A New Computer

My new computer is both exciting and frustrating. I will never figure out why companies believe customers will ever figure it all out on our own. I am looking forward to being able to post pictures on here again and maybe even posting slightly more frequently.

My kids are getting older so I am being more careful about what I post. I am not going to be one of those moms who posts embarrassing stories about my children. It is just too easy for people to use these stories against them later.

Week of Ups and Downs

It has been a week full of life's ups and downs yet overall it was mostly good. Here is a quick recap of our adventures this week.

Monday: We got to spend a nice quiet evening at home. We really don't have too many of these so it is nice when they come along. I am having a lot of trouble keeping up at work right now so I was able to spend some time working at home while my kids watched TV and played quietly.

Tuesday: I went on a field trip with Matthew's kindergarten class. I always enjoy watching my kids play with other kids and listening to their conversations. Matthew's class amazed me with how well behaved they were. There was actually only one child in all 3 kindergarten classes that got in trouble during the field trip and even he didn't get in any major trouble. Pretty amazing for a public school in larger city. Matthew picked out a green pumpkin and we are trying to decide what to do with it.

Wednesday: Another busy day. Jacob had an early swim team practice and we got home shortly before Matthew's day care bus arrived. We then went to dinner with a good friend who is expecting her first child in December. I always enjoy spending time with her and just wish we were able to spend more time together.

Thursday: What a day! Matthew was really excited about a family party at day care and really wanted me to attend. I was really looking forward to it until nothing would go my way at work. I was sure I was going to be lucky to be home by bedtime much less in time for a party. I called my mom and was very glad when she said she would take Jacob to practice and go to the party with Matthew. Things finally started to go my way at the end of the day and I made it to Matthew's party about half an hour before it ended. I was just in time to enjoy a taco and watch the kids break a pinata. I was then able to greet Jacob after practice and watch Matthew in his karate class before we went home for a quick dinner and bedtime.

Friday: I was very glad to see the week come to an end. I was still feeling a lot of stress about issues a work but knew that it was time to relax and leave it behind. We went to a Halloween party at the Y where the kids dressed as firefighters and played games. They had a great time until about half an hour before the party ended. Matthew was just a little too tired after a full week of school, day care and activities. We ended up leaving a little early but overall it was a great night.

Saturday: Saturday was just crazy but also a lot of fun. We started the day by running out of cinnamon rolls before the last child ate. I had to quickly throw another batch in the oven but it made us a couple minutes late to football. I then found out pictures were rescheduled for that morning. Of course, the kids still had face paint that wouldn't wash off completely from the night before so they weren't really looking their best. The pictures turned out alright but I decided I didn't need to order any since we just ordered school pictures and the kids don't change that much in 2 weeks.

We left football and decided to buy Matthew some ice skates for hockey lessons. Lessons start next week but the kids both had ice skating lessons yesterday. Of course, my bad luck was continuing and the store was busy making us late for ice skating. We would have been about 5 minutes late until we hit a train that stopped on the tracks for about 15 minutes. Ugh! The kids only made it to about 15 minutes of their lessons. Oh, well. They still have one more lesson and then will start hockey lessons on Sundays.

After hockey the day went much better. We went to Schuster's Playtime Farm where the kids got to pet some farm animals, feed the goats and play on a giant inflatable pillow. Aidan was with us and really enjoyed riding on the tracter train. All of the kids picked out pumpkins and this time Matthew chose a white pumpkin. Jacob and Aidan both chose orange pumpkins. I bought everyone a carmel apple and we left the farm and corn maze tired but happy. We got home last night and just collapsed.

Today starts another week and I am hoping it goes well. We only have 3 days of work and school this week then we get a long weekend. I am taking Jacob and Matthew to a water park and hotel for 2 days and Aidan is spending the night next weekend while his mom works. We don't have a lot of big plans for the weekend and I am hoping we will have some extra time to just relax and have fun. And maybe mulch and rake some leaves...

We appear to be a swimming family

We appear to be a swimming family now. Jacob has competed in 2 meets and he loves it. He swam 25 yd backstroke and 25 freestyle the past 2 weeks. This week he seemed to have really taken off. He cut almost 6 seconds off of his backstroke time from last week and 3 seconds off of his freestyle time. More importantly, he really loves swimming and is very motivated to continue to do well.

Jacob has had to miss 3 practices in the past 6 weeks because I couldn't get off work in time to get him there. I would think that with 3 practices a week he wouldn't mind taking a break once in awhile. I am very wrong. He cried the last 2 times telling me he isn't getting any stronger and that it is my fault. Talk about a guilt trip. He was also upset that I only signed him up to swim on Saturday this weekend and not Sunday's meet too. I really think one weekend day at the pool is enough.

