My New Shoes

Aren't these fun shoes?! They arrived today, just in time to wear tonight! I just LOVE them!!

This and That

It's been a week of rain and sunshine. We have gone from extremes of hot weather to cold weather. Fortunately, the boys have been to 2 Halloween parties this week to get their fill of candy. They may go trick-or treating tonight. It depends on the weather. Their daddy has already said that they would not be going if it was raining. I agree. I can give them all the candy I have here and they can have a sugar overdose on that. I will show you pictures tomorrow of them in their costumes. They are really cute! Yesterday, Dennis' workplace had a Halloween party for kids. The boys were already scheduled to get out of school early (1:00 pm). Dennis picked them up and took them to his office for the party. His hall was the Wizard of Oz hall. He was the Great and Mighty Oz! Isn't he just adorable?!! Many thanks to his co-workers that got him ready (the hat and mustache) for his part. That's about the extent that Dennis would get dressed up for Halloween. Last year, he played a judge. Can you tell he is a bit conservative? But, I love him!

This past week I was featured in a local newspaper. If you care to read the article, it can be found here. I don't think I even mentioned it to Dennis as we have been so busy this past week. I am covered up with paperwork. For the coming month, I have parent conference scheduled every day (up to 3 a day!) Thank goodness for my co-teacher who helps me with the students. Without her, I would be going crazy about now!

That's about it. Dennis and Deniska went to Anderson this morning to have my car fixed. The engine light came on and it needed checked out and I needed new brake pads. Nikolai and I went to Wal-Mart this morning where I spent more money than I should have. I try to stay out of Wal-Mart for that reason. I really did enjoy having Nikolai all to myself this morning. He is fun to shop with (at least while we are in the toy section!)

Fair Days

This past week, our school Agriculture's department hosted a fair. It was the first fair that they ever hosted and they did a spectacular job!!! They had a carnival but the main part of the fair was based on agriculture. They had a petting tent, a cattle tent, race cars, tractors, crafts, food vendors, live music, demonstrations of soap making or basket weaving, and various other things. We went Thursday after school - just me and the boys. For some reason, Dennis did not want to join us! Imagine that!!! The boys rode the ferris wheel. I did not buy them a lot of tickets for the carnival, much to their dismay.
They petted the goats and fed them. I think they enjoyed that as much as anything. The goats were cute.

Then, the highlight of the evening, the mechanical bull. Each boy got to ride the "bull" for several minutes. Poor little Nikolai kept falling off. Deniska rode for a long time. He is a "professional" now! The man who was operating this bull was so good to both of them. He put it on the lowest speed to ensure their success. I also got a kick of watching my students riding the bull. Lots of my students are in high school rodeo and their talent shown through when sitting on the bull.

After all the excitement we walked over to the football field where the JV team was having a game. Neither boy was impressed with the football game. They were at a disadvantage since I was the one explaining what was going on with the players, and I know nothing about football except which team was which. They did recognize several of my students dressed out on the field. They thought that was great since they knew them. We also ran into several varsity players that love my boys! I teach the nicest students as they made over the boys!!! Anyway, Nikolai did not like all the yelling and he couldn't understand why the players just did not dunk the ball to score. (Nikolai loves basketball!) Deniska seemed to catch on to what was happening on the field but he was more interested in his friends that were at the ball game. We sat through the ball game until half time and then we had to leave. They were ready to go since our team was losing. The boys needed to take their bath and get in bed. We had such a good evening - just me and the boys. I like for Dennis and I to have separate outings with the boys to make special memories.

Unfortunately, Susan...

I came across a funny Google trick, to type "unfortunately," followed by your name - you get such curiosities as:

Unfortunately, Susan is unaware that the last man she was with is entangled with the mob.

Unfortunately, Susan, your short questions require long answers.

Unfortunately, Susan is such a good liar that Drake thinks Josh kissed Susan!

Unfortunately, Susan's hyper critical boss, says he cannot always wait for an answer.

Unfortunately, Susan's team doesn't understand the complexity of the business processes surrounding it.

Then, I decided to do the same thing but to change the word to put a positive spin on the game.

Fortunately, Susan is very good about knowing what she wants to say and staying on point.

Fortunately, Susan had the extraordinary talent and the single minded artistic energy that were always true to her brilliant and powerful vision.

Fortunately, Susan didn't seem to notice his lapse in seductive conversation.

Fortunately, Susan has an idea to solve the problem.

Fortunately, Susan is not shy about seeking out lavatories wherever she may be.

Try it! It was fun! Let me know what you come up with for your name!

Coke Zero - Makes a Mama Proud

Yes, one of the prouder moments of motherhood hiding under that box. This is my Nikola who wore the empty Coke Zero box home from school today. He spied it in my classroom and it immediately became his helmet. Of course, I was also scolding him for making fun of his brother on the bus. That's when the box went on. I think it was his way of hiding from me. He's a lot like the cat who hides behind the curtains with his tail sticking out. Out of sight, out of mind. I was surprised that he let me take his picture. Silly boy!! The box eventually came off, just in time for dinner.

