Kill...Me...Now!!!

Have you ever had a day so bad that you can't quite believe it ever happened? That was me, today.

I woke up, barely got Maddie on the bus in time, went to a meeting, then work. When I got home, Matt was getting ready to take the two girls to a daddy-daughter camp-out with some friends. Totally cute.

I decided since it was just going to be me and Jaiden, to invite his friend to sleep over. We decided to go to Sky High (this really cool trampoline sports place) but Jaiden decided (after informing me he ate too much) to barf all over my stairs. And yes, these are the same stairs that I just had professionally cleaned yesterday! Arggg!

After cleaning up the barf (and determining that he was not indeed sick with a virus) we headed to Sky High. We got almost there and I realized I forgot my wallet! So we drove back home. When we finally got there they would not let the kids play because apparently we needed a release form from his mom (why oh why did I not check the website?!).

We went home so I could take some medicine (at this point I had a migraine) and head over to the roller rink so the kids could skate and I could still salvage this disaster of a night. After we had been there all of five minutes, my son's friend falls, hits his mouth and chips his permanent tooth! Mama mia!!!

After some tears, he got back in the rink and we ended up staying until they closed (ten). I did some editing while they skated and tried to block out the blaring music. LOL. There was a really cool guy who was skating and break dancing tho-so amazing to watch.

The boys had fun and I took them to get a Redbox and candy afterwards. When we got home I burned the popcorn to the point that it almost caught on fire (note to self, do not walk away from a bag of popcorn in the microwave). The whole house was covered in smoke. I made some more, and while the boys got jammies on, I put the movie in the dvd player.

You would think all would go smooth by now, right?! WRONG! The dvd player broke!!!! On the display, it had all these Y's and was acting crazy.  I could not believe my night. Long story short, I got it to work and they are now watching the movie.

I finally ended up having dinner-Captain Crunch. Don't judge me, I was too tired to make a thing.

Now I am going to crawl in bed and hope tomorrow I can laugh at all of this.

I hope you all had a better night than me. I'm sure Matt and the girls had a blast. I can't wait to hear all about it tomorrow :) ~S

Working Girl

Ash Imitating Me Getting Ready for Work :)
She did it all on her own.  Even the lipstick. ~S





A First!

Today was so surreal. I have never had my third child Ashlin, home alone all day with me.  My older daughter Maddie started first grade today and comes home with her older brother at 3:00. That means I have 8 hours alone with Ash. CRAZY! So strange having only one child at home. The house is sooooo quiet.

So this is how my day went...

I woke at 5:45, was dressed (yes, complete with make-up on), made my son breakfast and waited outside at 6:35 for the bus with him. I came in, got my two girls ready, fed them and drove my daughter to school for her first day of 1st grade! (She will ride the bus tomorrow, but she was nervous to meet her teacher the first day, so I drove her).

I got home at 8, played with Ash, worked from home until 11 (My students had two submissions this week which means 120 papers to grade in 3 days) and then met Matt for lunch. It was interesting to see Ashlin interact at McDonald's. She usually follows her sister around and plays, but since she was alone, today she was apprehensive and would not play with anyone. I think it will be hard for her to get used to the fact that Maddie (her best friend/sister) is gone now all day.

After McDonald's, Ashlin had a friend over, then it was homework time (yes, on the first day-my son), then more grading until Matt gets home.

I am hoping to get into a routine where I am dressed and ready for the day by the time the bus comes at 6:35, work in the morning and spend the afternoon with her doing fun stuff.

I realize this is my last year until she starts preschool, last child at home with me and only opportunity to spend quality alone time with her. I'm excited!!

As for working from home, luckily Matt has Wed-Friday off, so I only have Monday and Tuesday to balance working from home with everything else.

Speaking of, I need to go make dinner before the boss gets home!

~S

Life According to Ashlin

As you all know, when your child is 3 they ask a ton of questions and say silly things. Here is what Ashlin said to me today while I was grading and  I thought it was note worthy. Enjoy!

1} Apparently, when I was 98 years old I lit a match-four times. LOL. My child has no idea what age is it seems. That or I look REALLY old! She said that to me after asking if she could light a match and I told her she would have to wait until her dad came home.

2} "Mom, how come I can't jump into a book?"

3} What she wants for her birthday: A clock so she knows what time it is, a bell to wake her up, a pillow pet and a hand that crawls up the wall.

4}  She lost her tooth (her sister has a loose tooth), but it already grew back :)

5}  "Mom, when can  I stay outside until it's dark?"

6} "Mom, when can I get a pocket knife?"

I adore her. ~S

Party!!!

Our Back-To-School Bash

Making going back to school fun, especially after a summer of best friends, activities and sleeping in, is important for me.  I want my kids to look forward to school, not dread it. So each year, I throw a party.

Party Poppers!

The finished product. We made rings too :)

Making magnets to hang school art/work on fridge :)



Our new plaque-A little reminder :)  



 Courtesy of Matt. We always find a reason to have fireworks.

Random neighbor kids showed up. The boy on the end (the one with no shirt) is a sweetheart. LOL.

We had a great time. School starts on Tuesday.

I am excited about....watching Maddie bring home art and assignments that she is proud of, going to school parties, carnivals, concerts, holiday programs and other fun activities and watching my two kids grow, mature and make new friends.

Am I ready to wake up at 6 am?! NO!
Am I worried about how Ashlin will do with her best friend (her sis) gone at school all day long? YES! I will have to have lots of play dates for her-especially if I am going to be working from home.

Happy New School Year Everyone! ~S