A Nice Weekend!

I love 3 day weekends. I just wish they'd give me one more day to finish all the things I thought I was going to accomplish. Ho hum! I made a dent in the laundry pile, but it's still there. It never seems to go away. Dave started cleaning/ reorganizing our basement, so one corner of it looks GREAT now. We just have 3 corners and a middle to finish. Ho hum #2! He also put in a new kitchen faucet, which looks really nice. Mom will be glad to know it's not the one that looked like it had come out of a high school science room. I talked him out of that one and he made a really good choice on the one he installed. He also worked more on the "new" 4 Runner. I know I don't know anything about cars, but I figure that with the time he's put into it, that car should be in top running order. Yet he still goes out there and pops the hood and always has something he's working on. Either that or he's found out that's the only way to get away from his loud, energetic children and nagging wife! Anyway, he is very handy and capable and I'm very grateful for that.

Meanwhile, I entertained kids, did laundry, cleaned up messes and played the Wii for the first time. Yes, the world can end now. Dave suggested we get one and I was all for it. The kids have been playing a lot of games on the internet, but even with good filters, it still amazes us what can pop up. So, our hope is that the Wii can be a fun thing for the whole family that is a little safer than the unknown that can enter our home on the computer! No, I do not have time to play, but I did find out what a mean bowler and a lousy golfer I am. (Tanna golfs better than me!!) We also got the High School Musical Sing Along game (for Tanna and me) and we are a pretty good karaoke family. The kids are so fun to watch as they belt out the songs and shake their behinds in time to the music. I can't sing and dance at the same time, so I'm not as fun to watch! I've also realized I'm a much better backup/shower singer. Ah well, I guess I won't quit my day job. First graders aren't too picky -- good thing!

We were able to get out and go on a family walk yesterday and deliver cookies to our visiting/home teaching families. It was so nice to get out again and I'm ready for spring weather. The kids are getting stir crazy and I'm ready for bike riding weather again. It does mean another chasing after Tanna summer, but nonetheless I'm ready!

Eleven more days until Mason turns 5! I'm not ready for that! I don't enjoy seeing him get older. He's such a fun little boy and I will definitely miss these little years. I can't imagine him in kindergarten yet! It seems like they just grow up way too fast after they start school. Scottie will be in 4th grade next year and I'm sad about that one too! I wish I could keep them little -- even if they are handfuls! Scottie took a valentine to a girl in our ward and I just am not ready for all of this. I'm too young!!

Tanna the Great is growing up too fast also! I was talking to her today and am still amazed that we have complete conversations with each other. She can and does say anything and amazes me with her ability to reason and her higher level thinking skills. Of course this doesn't manifest itself when she is coloring on the walls or dumping laundry detergent, but my hope is that she'll mature quickly in these areas as well! Today we were watching "amazing kids" on Oprah and one was a little 7 year old who was singing. She had a really pretty dress on and Tanna matter-of-factly said, "I think I'll wear that tomorrow!" I laughed! She really is concerned about what she wears and she LOVES dresses! She even got her dad to buy her some dresses while they were out one day and matching shoes! He just couldn't resist how excited she was about it all. Yes, Tanna is the best dressed girl playing out in the mud. And I'm becoming a mean stain removing laundry queen. (That is on the part that isn't still piled on our laundry room floor!!)

Well, my 3 day weekend is over and my To Do list gets to wait for my early morning and late night cleaning sessions -- or the next 3 day weekend For now I must get to bed and prepare for another day of 1st grade!

Happy Presidents' Day!

Isn't it great to live in a country where we have a president who is elected by the people? Yes, differences of opinion will always be there, but we have a choice and the majority will be heard. I'm also thankful for men and women who are dedicating their lives to public service. I don't see any reasons that would pull me into wanting to hold a public office, especially President of the United States. So, I'm grateful for individuals who will sacrifice much to make our country a better place to live!

Why Oh Why Can Jill Not Blog? (Sing to the tune of "Where Oh Where Can My Little Dog Be?)

Okay, so my new resolution to blog weekly is not really working out. Here it is 11:15 pm and I'm finally succumbing to the guilt and sitting down at the computer again. So, today I thought I'd give a glimpse into my crazy life and maybe get a little understanding from the diligent bloggers out there as to why I can't seem to do it!!

