After two wonderful interviews that followed the daycare from hell interview, we have made our decision. I, unfortunately, do not have the time to fill in details at this time, but I will hopefully later tonight.
We are very happy!
Monday, May 24, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Followed my gut...
I sat down to write this post and got sidetracked with Facebook. Now I have another blog post brewing in my head, but I feel I need to let it simmer for a bit or I will say something I later regret. So, onto how I followed my gut today.
We are finding that Noah is much more high maintenance than Trinity ever was. He needs to be entertained or touching me at all times. This makes it very difficult for me to get any work done. Also, summer is busy for me, so I need hours during the day to schedule photo shoots and I can't be dependent on Husband to always be available. So, we are searching for daycare. The daycare we sent Trinity to has no openings. I am #16 on the waiting list and they have 2 openings in June and then nothing until September, maybe. I have been asking people for referrals and calling, but no one has a part time opening for a toddler. I thought I had someone last week, we had an interview scheduled for yesterday, but they canceled. Their one opening was filled on Monday. We had another interview this morning.
This is a new daycare opening in June. She worked for the school system and seemed to have it all going on. I was excited, then we showed up... The outside play equipment was less than 5 feet from the road with no fence. They have a dog. (Now, in general I'm not against dogs, but put with that many unknown children and you are asking for trouble.) And...they are smokers. You could tell they had the potpourri going on and the Febreeze and candles, but you could smell the underlying scent of cigarettes. We should have run, but we didn't. We stayed through the interview, where she had absolutely NO questions for us and she didn't even attempt to interact with Noah. So far she said she had 2 other toddlers under the age of 18 months, but her schedule had an hour of TV time scheduled EVERY morning. We left and my husband says "Drive away quickly, we will pretend this is a bad dream."
After returning home, I started making phone calls. I have an interview set up for 8 tomorrow morning and one on Monday. I liked both ladies on the phone, so hopefully one will work out.
I'll keep you posted, but am so glad we listened to our gut today.
We are finding that Noah is much more high maintenance than Trinity ever was. He needs to be entertained or touching me at all times. This makes it very difficult for me to get any work done. Also, summer is busy for me, so I need hours during the day to schedule photo shoots and I can't be dependent on Husband to always be available. So, we are searching for daycare. The daycare we sent Trinity to has no openings. I am #16 on the waiting list and they have 2 openings in June and then nothing until September, maybe. I have been asking people for referrals and calling, but no one has a part time opening for a toddler. I thought I had someone last week, we had an interview scheduled for yesterday, but they canceled. Their one opening was filled on Monday. We had another interview this morning.
This is a new daycare opening in June. She worked for the school system and seemed to have it all going on. I was excited, then we showed up... The outside play equipment was less than 5 feet from the road with no fence. They have a dog. (Now, in general I'm not against dogs, but put with that many unknown children and you are asking for trouble.) And...they are smokers. You could tell they had the potpourri going on and the Febreeze and candles, but you could smell the underlying scent of cigarettes. We should have run, but we didn't. We stayed through the interview, where she had absolutely NO questions for us and she didn't even attempt to interact with Noah. So far she said she had 2 other toddlers under the age of 18 months, but her schedule had an hour of TV time scheduled EVERY morning. We left and my husband says "Drive away quickly, we will pretend this is a bad dream."
After returning home, I started making phone calls. I have an interview set up for 8 tomorrow morning and one on Monday. I liked both ladies on the phone, so hopefully one will work out.
I'll keep you posted, but am so glad we listened to our gut today.
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Table manners
I think all parents have that one "thing" they don't compromise on, for me it is table manners. I teach my children table manners from the time they start eating solid foods. I've always had a thing for table manners. I remember asking my siblings to chew with their mouths closed at the dinner table and reprimanding my friends in school for not using a napkin. Trinity had impeccable table manners for so long because I teach by example and LOTS of repeating the rules. Now, I'm not talking using different forks for different courses, I'm talking the basics - don't talk with food in your mouth, use a napkin, use your silverware, etc.
Notice I said 'had', yep kindergarten has ruined my child's table manners. During lunch, the teachers sit at a table separate from the students & the students are left to their own devices for 30 minutes with no guidance. In our school, the parents volunteer to serve lunch, so I've been witness to the lunch room chaos. When I would serve after all the kids were seated I would go sit with Trinity. And I would promptly lose my appetite. Do kids eat like this at home? Ew! I had little girls showing me their food after it was half chewed. I saw little boys eating mashed potatoes with their hands. I saw kids wiping their hands on their shirts. And now guess what my child is doing? It seems that she has forgotten everything I've spent the last 6 years teaching her in favor of the teachings of her peers. So, I've gotten tough and this summer I'm going to get tougher. I will no longer tolerate horrible table manners. Some things, like elbows on the table, get a verbal warning, but if you chew with your mouth open so I can see the half masticated cow in your mouth, you will be excused from my table and asked to eat at the bar in the kitchen. I want to enjoy my dinner as much as the next person and I can't do that if you are talking with food in your mouth. So, dearest child of mine, be prepared for a rude awakening starting in June.
And of course, all my hard work will go straight out the window next fall I am sure.
Notice I said 'had', yep kindergarten has ruined my child's table manners. During lunch, the teachers sit at a table separate from the students & the students are left to their own devices for 30 minutes with no guidance. In our school, the parents volunteer to serve lunch, so I've been witness to the lunch room chaos. When I would serve after all the kids were seated I would go sit with Trinity. And I would promptly lose my appetite. Do kids eat like this at home? Ew! I had little girls showing me their food after it was half chewed. I saw little boys eating mashed potatoes with their hands. I saw kids wiping their hands on their shirts. And now guess what my child is doing? It seems that she has forgotten everything I've spent the last 6 years teaching her in favor of the teachings of her peers. So, I've gotten tough and this summer I'm going to get tougher. I will no longer tolerate horrible table manners. Some things, like elbows on the table, get a verbal warning, but if you chew with your mouth open so I can see the half masticated cow in your mouth, you will be excused from my table and asked to eat at the bar in the kitchen. I want to enjoy my dinner as much as the next person and I can't do that if you are talking with food in your mouth. So, dearest child of mine, be prepared for a rude awakening starting in June.
And of course, all my hard work will go straight out the window next fall I am sure.
Friday, May 14, 2010
When I was a girl...
