Summer is All The Mess

Y'all look at this picture. This child is a hot mess. He has chalk, dirt, chocolate, and popsicle all over him. But look at that smile! I got this shirt at the start of summer and it has been permanently stained. There is a soda stain on the back as well. Messy is happy! 

My bestie had her first baby at 37 and isn't her baby girl just gorgeous! Her name is Phoebe and the name matches her wild personality. They are such amazing parents and Phoebe has them wrapped around her sweet little finger. 

Here are a couple of photos from 4th of July. I wanted to get a photo of him before he got all dirty but as soon as he got outside he rolled around in the dirt. I just wish this child would learn how to swing himself. Pushing is getting old. 

These two cousins have spent every single day together this summer. There are huge fights but also some sweet moments. Here is one of these. They sat together in this wagon and shared a root beer. 

Y'all bless this child's soul. We shot a few fireworks in the backyard. Basically my sister's husband shot them off and we sat in the bed of the truck and watched. We did let the kids do a sparkler. My kid put the hot end to his lip. He never cried. He just said "I hurt my lip". This is it the next day. It is looking better each day. He learned a life lesson so I guess it all worked out. 

This weekend we are doing a family vacation to Hot Springs with my sister's family. We are renting a house close to a nice lake. We have plans to visit a museum, a water park, a go cart park, an amusement park, and also do some boating. It will be lots of chaos and mess so basically the kiddos will have the best time and all the adults will be needing a vacation after the vacation. 

Summer Fun

This week has been nothing but fun for the boys (my son Jack and his cousin Bennett). This Mama is exhausted though because making things fun is hard when you still have all the adult things to still do.

These boys have had swimming lessons all week. Bennett has done fabulous! Jack has made huge strides and I think I'll get him swimming lessons again in about a month. Let me tell you why. On Monday he was diagnosed with ADHD. I already knew he had it because as a teacher I know the signs. He will start a medication next week and we will have the rest of the summer to evaluate him in case we need to make any changes. 

We have been doing a lot of cooking. Both boys love to cook and it is an activity that keeps us busy and we end up with a treat we get to share with others. We have baked cookies, made banana pudding, made Oreo pudding,  bakes brownies, and I taught the boys how to make French toast. 

We also took an ice cream break. We went to Sonic and actually got out and sat outside. The kids thought that was so cool. The kids are loving summer!

Cleaning has also been made fun this week. I've had the boys help with the chores and they have loved it. I've let them do chores that they wouldn't normally get to do like vacuuming and mopping. I've had them help me clean each day and it has been so nice having the house be so clean.

Every Wednesday for a month our public library is having a reading program. The boys got to make homemade ice cream in plastic bags. They thought it was neat and loved getting to eat their own ice cream. 

Next week I have three days of professional development and Saturday I get to volunteer at a coding camp for girls in grades 8th through 12th. I'm looking forward to the 4th of July since we will be hosting a huge family get together. It's the weekend and we have no plans so I'm going to chill and read Crazy Rich Asians. Have a great weekend!

Unplugged: Teaching Coding with Storybooks

This week I'm spending my time at a computer science workshop. Before this class, I only thought of coding for middle and high school students and maybe upper elementary. Now I see that even pre-kindergarten kids can handle basic coding.

There is a wonderful blog called JDaniel4smom. She has a list of storybooks that is occupied by a printable. A group in my class presented this as a lesson to do with kindergarten. Since Jack is starting school in August I thought I would give it a try with him. The most important skill your child will need for this lesson is the ability to draw an arrow. Jack's arrows are not perfect by any means but I can tell which direction he is pointing. 

The first time we did this activity we did the coding activity using the book We're Going on a Bear Hunt. Jack loved it so much that he asked to do another so we did The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Here is what The Very Hungry Caterpillar printable looks like:

Here is what Jack's paper looks like (you will notice some mistakes and it probably wasn't the best idea to let him use a marker but it made him happy).

It's never too early to start teaching following steps (algorithms), directional words (up, down, left, right), and sequencing. This activity is a great way to blend literacy, math, and computer science.  