A Typical Day in the Life of Jill:

Wake up 6:00 am - Say, "Today's the day! I'm going to go down on the treadmill and start exercising again!" Then realize that I only got about 6 hours of sleep and press snooze and roll over.

6:10 am - Okay I really do need to get up! The house is quiet and it's all mine!! (That's motivation to get up right there!!)

Think about the exercise thing again, but realize that I have about 20 loads of laundry to catch up on and a dishwasher that needs to be emptied.

Shower, get ready, clean kitchen, transport dirty clothes, rotate clothes in washer to dryer, start a new load, and fold one batch. Take upstairs to put away later.

7:30 am Augghh! Where did time go?! Wake up Scottie or at least start the process. He's not exactly a morning person, so I try to make the process of getting him ready as smooth as possible.

8:00 am Augghh! It's time to go!!! Hurry, hurry, hurry!! Say for the millionth day in a row, "Scottie, we've got to get going we're running late again!" (I'm not exactly sure my kids even know what the word late means. I use it so often, that they probably think that this just means hey, we're on target. Proceed as usual!!)

8:15 am Dress Mason, since only Mom can do it -- or at least that's what he thinks!! -- and I'll have a guilty conscience the rest of the day if I don't fill this request.

8:25 am Off to school -- late -- auggh!!

8:40 am Arrive at school -- everyone congratulates me on making it to school another day!

9:00 am School starts and I won't bore you with the nitty gritty of a typical school day. Let's just say it's never boring and I am pretty good at multi-tasking!

3:30 pm Schools out! Get the last child out the door and prepare for tomorrow!

4:30ish pm Head home except for Mondays when I pick Scottie up from his piano lesson and Tuesdays when I race out with the kids to head to my school class. (Writing class with Brad Wilcox this semester.) Tuesdays I get home about 7:30 - 8 pm.

by 5 pm Home! And think about dinner. Depending on the evening's activities, we get a nicer meal or a rush meal.

Thursday - Get Scottie to Scouts at 5:30 - 6:30 pm.

Other days - 6 pm Call Scottie home from Dallen's house. Eat dinner.

6:35 pm Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays -- Boys go to Karate. Dave takes and stays with them I pick up since he has a class right after their class.

Take a few minutes to read mail, clean up a Tanna mess, clean up kitchen, go through Scottie's backpack, etc.

7:45 pm Pick up boys and do homework, showers, read books and work on getting to bed.

9:00ish pm Boys in bed on a good night. Tanna "the night owl" is still bouncing of the walls, and will be up for a while longer.

Clean kitchen and pick up rooms. Do homework and To Dos. Some night's I'm more productive than others.

Somewhere in here Tanna winds down and gets to bed. (I know - bad parenting, but she sleeps in and takes a nap. I guess I just count it as Mother/Daughter bonding time.)

11:30ish - Realize it's time for me to go to bed and think about the other 19 loads of laundry waiting to be done. Sigh, and fall asleep, ready to start again the next day!!

I know a completely organized person would be much more productive, but it seems there's always a new surprise from my 2 and 4 year olds that needs attention. (i.e. marker abstract art work on the walls, laundry soap dumped out all over the laundry room floor, and toys, toys, toys everywhere. Oh the 9 year old helps in that department too! We're working on getting them to help more and more, but it seems there's still plenty that needs my attention!)

We've been trying really hard to read a chapter out of the Family Book of Mormon each night and get some other reading in too! Of course, it all takes time!!!

I am grateful that Dave is such a good errand runner. He is good to run here and there and go shopping. That does help a lot! He works to maintain the house, but laundry is definitely not his forte -- hence the never ending laundry piles!!

So, by the end of a busy day, I have a hard time getting to the computer and sitting down to blog. Last week I had an extra evening of class and I was able to donate blood on a different evening. This week is class and 2 nights of parent/teacher conferences. So, I'm hoping for a less busy week next week with a little more time for all the to dos of life.

I do know that these are the days I will miss. I will look back and see how adorable my children were and how precious our time together was. So, I'm trying to keep my "busyness" in perspective and I'm trying to stop and smell a few roses along the way. So, although my house will never be pictured in a magazine, at least my kids will know that my time with them was always intended to be quality time!

