Tiny and Tiny Tots.

Tiny has been attending Tiny Tots through the city's parks n' rec. He seems to enjoy it. Zulema picks him up every day, and he seems to go willingly and with a smile. It seems that just about every day we hear something about his behavior. Here are some of his offenses:

-He takes his shoes off.
-He pushes.
-He hits.
-He won't stay in time out.
-He has been found partially nude.
-He pees at recess...On the playground.

Twice we have received "incident reports" from the teachers. I have had a phone conference once with a teacher. She said, "We don't want him out. We just want you to work at home on the same things we work on here." I assured her I do not encourage nudity and hitting at home, but I told her I would try my best to talk to him each day about his behavior before and after Tiny Tots.

Thursday I received a call from someone in the parks n' rec's office. This was an "official" call to talk about Tiny's behavior issues. She asked if I could attend Tiny Tots with him, and maybe this would help.

I couldn't help but laugh inside. This is the same technique I use in my classroom. I call the parent and ask them to come sit with their unruly child. We all know this cures the behavior for the day, but it does not change the child. I just listened to all the "expert" had to say while laughing still inside. I am an educator, a child care center owner, and above all a mother of four. On paper I should not be having this conversation, but here I am.

Long story short, my son is officially out of Tiny Tots. All of you moms out there that have children who have fallen victim to his terror are now burden free. Your child can go to Tiny Tots free of fear and without hesitation.

I'm still laughing inside.

Is this what the parents of my students are doing when I call? Are they blogging and laughing?

P.S. Tiny's behavior is angelic when compared to his brother's behavior at the age of three. Tiny is breath of fresh air. My calm...after the storm.

Chicago!

I had the honor of attending a literacy conference in Chicago this week. I was gone Monday through Friday, and my husband did it all while I was gone (again with no complaints).

I went with Regina from ALPS, and we had a great time attending workshops and seeing the sights. Bobby and I went to Chicago about a year and a half ago, so it was fun dragging Regina to all the things I felt she HAD to see. We did the Magnificent Mile, Millennium Park, Shedd Aquarium, Field's Museum of Natural History, Navy Pier, and we ate at some amazing restaurants. I mustn't fail to mention the great presenters at the conference and the super informative classes I sat in on.

On our first evening sightseeing, I dropped Regina's camera and broke it. I blame it on the gloves I was wearing. This Yuma girl is just not accustomed to wearing gloves. I handed my camera over to Regina for the week, so I don't have any pictures, yet. I know she'll share when she's ready.

We stayed at The Blackstone (the green roof pictured above) which is famous for boarding presidents and Al Capone. We were on on the 20th floor of 23 which required a key in the elevator. We were pretty impressed with ourselves. Our room was quite posh, and we were excited to have our own beds! When Regina made our reservations we were told there were no more double rooms, so we had agreed to snuggle. You can imagine our relief when we walked in and saw two beds!

Great trip! I learned a ton, and I am so thankful for the opportunity I had to attend. My sixth grade class did fine without me, and for that I am relieved. Thank you, Rancho, for all of your help and support! Thank you, Bobby, for always supporting me.

nook!

Yes, it bothers me not to put a capital "N" on the name, but I'm dealing with it.

I am headed to Chicago this week for a literacy conference. The other night I went to sit on the couch in my usual spot, and I moved a pillow to make space for myself, and low and behold my sweet husband had hidden the nook underneath! He is always so good to me. I was hoping for one, but I didn't think it would happen until grad school graduation (SUMMER!).

I will let you all know how I like it on our first trip together. I am hesitant about never holding a book in my hands again. I'm hesitant about not having all of my favorites on my shelf. I'm hesitant about not being able to hand off some of my favorites to all friends and family. Though, I am excited to have a million books available at all times. I am excited to only have to lug around a very light digital reader, and I am super excited to share digital books with fellow digital readers.

So, as you can see there are pros and cons. Like I said, I will let you know.

My Buddy is 5!

I remember as if it were just yesterday...I was sitting comfortably in the recliner, holding my beautiful, perfect, newborn baby boy, and watching my gorgeous girls roughhouse on the floor while thinking, "Wow! Life doesn't get much better than this. Our family is complete. I am content."

Just a few weeks after that moment my baby boy passed away. I told Bobby in the midst of my turmoil that I would never ever bear more children, and he swore he would never ask me to.

About a year and a half later I gave birth to another beautiful baby boy (head was/is a little big), and I am so grateful I did.

Maverick has been so many things in my life:

-He has been a test of my patience from the minute I came around to bringing another child into this world.
-He has taught me how to go without sleep for days at a time and still function.
-He has been my teacher in showing me the true difference between raising little boys vs. little girls.
-He has been my humbler (Is that a word?) by proving to me I know very little about parenting.
-He has been my "Bed Buddy" from day one (We share a pillow still).
-He has been a promise from my Heavenly Father that everything is going to be okay.

I love this kid. Happiest Birthday, Buddy!




Yes, that's a bite out of the 5.

Brutus!

We had the extreme privilege of tending to Jared and Krista's dog for a few days last week. We loved every minute of having him around. We are hoping they leave town again soon, so we can get him back.