Sew, Cook, Clean, Sew

That was my Thanksgiving day. 12 hours of it anyway. We have a tablecloth that we only use on Thanksgiving. Each year after dinner we sign it with a fabric pen. Then I use embroidery floss to make the signatures permanent. Each year gets a different color and I sew the city, state, and year along the edge of the tablecloth in the matching color. Last year on Thanksgiving Day we were moving. We spent the entire day packing the truck. (Then we went to Fire Mountain for dinner.)

The next day hubby left for Texas and the boys and I were in an empty house just waiting for our closing date to approach. I sewed the tablecloth and packed it to go to NY to visit family. We decided to have another Thanksgiving dinner while we were in NY. My tablecloth was signed and packed just in time to make the long trip to Texas. (Thank goodness it wasn't in the car top carrier that was stolen in Houston!) I had plenty of time to sew the signatures from our 2nd Thanksgiving dinner, but I never did it. I thought about it several times over the last few weeks but I never actually did it. So on Thursday morning I sewed the signatures from 2006, washed it, dried it, put it on the table, we ate, signed it, and I sat down to sew it right away. Now I can't decide if I should do that again next year (sew it right after dinner), or give myself a year off and sew it on Thanksgiving morning 2009. Anyway, here are some pictures of our past years' signatures. This is probably my favorite holiday decoration of all time.

Topsey

On Wednesday we went to Tospey Exotic Ranch & Drive Thru Safari. We found this place when we were stationed at Fort Hood during the late 90's and it's been a favorite family outing ever since. It's not a bad drive (just a few hours) and is a fun way to spend the afternoon. They have a petting zoo and all kinds of animals that will stick their heads right into your car window for a handful of food.

I don't mind the horses, zebras, goats, llamas, rams, buffalo, deer, antelope, donkeys, or long horn cattle. It's the ostriches that scare the heck out of me. Oh, and the emus. There is just something creepy about the way they look at you with those huge eyes just before they stick their long neck all the way into your car to peck one morsel of food out of your hand at warp speed. When I see them coming I roll up my window. This time around I was brave enough to take a video of the rest of my family being tortured by the ostrich.

Albert the camel was always the most entertaining animal at the ranch. He would follow us around the entire route, eating at least 5 of the 10 bags of food we had. Sadly, he not with us any more.

RIP ALBERT

Puppy Fever

My mom and I share a weakness for cute little animals. If my hubby and I were settled in our forever home I'd probably bring home a puppy or kitten a couple of times a year. If you've been reading my mom's comments over the last couple of days you might be confused. They don't have anything to do with the postings. They are all about ...

These beautiful baby girls are from Penelope's breeder. They have the same mommy as PJ does and a different daddy. Here's their mom, Alison:

And here is their dad, Toby:

This is PJ's dad, Joshua:

Aren't they adorable? And oh-so-hard to resist? Mom wants the little liver colored one and I'd take the black one. That is, if anyone has an extra $1800 they want to spend on us for Christmas!

Christmas Giveaway

Lisa is soooo into this blogging thing. She knows way more than I do and her blog is always so creative. She has a new post today about a Christmas Giveaway at one of her favorite blogs, 5 Minutes for Mom. I have a little extra time today so I am going to enter a couple of the drawings. Why do I have extra time, you ask? Because the boys have the entire week off from school and their dad is home with them. This morning while I was in class he cleaned the house, washed the dishes and finished the laundry. Then he took the boys out to play football and ride bikes. Now they are cleaning the garage. I have homework to do, but I am allowing myself a little break and enjoying the free time. Ok, anyway ... so I have gotten a little off the subject. Most of the stuff is baby stuff so I am not going to just go on their site and enter every little thing. But I am going to enter a couple of them. And who knows?!? ... maybe I'll win. The last time Lisa did one of these things on her blog she won three prizes and had 208 people sign up to win the prize she offered!

So, if you want to enter the contest, or if you want to look so you can have a tiny inkling of a clue about what all of this means, click HERE.

Are We There Yet?

Are we even half way there yet? I'm not. I am at 45 miles .... 55 to go. Looking at the calendar, we are a little more than half way through the challenge. These people need to send a comment so we can see how everyone is doing. Don't give up yet! This is still do-able. Just think how good you'll feel when you can say you walked 100 miles.

The Science Fair

The Science Fair was last week at the boys' school. The 2nd graders complete projects as a class, but were not judged like the 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders are. The teachers encourage them to do something extra at home with their families. My younger redneck in training's class did an experiment to find out what size battery would make the best electromagnet. Our boy was the only kid in his class that did anything extra at home.

