Five Minute Friday: Welcome

We started back to school and work this week. It was a welcome return to our regular routines. I'm not saying that we didn't enjoy the Christmas break. We did. I am never negligent in remembering how fortunate I am to have two weeks off at the holidays. That's not a work benefit everyone has. The kids and I spent a good number of days just hanging around the house. There was even a day when Henry wore shorts because I hadn't done laundry and we "weren't going anywhere anyway, right?"

It was a good break. But just as you cannot appreciate the sun without a few storms and you forget to enjoy the light unless it's broken up by dark; we start to take each other for granted when we are in each other's faces for too long. In our house absence makes the heart grow fonder! When I picked the kids up on Monday, we were all happy to see each other. The kids had enjoyed going back to school; learning, playing with their friends, and interacting with people other than the ones in our house.

2014 was a good year. It had it's ups and downs, but as a sunshine-y optimist, I tend to remember mostly the ups. When I remember the downs, I usually remember the life lessons learned rather than the actual events. I welcome 2015! I know it will be a good year too. Life is what you make it and I choose to make it a good one!

This post is party of Five Minute Friday. Click the link below for more details.

1. Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking.
2. Link back here and invite others to join in.
3. And then absolutely, no ifs, ands or buts about it, you need to visit the person who linked up before you; encourage them in their comments. Seriously. That is, like, the rule. And the fun. And the heart of this community...

A Hiking We Will Go

Monday, Labor Day, was a school holiday for the kids. Ken took the day off and then I succumbed to peer pressure and took the day off as well so we could spend the day together. We had discovered over the weekend that our dishwasher was broken, so Monday I had two choices: stare at (and wash) an overflowing sink full of dishes or GET OUT OF THE HOUSE!

Those of you who have met me know which choice I made!

We headed out to Shenandoah National Park and enjoyed a nice day outdoors walking through the meadow and the forest. The kids really love the idea of hiking, but they usually break down about 30 minutes after we get into the woods. They did pretty well this time and thankfully the terrain wasn't too hard. 

We saw tons of butterflies, a few caterpillars, and even spooked two deer up in the woods. The weather was gorgeous! There was plenty of shade in the forest and a nice breeze blowing across the meadow.

On the way home we stopped off in a sunflower field a local farmer had planted.  We missed the peak blooming period, but we still found some pretty flowers.

After that we made a quick stop at the grocery store. We needed paper plates and plastic cups if we were going to survive the broken dishwasher! However, for the record, I did wash all those dishes Monday night. And the new dishwasher is being delivered tomorrow!

See!?!?!

Kids' Character Challenge

Back in December, while the kids and I were on break, we started to get a little bit...tired of each other. The weather was bad and we spent a lot of time stuck in the house together. I was starting to pull my hair out for a way for everyone to get their moods back on track. Then I had an idea! I tried it out and it actually helped, so I tweaked it a little bit and tried it again the next month. Now were are on our fourth month and I think it's time to share.

The Kids' Character Challenge

The idea started out rather simply. I wanted the kids to be more helpful, so I made it a challenge. I told them that each time they were helpful to me or their dad or each other, I would give them a "helper point." At the end of the month, the child with the most helper points would get to choose a special prize for the family. I took a piece of paper, divided it into thirds, and wrote the kids' names at the tops of the columns. I pinned it up in the living room and started adding hashmarks each time someone was helpful.

One important detail that I found to be helpful was to be very mindful of my language in regards to the chart. Each time someone did something helpful, I would say, "Thank you. That was very helpful. I'm going to give you a helper point." Seeing one of their siblings receive helper points would often spur the others to try harder.
At the end of December, Frances was the winner! She chose a trip to Sweet Frog, a local frozen yogurt shop. As we loaded into the van, I made a point to talk with the kids about how nice it had been to have them working extra hard to be helpful. I also made the essential point that makes the whole competition worth doing: when each of us work harder to help each other, WE ALL WIN! It wasn't just the person with the most points getting froyo, we all got to go together.
We've continued with the character challenge with different ttraits each month. So far we've done kindness, generosity, and responsibility. Henry won the last two months and chose a swimming trip and a ice cream run to McDonald's. It was really fun going swimming in January (at an indoor pool, of course)! It was nice to be able to spend that time together all while congratulating Henry on a job well done.

