10 things about the dentist.
1. I took all three kids for their 6 month check-ups on Monday.
2. The boys have always been great patients from the time they started going to the dentist and Julianna is following in their footsteps. She was perfect in the chair. No fussing. Opened and closed at all the right times. Shook hands with the doctor. Even chatted a little with the hygienist.
3. Adam is a get-in-and-get-out kind of patient. No small talk, please. (Must get that from me.)
4. Josh is really good at the small talk. (Must get that from his dad.)
5. Julianna chose the pink Snow White toothbrush and pink chapstick and pink flossers. And a purple flower ring from the treasure chest.
6. Adam chose a green toothbrush and orange flossers.
7. Josh chose a red toothbrush and a grown up flosser.
8. I don't know what or if the boys chose anything from the treasure chest.
9. We still visit the same dentist that I went to as a teenager. Somehow he looks exactly the same as he did 20+ years ago.
10. 76 teeth checked, one cavity.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Perspective
It's a good thing I have a 3 year old who still thinks I'm "the best mommy in the world" to balance out the 12 year old who often thinks I'm "the meanest mom in the world."
Friday, January 20, 2012
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Tagged
Alyson tagged me and I don't want to be it so...
First Things First, The Rules:
1. You must post the rules.
2. Post eleven fun facts about yourself on the blog post.
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you've tagged.
4. Tag eleven people and link them on your post.
5. Let them know you've tagged them!
11 fun facts about me.
1. When I was 13 I went to Sea World in Florida and wanted to be a marine biologist for about a year. Funny thing is, I can't swim.
2. I have 33 teeth. The normal person, with wisdom teeth, has 32.
3. This year I will celebrate both my 40th birthday and my 20th anniversary.
4. I always eat two fries at a time. And I separate them out into pairs with similar lengths.
5. When I was a teenager I traded babysitting for art lessons. But I still can't draw. Even my kindergartners laugh at my white board drawings.
6. I lettered in high school...in choir...two years in a row.
7. I also took drama in high school. Which if you know me probably sounds unlikely. But that's what I get for letting my dad take me to register for my freshman year. (He also convinced me to take French instead of Spanish because, "Everybody takes Spanish.")
8. Until age 16 I declared that I was never getting married and therefore not having kids.
9. I watch Hollywood awards shows. I know how ridiculous they are and don't really care (or remember the next day) who wins. But I still find them entertaining.
10. I have taught every grade from kindergarten to 7th grade in my 16 year teaching career.
11. I was voted 3rd best speaker in my college Speech class. I guess they didn't notice how terrified I was every.single.time.
Now to answer Alyson's questions.
1. Would you rather be in prison for the rest of your life, or stranded on a deserted island with your closest loved ones for the rest of your life? (Assuming this is a tropical deserted island with plenty of food and such.) I actually had to think about this one for a minute. Of course I don't want to go to prison, but would I want my family to be deserted with me and deprive them of their lives off the island? But then I figured that since there would be fishing for Josh and bugs for Adam to study and a beach for Julianna to play on and seafood for Arrty, they'd be just fine. So I'd pick the island.
2. What was your biggest worry in high school? (Friends, grades, boys, acne, sports, something else?) I surprisingly had a pretty worry free high school experience. I just went, sat, learned what I could, didn't bring any attention to myself, and went home. I got good grades, didn't want a boyfriend (until I had one), had a few close friends (which was all I needed), and made jazz choir both years I tried out. I did worry, though, that my typing (yes, typing) teacher would stand behind me when she yelled "STOP" during timed tests and scare me so that I jumped and squealed. She always seemed to stand behind me for some reason.
3. If you had to be a character in a movie, who would you want to be? Wow. That's a hard one. Scarlett O'Hara? Strong, independent, but such a drama queen. Princess Leia? Confident, able to hold her own, but weird hair. Bella Swan? Two cute boys to choose from, immortality, but I don't think I could deal with all that angst. Thelma or Louise? Cool car, young Brad Pitt, but, well, they die. Dorothy Gale? Cute shoes, cute dog, but wicked witch to contend with. Clarise Starling? Umm, no. Sandy Olsen? Cool boyfriend, great hair, but I would never, ever wear skin tight leather pants. Hmmm. Oh, I know. Belle. She loves to read, is adventurous, and ends up being a princess. All I'd have to do is fall in love with a beast.
4. Would you choose an all-expense paid trip around the world (as many destinations as you want, for however long you want it to be, including your spouse and family if you want), or would you rather have $1 million cash here and now? I want to say cash, but the "for however long you want" part makes me think that I could travel for the rest of my life and have it paid for. I could "travel" in Ireland for a few years, then go on to some tropical island for a few years, then to Australia...
