Random thoughts

My BIL comes home from the Middle East this week. This tour was only 3 months long but I can tell you how hard it's been on my sister and their kids. I can't even begin to imagine what Army and Marine families have to endure. I got to thinking about it again after watching the season finale of Army Wives this week. As the soldiers prepared to ship out and their wives and families stood there saying their goodbyes, I was in tears. I have such immense respect for the people who sacrifice so much for this country. Not just the soldiers, but their families...the ones left here to carry on. It's heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time. I'm going to try to remember this when I complain about the travel involved with K-man's job. He's gone a week at a time at the most and at least I know there is always a return date. So really, what do I have to bitch about?

Happier thoughts

The Diesel is a monster! He's getting so big. Still doing the whole army crawl thing, but our sitter said he really crawled a couple of different times yesterday. I'll have to be on the lookout for that. We have had to lower the crib mattress though. After two mornings of walking into his room and finding him standing on his knees holding on the crib rail, I figured it was time. He's pulling up like that on everything he can reach these days. It really is cute. Especially when he looks and you and smiles like "do you see what I'm doing?" Still no teeth, though. It's crazy. We'll think one is about to come through and then it disappears so all we get are his adorable gummy smiles. He's also eating us out of house and home. I swear everytime I turn around I'm buying him more food at the grocery. I think it's a portend to his teenage years.

The Pookster loves her new school and has already learned so much. I love that we get something in her send home folder every day and she's so excited to show it to us. So hard for me to believe that she turns four on Sunday. Where has the time gone? Instead of this chubby little baby, we now have a petite pre-K kid who goes 90 to nothing pretty much nonstop.

Wouldn't trade either of our kiddos for all the tea in China! They and their daddy are my life. How'd I ever get so lucky?

First day of Pre-K

I probably should be crying, right? I probably would be if Pook wasn't so darned excited about her new school. Kid you not. She had serious trouble going to sleep last night b/c she kept wanting to go to school. She was up at 11:30 last night standing on my side of the bed telling me that she had slept and that it was time to go to school. I sent her back to bed and when I got out of the shower this morning at 6:45, she was up. All bright-eyed and bushy-tailed ready to start the day.

You should've seen her when we dropped her at school. She went into her room like such a big girl and just started doing exactly what she was supposed to. Writing about it now makes me want to cry. I didn't even get to kiss her goodbye she was so busy. She just blew me a kiss and said "'Bye, Mommy!"

Mommy and Daddy are going to have to get used to this being at school by the same time everyday. That means managing the alarm clock a little better. Making lunch and gathering snacks have now been added to the morning routine. We'll get it down. Even if it means I have to get up earlier. Ugh.

BTW - the back-to-school desktop is a freebie from Shabby Miss Jenn Designs in honor of its first birthday. She has some really, really cute kits. Go check it out!

Parent orientation

Your newly excited about enrolling your child in a new school that you just feel is going to be great for her as you sit down. You listen as the principal goes through the handbook. You glance around at the other parents. You shift in your seat after 30 minutes beginning to wonder how long this is going to last. You feel your eyes glaze over as you enter hour #2 of the same bits of information being repeated. You begin to imagine beating your head against the seat in front of you if you don't get up and move soon. Finally, the grandest words ever spoken..."That's all we have for you. Have a great night!" Ahhhh, freedom, sweet freedom! Feeling restored to your legs and fresh air in your lungs never felt so good.

Just a snippet of how K-man and I spent last evening. It really was vital information for us about the Pookster's new school, but it was unnervingly long and tedious. Welcome to Pre-K!

Couple new pics of the kiddos

Back to School...

Guess it's not really back to school for us, but in a way it sort of is. Pook starts her new school on Wednesday. So in preparation, we went through her ENTIRE wardrobe, tried on EVERY article of clothing she has, to see what still fits and what is going to be given away or sold. Our petite little thing is finally moving out of the 2T pant size. Bless her heart, she turns 4 in 2 weeks and is just now outgrowing the 2Ts! They all pretty much still fit in the waist but they are all definitely too short. I had flashbacks to my childhood and wearing too-short pants as we waded through the Pookster's clothes. Luckily, all her skirts and shorts still fit. We'll just have to begin the arduous task of finding pants that actually fit her tiny butt.

Next stop...shoes. Her shoe basket is in desperate need of a good cleaning out. There are umpteen pairs in there and I think maybe 5 she can actually still wear. She's in that oh-so-hard-to-find 6 1/2 size. You know that size where the 7 is too big, the 6 fits for now, but you don't want to be out looking for new shoes if she outgrows them in a week? That's where we are. She has to wear close toed shoes to her new school. No more flip flops or sandals to school. Ugh. Now I've got to keep up with more socks. Small price to pay I guess since Pook is very excited about attending her new school. We have parent orientation tomorrow night so I'll let you know how it goes.

