God Has a Way

God always has a way of slowing you down when the busyness of life overtakes you. This week, we have been slowed way down due to illness.

On Monday morning, I got that call from the school that all parents dread "Your child is running a fever. Please come pick her up." So off I go to the school to pick up Miss Emily who was coughing and running a low-grade fever.

Today was Mike's turn to stay home with Emily. From what I gather, they played Wii and watched TV most of the day. If Emily is still running a fever tomorrow, it will be my turn to stay home with her again.

Fortunately for Emily (and me, too), the field trip to the punkin' patch was postponed due to predicted stormy weather tomorrow. We'll go next Wednesday. At least she is not missing out on her first field trip!

Continuing our slowdown this week, Emily and I will be missing Cubbies tomorrow night. We don't want to spread germs around to a bunch of other little kids and Emily will need to get more good rest tomorrow night anyway.

I'm hopeful that Emily will be feeling better in time for our trip this weekend and that I won't catch what she has. I would hate to miss our trip, but I don't want to get anyone else sick either.

Only time will tell, but God has a way ...

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Way Behind and A(nother) Busy Week

I'm sorry to admit that I'm way behind on blog updates. I still need to tell you about my new gift to myself, my new project, and my fall flowers.

But I'm not going to talk about any of those things. Instead, I'm going to talk about colors. My little Emily loves to color. I bought her a box of 48 crayons this weekend and she has been busy coloring ever since. Scratch that .. WE have been busy coloring ever since. She likes to sit up on the arm of my chair and we color together.

I have tried to get her to keep the crayons in the box when not in use, but so far that has not happened. I have been finding them stuck down the side of my chair, on the floor, in my purse ... you get the idea.


Football Saturday

In case you didn't know, this weekend was the Red River Rivalry/OU-Texas weekend. We chose not to go down to Dallas, but we had a party at home instead. We ate Little Smokies, tortilla roll-ups, chips and Ro-tel dip, and coconut cream pie. Yum!

After lunch, Emily and I took a nap and so Football Saturday was over for us. Not for Mike, of course.


More Firsts

This week, we're going to have more "Firsts" at Emily's school. We'll have our first Field Trip to the punkin' patch followed by our first Parent-Teacher Conference. In many ways, I feel very unprepared for all these new firsts in the world of school children. Who am I to be making decisions for another human being? Me, and only by the grace of God!

I know we're going to have a blast though!

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Fall Break

This Thursday and Friday is Fall Break for Emily. Unbelievably, it's been nine weeks since the start of the school year. I was noticing this last night while I was signing Emily's Monday Folder for school. I've signed it nine times already!

Along with the break from school, this week is also a break from AWANA Cubbies. We'll "celebrate" by coming straight home from work and resting. That sounds good to me!

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Chubby Cubby and his Five Feisty Friends

Tonight at Awana Cubbies, we had five children in our class. As is the case every week this year, we only had one girl. We have one boy who is often very feisty and one girl who is often very loud. Anyway, it's a good group of kids.

Tonight for snack, we had apples and cereal. A bit of an odd combination, but I digress ...

Somehow, I was in charge of cutting up the apples. All of our kids wanted the peeling off the apples .. of course. So I was going to be fancy and cut the apples through the middle to make a star shape on the inside. And in perfect Jennifer style, I cut my finger with the knife on the very first slice.

And the moral of this story is: Do not give a Cubbies teacher a sharp knife. Ever never never!

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What's for lunch?

For the last few weeks, Mike has been packing Emily's lunch for school each morning. He usually fixes her a sandwich with some string cheese and fruit or maybe carrots or something. Sometimes she eats (or throws away?) most of it. Sometimes she does not.

Yesterday, she came home with about 75% of her sandwich, all of her cheese, and all of her fruit still in her lunch box. Mike asked her about this and she said that she did not want Daddy fixing her lunch any more. She said that she wanted to eat in the cafeteria.

So this morning we sent Emily to school with lunch money instead of a lunch box.

This afternoon, she came home and said that she ate a hot dog and coleslaw for lunch. She said her teacher said "Oh Emily, you ate all your lunch!" I don't know if I believe that part, but I guess we'll go with this new lunch plan for now.

