Photo Grocery List

This is an idea I've had for quite a while, but I never remembered in time to make it and print it before it was time to actually leave for the grocery store. After a series of meltdowns while at the store, including multiple times begging to hold the list ("but you can't read!" was always my response), I finally got around to making one he could read.



I just used clip art from Word and various graphics found around the web. They don't have to be exact (for example, I use a hamburger to represent ground beef), and I don't necessarily put everything on his list that is on mine. But it works! There have been no meltdowns for two consecutive weeks now because he had his own list and his own pen (which kept his hands (mostly) occupied so he wasn't trying to touch everything), and he felt like he had a job to do, so he was more focused and less all over the place. Really should have done it sooner!
Currently feeling: momentarily brilliant!

Cash: A Conversation With Luke

In the car, trying to decide if we had enough cash on hand to run in the grocery store and grab just one thing. If only it were this easy! LOL

DH: How much is it?
Me: Like $3. Do we have any cash?
DH: I only have a couple of singles.
Me: I don't have anything.
Luke: Daddy, we need to buy some more money?

Currently feeling: broke! LOL

Kindergarten Open House

Today was Open House at Luke's elementary school for all students to come and meet their teachers. Yes, on a Thursday. Yes, from 8AM-2PM. Why yes, that is in the middle of the day when many parents are working! I don't get it, but apparently all of the schools in this particular area have done it this way for years, and it clearly didn't stop lots of people from showing up. We arrived at 8:10, and there were literally about 100 people in line ahead of us. Now, most of those were in groups of 3-4 [parent(s) with kid(s)], so we only had to wait for 25-30 groups to clear, but it still took nearly 45 minutes. It was hot, but better in the 9AM heat than the 2PM heat. We saw a few kids that we knew from daycare, but they are all in higher grades than Luke.

You were not permitted to pass beyond the foyer without showing proof of residency. Thankfully, the head secretary had told me that when I registered him, so we were prepared. And since we had already registered, we were able to proceed directly to the lunch room; those who had not yet registered went to the library. The lunch room had different stations set up: bus routes, after school clubs (Luke is too young for all of them), after school care registration, PTA membership, etc. We were handed a packet of forms as we walked in, but I wasn't sure about some of the extras and whether or not they were recommended for his age group. Enter Julie, one of the PTA co-presidents. I don't know how or why she picked us as her pet project at that moment, but she walked us through every single step personally, what was a good idea to have and what we really didn't need, and made sure we had his teacher assignment before we left. She even gave us the low down on all of the Kindergarten teachers and said that both she and the principle are very concerned that each child be a good match with his or her teacher, so if we didn't feel Mrs. B was a good fit for Luke, we should contact her and she would be happy to walk is through the process of switching. It sounded like his assigned teacher would be very good for Luke, but I wanted to meet her to be sure. Then we headed up the hall to his Kindergarten room. Check out the hall outside of his classroom (all of the halls are this beautifully painted!).



The room is actually smaller than I expected, but she has it very well arranged with a whole lot crammed into a small space. (I'm sure it would feel larger without one wall completely consumed by computer desks, but I am also happy to see computers in there!) Very bright and cheery. She greeted us happily and gave us a quick rundown of things we might need or want to know. I think she is a great balance of nice (but not sticky sweet) and firm (but not gruff). She also cleared up the question of the pencil box without me even having to ask. Whew! There were three other families in there with us, but she juggled us easily, and I still got all of my questions answered.

I can't say I was very happy with some of the answers, but that's not her fault. It's just policy. There is no rest or nap time, which doesn't surprise me. But there is also no snack time. Not in the morning or in the afternoon. Wow, really? They eat lunch at 10:30 (yes, really!), and that's it? Nearly all of these kids get up before 7AM, and some before 6. I can also assure you that the vast majority of them, whether coming from home, Pre-K, or daycare, are accustomed to least one snack a day, possibly two. Combine having no snack and no rest time with having to get up 90 minutes earlier than usual so that he can get on the bus at 6:50 AM (yes, really! I'll be getting him up at 6), and that is a Luke meltdown just waiting to happen.

I explained that Luke gets either very unreasonable or very upset when he gets hungry, so if he starts refusing to follow basic instructions or starts crying over nothing, he probably needs calories. Once he gets upset, it is hard to get and/or keep him calm after without some kind of food. I offered to send some packs of crackers or something, if she was allowed to do that, not for every day, but just in case she needed them for any child. She said that she has packs of crackers and graham crackers on her "teacher wish list" to handle kids when they get like that. She has been teaching Kindergarten for 16 years, so I'm sure it isn't her first time handling the situation, but I did want to warn her that Luke is particularly prone to it (runs in the family, doesn't it little brother? LOL). I know kids have to get used to it at some point, but that is a whole lot of transitioning crammed into Kindergarten, which is (clearly!) stressful enough as it is. There's really no choice but to deal with it, but I don't have to be happy about it.

