My Little Chef

Wilson LOVES to help cook. He helps me make dinner almost every night. Tonight, we were making Maw and Paw's famous Chicken Veggie Pasta. One of my longtime favorites! Wilson peeled all of the carrots for me! He did a really great job too! He is all the time saying I can do such and such now that I am 4. He has even tried chewing gum, and didn't swallow it! After peeling the carrots he proceeded to eat many pieces of raw carrot and broccoli. He is such a good eater!
Poor Luke, he still doesn't feel good. He's had a rough day with not feeling well. He is pitiful. Still the awful cough and now a runny nose to go with it. Hang in there Lukie! This week is a 5 day week at school. Not so sure I'm going to make it!

News around here.

* Wilson and Luke went back to the doctor on Thursday. Wilson had a bad ear infection in his right ear. They gave him numbing drops and motrin at the doctor. Luke's coughing and runny nose is still just a cold so he is waiting it out.
*The 3 day week at school felt like a really LONG week! Not sure how, with it only being 3 days... Hoping this week goes at a faster pace!
* I'm not looking forward to my day of laundry and schoolwork. Lots to do! That's why I'm blogging.
* We went over to my mom and dad's house for a short visit last night. Aunt Terry had bought 3 new remote control cars! Wilson and Luke were so excited they could hardly eat dinner before our visit. We had a blast!
* Wilson told me today that he wants to make jam with me. Totally out of the blue. I've made jam once ever on my own! Don't know where he heard about that! So I told him we'd go to a strawberry patch this summer and make jam together!
* Wilson is officially signed up for Preschool and Teeball!! Yea!
* Wilson has started making up stories to tell me. They are so cute! He talks really quietly, so he's a little embarrased. Today he made one up about a mean farmer at the strawberry patch! He cracks me up...most of the time!
* Luke is getting to be such a big boy! He is finally cutting two more teeth up top. Only 2 more to go on the bottom. He loves pushing his baby and Henry around the house in the stroller he got from Cara and Jason for Christmas. He also loves trains. He's really into this book we checked out at the Library. I totally have to buy it. It's a great book! It's called Hey! Wake Up! By Sandra Boynton. We have a lot of her books!
Off to change the laundry...

Big Day...

29

twenty-nine

2 tens 9 ones

2-9

Yikes. I'm getting old.

Next year it will be well let's not even talk about next year. Here I was going into shock about almost being out of my 20's. Arrrghhh. I know all you older and wiser people think 29 is nuthin'. But. It SOUNDS old to me!

****************

Just to add insult to injury, I had x-rays done on my back this week. Found out my spine has some problems. Roughly 12-13% scoliosis. Exercises, electrical stimulation, etc. So some treatment has been recommended, nothing serious, it would have to be 20% or higher for a brace or something. Right now I'm thinking I was to go to my regular physician before doing too much. Hmm...

Snow Day #2

(This is my first time guest blogging for Alyssa)

Everyone around here was excited to have another snowday today-especially Wilson and Luke. Alyssa went to school for a while this morning to work on National Board entries, and the boys and I went to the backyard to work in the snow.

It was Luke's first real time to get to play in the snow. He learned real fast how to throw snowballs at Wilson and Lottie. This was also the first snow we've had that is really good for making a snowman. The boys were very excited about building and decorating the snowman even though he didn't last very long.

The best show EVER!

OK, if you know me well, you know how much I love the show Friends. As they started coming out with each season on DVD well, I had to buy all of them. A lot of them were gifts for several birthdays and Christmas's in a row. As I got each new DVD I watched every episode, preview, and bonus material on there. Usually with Andy in tow! He's a fan too, but not quite to the degree I am. Although he does like to quote it a lot! Then a couple years ago (not sure when) I watch all of the DVD's Seasons 1-10. It took a while. I had always wanted to see the entire 10 years in order to watch it progress and all. Since then I've not touched the DVD's. It fed the Friends Fix for a while! But...I started Season One (1994) this weekend! With the four day weekend I've watched 6 episodes! So one of 4 discs in Season One. I. absolutely. love. the. show. It makes me laugh soo much! It is hilarious! So my new goal for however long it takes is to pick my favorite episode of each season and tell you about it. I'm sure as soon as I start replaying the episode for you on my blog you'll remember it right away. (Won't you?!) IF you are a Friends fan. If you're not, maybe you shouldn't tell me. We might not be able to stay friends. Just kidding! I can always loan you my DVD's if you need to rekindle (or begin) your love of Friends. So 3 more discs to go on Season One before I can report my favorite episode. I know you are dying to find out which one it is so hopefully, I won't keep you waiting too long!

* Andy will be so proud of me. I used to have a really hard time picking favorites in anything. So hard to pick just one. But I'm getting better at it!

My Motivation!

We went to get the boys haircut on Saturday morning. On our way we drove past a newish set of store fronts and inside the window of one section was signs for ...The Melting Pot! It is a restaurant I've always wanted to try! Everything served is about fondue. It sounds different and fun! The signs says it's supposed to open in Spring 2008. So, I told Andy that is where we can go when National Board is done- the portfolio and the testing exercises. Looking forward to it!

