Alicia's Coming

We have a girl coming to stay with us from Utah. Her name is Alicia. I have never met her. So, you ask, why is someone you have never met coming to stay with you? Here is the whole story.

I got a phone call from my sister who lives in Kanosh. She told me about Alicia. Alicia's husband is serving in Iraq with my niece's husband. My niece, Natalie, has become friends with her because their husbands are serving together. To add another twist to this, Alicia works with my brother-in-law, so he knows her also. Well, that was complicated. Alicia's husband Brad, is coming to Walter Reed for some testing. Alicia is coming out here to be with Brad. She has never been here, or anywhere on her own (I think). We have been talking over the phone for the last week, and she is very sweet. I am to be her personal driver (man I wish I had one of those) for a few days, until Brad gets here (we think sometime tomorrow, but we are not sure, because this is the military.) She flies in today.

So this is the story of how a stranger came for a visit. The end.

SCATTERGORIES

Thanks for this Cami, it was really fun to do.

*Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following... *they
have to be real places, names, things...nothing made up!
Try to use different answers if the person in front of you had the same 1st
initial. You CAN'T use your name for the boy/girl name question.

What is your name? Jann

4 letter word: jump

Vehicle: jeep

TV Show: Jerry Springer (No, I don't watch it, I just couldn't think of another one)

City: Jersey City

Boy Name: John

Girl Name: Jennifer

Alcoholic drink: Jello Shooters (I don't actually know what these are, but I googled alcoholic drinks, and this is what came up.)

Occupation: janiter

Something you wear: jumper

Celebrity: Jerry Seinfield

Food: jello

Something found in a bathroom: junk

Reason for Being Late: James (and that is all I will say about that)

Cartoon Character: JoJo the Clown

Something You Shout: just wait a minute!

Rockets

Ashley asked her dad if he was going to come into school to help with the rockets this year. He went last year with Amanda, and she wanted him to come. He then says, "I wonder if they have fixed the formula from last year?" I could only vaguely remember what happened last year, but he refreshed my memory. It was pretty funny, so I thought I would share.

The teachers were passing out the formula sheet that the kids were supposed to work from on the day of the rocket launch. James started looking at the formula, and realized it was wrong. He went up to the teachers and told them it was wrong. He said they looked at him like he was a knuckle head. They told him they had gotten it from NASA. He told them, then NASA was wrong. They are then really looking at him like he is an idiot. I mean, how can NASA be wrong? They said it was the same formula they used last year. James told them, then you used the wrong formula last year. The teachers then take it inside to have the math teacher take a look. A few minutes later, out they all came with the math teacher to tell James he was right, and the formula was wrong. They had made about 100 copies of the wrong formula sheet, so they just went ahead and used the wrong formula. It will be interesting to see if they have it fixed for this year.

This story reminded me of another funny math thing with James. My kids always get help with their math, if they need it, from their dad. More than one of my kids has had the following conversation with their dad.

dad: "this is how you do the problem."
kid: "this is not how my teacher told me to do it."
dad: "I promise this is the right way to do it."
kid: "dad, you must be wrong."
mom: "you do know your dad has a Ph.D. in math?"
kid: could not care less that dad has a Ph.D. Will only trust their teacher.

When this happens, it always makes me laugh.

First Day on the Job

Today was my first day back to work. I really enjoyed it, and think it will work out for me. This very cute little boy, sang Beatles songs to me during lunch. Mostly, Lucy in the sky with diamonds.

They are already talking about me working full time. The class they want me in is very physical and intensive one on one work with autistic children. I am not sure that it is for me. I am just feeling back to myself after the car accident, and it may sabotage any progress I have made. The teacher in that class said she just takes motrin everyday, and she's o.k. That does not sound like a healthy thing to do. I am hesitant to take this job. I will have to pray about this before I make the decision.

In the midst of all this, I got a phone call from my sister telling me of a young newly married girl. Her husband is in Iraq, and they are sending him to Walter Reed for some tests. She wants to come out, but isn't even old enough to rent a car without jumping through hoops. She is supposed to come tomorrow, but her husband hasn't even left Iraq yet, and he doesn't know when he will be sent here. She is going to call me tonight or early tomorrow to let me know what her plans are. So, as you can imagine, we are cleaning our house for a guest that may or may not stay here, and may or may not be here tomorrow. It is amazing how you start looking at all sorts of things like your microwave, fridge, and oven when you know someone will be coming. URG!!!!! Well, I am off to clean.

My Perfect House

Thanks for this Julia, it was really fun to play.

