BACK TO SCHOOL

The kids were all surprisingly very excited for their first day back to school. Most surprising of all was Anthony's excitement over starting Kindergarten. Why, you ask? Well, because all summer long, whenever the subject of starting school would come up, he would tell me "I don't want to go to Kindergarten. I want to stay home with you forever and never, ever learn anything." As you can imagine, it did not go over well when I told him he didn't have a choice, and that he had to go. Every time we had this discussion, it ended in a knock down drag out tantrum. And honestly, toward the end of the summer I was having that tantrum right along with him out of pure frustration over the fact he couldn't seem to get over this whole you-need-to-go-to-school thing. Very frustrating.

So, like I said, I was pleasantly surprised when I dropped him off at school the first morning and didn't get any crying, yelling, or a tight vice grip on my leg while I tried leaving him there.

[black eye courtesy of his trying to "fly" off the rocking chair "just like Superman"]

As for Lucas and Ava, they were as easy as ever. In fact, they didn't even need my help getting to class and finding their desks. I followed them to their rooms anyway, tried to help get them settled in and said my tearful goodbyes. All the while they were busy getting the stuff in their desks situated and talking to friends they hadn't seen all summer. I got a quick wave, a look over their shoulder and a simple "bye Mom." I have to admit, it was a little bittersweet knowing they didn't need my help.

And lastly, my Liv Grace. This little girl started preschool today, and I cried. I cried when each and every one of my kids went off to preschool. It is so great to see them gaining new found independence, meeting new friends, and starting a new adventure in life, yet at the same time it is so sad to see them growing up, and not having them at home with me anymore.

She was just thrilled to be starting preschool. My girl was happy, smiling, and dancing around pretty much all morning, and it continued into the afternoon when I dropped her off at her new school. I was so happy to see her smiling face as I left her there.

So there you have it. The first day of school for my preschooler Liv Grace, my Kindergartner Anthony, my 2nd grader Lucas and my 3rd grader Ava. Whew.

You know, my Mom always told me, "enjoy your kids to the fullest - they will only be young once and they grow up in the blink of an eye." My eyes usually glazed over half way through her telling me this little tid-bit as I was thinking, "yah, yah, yah, they grow up, that's what happens, don't worry I won't miss any of it..." But I have to say she had a point, the years do indeed fly by, faster than I have really been prepared for. It is all so bittersweet.

I love you Ava, Lucas, Anthony, and Liv. Happy first day of school - Mama is so very proud of you all!

7

Happy Birthday to my sweet, sensitive, loving little boy....

Never, ever change my Lucas Alexander - you are truly one of a kind.

Mommy loves.

MY BOYS

Lucas loves his baby brother. He loves to comfort him when he cries, play with him when he needs attention, feed him when he is hungry, get him out of his crib after a nap.... all of it. But most of all I think he just loves holding him. ♥

Unfortunately, I am not certain how much longer he will be able to do so, being my chunky little 7 month old already weighs 20lbs. But until that day comes, I am pretty sure Lucas will be holding and taking care of his baby brother just like he always has.

MORE LITTLE GEMS FROM SCHOOL

Going through the kids' homework, artwork and other projects that they do at school is one of the highlights of my day.

I find it funny that of all occupations to choose from, he would choose to be a priest considering we never, ever go to church. And come to think about it, I wonder if he really even knows what a priest actually is. I can't believe I admitted to all that. Grandma's, if you are reading this, please forgive me.

Look closely at #7. Notice the teachers note "Oh no!" I asked Ava why she would write that - her response? "Oops. I messed up Momma. I meant to say green light, not red." Just a minor little detail, right?

When it comes to stuff such as this, they never seem to disappoint. Do they?

TOOTHFAIRY

My Lucas has had 4 lose teeth for some time now; two of which have been so very loose that I have tried to convince him to pull them out on his own. I tried explaining that when they are that loose it really doesn't hurt at all to pull them out.I tried explaining to him that if he didn't, they could fall out while he was sleeping or eating and he may not know. I tried explaining that if this did indeed happen, then he would not have the tooth/teeth to give to the tooth fairy. To my dismay, he wanted nothing to do with this whole idea. So when he came running in the door from school yesterday with a look of pure joy on his face, I was sure I was proven wrong - he had lost his tooth/teeth and actually had it/them in his possession.

