All About The Kids, I Promise!

OK, based on comments from grandparents, I'm getting the hint that it's time to give a blog based only on their happenings, and so I'm going to do it this morning while they are still peacefully sleeping (at 7:30! Ha! 6 AM was a one time shot!).

First, Chayce. We went to the library yesterday, and attended story time. The sweet child's librarian asked my daughter what her name was, and of course, Chayce answered "Princess". Not even Princess Chayce, no she's shortened it now and calls herself Princess. The librarian couldn't quite understand her and said, "Is your name Prentice?" Chayce's indignant NO led the librarian to ask me her name, which I stated is "Chayce". The librarian then looked very confused, and said that Chayce didn't have as many syllables as the name my daughter had stated to her, nor did it start with the same sound. I replied, "I know, she told you to call her Princess, but her name is Chayce." Sweetly, the librarian still referred to Chayce as Princess throughout the activity.

Later, we were counting limbs (for fun, promise, no ones' limbs were threatened), and Stephen asked Chayce how many feet she had. She said 4. So Stephen said, "Can you say quadriped?" And Chayce pipes up (imagine tiny 2 year old voice here), "I am a quadriped!" Cute, now I'll have to set her straight, though.

Then my Zach. Oh, he crushed my heart. We were reading a book and it used the phrase "green with envy" so naturally, we started to discuss envy. My first question to him, to get him on the right track on understanding envy was, "Haven't you ever really wanted to be able to be like someone, and felt upset that you weren't? For example, have you ever wanted to do things Mommy does, and it made you upset?" Zach then replies, "Mom, I don't want to be like you when I grow up, I'm trying to be like Daddy." Well, at least our son has a decent role model...but I have to admit, I almost felt a little envy right then. Of course I have to realize that Zach has the right idea, and even at 4, he's trying to be a good man, like his Daddy.

Note to the grandmas...next time I post, I promise photos will be included!!

Smile, and the world smiles with you.

Sigh. A contented happy sigh. Then a whompin' YAHOO! And then another sigh. Why? It was an eventful day, one I can't fully explain without saying I'm satisfied.

First, my children woke at 6 AM (What? They're awake? My sleep til 8:30-ers are awake? Why? It's dark out, it's quiet...WHY?) Anyhow, they were awake, and Chayce offered to carry me down the stairs if I was too tired to walk. She's only 2, so I declined her offer, but realized that she meant business about getting up and getting started. She actually put both hands under me on the bed and tried to lift. Hee hee, I couldn't help but smile, even at 6 AM. I actually should backtrack a little and add that Zachary came storming into our bedroom at 4AM stating that his eye patch was not in his bedroom, and he wanted it found right away. It wasn't even patch day, so we sent him back to rest a little longer, and I really wonder if he slept much. At least I did!!

Anyhow, down to breakfast. I'm trying to figure out how my children ended up so much more amazing than I'll ever be, even as young as they are. My 2-year old requests a grapefruit to start her morning, followed by either an egg and whole wheat toast, or a bowl of cereal--and opts to eat Total, or GrapeNuts over the fun "Little Einstein Fruity Stars" I snagged as a treat for them. Zachary also opts for Total, with a banana. I scan the kitchen for breakfast and think, "Gee, I wish we still had some of those cinnamon rolls I made the other day." Of course, they were whole wheat, so I shan't be flogged, but my taste buds still have to get whipped into shape every morning so that I'll take care of myself. My brain knows what is good for me, so does my body, but my tongue...that horrid little member that most people have to control for bad language, sets me up for bad nutrition if I let it, and my kids seem like masters of eating well. I should just follow their lead. Keep in mind, I'm the one at the store tossing in ice cream, while my son, who doesn't pay attention much to what I hide in the cart, is busy telling me that he saw a man carrying a box of discount candy corn, and if that man is a daddy, he's setting his kids up for a tummy ache (this has been learned from experience). I, of course, immediately feel guilty for the icecream, and put it back. Sadly, it's been months since the stuff has entered our home. BUT, that was another day, and I'm talking about today (tangents from the pregnant mind...they tend not to end).