Your home is a Four-wheeling Magnate's Stronghold Below is a snippet of the blueprints:

Find YOUR Dream Home!

Entering the Work Force

So after a fifteen year absence from the paid workforce, I am starting a job next week. I will be working for a couple of hours everyday with a kindergarten girl with special needs. It just seemed to be a good fit for me. It seemed very strange to be fingerprinted for a job, but that is what I did today. I guess it is comforting also to know that anyone working with our kids, has a background check done on them. I hope I pass.

It is a No

Well, for all you who know about this, James did not get the job. We are disappointed again, but have faith, that it is for the best. So we will be grateful for the job he does have, and I will use Mendy's tips on how to stretch our dollars.

Here's some Total Momsense

That's my Nic

I was rushing out the door to pick Amanda up after practice. Kelsie was at the door, saying she needed my help with her flashcards. I told her to ask Ashley, and that she was smart, or ask Kerrie because she is smart too, or ask Nic because he is smart also. Nic heard this, walked into the hall, took a bow, and said, "thank you, thank you very much." This made me laugh. He is mostly quiet, but every once in a while his little personality just comes out.

B & O Railroad

Today I took the cub scouts to the B & O Railroad Museum in Baltimore. I have never been there, and seeing as today was Kid's Fest, I decided to take all my kids. We really had a fabulous time, and we will go back to this museum. It is fairly small, but there are a lot of trains, and you actually get to ride on one, on the original first mile of track in the United States. I forgot my regular camera, so I snapped a few shots with my cell phone.

Viola Section Leader

Last Friday, Ashley auditioned for her position in the school orchestra. She found out on Monday that she is her section's leader. She was very excited about this. We are super proud of her for all her hard work. She is making really great progress, and it is so fun to hear her play.

It's A Mother's Job To Embarrass.

My kids are a little unhappy with me at the moment. Here is why. Last night was back to school night for grades 1-2 at Bollman Bridge. Seeing as I am the VP of PTA, and in charge of getting parents to volunteer, I devised a little skit for my family to perform. Here is how it went:

Note about costumes: Mom-mismatched shoes & curlers in hair. Amanda-Hammond cross country running uniform. Ashley-Patuxent Valley Middle School Music shirt, carrying book and backpack. Kerrie-Patuxent Valley Middle School Bulldogs shirt, carrying viola. Kelsie-Artistically dressed, carrying sketch book and colored pens. Nicolaas, soccer shorts and shirt, carrying soccer ball. Nathan-Football shirt, carrying football.

(As the door swings open, and MOM frantically herds all six kids into the cafeteria)
MOM: Hurry, we're late. Get in there. Quick.
Kerrie: Man, I can't believe she is making us do this.
Amanda: I know.
Ashley: She's crazy.
Kelsie: This is so embarrassing.
Nicolaas: (just follows, looking cute)
Nathan: I think it's going to be fun.
Mom: (comes hurrying up to the front apologizing for being late. Realizes curlers are still in hair. Takes out curlers. Turns to Ashley, digs through backpack, pulls out juggling clubs, and starts juggling.

After this I talked about how we all have very busy lives to juggle, then I dropped one of the clubs, and said, "is the one thing you want to drop, your child's education." Then I talked about the opportunities to volunteer in the school and the benefits of doing it.

Oh, did I mention, all the PTA board members were wearing T-shirts that I made? Crazy.

The funniest part is, as I was taking the kids home, I said, "we did pretty good, but I think we can do better tomorrow night." To which the kids all started yelling something to the effect of, you didn't tell us we had to do it twice. No mom, please don't make us. I just smiled and said, yep we're doing it. Tomorrow night is back to school night for grades 3-5.

Well, I don't know if this was a good way to present it or not. I do know, no one in that room will forget it, especially my kids.

Daedalus

Cami made me promise to do this post, so here it is. I went to Daedalus, during their 10% off the entire purchase sale, and went nuts. Of course, it was a very bad idea to bring Ashley and Amanda. They kept bringing me books, and it was hard to tell them no, when I did not want to. So here is the insane list of all the books I bought.

The Dollmaker by Harriette Arnow (I don't know if this is any good, it just looked interesting.)
Small Island by Andrea Levy
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee (I know I should have read this already, but I haven't)
The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins (I am reading this right now, and loving it.)
Blindness by Jose Saramago (Cami blogged about this one, so it must be good.)
Seeing by Jose Saramago
I'll Never Be Young Again by Daphne Du Maurier (This is one I bought just for a silly read. I've never read any of her books, but I'll give it a try.)