Overall, I feel like we're pretty ready for the first day. Guess we'll find out on Monday!

Currently feeling: hope we're ready!

No Air Conditioning: A Twitter Story

I whined about chronicled most of the details on Twitter from Saturday, July 31, through Monday, August 2, so I'll just copy those over to tell the story. If you already follow me on Twitter, there is a small bit of extra detail at the end.

==============================

Outside air conditioner not working. Covered by home warranty, but won't come until Mon unless "life threatening." Great.
Saturday, July 31, 2010 5:17:32 PM via txt

Could call for repair ourselves, but would have to pay. Why have warranty if don't use it? Why does everything have to break on weekends?!
Saturday, July 31, 2010 5:18:29 PM via txt

Sun is going down; can literally feel temp dropping inside the house. Perhaps we'll only be overly warm while sleeping vs sweltering?
Saturday, July 31, 2010 8:10:59 PM via web

How many fans can you plug in before you trip the circuit breaker? ::rolls eyes::
Saturday, July 31, 2010 10:53:40 PM via web

Survived last night. Actually bordering on comfortable with 3 fans going this morning. If only it would stay this way (ha ha; it's 9 AM).
Sunday, August 01, 2010 9:31:16 AM via web

Current outside temp: 93F/34C; Heat Index: 99F/37.5C. Thermostat temp reading: 78F/25.5C; Current master bedroom temp: 83F/28C. Ugh.
Sunday, August 01, 2010 12:43:48 PM via web

Current temperature in my den: 85F/29.5C at 3PM
Sunday, August 01, 2010 3:06:54 PM via web

Den temp now 87F/30.5C. Thermostat officially reads 81F/27.2C. Leaving for an air conditioned dinner! Hope it's cooler when we get back.
Sunday, August 01, 2010 4:50:44 PM via web

It's about 78 at the restasurant! But L had a meltdown when we tried to leave, so we're staying. Why does God hate me this weekend?
Sunday, August 01, 2010 5:37:46 PM via txt

L: Why we stay at a hotel? Me: Why do you think? L: Because hotels are cool! (He meant cool=nifty, but either definition works!)
Sunday, August 01, 2010 8:37:39 PM via mobile web

L & I @ hotel. DH staying @ house so he "won't disturb us when he leaves for work." Crazy! I'm sleeping in the AC, sorry.
Sunday, August 01, 2010 9:30:24 PM via mobile web

It was 84 on the thermostat this morning at the house. Only 78 outside! No word yet from home warranty company. Trying to be patient.
Monday, August 02, 2010 9:45:18 AM via mobile web

AC guy from home warranty company can't come until Wed!!! DH about to explode. Can't afford several nights of hotel & the repair! GRRR
Monday, August 02, 2010 12:49:24 PM via mobile web

Less than $200 to our maintenance company, & AC was fixed in 90 minutes! Stupid warranty.
Monday, August 02, 2010 4:28:52 PM via mobile web

75 degrees and falling. Ahhhh!!! Thank you all for putting up with my whining! LOL
Monday, August 02, 2010 6:50:51 PM via web

==============================

DH said that the AC repair guy barely had the cover of the outside unit off before he declared that he knew what the problem was. Turns out it was the capacitor, which basically burst. He said you could see the insides oozing out of the top. AC guy said they replace probably 1000 of those every summer. It's like batteries in a toy or a fan belt in a car; they just wear out. He also said it is both one of the easiest and cheapest things to fix, so we were lucky. Yay! Once again, we have to count our blessings. No, it wasn't fun. Yes, we still had to pay to fix it ourselves. But it was cheap and easy and fast; things could have been very much worse.

Currently feeling: gratefully chilly once more

July 2010 Round Up

Click mosaic to biggify. Created using Big Huge Labs Mosaic Maker.