5. If you had to go a year and eat only 5 foods, what would you choose? (Let's assume your nutritional needs are taken care of by a vitamin of some sort.)
1. chicken (it's very versatile)
2. tacos (could be made into taco salad if I got bored)
3. pizza (a variety if I could have it, or pepperoni, mushrooms and olives if I had to pick just 1)
4. watermelon (summer wouldn't be summer without it)
5. potatoes (mashed, baked, fried...)
6. What is your favorite physical feature on yourself? My hands. I don't know why. They're not especially attractive. I've never even had a manicure. And I can't remember the last time I even painted my nails.
7. What is your very first memory as a child? Walking down the path from our house to my grandparents house in West Virginia. It's very green and lush and warm.
8. If you had to move to another country, which country would you choose and why? That's an easy one. Ireland. It would give me opportunity to research my family's genealogy and I would be able to understand the language (sort of). I've read of people who travel to a different country and feel like they are coming home. I think Ireland would feel like that to me. Hopefully I'll get to find out someday.
9. What movie can you watch over and over and over again? I'm not an "over and over and over" again kind of movie watcher. But I will watch "Grease" every time I catch it on tv. Oh, and the Fast and Furious movies. I love them.
10. What is one job that you'd like to do, but can't or wouldn't because of circumstances? (circumstances such as: it doesn't pay well enough, the hours are bad, you don't live in a place where there's a great need for marine biologists, you don't have the body type to be a professional figure skater...) A professional dancer on Broadway. (Stop laughing, all of you.) I am fascinated by the effect dancing has on people. Just watching a really good dancer can be really moving. I have just in the last few years learned to appreciate dance as art. But I am way to old to start now. (At least I'm going to blame it on my age.) I'll just have to enjoy the kitchen dance sessions that I have with Julianna.
11. What is your secret phobia? (I'm not talking spiders or being alone or public speaking, I'm talking about the weird and totally irrational one that you don't like to admit to.) Oh, there are so many. I guess they all stem, though, from the fear of severe anxiety attacks and having one when it might be dangerous to me or others to be irrationally afraid. I am blessed to have very few these days and to have learned to control them most of the time.
Now, 11 questions for those I tag.
1. What was your favorite subject in school?
2. Pepsi or Coke? Chocolate or vanilla? Soup or salad?
3. If one holiday was going to disappear forever, which would you vote to lose?
4. Who was your favorite teacher and what subject and grade did they teach?
5. If you could only own 3 books, what would they be?
6. If you would have been able to name yourself, what would your name be?
7. Do you have reoccurring dreams and if so, is there one you're willing to share?
8. What is your favorite season and has it changed over time?
9. What is your dream vacation and what 3 things would be "musts" while there?
10. What 5 television shows, past or present, are your favorite?
11. If you were a tree (or plant of any kind), what kind of tree (or plant of any kind) would you be?
The 11 victims. (I don't know 11 bloggers (counting the ones that Alyson didn't already tag) well enough to tag them, so if you are not a blogger and I tag you, you can email me your answers and I will post them for you on my blog.) And if you choose not to play, that's okay, too. But it is a good exercise in creativity.
1. Ada
2. Kelly
3. Kathy
4. Marci
5. Amelia
6. Francis
7. Mom
8. Monica
9. Kim
10. Phil
11. Mel
First Things First, The Rules:
1. You must post the rules.
2. Post eleven fun facts about yourself on the blog post.
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you've tagged.
4. Tag eleven people and link them on your post.
5. Let them know you've tagged them!
11 fun facts about me.
1. When I was 13 I went to Sea World in Florida and wanted to be a marine biologist for about a year. Funny thing is, I can't swim.
2. I have 33 teeth. The normal person, with wisdom teeth, has 32.
3. This year I will celebrate both my 40th birthday and my 20th anniversary.
4. I always eat two fries at a time. And I separate them out into pairs with similar lengths.
5. When I was a teenager I traded babysitting for art lessons. But I still can't draw. Even my kindergartners laugh at my white board drawings.
6. I lettered in high school...in choir...two years in a row.
7. I also took drama in high school. Which if you know me probably sounds unlikely. But that's what I get for letting my dad take me to register for my freshman year. (He also convinced me to take French instead of Spanish because, "Everybody takes Spanish.")
8. Until age 16 I declared that I was never getting married and therefore not having kids.
9. I watch Hollywood awards shows. I know how ridiculous they are and don't really care (or remember the next day) who wins. But I still find them entertaining.
