We noticed when Carolyn was very young that she had a tendency towards perfectionism. She doesn't want to try new things and is constantly nervous that she's going to get something wrong. We often think that the reason she didn't speak until 18 months was she was afraid to say something improperly. Where did this come from? We really don't know, and I don't think it could be learned at such a young age.
I read a book this past week with ideas for how to help your child overcome these tendencies and a big part of it is to identify an perfectionist tendencies in yourself. I've never considered myself a perfectionist. Yes, if I'm going to do something I think it should (needs to) be done well. But since reading this book I've been keeping an eye on my own actions to see if I am forcing any perfectionist ways onto the children.
Lo and behold, we set out to make cheese crackers this last Friday and I found myself needing to hold back. I let the kids help with grating the cheese, although they struggled to do it very well. I used the mixer to put everything together. And then we started to form the crackers. To avoid the mess of last time, we decided to just make balls. They should all be similar in size and smooth balls, in my mind. But allow a 3 and 5yo to participate and they will not come out that way. I had to resist picking them up and rolling the balls just a touch more to be smooth. After all, lumpiness wasn't going to affect the final taste. I let the kids just put their work down on the pan, moving them only to assure they didn't bake together. When Carolyn decided to move on to cheese sticks, we had some issues with the appropriate thickness and I did step in to assure they were thin enough to cook properly. But in the end, the kids got in some great fine motor work and we have a wonderful finished product that is very yummy and healthy.
I will keep watching for my own innate perfectionist ways. It can be hard with kids this age to not correct mistakes, since I like to use them as learning opportunities. But I did learn from the book how to word my responses to their accomplishments to diminish the drive toward perfectionism. I think this was a useful book to read just before Carolyn starts kindergarten. I hope that by carefully crafting my responses I can diminish Carolyn's drive towards perfection and foster a new desire to try new things. I encourage anyone reading this with small children to take a look at themselves and see if you are conveying hidden perfectionist messages toward your child. There's enough competition in this world, let's make sure we are showing our children that as long as they try their best, it's good enough for us.
By eating healthy foods, including eliminating wheat and most grains, enjoying time outside without gadgets, and teaching our children about the world, we hope to raise our children to enjoy life and be free of physical maladies. Follow us on our journey towards general health and a sense of well being.
Sunday, August 18, 2013
Friday, August 9, 2013
Summer 2013 is ending
It's been a long time since I've written, and quite a busy summer! We started the summer with painting the kids' bedrooms. After finishing those, we headed to Blue Harbor for 3 nights with Jon's parents for vacation. It was pretty nice and fairly relaxing. The kids had a blast at the waterpark. When we got home we continued to paint the rest of the house - master bedroom, living room, kitchen, and playroom/hallway. It feels really nice to have the house feel more like ours. There's still a long list of changes we'd like to make, but finances will determine that as we go forward. We're growing some tomato plants out front, which are huge. We went to some sporting events, played at parks, and just enjoyed being together as a family.
The last 2 weeks Carolyn attended Safety City through the park district. It's a program my mom was part of starting and teaching when I was little. Carolyn had a lot of fun and enjoyed telling us all the new things she learned each day about how to be safe. I let the staff know today who my mom was, and almost cried as the director remembered her. I miss my mom a lot, but having the kids get to experience some of the things she helped create makes it a little easier. Carolyn did an awesome job at camp and her teacher was amazed that this was her first drop-off experience. Bodes very well for starting kindergarten. They even took a field trip on a school bus, so that won't be a foreign idea for her.
Jon started his new job this week with new staff training. He seems to really be enjoying himself and those around him are very nice. He has a great big office and we're discovering some nice perks along the way. We got free microsoft office for our new desktop computer. And the insurance, although we're selecting the HMO, is about $200/month cheaper than his old school. Looking forward to seeing his new paycheck at the end of the month.
