Happy December

Today is Polar Express & Pajama Day at preschool. There is nothing cuter than a bunch of 5 yr olds in their jammies. Unless it's their teacher in her jammies. It is a comfy, cozy day!  Too bad it is 25 degrees outside right now. Brrrrrr. It will certainly feel like the Polar Express.

Polar Express Day also means our winter break is right around the corner! We are busy elves in the classroom making parent presents and lots of Christmas art. Glitter everywhere! Apparently, my tolerance for glitter art is very high, and when a parent present plan fell through yesterday I stopped at Michael's to see what we could do to salvage Christmas for that class. I have such a great job! Who doesn't love snow confetti glitter ornaments?!  I came home and came up with a cute idea to decorate both sides of a paper mache snowman ornament. The front will be all snowy with a cute face and square sequins for buttons, and the other side will have the kids photo and this poem I found on the internet modge podged on:

The funniest face
looked out at me
From an ornament on
the Christmas Tree!
At first I thought it was Santa's elf,
But I looked again and
it was just myself!

Our Christmas program is on Tuesday, followed by a short class party, a longer staff lunch and gift exchange, and then we are off until January 8th!

Mid-terms are next week for Gib and Mariah. Indie comes home on Monday the 17th, and we will see Taryn on the 20th (she is flying in from Kansas City after visiting a friend's family). Sadly, Indie has to have gum surgery on the 18th but we will be ready with tons of yummy smoothies and drinks for the liquid diet that follows. We are praying she will sail through the recovery! Good thing Smoothie King is on our corner!

And on a completely different topic: We have all new windows. Yay! The ones in the back have no panes, so we can really enjoy the view. The dining room now has one giant picture window instead of the grouping of 3 that was there before. The best part is no more draftiness! I hope the heating and AC bills reflect the improvement. Maybe, just maybe, I will venture beyond the radius of my heater.

It's the hap-happiest season of all!!!

NEW Christmas List

Some of our teachers got to leave for a lunch presentation which counts towards our service hours we need each year. I can't wait for my turn! It was one of those out of control afternoons. I knew it was going to be ugly when a kid on my left made a mountain of glitter instead of shaking it lightly as I turned for a split second to check the kid on my right. I look over just as some puffed up cheeks blew it across the table. Another helpful child came over and immersed both hands and spread it far and wide. Okie Dokie. At lunch, I thought we could talk about what they wanted on their Christmas wish list because I was hoping to be all super knowledgeable about Doc McStuffins this time around. Not a single kid mentioned her.

There is such a HUGE difference between our younger class and the older ones. It still amazes me sometimes. Our list had heelies, 2 angel costumes, 4 green ninja costumes, dream light, and a castle that lights up. I had absolutely no problem understanding any of that.

Since the list making didn't take long enough, I asked them what should be on my list. It made my day :) Note: the answers above correspond to the answers that child provided for me:

1. Princess costume (given with a "how would I know?!" face)
2. A diamond necklace (love that girl)
3. A rope to lasso cows - it has a star and sparkles on it. And you have to have a horse too.
4. Ninja costume  (so I can play along I think)
5. Candy
6. A beautiful dress
7. PEACE sign necklace that lights up and changes colors
8. A Flashlight

It's My Birthday!

At preschool we have staff meeting every Thursday before the start of the school day. We have 8 classroom teachers and 5 "others" - teacher assistants, music teacher, asst. director and director. So to make our meetings extra happy we pretty much have a birthday once a month, whether or not it is your actual birthday. For us summer people, it's a chance to experience what life is like to have a birthday during the school year.

Today is MY DAY!!  We will have bfast goodies and funny cards. I think we all must stalk on card displays all over town looking for the funniest and best cards out there. We are all really good at it. It's a rare day that a birthday card is repeated during the year. I saw a great birthday card stand at a boutique that I will have to check out another time. The only problem is it's right next to the preschool and I think the chances are pretty high that one of my coworkers would stop in there too.  Oh, the horror if we gave the same card!!!

I got another early birthday present yesterday - Mike was at a business lunch thing with about 130 people and his name was pulled in a drawing for a $50 restaurant gift card!! We will be going out for a special night to celebrate OUR birthdays next weekend. 

I subbed on Tuesday for one of the Pre-K teachers - both were out because one gave a stomach bug to the other! so we had nothing but subs in Pre-K that day! anyways, the journal prompt was What is on Your Christmas Wish List?  Kid after kid kept saying the same thing. They are at the point where they will draw something and attempt to spell a word but like to have help sounding it out.  I could not for the life of me figure out what they were saying. I thought maybe it was Ninjago, but no... disgusted looks from the girls ruled that out.  I asked just about every kid in the class to say it, hoping somebody had better pronunciation so I could spell it.  

Me: Dog Mix Stuffing????!!

Kid 1: Yes - Dox Mix Stuffin

ask around the table - listening intently to every syllable

Me: Okaaaay. D--O-G.....M-I-X 

Kid 2: Docmixstuffins

Me: (oh geez not again) ask a couple different kids. Still hearing the same thing but I KNOW it can't be right.  I decide they are saying Mc, not MIX... D-O-G.....Mc-S-T-U-F-F-I-N-S

Kid 3: Dogmixstuffins

Me: (seriously?! what is this thing?!)  Spying a kid under a blanket and the backpacks waiting to surprise Santa  Hey - do you know DOG MC STUFFINS?  

Kid 4: Yeah!!!!   Doc Mc Stuffins!  

Me: Wait a minute - did you say DOC with a hard C sound like our letter of the week?

Kid 4: Yeah - Doc!

Me: DOC (cuh-cuh) not DOG (guh guh)????

Kid 4: Yeah - DOC Mc Suffins

Me to Kid 3: So it's Doc Mc Stuffins? Is that it? (thinking Oh, dear....)  So tell me, what does Doc Mc Stuffins do?????

Kid 1, 2, and 3 all start staying stuff like: She fixes things. She fixes things that are alive.  (mind you I have been writing stuff down as fast as I can to capture their words they say they said them - in each child's journal for their "reflection" thoughts)

Me to Kid 4: Time for extreme measures - let's use our technology resource. (iPhone!) Why do you want a Doc Mc Stuffins?

