Quiet Days

Since the girls are in school during the days till three and Jerrod works days, its usually just Gabryle and I during the day at home. Gabryle is so easy going I usually don't have to help him find things to do during the day. The only time I really have to help do anything is when its lunch  time, he needs a drink or can't get some toy down from a spot he can't reach.

Most of the time, Gabryle eats breakfast with the girls in the morning before they leave for school. That way when they leave he is all through and he is ready to go! He usually watches a couple of his cartoons on PBS in the morning, or we stick a Thomas and Friends on netflix and he is occupied for a while. If he gets bored with that he goes and plays in his room. He'll sit in his floor and play with trucks and cars or get his brobie dancing toy and play with it. Sometimes he will go and find Kylie's barbies or Kenzies DS and play with them. (how sad is it that a 22 month old boy can figure out how to play a DS)

I get a lot done during the day around the house that needs to get done while the girls are in school. Since Gabryle can keep himself busy with things. Some things he helps me with, like straightening the living room, getting the laundry sorted in the kids bathroom to wash and making sure the trash is picked up in the bathroom. His favorite thing to do though is help vacuum. He will unravel the cord for me to plug in and then when I tell him he turns the vacuum on then sometimes helps me push it. Other times he loves to just run up to the vacuum and giggle at it and let it "attack" his toes and then runs off laughing.

There are a few days though that Gabryle and I just kind of lounge around the house and have fun all day till we need to get the girls. I honestly think that is his favorite part of the day considering when I say its time to get the girls he is at the door in a heartbeat waiting for me to get my purse and stuff. I think he likes having Mom all to himself for most of the day. I can tell though that he does like being able to play with all the toys in the house by himself not having to share for a while.

Till Next Time!

Welcome Back Routine!

Being the beginning of the school year it sometimes gets a little hectic in the mornings around here. This year is no different besides now getting two kids ready and off for school. I am not big on making the kids follow a certain routine every day so I've never done that. The only thing regular we did do was nap time when they were little but I don't make Gabryle take a nap every day at the same time anymore. I watch and see when he needs it then lay him down. The only thing for sure that I do every day for sure though, is make sure we have homework done right when we get home from school before the afternoon cartoons begin on PBS.

Waking up at 630 to get both girls up, dressed, feed and off to school has actually been pretty easy around here. The girls are usually awake when I walk in to make sure they are up and they are either just getting out of bed or already getting dressed. Jerrod takes them to school while Gabryle and I stay at home, and then Gabryle and I pick them up. When we get home I have two folders to go through, Kylie's I do first since hers is pretty much just looking at the new sticker she has earned for being good or doing good on something in class and any notes sent home from the PIA (Parents In Action) or notes about upcoming school events. Mackenzie's is the one that will take the longest this year. Along with the notes from the school office they send every child, we will have homework. Today is day three of school and she already has homework.

She started with her reader which she did great on and then we did her sight word list. She did pretty well with that one with a few times needing help on a word. As she finished up I looked at the sheet her teacher sent home and it has the next four weeks worth of homework listed on it. Monday through Thursday she will for sure have at least a reader coming home for me to listen to her read, and sign the paper, then she will also have her sight word list brought home. In about six weeks she will begin her spelling homework.

I don't think it will take Mackenzie long to get used to the new routine of having homework everyday, especially if she finds it as easy as she did today. She did get a little mixed up in her words on the sight word list, but from watching her it looked like she kept looking at the next word more than the word she was on. Hopefully when she gets her glasses at the end of the week that will help her see the words much better and we can go from there! She does great at her reading which I am thrilled about. She loves to read and I bet when she gets even better at reading she will start reading more at home than she does now!

Till Next Time!

First Day of School

Well, we got through the first day of school! Both of the girls said they had a good day, and both seem pretty pooped this evening. Both the girls were up before 6:30 this morning. Kylie came running in cause she could not button the buttons on her shirt. Mackenzie was already getting dressed and just had her shoes left to get on. I feed them breakfast and then got myself ready.

We got to the school at eight and it was already a mad house with all the parents helping their children find their classroom and teachers helping people find their rooms. Jerrod took Mackenzie down to her classroom and helped her get her stuff into her room and Gabryle and I took Kylie to her classroom. We walked in and she was all excited. We found her name on the table with her play-doh and necklace the teachers bought for the kids and she started unpacking her bag. I helped her get stuff ready and by the time we had her stuff all ready to go, Jerrod was down. We sat with her for a second and before we knew it she was telling us "bye" so we took the cue and left. She was set. I was afraid she would fuss a little when we left but she didn't. :)

Picking up the girls today was even more of a madhouse! People not sure of the pick up procedures were blocking entrances to the parking lot, people exiting out the entrances and of course all the parents walking to pick their kids up across the street from the empty field the school owns. We waited in line and I finally just got out and walked to pick the girls up at their pickup door. I picked Kylie up first who had just started to cry because she thought we were not coming to get her. Poor thing! She and I then walked to the other door and picked up Mackenzie who had just gotten to the entrance area. By the time we got back to the car where Jerrod and Gabryle were, they had not moved one bit! We got in the car buckled up and the stories about the days events started!

