an update!!

It has been very busy around here!!! We have some updates though, so bullets it is!

• First off, Mae is starting dance class! She is SO excited. She'll be taking a ballet/gymnastics combo class at the Mountain Center, with Gabi. It's a class for 3 and 4 year olds. We got her ballet shoes and adorable leotard yesterday and she hasn't taken it off yet. Next Tuesday is Rosh Hashanah, but we'll start up the following week. She won't wear tights, but loves that tutu!
• Next in news, Sam is enjoying soccer and was very proud to tell the doctor today that he plays. He also managed to communicate that he doesn't ride with training wheels anymore, but he was in a weird goofy mood and was wanting me to talk for him. He got 4 shots today, poor guy, but we made it up to him with a new YouBeFunky guy, Wags.
  
• Not to be outdone, Ted came home today with a newsletter announcing that First Graders officially have homework. Every night. It is to read for 20 minutes. Any kind of reading: to yourself, out loud, being read to, etc. So we instigated "Family Reading Time" and set the time for 10 minutes of "Reading Alone" followed with 10 minutes of him reading to me and then me reading to him (and to the other kiddos). It was really nice. The first 10 minutes passed quickly. Ted read a simple book about peace (I could see him mouthing the words to himself). Sam looked through a Pokemon book and Mae turned pages on a new book we got in the mail about mezuzahs. Then the timer rang, disturbing us all really (I was into our bookclub book, Cassandra & Jane). Then Ted read a book to me that he had completed in school (it had math, colors and reading all rolled into one activity. Cool.) and then I read Peter and the Wolf to everyone. The timer rang during this (!) but we ignored it. Then I read the Peace book to them too. I think this is going to be really nice. Plus I might get my bookclub book read earlier!
• And in delicious food news, we had a scruptious local dinner tonight of Popeye Pasta from EDBV. It had TONS of greens in the sauce and the sauce itself had a touch of sweetness to it. A keeper for sure. Mmm.
  

more camping

Sam lucked out! Our friend Josh invited Paul et al to a quick local overnight. A 2 mile hike into the campsite, some good hikes, then out again the next afternoon. Ted didn't want to miss soccer game on Saturday morning, so Paul picked Sam up from preschool on Friday and off they went. They had a chilly time of it (it got down to 20 degrees at night) but they had a good time. I think it's so great for Sam to have alone time with either of us. He's usually with Ted or Mae, so this was pretty special. He's still talking about the waterfall. More pics on moeltini.

soccer boys!

Typical for Sam, his mom forgot the camera. Today Ted had his soccer practice with his team, then right after Sam had a SoccerTots class for 5 year olds. He was tentative at first but got into it pretty quickly and was very happy the entire time. He followed directions and is really quite good at maneuvering the ball. I was so thrilled! I brought all the kids dinner (grilled (fake) cheese, pears, veggie chips and a cookie) and we stayed a little late to watch the "grown ups" play (I think they are the college team). Sam got a balloon and was pretty darn proud all the way home. Mae had no fun at all and whined/cried/screamed/moaned the entire time. Oh so fun for me. Earlier in the day we all went to Jason's pool for a "last hurrah of summer" pool party with the kids in his preschool class. So fun! It was 85 today. Since it was 45 on Monday, this confirms my belief that Boulder has crazy weather. Fun though.

have you seen these?

I love these necklaces by Lisa Leonard and would love to order one with my 3 children's names! simplemom is having a giveaway for one of her necklaces...how fun! simplemom, by the way, is the site that really got me hooked on decluttering. I have her eBook in my "Control Journal" and it's wonderful! Over Labor Day weekend, after putting our sweet cat down and with the boys away camping, it really gave me comfort to tackle the house, and her book was wonderful! I highly recommend it! My house feels spacious, airy and peaceful. With 3 little ones, this is the first time in 6+ years it's felt this way (perhaps the first time ever!) Her daily docket is my favorite part of the whole thing, after the decluttering is accomplished (ah...). I refer to it constantly (and it's free to download! How nice is that?!) It's great to see what's for dinner, plus I add what's on the agenda for tomorrow's meal too. Since we have twice-a-week crockpot meals now, it really helps to get the beans cooked beforehand, something I always forgot before the daily docket. Love it! I wish wish wish wish I had taken before and after pictures. Some of the spaces are so different! I wonder if "Spring Cleaning" just feels like the wrong season to me. It sure felt good to get everything in order, in a sort of "back-to-school" way. Thank you, simplemom!

Time Outs

Ted has a lot of time outs lately. He went through a phase of not really needing them but he's back at the constant annoying of his brother. Today I came across some great alternatives to time-outs, and what really struck me was the line: "I see these problems as a result of low self esteem and self worth, and inability to show love for other people when they don’t love themselves and see in themselves power for good." This really got to me because I do think Ted is very hard on himself and it's made worse after a struggle. He'll tell me that he knows I don't love him anymore because he's so bad. I get annoyed because then the focus turns to him and his feelings rather than the fact that he just booted his brother right in the back, etc. Still, the idea of having a drawing place and asking the child to draw how he feels, and then talking about what he could have said/done differently might be OK. I'm going to try it.

