HAPPY HAIRCUT

Miss Allie has been begging to get her hair cut "short" for months. Each time we go to get a haircut I just tell the gal to trim it up. Yesterday, I caved & let her tell the gal what she wanted done. She told her to cut it to her shoulders. So, 5 inches are now gone & it looks adorable. Allie LOVES it & I think it is stinkin' cute too.

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RECAP
It's been awhile since I've posted anything about our day to day life. So, here's a recap of the past few weeks:

• I've been subbing full time since before Thanksgiving. I've grown to love the 1st grade class that I'm in and enjoyed my days there. Today, is my first day off. The person I was subbing for is now back to work. I'm planning to get caught up around the house, prepare for Spring Break, sub a little and enjoy some time off!
• Allie is preparing for her dance recital, which will be in May. She is working hard on her routine. She thinks this will be her last year taking dance.
• Jake was asked to play baseball this summer on an IBL team (Iowa Baseball League). It is much more competitive than rec ball. The season is also much longer. Practices begin any time and our last games will be in mid-July. There will be several months when we have BOTH baseball and soccer going on for him. It could be a long Spring!
• Allie sold the most Girl Scout cookies in her troop this year. She was quite excited. Our next job will be to deliver those cookies!
• We spent my birthday weekend with my family. My mom had a family dinner with my siblings & their families. It was great to be with the people that mean the most to me.
• Scott's grandmother was airlifted to University of Iowa Hospitals a couple of weekends ago. We spent the night in the ER waiting to see how she was. After a long night, she was admitted and now continues to get better every day.
• Jake's Scout den went ice skating for an outing. Jake thought he could just get out and skate! WRONG! He got better after awhile. Allie came along & was sure to dress the part with her vest, matching gloves & hat. She looked adorable & did much better than Jake on skates.
• The kids had their Valentine's Day parties at school. They enjoyed giving and receiving lots of Valentine's and candy. They played games and had snacks at their parties too.
• Scott and I went out with friends for Valentine's Day. We saw the movie Taken (it was great) and went to dinner and then out for a few drinks. We had a nice time.
• Scott and Jake are working on Jake's Pinewood Derby car. The derby is in a couple of weeks and they are actually starting early for once! This will be the last car that they make, Jake has decided not to do Scouts next year. That is fine since his plate is full with football, soccer, baseball and basketball.
• Jake took in a UNI basketball game last week. He loves going to UNI events.
• Jake had his music concert/musical for school. My mom was able to come see his big performance. The musical was wonderful.
• This week brings: friend day at dance (Allie is bringing Jordyn), Cub Scout banquet, conferences for both kids, religion class, dentist appts, no school on Thursday/Friday and a quiet weekend.
  
  Allie & Jake at the ice skating rink.
  The Scouts take a break from ice skating (Aidan, Jake, Paul, Sam & Will)
  Jake on skates.
  

Jake & Nicholas

Adam & Jake

Allie at the Valentine's party

Allie & Morgan

Jake at his concert

Jake & Paul at the concert

Jake singing during his concert.

Jake at a Scout meeting.

My niece & nephews at my party (Drew, Allie, Ben, Maddie & Jake)
Allie at the rink.

I LOVE

I am copying the idea for this entry from my friend Stacy. In honor of Valentine's Day, here are the things I love....