Jack: Halfway to Six

The first time I felt Jack move was on Mother's Day. It was my first Mother's Day gift and it meant the world to me. Time flew too quickly and now he is five and a half. The biggest reason I started blogging was so I would have a record of our life together. It's been too long since I've done a Jack update.

SCHOOL

• He finished up preschool on the 23rd.
• Can spell a few words including his full name.
• Most days he gets in trouble at school for screaming, hitting, or pinching his friends
• Has made impressive improvements in speech therapy
• Starts kindergarten in August and is most excited about going to a new playground
• He is all about the number 100  

TALKING

• The later in the day it gets the more he talks and the quicker
• If you tell him no, he will respond with "I never....". For example if I tell him he can't have a Kit Kat then he will say "I never get to have a Kit Kat". 
• He is also using words/phrases like "you are getting on my nerves", "I'm so frustrated", and "proud". He is asking "why" a lot too.
• The other day he said "What the hell?". Oops! That one is my fault.
• I've always called farts "toots" because I just hate the word fart. Well he has learned fart now and it is driving me mad.

ENTERTAINMENT

• Would rather be outside at all times
• Watches Thomas, Paw Patrol, Puppy Dog Pals, Shimmer and Shine, Little Einsteins, Super Why, and Blaze on tv.
• He also enjoys YouTube where he watches kids unbox Happy Meals. Jack has always loved the classic fairy tale stories like The Three Billy Goats Gruff and The Three Little Pigs. He watches those videos daily
• We haven't done much reading the last couple of weeks since the weather has warmed up. I do plan on trying to read him a chapter book during the summer.                            

HEALTH

• I ended up taking Jack to the doctor last week. He has horrible allergies like his mama. Jack is now taking allergy medicine daily and it seems to be helping.
• He is one tough cookie and it seems like he is always falling off something or tripping over something. He is super rough and gives his mama many scares.
• This summer Jack is meeting with a pediatrician to possibly get on medicine or at least some tips to work on some better sleeping habits and calming behaviors. 

Start of Summer

Hello sweet summertime! We've been on summer break for a total of four days. We have made the best out of those few days. This whole week I'm in a Computer Science workshop so that part isn't great but I am learning a lot.

Memorial Day weekend four of my sweet friends and I went to Orange Beach. We were there for three nights and the whole week before we were worried how Tropical Storm Alberto would mess up our trip. We didn't even pack our beach chairs. Once we made it there we went straight down to the beach thinking we would only get a few hours of beach time the whole trip. We were very wrong. By the second day we headed to the store and picked up some beach chairs.

We only had rain for maybe an hour the whole trip. We turned out so lucky.

One of the highlights of the trip was getting to taste this delicious banana split. It was an hour wait but oh my word it was great! This place is called The Yard and has been open just over a year in Gulf Shores. The place next door was pretty great and had the best guacamole. 

Two of the few days we have been on summer vacation Jack and I have been to this pool about 25 miles away. I had actually forgotten about this gem but was reminded about it on the drive back from the beach. Jack really loves it but taking him can get a little nerve wracking because he doesn't want to wear his floaties. He had a pretty big meltdown on Sunday over it but thankfully did get over it. 

We've also been dealing with this super hot summer by playing with water in the yard. I bought a couple of water shooters and filled up a tub with water. Bennett came over and they had a blast shooting each other with water and chasing each other around the yard. 

I'm holding this summer a lot closer to my heart since Jack will start kindergarten in August. I know that once big school starts that the growing up happens entirely too quickly.

Meet Hank

On April 21st we got a 3 week old male puppy. I've been wanting to get Jack a dog for awhile now. My sister got this puppy's sister the day before. It is a heartbreaking story that once our family heard about we had to help. The Mama dog was a stray and had the two puppies under someone's house. When the owner of the home tried to get the puppies out the mama dog bit the homeowner (well of course that is what the mama dog is gonna do!). Well the owner called the dog catcher and they shot the Mama. It just breaks my heart. The babies were taken to our towns vet clinic. A lady my sister works with fosters dogs and my sister couldn't resist taking the girl dog home. By the next morning the male puppy belonged to us. They both had to be bottle fed. 