I have been given a raise, which means I don't have to work as many hours this school year. I'm looking forward to being able to spend more time with the kids and not tied to my computer. They're also starting a 401k matching program. It's the typical 50% of your contributions up to 6%. So I'm putting in 7% to end up with 10% in there. If Jon switches his stuff away from fidelity, I might do the same and move all my stuff to CharlesSchwabb. But we'll what happens. The guy he was using wasn't very helpful and rarely, if ever, actually responds to our inquiries. It took him over a month when I wanted to increase contributions... you'd think he'd be right on that.
Carolyn starts school in 10 days. I still have mixed feelings about whether public school is the best option for her. Everyone that sees/hears her read is amazed. Whenever we use any of the online tests she ends up at a 4th grade level. We continue to work on her math and that I would put about half way through 1st grade. We've spent less time on it, so she isn't as far as I think she could be. I'm going to give this a whole hearted attempt though, and we'll see how it goes. I'm hoping that the Ipads will provide her with the opportunity to excel beyond her grade level. I looked over the curriculum last night and she has every item listed mastered. There are 3-4 things not yet mastered for 1st grade only. And those are things we haven't spent much time with - clock reading, money counting, numbers beyond 100, and parts of a sentence. So we'll definitely work on those in the next couple months and then start tackling the 2nd grade curriculum which does have more for her to work on.
James is really enjoying the preschool work we've been doing. We're through the first 7 weeks and will start on week 8 soon. He likes how varied it is and I think he enjoys that he gets to sit in my lap for a lot of it. He can sing his alphabet, count to 10, identify all the standard colors, and knows his shapes (square, triangle, rectangle, circle). We're working on identifying the letters and numbers, of which he does know a few. So he's trucking right along. I'm interested to see where he is just before entering kindergarten himself. I'm looking forward to spending time with just him when we don't have to go anywhere as well. He starts soccer in September and then story hour isn't until October. I figure we'll still go to the library once a week though.
I'm looking forward to enjoying this next week with just the 2 of them. We don't have a ton planned and that is going to be nice. Tomorrow we have no plans and will just enjoy time as a family, since from here Saturdays will likely involve grocery shopping.
The last 2 weeks Carolyn attended Safety City through the park district. It's a program my mom was part of starting and teaching when I was little. Carolyn had a lot of fun and enjoyed telling us all the new things she learned each day about how to be safe. I let the staff know today who my mom was, and almost cried as the director remembered her. I miss my mom a lot, but having the kids get to experience some of the things she helped create makes it a little easier. Carolyn did an awesome job at camp and her teacher was amazed that this was her first drop-off experience. Bodes very well for starting kindergarten. They even took a field trip on a school bus, so that won't be a foreign idea for her.
Jon started his new job this week with new staff training. He seems to really be enjoying himself and those around him are very nice. He has a great big office and we're discovering some nice perks along the way. We got free microsoft office for our new desktop computer. And the insurance, although we're selecting the HMO, is about $200/month cheaper than his old school. Looking forward to seeing his new paycheck at the end of the month.
I have been given a raise, which means I don't have to work as many hours this school year. I'm looking forward to being able to spend more time with the kids and not tied to my computer. They're also starting a 401k matching program. It's the typical 50% of your contributions up to 6%. So I'm putting in 7% to end up with 10% in there. If Jon switches his stuff away from fidelity, I might do the same and move all my stuff to CharlesSchwabb. But we'll what happens. The guy he was using wasn't very helpful and rarely, if ever, actually responds to our inquiries. It took him over a month when I wanted to increase contributions... you'd think he'd be right on that.
Carolyn starts school in 10 days. I still have mixed feelings about whether public school is the best option for her. Everyone that sees/hears her read is amazed. Whenever we use any of the online tests she ends up at a 4th grade level. We continue to work on her math and that I would put about half way through 1st grade. We've spent less time on it, so she isn't as far as I think she could be. I'm going to give this a whole hearted attempt though, and we'll see how it goes. I'm hoping that the Ipads will provide her with the opportunity to excel beyond her grade level. I looked over the curriculum last night and she has every item listed mastered. There are 3-4 things not yet mastered for 1st grade only. And those are things we haven't spent much time with - clock reading, money counting, numbers beyond 100, and parts of a sentence. So we'll definitely work on those in the next couple months and then start tackling the 2nd grade curriculum which does have more for her to work on.