• I love my husband and 2 beautiful kids.
• I love my parents.
• I love my siblings & their families.
• I love my grandmother. I miss my grandfather.
• I love how smart and kind Jake is. I love his love for sports.
• I love how Allie wants to be just like me. I love the way she says things, she is funny.
• I love Grand Mound & the home I grew up in. There is something about being in Grand Mound that makes me feel good.
• I love my house & the memories we are making for our kids.
• I love the memories of my childhood with my friends in my small little town.
• I love remembering my grandparent's house & the time spent with my cousins in the basement.
• I love shrimp (but I think an allergy has started, so I can't love it anymore).
• I love chocolate.
• I love to shop.
• I love Christmas & the 4th of July. No other holidays compare.
• I love my flannel pants & fleece sweatshirts.
• I love summer.
• I love hot dogs on the grill
• I love having a beer with good friends on my patio.
• I love working or volunteering at Hansen. The staff & the kids are wonderful.
• I love spending time with my family. They are my rock & often my comedy relief.
• I love spending hours on the phone with Kim, Mandy or mom.
• I love hearing Drew giggle at me.
• I love to tease Ben about sharing his food with me (the answer is always no).
• I love watching Maddie play...she is such a girly girl.
• I love the stupid text messages my brothers send me. I laugh out loud at them.
• I love it when my dad calls me. He never means to, it is usually an accident because he can't see to dial his phone. That makes me laugh.
• I love the relationship my parents have with my kids. My kids adore them & can't wait to visit. They allow them to do things that I don't let them do & they spend quality time doing what the kids want. My kids are SO lucky!
• I love Facebook.
• I love Diet Dr. Pepper.
• I love flip flops.
• I love purple.
• I love UNI football.
• I love watching my kids in their activities. I am so proud of them.
• I love to travel & wish there was more time to go places (we are going to Florida in March).
• I love to laugh. There is no one funnier than my dad (my mom probably disagrees).
• I love the movie the Wizard of Oz.
• I love the show Survivor, yes I admit it! I also love reruns of Friends and Little House on the Prairie & my latest find reruns of Brady Bunch.
• I love it when my house it clean & my laundry is done.
• I love to organize things. I own a label maker & love it.
• I love living in Iowa, most of the time.
• I love my blog & the book that I had made out of my 2007 entries (I'm working on 2008's book).
• I love my life & am probably one of the luckiest people alive. I have a wonderful family, awesome friends, a great home, good health & very few worries. Does it get much better than that??

Happy Valentine's Day to all!

25 RANDOM THINGS

I did this on Facebook & thought it would be fun to post it on my blog....

1. I am the oldest child.
2. My kids are named after last names in our family (Jacob after my Great Grandparents, the Jacobs & Allie after Scott's grandparent's the Allison's)
3. I hate pig tails.
4. I ashamed to admit that I LOVE Survivor.
5. At about 30 years old I learned to finally eat Chinese food...I can't believe I missed it all those years??
6. I am sarcastic.
7. I hate feet.
8. I have texture issues. I don't like really dry things, they freak me out.
9. I don't like Thanksgiving. I love the day after.
10. I HATE pigtails.
11. I LOVE the 4th of July, almost more than Christmas.
12. I am a volunteer o holic. It makes me feel good to volunteer.
13. I am a HUGE believer in YOU staying out of my personal space unless you are invited in...don't hug me!
14. I am slightly addicted to Facebook, but who isn't?
15. I have a BA in Psych with a minor in Criminology. Really using that degree!
16. I used to be a bill collector & actully knocked on people's doors to get them to pay me...can you say stupid???
17. I worked at Applebee's for years.
18. I love it when someone trips or falls down...that is funny!
19. I can't say no to chocolate.
20. My hands swell when I go into certain shops that have lots of lotions/candles. I think I'm allergic to something.
21. I've never mowed a lawn.
22. I love roller coasters, but hate twirly rides.
23. My son was born exactly 8 years after my hubby & I started dating & exactly 5 years after he proposed!
24. I am scared of something happening to my parents, but even more scared about something happening to my kids.
25. I have an irrational fear of snakes.

EAR INFECTION

Allie woke up this morning with no fever & no headache, but now an ear ache. I decided to run her to the doc to see what was up. She's NEVER complained of ear aches in the past, just everything else. So, I made an appointment & left work to get her to the doc. The doc checked her little ears & sure enough, an ear infection had been the culprit of our weekend illness. I was given a prescription, but told not to fill it until tomorrow afternoon. Say what? The new thought is to wait & see if the child's body can fight off the infection itself without the help of the Rx. This is only for kids over 2 though & the Rx should be filled if the symptoms are still there 48 hours later. I was pretty skeptical, although I'm not sure why, Allie has never had an ear infection & Jake only had 1 or 2 when he was a baby so how would I know the treatment protocol? I checked on Allie shortly after lunch to see how the ear was feeling & she said great! She could now hear & it didn't feel like her ear had someone pushing on it. Hmmmm....I'm guessing that the doc was right!

THIS WEEK

So, another week has come & gone. It seemed to drag on & on. Probably because this is the first 5 day work week without any snowdays, late starts, early outs or a holiday since well before Christmas.