Now, the list for the kids. Brace yourself.
Aesop's Fables
Nurse Matilda, Nurse Matilda, goes to Town, & Nurse Matilda goes to Hospital by Christianna Brand
Regarding the Sink, Regarding the Bathrooms & Regarding the Trees by Kate Klise
Judy Moody, Around the World in 8 1/2 Days, by Megan McDonald
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin (My mom keeps talking about this book, so I finally bought it.)
The Silper Donkey by Sonya Hartnett
The Unicorn Treasury, by Bruce Coville
Arthur and the Forbidden City, & Arthur and the Minimoys by Luc Besson
Gnat Stokes ad the Foggy Bottom Swamp Queen by Sally M. Keehn (I could not resist the title.)
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
Seeker by William Nicholson
Artemis Fowl Series: The Eternity Code, The Arctic Incident, Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
Ethan's Cat, Ethan's Birds, Ethan's Bike, & Ethan's Lunch by Johanna Hurwitz
Winnie Wakes up, Winnie's Walk, In and Out, & Winnie's Bedtime by Leba Schubert
Termite Eats, Termite Bounces, Termite Bites, & Termite Flies by Kathy Caple
Look At Me Fly, Flies For Lunch, Hopping Up and Down, & Tag, You're It by David Martin
Monkey Flies Away, Monkey, Watch Out!, Monkey Eats Worms by David Martin
Stink The Incredible Shrinking Kid by Megan McDonald
The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Jolly Roger and the Pirates of Captain Abdul by Colin McNaughton (I should have looked a little more closely at this one, it has illustrations of naked backsides. The mom was trying to clean up the dirty kids. OPPS. Nathan thought it was pretty funny.)
The Copper Braid of Shannon O'Shea by Laura Esckelson (This book is so great. Kelsie loves it, and so do I.)

That is 49 books. There may be more than that, as my kids have had their hands on them, and rounding all of them up took some time. We are really enjoying them.

I am trying to forget how much I spent. Oh well, it's for a good cause. The love of books.

Go Golden Bears!

Today is Amanda's first cross country meet. She actually will not be running, as she is still working on running three miles. She is getting there, I think she ran 1 1/2 miles at Wednesday's practice. I am really glad she is willing to even do this. You couldn't have paid me enough to run in high school. The team decided to wear their warm-up's to school today. So, of course I took pictures. Which did not turn out so well, and Amanda would not be patient for me to figure out why my camera wasn't working, but you will get the idea. Also, I guess it is Hammond High tradition, for the sports teams to dress in costume at the back to school dance, which is tonight. The cross country girls are going as bandits, and the boys are wearing togas. I guess the boys could not talk the girls into togas, so they are doing their own thing.

I am NOT a Morning Person

I have known for a long time, that mornings do not agree with me. I would much rather be in my bed. You may be laughing, as I am writing this post at 3:00 am, but there is a reason for this. Ever since I had the little stomach bug, my stomach has just not felt right, and for some strange reason, it gets worse at night. So instead of staying in bed, feeling yucky, I decided to get up and blog.

Now, what was I blogging about? Oh yes, mornings. I am the grumpiest person in the world before 9 am. My family does not like to deal me before then. This becomes particularly difficult when school is in, because they are all on the bus by 8 am, way before my being civil time. It is especially bad now with early morning seminary. Kellie I do not know how you do it, you are my hero. I usually end up feeling like a total jerk to my kids. They are probably really happy to go out the door in the mornings after encountering me. I have little or no patience when it comes to backpacks and shoes in the morning. If my kids are having trouble finding these items, I am not very happy as I help them. It usually comes along with me asking questions like, why did you not put them away? How do they get lost in so short a time? I mean you used them yesterday. And, if they have not done their homework, watch out. Morning is not the time to ask me for help with homework. I always feel guilty about this, and I am trying to work on it. It becomes humorous as I am sending them out the door, after being grumpy all morning, and saying, "have a good day, I love you." I am sure they are thinking, yeah right, you love me.

It is usually James to the rescue in the morning. He is great, when I am really bad, to just handle the whole thing on his own. He has driven Amanda to seminary everyday except two. Not really fair to him, especially since he is getting up in the night to take the puppy out to potty. I would do that, except there is something so creepy about being outside in the middle of the night. I am a totally wimp when it comes to the dark. He is my hero.

So, you have now discovered what I consider to be one of my greatest flaws. Maybe one of these days I will overcome it. Hopefully before I scar my children for life. Oh well, everyone needs something to tell their children, "you have it easy, when I was a kid, my mom would, blah, blah, blah..."

