Contraptions

Aaron loves to build and make contraptions. There is scrap wood in the shed from the basement project just waiting for some hammer and nails to see what he will come up with. He wants Daddy to come home first and saw it into smaller pieces.

However, those are not the kind of contraptions this post is about. Yesterday I was going over Aaron's spelling words with him. One of the words was "they're." He spelled it t-h-e-y-'-e-r. I wrote down the words "they" and "are" and showed him how the apostrophe takes the place of the a and the re stay in the same order. Contractions are not a new concept to him, but the little bit of teacher that is left in me couldn't resist breaking it down. He said, "I just have a hard time with contraptions." I smiled and said, "Yes. Those contraptions can be tricky." He'll eventually figure out what they are called.

Granilla

Granilla is a word that rhymes with gorilla. It is what Hannah calls granola. No matter how many times she hears one of us say the word correctly, she still calls it granilla. I will personally take out (as in do away with) anyone who corrects her. She doesn't mispronounce too many things anymore and I think it is too cute.

The Swing of Things

PK called the other day to ask me if I remembered something funny Aaron had said in the car one day. We both remembered the gist of it, but PK was wanting to know the specific words. I don't remember. We were all in the car and Rachel mentioned going to Justice and Kohls. Aaron said something like, "That is my most torturous store." It was so quick and dry and Aaron-like, we all cracked up. It probably happened sometime last winter. I have run a half marathon, bought a house, sent my husband up north for three months, traveled, gone through two dogs, started a new school year and am now running kids to and from activities so fast my head is spinning. It is a wonder I don't forget an entire kid, let alone something they said eons ago.

All the running around brings me back to the title of this post. We are officially back into the swing of things around here. Even though some kids across the country just started back to school this past week after the Labor Day weekend, mine have been back well over a month.

Rachel adjusted to middle school in, well, perfect Rachel fashion. She marched right in there with the confidence the good Lord has blessed her with and has taken on everything that has come her way. She is on the yearbook staff this year which requires her to stay after school once a week. She is playing trumpet in the band. PK plays the trumpet, so when he finally makes it back home (in five days...not that I am counting) they are going to practice together. She practices without me saying a word about it. I can tell she is learning and the notes sound less and less like a dying elephant every day.

Aaron is a different child than his sisters. He has two friends who he has had over to the house. That boy having at least one friend makes my heart sing. He had such a hard time adjusting when we first moved here. Hard to believe we have been here two years already. Well, sometimes when I am missing my peeps, it seems as though we have been here twenty years.

On the second morning of school Aaron told me, "I figured out I like school. I just don't like paperwork." I can relate. I like having a checkbook. I just don't like writing checks and the balancing act that comes along with it.

Aaron asked to sign up for the martial arts program offered at the school. "Sure!" I said. I had told the kids they were each limited to two activities one of which is Scouts, but I don't mind the after school clubs. They just stay later. It doesn't involve me trying to get three different kids to three different places at the same or overlapping times. He is also participating in chorus this year. I was really surprised when he asked to join that one. Rachel was in chorus the last two years and Aaron was eligible after the first semester last year, but he didn't want to. I think maybe it had something to do with it being Rachel's "thing" at the time. One new club this year is the Garden something-or-other Nature Club. (I have it written down, but if I get up from this spot to go look I will be side tracked somewhere along the way and won't get this post finished.) One of the teachers is a real tree hugger. I mean that in a good way. She wanted to start an environmental club and worked first hand with some people who developed a curriculum. After one day, Aaron LOVES it. He has really been into a show on Animal Planet called Whale Wars. A group of activists go fight Japanese whalers and defend whales. Aaron now has a grand plan of buying a big ship and defending whales or becoming a Navy Seal and defending the country. Either way, it's all good. Right?

This post could also be titled "Randomness" as I am recording a few thought so I don't forget how things were. That brings me back to PK and whatever Aaron said about Kohls. PK asked if I blogged about it. No. Of course, not. That would mean I actually do a good job of keeping up my blog these days. That is why I am posting some every day run of the mill stuff now. More randomness...I decided there is absolutely no television watching (at least by the children in this house) on school nights. I expected a lot of whining, but can I just say it has been WONDERFUL! The kids don't fight as much and I often catch then just making up some game and playing together. Who knew t.v. stifled creativity. If you know me well, you know I can be sarcastic. If you don't know me well, I can be sarcastic and you should re-read that line about t.v. and stifled creativity with the sarcasm I intended. I also think some of the less than desirable attitudes expressed by the offspring in this house were learned from some of the more popular shows. The attitudes are improving and I am sure there is a direct correlation.