Jake went to the hockey game & spent the night with his friend Adam last night. Sounds like they had a great time. Allie had her friend Jordyn sleep over. They had a lot of fun & I heard giggling well into the night & early this morning. This afternoon, Allie said she didn't feel well. For those that know Allie, know she is full of drama & I figured she was just tired (see where this is going?). So, I drug her out to lunch with my friend & her kids. When we got home, she begged me to take her temp & guess what? She had a temp of 101.5! Oops! She went right to bed & hasn't moved since. I felt pretty bad about not believing her.

On the calendar this week, dance for Allie, subbing all week for me, Allie's 1/2 b-day (she will bring treats to school since her b-day is in the summer), Religion class, the Giving Tree goes up for PTA, Jake's school concert/play & a visit from my mom.

SLEDDING

I took the kids sledding right after school on Thursday. It was a gorgeous 35+ degrees with no wind, perfect weather to be outside playing in the snow.

What else went on this week?? I subbed all week. Allie had dance, a Scout meeting & she has been out selling cookies like a mad woman. She met her goal & has adjusted it for a new goal! Jake had a Scout meeting, which was a tour of the police station. We had PJ day at school & a Student Council bake sale too. Since both kids are on Student Council, I had to make 96 chocolate chip cookies. If I never see another cookie, it will be too soon!

We have no plans for the weekend. I hope to get the house cleaned & sneak in a trip to the store before heading back to work/school on Monday.


Allie & her friend Olivia
Allie

Allie attempting the ramp

Jake

Jake on the board

SNOW DAYS

So, we had school called off because of the snow & extreme cold for 3 days last week (Wednesday-Friday). We then had the weekend off & now Martin Luther King Day too. We will have been off for 6 days straight. What did we do???

I spent all of the mornings getting chores done around the house. Once lunchtime hit, the kids & I dragged ourselves through at least 1-2 feet of snow (no kidding) & wind chills of -35 degrees (give or take several degrees) over to the neighbor's house each day. We enjoyed lunch, played Wii, played Scattagories, laughed a tons & gabbed. Each day there were different people there & each day was a TON of fun. The kids had a wonderful time & are wishing for another snow day on Tuesday!

Jake had friends spend the night on Friday to celebrate his b-day. He had his best buds (& neighbor boys) sleep over. I took the kids to see "Bedtime Stories" with Adam Sandler, it was a hit. We ordered OP pizza & they had tons of other snacks too. They spent most of the evening playing Wii, watching TV, wrestling, eating & doing boy things (think like a 9 year old boy).

On Saturday, we met friends and went to lunch at Carlos, then off to see "Mall Cop". The kids thought that movie was really funny & it was nice to be out and about again after sticking close to home for several days.

This week brings: lunch with friends, dance, Daisy's, Cub Scouts, Religion & I'm sure other things that I've forgotten. I am down to sub 4 more weeks. Yes, I've been there since mid-November. I am enjoying the kids so much, I'll miss them terribly when I'm done.

The neighbor boys: Paul, Jake, Adam & Ben

IT'S FREAKIN' COLD!

Yes, Iowa has been hit with some Arctic crap which is making it colder here than in Alaska. The actual air temp this morning was -20 and the once the wind chill was factored in, get this....it was -45. Say what? That's stinkin' cold!

SO...school is cancelled today due to the extreme cold temps. Now, I'm stuck in this house with 2 kids that are sick of each other & fighting. They are sick of the Wii, sick of TV, sick of movies, sick of playing with their toys & pretty much ready ready to go back to school. In fact, when I told them no school this morning, they both went "awwwww, we wanted to go!" That's just sad!Yeah, it's bad here!

Just think in about 6 months, I'll be complaining about the heat index of 100+ or something. Remind me of that in July!

LAST WEEK & THIS WEEK

We went back to school after 2+ long weeks off for Christmas break. It took us awhile to get back into the swing of our "normal" schedules, but we are there now! Here's a recap:

Monday: After a late start, we went back to school, back to long term subbing, back to dance. Jake started his week long computer camp, which was held at school. All 3rd graders participated & learned to type among other things. I was able to volunteer off & on throughout the week.

Tuesday: a quiet day, which we needed!

Wednesday: back to babysitting after school. A couple of other neighbor kids showed up too...

Thursday: I had to make hot chocolate for 23 3rd graders for computer camp. I didn't burn anyone!!

Friday: Allie found out she was on Student Council this semester. She's really excited. Scott & I went to dinner with our neighbors. We had an awful dinner, but a great time with our friends. We stayed out WAY too late!

