I'm SO Excited!!!

Finally had a parent teacher conference with Mrs. Gipson, Amaya's teacher. It went SO well!!! She sits down and asks if I have any specific concerns. She stops me before I can even say anything and says, "I know. I'm not challenging her enough. Right?!" That's absolutely right! DING DING DING!!! Tell her what she's won!

Okay... Back on track.

That's definitely been a big issue that I've had. All of Amaya's work that does get sent home is always covered in drawings on the back. Loads of drawings, not just a little doodle, a whole masterpiece. When asking Amaya about it, she said she had to draw to wait for everyone else to finish their work. Amaya never has homework. It's because she's been giving it to her during the day to keep her occupied. She's moved on from sight words to phrases and she's already completed those. She's known all of this well before kindergarten. Then her class was removed from the AR program because they didn't have enough slots for everyone. So they don't even do AR, they just let them grab whatever book they want off the shelves. Gipson did say that she was still verbally testing them on the books that they choose, just to keep them in the groove of testing. The parents were sent home notices about the AR testing a few months back and it stated that they were giving the tests verbally until the children could read themselves. HELLO?! How do you not know my child can read already? She's been reading since she was three! I sent a note to her requesting Amaya do the testing herself, with guidance in case she needed it. NEVER got a response. I brought it up today and she apologized for not having gotten back with me and asked her assistant, Mrs. Rush (who does the AR testing with the children) how the tests were being given to Amaya. She said that Amaya has been doing them herself for quite a while. Good answer, 'cause I would've been pissed off!

There were other things we talked about, mostly my dislike in her response time to me. Hopefully that will no longer be an issue.

Now for the GOOD AMAZING, EXCITING news!!!

Gipson told me that she spoke to the principal this morning before she met with me to discuss some good news. She's considering moving Amaya to the first grade!!!! EEK!!!!! At first I was irritated because she never initiated this before I requested to see her a gazillion times. But then I quickly got over that because it was happening now. She's sending an email to all the first grade teachers and setting up a meeting with them to discuss it and introduce them to Amaya. She'll then be tested with about three different types of tests to see where she stands and where she may be lacking. Instead of going straight to first grade right away, they'll be starting her with whichever teacher chooses her for one hour each day and then they'll go from there. Which to me sounds like it might take a couple months. I'm hoping not. I'll be there to give them a boost if there's any hindrance. Believe it!

Gipson's biggest concern with this seemed to be Tressa (Gipson has twins who are now 23). It's got me bothered some too. I'm not sure how to handle this situation with her. I don't want her to feel left out or not good enough... What if it becomes an issue with Joseph too. What if he feels less than because of it... *Sigh* Any ideas on how to approach this with Joseph and Tressa? Please send them my way!

There is much more to tell, but I can barely type because of the excitement! I've had a million typos to correct and more I'm sure I've missed a million more. I'll be sure to keep everyone updated and in the loop when I am notified of anything.

EEK!!!!!

What Have We Been Up To?

It has been over a month since I'd updated anyone on much of anything. So I'll give you some idea as to what we have been doing since then. Which really isn't much...

Let's see...

My parent's made a spontaneous move to St. Augustine, Florida in early September. They were going to make a pit stop here on their way, but Tropical Storm Lee had other plans. They were driving a 24ft. U-Haul, pulling their car and my grandmother was driving their van behind them. I don't blame them one bit for deciding to skip their stop here and head straight to their new home. During their stop at a hotel, my mother called. We talked about the storm and the situation. She then laughs and says, "I'm tired of lying to you being this high. You want to talk to him?" I said sure and then was like, Huh? Well, my dad, or who I thought was my dad, get's on the phone and we talk for about 30 seconds. I then asked puzzled, "Wait... Who is this?" Not recognizing the voice as my dad's. He laughs and says, "Mckinnion. Who did you think it was?" I freaked! I was so excited. I had to ask him what it was Mom said before she handed him the phone. She actually said, "I'm tired of lying to you, Boy (what we've called Mckinnion since he was fresh from the womb) says hi. You want to talk to him?" That is so not what I heard. Lol I was super excited to hear from my brother. They were going to surprise me when they showed up. I had no idea that he was moving with them. Unfortunately, life happens, and they've still yet to make the trip here. Soon... We'll see...