Kylie said she had a great day! She got to play with play-doh, have lunch, had snack time, rest time, center time and two story times! Her favorite part was playing outside on the playground before it started raining. She made one friend today and her name is Madeline. They had hamburgers for lunch and crackers with juice for a snack in the afternoon. She had Music as her special class for the day and since it was raining for the majority of the school day, they were allowed to watch a movie during recess time. All in all she says school was fun and had a good time and is excited about going back tomorrow. Her only concern was she still hasn't seen the crayons yet. The used markers today in class, but no crayons.

Mackenzie said her day was great. She knew a lot of the kids in her class, and three of the other kids were in her class last year. She did lots of papers today, did a scavenger hunt and had art as her special class. She has her own desk and she is excited since she gets to keep her crayons, eraser, pencils and things like that in a box in her desk, along with other things that her teacher will give her once they start using them. They got to do exercises in her room since they couldn't go out for recess, and she had hamburgers for lunch also. (one of her favorite school lunches I might add) 

All in all they had a good first day of school. Mackenzie even had her eye check up today, and in a week or so have a pair of glasses. She will use them just to read and when she uses the computer during class and at home, and watching TV. Once we get more into the routine of getting up and everything I'll update on the girls progress of school.

Till Next Time!

Learning some sign language....sort of

The past few weeks, the kids have watched a TV series on PBS called Signing time. It's a simple education show, that involves teaching kids American Sign Language. It has Rachel, the Mom, teaching sign language, with the help of her daughter Leah, who is deaf, and nephew Alex who can hear. She goes through a series of signs throughout the thirty minute program, each episode based on different sets of signs, ex: school, home, family etc. etc. etc.

Gabryle has lately really gotten into the show and the past few days has started using some of the signs he has been watching. One sign particularly Gabryle has been using more than others. I will admit I don't spend the entire thirty minutes watching the show with the kids, and I now have found myself really wishing I had. I know I have picked up some of the sign language, but not as much as the kids.

We were in Wal-Mart tonight and Gabryle started showing us the sign he keeps on using the past few days. He holds his right hand out flat, palm up and then uses his left hand with his pointer finger, tapping his right hand. As far as I can tell, looking online at different websites, he is either signing Dance or Jump. He loves to dance, so if that what he is signing that doesn't surprise me. He loves to dance. We asked Kylie what she thinks it is since she has picked up the most from the show, and she believes he is also signing dance (she told us that before I started to even look up what the sign he is doing means).

I'll still try to find more images of sign language signs to see if I can figure something else out, but from now on I  believe I will start watching Signing time with a lot more attention than I previously have. If any of you have a suggestion as to what Gabryle is signing, I'm more than happy to know! The sign language he is learning will be a great asset to him later on. It will be great he knows how to sign, and it is especially helpful since he doesn't know all the words he needs too, to be able to express what he is wanting or needing from us.

It's also great for the girls to, too learn how to do sign language. Kylie so far has picked up the most out of all three of the kids. If you give her something to learn, she soaks it up like a sponge. It will be interesting if she uses the sign language at school also. If I figure out what Gabryle has been signing I'll make sure and put it up here that I finally actually figured out what he is telling us.

Till Next time!!

Parent Orientation

Well, Jerrod and I attended the girls parent orientation at school earlier this evening. We had Kylies first, which was pretty much a review from when Mackenzie was in pre-k. Kylie has the same teacher that Mackenzie had, which we are thrilled about. She is a great teacher, who has been teaching for nearly 20 years, and her teachers aide is a sweet lady who has been doing her job for about 10 years.  They both fell in love with Mackenzie, and are excited about having Kylie this year. (They are in a run for their money this year with Kylie!!) Not much changed with the pre-k, except for now they are not allowed to ride the bus. We had hoped they had not changed that cause we had hoped they would be able to ride the bus, but not this year.

Kylie will have homework once a week and of course her family homework project once a month. She will have pe twice a week,  then art, music and guidance once a week. These are their "special" classes. They have different centers in her class which the kids learn different things. There is a science center, math center, writing center, reading center and home living center. Kylie will love the home living since it has a kitchen and dolls and things like that.

