Camera

So here is "One" good thing! I took my Camera over to Best Buy (the place I bought it) and the dude clicked a few buttons, reset all the settings... and said "take it home and see if that fixes it."

Looks like maybe it did :D Yay for not having to spend 5 billion dollars just to have it looked it! I guess the real test will be after a take a few more pictures to see if it continues to at least take decent pictures. Here's to hoping!

Update:

Yup, definitely better!  Glad it was just a software issue! :D BTW this is Goober weeding grandma's flower bed to earn some moola.... he wants to buy the new Lego Harry Potter game. :D

Update

Hi All, I haven't posted in a very long time... partially because I didn't know much I could post without offending those that I really really don't want to offend, while at the same time being authentic to myself. So I just stopped posting. Time to update though.

The summer was hard, but that isn't really news. We are still living with my in-laws, which is a huge help yet still very hard. Our marriage had some bumps. I worked the community lunches at our school (it's a federal program that provides free lunches to people under 18 years old for free) with my friend Nari. It helped to be able to have some kind of income until school started and it was a good preparation for when school actually started. We didn't venture any farther than thiry minutes away because we simply couldn't afford it.

The highlight of my summer? Well, that would have to have been the massage that I was able to get in June. I had given my dad a gift certificate for Christmas that he was not going to be able to take advantage of so he returned it to me so that I could use it. It was fabulous :)

School started on August 15th for Turbo (Preschool) and on August 18th for Missy and Goober. Because I'm an assistant at the school now I don't have to pay tuition for Turbo and he gets to stay all day until the other kids get out of school... which is a godsend because otherwise he would not be getting preschool due to cost and having him there until after school also makes me working more doable if Jer is able to find a job.

Oh, I can't remember if I updated on that or not. Jer found a job for a short time with a construction company that required that he live in Colorado until Sept. We tried it. It didn't work so well. So he came home and is now looking for a job again.

Anyways, back to me working. Right now I work for the charter school who provides our school with lunches. In the morning I get the number for lunches then prepare them and deliver and serve them to our school. After lunch I switch to assisting at the kids school until school gets out and then I switch back into lunch lady mode to input lunch balances, input figures into the computer, make reports (both daily and monthly), distribute fruits or vegetables to the classes for the Fruit and Vegetable Grant that our school got, and count the milk in the kindergarten room so that I can restock in the next morning for the Kindergarten Milk Snack Program. Then some days I switch modes again to PFA (remember that? It's like the PTO) President to do meetings for that etc.

Needless to say I spend a lot of time at the school and doing school type stuff.

The last couple of weeks were hard. Really hard. There wasn't enough time in the day to do everything that needed to be done for lunches (making lunch cards etc), the computer program at the school wasn't working right (the orders were not coming in on time or were not able to be input), the school changed the lunch schedule on me without letting me know (well, actually that was more the teachers than the school...), and then I had a teacher argue with me about how a student didn't get her lunch ordered and how that was somehow now my problem... oh, and did I mention that this was in front of at least 15 students while I was serving lunch? Then there was my assisting job that simply wasn't happening for a while... and the poor teacher that was putting up with it and my feeling like a failure in that department. Yeah. It was a swell week.

On top of that I came home to a house that was not mine, that my sister in law decided to stay at for the week as well, and that I have no personal private space in (though, don't get me wrong, I'm very VERY grateful to have a space to live at all... it's just really hard) and that I seem to be constantly offending someone in some way in...

Well, you get the point.

I miss feeling at home basically.

Now things are starting to chill out a little with school. I'm starting to get into a routine at least somewhat. I need to take a test for Math and English skills with the college sometime this month because I will be starting classes in January and need to register in October for those and hopefully Jer will get this job that he has applied for and passed a couple of screenings on.

So, that is the update. It's not very cheerful... but it is what it is. And I really am not trying to complain, but it's hard to say "life is hard" without sounding whiny. I'm just trying my best to buckle down and somehow do everything that I need to do to get through this. I can say that I'm very grateful that I have a loving and kind husband who doesn't moan about being a stay at home dad and running all sorts of errands etc for me, that put up with my long hours for those couple of weeks (hopefully these next few weeks will be a little less), and that is a really good dad. I know this is hard on him too, and I'm certain that at times I make things worse even when I don't mean to.

