I have never claimed to be an I-need-8-solid-hours-of-sleep-to-be-functional type of girl. Usually, it is more in the neighborhood of 4-6 and things are dandy. There is one caveat to this - the bed has to be all mine!
DD does not seem to understand this concept, and she doesn't understand that the bed in her room is hers! What is up with this? She understands concepts like: death, marriage, even my (and Stephen Hawking's) beginning explanations on nuclear fusion and black holes. We are getting ready to start debates on string theory and she can't get that she has her own bed for the entire night? Does she think she is in some weird "other" world in which she can only spend 2-4 hours in her own bed and then must change camp sites?
(Note: I realize that there are times I only need four hours and if she sleeps four then you would think it would all be good. However, my four hours starts a minimum of two hours after her four hours starts.... nice math problem - leaving me with about only 2 hours prior to infiltration.)
What is a mom (yawn) to do? If I owned Dunkin' Donuts - I'd be right on time to make the donuts.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Saturday, September 05, 2009
Coffee Craving
All that talk of tranquility has me craving some coffee!! It made me think of this photo that was taken when I was in Iraq. That mug is as big as my head and I would drink 1-3 of those a day while over there.
And I wonder why there is no quiet time in my house? How dare I!!
And I wonder why there is no quiet time in my house? How dare I!!
The Silence B4 the Storm
When I see the kids do yoga - it is sureal in so many ways. Unreal is more like it. The kids are typical siblings - it is rarely the quiet and tranquility of this picture.
No the kids don't do yoga outdoors in a field of wildflowers with bunnies hopping beside them and a deer drinking at the pond 100 feet away. They do it twice a week inside a studio because all the wildflowers would have caused a run for the Benadryl, and Divon and Dazjah would be chasing the bunny to see if it's tail was really fluffy or just a marshmellow they could try to eat.
That being said, I always tell other moms that there kids are great when they come over - they always are - and it is becuase our children are on better behavior when they are at someone else's house, they don't know just how far the rules can bend and they don't try to see just how far they can push those limits for fear that I will hold them upside down by their ankles off my deck. (My children know this is an idle threat!) But this picture showed me that my kids can actually relax their bodies and minds prior to 8:30 pm. Not to mention, the boys can now touch their toes without a ruler in each hand! (No they can't stick their foot behind their head, but Dazjah can - and they may be able to before the end of the year, if they stop laughing long enough to really try!)
No the kids don't do yoga outdoors in a field of wildflowers with bunnies hopping beside them and a deer drinking at the pond 100 feet away. They do it twice a week inside a studio because all the wildflowers would have caused a run for the Benadryl, and Divon and Dazjah would be chasing the bunny to see if it's tail was really fluffy or just a marshmellow they could try to eat.
That being said, I always tell other moms that there kids are great when they come over - they always are - and it is becuase our children are on better behavior when they are at someone else's house, they don't know just how far the rules can bend and they don't try to see just how far they can push those limits for fear that I will hold them upside down by their ankles off my deck. (My children know this is an idle threat!) But this picture showed me that my kids can actually relax their bodies and minds prior to 8:30 pm. Not to mention, the boys can now touch their toes without a ruler in each hand! (No they can't stick their foot behind their head, but Dazjah can - and they may be able to before the end of the year, if they stop laughing long enough to really try!)
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Remember Karate Kid?
Gee - does this pose look familiar? I thought I was looking at her version of the ending of the Karate Kid movie. No - it was just DD being silly with how she was going to go nuts and win the evening of sparring - there was no winner - it wasn't a competition. I was just glad I had my camera out and ready when DD pulled this pose. The face that she gave me with it had me rolling.
Of course, the other day when I talked to my sister had me rolling, too. At that time though it was because how her 10 and 7 year-olds explained having a baby. The 10 y.o. explained it as, "The baby comes out of the belly button." (Very matter-of-fact and confident in his answer.) The 7 y.o. then pipes in, "Yeah, and it has that string you have to cut." This is in sharp contrast (HA!) to my children who state that you have to "poop out the baby." Hey, at least mine know the right area!
Of course, the other day when I talked to my sister had me rolling, too. At that time though it was because how her 10 and 7 year-olds explained having a baby. The 10 y.o. explained it as, "The baby comes out of the belly button." (Very matter-of-fact and confident in his answer.) The 7 y.o. then pipes in, "Yeah, and it has that string you have to cut." This is in sharp contrast (HA!) to my children who state that you have to "poop out the baby." Hey, at least mine know the right area!
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
Silly Girl-isms 101
DD is so silly sometimes. Last night it was with her impression of acting crazy - this is the photo for proof. Tonight it was with her explanation of real versus pretend people on TV.
DD started by informing me that not all the people on TV were real. So I asked her who was real and how could you tell. Her answer, "Some people are real, but others - like Lazlo - are not." (Incase you don't know, Lazlo is a cartoon character.) NO WAY!! Lazlo isn't real - this can't be!! I was laughing so loud in my head that I didn't hear the rest of her explanation until she said, "...except the on America's Funniest Pets and People - they are real." These were her final thoughts before going to bed... I can't wait to hear about her dream from last night.
DD started by informing me that not all the people on TV were real. So I asked her who was real and how could you tell. Her answer, "Some people are real, but others - like Lazlo - are not." (Incase you don't know, Lazlo is a cartoon character.) NO WAY!! Lazlo isn't real - this can't be!! I was laughing so loud in my head that I didn't hear the rest of her explanation until she said, "...except the on America's Funniest Pets and People - they are real." These were her final thoughts before going to bed... I can't wait to hear about her dream from last night.