James is really enjoying the preschool work we've been doing. We're through the first 7 weeks and will start on week 8 soon. He likes how varied it is and I think he enjoys that he gets to sit in my lap for a lot of it. He can sing his alphabet, count to 10, identify all the standard colors, and knows his shapes (square, triangle, rectangle, circle). We're working on identifying the letters and numbers, of which he does know a few. So he's trucking right along. I'm interested to see where he is just before entering kindergarten himself. I'm looking forward to spending time with just him when we don't have to go anywhere as well. He starts soccer in September and then story hour isn't until October. I figure we'll still go to the library once a week though.
I'm looking forward to enjoying this next week with just the 2 of them. We don't have a ton planned and that is going to be nice. Tomorrow we have no plans and will just enjoy time as a family, since from here Saturdays will likely involve grocery shopping.
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Happy 3rd Birthday James!
Dear James,
Happy 3rd Birthday! I am truly enjoying watching you grow into a wonderful young boy. Daily I feel as though you are learning new things and can't wait to show them to the world. I love how you play so wonderfully with your sister and put up with her oft bossiness. You are learning some wonderful things from her. Don't be in a hurry to grow up and do everything that she can do though, it's okay to make your own decisions and follow your own desires. I know you want to read like she can and do math problems like she does, and that will come with time.
I am really looking forward to the special time we will get to spend together with Carolyn in school this fall. I can read to you, we can play cars, do yoga, and you can fully decide what the plans are in the mornings. We can snuggle in bed, head to the park, work on reading/writing/math, whatever is in your heart that day/minute. This is when you'll get to make more of a mark about who you are, to make your own decisions. And I can't wait to see more of your personality emerge. From what I can see now there's a lot of personality waiting to bust out.
You've had a wonderful 3rd year of life. I enjoyed listening to you recite your ABCs tonight, completely unprompted. Watching you ride your bike and spray your water toys was a lot of fun. The smile on your face was priceless. I love watching how excited you get about the small things in life from peanut butter and crackers for lunch to a squirt gun to your preschool workbook. Watching you color with more precision and start to identify letters and such a young age has been great.
I'm excited to see what the 4th year will bring for you. Just remember always that I'm here for snuggles and kisses whenever needed. Thanks for being an amazing, happy little boy.
Love always,
Mom
Happy 3rd Birthday! I am truly enjoying watching you grow into a wonderful young boy. Daily I feel as though you are learning new things and can't wait to show them to the world. I love how you play so wonderfully with your sister and put up with her oft bossiness. You are learning some wonderful things from her. Don't be in a hurry to grow up and do everything that she can do though, it's okay to make your own decisions and follow your own desires. I know you want to read like she can and do math problems like she does, and that will come with time.
I am really looking forward to the special time we will get to spend together with Carolyn in school this fall. I can read to you, we can play cars, do yoga, and you can fully decide what the plans are in the mornings. We can snuggle in bed, head to the park, work on reading/writing/math, whatever is in your heart that day/minute. This is when you'll get to make more of a mark about who you are, to make your own decisions. And I can't wait to see more of your personality emerge. From what I can see now there's a lot of personality waiting to bust out.
You've had a wonderful 3rd year of life. I enjoyed listening to you recite your ABCs tonight, completely unprompted. Watching you ride your bike and spray your water toys was a lot of fun. The smile on your face was priceless. I love watching how excited you get about the small things in life from peanut butter and crackers for lunch to a squirt gun to your preschool workbook. Watching you color with more precision and start to identify letters and such a young age has been great.
I'm excited to see what the 4th year will bring for you. Just remember always that I'm here for snuggles and kisses whenever needed. Thanks for being an amazing, happy little boy.