Before he could get his jacket off and backpack on it's hook, he yelled out, "Mom! I finally lost my tooth!" As he opened his mouth to show me, I noticed things weren't as they should be.

Two teeth were missing. I decided to hope for the best, and believe that maybe in all of his excitement he had forgotten to mention that he had actually lost 2 teeth, not just one.

"Don't you mean you lost two teeth?"

Insert very long pause

"No. I only lost 1 tooth Mom."

CRAP.

"Hmmm. But you have two teeth missing."

"WHAT?"

As he stood there trying to put together how in the heck he could have lost another tooth and not noticed it, Ava walked up to see what all of the commotion was about.

"Open up Lucas. HAH-HAH-HAH!!! You really did lose 2 teeth - how did you NOT know that? HAH-HAH-HAH!!"

I quickly stepped in so as to stop the angry fight between brother and sister before it started, and said, "he probably swallowed it when he was eating lunch and did not even notice. No big deal. It will just come out in his poop later."

Ava found this little tid-bit quite amusing - Lucas, not so much. She laughed and laughed saying "Your tooth is going to come out in the toilet in your poop! EEEEEWWW!!" That's my Ava for you.

After coming to terms with the fact that he indeed would not be putting that second tooth under his pillow that night, he decided to make his way to the bathroom mirror to access the situation. A moment later, he walked out with his head down and very dramatically said, "I did lose two teeth. How will the tooth fairy know that I lost 2 teeth when I only have one of them? I will only get paid for one tooth! That is not fair!"

I came up with a genius idea to write the Tooth Fairy a note in order to fill her in on the situation. What can I say, I am quick on my feet like that.

I had Lucas come up with the content, I wrote it, and we both signed it. You know, to help convince the tooth fairy that we were indeed telling the truth. [Lucas was concerned she may think we were lying.]

Whew. Crisis averted.

Before tucking everyone in for the night, Lucas placed his tooth, along with the all important letter, neatly underneath his pillow and then decided he needed to go to the bathroom. 20 minutes later [the kids takes his time], he came out of the bathroom and said, "Hey Mom, I just pooped and my tooth was in it!"

Lovely.

Hoping against hope that the answer was yes, I said, "did you flush it?"

"Yep. We wrote the tooth fairy a letter, so I didn't think we needed it."

Smart little boy I have; if I do say so myself.

HOCKEY

My boys started hockey this past weekend, and I have to admit, I am not all that thrilled about them taking up this sport. It is one of those sports that pretty much consumes all of your free time with its horrible ice times, numerous practices each week, and tournaments filling up the weekends that would have otherwise been spent as a family, doing fun family things.

Another reason for my lack of being thrilled is that the Mr. was the catalyst behind this whole hockey thing. The boys? Not so much. Don't get me wrong, once the Mr. sold them on the idea, they were excited - This will be so much fun boys! I played hockey when I was young like you! You get to skate on a big rink with all kinds of other kids your age and use a stick and shoot pucks into the goals. I will even skate with you at all the practices!" Really, what 4 and 6 year old boy wouldn't be excited after hearing this?"

How the Mr. tried to sell me on the idea? He said he wanted the boys to play hockey, that it was a good sport for them to get started in at an early age, that he played hockey when he was young and he wanted the boys to have the same experience. Yada, yada, yada. All I heard was there go our weekends to do anything like head out to the cabin for the weekend, or spend a Saturday out at the zoo, or the Mall of America, or spend a lazy Sunday laying around in our pajamas watching T.V. and reading the paper.

Call me Negative Nelly, Debby Downer, whatever you choose. 'Cause I know, this sounds all sorts of selfish on my part, but it's the truth and I am all about being honest.

Anyway, Dad spent the week running around with the boys, spending a small fortune on sticks, pads, cups, mouth guards, hockey sticks, helmets, hockey bags, etc in preparation for their very first practice. The boys were over the moon excited, and of course Dad was as well, so how could I not be excited for them? This was a good thing.

Staying true to his personality, my Anthony Thomas cried and cried before getting ready for practice Saturday. "I don't wanna skate! I don't like falling. Pleeeaassse don't make me goooooo!" That soon subsided after some encouraging words from the Mr. and I, and he was ready to get suited up for practice.