Kid 4: That's her!!! Because she is a doctor like my dad  (total DUH face)

Why didn't I ask that question first?!! Dog Mix Stuffing indeed.  Yum.  I was telling that story yesterday to our teachers and director, and reminded them of my really great idea that we have an in-service day with a bunch of Nick Jr shows on the DVR so we can get a few credit hours and be up on the latest trends.... Blues Clues is becoming a relic, Barney has been out longer than he was in, and Dora is about all I got left.  I need some jaunty new tunes anyway. 

Ready for Santa!

We are ready to celebrate here!  Mariah and I did the Christmas lights while Mike was picking up Taryn. When they arrived, they both exclaimed "that's just WRONG".  However, I'd like to point out doing lights in a balmy 70-something in short sleeves, is soooo much better than in coat, hat and mittens! Mariah was my helper in all things Christmas this year. I think it will be her lot in life - to be my helper - what a lucky gal.  Good thing I'm, I mean SHE, is so talented with decorating, shopping, wrapping, and fun to hang out with!

We are hoping to celebrate soon with Gib choosing a college! I don't know if it will happen before Christmas, but I expect by February we may close to deciding. He has been accepted at all 7 of the colleges we applied to with 5 so far offering basically 1/2 tuition scholarships. Two of our top choice schools award their scholarships later this month. Gib talked to the admissions counselor for our area from BSC last night for an interview. We exchanged emails and met him at the campus visit, but an interview is where you have the chance to get your name closer to the top of the list. He handed Gib his admission acceptance packet and they talked for 45 minutes. Gib had an awesome looking student resume, and we are hoping that this meeting helps Gib secure a leadership scholarship on top of merit award. The admissions guy was impressed with Gib's Eagle project portfolio and said he'd never had someone bring one to him before. He liked that and they discussed a tree fort he was planning on building. Male bonding - gotta love it.

My big adventure for Black Friday this year was to go to the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro, Alabama. It was a little farther away than anticipated. I thought it was in Huntsville, which is closer.  By the time I figured out it was farther away I felt committed to going. I have wanted to see what it was like for years after seeing it on TV once, so finally, I decided to humor me and go. Let's just say I was completely underwhelmed. We did find some good deals and in the end we were happy, but in the moment.... well:

"It's Goodwill 2.0" (to Mike on the phone who burst out laughing)

"I found the unclaimed baggage from a Drag Queen"

"$239 dollars!!!!! For an ugly pair of shoes?!"

"If I was a bride and lost that dress, I'd be happy"

Mariah and I shopped together, Taryn flowed between us and Indie, or was off doing her own thing. She wasn't a happy camper - and I didn't blame her. If we liked something, it was ridiculously expensive.  If a place is basically a department sized Goodwill, c'mon, you can't charge $65 for a purse! Indie, meanwhile, unbeknownst to me, was bebopping around finding all sorts of stuff.  I was dreading the moment I saw her face and was anticipating that her expression would be along the lines of appalled and disgusted that we drove 2.5 hrs to get HERE.  So imagine my shock, when she came up with a buggy FULL of stuff and a big smile on her face. She hit a goldmine - finding some very cute clothes and 2 pair of jeans that were like made for her! They are amazing, she looks super in them, and they were only $3 each!  She says when you're a poor college student who hasn't bought new clothes in a year, you develop superior bargain hunting skills.  We did find a few things that made the trip worthwhile, but I wouldn't go again. I googled ebay for the items and costs to see how well we did - and we saved $513 on 6 items.  So in the end, I was pleased. Still not going back. But if I did, seeing the nuclear power reactors off in the distance (who knew?) and hearing Taryn going "aren't they beautiful!" in a voice one would expect to hear when viewing the Grand Canyon would make me smile. It's all in the eye of the beholder!

So to cap off our Black Friday we couldn't get to the outdoor mall on our way home soon enough. There we shopped like mad, making up for lost time, and knocking out our Christmas gifts to everyone in one fell swoop. Well, almost - you know it's always "one or two more presents and them I'm done" with me.

The next weekend, Mariah and I wrapped everything! It took us like 5 hours, but we did. Then the next day we put up the tree, and then put all the presents under it, and then we put on the ornaments. Which we should have done before putting presents under the tree, because we couldn't reach the top from where we were standing. We finished the house decorations, going for super simple.

College Road Trip

Gib and I left town Thursday after school and returned home Monday night from our College Road Trip. We went to Indie's first. Mercer's Homecoming was that weekend and we got an invite from the admissions counselor to attend. Gib liked it, and he even got to sit in on one of Indie's Great Books classes, and have a chat at Jittery Joe's with the professor who does Mercer Service Scholars.  It was an informal interview for MSS and we are pretty sure Gib is in - should he decide to go to Mercer. 

And who doesn't love a puppy?! We got acquainted with Sophie and all her baby teeth. Jeff adopted her from the pound. She is adorable. I think Indie is right in guessing her doggie parents are Australian Shepherd and some kind of Terrier. She looks totally Australian, but her coat and her mannerisms especially when digging or hanging onto something, like say your hand or shirt, are reminiscent of a Terrier breed.

Even the cat loves the puppy.  It was very entertaining to watch them play together. Poor Aussie though, that tiny puppy is doubling in size before his eyes. Sophie has a puppy butt move that is hysterical. She runs up to Aussie, at the last second she turns, and smacks him in the face with her rear end. There is a roll on the floor die laughing video that I hope to get my hands on someday.

We went to a reception downtown Macon (free food) and made our impressions: well spoken, fun people, incredibly hungry. Gib took care of a platter of cheese and ham. We also scored tickets for breakfast, tailgate lunch and the men's basketball game. Jeff was especially glad he and Indie didn't have to go to the women's basketball game in order to get tickets to the men's. All the other students had to go that route. It's who you know Jeff - who you know.  We are not sure what Jeff is thinking here - probably something along the lines of the food at the reception did not a dinner make. But I laugh every time I see my kids with the same expression, head tilts, etc. and you can definitely tell they are related! We liked how even the guy in the back smiled for Take 2.