Love always,
Mom
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Time to Enjoy
This past month has been incredibly stressful. Jon will be starting a new job in the fall, which is awesome. But the interview process was stressful. I will not be working FT, and the interview process was beyond stressful. But I suppose all is well that ends well. God has a different plan for me, and I think I know just what that is. With Jon's $14k raise and possibly lower insurance costs, my income will be completely extra. So I will be cutting back on work, down to 8-10hrs/week and instead focus on our family. With a lower overall stress load, life should get easier and more enjoyable. I'm looking forward to having some time to relax while James is at his activities and Carolyn is at school. I'll get to read a lot of books I suppose! I'm also looking forward to getting a chance to work on academics with the kids more, as well as not worry about work things being scheduled so we're stuck at home. James is still a long ways from giving up his nap, so that should give me some time each day to work with Carolyn.
Carolyn is now reading at a 3-4th grade level. She regularly picks up a chapter book and will read through it. Of course, she continues to love being read to and we do a ton of that. She officially has over 600 sight words. I've been pushing spelling a little more lately because I am running out of notecards, haha! She also is enjoying the math computer program that we have, came with the workbook I bought her for Christmas. It's just called Math 1-2, for first to second grade. I can tell that she's memorized most of the addition facts for 1-5, and she can add or subtract pretty much any number if she has the right manipulatives - counting items, her fingers, or a number line. It's amazing to see her brain developing so rapidly. I received a letter from the school that she will indeed be receiving an IPad next year. I'm excited to see how they will use it to keep her challenged. Her K teacher is definitely in for a challenge I think. I'm interested to see what the screening she has at the end of the month will be like. I really should try and get her to the dentist before then and maybe even the eye doctor. Will have to see what our insurance covers. Sign up for summer gymnastics is also next week, so we found out yesterday what level to sign up for. Carolyn was very happy to hear that she gets to stay in the advanced class. We'll only do part of the summer, but that means 2x/week starting in the fall. She seems to be enjoying soccer as well. So in the fall she'll do gymnastics and soccer, then we'll replace soccer with something else during the winter. I might let her try ice skating if it fits into our day.
James is doing great and showing interest in learning his letters. I think he sees how much Carolyn enjoys reading. He wants to play his "games" often, which is looking at the letter and song stuff on Starfall.com. In the fall I will start more of a formal program with him like I did with Carolyn, starting with getting books for a letter each week. Maybe I'll try to pick an animal for each letter to get books about as well, he loves to read the books with facts about animals. He's doing well with numbers and can easily count to 10. So we'll continue to work on getting to 20 and see how he's doing from there. I think he'll really enjoy the one-on-one time with me, even if he'll miss Carolyn. He's already telling people "Carolyn go to kindergarten, I'll be sad". He continues to enjoy his gymnastics, which we'll continue into the fall. I'm planning to drive him out to Lake Zurich for soccer as well, since no where else seems to have an outdoor program during the day. We'll likely just do the fall though and switch to swimming after that. If finances end up being better than I'm currently anticipating, I might consider letting him do gymnastics, swimming, and soccer. With story hour that would still leave us 1 morning with nothing. But for now I'm figuring 2 is probably good. He'll enjoy the museum and other fun places where we get to spend time together when we're not at home or a park. It will be interesting to see his personality really take shape once the focus is entirely on him and Carolyn isn't around to boss him around.
Enjoyment continues tomorrow with another trip to Brookfield. 3 adults and 2 children, I think we'll have it all covered! Supposed to be a gorgeous day.