They are working on being responsible this month. I've taken to defining the character trait on our chart so the kids know exactly what they are working on. The kids enjoy competing for the honor of choosing the reward, but they also enjoy celebrating together as a family and praising each other for working hard.
As you can see from the pictures, Ben has been behind all three months. He's only three, so maybe he's less ready to internalize the traits we are working on, but he still enjoys earning points, and as I pointed out earlier, we all win when we work together.

One of my favorite parts about this game is the simplicity. It is not complicated to keep track of and the rules don't need to be repeated daily. In all honesty, I can forget about encouraging them for a day or two and there are no ill effects. They often ask if a certain behavior will earn them a point, which reminds me about it and I am happy to reward a point if it has been earned.
I'm not sure which character trait we'll work on next month. I've been looking back on their most recent behavior issues and choosing a new trait that will challenge them just enough. We've even talked together about which trait they would like to work on. This family challenge is making all five of us more mindful of the people we want to be and the traits we want to espouse.
Do you have a way to work on character building with your children? What works for you?

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Have You Made Your Christmas List Yet??

Are you done with your Christmas shopping?  I'm not!  Haven't even really started.  Well not completely.  I truly like to take my holidays one at a time and so I typically try to finish with Thanksgiving before I start in on Christmas.  We like to savor Advent around here.  But I get that not everyone feels that way.  In fact, I know a few people who finish their Christmas shopping for the following year by shopping at all the after-Christmas sales!  I would totally LOSE anything I tried to buy that early!!

I have nothing against people who finish all their shopping early.  Kudos to you for having the brain cells to remember where you put it and who it's for!!  I try really hard to accommodate all of my early shopping friends and relatives, though.  Especially when it comes to gifts for my kids.  I have running lists in my head of things I would never buy them things they might enjoy having and don't own yet.  I also have a very special list here.  Go check it out.  Unless you've already bought my kids presents. Because then it's probably already too late.  But don't worry! I'm a forgiving person!

We have bins just like this at home!

If you're visiting from Margarita Mommies, then welcome!  I hope you enjoy it here. If you do, make sure to leave a comment so I can return your visit.  And you can find all my follow buttons at the top of the right-hand sidebar.  Thanks for stopping by!!

What Makes Your Kids Freak Out?

Earlier this week, Benjamin screamed at me the whole way home from day care.  My offense?  I had "parked in the wrong spot" when I picked him up.  This morning he was extremely mad because, while he had asked me to cut his eggs for him, he didn't want me to cut all of them.  It got me wondering...What are the most common reasons kids freak out?

What makes your kids freak out?
	Tired
	Hungry
	Sibling squabbles
	Clothing options
	Yucky dinner choices
	Being told "no"
	Unknown
	Other (add it in the comments)
pollcode.com free polls

Hiking With Children

I just got back from an amazing family reunion and I've got lots to say about it (likely next week), but for now I wanted to share pictures and a story about my hiking adventure from last week. 

My friend Julie had asked if we wanted to try out some trails behind a local community center with her last Friday.  I thought it sounded like fun, so we agreed to meet up that morning, along with Julie's sister Carolyn and her son, R*. 

We had trouble getting started because everyone was tired from fireworks the previous evening.  You know the only time kids sleep late is when you need them to get moving!!  We ended up being 45 minutes late to meet up with our hiking crew.  Sorry!!

Julie had gotten a map and we had all looked it over to figure out what our plan would be.  Who am I kidding!  I don't do maps!!  But we decided to hit the trail and see where it led.  All the trails intersected at various points and all the trails led back to the main one which made a big horseshoe behind the community center. We figured we couldn't get lost (this is a literary device called "foreshadowing").

We had three moms and six kids, aged 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 9.  I had Benjamin in a backpack carrier and R* was in a stroller (which the lady at the community center said would be fine).

We could see trail markings and the kids were all excited.  Then we came to the first fork and couldn't quite figure out which way to go.  Undeterred, we picked randomly and kept walking.  This happened a few more times and we consulted the map and each came up with a different idea that totally made sense.  But we kept walking.  We even wrestled the stroller up some rocky hills and soldiered on.

Does this make sense??

Then it started to get hot...and muggy.  Henry found a bug on his leg that freaked him out (yes, it was a tick).  I brushed it off after two tries and he was fine.  Some complaining started.  I told the bigger kids to look for the first letter of their name in the nature around them.  I figure that an F, H and L would be pretty easy to find.  The younger three thankfully wouldn't understand the game because they would have needed a B, R, and D.

Frances found a lower case "F"

 Henry started telling Julie's daughter about all the "Ls" we had finding.  Carolyn commented that he was really good at the game.  Sadly, I had to inform her that he was finding lowercase "Ls" which isn't all that hard in a forest!!

