Happy Birthday Carter (a little late)

Halloween Festivities (a little late)

One who I can be myself with...

I am thankful for my best friend, Chris!  I am so thankful that I can be my grumpy-old self and he still loves me.  This past week we had a really good heart-to-heart and I was able to express myself and all my issues to him.  I'm so thankful that I can tell him all my problems and he will still love me and be there for me.  I have found that when trials come, if we stick together we come out so much stronger.  He is my best friend and I'm glad that we are learning to rely on each other.  

The one problem with my relationship with Chris is that we are never together.  He works 12 hours a day and then goes to school three nights a week.  We haven't had a "date" in who knows how long.  We use up our babysitters so I can work and can't really afford hiring another babysitter.  I miss him.  What are some things that you and your spouse do to stay connected even when you can't BE together?

Good things to come...

Those who know me, will remember how much I LOVE tulips and daffodils. The blooming of these glorious flowers fill me with excitement for spring.  I am thankful (#13) for the amazing creation of bulbs.  When you plant that bulb you plant faith that good things will come.  We put the world to sleep with the hope that when it awakens we will have color and beauty.

Yesterday, Chris and I planted thousands of bulbs in grandma's garden.  As we were planting I kept thinking about the blossoms that will break the hard ground. I look forward to seeing the efforts of our labors. (By the way, when I say thousands...I mean thousands!  Chris and I think that there were over 7,000 bulbs.  In the spring, I'll post the evidence!)

Gratitude in Parent Teacher conference week

Although a week has passed and I haven't blogged my gratitude, I have found many things to be grateful for this week.

I had parent teacher conferences this week which equal a lot of time and exhaustion.  So for my Gratitude #8 (Monday) I would have to be grateful for the opportunity to meet one-on-one with my students and their parents.  When I met with the individual families I am reminded of the uniqueness of each of my students.  It is wonderful to celebrate their strengths and suggest areas to improve.  I have a fantastic class that is willing to reach higher.  I am grateful that I work with gifted students that have an amazing love for learning.

Also because of the long hours, my heart was once again, overflowed with love and appreciation for my MOTHER. My Gratitude #9 (Tuesday).  What would I do without her?  She takes my children whenever I cannot be with them.  This past week she was probably with the kids more than I was.  On Tuesday she babysat from 12:00 p.m. till 8:00 p.m and then Wednesday she had them from 8:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. Then she also tended them on Thursday from 8:00 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.  She is the best grandmother and I feel so lucky that I can take them to her and not think twice if they are happy and having their needs met.  I will never be able to repay her.

Gratitude #10 (Wednesday) - I am thankful for friends.  I have some of the best friends.  I appreciate my friendships with the people I work with.  Since I only teach part-time I feel secluded at school. When I'm at school, I usually have to get the work done and then get out of there. But this week of conferences, as teachers we need each other.  The dinner time provided by the PTA is like 40 minutes of heaven!  We get to talk to each other, vent, and rally around each other.  I'm grateful for the experiences of others and how they buoy me up.  I'm also very thankful for Catherine. She was my previous teaching partner.  I'm grateful that she knows me and knows what to say to me to stop the tears and my personal punches.

My gratitude #11 (Thursday) is the life lessons I learn from my students and their parents. Since I have become a parent, I have a new appreciation for the active and involved parent.  It is a big job to raise responsible children.  I hope that I will remember some of the sacrifices that my students' parents have made to lay the groundwork for their children.  I love learning from the parent that helps their child grow and encourages them lovingly to do better and find areas to improve on. One day, not too far away, I will be sitting in an SEP conference, on the other side of the table.  I hope I will be able to be a parent that teachers will admire because I am helping my child.  It really does take the teacher and the parents to ensure success in the child's education.

Gratitude #12 (Friday) is that I am only a part-time teacher.  I loved that I didn't have to go to school on Friday.  I got to stay home with my kids, go to a boutique with my mom, get my errands done, and be rejuvenated after a long SEP week.

My brother Mike

I have three brothers and no sisters.  I am grateful for my siblings and the influence they have on me.  Today for my Gratitute #7, I would like to spotlight my brother Mike.  Mike lives in New York and is the greatest brother and uncle.  I love talking with him and having his down-to-earth advice.  He is such a great uncle to my kids.  Carter adores Mike and vice-versa.  I'm grateful that my brother chooses to have an active relationship with my children. I think that this life is pretty difficult and we are lucky to have as many people in our cheering section as possible.

Mike is also a very talented and humorous actor. To see his reel go here.

Gratitude #6- The funny things the kids say!

Mom: "What should we do tonight?  Where do you want to go?"

Carter: (thoughtful) "I want to go to hell."

Mom: "What?"

Carter: (thoughtful) "I want to go to hell."

Mom: "Carter, I don't know what you are saying." (I least I was hoping he didn't know what he was saying).

Carter: (his little mind was working overtime trying to figure out what he was trying to say). "I want to go to 'toe hell.'"

Mom: "Toe hell?"

Carter: "I don't know what the word is.  Ya know, the place where there is two beds?"

Mom: "Oh, the HOTEL."

Carter: "Yea, I want to got to a hotel tonight, in Blaise's town."

Mom: (relieved) "Phew!"

To teach...

Gratitude #5

I have the best job.  I am so lucky to get to stay home with my kids two days a week (and every other Friday) and then work two days. I teach 4th grade in the Spectrum program.  I have a class that is full of motivated, enthusiastic, and intelligent students.  I really enjoy going to work and getting to teach these great kids. I am constantly amazed at how much they know and how much I learn from them!  I admire these gifted children.  They are very well-rounded and have such great comments in class discussions.

