Little Puzzles

Being an aide to a special needs child can prove challenging. I'm so thankful for this job, but sometimes I feel so inadequate.

Nurturing and interacting with small children feels very natural to me, but when you take a 3-year-old with the capacity of a 9-12 month old (so I'm told), all of a sudden techniques that generally work don't work anymore, and you have to start thinking differently.

One of the teachers is so good about explaining how certain children process certain things and really offers a lot of insight.

I was playing in the play area with my little one and she came over and told me that this may be the most difficult area to work in. We need to teach these kids appropriate play: baby is hungry, let's feed baby; put the car on the track and make it go down; stack one block on the other, etc. as these kids often get into their own little world and don't play with toys with a purpose in mind. Interesting...and helpful.

Later on the playground, I got my little one to play for a long time in the sandbox, not just letting sand sift through her fingers, as usual, but actually scooping sand with a shovel into a pail.

There is so much I want to know and learn about this little one so that I can help her to the best of my ability. I think each special needs child is kind of like a one-of-a-kind jigsaw puzzle. They have their own secrets on how they work and the rest of the world has to figure them out.

Updating Before It's All Outdated

Updates:


The girls started school on Wednesday and are thrilled to be able to walk to school. Mike had to be in charge of first day of school duties (his first time ever) because I started my new job that day. He did a good job. Even getting a photo of them with the principal (bonus points!)


Sis signed up for classes at the local community college and will start at the end of August. It's strange not having her around all the time. Since the move, she's moved in with her dad (only a mile away). Even when she was home, I didn't see her a lot, but at least we had a few minutes a day where we could touch base with each other. I miss that.


I started my new job as a one-on-one aide at a special ed preschool on Wednesday as well. I love it. I feel so blessed to have a job like this that's so rewarding.


I'm still working at the lodge, and yesterday as I went from my kid-centered preschool job to my adult-centered waitressing job I was struck by just how different my two jobs are. At one it's all about play and enthusiasm and simple words, at the other it's all about adult conversation, efficiency and being business-like. Kind of weird to have to shift gears like that all in one day.


Also on Wednesday, Bub and Cass came up to visit for the day. We managed to fit a lot into their short visit. We took a tour of some local caverns:


Wow, that's a really big....thumb


It was really hard to get a decent photo in the close quarters of the cavern.


We then came home and made pizza, then we walked down to the lake, and came back home and had pie and I cut Bub's hair. We had lots of laughs and fun times.


Bub was in love with the orange kitty, Princess


and Cass, who's allergic to cats, was a real trooper who loaded herself up on allergy meds so that she could enjoy them too.

The kittens are doing really well. Im not having to bottle feed them anymore. They're still on formula but I'm mixing some soft cat food with it now. They are climbing and running now and playing like crazy. They are so ridiculously cute. Here is where they like to sleep now with their "surrogate mother":


Consider yourself updated.

Like Butter...

That's what the walls in my livingroom look like. Well, that's actually the name of the paint color too. I love it. It's sunny and cheerful.

This room took a lot of work. First pulling up the old carpet and removing umpteen staples from the floor without damaging it, but so worth it. It was so neat to pull back the carpet and see this beautiful hardwood underneath.

Then we painted the ceiling and trim and the double hung windows (which are a total pain), and of course everything needed two coats.

Finally it was time for the yellow. What a transformation. This room just has a whole new feel to it.

My good friend and my niece helped with the painting. The first day my niece needed to leave and I had to go to work and my friend insisted on staying and painting my ceiling. Now that's true friendship!

The lady that grew up in this house stopped by and I showed her the floors. She says she remembered her mom waxing the floors. All the furniture would be removed and after the waxing her mom would give both her and her sister a pillow and let them slide all over the floor to their heart's content. She said they didn't realize at the time that they were helping to polish the floor.

After surveying the new improved livingroom, she also said that her mom and dad would be proud, and that meant a lot to me.

It's funny how much homier this house feels than any house I've lived in for quite a while. I think part of it is the fixing up, but there's just a homey feeling to it over all. This winter is still worrying me a bit - I'm just not sure how warm we'll be and I hate being cold - but I'm willing to give it a shot.