Our kids are clothed and have food and beds to sleep in and they have good teachers, I have a job that I can at least potentially leave when the kids get out for he day and that I can do partially from home if needed (at least the paperwork). I'm grateful for my in-laws and their generousity in putting up with us and for my parents and their generosity in trying to help us with letting the kids do fun things like dance class for Missy, going camping, and taking them sometimes so that we can get some time to wind down. I'm thankful for understanding friends who realize that I don't feel comfortable inviting them over socially unless I ask my in-laws first and who also understand that I also am reluctant to invite my children's friends from school over ... because, again, it isn't our house.

I'm grateful that our renters have paid their rent (so far) even if they are a little flaky and do pay late. I hope that we don't have to evict them for not paying certain utilities... but if we do... well, maybe Jer will get that job, eh? And maybe we could move back into our own house... maybe, but I'm not counting on it... Wishful thinking, eh? Well, you have to hope for something... right?

PS. My camera is having issues as well, so sorry... no pictures. Fuzzy fuzzness is not fun to look at lol

PFA Stuffers

Okay, so today the PFA did a yardsale/clothes swap. I think it went pretty well... in the middle of it I decided that I needed to take down the egg cartons that we had put up earlier in the year because the construction guys are going to start working on building in the "multipurpose room" (which really means "2 unfinished classrooms that happen to be side-by-side").

If you are wondering why we had put up egg cartons, it was in a desperate attempt to dampen the echos in that blasted room... they were giving the gym teacher a headache every time they had gym in there. The Egg cartons helped a little... but not terribly much. Oh well, it was the thought that counted... right?!

So did I take a picture of the yardsale? Nope.... but I got some of the egg cartons! lol Each layer has 27 dozen places for eggs on them. There are 21 layers. Have fun with that one! :D

Oh No!  Someone's foot is in there!?

Death by Egg Carton!!!! ;) lol

Here's one to give you a better idea...

Miss B is standing next to them, she is about Missy's size. She is such a good sport!

Beautiful Day

Okay, so last Wednesday was Goober's 8th birthday!  I can't believe the kids is getting so big! We had a couple of small family parties for him over Memorial Day weekend since my sister Jo was in town and then on Monday Jer's sister was in town. It may not look like the kid got much celebrating, but he definitely got enough sugar for the birthday over the weekend! :D

Anywho, Wednesday was the first truly nice day we have had this spring yet so we joined friends for a picnic lunch at the park, which was fun despite the never ending windy wind o'Idaho.

After we got home from lunch Grandma S bought cupcakes from the Cocoa Bean for Goobers birthday (mmmmm they are SO GOOD! Better than that other place for sure. They look so good you doubt that they can possibly taste good... and then WHAM! A Miracle! Someone figured out how to make awesome looking, great tasting cupcakes!).

That evening we met up at another park with a couple of friends I hadn't seen in a VERY long time.

Ahren and Rachelle were some of my very best high school friends. We were almost always together, so not fair that they look just like they used to!!! :D It was great to see them though! And the kids had a blast playing too!

That picture is missing three of the kiddos ( four if you count Turbo who is hiding behind one of Ahren's girls in this picture lol) Missy made quick friends with Ahren's youngest daughter, and Ahren's 7 month old son isn't up for racing down hills quiiiiite yet ;)

 Here's one with all of us (Except Ahren's hubs who was taking the picture, thanks Aaron!) Sorry it's a little fuzzy, apparently I need to clean my camera's lens :P maybe they got one that wasn't fuzzified!?

Jer in Colorado

Two days ago Jer left for Colorado for work. The project he is working on is supposed to be a 90(?) day project... meaning he won't be home again until 2 or 3 months has passed.

I'm doing alright so far. I do miss him though. But I really think that once the weekend hits I'll really feel it... just because I'm pretty used to him being gone during the week days but having him around on the weekends.


I hope he is adjusting alright...

Happy Mother's Day!

I love this PostSecret! Even the art reminds me of my mom :)

Positive News :)

Yesterday I woke up grumpy... well, not really... but things had a rough start.