A few of my Lucas...

And what do you know, both the boys loved it and can't wait to skate again next weekend.

This hockey thing may be taking up our weekends and making it pretty well impossible for us to have time together as a whole family from now until March, but I think I can live with that. The boys are going to get some much needed quality time with their Dad, doing something that makes all of them happy. It makes me happy when they are happy, and happiness is a good thing, no?

HALLOWEEN FUN

The kids took off for school this morning all dressed up and ready for their Halloween parties.

This year we have...

Thing 2 from the ever popular Dr. Seuss books. Miss Emily is Thing 1, but since they don't go to the same school Ava is without her sidekick for the day.

Einstein, who is having a hard time remembering that he indeed discovered the theory of relativity. A little bit of knowledge he needs to be able to relay to his class today during the party. [To tell you truth, I am not sure he even remotely understands what this whole theory of relativity means, but what do you expect from a 6 year old?]

And last but not least, Anthony, my little gorilla.

Sunday I will reveal pictures of Miss Liv and my baby Nathan all dressed up in their costumes. They are going to be cute. I can't wait.

SCHOOL PICTURES

School pictures forms came home in the kids' backpacks a few weeks ago. Ahhhh... school picture day. I always put way too much thought into what "package" to purchase - do I go for it and buy the big one with 1 8x10, 2 5x7's, 4 3 1/2x5's, 8 wallets, and the class picture? [Yes, I have that memorized.] Or do I go with the simple 1 5x7, 2 3 1/2x5's, 8 wallets and class picture?

If I get package #1, and they end up having messy hair, food on their face, a goofy smile, or their eyes are closed - I am out the cash and left with a whole stack of crappy pictures. Any of the aforementioned scenarios are more than likely to occur being they will no longer be in my presence once they get on that bus. They could very well get get crap all over their face from snack time and not wash it off, or snarl up their hair after wearing their hats to school, or make some goofy face for the poor camera man [who is assigned the painstaking task of photographing hundreds of kids under the age of 10]. You get it, the opportunities for them to mess up this picture without me present are endless. But if I buy package #2, and hell freezes over when they come home with the cutest darn picture I have ever laid my eyes on, I will be kicking myself for not buying more to hand out to Grandmas, Grandpas, Uncles, Aunts, friends, and complete strangers I happen to pass on the street [kidding on that one]. Whew - that was one hell of a run on sentence.

After putting much thought into this, and asking the Mr. for his input and getting "why are you putting this much thought into the kids school pictures. If they turn out, great. If they don't, toss 'em", I decided to play it safe and go the cheaper route.

And I am glad I did.

Not sure what happened here, but Ava's picture fell a bit short in the "turning out nice" category. Here she is sporting her ever popular fake smile. And for some reason there seems to be a bright circle on the tip of her nose - it almost looks as if she had it squished up against a glass wall or something. The Mr. thinks it was a goof up on the photographers part with the lighting. Whatever the case, Ava is adamant about getting her picture retaken because of this issue with how her nose looks, and because she is not satisfied with how her hair looks. How on earth could she pass the wallet sizes out to her friends when she looked like this? [Insert dramatic gasp.]

Lucas' did not turn out all that terrible, but he has a really weird look on his face. It's almost like the photographer tried to say something to make Lucas smile that he unfortunately didn't find all that funny. Go figure. And again, the lighting thing - it looks like he has a bright light from the heavens above shining down right on top of his head.

And last but not least, my Anthony Thomas. Did the photographer not have a box of those little black combs laying around? C'mon, he is photographing preschoolers for the love of God. You can't expect a 4 year old to keep his hair looking perfect from the moment he leaves the house until the afternoon hours when he has his picture taken. Nope, no way.

I guess the moral of the story here is, you get what you get. Or as my kids would say, "You get what you get and you don't have a fit." A wise little piece of advice they were all given in preschool.

From now on, I think I am going to quit beating myself up every year over what package to buy, and just go with the cheaper of the two. It only took me 5 years to come to this conclusion, but better late than never, right?

GRANDPARENTS

I love Tuesdays. Tuesdays are the one glorious day of the week that I have to myself - well almost to myself. My little Nathan bug is going to be permanently attached to me until he is 5 months old due to me being his one and only source of nourishment until that date. But one 2 month old monkey is nothing to me considering I am most often strapped down with 5 of 'em....