What books and/or magazines did I read this month?
Finished My Life in France, by Julia Child, which I really and truly enjoyed. Also started and finished Julie & Julia, by Julie Powell, which was interesting and sometimes funny, but I didn't enjoying it overall quite as much as My Life in France. (And I am so impressed with myself for starting and finishing a book in the same month! LOL)

What movies and/or tv shows did I watch this month?
* TV Time: Started watching a few new shows. American Pickers on History, which is a couple of guys who hunt through junk yards looking for "rusty gold" as they call it, finding stuff people have forgotten about, buying it, cleaning it up, and reselling it. Very interesting to see what they find, and how some things may not be worth much in the area where they're found, but can be worth a good deal in other parts of the country. The Closer is back on TNT, which we love. It is followed this year by a new show with Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander called Rizzoli and Isles. It's still trying to find its footing, but I like both women and the two supporting male roles very much. I'll give it a little more time.
* New Films: Toy Story 3, which was pretty good, but I'm not sure I really liked it, if that makes any sense. I don't see myself watching it over and over like I do the other two. Surrogates, which was interesting, somewhat similar to I, Robot. It was just okay. And This Is It, the Michael Jackson documentary of the rehearsal footage from his concert that was not to be. I enjoyed it more than I expected to, actually.
* Old Favorites: Reign of Fire, Contact, Pocahontas, WALL-E, Jurassic Park III, Julie & Julia, Ratatouille, Toy Story, Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

What special days did I celebrate and how?
We celebrated our anniversary by going to see the Braves game followed by Luke's first July 4th Fireworks. I celebrated my birthday by visiting my new infant niece for the first time!

What gifts did I give and/or receive?
As an anniversary gift, DH bought really good seats for the Braves game. I received gift certificates from family for my birthday, plus a card and birthday cake while at BIL and SIL's house. Nana and Papa sent Luke his first ever school backpack. ACK!! He looks so grown up wearing it!

What illnesses or health concerns did I have?
Oh my goodness, am I actually able to say "none"? I'm typing this in August, so I don't think I can retroactively jinx July, but you never know. I'm expecting quite a bit of sniffles and whatnot with Luke going to Kindergarten and meeting a bunch of new kids (and their new germs). Maybe the illness gods decided to give us a small break for a change.

What fun things did I do with my friends and/or family?
We traveled to NC to visit with BIL and SIL and their two girls. I went antique shopping with my mom. And of course, the Star Wars exhibit and the Space and Rocket Center were amazing.

What new foods, recipes or restaurants did I try this month?
We tried Buckhead Pizza Co. on the way out of town towards North Carolina.

What special or unusual purchases did I make?
I went shopping for girl stuff (for the nieces), which is definitely unusual! LOL I got a lovely carnival glass cup at the antique store. We also bought Luke's first ever set of school supplies.

What were this month's disappointments?
We discovered the air conditioner was broken the morning of July 31. Lovely way to end the month. The home warranty folks don't seem interested in helping before Monday unless it is "life threatening." Will anyone at this house literally die? Doubtful. Will it threaten our sanity? Most definitely.

What were my accomplishments this month?
My big work project is done! And only 2 weeks behind. This type of project is notorious for being months behind schedule, so just two weeks late is quite a miraculous feat. It still has to pass all of the testing (this is the first time we've done this particular "box"), but the installation and turn up are complete. Yaaaaaaaaay! ::insert Kermit flail here:: (If you have no idea what that means, watch the first 12 seconds of this (SFW) video on YouTube.)

For my 101 Things list, I'm still chipping away at some of the multiple ones (new restaurant, Netflix movies, read a book), but none of the individual items this month. I'm trying not to get discouraged, but we are so busy! I'll try to look at the list and make a conscious effort on a few of them for August.

Work and travel/activities really took up most of the month. Our trips were all very successful, if you want to consider travel an accomplishment. We were so busy, I don't consider us as having had a slack month, but I can't really point to very many specific "accomplishments."

What were Luke's accomplishments this month?


I've already talked about most of it. He saw a movie at the theater, he saw his first July 4th fireworks. Oh, he added two new states to his state count during our trip to Huntsville, which brings his total to 8. I think that was our best museum experience to date, so that was good. I think he is getting closer to being ready for some museum-centric vacations in a year or two, which makes me happy. And he held a baby for the first time. He was really very well behaved during all of our travels. And he was very excited about his Kindergarten backpack! (see picture above; that is NOT a first day of school photo)

Anything else noteworthy to record?
It has been really hot all month, and I hear August isn't going to be much better. Sure hope we get that air conditioner up and working again in a hurry!

Monthly Round Up courtesy of Katie the Scrapbook Lady.

Currently feeling: melting

More Kindergarten Angst

Just what you wanted to hear, right? LOL I'm trying to be calm about it, I really am. But they give us (two engineers!) these forms and instructions that are... insufficient, and I get stressed!