We have a Barnes and Noble Book fair for the kids school today, and there were a few miscommunications and things that made it not turn out quite how it was supposed to. So I was over at the school before I'd even had a chance to get a shower making copies and putting signs up on the doors and waiting for the principal to get there so I could get an okay for using the schools letterhead. Well, turns out he wasn't there... and hadn't let the secretary know he wouldn't be there either. And as I said, I was already grumpy because of other issues.

Well, after resigning myself to using the letter without the letterhead and going home because I felt icky (Hello! No shower!) I proceeded to go about my day, including applying for a few jobs while I was at it.

Part of that was to call into a corporate office and go through a screening process, which I passed, now I'm just waiting for a phone interview. Then we got a call for Jer...

It was someone from a company he had applied to work due to a tip from someone I'd met through the PFA.

He had an interview at 3. :) So off he went at while I went and picked up Goober from school. Shortly after I got back I received a call from the guy who is managing renting our house. WE GOT RENTERS! Yay!

Can I tell you what a stress that takes off? Now I won't need to worry about finding the funds to pay the mortgage anymore, the rent will do that :) And while that means that we also can't move back into our house soon, it makes further problems less likely.

Jer took a long time at his interview. Turns out the guy interviewing him had to put out a fire. No, really... some of the guys had lit a door on fire and he had to help put it out! LOL and you thought I was just talking about management type "Fires" :D Anyhow, Jer got a temporary position at a construction company that works all around the world. The job will last a couple of months and potentially turn into something more!!! While it isn't permanent, I'm just happy that we will be able to pay some bills without having our credit go down the tubes for a couple of months.

I'm NOT complaining!!!

Doing Much Better Today.

Sorry about the downer yesterday.

One of those days.

So hear we are.

We are living in my in-laws basement. I'm so glad we have a good support system and people who are willing to put up with us for a while. Our house is empty. Cleaned. And waiting for a renter to come along. We are crossing our fingers that that happens quickly.

Both Jer and I have been applying for jobs and I've been doing a temp job here or there. I had an interview for a job... I didn't really think it ethical for me to do the job of a nurse without having a license though, and for minimum wage at that, so I couldn't bring myself to take that job. It feels like all of the jobs that are available are sorely underpaid. Minimum wage for helping the disabled shower and toilet? This seems inherently wrong, no wonder turnover is so high. We need a more permanent solution.

Goober has been having issues lately at school. It started before we became unemployed... in fact, if I think about it, I was concerned about him clear back when he was in preschool. It comes in waves. For a while he seems to be alright, doing what he should be at school etc. Not the smartest kid, nor the most popular, nor anywhere close to either, but at least not the brunt of the other kids. Then things get rough... I don't know if it's my perception though. It may be that things aren't changing much, and I'm just seeing the problem in a fashion similar to that of watching a train go by a neighborhood. First you hear it, then you see it peak out from behind some houses, then disappear...sometimes for a long while behind buildings, then it pops out again in another place. Is the train really gone? No. Are there times you think it might be? ya, probably.

I worry that he might have an attention deficit disorder. When he was younger I thought it was something like an Audio Processing Disorder because he isn't hyper (usually) and he can focus with intensity at times. But if it's not something he is sincerely interested in? Forget it. Even if he knows he needs to do it and is trying, he is so easily distracted that I almost have to have him in a completely separate room from everyone else. He also gets really upset and I can't seem to calm him down. He's so intent on being upset that there is almost no way to dissuade him from it. You just have to ride it out.

And all this right as we loose insurance.

Then the other night as we sat eating dinner Goober pipes up "Mom, I know why T and I (at school) tell me I'm stupid." (these are two other children in his class). I ask why, hoping it's something like, Because someone else is calling them stupid!

Instead I get "Because I am."

I want to cry.

Jer stepped in and explained that just because you aren't good at one thing doesn't make you stupid, everyone is good at different things. As one of my favorite quotes says "Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid." The quote is attributed to Albert Einstein, but it's not verifiable if it was actually him who said it, but it's a good one non-the-less.

Sigh.

