24 May 2015

It was a very busy week, but it's over and so is school!  Work was hectic, life was hectic, but we made it.  The girls were so excited for the end of the year festivities.  Felicity had her AR party and was so excited to tell us about the Eegees and jumping castles.  She had so much fun.  She did reach her two goals this year:  1) Bobcat of the Month and 2) have the most AR points in her class, she finished the year with 198 points.  Helen's goals were 1) Owl of the Month and 2) Read three chapter books.  Report cards were pretty good, Felicity got several 4's so I was happy that she had access to leveled material.  Helen was solid in most areas receiving 3's.  She does, however, have some areas to improve in over the summer, so we're going to keep working.  I'm so proud of the girls for their hard work this year and how much they have grown.

The kids went to Nana and Papa's Thursday night and I was able to get up and run on Friday morning which was so nice.  My friend Troy also stopped by Friday morning before I left for work to look at my leaking garbage disposal.  He determined it would need to come out, so he took it out and I had to make a stop at Home Depot on the way home to pick up a new one.Friday night we had dinner with Nana and Papa and then came home for a movie and relaxing.  After the kids went to bed Troy came back and put in my new garbage disposal, I was so grateful for his help!

Saturday morning the kids went with their day for a weekend visit and I got some chores done.  It was quiet and peaceful.  Sunday was equally quiet.  I had the opportunity to interpret for Sacrament Meeting...boy my fingers forget how to speak quickly!  I had volunteered to fill in for the teacher and taught Relief Society.  The lesson was based on the talk The Parable of the Sower by Dallin H. Oaks.  I really appreciated the opportunity to do that and enjoyed it, who doesn't love a good gardening analogy?  In the afternoon Jan and I went for a walk and I came home and sewed for a bit.  I'm looking forward to being off tomorrow and will be picking the kids up first thing in the morning. 
I am also planning a trip to the temple Tuesday. Happy summer everyone!

17 May 2015

Hurry up end of the school year, I'm tired!

We did a lot of reading this week.  The end of the quarter for AR reading was Thursday and we were still several chapters away from finishing Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.  I also wanted to leave a day to review and do some practice quizzes before sending her off to take the AR test.  It was a really bad week for me to have pretty much lost my voice, but we powered through and was able to finish on Wednesday night.  Felicity was so proud of herself and she really enjoyed the book.  I loved rereading it and I loved spending the time with her.

The girls had their end of the year piano recital on Thursday.  I was concerned that they were not going to be ready, but they kept reassuring me they were.  I got them home from the after school program and dressed and then we rushed to the church building to get there.  Helen played first and had two pieces, she assured me were memorized and ready to go.  Well...she played two songs, they were in the right key, they were not the songs that she had practiced.  I think part of the problem was the two songs were similar, but she improvised both.  She really thought she was clever, but I was less than happy.  Felicity was not as lucky as one of her songs was one that 90% of the room knew, so it was obvious when she wasn't playing the right notes.  It was hard for me to let them fail, but I was just so tired of being the piano practice tyrant.  We talked about them taking responsibility for their own practice and I think (hope) some lessons were learned.

Felicity is loving soccer and was excited to have another game on Saturday morning.  I'm so proud of how well she's picked it up, she really is having a lot of fun.  In the afternoon Mindy and Melynda and her lovely family went with me into Tucson to go to the estate sale and then we had lunch afterward.  It was a big crowd, but so much fun; the kids really love being together.  We had family movie night in the evening, and you guessed it, we watched Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
 

Sunday was quiet and peaceful.  We all enjoyed our church meetings and then went to Nana and Papa's for dinner and visiting.  One more week of school...we can do this!

10 May 2015 Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day.  What a lovely day to celebrate motherhood and all that is nurturing and beautiful in the world.

May is here, how did that even happen?  I cannot believe that we are just a few short weeks away from the end of the school year.  I am, truthfully, looking forward to it as I'm burned out on early bedtimes, homework, early mornings and the seemingly incessant rushing.  I know that after a few weeks of summer vacation I'll crave the structure of the school year again, but for now, I need a break.