Anyhow, today we went to the library for story time. The children enjoyed singing along with Jim Gill's "I Took A Bath in the Washing Machine" song, although Chayce sings it "Washing sheep sheep" Zach keeps correcting her, poor kid. Anyhow, because we got there a little early (because of my early risers...this better be a onetime thing!) I was able to make the deal of a lifetime (OK, marrying Stephen has been the best one thus far, but after marrying him, having two...er three awesome kids, this comes close). Our library was cleaning out their old reference material, and had set the entire "WORLD BOOK Encyclopedia" Set out on the children's withdrawn hardback books for sale shelf. All books on this shelf are $0.50, and I usually get some great ones, because the library is often getting rid of things they have multiple copies of that don't get checked out very often, to make room for new items. Shelves only hold so much, you know. Anyhow, I went and checked with a librarian that they were serious, and was told, "Yes, the entire set was being sold." I paid $11. I feel like a thief, considering I just went online and found that the cheapest 2006 set of World Book encyclopedias I could find were just below $500. If I hadn't wanted to get a set of encyclopedias for my home anyway, I'd be selling them for full price online and making a hefty profit of $480, considering I spent maybe 10 minutes checking to make sure they were serious. That's what...a wage of $2880/hour if I sell them. Not bad for a stay at home mom. Of course, I value the knowledge inside, and the accessibility for my children much more than the money. If I valued money more than my children, I wouldn't be staying home and homeschooling. I have a degree in HR and management for heaven's sake! Often people ask me if I plan on going back to work once I've got all my children in school...here's my answer in public, open forum, so I don't have to say it so often: NO. We are homeschooling. And even if we found a school that was something we felt was suitable for our children, you'd have to find me a job that got me home before they were...I'm not having latchkey children, and I have about 500 reasons why. I'll list them if you ask, but be prepared, I can get really into it. I do think about what I'll do when they move out, which is why I often keep up with current business trends, and I have my list of things I'll do when the very youngest turns 18. For now, my children will know where to find me.

Then, dinner this evening. We often have squabbles about finishing dinner, or what is a bite when mom says "take 2 bites", not chewing with your mouth open, or pushing your sibling off their chair. But tonight...was...FABULOUS!

It started with letting the kids make the egg drop soup (with Stephen's supervision, of course) while I made a salad to go with it. They did a great job, and even set the table for me (where were my kids? Had aliens come in and taken over?) and then, they ATE. Then left the table satisfied, played for awhile, and went to bed. So, maybe the old adage about positive thinking is true...Smile, and the world smiles with you!

A Better Day

I feel the need to update my last post...after the plumber came (Amazing man, only charged us $20, which probably only paid his gas, as he's been running all over fixing "weather" problems), we felt hopeful. Luckily, we've found a plumber who is willing to show us not only what is wrong, but what parts are needed to fix it, and how to use them so we can be self-sufficient. I'm not sure how he stays in business, perhaps from all the referrals, but even then, he doesn't charge much (our last ordeal took three days to fix, and he only charged $70 TOTAL). Anyhow, after he left we were able to fix the broken pipes (oh, yes, the upstairs bathroom broke due to freezing after all, and I'm including the kitchen breakage here as well...) for a total of (drum roll please) $8. Yeah, I think I can handle that. We also found the coldest wind tunnel running across the top of our basement (thanks to John, our plumber), so even though our basement was warm (as Stephen had stuffed as much fiberglass insulation in as he could) the ceiling of our basement was being blasted by air that was below zero. Problem here is, we probably would never have noticed, as neither of us is very tall in stature, and you don't feel it down below at all...only right at the ceiling. So, we're guessing this wind tunnel was doing the freezing, because it's not much warmer outside, but our pipes haven't frozen again since we stopped it.


Now, we're almost caught up in cleaning up the messes caused by the water, and also the rest of the house (which we put off cleaning due to having to worry about pipes). The children and I even got to sit and read stories today!

On another humorous note...I just discovered that there is a reason that my thermostat says it's 65 in my house, but I'm freezing. Don't know why it didn't dawn on me before...my monitor is placed directly below the thermostat. Anyone ever felt the heat given off by a monitor? Yup, feeling silly...but somehow grateful, since I thought I had to tough it out at 65, but our home was probably colder, which more than likely kept the heat bill lower than it would have otherwise been. The kids didn't seem to notice, but they run around all day...how could they?

