It's getting festive around here!

We were able to put up our tree and all of the decor (minus the outdoor lights...coming soon) on Friday afternoon. The kids loved helping put up the tree and opening all of the ornaments. Every year, I keep saying I am going to buy ornaments that have some sort of color scheme, but then I cave and we put up all of our ornaments we love that range in age from 1979 to 2011.

We purchased some new crystal-lit garland to place above our fireplace as well as some new JOY letters, which I picked up at a craft show a while back, although, I think they also have a shop on Etsy.

They are so big

A mom at our daycare is trying to open her own photography business and spent some time taking a bunch of pictures to jumpstart her business. She did such a great job. Anyway, the parents loved all of the pics and she was able to capture each of the kids and their personalities. Love these two she took of the kids.

Pretty soon, they will be home w/ me for the summer. Lately, B2 has been spending a lot of time just messing around w/ each other: wrestling, jumping off of things, jumping on beds, hiding under blankets, throwing stuff, and just messing around. It's funny to watch it happen but also grinds on my nerves when I stop them from doing something and then five minutes later, they have moved on to mess around w/ something else.

They are pretty funny and have so much to say about everything and anything. It's so fun to listen to their conversations and intuitions about the world and how they think it works.

Prom

Prom was at the EMP this year and it was a lot of fun. Next year, Dj is coming with me. He stayed home to watch the kids so we wouldn't have to pay a babysitter two weeks in a row. The weather held out until about midnight and then I ran through pouring rain to my car. it was a beautiful event complete with cookies on a stick, caramel dipping that included cookies, fruit, graham crackers, etc. and nuts, butterfinger mix, marshmallows and more to sprinkle on top. It was a pretty nice spread.

Prior to the event, the staff who agreed to chaperone met up at Old Spaghetti Factory downtown. It has been years since I've been to this specific location...the last time was pre-children. HINT HINT. The great thing about OSF is that it's decent food and cheap. Like really cheap. LIke you can get bread, salad, your entree and ice cream for $12. Seriously. It's almost like Fazolli's cheap but the food is not quite as good in my humble opinion.

The kids were pretty good at the dance (we had to break up a few "sex scenes" on the dance floor) and they loved the venue.

I only remembered to snap a couple of pictures. Here are two of nearly the same pic. with my friend, Bonnie from school. She is our bookkeeper and has been so wonderful to me this year and helped me out as I stepped into the new role as ASB Advisor. She just accepted a job with TFA in Las Vegas, so she'll be leaving us at the end of the year. She is so knowledgeable and has been in our district for a long time, so I am not sure who will be able to fill her shoes...

These two pics were taken towards the end of the night.

Grrrr Baby

Okay, so either we have additional animals in the house or two babies who are pretending they are dogs, bears, lions, or any other furry friend who enjoys growlingl. Lately, Baylen is all about the dramatic play and making the funniest, yet realistic faces. Brynn will follow suit w/ the faces now and again and finally, I was able to snap a couple of them on camera last week. They will crawl on their hands and knees and chase each other, pretend to eat each other, and growl for what appears to be minutes on end. Whenever Baylen morphs into whatever beast he's claiming to be at that moment, all I can do is giggle. He tries so hard to be as realistic as he can. Kudos to this kid.

I turned 32

Last weekend, I celebrated my 32nd birthday. It was a pretty good weekend. This year, I will finish my Master's program and complete all of my graduate credits. I will enroll and take a history class on WWII. Both of my children will be in pre-school; Baylen will start his first year and Brynn will be in Pre-K. I will be teaching high school students in my second year at AHS and begin my 11th year in education. This summer, Dj and I will celebrate our 8th Wedding Anniversary. My entire family is coming out for a vacay in July and we're going to the beach. So many things to be thankful for.

I remembered

Driving home today, I flipped on the radio and it triggered my memory. I remembered what the kids were talking about yesterday that made me laugh.

The song lyrics came across the radio yesterday, "Today I don't feel like doing anything. I just wanna lay in my bed..." blah blah

Anyway, the part of the song where he sings, "...put my hand in my pants..."