Cat Tales

(I think I should just start ALL my stories with the line, "against my better judgement...")

My friend tells me that the folks where her daughter takes riding lessons have two kittens they found and do I want one? Well, I had been thinking of getting another kitten as a playmate for Sis' kitten as she's so wild and playful so I told her I would consider it.

Later that day we drive out to the ranch to look at the kittens. I know that there's a really good chance that if I'm looking at them I'll be bringing one home, so I'm prepared.

We get there and can hear them already as we get out of the car. I can't believe all the meowing is coming from these two babies. On closer inspection I notice that they're tiny, a lot smaller than I expected. The people say they found them a day or so ago meowing near the driveway. They say they've been feeding them regular cow's milk and moistened food. I know kitties shouldn't have cow's milk so at this point I'm concerned, and I know these people have barn cats they let breed at will, and that they're just anxious to get rid of these two so at this point I commit to taking both of them.

Our friend gave us some soft kitten food and as we drive the half hour home I can hear the babies sucking the juice from the food out of Moo and Nat's hands. It's fairly late, 9:30, so I figure I'll go home and research what I need to feed them and take them to the vet in the morning. As luck would have it I see our vet out taking her dogs for a walk on our way home. I pull over and acost her and ask if she wouldn't mind looking at the two babies.

Our vet is so kind and accomodating that she insists that we come to the office (which is right next to her house) so she can check them out and give us a can of formula to take home.

We found that the orange one is pretty good at lapping milk from a dish but the gray one was having trouble so we got bottles to feed with.

These poor babies were most definitely starving when we got them and once their little tummies were full, they calmed down and even began playing. My theory is that one of their barn cats was a young mama and abandoned the little ones. My friend said that the people wouldn't have bothered with the babies much longer so they wouldn't have survived had I not taken them.

These little ones are a lot of work right now, but they're so darned cute. The vet said that in about a week we can start them on soft solids and they already have the cat box figured out. They do miss their mama though. They suck on their blankets and even on our hands. I'm so glad that I took these little cuties home that night, even though they are so much responsibility. I hope that they thrive and that we'll enjoy them for years to come.

I'm a Push-over... But You Already Knew That

Yep, this is what we have at our house as of last night:

They're maybe 3 weeks old. We're feeding them kitty formula out of a saucer because they can't eat solids yet. So far they're doing ok. They try to nurse on us though, poor babies. I'll have to write the story of their arrival later, but thought this would be a good teaser.

Fixin' Up

Here are photos of the bathroom before, during and after. The during lasted a LITTLE longer than I expected, but I should be used to it being the wife of a contractor...but Mike finally finished it last night. Woo! (Oh and I should say that the during photo is not representative of how we've been living--the moldy lino was scraped out and I put down a huge area rug to cover up the wood that was underneath.) Anyway, here 'tis:

We used inexpensive adhesive floor tiles. This bathroom is huge, but the flooring only cost $70, with some tiles left over. We'll be reinbursed by the landlord of course.

I'd really like to paint the cupboards (can you believe the amount of storage!?). Any suggestions? I really like sagey green, but am not sure. The walls are white and gold marlite, so they can't be painted, and I wouldn't paint the oak cabinets where the sink is either.

Shopping, Swimming and Shaping Up

I took the girls school shopping on Monday. We took a quick trip out to see Grandpa and Aunt Tracy and visit the malls.

I tell ya, shopping with three girls is not for wimps! They are slave drivers! We shopped all day, going to several stores, driving all over town then came home and had dinner with Grandpa and they were ready for more so we went and closed the mall.

The next day I went to the thrift store and bought a few things I needed, then we spent time with Aunt Tracy at her pool. Here's Sis and Aunt Tracy's little dog Bridget:

and Nat and Moo tried to figure out how to dive:

Anyway, my one splurge was a pair of Skechers Shape-ups which claim to help you exercise while you walk. I needed new work shoes and I figure I might as well be exercising while I'm at work waiting on tables. I wore them for the first time tonight at work. They're nice and squooshy but I feel like I walk a little clunky.