I am also lucky to have a good teaching partner - Channing!  I work with some great people and am lucky to call my colleagues my friends.  I am also grateful for a supportive principal that allows the sky to be the limit.

I am also very grateful for the relationships that I have developed over the years through teaching.  Since I teach with the gifted children, their parents are extremely involved in their education.  (Which is a really good thing in MOST cases!)  I love to have parents in the classroom and I love to get to know them.  I consider some of my student's parents some of my dearest friends and examples.

Today my class was in charge of hosting the incentive party for 100 kids.  One of my parents planned the neatest Hawaiian Luau.  Another parent, who was born and raised in Hawaii, cooked us Kahlua pork, sticky rice, and provided Hawaiian dance lessons.  Many parents came and helped pull this AWESOME activity together. Many parents donated money, treats, time, and materials to have fun engaging activities.  I love being able to offer great enrichment activities because I have great parents to support me.  I am thankful for parent involvement.

I am thankful that I teach!

Biggest Loser

Gratitude #4: Exercise!

Yes, I'm addicted.  8 weeks ago I signed up for a "Biggest Loser" competition at my gym.  We got personal training sessions and nutritional counseling. Tonight was the final weigh-in. Well 16 pounds later, I took 2nd place!  It was based on % lost, and I was .4% away from winning. (Sooo close). My team, however, took 1st place! I won a exercise ball, a massage gift certificate, and $25 gift certificate for a restaurant. 

Through this experience I fell in love with exercising!  It is a wonderful feeling to not be tired. I feel great, and I am very grateful for a healthy body.  Before I started exercising I felt so tired if I had to walk any distances, and now I feel like I have a spring in my step. (Well, most of the time).

I am also so thankful for the gym daycare.  Carter and Kathryn love going to the gym because the daycare keeps them entertained.  Kathryn loves the dolly there and is constantly rocking the baby and putting her in the cradle.  Carter loves the coloring pages, particularly the Star Wars' pages.  Kimball is still perfect at the gym, so he comes with me.  He is usually lulled to sleep in the spinning classes and watching the elliptical or stair climber. I'm thankful that I can go to the gym and have an hour for me and my sanity.

What an amazing speech!

Gratitude #3

Our great country. An opportunity for change. A leader who believes in America. An inspiring speech that highlighted our growth as a nation and acknowledged that the change will be difficult.  The road will be steep, but I believe with Obama's positive attitude and the American people's service, our great nation can stay great!  If you missed his speech, check it out here.

I know many people, especially here in Utah, may not have been a "fan" of Obama.  I loved what Megan said on her blog.  We need to get the facts!

Also a cute story:

Carter asked me yesterday after he had torn off my "I voted" sticker, who I voted for.  I told him Obama.  He said, "Is he the black guy or the blue guy?"  I was like, "what?"  We've never discussed color of skin and I was a little concerned about what he had been hearing.  He told me that he had learned about voting at pre-school.  He said that he wanted the blue guy to win. After some more clarification, he asked, "Did you vote for the guy in the black shirt or the blue shirt?" Oh!  He pulled out his "Weekly Reader" magazine from school and sure enough - there was McCain in a black shirt and Obama in the blue shirt.

Finding the joy!

Gratitude #2 

Yesterday was one of these days:

At the end of the day, I remembered that I was going to write about the things that I am grateful for.  I had to really think about what my blessings were. I decided that what I am thankful for is that we get to start over every day.  We can go to bed and replace any negative experiences with a new light on things.  

I was a terrible mom yesterday. I blame it on a book my mother recommended I read (Something Borrowed by Emily Griffin).  I chose to read it while the kids watched "George" and "Arthur." Well, it was a real page turner, so before I knew it the morning cartoons were over! (I hate to even calculate how many hours they spent watching the TV). You have to know that when I read, I just want to finish the book as fast as I can.  I dive into the story as if I'm watching a movie.  Who is going to stop watching a drama love story to do the laundry or clean up the recent "fort" or make a healthy snack?  I wish I was more dedicated!  By the end of the day (Chris had school until 10) the house was a disaster, the kids were whiny for more attention, and I was just grumpy I didn't get to the ending. Yes, I was a bad mom yesterday. 

But I am grateful that regardless of how horrible your day is, you can go to bed and wake up with a clean slate.  Hopefully with that clean slate I can strive to be a little better. 

Season of Thanksgiving

Kelli had a great idea!  She is sharing something that she is thankful for everyday until Thanksgiving.  I'm following her lead!  I loved the General Conference talk about expressing gratitude by David A. Bednar. I also just read the scripture story of the ten lepers to Carter.  We talked about saying thanks and so I feel that I must express what I am grateful for.

Gratitude #1 

My Sweet Family!

I am so grateful for my little family.  The times we get to spend together are so precious to me. I love watching Carter and Kathryn interact with each other.  They are starting to be little best buddies.  They giggle, play, find mischief, make messes, rearrange the furniture, and love each other. (Ask me how many times I've had to put the cushions back on the couch!)  I also love watching Kimball watch them!  Oh, how time will fly and he will soon be one of the active 3 Muskateers.  He follows them with his eyes and sometimes laughs out loud at what they do.  The other day we went to the library and I was reading "Are you my Mother?" and Carter and Kathryn were enthralled in the story, but Kimball was laughing hysterically every time I read "Are you my Mother?"  It was adorable!  Other people noticed the giggling and came to watch!  I was the story-time special guest.  I love being with my children, they bring me so much joy!  I also love when Chris gets to be home with us.  He is usually so busy with school and work, but when he is home we love it!  He makes the best breakfast on Saturday mornings.  He is such a good dad.  The kids beam when they see their dad.  Yes, my family is one of my most treasured blessings.  I am thankful for them!