Carolyn is now reading at a 3-4th grade level. She regularly picks up a chapter book and will read through it. Of course, she continues to love being read to and we do a ton of that. She officially has over 600 sight words. I've been pushing spelling a little more lately because I am running out of notecards, haha! She also is enjoying the math computer program that we have, came with the workbook I bought her for Christmas. It's just called Math 1-2, for first to second grade. I can tell that she's memorized most of the addition facts for 1-5, and she can add or subtract pretty much any number if she has the right manipulatives - counting items, her fingers, or a number line. It's amazing to see her brain developing so rapidly. I received a letter from the school that she will indeed be receiving an IPad next year. I'm excited to see how they will use it to keep her challenged. Her K teacher is definitely in for a challenge I think. I'm interested to see what the screening she has at the end of the month will be like. I really should try and get her to the dentist before then and maybe even the eye doctor. Will have to see what our insurance covers. Sign up for summer gymnastics is also next week, so we found out yesterday what level to sign up for. Carolyn was very happy to hear that she gets to stay in the advanced class. We'll only do part of the summer, but that means 2x/week starting in the fall. She seems to be enjoying soccer as well. So in the fall she'll do gymnastics and soccer, then we'll replace soccer with something else during the winter. I might let her try ice skating if it fits into our day.
James is doing great and showing interest in learning his letters. I think he sees how much Carolyn enjoys reading. He wants to play his "games" often, which is looking at the letter and song stuff on Starfall.com. In the fall I will start more of a formal program with him like I did with Carolyn, starting with getting books for a letter each week. Maybe I'll try to pick an animal for each letter to get books about as well, he loves to read the books with facts about animals. He's doing well with numbers and can easily count to 10. So we'll continue to work on getting to 20 and see how he's doing from there. I think he'll really enjoy the one-on-one time with me, even if he'll miss Carolyn. He's already telling people "Carolyn go to kindergarten, I'll be sad". He continues to enjoy his gymnastics, which we'll continue into the fall. I'm planning to drive him out to Lake Zurich for soccer as well, since no where else seems to have an outdoor program during the day. We'll likely just do the fall though and switch to swimming after that. If finances end up being better than I'm currently anticipating, I might consider letting him do gymnastics, swimming, and soccer. With story hour that would still leave us 1 morning with nothing. But for now I'm figuring 2 is probably good. He'll enjoy the museum and other fun places where we get to spend time together when we're not at home or a park. It will be interesting to see his personality really take shape once the focus is entirely on him and Carolyn isn't around to boss him around.
Enjoyment continues tomorrow with another trip to Brookfield. 3 adults and 2 children, I think we'll have it all covered! Supposed to be a gorgeous day.
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Why does God think I'm so strong?
I've always told people, and truly believed, that God would never give me more than I could handle in times of trial. And that He always knows how long we can bear the trials for. And so today, I wish He didn't believe that my family and me are so strong. We've been through some pretty difficult financial times in the last couple years. Along the way we've had blessings at just the right time. I felt like we were really making progress by getting to our "forever home". But as I start to look around, I feel as though we may have made a huge mistake. There's much work to be done on this house, and not much money to do it. I slacked off a bit last month, believing Jon would be paid for track and that check didn't come in. We'll get that money, just not until next month. We had to pull from saving a little to pay the credit card in full. It will be close this month after needing a new tire for me and a new headlight assembly for Jon. Things we literally could not avoid paying for. And of course the usual payments for car registration don't help things this month. We thought the washer was done over the weekend, but thank God it started back up again and seems fine. With the terrible storms last night, though, we have leaks inside the house. We're pretty sure it's related to water entering a vent in one spot. But then I looked up and noticed a water mark on the ceiling. Now, I could be imagining this, but I don't think it was there before. I also think it grew throughout the afternoon, when it wasn't even raining. I've drawn on the ends and will take another look in the morning. But it seems we will need to replace the roof, and we don't have $10k to do that. We will get one more estimate. I really would like to have it done properly, which would also mean new gutters and soffits at the same time. But with no major change in income, I'm not really comfortable committing to lay that much out when we know there are also other repairs (plumbing) on the near horizon.
A decision regarding my full time position has been delayed. Due to the tragedy in Boston, flights were messed up for the VP, and final interviews were then delayed. It looks like I won't hear until some time next week. Jon had an interview today as well. It would be a good raise ($12k), but not as big as other places he's interviewed.