I was going to go with the all black

but Sis said it looked more like I had hooves than feet so I went with the black and white instead

The bonus to their big curvy bottom is that it makes me just a bit taller. I'm not sure if their big curvy bottom will do anything for the curves on my bottom, I guess we'll see. In fact as I clomped around the dining room at work tonight I began to wonder if they're just another version of the ballet dancer's magic toe shoes---making me believe I'm getting an extra workout when actually it's all just in my mind. I guess time will tell!

Out of the Loopy, or Maybe Just Loopy, I Don't Know

So...what have I been up to you wonder? (At least I hope someone's wondering and interested in my fascinatingly mundane life.)

Well, the move of course (the elders of our church are awesome and didn't even complain about moving us again in less than a year), and painting and minor decorating (hung a bunch of curtains today, by myself even), cleaning up the old house (I love the Rug Doctor, he rocks, but actually he really sucks, and that was even more helpful), working way more than I want or need to (but that's the summer season for ya at a lodge in the mountains--make hay while the sun shines and all that jazz), and still waiting for the internet at my house (which is why I'm at work during my off time using the free wi-fi) and also cursing Comcast (telling them to shove it yesterday, and now waiting for DSL to be hooked up instead) and basically trying to regain some semblance of normalcy and sanity, because moving really takes it out of a person.

I'm really happy in our new place. It's really homey and has a good feel to it. When I have normal internet access again I will post the livingroom's transformation. Now I can't wait to do the kitchen, and the dining room, and the laundry and the office and Moo's room...yeah I have a lot to look forward to.

Plus I interviewed today for a special ed position but if that doesn't work out, the middle school wants me as a lunch lady, so I have employment of some sort starting August 19 when the kids return to school. Yay!

Plus I turned 45 on the 28th!

So no, I haven't dropped off the face of the earth, I'm here muddling through, and hope to be back to my normal routine soon.

Moving Into This Old House Update

Well, here's the update:


The church is moving us this coming Saturday, and I still haven't packed a box (although I have moved miscellany loose items up to the new place) and Mike took 2 loads of boxes (still packed from November's move) up yesterday.


I finally finished all the carpet cleaning and vacuuming cobwebs (I've never had to clean a house so much to move into! Not fair!).


The one and only bathroom is still in demolition mode.



The livingroom looked like this:



but there was a rumor that there was hardwood underneath, so now it looks like this:




I still need to paint the walls and pull up umpteen billion staples out of the floor before Saturday. So all of you that offered to help if I needed it, guess what? Your phone will definitely be ringing.

Oh and I have to work, and pack, and keep up with regular chores like laundry and dishes (and blogging), and then do a dancer's flea market I'm involved in on Saturday as well (that I committed to long before this move came along). Of course my employer needs me more than ever right now, and I'm weighing extra money vs extra time. Money is winning, but I may still try to find someone to work for me one day this week.

Other than that it's been hotter than blazes, and the air conditioner in our current home has only been working intermittently (despite the fact that I've been cursing at it quite consistently). At our new home, however, it's about 20 degrees cooler with a nice breeze blowing through the pines. I'm sure loving it now, but I know this winter it will turn into Little Siberia and I'll have snow up to my fanny!

Nat and Moo are excited to move, and they are actually looking forward to having snow up to their fannies this winter. They've actually packed a couple boxes too and did a great job helping me pull up the livingroom carpet the other day and spent a good hour pulling up staples even going so far as to claim it was fun!

So there ya have it. Maybe by next Monday I'll feel a bit more sane. Or not. Oh well, "this too shall pass".

Anniversaries are Hot, Sweaty, and Kinda Stinky

So, Mike and I spent our 12th anniversary getting all dirty and sweaty. Yeah, that's right. He tore up old linoleum and I shampooed carpets. What did you think I was talking about? Sheesh!

Our "new" abode (and I am using the term new here VERY loosely) is turning out to be a bit more work than we thought.

Yesterday we tore out the carpet in the bathroom. When we originally looked at the house I told the rental agent that the carpet would be a deal-breaker unless we could rip it out and replace it, so that's what we're doing.

GAG...

When Mike started tearing it out the smell of cat urine was overwhelming. And then I saw all the stains on the bottom of the carpet. I'm pretty tough, and it takes a lot to make me queazy, but this did it. I left and went in to another room and shouted my encouragement. Let's just say it was bad.

