Let's Make a Deal

Today, fourth grade teacher Mrs. G. said, "I'm going to buy sodas for the students who pass their AR  (Accelerated Reader) goal this quarter." One boy said, "Throw in a chocolate bar, and you've got a deal." Love it!

Chinchilla Diorama

During Thanksgiving holiday most of us spent time shopping, but not my third grade daughter Mary Jae.

She stayed home and diligently worked on her Chinchilla Diorama for school. I think she did an amazing job relating the Chilean habitat of a chinchilla, right down to the Chilean miner escaping the mine.  Brilliant!

Happy Thanksgiving

Hope you have a fabulous and blessed Thanksgiving with family and friends.  I will be spending the Thanksgiving weekend with family, so please check back on Monday.  HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

He's Really Trying

Jeremy recently offered this prayer up to God:  OUR FATHER HAS ART IN HEAVEN.  HOWARD IS MY NAME. 

I am SURE that God absolutely LOVED IT!

Going On a Deer Hunt

Three-year-old Davey was so excited that his Daddy shot a big ol' buck today!
He said,  "I love to eat dead deer!" Nicely put.

Diorama

My third-grade daughter has a project for Thanksgiving break.  She is to create a diorama (a project usually in a shoebox that creates a realistic background and characteristics of an animal.)  Upon hearing this assignment, she was immediately pumped full of creative ideas. 

While technically Thanksgiving Break is about a week away, she began Googling facts about CHINCHILLAS and sweeping the house for useful diorama props seconds after arriving home. She tracked me down wherever I was in the house to ask my thoughts on her latest creative use of a household product for her diorama. 

While I am use to her usual creative genius, I must admit she caught me off-guard with this question.
 
Mary Jae:  "Do we have a tube?"
Me:  "What?"
Mary Jae:  "Do we have anything we can use as a tube?""
Me:  "For what?"
Mary Jae:  "I need a tube for my diorama."
Me:  "What 's the tube for?"
Mary Jae:  "It represents the Chilean miners."  "Chinchillas are found in Chile, you know."

Five minutes later she came downstairs with a slinky and rubber-bendable-smiley face guy.   Stay tuned for pictures.  I can't wait to see it myself.    

Family Game Night

A few nights ago our oldest son brought his girlfriend over for supper and family game night.  His dad worked tirelessly for an hour and a half before their arrival making an impressive "Breakfast for Supper" spread.  After a filling meal of pancakes, sausage, bacon, scrambled eggs, bisquits and hashbrowns I volunteered to clean up the kitchen while everyone else kicked off game night with SCRABBLE. 

Dad deemed himself "official judge" as the kids picked their letter tiles and settled in.  Big brother and girlfriend (Jerremy and Erica) are 21, little brother (Jarrod) is 15 and little sister (Mary Jae) is 9. While Erica has never played Scrabble.  Jerremy and Mary Jae are both incredibly articulate. Jarrod is very laid back and just goes with the flow.

The game started slow and easy.   As play progressed Jarrod and Mary Jae occasionally found themselves stuck.  So...I would sneak around my sink full of dishes and lend my assistance.  On one such occasion I suggested Jarrod add H-O-E-S to a blank tile Mary Jae previously designated as "S".   From his seat at the kitchen table he looked up at me in confusion and whispered in my ear, "Uh, I thought that was a bad word."

I LOVE that my 15 year old is still innocent enough to care...I LOVE that we had a family game night...I LOVE that my kids want to spend time together...I Love that this still makes me laugh days later.

Oh, Pie!

This week I had the opportunity to sub with my wonderful Pre-K kids.  During the afternoon class, an all-school assembly was held in the gym.  Apparently, the local police department sponsored a coin drive for Special Olympics.  Every student from the classroom that donated the most money won the right to through a pie at a policeman during this special assembly. 

Being a tiny Pre-K class in a Kindergarten through third grade school, we had front row seating---right on the gym floor.  I explained to the boys and girls what would be happening.  It was a little confusing for my little guys, because the policemen were wearing t-shirts and jeans---no uniforms.  

The roar of the crowd grew as each student from the winning first-grade classroom stepped up to the line to throw a pie at a policemen . All the children began chanting THROW THE PIE!!!!...THROW THE PIE!!!!  As each pie hit its mark "Brayden's" eyes grew larger and larger.  With his big deer-in-the-headlight-eyes "Brayden" looked at me and said, " Are they going to throw pies at us?"

It's All About Control

My friend Paula and her husband planned to take their two smallest boys to the movies last weekend.

On Friday, when six-year-old Matthew came home from school whiny and emotional, it was apparent he needed an early bedtime more than the movies. Daddy told him and his three-year-old brother Chevy the movies would have to wait, because he was having trouble controlling his emotions.

On Saturday Matthew asked Mom and Dad if the family would be going to the movies, before his parents could answer little brother Chevy chimed in, "Matthew, you've gots to learn to control your oceans."

You Can Be Anything

Tonight, while spending some time with my nine-year-old daughter, I felt the need to tell her "You really can be anything you want to be."  Do you ever just feel an overwhelming urge to let your kids know HOW MUCH potential they have?  While explaining to Jae she really could be ANYTHING she shared her life goals with me.  They are as follows:

1.  Dancer
2.  Gymnastics Teacher
3.  Scientist
4.  Sculptor

Remember a time when you truly believed you could be ANYTHING?    I LOVE this age, because the possibilities are endless.  No self doubt or disbelief...just dreams.

Thought for the Day

"Each day of our lives we make deposits in the memory banks of our children."




~Charles Swindoll

Note

I recently hosted a 40th Birthday Slumber Party for my forever friend Mary Beth. (I could tell you all about that experience, but, like Vegas, what happens at our slumber parties stays at our slumber parties.) While running errands to do last minute preperation my friend Tricia called the house. Tricia needed the oven heated for her appetizers, so she left this message with my responsible nine-year-old daughter.

I had to smile when I saw that Mary Jae wrote in clock time instead of "oven time".

My Story

Seven-year-old Aiden recently gave me a beautiful book he made about my life for a class project. I just had to share.

This person is Michele Marie Kirby.

She was born in Alton, IL. Her special time is when she had children. P.S. She's my mom's BFF.

The End...Oh, by the way, she's married. I know--it's cute or it's not...The End...P.P.P.S I almost forgot they're licking. The end.


In case you are wondering. Yes, Aiden did draw me and my husband licking. No, it's not liking. We are definitely licking. His explaination: "I didn't know how to draw kissing so I just drew licking."

I am truly honored and blessed to have my biography written by Aiden.

Another cute tidbit from three-year-old Davey.

Davey: "Mom, did you know that God made us special?"
Mom: "You're right Davey! He sure did!
Davey: "Yah, he made all those other people plain."