, Dad. Do another one!" K says, "If you think that one was good, wait until you hear this one." GROSS!

(It's like on 7Brides for 7Brothers when Adam is acting uncivilized like his brothers and Millie gets upset with him and he says "What do I need to be civilized for? I already got me a wife". But, K, my boys are still single.)

So, with CHiPs, I don't mind watching that every now and then. Ponch and John are pretty cute, however, I'm sure that's not why the boys are watching it. The whole fighting thing is hard for me to get because I don't want to kill anyone no matter what language they speak. And as for the burping thing, well, I have to act disgusted by the whole thing but well, let just say, I went to girls camp when I was younger.

Z is turning 12 in a couple of weeks and his emotions are all over the map. I put my arm around him in public the other day and he just about died. He was so embarrassed. He was so proud to show me his newly discovered arm pit hair. His voice is crackly. Sometimes when he is talking I have to go see who is in my house. His hair is starting to go curly. He looks like he's growing up. He is almost the "T" word. I'm not ready for this. I don't have a clue what I am doing. This is very foreign territory. (there's that army talk again) I'm going to have to get a book on how to raise boys. Any suggestions?

Today I feel...SAD

Today President Faust died. I liked him so much. I loved to hear him talk and he always seemed so kind and good. It's hard to see things change. I feel so small and helpless in this big crazy world. Sometimes I wish life wasn't so hard. I'm so thankful for my knowledge of the gospel and for our Savior, Jesus Christ. I know that through the atonement and our faith, he can heal our hearts and give us peace in spite of our pain.

V's Wedding and Reception

V is married!! It was fun to get together with all of my brothers and sisters and their families. We don't get to all be together very often. It seems like the time goes way to quickly and is too far in between visits but we'll take what we can get. 7 out of 10 of us are now married. 2 parents + 9 sisters + 8 brothers + 20 grandkids = 1 BIG happy family (and we're still going to get bigger!! YEAH!) Thanks V and J for getting married so that we had a great reason to get together. I love my family!!!

Our Family

Mom, Dad & Kids PLUS J and Grandma

(back)D, S, B, (front)L, M, C, Dad, Mom, V, J, Grandma, D, L, K

The Boys(back)D, S, J, Dad, N (front)B, K, J, T

The Girls(back)L, Mom, C (middle)K, M, D, C (front)L, V, B

The Grandkids4 of these kids are from J's side. The other 20 are ours!

S's Baptism

S was baptized on Saturday, August 4th. She was so excited and nervous. Her father baptized her and confirmed her. She sang her first public solo, a song called "Today I will be Baptized". She sounded so sweet. She did a beautiful job.She was able to have lots of family and friends come to support her. We are so proud of her and love her very much! It was a very spiritual afternoon.