School for Jer or I doesn't start until fall, and even then looking into funding etc intimidates me so badly that I procrastinate it. I logically know that it's not that big of a deal... make an appointment, go meet with someone at the school. They should be able to guide us. But I have to fight hard to even take a step. It unknown territory that feels dangerous, then again, it's more dangerous not to do it.

Nothing specifically has gone wrong today. In fact, most of the day has been one that I would normally consider good. Missy had a Birthday party at a classmates house, Turbo gets to go spend the night at my parents house tonight. The kids have been pretty decent outside of a few instances where they have argued.

But I'm still worried about everything. But does that help? No. In fact if anything it just makes it worse.

I worry about loosing our house, and our van, and I worry about Goober and if I need to take him in for testing... and if we will be able to pay for it. I worry about being a burden on people who care about us. I know they love us, but there is a limit to how much help they can offer and how much I can accept. I'm an independent person by nature, and I feel that some of this may just kill me.

I know that loosing all of our things isn't the end of the world, I know we will survive if that happens, but I also know that the process would be painful. If it's going to happen, I just want to get it over with. I want a magic 8 ball that I can ask "will we find a job that will work in the next 10 months?" and it will say "Yes" or "No" and that would be the end of it.

Dammit, if we could pull ourselves up by our "bootstraps" we would... but we don't seem to have any. We are trying to find new ones, but every time we think we might have we find the boot is too large or that the shoe laces are too short.

Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

I.R.Smert

Okay, so I've had to change my email address (it's been edited on my sidebar if you are interested) because we are turning off our internet (cause the In-laws have it... not cause we can live without it) and because our ISP is selfish about my Q.com address and won't let me keep it.

I was trying for all I was worth the change me email address with everyone (I'm sure I've missed some) and I changed it with blogger, but alas I kept getting emails at my old address whenever I posted or someone commented. Grrrr

Well, I figured it out, and now I'm going to share it with you!  Don't you feel special? No? Well, feel special DANGIT! ...

Alrighty, here's how this works. Go to your "Dashboard" and click on the "comments" tab. Then scroll ALLLLLLLLLL the way down to the bottom.

See where is says "comment notification addresses"? Well, put in the address you want notified! Tada!

I.R.Smert

Here's the lowdown...

So, as Jer and I prepare for the worst we have come to some conclusions...

First, we need to rent our house out.

If the market were better we would try to sell it, but as it stands we would have to sell it at a loss... which is technically considered a short-sale. And it dings your credit. So for now we will be moving into Jer's parents basement. This is the most reliable way that we can see of being able to continue playing our house payments while I look for work.

Yes, that's right. I'm going back to work. I've applied to a temp service with the hopes of finding a job I can not just tolerate, but which I can enjoy. Hopefully something great will come my way.

If you are wondering what Jer will be doing, well...

He's going to go back to school.

He wants to go into computer tech. I'm glad he has a goal and something he can see himself doing :) And I hope that after we get through all of this we will be in a better place all around!

And who knows!? Maybe when we are all done we will truly be able to say "I understand" when the other complains about the monotony of housework or about a long week at work!

In the end, I have to think it's all for the best.

PS if you hear of any clerical or office jobs that are hiring... that's what I'd like to end up doing :)

Goober at School

So yesterday in Goobers "take home folder" I found some pictures of him that his teacher sent home. I think these are great! They also show how a Montessori school is different from a regular school so I'm posting them!

See the big smile above? Yeah, that's awesome for me to see! His work mat is behind him, I think he is working on his grammar, but I'm not sure cause the area of the classroom he is in focuses on math (which is his favorite subject).

Here Goober is sitting at his table with some other kids in his class. It looks like they are all supposed to be working on language and spelling. The kids are allowed to work in groups and help each other, everything is not based on grades but more on the fact that you are learning and working hard, even if you are learning from the other kids (which builds good teamwork skills and encourages kids to not be ashamed of asking for help if they need it even if the teacher is currently helping someone else)

We have parent teacher conferences this week, I'm excited to see how both of my kids are doing. :)

This is Goober reading during "Read aloud time". I thought it was "circle time", but Goober just informed me not. But because I know more about "circle time" I'm going to explain that! lol

They do circle time at the beginning of class, right before lunch, and at the end of the day. At the beginning of the day they go over roll (one of the kids takes roll), they go over what the weather is going to be like that day (again, another child is in charge of that), what the date is, and what the lesson plan is for the day.