In the last few days husband & I have been talking a lot about the differences in when we grew up and now. We both lived in very small towns, where everyone knew you and you knew everyone. So, if a stranger wandered into town it wasn't long before kids were herded indoors and warnings issued. Also, because of the small towns we lived in we had a lot of freedom. From fairly young I was allowed to walk to the houses of friends that lived within a couple blocks. Once I started school I pretty much had the freedom to walk to anywhere as long as my mother had prior knowledge.
I cannot imagine giving my 6 year old that kind of freedom. Within the last few months I've started letting her play outside and at the house across the street without me watching her. She has asked when she can walk home from school by herself & I felt my heart stop beating. Yes, her school is only 8 blocks away, but she would have to cross one of the 3 busiest streets in town. And that isn't taking into account all the other horrible things that could happen to her along the way.
When husband and I were young we were told about taking candy from strangers and never get into a car with a stranger. This was about as bad as it got for us. We listened and heeded the warnings and all was well in our small worlds.
We have to be so much more careful these days. The fear of abduction seems almost mild compared to the horrors we read about. We have to teach our children to protect themselves from predators online, in the neighborhood, in their schools and anywhere else they may be. How do you teach morals in a time when pedophiles live a block over and you can see porn by typing "chicken breast" into Google. How do you teach respect when kindergartners are taking weapons to school.
We've already had to deal with Trinity getting choked in preschool. Yeah, that didn't fly with me at all. That is learned behavior & that kid was never allowed unsupervised with my kid after I raised all kinds of hell. So, even in rural Minnesota we have our problems. I think every one does in some way.
I realize parenting is hard and I wouldn't trade it for anything, but I wonder what new horrors my children will have to fear for their children.
I cannot imagine giving my 6 year old that kind of freedom. Within the last few months I've started letting her play outside and at the house across the street without me watching her. She has asked when she can walk home from school by herself & I felt my heart stop beating. Yes, her school is only 8 blocks away, but she would have to cross one of the 3 busiest streets in town. And that isn't taking into account all the other horrible things that could happen to her along the way.
When husband and I were young we were told about taking candy from strangers and never get into a car with a stranger. This was about as bad as it got for us. We listened and heeded the warnings and all was well in our small worlds.
We have to be so much more careful these days. The fear of abduction seems almost mild compared to the horrors we read about. We have to teach our children to protect themselves from predators online, in the neighborhood, in their schools and anywhere else they may be. How do you teach morals in a time when pedophiles live a block over and you can see porn by typing "chicken breast" into Google. How do you teach respect when kindergartners are taking weapons to school.
We've already had to deal with Trinity getting choked in preschool. Yeah, that didn't fly with me at all. That is learned behavior & that kid was never allowed unsupervised with my kid after I raised all kinds of hell. So, even in rural Minnesota we have our problems. I think every one does in some way.
I realize parenting is hard and I wouldn't trade it for anything, but I wonder what new horrors my children will have to fear for their children.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Another road trip
The end of March and early April we packed up the car and had our first road trip since Noah was born. Trinity was such a wonderful traveler from the very beginning and I'm afraid Noah does not like even the shortest of trips, so we knew from the moment we had the idea to drive to Colorado that it was going to be an adventure.
And an adventure it was - WOW! The people we were visiting have 4 children of their own. We offered to stay in a hotel, but they insisted we stay with them. We have visited before and stayed with them, and we had issues then. I was nervous for this stay to say the least. I am proven time and time again - LISTEN TO YOUR GUT!
First off I am uncomfortable every time I stay at someone else's home. I always feel I have to make sure I don't make a mess, because I hate the idea of someone needing to pick up after me or my family. I also am always on edge for fear my children will break something. So, I am on edge going into the vacation and we enter a house filled with stress. Our friends confided separately to both my husband and I that they are having issues. However, they don't talk to each other.
Second, on our family vacation Husband's friend wants to monopolize his time. So, once again we go on 'vacation' and I end up doing everything I normally do except I cannot let my children be themselves and I'm already freaking stressed out. I have no help and my children are being influenced by people who have never been disciplined in their life. This is why I hate vacations.
I had plans to meet up with some mothers I 'met' online while we were in Colorado. This was, quite honestly, the only reason I agreed to this farce of a 'vacation'. We were going to meet on Friday to go swimming. Trinity loves the water, so this was going to be great. UNTIL the drama begins - I will not go into detail because it is not my story to tell and I'm still very angry about the whole situation. Needless to say I did not make it to swimming and I am in no hurry to return to Colorado.
So, here we are again with family functions to attend in other states and a road trip ahead of us. I am dreading this whole thing, it is making me physically ill and I want to cry. Okay, part of that may be PMS, but I am stressing out. Part of me is hoping my husbands time off request is denied so I don't have to live through another road trip. But at least I'm not headed to Colorado again.
And an adventure it was - WOW! The people we were visiting have 4 children of their own. We offered to stay in a hotel, but they insisted we stay with them. We have visited before and stayed with them, and we had issues then. I was nervous for this stay to say the least. I am proven time and time again - LISTEN TO YOUR GUT!
First off I am uncomfortable every time I stay at someone else's home. I always feel I have to make sure I don't make a mess, because I hate the idea of someone needing to pick up after me or my family. I also am always on edge for fear my children will break something. So, I am on edge going into the vacation and we enter a house filled with stress. Our friends confided separately to both my husband and I that they are having issues. However, they don't talk to each other.
Second, on our family vacation Husband's friend wants to monopolize his time. So, once again we go on 'vacation' and I end up doing everything I normally do except I cannot let my children be themselves and I'm already freaking stressed out. I have no help and my children are being influenced by people who have never been disciplined in their life. This is why I hate vacations.
I had plans to meet up with some mothers I 'met' online while we were in Colorado. This was, quite honestly, the only reason I agreed to this farce of a 'vacation'. We were going to meet on Friday to go swimming. Trinity loves the water, so this was going to be great. UNTIL the drama begins - I will not go into detail because it is not my story to tell and I'm still very angry about the whole situation. Needless to say I did not make it to swimming and I am in no hurry to return to Colorado.