We found some scat.  I have a bit of a fascination with it when found in the forest.  Diapers, not so much!!  We examined a few patches and talked about what kinds of animals had likely left them and what they had been eating.

**Aside #1** I told my brother about some berry-filled scat and he said it was probably a bear.  Then he explained that black bear scat is full of berries, where grizzly bear scat is full of pepper spray and bear bells. Get it?? It's a joke.  Aren't we a funny family!?!

**Aside #2** At the family reunion we spent some time in a state park.  My mom picked up a brochure about fun kids' activities.  Here's one of the programs offered:

 Ummm...No thank you.

We also got to see some wildlife: butterflies, dragonflies, this huge caterpillar:

It was bigger than my middle finger!

 and a spider making a web.

Pretty sure it's not radioactive

 We kept coming upon different trail intersections and choosing randomly.  At one point we went up a very steep, rocky hill.  Of course, once we wrestled the stroller up it we discovered two things: First, that we had gone up the wrong path, and second that the stroller wheel was locked!!

The kids ended up getting more than a little cranky, but we were already trying to head back out at that point.  We wondered a few times whether is was quicker to keep going or to turn around.  In the end we kept going and finally made it back to the community center where we celebrated with lunch and then mini-blizzards from Dairy Queen.

The question I know you are all dying to ask is: Does Benjamin like hiking??

Well, the answer is, no.  Not really.  But he does like ice cream!!

I Wish My Kids Misbehaved Like This More Often

Last night we had the pleasure of attending the Confirmation Mass at our church.  I haven't been to a Confirmation Mass since the last one I coordinated about 3 years ago.  I haven't really had a reason.  This year, however, one of Henry's "big friends" was being Confirmed.

Michael and his mother are in the teaching rotation for Henry's class this year.  His mom told me that Michael specifically asked for Henry's class this year because he had so much fun with him the year before.  Henry *loves* Michael!  He loves giving him high fives because Michael pretends that they hurt. He loves sitting with him at Mass because Michael is an usher and he lets Henry help him take up the collection.  He loves going to class with him and Michael always walks him back to our pew and tell me what a great job Henry did in class that day.

When I told Henry that Michael was being Confirmed, Henry was a little quizzical.  Being only 5 he doesn't really get Sacraments. He knew Frances' First Communion was important last year, though, so I explained that this was important for Michael in a similar way.  Then I asked Henry if he wanted to go to Michael's Confirmation.  Repeatedly.  Stressing the fact that it was extra church. And late in the evening. And he couldn't take toys.  And each time he replied with an emphatic "YES!" Because he really loves Michael.

So we made plans to go.  Thankfully, Ken was off last night and we were able to give all three kids a choice of whether to go or not.  They all said they wanted to go, so we ate a quick dinner and headed out to church.  The church was already crowded when we got there and even though the kids' auto-pilots kicked in and they tried to go to our regular seats, we had to sit in a different place.

Frances sat with Ken and the boys sat closer to me.  She was fine through the whole Mass because she is old enough to understand and want to participate.  I was pleasantly surprised when the boys were also fairly good and mostly quiet through the first 45 minutes of Mass.  Then they started getting wiggly.  They both wanted to stand on my lap and see Michael when his name was called.  (Incidentally, there were also a few of my former second graders being Confirmed, so that was a bit of a fun shock!)  Then Benjamin started singing "Allelula" by himself in competition with the Bishop's homily.  A little later the boys started playing "puppy" only in this case Benjamin was a puppy who really loved his owner (played by Henry) and kept hugging him.  Then Henry would giggle a little giggle and say, "He just loves me so much!" and Benjamin would give him a kiss and hug him some more.

The people around us glanced over at them a few times, but none of them looked annoyed. Instead the smiled brightly and probably thought to themselves what a wonderful mother I was to have children singing Alleluia and hugging each other all through Mass. {Okay, maybe that's not what they were thinking, but I can dream, right?}  Ken and I just kept smiling and rolling our eyes at each other over their heads.

After Mass we went over to the social hall and had some desserts and then ate almost all the olives from the food trays.  Henry got to give Michael a big hug and go say hi to his parents.  We headed home after a little bit and got the kids to bed.  On the way home I asked them what they had thought. The boys both said they liked it and Frances said she almost cried because it was so special.

The Holy Spirit was out in full force last night!!

