I'm exhausted

Yes, that sounds like something I would say (well I say it almost every day).
However, this time these words came from a 4 year old motormouth, usually full of constant energy, at 7:15pm last night!

I guess that's what a busy day at school, including an ENCORE field trip will do to you. We hope so! We'd like our children to go to bed before 9-10pm, especially as I want to be in bed. I'm exhausted! : )

More words & other amazing stuff from Julia!

Literally the words never end - Julia added 3 more for me to highlight on the Sight Word list today. The list is 220 words - 11 lists with 20 words on each list.  Students need to know 40 words at end of K and 220 words at beginning of 2nd grade. It includes 11 color words & 10 number words which Julia knows. These words are some of the most common words as children start to read sentences, phrases & books.

The list doesn't include 13 words she also knows:
apple, baby, mommy, daddy, dog, cat, pig, cow, book, moon, king, library, bus

In addition to some proper nouns for real & fictional people:
God, Jesus, Dora, Boots
Julia's first & last names
first & last names of Tara, Jai, Jacqueline, Bonnie, Susie
our home address, city, and phone number

Reading Strategy
She has this really interesting technique. She thinks of a familiar phrase or book title she's seen before  - like "llama llama mad AT mama." Then she says "at" & keeps reading. I told a co-worker about this technique. She said that teachers try to encourage students to use this strategy, but it's hard to teach. She was amazed, especially as we didn't teach her this skill, she told me about it!

"Call the Midwife"
Julia & I are in my car, driving somewhere, in a quiet contemplative space; I decide to turn on my audio book. Listening to books to & from work is the only way I really read these days.  It is barely on before Julia says "that's Call the Midwife ... "yes" I say in surprise ... "how do you know that?" ... Julia says "it's the woman's voice from the TV show."

... like duh, mom! Uhh, really, she recognized the narrator's voice which isn't even the same voice of narrator on the TV show. It's probably the British accent, but she didn't say "Downton Abbey," another program she knows I watch & she has seen before. I told my co-worker this story too & she said "wow she knows the word "midwife." That's not so shocking since we worked with midwives with both pregnancies. Julia heard us talk about them & she went to some appointments & met a few of thewidwives.

However, we think Julia must have a photographic memory or very close to it. She remembers EVERYTHING - words, directions, tiny details we don't even realize she's heard or noticed. Julia's truly an amazing young person; she's so smart! It seems like we're in for a fast ride & Jai & I hope we can keep up!

Downton Abbey 1/27/13

More quotes from awesome show, thanks again to sister, Susie. 
This was a tear jerker episode! Poor Sybil, Tom & Cora!

Mrs. Patmore: Why are you talking about having babies for, Ivy? I think we can leave that for a little further down the menu, thank you.

James: It is always an idea to be prepared.
Thomas: I expect you are always prepared.

James: I try to be, Mr. Barrow.
Mr. Carson: I do not like the direction this conversation is taking. Could we all begin the day's tasks, please?
Ivy: It is exciting though isn't it, to have a baby in the house?
Daisy: It will not make much difference to you. Now get back in the kitchen and do as you are told!

Mrs. Crawley/Isobel: Where will you go?
Mrs. Bird: Back to Manchester and stay with my sister. She says there is plenty of work for a plain cook these days.
Mrs. Crawley/Isobel: And they will find one in you. Goodbye, Mrs. Bird, and good luck.

Cora: Your grandmother will be with us every night until the baby is born.
Lady Grantham/Granny/Violet: I hate to get news secondhand.

Matthew: Edith, have you written back to your editor yet?
Lady Grantham/Granny/Violet: What is this?
Matthew: Edith has had an invitation to write a newspaper column.
Lady Grantham/Granny/Violet: And when may she expect an offer to appear on the London stage?

Mrs. Crawley: Are you all right, Ethel? Only I heard a shout.
Ethel: Fine, ma'am. Everything is fine. It is a kidney souffle, ma'am.
Mrs. Crawley: A kidney souffle? Isn't that a bit adventurous?
Ethel: I have seen Mrs. Patmore do it a hundred times.
Mrs. Crawley: Yes, but she cannot have begun her career as a cook by making a kidney souffle.
Ethel: Shall I try something else, ma'am?
Mrs. Crawley: No. If we are to avoid a midnight feast, it is too late to turn back.