So, here we are again with family functions to attend in other states and a road trip ahead of us. I am dreading this whole thing, it is making me physically ill and I want to cry. Okay, part of that may be PMS, but I am stressing out. Part of me is hoping my husbands time off request is denied so I don't have to live through another road trip. But at least I'm not headed to Colorado again.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Mother's Day
Mother's Day is fast approaching and just like every other year my husband a week prior says "What do you want to do for Mother's Day?" And again, like every other year, I don't answer honestly. I say "I don't know." I do know what I want to do on Mother's Day. I want to sleep in and then forget it is Mother's Day. OH MY GOD - did I really just say that out loud?!?!
I may be hated by mothers every where, but I am okay with that, because I personally dislike Mother's Day. For the record, I also dislike Valentine's Day. I do NOT need a day where my husband and children are forced to spend money and go out of their way to make me feel special. I am so blessed that my husband and children do this all the time out of the blue not because they have to but because they want to. To me, this makes it SO much better. I would rather be surprised on a Tuesday with a gas station rose than be given a huge bouquet from the floral shop on Sunday. I would rather get a candy bar on a random trip to the grocery store because they had my favorite than a 5 lb box of fancy chocolates one day out of the year.
I love my husband. He tells me he loves me several times a day. He makes me laugh and he is my best friend. I adore my children and if I were to get nothing other than hugs, kisses and hearing them laugh, that would be enough for me. My family show me they love me and appreciate me on a daily basis and I will take that over dinner out and fancy gifts one day a year in half a heartbeat.
So, to all those Moms out there that don't feel the way I feel, I hope your Mother's Day is wonderful, relaxing, pampering or whatever you want it to be. I will hopefully be sleeping in and then doing something as a family, like yard work or putting Trinity's room back together after the makeover or taking a family nap.
I may be hated by mothers every where, but I am okay with that, because I personally dislike Mother's Day. For the record, I also dislike Valentine's Day. I do NOT need a day where my husband and children are forced to spend money and go out of their way to make me feel special. I am so blessed that my husband and children do this all the time out of the blue not because they have to but because they want to. To me, this makes it SO much better. I would rather be surprised on a Tuesday with a gas station rose than be given a huge bouquet from the floral shop on Sunday. I would rather get a candy bar on a random trip to the grocery store because they had my favorite than a 5 lb box of fancy chocolates one day out of the year.
I love my husband. He tells me he loves me several times a day. He makes me laugh and he is my best friend. I adore my children and if I were to get nothing other than hugs, kisses and hearing them laugh, that would be enough for me. My family show me they love me and appreciate me on a daily basis and I will take that over dinner out and fancy gifts one day a year in half a heartbeat.
So, to all those Moms out there that don't feel the way I feel, I hope your Mother's Day is wonderful, relaxing, pampering or whatever you want it to be. I will hopefully be sleeping in and then doing something as a family, like yard work or putting Trinity's room back together after the makeover or taking a family nap.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Family
I can post this, because my family does not know about my blog. I believe I have posted before about some of my issues with my sister-in-law. I love her, but I think she is married to a horrible specimen of a man and this has caused a rift to develop. She has a step-daughter (age 14) and a step-son (age 16) and a biological son that is 6 months younger than Trinity. Her husband has custody of his son, but his ex-wife has custody of his daughter. They split the kids because he did not want to pay child support. Right after Christmas my step-niece got into a fight with my sister-in-law. Apparently she was rude to both her step-mother and her father. Her father asked her to leave. She was angry and refused to visit. Now my sister-in-law and her husband are bad mouthing my step-niece saying she is a brat, lazy, unappreciative, hates her family, she's worthless and disrespectful. My step-niece has shown some questionable behavior to the point that a family member who is a state mandated reporter, called to report her behavior to her school counselor. I hope she is getting help. I have limited access to her. In times like these I am so very grateful for Facebook.
None of us are allowed to question the parenting skills of my sister-in-law or brother-in-law. If we do, they rip you apart and you are bad mouthed for months. And by parenting skills, I mean ANYTHING having to do with their kids. I asked the oldest if he had started drivers training and I got a 20 minute lecture on how he was ungrateful and not responsible enough to drive from my sister-in-law.
I am typing this all out because it is eating me alive and I miss my niece. What she did was wrong and she should be held accountable, but casting her out of your family may be a little overkill in my opinion. I want her to have a good life and be surrounded by supportive, loving people. I think it is sad that in these critical formative years her Dad has chosen to turn his back on her. I love her, I hope she knows that and I wish her nothing but happiness.
None of us are allowed to question the parenting skills of my sister-in-law or brother-in-law. If we do, they rip you apart and you are bad mouthed for months. And by parenting skills, I mean ANYTHING having to do with their kids. I asked the oldest if he had started drivers training and I got a 20 minute lecture on how he was ungrateful and not responsible enough to drive from my sister-in-law.
I am typing this all out because it is eating me alive and I miss my niece. What she did was wrong and she should be held accountable, but casting her out of your family may be a little overkill in my opinion. I want her to have a good life and be surrounded by supportive, loving people. I think it is sad that in these critical formative years her Dad has chosen to turn his back on her. I love her, I hope she knows that and I wish her nothing but happiness.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Manic Monday
I am working again today. Therefore the title of this post seemed right, since I seem unable to coordinate getting Trinity ready for school, keeping Noah happy and getting myself ready. However, Trinity is at school, dressed properly with a lunch and instructions for getting home after school (I won't be picking her up). Noah is safely at home with a capable sitter (his aunt) and I am at work with coffee. I was a few minutes late, but that was because I had to stop for coffee or today would have been unbearable. Okay, the day would have been bearable, but I would not have been bearable. I'm even showered, dressed, wearing heels and made an attempt at doing my hair. It is raining, so I didn't make much of an attempt at my hair, but an attempt was made and I count that.
Yesterday I was supposed to get a bunch of stuff done and I ended up snuggling on the couch all afternoon with Trinity. I feel she sometimes gets my 'leftover' time, so it was nice to have some 'girl power' time. 'Girl power' is what we call our one-on-one time. We've been calling it that since she was quite little and it has sort of stuck.
Saturday we went shopping at Kohl's. It was fun, even though Noah was crabby. He was fine as long as the stroller cart kept moving, but if we stopped the screaming began. This was fine until Trinity had to try on clothes & Noah didn't want to sit still. I couldn't let him out of the stroller, because he would crawl out under the door. In the end it worked, but it made life interesting. Trinity had fun picking out her own clothes and figuring out her money. She loved that she got to count out her money to the cashier. I think she was a little disappointed that she didn't get change. She even talked me into getting a pair of shoes for myself. I am disappointed that we went shopping for clothes for warm weather and the next day it turned cold and rainy. Blech, but that is spring for you.