5 Things I Hope My Kids Never Figure Out

Last night I was making dinner and supervising chores (fine, I was yelling threats from the kitchen...) when I said something that I've said many times before. For some reason though, this particular instance made me giggle.  And I decided it would make a good post.  So I present you with...

1. What started it all was when I said to Henry, "What did I tell you would happen if you didn't get that laundry put away."  The reason I laughed is that when I said it he ran quickly from the room, but for the life of me I couldn't remember what would happen if he didn't finish.  I have a couple of go-to "motivators" for each child.  I like to keep the consequences of the actions something logical, so, for example if you don't do your chores, you won't get to watch your TV show because you'll still be finishing what you were supposed to do.  If you don't wash your hands before dinner, you won't be able to sit with us at the table because your germy hands could make everyone sick.  But in this case, I have no idea what I had told Henry.  In the end, it didn't matter because apparently he remembered and he did get his laundry put away.  I just hope my kids never figure out how often I forget which consequences I promised.
2. One thing that Ken likes to roll his eyes at me about is my over-dramatization of lateness.  If we have a particularly busy Saturday where no one gets a nap (or any kind of downtime) I like to get everyone into bed early.  But I know that if I tell them they are going to bed early they will see it as a punishment and resist.  So around dinner, this is what happens, "Hey guys! We need to eat quickly because it's really late and everybody's got to get to bed."  When in fact it is only 5:30.  Or we'll be on our way home and I'll say, "Kids, we are getting home really late tonight, so as soon as we get in the house it's time for jammies and brushing your teeth."  And it's only 6:30. By setting this up early and stressing how late it is, I can get the kids in bed by 7:30 with very few problems.  I just hope my kids never figure out how to tell time.
3. I try to feed my kids a good diet of healthy food. However, I am not perfect about it and we all occasionally indulge in some junk: candy, prepared food, take-out, and fast food.  One thing I have found that helps to prevent temptation in regards to candy and junk food is to just not buy it.  I don't typically have those kinds of food around the house unless there is a specific reason. Around the holidays we get quite the influx of candy, just as I am sure that most of you do.  We put all the candy in one basket and the kids are allowed one piece after dinner if they have finished their meal.  They are pretty good at this rule and Frances and Henry clear their plates almost every night.  I just hope they never figure out how much of their candy I eat!
4. I've seen lots of pictures and videos of kids being naughty all over the Internet.  Some of them have gone viral and brought their parents fifteen minutes of fame.  Some of them are from my own Facebook friends.  I usually give a little chuckle, and then move on.  Sometimes I've gotten a pretty good "LOL, share with your friends" reaction.  But I always hide those pictures from my kids and I never take them myself.  Sure it's cute sometimes, but I know what would happen if I laughed at my kids while they were being bad...they would keep being bad. They would do it over and over again just for the laughs.  So I don't laugh.  Or at least I try really hard not to and I leave the room if necessary.  And we're all in trouble if Ken and I make eye contact!  Some of the naughty things they do are kinda funny, so I hope my kids never figure out how cute they can be when they're being naughty!
5.  Frances is my first born. She's the child that made me a mom. She's my only girl.  She hugs more often than my other kids.  She is just like me in her love of reading, her sense of style, her kindness and love of others.  Henry is my first boy.  He's the one who introduced me to the concept of how harrowing the life of a "boy mom" can be. He climbs things I never thought of as climbable.  He hugs tighter than than my other kids. He is just like me in his sense of curiosity and wonder with the world.  Benjamin is my baby.  He loves his brother and sister fiercely.   He hugs longer than the others.  He is just like me in his love of singing and music.  Sure they all drive me crazy at times, but more importantly I love them.  I love them each in different ways. I love them more than I ever thought I could love another person.  I just hope they never figure out which one I love more! (Because that one doesn't have an answer!)

Can anyone tell me...

• Why Frances will eat pizza, pizza soup and dip cheese sticks in spaghetti sauce from this jar, but will not eat spaghetti?

• Why my children are up at 5am on Saturdays, but have to be dragged out of bed at 7 on school days?

• Where there is room to sit on this couch with all these animals?

• Why my children know ALL the rules in our household, except when they should be following them?
• Why dinner takes 45 minutes to eat every night?
• Where Henry gets all his energy?
• How these kids got to be so cute?

There's No Place Like Home

The kids and I went to Radford for my dad's retirement party and were fortunate to be able to stay a few extra days to visit.  We did almost all of the summer pre-requisites.

We watched Uncle Alan go fishing. He got a fish on his first cast and then lost two lures in a row!!

