Shameless

Really, do I have to say anything in my post today? By now I know you're shaking your head about my shameless plugs. There are some things that I just can't help about myself. :)

In case you forgot

My birthday is just around the corner...less than one week! That would be next Tuesday, in case you weren't sure.

It figures

So I was on the phone with Jason yesterday and suddenly the phone died and my carbon monoxide detector was beeping. Then it was quiet. What in the world?!? It was a beautiful sunny day out, not windy or anything, and our power goes out. And, I can't call Jason to tell him why I hung up on him since my "power outage phone" is in a dump somewhere. Of course, it was right at supper time, so that totally threw my dinner plans out of whack (not that they were great plans, but they still required power!). I still don't know why my power went out, but thankfully it came back on after a little over an hour...so I still had time to make dinner.

We're in trouble

Jason and I just Googled Monarch butterflies. Why? Ethan showed us a picture of a monarch butterfly that he made in school today. He announced that the butterfly that he drew was a "boy butterfly". Since everything lately for him is all about boys, we kind of rolled our eyes. We asked him, "why is this a boy butterfly?" and he told us "because the boy butterfly has spots and the girl butterfly doesn't". He then showed us the spots he put on the butterfly. So, we put him to bed and were trying to decide if there was a difference between male and female butterflies. So we did a search and found this. I think we may have trouble helping him with his homework...unless we can google it without him knowing.

Sometimes you just need a good book

So lately I've been a little...let's just say emotional. (Have you read my last few posts? I can hardly read them without more tears!) I needed a good lighthearted book, and thankfully a book that I've been anticipating came in for me this past weekend at the library. I've already finished it, and it's one where I wanted to read it as fast as I could because I loved it so much, but also wanted to read slowly just so it wouldn't be done too quickly! One of my favorite authors is Janet Evanovich, simply because her writing makes me laugh throughout the book. She has an odd sense of humor and a great imagination, which together make me sit and giggle as I read. Needless to say, Jason does tend to look at me like I'm a little odd while I'm reading her books. I try and explain the funny parts, but her humor is really only understood if you read the book and know the characters.

The book I just read is her newest from her Stephanie Plum Series, called Lean Mean Thirteen. If you need a good read that will make you laugh with a bunch of odd humor and characters, read through this series. I don't think you'll regret it!

1st Day of School

He started school this morning,
And he seemed so very small,
As I waited there beside him
In the preschool hall.

And as he took his place beside
The others in the class,
I realized how all too soon
Those first few years can pass.

Remembering, I saw him as
He first learned how to walk,
The words that we alone made out
When he began to talk.

This little boy so much absorbed
In learning how to write!
It seems as tho' he must have grown
To boy-hood overnight.

My eyes were blurred but hastily
I brushed the tears away,
Lest by some word or sign of mine
I mar his first big day.

Oh, how I longed to stay with him
And keep him by the hand,
To lead him through the places
That I couldn't understand.

And something closely kin to fear
Was mingled with my pride,
I knew he would no longer be
A baby at my side.

But as he must have his chance to live,
To work his problems out,
The privilege to grow and learn
What life is all about.

And I must share my little boy
with friends and work and play;
He's not a baby anymore--
He started school today.

author unknown

First Day Jitters

School starts on Monday and I have a case of the first day jitters. Ethan's fine, of course, he can hardly contain his excitement for school. I, on the other hand, can't stop thinking about it. How can this day be here already? How did time suddenly go from "It's a boy" to "It's time for school"? I know this is something that all moms go through, but it still doesn't make it much easier. My baby boy's world is about to drastically change. He's going from the shelter of our home out into the big world. Honestly, it scares me to not be able to control the things he learns and sees. When he's with me, I can turn off the TV and radio so he doesn't hear or see all the bad things that happen in the world. He doesn't need to know that there are things like bullies, loneliness, teasing, and bad days. He's going to figure out that there are some things in life that are just plain hard, and that he may have a difficult time learning things. He doesn't know about divorce and hate. He knows love, happiness, and play.

I am excited for him to go to school, please don't misunderstand me. How can I not be when he says things like "Do you think we'll sing songs in preschool?" and "I think I'll learn numbers that I don't know about, like 31, 32, 33...". I am happy because of his happiness, excitement, and anticipation.