Most of circle time is lead by a student, the only time it's not is when the kids are having a really hard day or the teacher does reading time (they have read Laura Inglis Wilder and after they were done they made bread as a class and talked about things that people used to do back when pioneers were coming to the west).

I love Goober's teacher, she is wonderful and does an excellent job working with him, and I SO love the school, it really is a Godsend for my kids.

Jer Lost His Job

Well, the title about says it all.

Today Jer came home from work with the news that he had been fired. Over a technicality at that, but it still doesn't change the fact.

He has been tired of working on the phones for quite some time.. it had started to be a drain on him emotionally and mentally, so hopefully this is a blessing in disguise.

This may mean many things, hopefully not many bad things. But if that is the case... it's the case and there isn't much I can do about it.

Jer is great about just about everything that he applies himself to. He is efficient and has a lot of common sense, he is also very good at learning new things. I know that whatever he ends up doing, he will do it well.

If you hear of anything, please let us know. This doesn't exclude me getting a job as well, If I need to (which is likely) I will.

Here's to hoping that this whole thing turns into a good opportunity.

bleh...

So yesterday I started to feel it.

That narsty ickyness in my stomach.

I couldn't decide if it was me becoming ill or just the placebo effect of everyone around me being ill and me thinking I could have gotten it too.

So I went to my Love and Logic class at the school last night and then came home and went to bed.

This morning I felt downright crappy. You know that feeling where if you lay down you feel like everything is up in your throat, but if you sit up you think you might hurl? Yeah, that feeling.

Jer took care of getting the kids up and getting them out the door, I did Missy's hair in a pony tail while she ate and then went back to bed. At some point my mom came by and dropped some things off.

Jer let me sleep.

I woke at about 11 and decided it was probably time to get a shower etc and that I felt remarkably better. I felt better for a while.

and then not so good.

Then better.

So, here is the question... at what point can I say "I feel better" when it's so off again and on again?! I had been planning on taking Missy to see some friends preform with their dance classes tonight... and tomorrow I had planned on going to Utah (I know my grandpa is really looking forward to the visit) and going to the aquarium because Missy has been asking to see "fishes" lately and it will be a while before I get another weekend that we can do that.

So if I don't start feeling crappy again, do you think it's alright to go ahead with my plans, or do you think maybe not?

Walk Like and Egyptian

The Women of Tahrir from Yasmin Moll on Vimeo.

For women told "no" so often, it's amazing what happens when they decide that they too have a voice.

Poor Sickos :(

So, as you know, last Friday Missy was sick. I mainly attributed it to something that was probably food related.

Yeah, that was a mistake I think.

Last night Goober came into my room around midnight to tell me he couldn't sleep and wasn't feeling well. So I took his temperature (it was a little high) and gave him some kids Motrin and some kids Pepto tablets and sent him back to bed hoping that would stave whatever it was off.

Within an hour I hear him yelling for me. As I go into his room he tells me that he puked, and then he continued to puke. I tried to mitigate some of the damage, thinking that since his bed was already a mess I just wanted him to keep the mess there.

I ran and got Jer (who was downstairs watching a movie) and we both went to work getting things cleaned up, which was a huge job because Goober sleeps on the top bunk and that is definitely not the best place to throw up at. I should have moved him to the bottom bunk when he started complaining about not feeling well. Live and learn I guess1!

I put Goober in the bath, and got Turbo a bed fixed up on the front room couch so that he could continue to sleep (thank goodness he wasn't sleeping in the line of fire!), then proceeded to take the bedding that Jer was stripping off of the boys beds and spraying the gunk off in the kitchen sink with the sprayer. Jer proceeded to use the carpet cleaning solution on the boys carpet and while I was throwing things into the washing machine he made the boys beds.

We decided that Goober should sleep on the bottom bunk in case he got hit with another bout of the stuff. Turbo slept the rest of the night on the couch.

When we were all done and Goober was tucked back into bed and had the "puke bowl" close at hand Jer tells me that he doesn't feel so hot either.