All of a sudden, Brynn shouts from the back seat..."Put my hand in my pants?!" and giggles, then said, "That's disgusting!"

Baylen is dying laughing. Just hysterically giggling.

I'm smiling and laughing in the front acknowledging those were indeed the lyrics.

Brynn then added, "Baylen does that!"

Baylen responded..."Yeah I do!"

OMG

Brynnisms #26 and Baylenisms #15

This was a funny conversation we were having on the way home today.

Do you ever have funny convos with your kids and think that something they said was super funny and then when you try to remember it later, your mind goes blank? Well, that's what happened to me today. CUE VIOLIN MUSIC.

Here's what I do remember about today's convo:


Me: Hey, guys, look at all this poop all over my car. I parked by a tree and the birds pooped all over my car today.

Brynn: What kind of birds? Was it a crow?

Me: IDK for sure.

Brynn: Maybe it was a robin.

Baylen: Crows have big poop. haha

Brynn: Eww! That's disgusting.


Bay: What do dinosaurs eat? Do they eat fish?

Me: Yes. And they eat other dinosaurs or plants.

Bay: Ew. That's disgusting. I don't like plants.

Brynn (matter-of-factly): Well, Eagles eat little bunnies. That's why we don't see any around. Because the eagles are eating them all.

Hmmm no wonder we haven't seen any bunnies around lately.

Spirit Days

Doesn't Mister AKA SuperMan crack you up? He is such drama and has the funniest faces. Don't let his pouty face fool you; this is his regular morning routine...something makes him angry and then he turns against the world. I tried my best to get him to crack a smile, but to no avail.

We had a Spirit Week (my idea that I presented to the daycare director) and the kids enjoyed dressing up each day. We had pajama day, princess and hero day, sports day, college team day, and red, white & blue day.

Here are a couple of pics from Spirit Week. I didn't snap one of PJ day...unless it's on my phone. I'll have to check. Princess Day was the hardest day for Brynn because she didn't know which princess she wanted to be. First, she chose Snow White, then switched to Tiana, and finally settled on Ariel. She was serenading her teachers with, "Part of Your World" all day long, apparently. I'm sure it was music to their ears. ;)

Phyllis Tashlik's famous words

Phyllis Tashlik is probably not well known in anyone's world except if you are reading her educational articles for a specific Master's class like I am. Anyway, she writes about alternative assessments and the importance of looking beyond the state/standardized tests as the only means to measure a student's progress. This is my passion. This is my forte. I am in the zone when I read her articles and find myself nodding, yelling out..."Right on, sista!" or simply smiling. She is so right. My favorite quote from this week's article..."We run the risk of valuing what we measure [rather than] measuring what we value" (p. 3). We as teachers know what our kids can do and where they struggle.

A standardized test does not measure the whole child. It does not measure where a child begins and where they end. It does not measure that a divorce might have taken place or the death of a parent occurred a month before the test. Those tests do not measure maturity levels, their ethical decision making (or unethical) or the ways in which they engage in class discussions. They do not gauge a child's innovative abilities or ideas, or creativity. And they do not measure a child's will and motivation level to get out of bed every morning despite the fact they may not have anything in the house to eat for breakfast or for dinner that night when they get home. So where are our state and national leaders when it comes to our real priorities? Are all of these tests in the best interest of what our kids need the most?

Okay, I'm stepping off of my soapbox now.

You Are My Heart

(A student of mine painted this for me recently so I could hang it in the kids' room.)

Look at these two...sweet babies that they are. I know B & B aren't babies anymore, but I call them that often because they are growing up on me way too fast. B2 are just as excited about Mother's Day as I am. :) Their personalities shine through and no captions are needed for these two photos. Little pieces of sunshine and energy and brilliance. Bright, loving, sweet as honey with a hint of spice now and again. With shining eyes, giggles galore, and sparkling smiles...so full of life. So full of love.



Indeed they are. My Heart.

Happy Mother's Day

to my mom. I love you so much, mom and I am so fortunate to have you in my life. You have always been there for me and supported every decision I've made, goal I've set, and dream I've aspired to reach. I know that when we were growing up, you often put us before yourself. Thank you for giving us everything you could and so much more.

