Art Class Folies!

I am so behind in posting but wanted to share some of the things I've been doing in my art class this year and with my students...
This is the door I painted for the beginning of the school year, it reads: "Grow your creativity"...

G-man and I made this melted crayon art together as decor for the classroom:

and my friend and I made these cute "a la Martha Stewart" lanterns for the ceiling

One of the first projects I did this year with my 8th graders was "painted shoes" (or painted Toms shoes) as part of our painting unit. They loved their shoes and I think they did an amazing job.
This is the prototype that I did first to decode the project:

 Then S-dog begged me to paint his... I tried to talk him into trains or robots but he INSISTED on flames and I think his creative instincts are on the money!

Here are some of my students' creations!...

Fertile Gnomes...

Friday was our Halloween festivities at our school. The children look forward to the Halloween parade and each class has a class party full of games, crafts and festivities. This year our family dressed up as garden gnomes. Of course our boys were not content with being your average every day garden gnome variety they had to infuse some super hero elements into their characters to make them more desirable. On our way to school this is what I heard as they discussed their gnome status..."when I rub my magic mushroom (appliqued on their vests) I can command lava!"..."when I rub my mushroom I can command the sky!"...Well, you get the picture.
Then the boys decided that they each needed to have "gnome names" and they had to be cool. G-man said "I'm going to be Digger, cause I love to dig!". Seichi proclaimed that he was going to be called "Shroom" after mu-shroom. S-dog exclaimed "I love lightning!" so we decided his name would be "Zinger". Then Biel chimed in "I'll be called Fertile!" My head spun around to look at him and maintain the car safely on the road at the same time...so shocked by his statement was I. I tried to maintain my cool by calmly asking "really honey why is that?" He replied "you know Fertile is short for fertilizer, get it?" I retorted "it's also short for fertility which means that you can make a lot of babies". His eyes grew wide as he replied "Oh no, I certainly don't want to be doing that!" We laughed so hard, it felt almost healing to share that kind of a belly laugh with my child and create a fun inside joke. Then we focused our efforts on coming up with a cool gnome name for him, finally settling on "Oakey" as in oak tree. We thought it to be a solid, respectable, masculine gnome name. After we finished Biel piped up "wow that certainly took a long time just to come up with one gnome name for me, imagine if I had to come up with a name for each of the gnome babies I would have had!" We laughed even harder. What a funny dude!

This morning we went to a "trunk or treat" with all our friends from church, the boys had so much fun going from car to car collecting treats and visiting with their friends. Afterwards on our way home I whined about how empty our fridge was and how I really didn't want to go grocery shopping. Handsome hubby suggested we all go to Costco together as a family in our gnome costumes. I NEVER thought I would hear my husband make that sort of suggestion. He even wore HIS costume! We went to Costco and boy did heads turn and a lot of smiles. I couldn't help feel that we were cheering up some people's day with our crazy antics. We had many comments too..."nice costumes I love your elf costumes!"...actually we are garden gnomes. "I love your smurf costumes"...actually we are garden gnomes. "I love your Santa costumes"...actually we are garden gnomes. "I love your seven dwarf costumes"....PEOPLE WE ARE GARDEN GNOMES!!!!  All in all it was a lot of fun!

How are male brains wired?

So this is a question that continues to intrigue me being surrounded by so many males in my life. I was listening to an audio book earlier this week that talked about that In Utero there is a fluid that goes through the womb around 13 weeks and that if the baby is female this fluid doesn't affect them but if they are male then it actually kills off a part of their brain (kind of makes me chuckle the jokes that come to mind!) and thus creates the males to be predominantly left brained and the females predominantly right brained. Now, I haven't had time to verify this information and I don't really know if its true or not but I thought it was as good an explanation as any.

I have visions of sitting around the dinner table involved in deep, meaningful conversations with my boys and handsome hubby and once in a blue moon this occurs but more often than not this is what happens...

After a blessing on the food we start eating and one of the boys (usually my second or third born) starts talking about a book that they have all read, or a joke they have all heard before or a cartoon or movie that they have all seen and one son starts quoting it. Then another son interjects and corrects the previous son making sure that the quote is verbatim. Then all the boys start talking over top of each other to have their turn to continue adding additional quotes from the "said" movie, book or joke.

I am continually amazed but the endless enjoyment that they all seem to get out of this mundane exercise and even more amazed at the accuracy with which they can quote book, movies, etc. that I too have seen with them! Often I sit there racking my brain trying to figure out what scene they are talking about. I have observed the same thing with handsome hubby and his brothers quoting childhood memories or movies they have seen together as children with mind boggling accuracy. As a result I have chalked it up to the way that the male brain is wired and I will not even attempt to compete in this arena.