On September 12th I had gotten a pretty bad toothache. I'd taken Tylenol all day for, but at about 5 o'clock-ish, it reared it's big ugly head at me. I hadn't felt pain quite like it ever! I stayed home from school that night, hoping it would get better. It didn't. I couldn't sleep and my face had swollen. I looked and felt hideous! Wish I'd had taken a picture to show you. :Þ  Jonathan stayed home from work the next morning so that he could take the kiddos to their six month dental cleaning and checkup since I was feeling so miserably. He kept trying to talk me into going to the dentist or Urgent Care, but our funds were super tight that week and there was no way we'd be able to afford it. So I refused to go. He called his mother, and asked for a favor. She was seriously my lifesaver that morning! I don't know what I would have done had she not been there to help us out.

Went to Urgent Care to have it checked out. It was a severe abscess. He told me that had I not gone in when I did, I may have had to be hospitalized for severe infection. Holy crap, that was scary! He prescribed me penicillin, naproxen and lortab. He said he felt safe prescribing me a narcotic since I "looked legit." Haha! Got my prescriptions and downed them right away! Unfortunately, the penicillin made me vomit for the first two days. It was terrible! Couldn't keep anything down and was in a constant state of pain from the abscess and nausea from the penicillin. It took about a week, before I truly felt back to normal. We were able to pay my in-laws back for the doctor's visit and Rx's the following week. And I couldn't thank them enough for all the help they've been able to offer us. You are truly appreciated!

The day I went to Urgent Care, happened to be the same day the kids' dental cleaning and checkup was. They go every six months. I'll be damned if they ever have teeth like mine :( Anywhoo... Jonathan took them and Joseph had moderate gingivitis. What? I make them brush their teeth after every meal. There is no way he has gingivitis! Apparently, when I had told him to brush, he was just going into the bathroom to play. So I ended up brushing his teeth for a week after that and then watched him every time the following week to make sure it was actually getting done. I don't supervise him now, but I do random check-in's when he's brushing. So far, every time, he's actually brushing and doing it correctly. Dr. Hyde, then discussed fixing his chipped front tooth... Again! They fixed it once, and it fell off that week! If it doesn't stay for very long this time, they'll just put a crown on it instead. I imagine, that's what's going to have to happen. He plays too rough to not lose the piece they put on.  All of them are clear of any cavities and everything looks great. Still trying to get the girls to quit sucking their thumbs though. They're okay as long as they're busy. The second they stop doing anything, it's right to their mouths. Tressa has started using her shirts in place of her blanket when she sucks her thumb. Ugh! She's so rebellious! :Þ Just don't want the girls to cause any malformation of their teeth. It's bad enough Joseph is going to probably have braces. Bleh! Poor kiddos and my bad genes. (Thanks a lot Dad! :Þ)

For school, we had a scavenger hunt scheduled at the local outlet mall for the 28th. It got cancelled due to the bad weather that day. Nobody brought anything to be able to do practical work, so we ended up going to Edgewater Mall instead. For the scavenger hunt we had grouped up in no more than five people. We were given a list of things to find, like, someone with a swing bob, someone 50% gray, someone with rollers still in their hair, and we had to approach said person, explain who we were and get their permission to take a picture. It was super fun until one of the rent-a-cop's approached us and halted our fun because he said we had to have prior approval from the mall manager. UGH! We'd all made the trip so Mrs. Lynne and Mr. Morgan told us to go do some shopping, or window shopping and get something to eat to fill our time for the next two hours or so. Overall it was fun, but wish we could have done what was intended. Next time we'll know to get prior approval.

I was able to pick up my honey and take him out during his lunch break one day. It was nice to just see him and let him get out of his work atmosphere for about an hour. He needed the break. :)

Our school was cancelled on the 1st of this month, so I had a whole weekend with the family. On Sunday we decided we would get out and do something. We're always cooped up in the house. There really isn't a whole lot to do around here for very cheap, unless you want to go to the beach... And we're just not beach lovers. Right Rebecca? :Þ

We went for lunch at McDonald's since Chick-fil-a is closed on Sunday! Bleh! Then we went and played minigolf. We had so much fun! It was a beautiful day out too. The weather was perfect, it was quiet out and the kiddos were well behaved. Amaya got bored after the first hole. She looked to Jonathan and said, "I'm done playing hockey." Lol Hockey?