10. I have taught every grade from kindergarten to 7th grade in my 16 year teaching career.
11. I was voted 3rd best speaker in my college Speech class. I guess they didn't notice how terrified I was every.single.time.
Now to answer Alyson's questions.
1. Would you rather be in prison for the rest of your life, or stranded on a deserted island with your closest loved ones for the rest of your life? (Assuming this is a tropical deserted island with plenty of food and such.) I actually had to think about this one for a minute. Of course I don't want to go to prison, but would I want my family to be deserted with me and deprive them of their lives off the island? But then I figured that since there would be fishing for Josh and bugs for Adam to study and a beach for Julianna to play on and seafood for Arrty, they'd be just fine. So I'd pick the island.
2. What was your biggest worry in high school? (Friends, grades, boys, acne, sports, something else?) I surprisingly had a pretty worry free high school experience. I just went, sat, learned what I could, didn't bring any attention to myself, and went home. I got good grades, didn't want a boyfriend (until I had one), had a few close friends (which was all I needed), and made jazz choir both years I tried out. I did worry, though, that my typing (yes, typing) teacher would stand behind me when she yelled "STOP" during timed tests and scare me so that I jumped and squealed. She always seemed to stand behind me for some reason.
3. If you had to be a character in a movie, who would you want to be? Wow. That's a hard one. Scarlett O'Hara? Strong, independent, but such a drama queen. Princess Leia? Confident, able to hold her own, but weird hair. Bella Swan? Two cute boys to choose from, immortality, but I don't think I could deal with all that angst. Thelma or Louise? Cool car, young Brad Pitt, but, well, they die. Dorothy Gale? Cute shoes, cute dog, but wicked witch to contend with. Clarise Starling? Umm, no. Sandy Olsen? Cool boyfriend, great hair, but I would never, ever wear skin tight leather pants. Hmmm. Oh, I know. Belle. She loves to read, is adventurous, and ends up being a princess. All I'd have to do is fall in love with a beast.
4. Would you choose an all-expense paid trip around the world (as many destinations as you want, for however long you want it to be, including your spouse and family if you want), or would you rather have $1 million cash here and now? I want to say cash, but the "for however long you want" part makes me think that I could travel for the rest of my life and have it paid for. I could "travel" in Ireland for a few years, then go on to some tropical island for a few years, then to Australia...
5. If you had to go a year and eat only 5 foods, what would you choose? (Let's assume your nutritional needs are taken care of by a vitamin of some sort.)
1. chicken (it's very versatile)
2. tacos (could be made into taco salad if I got bored)
3. pizza (a variety if I could have it, or pepperoni, mushrooms and olives if I had to pick just 1)
4. watermelon (summer wouldn't be summer without it)
5. potatoes (mashed, baked, fried...)
6. What is your favorite physical feature on yourself? My hands. I don't know why. They're not especially attractive. I've never even had a manicure. And I can't remember the last time I even painted my nails.
7. What is your very first memory as a child? Walking down the path from our house to my grandparents house in West Virginia. It's very green and lush and warm.
8. If you had to move to another country, which country would you choose and why? That's an easy one. Ireland. It would give me opportunity to research my family's genealogy and I would be able to understand the language (sort of). I've read of people who travel to a different country and feel like they are coming home. I think Ireland would feel like that to me. Hopefully I'll get to find out someday.
9. What movie can you watch over and over and over again? I'm not an "over and over and over" again kind of movie watcher. But I will watch "Grease" every time I catch it on tv. Oh, and the Fast and Furious movies. I love them.
10. What is one job that you'd like to do, but can't or wouldn't because of circumstances? (circumstances such as: it doesn't pay well enough, the hours are bad, you don't live in a place where there's a great need for marine biologists, you don't have the body type to be a professional figure skater...) A professional dancer on Broadway. (Stop laughing, all of you.) I am fascinated by the effect dancing has on people. Just watching a really good dancer can be really moving. I have just in the last few years learned to appreciate dance as art. But I am way to old to start now. (At least I'm going to blame it on my age.) I'll just have to enjoy the kitchen dance sessions that I have with Julianna.
11. What is your secret phobia? (I'm not talking spiders or being alone or public speaking, I'm talking about the weird and totally irrational one that you don't like to admit to.) Oh, there are so many. I guess they all stem, though, from the fear of severe anxiety attacks and having one when it might be dangerous to me or others to be irrationally afraid. I am blessed to have very few these days and to have learned to control them most of the time.
Now, 11 questions for those I tag.