I went to a back doctor today for an evaluation. They came to our school last week and did scans on our backs along with a free chair massage. Out of the 12 areas checked, I had 1 ok (green area). The rest were purple and red. So I had many areas that were almost spasm areas because they were red. Green is good, then yellow, then purple and finally red. So needless to say I'm stressed and tense! At the evaluation today I had to fill out lots of paperwork and they checked along my spine for tender areas. Then lots of x-rays. Apparently my back is full of knots. (I guess that is why I'm always asking for back massages, Andy!). The doctor said I needed some relief TODAY so they did this electric stimulus thing by attaching two patch things on my upper back. Then they turned it on and it felt tingly. After a few minutes some of my muscle felt like they were rolling the knots out. I don't know if that is a spasm or what. They also had a moist heat pack on my upper back/shoulder area. It did give me some relief but it is back to hurting. I'll return this week to hear their recommendation for me and see the results of the x-rays. It would be great if my neck and shoulders didn't hurt and always feel so tense!

Golfball

Well I talked to Wilson about signing up for Teeball. He was pumped! Saying he would be so excited. Then he said he was scared because he didn't know how to play. I told him he would be on a team and have a coach that would teach him how to play. Sign ups start next Saturday. The next day we were talking about teeball again and he said I want to play golfball. Not golf, golfball! What logical thinking! Baseball, teeball, basketball, football...golfball! I said you can't play golf at 4 years old, you'll have to wait. So then we got into talking about how Uncle Mac or Paw Paw could take him to the driving range sometime. I think he's mostly referring to putt-putt golf because that is what he has played before. We told him he can go golfing when it warms up. So next weekend I'll sign him up for Teeball. I think it will be really good for him to be on a team and get some energy out!

Also, he has his preschool visit on Wednesday! I'm really hoping I can leave school for about an hour to meet him and Andy there. I'm so excited that he will be starting school in September! He sure is growing up!

Doctor Check-Ups

Thursday afternoon Wilson and Luke had their 4 and 2 year old check-ups. Overall, things went well! When we went to our room the nurse talked to us and Wilson for a minute. Then, she asked Wilson to go with her to play some games (vision and hearing screenings). He willingly walked out with her by himself for the games. He did well on them because they had to vision/hearing concerns. Next we had to weigh them.

Wilson's stats:
Height: 41 1/4 inches (69 percentile)
Weight: 41 pounds (88 percentile)

Luke's stats:
Height: 35 inches (65 percentile)
Weight: 29 pounds (66 percentile)
Luke had a pretty good growth spurt over the past 6 months. His height and weight percentiles increased quite a bit! His head circumfrence is in the 99 percentile!

After talking to the nurse and doctor we had the dreaded shots. Luke had to get 1 shot which was pretty painless compared to Wilson's 4 shots. They were both pitiful- but more so Wilson since his kept coming. He was screaming and crying and kicking - it took Daddy and 2 nurses to hold him down. He kept yelling "stop, that hurts". He was brave though! They both got a sucker at the doctor and then we took them to Panera for a treat. Luke picked out a pumpkin muffie and Wilson picked a cinnamon roll.

What was really pitiful was how sore Wilson's legs have been. We gave them both motrin that afternoon. Wilson woke up in the night with his legs hurting so we gave him more motrin. Then he limped a little the next two days saying his legs hurt because the nurse bruised him with the shots. They must have hurt because he generally doesn't complain about pain once the initial shock is over. So he had a few more doses of motrin which helped some.

Today we're home from church due to bad coughs and congestion. Wilson and Luke both have a terrible sounding cough, but at this point it is just a cold. Wilson slept horribly, waking up at least 3-4 times in the night. He was having trouble breathing. Hopefully these will just stay colds and not turn into anything else.

National Board Day

I'm at Panera, working on my National Board portfolio.
I'm feeling panicky.
I have a lot to do.
I'm overwhelmed.
I still have a list of things to do for the entry I started in November.
I have 3 other entries to write.
It is due March 31.
I don't know how I will get it all done.
I could go on and on but I have to get back to work.
Breathe in, breathe out, repeat.

I love my 2nd grade team!

Here is a picture of the fabulous team that I teach with! Abby, Jenn, Gayla and me! We decided to skip Christmas gifts for each other and plan a night to go to dinner together and have some quality talking time (outside of our school building)! This past Thursday we met at PF Chang's for dinner. It was delicious! We had lettuce wraps, dinner, and the Lucky 8 dessert! I got to try many new things because we ordered things to share. We were there for over 2 hours! Time flew and we enjoyed each other's company. We're hoping to start getting together maybe once a month to meet for coffee or something. It was so nice hanging out. Shawna, our curriculum coach at school, calls our team a "fluke" - because we all get along so well! We share ideas, share resources, and plan everything together. We're all teaching the same thing in practically the same way, everyday! I feel so blessed to work with such wonderful women who make work a nice place to come to everyday. School can be so stressful, but my team is always there to support me. Love you girls!