This evening over steaming bowls of white bean chilli, the chosen quotes came from the movie "Hercules" that the boys find supremely hilarious or (i-larioust as S-dog says). S-dog in attempting to keep up with his older brothers tried to quote something that is said in the movie by Phil the centaur and it went something like this... "remember what Phil the red hamster said?..."  We spent several minutes trying to decode what he was referring to by "red hamster". When we realized it we all exploded in fits of laughter. I guess to a 4 year old a cartoon centaur looks a bit like a hamster...?

The Sinks Are Always Cleaner...

In our church we carry out volunteer positions. My position or "calling" is that of the stake primary music coordinator, which is a fancy way of saying that I am in charge of all the music for the children and train the music leaders on how to conduct or teach the music to the little ones. I have had this calling for over 2 years now and I really like it.
Last night we had an auxiliary training meeting for all the primary presidencies and their music leaders. It was to be a brainstorming session where the leaders could get ideas from each other to spark new creativity. At the beginning of the brainstorming session I was to teach the new song for 2011-2012 to all the leaders, I was also in charge of decorations and making some of the refreshments. I was quite stressed about the song in particular...I love to sing but I don't love doing solos, especially when they aren't written for altos (which undoubtedly I am). I just feel so vulnerable standing there...all eyes on me...everyone waiting for the virtuoso songbird only to hear a squawking crow of a singer. I really struggled with trying to get some direction as to how the song should be presented?, what did the teachers need to hear?, what tools/ideas could I provide them to make their jobs easier? I finally settled on painting a large earth and discussing with the teachers different opportunities that we have when we come to earth and what help does God provide us. We came up with the symbols or drawings together for each part of the verse and stuck them on the earth (since the song begins "I came to earth...."). It went well, and despite my shaking I got through it. In retrospect I can see that my prayers were answered and I got the direction I was looking for and was able to keep it simple but effective. It's nice to know that you aren't all alone, even when you feel like you are sometimes.

After teaching the song I sat with the music leaders in the brainstorming session. After about 5 minutes into the  session my friend Emigen started packing up her baby getting ready to leave. I said to her "are you leaving?", she told me her husband had a meeting in 10 min and she had to get home to her other 4 little ones. I told her "I'll go watch your kiddos and you stay for the meeting". Normally, my dear Emigen would never take me up on the offer. She is one of the most amazing mothers, homemakers I know. She is such a constant inspiration to me...not because her house is always spotless and exquisitely decorated but because its not and she is ok with that. I admire her frugality and organizational skills. Her home is welcoming and charming and modest and I feel at home there. She doesn't put on heirs or pretension trying to be someone she is not. She is very adept at balancing her 5 little ones and making sure that their needs, and nutrition come first. She spends hours and hours reading to them and teaching them and creating with them...paint, clay, markers, crayons etc. She is a darling mother and as a result of her vigilance and care her kids are so well behaved, loving, kind, creative and fantastic readers!
Much to my surprise she took me up on the offer and I headed over to her house. I helped the kids with their homework while stacking the dishwasher and cleaning up from supper. The older kids got their baths finished up and I read to the younger ones. I got teeth brushed and prayers said and tucked them all into bed. I noticed a bounce in my step and excitement in my voice being able to take care of these darling children knowing that my dear friend would be coming home to less worry, less mess and might be able to enjoy her evening a little more if I worked a little harder. Why is it so much more fun to clean someone else's home than your own?? Suddenly a peace came to me and I felt closer to my Savior than I had in a long time.. so grateful to have had the precious opportunity of time dedicated to worrying about someone else and not just my little space.

11 going on 16...

I had a friend once tell me that boys and girls open up to their parents in different ways and that boys tend to open up if they are side by side (as opposed to facing you) which is most easily done in the car. I have tried this out multiple times with my 11 year old Biel.
I have found that often he just starts talking about things that I would not have asked him about on his own only if he is sitting next to me in the car. So the theme this week is...girls! Towards the end of the year last year was the first time he actually noticed girls even exist. He had a very tiny "crush" on a girl in his class. When I asked him why he sort of fancied her he responded "because she knows when its time to be silly and when its time to be serious and she always stays on task!". This comment somehow comforted me and made me chuckle.
Today however...he confessed that he sort of liked a different girl (she has had her eye on him since 1st grade and makes no quams about letting him know...forward girls sort of make me nervous). I asked him why he fancied her and he said "because she's really cute, she is smart, she is kind to others, she's funny and she's liked me since 1st grade so that kind of makes a difference cause at least I know that she knows that I exist." Then what he said next sort of caught me by surprize..."Mom I know your just dying to get every detail out of me and I know that in your head right now your thinking 'Ahhhhh my boy is growing up' but it will be ok Mom". He's right...it does freak me out that we will be donning a new chapter of life and that hormones will kick in even more. I'm sure that I don't really know what I'm in for and that is a scares me to death.