Happy Mother's Day! I'm sorry we are not closer to celebrate together.

The demise of B.L.

I honestly don't know how I feel about this. Part of me feels glad that they found him and they have put this to rest. Another part of me feels like we should continue to be afraid...maybe even more afraid than we were prior to his demise. Mixed emotions also range around the fact that he was shot, dead and he did not have a weapon in his hands (according to new reports I read online today). While I have limited knowledge on what happened and the methods in which he was even found and things that transpired afterward, I am wondering why they didn't try to get him alive. Maybe that would have been worse. Perhaps his capture would have caused uproar and groups of people attacking our country just to get him out of jail. I don't know. Maybe it's supposed to be this way. I know he did horrible things. I obviously don't like or support him, nor his past actions, and I am certainly not sticking up for him. But I still have mixed emotions about this whole thing. Additionally, I worry about the picture of Americans rallying and cheering after news of his death...I wonder how Muslims in the Middle East viewed the jubilation...do they think we're evil? Do they think we are ignorant or heartless? Do they want revenge? Are our children any safer? Hmmm...I just do not know what to think at this point.

Easter Pose

I try and get a cute Easter pose each year and these two were full of crazy smiles.

Brynnisms #25

All week, our daycare is having spirit week. Tomorrow is Princess/Hero Day. Brynn and I were discussing what she should dress up as and I was trying to convince her to wear a princess dress like her Tiana one or Rapunzel.

Brynn: Mom, I want to dress up as Wonder Woman instead.

Me: I thought you said you wanted to dress up as Tiana. Did you change your mind? Why? You could wear a crown w/ your dress if you were a princess.

Brynn: I want to be a hero instead.

Me: Are you sure? It might be kind of cold to wear that costume.

Brynn: Well, fine! I'm going to dress in an old BOOT then!

Me: Did you just say an old boot?!

Brynn: Yeah. An Old Boot. I'm wearing an Old Boot. So there!

She is so Miss-Know-It-All these days, I tell ya! :0

Happy Easter 2011!

Dying Eggs

We spent Thursday night making bunny-shaped rice krispie treats w/ chocolate ears for B2's teachers and a few of my friends at work. We also spent time dying eggs. The kids enjoyed dipping and picking their colors.

Bay's favorite part of soccer

Can you guess what it is?

B's first sleepover

Brynn wanted to invite her friend, E. over for a sleepover at our house. Brynn has stayed at her house once already and had a great time, so we wanted to invite her back. E. was thrilled to ride home w/ me when I picked the girls up from daycare a couple of Fridays ago. She was very polite and both girls, along w/ Baylen, had a great time. Bay had sort of a hard time being the odd boy out for awhile, but he adjusted and we tried to make him feel included and keep him busy. We made bracelets, ate cupcakes, made our own pizzas, and watched Tangled. The girls went to bed around 9:30 and didn't stir once. They were beat. :) All in all, it was a fun sleepover. :)

Happy Egg Hunt!

The kids were super excited to go to daycare today b/c it was their annual Easter Egg Hunt and Easter party at school. They take pictures, have an egg hunt, and make Easter baskets (prior to finding the eggs). They came home with lots of goodies and fun stories. Here they are b/f daycare this a.m.

These Two...

are crazy lately. They are all about:

-wrestling with one another
-hiding from each other
-fooling around
-talking all night at bedtime instead of going to bed
-hitting each other and fighting
-playing My Little Ponies and Cars Cars together
-fighting over stuffed animals to sleep with
-singing together
-finding ways to annoy each other
-calling each other their best friend
-eating us out of house and home
-jumping on the bed
-dancing together
-playing games
-putting together puzzles
-having their own conversations
-always wanting to have the last word

The other day, Dj walked into Brynn saying, "Baylen, give me a butt drop." LOL Yeah...always up to something. haha

It's fun to watch them interact and listen to what they are scheming or how they irritate each other at times. They really care about each other. We'll see how that plays out over the next few years. :)

Vietnam

I'm teaching about the Vietnam War right now...what do you remember about it if you were alive then? I need some first-hand accounts. Tell me about the draft and how it worked. Tell me what people were thinking.