The bonfire was lit after some painfully loud music and athletic team introductions. Gib and I slipped away to score some ibuprofen from the Hilton across the street.  The guys both commented at the exact same time that they would have gone with a Log Cabin bonfire formation. Jeff went on to explain something in engineer-speak about how they make the same mistake every year. I will paraphrase my own way: "the pit is too small, the wood too long, the orange fencing too close - it  has taken out the fence a couple of times". Since Indie was close to the fence when the bonfire collapsed we were glad that didn't happen this year, but I was kind of looking forward to the screaming and mayhem. Little bit of a bummer there. The falling embers landing on people was only mildly entertaining.

The evening I cat and puppy sat was exhausting. I was up until 1 am with the little monsters. Give me 25 preschoolers any day of the week - ANY DAY - and it would be easier.  I was running around like a nut trying to keep up with puppy chewing on cords, me, kleenex, me, the cat, me.... it never ended I tell ya! I finally corraled her against the sofa and my legs and gave her my water bottle to chew. This pic was taken about 3.5 seconds before she got the paper label off and he had a big tug of war and I had to insert my fingers in the jaws of death to extract it. 

On Sunday, we all enjoyed brunch at IHOP, and then we departed for Alabama, to attend Birmingham-Southern College's preview for high school seniors on Monday.

One thing we gotta say for Alabama, the visitors center is one of the nicest rest areas we've been too. Gib even tagged it in my google map favorites. Not sure we'll ever go across GA to AL again, but now we'll know where to go. Haha - get it?

Sadly, I have NO pictures from BSC. It was an awful day - tons of rain, gray skies, and cold!

But, Gib got to meet people, attended a business class, and a session about BSC's unique January Explorations term. We liked that college too, and The General, the college president who retired as a Marine Commandant, worked under Reagan and Bush Sr., and on the Joint Chiefs of Staff for Clinton, grabbed Gib by the hoodie pocket and said "Gib! You ARE coming here aren't ya?! Where else would you want to go?!!!!"  Sir, yes Sir! - would have been the appropriate response Gib.  Gib said Maybe. May Day! May Day! Damage Control! Who Has English Problem?!  Gib went on to explain he has visited 5 colleges (much to his dismay I think) and BSC, Mercer, and Samford were at the top of his list.  Points for courage and honesty Dude. 

The Real Deal

You have to read Nation Building first - this is a follow up blog post with REAL pics from our own yard!

The winter patio pots with pansies and swiss chard

 Some kind of mustard plant and pansies

 Another kale and pansies

 Toad spa is closed for winter but the toad sign looked cute up here

The Pit - 

Mom hacked through the salvia and eunonymous like parting the Red Sea

 There's a turtle hut under here!

 The big reveal! He stayed in all night - he likes it! He really likes it!

 Stacked logs, soil, leaves, and pine straw creating a couple hidey holes a turtle could dig under

 The slumlord corner. Old plastic pot filled with dirt and weeds that became like concrete, oh 4 yrs ago, and never removed from The Pit.  Turned it over and propped it up. It's next to a possible tunnel under the wood and where I found the turtle after it had moved from the spot mom found it.  It was way too cold for it to be out in the open. 

 My favorite: Turtle Stairs!

Nation Building

Mike jokingly accused me of Nation Building. For a turtle. And I have to give him a huge shout-out because he humored me and totally enabled it. Yay Mike!! You see, it all started yesterday during our Fall transition gardening day. I am using images from the internet - I'm too lazy to go outside right now but I found some very close matches to the real thing - so to continue: 

 Mom and I were ruthlessly pulling out annuals in the yard that wouldn't survive the winter and redoing our summer patio pots to add winter kale, swiss chard, and pansies. It took the better part of the day. Mike was closing the house vents and commented that it was getting too difficult to fight his way into the air conditioner pit. Mom's Black Beauty Salvia is MASSIVE and has merged with eunonymous. Looks alot like this:

So she pruned to recreate the passageway I had made at the beginning of summer. Once she got in the pit, she figured she'd do some clean up, remove the hose, etc.  That's when it happened:  She found a hibernating turtle.  I had been betting it hibernated UNDER the mass of plants,but she found the turtle under the hose to the air conditioner and a thin layer of grass and leaves. 

I figured it was Son of a Gun and I didn't want to disturb his spot for a second time, but I was perplexed as to how he got in there. I looked all over for a tunnel or a way up and over the foot+ high stacked 6X6's. It sure seemed like it would be a problem to me. As the evening grew frigid and a big ol' storm blasted through I got to worrying about Son of a Gun.  So I googled eastern box turtle hibernation. I discovered that turtles are good climbers.  OK, so maybe he can get out if he wanted to, but how did he get IN then - did he fall? What if he falls trying to get out and lands upside down? Does he even want to be in there for the winter?  

Well, I read alot and obviously found some great pics, but it turns out people actually build turtle enclosures the same size as where Son of a Gun is currently snoozing.  And you see where this is going, don't you......

NOT QUITE!!!!

Hahaha - I laughed so hard when I saw this while looking for ideas to best support my hibernating, possibly stuck in the pit turtle. I mentioned some possible solutions to Mike and he graciously, if mockingly, helped. I moved the little guy into his new coconut igloo covered by leaves and pine straw and found out he is NOT Son of a Gun. I discretely looked at his undershell, since my googling had revealed some gender distinction information, and I kinda hoped I had a potential girlfriend. But I think this one is a male. So, note to self: check on the gender of Son of a Gun when I see "him" again. Maybe all hope is not lost. (when I was a kid, we ended up with turtle babies and I would LOVE to see that happen here!) 

So, this is almost exactly what our pit looks like, but ours is a bit higher.

This is one of the hibernation in progress photos - it was then topped off by a few inches of leaves.  I think you get the picture (haha).  Since my pit is pretty much the same only it has 4 sides, I did the same thing and just added more soil, leaves, and pine straw. Oh, and brick stairs to go to and fro. That was Mike's contribution :) It looks like this, but better.

After I was finished I thought I'd see if the Nation Building comment was deserved.  I decided there were enough coincidences that I can't dodge that one. 

Turtle Nation Building - 

1) Solves a difficult social problem - getting in and out of the pit could be a very difficult social (not to mention hazardous) problem especially if a likely female box turtle happens by that might want to canoodle for the winter.