My sister named her puppy Kohl but we had a hard time coming up with a name for her brother. After throwing names around the whole day I finally googled male dog names and said them until Jack landed on one he liked. He said he liked the name Hank and I liked it too. 

It's been almost two weeks since we have welcomed Hank into our lives. The first week was super hard. I was having to get up all hours of the night to bottle feed Hank. Jack being such a light sleeper would get up too and there were days where I thought I can't do this anymore. However, we have survived! 

Hank has doubled in size and is no longer needing to be bottle fed. He gets formula and also soft dog food. He and his sister have had vet visits and are doing well. 

Jack is obsessed with Hank and I am looking forward to seeing these two bond for years to come!

Kindergarten Prep-Name Writing

Whether I'm ready or not, Jack starts kindergarten in August. I know that name writing is super important. He pretty much has his first name down. I would like for him to keep his letters closer to the same size but that's a minor thing. One of my goals for 2018 was to help Jack master writing his last name also. 

I was able to make these worksheets myself using a website. 

You can make and print your own by clicking here.

Easter in Pictures

My Secret Pal made Jack a super cute Easter basket!

This picture is a little fuzzy but I just love my nephew Bennett.

Here is Jack with the Easter Bunny. We had a great time at the McGehee Women's League Egg Drop.

Here is Jack holding is first ever fish.

Sunday we had lots of family over and my cousin's girlfriend brought this super cute cake.

Things I'm Lovin' Right Now

1. The book Girl, Wash Your Face. It is a nonfiction Christian self-help book. Y'all I'm seriously in love with this book! I've never experienced such a directly helpful book. It's one of those books that you will want to give to all the women in your life and keep yourself a copy to look back on often.

2.  The HBO show Divorce. It isn't a show to watch with the kiddos around because they really enjoy dropping the f bomb but there is just something funny and real about it. Sarah Jessica Parker is crazy gorgeous as always and I find myself quite envious. 

3. My sister subscribes to Birchbox and gives me all the products that aren't right for her. Well one of those items with an eye shadow crayon by Dirty Little Secret. I love it! It is so easy to put on and it stays put. I like it so much that I purchased another in a slightly different color. 

4. My backpack from Santa. I get so many compliments on it. Jack was getting older and a whole diaper bag was no longer necessary. Jack has his own smaller backpack but there were some items (like Tylenol and extra snacks) that I did not want him to have access too while being out and about. I now carry it everywhere. It always contains a book, my goals binder, paper and pens, and my prayer journal. 

5. Prayer journal. It's a 3 month prayer journal. On each page it has 4 squares. There is a square for the verse of the day, a Lord teach me too square, a square to write what you are thankful for, and a spot to put down your prayer requests. I'm already enjoying looking back to see how God has responded to what I've written. I signed up to get a verse sent to my email each day. You can sign up by clicking here. 

6. John Frieda Hot Air Brush. Drying my thick hair is such a chore. I got this gem for Christmas and now I couldn't imagine drying my hair any other way. It doesn't give me the perfect blowout look but it does minimize my frizzy hair quite a bit and makes it so much easier to straighten. A few swipes with my straightener and my hair is straight and not frizzy. Without this drying brush it would take a lot more time to do my hair.

What is something you are lovin' right now? 

Life Lately

I'm so thankful it is Friday. I enjoy my job but sometimes I wish I were a stay at home mom. This morning was especially hard because Jack didn't want me to go to work, he didn't want to go to pre-school, and he wanted to go get donuts. I would have much rather had a donut date with him. I haven't been blogging much this past year so I thought I do a few updates. My life isn't very fascinating but one day I'll appreciate rereading these posts.