After finishing our game the kiddos asked if we were going to be doing anything else. We'd gotten lucky to be able to do what we did that day. Then they started stomping their feet and bickering about how they wanted to do this and do that. My feelings were hurt! They didn't say, "Thanks Mom and Dad for taking us out. We had a great time!" It was more like "Fuck you guys. We want more." Ugh! I wasn't even angry with them, I was just hurt. Our finances are budgeted every month and rarely do we have enough extra to do something outside of the house or go out to eat. And we did both that day. I felt like they were being so ungrateful and rude. Jonathan works his ass off to provide for us and then they acted that way. I had a talk with them and felt a little better. I know that they're just kids and they don't understand things the way that we do, but it still hurt.

School is going well. SO READY to be done. I should be finished by February. These last few months seem to be going so quickly, yet so slowly. We've lost a lot of our teachers and are now down to two instructors. Hoping we don't lose another. The teacher, student ratio would not meet requirements then. Not sure what will happen if that takes place.

The kiddos are doing well in school. I still can't stand Amaya's teacher for shit. Hoping to resolve that. Joseph's class had an AR party and he told us that he'd met his goal, but was still unable to participate. I contacted his teacher and she told me that he did indeed meet his goal, but his average score was 86 and you had to have an average of 90. She then states how proud she is of him for reading chapter books. He's the only one in his class reading the chapter books, and he's only 4 points under in average and he still cannot participate! So he's penalized for reading at levels above his classmates. Lovely!

We did our costume shopping this weekend. Joseph has wanted to be a skeleton since April. He chose this costume. He's most excited about the blood. Tressa walked into the store and immediately picked out the Spanish Princess costume. Amaya was dead set on being a princess when we walked into the store until she spotted the Miss Sock Hop costume. Unfortunately, they didn't have her size. So she resorted back to her original idea and is a princess. She's so excited about it lighting up too. She's told everyone already!

A friend from school told me about a new subdivision that was being built. They have two and three bedroom houses. We drove by on Monday, hoping they'd be open so that we could see them. They were closed, but we drove around and the outsides are beautiful. The three bedrooms are only $675 a month (1350 sq ft. They also offer a 1500 sq ft but I'm not sure what the price difference is). That's only $60 more a month than what we pay now. AND they have two car garages, big yards and they'll put up a six foot privacy fence around the back yard for an additional $25 a month. I'm super stoked! We're hoping that Jonathan can get a day off this week to be able to stop by and view them. It's kinda out in the country too. But it's so pretty and quiet out there. So far, I'm already disappointed in the fact that the kids would attend Lyman Elementary. When I was substituting, I taught there three times for the first and third grade and I did not care for the teachers. They were just awful mean to the kids. I've heard that their principal has changed since then and things may be different. I dunno...

I've rambled quite a bit. So I'll end things here.
Hope everyone has been doing well!
 XOXO,

2nd Grade And Kindergarten Too!

It's been a whole week (and two days to be precise) since the kiddos have begun this school year and I've yet to even mention it. I don't feel too terribly though because Joseph's first day of kindergarten wasn't written about until two months later. D'oh!

August 4th, the apartment would be quiet. I would be alone. My babies children would all be in school. I'd be lost. I would cry, be depressed, lazy. I was surely going to miss all the screaming, the fighting, spankings, the time outs, and...

BOY WAS I WRONG!

The apartment has been so nice and quiet! There is no screaming, crying or fighting. No spankings or time outs. Just me and the apartment. I think I'm already used to it! :P

We started the day with a 5:20 alarm and a shower before waking the kiddos. Oatmeal for breakfast and out the door. 

Jonathan went into work late to be able to come and take the kiddos to their first day of school. They were so happy he was able to come. We loaded up and left the house at 6:30am to beat the traffic. We learned last year and the previous year not to leave at 7, because you won't get to the school until at least 8, and the school is less than five miles from the house. First day of school traffic is ridiculous. However, this year we got to the school at 6:45 and had to wait 15 minutes before the school opens. I couldn't believe it! There was literally zero traffic! Others were not so smart. A friend I attend school with made the same mistake we did previous years and didn't get to school until nearly 8.