I continue to be torn about whether I want this full time position at this time in life. The money would be great and the mental stimulation was be awesome. I've been feeling somewhat stuck lately and am certainly ready for a new challenge. I think I could perform the job very well, possibly better than they would anticipate since I am very efficient with my time and great with technology. They know me well and should have a solid idea of my abilities since I've been with the company for 5.5 years, and 4.5 years in some type of management role. But, then there's James. He deserves to have me full time until he reaches kindergarten. I love the type of kid Carolyn is turning out to be. Yes, I'd like it if she would stop getting up at night. But she won't be 10 and getting out of bed just to be tucked in again. She's a terrific little girl that excels in everything she tries, and I like to think I had something to do with that. I know James isn't the same kid. But if I'm honest with myself, I think he'd miss something by being put in preschool during the week. I know he won't have Carolyn home to play with in the mornings. But she'll be home before noon. By the time she's picked up the bus, we'll have time to get him to an activity and home, he'll barely miss her. He likes having time to just play around the house too. If I send him to preschool, he'll miss that time. I was just thinking that a great schedule for him next year would be 2 activities, library, a day with me at home, and then a day with Jon's dad or out at some fun activity or another day at home depending on how he's feeling. I was just telling his swim teacher today how I don't think kids this age really learn anything but bad habits from each other. And I do believe that. Am I just convincing myself of this so I'll be less disappointed if I don't get the job? Or do I really feel this way? I'm not sure I'll ever really know. Tough spot to be in right now.
Dear God, you know what we can handle. I feel like I'm at my breaking point. I'm waiting for your blessings to come pouring in our family right now, but I feel like I'm barely above the water.
A decision regarding my full time position has been delayed. Due to the tragedy in Boston, flights were messed up for the VP, and final interviews were then delayed. It looks like I won't hear until some time next week. Jon had an interview today as well. It would be a good raise ($12k), but not as big as other places he's interviewed.
I continue to be torn about whether I want this full time position at this time in life. The money would be great and the mental stimulation was be awesome. I've been feeling somewhat stuck lately and am certainly ready for a new challenge. I think I could perform the job very well, possibly better than they would anticipate since I am very efficient with my time and great with technology. They know me well and should have a solid idea of my abilities since I've been with the company for 5.5 years, and 4.5 years in some type of management role. But, then there's James. He deserves to have me full time until he reaches kindergarten. I love the type of kid Carolyn is turning out to be. Yes, I'd like it if she would stop getting up at night. But she won't be 10 and getting out of bed just to be tucked in again. She's a terrific little girl that excels in everything she tries, and I like to think I had something to do with that. I know James isn't the same kid. But if I'm honest with myself, I think he'd miss something by being put in preschool during the week. I know he won't have Carolyn home to play with in the mornings. But she'll be home before noon. By the time she's picked up the bus, we'll have time to get him to an activity and home, he'll barely miss her. He likes having time to just play around the house too. If I send him to preschool, he'll miss that time. I was just thinking that a great schedule for him next year would be 2 activities, library, a day with me at home, and then a day with Jon's dad or out at some fun activity or another day at home depending on how he's feeling. I was just telling his swim teacher today how I don't think kids this age really learn anything but bad habits from each other. And I do believe that. Am I just convincing myself of this so I'll be less disappointed if I don't get the job? Or do I really feel this way? I'm not sure I'll ever really know. Tough spot to be in right now.
Dear God, you know what we can handle. I feel like I'm at my breaking point. I'm waiting for your blessings to come pouring in our family right now, but I feel like I'm barely above the water.
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Turning 5 today!
Dear Carolyn,
Today you turned 5 years old. It's hard for me to imagine that it's really been 5 years. But then it's also hard to remember life before you arrived. It's amazing to watch you grow and learn new things every day. You are developing into a wonderful little girl, and I love that you are quickly picking up on the important things in life.