Mrs. Hughes: But Ethel has given all that up.
Mr. Carson: I did not think she was running a brothel in Mrs. Crawley's kitchen!

Lady Grantham/Granny/Violet: Well, do not look at me. Cora is right. The decision lies with the chauffeur.

Once again, Susie forgot the scene between Mary & Edith as they discuss the need to be nicer sisters to each other.

Downton Abbey 1/20/13

More great quotes from favorite show, thanks to sister, Susie.

Thomas: I do not like to feel that the house is not being properly represented.

Obrien's nephew: Is that aimed at me?
Thomas: If the cap fits, wear it.

Granny: Thank you, my dear, that is very kind. How much do I owe you?
Edith: A guinea.
Granny: (cork pops) A guinea? For a bottle of scent? Did he have a mask and a gun?

Granny: There must something you can put your mind to.
Edith: Like what? Gardening?

Granny: Oh no, you cannot be as desperate as that.

Mary: He will explain what has happened when our guest is gone.
Lady Grantham/Violet/Granny: Something to look forward to.

Tom: Then they set fire to it.
Edith: What a tragedy.
Lady Grantham/Violet/Granny: Well, yes and no. That house was hideous. But, of course, that is no excuse.
[everyone talking about Branson being there or not and why]
Tom: Those places are different for me. I do not look at them and see charm and gracious living. I see something horrible.

Lady Grantham/Violet: With Drumgoole Castle, I rather agree.
Robert: Mama, you are not helping.

Mary: Well it is settled then. Tell the maids they can buy their valentines.

Tom: I was always against any personal violence. I swear it.
Lady Grantham/Violet/Granny: Oh, so at least we can sleep in our beds.

Lady Grantham/Violet/Granny: What do you mean you wrote to a newspaper? No lady writes to a newspaper.
Edith: What about Lady Sarah Wilson? She is the daughter of a duke and she worked as a war journalist.
Lady Grantham/Violet/Granny: She is a Churchill. The Churchills are different.
Mary: Have we no Churchill blood?
Cora: I think Granny is right.
Lady Grantham/Violet/Granny: Can somebody write that down?

Susie forgot a favorite! At the end of the episode, the conversation between Matthew & Cousin Violet. Violet as always comically expressed such surprise that M was coming to her to discuss the future of Downton Abbey. 

Downton Abbey 1/13/13

I appreciate my sister sending me some of our favorite moments to relive the episode.  Poor Edith!

Edith: Isn't it exciting?

Granny: At my age, one must ration one's excitement.

Granny: I really think you should to go to bed. No bride wants to look tired at her wedding. It either means she is anxious or been up to no good.

Edith: I will not sleep a wink.

Sybil: Tonight or tomorrow?

Granny: Sybil, vulgarity is no substitute for wit.

Sybil: Well, you started it!

(Edith giggling)

Oh, my goodness, the look Granny gives Sybil is awesomely priceless! :D

Mama/Granny: Robert, Edith is beginning her life as an old man's drudge. I should not have thought a large drawing room much compensation.

Robert: Why dwell on that now?

Mama/Granny: Because I want the pleasure of saying I told you so.

Lady Grantham/Violet/Granny: He looks as if he is waiting for a beating from the headmaster.

Vicar/Pastor: Do you think I should reassure him?

Lady Grantham/Violet/Granny: How? He has done it before, so he must be in possession of all the facts.

Somebody needs to eat the cake and drink the champagne!

Lady Grantham/Cora: Carson, I do not want Edith to see any of the wedding food.

Carson: Mrs. Hughes and Anna are taking what is left down to Mr. Travis tomorrow, m'lady, for the poor.

Lady Grantham/Violet: If the poor do not want it, you can bring it over to me. (smirking)

[sad commentary and that woeful music]

Anna: What would you like me to get you?

Edith: A different life.