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Oh Those Rainy Days

Yesterday was one of those rainy and cool days. After church, we went to lunch at Ted's. Emily wanted to go there so that we could get a gift card for her teacher for her birthday. I really thought Emily would choose to get a gift card from Sonic, but she surprised me and said Ted's. She said her teacher really likes Ted's. All throughout lunch, Emily was whispering in my ear about her teacher. I was not sure if she thought she saw her teacher there or she was just excited to be getting her a gift. After about the 150th time, I finally decided that she was probably just excited.

After lunch, we had to go to the store and run some errands in town then we headed home for a nap.

And after nap, it was time for one of our favorite rainy day activities - baking cookies. I don't know if you would call it a tradition, but I have many fond memories of baking cookies on rainy days.

And Emily wanted to help with everything ...

Unwrapping the butter

Cracking the eggs (apologies to whomever gets the cookies with the shells in it)

And, of course, licking the beaters (notice her methodical licking style)



It's GOOD stuff!

Emily told me to stop taking her picture while she was eating. She was busy! (Ha!)

Those cookies were mighty fine. We put chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, and pecans in them.

And did you notice my new Mickey Mouse measuring cups??? My mother-in-law brought these home for me from Disney World. They are SO cute.

We love rainy days.

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Shelfishly

This weekend, Mike helped me put up some shelves that I bought a couple weeks ago. (Hobby Lobby, 50% off - Score!) I wanted something to go over the TV since we are not ready to purchase an entertainment center for our new TV yet. We were able to get one side of each shelf into a stud in the wall. The other side was hung using a wall anchor.




We also hung a small shelf by the clock. I want to put some pictures and maybe some greenery on the shelves, but I haven't gotten that far yet.

I will admit that this was a multi-day project for us. Each shelf came with a pattern that I cut out and taped onto the wall to try different positions for the shelves. After I moved them all around several times, I finally decided on a basic configuration. Then I had to identify the studs. I knew I wanted at least one end in the studs for stability so I had to change my configuration based on where the studs were located.

After I located the studs, I had to level the shelves. During this process, one of the paper patterns ripped and so I had to "make do" and still try to get the thing level. After I did all this, I asked Mike to check (and adjust) the level.

I followed the mantra "Level twice, screw once." Even with this, one of the shelves ended up un-level when it was installed on the wall. Argh! We finally got that one worked out. I would say it was smooth sailing, but really it was not.'

But ... all's well that ends well.

So what do you think? I think it will look a lot better when I get something on the shelves.

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Our First Fundraiser

A couple weeks ago, we participated in our first fundraiser at Emily's school. We sold Blue & Gold Sausage, but only to ourselves. With everything else going on, I just didn't feel like we could do more than that right now.

Our Blue & Gold was delivered to the school today. Mike's mom and dad were nice enough to pick up our order. Mike stopped by the store and picked up a few other items that we needed and we cooked breakfast for supper.

We had biscuits with sausage gravy, fluffy scrambled eggs, sausage patties and thick cut bacon (also a Blue & Gold item). I didn't care much for the gravy, but Mike said it had a good flavor. I also overcooked the bacon a bit, but it was still pretty good.


Home Room Mother

This week, we also got an email from Emily's teacher thanking someone else for "agreeing" to be the home room mother. I will admit that I was a little disappointed since I expressed interest in doing that on Meet the Teacher Night back in August and nothing had been said about it since then. Oh well, I will still be there and I will still help. I think it's just a rookie parenting expectation that turn out the way I had hoped.


More Firsts

It looks like October is shaping up to be a busy month for us. We have a preschool Sunday School carnival at church. Then we have fall break then our first field trip at school followed by our first parent/teacher conference. We also have our first school party of the year and a fall carnival at the school AND a fall carnival at church.


Last, but Not Least ...

And last, but very importantly, Emily and I will be going to visit my sister one weekend in October. It's our annual Girls Weekend and shopping trip. Emily and I are very excited to be going to spend some time with my sister and brother-in-law and my mom.


October has not even started and I'm already exhausted! Ha!

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Tick Tock Clock

This afternoon, we got Emily settled for her nap and laid down for a bit ourselves. We have a monitor in our bedroom so we listened to her playing and talking and singing for a long while. Eventually, she started calling "Daaaaaddy ... Daaaaady ... Daddy .. Daddy .. Daddy ...".

Mike went into her room and told her to lay down. She didn't lay down, but started (fake) crying and fussing instead. He left her room and she started crying "I want my Mama ... I want Mama ...". I went in there to "finish the job" and get her to go to sleep. She said she didn't want to go to sleep and refused to lay down. I punished her and she finally decided to lay down.