2) Achieve objectives in interaction with other governments (aka humans) - food, shelter, and water. This was my main concern and I'm sure my wild turtles do just fine without my help, but I'm not losing another night's sleep worrying whether or not it can get in or out, and if it is going to be warm enough in that scrabble dirt pit. Now I can let it do its own thing and if a turtle wants to interact by visiting the yard, with objective #1 taken care of, we both benefit.

3) Manage environment and natural resources - As a responsible nation builder I mainly used resources found in the yard - logs, leaves, soil and brick. I added a couple bags of topsoil, a layer of leaves and topped with a couple bales of pine straw. I created four safe spots for the turtle because I know for a fact they are difficult to please. So now we have enough room and safe environment to raise a family - in the event that canoodling happens. 

4) Culturally appropriate systems - I think I get a gold star for this one. More than simply raising living standards - a successful foundation and beautification of a turtle corridor has solved a particular problem (access) and added culturally appropriate materials (housing) while not creating turtle dependence on foreign aid. 

Well, that's it. I think another title for this post could be 

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING!!

Wedding Planner

Mariah had to plan a wedding for her Family & Consumer Science class. She's been working on it FOREVER! Every last detail from the bridesmaids dresses, to her sister's contribution of a couple cute flower girls, to a home for the newlyweds to move in to. The finale was the scrapbook.

Now let's just put it out there that I am NOT a scrapbooker. On the weekend we made quite the trip to Michael's for paper, embellishments, stickers, metallic pens, etc.  I got distracted by the dollar bins and Mariah power shopped without me. When she came back she had to have had more than $100 worth in the little red basket. I said something along the lines of NO WAY, and Mariah sat down and started going through it asking the tough questions and eliminated about half.  Scrapbooking is one expensive hobby!

On Monday, I got permission to use the color copier at preschool and went in to print out about 25 pages. That was a big help. It was fast, easy, looked great, and free!

Monday after school, Mariah went right to work. The project was due in Tuesday. She volunteered to skip school on Monday so she'd have lots of time to finish a project worth like half her grade for the semester, but I took a pass on that idea. Mariah stopped only briefly to eat dinner, and from 3:30 to 11:30 p.m. she scrapbooked like the glue smelled good. I did alot of cutting from the 25 pages of pictures! That, and saying which color looked better, or what side of the page a flower should go on, was my big contribution. She did a great job but pointed out all the other mom's were helping alot more. Well, guess those mom's are not Weather Channel addicts with a major hurricane, nay THE PERFECT STORM, coming ashore on the East Coast.

She hoped her scrapbook might win one of the 3 prizes - A+ schmay-pus, give us gift cards! But when she got home from school today her comment was something like this: "The moms in this town are like scrapbooking experts!!!"  (Sigh) I hoped the mom's would stop doing their kids projects in Elementary school. When I said that to Mike, he reminded me of a certain child's middle school Atom Molecule project;  I still maintain he pulled his weight!  C'mon, you don't let young boys use a glue gun unsupervised!

This morning I spent 20 minutes going everywhere Mariah left behind a debris pile - while listening to the Weather Channel describe the wake of destruction from FRANKENSTORM. I enjoy irony quite a bit. I had a trash bag and went all around the dining room table - started at the top and worked my way to the floor, then the side table, her desk, and two end tables... and the office desk, couch and ottoman.  Glad I got it done before I had to leave for work today, and also glad we are safe & sound (mostly).

When I told Mariah she has a real future in wedding planning she said she'd charge $30,000.  Celebrity Wedding planner it is!

Let's just take the A and be on our way - leave Michael's behind and nobody gets hurt.

Accepted!

It's been a pretty good week. We had a nice, relaxed Fall Break from Friday 10/19 until Tuesday 10/23.  Going back to school and work on Wednesday was a bit rough - those breaks are all fun and games until they're over!  As you can see, I took the trouble to sign Gib out to do this blog. Not as much activity on his college gmail now that the apps are done. Whooo-hoooo!  I've been sort of requested to stop living vicariously in his college email so I log out now when I'm done peeking. What a hassle. Apparently, replying to an admissions email, rsvp'ing for stuff,  and logging him into a college's social network for the incoming class (and accepting friend requests from cute girls) is FROWNED UPON in his establishment! If he thinks I've taken to solitary confinement on that, he needs to remember I've got a smartphone. With an app.  "Nobody knows..."

We do have to stay on top of emails with reminders for teacher recommendations, requests for extra supplements or short answer responses that the school wants now that the application is complete, so a responsible, prompt person ought to be checking it every day. There are a couple colleges with November 1 deadlines for the best scholarship offers. Someday Gib can pay me for all this free work. When technology completely passes me by, I plan to collect big time. For now, I should think Mr. Type B personality should be glad to have Mrs. Type A in his corner.

These days, if the house phone rings there's a good chance it is one of the colleges calling Gib. Maybe I'm a little biased but he sure sounds like someone they'd want at their university when he speaks to them! This whole process wears Gib out, lemme tell ya.

BUT.... there's a silver lining!  The admission acceptance letters have started rolling in!

The first one was from Mercer - we got an email followed by a big orange You're Accepted! packet the next day.  Also in the mailbox was an acceptance letter from University of Tennessee-Chattanooga.  That's what all the fake excitement is about... better watch out Gib - you might end up going there!  He kinda didn't apply to that one; a strategic parent did since it didn't require anything more than name and address (and $30). Options are always nice. And having two in-state options seemed prudent.

So, now that the HARD work is done, it is time to start applying for scholarships. Sorry Gib! But if we're really lucky, there will be lots of silver and gold lining as a result!

We'll see who gets the last laugh.

Doing Good

I am so proud of my kids - they are just good hearted people! To see them pursuing things that make them happy and contribute to the community is one of the best things for a parent. They get along with each other, are loving, and kind to others. 

Who's going to be a hair/make-up/fashion model tonight?! That girl - right there!
It's a total WIN-WIN because not only does Mariah get to experience a really fun evening, the show is a benefit for breast cancer.  (And she got new cowboy boots, to go with the outfit they are providing. They were on her Christmas wishlist anyway, she just gets a chance to do a little breaking in of the boots now. Wish we wore the same size - I'd be happy to help with that). She may be young, but Mariah will do great things. She has the biggest heart of us all. 