Saturday: All of my siblings and their families came for a weekend of fun. We hung out, ate too much, had drinks and played a lot of Wii. We had a small Wii mishap. My brother Will lost control of the Wii remote & flung it into the fireplace. Fortunately, it just caused a small dent & nothing was broken. It was pretty funny after it was all said & done.

Sunday: Jake turned 9. We had a family party for him. All he wanted for his b-day was UnderArmor clothes & a DS. He got the clothes from us & Uncle Will. He got cash & gift cards from everyone else & was able to buy his DS & a game. Talk about being excited! We also got to eat dinner at his choice...Carlos O Kelley's.

This week: dance & Scout were cancelled due to a blizzard on Monday & we had an early out. I had a PTA meeting last night. School was cancelled today due to the 7 inches of snow we got. I am still subbing all week & potentially for a long, long while. Jake is having his best buds over on Friday for a sleepover/movie. It is bitterly cold & doesn't look to get warmer until the weekend. UGH!

Jake with his b-day cake
Jake with his new UnderArmor Panthers tee


Jake's class during computer camp

The "big momma" crayfish from Jake's classroom. It's tail is folded under...it is bigger than it looks. I think it is a lobster :)

The kids playing Wii on New Year's.

HAPPY 9th BIRTHDAY JAKE!

My little boy is 9 years old. I can't believe it. I wonder where the time went?

• Wasn't it just yesterday I met you for the first time? It was love at first sight.


• Wasn't it just yesterday when we brought your home from the hospital & I couldn't sleep because I thought something would happen to you.


• Wasn't it just yesterday when you were only happy when you were in a diaper? You hated clothes, you were too hot.


• Wasn't it just yesterday when your favorite toy was a stuffed chicken that Aunt Mandy gave you?


• Wasn't it just yesterday when you dug in your 1st birthday cake?


• Wasn't it just yesterday when Allie was born? You were obsessed with her eyes and tried to poke them!


• Wasn't it just yesterday when you called Uncle Michael Paco and Nana Terri Banana?


• Wasn't it just yesterday when you were obsessed with Buzz Lightyear, Spiderman & Batman?


• Wasn't it just yesterday when you couldn't get enough information about dinosaurs, weather & presidents?


• Wasn't it just yesterday when it took like 4 nurses to hold you down to get your Kindergarten shots?


• Wasn't it just yesterday when you started preschool with Mrs. Sherer? Kindergarten with Miss Pins? 1st grade with Mrs. Wyckoff? 2nd grade with Mr. Wagner?


• Wasn't it just yesterday when you met your best friends Paul, Ben & Adam?


• Wasn't it just yesterday when you learned to ride a bike?


• Wasn't it just yesterday when you ran your 1st mile? Played your 1st soccer, football, baseball & basketball games? Took your 1st swimming lesson?

The time will keep flying by...before long, you'll be going to high school, driving, dating, graduating and so on. While I am SO excited to be with your during these milestones, but I wish time would slow down.

I love you Jacob!

PS...I'll post pictures & details about last week later :)

DUE DATE

Nine years ago today I was "due" to have Jacob. I can remember how uncomfortable I was. I was swollen & huge. I couldn't wear my rings or real shoes. I had to wear sandals with an adjustable strap & socks. Sandals in winter because you have to is no fun. I remember thinking all day long that I'd be going into labor any minute... YEAH RIGHT....I didn't have my lovely boy until January 11th...5 days later.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Hello 2009! Where the heck did 2008 go? We had a wonderful year! Jake started 3rd grade and Allie started 1st. Allie learned to ride a bike. Jake scored several goals in soccer & TD's in football. Allie had 2 dance recitals. Our summer was wonderful. Both kids had wonderful conferences. Scott was promoted. We took 2 wonderful mini vacations. We spent lots of time with family and friends. We are all healthy. Does the year really get much better?

We spent this past week getting the house back in order. The Christmas stuff is packed away until next year. Most of the closets, drawers and cupboards were re-organized & we have lots to donate to Good Will. The vac has been run, floors mopped, laundry is caught up & we have spent tons of time together. Our newest family past time has become playing Mario Kart on the Wii. Hands down, I am the worst...it is still fun & the kids try to help old mom out. They even cheer for me when I don't end up last! Such sweet kids!