Hello! Tueller's House of Frustration, How Can I Serve You?

Sigh. Really, it's been an amazing week, filled with complete ups and downs that a roller-coaster cannot shake a stick at. It started last Sunday, for some odd reason I was devastated by the idea that I "had" to go to Chicago and attend religious services at the LDS temple--never mind that it's NOT mandatory, no one asked me to go, and I pretty much planned the trip (with great help from Stephen in getting a sitter so we could swap). Even so, I was up half the night thinking about it, and was dead tired the next day. On the upside, I learned what an amazing man my husband is, as he was ready to cancel the trip just so I'd sleep (even though he was really looking forward to it). Funny part is, after I did sleep, I really looked forward to the trip, and then had a wonderful time there, knowing I'd gotten ahead on housework so there'd be no worries this weekend, and we could enjoy ourselves. Of course, the fact that it took FOUR HOURS to return from Chicago (a two-hour trip) was one of the downs...yet it was a bit nice to spend four hours sitting with my husband in traffic, knowing that NO BODY could interrupt our conversation--not a waiter from the restaurant (which was a big plus on this trip--the food was GREAT!), not one of my darling children, and not a phone call trying to pry my husband away from me for a meeting (after he's been slaving away at work). If I ever rule the world, I'm outlawing meetings that last more than 15 minutes, and limiting those to once a month per person. Life should be lived, not met about.

Then, Saturday came. I was thrilled to be able to babysit for the couple that sat for us.

Their daughter is absolutely delightful and curious. Cute as a button, too. Of course, there has to be a down for the weekend...our pipes froze, and it doesn't look like it's going to warm up anytime soon. The funny part to this is that we were brushing our teeth upstairs when Stephen ran downstairs to check the weather to see if we needed to leave the water on. The water actually stopped as soon as he got to the bottom of the staircase, and all I could say was, "Umm, honey? Too late!" At least we have water in the kitchen and one of the bathrooms, including hot, so dishes can be done...well, they could be, until today.

I was in the kitchen, minding my own business, washing dinner dishes when I hear the strangest noise...a popping noise if you will, and then, I realize, with great disdain, that my feet are getting wet. Yes, despite NOT freezing, the pipes under our sink broke. What a sick coincidence. One of the two places water is actually running in my home, breaks. So, needless to say, my dinner dishes are half done, there are no hardware stores open, and I'm merely praying for the bathroom water to keep working. What more can I do? Besides running the water and keeping heaters on...not much. Especially since we had been doing that, and the water STILL froze upstairs, odd. It has to be freezing somewhere we can't get to, we've heated all we can think of without running our heat bill through the roof.

On the other upside (see there are always lots of those...who needs water anyway?), Stephen got to have a one-on-one outing with each of the children yesterday. We're trying to spend lots of one-on-one time with them before #3 comes, and it's been so pleasant. Chayce ended up with two new nightgowns out of the deal (note to self, thank great-grandma Tueller for Christmas bonus), and only one meltdown the entire time she was out with her dad. The meltdown was over a variety pack of little girls' high heel dress up shoes. Stephen forbid those entering the house again (we had some, but too many falls and owies occurred, they were banned for safety reasons), and my fashion diva was devastated. Zachary is pining away for a new addition to his train set, yet the ONE train he wants cost double what Chayce paid (plus some) for two nightgowns. We told him he'd have to earn the difference before he could buy it, which meant he had to keep his regular chores done and THEN (and only then) he could ask for extra jobs to earn the $$. I refuse to pay him for merely doing his part in taking care of his surroundings and home. Taking care of yourself should be something you just do, not get paid for. So, his extra jobs are not from his list, but from everyone else's. If he does something on someone else's list, he can be paid (because that is going above and beyond) but only if he's already taken care of his own list. We'll see how it works out. He'll be five this year, so I don't think it's too much of a stretch for him to comprehend.

I suppose I should run off and tidy what I can before bed, without cleaning the kitchen (oh darn! Or is that a positive? ).

BUBBLES!!!

We decided to discover bubbles indoors today...what a blast! Bubbles popping everywhere, only a few mishaps of tasted soap, and lots of sudsy fun. We even drove our toy cars through. Too fun, way too much fun--or is that possible?

