Long Time, No Blog

Wow it has been ages since I have blogged and with no good excuse except for life getting in the way as usual. I'm much better at Facebooking - it's quicker.

Where has the time gone- it is the middle of June and I have nothing to show for the last 5 1/2 months! We had some hard times/decisions and thought we had life squared away but then- nope- had to rethink everything again. Luckily we are not ones to burn bridges and we try to remember that everything happens for a reason.

Charlie

-thought he had a job with his old company (different department)- had a verbal offer, but stupid human resources had to re-post position as it was not originally posted for remote which is what they were offering him. So we thought long and hard and he had decided to not go to school for his masters in teaching and take the job- the money and benefits were going to come in very handy. It was a tough decision but he was doing what we needed, money has been tight with only one income since March. Well after they re-posted they hired somebody internally and we had to go back to plan B.

-So Charlie will be starting school and student teaching in August- so we had to rethink childcare, budget (as will still be one income until maybe next fall, if he gets a position) and such. I'm going to trust it was meant to be, for him to be a teacher. Everything happens for a reason, right? He really will be an awesome teacher!

On the good side they did offer him some remote contract work for the summer, despite not hiring him full time. So there will be some income this summer- although it means a scramble to find daycare/summer programs for the 3 little ones. All three will go back to our good old standby daycare for about 8 weeks. They do some fun summer activities for the older/school aged children and our children know and are comfortable with the teachers. We are taking the first and last weeks off to do stuff as a family and they may take another week off for soccer camp.

Erica

- working 4 days a week. We are very busy/steady- it will be tough going during the summer and down a doctor, but in this economy sometimes you just have to work harder and not spread out the profits too thin amongst many. I was feeling a bit down and overwhelmed/burnt out- but have overcome those feelings and back onto really liking my job. (good thing, as we can only handle one job change for now). Got all the doctor evals done. Have a few new protocols to write up.

-went to Montreal for some continuing education (have to have so many credits every year to keep my license). We left children behind with my parents and Charlie and I had a blast. Have not been away without children in at least 3 years. The classes/lectures were very good and I learned a few new things too.

-did two 6x9 photo albums for Hannah's teachers' gifts- I hope they like them. I think they came out good if I do say so myself. Still need to work on Owen's teachers', I figured since he was going back for the summer I had until the end of summer to do them.

-besides above albums have not scrapped since May3! That is crazy!!!!

Hannah

-finished kindergarten this past Friday with glowing marks and comments. She was always the one chosen to read in church. She is so stinking smart.

-has one summer project to do- a treasure box to fill over the summer to help her remember all she did this summer.

-she really enjoyed soccer camp at Bowdoin College this past spring and hopefully will do another one this summer.

-is an expert at riding her large 2 wheeler without training wheels

-is getting very good at swimming

-still loves to dress up in skirts and dresses (I'm still trying to figure out where this girly girl came from)

-is interested in learning to play the harp or flute

-will be starting horseback riding lessons

Owen

-graduated from kindergarten (photos are on my Facebook page)

-also loved soccer camp and hopes to do more this summer

-interested in learning to play the piano

-also an expert at riding his small 2 wheeler without training wheels

-also getting better at swimming

-still collecting every snail, lizard and frog he finds (he has yet to catch a snake)

-still loving all things Star Wars

Isabel

-turns 2 the end of this month (how the heck did that happen?)

-talking much more and forming sentences

-learning to ride her tricycle

-doing everything her big brother and sister do (much to their frustration)

-still cracking me up with her faces

-and scaring me with her daredevil adventures (climbs the much too high ladder on the playsets)

-working on stopping sucking her thumb (she's really not on board with this one yet)

Summer plans

-StoryLand

-Boston Museum of Science

-Boston Aquarium

-Art with Heather

-soccer camp

-St Johns Bazaar

-Heather's Midsummer dance and camp out

-Harrison's baptism

-trips to various beaches

Happy Easter

Well I was worried that it wasn't going to be so happy when we were woken up by Hannah at 5:30 this morning, but it turned out to be fun! We were able to hold her off until the others awoke at 6:00. Downstairs we went to see if the Easter Bunny had left any goodies!!!

