Carving pumpkins

Carving the pumpkins this year took two days. This was simply because I don't have much extra time anymore. Once we finish the huge amount of homework they all have, it is almost dinner time. What did I do with all the free time I had before I started working!! Of course we had to pick the windiest day, if we didn't have something setting on the newspaper it would blow away. Last year none of the kids liked putting their hands into the pumpkins to get the seeds out, this year they didn't have a problem. Kristina and Luba drew the faces they wanted and I tried the best I could to carve them. I cut Michael's myself, I was afraid of what sort of face he would draw. They are all so excited about going Trick-or-Treating since they know about all the candy they will be getting. Last year we tried to explain to them what would happen, but I don't think they really understood until they went up to the first door.

Please note all the 'new' black mulch. I put down 45 bags in the front yard, by myself, before I started back to work. I was very proud of myself.

Mom x3

UVA game

The kids school pictures.

Today we went to the UVA game against UNC. Unfortunately I didn't bring the camera so I have no pictures. We almost didn't make it to the game because Michael woke up with his jaw swollen like Luba's has been in the past. I called and took him to the doctor and was told he had a swollen lymph node. I told the doctor the last time I heard that and wasn't given antibiotics Luba ended up in the hospital for two nights, so at least, this time, I was given antibiotics. We raced home and left to head to the game by noon.

We arrived in Charlottesville 30 minutes before the game started so we had to walk as fast as we could to the stadium. The game was cold, but great! We won in overtime against UNC 16-13. All the fans who could ran onto the field. Luba and Michael enjoyed just yelling as loud as they could. When we got back to the truck we were able to tailgate eating our sandwiches. The kids thought it was great because we were eating outside and it was 8 at night. The kids and Cliff fell asleep in the truck on the way home.

Monday I start back to work. I will be working for Sentara as a Nurse Practitioner seeing patients in their Long Term Care facilities. I am excited to be going back to work although I know I will be tired and will have to run most of my errands on the weekends.

Mom x3

Taylor Farms

Today Michael's class went to Taylor Farms. I was able to go as a chaperone. He was so excited to be going to see animals and get a pumpkin. When we first arrived we had to wait for the hayride to take us to the pumpkin patch. While waiting all the kids got to climb on a pile of bales of hay and slide down. They thought it was great. Finally we were able to take the hayride to the pumpkin patch. The driver told the kids they were only supposed to get the small pumpkins, but if they could carry it they could have it. I sent Michael over to the big pumpkins and had him pick up as big of a pumpkin as he could find. He found a really big one and could carry it about 3 feet. Hey, they didn't say how far they had to carry it! At least I was there to carry it most of the way. There were other children who got bit ones, but Michael got the biggest.

After we put the pumpkins back on the bus the kids at lunch. Before going on a tour of the animals they were able to climb on the wood structures one of which was a boat.

During the tour Michael loved petting the animals.

Mom x3

Fall Festival

This evening was the Fall Festival at school. I took the girls while John stayed home with Michael since it was going to be way past his bedtime. (He still sleeps 12 hrs.) There weren't as many games as last time, but the girls still had fun. I say Kristina won the pie eating contest, but the boy at the end started 'mooing' first and he still had chocolate pudding on his plate. Kristina cleaned her plate. Luba won a cake from the cake walk. She was so excited. They did get some small candy bars from other games, but not nearly the amount of last year. Hey, we still have some left over from last year. All in all the girls had a great time.

Mom x3

UVA game

Today we went to the UVA game. We left at 7:15 in the morning so we could tailgate. The weather was beautiful. We had fun tailgaiting, the kids love to eat outside and watch everyone around eating, 'drinking', and playing games.

the all important cowbell

The kids are getting into the games more. Kristina generally knows where the ball is. John was trying to explain to her how the game is played. Michael spent a lot of time playing with an acorn he had found or playing with my 'calf' bell, (a small version of John's). Luba likes to watch to score board to see who is winning and she watches the clock count down to when we will be leaving.

We beat ECU!

Michael in cousin Kyle's band hat.

Mom x3

Luba get a Bible

Today in church all the first graders received Bibles. Luba was so excited to have her very own Bible with both the Old and New Testaments. She was a little scared to have to go up front, but she did great. She started trying to read it on the way home.

The big news is that yesterday, we finally told the kids we are going to Walt Disney World next month. We will be going the 1st-4th. We bought the tickets in August and I have been dying to tell them. They are so excited, since they went to Disneyland this past summer they know what it will be like. I think John and I are almost excited. We will be eating one meal with Cinderella and the stepsisters and another meal with Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, and Eeorye.

An excited mom x3

Johnny Appleseed Day

Today is Johnny Appleseed's birthday. Michael's class was making applesauce so I went in to help. My job was to help staple the hats, (which are supposed to look like pots). I had a lot of fun making the hats, coloring pictures of apples and tasting apple sauce and apple cider.