This morning was the first time since I've known Jer that he actually physically upchucked. Keep in mind that we have been married over nine years... ya, the man hated throwing up and would rather feel crappy for an extended period of time than do it.

Anyways, I really hope that this stuff passes quickly for the boys like it did for Missy and that somehow Turbo and I are able to avoid it.

Trying to clean out the wrong folder

Tonight I was looking at my email. I thought "Hey! Maybe I should clean out some of my folders!"

I clicked "Manage folders" and looked at which ones had the most memory in them. Turned out my "Family" folder had the most. So I clicked there and started to sift.

Yeah, not such a good idea.

You know how time is supposed to help heal? Apparently re-reading things that have happened in the past undoes that. I don't know if there is real healing from some things.

I thought about just deleting it all... then thought, it will probably be important someday for my children to understand the dynamics of certain relationships and why they are the way they are.

I should probably print those emails out, but then I wouldn't know what to do with them and I would probably come across them more often and just end up crying again.

So, so much for trying to clean out that folder.

Maybe in a couple more years...

Considering Dance and When do you speak up?

Today Missy woke up at 4:45 am with news that she had puked on her bed. Poor girl. I gave her a bath to clean her up and wash yuck out of her hair while Jer (saint of a man) cleaned up her bed and got new bedding on her bed. She was surprisingly happy considering and I was able to put her back in bed without much fuss.

At 7:45 she was back in my room saying she was cold... I had her lay down with me and after a sec realized that she was swallowing a lot. We raced to the bathroom and she lost it again. Poor thing. I noticed her hair was wet and thought it was because of the earlier bath, but upon checking her bed found that wasn't the case. Into the bath again and another sheet change. Again she was remarkably upbeat.

By 9am she hadn't gotten sick again and seemed to be doing well, so I took off to a dance festival in a nearby town to watch a friend's daughter preform their dance routines. I had said I was interested and would try... so off I went.

To sum that up, it was really really cool, I think I will probably be taking Missy (and maybe the boys of they are interested) to watch a performance this Thursday. If they are interested I may go ahead and sign them up.

Goober already thinks he has mad dancing skillz... but he really doesn't. If he wants them though I'm happy to give it a try, maybe he just needs some tips from someone who CAN dance. lol

In other news: I think I may have started a fire storm on a friends blog. I hope not though.

She has a wonderful little boy who happens to really enjoy girl things. Including pretending to have long hair and put bows etc in it. He is so cute! :)

Anyhow, comments keep popping up (not just one time but many) on her blog that conclude decisively that he "will grow out of it"... and I admit, he might. That would certainly make life easier for him (and all those who love him) in the long run, and probably the short run in many ways as well.

My concern is this... what if he doesn't? Are these people inadvertently saying that they won't accept him if he doesn't? are they saying that they will blame his parents if he doesn't or that they will think something is "wrong" if he doesn't?

I certainly don't think they are intending to be insensitive or hurtful, but I think to many people these comments may come across that way.

So I tried to gently say that things may not end up exactly how others want it to, and that is alright. That little boy will be loved and admired and have loads of potential in spite of (or maybe because of) the things that he finds enjoyable and that he is drawn to in this life.

I know my friend will take my comment the way I intended it, and I made sure that she knows that she can delete it if she wants to and I won't be offended or have my feelings hurt.

So what do you do when you think others may be unintentionally causing harm? Do you say something or do you stay silent... and if you say something, well, at what point do you say it?

Our School

I'm so happy! They redid our schools website! It looks 5 thousand times better and I'm excited to see when all the info is put into it :)

Tonight I get to be on a question and answer panel (whatever that entails... all I know is that I'm the  "parent" on the panel). I guess the panel is going to be after we have a Montessori Expert Speak... interesting, I guess we had her fly in from... um, somewhere that's not here, I can't remember lol.

She's supposed to be good and it's open to the public :) Come join us if you want! it's at 7pm at the Shilo Inn.

Assumptions.

Isn't it interesting the assumptions that people make about others.

I find it amusing that ever since I started dying my hair punk colors teenagers now gravitate towards me... :)

Ever since I started wearing dangly earrings regularly people think I'm always put together... *snicker*

Ever since I started to exercise people think I eat right... MWHAHAHAHA

and ever since I became open about my lack of belief some people think that I'm not as worthwhile or as good of a person as I used to be ...

or at least they stopped trying as hard to hide how they felt.