We took Joseph to class first since his was closest. 

We located his classroom. His teacher this year is Ms. Stetson and her assistant Ms. Childers. He hesitated walking into his classroom while fidgeting with the straps of his back pack and one last sad look at mommy and daddy before he walked in and found his seat. I'm surprised I didn't cry then. I'm equally surprised at his hesitancy and shyness. 

We exited the second grade hall and entered kindergarten. At orientation we found out that the girls would be in separate classrooms, but directly across from one another. I found myself a little bummed about this since the lady completing their registration said she would probably put them into the same classroom. I got my hopes up, but the girls are ecstatic they aren't in the same room. Ha! 

Amaya's teacher this year is Mrs. Gipson and her assistant Ms. Rush. At orientation Jonathan and I had already decided we liked Tressa's teacher best, so I'm hoping Amaya's teacher doesn't disappoint. She doesn't seem to be very organized and she's just too nice and seems easy. I want Amaya to be challenged so she doesn't get bored and lose interest.*Crossing our fingers*

Amaya was so excited! Especially since a neighbor friend is in her class. She didn't even say bye to us. Just found a seat she liked and started coloring. *Sigh*

Tressa's teacher is Ms. Holifield (Pronounced: Holy-field). I love her already. She is super organized and up front about how she works. I think Tressa will be challenged just enough and I love this. Tressa found her designated seat and began coloring, much like Amaya. Only Tressa actually told us goodbye and asked, "Can you stay with me for just a little bit longer Mommy?" Uhhhh!!! My heart melted! I about lost it! 

After class drop offs, we walked away from the school and I was finally able to cry. I made it without crying in front of them. We made it home and I was a little sad at first. The silence was almost too much. That only lasted about an hour or two and I was steadily getting used to it. Ha!

I was happy to learn that they had such a great day! They had so much to tell me. They started yelling at one another because everyone of them was trying to tell me something all at once. I had to split it up and give everyone their 15 minutes. Lol

Joseph's day:

-"Did you make any new friends?"

   -"Yeah. Um... Melanie Parker. She's a girl." *Giggle, giggle* "And Patrick and Rodriguez."

-"What was your favorite thing about today?"

   -"Playing M&M Math because we got to eat the M&M's when we were done. Playing at PE...... And we read stories called, Monster's First Day Of School and Sam's Best Seat In 2nd Grade."

"... Me and a friend named Elijah, um... he has a name so you know what to call him..." HAHA!

Amaya's day:

-"Did you make any new friends?"

   -"Yeah. EVERYONE!"

-"What was your favorite thing about today?"

   -"Playing at recess and getting my goody bag and new book."

"I had broccoli in my salad at lunch and it was all crunchy because it was fresh! YUMMY!"

Tressa's day:

-"Did you make any new friends?"

   -"Yeah, but not a lot. Just Cassy and Anthony."

-"What was your favorite thing about today?"

   -"Nothing." She starts crying and rubbing her eyes.

   -"Why not baby? You were so excited to tell me about your day when you got off the bus."

   -"Because I didn't *sob, sob* get to go, get to, *sob sob* to go to P.Eeeeeeeee. and, and *Sob sob* recess like Amaya and Joseph's class did." Poor baby :(

"The Michael in my class is not my boyfriend Michael, it's a new Michael."

Their day's were great! They loved it! They had so much to talk about and a lot of paper work to bring me! Ugh! Hate those first few days.

Joseph and Amaya have both already pulled keys (I'll write a separate post on this later). Amaya for talking (go figure) and Joseph for being out of his seat without permission (another go figure). The girls will begin getting homework starting next week, thankfully! They've been pretty upset that Joseph has had homework and they haven't. I'm guessing they won't feel that way for long. Ha!

Joseph has his first spelling test today and I'm sure he'll do great. He's an excellent speller like his mommy! Amaya is tying her shoes like a pro. She learned last year, but over the summer her foot wear consisted of sandals and flip flops so she forgot. Joseph still isn't grasping it. He gives up too quickly and he thinks that if he doesn't untie them before taking them off that he doesn't have to do it in the morning. Wrong! I'm going to work with both Tressa and Joseph on that this weekend. Hopefully they'll master it. 