Boy did he! Baskets filled with toys (candy comes later in all the hidden eggs)- paddle balls, water squirters for when it gets nice out, puzzles to color, books, bubbles, small stuffed animals and some Star Wars figures. Then off to church for 10:30- Hannah and Owen sang with the Cherub Choir and looked adorable. Izzy is rearing to go with them- but needs to wait another 2 years. Home for lunch and a small egg hunt- that bunny left eggs outside filled with M&Ms, jelly beans, fruit chews and chocolate eggs. Izzy took a nap then we headed out to Charlie's parents for another egg hunt! More candy to be had and some light snacks. Back home for dinner and an early bedtime. Whew, a fun filled day, but it's back to the normal grind of work and school tomorrow.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Happy Birthday To Me

Yep that's right it's my birthday and I'm ok with that. I'm 36 years old today, well not quite, as I verified with my mother I was born pretty late at night- almost made it until April 5th- so I have a few more hours of enjoying 35. Perhaps that is why I would prefer to stay up late than get up early.

It's actually a good day- the grey skies have cleared- there is actual sun! Enough to make you squint when you are outside. It's 50 degrees out-warm enough for no jackets as Owen announced! The family let me rest in until about 7:15am and then I was tackled by all 3 children who sang Happy Birthday (well Izzy just said Happy and yay but I got the message). There were chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast- yum and then Hannah and I worked on her friend's birthday card amidst the emails and phone calls of Happy Birthday wishes (thanks everyone!). We have been very laid back today. which is nice. I'll take Hannah to the birthday party in a bit (pool party at the Y- Hannah is very excited to go swimming) and then Charlie and I will head out for drinks and dinner for my birthday. I'll let you know how 36 is!

PS: Jenn I'm kicking your butt with updates-lol

Tagged

I was Tagged, again- this time by Elisha.
Here are the rules-
*
Go to the photos folder on your computer.
*
Go to the 7th folder of photos.
*
Go to the 7th photo.
*
Put the 7th photo on your blog along with a description.
*
Invite 7 friends to join.
I am tagging Jenn, Sara, Heather, Nedra, Kim, Sara, Bethany
Here is the 7th photo from my 7th folder: Izzy pretending to be a Jedi. The force is strong in this young one!

Facebook

After much prodding from friends I joined Facebook. I have to admit it is fun and I have re-connected with some friends that I have not heard hide nor hair from in many years. Caught up with some high school friends, college friends, vet school friends, and intern-mates! Took a few quizes, made some lists/notes and found an egg given to me by my friend Karla- thanks by the way Karla! Facebook is a tad addicting right now and I can add another thing to the list of my life distractions (because I needed more).

Another month gone

Wow- another whole month has gone by since I have actually updated. Time flies when your having fun- wait...was I having fun? Anywho... Let's see what has been going on at the Happy Chaos abode this past month?

Charlie
-The end of February/beginning of March found Charlie cramming in many extra choir rehearsals as they neared their large Handel's Messiah concert March 8th. They do a big concert every year with a whole orchestra and everything- quite the production and I'm glad it went well. It is something he enjoys and while I selfishly dislike the Wednesday evening rehearsals- I'm glad he goes.
-He has heard from the ETEP program at USM and he is in! This is a program that gives him tons of in-class experience and allows him to be just a few credits shy of a masters degree in teaching. Presently he has a teaching certificate but no teaching degree (just his BA in History and his MS in Communications) so this will make him more desirable to hire. He is accepting which means another 9 months of him out of work- but then hopefully he will be hired and in a job he will enjoy. Plus the schedule will be great as our children get more into their school years. No more scrabbling for daycare or babysitting during school breaks.