Under the nasty "history-of-pee carpet" (as I fondly call it), we found warped linoleum and mold which equals a lot more work than we thought.

Nice moldy, warped linoleum. I'll take it over nasty, smelly carpet though!

Today Mike began tearing it up, and then will have to put down an underlayment to even out the surface before we can lay down the adhesive floor tiles I purchased. It is assumed that the owners will reimburse us for all this, and I think it's a given now that the rental agent came by and observed the scene today. This project was LONG overdue, and the inside air quality has improved 100%. Thankfully this seems to be the only place the cat used as it's potty. 'Nuff said.

I in the mean time, was up in the attic vacuuming cobwebs and shampooing the carpet. The girls want to use this as a playroom so I was determined it be clean. The attic is very low--about 5 1/2 feet at the ceiling peak, and it was very hot and stuffy from being closed up.

The attic, before my cleaning spree--I really want to paint up here, hopefully I'll get permission

I actually broke into a sweat toiling away today. That may not sound like a big accomplishment for most people, but for cold-blooded me it was big news. I came down the ladder-stairs (you know the kind that fold up into the ceiling?) and told Mike, "Look! I'm actually sweating! I have sweat dripping from my brow!" He rushed over to look and could hardly believe his eyes.

I know that sounds dumb, but I seriously never sweat (and not for lack of trying). The combo of no air circulation, 90 some odd degrees and pushing a steam cleaner around finally did it. Woo hoo! Yay sweat glands!

Then later, we washed the dirt off ourselves, grabbed the girls, and went out to a lovely dinner followed with a nice bike ride through the neighborhood.

Well, no one can ever accuse us of not knowing how to party on our anniversary! Sweat, demolition, steamy carpets and a bike ride. Good times!

God Bless America

You CAN Teach an Old Mom New Tricks

So how come it has taken me 21 years of mothering to figure this out: having a pool party for a child's birthday is the easiest party option ever?


We celebrated Nat's 7th birthday with her friends last Friday and she wanted a pool party. Lucky for me the place where I work has a wonderful pool, so we sent out the word to her friends.


Come Friday, I was struck by the fact that all I had to do was pack a few snacks and head for the pool. Didn't have to clean my house for visitors. Didn't have to decorate. Just had to arrive. Wow, what a concept! And then the more I thought about it, I realized that I didn't even have to plan activities and games. The pool is the activity. And another big plus: I wouldn't have to clean up my house after the party either.


This was ground-breaking territory for me! Why on earth has it taken me this long to figure this out? I have no idea. I guess because I let the kids plan their parties, and Nat really is the only one of my kids with a summer birthday. Yeah, that's the ticket. I certainly couldn't be so lacking in awesome, super-mom party planning skills that it's never occurred to me before this!

Nat wanted my "famous" pudding pie instead of cake (vanilla and chocolate pudding layered in a cookie crust--super easy too!)


I wore my special Seven t-shirt for the occassion. I bought this t-shirt especially for our "7 fun things on 7/7/07" extravaganza that we had 2 years ago, and it was nice to have another event where it was relevant to wear it.



On a side note, I scored bonus points by having the pool party at my place of employment, which is like my second home. I was able to go to the kitchen and get everything I forgot to bring with me: a knife, pie server, spoons, extra plates, and a lighter.

Oh, this pool party thing is definitely an annual tradition now.

Fun in the Forest

This time last week I was going camping with all my kids -- yes, all four of mine, plus a couple I consider mine now. So fun.

We got a gorgeous site right on the meadow. And there were hardly any other campers there.

This is how we crossed the meadow to get to the bathrooms.

Nat and Moo took part in Junior Rangers. That brought back memories of camping trips when I was young. I loved Junior Rangers.

Nat in her coyote mask she made at JR Rangers.

Bub and Sis' dad came up and sang songs around the campfire with us which was uber-cool. They even sang a spooky song with a surprise ending that scared Nat and Moo half to death (in a fun, 'we're camping' way). (Wish I had a picture...darn.)

Here Cass and Sis try out a new taste sensation:bananas with chocolate and marshmallow heated over the fire. Sis is very excited as you can see from her expression!