We went to the park and blew bubbles with new birthday bubble wands from Jean and Clare.  Thanks guys!!

Played in the swings,

went down the slide

a few hundred times,

caught lightning bugs,

and spent some good quality time with family!

We are officially out numbered!

Benjamin Alan Lieber joined the family on Wednesday, April 28 at 4:16 PM.  He was 7 lbs, 9 oz and 18 1/2 inches long. We had a very easy delivery and are home doing well.  Here are a few pictures to enjoy:

Just born

Coming home

home

My precious kiddos!

Overheard from the Children's Room

FJ: But Henry-You are my best friend!

I love it when they get along and play together nicely!! Which is exceptionally funny because ten minutes before this exchange they were screaming at each other and I am sure that time will come again soon. I guess it is reassuring to know that at the end of the day they are completely in love with each other.

Side note: They just came out to get a princess crown and a pirate hat to take into their adventures in their room. 

Another side note: I know I am horribly behind on my blog, but I am trying to get some work done today, so I am refusing to do it now.

Also, other random thought: Henry didn't want to wear the pirate hat because he just came out with a bandana tied around his neck. Frances says he is a cowboy. He says, "I a princess cowboy!"  Then he got down on all fours and said "I am princess cowboy doggie!!" and growled at me.

Gus Bus Birthday Bash

We have an AWESOME program here in town called The Reading Road Show. The program consists of a classroom set of book bags that contain books for the children to take home from day care to their families and read together. These books get swapped out once a week, so the kids are continually exposed to new books and they get excited about reading. Another component of the program is the Gus Bus. The Gus Bus is kind of like a bookmobile made for kids. It comes to area day cares, home care facilities, public preschools and low income neighborhoods on a monthly basis. While on the Gus Bus, Mr. Mike reads a few stories to the kids, sings some songs and sometimes plays a game. The kids LOVE Mr. Mike!

This program was funded originally through a grant and it is now in its 5th year. So what does a bus do to celebrate its birthday? It invites all its vehicular friends out for a party!! The JMU Convocation Center parking lot is the host for the celebration. There are motorcycles, race cars, school buses, charter buses, trash trucks, police cars, and lots more vehicles that the kids can sit in or get into. We invited Stacey and her brood out for the morning and let the kids explore. There is a scavenger hunt while you are there to find a certain number of labelled bunny rabbits. When you find a bunny rabbit, you have to write down where you found it. When you find all the rabbits, you get a prize. This year my two both picked toothbrushes. We finished off the day with hot dogs and free ice cream. Then we headed home for naps!

Praying for MckMama

Today after our rest time, my class at the preschool took some time out to pray for MckMama. I told them a brief version of the story in words I hoped they could understand. I had them each feel their own hearts. Then I told them I had a friend whose baby had trouble with his heart. I told them that the doctors weren't sure what to do for him. I asked the kids if they knew anyone who could fix Stellan's heart. I wish you could have seen them all sitting there with their hands over their hearts as they all shouted "GOD!!" Then I gave each kid a letter of Stellan's name and had the color them. I asked them to pray for Stellan as they colored. I wish I could have written down the conversations they had while coloring!

When they finished their coloring, I had them hold their letters together to spell Stellan's name and then took their picture. Of course, I had forgotten my camera at home, so I had to use Amber's cell phone and send the pictures to my facebook account. Then I took all the kids into the office at the day care and let the kids watch me email the picture to MckMama as we said another prayer together. We made her photo gallery!! You have to scroll rather far down the page. MckMama is adding new pictures all the time and she puts them at the top, so we keep getting moved further down.

After they were all done, one of the kids asked if he could take his letter home and keep praying for Stellan. How sweet!!

Swimming Pool!

Every Thursday this summer we have taken the day care kids to the pool at Gypsy Hill. They have a really large shallow end where the kids can jump around and play and still be safe. All of the kids get in the water; most of them will put their faces in the water and a few of them can even swim. Here are some pictures and video I took today. This first one is Frances going under the water effortlessly.

The next one is Hunter and some of the boys running around.

For some reason, I can't upload any still photos right now, so check back.

Thankful Thursdays

I cannot believe that it is already August!! Where did the summer go? This week I am especially thankful for:

• My class. They get annoying and they don't always listen well, but I love my class and I will miss them at the end of the summer. One of the huge benefits of the child-care world versus public (or private) schools is that I get to forge a real bond with these kids and their families. If there are siblings, I get to know them as well. And then for school holidays and snow days I usually get to see "my kids" again. I get to keep in touch and get the latest on their progress once they get to "big school." And there's always next summer!