Five presidencies...15 years...a draft...Guerilla Warfare...secrets...secret wars...more bombs dropped than in WWI and WW2 combined (in Laos especially)...millions dead...and for what? Many say this is the war the U.S. lost...would it have been best for us to stay in our own country vs. going to help...many say the United States' intention was to spread imperialism and push democracy in yet another area of the world...do you agree w/ that?

creative writing

posted under my writing blog: Fitz Ink...had to write an example for my kids so they could write their own. How I love to teach writing.

Baylenisms #10 & #11

Sooo funny.

Today, Brynn has been kinda snippy and talking back. This shares a direct correlation to refusing a nap. Earlier this morning, I told her that she would receive some Sassy Sauce if her talking back continued.

Fast forward to dinner tonight. We're eating and everything is going fine. Then, Brynn starts to say, "Mom, it's your fault that I pee my pants when I sleep at night." Of course, I respond and explain that we don't blame others for things that are out of our control but in words she can understand. She doesn't agree and ends again with, "But it's your fault!"

Dj and I look at each other, smirk and continue to eat. Then Baylen adds,

"Mom, she's being demanding. I think she needs Sassy Sauce."

Well stated, sir. :)


Tonight at dinner...

Bay: Mom, what's that on your plate?

Me: It's an omlet. Eggs with peppers, cheese, ham and onions.

Bay: Oh. It has what's that called? Oh yeah...vegetables.

Soccer Mom...I am not

Baylen's first soccer game occurred this past Saturday. I was excited for him even though my expectations were set pretty low considering his lack of wanting to practice during the week. He gets so excited about soccer when we talk about it and then we get there and he's like...no way. Anyway, he wasn't so sure about it when he saw all of the adults there and kids playing, but slowly walked out w/ some gentle coaxing from his father and I. At first, he wasn't quite sure what to do but after the opposing team scored 3 goals on us in a row, he started to figure it out. He was learning how to kick the ball and figuring out which way to go. He was smiling and having fun. The kids on his team were all in the same boat, just trying to figure everything out. The other team killed us, but that is okay b/c all of our kids are playing for the first time. It's sort of not fair that you can write down other kids' names or coaches you prefer b/c then the same kids get on the same team every single time and play for 2-3 years in a row and just dominate everyone. I think it's only fair to place siblings together if they are in the same age group, otherwise, it would be more equal if they just randomly put kids on teams. Oh well.

We have one kid on our team who is pretty good and can score, but everyone else is still learning. Anyway, we're hoping that he will enjoy going to practice this week and look forward to the treats at halftime (his favorite part) and the big surprise treat at the end of the game. Last week at practice, Dj takes him out of the car and he runs onto the field, stops, turns around and says, "I'm tired. I wanna go home now!" LOL This kid!

I must admit that I really do not like soccer. Don't get me wrong; I LOVE sports. I love to watch them and I love to play a lot of them. But soccer is not on my list of favorite things. I don't like standing out there watching and I dislike it even more in the rain. The game on Sat. was cold (thankfully no rain) but just felt "wet' and somewhat muddy. Blah. I am thinking that t-ball might be something we could all be interested in next year...which would include Baylen and Brynn playing.

Looking through old photos...

and found this one of Dj and the kids...this is such a good picture of them and no caption is needed to explain how good of a daddy Dj is.

How does it seem possible that B2 seems so grown up now?

Baylenisms #5, 6, 7, 8

He's a little stinker...

Me: I'm cold...it's cold in here.

Bay: Well, put on a sweatshirt!

*****

Today on the way home from daycare...I'm putting him in his car seat:

Me: I need to put the little pad back in on your seat. It fell off.

Baylen: Well that pad hurts my feelings.

Me: What? It doesn't hurt your feelings! You're silly!

Bay: Smirks and laughs.

******

He's grabbing at his crotch the other day...

Me: What's wrong? Do you have to pee? Is something wrong with your peepee?

Bay: No, I got a wedgie!

******

Me: Baylen, how do you spell your name?

Bay: B-R-Y-N-N-A

hahaha

HECK YES!