Halo Debyla

Handsome hubby has been teaching himself how to play the ukelele. He is pretty amazing for not only being self taught but also for having been playing for only a couple of months. Recently he has been teaching himself how to play "Hey There Delilah" by the Plain White T's. He makes my heart swoon when he plays it with his amazing voice, he really is so talented.
On Saturday we drove to Provo to attend some BYU Homecoming festivities and on the way there we listened to some music in the car one of the songs was "Hey There Delilah". Seichi questioned "What does halo ledyla mean?" to which G-man responded with an irritated tone in his voice "No Seichi it's not 'halo ledyla' its "Hey O Debyla!!"
Handsome hubby, Biel and I tried to squelch our giggles without much success I'm afraid.

Hawaina Family Wedding...

Last weekend we had the opportunity to have every member of handsome hubby's family in town for his sister Weechow's wedding. She is the last of all the siblings to get married and is the only girl! It was a wonderful weekend and such a treat to be able to spend some quality time with his family. I am really lucky to have married into a family full of people that I genuinely like...not just love, cause I have to "love" them but they are the kind of people I would choose to spend time with. For this I feel very fortunate.

Two brothers and their wives had never met the groom before and they were very insistent on meeting him before the wedding which I completely agree with, however, I was rather pleasantly surprised to see that even a family full of brothers still experiences some drama once in a while. The realization of this suddenly made me feel more at peace with my family and the periodic ruffled feathers that occur. We ended up going out to dinner with all the siblings and their wives/fiance to Red Robin...where all the boys love the Bonsai burger :) We had such a fun time, especially towards the end as the brothers started telling stories from their childhood...we were all in stitches and I'm sure the Red Robin staff was plotting our departure.

We had handsome hubby's brother Skela and Wiss stay with us with their 5 children. It was so wonderful to have them...what amazing house guests they were, wish they could have stayed longer. After Red Robin I was able to get all the finishing touches put on the wedding dresses for their girls and Wiss helped me by threading the elastic. I was tickled to find that the dresses I had made actually fit all their girls perfectly and looked so darn cute on them (they are precious girls). I was feeling pretty smug having completed my sewing deadline before 11pm the night before the wedding! I had visions of finishing the dresses the morning of with the men starting to lose patience with me :)

It was a wonderful wedding and we were thrilled that my babysitter did an amazing job taking care of 13 of the grandchildren (age 11 and under) and the kids were really well behaved to my amazement. It was a long day for them of waiting for the wedding, waiting for the pictures, waiting for the luncheon, waiting for the reception but all in all they were darling kids and did so well together. All 15 of them get a long so well together, what a blessing.
The day after the wedding we all went to Provo for the BYU Homecoming parade and to walk around campus (*sigh* fond memories). While we watched the parade a float with the law school students came by and one of the girls from the float yelled up to handsome hubby "HEY, your supposed to be on this float!" to which he responded "Well, I have kids I can't". I told him that next year we will gladly walk with him in the parade...no excuses :) That evening the boys all went to the BYU Homecoming football game and took the older boys too. Wiss and I convinced our sister in law Jelyse to put her boys down at our house and hang out with us. It was the best time I had had in a while we laughed and laughed and talked about parenting and spiritual things and just navigating life's troubles in general. I didn't want the evening to end and considering that between the three of us we had 8 sleeping children that remained asleep as we laughed our heads of it was a very successful night...until the men came home and ate our ice cream that is :) Spending time with the sistas was just the therapy we all needed.

Mediocrity produces good fruit...

I was rebuked in a gentle and kind fashion by my 11 year old on the way to school today. I must be honest...I needed it and deserved it. He never ceases to amaze me, the wisdom and creative inner voice that he seems to muster up effortlessly. He really is wise beyond his years (and behind his ears!).

Last night we learned about the allegory of the olive tree and discussed its meaning at Family Home Evening and this is what Biel said to me this morning..."Mom I have heard that you feel that you do everything in a mediocre way and nothing very "well". I don't know how you can say that, it simply isn't true...most moms wouldn't last a day in your shoes and you need to realize that you are doing your very best. We love you and your meals! You are "bringing forth good fruit", there is nobody that is perfect and unless you are really doing a terrible job at work/school/being a parent etc. you are still "bringing forth good fruit" because you are making an effort and your heart is in the right place.

It certainly put a new perspective on my day. I really love that kid....I think I'm going to keep him!
Completely off topic...Biel is running regionals this week in cross country. He has been getting faster and faster and has completely shocked me. Yesterday he ran a 5 min 50 sec mile! In another meet he ran two miles in 14 min 05 sec. His goal is 2 miles in under 12 min. There is no way on this green earth that I could accomplish that but it is so neat to see your child find something that he is both passionate about and excels in and might just keep him out of trouble when he becomes a teenager :) Good luck this week Biel...sure love you bud!