Hot Chocolate Ranting

OK, first, I realize I already posted this evening, but this really got to me...and you'll have to forgive my ranting, but THINK about this!
At Sam's Club (Which is usually rip-off central, BUT, we did get a decent deal on our cell phones, so we renewed, next year, we won't have to renew to keep the phone, whew. Plus, we usually only visit for the samples--sometimes to buy a Godiva Cheesecake, but I digress.)...OK, starting over, At Sam's Club I was walking the aisles (good for winter exercise), and noticed that hot cocoa mix is considered a "Seasonal Item". Later, while walking around the produce, I noticed that there were tomatoes and bell peppers, and cucumbers...odd. Why is this odd? Well, coming from someone who attempts to frequent the farmer's market and WILL NOT buy those greenish-pink-looking, cardboard tasting tomatoes, it's odd to see a fruit (yes, tomato is a fruit) that is OUT OF SEASON be considered a staple, when hot cocoa mix, which usually is a pantry staple (as in shelf stable, doesn't need to grow--except for the cacao (yes, I spelled that right) beans which don't grow around here ANYWAY--is considered out of season now. I'm supposing they mean that the Christmas season is when hot cocoa powder is "IN". Arrrgh! I'm going to make one plea to all parents reading this blog:
If you have not already done so, will you please teach your children that fresh food has seasons and that it comes out of the ground, and that there has been DIRT on it, and that is OK? Also, please, even if you only do it ONCE, make bread with your children...heck, make it for yourself! It tastes better anyway. I just had a friend (and I'm NOT lying) on the phone yesterday who thought I was lying to her when I said that I made bread and I did not have a bread machine. She seriously thought you had to have a special oven, and superhuman abilities to make a loaf of bread. Now, I love her dearly, but then to hear her categorize zucchini bread and whole wheat bread in the same category--as in not much difference except the zucchini one has zucchini and a bit more sugar--I became a little exasperated, and then smiled at my kids who enjoy dipping their fingers (and licking them off) in freshly ground whole wheat flour. I'm sure I'll have many parental failings, but at least my children will know where their food comes from! That seems like a good survival skill to me.

The Mulberry Bush

Storytime today was ruled by the South Bend Tuellers! What do I mean? Well, first, Chayce kept asking for specific songs, and I think it flattered the librarian (this is due to the fact that the last time this particular librarian taught storytime, she had an umbrella covered with "blueberry" print fabric, and we sang, "Here we go round the blueberry bush" and read "Blueberries For Sal"--great book, by the way--in honor of blueberry season). Anyhow, today the lesson was on colors, and we sang "This is the way we find the --orange, blue, yellow, etc--" instead of playing the game that was planned since Chayce kept asking for the Mulberry Bush song. Very cute. Might I add that Chayce also stalks the regular storytime librarian, and calls her the "Icky-Sticky Bubblegum lady" and will NOT leave the library til we've hunted her down and said hello. It's kind of cute. Oh, Icky-Sticky Bubblegum is a song. A fun one that my kids enjoy all too much. Zachary also ruled the roost, as the activity was color mixing (and can I say I was proud?) and when the story called for purple, he was armed and ready with the red and blue! Funny part, and the reason I was proud, is that we attended at the same time as a local preschool, and the teacher who had brought the kids as a field trip couldn't figure out how my son knew his color mixing when I wasn't putting him in school (it was the local preschool). Funny how people compartmentalize learning...it must take place in a class room. NOT. I won't rant and rave here (why not? It's MY blog...) only because most people reading this already know I have my pet peeves. Of course, this is the perfect tie in to a book I've been reading about the education of inner city kids. The teacher gives specific stories of each student to show how each child needed him differently. Anyhow, one of the biggest themes is that the kids never could connect real life with what they were learning. For example, one child never realized that the story of Thanksgiving and the Pilgrims SHOULD mean something to him, that he lived on the same coast they landed...it was all just a story to him. Then, when the teacher pointed out that he was going swimming that afternoon in the same water the Pilgrims landed in, the child was amazed! These people were real! Great book, I probably won't finish it due to time constraints, but what I did learn was helpful. Made helping my kids put 2&2 together a bit easier. Not that they are inner city street walkers, but I think most kids have a lot more in common than we give them credit.