It's about time! Brynn CAN'T WAIT! Alderwood Mall is going to have frequent visitors, I have a feeling. So glad I don't have to pay shipping for this store much longer. :)

New Visitors

This weekend was a busy yet important weekend for our family. B & B were able to meet their Grandma Jeriwan (Grandma Jeri) for the first time as well as their Great Grandma Sum Kee (also known as "Rose"). Both live in Las Vegas and when G'ma Jeri found out she had grandkids a couple of months ago, she has been calling and talking to the kids and decided to come and visit. After driving 19 hours, they settled in for the weekend, bringing a new puppy to entertain. Although it seemed like a crazy weekend getting used to a wild puppy, meeting new people (for the kids mostly), listening to Great Grandma Rose tell the same stories many times (she has dementia) and running various errands, it was nice to get to know them a little bit better. Both are funny and very talkative and love the kids. Jeri taught me how to make some authentic Chinese food (fried rice and egg rolls) and also made some other yummy food while she was here. We went to an Asian market for the first time together and she showed me how to look for the right kinds of ingredients and what kind of food is good to buy. HINT: if you like Asian food as much as we do, go to an Asian grocery store...Asian markets actually sell meat cheaper and also sell soy sauce, sweet & sour sauce, rice, etc. WAY cheaper than the grocery store.

Grandma J. works at Marshall's, so she brought all sorts of goodies for the kids like pillow pets, several dresses for Brynn, lots of shoes, and more. She even brought a present for Baylen for his birthday and bought each of them a toy. They were pretty excited about it all.

Great Grandma Rose speaks a little bit of broken English but mostly Thai mixed w/ Chinese. She is a bit hard of hearing and is waiting to get a new hearing aid as well as some new teeth b/c she had to get many of them pulled. She will turn 79 in two weeks. She was very happy to meet us and kept saying she would miss us. She had some really old pictures in her purse of her father and her brother. I'll try and post them later...her father was a very good Chinese doctor and used to help many sick people in his village and neighboring villages. He would find ways to mix herbal medicines to help very sick people return to good health. He was well known. It was neat to hear about the history of a part of our family.

The kids enjoyed meeting their grandmas and spent the weekend eating, talking, playing with the dog, reading to grandma, playing games w/ grandma, and getting to know them both.

Grandma J. and GG Rose left this morning to head back to Las Vegas. We hope to see them again sometime. Maybe we can visit them if we make it to Vegas in the fall for a little adult getaway...we'll see.

It was fun to have some authentic culture and learn some cultural traditions and language that our little family does have a connection to. It's good for our kids to learn about their roots too.

I can read, momma! :)

Last summer, I tried working w/ Brynn to start teaching her sight words. It went okay but I don't think she was ready...too young. So, we sort of dropped it and focused more on continuing to practice identifying our letters and thinking of words that started wit those letters on the way to and from school. Then we started working on words that rhymed. Last night, I asked Brynn if she wanted to start learning how to read. She was so excited and went upstairs to grab the books I bought last year to start teaching her sight words and reading easy sentences. The series of books are numbered, so each set of sight words builds on the next set or sound. Last night, we made it through the first four books. The third and forth books were tough for her, but she continued to try. I could see her trying to use her sounds and spelling out the word to try and figure out the sound or the word. Tonight, she made it through the first four books with ease! I was so proud of her! I even covered up the pictures so she could only see the words. She continued to make it through reading each book. It's so cute to hear and watch. She is so excited to feel so grown up and after she reads a short sentence she thinks about it and gets what the sentence is saying and reacts to it/comprehends it. It's super cute.

As a teacher, I think I am more worried about my kids being good students and prepared for school, even though it's still a year away for her. I know how important it is for kids to know how to recognize sight words even as they enter Kindergarten and the advantages they will have if they know how to read well.

Uncle Paul comes to visit

It's been a long time since we've seen Uncle Paul. He came up to visit this weekend so we could take him out for his birthday. We enjoyed seeing him and glad he was able to spend the night and some time w/ us. It's been over a year since we have seen him last. He has been working really hard to find a job after losing his almost a year ago. It's been a tough year for so many and hard to see someone you know and love have to play the waiting game for this long. In the last year alone, he's applied for almost 500 jobs. He has about 12 resumes out currently so we're hoping for some good news for him. He is qualified for so many of the jobs but someone else gets b/c he doesn't have a Master's Degree. While he continues to apply for jobs, he has decided to return to school for his Master's. Hopefully this will entice schools who are hiring as well.