Yesterday I was supposed to get a bunch of stuff done and I ended up snuggling on the couch all afternoon with Trinity. I feel she sometimes gets my 'leftover' time, so it was nice to have some 'girl power' time. 'Girl power' is what we call our one-on-one time. We've been calling it that since she was quite little and it has sort of stuck.
Saturday we went shopping at Kohl's. It was fun, even though Noah was crabby. He was fine as long as the stroller cart kept moving, but if we stopped the screaming began. This was fine until Trinity had to try on clothes & Noah didn't want to sit still. I couldn't let him out of the stroller, because he would crawl out under the door. In the end it worked, but it made life interesting. Trinity had fun picking out her own clothes and figuring out her money. She loved that she got to count out her money to the cashier. I think she was a little disappointed that she didn't get change. She even talked me into getting a pair of shoes for myself. I am disappointed that we went shopping for clothes for warm weather and the next day it turned cold and rainy. Blech, but that is spring for you.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Feeling the love
I took the kids shopping this morning. Trinity has been learning about money in school, so I took the opportunity to cash in her piggy banks and after putting half in her savings account, she was allowed to spend the remainder at Kohl's today. She needed some summer clothes & she wanted flip flops and sandles. Noah also needed summer clothes as he has been forced to roast in long sleeves or wear nothing but a onesie.
Trinity was in charge of her own money and after counting it out MANY times, she knew how much she had to spend. Off we went to Kohl's this morning. The nearest Kohl's is about a half hour away. Not too long, but long enough that Trinity gets bored. So, here is a snippet of our conversation this morning.
Trinity: "Mom, can I tell you a story?"
Me: "Sure."
Her: "What do you want it to be about?"
Me: "How about a frog."
Her: "Okay. Once upon a time, there was a frog. The end. Now it is your turn to tell me a story."
Hmmm...kind of walked into that one. But off we went taking turns telling each other simple silly stories that had us both laughing...UNTIL...
Me: "What do you want your story about this time?"
Trinity: "How about a really awesome Dad and his wife."
Me: "Once upon a time there was this Dad..."
Her: "Don't you mean a really awesome Dad?"
Me: "Right, sorry. Once upon a time there was a really awesome Dad and a really awesome Mom. ..."
Her: "That's not right, the Dad is really awesome and he's just married to his wife, she's just a regular boring mom."
Me: "So, you don't want the story about your Dad?"
Her: "Mom, I just described my Dad, so of course it is about him."
So, I was feeling the love from my eldest child today. Apparently, I am just a regular boring Mom who has the honor of being married to a really awesome Dad. Am I supposed to be honored for myself or feel sorry for him?
Trinity was in charge of her own money and after counting it out MANY times, she knew how much she had to spend. Off we went to Kohl's this morning. The nearest Kohl's is about a half hour away. Not too long, but long enough that Trinity gets bored. So, here is a snippet of our conversation this morning.
Trinity: "Mom, can I tell you a story?"
Me: "Sure."
Her: "What do you want it to be about?"
Me: "How about a frog."
Her: "Okay. Once upon a time, there was a frog. The end. Now it is your turn to tell me a story."
Hmmm...kind of walked into that one. But off we went taking turns telling each other simple silly stories that had us both laughing...UNTIL...
Me: "What do you want your story about this time?"
Trinity: "How about a really awesome Dad and his wife."
Me: "Once upon a time there was this Dad..."
Her: "Don't you mean a really awesome Dad?"
Me: "Right, sorry. Once upon a time there was a really awesome Dad and a really awesome Mom. ..."
Her: "That's not right, the Dad is really awesome and he's just married to his wife, she's just a regular boring mom."
Me: "So, you don't want the story about your Dad?"
Her: "Mom, I just described my Dad, so of course it is about him."
So, I was feeling the love from my eldest child today. Apparently, I am just a regular boring Mom who has the honor of being married to a really awesome Dad. Am I supposed to be honored for myself or feel sorry for him?
Friday, April 23, 2010
Working
I am working today. A good friend of ours owns a jewelry store and prior to having two children I would help out every Christmas. He sent his staff to the jewelry show in Chicago, so I am filling in. A pretty low key job, obviously, since I'm blogging while here, but I am having fun. I love customer service A LOT and retail sales in small doses. So this job suits me perfectly on a fill-in, part-time basis.
I have to say, I admire those of you working moms, because having been out of the workforce for so long I find it very difficult to get in the swing of things. I forgot to send a lunch to school with Trinity this morning. Luckily lunch was something she didn't hate. I forgot to send her yearbook order form back, again luckily I taught Art Adventure today, so I took in at that time. I miss Noah like crazy & it has only been 4 hours. I felt like I was rushing to get ready and I forgot to eat lunch. Thank goodness for the tictacs in my purse. I just feel completely out of my element and unorganized today. Those of you that do this on a regular basis, I applaud you, because come fall when I am back in school my family will most likely be running around naked and living off Pop Tarts.
I have to say, I admire those of you working moms, because having been out of the workforce for so long I find it very difficult to get in the swing of things. I forgot to send a lunch to school with Trinity this morning. Luckily lunch was something she didn't hate. I forgot to send her yearbook order form back, again luckily I taught Art Adventure today, so I took in at that time. I miss Noah like crazy & it has only been 4 hours. I felt like I was rushing to get ready and I forgot to eat lunch. Thank goodness for the tictacs in my purse. I just feel completely out of my element and unorganized today. Those of you that do this on a regular basis, I applaud you, because come fall when I am back in school my family will most likely be running around naked and living off Pop Tarts.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Art
One of the bad things about Trinity going to a small (less than 100 total students K-6) school is they don't have an art curriculum. They have gym, music, Spanish & religion, but no art program. This is where the parents step in. They do, however, participate in the Art Adventure program in conjunction with the Minneapolis Institute of Art. This program allows parents to volunteer their time and teach the kids a little about art. At the beginning of the school year Trinity's teacher gave my name as someone who would be a good choice to teach. This proves to me that I am far too nice to Trinity's teacher. But anyway, twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring the parents go to the MIA and see 8 pieces of art and learn about each one. Then we go home, pick 4 days that work with the teacher, enter the classroom and try to excite these young minds about art.