I'm already loving all of the drawings and class work they're bringing home. I've yet to get anything back from Amaya's teacher and this sadly, does not surprise me. She's been a day behind the other two teachers in having paperwork sent home too. Ugh!

I hope to see my children continue to have such good feelings about learning and school. I can't wait to see them blossom with intelligence and confidence.

More to come,

      

Did I Really Just Say That?

"Tressa, please leave my boobs alone."

"Don't be touching each others privates."

"Quit scratching your butt and picking your nose!"
 

"Stop staring at her or both of us are going to sit and stare at you!"

"Wipe your butt with toilet paper, not the Kleenex!"

"No cartoons right now. Later when Mommy needs quiet time."

"Because you are a girl. That's why you don't have a penis."

"I don't like you either!"

"Your butt itches? Probably because you're the one that denied leaving their poo in the toilet and no toilet paper was used. Deal with it."

"Stop tasting your snot and spitting it on my carpet!"

Thankful Thursday

So it's been a month since my last post. Seriously slacking, I know! I'm going to make it short and sweet today...

I am thankful for my husband, my children, and second chances.

Dear Amaya

Welcome to the "big girl" stage! At least that's what you practically told me the morning of your birthday. "We're big girls now Mommy!" Said with so much excitement in your voice. I swear I had to hold back the tears. Joseph is seven and now my baby girls are five... *Sigh*

According to the bathroom scale you weigh 38.4lbs and if I am using the tape measure correctly, you are 43" (3ft. 7½") tall. You wear a size 11½,  sometimes 12 shoe and a 5 pants and shirt.

You no longer take naps, but we have our designated quiet time for one hour after lunch. During quiet time you read a book, color, play quietly in your room, or take a small nap if you want. The naps are never part of your quiet time. You never took naps when you had a nap time. Mostly you play "house" with Tressa or read a book.

You are the most independent child I've known. You take great pride in learning and doing things on your own. You would rather spend 30 minutes trying to open your goldfish snack than ask for help. Your favorite things are playing house, riding your new bike and singing every song you shouldn't (Ciara- Ride, Rihanna- S&M, etc). You love reading and are obsessed with princesses. Your favorite things to say are, "Dang!", "What the heck?!", and "That's not fair!" (You definitely picked that one up from your brother. He's been on quite the "It's not fair." kick lately.)

You recently developed a fear of taking a shower with the door shut. We've been trying to teach you and your sister to be a little more modest (Lol) and part of that is shutting the bathroom door when showering. You keep telling me it's scary, but I can't get an answer why from you.

You learned so much this year. You learned to tie your shoes, you were able to stand in front of a crowd and sing or read without stage fright, you're able to calculate simple addition, and are able to tell time on a digital clock. All of those things before you even reached kindergarten! I can only imagine what you'll learn this year. I just love how eager you are to learn. Hopefully you never lose that about you.

Here's to being five... to being a big girl... to being an amazing daughter and sister.

Love,

          Mommy & Daddy

Happy Birthday Amaya

5... Five... FIVE! You are FIVE YEARS OLD today!

I can't believe it!

Every year we have a questionnaire for them just to see if and how their answers change. It's a lot of fun really. Some of the questions are nonsense but it allows me the opportunity to see even more how they think by how they respond to the question. Like, "What is your favorite scent?" It's just interesting to see their responses. You can see Joseph's here and Tressa's here.


2010's Questionnaire


Favorite Food?     "Pizza."
Favorite Drink?     "Cherry juice."
Favorite Cartoon?     "Dora The Explorer."
Cartoon Character?     "Spongebob Squarepants."
Favorite Movie?     "Tinkerbell."
Favorite Animal?     "Fish."
Favorite Toy?     "Mickey."
Favorite Color?     "Pink."
Favorite Letter?     "A."
Favorite Number?     "1."
Favorite Story/Book?     "Wall-E."
Favorite Song?     "ABC's"
Favorite Game?     "Seek and Find with Daddy."
Favorite Holiday?     "Our birthday."
Favorite Day?     "Saturday."
Favorite Season?     "Winter."
Favorite Scent?     "Clean clothes."
When you grow up...?     "Mommy."
Children when you grow up?     "1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10-- A LOT of babies. MY babies."
Boyfriend?     *Laughs*
Favorite thing about learning time?     "Coloring."
Least favorite?     "Time out."
Best friend?     "Mommy, Tressa, and Joseph."
What do you want to know or learn before you turn five?     "School."


