Creativity & Imagination

As adults, we hardly ever get to use our imagination or be creative and think outside the box.  So when my kids start to get ideas in their heads, I love watching them let their creativity flow.  I think it is so important to let children make a mess every now and then.  After all, children learn best when they are playing.  

 These moments won't last forever. So cherish the messes and the creativity.

Family weekends are my favorite.

This weekend we surprised the kids and took them to the Memphis Zoo. It was their annual "Zooper Hero" weekend, where some pretty cool guys showed up.

 

The kids LOVED it. It was pretty cool, but my arms were DYING from having to hold Kenzie up for 30 minutes lol. Obviously, I need to start lifting weights.

 I love the zoo. Although we didn't get to see all of the animals, since it was so cold, we still had a blast! And we saw my favorites, the penguins and reindeer.

 I love family time. I love making memories with the kids. And I'm so thankful that we are blessed enough to be able to do these things with our children!

 

Busy Week! {Weekend Recap}

This week has been crazy. I'm still trying to adjust to my schedule, which now includes two days a week of observing in a PreK classroom! It's SO much fun and I love watching the kids/teacher! I can't WAIT to have my own classroom! Hopefully that will come sooner than later. One of the pluses of observing at the Elementary school, is that I get to see Kenzie at lunch. :)

Tucker started daycare, too. I was so nervous for him. I didn't want to leave my baby boy. But turns out, he didn't mind at all! He went right to play when I dropped him off. He was so excited to tell me about his day when I picked him up:) That just made it SO much better on me.

 

I went to parent/teacher conference Thursday for Kenzie, and of course, she's doing just fine. She's adjusted to taking her 1st grade class SO well. She's even made a 100 on Phonics, Spelling, AND Reading on her progress report for 1st grade! 

Saturday I went to get my phone replaced. Yes. My phone that I JUST got less than a month ago....I dropped it on the concrete and it cracked. But thanks to Best Buy's Geek Squad insurance, I was able to replace my phone with a brand new one for freeeeeeeeeee! Then we went to watch the UFC fights that night with some friends and delicious food.

Sunday was the lazy day, duh. Subway for lunch. Homework assignments. Avoiding housework. The usual lol.

And I guess I didn't take one picture this weekend! Shame...shame....

A Poem for my Children.

I've heard your heartbeat, in sync with mine. 

I've felt you kick inside me numerous times.

I dreamt of your face; how beautiful it would be.

And I fell instantly in love, when they placed you on me.

You are my angel sent from heaven. My child. My world.

A new beginning of life, mine + yours, unfurled.

From tiny toes, to late night cries.

To runny noses and shoes that tie.

I've watched you grow. I watched you learn.

I've rocked you to sleep and I've looked at you stern.

I pray for you daily. I pray I'm raising you right.

Because sometimes being a Mother keeps me up at night.

I worry about your life. I worry about who you'll be.

I worry that somebody else could do this better than me.

But I know God sent you to be my child.

He knew that I needed an angel. So he sent you. And He smiled.

Because He knew I could be strong and do the best I can.

He knew I was up for the task that I did not plan.

I never imagined I could be who I am today.

I am your mother. You are my child. And no one can take that away. 

Let's Talk Genius.

First, let me start by saying that I love both of my children equally. They also get on my nerves equally. But I never want to be known as one of those parents who puts one child ahead of the other one.

With that being said, this post has tons of bragging on ONE child. But I think it SHOULD be bragged on because I am SOOOOOOO proud!

This post is all about this girl:

Want to know why I'm so proud of her, other than the fact that she's my beautiful angel?

I had a meeting with her teacher today. They let her take the Star Reading test the other day. She scored a 1.8. That means she's reading at a 2nd grade reading level!!! 

She's in Kindergarten. 

She just turned 5 a month ago.

 And she's reading at a 2nd grade level. 

This just blows my mind!

She is also advanced for her age in every category: Spelling, writing, and math. 

Her Kindergarten teacher says that she never acts bored in class, but she just doesn't want her to become bored. They are just now focusing on letters A-T. Kenzie knew that stuff when she was two. And the best part about all this? Kenzie never flaunts her "smartness". She understands that some kids aren't advanced, and she doesn't try to rub that in...she HELPS them. How precious is that?

During the meeting, we were discussing our options on how to help her excel without her becoming bored with Kindergarten. One option was to send her on to 1st grade completely. 

That's HUGE, people. 

But Doug and I talked, and we just don't think that's the best option for her. She's already one of the youngest in her class, and that would put her graduating at 16! I can't send my 16 year old baby to college! That's just too young.

So the option we went with was to let her stay in Kindergarten, but take the 1st grade reading class. This way, she will still be able to spend time with her friends, but to challenge her more in her academics. She will be participating in the AR reading program, which they don't even offer until 1st grade! I think this will work out perfectly and Kenzie seems excited about it as well.

Doug and I (and everyone else who knows Kenzie) is SO proud of her. I love that she loves to learn and I hope she continues to do so. I hope she stays the same sweet angel that she is now. 

How I'm Keeping My Sanity.

This semester I decided I was NOT going to be as stressed out as I was last semester. (We'll see how that goes later on lol). I'm taking 3 on campus classes and two online classes, one of which is Pre-Calculus...yep. For one of my education classes, I have to do 45 hours worth of volunteer hours at a local child care facility. I'm trying to figure out what to do about that because I'm going to have to put Tucker in some sort of daycare so I can do my hours. So I'm sort of stressing about that. But so far, I'm keeping my head on straight with everything else! 

My method this semester is SCHEDULES! Now, if you know me in real life, you know I'm borderline OCD and I need things to be organized and planned out. So, I made myself a schedule for this semester! It includes my cleaning schedule, school work time, workouts, and everything in between. This helps me out SO much. I make sure to dedicate at least 2.5 hours a day on school assignments, so I don't fall behind and get stressed out. Wish me luck this semester! It's going to be a busy one!

And of course, lots of coffee. I couldn't survive without it!

Life lately has been pretty much the same. I've been fluctuating one or two pounds because I've lost my motivation to work out/count calories. (I know, I know...shame on me)! But I'm not giving up, I promise. 

Kenzie's loving Kindergarten and Tucker has found a love for Mario and Luigi. 

 I'm excited for this weekend! It's FOOTBALL SEASON! Go Vols! We are going to visit my Papa at the River for Labor Day weekend and I can't wait! I love "mini vacations" lol. 

I also realize that this post is rambly...I'm sorry!

Family Night!

What have I been up to lately?

Oh, you know. Just losing weight and such.

I haven't been counting calories, but I've been eating less and watching what/when I eat. I just need to motivate myself to get back to doing yoga. I'm down 10 pounds, but I've been stuck here for over a week.

We took the kids to see Planes 3D last Saturday. It was Tucker's first movie at a theater:) They loved it!

I love family time with these crazy people. I wouldn't trade it for anything.