First Day of School 2014

Carter, you are adorable, but you have never been a fan of getting your picture taken in the morning. 

Ethan, you are starting 1st grade and you are so excited! You love school, all of your friends, and you have been telling us that your teachers name is Ms. Tortoise and we've been explaining to you that she is not a turtle...her name is really Ms. Torres. I hope you call her by her real name at school. ;-)

Clara, welcome to America! We hope that you love living with our family as much as we love having you here! We hope you meet lots of friends at the high school and share all of your experiences with your friends and family back home in Germany. 

Mariah, this was your last first day of high school! You were pretty emotional the night before your last first day. You laughed so hard that you cried and cried so hard that you laughed which scared your boyfriend, Ryan, but made me laugh and cry with you. We love you very much and wish you the best last year of high school. Make it a great one peanut. ;-)

Look Out Drivers

Remember my post about Mariah driving...

Well, our baby is legal behind the wheel!  She is a good driver.  A responsible driver.  But hasn't learned the art of defensive driving yet.  Unfortunately, that part takes time and is learned through experiences. 

On Good Friday Mariah passed her driving test!  It's official.  She's grown up.  I'm still in denial.  We haven't allowed her to take out the vehicle on her own, but it will happen soon.  We can't keep her boxed in for much longer. 

I think Paster Sue said it best in one of her recent newsletters. 

 "May you never drive faster than your guardian angel can fly." 

Mariah is SIXTEEN

Mariah turned SIXTEEN on December 2nd, 2012!  Can you believe it?!  I can't.  My baby girl is becoming an adult! She has her temps, she doing really well with learning to drive, maybe soon we will let her get her license... just not quit ready to take that step yet... gulp! 

We had a nice birthday party for her.  She had a bunch of friends spend the night on Saturday and on Sunday our friends and family came over.  Complete weekend of celebrating. 

Do I look old enough to be her mom?!  Be nice!  ;-)

  

My mom let us borrow her chocolate fountain for the "sweet" sixteen birthday party.  It was a hit!  Kids and adults couldn't get enough of it! 

Really, I have a sixteen year old daughter?!?!

We love you Mariah!  May life bring you everything you dream of and more!

Family Day in Chicago

We love living so close to a big city. Actually, two big cities, but we tend to favor Chicago. On Saturday we surprised the kids with a trip down to Chicago. We took the train out of Waukegan. It was the first train ride to Chicago for all three of our kids. They seemed to enjoy it on the way there, but on the way back we were all exhausted and just ready to be at home.

Chicago was a lot of fun.  The weather was perfect.  The city was packed!  But everyone was in great holiday spirits.  Ethan wasn't so sure of the big crowds at first.  He became pretty upset and made it very well known that he wanted to go home.  Thankfully, some delicious food from Rock Bottom Brewery seemed to calm him down and prepare him to head back out on to the congested streets. 

We did some touring around, took lots of pictures, and watched the parade.  Radio Disney was at the parade so we heard some live performances and got to see a couple Disney celebrities.  The kids thought that was pretty cool! 

After the parade there was an amazing display of fireworks. They were LOUD. The noise bounced from building to building. Ethan and Carter watched with pure amazement.  Ethan didn't even care that his hat was falling off of his head...

On the way back to the train station, Mariah and I ran in to one of the many Starbucks and grabbed some warm drinks and a couple snacks for Cory and the boys. I love Starbucks.... What a great way to end a perfect family day.

Ethan slept on the train ride home.  We were hoping that Carter would do the same, but he decided to sing loudly in a horrible crying type of way... I bounced him, rocked him, and did everything I could to keep him quiet so the other passengers wouldn't get upset.  I even resorted to feeding him cookies at 10:30 at night... I was going for anything that would work. 

We got home a little before midnight and put the kids to bed.  We thought for sure they would sleep in, but by 7am the next morning they were all wide awake.  So much for catching up on sleep, but it was worth it! 

I love family adventures! 

And... it's October

Mariah has a job!  Her very first official job!  She is working at a local Farmer's Market and Gift Shop.  She was hired on as seasonal help, but is really enjoying it and hopes to get hired on year-round!  I have some great pictures of her first day, but haven't taken them off of my camera yet...

Carter moved up to the toddler room at daycare.  He is still adjusting.  We miss the infant room teachers a lot.  :-( 

Ethan is adjusting to the new school/daycare/preschool year.  His friends that were older than him have all gone off to kindergarten and now he is one of the oldest in his class.  He is adjusting and making new friends.