I've Been Tagged

Thanks Julia! I tag Corinne, Christie, Kellie & Tracy

Jobs I've held:
1. Mother
2. Cook
3. Maid
4. Personal Driver
5. Tutor
6. Special Educator
7. Nurse
8. Personal Assistant
9. Laundress
10. Volunteer
11. School Aid
12. Music Teacher
13. Personal Shopper
14. Decorator
15. Cheerleader
16. Motivator
17. Therapist
18. Defender

My Guilty Pleasures:
1. Reading
2. Sleeping

Places I have lived:
1. Jessup, MD
2. Riverview, FL
3. Elkridge, MD
4. Provo, UT
5. Tucson, AZ
6. Mesa, AZ
7. Phoenix, AZ
8. Queen Creek, AZ
9. Thatcher, AZ
10. St. Johns, AZ

What were likely the 1st things you thought when you saw your significant other for the first time?:
1. He is so shy.
2. He's older than me, this will not work.
3. He reminds me of my Dad.

Places I’ve Been on Vacation (in the U.S.):
1. Orlando, FL
2. Daytona Beach, FL
3. Utah
4. Arizona
5. California
6. Hawaii
7. New York City
8. Washington D.C.
9. Palmrya, NY
10. Chicago, IL
11. Cincinnati, OH
12. Kirtland, OH
13. Pensylvania
14. West Virginia
15. New Mexico

Places I've Been (out of U.S.)
1. Mexico
2. France
3. Germany
4. Austria
5. Switzerland
6. Luxembourg
7. Liechtenstein



Favorite Foods:
1. Mexican Food
2. Ice Cream
3. Chinese Food

Websites I Visit Daily:
1. Various Blogs


Nicknames I’ve been called:
1. Jannie
2. Jannie Rannie Roo
3. (the one I hated) Jannie Rannie Roo, panties full of poo (by my brother & sister
4. (the one I love most) Sweetheart

What a Surprise!

Kerrie and I went to petsmart today to pick up a few doggie items. We were walking down the main isle at the Petsmart in Columbia, when Kerrie says, "mom, there's Uncle Craig." We were walking past the bird section, and so I thought she was saying there was a bird there that looks like one of Uncle Craig's birds. When I said that she said, "no, there is Uncle Craig." I look up and sure enough, there is a picture of my brother holding a bird. It was such a surprise. I laughed, then took out my camera and took a picture of it. I kept saying I couldn't believe it. Kerrie on the other hand said, "of course mom, he's world famous." Well not quite, but he is in commercials in Arizona, it was just so unexpected to find him in Maryland. He has always loved and owned birds. He trains them, and uses them in his magic shows. Here is the picture I took of the picture of my brother. Next time you are in Petsmart in Columbia check him out at the bird cage.

Oh YUCK!

Well, we were on a roll with cleaning. I was actually getting excited. Then yesterday I remembered, we got a recall notice for the van, so I call the Ford dealership, and they can fix it in two hours. What a surprise, I was thinking it would take a week to get it in. They replaced a wire in the cruise control, that apparently has been igniting for no good reason, even when the car is off. Scary. So then I figure, I'm out so I might as well go get Nic's glasses fixed that he left on the floor and James stepped on. I went to costco, and I just can't go there without buying stuff. Then James called and said, "let's go on a date." I am thinking you bet, that sounds fun. We went to Charley's Sub's, which is a sandwich shop on base that is fabulous. While we were there, we decided to stop at the commissary and that turned into a major shopping trip. I know, nice date, but hey, we were together and talking, and that was really nice.

While I was out running errands, I told the kids to keep working. That did not work any better than the other million times I have made this request. For some reason, my kids just are not able to work if I'm not there working with them. So, I plan to start again on Saturday. Well, in the middle of the night I woke up with a horrible tummy ache, and by morning, I cannot get out of bed. I am just trying not to throw up. My nose is all stuffed up, and I think I am getting that nasty bug that has been going around. Oh well, intentions are good right. Well, I will ignore the quote of the road to hell is paved with them.

Maybe the kids will work without me. I can always hope. I was going to take the kids to see Underdog tonight, as it is showing at the base theatre for really cheap. Oh, by the way, Hairspray is showing next weekend, anyone want to come? It is about half the price as a regular theatre I think. I have never actually been to this theatre, so I do not know how small it is, but hey it's bigger than my tv. We can go Friday or Saturday. Either day it starts at 6:30. Let me know if you want to come with me.

Well, I hope your weekend is going a little better than mine.