~Leprechaun Trap~

So for Ethan’s preschool class we were to build a leprechaun trap…what the devil is that?  We didn’t have a hot clue!  So www.bing.com later and we had an idea…unfortunately we left it till the last minute and it was already Ethan’s bedtime.  So off to bed goes Ethan and who builds the trap?  Why of course Mommy!  I think it turned out alright, hopefully he doesn’t get called out for not participating in the construction of it!

Leprechaun Trap VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

~Ethan’s Calendar Wall~

Ethan had so much fun this year with the advent calendar we did at Christmas time that I wanted to get him a monthly calendar.  I wanted one that he would be able to easily put the numbers on and off and one that would work month over month.  I initially was going to make one out of vinyl using my Silhouette but I wouldn’t have been able to get it big enough.  So I started looking for a set to buy.  I wanted something that would kind of go with our house decor but that proved too hard to find.  When I was in Edmonton a few weeks ago with Melissa we went to an Education Station store on 137 Ave to see what they had.  They of course had quite a selection and it took me forever to make up my mind!  I’m sure Melissa was getting frustrated with me!  I looked at wooden ones, slider ones, paper, plastic, whiteboard…you name it!  I decided to go with one made out of paper because it was the size I liked.  Then there was a selection of like 6 different themes!  My goodness the choices!  I finally got one I liked and the women at the store suggested I laminate it.  I didn’t want to spend the money on it so I didn’t bother.  It was only like 60cents a foot but I was feeling pinched for money after being gone from home for 2 weeks working. 

I got it home and set it up on the wall for us to start on Feb 1st.  By Feb 3rd I was done with it being paper…what a pain in the hiney!  So I borrowed a laminator and laminated all the small pieces I could with it and ended up taking the big calendar into Staples to get done.  $12 later!!! Holey crap, it would have cost me like $2 in Edmonton!  Kicking myself out the door I went home and applied mini velcro dots to the calendar and the numbers and voila!  This is what we have!

~Ethan’s Calendar Wall~ VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

It doesn’t match the decor at all…who cares!  I have it right by the patio door in the dining room so we can do it every morning after breakfast.  He loves talking about what the weather is like the most right now.  He’s also already asking how long it is till Christmas again…he must have really enjoyed it this year!  Anyhow, just thought I’d share our newest thing!

~Book Reviews~

I just finished “Roses” by Leila Meacham.  It blew my mind.  Rich characters. Great Plot.  Good transitions between chapters and timelines.  It carries you through the spellbinding lives of the 3 reigning families, The Toliver’s, The DuMont’s and the Warwick’s in the Texas cotton growing community of Howbutker.  Through well written twists and turns it takes you through a almost century of their lives and all the drama, love and war that it was.  Rich descriptions, realistic situations and an attention getting storyline kept me hooked on this book for the week it took me to read it.  If you like a well written historical romance/family history style book this one is for you!  It was recommended to me by my friend Chantel and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

The Help by Kathryn Stockett was also very good.  I did a review on GoodReads on it that I think describes it…I would love to read more books by her…need to look into that!

Heaven is for Real – A Little Boy’s Astounding Story of his trip to heaven and back by:  Todd Burpo with Lynn Vincent.  It was heart wrenching and carried a powerful message…one I’m still not ready to receive.  Heaven is real.  I did a lot of crying reading this book…what that family went through…wow.  This book is not for everyone that is for sure but it was a quick read and opens a conversation…

Right now I’m reading some non-fiction business books to help me work on some issues I’m facing at work…self-help kind of stuff…let’s see if I can learn anything from them, LOL!  After that I’m putting the brakes on reading for pleasure for awhile and getting into my textbook for school.  I’ve already read most of it but now I need to apply what I’ve read and complete the assignments.  My official start date was on Feb 1st so I’ve got 6 months to complete it.  I’m confident that if I get working on it I should be done within 3 months.  I’ve read ahead to the assignments and they are all things I’m dealing with everyday anyhow.  I’m looking forward to getting on with it…just need to nip the procrastination in the bud and get on with it!

So even though I’m taking a break I still LOVE book recommendations!  Send me what’s on your bookshelf, Kobo, Kindle, Ibooks….I’d love to hear about it!

~Teacher Christmas Gifts!~

I love crafting and love it even more when I have lots of time to do it…Hahaha….who has time?  So instead I have a love affair with my Silhouette SD and the creativeness it allows me!  On Wednesday night I was having two fits because Thursday was Ethan’s last day of school before the Christmas break and I didn’t have even a card for the teachers!  So I loaded up my Silhouette program and searched for something just right and came out with these:

~Teacher Christmas Gifts!~ VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

I stamped the back with Merry Christmas and wrote From: Ethan.  I put little baggies inside with really, really good chocolate truffles, packed them in a box and sent them off to school.  They sent a note home that they liked them…who wouldn’t love truffles in this eh?  Unfortunately I had all kinds of computer issues last night and didn’t get any treats made for daycare like I intended so they got chocolate chip cookies instead.  Hope the kids enjoyed them today at their Daycare Christmas party!  It’s a couple days till my 1st Annual Grounds-Rogers Christmas Party and the plans are starting to come together!  I don’t know when I’ll sleep before then but I’m having a tonne of fun so that’s all that counts right?  If you’re coming can’t wait to see you!

