State Fair

Yesterday we went to the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson. Although Robert has lived in Kansas 30 years, he had never been to the state fair, let alone Hutch. Because he grew up in the Kansas City area, he inherited the attitude that everything west of Topeka is on another planet. Living in far southwest Kansas has been an eye-opener for him. We had a fun time and the boys really enjoyed the carnival rides. We set a $50 limit but boy, we sure could have spent four-times that amount. It is a 2 1/2 hour drive to Hutch so we had a full day. Adam and Matt enjoyed feeding and petting the animals in the petting zoo. This goat not only ate Adam's food, he ate his cup.

Although Matt's face doesn't show it, both he and Adam were in heaven when they saw this GIANT gumball machine.


Adam's in the 3rd car back--the brown-haired kid

Matt and Robert went on the dragon coaster. Too bad I couldn't get a closer shot. Matt's face was a cross between jubilation and terror. They're in the first car.

We even got to see pig races.

Here's Adam high above the fair in the ferris wheel.

FHE-part 2

Adam and Matt have REALLY gotten into this "Home Alone" movie. They've watched it a number of times now. Too bad it's due back at the store today. Adam is secretly drawing up his own "battle plan". It has a diagram of our house and the boobytraps for each room. He doesn't want Rob and I to know about it but I saw it in his closet. Matt has been quoting the lines from the movie. He has a particular favorite. All day yesterday he was saying in his little 4 year old, gangster voice, "Keep the change, you filthy animal". It cracks me up.

FHE

On Monday for FHE we watched the movie "Home Alone". We had been telling the boys that it's such a funny movie, so they were quite excited. They thoroughly enjoyed it. It was just as funny as when I first watched it 20 years ago. Of course when we have a movie night they expect treats...and lots of them (hence the tablecloth to protect the carpet from sticky fingers).

**Side note--Today I bought two bottles of body wash, two tubes of mascara and a pack of tic-tacs and paid only $1.24. Ahhh, the power of coupons.

I've been a bit MIA. Last week I had really bad allergies and I felt so drained. I never had allergies until moving to southwest Kansas. We've got so much stuff in the air here--cow manure and dander, hay, weeds, multiple harvests of multiple crops, etc. It's killing me. We've also been working on our laundry room. It's a big space, about 120 sq. ft. We painted the walls, trim, cupboards, shelves and doors and changed the hardware.
Yesterday we took Adam and Matt down to the new waterpark in Liberal again. It was the last day to be opened for the season. This Saturday we're planning on going to the Kansas State Fair.
Primary is going fine. To me it feels very routine. I've had this same calling four times in the past six years. I'm trying to be excited about it, but it's a struggle occasionally. I was released from being the choir pianist. So, it is nice to be down to one calling. Six months ago, I had four (and that's not counting VT).

I'm Spoiled...

I woke up yesterday morning with both anticipation and hesitation. I began my day like everyday, waking up at 5:45 to walk for an hour. I left the house, crossed the street, walked down the sidewalk about 100 feet, and then the rain began. It got heavier and heavier, enough for me to turn around and go back home. At 7:00 I got the boys up and got them ready. Adam was at school by 8:15. Then Matt and I took some pictures (see earlier post) of his first day. I took Matt to school, ran errands while he was there, and then picked him up at 11:30. Between 11:30 and 1:30, I had a bunch to do. I fixed lunch for Matt, Robert and I. Robert got his bag packed. He left for Manhattan "the little apple" Kansas on a work trip and will be gone 'til Sunday. Matt and I then picked Adam up at 1:30 to drive down to Liberal (70 miles south) for an appt. with his OCD doctor. I initially thought the day was going to be a bit hectic, but amazingly everything went smoothly. After the appt. we played at a park and got ice cream before driving back to Garden City. While cruising along, I started thinking that I'm spoiled being a stay-at-home mom. There are tons of things I get to do that working moms don't. When I took Matt to school, all (and I mean all) of the other children just ran right into the room and didn't worry a bit about where their moms were. Matt was only one that was nervous to be there. This same thing happened when Adam started preschool. And I think it's because all the other moms work and the other kids have been in daycare. I'm thankful that I don't have a job and that I could stay as long as needed with Matt yesterday. And that I can pick him up everyday and not the babysitter. I am thankful, too, that I can use the entire afternoon to take my son to the doctor and not have to worry about using my vacation/sick time. I love living across the street from Adam's school and being able to stand on my front porch and watch him play at recess. Or have the time to walk him to school and then take extra time walking home so Matt can jump at all the low-hanging tree branches to try to get leaves. These are all things I wouldn't be able to do if I had to work and not stay home with my boys. Granted, staying at home has not always been a picnic. There's definitely been sacrifices we've had to make--like cutting our income in half when Adam was born and not being able to buy a house until we'd been married for over 10 years. There have been many days when I've felt isolated and lonely but the blessings of staying home have definitely outweighed the sacrifices.