Funny Little Quips

Yesterday my two youngest said a couple random funny things that I don't want to forget. We were watching LDS General Conference and they were coloring quietly when suddenly Seichi exclaims: "My teacher keeps saying that we are "cute" and I just want to go up to the front of the class and correct her and say 'by the way the word you should be using is handsome!'

A couple minutes later S-dog shouts at the top of his voice while coloring an ABC animal book "I got the biggest longest duck to color! (referring to an ostrich) Seichi burst out laughing at his brother's announcement that the ostrich was a big long duck. I just love hearing my children explode into belly laughs even if it means that I missed 10 full minutes of conference while they regained their composure.

Girl Time, Psychos and Dangerous Laundry

This past weekend I had the unusual opportunity to have some serious "girl time" with some girl friends for 3 days in a row! Being surrounded by boys (and a man) all the time I forgot how much I love and periodically need the camaraderie and laughter that comes from being around women that I love. Spending time with them fill me up in a way that those with testosterone just can't despite their best efforts :) On Friday I went out for dinner and a late movie with a dear group of girls that have been my neighbors throughout the past 8 years. We laughed and laughed and it felt so good to get the debriefing on what's going on in each of their worlds and reconnect with them; we've been so out of touch with each other.

On Wednesday I went to a Women's Conference with a few of my girl friends. We took the Trax train downtown and were able to hear an amazing address by Dieter F. Uchtdorf. I felt like he was speaking right to me when he spoke about "not forgetting to have patience with yourself" (which I do not do very well) and "determining the difference between a good and a foolish sacrifice" (again not so stellar at accomplishing either) and also "don't forget to be happy now" (I have so much to be thankful for that makes me happy now...need to take inventory right away). He said a lot of things that I needed to hear and had me laughing out loud at several parts in the process. Afterwards my friends and I went out for dinner and chatted and laughed. It was so therapeutic.

On Sunday I needed to attend 2 children's programs and had a meeting to attend which had to do with my volunteer position at church. Handsome hubby ended up having to take all 4 boys to church by himself while I went to attend the children's programs with a different batch of my girlfriends.

During one of the programs one 11 year old boy stood to share his favorite scripture story. He said "My favorite scripture story is of Noah and the ark. Noah told the people that God was going to send a lot of rain and he started gathering up the animals one boy and one girl animal into the ark. The people thought that Noah was psycho and didn't listen, and I have a Noah's ark tie." Children can be so pure and innocent and down right hilarious. I don't think I'll ever forget this little boy's rendition of Noah and the "psychos".

I think it was easier to go from two to three boys or three to four boys than it was to go from one little boy to two little boys. I will say however that the one thing that put me "over the edge" with the addition of each little dude was the increase of laundry! This past week as I was desperately trying to get laundry caught up for the coming days ahead. I asked the boys to put through a couple of loads of their clothes. I forgot to remind them to check the pockets of their pants before putting them in the washing machine. You guessed it...when I went to do a laundry change-over (which was later than it really should have been) I was shocked to see that Seichi's ipod shuffle and ear phones had gone through the wash thanks to S-dog borrowing them and putting them in his pockets. I freaked out as I showed handsome hubby what happened. I said to him "if this ipod ever works again we will be purchasing only apple products/computers for the rest of our lives". I think it needs to dry out more fully being it will turn on again as a result of this dangerous laundry experience.

And the award for Mom of the year goes to.....

Not me...that's for sure. In case some of you out there thought I was "super Mom" and talented at parenting in any way...I'm here to dispel those myths and state emphatically that I have never pretended to be all that in any way, shape or form :)
So my two middle boys got up this morning and while I was rushing to get ready for work myself (really bad hair day, had to do it over again 3 times...ug!) they got dressed, had breakfast, brushed their teeth, did their hair and set out their shoes. They still had time left over so they decided to make all the beds in the house, put away their clean clothes pile, made sure all the house lights were turned off, made breakfast for their older brother and put away his clothes, washed off the table and stacked the dishwasher. I thought "who are you and where are my boys?" but I wasn't about to complain...who would?
I went on and on to them about how peaceful our house was thanks to them, what a wonderful example they were and how thoughtful and charitable they had been. I was on cloud 9 thanks to them, and we were on time leaving the house...again, thanks to them. Yes, life was blissful and perfect for a small moment...that is until we got into the car. Suddenly all *$&%# broke loose. G-man got after Seichi for being annoying and too rambunctious and when he didn't listen took it upon himself to hit his brother in his efforts to make him behave. Seichi started wailing and pushing G-man back then they were yelling at each other and generally looking for things to pick on each other for. Well, you guessed it...there went our peaceful, glorious morning...back to reality.
I tried at first to calm them down and offer suggestions for positive communication while trying desperately to keep the vehicle on the road. When that didn't work I started raising my voice and threatening to revoke privileges...by the time we got onto the freeway I was full on screaming and by the time we got to school I was fuming and issuing a rather effective 'silent treatment' to my two middle boys, by the time the first bell rang I had tears streaming down my cheeks out of frustration and general guilt for raising my voice.
Definitely, not the way I wanted to start off the morning. I am still reeling from this morning feeling so guilty for the screaming that is probably ringing in their little ears to begin their day, probably preventing them from focusing on complex mathematical equations, eating well balanced lunches or being involved in stimulating, meaningful conversations with classmates...instead they are probably sitting in the corner of their classrooms rocking back and forth blowing bubbles and humming "you are my sunshine". I've ruined my children forever!