Birthday Boys!

Tomorrow is Wilson's 4th birthday! Hard to believe! He and I are making cupcakes today. He wanted white cupcakes with white icing so he can do the sprinkles! They're in Sponge Bob cupcake liners. He's been into Sponge Bob lately even though he's never see the show! Right now he is throwing a birthday party for Charlie, his favorite stuffed animal, in the living room. He has school tomorrow so he'll take cupcakes to school. Andy is going to make him and Luke pancakes for breakfast. Then when I get home after my meeting (hate that I have a late meeting on his b-day- feeling the guilt) we'll make pizza. My mom and dad are coming over to celebrate and we'll have pizza, salad, and cupcakes. He gets to open his present from Mimi and Poppy in the morning- he picked it out on ebay. It is a vintage metal Tonka firetruck. Pretty cool! The ladder rotates and lifts up. When I get home he'll open his present from us and Luke. We got him new crocs and Luke got him sponge bob's that fit into the holes of his crocs. He has so many toys Andy and I couldn't bring ourselves to get him any more. He'll open a present from my parents when they're hear for dinner as well. So a pretty festive day all in all.

Luke will be getting crocs too with Dora things from Wilson to fit in his crocs. We're having a joint party on Saturday for family at my sister's house. Wilson's b-day is the 7th, Caroline's is the 10th, and Luke's is the 13th. It's too hard to have 3 separate parties in 1 week's time! So this is our first year to combine them. We'll have 3 cakes! Wilson now wants a fire truck party. I think I'll do Thomas the Train for Luke. Mimi and Poppy ordered him more Thomas the Train lego sets. My mom and dad have some type of fire truck for Wilson and rain boots for both of them for playing outside! That way we don't have to worry about their shoes staying clean. Clean shoes and boys? Not so much.

Andy and I keep telling ourselves the next baby WILL NOT be born in January. Period.! So this Spring we might just avoid each other!! When we got pregnant with Wilson we had been trying for 4 months. Luke was a TOTAL surprise!! So baby #3 will. not. be. born. in. January.

My Lukie

Whoopee! Great news. Andy thought up a new game to play with Luke at mealtime- it got him to actually TRY what I made for dinner. He ate a bite...liked it...and asked for MORE!! Look at that clean plate! He ate all of his crockpot meatloaf! And all of his homemade mashed potatoes! Wouldn't touch his peas...but we'll take it one step at a time!

Close your eyes! Open your mouth! Here comes a big surprise! (most people don't like this game but Luke sure does!)

How cute is that!!! Adorable. We also found a brown shoe! In Luke's size. So we wore them out of the store!

Wilson's new shoes!

Still looking for some CUTE, brown shoes (preferably velcro), in size 7 1/2 for Luke! All the cute 7 1/2 shoes are sold out!

Snow Day!!

Last night at 10pm, I was laying in bed reading. Andy was on the look out for school closings. I figured I wouldn't know anything until morning. He came in and turned off my alarm and said school's out! I read a lot longer than I would have otherwise and was very thankful for one more day! Wilson and Daddy went outside in the 9 degree weather this morning - for just a little while! The wind chill was -7! When they came in Wilson had some hot chocolate. Since, we've been to the library to check out new books, Dillards to try and find new shoes - success for Wilson! Still can't find a store with either of their sizes in a brown shoe. Wilson chose new tennis shoes. They are quite ugly! They are leather Nike tennis shoes with some lime green and black on them. He LOVED them and could get them on and off really easily. So he wore them out of the store! They are part of his birthday present from Mimi and Poppy. I'll have to post at picture of them later. The camera battery is charging! Andy and I kept mouthing/whispering how ugly we thought they were...but that is not a battle to fight! There are plenty of other things I tell him no to so I thought what the heck!

Happy New Year!

Hmmph.
School starts tomorrow. Unless we have a snow day! My street is covered in snow so maybe... Anyway I went to the walk-in clinic today and got a z-pack for bronchitis. Yuck. I didn't manage to keep from getting sick. I fought it for a while! With this new year ahead of us I thought I'd tell you about 2 new things I'm using these days. I love them!
1. Facebook- I have gotten "in touch" with over 50 friends in the last few weeks on Facebook. I love it! It is a quick, easy way to stay in touch with tons of people. I've found friends I grew up with, went to high school/church/college with etc. Love it! If you want to look into it and possibly get a profile page go here.

2. Google Reader- I read about google reader on Sarah's blog. I thought it sounded convenient and something I should try but never got around to it...until this week! I love it! It has all of the blogs I check in one spot now. Like a blog inbox. It tells me which blogs have been updated so I don't have to check all the blogs I read to see if they were updated or not. Love it! Huge time saver. I know I could just not read the blogs, but what fun would that be? Then I wouldn't see all the great pictures or know what is going on in everyone else's life! I'm addicted to reading several blogs now! If you want to try google reader, go here!