What Children Learn in Preschool

So Jack is learning the alphabet in preschool. He just finished learning about the letter "E". On the way home, we talked about words which began with the letter E. I said eh-eh-egg. Jack said eh-eh-elephant. I said ee-ee-eclipse. Jack then popped off with kuh- kuh, ExsKimo. (Purposely spelled that way, as that is how he said it!) Way to go for all words that begin with E! even kuh-kuh, exskimo!

Giving Thanks

Now that the season for remembering and "Giving Thanks" is upon us, I would like to compile a small list of what I am thankful for... starting with things I know.
I am thankful that I know-

• Kisses heal all owies.
• It is worth the time it takes to make a child laugh. Not just a giggle, though those are good too, but a big gut busting belly laugh the shakes them from head to toe!
• All moms are human, but not every human gets the opportunity to be a mom
• Teaching the kids to help pick up will save some future spouse a lot of frustration
• My family loves me
• My family can forgive me when I mess up
• My Heavenly Father hears my prayers, even when I am driving down the road in a snow storm.... particularly then!

I am thankful that I have learned...

• Patience is a virtue, and I don't need things "RIGHT NOW!"
• Mr. Clean Magic Erasers can take the grime out of anything.
• Anything that Mr. Clean can't grab... "Goo Be Gone" CAN!
• Children forgive easily
• Words spoken in anger are remembered a heck of a lot longer than compliments
• Your parents are only human, and I can still learn from them.
• I will ALWAYS have a friend in my sisters
• How to count to ten before I make a comment which I might later wish that I had counted to ten before I said it....

I am thankful for...

• YOU

Losing an appendage/ Losing your computer- which hurts worse?

Having never lost a limb, but having often lost my mind, I felt that you would understand how I felt when my computer got wiped clean! Oh the pain! I learned the hard way that a jump drive only works if you actually save the origional files, and NOT SHORTCUTS! (Word to the wise) Don't let your spouse convince you that he needs to reset... or wipe the computer clean... especially when your have all your graduate assignments on the hard drive! Long story short, I think I would not have minded losing a limb because it was painful (yes I actually cried) when I had to start over on my final papers.

Anyway, I am now back on track, and things are going fine! Thanks for all of you who were wondering why I dropped off the face of the earth!

This Week's Report on the Good, the Bad and the Very Unattractive

The Good

Homemade cookies

Changing colors on the leaves

Spud Harvest

Kareoke

The Bad

tight pants

arriving at stores before they open

State Standardized Testing

The Unattractive

Hobo spider traps

Cleaning Bathrooms on Saturday

goose poop along the greenbelt path

Morning Breath (PEE-YEW)

What You Can Learn From A Child

So the other day I was in the kitchen, and I was listening to my two youngest sons who were in our family room playing Star Wars Lego video game. They were playing together well, but kept changing their characters on the screen. Finally Jack came up with what he thought was an excellent idea, and here is where the lesson begins. He said to Ben- "Ben, you be Yoda, I be Joseph Smith!
I laughed my head off at this, but afterwards I began to explore what might have prompted his three year old mind to interpret these two figures to be entertwined. Could it possibly be that they were two good guys? They both had experience in battling the dark side? They both knew how to use the "Force"?
I still don't know, but I did learn one thing. Children are much more aware of their surroundings than we give them credit for. So I say hooray for knowing good from evil, and may the force be with you all!

Ahh, what the world knows about me...

I spent the morning cleaning like a wirlwind. I even mowed the front lawn after vacuuming and cleaning my carpets. With the best of intentions I swept Jack into the minivan (which I have decided to lovingly refer to as "Shelley") **more on this later**, and we headed to the library. This is where things got decidedly ugly. We arrived at the library at 9:30 in the morning. (YES I DID ACCOMPLISH ALL THOSE OTHER THINGS BETWEEN 8:00 AND 9:00!) The library didn't open until 10:00, which I remembered only as we were pulling in. So, rather than wait in Shelley (the van) for half and hour, I decided to go to Fred Meyer and brows. (This is the beginning of the end for me.) My first big mistake! I said, "Hey Jack, let's go see what you would like for your birthday!" Then I left my purse in the car. Jack wanted every toy gun, starwars memorobilia and car in the toy department and was not very happy about the fact that we were not putting them in the cart RIGHT NOW! My only saving grace was that luckily I had my watch on, and could say "OOHHH the library just opened!" And I raced for the car with one only slightly pacified toddler. Next came my most embarrasing moment of the week. And why am I putting it on this page? Because I have decided that if people in the library found it humorous, you would too! So there I am in the junior section... only my son and a buzillion little books around... I squat/crouch down to see the bottom shelf (quite proud that my knees can still do this position) when I suddenly experience... how shall I say it... a small explosion between the legs (as Webster defines it). You got it. A small toot. Nothing silent and deadly, just a small innocent fluff kind that I am sure NO ONE ELSE has ever had right?!? So I casually look up, and note that there is noone for at least three row, so I am relieved. Then Jack blurts out laughingly, "Mom, did you just TOOT?!?" I told him that I did. BIG MISTAKE! If your child ever asks you this, tell him that Big Foot did, or that the earths plate techtonics right below your feet just shifted, or even suggest that what they heard was the ventilation system turning on... but what ever you do, DO NOT TELL YOUR THREE YEAR OLD THAT YOU TOOTED! He started laughing, and ran out into the middle of the library and yelled, "Hey guess what! My mom tooted!" He said this about four times (and to as many people as he could) before I, with as much dignity as I could muster, got him out of the library. Ah the joys of motherhood!

Today I got fired

Long days, short nights, barking dogs, it was all adding up. Early morning meetings, bus duty, grades due and the week seemed never ending. So it came as a bit of a surprise to me, after all my hard work that I should get fired. It happened suddenly... one minute I was walking with Jack (my three year old astute son) and with three little words I decided to prioritize a bit better. He told me I was fired. HELLO! My baby fired me as a mother! So now I am trying to play more, and take life one day at a time. Teacher, department head, taxi driver, all of that can wait. Being a mom is what life is all about!