Associates Program

I'm writing from Salt Lake City tonight. I'm off on an "Associates" weekend. I was asked to be part of a Cohort through the BYU-Public School Partnership this year along with our principal and another teacher from our school. We're studying the moral dimensions of teaching that are needed to create an "educative community." Anyway, it's a lot of reading in preparation for each session, but I have really enjoyed the sessions. There are about 20 of us from Alpine School District and BYU. It's been interesting to learn from elementary through university level teachers/staff and I have learned a lot. The best part is that we are pampered while we are here with our lodgings and meals. Dave is good enough to take over home life and I get a bit of a get-away. Anyway, it's been a good experience and I'm glad for the opportunity.

We're Alive - continued

It's January and it's a time of New Year's resolutions, so not only will I try to blog for my class assignment, but maybe I'll even include it as a resolution. (The maybe was thrown in to cover me in case I slack off again!!). We'll see! (I'm a great goal setter, aren't I?!).

Scottie, Mason, and Dave have started Karate (Kyoki-do). They go to a place here on Main Street and seem to really be enjoying it. Mason is the cutest one there, since he is the littlest. The rest are more Scottie-sized and up. I haven't been able to sit in on much of their lessons, because Tanna cannot sit still through it. Apparently they find it distracting to have her running in her snow-covered boots across the mats like a wild animal. Go figure! The other option is to have me hold her down during one of her amazing 2 year old tantrums. So I opt to let Dave take them and sit with them and me pick them up before his class. It's keeping us all busy 2-3 nights a week, but they love it and it seems to be a good sport for Scottie. He has never really had the patience for team sports -- all the waiting around for your turn at bat or the magnet-ball soccer game the little ones play. Anyway, he shows to have real talent. He's always had great coordination, so this may be a good place for him. Mason is just cute and is learning that you have to raise your hand to talk and that you can't put your fingers in your mouth. At least, that's what he told me about last night's class.

Tanna really wants to start a "dancing class." She is very jealous of the boys and wants her own class to go to. I think I'll start her in either gymnastics or dance soon. I think she has to be potty-trained first to start dance. Potty-training is something she may end up doing on her own. She seems to want it, but just doesn't have a 100% of her mom and dad's support to get her totally there. Diapers are easier, even if they are expensive! I'm just not home consistently enough to help her be successful. So, she probably will end up being super easy once her parents get on board!

Well, it's Tuesday morning and I still have tons to do to get out the door on time! It's class night for me and it will be a long day. So off I go for another adventure-filled day!

Yes, We're Alive!!!

I am heading up to bed, but I decided to update all of my anxiously awaiting readers and let you know that we are still alive. I just started a new class for my Reading Endorsement and Brad Wilcox is the teacher. One of our assignments is to keep a journal, so I think I will use my blog to fulfill that assignment. The good news is that I have to do it, so hopefully my family will get a little more of their history recorded -- at least for this semester. So, hi ho hi ho, here's to better blogging!

Jill

Where Oh Where Did My Weekend Go?!

Well, it's Monday night and tomorrow starts the hubbub again! I was so sure I would get so much done this weekend! I did, but it wasn't necessarily what I had planned on getting done! I guess that's how my life seems to go! At least we're having fun!


Thursday was my Tanna's 2 year old birthday! It's hard to believe she's 2, but it's fun to watch her grow up! She is talking (well, we can understand her!) now and she has such big ideas for how things should go! It is so fun watching the difference between boys and girls. (At least my girl!) She is so much different than I ever expected! She is so busy and tough! She gets into many more messes than the boys ever did and she is so fun -- in a girlie kind of way! She loves to play in the dirt and needs 2 baths a day, but then she'll turn around and cuddle with her baby doll! It's fun to watch her! She is definitely her own little person and there's no changing her! She can throw a tantrum like the best of them and then cuddle and hug like no other. She's got her dad wrapped around his little finger and he loves having a daughter! (He was nervous when he first found out we were having a girl!) She is such an character! Her most common phrases are: "I don't like it!" "Do it again!" "Come on, Mom" "He's mean!" "No!" "Mason's rude!" "Go 'way!" And so forth... You get the idea that she can hold her own just fine!