And the war between Ms. O'Brien and Thomas, love budding with Alfred and Daisy, and possibly Mr. Carson and Mrs. Hughes are delicious!!

Downton Abbey 1/6/13

Maggie Smith: "No guest should be admitted without the date of their departure settled." (referring to character played by Shirley McClaine)
They play the mother of son and mother of daughter who are the Lord & Lady Grantham of Downton Abbey.

I know there are more, but this is all I've got. : )

Love Maggie Smith

I have some Downton Abbey posts to come, but I'm watching DVD of "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" (for the elderly & beautiful) right now. It has lots of some favorite older British actors in it, including Dame Judi Dench and the awesome Maggie Smith.

MS's character appears to be quite a racist & seems to be in need of a hip transplant, but the waiting list is 6 months out. She says "I cannot plan that far in advance. I don't even buy green bananas." : )

I find that funny in particular because we eat tons of bananas each week. We usually buy a few yellow to eat now & a green bunch to have time before they all get too ripe.

"Pickled onions, pickled eggs, just pickles" ... first 2 not allowed on the plane flight, but the pickles were OK.  Strange.

ENCORE

We had an evaluation completed on Jan. 7.
Julia is officially identified as Gifted.

• she knows all, but 1 of the standards for Pre-K
• she knows many of the standards for Kindergarten
• knows 50 sight words (1/23/13) - K benchmark is 40
• knows 67 words (2/1/13)
• she reads books! (not every passage & page completely)
• with assistance, she's learning new words constantly! It's crazy!

Her eligibility meeting was on Monday - determined not eligible because there is no evidence of a disability. Currently ENCORE are general education services provided for all Pre-school children identified as Gifted. The eligibility & IEP situation is different, we have to determine if there is a disability & whether special education services are needed. We're considering for Julia to start Kindergarten early (see above info) ... in order for that to happen, she must have an IEP. We need to consult with her ENCORE teacher in a few weeks/months.  Which means we have to wait ... I hate waiting! I'm not a patient person!

Julia's first ENCORE class was Thursday. We had to complete all kinds of registration forms ... I didn't expect that.  I officially have a child in MNPS! How wild is that??!!

I knew it would happen soon, but it was in the future even though we'd applied for optional schools in November. However, the paperwork part really made it more real, even after getting her psychological report on Monday.  Being a parent of a MNPS student is slightly different than being a MNPS employee. It is a unique position, perspective to have. I know policy & procedure, but it's been other people's children before. Now I'm applying this information to my child.  It is an advantage yet also crazy, weird, exciting!

Julia had a great time at ENCORE (at Robertson Academy)! She walked right into class & started checking out room, comfortable & confident. Her teacher said "she's quite a thinker."

No joke! She's a never ending thinking, talking, running & constantly emoting 4 year old girl! Jai & I need a support group! Seriously!

SNOW DAY!

Posted on MNPS website when I checked at 6:20am!!! All Metro Nashville Public Schools are closed Friday, Feb. 1,  due to inclement weather.

WOO! HOO! Finally!
Best news ever - well recently! : )

I'm awake because I went to bed last night at 8:45pm, after falling asleep while reading with Julia. Jacqueline was already asleep, Jai was dozing on couch.
I got about 6-7 hours of sleep which is lovely, especially as I woke up late at 6:10am. I was going to be pushing it to get ready & out the door around 7am.

When Jai brought Jacqueline upstairs (the guest room is like her new favorite place to sleep for her first stretch) to eat at 3:30am, he said it had snowed for only about 15 minutes. He mentioned that trash cans were covered. I said, "well let's hope Joelton is really covered up"! Plus he said it was about 20 degrees.

The combination will create the "perfect storm" for a snow day & it did!!!! : )

I've posted 1X this week!! GOAL!!

Now I'm going to watch a movie all by myself since my family won't wake up for 2 more hours!!!! : )

where's the husband?

More of funny comments Julia makes ... it is good stuff!

Overheard during her time with K & M & family ...
gender confused bear - "sometimes Sawyer is male, sometimes female ... I don't ask. That is rude."

something about Nazis ... what?? where did she learn about that?
Apparently she really listens when NPR is on the radio.