2011's Questionnaire


Favorite Food?     "Oatmeal and cereal."
Favorite Drink?     "Kool-aid." Which is weird because they don't get to drink Kool-aid.
Favorite Cartoon?     "Dora The Explorer."
Cartoon Character?     "Dora."
Favorite Movie?     "Dragon Tales."
Favorite Animal?     "Pig."
Favorite Toy?     "My fairies."
Favorite Color?     "Pink, yellow, silver and gold."
Favorite Letter?     "A."
Favorite Number?     "1."
Favorite Story/Book?     "Bob The Builder."
Favorite Song?     "Dragon Tales theme song."
Favorite Game?     "Dress up like princesses."
Favorite Holiday?     "Christmas."
Favorite Day?     "Our birthday."
Favorite Season?     "Spring."
Favorite Scent?     "Pizza."   
When you grow up...?     "Princess ballerina."
Children when you grow up?     "FIVE!"
Boyfriend?     "Uh... NO!" That's my girl! ;-P
Favorite thing about school?     "Playing outside."
Least favorite?     "Sleeping, like at nap time."
Best friend?     "Tey and Desiree."
What do you want to know or learn before you turn six?     "How to play Yahtzee by myself."

Hello Kitty Celebrations

          -Jaclyn-

Amaya-isms

"Boys have cooties. Girls have booties and boobies!"
She then laughs hysterically at her discovery. Lol

"Can I get on the scale?"
"Sure."
Gets on scale..."36.2, Tressa and me weigh the same!"
I get on the scale... It reads 158.6...
"WOW! You weigh a lot of numbers, Mom!"

"Tressa is being a brat and I am a princess, huh Mom?"

"What is shepherd's pie?"
Joseph: "It's like a pot pie, but made by a shepherd."
(I forgot to add that to his post, so I'm posting it here since Amaya was the one who asked him. Lol)

"I am so excited for kindergarten!"

Amaya-isms

"Oooooh! I got a toasty roll (tootsie roll) guys!"

"I have dreams that I am a princess with all kinds of pretty things like Ariel."

"Mom!" As she runs off the school bus. "Do you know what Jeremy said to me on the bus?!" Tressa snickers and tells me "It's so silly Mom." "What did he tell you Amaya?" I ask. "He said when I am bigger and he has a ring, he is going to marry me... marry me for real!"

While out for Hibachi, the chef makes a large fire and she says, "Wow!... That... was SO cool!"

"Mom. What comes after P?"
"Q!"
"MOM! What comes after P?"
"I said Q!"
"No. I'm spelling paper."
"Oh! A."
Jonathan then asks, "Wait! How are you spelling paper, Amaya because there are two p's?"
"The right way."

"You need to fix your hair like this (shows how she fixes her hair). This is how we do it on Earth. We are on Earth with y'all."

.:Note:. I have NO idea what she was even talking about, but it was funny nonetheless, especially with the strong Sookie (True Blood fans!) southern accent. .:End Note:.

          -Jaclyn-

 

The Influence of Music

You hear this all the time, but I love music in all shapes and forms and listen to it always.

Yesterday I get the girls from the bus stop and Amaya shouts, "GUESS WHAT ME AND TRESSA WERE SINGING ON THE BUS!"
"What were you singing?"
"RIDE IT!"

I wanted to DIE I tell you!!! She was referring to Ciara's song Ride featuring Ludacris... I wonder what the teachers were thinking when they heard them singing that?!

I think it's time to censor my music around them...

Censored music and hilarious children

          -Jaclyn-

Best B-U-Y

This weekend we made a visit to Best Buy. Walking up to the entrance Amaya excitedly announces, "We're going in Best B-U-Y!"

"We are?"

"Yep!"