Matthew is really surprising me. He has always enjoyed swimming but never really put a lot of effort into swimming lessons. He usually plays around on the side of the pool and doesn't always follow the instructor's directions. Matthew asked to join swim team and I told him he needs to learn to swim better and show me that he can listen to the teacher so I know he will listen to the coach. All of a sudden he is motivated and surprising everyone. He went from refusing to swim more than a few feet to swimming half way across the pool. He also went from refusing to float on his back to swimming backstroke in 1 week. He now wants to practice his strokes during open swim times and asks every weekend if I will take him swimming. He was really excited when Jacob's coach told him he can join mid-season or as soon as he can swim well enough. I told him I probably won't sign him up this winter because I want him to be a little older but I would sign him up for summer swim next summer if he keeps trying hard in lessons and can swim the length of the pool.

Jacob will probably swim in 14 more swim meets before the season ends in March. He will have short breaks over the holidays and in January but otherwise can swim almost every weekend. There are a couple of weeks that we are busy and he will miss the meets but that will probably just give him some nice breaks. My goal is to let him swim in 2 to 3 meets a month and see how he does.

I am really enjoying watching Jacob swim and hope he continues to love the sport. I also hope Matthew enjoys it next summer. I think it would be great to be able to watch both boys compete and improve their skills. Swimming is a lifelong skill and something they can enjoy for years to come.

Am I Becoming One Of Those Moms?

Jacob had his frist swim meet yesterday. I tried really hard to share some of my advice (I swam in high school) with him but not be too pushy. I'm not sure I was very successful but I tried. Mostly I am trying to let him take the lead in how often we swim outside of practice and then just encouraging him. Yesterday Jacob swam 25 yard freestyle, 25 yard backstroke and 2 relays. He had a lot of fun and enjoyed keeping track of his times. I have a lot to learn about how to be a swim team parent. I need to figure out what kind of snacks are the best to bring, how soon to make sure he is at clerk of course to get ready for his meets and when to have him put on sweats and when to encourage him to just wait with a suit and towel on. I knew I would have trouble with those areas and am slowly starting to figure it out. The place I surprised myself was when I was at the wall where the results were being posted anxiously waiting for Jacob's time. I listened to parents talking about cutoff times and complaining that state time qualifiers haven't been posted yet. I'm not concerned at all about Jacob qualifying for state. Probably because he has almost no chance of qualifying but I also hope I don't ever get as anxious as those parents about having a child qualify. I just want him to have fun and do his best. I need to make sure that is where my focus stays and not watching every time to see if he "qualifies" for anything. That is the coaches job to worry about.

Jacob is 7!

Happy birthday to my wonderful son Jacob! It seems like just a few months ago I was in Ethiopia picking up a 1 year old boy. Today that boy is 7 years old and no longer little. Here are 7 things I love about my son in honor of his 7th birthday. 1) His kind heart. Jacob is a very loving child who loves to help other people and make others happy. 2) His hard work and determination. One of my goals for Jacob when he started kindergarten was for him to learn not to give up when he gets frustrated. I am amazed and proud of how far he has come in just a year. Whether it was learning to read or practicing for weeks to prepare for swim team tryouts, Jacob has shown that he can not only work hard when he needs to but he can excel when he puts his mind to it. 3) Watching Jacob play sports. Jacob has some amazing speed. I have watched him outrun kids three or four years older than him. It's fun to watch him whether it is chasing down a ball in the outfield, catching up to an oposing player on the soccer field and preventing a goal or scoring a touchdown during flag football. Jacob has the speed that I never had but always wished I did as a child. 4) His smile. Jacob has always had a great smile that makes other people smile too. It's one of his traits that people have always commented on and still do to this day. 5) Responsibility. Jacob is really a pretty responsible kid for his age. It's nice having a kid that I can trust most of the time. He's still a kid and sometimes makes some poor choices but most of the time I can trust that he will be well-behaved even when he is at school or with other adults. 6) His passion. Jacob is very passionate about whatever his current love is. Right now he loves sports and spends most of his time either playing, talking or thinking about sports. He recently told me that he isn't really a video game person. He's just a sports person. 7) His active spirit. As Jacob said, he's not a video game person. He will watch TV or play video games for a short period of time but he usually prefers to be doing something active. Even when we are just spending time at home relaxing, Jacob will often go outside to ride his bike or dig holes in the garden. He is always up for a game of baseball or go to the Y for a swim. I love that I don't have to put restrictions on screen time because he puts them on himself.