It's been awesome to watch you learn to read in the last couple months. You already have well over 400 sight words and can spell at least 100 of them. You can do many math problems and love to do science experiments. It's fun to read with/to you about the presidents and different science topics. Your love for learning is contagious and breeds an attitude of love for books within our home. Your energy when you run around the house, splash in the pool, climb at the park, or swing at gymnastics knows no bounds. It has been amazing to see you learn so many athletic skills in such a short amount of time.
You have quickly learned what's most important in life - spending time with those you love. It's a joy to watch you play with your brother and see how close the two of you are. I hope you maintain that relationship as you grow older and have different interests. I appreciate that you tolerate his desire to do everything you do. It's a sign of how much he loves having you as a big sister. You're doing a great job showing him excellent manners. Seeing how excited you were about every present yesterday and your eagerness to give each person a giant hug and say thank you immediately was fantastic. I could tell you really appreciated the time each person put into choosing your gifts. Seeing you spend time with each person who came yesterday was fun too. It's fun to have a lot of people share your life and enjoy playing with you.
You bring a lot of joy and energy into our house, and I thank God every day he brought you to me and Dad. I hope as you go off to school in a couple months that the foundation we've provided you will serve you well. I will continue to enjoy watching you grow and learn new things. And I will continue to be here for you, forever. You'll likely hear many new things once you start school, and I hope you know you can always come home and ask me or Dad questions about what you heard. Keep doing what you're doing, sweetie, because it's really working. When you meet some harder obstacles, know we'll always be here to help you out.
Love always,
Mom
Today you turned 5 years old. It's hard for me to imagine that it's really been 5 years. But then it's also hard to remember life before you arrived. It's amazing to watch you grow and learn new things every day. You are developing into a wonderful little girl, and I love that you are quickly picking up on the important things in life.
It's been awesome to watch you learn to read in the last couple months. You already have well over 400 sight words and can spell at least 100 of them. You can do many math problems and love to do science experiments. It's fun to read with/to you about the presidents and different science topics. Your love for learning is contagious and breeds an attitude of love for books within our home. Your energy when you run around the house, splash in the pool, climb at the park, or swing at gymnastics knows no bounds. It has been amazing to see you learn so many athletic skills in such a short amount of time.
You have quickly learned what's most important in life - spending time with those you love. It's a joy to watch you play with your brother and see how close the two of you are. I hope you maintain that relationship as you grow older and have different interests. I appreciate that you tolerate his desire to do everything you do. It's a sign of how much he loves having you as a big sister. You're doing a great job showing him excellent manners. Seeing how excited you were about every present yesterday and your eagerness to give each person a giant hug and say thank you immediately was fantastic. I could tell you really appreciated the time each person put into choosing your gifts. Seeing you spend time with each person who came yesterday was fun too. It's fun to have a lot of people share your life and enjoy playing with you.
You bring a lot of joy and energy into our house, and I thank God every day he brought you to me and Dad. I hope as you go off to school in a couple months that the foundation we've provided you will serve you well. I will continue to enjoy watching you grow and learn new things. And I will continue to be here for you, forever. You'll likely hear many new things once you start school, and I hope you know you can always come home and ask me or Dad questions about what you heard. Keep doing what you're doing, sweetie, because it's really working. When you meet some harder obstacles, know we'll always be here to help you out.
Love always,
Mom
Sunday, April 7, 2013
So many possibilities
I haven't written in a while, and things have been crazy. Easter was last weekend and we had a nice family celebration with both sides of the family. Jon was back to work last week and had 2 meets. I was surprised with a full time job posting and interview. I locked us out of the house and so we replaced the locks as we had been intending. But today was a calmer day and we had a great afternoon at the park.
In an attempt to calm my mind, and thinking it was a warm day (it was chilly), we headed to the park this afternoon. Both kids enjoyed the swinging, climbing, and sliding. A group of kids were there and they played follow the leader with them for a while. Once those kids left, we played with our kids as the leaders. I followed James and Jon followed Carolyn. They both seemed to really like being in charge, and everyone got some great exercise out of it. I'll definitely be pulling this idea out when there aren't other kids to play with at the park. It's always awesome and amazing to me how well James and Carolyn play together and with other kids. I also commented to Jon today that I love that our kids do not need electronics to keep them occupied. When we got home, the kids and Jon read about James Madison and Monroe while I started dinner. After dinner, the kids went into their playroom and played nicely together. I suspect we'll get some good sleep from them tonight as well.
