Reason's for my gray hair...

I am in serious need of a venting session. I have good news about my class. I moved 4 of my kids to a K/1 combo. This is good news because i have 4 less students BUT I got rid of good students. The were medium high kids and not behavior problems at all. I still have "those" ones. Speaking of "those" ones let me give you an up date on them.

The Mutes are down from 5 to 3. The remaining 3 still REFUSE to speak. They do their work which is great but again part of kindergarten is SPEAKING. "You say it You learn it". I have parent conferences next week and this need they have to blend in with the walls will be addressed.

Miss Attitude is still going strong. She has about 1/2 good days every 2 weeks. She can not be nice. I am starting to think that it is impossible for her to not piss everybody off. She has also turned into a bold face LIAR. For example I caught her punching another kid in the back. To make it worse it was one of my mutes. I confront her and tell her that I saw her punch him and would like to know why. I thought I asked nice and that it was a reasonable question. Her response is...I didn't punch him! He lied! Tell her he didn't say anything I SAW you do it. Her response...You're wrong I didn't hit him. She argued this for 10 minutes. I even told her that the truth will get her less punishment. NOPE she stuck to that story. This girl is going to be a terror. Can't wait until she's a teen and gets her period. Oh what a joy she will be then. Thank GOD she will be out of my class by then...hopefully.

The Licker has turned into an obnoxious I don't want to do a damn thing bump on a log. He has stopped licking people. He does still lick objects when he thinks no one will see. When it comes to his work he flat out REFUSES to do it. It's not that he can't he has the ability to he just doesn't WANT to. Whenever he is told to do his work he answers with "I can't". That's it "I can't". Really because yesterday you TRACED the letters did you loose that skill overnight? He makes me a little crazy with his answers.

Like I said before parent conferences are next week and all of my little issues with my prized students will be addressed. What I really hope doesn't happen is that the parents think I'm a priest and start confessing all of their sins. This has happened at almost every parent conference. I don't mind hearing what is going on in the house especially if it effects the child in my class. I don't want to hear your having a secret affair or that your oldest child is going to jail for selling drugs. I don't want to hear about your gang or how many times the cops have been to your neighbors house. Unless it is about your child or your child is in danger stop blabbing about. Here's hoping all goes smoothly...fingers crossed.

On to my own little Queen of contradiction...Mia. She is the main source of my gray hair. Everyday it is a fight to get her into clothes...EVERYDAY!!! I have to tell her again and again that she can take them off after school. And trust me she does. The minute we walk through the door past the living room and into the kitchen she is in her panties with a trail of clothes behind her. It takes me 20 minutes to get her dressed and 2 seconds for her to get naked. I don't understand this!! I don't walk around in my underwear, Jacob doesn't walk around in his, hmmm Who could she be copying...hmmmm. Process of elimination says... DAD! Sorry sweety but it's YOU! Another issue with my little gray hair giver is her hair. I ask her, Do you want your hair up or down? She says "Up!" So I put it up. The second I'm done she wants it down and is flipping out over her hair. I put it down to make her happy because I love her and don't want her sad. Plus if she doesn't stop her yelling I might tape her mouth shut. Wouldn't want that to happen ...would we? Like I said she is the QUEEN of contradiction.

Anyways off to watch football. I'm in a fantasy football league and need to see how my players are doing. Maybe I should write about that next time I get a quiet moment. :)

My NEW students and the craziness in my class

The new school year is well under way. I am SUPER busy with work which to be honest is kind of pissing me off. I find myself taking work home with me and working at night and on the weekends when I should be playing. I'm not new to teaching and I REFUSE to go and work in my classroom on the weekends and stay past 3. I'm going to have to find a way to work this out. And in classroom behavior news the HONEYMOON period with my students is over. Personalities are coming out in full force. Let me introduce you to a few, there is Miss Attitude, The Mutes, The Social Butterflies, and last but certainly not least The Licker. That's right I have a licker! Lets begin...

Miss Attitude is a 5 year old little girl that thinks she's 25. She wants to rule the class and is constantly mocking me. She has the eye rolling crap down. In her mission to piss me off daily she has also managed to start piss off her classmates. Her hair is always in pony tails (like that little girl from The Bad Seed) and she flips them around hitting others in the face. She will adjust to the rules of the class but, it's going to take awhile. She is VERY stubborn.