Grand kidless....?

The boys and are were folding laundry the other day and somehow we got on the topic of babies and families etc. (My boys LOVE to hear who "came out" of Mommy's tummy vs. who was "cut out" of Mommy's tummy, not sure why exactly).
G-man stated emphatically, "I don't think I will get married...ever!" I probed and asked him why to which he replied "it's just so much work and then you have kids and then there's diapers and potty training...it's just too much work, besides, I don't even have a girlfriend yet!" Well, I guess he has thought it through; at least its not an impulsive decision.
After hearing G-man's statement Biel chimed in "am I the ONLY one that is going to give Mom grand kids and especially grand-daughters?"...G-man replied "I guess so bud, I guess so."
It will be interesting to see what the future holds.

news to take home to parents...

One things I LOVE about our school is how well they keep up with current technology in the classroom. They really make a concerted effort to ensure teachers needs are supported by technology to make their lives easier. This year the administration bought me a bluetooth compatible drawing pad to use while I walk around the classroom so that I don't have my backs to the students...so smart. They also bought me a high resolution document camera, which I must say is amazing. It allows me to draw, sketch or do a demonstration which is projected onto my whiteboard. The students no longer have to gather around my table, craning their necks trying to see my latest demonstration. It's amazing and has simplified my life in the classroom tremendously.
One of the major pitfalls of the document camera is the high resolution...it is so good, a little too good. Earlier this week I was doing a sketching/shading demonstration for my 8th graders. They asked me to put down the blinds cause it was causing a glare and they couldn't see very well. As I reached and put down the blinds they started laughing. I asked them what was so funny. One of the girls in my class replied "when you put down the blinds the document camera showed right down your shirt!" I wanted to die, just shrivel up and become very very small and invisible. I thought to myself "don't make a big deal of this and they won't", I took a deep breath and said "well, it sure is a good thing there isn't much to see there isn't it, that sure is a great piece of news to bring home to your parents I'm sure they'll appreciate that...ok back to our shading exercise". And...that was the end of it, at least I hope so. I realized that if ONLY I were just a few inches taller that blasted document camera wouldn't have had a clear down the shirt viewpoint, yet another thing to blame my vertically challenged frame on.

It's Birthday Time again!

Late August through September is a busy time for our family. We have 3 birthdays within 3 weeks of each other just in our immediate family alone...not to mention my sister, brother in law, (my Mom when she was with us), and my father in law to top it all off. Phew!
On Sunday it was my handsome hubby's 35th birthday. In our church we fast for two full meals on the first Sunday of each month and donate the amount we would have spent on food for humanitarian aid to help those in our community with basic shelter and foods costs. The first Sunday of the month fell on...you guessed it my handsome hubby's birthday! He requested chicken parmesan for dinner and a triple layer lemon cake with lemon cream cheese frosting for his birthday cake. I just have to say its really hard to cook and be fasting at the same time...just sayin'.
My handsome hubby likes to keep tickets from every movie we have been to in addition to little memorabilia from different events. I have wondered for the last couple of years why they were collecting on top of his dresser to which he replied "I don't know I just like to keep them to remember the event". I have to be honest, it made my heart melt a little to hear his sentimental statement. I made him a bulletin board to match our room for him to pin all his memorabilia and ticket stubs to. He was thrilled with my "thoughtful" gift! Brownie points for me :)
I learned a little over ten years ago that the most important thing that needs to happen on any special day in which my husband is the center of attention is breakfast in bed. And as tradition would have it, donuts for breakfast is a must. Since he was fasting on his birthday he got a birthday celebration on Sunday and breakfast in bed along with donuts (having waited at the grocery store at 6am on labor day for the 'just barely made' donuts). Can you tell I adore this man? Well, I really do...he is the best and I'm lucky to have sifted through the frogs to find this lemon cake and donut lovin' prince!