• I am thankful for my friend Heidy. Her husband got a great job offer in North Carolina, which is where her mother and stepfather wanted to move anyway, so with about 36 hours notice, she is off to Charlotte. She came to work at the daycare almost two years ago, soon after she and her husband and son arrived from Cuba. She learned English so quickly! And for the last year, she was my teaching assistant. She and I had a rhythm. We worked really well together. Some days she would say something and sound exactly like me-sometimes that was a good thing and sometimes it wasn't. :) She had such a love for the babies at the day care (especially mine). Heidy--Henry, Frances and I will miss you!!


• Summer-It is almost over. *sniff* I love being outside in the hot sun. I love to feel my hair get hot and go barefoot in the grass. I like going to the pool (although, I don't relish getting in the water). I like an excuse to wear my bathing suit and soak up some Vitamin D. I have never been diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder, but I feel happier in the summer and being cooped all winter makes me grumpy. Frances (and Henry, a little bit) love the water and playing outside. She learned to go under the water this summer (more later). It has been an awesome summer, and thankfully I think I have most of it recorded here on my trusty ole blog.

Thankful Thursdays

Today I am home from work because Henry threw up this morning twice at school. I took him to the doctor who said that it sounds like a stomach virus and to just keep him hydrated. He is acting fine now and hasn't thrown up since this morning.

• I am thankful for modern medicine. I love Henry's doctor. She was a good friend before she was his doctor and she was willing to see him (and the rest of the family) while we were in between insurance policies. I can call her at home to ask a question and she doesn't get annoyed (I've only done it once or twice). I can call the office and describe symptoms over the phone and she can call in a prescription if I need one. It is nice to have a doctor friend so that I can keep on top of what is going around.


• I am thankful for my mailman and his family. This should actually count for a few entries, but I will put it all together. Firstly my mailman is the son of a woman that used to work at the church with me. He is also the son-in-law of a woman I used to teach with. He and his family go to my church and I was in a group with his younger brother in college. I just love this whole family! They are awesome! He holds the mail when we are out of town. He asks about us if we don't pick it up for a few days. I have had more than one piece of mail delivered to my house despite being marked "postage due." I can put my outgoing mail outside with two quarters taped to it and it will get mailed. All of those things are neat, but let me tell you why else I love this family...Last summer I was out st some garage sales. I stopped at one and found a lot of really nice girls' clothes for good prices. As I was loading up my arms, the owner of the house approached me and it turns out to be the mailman's wife! She loaded me up with more clothes and toys and then gave me an awesome deal. Twice since then I have caught her delivering boxes of her daughter's old clothes to my house. It is an absolute Godsend to have these clothes. It means less shopping for me and good clothes get a few more uses out of them. What an awesome family!!


• Thirdly, I am thankful for my daughter's friends. This one comes with a funny story. Earlier in the week a mom came to pick up her three girls, one of whom is in my class. Her daughter looked at her mom and said "uh-uh, I want to go home with Ms. Rabia." She planted her feet and practically refused to leave. I promised her that we would make arrangements to let her come over sometime soon. Well it turns out that today was the day. You might think I am crazy for inviting over a guest when Henry is not feeling well, but let me tell you-it works! The two girls are having a ball playing downstairs and I am able to give Henry the cuddles he wants. Both my kids are happy and I don't feel split in two!! It's also pretty sweet to listen to the girls playing pretend and the conversations they are having. Mine's the one on the left, and please excuse the mess in the background. :)

I love a parade...

Yesterday morning when I got to work I walked in on a conversation about a parade. It turns out that Weyers Cave was having a parade and lawn party and my boss was having a float in the parade to advertise the day care. Well in typical "me" fashion, we all decided to join in on the parade at the last minute. Stacey and her kids joined in too, as well as Kristen and hers, and some other families from the other day care. We all dressed in red, white and blue and waved American flags. Ken drove the truck (even though it was a Ford) and the rest of us sat in the bed or on the trailer. We threw candy, blew bubbles and shot silly string at people. It was quite fun!
After the parade, we went over to the lawn party. Stacey and the kids came with us and we watched rides for a little while and then went on the cars and the airplanes. The kids had a great time!! Of course, none of us wonderful mothers had cameras with us, so I don't have pictures, but if anyone sends me any I will post them later.
Hopefully today I will be going to get Frances' pictures and then I can post for her about the Safari Park trip on Thursday.