Our older redneck in training's experiment was about recycling. He recycled computer paper and newspaper then tested them to judge which one was more durable. His recycled paper looked great, his display board was awesome, his newspaper tree was a great touch, and the free papers he handed out only helped his case ;)

He was judged by three different judges throughout the morning. They looked at his recycled paper, his display, his journal, and asked him various questions about his experiment.

There were several different categories. His project was in the Earth Science category. He won 1st place -- "Best in Category"

They have already started trying to figure out what to do next year. Both boys will be judged next year and our soon-to-be 6th grader will be eligible to go to a district competition. So they'll need to come up with good ideas! If anyone has any ideas feel free to send them our way.

November!

I was just adding pictures to my computer from my camera when I realized it is November! I have been putting pictures into my October folder all month. For 18 days! How did this happen?!? I am either too busy or exhibiting signs of early Alzheimer's. Sadly I think it may be a combination of both. UGH!!

My Tolerance

Or should I say my lack of tolerance? My friend Mandy used to tease me about how low my tolerance for alcohol is. But more than tease me, she did her best to help me conquer this particular problem. Every chance we got (you know, kids' birthday parties, trick-or-treating, etc) we'd throw back a few and work on my problem. She's a true friend!

Well, we've been here in Texas almost a year now. And my problem is back. One time in August we had a few people over and I had two margaritas. Two. I didn't get out of bed until 4:00 the next afternoon.

It has been a heck of a couple of weeks with my projects and the boys projects and we have been very busy. Last night was the end of it. My learning centers were presented last week and their science fair is today. So I asked my darling husband to drop me off and pick me up at the spouse's dinner I went to so that I could enjoy a margarita. I had two. The magic number. After I mentioned something about sneaking alcohol into the Battalion Christmas Party (in front of the colonel's wife by the way) Jennifer started kicking me under the table.

Mandy, what are you going to do about this? Start packing! And you know what kind of packing I mean.

My Learning Centers

I had to create 8 learning centers for one of my classes. I had to think up the ideas, write the lesson plans, and make the centers. On Wednesday we displayed our centers at the college. I am so glad that assignment is behind me. Only 5 weeks to go in the semester!

Wordless Wednesday --Science Fair Project

Classifieds

This ad was in the FOUND section of the classifieds in my local paper. I could not make this stuff up if I tried.

FOUND OCT 28th, 2007 in the 1900 blk. of E. 21st.
One Holstein Bull calf.
Call Animal Services at 657-4225

Before and After

Penelope desperately needed a good grooming. We have been to a groomer here and I was pleased enough with the job they did, but I needed to go to Abilene today so I decided to call Amy Green, PJ's breeder to ask if she could groom her. They live in Tuscola which is on the way to Abilene. Amy came to my rescue today and made PJ look gorgeous again. Here are before and after pictures:

PS. Go here to see PJ's half-brother, Grant. He is so adorable! I met him today and would have taken him home if I had the time to care for another puppy. He was soooooooooooooo sweet!

Trick-or-Treat

Wordless Wednesday

Jack-O-Lanterns

The boys carved their Halloween pumpkins today. They did everything by themselves. I didn't have to set up, draw faces, help carve, or clean up! They did it all. The only thing I did was show up to "oooh and aaah" and take pictures. I just love having big kids!!

This is Kenny's big pumpkin. His name is Kenny.

This is Chase's big pumpkin. His name is Chomp. Oh, and the little guy's name is Squash.

This is one of the four faces of Chase's little pumpkin. His name is Puker.

Here's Dr. Jekyll.

This is Mr. Hyde.

And this is Boo.

This is Pac-Man chasing Squash.

And this is Kenny's little creation. He carved "MOM" into it.

Happiness is ...

This was the longest week ever. I had two midterms, two tests, two lessons to prepare and teach, tons of homework, etc, etc. I had to go into the elementary schools three times. I had a kid throw up in the car on the way to school. Brian worked approximately 72 hours. The phone rang about 10 times during the night. I endured two migraines. Yesterday I was up at 4:00 am and didn't stop working until 10:30 pm. Today I got up at 4:30 am. I took an online test, went to classes, went to observation in the elementary school, worked at the fall fest at the boys' school (haunted alley and then tattoos). Then I followed them around while they played. It's 8:45 and we just got home. But ... yes, there is a silver lining ... it is the weekend and I won a cake in the cake walk that is the best freakin' coffee cake I have had in a loooooong time. The week is done and this cake is so good I have already forgotten how long it was.