Girl On The Run

This past weekend I had the fortunate opportunity to run the Hood to Coast relay in Oregon. It is a 200 mile relay that goes from Mt. Hood to the Oregon Coast (seaside beach) over the course of approximately 30 hours. Our team was of 12 people, 6 in each van. I ran with several of the awesome women I teach with, we had a great time.
My adventure began with me arriving at PDX in the evening and then meeting up with a few teammates and driving 1.5 hours to a lodge in the middle of no-where for the night. The lodge had a "girls" sleeping quarters and one for the boys with about 20 bunk beds in each. By the time I got into bed it was around midnight and I had to tiptoe in and with the use of my headlamp locate a bed for the evening. An hour later the snoring began. I wish I were one of those people that can sleep whenever and wherever they want but sadly 11 years of parenting has made me the worlds lightest sleeper. I laid there listening to one of the other girls snoring as I tossed and turned and thought of a variety of things I could do to this fellow bunk mate...throw shoes at her? yell at her? put a pillow over her head?...you get the picture. At 3am some of the bunk mates began to arise and leave to begin their relay (they had earlier start times than we did). At 4am another batch left and I kept praying that the snoring girl would be amongst them...no luck. The snoring continued only this time accompanied with the LOUDEST thunder and lightning storm I have ever heard. The rain pelted down as I laid there praying for a few minutes of sleep. The rain stopped around 5:30 but the snoring continued. We got up at 6:30am only to find out that the "snorer" was one of my teammates that I had not yet met. I felt bad thinking those horrible thoughts of how I wanted to hurt her as I discovered that she is the most amazing, interesting and sweetest girl. I feel honored to have gotten to know her...even if she does snore :)
Our team name was "running time machine" so we dressed up in 80's garb and boy did we look sweet! I'm including a few pics of our rad outfits, please take note of the torn/woven t-shirts and my friends huge wig that won her more photo ops than we could shake a stick at. Half way through the race we began doing random "dance parties" on the side of the road in order to encourage our runner. Soon other vans approached us and asked if we would dance and cheer on their runners but making complete fools of ourselves...which of course we were happy to do. We made a lot of friends this way!

I have been wanting to do this race for over 4 years now but couldn't find anyone crazy enough to do it with me. I am so thrilled that I got the chance to run with these amazing women. We had so much fun, they are such great sports and the course was superbe. I only ran 17 miles of the 200 but I would definitely do this race again, not to mention ending at Seaside beach which is breathtaking and has the softest sand ever!
I will say that being the "token Mormon" had its drawbacks especially when you are the only one painfully aware in your sober state of what a fool you and your whole team are making of yourselves and your the only one that cares, oh and being designated driver when your exhausted and trying desperately to keep your eyes wide open. But it was a great experience for this girl on the run.

Happy Birthday Biel!

It's hard to believe my handsome little boy is now 11!! How did that happen? The years have just flown by, light speed really. My little Biel is now in 6th grade. He was soooo nervous to go to 6th grade (which is middle school) and in all honestly I felt as though I was sending my lamb to the wolves. However, with nearly 3.5 weeks into the school year already my little dude is loving 6th grade and has been heard stating on more than one occasion "I just love 6th grade, it makes me feel so responsible and professional". I am thrilled he is having a positive experience.
As is tradition in our home the boys get donuts and breakfast in bed on their birthdays. Up until this year I haven't had to be at school for 7:45am with 4 boys completely ready for the day in tow. So this year was a bit stressful. I drove up to Maceys at 6:15am to get some donuts...sadly they hadn't even cooked them yet. I called hubby at home and asked him to look up phone numbers of additional grocery stores that may have 6:15am donuts. I finally located one and rushed to fill my order.
Once home with the "loot" of donuts I rushed about to make a suitable "breakfast in bed" tray for my sweet 11 year old, while simultaneously chiming the other boys to "get ready right now!".
And then came the sad moment of the day... while we brought down the breakfast in bed tray to Biel I had to venture into the "downstairs" where the boys sleep and play. The disarray that assaulted my senses was unwelcomed and instantly launched me into a bad mood as I sang "happy birthday to you..." through a clenched jaw.
I tried to push it out of my mind but felt so taken for granted and sad that my boys would show such little respect for the laundry I folded for them or our home in general...I sort of forgot that they after all are "little boys". On the way to school I was bombarded with apologies and promises of change to which I replied "I don't want promises, I only want actions". I explained that they were to not participate in any electronics for the rest of the week (4 days) and that should be sufficient time for them to live, sleep and function in their rooms and prove to their parents that they can reside in our home and still be responsible.
I feel badly that I was not able to overcome this "bleep in the radar" and could have potentially ruined my sweet boy's birthday. I made up for it by decorating his locker at school for which he was completely excited and became very popular for the day.
Our little Biel also joined the cross country running team the week of his birthday. He is a whole head shorter than many of the 7th and 8th graders but notwithstanding that he amazed me with his 15min 44sec 2 mile run beating all the 7th and 8th graders. Who new someone so speedy could come from a body with slow and stumpy legs like mine? I guess miracles do exist, now maybe if we could only experience a miracle for keeping the downstairs perpetually clean.