High School Musical 2

Yes, we succumbed to the ultra-hyped Disney machine and watched HSM2. I should be embarassed to admit that I liked it...but I'm not, not in the least. We even made a 2 day affair of it all by watching HSM1 the night before. Can I tell you that there is nothing cuter than watching Pook sing along to these songs? She's currently watching the HSM2 sing-along version on the Disney channel. Our girl, she's destined for stardom. Don't believe it? Just ask her. She'll tell you she's going to be a pop star. It's a hoot!

Decision made

We came to a decision late last week about Pook's new school and we are very much at peace. We just feel like God laid it on our hearts that this was the right place for her. She'll be in a class of only 6 kids and she's excited about going to a new school. We have a back-to-school luau there tonight so hopefully she'll get to meet some of the kids in her class.

In other news...
It is dang hot here. Summer has finally come to Texas. This is the heat we all know and hate. I guess we should be thankful that it waited until August to arrive. I'm just praying that this doesn't mean that summer is going to hang around until November now.

First words *sort of*

We have another talker on our hands. The Diesel has taken to making Ma Ma sounds and he's getting pretty consistent with it...especially when I'm not feeding him fast enough. Then just this morning I heard him saying Da Da Da. It's all cute and gravelly and loud. He's presently talking my ear off and I love it! And this boy can seriously scoot. He's got the one armed army crawl that cracks us all up but he knows how to get there in a hurry when he wants something. Don't let us leave a flip flop on the floor. That's prime material for him. He also loves being under the computer chair. Something about the light from the CPU and external hard drive just draws him like a moth to a flame.

Frustration abound

I am beyond frustrated. Please allow me to vent.

The Pook turns 4 on September 2 and we'd been led to understand...no TOLD (by her school administrators)...that she would be going into a PreK class as of August 27. So last Thursday I get a call from Pook's school regarding her placement for this next school year. They told me that b/c she will not be 4 on Sept 1 that they will not move her up to PreK but put her in a 4 yr old class instead. They stated that it was b/c of the TX standard that a child must be 5 by Sept 1 in order to be eligible for Kinder. Then why did you move her up to the oldest 3's class and tell us that she'd be going to PreK this fall? And why, praytell, did you wait until 2 1/2 weeks before school starts to let us know this little piece of information?

DH and I have been on the phone calling every private school in town checking on availability and seeing if they might be the right fit for her. Look, we don't think our child is brilliant or a child prodigy. We just don't want her educational choices and opportunities to be limited b/c she was born 1 stinkin' day late. If after the year of PreK her teachers don't think she's ready for Kinder then we have absolutely NO problem having her in PreK for a 2nd year. Even her teachers at her school now are PO'd. They can't believe the school has done this and told us that they wish they would ask them who was ready for PreK and who wasn't. To top it all off, the school administrators weren't honest with us about the real reason for not moving her up. It slipped in a conversation with DH that there wasn't room for her in a PreK class. It's just all so frustrating.

After a crash course in private schools I think we have it narrowed down to two. I have a headache and my dang hand hurts from filling out applications. Not to mention that our checkbook is taking a beating, too. Is it just me or is $400 a bit excessive for a registration fee?

What would you do in our shoes? Just suck it up and put her in the 4 YO class or try and find her a PreK?

Just a fly by post

I have now landed for at least a little while. K-man, the kids and I took off for Kansas last Friday for a family reunion. Lots of good food and the opportunity to show off the kiddos made the 8 hour drive almost bearable. You know, I could really go for some more of the onion souffle right about now. Think I'll have to post that recipe for all to enjoy.

One of the best men from our wedding (yes, I meant one...K-man had two) got married a couple of months ago and there was a reception for them while we were in Kansas. So after a day of stuffing ourselves we headed over to help our friends celebrate. A grand time was had by all...especially by the Pookster who danced her little feet off. It was a very late night and Sunday morning came a tish too early. I had been asked by K-man's aunt to sing at their church. Now, you may or may not know that I have a horrendous case of stage fright when it comes to singing by myself in public. Not that I don't think I can't sing, I'm just afraid that somebody (or everybody) will think that I'm terrible. Silly, I know, but there you have it. My sweet girl helped me out with that and stood right up there on stage, microphone in hand and sang her little heart out right along with me. Church full of people? Who cares? Not her. It was almost too much for me. She a natural born performer. I'm hoping to post the audio when I get the copy of the service. Keep your fingers crossed that I'll figure out how to do that.

Stopped over at my sister's for the night on Sunday. It's always good to visit with her and then headed south on I-35 Monday morning. Of course, a pit stop for fried pies was in order. Completely not healthy, but oh-so-tasty.

No sooner do we get home that I'm packing again. An overnight staff retreat called me away from home on Tuesday. Needless to say, I am more than happy to have slept in my own bed last night and to know that I'll be enjoying that comfort for a while.

Hotel beds
Which brings to mind a question? Do you have a favorite hotel? Hotel bed? For the most part, we're not 5-star travelers, but after sleeping in a Best Western and a Comfort Inn the past few days...I've got to give my nod to the Comfort Inn for the better bed. Higher off the ground, softer mattress, weighty enough comforter, and plenty o' pillows. Of course, neither compare to the Westin Heavenly Bed. Sometimes I'm just random.