Erica
-I enjoyed a fun and relaxing weekend (Fri-Sun) crop with friends at the beginning of March. Didn't get as many pages as I had hoped, but still accomplished 11 pages and 3 cards. Plus laughed with friends and just de-stressed some.
-The week following that was vacation for me- really a stay-cation as not a lot of money to go anywhere. Spent most of it sorting through the tons of outgrown clothes. I am so thankful to have family and friends hand down some wonderful clothes- it will be a life safer this next year not having to buy a lot of clothing. So I sorted clothes into piles- save for our children, to hand down to others, sell on ebay or consignment, or give to our church or Goodwill. Also re-organized the children's closets to prepare for some warmer weather (it has to come sometime!)
-During vacation I also renewed my drivers license- why do they always come out horrible and you only get to choose from 2 and the first one was taken by accident- she pushed the button while setting up- so I was completely taken by surprise! Oh well not many people see it I guess. We also renewed our passports so we can head to Canada in June (some time without children and I'm going to some continuing education meetings to stay licensed for work).
-We went to a breeder client of mine to play/socialize with the new litter of puppies- see the photos below for a shot of one of them. Adorable Belgian Tervurens.

Hannah
-had her second report card and parent/teacher conference. She is doing exceptionally well. They are so impressed by her reading abilities and her cheery/happy disposition. She gets along well with others and has not had a non-sticker day ever (they get a sticker every day if they have done well that day).
-She turned 6 this past Tuesday (although she'd like you to believe it was 16!). Over the weekend we had her party at the 1 screen movie theater in town. You can bring any movie in to watch- they supply popcorn and drinks and a space for cake and presents afterwards. She partied with 11 of her friends. She received many great presents from friends and family- including a Nintendo DS in ice pink (of course) with many games, the 2 Diamond Castle Barbies and the Diamond Castle movie, about 15 books (Magic Tree House, Rainbow Fairies and Junie B Jones), more stuffed animals (have I told you how many we have and that they seem to breed in our house!)and some fun crafts that we still need to work on (maybe during April break)

Owen
-Is getting ready to graduate from preschool. He too is doing really well at school. Knows all his letters upper and lower and can write almost all as well (the lower cases are a bit tricky). He is really starting to sound out words and knows some sight words.
-He LOVES anything Star Wars related. We watches the Clone Wars Series daily (although we have seen them all), loves his Star Wars Legos including the Lego Wii game, and is in the process of collecting the figures. We just picked up 2 more Star Wars books from the book fair and I am looking to buy another Star Wars T-shirt (we have outgrown one of our two). He also still loves any super hero and Transformer. -He is starting to work on riding a 2 wheeler without training wheels.

Isabel
-She is really growing up! Her talking is getting better, she understands tons and is a real helper around the house. She has a similar obsession with shoes as Hannah does (another Lil' Imelda!) and loves to steal her sister's jewelry and lip gloss. (I think I'm in for another girly girl- where is my tomboy?)
-Soon she will be learning to ride her tricycle- but really enjoys just running and walking. I'm always impressed with how far she can go without getting tired.
-She is starting to enjoy coloring as well- it's just not always on paper!
-Most of the time she is a good eater, but sleeping is not her forte. We did not do a good job on teaching her to fall asleep on her own and are paying for it. She still gets up at least once in the night and we have to go and get her back to sleep. She is down to one early afternoon nap a day that lasts about 1.5 hours.
-She is a total ham! She can always make me laugh with her antics.

Well that is all for now- I'm going to go and work on a Smilebox of photos for the bottom of this post. Hope everyone who reads this (does anybody read this?) is doing well. Until next time......

Make a Smilebox slideshow

I was tagged

So Jenn is making me play tag (JK Jenn!)- I am posting a pict of myself right now & picking 5 blog buddies to TAG to do the same! So there I am!!

So now Elisha, Sara, Kim, Nedra and Kimberly it is your turn- Tag you're it!!!