That one is actually really, really sad and quite hurtful.

Poor Spidey...

So, for those who don't know, I'm currently in the process of potty training Turbo. Yes, he is actually pretty old for this (about 3 and a half) but after the fiasco potty training Goober I really just wasn't up for the fight.

So, a couple of weeks ago Turbo decided it was time to go in the potty, hey! I wasn't going to fight him! If he wanted to that is awesome. So off on the potty train we went.

He got down #1 really fast, he is still having some issues with #2 but that could be due to unset tummy issues etc.

Today after an accident he exclaimed to Jer "But I don't want to poop on Spiderman!"

Now, his undies had wolverine on them, but he has others with spidey on them. Needless to say, I'm really glad he is getting the point that ... er... no one likes to be pooped on?

LOL

Crap

I think I might have strep throat. Guess I'll be going to the doctor tomorrow.

Attack of the craaaazy PTO lady....

I often wonder how other people see me. Last night our charter school had a "Parent Training Night" which basically helps parents know what to expect from our school and hopefully alleviates some unneeded concerns.

Well, towards the end the Principal/Administrator (yes they are the same guy... that is how Charter Schools work) asked me to get up and introduce myself and tell the parents a bit about what the PFA (aka a fancy acronym for PTO... oh, wait, that's another acronym!) was doing and what we need.

I knew that I would be doing this for a couple of days, which probably made it worse. I have never gotten up and talked from any other position than "hi, I'm here, and I have a question" in a largish meeting before.

I was nervous.

I think, and I may be wrong, that most people don't think I'm the type of person that gets nervous. I'm loud, I like to talk, I have no problem walking up to strangers and saying "Hi!", heck I never had much of an issue at church with giving talks (though they never asked me to! Some people just have luck. Mwhahaha ... or it could be a distinctly "I say what I think" attitude that scared them off... I dunno.)

Anyhow, on my Facebook status I put something up about rambling when I get nervous (which I do...among other things, like saying "um" waaaaay to much!). I always hope that when I do that ... you know... broadcast any feeling other than uber happy, that people don't think I'm fishing for compliments, cause I'm really not. I was nervous.

My stomach was even upset over it.

So the time came for me to get up and talk, and I did, and I took a friends advice... "just pretend that you aren't nervous" and everything turned out okay. I forgot one thing, but it was kinda minor... and my hair is admittedly unnatural so I wondered the whole time if people thought I was a nut, or if it made me more approachable.

How many people do you know with punk colored hair that aren't teenagers? (oh I hope people don't think I'm trying to be a teenager... ugh... NO THANK YOU!).

Anyhow, I think I got done what was needed... and hopefully soon I will get over my nerves.

P.S picture of the "hair"... I just had it done on Monday, and yes, anything dark in the picture is actually purple. (and no, I did not get a neck tattoo... that's an earing!)

Silly Kidlets

 Okay, I know I haven't posted in a while... but I was just uploading pictures to my computer and thought I would share... because I find some of them amusing. :)

Often, after Jer comes home from work, I will walk through the living room to something like this:

 I hit my "wall" at about 1-2pm and feel like I need a nap... he hits his right after dinner.

On this day Turbo was making a weird face... often. Jer and I were trying to figure out what was up with it.

 He would even do it upside down...

 Then Missy decided she wanted in on the action... and Turbo decided he wasn't done apparently.

Then it turned into the "Duck Face"

Jer and I got laughing pretty hard about this... you know how some girls pull this face thinking it's somehow sexy? Yeah? well... we don't get that and think it's absurd and a little atrocious looking.

The other night we went up to my parents house... the kids were having a lot of fun and at one point Jer used my parents washable markers to make a mark on Missy's face. Missy got upset and Jer had to show her that it washed off... then the boys saw it and decided they wanted to be "Spider man!"

Yeah, I'm starting to think that "washable markers" should also be called "face paint markers".

And here is Goober's "Serious" spidey pose...

And Turbos "spidey" pose...

Peace out. :)