Football

Something that I am learning while parenting boys is that sports play a huge part in their lives. I doubt that either of my boys will be particularly athletic (I'm counting on an academic scholarship, not a sports one!) but it's what they do. They play baseball with the kids on the block, Ted plays basketball and kickball at recess every day. He can't wait to bring his football to school to play with his buddies at recess. Sports are a thing I never did growing up. Theatre and music were my life. And that's not to say that those won't come into play for the boys either, but right now, the ball is the thing. I have to say, spending a gorgeous Saturday morning at a beautiful park with breathtaking mountain views while Ted played soccer made for a perfect morning. And hanging out with the other parents while our kids finished up their little football clinic on a crisp fall afternoon was lovely. Good times. Loads more pics on moeltini.

it's soccer season!

Last year Ted didn't want to play, but this year he was very into it. His team is his 4 classmates, Kai, Peter, Omri and Sierra, plus an extra boy named Luca. Their team is so sweet and supportive (they would jump up and down, pumping their fists, when a friend got a goal, then rush in for a group hug. SO cute.) I'm so glad he's having fun. He even made his first goal ever in today's game. He was so proud!

Lovely Day; stressful afternoon

This morning Sam and Mae dropped in to the JCC while I went up to Gold Lake for a special JCC Yoga Morning. We had a lovely 90-minute "Forrest" yoga class followed by a delicious lunch. We were going to do the hot tub, but it was chilly and rainy, so we skipped it in favor of a mellow ride down. At the Toyota dealer, I found that our routine checkup showed serious brake problems, so I'm driving a loaner, a Dodge minivan monster (it's huge!)
I hope that tomorrow is a more mellow day. I volunteer in Ted's classroom in the morning, then I'll go on a long run. Hopefully our weekend will be a calm one too. TGIF!

Sunday ... busy but worth it

Sundays are going to be busy in September. Ted has Sunday School and I have rehearsal in Denver. Today Heather took him, then brought him to the pool to swim with Zach before Football at the JCC. All his RMDC buddies were there, Zach, Jack, Jacob, Blake, Jarod and Paxton (no girls, big surprise!) It was very cute to see them running passes. Ted doesn't catch very well but he's pretty good at stopping people on defense. His only other experience in football is from summer camp. After we got home I cooked up some delicious Enchildas from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan. Really fantastic. Then while Paul put the kids to bed I prepped our crockpot dinner for tomorrow, a curry dish. The house smells wonderful. Between cooking dinner, prepping tomorrow's, making the kids' lunches and cleaning up the kitchen, it was a busy evening. But an effective one! Should be a smooth week ahead. Or, at least, a smooth Monday.

Balls on that shizz, let's bounce

Here it is folks, modern slang. Ted came home from school announcing that his new movement class at school was "the shizz." Wha? Paul googled it and came up with the newest slang among teens. I guess when the K/1s are next door to the middle schoolers, they pick up on these things? Too funny. The quote is one Paul found while googling. It roughly translates to: "You are right on; that place is way cool, let's go there!" Oy!

A very productive day. I had my 2 hour project blitz today (I'm doing a 30 Day Clutter Program, hosted by the same divas as the Green Smoothie Challenge, so I know I'm in good hands!) My assignment on Friday was a 15 minute decluttering blitz of a small, do-able area. I chose my laundry area. Then today, for the biggie, I expanded to the whole basement (not the crawl space.) As per my instructions, I sorted into Pitch (only 1 garbage bag), Recycle (lots of paper here!), Donate (lots here) and Keep (but assign a home to it.) Done! I need to work on my desk area (should be easy enough to do in a 15min session) and I need to actually clean the area (oh, the dust!) but it looks great. Everything in there is something we need or love. Feels good.

The other strangely effective tool I've adapted is a 4 week Menu Rotation. The basic schedule is:

• Monday: Fancy Crock Pot Meal (prepared Sunday night)
  
• Tuesday: Stir-Fry or Pasta
  
• Wednesday: Easy Crock Pot Meal (beans 'n rice type)
  
• Thursday: Homemade Pizza
  
• Friday: Chili or Soup & Challah
  
• Saturday: Something New (a time to try new recipes)
  
• Sunday: Something Easy or Leftovers
  

This will repeat every month. I have recipes plugged in for the month, which I might just repeat in October, since they are all easy favorites. Why is it that I get all organized once I get a job and feel busy all the time? A friend said now that I'm doing something for myself, I've found new energy that I can put towards other pursuits, like this new-found zeal for decluttering and keeping things clean. Whatever it is, I like it!

Happy Birthday, Sam!

Sam is 5 today. It's amazing to me that he can be 5 already. Another mom and I were chatting today and her take on it is that some children are naturally sweet, and that sweetness translates into youthfulness sometimes. Sam is a sweet pea. He was overjoyed at his 2 new YouBeFunky guys this morning and helped me bake his Oreo cupcakes for preschool tomorrow. His party was at the Louisville Rec Center and he had a blast with his buddies. He and Jason went off the diving board a zillion times, running at high speeds and doing spins and stuff off the board. Of course the slide was a hit with him, as usual, and Ally the Alligator was fun for a while, but the water was cold in that part of the pool. His Spiderman cake made him very happy and he got home and opened more presents. They are great ones this year, almost all building sets, which he is just starting to get into. All in all, a fun day and a great party. Happy Birthday, big boy!

At peace

This morning we buried Electra in the backyard, next to the garden. I plan to transfer some catnip from the other side of the yard to this spot. Ted used the stepping stone he made in Pre-K as the tombstone. We all shared a happy memory of her and it seemed to be a good ritual for the kids to go through (Paul and I were a mess, of course. Kids are so resilient.) I put together some of our favorite pics on a separate post, just as a remembrance. Some sad and heavy hearts today, and some tears too.