Thanks for sharing....

This has been my first full week of classes with my new students. So far I have met with nearly 21 different classes...that's roughly 400 students! We have been going over classroom expectations and playing ice breaker art games and some classes even had time to do some drawing. My older grades have been making and "personalizing" their sketchbooks.
Yesterday I had a first grade class come in with a new student that started off yelling "Hi Art Teacher, when are we doing sculpture?", I replied that we will be doing it later in the year. He continued to interrupt throughout the entire period about 20 times asking "but how are sculptures made?", "when are we making sculptures?", "I want to make a sculpture!", "You haven't told us yet about our sculptures!", "When are you going to let us start on our sculptures!", "Your not paying attention to me I'm asking you about sculptures!!", etc. At first I thought 'ok this student is new and just needs to learn how to raise his hand and take his turn'. After about 10 minutes I thought 'maybe there is something up with this little guy and I need to handle it differently than I normally would'. After about 20 minutes I thought 'OK there is definitely something going on here and where is his IEP??" My energy was draining FAST and the class was starting to get restless cause I kept having to stop and direct my energy towards our new student.
After class their teacher came to pick up the class and walk them back. I gave her the "mayday mayday crashing and burning look" with my eyes. She told me that he was a new student that just got in on the lottery and this was his first day (school started a week ago), that they haven't received his IEP yet but that his parents have indicated that he is quick to anger, shouts out uncontrollably in class, has high functioning asperghers/autism and some ADD. She said "I probably should have given you a heads up."...in my mind I'm thinking "yeah that would have been helpful" but I just smiled (she is an amazing teacher and a dear friend) and just pretended like I had it under control. (fake it til' ya make it!) Well, if nothing else it has brought yet another weakness to the surface that I need to make a strength so I can help this little guy have a great year as well as the class and so I can maintain what semblance of sanity I have remaining.

Today in class I was teaching another 1st grade class. I was explaining to them that we need to sit with "all four stool legs firmly on the floor". I mentioned to them that we need to be safe and we might fall off the stools and hit our head and we just don't want to have any stitches. That was obviously the wrong thing to say as 7 hands shot up in the air to share their "stitches stories". One little boy blurted out as I tried to get back on track "My brother got stitches in his butt crack!"...."Oh my!" I replied. Well, thanks for sharing.....

Dear oh deer...

I managed by some small miracle to drag my behind out of bed this morning at 4:45 after a few short hours of sleep...ok 5.5 hours to be exact. I met my friend and we went for a 4 mile run before work, kids, school took over our attention. As we neared the end of our run I said goodbye to my friend and she headed towards her house, I changed course to head towards mine. Five minutes down the road I saw a couple of figures, what looked like dogs. I suddenly became very worried because they were not behind a fence and there were no owners around...and I have had dogs chase me when I run, not pleasant. As I approached I quickly realized that they were not dogs at all but rather deer! I have never seen deer in our city and really do consider ourselves to live in the "city". I was pleasantly surprised and not sure how to handle the situation. Growing up in Canada we have "beware of deer" and "beware of moose" signs along many major highways and roads. I know of the damage they can do to cars for example but what about humans? These deer were only 2 feet away from me, it was quite a treat.

OHHHH DEAR!... This weekend I am going to Oregon to run in a 195 mile relay race. Our team theme is "running time machine" and we are supposed to dress up in 80's retro fashion. I ordered a pair of hot pink leopard printed biking shorts online. Only when I got them they were not as long as biking shorts but more like hot pants! Eeek! I asked Hubby if I could get away with wearing them to which he replied "I think so especially if you wear a long-ish shirt". Hmmmm....that didn't leave me feeling too confident. I must say that on my relay team I am the 2nd oldest and am older than most of my teammates by over a decade! Not to mention that my teammates don't have kids let alone four! Something special happens to your body as you age and particularly after you have kids. Let's just say that everything tends to migrate south! I decided that I should take a run (in the dark of course, don't want to scare people) before my relay to see if the hot pink leopard print hot pants had any redeeming qualities. I put them on this morning and as I bent down to tie my shoes I distinctly heard my inner voice scream at me "OHHHH DEAR, YOU JUST CAN'T PULL THOSE OFF". So off they came and me and my bruised ego donned a fluorescent yellow pair instead. And am I the only one that constantly has one side of my shorts that rides up or do I have one butt cheek bigger than the other? Guess I should have Hubby answer that question for me after I've healed from the last diplomatic zinger.