We go back to school on Monday. It's time. I am subbing the next 2 weeks. I have been in the same classroom with 2 boys since before Thanksgiving. I'm really going to miss them when I'm done. Allie has enjoyed having me in the classroom right next to her's. Jake is around the corner & pops in to say hi too!

Jake's b-day is in a week. I changed the border early to reflect that. He'll be 9! Hard to believe. We are having family here for a party next weekend. My siblings are coming up on Friday/Saturday for the weekend. I can't wait to hang out with them. What a perfect end to what I assume will be a hectic week as we get back into the groove of school, work & our extra activities.

FISCHER CHRISTMAS

The kids & I hitched a ride with my sister on Friday & were able to spend a few days with my family before Scott came to get us & celebrate Christmas on Sunday.

On Friday night, we ordered pizza & played games at my parent's house. My grandmother joined us & we were able to visit with her awhile.

On Saturday, mom & I shopped for a bit then Dad ran the kids & me to Kim & Michael's house. We hung out there for awhile before Kim & I hit the mall & Target for some bargains. Scott joined us that night after a very long trip. The roads got bad while he was on his way. I couldn't wait for him to walk through the door.

On Sunday, we celebrated Christmas. We had a wonderful brunch at Kim & Michael's. Everyone pitched in and made food. We opened gifts & played a fun present game that the kids love. We had a wonderful time! On the way home, we stopped by a mall so that the kids could pick out something since they had money burning a hole in their pocket. We also ate at our favorite restaurant, Granite City before heading home. I was ready to get home!


I spent yesterday taking down Christmas decorations, doing laundry & running the vac. Today I hope to finish cleaning & organize the kid's rooms. I'd love to tackle other closets, cupboards & drawers too...we'll see! No plans for NY Eve & looks like football watching on NY Day.


Jake & Drew
Nana, Papa & their grandkids (Ben, Allie, Jake, Maddie & Drew)
The cousins (Drew, Maddie, Jake, Allie & Ben)
My family

The whole Fischer clan: (front) Jake, Ben, Allie (middle) Drew, Kim, Mom, Me, Mandy & Maddie (back) Michael, Mike, Will, Dad, Scott

Allie & her new toy
Me & Al

Michael & Al

Kim & Al

CHRISTMAS EVE & CHRISTMAS DAY

We had a fabulous Christmas! We spent Christmas Eve here at home, just the four of us. It was really nice. We had a delicious steak dinner, watched Elf & got ready for Santa's arrival. We read our usual Christmas stories & left milk & cookies out for the big guy.

The kids woke up shortly before 7:00 ready to see what they got. The had stockings filled to the brim & lots of other things left under the tree by Santa. Jake got his IPOD & his video games that he asked for. Allie got her easel & blendy pens that she wanted. Both got lots of other things from Santa as well.

After looking over Santa's gifts, we opened gifts from each other. I got my pink IPOD from the kids & Scott. I love it. The kids also made some really neat ornaments at school for me. The kids got lots of new clothes & a few other things from us. They also exchanged gift between each other & loved what the other one picked out.

Once gifts were over, we had a brunch & waited for my sister, her kids & my parents to arrive. We had munchies/snacks with them & played lots of board games & some video games too. It was a great day!

The day after Christmas, the girls went bargain shopping while Papa stayed home with the kids. Once we were done shopping, the kids & I hopped into Mandy's car & rode back to my parent's house to spend some time with them until our family Christmas on Sunday. I'll post about the weekend later.

Jake with the ball that Allie got him.

Allie with the new Barbies that Jake got her.

Our stocking are filled

Here's the stash that Santa left. He tends to go a bit overboard!

The kids leaving cookies out for Santa.

The kids by the tree.

Jake frosting cookies on Xmas Eve.

Allie with Santa (Jake refused to sit with Santa).

12 DAYS OF DECEMBER

The kid's music teacher taught the kids a new version of the 12 Days of Christmas. They sang it at an all school sing along last week. The entire school was really into it & it was SO cute. Here are the words starting at day 12 (to the tune of the the 12 Days of Christmas).

On the 12th day of December a student said to me:
Bet your gonna miss me.
Will we watch a movie?
I forgot my homework.
He threw a snowball.
There's a snowstorm coming.
School should be cancelled.
Will we get out early?
Is it recess yet?
Dr. Reid is coming.
Am I in trouble?
I lost my mitten...
and when is the class party?