I love the way the program works, because we don't tell them dates, names & spout off facts and speculations about the artist or the piece of art. The kids tell us. We ask things like "What do you see?" "How does this make you feel?" "Why?" We teach them that no matter how you look at it or how it makes you feel, there is no wrong answer. You can't be wrong in the world of art! After spending about half the time discussing the art, then the kids get to do a project that the parents think up that corresponds in some way with the pieces they just talked about. Some are fun and successful & some are not. But we are not professionals, nor do we pretend to be and the kids have fun no matter what.
So last week I had my first spring Art Adventure class. Normally I do this with another mom, but she called and said she had an emergency and could I handle it myself. The project seemed fairly easy, so I said yes. The project was looking through a toilet paper tube and drawing only what you saw through the tube. Straightforward enough, I thought. These are bright young kindergarten minds - they can handle it. . . Until we got started. Oh me, oh my! I had one little girl in glasses that swore she could not see through the tube with one eye shut. I told her to put her glasses back on and try and she said she was unable to shut her eyes with her glasses on, nor could she cover up one eye. She ended up keeping both eyes open since the tears were starting to sprout. Then Trinity brings me her picture, which is well done and I can tell she spent a lot of time on it, except she drew me, her father, herself and her brother. Um, two of the four weren't in the room. So, I asked her as sweetly as I could if she could turn her page over and try again, after praising her work of course. She slunk back to her desk and put her head down - AND STARTED TO CRY. Yes, she has the meanest mom in the world, because I made her cry in front of her entire class. I felt so awful.
Today I am going back, on my own again. Wish me luck. I'm going to try really hard not to make anyone cry today, especially my own child.
I love the way the program works, because we don't tell them dates, names & spout off facts and speculations about the artist or the piece of art. The kids tell us. We ask things like "What do you see?" "How does this make you feel?" "Why?" We teach them that no matter how you look at it or how it makes you feel, there is no wrong answer. You can't be wrong in the world of art! After spending about half the time discussing the art, then the kids get to do a project that the parents think up that corresponds in some way with the pieces they just talked about. Some are fun and successful & some are not. But we are not professionals, nor do we pretend to be and the kids have fun no matter what.
So last week I had my first spring Art Adventure class. Normally I do this with another mom, but she called and said she had an emergency and could I handle it myself. The project seemed fairly easy, so I said yes. The project was looking through a toilet paper tube and drawing only what you saw through the tube. Straightforward enough, I thought. These are bright young kindergarten minds - they can handle it. . . Until we got started. Oh me, oh my! I had one little girl in glasses that swore she could not see through the tube with one eye shut. I told her to put her glasses back on and try and she said she was unable to shut her eyes with her glasses on, nor could she cover up one eye. She ended up keeping both eyes open since the tears were starting to sprout. Then Trinity brings me her picture, which is well done and I can tell she spent a lot of time on it, except she drew me, her father, herself and her brother. Um, two of the four weren't in the room. So, I asked her as sweetly as I could if she could turn her page over and try again, after praising her work of course. She slunk back to her desk and put her head down - AND STARTED TO CRY. Yes, she has the meanest mom in the world, because I made her cry in front of her entire class. I felt so awful.
Today I am going back, on my own again. Wish me luck. I'm going to try really hard not to make anyone cry today, especially my own child.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
I have so much I want to tell you, but I doubt the baby is going to give me enough time to say it all. So, I am going to meander my way through and hopefully there is a point at the end.
Can I tell you how much I am enjoying being a mom of 2. I love it. However, I am nearing my end of the stay at home mom gig. I am ever so grateful for the opportunity to stay home for over a year with Noah. I was able to stay home for 6 months with Trinity and I loved it. I think that closing the business before Noah was born & then staying home was the correct decision at the time, but now I'm looking for more.
The market is being saturated with photographers claiming to be professional, just because they bought an SLR digital camera. I don't want to spend every moment of my time begging for business and explaining why my prices are higher than the weekend photographer who gets their prints from Wal-Mart. I want to spend my free time with my family. I want to have free time. I love being a photographer and I'm good at what I do. But I want to focus my energy on my children right now. Trinity is only in kindergarten once, Noah is only 1 for a year - I want to savor every moment.
Right before Christmas we learned we were pregnant again. It was bad timing, but we came to love the idea of growing our family and adding another life to our hearts. However, it was not meant to be. We went in for a routine appointment and there was no heartbeat. I ended up having a D&C a few weeks afterwards. We decided to wait to make a decision until our emotions were less raw and now we've decided our family is complete. Unless God decides to intervene, we are done having children. I believe this has prompted my latest transformation.
I have decided to go back to school in the fall and get my teaching certificate. I want to teach. It was my dream in college and the dream is starting to surface again. I am feeling good, very good.
Can I tell you how much I am enjoying being a mom of 2. I love it. However, I am nearing my end of the stay at home mom gig. I am ever so grateful for the opportunity to stay home for over a year with Noah. I was able to stay home for 6 months with Trinity and I loved it. I think that closing the business before Noah was born & then staying home was the correct decision at the time, but now I'm looking for more.
The market is being saturated with photographers claiming to be professional, just because they bought an SLR digital camera. I don't want to spend every moment of my time begging for business and explaining why my prices are higher than the weekend photographer who gets their prints from Wal-Mart. I want to spend my free time with my family. I want to have free time. I love being a photographer and I'm good at what I do. But I want to focus my energy on my children right now. Trinity is only in kindergarten once, Noah is only 1 for a year - I want to savor every moment.
Right before Christmas we learned we were pregnant again. It was bad timing, but we came to love the idea of growing our family and adding another life to our hearts. However, it was not meant to be. We went in for a routine appointment and there was no heartbeat. I ended up having a D&C a few weeks afterwards. We decided to wait to make a decision until our emotions were less raw and now we've decided our family is complete. Unless God decides to intervene, we are done having children. I believe this has prompted my latest transformation.
I have decided to go back to school in the fall and get my teaching certificate. I want to teach. It was my dream in college and the dream is starting to surface again. I am feeling good, very good.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Mommy Guilt of a New Kind
When I was little I remember my Mom was the best room mother. She attended every Halloween, Christmas and Valentine's party my class ever threw. She was a chaperone on every field trip I ever took. I have such great memories of picking apples with my Mom, going to the circus with my Mom, eating pink cupcakes with my Mom. In all these pictures there was also my little brother. See back when I was in elementary school, little siblings were welcomed on these trips and parties. And when my little brother started school, Mom went on his trips and attended his parties as well.