As I turned to leave, I noticed her digital alarm clock on her dresser. It said 2:18. I told Emily that she couldn't call for me again until the first number on the clock said 3. She said she understood and I went back to my bed to begin my siesta.

I hear this strange clicking noise on the monitor and I ask Mike what he thinks that noise might be. He said "I think she's messing with her alarm clock." When he said that, I realized it did sound like she was pressing buttons on her clock.

And then she started talking ... "Say 3 ... Say 3 ... Saaay 3!" "H - o - u - r". *click click click* "M - i - n - u - t - e". *click click* Ahh! She's pushing buttons and trying to make the clock say 3!

She worked on that clock for a long time. Luckily (for her), she never got it to say 3 before it actually was 3.

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Oh What a Difference a Year Makes

Last year at this time, we went to the State Fair.

We ate some of the same food.

We played some of the same games.

But oh what a difference a year makes.

Now we're bigger.

And stronger.

And fully able to catch lots of fishies with ease.

Oh what a difference a year makes.

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The Great State Fair of Oklahoma 2009

This morning after Sunday School, we went out to the State Fair. We found something (Okay, things) for lunch, played some games, then went to see the afternoon performance of Disney on Ice.

After the show, we found us a(nother) snack and then Emily rode the Carousel with Sarah. The poppas got to ride too. Guess it's just not cool to ride rides at the fair with your mom or dad.

That was about all the fun we could handle for one day. We headed out to find the car and home we went.

I tried to nap, but Emily wanted to color. I guess you know who won.

It was a busy and fun day. We got too much sun and ate too much food, but didn't have too much fun. Fortunately, the state fair only comes to town once a year.

Until next year ... enjoy a few pictures from our fun day.

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Emily's Artwork

Emily has been doing a lot of art at school and at church.


Earlier this week, she came home and said that she had a picture that she wanted me to put on my blog. Except .. that she couldn't find it. It took her three days, but she finally found it in her dad's car tonight. And look at her beautiful Humpty Dumpty! (And you might not be able to see it, but check out her cutting skillz on Humpty.)

Then at Cubbies this week, Emily got an Adam & Eve picture, but she didn't have time to finish it that night. She's been working on it every night this week and I think it turned out really nice. I think she's coloring great for a four-year-old.

And now lets move on to the more serious art. The next item for your viewing pleasure would be "Green Eggs and Ham" ya know, Sam I Am. She said it was made with glue. It didn't look like it to me, but what do I know?

Emily has also been learning a lot of songs that go along with her lessons about colors, shapes, and letters.

I'm as round as I can be .. I can be ... I can be ...
I'm as round as I can be .. I'm a circle.

B-L-U-E spells blue,

B-L-U-E spells blue,

Hi-Ho Did you know

B-L-U-E spells blue.

The big sky's blue

The ocean is too

Hi-Ho Did you know

B-L-U-E spells blue.

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Kevin's Birthday Dinner

Tonight, we went out to dinner at Alfredo's with the fam for Kevin's birthday. Kim and Brynlee came down from Tulsa and I got to hold baby Brynlee for a few minutes. Emily was so excited and was a little fascinated with Brynlee's tiny toes.

We all had some good Mexican food and Aunt Charlene made a yummy cake.

I would be posting pictures except that I forgot to take my camera with me. The camera battery is charging in anticipation of our trip to the Oklahoma State Fair this weekend. We're going to see Disney on Ice and then maybe get some cotton candy (pink, of course).

Happy Birthday, Kevin!!! (No, he doesn't read my blog.)

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Funny Feet Day

The other week, Emily has Funny Feet Day at school in honor of Mr. F and his funny feet.


Emily was going to wear her sequined princess shoes, but they were too small. She ended up wearing her bright pink quilted shoes and her pink lacy turtle socks.

I'd say those are pretty funny feet!

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Grandparents Day

Top (l to r): Grandmother, Nanny, Aunt Pat
Bottom (l to r): Pops, Emily, and Mason

Last Friday was "Grandparents Day" at Emily's school. Emily had a lot of visitors who came to see her at school.

The school served cinnamon rolls and coffee.

Then Emily took Grandmother to her classroom to show off her desk and everything they have been working on.