Anyway, the one and only reason I am able to get this day "off"? Why that would be Grandma Diane and Papa Ron. These two wonderful beings decided long ago when we first had Ava, that they wanted to have a grandparents day of sorts. One day each week that was set aside for them to spend time with their grandchildren. They asked the Mr. and I what we thought of this, and for obvious reasons, we thought it was nothing short of a fabulous idea and were more than happy with this decision of theirs.

So this is how my day off came to be. I loved them when they started 7 years ago, and I have to say I love them even more now [5 kids later] for many reasons.

On these terrific Tuesdays I get some much needed time alone to grocery shop, run to Target,and take care of Dr. appointments that I otherwise would not be able to with kids in tow. I can take a nap, or lay on the couch and [heaven forbid] actually watch a show on Tivo from start to finish - uninterrupted. I can have lunch with the Mr. at a restaurant in peace, I can go out to the Mall and do some window shopping. I can pretty much do whatever I want, and frankly, it is nothing short of pure bliss.

Enough about me and how I reap the benefits of this fabulous day, let's talk about the kids. The benefits that have come from them spending this time with their grandparents has been immeasurable. They have spent many days at Grandma and Papa's over the past 7 years playing lego's and building forts with grandpa, baking cookies, and reading books with grandma, going for walks, and even having sleepovers.

They get to do things over there that I [mean old Mom] won't let them do all that often at our house. 'Cause to tell you the truth, it is too messy, I don't have the time, or it is just a big old pain in the butt to undertake. Things like playing play-doh, finger painting, coloring with markers [Miss Liv colors all over her body so I have banned them from my house], carving pumpkins, and baking cakes, cookies, brownies and other goodies. The list goes on and on.

Just yesterday I received an email from Grandma Diane letting the kids know what fun was in store for them this Tuesday.

The Shelton Day Care will be open Tuesday, October 4th for business.

Anthony...As the oldest , wondering if you could help me bring up the Halloween decor and decorate the house in this decor. There is a new workbook purchased for you that we will work on each week. A new challenging 48 piece Toy Story awaits you, as well as an art project. Your cooking skills will be used in the making of ants on a log( the girls will help) and the making of Halloween cookies. Your green blanket is here.

Lucia and Olivia....Papa went to a garage sale recently and bought for you something quite special. A Little Tykes dollhouse with all the furniture to go with it. Grandma has washed all the pieces, I think you will enjoy this a lot. Like new. And also 4 wooden puzzlesfor you, and an art project. Should be a fun day.

Laura...Grandma has bought for you a lot of baby food so mom no longer has to bring any, even some"puffs"...

Upcoming Events...On October 12th we plan on carving pumpkins, or at least paint them.Wondering if the kids should bring their own....is that a possibility? I think they would feel special if they brought in their own. We will also be working on 3 big totes in the basement, putting our big toys in them, and cleaning out the basement.

Give-aways...Anyone want the punching inflatable hockey player.? have that to donate or give away.

Ava, Lucas...Ava, I have the Judy Blume chapter books, and others(Amelia Bedilia)when you are ready for that. Lucas, I have a Hop on Pop book here,can you read that to me?

Tuesday Menu...Turkey breast, mashed potatoes, corn ,buns , romaine salad. Surprise dessert.

Yours truly, Diane Shelton, daycare provider

Gives you a good idea as to what their Grandparents do for them, and how very much they love them, doesn't it?

I get what they do for me - giving me a day to myself, to get things done, to recharge my batteries and "take a breather" so to speak. I appreciate it more than they will ever know. But the kids are too young to really understand what they are doing for them. Little do they know, that one day they will look back at all of this "stuff" they do at Grandma and Papa's and realize that over those years they forged some really amazing memories. Memories that will stick with them for the rest of their lives.

WORRY IS MY MIDDLE NAME

I am a worrier. I worried before I had kids, I worry even more [if that is even possible] now that I have kids. I worry about everything.

I worry that they are getting enough to eat, I worry about whether the food they are eating is healthy and good enough for their little bodies, I worry about them getting snatched away from the bus stop from some nasty stranger [a bit over the top, I know], I worry about how well they are doing in school, I worry about them making friends, fitting in, and feeling like they belong, I worry about them getting hurt, picked on or bullied, and I worry about whether I am raising them well enough so that they grow up to be strong, well rounded adults. You get it, worry is my middle name.