So here we are today and now I have a kindergartener and an infant, just like my Mom, but somehow things are different. First, I don't know how she did it, but my Mom managed her time WAY better than I do. Maybe it is because she didn't have Facebook, Twitter & blogs, but who can say for sure. I've been asked twice now to help with Trinity's class. Once was a lunch server and just today I was asked to be a teacher for Art Adventure week. My problem - no siblings allowed. I can't do it. I tried to get Noah into the daycare that Trinity was in, just part time, maybe 10 hours a week, but no, they don't have any openings until June. June! So, here I sit almost in tears, because as I watched Trinity grow from a infant to a toddler to a preschooler, I was there - always - for every field trip, for every party, for every event, until now.
We had a plan, a plan for an only child. ONE child I could devote all my attention and time to, but then we were surprised by this wonderful gift from God. While I wouldn't change things for anything, I am now plagued with mommy guilt once again. The guilt that my plans of being there for every field trip, every party, every fundraiser, every PSA meeting, every Girl Scout meeting is crushed. I now know that the same fond memories I have of my Mom and snowman cookies, Trinity will not have. Maybe the pain is too fresh, maybe after some time I will come to grips with this too, maybe I am just feeling overwhelmed this week, maybe I am just overreacting, but my heart is breaking & I feel I am not living up to my fullest potential as a Mom today. The guilt is creeping in and I'm not sure how to stop it.
So here we are today and now I have a kindergartener and an infant, just like my Mom, but somehow things are different. First, I don't know how she did it, but my Mom managed her time WAY better than I do. Maybe it is because she didn't have Facebook, Twitter & blogs, but who can say for sure. I've been asked twice now to help with Trinity's class. Once was a lunch server and just today I was asked to be a teacher for Art Adventure week. My problem - no siblings allowed. I can't do it. I tried to get Noah into the daycare that Trinity was in, just part time, maybe 10 hours a week, but no, they don't have any openings until June. June! So, here I sit almost in tears, because as I watched Trinity grow from a infant to a toddler to a preschooler, I was there - always - for every field trip, for every party, for every event, until now.
We had a plan, a plan for an only child. ONE child I could devote all my attention and time to, but then we were surprised by this wonderful gift from God. While I wouldn't change things for anything, I am now plagued with mommy guilt once again. The guilt that my plans of being there for every field trip, every party, every fundraiser, every PSA meeting, every Girl Scout meeting is crushed. I now know that the same fond memories I have of my Mom and snowman cookies, Trinity will not have. Maybe the pain is too fresh, maybe after some time I will come to grips with this too, maybe I am just feeling overwhelmed this week, maybe I am just overreacting, but my heart is breaking & I feel I am not living up to my fullest potential as a Mom today. The guilt is creeping in and I'm not sure how to stop it.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
I'm getting my groove back.
One thing about my pregnancies is that they throw my life into chaos. I realize that is probably true for most people, but all I can atest to is my own. I feel like I lose myself because I am unable to function normally. Add to that the fact that just being pregnant this last time was a shock for me I haven't felt like myself in over a year. Noah is now 6 months old and I am just starting to feel like I am getting myself back. So, part of getting myself back on track is to start blogging again.
I am not going to make any promises and I'm not going to pretend that I am blogging for those of you reading this. This blog is for me. It is my place to express my feelings that I may not be comfortable expressing anywhere else. You are welcome to read it, comment on it or ignore it. I appreciate your interest in my life, but these thoughts and words are mine.
Trinity began kindergarten on September 1st. I am not sure when she grew up, but I look back and realize that I took for granted that she would always be little and now she isn't. She loves school and I am so far happy with our choice of sending her to our local Catholic school.
Noah is all boy. He made his appearance into our lives on March 4, 2009. His labor was a little longer than Trinity's, but still short at 6 1/2 hours. He is now just over 6 months and doing well. He is almost 18 lbs and 26 1/2" long at his appointment last week. I find that parenting the second time has some great times and some horrible times. I know that we never thought we'd have a second child, but now we just cannot imagine our lives without this amazing gift from God. He has already managed to climb out of his swing and is a daredevil. He is not a snuggler much to my dismay, but I'll keep him anyway.
We have made much progress on our kitchen remodel. We still have some trim to get up & a little touch up painting, but overall we are close to done. It was one long year of construction. My black concrete counter tops are killer by the way. If you want to see them I have pictures on Facebook, just friend me.
I think this is going to be the end of my return to blogging. I need to get some stuff done before Noah wakes up and we have to go pick up Trinity today from Montessori. She was missing her Montessori friends, so we agreed she could do their after school program one afternoon a week and Tuesdays are her day. She gets to ride the bus from kindergarten to Montessori and boy I think the only thing that could top that is if we actually bought her a pony. I can't wait to hear about her first day.
Have a wonderful day, smile and ask someone how you can help them today. It is amazing how your outlook can change with one question.
I am not going to make any promises and I'm not going to pretend that I am blogging for those of you reading this. This blog is for me. It is my place to express my feelings that I may not be comfortable expressing anywhere else. You are welcome to read it, comment on it or ignore it. I appreciate your interest in my life, but these thoughts and words are mine.
Trinity began kindergarten on September 1st. I am not sure when she grew up, but I look back and realize that I took for granted that she would always be little and now she isn't. She loves school and I am so far happy with our choice of sending her to our local Catholic school.
Noah is all boy. He made his appearance into our lives on March 4, 2009. His labor was a little longer than Trinity's, but still short at 6 1/2 hours. He is now just over 6 months and doing well. He is almost 18 lbs and 26 1/2" long at his appointment last week. I find that parenting the second time has some great times and some horrible times. I know that we never thought we'd have a second child, but now we just cannot imagine our lives without this amazing gift from God. He has already managed to climb out of his swing and is a daredevil. He is not a snuggler much to my dismay, but I'll keep him anyway.
We have made much progress on our kitchen remodel. We still have some trim to get up & a little touch up painting, but overall we are close to done. It was one long year of construction. My black concrete counter tops are killer by the way. If you want to see them I have pictures on Facebook, just friend me.
I think this is going to be the end of my return to blogging. I need to get some stuff done before Noah wakes up and we have to go pick up Trinity today from Montessori. She was missing her Montessori friends, so we agreed she could do their after school program one afternoon a week and Tuesdays are her day. She gets to ride the bus from kindergarten to Montessori and boy I think the only thing that could top that is if we actually bought her a pony. I can't wait to hear about her first day.