Ken is in style!

Thanks to G'ma J., Brynn received a small box of very fashionable clothes for her Ken dolls. Both Kens have many exciting outfits to choose from. This is the first outfit that has been worn...matching cow pajamas (including a pair of cow boxers) paired with his fancy dress shoes.

Running in circles...or really slowly

I don't mind working out. I like it even better when I see results, which is why I was so stuck on (and still am) my Jilian Michaels video (The Shred). I enjoy being thinner and when I'm working out regularly, I feel so much better and I have more energy. These are all benefits. Sometimes, though, I need to mix it up. So...over the past year, I've picked up running off and on.

Honestly, I hate running. Even worse, I hate running outside. However, I know it's good for me, so I do it anyway. It's actually super hard on my hips, which I blame on my second pregnancy w/ Bay. I never had problems before that. Earlier this year, I had to go to the chrio to get some work done b/c my hip was completely out of place. This happened b/c I was doing a lot of jogging outside. I had to wear an ugly brace, It wasn't cool or fashion forward. My chiro urged me not to run outside but stick to a treadmill until I was able to run w/ longer strides and at a faster pace. I wish I had a treadmill. I would use it.

The weather has been nicer lately, and I have had a few free moments after school, so I took advantage. Dj bought me a couple of new Jillian DVDs, which I'll be trying on rainy days. But I vowed to myself that when it's nice, I will run outside on the track near my school.

I shouldn't say run; what I really mean is jog. Last weekend, I went out and ended up making it for two miles. It wasn't bad. This week, I've been continuing to jog around 2.1 miles according to my pedometer. I still don't love it, but I know it's worth it in the end. I just need to keep thinking: Prom in May....healthy....swimsuit in June and July...yeah. :)

When will they ever go to sleep?

We are having a hard time STILL getting our kids to stay in bed and go to sleep. Baylen is MUCH WORSE than Brynn. I am not sure what to do to get them to go to sleep. Are they night owls like their parents? Is his nap too long at school? On the days that it rains and they can't go outside, it's even worse. He doesn't have enough ways to expend his energy so he comes home and he's ready to just run all over. It is seriously so tiring. I thought with the time change, it would get better. It has not improved. He's in bed between 8 and 8:30 and at 9, even 9:30, he'll waltz down the stairs with a big grin on his face. While cute, it's still very irritating.

Thanks for coming to visit!

We had so much fun and they kids keep asking when you are coming back!

Happy St. Paddy's Day!

From our favorite little leprechauns!

Brynn update

Last Friday, Brynn had another appt. at CH. After spending some time conversing w/ the doctor, he sent us on our way to have some X-rays. The results initially showed some sort of bone issue that could be causing the "bump" or "lump" we've been feeling. After a radiologist looked it over yesterday, the report came back saying her first ribs were underdeveloped and showed signs of being hypoplastic. The doctor will refer us to someone in orthopedics and we'll go from there. We're not exactly sure what will happen next, so I guess, we wait and see. The lump bothers her when she gets buckled into her car seat, and can get sensitive after poking and prodding. One thing is for sure...going to that hospital the past couple of weeks has been eye opening and sad. So many sick kids and I just feel so bad for their parents. That has to be so hard. How brave are they? And those kids...such fighters.

Baylenisms #7, #8, #9

Funny Stuff heard from the Mister Mister this weekend

The last week or so, every time we say something to Baylen, he responds with, "What?"

I mean he says this after ANYTHING we say to him. Our response back to him lately (instead of repeating) is "You heard me."

Soooo when my parents were here visiting this weekend, here's what happened:

Bay: Papa...blah blah blah (whatever he said).

Papa: What?

Bay: You heard me!



Baylen letting go of a balloon after leaving Red Robin...10 seconds later: Did that go all the way to China?

Papa: yes!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Mister Mister!

How can you be three already! You seem so grown up!