So when they started school this year at St. Croix Prep I was a wreck. I had pulled Ava out of Lily lake in March of last year to start school there [which meant she only got 2 months of this new school stuff under her belt], and now Lucas was starting the year off there as a first grader. Everything was going to be new for them - school, classes, teachers, friends - everything. They seemed just fine with it, but it was all too much for this Mom to handle.

I sent them off on the bus for their very first day of school and much to my surprise, I did not even cry. I spent the day busying myself with household chores and playing with Anthony, Liv and Nathan. When they arrived home I didn't give them much time before I started in with the questions. "How was it?" "Do you like your teachers?" "Did you have a good day?" "How was lunch? What did you have?" "Did you make any new friends?" "What did you learn?"

They both stood their staring at me as if I were crazy as they were hit with a myriad of questions. And I guess I don't blame them, as I was acting a bit crazy. But I am a Mom, so I figure I am allowed to be crazy every once in a while. Plus, my craziness is due to the fact that I love them so damn much and want nothing but the very best for them.

Anyway, I didn't get many answers to those questions. I got a few "It was alright's", some "I don't know's"and a couple "good's". All standard I-don't-want-to-answer-your-questions-Mom answers, but that was o.k. I decided that if I were patient and kept asking as the weeks passed by I would get some answers.

Turns out those answers still did not come after 2 weeks of them being at school.

I was feeling a bit bummed that my kids did not want to fill me in on what was going on, when the Mr. offered a suggestion that could help in getting the kids to communicate with me. He suggested [ever so gently] that I stop asking them so many darn questions, give them some space, and time and when they are ready to talk, or if they feel the need to tell me something, they will.

I knew all of this deep down, but for some reason I could not help myself. Whenever the kids would come home from school, my brain would say, "leave them alone, let them have a snack, do their homework, change and go play." My mouth would say "How was it? Did you meet any new friends today, what did you learn? Tell Mom all about it!"

And let me say this is not because I am a nosy, annoying Mom who has to be all up in her kids' business. It is only because I want to know if they are doing well, and feeling happy and confident in their new surroundings. And in their every day life for that matter.

I think my lovely husband could sense I needed something to make me relax a bit. Something telling me that the kids were in fact doing well. So he emailed Lucas' teacher to find out first hand how he was doing. [Boy do I love that man.]

Hi, Deb.

Thank you for the newsletter.

How is Lucas doing? He seems very happy at his new school but he can be painfully shy in the beginning.

Do you think he is adjusting well? Is there anything we need to focus on at home?

Sincerely,

Mr. Shelton

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Hello Mr. Shelton,

I'm glad Lucas is happy. I can see a little shyness in Lucas, but not a huge amount. He participates in class and mixes well with the other kids.

In the first week, I noticed him being very observant of where things are and how things are done (like lunch, bathrooms, going from classroom to classroom, etc.). He caught on quickly, and he seems comfortable this week. We've been doing some activities to get to know each others' names, and not only is he getting to know others, others are quick to know him as well. He's the kind of boy everyone wants to be friends with. He is actually getting a little too chatty with his new friends at his table in the classroom once in awhile - that's OK.

I think Lucas is adjusting just beautifully, and by the way he has integrated with the other students, it seems like he's always been here. Thanks for checking in, and for all you do at home. I'm so glad to have you back this year!

Deb

Just what this Mama needed to hear.

After seeing this exchange, I decided to send an email to Miss Ava's teacher as well to see how she was doing.

Hi Mrs. Chamberlain -

I just thought I would check in with you to see how Ava was doing so far this year. She started out at St. Croix Prep in March of last year, so it was an adjustment for her to leave Lily Lake and all of her friends there for a new school. She seemed to do well, but was not there all that long before the school year ended. She and Keelin, who is in another class this year, seemed to connect really well last year during the short time Ava was at St. Croix prep. I know she has mentioned she was bummed that she was not in her class this year. I just wanted to make sure she was doing well both socially and academically so far. I have asked her a few times if she has made some new friends, and who she plays with, sits with at lunch, etc but she does not tell me much. I am certain she is doing just fine, but I still wanted to check in with you.