Monday, June 08, 2009
Pretty in Pink
DD loves wearing dresses. This is just another typical day of dressing for school.... then she emerges from her room and I tell her to change. Well, this day I let her wear the way-too-dressy-dress to school.
This photo was a couple of weeks ago. She has now found two pair of golfing shorts (she has never gone golfing) that she will occassionally wear, and she will wear t-shirts as long as they have sparkles on them. (Makes me think of The Gilmore Girls.) Talk about spunk.
Did I mention that there was a time when she wouldn't do karate because 1) there was no pink belt and 2) you couldn't wear a karate skirt - she could kick higher if she had a karate skirt. (I think she had seen a clip from the new Charlie's Angels on TV.)
Thursday, June 04, 2009
Amazingly Smooth - Not unless Nair is Involved
Just one of my little quirks - What are things that are smooth?
- legs after using nair
- a really good, aged liquor
- satin sheets
- my super klutz sister (just joshin' - Jess falls with no grace;o)
However - I have never classified a soda as smooth. I can't believe that this is the new tag line for Cherry Dr. Pepper. The carbonation makes any soda NOT smooth as it sits on your tongue, goes down your throat, and occasionally (after you have drank too much way too fast) that atrocious bellow of a burp. I can't even stick up my pinky and say, "But it is so smooth on my palate." - Not happenin'!
In other (totally unrelated) news - DD will be starting Kindergarten in July. She will be attending the same year-round school as her brothers. They will be in second grade. And - to our delight - she will be in the Spanish Immersion program. I LOVE the Spanish Immersion program. It isn't about the language - I wouldn't care if it were French, Mandarin, Arabic, or Swahili. What it is about is the level of brain usage, the challenges a second language poses, and the creativity utilized by the teachers.
With the boys - there has been no loss of English comprehension. They write as well as and better than most of the traditional (English-only taught) 1st graders in their school. Although they read, talk, and write in Spanish all day - the majority of their time at home is in English. Like many boys they are into comic books and other animation. So, we spend a lot of time at the library - they get to choose some animation books and they get some traditional books. We started the Judy Bloom series about Fudge - they love this series of chapter books. One of their favorite portions to read and re-read and re-read is when Mr. Feathers (the bird) says, "Bonjour, Stupid" repeatedly through the chapter. - FYI: Their school works with the SPLASH! Program. These teachers and assistants are bi-lingual and amazing in their ideas on how to teach.
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
More Soup Please!
This is how viciously my children protect their food. Note the "touch it and die" look on DD's face, the amazingly awesome block by Divon, and the kung-fu punch you would receive from Zephan.
The kids are very excited that I was the "selectee of choice" for the Kansas position. They are very anxious to move to Kansas so that they can be closer to their Nebraska cousins - Chayse and Tuker. Of course, they are also very interested in what Worlds of Fun and Oceans of Fun have to offer as well. I guess it is time to do all those things here that I had been putting off. Nothing huge - but the typical one more trip to the beach, some other sights in and around North Carolina that are interesting and fun for a weekend trip, and lots of pictures. Needless to say, I have begun to put together weekend plans for excursions. In a few weeks we will be going to the Museum of Life and Science up in Raleigh. There is a trip to a mysterious and fun house - I will give you the details when we get back. As spring progresses we will return for another hike at Raven Rock and other NC parks. All-in-all there will be plenty more to write about and a plethora of pictures to share...
We have plenty of plans for visiting our east coast family, too. We have scheduled Christmas in New York at Auntie Danielle's place- the kids are super excited anytime we mention New York becuase they know that means they will get to see their cousins Xavier, Sebastian and Savannah. There will be adventures with Grandpa Lu - usually meaning arcade or video games, and we will be attending more rugby games with daddy this spring and summer.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Here they are... loving the snow that we received this week. Although it was only about 6", schools were closed for the past two days. Honestly though - I like that the kids were able to experience it instead of sitting around in class day dreaming about snowmen, snowballs, and snow angels. DD had just been harping on me about how it wasn't winter. Her logic was that it snowed in the winter and we didn't ever have any snow. Therefore, it wasn't winter.
Ding, ding, ding - we have a grand prize winner. DD your fabulous prize is...... WINTER!
Today in addition to honing our snowball making skills and having a snowball fight with the neighbors, we also talked about icicles. We talked about why we didn't have them yesterday, but why we had some nice big ones this morning. We took a walk around the neighborhood and talked about icicles and snow on mailboxes. I know that sounds so interesting! However, we talked about why the plastic mailboxes didn't have snow or icicles left on them but the metal ones did. We talked about why there were icicles only on one side - even though the mailbox was level. We talked about how there was up to 2" of snow on one side of the mailbox, but on the top and other side there was little if any.... it was interesting conversation and my little men proved to me why there teachers say they always ask great questions. (Yeah, I am biased... )
It was wonderful to let them all experience some of this weather and all the fun that snow can bring. However, there was a large part of me that desperately wants to sweep them all up and hall them closer to my home - where they would get a large dose of winter - and the chill that comes with it - every year. Hey, I have got to teach these kids what cold weather is - 40 degrees is only on the chilly side of nice, not "pull out the sweaters, long johns, and heavy down coats freezing."
I have a few more pictures posted on my flickr... check it out to see more of the kids and their snowball eating - I mean making - experiences from the past two days.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)