Have a wonderful day, smile and ask someone how you can help them today. It is amazing how your outlook can change with one question.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
I
Monday, October 27, 2008
Naive, strict, old-fashioned, out of touch - what am I?
I liked how I was raised. I think my parents did a great job and I turned out pretty well. My parents weren't perfect & made plenty of mistakes, but they let me explore my surroundings & gave me a stable foundation in which to build my life. So, I learned from their mistakes, but I try to raise Trinity with the same values I was raised.
However, DH & I seem to be the only ones who subscribe to our parenting style. Not that this bothers me, but I'm wondering if I'm out of touch with how children are raised today. For example, we expect Trinity to have table manners, well actually, manners in general. We follow through with what we say, so if she is misbehaving and we tell her 'x' will happen if she doesn't stop, then 'x' happens. Not sometimes, but every time. We expect her to be quiet during church and not run in stores. She has to hold our hand to cross the street & she only watches age appropriate TV & movies.
It is the TV & movie rule that seems to be criticized the most. My SIL sees nothing wrong with letting her 3 1/2 year old watch Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix. My good friend lets her 7 year old watch Star Wars, Doctor Who, Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, etc. I won't even allow Trinity to watch Hannah Montana, because I think high school issues are meant for an older demographic than an almost 5 year old. I don't think the humor in shows like "Back in the Barnyard" & SpongeBob are appropriate for her age either.
So, am I just old-fashioned, out of touch or too strict? I know that I am comfortable with my parenting style & I have no plans to change anything, but I am interested in knowing if I am the only parent who feels this way.
However, DH & I seem to be the only ones who subscribe to our parenting style. Not that this bothers me, but I'm wondering if I'm out of touch with how children are raised today. For example, we expect Trinity to have table manners, well actually, manners in general. We follow through with what we say, so if she is misbehaving and we tell her 'x' will happen if she doesn't stop, then 'x' happens. Not sometimes, but every time. We expect her to be quiet during church and not run in stores. She has to hold our hand to cross the street & she only watches age appropriate TV & movies.
It is the TV & movie rule that seems to be criticized the most. My SIL sees nothing wrong with letting her 3 1/2 year old watch Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix. My good friend lets her 7 year old watch Star Wars, Doctor Who, Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, etc. I won't even allow Trinity to watch Hannah Montana, because I think high school issues are meant for an older demographic than an almost 5 year old. I don't think the humor in shows like "Back in the Barnyard" & SpongeBob are appropriate for her age either.
So, am I just old-fashioned, out of touch or too strict? I know that I am comfortable with my parenting style & I have no plans to change anything, but I am interested in knowing if I am the only parent who feels this way.
Monday, October 20, 2008
I survived Vegas, pretty much.
Vegas was a blast, for the most part. The flights were fine. I met some new cool people & I got about a months worth of walking in. I slept very little & it caught up with me Saturday night. The rest of the girls went out clubbing Saturday evening, but I went back to the condo after dinner, because I knew I had overextended myself on Friday. Well, after everyone left I got ready for bed, and after lying down I started violently vomiting. I think in the end I slept less than the girls, because I was so unbelievably ill. I managed to get through the flight home without being sick, and I even slept a little. Once I got home, it was another story. I am so grateful for the PICC line, because I think it is the only thing that saved me from a hospital stay. I slept from 3pm on Sunday until 7am Monday waking for an hour to attempt dinner (& promptly throw it back up). I feel much better today and ate an apple for breakfast & some lunch. I can tell I'm still dehydrated, so I may do three bags of fluid today to get myself totally back to normal.
When I'm feeling a bit more normal, I will post some Vegas pictures. We had so much fun!
When I'm feeling a bit more normal, I will post some Vegas pictures. We had so much fun!
Friday, October 10, 2008
I'm going to Vegas
I've had this trip planned for several months, but it has always seemed so far away and now I'm leaving in less than a week. How did that happen? Where did the time go?
DH's cousin is getting married, so I sort of put the idea in her head that she needed a Vegas bachelorette party. Okay, maybe I just needed to go to a Vegas bachelorette party, but that was before I got knocked up. Obviously my initial plan of partying like a single girl in Vegas isn't going to happen now & I'm okay with that, but I'm still looking forward to the trip. I adore DH's cousin & her sister (who is also coming). DH's sister lives in a suburb of Vegas, so I get to see my niece (& my SIL & BIL) which I am excited about. I don't know the other girls going, but I'm sure they are tons of fun. We plan on going to the 'Thunder from Down Under' show on Friday night and one of my favorite Italian restaurants on Saturday. I know I will have to pull out of a couple of the activities, but hopefully everyone understands.
Of course I've been in a panic for two days because my SIL is one of the most stylish people I know & so is DH's cousin. I have no clothes that fit or are appropriate for Vegas nightlife. I guess I will survive or I'll just go naked. That's okay in Vegas right?
I will post all about it after the trip as I'm trying to get by without dragging the laptop with me. I really want to travel as light as possible.
DH's cousin is getting married, so I sort of put the idea in her head that she needed a Vegas bachelorette party. Okay, maybe I just needed to go to a Vegas bachelorette party, but that was before I got knocked up. Obviously my initial plan of partying like a single girl in Vegas isn't going to happen now & I'm okay with that, but I'm still looking forward to the trip. I adore DH's cousin & her sister (who is also coming). DH's sister lives in a suburb of Vegas, so I get to see my niece (& my SIL & BIL) which I am excited about. I don't know the other girls going, but I'm sure they are tons of fun. We plan on going to the 'Thunder from Down Under' show on Friday night and one of my favorite Italian restaurants on Saturday. I know I will have to pull out of a couple of the activities, but hopefully everyone understands.
Of course I've been in a panic for two days because my SIL is one of the most stylish people I know & so is DH's cousin. I have no clothes that fit or are appropriate for Vegas nightlife. I guess I will survive or I'll just go naked. That's okay in Vegas right?