Yesterday as we prepared for her overnight at K&M's, Julia was getting her clothes together. She starts counting the people in their house ... 2 women, 3 girls, 4 boys. She stops & says again "2 women ... where's the husband?" She's quite serious in her happy curious way.

I explained that every family is different, there isn't always a wife & husband, sometimes there are 2 wives or 2 husbands.  Then Julia says "it doesn't make sense." She loves K&M & family, I don't believe she's homophobic or anything, her godfathers are 2 men in a committed relationship. However, her idea of marriage, probably because of books, TV & movies, is a man & woman.

Never boring living with Julia! : )

Cake Monster

We have a situation. Jacqueline loves cake!
Cake or muffin or biscuit - doesn't matter, she likes it!
Jai thinks it's my homemade stuff, but I'm not sure.

Every time she sees something that resembles cake or muffin or biscuit, she goes crazy, clapping her hands, making noises LOUDLY. It's funny, but I think we have a serious situation.

Julia is a fan of dessert - understatement! She ate her applesauce birthday cake, but it wasn't anything overly enthusiastic. However, her love of dessert started about 2 years ago & now it's become standard to hear "what's for dessert?" even when she's not eating much for dinner.

Everyone loves my applesauce birthday cake. It's pretty darn yummy, moist, good balance of healthy and not too sweet. Well, I made a carob cake this week. Some people call carob "hippie chocolate" (recent "New Girl" episode). Jacqueline went crazy for it too!! : )

Luckily most of my homemade creations are healthy, local and/or organic ingredients if possible. I doubt my children will be obese unless they stop moving ... I would like that sometimes, but they are normal age-appropriate children. Eating dessert is OK as long as you eat foods in a healthy balance.

Hippie chocolate - love it too! : )

Today ladies!

1/23/13 Modern Family - that Lily! : )

Post Every Week - 2013 Goal

I will post something ONCE a week.
Simple!

Really I should tell myself once a day so it happens once a week ... it's like exercise!

If I say every day, it's just NOT realistic, but 1 time in 7 days, surely I can do that!!

OK - followers ... keep me honest! : )

12 month Wellness Check

Jacqueline went for her 1 year check at the MNPS clinic this week.
She's doing well, seems to be on par with everything. The NP is pleased, not concerned about anything. She had to get 3 shots AND blood drawn for 2 checks for lead & hemocrit levels (iron). Jacqueline was NOT happy about that. : (
It really bothered Julia too and we had to leave & read a book in another room.

Her weight was barely 18 pounds (around the 5 %tile, slightly lower than usual 10 %tile). It is more than Julia weighed, but less than she should, given her being sick for many weeks in December. She is more mobile, crawling faster & cruising quite a bit though that's not why her weight is lower.

Julia had been walking for 2 months at this point! Another reminder of how different each child is. Actually we're grateful she's not walking as much as we want her to. Then the pace would pick up & we're barely keeping up with them now! : )

HAPPY ONE YEAR, JACQUELINE!!!

School Wait list ...

1/22/13 Update: I had the numbers wrong!

I haven't posted in forever, actually never finished post about School Option process, but I thought I'd quickly post our numbers on the wait list.
141 for Hull Jackson = 148 (this is our first choice)
134 for Stanford = 131

I don't think Julia will be going to PK at either of the Montessori schools in MNPS. Oh well, in April we'll complete application for other PK options.

I have a few theories on why our numbers suck, but I'll have to write that later.

FIRST birthday fun

This was a funny birthday party probably because Julia was running around & wanting to take all of Jacqueline's presents.

Side note:
Sharing really is a hard concept, but sharing isn't the correct term for YOUR birthday presents immediately after getting them.

We had the small family only party as usual for 1st birthday. Lisa, my 18 year old sister, came up from college in Chattanooga. Bonnie, made it to this first birthday. : ) Susie participated via Skype to witness the lovely chaos that is now standard fare in our home.

Gifts: you know I love them!
Jacqueline liked her presents. Lisa gave her a cute toy turtle (Squirt from "Finding Nemo"). We got her some Eric Carle items, a great bilingual book about colors & the Numbers flash cards. EC stuff is so beautiful.