Kenny's birthday

Kenny got a birthday package from his Aunt Lisa today (thanks Aunt Lisa!) It reminded me that I haven't posted any pictures from his big day. We invited Austin and Mathew Ludwigsen over to celebrate with us and the boys had a fun afternoon. Kenny loved all of his gifts and has already mentally spent his birthday money that Grammy is sending. I am going to try to upload a video of his toy that he bought with the money Austin & Mathew gave him. I have to admit -- the whole family has been having fun playing with it!

Some more pictures ...

Thanks Aunt Lisa!

Here's a great big THANK-YOU to Aunt Lisa for the really fun halloween gifts! The boys just loved everything in their package. I think I can see a bit of a family resemblence between Chase & Kenny and their cousin Austin. Check out his picture to see if you can see it too.

South of the Mason Dixon

Chase was born in NY. I was born and raised in NY. Most of his upbringing has been "northern" because I am bossy and because his southern father likes to get deployed a lot. Apparently Brian's been home too long. Or peer influence is getting to Chase. Today he used "fixin' to" in a sentence. He said he was "fixin' to get worried" when he couldn't find his sunglasses. He didn't even realize he said it! And he wasn't making fun of southerners either. That is usually the only time we use that phrase around here. Then about 30 minutes later he was trying to do a juggling trick with a plastic bottle of Sprite and he called it a Coke. A coke! If you are from the north and were smart enough to stay in the north, you might not know why this is so monumental. I found this on the internet to help you understand:

It seems if you are from the South or even visiting the South, no matter what type of carbonated beverage you are drinking, son, you are drinking a Coke. I am sure the Pepsi people are not too thrilled with that.

Lots of Brian's relatives use "Coke" for every type of soda that they drink. Well, Chase is one of Brian's relatives. So I guess that makes it ok, right? Or maybe we've been in the south too damn long!

Kenny's Birthday

I am going to follow my friend Julie's lead again and put a link on the side of my blog with a list of things Kenny is wanting for his birthday. However, she's a little better organized than I am and her son's list was online over a month before his birthday. Ken's big day is this Sunday!!! I am in no way asking any of you to buy/send gifts. But I know that it's been a long time since we've visited so if you were planning to buy/send a gift anyway and didn't have a clue what he wanted ... well, here's a little list for you.

We've Been Boo'd!!

The air is cool, the season fall,
Soon Halloween will come to all.
Ghosts and goblins, spooks galore,
Tricky witches at your door.
The spooks are after things to do,
In fact a spook brought this "Boo" to you!
The excitement comes when friends like you,
Copy this note and make it two.
We'll all have smiles upon our faces,
No one will know who "BOO"ed who's places!
Just two short days to work your spell,
Keep it secret, hide it well.
Please join the fun, the seasons here.
Just spread these "BOO's" and Halloween cheer.

Today when we got home from school we found a package on the front porch. There were lots of great surprises inside for everyone:

When Kenny saw the Crawling Hand he said, "I've always wanted one of these!" And the skulls ... what can I even say? They are disgusting ... revolting ... gag-inducing. But the boys think they are the very best thing in the world!

So here's a great big THANK-YOU to Aunt Kathy, Abby Grace and Emily in Florida!! It was a great surprise!! We love you guys!!!

My Turn to Brag

My friend Julie bragged about her smart little boys so I figured I might as well do the same thing! We got our first report cards today. FYI for everyone not in Texas: we have six 6-week grading periods here.

Chase:

• English -- 95
• Reading -- 100
• Spelling -- 100
• Math -- 95
• Science -- 98
• Social Studies -- 97
• Conduct -- E
• P.E. -- E
• Art -- E
• Music -- E
• Technology -- E

Kenny:

• English -- 97
• Reading -- 96
• Spelling -- 100
• Math -- 95
• Science -- E
• Social Studies -- E
• Conduct -- E
• P.E. -- E
• Art -- E
• Music -- E
• Technology -- S

Kenny's teacher has recommended having him tested for the gifted program. Chase was already "labeled" as gifted in North Carolina so he doesn't have to test again here. We are going to go ahead with Kenny's testing, but even if he is labeled as gifted we are not going to enroll him in the gifted program. All of the gifted kids in town go to one school and are in one class. That would be ok with me except for the fact that each grade level is in a different school. So not only would my kids be going to different schools, they would also change schools every school year. This is already Chase's 3rd school and Kenny's 2nd so we are not going to put them through the stress of changing again when it is unneccessary. Kenny's teacher knows that is our plan but we are still going to test him. I wouldn't mind the label. And she is willing to give him enrichment activities during class. She's been great about working with us on this.