For example, we tried to be prepared and get the school supplies in advance, based on the list I was given when we registered. Simple enough, right? Maybe not. Some examples - Item: 5 glue sticks. Okay, what size? They had 3 different sizes. I assume they mean the size I grew up with, but they didn't say. 5 little ones, 5 big honking ones? Are the "goes on purple, dries clear" ones okay or not? Specify please. (They did give a length on the scissors, which helped me so much!) Item: 2 erasers. Okay, what type? Cap erasers for his pencils? The clicky stick eraser that my husband likes? Classic pink erasers? Again, these are all different styles and types that serve different purposes. What is it he needs? If it truly doesn't matter, then say "any type," or something like that. This next item, in particular, caused me so much angst that we didn't even buy one while at the store: pencil box. Well, what does it need to hold? Just the pencils? Just the primary stuff, like pencils, crayons, glue sticks, and scissors? Or do those items go somewhere else? If it needs to hold everything on his supply list (all of the above, plus markers, glue bottles, all of the extra crayons and pencils, etc), then it will need to be the size of a small suitcase. I'm not asking for dimensions or a specific brand/type, just an idea of what the pencil box is supposed to hold, because there are a lot of different sizes out there. I decided to wait and ask his teacher at open house.

Then there is the "Kindergarten Readiness Checklist." This is something we are supposed to fill out to give his teacher an idea of where each child stands on things. Some are pretty easy: "Recognizes first/last name in print" (yes) or "Reads simple books" (no). You are supposed to respond with Exposed, In Progress, or Achieved. (So actually, those answers should be Achieved and Exposed, respectively.) I try to be completely honest on these types of things. Like any child, Luke is better at some things than others, and if you are bothering to give me this assessment, I figure you want it to be accurate. But what about some of the other items? "Able to sit and listen with interested to stories for 10 minutes." Well, it depends on the day and the story! Does the story interest him? Is he hungry? Has he been (more or less) sitting still for quite a while already? It all depends. So is that achieved or in progress? "Sequences a series of three picture cards." I have no idea. He's never been asked to do that! I also don't really know what type of picture cards you mean. I could make some assumptions, but I'd really rather not. So I guess I should answer with the lowest level of achievement, but I can't really say "Exposed" since we've never tried it. Do I just leave it blank? "Willingly cleans up own area after play or activity." Um, exactly how many 5-year-olds always do that willingly? Heck, I don't "willingly" clean up my own mess; more like grudgingly! That seems more of a personality type thing than an achievement. "Accepts rules and authority." You're kidding, right? Has any young child (or teenager!!) actually fully "achieved" that? If so, I want to know what their parents are doing differently!

I don't want to make him look like an idiot or a problem child, but I am trying to answer the questions as precisely as possible. I also think "rarely, sometimes, usually" (or something along those lines) would be a better scale than exposed, in progress, achieved. This is why you don't give this kind of thing to an engineer without more precise instructions or a better scale. It stresses us out!! And all I could think the whole time I was staring at and fussing about this is that *surely* most other parents don't get this uptight about a simple form and supply list. I could also imagine the teacher just rolling her eyes at me (hopefully behind my back) when I ask about what size the pencil box needs to be. I even mentioned on Twitter that I wondered if teachers preferred uninvolved to anal. I don't want to be "that mom," you know? (My teacher friends assured me anal was preferred. Thanks, y'all!) And the worst part is, he hasn't actually even *started* Kindergarten yet. ::sigh::

Are we there yet?

Currently feeling: frustrated

My 34th birthday gift: Meeting my new niece

Okay, time to talk about the special thing I got to do for my birthday weekend this year! We drove once again to North Carolina to visit DH's brother and family and to meet our new niece! Our previous trip in April was for niece N's second birthday, only a few weeks before her new little sister was due to make her appearance in this world. We were not able to meet N until she was almost 6 months old, and we wanted to do everything possible to meet our new niece sooner. I present Miss M:



I think I just lost my husband to a younger woman! LOL We truly had an excellent trip. We didn't have any plans for this trip, we simply wanted to spend time with all of them and follow their schedule as needed, which is always subject to the whims of an infant. As much fun as we had at N's birthday party, and as much as we enjoy SIL's family, it was nice to spend time with just them this trip.

Luke has never really been around a baby, and he had no idea what to make of M. He certainly doesn't seem anxious to have a little brother or sister (fine with us! LOL). He wanted to be near her some, but when I did this, he was completely confused:



I've already mentioned my grandfather's stroke. I know my father hated sending that message on my actual birthday, but such is life. At least I had distractions to keep me from fretting all weekend. BIL and SIL were kind enough to get me a birthday cake (which was excellent!), everyone sang happy birthday (and N didn't cry!), and I got the sweetest card from my nieces, complete with sticker badge:



What more could an aunt wish for on her birthday?

Currently feeling: festive