The Mutes are my silent few. I have about 5 students that have said no more then 3 words so far. They try their best to do their work and they are making some progress in the weeks that we have been in school. However if they don't start talking their progress is going to come to a screeching halt. I need them to start making letter sounds and blending and segmenting and you know make friends. They tend to sit and just stare. They don't cry, they just watch everything that goes on. I somehow have to get across to them that kindergarten only works when it's interactive. If they don't start participating they aren't going to be able to keep up. I give them until the end of this month and they will be joining the social butterflies.

The Social Butterflies are my talkers. I can relate to this group because I was a part of it when I was in school. I can relate to their need to talk to their buddies. And talk they do...constantly. They talk about the most random stuff. I find myself listening to their conversations and laughing. This is not a bad group just a noisy group.

And now let me introduce The Licker. He is the cause of some serious headaches. He first licked the table. Then when I told him not to lick the table he licked the table legs and the chair. He can NOT keep his hands to himself. He is always poking or laying on his friends. Yes LAYING on his friends! He sprawls out all over usually one of the Mutes that is looking at me with their big eyes saying "HELP ME!" I have put him on his own planet. His desk is far away from everyone else. He is going to be the one that gives me more gray hair. Every time he is asked a question is ONLY response is "HUH". He dances at the end of the line. Even if I put him in the middle of the line he finds his way to the end of the line. Oh the year he is going to give me!

So these are my kinders so far. And as far as bringing Jacob with me it's still AWESOME. He does talk non stop all afternoon. I'm getting used to that. He also just started soccer. His coach is a dillhole that makes me want to punch him out and take over. So we'll see how the season goes. At least he likes soccer this year, that's plus :)

Until the next time I get a break and a moment to myself.

The first week back!

Well, the first school week is over. To say I've been busy is an understatement. Life in the house is back to being on a schedule...BOO. No more late night movies and sleeping in. However on a the plus side...sorta depends on how you look at it. Jacob started KINDERGARTEN!!! Oh the proud mommy moment I had walking him to class on his first day. I NOW know why those sappy moms cried when I took their children away from them on their first day. Jacob was great though. He met his teacher and he met new friends and wanted not a damn thing to do with me. Except when I see him at recess and lunch and he gives me a little wink and a thumbs up. He's pretty awesome :) I thought that it would be weird having him at the school for 4 hours in another class and then with me in my class for another 4 hours. But, it hasn't been bad at all. He helps me with my prep work and he tells me about his day. It's great to say the least. Alright enough of me gushing about my big boys first day of kindergarten.

On to another aspect of my life, my own class. When I got my first roster it had 29 kids on it. I went "WHAT THE EFF!!" I got my head around it and excepted and prepped all weekend for them. Then within 3 days my roster rose to 33! I said OK I'm no longer teaching I am wrangling sheep and hoping to GOD that they never realize they out number me and plot to take over. I do have to say that I really have few behavior problems. Academics on the other hand are ehhh they'll improve over time. Right now all that matters is that I survived they survived. There was no PEE, PUKE, KICKING, or BITING only a few tears...some might have been mine.

So there you have it the first week is over. Lets see what the rest of this wrangling...I mean teaching of this group brings me.

This summer has been packed with lots of stuff that I can sorta sum up here but I have no clue where to begin. I started off doing a pretty good job of chronicling some of the stuff we did and then we got busy and I got well...LAZY. So here are some of our activities.

We utilized the heck out of our Sea world passes and went to almost every park between Lake Elsinore and Riverside. We had beach trips and family BBQ's. Then there was Mia's birthday Extravaganza. Our birthdays go together so I kind of canceled mine out so I can stay the same age FOREVER. It also makes it OK for me to go completely overboard on her party. This year was no exception. She had a Strawberry Shortcake themed party with a GIGANTIC inflatable slip and slide. It was RAD!! She had a great time and so did I. It makes me so happy to see her come downstairs the day of the party and see the house decorated. Not only that but I have the most amazingly wonderful family and friends and they make her day AWESOME.