Daycare's play area is all sand.  ALL SAND. Which means every day when I pick up the boys they are covered in sand.  It's in their shoes, coated on their socks, in their hair, on their skin, in Carter's diaper.  Seriously it is everywhere and it makes me CRAZY!  The daycare is having a fundraiser for more playground equipment and sand... how do I tell them that I am not helping them with their fundraiser... because the sand is HORRIBLE! 

My brother and his wife are due to have their baby boy any day now!  So excited for them.  Baby Oliver Christian is going to be a very loved little man.  I can't wait to snuggle him! 

Well, that's all for now.  Not much for my first post in over three weeks.  Sorry about the lack of pictures... Just how I role lately. 

Happy October!

Mariah is DRIVING!

Mariah's driving!  She has her temporary learners permit and she is officially behind the wheel and on the streets!  She is doing great!  Mariah took the driver's education class this summer at her school.  She learned a lot about blind spots, the consequences of texting while driving, and that the road can be a scary place.  I've been making it a huge deal to point out all of the people texting and driving.  Have you ever looked around and observed all of the texters?  It is crazy!  Cory beeped at a young female driver yesterday because she was swerving and texting.  She never even looked up and acknowledge that we beeped. 

We are very excited for Mariah, but very nervous for her at the same time.  We know that she will do fine.  We have complete faith in her, but we are worried about all of the other drives.  Please remind everyone you know that texting while driving is not safe!  Pay attention while on the road, because many people around you are not paying attention. 

Good luck Mariah!  We pray for your safety behind the wheel and in the passenger seat with your friends!  God, please keep her safe. 

Some Weeks Just Bite

I am having a down day week.  Maybe because I'm a little tired.  Okay, a lot tired.  Or maybe it's because I'm thinking ahead to the kids being off of school over the summer and I'll still have to go to work every day.  Or maybe it's because the weather has been cooler again and extremely windy and I really don't like the wind.  Or maybe this cold I'm fighting has something to do with it.  Or the fact that my baby is almost 16 years old.  Or that my baby-baby is almost 1.  And that my middle baby is going to start school in a year and a half.  Guess there are lots of things that could be making me feel down. 

It could also be that my benefits cost is going to drastically rise in July and even after a small raise I'll still be bringing home less money per paycheck.  Or maybe it's the long to do list that we still have for our house after 6 years.  Don't get me wrong, I love projects.  I just hate things like spending a fortune to pave our long driveway.  Or saving money so some day we can build another garage to store all the things that come along with living in the country.

I'm also panicking over the what-ifs that come along with having two boys in the country.  ATVs, accidents, snowmobiles, accidents, dirt bikes, accidents.

Or maybe the "accident" worry is coming from asking my mom if she could take my daughter to Drivers Ed this summer.  No, I'm not worried about my mom driving.  I'm worried about letting go of Mariah a little bit more.

Doesn't feel like it was that long ago when she was learning how to drive her little pink sports car around the yard.  Just like Ethan does now, Mariah always had an animal in the car with her.  Notice the cute little kitten that she's holding on to? She's always been an animal lover.

This is going to be a really tough summer. 

Yes, That's Me

I am the mom that often looks like this at work.  Frizzy, air dried hair.

But that doesn't last for long.  It quickly turns in to this.

Not the greatest look.  I know.  Instead of taking 10-15 minutes every morning to do my hair, I choose to have breakfast with my kids in the kitchen, then take time to play with them at daycare while dropping them off. I drop Mariah off at high school every morning and talk to her about her day on the way there.  I read the menu to Ethan at school every morning.  We look around his classroom and he points out what he did the day before.  Right now they are growing beans, sunflowers, and pumpkins under a little lamp in the corner.  Ethan's beans are about 2 inches tall!  Then we pick out toys for Carter to play with, say HI to the other kids, and catch up with the teachers.  I get a couple hugs and kisses from both boys, and leave with a smile on my face. 

 Those moments with my kids are way more important to me than the way my hair looks.  Sure, some mornings I rock and am able to do both, that's ultimately my goal, but on days like this when my hair is a mess and I am watching well groomed moms drop their kids off at daycare and fly out of the door without even hugging their child good-bye, well, those are the moments that make these messy hairstyles that much better. 

Little Artists

Ethan and Mariah love to work on craft projects together.  One of their favorite projects is painting on canvas.  I've been getting these packs of canvas at Hobby Lobby for about $7 for two.  They are so easy to display around the house.