Lisa also gave Julia her birthday gift. It is this amazingly cool Dr. Seuss book called "All About Myself." It's great because it includes all of these opportunities to identify & count facts about Julia - name & age, but also how many teeth she has or what color is her hair.

OK after writing all this, the BEST part of the birthday party was the cake! Jacqueline went crazy, she got so excited when she saw it.  We think she's been observing us eat this applesauce cake for the last few months & wondering when is it my turn to get some! As I put the piece on her tray, I didn't think to make it smaller. She picked it ALL up & stuffed it in her mouth! While laughing, I worriedly observed her to make sure she wasn't choking!

It was hysterical & I hope Jai got some good video. I need to ask him where it is. It is some good stuff!

HAPPY first BIRTHDAY, Jacqueline! : )

75th %tile

WHAT??

For height ... yes, expected.
For weight ... is that a typo??

Nope that is what Julia's stats were at her 4 year old well child check yesterday.
Ironically she doesn't weigh 40 pounds yet. That means she is still sitting in the same car seat. That's fine, gives us more time to find a booster seat (thought we'd found 1 on Craig's List, but it was gone quickly!).

Julia always has been tall & lean. Hopefully she will continue to be healthy despite her random eating style & mad crazy fast metabolism.

Oh, well, that's Julia! : )

Nutcracker ballet

Julia's birthday present from Grandma Bonnie was a treat for 3 generations.
The ballet for child, mother, grandmother was a date after church & lunch at Sitar Indian restaurant & was lots of fun! All dressed up in dresses & tights (2 of 3 of us were wearing tights!). : )

After intermission where we hung out in the lobby & watched people at the fountain, we returned to our seats.  I didn't hear this comment at the time, but my mom told me later that Julia, looking quite puzzled, said "what are we doing back here?" Priceless! So Julia. She thought the performance was over & I can understand it. It could have ended at that point & worked for me.

Another funny comment was about a male dancer's attire.
"He's wearing tights ... and you can see his _______ (accurately named male anatomy)." Such frank honesty!

Overall maybe this will become a family tradition though there was lots of Julia saying "what's going to happen next?" : )

funny julia comments

There are SO many funny statements Julia makes.
Many start with "Parents ..." or "My husband ..."
Really! Seriously! : )

These are some recent ones!

12/14/12 her annual birthday date with Uncle Mike
They were at the mall.
"Mike - you look cute in that shirt."
To a mannequin, holding his hand - "I like him."


12/13/12 after Family Math Night at my school

Talking about 1 of the teachers who she knows as Becca - "she is so nice."

While playing cards with Pre-k students - "Alright give me all your jacks."

Not sure of the date, happens quite often lately
To Mommy & Daddy when responding to Jacqueline's gibberish with nonsense words
"Don't do that, talk to her, she's learning."
Disclaimer: we used to say that to Julia when she cries or talks like a baby instead of a big girl in front of Jacqueline ... ahh, the student becomes the teacher.

HILARIOUS! : )

12-12-12

JSS is 11 months old yesterday
Cool numbers!

If you didn't know it, I'm a numbers geek.
Like JSS' birthdate is 1-11-12.
1-2-3 if you add those numbers individually or if you add the 1 + 11 that = 12 same as the year or 1 + the other 1's = 3 which equals the 1+2 in 12 which also is 3.

I've probably already written about it, but I like finding fun associations with numbers.

4 year old Julia

4 glorious years with Julia

We had another fun family birthday at home again this year.
No other friends, no big organized fiesta at an expensive play place or fancy decorated cake. We enjoyed attending those parties as well as some at the child's home - a good variety of experiences.

Julia's request was to make cupcakes together this year, not the typical applesauce cake. She is getting older & of course has her opinions. She wanted chocolate, but I said no so we had lemon. They were yummy! Julia also wanted pizza which we ordered from Castrillo's.

Next year I'm thinking we might reserve the meeting room at the Y - it's affordable& convenient & good parking.

