Quinn's Classwork

I found this paper in Quinn's bookbag. I thought that for a child in K-4 Preschool, this was pretty advanced work.  Quinn said "But it was easy Mommy.  You just count the animals and color the blocks like this."

Works for me!!

Why, yes, that IS a rocketship in my living room!

Over the Christmas holidays, we did not get to travel due to Buddy's work situation.  When everyone came for Quinn's birthday, they also brought our Christmas presents.

I can't remember if it was Evan or Mackenzie who pulled Quinn's name for the cousin exchange, but Buddy's sister, Fran, was really excited about the gift they had chosen for him.  So much so, that on their way back to Ohio, they were going to come by for lunch just so they could see Quinn open the gift.  Unfortunately they got a stomach bug and opted to NOT visit...for which I'm very grateful!

When I saw the box, it was large, and I'm not quite sure what I thought it would be, but I certainly wasn't expecting this.....

 

The box is upside down, but you can see it shows a picture of a rocket ship.  What you CAN'T see, is that the box says it is 5 FEET LONG! Hmm.........

I will honestly tell you trying to put this together about put me in the mental hospital.  Who would have thought that cardboard could make you feel so stupid.  I literally had to walk away from the kit because it was driving me foolish.  Luckily for all involved, Buddy stepped in to help. If he can build multi-million dollar offices and other buildings, surely he can put together a silly cardboard rocket ship.  (He had trouble too....just so you know!)

After a lot of heartache, sweat, and a tear or two (that was me), we now have THIS in our foyer.

So if you stop by, don't be alarmed.  We won't be sending you to a galaxy far far away!

Sick Day / Work Day

This week I had a couple of days without my students.  The end of 2nd quarter combined with the Martin Luther King holiday gave me an extra-long weekend.  Quinn's school was also closed Monday so I was looking forward to a nice "Mommy and Me" day with the boys.

Life, as always, had other plans.

Quinn developed a cough over the weekend, and we were pretty concerned. Buddy listened to Quinn with our stethoscope and thought he could hear wheezing. By Monday morning, I knew it was time to head to the doctor. At least I didn't have to make sub plans.

The doctor also heard the wheezing and insisted that Quinn take a breathing treatment before we could leave.  We've been down this road once before, but he was so little, I doubt he remembers it.  We ended up with orders to continue these treatments 4 times a day for the next two weeks.

The rest of Monday he was so pitiful, just laying around on the couch.  If you know Quinn, you know this is not his typical behavior.  Tuesday, I decided to keep him with me.  He doesn't have his preschool class on Tuesday, and I had to be in my classroom anyway, so I took Jacob to Nana Susan's and Quinn went with me to work.

I took our big orange afghan and that was his "resting spot".  Fuzzy Buddy came along too. He chose several VeggieTales and other videos and he watched them on my big screen.



I stopped working a few times to give him his breathing treatment and by the end of the day, he was perking up.  I guess he could breathe easier!  So I could get the last of my work done, I turned off the videos and put on a website that the Kindergarten teachers use and let Quinn play with my big board.  He was quite the natural!

He has already asked to go back to my school...."It's so much fun in your class Mommy!"

The Other Grandma

I've said it before many times but I absolutely LOVE my grandma.  I lived next door to her until I was a junior in high school. When we moved, it was to a house about 5 minutes away. When I was in college we moved in WITH her.  She has been a major part of my life and I am so thankful for that influence she has had in my life.

When Quinn was learning to talk, he had a little trouble distinguishing between my mom (whom he called "Grandma") and my own Grandma (which would be his great-grandma).  I wanted him to call her GG...for "great grandma" but neither Mom nor Grandma cared for that name. They never said anything but I could tell by the look on their faces that GG would not work.  So we decided to see what Quin would call her and that would be it.

My parents came for a visit not long after that and Grandma did not come.  Quinn went out to the driveway to greet my parents, but looked confused. He looked at me and said "Where's da other Grandma?"  It took us a minute to realize it, but Quinn had officially given my Grandma her name. She LOVES it, and now signs all his cards Love, The Other Grandma!!

I wish we lived closer so Quinn and Jacob could experience the every-day love from this lady that I grew up with, but for now, we will cherish every moment we can get.

Knitting a Hat

Now that Jacob isn't a needy newborn anymore, I've gotten back into my knitting/crocheting.  I knit a dishcloth just for fun. I made a scarf for Quinn's teacher for Christmas.  After that, I decided I wanted to try something new.

Buddy has always said he wanted me to learn to knit a hat.  I found a super easy pattern for hat beginners and here's the results.

Teaching with Technology

Last week my 5th grade teaching team received some excellent news.  Our new technology would be arriving very soon.

This year, NC is administering all of the Science End of Grade tests online.  In order to accomodate this, my county arranged a grant and the result was all teachers of science would receive a laptop cart and enough laptops for all the students in their class. Since fifth graders take an EOG in science, all 5th grade teachers in my county got a cart.  This cart stays in my classroom and the laptops are just for us. The other 4 teachers on my team got the same setup.  These are top-of-the-line computers, and are on a 3-year lease, so on the 4th year, we get all new computers.

I can't wait to enhance my teaching with this new technology!!

School Spirit Week

School Spirit Week at Quinn's school is usually held during the first weeks of January, to coincide with the school's homecoming game and pageant.  Last year and this year it fell on the week of Quinn's birthday!

Unfortunately for us, some of the dress-up ideas were a little too difficult for this non-creative mama.

Monday was "Medieval Day".  This is easy if you are a girl.  Put them in the Princess costume of your choice and you are done. For boys, this means being a knight, a jester, or a king/prince.  If I had more time, maybe I could have consulted with crafty friends to help me come up with an outfit, but this time, it meant buying a costume.  So we did not participate on this day.

Tuesday was "Alphabet Day".  Each homeroom chose a letter and kids dressed up with things that started with that letter. Quinn's class got the letter P.  Girls wore polka-dots or pink.  Quinn wore what any country boy would wear....PLAID. And he insisted I wear purple.

Wednesday was Pajama Day (and Quinn's birthday.....separate post)

Thursday was Character Day....so Quinn wore his Super Mario Bros (no picture).

Friday was Red, White, and Blue day....school colors. And I didn't get a picture of this either.

Five is Fantastic!!

I'll never forget the day I found out I was pregnant.  April 28, 2007 helped my heart heal after losing my first baby when I was only 9 weeks along.  I never would have imagined that 7 weeks after my greatest loss, I would be given a great joy.

I'll never forget the day I held my baby for the first time.  January 9, 2008 taught me that hard work (12 hours of labor; 2 hours of pushing) and fear (emergency c-section) can still bring about something sweet.

Today that precious baby turns five years old, and I'm beginning to forget.

I'm forgetting what it was like to hold and rock him until he fell asleep in my arms.
I'm forgetting what it was like to hold a little hand as he takes unsteady steps.
I'm forgetting what it was like to listen to a little voice ask for a "cheese shanka" or his "on-ge na-na".
I'm forgetting so many things.

I don't want to forget.

Babies grow up in the blink of an eye.  I've got to stop blinking.

But if I stop blinking, I won't be able to see what is right in front of me.



Quinn turned 5 on Pajama Day

 Please Lord, help me see in the moment and never forget the memories.

Mommy loves you Quinn.  I am so proud to be Your Girl!!