~EEK! I Did It!!!~

I just paid out $647 for Step 1 of my 5 year plan!  I’m a student again, taking the Bachelor of Human Resources and Labour Relations from Athabasca University!  The first of 10 classes that I need to take to achieve this degree will be in the mail to me by next week.  I hope to have the degree complete within 2.5 years.  Then I will be going after my CHRP designation and others as I see necessary.  I’m so excited/nervous/scared about it!  EEEKKKK!!!

~My Big Boy taking the Bus~

From Monday to Thursday Ethan takes the school bus from daycare to his Preschool. I asked my daycare provider to take some pictures of him getting on the bus the other day so I could hae them. They are too cute! He can finally make the stairs of the bus himself I hear. I've got no complaints on his behaviour on the bus, he stays in his seat and listens to the driver. Most days he is in a car seat on the bus anyhow but there is one bus that isn't equipped so on that one he just rides on the seat. There is an aid on the bus to help out, the bus is for preschoolers only. It's hard to believe my little guy is going to school though!

Help me make October Count for Kids!

Ethan is fundraising for Unicef this year through his preschool. He wants to raise '50 loonies' Please help him make his goal! Click the link to donate through his personal Unicef webpage!

Help me make October Count for Kids!

~My son, the Deliquent...~

So I got my second call to go to the school to get Ethan from the Principals office last week...this last time I went they told me he essentially wasn't welcome to return to the classroom. Did he bully other kids? Yell at the teachers? Act out in the classroom? Use bad words? Nope he crapped his pants. Yup. He pooped. In his pants. So they just don't think he's ready at this time. So he got expelled from the Montessori preschool.

He will still be going to the PUF preschool Mon-Thurs mornings. They don't have a choice though...I'm disappointed but at the same time its probably for the best. I don't know how much he was getting out of it. He was pretty tired out on those days. He's still pretty young for full days. They said we can try again for January but I think I'm going to wait until next year. By then he'll have had a chance to really understand what it is all about and gain all the benefits of the PUF classroom. His speech is already showing improvement from just the last month and a half.

So thats the update for my little deliquent...expelled from school at 3-1/2!!!



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

~Ethan’s First Weeks of School/Our Schedule~

Well so far my little man has been enjoying school.  He comes home every day talking about the school bus, the teacher, the play park….keeping it simple!  I’m so glad that he seems to be fitting in and adapting to the new schedule so quickly.  We have a good routine down pat and it’s working.

I work:

Monday 5am – 2pm – Ethan is out of school at 2:30pm one Monday a month, the rest 3:15pm so I will work overtime till 3pm those days.

Tuesday – Thursday 7am –4pm – This way I can be home at a decent hour to make supper and get Ethan to bed on time.

Friday 1-10pm – Ethan has no school on Friday…we get to hang out in the morning together and he doesn’t have much time in daycare as well.

I love that I have this flexibility to my work schedule!  I can really make our family schedule work and have time to spend with Ethan and Randy.  Well sometimes with Randy…he’s working lots right now and I really only see him on the weekends.

Anyhow. it’s working for us.  We like it.

~Books~

It seems like forever ago that I sat down and read a good book. This summer I’ve been making an effort to read more and get back to one of my passions when I was younger. So far this summer I’ve read:

The Secret Daughter by: shilpi somaya gowda

It was a book I couldn’t put down. Such descriptive writing and thought provoking storyline. It made me want to go to India and experience the things she described and made me sad that the slums she described exist in this modern day world. It was a realistic beautiful look into a society that I couldn’t imagine surviving in.

Good in Bed by: Jennifer Weiner

It was a quick read, amusing and airy storyline. I see myself in bits of this storyline but don’t really believe anyone could live this story.

Freedom by: James Patterson

I bought it on my Ipad and just haven’t gotten used to the idea of reading on it. It isn’t done yet so I can’t really say what I think about it but so far it is an interesting story.

I have several books I’ve picked up this summer that are on my to read list. You’ve got to love garage sales! That’s where they’ve all come from! I’ve got sitting beside me:

Love in the Time of Cholera by: Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Late Nights on Air by: Elizabeth Hay

Olive Kitteridge by: Elizabeth Strout

The Saffron Gate by: Linda Holeman

The Gatecrasher by: Madeleine Wickham (alias for Sophie Kinsella)

Twenties Girl by: Sophie Kinsella

The Life you Want by: Bob Greene

Quite a variety of books and genres but I love that, it keeps it interesting. I’ve got lots of reading planned for this winter, on my elliptical! I hope it has a book holder! Starting October 19th through January 27th, our family is joining a 100,000 nights of reading program through the school. Every night we read to Ethan for at least 15 minutes, more often like half an hour. This program through school is all about reading for 15 minutes a night for 100 Nights. Not a challenge for this family of bookworms!