Gib had his Great Day of Service, and the Frisbee for Fibromyalgia benefit tournament. And you can't forget the Eagle Project, or all the camping/canoe trips with younger scouts who didn't have a dad to take them. Countless hours spent as a friend, leader, and mentor. We may never know the impact that had on others, but we know Gib valued the friendship and help from senior scouts in his troop and it helped him become the great guy he is today.

Besides helping incoming freshmen get used to college life, Taryn also helps other students with ADD at her college through student support services. She donated for the campus drive to find a bone marrow match: perfectly willing to go through the procedure to help another person should she be a match. That's a real gift.

While getting a degree for the purpose of helping children, Indie also discovered a love for helping improve life for those in Africa and abroad. She is in the midst of planning with another Mercer senior a fundraiser for Zimbabwe Outreach Ministries. It's been a big time commitment for her, and they do such important work (see the link on her facebook). We are hoping the fundraiser is a  huge success!

It's a blessing to be blessed with a wonderful family.

A Great Day

Gib is still blogging like a fool.  He is also getting email from colleges, and I am too lazy to log in and out all the time, so he's ON right now. He gets about a call a night too. Popular guy.

Today was The Great Day of Service for seniors; Gib and friends chose to go to Percy Warner Park and they chopped down trees (aka honeysuckle) with axes.  If you are like me you were nodding, nodding and then WHAT?! Yeah, axes. Nobody got hurt. Southern boys and all that. Somebody did break a toe but that was later at Ultimate.

Meanwhile back at high school, Mariah took the PSAT. She said it was easy. Maybe she missed a couple in English. Okie dokie.... if she's right, that's going to change everything.  I love my kids, they are smart, but they do NOT lack in confidence.

There was a cricket, two ladybugs and one teeny tiniest ladybug ever, some big ants, and maybe a spider..and a very wiggly worm on the playground today. It all started with the cricket.  I pointed it out, a fascinated circle formed, pigtails touched the cricket and the cricket jumped into a dress.  Under it. Ear splitting screaming ensued, first from an observer but then ALL the girls joined in.... ever so calmly I snagged an arm, flicked it off and hugged a cutie, making a joke, (is this a tent? an umbrella? I love umbrellas! They are good hiding places when monsters are trying to catch me!) we barely avoided some serious tears, we noted how fast our hearts were beating and moved on with a request that if crickets make you squeal, to play farther away from it. Measure of success: everyone was trying to catch that cricket a few minutes later.  I was so happy when we got it outside of the playground via a skinny arm through the chain link fence and HOP!

The BEST from yesterday. The firemen came in their big firetruck. We had the whole demonstration and learned that even though a fireman looks kinda weird in all his safety gear he really is someone you should run to and give a hug if you ever see him trying to save you in a fire.  A few brave souls ran up and hugged our fireman. As we moved on to climb inside the truck, one of those precious kiddos did that "I'm watching you" sign with the two first fingers pointing at herself and then right in his face. I burst out laughing - couldn't help it. She then told her teacher "I don't really like firemen".  I had soooo much fun telling her mom about that. Still laughing about it today.

Today, I had a giggle over a teacher telling a wiggly boy at lunchtime to sit up and put all four legs on the floor - meaning the chair he was tipping - he frowned, looked at her and replied, "I DON'T have four legs!"

New Frontier

I'm always braving new frontiers but this time it was Mariah on a youth retreat at a place called New Frontiers. She pretty much went to bed when she got home so the details are a little sparse right now, however she had a good time. Especially in the cave! 

She was telling us about crawling around in the cave, squeezing through tight openings, and her sore foot from another hike, when Mike asked if she had brought clothes for getting dirty in. Mariah replied, "yeah your windbreaker".  Uhhhhh.... MY windbreaker? Which one?  Haha yeah, I kind of forgot to tell Mike about that. At least I changed my mind about giving her Gib's scout pants (which would have been perfect) since he hasn't had his Eagle Court of Honor yet. Otherwise I would have had two surprised guys here.

Speaking of which, the senior scouts decided it would be cool if the guys in their Crew had a big ol' group Eagle Court of Honor. A couple of them needed to get on the ball and actually do their project first. So the timeline is after the holidays. It will be fun to see all of them at this important milestone together.

Training for Philmont has begun. Gib however is pretty darn certain he could run the whole Philmont Trail thing and is content to wait until Spring training for backpacking trips. OK, whatever. Getting those college applications done was challenge enough for now.

Fall break is Friday-Tuesday this week. We can't wait!!!

Round 2

Today is Round 2 of the Super Sub.

Yesterday was probably a crazy day, everywhere except the 2 yr old room! Compared to my usual day, it was crazy easy. I had a good day, but I'm happy to return to Pre-K - as a sub once again.  Different teacher - but it is another sick kid!  I'm doubling down on Airborne.  Every 2 yr old had a cough and a runny nose.  Teacher kids are dropping like flies.  I had a short-lived sore throat and runny nose with alot of tiredness last week with a lingering headache that won't quite go away. Don't need a round 2 of that!

We finished the day with Mariah's fall concert. I was so surprised all the music was spiritual - well, except Lollipop Lollipop and some African tunes which were awesome, and who knows, maybe they were spiritual too.  Tatu-Tatu, Gabi-Gabi - not sure what that means.   I'll ask the two year olds next week.....

Comfort Zone

Still signed in as Gib.... whatever.  You all know who it is!

Today I am a sub once (or is it twice?) removed at preschool.  I was at the dentist yesterday getting a filling replaced (yuck) when I got the news a Pre-K teacher's son has walking pneumonia. Not a problem - I knew from experience the attraction of taking the pumpkins we got at the farm on Thursday and getting to clean the mud off and wash them all day in the water table, and also a weighing station to see which was heaviest, maybe do some sorting by size, weight, prettiest, biggest stem, etc.  This can last ALL day.  "Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy" as the pre-k kids like to say.

Then I got a call from my boss in the afternoon. I answered it with "I hear I'm subbing" thinking she didn't know I knew.  "Yeah, well about that....."  Turns out that we are down 2 teachers in the Littles side of preschool, and only one sub can come in who was going to be doing my job.  A grandpa stepped up to the plate and is staying with the walking pneumonia kid so his mom can play with pumpkins all day, and I was moved to the 2 yr old class who's son had a fever at school and whose teacher sounds sick too.