It was a nice week.  We had Activity Days on Wednesday and on Thursday I had a fun time at a ward week day activity.  Thursday was also my annual health screening at work.  I was a little disappointed, all of my statistics were good and I am very healthy, so for that I am grateful, but my weight and waist circumference were completely unchanged from my assessment last year.  How is that I've been trying to get to goal all year and am still in the same place?  I know the answer to that question, but that doesn't assuage my frustration.  I really need to find the motivation to get myself to where I want to be.  I will say, however, that a year of maintenance is a great thing.

Friday, Mindy and I went into Tucson for some second hand shopping and took Arlo and her nephew Isiah with us.  The boys were so darling together and we had such a nice time! The kids went to visit their dad for the weekend and left on Friday night.  I spent the evening grocery shopping and cleaning since I knew I was going to be busy Saturday.  I also finished up some fun hair bows that I made to match our outfits for the stake volleyball tournament.  They were huge and a lot of fun!  Saturday morning found me at the stake center where I got to play volleyball with friends in a small church tournament.  It was so much fun, although I'm not as fast nor can I jump as high as I used to!  After the tournament I went into Tucson with Mindy to peruse the estate sales.  We had a blast.

A friend had a friend that was looking to get rid of six hens, so I was happy to welcome six new chickens to my coop.  I'm pretty sure some of these "hens" are not actually hens but roosters, and they will have to go.  The previous owners obviously does not take the same approach to chicken keeping that I do, as they literally had me get pen and paper to write down the chickens names!  They are very tame and let the kids hold them, which will make it harder to eat them in a few years when they stop laying!

In the evening I went to pick up the kids so that they could be home for Mother's day.  Sunday morning I was up early to make cinnamon rolls and found the most beautiful bouquet of roses on my door step.  It made my day, I'm still smiling at the memory of finding them.  The kids sang for Mother's Day in Sacrament meeting and that was a treat and then we went to Nana and Papa's to have lunch and visit when church was over.  I was so thankful that my dear friends were considerate enough to get a card and a gift for the kids to sign and give to me for mother's day.  It really made my day special.  I was also extremely grateful for the very thoughtful gifts that my mother gave me and a beautiful card and gift from my brother. 

It was a relaxing day and I was so grateful for everyone who thought of me.  I am also eternally grateful for my mother who works so tirelessly for our family and sacrifices so much for those she loves, that's been especially true and evident this year as she drives into Tucson multiple times a week to take my Grandmother to see my Grandfather and help her run errands.  She has been a wonderful example of Christ-like service and I'm so grateful that she is my mother and even more that she is my children's Nana.

03 May 2015

I feel really badly that I somehow managed to skip three weeks of blog entries and now I'm paying the price as I try to remember all the awesome things that we did!  The girls have been preparing for their end of year piano recital, although I still find that practice time is a struggle.  Helen willingly practices but I doubt the efficacy of her practice time.  Felicity fights me, I have to constantly remind her from the kitchen to keep going, play again.  I need to come up with some sort of incentive!

Tuesday evening Helen had her 1st grade musical performance.  It was called "Hats" and Helen picked out her favorite hat, the polar bear beaning I made her for Christmas, to wear.  I always pick the wrong seat and this year was no exception.  Helen was obscured from my view almost the entire time and I quite honestly could not understand anything they were singing about.  She did have a speaking line and did well.  She enjoyed herself, so I would consider that a success.

We've been struggling with Arlo's behavior at school, so there were a couple days this week that he went to bed early after having a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for dinner.  I have been calling mid day to check on him and have them remind him that I'm expecting him to be good.  On Thursday, however, he came home with a positive report, so we stopped at McDonald's for an ice cream treat to celebrate.  I kept him home with me on Friday and we had a great day together.  We played, we cleaned, we went grocery shopping, we even went into Tucson with friends to see Nana at the store and have lunch. 

The weather has been so nice, that I set up the backyard pool and that's where we cooled off this weekend.

 

The garden is doing well and I'm so happy to have so much green in the backyard.  We had our usual Saturday night popcorn and movie in our PJs and relaxed after a fun day of soccer, chores, swimming, and fun.  Our Sunday meetings were nice and it was just a lovely weekend.