Jon is of course anxiously awaiting a call from HS where he interviewed over spring break. Other openings have popped up, or are anticipated soon, which gives him hope to escape his current school. He just feels very beaten down and that he's not able to service kids appropriately.
Unexpectedly, about 10 days ago I received an email regarding a full time science manager position with my current company. I submitted my cover letter and resume, hoping to get an interview. I interviewed this last Thursday and now I sit and wait about another 10 days to see if I'm chosen. Of course, I have mixed feelings about the position. It's perfect, everything I would hope for, but not perfect timing. I never envisioned going full time again until James started first grade - so 3 more years. But this is too good of a position to pass up, especially after I found out it pays ~$60k - to work at home! It could even give us the option of Jon taking a year of parental leave while still coaching. We would end up having a higher total income if he even just kept his track position. Plus our expenses would shrink without his commute. In the meantime, we'd hope for another opening. But that all depends on whether he finds another position this year.
There are just many possibilities of where our lives could lead right now. And the good news is that we should have a pretty firm grasp on where we're headed by the end of the month. We have been blessed with some amazing things over the years and pray that God continues to pour out his blessings in the coming weeks. I'm not sure what the plan is for our family, but I anxiously await the results.
Ready for another crazy week with Carolyn turning 5 next Sunday. It's hard to believe so much has happened since she was born. But when I sit with her, it's hard to believe she's truly only 5. I look forward to continuing watching her develop as well.
In an attempt to calm my mind, and thinking it was a warm day (it was chilly), we headed to the park this afternoon. Both kids enjoyed the swinging, climbing, and sliding. A group of kids were there and they played follow the leader with them for a while. Once those kids left, we played with our kids as the leaders. I followed James and Jon followed Carolyn. They both seemed to really like being in charge, and everyone got some great exercise out of it. I'll definitely be pulling this idea out when there aren't other kids to play with at the park. It's always awesome and amazing to me how well James and Carolyn play together and with other kids. I also commented to Jon today that I love that our kids do not need electronics to keep them occupied. When we got home, the kids and Jon read about James Madison and Monroe while I started dinner. After dinner, the kids went into their playroom and played nicely together. I suspect we'll get some good sleep from them tonight as well.
Jon is of course anxiously awaiting a call from HS where he interviewed over spring break. Other openings have popped up, or are anticipated soon, which gives him hope to escape his current school. He just feels very beaten down and that he's not able to service kids appropriately.
Unexpectedly, about 10 days ago I received an email regarding a full time science manager position with my current company. I submitted my cover letter and resume, hoping to get an interview. I interviewed this last Thursday and now I sit and wait about another 10 days to see if I'm chosen. Of course, I have mixed feelings about the position. It's perfect, everything I would hope for, but not perfect timing. I never envisioned going full time again until James started first grade - so 3 more years. But this is too good of a position to pass up, especially after I found out it pays ~$60k - to work at home! It could even give us the option of Jon taking a year of parental leave while still coaching. We would end up having a higher total income if he even just kept his track position. Plus our expenses would shrink without his commute. In the meantime, we'd hope for another opening. But that all depends on whether he finds another position this year.
There are just many possibilities of where our lives could lead right now. And the good news is that we should have a pretty firm grasp on where we're headed by the end of the month. We have been blessed with some amazing things over the years and pray that God continues to pour out his blessings in the coming weeks. I'm not sure what the plan is for our family, but I anxiously await the results.
Ready for another crazy week with Carolyn turning 5 next Sunday. It's hard to believe so much has happened since she was born. But when I sit with her, it's hard to believe she's truly only 5. I look forward to continuing watching her develop as well.
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