So it's a little out of my comfort zone, but luckily I remember the words to the song "If You Chance to Meet a Frown" which should come in handy when they all start crying at once when they don't see their beloved teacher!

Well, I better get dressed and run out the door to pick up preschool milk and take something to Mike. As a testament to my experience with 2 yr olds, I'm wearing something that won't show if I have to cuddle snotty criers.  At least it's a short week - no school on Thursday!!

P.S. Mariah has a chorus concert tonight. Looking forward to it!

m.o.m.

MORE ON MARIAH:

How could I have forgotten?! Well probably because I'm a wee bit behind on blogging (and you may know from facebook) But.... Mariah auditioned for mid-state honors choir as an Alto and she made it!!!

Now, I've never been to a singing audition before and next time one comes around I am either getting medication or bringing earplugs. MY daughter sounded just fine, but some sure did NOT and everyone was singing at different points in Ave Maria, trying to be louder than everyone else, over-singing, doing vocal warm ups, chit-chatting, and not using their "head-voice" right, whatever that is.

Mariah said the audition took place behind a screen so she couldn't see them and they couldn't see her. She liked it that way (no surprise from Ms. Don't-Watch-Me-Perform) and thinks she did better with it. It allowed her to smoosh her face or something to make long vowels while she sang. Alot of her friends hated it and felt it made the audition worse. I'm glad she gave it her all, and that she was selected to participate.

There is a humongous rehearsal - like 6 hrs long for a handful of songs and I imagine they get to eat and then the performance at Christ Church Cathedral in Nashville on Nov 8th.

Mariah also made a very wise decision not to try out for the first play of the year - I love not having two places to be at the same time! Unless you count the laundry room and kitchen... well, I still dislike that one.

Congratulations Mariah! We are proud of you and can't wait to sneak in Christ Church Cathedral to hear the performance. You'll never know.... just ignore the man on his belly taking pictures with a zoom lens - it's not your dad, promise.

Yay!

Gib is logged in to gmail for college application purposes and I don't feel like changing it right now. It's a Monday.  And - IT'S ALL OVER EXCEPT THE SHOUTING!!

But first - let's just say HAPPY BIRTHDAY INDIE!! We love you!   Indie is in the midst of grad school applications and has another GRE in Psychology. We will miss her during Fall Break. And it looks like our plans to go to Mercer this month may be moved to November as well. Good thing we had a back up plan for her birthday present and she should be receiving it today.  Yay Apple (4S) and upgrades near birthdays.

Taryn doesn't get a fall break and I'm anxiously waiting to hear if her Thanksgiving break dates have been changed. Her RA told her that they only got Thurs-Sun off and if that is true, wow, that sure doesn't allow for travelling and spending time with the family. Half her break will be spent in the car coming and going.  I frantically started looking for alternative ideas to spend Thanksgiving as a family in another city (which I was starting to warm up to - vacation, fun, no cooking)  but Mike wasn't fond of that idea or changing his and Gib's after-Thanksgiving tradition of working their 4 shifts at the BSA Christmas Tree Lot on Friday and Saturday. This year will be their last, and besides contributing to the troop, it is required to secure Gib's spot on the Philmont trip this summer (whoohooo!!!!). So, surely Taryn's RA has it wrong - surely! If not, looks like a midnight run to Rolla is in our future to make it back home in time for Surf N Turf. Taryn can spend a few quality hours running back and forth on Starbucks/McDonald runs for the guys, and have sushi with dad after freezing (maybe) in downtown Franklin all day.  Or.... we can go shopping on Black Friday! Or.... we can sleep in alot. Pretty sure I know which of those ideas Taryn will like the most.

Mariah won a scrapbook for her sketch of a wedding dress for the fashion class.  She is in the middle of planning her future wedding and I do hope they give her a teeny tiny budget to work with. Haha. We totally will need her amazing design skills and creative ideas in the future!

BACK TO GIB... Finally!

It was a good weekend - sorta, mostly... the best part was in the middle kind of like a college prep sandwich.

Saturday morning - SAT TEST (ugh)
Saturday afternoon - Lunch with mom - that had to be a highlight!
Saturday evening - Frisbee for Fibromyalgia tournament: Gib's team went undefeated and won!!! Yay! Mike and I went for part of the tournament and enjoyed seeing our son play. He is really good :)
Sunday - Finish college applications, tweak essay to meet response questions, fill out transcript request forms. Ugh.

Gib is now 95% finished with college applications to MERCER, BSC, SAMFORD, UT MARTIN, UT CHATTANOOGA, XAVIER AND BAYLOR. Baylor University will reply back within 48 hours with supplemental information to complete.  When that is done, we get to sit back and wait.... and take one final ACT exam. Thank goodness that will be it.

IT'S ALL OVER EXCEPT THE SHOUTING!!!   And we are really hoping it's the cheering kind.

I Don't Know About That

The things that made me laugh this week.  Gib and Mariah are a riot together. They totally crack me up. Hearing them arriving home from school, Gib teasing his sister, them laughing - it's simply the best thing ever to hear your kids having a good time together.  Preschool is also a constant source of amusement. I just hate it when I remember really laughing about something but can't quite put my finger on what/why!  Oh, the memory is going..... that's why I like to share tidbits so I can go back and think - Oh Yeah!!

Yesterday two of us got the dreaded phone call from the school. We called for playground back up so I could take the call.  It was easy to field and I was glad I didn't have to rush off to get a sicko. The health care team needed to verify the medications and instructions for Gib's migraines. I have to go back in and sign something even though I was the one who gave them the instructions and signed the form in the first place. I was however thanked for typing out the form :)

The other teacher - not so lucky.We had just come in from the playground and I get called urgently to her room. I was so relieved when I heard the words "I have a barfer" that it wasn't one of our preschool kids that I was HAPPY to take over her class for what little remained of the day.  Because she left in a hurry, after a quick explanation to her class, and this is the first time I took over her class, some of the kids were a little concerned. One munchkin jumped for joy and clapped her hands, so there you go... she's onto what it means when I'm in the room: FUN TIME!  I put on my teacher hat though and we did our afternoon work. I had to laugh when a cutie who spent weeks with me as an interim teacher last year needed to clear a few things up:

 "Are you the boss of us right now?"