I also found out some bad/good news today. Michael is too smart, he didn't qualify for Extended Day Kindergarten! How could this be!? I hadn't taught him anything all the previous year and when the girls tried to teach him how to write his name I had them play other games. Not that I didn't want him to learn, but I needed him in school all day so I could go back to work. His teacher showed me the scores on his test. He had written the first four letters of his name and knew 18 out of 26 letters. I was told he wasn't even close to the bottom 15 in the class. I guess it is good to know he learned all that on his own. Now, though, I will have to find somewhere for him to go when he gets out of school when I go to work. As my neighbor said, it's better to have to be finding somewhere for him to go because he was too smart, instead of having to find a tutor because he doesn't understand. Hopefully he will continue to learn fast throughout school.

There is a small YMCA between our house and the school which he can go to. The bus will even drop him off so I won't have to worry about transportation.

Mom x3

Air Show

The first few weeks of school were uneventful, which is good. Michael has learned he has to listen and obey the teacher and bus driver, or face the consequences. I think he thought he only had to listen to mama and papa and that we would never know if he didn't listen to others, away from home. The girls like being back in school. Kristina has made new friends, since her other ones are in different classes. Luba's best friend Maggie is in her class again this year. Michael says he has friends, but he doesn't know their names yet.

John had to go to Atlanta for business for three days and I decided I didn't like being a single mom. How they do it, I will never know.

I have started interviewing for jobs. It may be hard to find the right one which will work with the hours I want, since I want to be home when the kids are home. I always have the option of going back to work in the hospital on the weekends, but I don't really want to have to do that. During my free time in the mornings I have begun putting down attic flooring. We really messed up when we didn't have to builder put any down. I haven't told John, so in the mornings I go to Home Depot and buy the plywood. If necessary I have to use our circular saw to make sure the wood is cut the right size. I have become quite a pro using the saw and nailing down the wood. I have put down a total of 96 sq. feet though out the attic.

Today we went to the Air Show. It wasn't the best day for one due to the clouds, but the kids had fun. They loved watching the Blue Angels flying close together and seeming to almost hit each other. We were able to walk around and just look in some of the planes and helicopters.












Mom x3

First and Second day of school

September 2, 2008

Yesterday was the first day of school for Kristina and Michael. Kristina is starting fourth grade and Michael is starting Kindergarten. Michael is so excited to be going to school like the girls. Being the youngest he always wants to do what the older ones are doing. He can't wait until he has homework to do like the girls, but I think the big thing is riding the bus. He rode the bus home from school and John's mom was able to watch him since I was still in the hospital with Luba. I got home from the hospital with Luba around 7 PM. Both Kristina and Michael were so eager to show m what they had done, both talking a mile a minute. What a difference from last year when they were talking a mile a minute in Russian and I couldn't understand them at all. They both loved their classrooms and met a lot of new kids.

Today we went through all the picture taking again since it is Luba's first day of school. She wa sad to miss the first day of school, but glad to be home from the hospital without having to have surgery. I don't think she feels 100%, but she didn't want to miss anymore school. Even when I went in at noon to pick up Michael, I saw Luba and she was running down the hallway and her teacher said she was doing great.

September 3, 2008

Once the kids got on the bus I went to my usual thrift shop. It was sad since I didn't have Michael in the cart with me. It was amazing though how much faster it was to do all my errands.

Mom x3

Hospital stay for Luba

Well, we got up Sunday morning and went to the Cracker Barrel in Waynesboro for breakfast. Luba wasn't eating much and was complaining it hurt to chew. This was not a complaint she had had before. Her neck was much more swollen and red so we decided to go back home and straight to CHKD ER. Of course she was terrified and started saying she felt fine, but you could tell she wasn't ok. She was crying on and off the whole way home and kept asking what the doctor was going to do. We got to the ER at 2 PM, she made it upstairs to a room at 10 PM. (We watched 3 complete movies in the ER.) Mutiple doctors had to come see her. A 1st year resident ER would first see her, then a 3rd yr resident, then the attending. Then we had to go through the same thing with Pediatrics and the same thing with ENT. I don't know how many times I had to go through her history. She was wondering how many doctors she was going to see. She also had to have a CT done. Or course putting in the IV and drawing blood was no picnic either. John stayed out in the waiting room with Kristina and Michael, along with Cliff, (John's brother who had gone to the game with us), for four hours until he decided he needed to go home.

in the ER

At least I was able to sleep in the hospital with her, not how we planned on spending the weekend. Once she was put on IV antibiotics, by Monday afternoon the redness and swelling had gone down some. They decided she didn't need to have surgery. That was great, but she would have to stay another night, which would mean missing the first day of school. I have to admit I was very sad for her missing the first day of school. I even shed a few tears myself, Tuesday morning knowing I was missing taking Michael to his first day of Kindergarten. I did get to talk to both Kristina and Michael on the phone before they left and John took pictures.

in her hospital room

Luba got home from the hospital at 7 PM on Tuesday feeling much better and excited about going to school in the AM.

Mom x3