Also in October I’m ordering my first class from Athabasca towards my degree. I’m scared but I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time! Since Home Depot will pay for half of it I’m going for it! It will take me a couple of years but in the end I will have a degree! Bachelor of Human Resources and Labour Relations. I’m looking forward to having that education to back up my experience I’m gaining in my job as an HR manager. I will also be going after my CHRP designation. With that and a degree I can get a job almost anywhere in HR. I’m so proud to be working towards a goal and glad that I can role model the importance of education to my kids!

I wish I had a book club like my friend Chantel does…there is one at the Library that I might join…mostly just chicken about it! I just need to do it once and see if there are people there that I gel with I guess and go from there. Who knows? Maybe I’ll even make a new friend! Edited to add: the day I posted this I got an email inviting me to a Grande Prairie Mommy Book Club. I'm biting the bullet and signing up! YAY!!!

So? What’s on your book list? I love recommendations! Chantel sent me home with a list the other day that I can’t wait to work through! Anyone else have any they love and want to share with me?

~Ethan’s First Day of Preschool~

Off we go for our first day of school!  Dressed in a cute little outfit with his ultra-cool Thomas back pack stuffed full of essentials for his classroom.  New indoor shoes, Kleenex, a change of clothing and a permission slip to let him go swimming monthly and on walks around the neighbourhood.  I look at these pictures and am so proud to be this little guys Mom!

I pray that he will have success in all that he does, that he works hard and sees the results, that he makes friends easily and avoids bullies, that he likes and respects his teachers because they’ve earned it from him, and that he achieves the dreams he sets for himself, not ones that others put on him (me included).

I took him into his classroom today, which apparently I’m not supposed to.  I’m supposed to drop him off at the door to the school and they will take them in from there.  No one told me that.  Oh well.  Next time.  Anyhow.  Ethan got in, took off his shoes etc. and put them away and went right to playing.  I spoke with a teacher assistant and got the low down on how we were supposed to do it.  When I was sure he could be left there I went over to him and said good-bye and told him to be a good boy.  He wanted a kiss & hug.  I gave him a couple…I started to leave and he says “Mommy”  I said “Yes Ethan”  , “I love you Mommy”  and that is when I lost it.  I said I love you back and bolted.  I barely made the school sidewalk before the boo-hoo-hoos started.  By the time I got to my truck I was into full waterworks!  Driving to work I was worried I would get a distracted driver ticket because I was bawling.  I composed myself, got into work and my assistant saw me and said “How did it go?”  and full on waterworks and boo-hooing ensued.  I think I may have scared her….

When I went to pick him up they were playing in the playground.  He was off on his own, shocker, and did not want to leave.  He said he really liked his teacher and school and he wanted to stay all day.  It took a lot of convincing to get him to leave.  Finally his teacher assistant grabbed him for me because he kept running away from me.  He decided she needed a kiss & hug too, she told him that she couldn’t wait to say good-bye to him again!  It was so cute!

Tomorrow is the big day.  He goes to the one classroom in the morning and then transfers to the the other for the afternoon.  He goes from 8:45 am to 3:15pm.  I have to make him two snacks and a lunch for tomorrow.  I have no idea what to send….Also his dish didn’t come home today from snack, not impressed!

I have such a good feeling about this whole experience for him.  He is going to thrive here!  He even already has a field trip planned too!  He goes swimming on Sept 19th, plus has an early out already next Monday!  I can’t keep up, my head is spinning!

Anyhow let me get to what everyone wants to see:

My little Preschooler with his Thomas Backpack:

Ethans' 1st day Preschool VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

~Randy goes back to School~

It seems like just yesterday Randy was away at school but in reality it was 2 years ago already!!!  He is challenging a year which is why there is a gap but it is time for him to head back to school for his 3rd year…He called today and was lucky enough to get registered for his 3rd session for Sheetmetal Worker at NAIT in Edmonton.  He was very worried about getting in for his 3rd year…he is still finishing his 2nd and they have far less spots available for the 3rd session.  But he waited on hold for an hour and was able to get in!!!  He starts August 29th and goes for 10 weeks which puts him home before winter gets really set in.  This will enable him to come home on weekends more, or for us to go see him because the roads won’t be as bad yet. 

It won’t be as hard on us financially this time because of course I make more now and our vehicle will be paid off before he goes away…the sad thing is that he will likely miss Ethan’s first day of school because it will probably be the same day that he starts in Edmonton.  I will of course take lots of pictures and send them to him but I know he’s sad about not being here for that big day.  The tricky with him being gone this time is that during that time period every year I usually have a couple of trips out of town to take with work and I won’t have anyone to watch Ethan.  So I will have to figure that out but thankfully we’ve made some friends here and I trust them to look after him if of course they can!  Otherwise I just don’t go on the trip and hopefully that isn’t an issue with my work.

When he gets back he will be that much closer to being a Journeyman which makes our family that much more secure…he can go anywhere with his ticket!  I’m proud of him for going after this and pushing through it, I know it can’t be easy to be away from home that long and to be back in school but he’s doing a great job and Ethan and I are very proud of him!