Also, Ava has been asking me to volunteer in class ever since the first day of school, so I was really bummed that I was not able to help out this Thursday. I have 3 kids still at home with me during the day that unfortunately don't permit me to have much free time to come in and volunteer. But I wanted to let you know that I do have time on Tuesdays as the kids spend that day at their Grandparents each week.

So if you ever have any volunteer opportunities that fall on a Tuesday, please think of me!!

Thanks so much, Maria Shelton

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Hi Maria!

Good to hear from you! Ava is a delight to have in our class! She is definitely on the quieter side, but she has occasionally raised her hand to answer a question and add to the discussion. She seems to be getting along really well with Mallory Whitley (I don't know if she's mentioned her to you) and a few other girls in class. Being new to a school half way through is so hard! I moved when I was in 3rd grade so I completely understand how hard it is to pick up and try to make new friends and learn the academics. Ava's academics seem to be pretty good...she's in the Saxon 2 math class with Mr. Reistad and she scored very well on her Reading NWEA test. She's keeping up with the work and activities, too!

If Ava is ever feeling overwhelmed or left out she can always come to me or Mrs. Lynch (our EA). Mrs. Lynch is the one who monitors lunch and recess so I will also talk with her about Ava's social habits and who she's hanging out with!

I hope that helps! If you have any questions please feel free to e-mail or call anytime! Have a great Monday!

Mrs. Chamberlain


Needless to say, these emails have quelled my need for answers from both Ava and Lucas.

At least for now.

What can I say? I'm a Mom, I worry.

ART WORK

I will never, ever tire of the art work that my monkeys bring home from school each day. It is something I look forward to each time they come running off of the bus and hand me their backpacks for me to go through.

The past two days Lucas has come home with some really great stuff.

The front: My favorite part of this summer was... Tubing. Not so great on the spelling, but the picture gave away what he was attempting to write. Him in the tube, with Dad in the boat pulling him along. How wonderful is that picture?

the back: I went to the movie theatre. I think half way through attempting to write "theatre" he gave up - hence the "Dr". I love, love, love the photo that goes along with this one. People sitting in their theater seats eating popcorn - notice the kid in the last row was ever so gracious as to share his popcorn with the kid in the middle row.

Day 2 he came home with this little gem.

In first grade this year, I would really like to... Play outside whenever I want. Accompanied by a picture of what I assume to be a playground.

When he arrived home with this second piece of artwork I mentioned to him how much I enjoyed it all. I also ever so casually asked if his teacher was letting everyone complete these little assignments all on their own. Meaning without any help when it came to spelling, punctuation, etc. I am certain you can guess what the answer to that question was.

BACK TO SCHOOL! [PART 2]

Before the kids arrived home on the bus this afternoon Dad called saying that he would be home in time to watch them get off the bus. He and I thought it would be fun for them to see us both waiting when they arrived home after their very first day of school. After getting off of the bus, we thought it would be fun to hang out just the 4 of us, have a snack and talk about their first day. You know the stuff - Did you like your teacher? Did you make any new friends? What did you have for lunch? Did you get some homework? Tell me all about it!

When the bus finally arrived,

and they hopped off, I could tell right away that the day was a success.

I could also tell from the look on his face, that Lucas was getting pretty sick of all the pictures I had been taking. And I was alright with that.

I ran excitedly toward them to give them hugs and ask all about their first day, and what did they do? They ran right past me and into the house.

When I finally caught up to them they were half way up the stairs.

"Hey! Aren't you guys going to tell me about your very first day at school? I want to hear all about it!"

"We are going to change and play with everyone outside!"

"But tell me about your first day!"

"It was fine." was what I got from them as they continued on their way up the stairs.

"What did you do?"

Lucas: "I don't really remember."

Ava: "We don't have any homework. Can we play outside?"

Seriously? This was Ava's very first day of 2nd grade and Lucas' very first day of 1st grade - not to mention his very first day at a new school. And this was all they had for me - I don't really remember what we did, it was fine, and Ava completely ignoring my question with a response of we don't have any homework can we play outside?

I am beginning to think this whole first day of school thing is a much bigger deal for Mom and Dad than it is for the kids. No?