Mackenzie's teacher seems to be a very energetic teacher that really cares about her students. She has been teaching for 17 years now and has kids of her own. She seems to love talking, which will match Kenzie's personality very well since she loves talking also. Kenzie was also glad to hear that one of the girls that was on her tball team with her over the summer is in her class again this year, and one of the other little boys from her kindergarten class that she is real close with. This year she will start with spelling, phonics, reading and math. They will go through 5 different reading books during the school year. Tonight we were sent home with a folder of booklets for us to help with the kids when they have homework.

Homework will be daily this year. Her reading textbook will be sent home every day and then of course the spelling word list and anything else that needs sent home to work on. Her teacher is also starting a new part of her class called "Mystery Reader". When possible she will have a parent, or family member come to the classroom, unannounced to all the students and read to the class. Before the reader comes in she will read a paper with a few bits of information about the reader and see if the class can try and guess who will be coming into the class.

This school year will be busy, but I'm sure we will all enjoy it. I'll help with one class party per girl, and whatever field trips I can help with. Kylie will only have one this year, and it will be at the end of the year. I'm not sure yet how many Mackenzie will take this year, but I'm sure whatever they will be, it will be enjoyable for her. I know the girls are looking forward to Thursday getting here and it can't get here fast enough. I'll for sure make another post Thursday evening on how the girls first day of school went.

Till Next Time!!

back to school nerves

Well, there are only five more days left of summer for the girls. They both will start school on Thursday at 8 am and get off at 3 in the afternoon. Mackenzie can not be more excited. She is so ready to find out which teacher she got and is hoping it is the one she likes the most, but I know whom ever she gets she will love it!

Kylie however has started to get a little bit nervous about the start of school. I think a lot of it is because Mackenzie has told her so much of what she needs to do and not do and how to do things. Jerrod and I are hoping she gets the same teacher that Mackenzie had in pre-k, but I am sure who ever she gets will be great. I've made sure to let Kylie know that she will enjoy school, and that she will have to get used to her routine with her class, but once she is used to going after a few days she will love it.

The one thing she is most excited about is that she got to get a new Barbie backpack and soon she will be able to buy beef jerky's and smencils (pencils made out of recycled paper that are scented. Heavily scented!) at school in the office like Mackenzie. Sometimes I think she is more excited than she is letting us see that she gets to start school. Even if she isn't and she is still nervous,  I think she will do great. She loves to learn, loves playing with other kids, and all around will be a good student. She might be shy the first few days but I know she will make many friends, just as Mackenzie has (who is little Miss. Popular at school. Even with the teachers!)

Till next time!

Almost there!

Today was enrollment day for the girls at school! It was convenient this year with them putting all of one family together in one file to fill out this year, and I think made the process go fairly smoothly. Took us all but an hour and a half. could have been worse I guess.

We got there at noon so Kylie and I could do her check with the speech pathologist. Kylie walked in and the pathologist was telling Kylie what we would and she would check her hearing and if needed send us to the doctor to have her ears looked at. First thing out of Kylie's mouth "I already got my stitches out, i don't need to go back to the doctor." I laughed at her for saying that. (for those who don't know she fell and hit her head back in April and had to have 7 stitches put in her forehead just above her left eyebrow.)

She went through the process handing things that she was supposed to hand over, repeat things she needed to repeat and doing the hearing test (which we eventually convinced her that the headphones although they looked weird, are like Mommy's in her i-pod.) She passed of course, and I never doubted she would  not pass. Kylie can explain some things and talk  better than some adults I've met. She can also talk your ear off if she wants to!

After we were done we drove on around to the activity building for the school system and went in and started the enrollment process with getting our "family packet" and getting the forms filled out. We then started in the line to make it down for verification we live in the school district and to find out what bus we would be on if we use the bus. (that is still a deciding factor due to not knowing if Kylie can ride yet or not) We turned in our paper work, went ahead and got the girls their school field trip shirts, turned in current shot records and then went through the cashier line to pay for the school supply fees, t-shirts and lunch money.

all in all I can say that it was much better than getting Kenzie enrolled last year in the school. The process was a lot simpler it seemed today and that was with a gym full of parents and students, ranging from pre-k through 12 grade. Mackenzie got to see a lot of her friends from last year, and some of her favorite teachers. Now all we will do is wait and see what teachers the girls get, go to parent orientation next week on Tuesday then start school Thursday of next week!! This has been a quick summer it seems, but I'm ready for the girls to be in school.

Till next time!!