"So what does B-U-Y spell?"

"Nothing! DUH!" in her most sassy matter-of-fact voice.

"It does too! It spells buy, Amaya."

"It does not!"

"Amaya, it spells buy. We're at Best Buy."

"It does not, Mom!" "My V.Reader said b-y spells by!"

I couldn't help but laugh. I then explained to her the different spellings and meanings of the word by, bye, and buy. She accepted my answer then later still mentioned we were at Best B-U-Y.

Laughs and sarcasm

          -Jaclyn-

Amaya-isms

"Ouch Mom! You just hurt my brain." While fixing her hair for school.

"You gotta eat it all so you can be big and strong like me, 'cause I ate it all." She then flexes her muscles.

"Tressa, quit farting, nasty!" "Mom! Tell Tressa to quit farting by me!"

"Mrs. Andrews lets me read after lunch because I am SO smart."

"Happy Thanksgiving Mom." She ever so sweetly hugs and kisses me. I informed her that it isn't until Thursday, then she says, "Mrs. Andrews LIED TO ME?!"

"We can fight pillows!" (Pillow fight)

"That's a differenter hide and seek."

Lots of love and laughter

          -Jaclyn-

MIA & Halloween

Sorry I've been kind of missing in action. The charger for our laptop took a crap so it was out of commission for a little over a week. Not much exciting has occurred anyhow.

Halloween was yesterday and the kids had a blast!

They were SO antsy and ready to go so their dinner was hardly touched.

This year was much more exciting than last years.

They weren't nearly as timid when it came to walking up to strangers houses and taking their candy.

They never complained about how tired they were or how much their feet hurt.

When asked what their favorite part of last night was... 

Joseph responded, "I got to wear black nail polish, but only on Halloween because it's for girls."

Amaya said, "I got to wear pretty pink makeup and glitter."

Tressa of course said, "We got to eat the candy for dessert!"

Overall, it was a great night. The kiddos did not want to wake for school this morning after having gone to bed later than usual and all of the excitement they got wore them out. They can't wait to play dress up in their costumes when they get home from school and they've already decided what they're going to be next year! 

Happy November and lots of love!

          -Jaclyn-

"...Proud of You..."

Jonathan and I, with all our children in tow are on an extravagant trip over seas, we're speaking the language fluently and planning the next trip when I wake to at 3:13am to Amaya tapping me on the cheek. I ask what's wrong and then I smell... THE SMELL. You know, the smell of vomit, yeah, THAT smell... She tells me she puked all over her bed... I get her shower ready and load her bed sheets into the washer.

Round two at 3:30am... and then rounds three and four...

She wakes this morning still puking.

At 7:30 it is time for me to take Tressa to the bus stop. Amaya starts puking again and this is where my post really begins.

I start rubbing her back and I start to cry. I am crying because I can't make her feel better, but I am mostly crying because I felt like a terrible mother having to take her to the bus stop where she has to puke in the grass. Tressa see's me crying and asks,

"What's wrong mommy?" 

"Nothing baby, mommy's just sad that Amaya is sick." 

"It's okay. I will rub her back for you mommy." 

That only made me cry more. Tressa loving on her sister. holding her hair and rubbing her back because mommy is sad. Tressa sits on the concrete and tells Amaya to sit in her lap. (I began kicking myself for not having my camera glued to my hand.)

The bus picks up Tressa and Amaya and I walk back. Rather, I walk back carrying Amaya. I tell her how happy it makes me that the kids all love each other so much and how proud I am of them for it and many other things.

WARNING: Tearjerker ahead!

Amaya replies,

"You take care of me good makes me proud of you Mommy."

I swear I cried a river! I felt so terrible taking her to the bus stop when she felt so miserable and had to puke in the grass... Until she reassured me that I am doing everything just right. 

I am so proud of the children that I have. They are all so amazing in so many ways. Joseph is so smart, creative and willing to help whenever I need him and for whatever reason. Tressa is so loving and protective of and adores her siblings. Amaya is so active and ready and willing to learn and teach everyone else everything she knows.

I am so thankful for everything I have. I am ashamed of myself for asking for more when I already have everything I could ever need.

Lots of love and amazing things in your life

          -Jaclyn-