"Yes. Your teacher had to leave so I'm helping out - I'm a teacher here too"

"But are you always the boss of us or just when our teacher isn't here?"

"When your teacher is here she is in charge of the class. I'm always her helper."

"So when she gets back she will be the boss of us again?"

"Yep"

"Whew! That's good"  

Are they not the most precious ever?!  I still felt that way when reading Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? and the kids were to think about similarities between that and Do You Want to be My Friend? They are big into finding similarities/differences and rhyme/connections. Each one has a sign you make with your hand - nodding yes fist for similarity, shaking no fist for difference, tug your ear for hearing a rhyme, and touching your temple for making a connection. We look like little baseball coaches when we talk! So I'm reading away and we stop to discuss when a student makes the similarity sign.  It's all going beautifully when I turn a page and before I even glance down at it one kiddo is madly making the sign for a similarity.  So I ask him and he replies "It's like you! It's like you!!!!!"  I look down at the book and I see a WALRUS.   I raise my eyebrow and go "A walrus?!" LOL - I mean how hysterical is this?!  Everyone laughs like crazy and he points out that the pink walrus is the EXACT shade of my shirt. I had a smile a mile wide and say, "aha, I always wanted to be like a walrus!" and that little sweetie from the Boss Of Me conversation goes "me too!".

The BEST way to end a preschool day.  Unless of course you're going to HOT-LANTA like one of the kiddos. He says that every single time he means Atlanta.  Love it! I gotta tell him about Mariah and AUNT-LANTA: I don't know her....

Being Prepared

BE PREPARED - two words everyone should live by.  Some key phrases come to mind: Be prepared for the worst; be prepared for the unexpected; be prepared to hang on tight, and be prepared to be amazed.....

The benefits of abiding by that motto was especially apparent when yesterday at 3:30 pm our director found out that out preschool assessment was bumped up to today. We've worked hard the past few years to be very in sync with the program to the point where we really don't need to do more than keep current on changes and walk through each other's rooms every now & then to spot things we love and see what could be improved or placed differently. It's such a normal part of our operation that to have a sudden assessment day sprung on us was no big deal. And blessings abounded because the teacher who really wanted to be in the spotlight was chosen, (her children are so angelic it's almost freaky), AND we got the assessor who gave us our highest marks ever a couple years ago.  Yay!  We are all secretly hoping to beat all the other preschools in our county again.

And now for our Be Prepared to Be Amazed portion of today's Preschool report:  did you know this trike, operated by a professional, can spin a kid 180-360 degrees?! If only it had a seat belt because every now and then even a professional loses a kid right out of the seat! Of course that happens most often when the degree of difficulty matches the degree of daredevil , with the feet off the pedals and resting on the bar, white knuckled grip, and as someone runs to reach maximum speed, flung into the spin zone! To begin this play, my favorite thing to do is walk all casual near someone riding it, and when they pass me, I grab the handle, and run them backwards or spin them around. I gotta watch the spin on that maneuver because they never see it coming and they fall off.  Today I was playing with some kids and there is this one sweetie who seemed quite fearless. I whispered to her to get on... GET ON! Hurry!  And off we went for about 20 minutes of running, being chased by kids on Harley Big Wheels, making some awesome spins, and even wheelies!  Usually the wheelies have to be real tame but she took all I could dish out and kept screaming for more; we even managed to go do a high enough wheelie to manhandle someone on the Harley Big Wheel;  our trike tire was on top of hers and we pushed her backwards and it made the coolest sound like cards in a bike tire. We OWNED that Big Wheel! (poor other kid) I'm thinking Fisher Price totally had all this in mind when they named that little red and purple trike The (MONSTER) ROCK ROLL & RIDE.  That one qualifies for be prepared for the unexpected.

Might As Well

Might as well blog. It's a yucky, yucky Monday. Forecasted to have upwards of 5" rain and the worst hasn't hit yet. And besides that there's only so much speculating a gal can do before she goes crazy about ALL of the following:

Online college applications and essay in progress for Gib.  I like to get a headstart and do all the scholarship searching, fill in names, addresses, emails, birthdays, siblings, class schedule, gpa, test scores, etc., etc., etc., and then let the applicant insert his personal statement (aka essay) and voila! As painless as possible (for the student).  I was about to just set up the account at one university today but there was a pop up box that said if you are a parent...stop now! Well, this parent will revisit that portal another time when Gib is at least in the house. Kinda obvious when it's a school day that the student didn't type in his address and stuff. I got the distinct feeling time and date stamping was in place. Sheesh.  Gib has some work to do with his grades if all that work is going to pay off, so he will be enjoying a break from his Xbox for awhile.

Indie has her big GRE exam this weekend. Good luck Indie! She is also in the thick of graduate school search process. She too will be starting the grad school application process. Too bad she doesn't have people to fill in names, addresses, emails, birthdays, siblings, class schedule, gpa, test scores, etc., etc., etc. Last I know of , the following schools are in the hunt: Baylor, SDSU (for Mike); Kansas, Wisconsin-Madison, St.Louis, Mercer (maybe), New York, and Boston. I probably forgot one or two. Indie can grace us with a comment, or even update her blog!  We did talk about how she may switch her masters degree focus and go for a Social Work masters, which will have more of a classroom environment over do your own research method, and there are many career options for counseling with it, especially if she goes for the social work + business masters available at some of those universities.

Mariah wrote a 7 page short story for English. Yes you should laugh. I did. It was about her emergency appendectomy. I thought for sure I was going to be thrown under the Bad Mom Bus - had a flashback to the 15 page fictional horror assignment where I was stuffed in the volvo's trunk by the killer. I groaned when she handed it to me but she assured me I was portrayed as a good mom. Sure enough, I exhibited concern, heated a hotpad for her tummy, and had a heartwarming smile. And while she shared how I made her laugh, which really hurt, over the "Breathe In...Hold...Breathe Out" MRI imitation, she did neglect to mention how I performed my own at-home appendicitis examination which had to have hurt a whole lot more than some giggles. All in all, I guess I owe her one... or maybe we're just even, because that volvo-trunk episode in the first paragraph still bothers me.