She'll be 5 & we can invite 5 friends. That means about 20 people though because of parents ... surely I can handle that. : )

School Choice

Of course I started this post 2 months ago ... why cannot I pledge to post 1X a day so this doesn't happen. I don't remember what I was going to say exactly.
MNPS has this application process for certain schools which are considered optional. The application period is Nov. 1-30, deadline is Nov. 30.  We completed it in early November.

There are 2 schools for children aged 3-4 years old. They are Montessori focused schools located in the Donelson & Metrocenter areas. Typically you can apply for up to 7 schools; however, these are the only 2 available for Julia at this time. If she doesn't get selected (supposed to be random), then she's wait listed  Our next options are the other Pre-K programs at various schools around the county.

Luckily there are a few at schools in East Nashville which we prefer for a variety of reasons, mainly proximity as you must provide transportation. We also don't want Julia to change schools (hopefully we like the initial one she attends).
We really liked Hattie Cotton & Dan Mills, but DM is the only 1 that has a PK that she's eligible. Our friends' children go there as well as Julia's former teacher's grandchild; they all speak highly of the school. We went to HC's family fitness night & had a blast. We also like our SOZ (school of zone), Inglewood ES, but it doesn't have a PK that Julia is eligible.

Fortunately transportation is not an issue for us. You have to transport your child to PK regardless of where it is as well as any option school that is not your SOZ.  We're too close to Inglewood ES for bus transportation anyway so Jai is planning to walk with the girls if we go to IES or HC. DM is about 2 miles away.

The good thing is we like our options. Julia is going to school somewhere 5 days a week next year. Good for Julia, good for Jai, good for Jacqueline. : )

Pumping Countdown

I have 4 more weeks until Winter Break. I renewed the rental pump today for one last month. Excited much!!!!!!

If necessary after Winter Break I'll bring my home pump to work for a week or 2. I will try to wean myself to only 1 pump a day as Jacqueline will be 1 on Jan. 11. We'll see if that will be required, maybe it won't!!!

So excited for so many reasons! Now I need to get back to the gym more than once a day week so I can continue to consume the calories I enjoy. : )

CLOTH DIAPERS

This is a REALLY old post I started (not really) in 2009.
Really old, come on, so ridiculous!

We used cloth with Julia & we're using them again with Jacqueline. We use the diaper service Smile Mommy which is a small business in East Nashville. Some people ask me about washing my own. Nope, not going to do it. It is worth every dollar we pay SM for someone else to pick up a bag of dirty diapers each week & leave us a clean bag. I like using cloth for a variety of reasons, but I do not want to manage it.  Also it's really nice as your baby grows bigger all I have to do is contact SM & we have new covers & diapers in the next size. So easy, so simple!

One element that is different from when Julia was baby & toddler is that now we keep the covers & wash them ourselves. Initially Jai & I were not fond of this arrangement. We liked getting new covers each week, especially if there were some we didn't care for. However, Jacqueline quickly moved through a few size stages so it was good when we changed & got new covers a few weeks later.  We also can wash them more often if needed & they dry fairly quickly.

Jacqueline has been in her current size for a few months now & is not likely to grow out of it for awhile, possibly not before she toilet trains. We had a few covers we didn't like.  SM asked us to return a couple this week because we downsized how many diapers we receive each week which means we get fewer covers. We gladly chose the 2 we dislike to return. Win win for everyone! : )

The cost is maybe more than most disposables, but comparable to the more environmentally friendly 7th Generation or 365 Whole Foods brands which we purchase when we travel. Overall we like cloth being on our babies' bottoms & are very grateful for a diaper service in our community.

family

Another really old post - not sure what I intended to write though from the date it was a few weeks after Julia was born. My sister was in Nashville during Winter Break for the Christmas holiday & so was my dad & his family.

Original text in BOLD, didn't edit any of it.
dad & his kids - 3 from first marriage, 3 from second marriage
susie and joel here at same time, great opportunity
step-mother breastfed all 3 kids for 15-18 months after returning to paid job after 6 weeks (went to her mother's house on lunch hour to nurse), also used cloth diapers,
susie - the waterworks

Again not sure what else I was going to write, but I'm going to post it. : )