Oh dear!...yesterday S-dog was upstairs and I called him downstairs so that Biel could concentrate on his homework (S-dog was distracting him). S-dog thought I wanted him to come downstairs and do homework so he called back "Mom I already done my homework" in an exasperated tone (as if 3 year olds even have homework!). I told him that I simply needed him to come downstairs...he replied "Alright! Silly dummy!..." and started stomping down the stairs. I was so shocked to be spoken to in this fashion I literally gasped. Hubby heard my gasp and said "was he talking to you?", I affirmed his fear and Hubby flew up the stairs to reprimand and rebuke. Less than 5 minutes later I had a tear stained little S-dog at my side apologizing amidst sobs of regret and demanding validating hugs. I am grateful for a husband that defends me and teaches our boys how to honor their mother...but they are definitely still in training!

How to raise a fruit ninja

While I was making lunch this afternoon Seichi came upstairs wearing baby legwarmers on his feet and arms and saying that they were "ninja clothing that helped him with his ninja moves". He was followed closely behind by 3 year old S-dog with a blue fuzzy bathrobe with different vehicles on it (a gift given to his oldest brother by Grandmum), also adorned with black opaque goggles and some wicked ninja moves. They were moving all over the kitchen assuming a variety of well executed stances and facial expressions as if they had been in training for months at the very least.
At lunch hubby kept encouraging S-dog to eat more than just grapes to which S-dog replied with the most grown up mature expression he could muster: "but Daddy that's what ninjas eat. That's what they like is grapes and watermelon". A few minutes later he exclaimed "I'm going to sing you all a song so you can 'rock out'....Ninja's eat grapes and ninjas eat quesadillas, ninjas drink water and watermelon too and they don't take naps they just practice their sumo and karate moves".
Daddy gave a stellar performance trying desperately to maintain his composure and keep from bursting out into laughter as he said "S-dog there will be no more fruit for this little ninja until your quesadilla is finished". Well...the voice of reason has spoken, what more is there to say?

Clean Fun!

Well, yesterday marked the end of swim team season. The boys will continue to swim throughout the year but the swim team meets are only in the summer. Biel and G-man are on the swim team...even at that G-man is the youngest and smallest on his team. Generally you can't be on the swim team until you are 9 but they made an exception for him last year allowing him on the team at 7.
Seichi and S-dog took swimming lessons all year as well and throughout this summer. Seichi is DYING to be on the swim team too with his older brothers and experiencing quite a bit of frustration in having to wait so long :)
The older boys were so nervous for their first meet. Biel spewed off a whole litany of worries to me that morning at breakfast...."what if I do horribly and my team gets upset with me?", "what if my goggles fall off when I dive in?", "what if I swallow a whole bunch of water and can't finish my heat?", "what if, what if, what if...."
I tried my best to dispel the myths and put his mind at ease but I realized since I was never competitive in swimming I really don't know exactly what advice to give. I thought that perhaps redirecting them to handsome hubby might do the trick. So I said "I can understand that your nervous, that is normal for your first meet especially...why don't you go talk to Daddy about all your "what ifs" and see if he has some advice. Daddy swam competitively for years and I bet he has some great advice for you." Well I wasn't wrong. Daddy's response? "Boys just swim your hardest and stretch out those arms and let everything else happen if they happen. Just do your best, don't worry about anything else." Somehow that advice worked and the boys were able to calm down quite a bit.

Enough to get 2 first place, 2 second place and 1 third place in their heats. It was so fun to watch them "try their best". Here is a little video of Biel taking first in 50M back stroke.

After the meet the boys were so overjoyed and on top of the world excited with their ribbons and their overall experience. And the best part? They come home exhausted and CLEAN! Gotta love that!

Joy In The Journey!

I just started a new job last week...teaching art full time! It's been a new adventure filled with lots of things to look forward to but also it has been a venue through which all my weaknesses, inabilities and inadequacies have come bubbling to the surface.
Along with the inevitable stresses and difficulties that a new job presents has been a hightened ability to see the sweet moments where they occurr. I don't remember seeing as many along the way of my 11 years of parenting or the 12 years of marriage that I have successfully navigated (so far) but nevertheless I am grateful to see them more frequently now.
For family home evening night last week we took a very belated (and promised) trip to our local 7-11 for Slurpees. To be able to walk hand in hand with my hubby while our four boys walked ahead of us also hand in hand and broken into groups of two warmed my heart. On the way home S-dog couldn't finish his Slurpee and offered it to his brothers and they took turns gladly "helping" him finish it...not very hygienic but nevertheless sweet.
At dinner the other night, gathered together and hearing the boys chatter away about their days activities and how much fun they had at the park and the latest Lego creation and the newest powers that they've discovered about their Pokemon just made me so grateful for 4 little dudes. All 4 have very different personalitiea but still thoroughly enjoy each others companionship. How lucky I am to have 4 very healthy little boys...sure we have a major deficiency of pink around our house but notwithstanding this...I am a lucky Mommy and so blessed to be working at their school and see them/hug them throughout the day. I'm thankful that my heart took the time to "take some pictures" this week and hopefully in the process the joy in the journey can balance out the stresses and worries.