The campground is full of warnings about bears which made city-girl Cass a bit nervous. On the second night I awoke to Suey growling and barking (in the tent with us) and heard the unmistakeable metal squeak of the bear-proof food locker door. I knew that wasn't good, but I wasn't really up to going out to investigate.

The next morning I got up to inspect the damage and found the locker door ajar and an empty graham cracker wrapper, 2 Hershey bar wrappers and an empty marshmallow bag on the ground. Further investigation revealed that a Capri Sun prevented the locker from latching completely but the rest of the food inside was untouched.

Well, obviously it wasn't a bear, otherwise the locker would have been emptied out. Apparently it was just a raccoon with a hankering for S'mores. That critter could've had any combination of goodies but chose to make that yummy campfire treat instead.

Here Bub demonstrates what a crazed, fearsome, forest creature might look like raiding a bear locker, which is exactly why I wasn't going to peek my head out of the tent at 4am!

We also did lots of bike riding. I was proud of Suey because she learned how to run along side my bike while I rode. She did really well pacing herself with me, and it is a fantastic way to wear out a dog!

Our fearless squirrel chaser and locker protector.

I was so thankful that Bub and Cass planned this trip and didn't mind me tagging along. What a great start to the summer!

Seriously, AGAIN? (That's most people's reaction when hearing the following news. Well either that or hysterical laughter)

So....about a month ago Mike starts looking through the paper and mentioning that there's a rental for this much less, or that much less than what we're currently paying. I give him that "you've gotta be freaking kidding me" look, and tell him there ain't no way I'm pulling up stakes again unless it's nothing short of screaming deal.

Well, he found a screaming deal. And we're moving again in just a few short weeks. We're crazy, but saving $5oo a month in rent is just too good to pass up. Of course it means moving BACK up the hill to the snow and away from our fantastic neighborhood with our Bishop across the street (who actually babysat my girls yesterday--seriously, who's bishop is that great?) and our church just around the corner, and our town donkey. However, now the girls won't have to change schools this coming fall, in fact they will be able to WALK to school. They can even walk to school in the snow so that they have stories to guilt their future children with! There's also a couple parks and a lake within walking distance. So there's good and bad.

The house we will be renting is in a very old neighborhood, built in the 30's when there was a saw mill and logging was at it's peak in that area. The houses were built by the loggers and saw mill employees. The lake used to be the old mill pond, but now is a wonderful recreation area. I've actually lived in this neighborhood before, some 15 years ago, and I do really like it.

The house itself is a bit funky, but I'm pretty much an expert on fixing up funky little houses, so I'm kind of looking forward to that too. The house sits on two lots, has a bunch of apple trees, two outbuildings for all of Mike's treasures that he's sure to need some day, and a lot more square footage than the little tract house we're in now.

I was a little disappointed that our current landlord wouldn't bargain with us on the rent here though. There are a lot of houses for rent, and rents are dropping like crazy. He didn't want us to leave, but wouldn't drop our rent either. He apparently isn't aware that there are 2 other rentals sitting vacant on this street for the same price we're paying, and that are bigger than this one. I have a feeling he WILL have to come down on rent to get this place occupied.

At any rate, the thought of moving again after just 8 months is just not something I relish, but after moving 6 times in the last 10 years, I guess I'm getting used to it.

B-day and F-day

...or birthday and Father's day for you people who don't care for abbreviations.

Saturday was Nat's 7th birthday (and my sister's blankity-blanketh birthday). Nat wanted breakfast in bed. Here she is enjoying strawberry waffles while the dog demonstrates amazing restraint.

Showing that she does share more than a birthday with her Auntie, Nat wrote a list (several days in advance I might add), to show in what order she would open her cards and presents. Auntie is the queen of organizing and list-making and somehow that seems to have transferred to Nat's genetic makeup.

Being 7, she's now old enough to appreciate the beauty of cold hard cash.

And LOVED her very own horse set from Auntie and Uncle Dave.

I took her on a mystery trip to get her present. She thought I was going to make her go to a different part of the store while I bought her present, but she was surprised when I stopped in front of the bikes and told her to pick one out. She then surprised me by NOT picking the pink one. Yes, this one has pink on it, but I thought for sure she'd go with the most girly one.