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Three Colors

Pink

Purple

Pink with white edge

Brown

I mowed this darn thing down on Sunday afternoon. Then on Monday night, I looked out the kitchen window and what did I see? It's baaaack! And it's bigger than it was before. Not just bigger, but about twice as big!

I guess he told me, right?

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By The Numbers

1 - Fruit for Emily's Friendship Fruit Salad on Friday. She picked strawberries.

2 - Silly Shoes in honor of "Mr. F" and his funny feet. Friday.

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3 - Three-year-olds in Sunday School. Three teachers.

4 - Fabulous placemats complete with last supper picture, memory verse "Jesus said 'Remember me'", and lots and lots of food pictures and stickers.

1 - Loaf of bread.

3 - Little cups of water.

1 - Important Bible Lesson (Remember Jesus by loving others.)

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3 - Early-morning visitors in our backyard.

2 - Babies.

1 - Mama.



3 - Crape Myrtles.

3 - Colors.

3 - Sizes.



1 - Nice surprise. Mostly for mom. (Details coming soon.)

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3 - Days until ...

5 - Family members

1 - Airplane ride (or maybe two)

7 - Days in Florida

1 - Mouse, big ears, big smile

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3 - Days until Cubbies starts

5 - Work days until the weekend

1 - Tired girl, headed to bed.

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High Fashion

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Sunday School Bulletin Boards

Last Saturday, Cherry and I met at the church to decorate our new Sunday School room. We had two bulletin boards to decorate and the "late Sunday School" teacher had the other bulletin board.

We wanted to make sure our room looked like a Sunday School room and not a daycare room.

Our first bulletin board was so big that we split it into two sections.

The left side - We Love to Learn About God

The right side - Noah's Ark - The Animals Came Two By Two

The "fun board" - Giddy Up to Sunday School

The other end of the Cowboy Board - I'm pretty proud of our old oak tree. We're going to change it with the seasons.

I think our room turned out really cute. We are going to have a great year!!!

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Lots of Little Bits

Sorry about the lack of blog updates, we have been really busy this week.

Emily's first week of school went very well. They have been working on cutting with scissors and tracing lines. I guess that's to help get the kids ready for writing letters. And really, it's a smart idea if you ask me.

On Monday, Emily got to bring snacks for the whole class. They have a rotating snack schedule. We can bring anything we'd like as long as it's a healthy snack. Some of her examples were fruit, crackers, and gummy fruit snacks. We chose some Rice Krispie treats. Not sure if that's exactly a "healthy snack", but it's got to be at least as good as fruit snacks. Wouldn't you agree?

Despite the good first week, we've hit a few tiny bumps in the road. One day, she forgot to give her lunch money to her teacher. Another day, she forgot to bring her lunch box home from school. Today, she came home and said that the teacher knocked her down on the playground. She's fine and she said it was an accident. She didn't even tell me about it until I asked her why she had dirt all over her arms this evening.

One afternoon the school called me to ask what school district we live in. (We had requested a transfer to this school last spring.) The lady said that when we registered Emily for school, they had not submitted the transfer paperwork to the other school. It was fine and it will not prevent Emily from going to school there, but they were going to have to submit the paperwork for the transfer. Everything turned out okay, but it's never fun getting a phone call from the school!

I find that it takes a lot of time and energy to be organized for school. I am always a little worried that I am going to forget something or that something is not going to go as planned. I think most of that is just being a first-time school parent. With time, these things should get easier. At least I hope so.

We are also gearing up to begin a new year of Sunday School. I think I've mentioned before that Gary and Cherry and I are going to be teaching the three-year-old class during the early hour of Sunday School. It was really time for a change in that class and we are excited about all the things we are going to do this year.

Mike and Emily and I went to Mardel's last weekend to look around and see if they had any supplies that I needed/wanted for Sunday School. I was looking for a Bible story book that had cute pictures to go along with the stories. I found one that would work perfectly and it also had two CD's with songs that related to each of the stories. Mike also found some felt Bible story pieces that I could use to tell the story. They were sooo cute, but I thought they were too expensive.

We have already started rearranging and redecorating the classroom and we'll go up to the church early in the morning to finish up. This Sunday will be our first week with our new boys and girls. Right now, we only have four or five children in our class, but we hope to have more very soon. Emily will be moving up to Aunt Charlene and Nanny's class. I know she will enjoy this very much.

I have some new pictures to share, but that will have to be another night. For now, I'm headed to bed.

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