We also go to LA every summer. Jacob has an OBSESSION with space lately. We have gone to the Griffith Observatory a couple times this year. It's free and Jacob and Mia have so much fun hearing about the planets. I have to be honest the first few times I was into it as well. Not this time. I like the views but I'm done with the planets. Does that make me a bad mom? More then likely it does. OH well I'll make it up to him :) Anyways we did lots of exploring and went to a couple of restaurants, Philippe's and the Hard Rock in Hollywood. We also got to see the movie stars walk into the premier of "RISE of the PLANET of the APES". That was fun lots of cameras and security. The kids were kind of pissed they didn't get to see real apes. We had fun and it was an adventure.

The summer has one more week left and then we go back to schedules and reality. I hope this post makes sense it is just kind of bubbling out of my head and I know I forgot a bunch of stuff and I didn't elaborate on details but EHHH what are gonna do?

Vegas Baby

Lats Sunday Isaac and I dropped the kiddos off at his parents and headed to Las Vegas. We go every year as our "grown up" vacation. And EVERY year I cry when I drop my kiddos off...EVERY TIME. After about 30 minutes I'm good and the guilt kind of subsides. So we are on our way bumping Pennywise, Face to Face, Bad Religion and other punk rock music. We were pumped up. We got to New York New York and checked in and began to gamble. Gambling is fun if you look at it the right way. We like the social aspect of it. I know that sounds stupid but really that's what we like. We sometimes (by we I mean Isaac) win and we sometimes (I mean me) loose, but we always have a good time doing it because we are laughing with others at the craps table and drinking. After a few hours we went up and got ready because we had tickets to see Mystere.

I put on these pink sparkly 4 inch heels my mom got me for Christmas. They looked so cute with my little black dress. Isaac was dressed all in black I was in black we looked GOOD. Which is rare for us. :) So we are dressed and ready and getting into the car I realized my dress is a bit short. I tried my hardest not to give everyone a show of my ass but it was kind of awkward. Anyways the show was really good. Lots of amazing feats of strength. There was one thing that just creeped me out. They had a guy dressed as a baby. A really fat creepy guy dressed in a diaper. I did not appreciate whatever it is he added to the show. He was GROSS! After the show we went to a bar and had a "night cap"...or few.

The next day my legs were like Jell-O from my cute shoes. But I didn't really care because it was worth it. Those shoes were cute and fun. I sucked it up and we went to Cesar's. They have a Serendipity restaurant in front with the most massive donut I have ever seen. It was huge and saying "Gwenett you must eat me. I'm delicious." I had to do it. I love donuts and there was no way I was going to pass this baby up. It was so GOOD! I thought it would be dry and kind of BLAH. I'm so glad I was wrong. So after our lovely brunch we walked around and gambled and had a couple cocktails and walked some more. For dinner we went to a restaurant called the "Burger Bar". The burgers were fantastic. I had...I don't remember what I had. :( Because Isaac's burger demolished mine. He had a kobe burger with asparagus and a...lobster tail! It was the best burger ever! After our delicious burgers we went to the piano bar in New York New York. We stood outside watching for a while and then went to the guy to get in. He said I could get in for free but Isaac had to pay $10 to stand. UMMMM what? No that was not going to fly with me. We were just standing by the door and to do the same thing 2 feet over was going to cost $10? NOPE that's annoying. We went and played more games and drank an ice cream shake.

The next day we ate at the Mirage and left Vegas for another year.

While we were in Vegas my kiddos jumped from family member to family member. I am extremely greatful to have such a great family. My kids loved seeing all of their grandparents and a couple of their cousins. My poor nephew Isaiah had to share his bed with Mia. She is a beast to sleep with. He said she would make him rub her back ALL night. If he stopped she would grab his hand and put it on her back. She has done this to me so I feel for him. I don't think my kids were very excited we came home they wanted to continue their trip to all of their cousins houses. :)

Until next year Vegas <3

Sleep

When I was younger (many moons ago) I would sleep 10 hours at night. It was great! I would go to sleep when I was tired and wake up when I wanted too. In college I would go 36-48 hours with no sleep and get research done and papers written without any crabby side effects. However once those 36 hours were up, I had a chance to play catch up on my sleep and would sleep for 12-14 hours. That is probably what made staying up for that long not a big deal. I knew that once it was over I would be able to catch up.