Matt's 1st Day of Preschool

Matthew had his first day of preschool yesterday. To say he was not thrilled about it, is a HUGE understatement. He is such a momma's boy that he had no interest in going anywhere without me. For the past month he has told me repeatedly that he doesn't want to go to preschool and that he won't have fun and that he'll just stand in the corner and not doing anything. Too bad his tactics didn't work. The following pictures accurately represent my attempts at getting a "first day of school" photo. His actions say it all. "Arrggghh, I don't want my picture taken."

"You can't make me."

"See, I told you. You still can't make me."

"Fine. You can see part of my face."

Ahh. Victory! A small grin.

I took Matt into his class and stayed around for 10-15 minutes. He was not happy when I told him I was leaving and would be back later. I left and spent the next two hours wondering if he really was standing in the corner, ignoring everyone. When I picked him up he was smiling. As we walked to the car, he said, "Mom, I was wrong about something. I was wrong that I wasn't going to have fun." (Me)-"Did you have fun?" (Matt)-"Yeah, can I come again tomorrow? And next time, don't stay a long time when you bring me, just a short time." Ahhhh, victory! He's excited about school now and is bummed that he only gets to go three days a week. His teacher, Ms. Janine, really is wonderful. She has such a warm and friendly personality. Adam told Matt, "she just loves the kids."

Weekly Tidbits & Musings

We're getting back into the routine of a school schedule. This was the first full week of school for Adam. He's doing really well, and like any normal kid, tells me he doesn't want to go to school every morning when I wake him up. On Monday he came home and was really excited because he made a new friend, Cole. And, that "it only took four days" of school before he had a new friend. He said last year it took him a lot longer. Cole is the only student in Adam's class that is new to the school. So, I'm happy and proud that Adam is being friendly to the "new kid".

Sometimes I think Adam has an adult brain in a kid body. Every so often I catch glimpses of what he's going to be like all grown up. Monday night while getting ready for bed, he told me he had to make a "to do" list for the next day. I asked him where he got that idea and why would he need to do that. He responded by telling me he had to do it so he wouldn't forget what he needed/wanted to do. So, I let him write his list. He listed six things to do, including, going to school, watching TV, playing with Matthew, and watching more TV. Beside each item he drew a square so he could check it off as he completed it. Is this really organized or really anal?

As I've posted before, I love finding a bargain and paying as little for something as possible. This week I spent $40 for $100 worth of groceries. It takes a little planning and strategizing, but anyone can do it. Here are a couple of my latest finds. If you shop at a grocery store that has a store card (the kind you scan to get the sale prices), there are websites that can link electronic coupons straight to your card. AND, you can use paper coupons as well. EX: $1.00 paper coupon for cereal + $1.00 electronic coupon = $2.00 off. This week I got boxes of fruit snacks for $.50 each and Hamburger Helper (good food storage item) for $.10 each. The websites for the electronic coupons are: http://www.shortcuts.com/, http://www.pgesaver.com/, and http://www.softcoin.com/. Right now I've got about 100 coupons on my card. I would bet between the three sites, there are at least 150 coupons.

With Adam back in school and Matt starting preschool next week. And the fact, that they're growing up and will both be in school full-time next year, makes me feel like I'm in "limbo-land". I remember feeling MANY times when they were babies and toddlers, how nice it would be when they were in school and I could do "this, this, and this." But now that they're going to school, "this, this and this" just doesn't seem as important or worthwhile. Sometimes I feel like I have to find something to do just to fill the time. I know there are things I can do to postpone this phase, like keep Matt home from preschool, but that simply delays it. There's nothing that will avoid it. Don't get me wrong, there are times when I think to myself, "Hallelujah, I've got the house to myself". Or grocery shopping by myself is definitely a huge bonus. But, there are times, too, when it just feels downright lonely.