1. What was your favorite subject in school?
2. Pepsi or Coke? Chocolate or vanilla? Soup or salad?
3. If one holiday was going to disappear forever, which would you vote to lose?
4. Who was your favorite teacher and what subject and grade did they teach?
5. If you could only own 3 books, what would they be?
6. If you would have been able to name yourself, what would your name be?
7. Do you have reoccurring dreams and if so, is there one you're willing to share?
8. What is your favorite season and has it changed over time?
9. What is your dream vacation and what 3 things would be "musts" while there?
10. What 5 television shows, past or present, are your favorite?
11. If you were a tree (or plant of any kind), what kind of tree (or plant of any kind) would you be?
The 11 victims. (I don't know 11 bloggers (counting the ones that Alyson didn't already tag) well enough to tag them, so if you are not a blogger and I tag you, you can email me your answers and I will post them for you on my blog.) And if you choose not to play, that's okay, too. But it is a good exercise in creativity.
1. Ada
2. Kelly
3. Kathy
4. Marci
5. Amelia
6. Francis
7. Mom
8. Monica
9. Kim
10. Phil
11. Mel
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Girl Time
Yesterday after school, the boys wanted to hang out in the youth center with some of the other kids from church. I told them they could since I had a few errands to run anyway. So Julianna and I went to Target to look around and pick up a few things. We still had time after that, so I asked Julianna if she wanted to go to the library. She said, "What's the library?" After I stopped crying, I told her what it was. I guess she doesn't remember the few times we've gone in her short life. Working at a school, having book loving friends to borrow from, and having a "library" of our own at home doesn't give much cause for using the public library.
When we got there, I was surprised at how busy it was on a Tuesday afternoon. But when we walked in I saw why. Every computer station was full while very few people roamed the book aisles. I headed toward the young adult section to look for "Fire" by Kristin Cashore and was glad to find it on the shelf. Then I led Jules to the kid's area. She loved it. She looked in every nook and cranny at all the books and toys and puzzles. It was really fun to explore with her. After a while I let her pick out a few books to borrow. It was all very exciting. But the best part of going to the library is that it's quiet. My life doesn't lend itself to being very quiet. At the library you don't have a choice. It's just quiet. So wonderfully, gloriously quiet. I think my little girl and I may just have started a new Tuesday afternoon tradition. Girl time at the library.
When we got there, I was surprised at how busy it was on a Tuesday afternoon. But when we walked in I saw why. Every computer station was full while very few people roamed the book aisles. I headed toward the young adult section to look for "Fire" by Kristin Cashore and was glad to find it on the shelf. Then I led Jules to the kid's area. She loved it. She looked in every nook and cranny at all the books and toys and puzzles. It was really fun to explore with her. After a while I let her pick out a few books to borrow. It was all very exciting. But the best part of going to the library is that it's quiet. My life doesn't lend itself to being very quiet. At the library you don't have a choice. It's just quiet. So wonderfully, gloriously quiet. I think my little girl and I may just have started a new Tuesday afternoon tradition. Girl time at the library.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Monday, January 09, 2012
Bedtime Conversation
The other night when I was tucking Julianna into bed, she told me that she needed to take her phone to bed. Here's the conversation:
Jules: Mommy, I need my phone.
Me: Why do you need to take your phone to bed?
Jules: Abby is going to call me.
Me: She is? Isn't it her bedtime, too?
Jules: Yes but she is going to have trouble.
Me: Trouble? What kind of trouble?
Jules: Trouble with her light. I might have to use your car.
Me: Use my car? Why?
Jules: To go help Abby with her light.
Me: Umm, I'm pretty sure her mommy can help her with her light.
Jules: Oh. Okay.
Jules: Mommy, I need my phone.
Me: Why do you need to take your phone to bed?
Jules: Abby is going to call me.
Me: She is? Isn't it her bedtime, too?
Jules: Yes but she is going to have trouble.
Me: Trouble? What kind of trouble?
Jules: Trouble with her light. I might have to use your car.
Me: Use my car? Why?
Jules: To go help Abby with her light.
Me: Umm, I'm pretty sure her mommy can help her with her light.
Jules: Oh. Okay.
Wednesday, January 04, 2012
Recess Duty Today
Recess duty today felt like recess duty in late March or early April. I loved it. The kids were running and chasing and playing soccer. I walked around the playground five times and enjoyed the activity of it. The sun was shining and the sky was blue and my hands and toes stayed warm. It was lovely...well, as lovely as a walk in the sunshine can be while supervising 45 children. But, I am not fooled. I know full well that it's still winter. And in a few weeks, when there is three feet of snow on the ground, I will remember this day, this warm, wonderful day, and smile. And I will look forward, once again, to a North Idaho spring with days that feel remarkably like today.
Sunday, January 01, 2012
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