Settling In

We have now completed three weeks of school. I am relieved to say we are starting to figure out our new routines and things are going really well. The morning routine is pretty much worked out. Matthew's school has a community breakfast where everyone in the school eats together. I love this idea. It makes sure that all of the kids receive breakfast, doesn't single out those children who receive free breakfast and helps all of the kids settle in and start their day well. The principal uses this time to recognize birthdays, holidays that students are celebrating and make announcements. I also like the community breakfast because it made Matthew's adjustment a little easier. Matthew has always started out his day with breakfast. He had breakfast right after he arrived at day care and last year his 4K class had a community breakfast together. Even his summer program had a morning snack right after the kids all arrived which Matthew thought of as actually having breakfast. He has learned that breakfast signals the start of his school day and is a nice way to help him settle down. Matthew has also seen food as a tool for feeling safe and secure so starting his day with breakfast with his class helps him to perceive his teacher and school as a safe place where his needs will be met. Jacob has decided that he wants to eat breakfast at school this year as well. This is a change for him. His school doesn't have a community breakfast so he has to get to school 15 minutes early and then can choose between eating breakfast and playing on the playground. I always give him his choice since school breakfast is really cheap but I also understand if he wants to play with his friends. So far he has chosen to eat at school which makes our mornings a little smoother and faster. My parents returned from vacation last week and we were very happy to see them again. I am always grateful for everything they do for us. Even just having their emotional support and someone to turn to when I am having a rough day and just need some support is really nice. The only part of our schedule that is still being fine tuned is after school. Jacob and Matthew started their after school activities two weeks ago but the schedule has changed a few times. Jacob had a field trip one afternoon and a party another afternoon last week so he had to change his swim team practices around. Matthew has activiites on Tuesday and Thursdays evenings so those evenings are really busy. They go pretty well except I haven't quite figured out the best way to serve dinner. I am thinking that these are great nights for crock pot dinners but I haven't found very many recipes that I am in love with. I plan to spend some time over the next few weeks experimenting with different dinners (crock pot and ones that are quick to fix) so that those evenings are a little smoother. I am enjoying being with my children in the evenings and not using babysitters at night. That is such a huge change from the past 3 years when I was in class or at my internship at least 2 evenings a week. Now I get off work and I know that I will get to see my kids. The only exceptions are when I have an emergency at work and have to work late but thankfully that doesn't happen often. We are still adjusting to the new school year but we are much more settled than we were even just a couple of months ago. I think it will be another month or so before we really get used to the new schedule and are able to relax a little more but we are getting closer. I still need to figure out some things like when is the best time to buy groceries and run errands but those are details that will get worked out as time goes on. For now I am just happy to finally be getting caught up and able to spend more time with my family.

A Horrible Week At Work and Great Week At Home

This week was one of the worst weeks I have had at work in a very long time. I have been staying up late at night almost every night trying to get everything done on time. I always seem to be more emotional whenever I don't eat or sleep enough so let's just say I have been struggling at work. Thankfully, the week is almost over and next week is looking better. Life at home has been wonderful. I can't figure out how to upload pictures right now but the boys looked great for their first day of school. Matthew wanted to be "fancy" and insisted on wearing a dress shirt and tie. Jacob wore his new Packers jersey. They both really like their new teachers and have done well their first week of school. I wrote about Matthew's first week in another post. This week has been very relaxing at home. We are finally getting back into a consistent routine. I can already see Matthew and Jacob beginning to settle down and getting used to having me home with them every night. My parents are on vacation so it really is just the 3 of us most nights. While I love my parents and everything they do for us, it has been nice to be able to pick up my kids myself and just spend time the three of us. Of course, we are looking forward to my parents' return in a couple of weeks and miss them terribly. Here is the summary of this week. I apologize if Blogger makes it harder to read by not accepting my spaces when I post it. Someday I will get a newer computer that Blogger likes better. Monday: Monday was Labor Day. We had the privilege of watching our friend Aidan during the day. I took all of the boys to Devil's Lake where we met up with some other single moms and dads. It was great seeing our friends and everyone had a great time. I loved watching Jacob and Matthew make sand tunnels and build dams in the sand. Jacob practiced his swimming as well. Tuesday: Jacob had his first day of swim team try-outs. I was really worried about whether or not he would be able to make the team. He swims well enough to swim with the 6 year olds but I wasn't sure he would be able to be with the 7 and 8 year olds. Jacob turns 7 in just a couple of weeks. Jacob did great in swimming. I have never seen him work that hard. Whenever he would start to get tired, he would take a deep breath and push himself harder. He was determined and nervous (even chewed through the strap on his goggles). His hard work payed off. Jacob not only made the team but swam well enough to practice with the seven and eight year olds. He is very excited. We learned it was a free trial week at the Y and there were many classes that people could try for free. Matthew took a mini-karate class and loved it. I told him I will sign him up for karate if he continues to do well in kindergarten and his after school program. Wednesday: Matthew rode the bus home for the first time. I wasn't sure what time he would get home so Jacob and I anxiously waited in our driveway for half an hour until the bus pulled up. Matthew got off the bus with a huge smile on his face and waved by to the driver. We spent Wednesday evening doing laundry and just relaxing. Matthew had a headache (probably from the stress of starting a new school and learning so much) so he went to bed early. Both of the kids were very well behaved especially since they were both really tired. Thursday: Jacob had his second day of swim team try-outs. Jacob didn't seem to have the energy or nerves that he had on Tuesday but still swam hard and tried hard. I turned in the paperwork (and fees) so he is now ready for regular practices starting next week. We ran a couple of errands after swim team and bought a very large bag of dog food. Then it was home to relax for a little while and get ready for bed. The kids and I have really enjoyed being able to relax at home more and not be quite so busy or always worried about getting to our next program on time. I really think being home more and just able to relax and follow a general routine will help all of us do better at school and home. So far it seems to really be helping. It's still early but we are off to a good start.