Lately I've surprised Ethan by putting a couple of his canvas drawings on display.  This first one he made while I was pregnant with Carter.  It's the perfect pop of color needed for the shelf in Carter's room.  Ethan loves that it's on display in his little brother, Carty's, room. 

This next one Ethan made about a week ago.  Ethan and Mariah love to go downstairs to the craft room room and paint up some artwork.  They never let me come down while they are working and love surprising me with their creations after they dry.  Ethan's been learning a lot about weather at school lately and he explained to me that this piece has a green and yellow twister in the lower right corner.  I love his creativity.  Ethan's eyes lit up when he found this piece of artwork on display in the kid's bathroom. 

Mariah made a really cool John Deere tractor for Ethan.  This piece is on display in Ethan's room.  He loves that his big sister made it just for him. 

Mariah's Dance Team

This happened back in January, forgive me.  I can't believe I let pictures sit on my camera for three months... I need to get better at this.

Mariah's JV Dance Team won 1st in the State!  The girls rocked the house.  They were awesome.  So proud of them and their talents.

One Day at a Time

Raising a teenager is exhausting.  She hates me.  She seriously hates me.  I know it's not "real".  I know this is what happens to teenage girls that don't get everything they want.  I get it.  We have all been there.  We were all teenagers at one point.  Those evil drama filled years that many of us would never go back and relive. 

As a teenager:  We see things from our world only.  The world around us doesn't really exist.  We are the existence.  We can do anything.  Go anywhere.  The world is our canvas and we are free birds.  Until... mom and dad (or step dad) tell us no and make us do things like wash dishes and feed the dogs.  They take away our texting abilities for a day or two at a time and they tell us we can't do extra curricular activities.  They want us to respect them and tell them our plans in detail.  They expect us to know what's going on at school and what events are coming up.  But, as teenagers, we don't care about the details.  We just know that we want to be somewhere and we should be allowed to be there.  If we have to explain ourselves we get upset and blame our parents for being mean to us. 

Unfortunately teenagers don't see the bigger picture.  As adults we don't always see the bigger picture.  Life is hard.  I 'm not going to lie.  But, it's rewarding.  Even these days where I go to work and struggle all day long to hold back the tears knowing that my daughter is telling all her friends today how much she hates Cory and I and how horrible of parents we are... it's still rewarding. 

Cut From the Same Cloth

These were Cory's words this morning as Mariah and I were yelling at each other...

Mariah was yelling at Ethan, so I yelled at Mariah.  Mariah yelled back at me and went outside to sit in my van.  Oh the joys of parenting a teenage daughter that is just as headstrong as I am...

I told my dad the other day that Mariah can be a real handful.  His reaction: Ha, Good!  Thanks dad... guess I wasn't a walk in the park either. 

Oh I love her dearly, but we sure can bump heads.  We are, as Cory put it, cut from the same cloth.

Snow Fun

We finally got enough snow for sledding!  Yes, I am actually excited about that.  Normally I am not a fan of the winters and cold weather, but I'll have to admit that playing with the kids in the snow kind of makes me feel like a kid all over again. 

Mariah and Ethan sledding down the hill together.

Coming to a crash landing.

Ethan getting up to do it all over again.

Mariah telling me her butt is so cold there are penguins on it.

Heading up the hill for more.

 

 My brother trying to take me out...

literally...

I had to run out of the way and he laughed the whole time.

She's a Good Kid

Mariah has a loving heart.  She really enjoys school, loves her friends, loves being a part of the dance group at school, and loves buying gifts for others.  This morning I dropped her off at school just like every other morning, but today... I almost had to park the van and help her in with all her bags.  She had a bag full of presents for her friends, a 9x13 pan of brownies that she made last night to share with her friends, a 2 liter of soda for a party in Spanish class, and her actual school bag.  She was getting out of the van this morning and looked up at me like "mom, I need a couple more arms".  We stuffed her school bag as full as we could and she scooped up all her stuff.  As she was walking in to the school one of her friends came running out and gave her a hug.  Mariah couldn't hug back because her hands were full.  Her friend quickly took the brownies ~ of course ~ and helped Mariah in to the school. 

Moments like this are heart warming and worth remembering.  She really has a loving heart. 

I love you lots Mariah.

I found this picture while looking through my phone for pictures of Mariah to add to this post.  With this picture I'll also have to say that I love your comical side too, Mariah.  So lovely of you to sneak my phone and occasionally take goofy pictures of yourself for me to find later.  :)