Taking Monkies To The Zoo

I almost forgot....I was one of the lucky parents that got to tag along on the 1st grade field trip to Zoo Montana on Wednesday, May 16th, 2012.  It was very hot but very fun.  I had a great group of kids that accompanied me through the zoo. We got to see a tiger, snakes, bears, a wolf, eagles and we even saw a peacock trying to romance a pepsi machine!  They had a blast feeding the goats and we got to sit on a gopher community to eat our lunch.  Lastly, we hit the gift shop and Gabriel found a new buddy...he named him Reggie! Thanks kids....spending time with you never gets old!

"Zoo Boy" from the news talking about the snake in his arms

Mr. Peacock showing off for the his girlfriend

all the kids flocking to the bus driver, Ron, during lunch. :-)

My cool group--Gabriel, Charlie, Jake and Natalie

The Coolies with eagles in the background

The eagles posing for me

The Coolies posing with the monkey

This peacock was actually showing off to the pepsi machine behind him

Too cute....

Jake was capturing the bears

Gabe and Reggie the Snake

I Told You I Would Be Back

Well here I am.  I have survived a preschool graduation and an 8th grade graduation. I have survived making 3 sheet cakes and 48 cupcakes. I have survived cleanup after 8th grade graduation and I have survived letting my little man go to his 1st ever sleep over with someone other than family. We all had a great time and the best part is that I didn't have to fight to get the kids ready for school!  Please enjoy the following pictures of our graduation adventures.....like any good bad mom, I didn't get a very good
picture of my 8th grader but I will be posting some when the "better" ones come to me. Have a great day!

Rollie's preschool graduation cake

Preschool cake....again

Waiting his turn at the famous preschool track meet

Dad was Rollie's race buddy

Maddie spruced up for graduation

Gabe got bored and decorated Munga (Grandma)

I got the graduate and JJ(grandpa) in one picture

Heading over to get his diploma

1 of 2 8th grade graduation cakes

 

                           Cake #2 of 8th grade

                           

48 cupcakes for 8th grade graduation

8th grade graduation class motto (LOVE IT!)

Emily actually getting her diploma (I don't claim to be a professional photographer)

oh, and we ate another smurf!

First Day of School...2011



Well the day has finally arrived. I get to spend my days in peace and quiet again. Yes, school has started.  Now all the fighting that is done for my viewing and hearing pleasure will be done after school and on weekends.  Don't get me wrong, I will miss having them around but I think I can get used to it!

  Usually on the first day of school every child wants me to go to their classroom first and gets mad when I finally have to choose one and it wasn't them.  This year, however, everyone ran off to their own classrooms and left me and the youngest in the dust.  So I bought planners for the older two (these things didn't exist when I was in school) and headed to Gabriel's classroom first.  What a sweet boy. I told him I would help him find his desk.....which had his name on it.......which he was literally standing right next to.  I told him "look for the desk that has your name on it". He chose a desk a whole row away with a girl's name on it.....oh no! Did he forget his name over the summer break?  I doubt it.....he heard his name in it's entirety plenty this summer.  Good luck Mrs. W. 

  As for the other two....I took Madison her planner and she barely paid heed to my presence until....when I turned to leave I thought she was gonna ask me to stay for the day.  I knew she wanted a hug and kiss goodbye but that would be totally uncool for a six grader.  As for Emily the eighth grader.....she took the planner hugged her little brother and told me "bye mom".  I know it was code for go away but I read between the lines and distinctly heard "Goodbye Mother. I Love you. Thanks for being the best mom a girl could ask for. I can't wait to see you after school to tell you about my day and, oh yeah, I promise to clean my room and do the dishes after supper."

    My littlest starts his 2nd year of preschool the 29th.  I feel I should make the best of this year with him for next year I will surrender him to the public school system and I will find myself childless 8-3 M-F for the time in 13 years. Weird.  HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL TO KIDS AND PARENTS!

I Often Wondered If I Was Related To Someone Famous.....

   As it turns out I have a daughter named Sacagawea. Last Friday my daughter's 5th grade class had their annual wax museum.  They get to pick a famous person from history, make a background, write a report and don a costume depicting their chosen figure.  A few years before my oldest daughter chose Ronald Reagan. (I think the reason was that she got to wear a cowboy hat which makes her think of horses....I know its a weird link but I think her brain may be part horse!)  It is fun to see all of the creative costumes that all of the kids come up with, not to mention the interesting reports. My mom went along this year.  When she read Madison's report she asked me if she had any help writing it.  Ok! Fine! I will admit it....she asked me to type it up for her and when I did I couldn't help but "revise" a little. I had a hard time with her saying 5 different times that Sacagawea was 16 when she was pregnant just so she could stretch out the report!......There. I confessed....why don't you shine a light in my eyes!)  Anyways, she got a gob of extra points for the project and I have to say that I am really proud of her for taking on the task and completing it all (mostly on her own....Good Job Madison!

P.S.....for anyone reading this who believes that I spelled Sacagawea wrong, I believed I did too but I am writing it how Madison did and she swears that she found it spelled that way in her research.  If she is willing to swear it, then it is my duty as a mother to believe her.......right?!

Bedtime....Always Fun!