October and boys

"All things on earth point home in old October." --Thomas Wolfe

I love my new door wreath. It was marked down from $20 to $3.99! You just can't beat that price. I love the kitty cat - so much personality in that smile. It's hard to believe that Halloween is 11 days away. I would really like to decorate more (since the wreath is my ONLY Halloween decoration!) It's just a matter of time. I need about 36 hours in a day instead of 24. Since Halloween is so close, perhaps fall decorations would be more in line. I will have to think about that today and make a plan.

The boys have been playing in their Halloween costumes for several weeks. Nikolai is going as Harry Potter. (I don't know as if I have mentioned that Nikolai recently became obsessed with Harry Potter. It's a good thing that I love Harry too and we can have in-depth conversations about all of his adventures. Well, as in-depth as an 8 year can be!) Deniska is going as the grim reaper. He and I had a fight over his costume. He picked it out, wore it all day, but then decided he did not like it when his brother made a comment about being able to see his face. Several HOURS later, I told him he could just do what he wanted, I was finished trying to make it right. I told him he could just stay home with me on Halloween night. After several days of me not budging, he has decided that he likes his costume well enough to wear on the big night. Kids!!

Conversation with Deniska

Deniska: Mom, do you love me?

Mom: Yes, Deniska. I love you more than anything in the world.

pause

Mom: Deniska, do you love me?

Denisaka: Yes.

Mom: How much?

Deniska: All the way to Heaven!

my heart just melted!

Paperwork

Whew! I finally finished a 27 page application for our school. I am so glad to have it finished. It just need the appropriate signatures and I can email it to the state department. I have also scheduled 46 parent conferences between now and November 1. So, I will keep working on that paperwork. Let's see, each conference averages 36-40 pages each. If my calculations are correct, that would be 1,656 - 1,840 sheets of paper that I will have handled. That is not counting regular papers that need to be graded and processed. No wonder I have eye strain at the end of the day. Still, I am very grateful to have a job that provides for my family and one that I feel I can make a difference.

2 boys + legos = big time CREATIVITY!

This past summer when we were visiting Dennis' mother, Joyce, the boys played with her legos. She let them bring home the legos she had and that started out lego phase in this home. I bought more legos this past summer than Wal-Mart had. The boys are totally into building things and since it is good for their eye hand coordination, reasoning skills, problem solving skills, etc... I have no problem in shelling out the money for the little pieces of plastic that I step on in the middle of the night. This is their lego box. I don't know why there are other things in there. I bet they were cleaning up in a hurry and stuck some toys out of the eyesight of their daddy.

Deniska made a "cop car with jets and a boat". It obviously is a multi purpose vehicle! Don't you love his Halloween shirt that I bought him? It glows in the dark.

Nikolai made a motorcycle for the "bad guys" to ride around in on their crime sprees. I hope that is not an indicator of future career choices.

A close up of their creations. They spend hours playing with their legos. This is a good thing since we have no TV during the school week. I really believe that little ones should learn to use their creativity instead of watching TV without a purpose. I don't think TV in and of itself is evil, it just has to be used appropriately. That's why we have a lock on the programs the boys can watch.

We are blessed to have such creative funny little boys. They fill our home with love and laughter. (As you can tell, today has been a good day with them!)

Stone Mountain - Labor Day

We had a wonderful time at Stone Mountain over the Labor Day weekend! We played putt-putt. Nikolai and I cheated shamelessly as Deniska and Dennis played by the rules. We went to a 4D movie, Journey to the Center of the Earth, and really enjoyed ourselves. The sprinkler system in the ceiling malfunctioned and lots of people got soaking wet. We laughed and laughed.

Then, we rode the Summit Skylift up to the top of Stone Mountain. This is the boys standing on the top of the mountain. What a neat place to visit. What a packed skylift! Whew!

A picture of the enormous bas-relief on its north face, the largest bas-relief in the world. Three figures of the Confederate States of America are carved there: Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, and Jefferson Davis.

We rode the train, a full size locomotive from the 1940s with open-air cars, that took us on a five-mile excursion around the mountain. It reminded Dennis and me of our train rides in Russia from Moscow to Pskov.

The boys climbed the SkyHike- 40 feet in the air. Be still my heart. Of course they were never in harms way. I would like to climb it myself. It looked like so much fun!! Deniska was a little scared and we couldn't get dare-devil Nikolai off. The higher the better.

And Deniska tried the rock climbing wall.

We rode the ducks The Ducks are 1940's era Army DUKWs, converted into comfortable open-air vehicles for your viewing and listening pleasure. Deniska and Nikolai both had to wear life jackets. Deniska drove the Duck, Nikolai was too scared. Our 'conductor' was a hoot. I don't think we all have ever laughed so much!

Where has the time gone?

August 17, 2009 was the first day of school for the boys. They were both looking forward to going back to school. Nikolai has a wonderful teacher and is just flourishing under her direction. Deniska's teacher is out on maternity leave. He is not as happy and I am concerned about his attitude. I have a conference this coming week with his principal to discuss my concerns.

The first nine weeks are almost over; I think we have another week and a few days. I can't believe that time has flown so quickly. My days are a a whirlwind of activity at school. I can't ever remember having such a busy, busy year.