I guess I'll have to stick with the only things I can do: Pray hard, and continue to teach him right and wrong whenever I have the chance. Love him unconditionally, and give him all the hugs and kisses that he'll let me dish out. I'm also going to hold his hand every chance I get, because I know that someday soon he won't let me do it anymore. Some stages in life are hard for a mom, even though they are good stages. I think the most difficult part may be that this is only preschool; just the beginning.

For added emphasis

Micah has a new thing. He's starting to say more words, but most things are referred to by one word.

"Eh"

Not really sure if that's how it should be spelled, but hopefully you get the idea. If he really wants to emphasize something, or wants us to do something, he points. Many times he'll come running from the other room, point at me, say "eh", and then run back to where he was. The translation is this: "Mom, I need your help with something, follow me". When I enter the room, he points at what he needs or wants, and says "eh" again. Translation: "I want that".

He's pretty cute when he points, and many times I can't help but laugh, but the "eh" for EVERYTHING is getting a little old. Reminder to self, kids go through phases in language development where words only make sense to them. This too shall pass, and then he'll probably talk nonstop like his brother.

Visiting Day

Today we went to Ethan's preschool classroom for visiting day. Ethan was so excited that he had a hard time sleeping this morning (which meant mommy was up with him four times between 4:30 and 6:15...not cool when the alarm went off at 6:30).

When we told him it was time to go, he practically ran out to the van and chattered the whole way about seeing his classroom and going to school. We were able to find his assigned hook where he needs to hang his backpack and then meet his teachers. They seem like great ladies. Ethan then had a chance to explore the room. The teachers have all sorts of stations set up, so Ethan wandered around and played with puzzles, race cars, and a pretend food market. He played a little with some of his classmates, but mostly he stuck pretty close to Jason and I. I think that once Jason and I are not in the classroom, he'll be a little more open to getting to know the other kids in his class (especially since their parents won't be there either!). I think he had a lot of fun, and now he's talking about going back to classroom for his first day of school on Monday. He's very excited for school!

In case you were wondering, there's no school on my birthday. That's Tuesday, September 25. :)

PS. As soon as I upload the pictures of visiting day to the computer, I'll add them to my post.

In case of a power outage

If there's a power outage at my house, don't plan on being able to contact us via the telephone. We have a phone that we could plug in that wasn't cordless, the kind that doesn't need electricity to function. Micah liked to play with the phone and carry it around and pretend to talk on it. Today he unfortunately found a new use for it. He dunked it in the toilet and swished it around a bit. I'm not too willing to try it to see if it still works. Something tells me a dunking in the toilet will make it not so useful. So, we trashed the phone and now will be unreachable if there's a power outage. At least we still have the cell.

Just so you all know...

Today is the first day in September, in case you didn't realize it by the date right above this. This means it is my birthday month, which means I will be regularly and randomly announcing that my birthday is coming soon (and since it's not until the 25th, there will be plenty of time for you to be sick of my announcements). I am not the one in the household that is turning 30! this year, so I am fine with proclaiming my day. Enjoy my annoying habit!

So good, and so easy

I have a new favorite snack to make. Since I recently, shall I say, "acquired" a large amount Cocoa Pebbles cereal, I went searching for a recipe that I could use them in. (My methods for acquiring the cereal will probably end up in a different post some other time!) This is the recipe I found:



They are called Hot Cocoa Crispy Squares. Click on the name to view the recipe, since I don't feel like typing it all out! :) I also highly recommend the Kraft Foods website that I found it on since it has a ton of great recipes. These were so simple to make, and Ethan even liked to help because he could sprinkle all the marshmallows on the top. Micah helped too, though his help came in the form of making sure there were not too many marshmallows for the top. These were generously distributed by his big brother.

I figured that since I always like hearing about good, easy recipes, that I should share this one. Kimberly had a recipe on her blog the other day that I think I'm going to have to try...mainly because it includes the words "gooey" and "drunken berries". How could that not be a good recipe? So, someday some unsuspecting soul who comes to my house will likely be my guinea pig for Gooey Butter Cake with Drunken Berries. Come on, now that you've seen the name of the recipe, you know exactly what I mean. Let me know if you try it, I'll come over and be your tester...maybe I'll bring some Hot Cocoa Crispy Squares.