FAIRFIELD CHRISTMAS

We went to Fairfield to visit Scott's family & celebrate Christmas. We drove through a blizzard to get there & the roads were awful. We had a nice time catching up with his sisters from Texas & Kansas, we don't get to see them except once year or so. The kids enjoyed playing with their cousins too. We stayed up too late, ate great food, had good conversations & an overall nice time.

The kids playing with a gift Jake received (Nerf Dart Tag)
Alex, Jake & Lucas

Maddie & Allie

SANTA?


I am pretty sure that Jake's doesn't believe in Santa anymore. He refused to sit with Santa & get his picture taken. He reluctantly wrote him a letter & we mailed it at the mall. Today, he got a reply to his letter...he rolled his eyes & grinned slyly as he read it. He said "yea, right it came from the North Pole".

Why does he have to grow up??

I HATE SNOW!

Yes, I hate snow. I know, I live in Iowa...get over it! I can't. We got (unofficially) about 12 inches of snow from about 10 pm last night to 7 am this morning. Snow ruins fun. No school on the last day before our holiday break. No holiday party for the kids. No "see you next year" jokes from the kids as they leave. No caroling at the hospital for Allie's class. No frosting gingerbread cookies at school. No fun!

Did I mention I hate snow?? I hear more is coming tomorrow, then comes wind with "ground like blizzards". What the heck? When did I move from Iowa to the North Pole?

TRADITIONS

As Allie & were putting up our Christmas decorations, I started thinking about traditions. We have lots of traditions in our family. Some are new & started when the kids were born. Others date back many years to my childhood or even further. Here are some of my favorite Christmas traditions:

• Putting up our Christmas trees and other decorations on or a day before Thanksgiving.
• The gold angels that float when the candles below are lit. This was always on my grandma Marge's desk when I was a child. Several years back, she passed it onto me to share with my children.
• Reading Twas the Night Before Christmas to my kids before bed on Christmas Eve.
• Black Friday shopping with Mandy & Kim. Oh what fun we have!
• Enormous stocking for Santa fill. My mom quilted the stockings for us. They are beautiful. The oversized stocking came from Scott's childhood.
• Waking up on Christmas morning in my bed & waiting for the kids to wake up & see what Santa left for them. They have TONS of unwrapped gifts waiting under the tree from Santa. They also have a few from us.
• The star on top of my Christmas tree. Jake picked this out when he was about 2. It isn't pretty, but I love it.
• Watching Elf & A Christmas Story with the kids.
• Reading the kids Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree. My mom read that book to me when I was little.
• My sentimental tree. I have ornaments that the kids made over the year, I have ornaments that adorned my mom's tree when I was growing up & even a few from my grandmother's tree. I love that tree!
• My Hallmark ornaments. I have the "mom" ornament from every year since I became a mom. I also have TONS of Wizard of Oz ornaments and many other.
• I love all of the holiday baking that I do. Many of the recipes are ones that my mom used to make for us & many came from my grandmother, aunts or other relatives over the years.
• Setting cookies out for Santa on my plate that reads "Cookies for Santa" and leaving him milk in my mug that reads "Cocoa for Santa". What a great gift from my dear friend Cris.
• My Christmas CD's. We play them when we bake.
• I love my white ceramic tree with the colored bulbs. My mom & most of my aunts had similar ones in their houses as I grew up. I knew I wanted one for my kids to love too. My grandma Dot gave me one for my bridal shower. I love that thing & now my kids do too!
• Appetizers on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day & watching a Christmas movie together.
• The old broken Rudolph stuffed toy & Santa candle. Those were always on the end table at my mom's house. She says they were from her childhood. Mom told me she is ready to hand those down to me this year! I can't wait!!
• Opening just 1 gift on Christmas Eve (usually the kids open their new PJ's).
• Steak & shrimp either on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.
• Being with family. We usually spend Christmas Eve/Day here at our house & we really enjoy that. Sometimes my parents or siblings join us, other times it is just us. We travel to our extended family the weekend before & the weekend after to celebrate Christmas too.

I am glad I am able to share these traditions, old and new, with my children. I can't wait to see what traditions they continue with their families & the new things they add!

TOYS FOR TOTS

Jake & his friend Paul had a joint b-day party last weekend at the UNI pool (Paul's b-day is in October & Jake's in January). They were allowed to invite about 40-50 kids (capacity of the pool). They opted to donate their gifts to Toys for Tots. I was pretty proud of them!