I will post all about it after the trip as I'm trying to get by without dragging the laptop with me. I really want to travel as light as possible.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Our daughter's first solo adventure
Sunday started as any other Sunday - up early, breakfast, church, Home Depot, lunch, nap, etc. Little did we know that our evening was going to be far from routine. First, we discovered our upper cabinets had to come out in one piece, so we had to call in favors for people to rush over and help us remove them. We are trying to reuse our cabinets, so we wanted to take them out gently. Second, I developed a clot in my PICC catheter so I had to run to the emergency room to have it de-clotted. Right before I headed to the ER Trinity asked if she could play outside, but since I was leaving and DH was in the kitchen, I said 'no'. DH then yells from the kitchen that he let her do it on Saturday while I was at work. *sigh* Okay, I caved and said fine assuming DH & Trinity had worked out some kind of arrangement. I'm waiting in the ER, which is pretty busy, when DH comes rushing in, looks around and runs out again. Uh, what the hell, I am thinking. So I have a friend of mine who is keeping me company when it dawns on me that Trinity must be missing. I can think of no other reason for his behavior. She leaves to help him search and I'm stuck in the stupid waiting room of the ER unable to do anything.
Turns out in the end that Trinity had asked if she could push her baby in her stroller on the sidewalk. DH had said yes, assuming she meant the sidewalk in front of our house. However, she decided to take her baby for a walk on the sidewalk on the busy street at the end of our block. Then, she apparently decided it would be fun to visit the park. The park is about 1/2 a mile from our house and involves crossing one of the top 5 busiest streets in our town. DH found her and she spent the rest of the evening sitting in the recliner. She is also unable to play outside for a few days at all and after that she must be supervised. She also had her TV priviledges taken away for last night and today until bed.
I'd love to be able to say 'I told you so.', but DH was so freaked by the whole incident I just don't have the heart. The bigger problem I see is that while she understood she was in trouble, she doesn't actually seem to think she did anything wrong. I have to admit that this worries me. We have always told her she cannot cross the street without an adult and we still enforce holding our hands when crossing streets, driveways & parking lots. When asked about why she thought it was okay to cross the street, her response was "But I thought I was old enough to cross by myself."
Call me crazy, but I see lots of gray hair in my future.
Turns out in the end that Trinity had asked if she could push her baby in her stroller on the sidewalk. DH had said yes, assuming she meant the sidewalk in front of our house. However, she decided to take her baby for a walk on the sidewalk on the busy street at the end of our block. Then, she apparently decided it would be fun to visit the park. The park is about 1/2 a mile from our house and involves crossing one of the top 5 busiest streets in our town. DH found her and she spent the rest of the evening sitting in the recliner. She is also unable to play outside for a few days at all and after that she must be supervised. She also had her TV priviledges taken away for last night and today until bed.
I'd love to be able to say 'I told you so.', but DH was so freaked by the whole incident I just don't have the heart. The bigger problem I see is that while she understood she was in trouble, she doesn't actually seem to think she did anything wrong. I have to admit that this worries me. We have always told her she cannot cross the street without an adult and we still enforce holding our hands when crossing streets, driveways & parking lots. When asked about why she thought it was okay to cross the street, her response was "But I thought I was old enough to cross by myself."
Call me crazy, but I see lots of gray hair in my future.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
I'm finally back
I have been feeling pretty miserable lately & typing does not help. I've had a PICC line for almost 2 weeks and it has helped. I am able to give myself IV treatments at home or at the studio. So it helps me stay hydrated and I still get to be productive - woohoo!
Trinity is back at Montessori and doing well. I have kept her teachers apprised of what is going on at home, so if she has any behavioral issues or anything at school, her teachers know what is going on. So far everything is good. She is such a trooper through all this chaos of me being sick. We heard the baby's heartbeat for the first time in the ER. Trinity was with & she thought it was pretty cool. We are letting her come to the 20 week ultrasound and she is excited for that.
Today is construction (destruction) day 1. We are gutting our kitchen. We've hated our kitchen since we moved into this house 8 years ago, but there have been so many other projects that needed to get done, so the kitchen got dropped to the bottom of the to do list. Well, now it has made its way to the top. On top of gutting the kitchen and completely changing the layout, we are replacing all the plumbing and moving the laundry room from the basement to the second floor where all the bedrooms are. We are also going to gut the upstairs bathroom, but that will be more of a winter/spring project. DH is doing most of the work himself. This is good and bad. He is very talented and able to do the work, however, he isn't always the most motivated. We have several projects in various stages of 'doneness' around the house. We've picked out the new flooring and paint. I have an idea of what I want for lighting, we are keeping our existing appliances, since they are only a couple years old. DH & I still have to agree on cabinet hardware, a faucet & sink. We have it narrowed down to either a concrete countertop or we found this awesome granite tile today that I want most desperately. DH is crunching numbers to see which is in our budget.
So, lots of stuff going on. I am starting to get more energy, so hopefully I will get caught up at the studio and be able to post more often. I feel like I've been neglecting all of my friends. I hope to be better. And hopefully next time I will have pictures of my torn up kitchen.
Trinity is back at Montessori and doing well. I have kept her teachers apprised of what is going on at home, so if she has any behavioral issues or anything at school, her teachers know what is going on. So far everything is good. She is such a trooper through all this chaos of me being sick. We heard the baby's heartbeat for the first time in the ER. Trinity was with & she thought it was pretty cool. We are letting her come to the 20 week ultrasound and she is excited for that.
Today is construction (destruction) day 1. We are gutting our kitchen. We've hated our kitchen since we moved into this house 8 years ago, but there have been so many other projects that needed to get done, so the kitchen got dropped to the bottom of the to do list. Well, now it has made its way to the top. On top of gutting the kitchen and completely changing the layout, we are replacing all the plumbing and moving the laundry room from the basement to the second floor where all the bedrooms are. We are also going to gut the upstairs bathroom, but that will be more of a winter/spring project. DH is doing most of the work himself. This is good and bad. He is very talented and able to do the work, however, he isn't always the most motivated. We have several projects in various stages of 'doneness' around the house. We've picked out the new flooring and paint. I have an idea of what I want for lighting, we are keeping our existing appliances, since they are only a couple years old. DH & I still have to agree on cabinet hardware, a faucet & sink. We have it narrowed down to either a concrete countertop or we found this awesome granite tile today that I want most desperately. DH is crunching numbers to see which is in our budget.
So, lots of stuff going on. I am starting to get more energy, so hopefully I will get caught up at the studio and be able to post more often. I feel like I've been neglecting all of my friends. I hope to be better. And hopefully next time I will have pictures of my torn up kitchen.
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