Ok, I think that's enough bragging for one day!

Everything's Not Bigger in Texas!

Apparently, not everything in Texas is bigger. A parade came right through our neighborhood today. The parade consisted of the police chief, two fire trucks, an ambulance, two motorcycles, and a police car. The kids were very excited because it went down our street one way, turned around and came back past our house again. So they got to run out in the street barefoot for candy twice in one day. What a treat!

Chase's friends

The Cumberland County School District in Fayetteville, NC is participating in an energy conservation program. There's an informational commercial available on the internet that is going to air in Fayetteville during this month that has four of Chase's friends from his school in Fayetteville. If you want to watch it and see his friends and his old school click here and then scroll down to the "Conservation Corner" link.

Great job Andrew!!!

Who Put Me in Charge?!?

Today when I showed up at the elementary school for my observation time there was a different teacher in my room. Even though it is only 2nd grade, they team teach. I wasn't sure if I should go looking for my assigned teacher or stay with my assigned class. I decided to stay with my class so that I could observe a different teaching style. This teacher was sitting on the floor with all of the kids going through a workbook that is designed to prepare the students for the TAKS test. She didn't seem very happy and neither did the students. That was not fun for any of us. I could go on and on about it, but I won't.

After about 15 minutes the teachers swapped classes again. A man came in and talked about the food pyramid and he guided the students through analyzing a sample menu. He was really energetic and seemed to enjoy the lesson. When he was done he left. Me. Alone. With. The. Entire. Class. (more about him later)

I was alone with them for almost 10 minutes. I just walked around the room and helped them with their food pyramid worksheet. If they were done I told them to get a book out of their desks and read. I also spent the entire time silently praying they wouldn't get so loud that the other teachers in the classes near ours would be able to hear us!

Then my teacher came back. She got them going on a language arts lesson. It was a pretty easy one (nouns and verbs) and she let me lead the part of the lesson that involved checking their answers. It was easy except that I can't remember half of their names yet and I called on some of the same kids twice. They all raise their hands eagerly for every single question. After a while this one kid said, "You already called on her! Call on someone who hasn't answered yet!" Really, if I can't get through checking one worksheet ... how am I supposed to teach a whole classroom full of kids for an entire school year?!?

By this time it was almost time for the kids to go home. They all line up in various sections of the hallway to go to their destinations (car-riders, bus riders, walkers, day-care, etc) My teacher asked me to stand at the door (out in the hallway ... the door to the outside world) and make sure they weren't too loud. I was assigned the car-riders. Mr. Food Pyramid was standing with the bus-riders. After a few minutes he looked at me and asked me when he was supposed to let them go. He asked me! Uhhhh .... I don't know? Is that the right answer?

He led his group out the door and mine tried to leave. Well, obviously I can't be the person who takes the car-riders out to their parents. The parents who know who their kids' teachers are!! So I just stood in between the kids and the door. Kinda like a sheep dog. That worked until a REAL teacher showed up and took over. A teacher who told me that Mr. Food Pyramid was a sub then promptly asked me who (the hell) I was. (I could see it in her eyes) That badge they gave me at the school disctrict building didn't mean anything to her.

She took over and I got the heck outta there. As fast as I could!

I was there an hour and it only seemed like 10. I need a nap. Or a margarita. Or both!

Challenge Update

Ok, the challenge ... so far it's me, my mom, Lisa, Rebekah, Cindy, D.J., Jennifer, and my Aunt Kathy. Anyone else?

And does anyone know how to make a progress bar/chart for the side of my blog?

Only in the South

Only in the south can you order a "Photo Can Cooler" with your kid's school picture on it. Yep, through the school. A can cooler. For your soda (beer). And it's only $16. What a bargain.

Contest

Thanks Lisa! I entered this contest too :)

The Challenge

Last night while I was in my bed wide awake after taking the puppy outside (for the second time) I came up with a brilliant plan. I am going to walk 100 miles before the end of the year. Lately it seems that I don't make the time for any kind of exercise at all. My weight has fluctuated a little over the years and I don't want it to fluctuate back up into the numbers that I don't like seeing on the scale. So I am going to challenge myself to walk 100 miles between now and December 31. My Aunt Kathy (in Florida) is going to walk too. Anybody else want to join us? 100 miles, in 92 days. Any takers?