Hannah is rocking the first grade world. Her teacher had a baby this morning, so we have a sub for the next couple months. I've needed to talk to Miss Sassy Pant's teacher about challenging her, but knowing her teacher was going to exit the premises at any moment, I was just waiting for the sub. Hannah has read chapter books along the lines of Junie B. and Magic Tree House all summer long. First graders are kept in the "easy reader" section in the Media Center at the school so Hannah is bringing home some fun books. However, she needs to bump it up a notch. She is allowed to check out two books at a time so I am going to insist that one of them be a chapter book. She is getting ready to start an after school art program. It is very artsy crafty with a little bit about different artists thrown in there. She is all about artsy crafty so this will be perfect.

Rachel has eight of her friends coming for a sleepover tonight to celebrate her birthday. Rachel and Aaron have each invited a friend to keep them out of their sister's hair. I really should have done the math on this one before I agreed. If you didn't do the math, that leaves it 13 to 1. Nice.

I had an exterminator come today and have contracted for the company to come spray quarterly for the next year. Our landlords at the previous house had a similar arrangement and it worked well. If there is any kind of infestation in between sprays, they will come take care of it. I really don't like bugs. Especially spiders, crickets, those giant Southern flying cockroaches and house centipedes. Bluch!

I discovered the t.v. series NCIS this summer. I think it is getting ready to start its eighth season. How have I missed this show until now. Love, love, love it! PK and I don't really watch a lot of t.v. We are fans of The Biggest Loser, but it comes on too late here. We usually watch it on Hulu a week late so we can watch it on an old people bedtime schedule. He better like NCIS. Just sayin'!

I am volunteering two days a week in the Media Center at Aaron and Hannah's school. I have done it in the past. There is something therapeutic about shelving those books. I am the room parent for Hannah's class this year. I like being at their school. I have my name on lists to help at Rachel's school, but haven't been asked to do anything. Of course, I will help if asked, but I am not going to push it. Rachel being in middle school and radiating all the coolness that comes with that isn't as thrilled to see me walking the hallways as her brother and sister are.

The kids and I spent last Saturday morning cleaning and organizing the garage. We pulled out the last of the stuff the previous owners left behind. I have a man coming to haul it all off on Saturday morning. Once that junk is gone, I think it will officially feel like my house.

Around here, we have blue jobs and pink jobs. Pink jobs are mine and blue jobs are PK's. I have had to do way too many blue jobs lately. I am in the middle of one that is driving me crazy. The filter for the ice maker and water in the frig needs to be changed. I can't for the life of me get the old filter out. I think the part that I pulled out is supposed to pull out the entire filter. I guess we will just forgo ice until PK gets home.

I have less than an hour before the masses descend looking for sleepover fun led by yours truly. Not to mention I have about a gazillion little pigs in a blanket to make.

A Little Boy Lives Here

As I was cleaning the floors this morning, I came across this guy in the hallway.

It is one of Aaron's Army guys. I don't mind dust in the house or dirty floors, but I don't like clutter. Things need to be put away, so my first instinct was to throw the Army dude up the stairs so Aaron could put it away. However, something inside of me whispered, "A little boy lives in this house." So I left the Army dude standing on the ledge in the little hallway outside the living room.

I continued cleaning the floors and my thoughts went to a time when the little boy in this house will pack up and go away to college or join the Navy "to defend this country" so he claims is one of his dreams. He is such a compassionate little guy. He is also a passionate little guy. He throws everything he has into the dream or interest of the moment.

When I came to the dining room, I found a Nerf bullet on the floor.

I did pick it up because I was cleaning the floor, but I smiled because I was still thinking that a little boy lives here. But before I picked it up I went and got my camera and took a picture of the bullet on the floor and the Army dude on the ledge because I knew I needed to write a blog post to look back on years from now and remember what it was like when a little boy lived here.

Reunion = Awkward

A week before P.K.'s 20th high school reunion, he found out he would indeed have liberty that weekend and decided he would like to attend. The kids and I were on the last leg of our trip home from visiting P.K. when he called to ask if I would like to meet him in St. Louis the following weekend. I was tired of traveling and just wanted to get home, but I also jumped at the excuse to see P.K. again.

It is about a nine hour drive from my house to my sister-in-law's house outside of St. Louis. The kids started school on the Thursday before the reunion and Rachel doesn't get out of school until 4:15. That would have put us arriving at our destination around 1:15 in the morning if we didn't make any stops or hit any traffic. I turn into a pumpkin by 8:30, so I knew there was no way I would make it until 1:00 in the morning. I decided to pull the kids out early.