If you follow facebook, you know about as much as I do about Taryn's life and current events. Go Taryn! Call home! You can do it!!!

And finally, but not least importantly, some weird stuff has been going on. The bbq cover was removed by who-knows-who, folded up and placed down on the sidewalk by the creek. I KNOW it wasn't Mike (refer to the folded up part) and it wasn't me because I would have put it back ON the bbq. Grammy claims innocence. We decided to blame the yard guy who might have just been helping if it had been blown off, but everyone remembers being on after the bbq a couple days previously, so do-do-do-do-do-do-do-doooo.

And then the blue one-inch deep ceramic saucer that sits under the peony by the stairs is GONE! It goes under the matching pot to catch water but we used it in the garden for the cats to sip water from and for turtle-dipping. I know it wasn't Mike because when I asked him he said very cluelessly "what ceramic dish thingy?" And he could've care less but humored me and pretended to care when he went outside to look at the empty spot. And, I know it wasn't ME, the only person who notices weird stuff around here. Again, Grammy claims innocence, despite the fact she admits to moving the turtle's terra cotta hidey hole pot right next to the now missing feline/amphibian watering hole. I'm actually a little fearful that maybe a yard guy kidnapped my turtle, ceramic dish and all.  I just hope and pray he is still in my yard. I like that little Son of a Gun!

Temple of Doom

Playground time is everyone's favorite part of the day.  The Jello Jiggler game is already in full swing with the tots this year picking up on a new trick of telling me some kind of yucky food they are so the Jello Jiggler Monster won't be tempted to try to catch them for a snack. Lemon has been a favorite, but we went green yesterday and many chose to be treetops and bark. I love watching the suspense build on their faces as I go, "lemon?! peew! peew! I don't LIKE lemons! Wait a minute..... I smell (sniff sniff) PEANUT BUTTER!!!!" and they all take off squealing.  

Eventually, I get put in what used to be called JAIL.  We have a few new kiddos to our school this year and they have a new place to send me - THE TEMPLE OF DOOM!!!  

 Here's Indiana Jones fighting off the natives....

yep, that DOES look familiar.  Only my little natives have sandy hands and try to pull my legs out from under me, and I have my walkie talkie in my hand, holding it over my head, so it doesn't get ripped off...

It got me to thinking, we are always looking for some way to improve our playground... why not build a replica of the TEMPLE OF DOOM?!  Of course I found one one the internet. Wonder what my boss would think of it? Wonder how many child safety standards it abuses?!

Here's the staff photo from last winter taken near the temple of doom. This is usually the spaceship, which is a whole 'nother game.  Maybe I will be an alien invader today just to mix things up.

Choices

Last week was Homecoming Week and Mariah made sure I was super busy for it. I hear their float was awesome - the theme was Rock The Ravens and there was a Raven smashing a guitar. Gib's class float was censored for something really stretching it for innuendo so interest waned, and whoever was left (not Gib) made their float a Raven riding in a train for Railroad the Ravens or something like that. I was perked for a minute when I heard there would be a train because then you could do the classic damsel in distress tied down on the tracks and a Raven rescues her - or The Raven the evil, mad train engineer - Hmmm, guess I would have been censored too.  Luckily, the powers above weren't upset with my diabolical thinking because I survived making a couple trips running through an intense lightning and thunder storm that dropped 2 inches in under an hour just to bring emergency supplies to the freshmen float build.

Gib has been diligent in his duties as VP of Ultimate Frisbee.  And of course the big news - he had his Board of Review and made Eagle!  Gib also had the ACT test along with most of the county's seniors. I've never seen a line that long.  We got there early, even after the nifty idea of getting a 5 hr energy drink at the gas station on our way, but it was cold and starting to rain so Gib decided to wait in the car. We had a nice chat and next thing you know the line was crazy long. At 15 minutes prior to reporting time they opened the doors and Gib headed for the herd of miserable students.  Gib says he thinks he did good and we are hoping for a 3 pt bumped to access a higher scholarship level at most universities. In a couple of sections I think it is very possible for him to get a 30, and maybe that will be enough if the overall Comp is still under 30. Some universities only take math & english scores and in that case he'll be golden.  He liked his tutor and after her help, he only missed 1 math question on the practice test. He said her practical tips for test day (like wearing flip flops so your feet can touch the floor, comfortable but nice outfit, and power of positive thinking) worked really well.  He's got the SAT next month and testing is done except for AP exams at the end of the year.

Keeping firmly in college planning mode, I am working on a great fit top 5, with another 3-5 of potentials. Gib needs to also spend some time on their websites to see if I'm on track. I think I am but hey, I'm not the one going!!  Applications are underway with goal of completion by Oct 1. Gib is working on his essay - trying to nail down his thesis statement and get a good rough draft.  He will need to get his letters of recommendation and we'll be good to go!

BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

Waco, Texas

Lots of Pro's, especially in the scholarship dept, lots of Business Major programs; Con: Waco.

BIRMINGHAM-SOUTHERN COLLEGE

Birmingham, Alabama

Pro's: Small Size appeals to Gib, very much a hands on, personal approach, service oriented;; University Pres works w/o salary to improve school and lead in new direction;  Con's: business program not as big as others

DAYTON UNIVERSITY

Dayton, Ohio

New on my list! Pro's: Supposedly a fantastic community on campus, advertises good scholarships, big business program, GE (Fortune 100) building a $51 mil R&D facility on campus focusing on alternative power, and there's another company on campus more medical, plus dayton area also has potential for really good internships. Motto: Learn, Lead, Serve - "exactly!" Hits a lot of Top Lists nationally;  Con's: Price Tag even with scholarship

MERCER UNIVERSITY

Macon, Georgia

(this is the building where Indie interviewed for her scholarship!)

Pro's: Familiarity, Great school, potential for scholarship very good, service scholars; Con's: Macon (ugh) and business program not as varied 

SAMFORD UNIVERSITY

Birmingham, Alabama

Pro's: Gib's first choice, meets all criteria, in very nice neighborhood of birmingham, lowest tuition and R&B of all out of state choices so far; Con's: Very strict in a Baptisty way