For Father's day, the girls planned and cooked dinner for Dad. They grilled steak and chicken, made fruit salad, rice and corn on the cob. Yum!

Dad likes a little pepper on his dinner, can you tell? (Even on the fruit salad! Ew!)

That was our weekend. Gotta love those B-days and F-days!

End of the School Year Funnies

This year the younger girls' elementary school did a yearbook. It was soft cover and only $20 so I got one for them to share. It was really cute and money well spent in my opinion.

Anyway, I was explaining to Nat that she should take the yearbook to school and have her friends sign it. when I picked her up at the end of the day, she says, "I got almost everyone in my class to sign, but I had to sign Mallory and Avery's names because they were absent." I had to chuckle. I guess she doesn't quite get the yearbook concept yet!

Since we moved down the hill, it's been Mike's job to get the girls to school on his way to work. I also put him in charge of getting them ready and out the door since I have been leaving for work before they need to go. The girls know their dad is a complete push-over and they have been taking advantage, though Mike himself is not known for being punctual, so nearly every day the girls are tardy by a few minutes, and this has been going on since November.

Then on Friday, the last day of school, the girls tell me that their dad got an award when he dropped them off in the morning. I really couldn't figure that out. They said the secretary stopped them in the hall and called the principal over and the principal presented their father with a certificate.

Sure enough he has an official "certificate of achievement" from the principal congratulating him on his "efforts and success" in "arriving on time on Thursday". It is signed by the principal as "attendance officer". I'm sure glad our school has a sense of humor and that the office staff was able to have a little fun at Mike's expense. I think we're going to frame it and display it next to his chili cookoff and rib awards.

A Graduation Miracle

I'll start this story with a little history. First we've been having kind of weird weather for June. Usually it's already nice and warm and getting hotter by the day, the kids are running through sprinklers, and fans are getting a workout. For the last 2 weeks though, we've been getting afternoon thunderstorms, and the last week we've been getting rain off and on each day.

Well, Sis' graduation was quickly approaching and no one wanted to have to move it indoors to the gym. If that were to happen, each graduate had tickets: 5 tickets to hand out to family members to enter the gym to watch live, and 2 more to allow others to go to the theater and watch on a monitor. Any other spectators would be relegated to watching from tv's in the classrooms. Four years ago this class' middle school graduation was rained out, so everyone was on edge and hoping that wouldn't happen again.

Yesterday we woke to rain...then it stopped and heavy clouds lingered and threatened all day. It looked like things were going to clear as we headed to the high school. To our dismay a huge black cloud hovered over the school. No rain yet, so I prayed it would just keep on moving and take it's precipitation on up the hill.

Alas, it was not to be and about the time we got our blankets laid out and began our hour long wait for the ceremony to begin, the black cloud unleashed it's fury. Gah!

Thankfully the graduates were safe and dry in the gym, but the spectators were not spared. Of course I didn't bring an umbrella, optimist (or fool) that I am. At first it was exciting and funny,

but as the rain continued our spirits were dampened

I was literally soaked through to my underwear; through a coat and a jacket, through my shoes to my soggy socks. I was drenched. Mike arrived and took the girls home to change and to get me some dry clothes as I was to head out to work at Grad Night right after the graduation. (They arrived back a little late, but were able to see Sis get her diploma).

All around we could see the skies clearing, if this cloud would just keep moving....then this started to appear

and just kept getting brighter and more beautiful

and you know how I feel about rainbows

Just about 10 minutes before the ceremony was to start the sky cleared, they dried off the chairs for the graduates, and the ceremony began. I couldn't believe the timing of the storm. Everyone's prayers were answered. Hallelujah!

As we stood for the National Anthem, I realized my body had warmed the puddle of water I was sitting in and it was very uncomfortable to move! I wanted to stay in my nice warm puddle! I'm not sure I can remember a time I was that soaked. As I reflect on it today though, it really made it not only a visual experience, but a very physical one as well. I would not trade my wet undies and shivering body for a dry ceremony and miss out on this special graduation for anything!

Happy graduation, Sis! You did it!