Tanna's favorite movie is one put out by the Waterford Institute called the ABCs and Such. She watches it over and over again! They teach each letter and teach how to write it with a catchy phrase (like A -- slant down, slant down, across) and then the sound. Then it sings the ABC song a million times. You'd think she'd get tired of it, but she loves it!! Kim said she pointed out a P on the keyboard the other day at her house. I'm glad to see that the hours she has spent watching this movie have paid off!! :-) I'm hoping she'll be an early reader and a breeze to teach! We'll see! It is fun to hear her sing the alphabet song though. She doesn' t get it perfect, but she does pretty well for someone so young!! As I sit here typing, she is trying to draw the letters on her Magnadoodle! See she can be adorable!!

Anyway, I am so thankful to have a little girl! She is nothing I expected and everything I could ever ask for! She has made our lives so much brighter and brought a whole new dimension to our lives. The boys adore her (most of the time) and are so good with her! She can drive them crazy, but that's part of her job! So, thank goodness for little girls! My mom use to say this rhyme all of the time: "There was a little girl, who had a little curl, right in the middle of her forehead. When she was good, she was very, very good. And when she was bad, she was horrid!" I can't imagine why she would ever have said that to me, except now I know it fits perfectly with my little girl! :-) ...And boy do we love her!!!

We spent Tanna's birthday night by going to Burger King. Her brothers had some influence on her decision. We then went to Big Lots and bought her a little phone (Thanks Mark and family!) and then we went over to Toys R Us. They were out of crowns and balloons -- disappointing! But we picked up a sand and water table from G & G Shanks. We also picked out a bike for her that actually fits her tiny little legs. The boys each bought something with money they had brought. (A Ben 10 toy for Scottie and a mini Barney for Mason. They were in heaven!) We went home to sing and have cake. It wasn't the most exciting birthday, but we figured she's 2 and doesn't really care all that much yet! We have years of that ahead of us!! :-) At least she felt honored and knew it was her "bootday."

Friday was our dance festival and field day at school. The weather held out, for the most part, and we had a great day. Dave brought Mason and Tanna out despite Scottie's pleas for him to come. He was embarrassed! It turned out that he was thrilled they had come and was glad they got to see his class perform "Cotton-eye Joe." My class did a cute song from Shrek called "On My Way." One of my student's mom choreographed and taught the kids the dance! Yahoo! It was cute and I think the parents were impressed with all of the dances!

After school Kim called and realized she was short 2 graduation gowns for that evening's preschool graduation. I was at school still and one of the teachers said she could help me sew something together. I went to her house and we hurried to make 2 more gowns. Claudia was amazing and I owe her. She had me with my lack of sewing talent cutting, pinning, and ironing while she sewed. We did it (or SHE did it and I helped) and I raced to the store to pick up the pop for that night. I hurried home, changed Mason and we all jumped in the van to get there about 5 minutes before it started. That was a busy night! But it was very worth it! Kim did a fantastic and very professional job and I think everyone was impressed! The kids sang songs, she showed a DVD she had made with pictures of the kids set to music and then they did the formal procession. It was very cute and Mason was very proud to have us there watching him! He had hoped to have all his aunts and uncles, grandparents, etc., but I told him this would just be for our family this time and that we would take a lot of pictures! Paige ended up being there to help and Mason was so glad that she had come just to see him. (Or so he thought!) Thanks, Paige AND Kim. It was a nice evening!

Saturday we went to Jungle Jim's to meet all the sisters and families to celebrate Tanna and Ella's birthdays! It's an indoor carnival and the kids had a blast! We had a hard time getting them to leave. We had a fun time and enjoyed being with the other local cousins!

Sunday we went to a neighbor's for a BBQ. There were 3 other families from our ward/neighborhood and it was nice to visit with them. It was a perfect weather day and I'm glad we didn't wait until Monday with the rain!

Today we have taken it easy. It's rained most of the day, so it made it an indoor day. We went and had leftovers at the neighbors (aren't they good to us?!) and then the boys spent an hour or so collecting worms! Luckily they ended up in the Toney's garden and not in our house! I was a bit nervous about that!!

I read my assignment for tomorrow's class (my night class) and wrote my paper. The boys watched "Old Yeller" and the day is now over! Wow, it was a nice weekend, but it's over! I wish I had another few days! Only 4 more days of school and then I can officially be "off" for the summer. (Actually, my summer is going to be pretty busy, but at least it will be a bit free-er!)

That's life with the Shanks in a nutshell! Signing off for now -- I'm Jill Shanks!! :-)