We arrived at our destination in about 10 hours. We hit major traffic about an hour out. An oil tanker had overturned on the interstate and had it shut down most of the day. Up until this point I had felt a bit guilty for spending the money to splurge on a GPS. Our little Jenny (that is what the family has named our GPS) redirected me through cornfields which were probably never seen by an outsider before. On one of these one lane, gravel, country roads I saw a ninety year old woman drive a four wheeler out to check her mailbox.

We hung out at my sister-in-law's house watching the kids play in the pool most of the day Saturday. I should mention it is also my brother-in-law's house. Which leads me to a totally different discussion. Is my sister-in-law's husband my brother-in-law or just my sister-in-law's husband. I decided that as long as a person likes his or her in-law's spouse he or she can be claimed with the title in-law. If you don't like the person then you might want to refer to him or her as my sister-in-law's husband or brother-in-law's wife. I totally digress.

Ragini (my sister-in-law) and Dan (my brother-in-law...I like him so we will go with that title) were nice enough to babysit for us. Come on. Who wouldn't like someone who offers free babysitting and loves your kids?

I wasn't sure what to wear to the reunion and finally decided that other than the couple we were going with, I probably won't see any of these people again unless we attend the 30th reunion.

I picked up dress at Target of all places. Here P.K. and I are posing on Ragini's deck. She insisted on taking pictures and in hindsight I am glad she did.

Here we are with Jennifer and Tim. Jennifer and P.K. attended school together and the family has other connections. Jennifer's brother, Greg, is married to P.K.'s older sister, Sunita. Jennifer attended the same college as P.K. and I did for one year. P.K. was at the Coast Guard Academy during that year. I was friends with Sunita before P.K. came. Jennifer and Ragini were roommates at some point in their adult life before either of them was married. Needless to say, we were happy to get to spend some time with them.

I do not keep in touch with one single solitary person with whom I attended high school. I went from kindergarten through eighth grade with the same kids. When high school came around they all went to one high school and I had to go to a different one. I never really clicked with any of the pre-formed clicks, so I had no desire to attend my 20th high school reunion.

I learned that the term "High School Reunion" is really synonymous with the word "Awkward." Where do I begin to explain this? Neither Tim or I are the most outgoing people in social situations. I think both of us were happy sitting at a table watching the former classmates catch up. Most of the conversation went something like this:

Former classmate: Hey, P.K.

P.K.: Hey, "insert name of former classmate" (or if he didn't know the name and couldn't see the name tag he just said, "Hey.")

Then there was an awkward moment of silence as they grinned and nodded at each other hoping the other would have something to say.

A lot of people said, "So how is life?" or "What have you been up to?" I had to try really hard to keep myself from laughing. It had been 20 years since some of these people had seen each other. I could give you an earful of what has happened in life after 20 days. After the question was asked there was another awkward moment of silence while the person being asked the question tried to figure out a good way to sum up the last 20 years in about 20 seconds. The only thing that brought a longer period of silence was when P.K. introduced me to one of his former classmates. We didn't even have the memory of high school to try to start a conversation.

Someone in the planning stages thought it would be a good idea to have a DJ playing songs from the high school era. This was the graduating class of 1990. They fled the 80s and some things in the 80s should have been left in the past. It was really hard to hear over the music. I think music in the background would have been nice, but the blaring sound was not conducive to pleasant conversation. What if you were one of those people who had already hit the open bar several times and weren't shy about sharing the worst of the past 20 years. You now it slipped out in an obnoxiously loud voice between songs.

Some things never change. There was one lady (I so use the term loosely) who had to ****family blog written by Christian author****...had a difficult time finding a place to put her name tag. She was very entertaining as the night went on. Tim and I were taking bets as to how long it would take for her to take her dance moves to the top of the bar.

One of the men who still lives locally was in a conversation with P.K., another classmate who lives near Chicago and me. He mentioned he got a room at the hotel across the street for the night. The classmate from Chicago asked him where he lived and he named a local community. The out-of-towners were all staying with relatives in the area.

It was fun to watch P.K. interact with these people and I can say I have been to a 20 year reunion. Now college is a different story. I have friends I keep in touch with and I hope someone is planning it!

Middle School

Rachel reached another milestone today. She started Middle School. I felt like she was starting kindergarten all over again. She didn't want me to help her anymore today than she did back then. It was all I could do to keep myself from jumping out of the car and walking her to her class to make sure she found her room with no problem. I did offer, but I got that tween eye roll and a "Mom, I've got this." She had a great day. She is in all advanced classes. No surprise there. She is P.K.'s kid.

Back to School

Hannah started first grade and Aaron started fourth grade today. They were both excited to get back to school and see their friends. Aaron came home and announced, "I figured I out I actually like school. I just don't like paperwork."

Here's a picture of all three of them. Rachel hadn't fixed her hair yet. She is getting her own special post today.