Jake & a couple of the guys.
Jake & Paul with their donations.

The whole group!

PERSUASIVE LETTER

Jake had to write a persuasive letter to me. Here it is:

Dear Mom and Dad,

I know you think I'm a very cool third grader. Do you know what would make me even cooler? An i-pod.

I need an i-pod, do you know why? Do you know how loud my CD player is? An i-pod is silent. It comes with headphones so I can only hear my music. I can also download my music for less money than buying a CD. Did you know you can put math games on an i-pod? I can get better at math facts. An i-pod can keep me busy in the car on long trips. Don't forget, my MP3 player is broken, an i-pod can replace it.

If you buy me an i-pod, I will take good care of it. I'll share it with my sister. I will always ask permission to use my i-pod. I will keep the volume low so I don't ruin my hearing. I will help pay for the music and games we download.

Thank you for considering this. I would really like an i-pod.

Love,
Jacob Grinstead

SANTA LETTERS

The kids wrote their Santa letters today. Here they are...copied JUST like they wrote them. If you think like a 1st grader, you will be able to read Allie's...also HSM stands for High School Musical and HM stands for Hannah Montana...again think like a 1st grader.:


Dear Santa,

I would like for christmis:

1. an esill
2. blendy pens
3. HSM prom dalls
4. the pink flying pone
5. HM been bags
6. my famlly to have a good christmis

Love,

Allie

Dear Santa,

I would like an i-pod nano or a i-pod touch and I would like Madden 09, NCAA 09, FIFA 09 and NHL 09. I sometimes treated people unfairly, but I've been fine.

Love,

Jacob T. Grinstead

HALF WAY THERE

Jake & I were talking this morning about his upcoming 9th birthday in January. He was talking about how soon he'll be a teenager (GOD) and about how when he's 10, he won't be 1 number anymore. Out of no where, he looked at me and said "When I turn 9, I'm half way to being a grown up". OUCH!! He's right, he'll be halfway to 18 years old! Where did the time go??? And why can't it slow down????

DEAR SANTA

I got this from my sister in law & think it is too funny not to share!

Dear Santa,

I've been a good mom all year. I've fed, cleaned and cuddled my children on demand, visited the doctor's office more than my own doctor, sold sixty-two cases of candy bars to raise money to plant a shade tree on the school playground. I was hoping you could spread my list out -- over several Christmases. Since I had to write this letter with my son's red crayon, on the back of a receipt in the laundry room between cycles; and who knows when I'll find any more free time in the next 18 years, so now - - *** Here are my Christmas wishes ***

* I'd like a pair of legs that don't ache (-in any color, except purple, which I already have) and arms that don't hurt or flap in the breeze; but are strong enough to pull my screaming child out of the candy aisle in the grocery store.

* I'd also like a waist, since I lost mine somewhere in the seventh month of my last pregnancy.

* If you're hauling big-ticket items this year, I'd like fingerprint resistant windows and a radio that only plays adult music; a television that doesn't broadcast any programs containing talking animals; and a refrigerator with a secret compartment behind the crisper where I can hide to talk on the phone.

* On the practical side, I could use a talking doll that says, 'Yes, Mommy' to boost my parental confidence, along with two kids who don't fight and three pairs of jeans that will zip all the way up without the use of power tools.

* I could also use a recording of Tibetan monks chanting, 'Don't eat in the living room' and 'Take your hands off your brother,' because my voice seems to be just out of my children's hearing range and can only be heard by the dog.

*If it's too late to find any of these products, I'd settle for enough time to brush my teeth and comb my hair in the same morning, or the luxury of eating food warmer than room temperature without it being served in a Styrofoam container.

*If you don't mind, I could also use a few miracles to brighten the holiday season. Would it be too much trouble to declare ketchup a vegetable? It will clear my conscience immensely.

*It would be helpful if you could coerce my children to help around the house without demanding payment as if they were the bosses of an organized crime family.

Well, the buzzer on the dryer is ringing, and my son saw my feet under the laundry room door. I think he wants his red crayon back.

Have a safe trip Santa, and remember to leave your wet boots by the door, and come in and dry off, so you don't catch cold. Help yourself to cookies on the table, but don't eat too many or leave crumbs on the carpet.

Yours always with love and appreciation,
A Mom

P.S. One more thing . . You can cancel all my requests, if you can keep my children 'young' enough to believe in Santa. . . .