Jack is now 5 and starts kindergarten in August. He is enjoying preschool and learning so much. He still isn't fond of sleeping but we at least have an appointment now to get him evaluated. I know 5 year old boys have lots of energy but I know there is something deeper. We are part of the Hippy program. They send home books and activities for us to do together. Jack loves doing his "homework" and we have had a lot of fun together. This experiment we were seeing what cleaned a penny best. We learned that mixing salt and vinegar did the trick.

My best friend Jessica and her husband Stan had their first baby at 37. For the longest time they were set on never having children but about a year and a half ago they changed their mind. Little Miss Phoebe is seriously the prettiest baby I've ever seen.

Last weekend it was pretty enough to go outside so I took Jack and my nephew Bennett to a small town festival nearby. They enjoyed the bouncy house the most and Mama enjoyed watching them laugh and play. I adore seeing them become the best of friends.

These past two weeks my friend Ginger and I have been training for a 5K. We haven't signed up for one yet but it is on my to do list for this year. So far the most we have walked is 2.94 miles. Each day we have walked enough to beat the previous days distance.

I picked up two super cute bunnies from Dollar General for only $3.50 each! Aren't they adorable???

One more week of work before a whole week of no work! We don't have any plans and I'm totally okay with that. I need some R&R. It's been awhile since I've had some very intentional rest. 

Tomorrow there is rain in the forecast so Jack and I are heading to a friend's house for an indoor playdate. I hope y'all have a great weekend!

18 in 2018

1. Keep a reading log

2. Teach Jack how to write his last name

3. Walk/run a 5K

4. Reach Level 600 of Candy Crush

5. Read the Bible in chronological order

6. Get hair cut/dyed professionally

7. Give up soda for 30 days

8. Try Revitalu Brew for 30 days

9. Finish 2 Bible studies

10. Send in applications for jobs closer to home

11. Jack and I move into our own home

12. Take Jack to Chuck E. Cheese

13. Take some sort of class (online or in person)

14. Teach Jack 25 sight words

15. Keep a prayer journal for at least 30 days straight

16. Write a summer to do list

17. Write a family vision statement with goals

18. Donate blood

Goal Getters

At the first of the year, my friend Candi and I decided to search for a few gals who wanted to work with us on planning, setting, and achieving goals. We found two other like-minded girls who wanted to make some serious change in 2018. 

What I really love about this small group of 4 is that we didn't all know each other before. We all come from different situations and the one thing we for sure have it common is that we like to keep it real. 

Our first meeting was in January. We met at Heather's (because her three kids were gone at the time). We each brought planners, notebooks, stickers, pens, pencils, and other supplies. We took turns just speaking our current situations and what we would like to change. As a group we helped that person define exactly what they wanted to change. Before we left that night, each of us had three to five things they wanted to change about their lives. 

Our homework was to write our current reality for each goal and what progression would look like. Each month we are to update the current reality to see our progress. Here is an example:

1. Improve overall health

Current Reality:

1. Drink too much Dr. Pepper
2. Exercise is non existence
3. Have a gym membership that I don’t use
4. Don’t eat breakfast or lunch most days
5. Eat way too much before bed
6. Overweight

Current Reality (February)

1. I drink an occasional Dr. Pepper
2. I’ve only worked out once
3. Still don’t use gym membership
4. Have cut out before bed eating
5. I’ve lost a few pounds
6. Joined Weight Watchers but still haven’t attended an actual meeting

Progression:

1. No more sodas
2. Exercise routine
3. Eat breakfast and lunch
4. Pack lunch for school
5. Get to a healthy weight
6. Have more energy

Last night we met again for our February meeting. Candi hosted, and since is an amazing cook, we ate great. So much for healthy eating! We all agreed this would be our cheat meal.

You know those 101 in 1001 lists out there? Well we decided to each make an 18 in 2018 list. We shared a couple of different ideas and will report out during our March meeting. I'll share mine here tomorrow. 

Here are my goals for 2018:

1. Improve overall health

2. Reduce Debt

3. Grow spiritually

4. Be more intentional with Jack

5. Enhance my overall appearance

Our little group is named the Goal Getters and we have started a Facebook messenger group where we share ups and downs, motivation, and ideas. 

Accountability is key to my success!