When Isaac and I moved in together our sleep habits were very different. He works all night so even on days that he is home he is still up ALL night and sleeps all day. I would stay up with him as much as I could and then sleep in the next day. It was heaven.

Then I got pregnant with Jacob. All of the books I read and the stories people told me warned me about loosing sleep. I kinda went into panic mode. Then I had him and he was NOTHING like I had heard. All he wanted to do was sleep and eat and eat and sleep. Needless to say he was GIGANTIC. But hes was healthy and happy and he slept. This meant that I slept. I thought those books and people had some crazy baby mine liked to sleep.


Then I had Mia...OH MIA! Mia didn't like sleep from day one. She also was not a big fan of eating. All she wanted/wants to do is play. She didn't sleep through the night until she was 2 years old. She wouldn't wake up to eat she would wake up to play and talk. If she was up that meant that I was up. I had no chance to catch up on sleep because she never really slept. I went from getting 10 hours of sleep to about 8 hours of sleep with Jacob to 3 maybe 4 hours of sleep a night with Mia. I missed sleep A LOT.

So now she is almost 3 and POOF! These last few months she has caught on to our family love of sleeping...sorta. Recently she has been sleeping in until 9:00! Oh how I LOVE this. There is a catch to this though. She...well really the whole family is on vacation mode so we do not have a set bed time. We have been going to bed around 10:30/11. But we are getting a good 8/9 hours of sleep a night. I LOVE it!! Sleep is good it makes you happy. It also makes you pretty from what I hear. I need this sleep. I have friends (that don't have kids yet) that sleep 9 hours a night and have these great witty comments and are focused during the day. I think that it's because they got sleep. It is the cure to everything. You're sick...go to sleep. POOF All better! Think about when you are seriously injured doctor's put you in a comma. What is a comma? A lot of flipping sleep. Now that I am getting actual sleep I do not expect to get sick at all. This is just my theory. I feel happier now that I am getting sleep. It's become my Prozac.



:)

Fun Saturday Night

On Friday my mother in law called me and said that Aarron (Isaac's brother) was going to be in San Diego on Saturday with his band. He works with Air Borne Toxic Avengers as a Roadie. He travels ALL over with them. Before them he worked with Andrew W K. Anyways...She said that he could get us tickets for free! SCORE smiles all around!! Then I went into "crap I need a babysitter mode". As it turns out the tickets were for Isaac and I, his brother Joe and our nephew Isaiah. He's 12 and as tall as I am...maybe slightly slightly taller. He is a GREAT kid. So after hearing the invite list I went hmmm that leaves Jill (Joe's wife) at home just down the street...hmmmm DING insta babysitter. Jill is awesome and she likes my kids which is always a bonus.

Saturday arrives and off the 4 of us go. The band was playing at the San Diego House of Blues. We got so lucky and parked right across the street from it. We went to get our tickets at Will Call and they gave us an envelope of stuff...wrist bands and a couple stickers. After we got our stuff we had time to kill and headed to the sushi restaurant that was right around the corner. Much better then House of Blues food...much better. Aarron met us there for a drink. After dinner we went back to HOB to catch the opening act Mona...something. As we were headed in the security guy took away Isaiah's wrist band and said he was to young for ALL access. BUMMER :( We went in and Aarron went to talk to some people and told us he would be back for Isaiah after the Mona band. Joe stayed on the floor with Isaiah and Isaac and I went to the VIP seating area which is right behind the sound board. We had a straight shot of the stage and big bar stools to sit on with a private cocktail waitress. It was nice...until we noticed the girls in the area with us. Oh brother!! They were the Mona bands groupies and bugged me A LOT. I was waiting for one of them to pop out a boob. They were that excited for the Mona band. I was super happy when the band was done and the girls disappeared. Isaiah also disappeared with Aaron. They went backstage where Isaiah got to watch the show. Isaac, Joe and I watched from our nice seats and everyone else stood around for the 2 hour show giving us the stink eye. The place was packed shoulder to shoulder. Expect where we were sitting. We had chairs and no one blocked our view or wiped their sweat on us. The band put on a good show. Aarron got us a great hook up. It was awesome! Can't wait to see what band he works with next! Is it sad that I'm crossing my fingers that he works for the Foo Fighter's or Bad Religion next?