School is finally in full swing.  Having said that, I think my kids are still on the summer schedule.  Around our house, bedtime is 9:00pm. (My husband wishes it was 7:00)  I have come to the conclusion that if I want my darlings in bed by 9, I'd better start herding them in that direction around 7:30 and then maybe, just maybe things will fall into place.  My children are the masters of distraction.  When I say it is time to get ready for bed, they head towards their room and then shut the door and get lost in the TV.  When they are that quiet I forget (for only a moment) where I have sent them and why but, nonetheless, am enjoying the peace and quiet.  When I finally go back to check on them I get crazy because they haven't done one thing that I have asked.  Seeing the crazy in my eyes they hop to (or pretend to) and get ready for bed.  Apparently they have a condition that doesn't allow them to go to sleep unless I have tucked them in. (and it has to be ME, not even Dad will do at this point...I think it may all be part of their devious plan to avoid bed) After many mooches and hugs and tucks (and I say MANY because if I give an "incorrect" hug or mooch we have to start all over) I finally get out of there and by now it is usually past 9:30.  What procrastinators......(I think I have worked with people with this same condition!)  Funnily enough, it doesn't end there.  After I get them all to bed and have made it to bed myself, there is nothing like the feeling you get when you are just drifting off and you open your eyes and you have your nine year old 2 inches from your face.  She has, yet again, heard noises and wants to sleep in our room.  I tell her that there are 3 other people sleeping in the room with her...if the boogy man does show up she needs only to outrun her brothers and sister that I don't care but she has to sleep on the floor.  I only let my kids sleep on the floor in my room.  You would think that this would discourage them from it......not my kids.  When I get out of bed in the mornings I get to run an obstacle course of bodies.  All of my kids sleep with their blankets over their heads so if I happen to step on someone I can usually tell who it is by the noise they make.  I have accidentally step on a few of them and you would think that would discourage them....not my kids.  And don't even get me started on what it is like trying to explain to the husband why I am "not in the mood".....it is very hard to get the romance going with all of your previous "creations of love" just waiting to question your every move......I can't wait until bedtime tonight....maybe I will start the proceedings at 6 tonight......

What a difference a day will make....

I am happy to report that my little boy decided that he likes school after all! He was a little nervous when we go there but after we stepped inside and bee-lined for the bathroom......while in the loo we had a little chat and he decided that he was going to be OK. I left my little darling behind with his new friends with a new sense of assurance. I never got "the call" this time and when I got there to pick him up he and all his new friends were playing in the sandbox. The teacher was excited to tell me that he drank his milk at snack time and even went potty for her! YEAH!!! (that is quite a feat in itself considering that he won't even go for his own dad :-) When it was time to leave, though, he again threw a fit -- only this time it was because he DID NOT want to leave school! LOL! I finally got him out of there kicking and screaming....let's hope tomorrow holds a better departure....The cutest thing is that when you ask him his name he says "6" and when you ask him who his best friend his he says "sandbox"! I love my special little boy :-) Until next time....

I found yet another who DOES NOT like school...

My second middle darling! As stated in a previous blog, he was extremely excited to start school and totally bummed when he found out that it was not at the same location as his sisters. Today was his first day at "Linda's". He was pretty excited until, on the way there, I told him that he would be there by himself without brother and me. He started to get a little worried but was still excited to see what was on the other side of the door. When we got inside his "static cling" problem got worse....he was more clingy than one of those annoying dryer sheets someone else finds stuck to the back of your shirt. We made a short trip to the bathroom and then settled in at a tiny table with microscopic chairs for a little "getting to know the place" time. After a few minutes he was comfortable enough for brother and I to leave and my last mental picture of his was a happy one. School runs from 8:30 to 11:00am. I was feeling pretty good about it all and was just saying so to one of the husband's sisters when I got "the call". Hello Mrs. Myrstol....your son had an accident (number 1, thank goodness!) can you bring some dry clothes? "I am on my way"! I then ask myself, "You knew this would happen...you should have just put the extra clothes in the backpack like you planned!" ( I knew this would happen because he as stubborn as a mule not because he likes to pee his pants!) When I got there he was a sad little sight. He was sitting on the step stool in the bathroom looking lost and he started to cry when he saw me. While I was getting him changed, he kept crying over and over, "I don't like school, I don't like school!" All I could think was, "Kid, you've got a long road ahead of you if you dislike school this much this early!" My plan of "you need to go to school or we will have to take your bike back to the store" totally backfired on me when he wanted to hold open the car door so I could load up his bike! Please wish us luck for we are going to try it one more time this Thursday. Lucky for him they are all just little little kids so I doubt they will dub him as "the kid who peed his pants his very first day of school!" Let's just hope he get over his dislike for school and this episode doesn't repeat itself when he get to kindergarten and little kids' memories seem to be somewhat keener! Until next time....

Who doesn't love the first day of school?

I would say most kids everywhere but it is a different story when you ask most parents :-)Yesterday was the first day of school for my two oldest. All summer long they talked about how much they hated school but also how bored they were! When we went school shopping they got pretty excited but it faded quickly! The night before the first day of school they, again, thought that school was dumb....mostly because it was the start of their early to bed schedule but come the next morning (after they finally woke up) they got pretty excited again! They couldn't wait to get there so we could inspect the class room and see where their desks were -- hoping that it was right next to their best friend! Well my oldest was happy with everything but my second oldest was already worried that school would be hard and and she might not make it through....and this was after only 10 minutes! She may have had a premonition of a bad day.....during her first recess of the year she got smacked in the eye by a runaway tether ball and she wound up with her first black eye! What a way to start the first day!!!!!
My third child gets to start preschool next Tuesday! He seemed to understand this yesterday but this morning he threw a full on fit when I dropped the 2 oldest off because he thought he was going too....bless his heart! I only hope that he has the same enthusiasm next week when he realizes for the first time that mommy doesn't get to go to school with you!!!! Hopefully the coming year will be smooth sailing for all!! Until next time.....