September 02, 2010
thank you for lunch
I thought about whether or not I should share this but then I figured this blog has become Quinn's baby book... so here it is...
Before Quinn's conference I joined Quinn and his class for lunch in the cafeteria. Apparently the first 10 minutes is "quiet lunch" but the two of us were allowed to talk. He pointed out the kids in his class by name so I could get to know them and then we had a nice chat about his day so far (they planted seeds earlier that morning). All of a sudden quiet time was over and while his table remained very well behaved the boy on the other side of me became a chatter box... about all things digimon(?). There is no way to graciously bow out of a conversation with an enthusiastic 6 year old - they just don't get it. So I did my best to half listen and still give Quinn some of my attention. It was during this time that I caught Quinn looking up at me with a smile on his face when he simply said "You're so pretty.". Of course it melted my heart. I knew his comment wasn't really about how I looked that day (although I did put on makeup and was out of my "comfy clothes"), but instead the perfect thank you. I know how much it means to him to have me visit his class or to have join him for lunch. I also know that the years will come quickly when he won't want anything to do with me out in public and will insist on maintaining a separate world exclusive of me. Regardless I relish these moments with my sweet and tender Quinn-y.
Posted by terri at 11:45 PM | Comments (0)
August 31, 2010
first grade anxiety
First Born children go through a lot of stress invoked by their parents. We realize this time and time again. The latest example was made clear during Quinn's conference this afternoon:
Vocabulary Tests:
Our version: Half the kids take spelling tests and half take vocabulary tests. Quinn takes the vocabulary tests which have actually been fairly challenging words (in our opinion for a first grader). Regardless, we somehow came up with the assumption he was in the "lower" group and wasn't ready for the spelling tests - despite Quinn trying to tell us otherwise.
The reality: Quinn is in the advanced half of the group. His teacher thought the spelling words would be too easy and obvious for his group so they focus on vocabulary with three bonus spelling words.
Test scores:
Our version: 103 is typically the highest score. 100 for answering all of the vocabulary definitions correctly then 1 bonus point for spelling each of 3 bonus words correctly (ex: gentle). Every week the tests are hung on the wall outside the classroom. Last week Quinn's score was the lowest - an 82. So we thought he had gotten the lowest score out of the "lower" group.
The reality: She only hangs the good papers in the hall - 80% and above.
Today during our conference his teacher asked me if Quinn has any older brothers or sisters. At my reply, she said "I didn't think so". And I thought I was pretty low key :)
Posted by terri at 08:42 PM | Comments (0)
Yo Gabba Gabba Live
Allison was nuts about Yo Gabba Gabba for the longest time. She still seems to enjoy them so I jumped on the opportunity to take her to see a live show. The tickets weren't cheap and the venue is over an hour away. The response I got when I shared the good news with her: "NO!!! SCARY!". It appears she may still be traumatized from Disney World.
Posted by terri at 08:38 PM | Comments (0)
August 30, 2010
Allison hates the Gap
Yesterday Allison insisted on running out to the mall with me. I had a 30% off coupon for GAP and Old Navy and of course I HAD to use it. She was all excited to get to the mall and extra happy that our first stop was to get a treat. After bouncing back and forth between and cookie or pretzel (she chose pretzel but somehow ended up with both) we headed over to the Gap. Well turns out she doesn't like the Gap. Well actually like is not strong enough, she seems to HATE the Gap. She started fussing as soon as I started to turn into the store but since she was sitting in the stroller and I was going fast there wasn't a whole lot she could do about it. No sooner then I turn to look at something before I catch her out of the corner of my eye - she was pushing the stroller out of the store. I was right in front at the little girls section and she went and positioned herself on the other side of the window and stared at me with one of her sassy glares. I went and fetched her and she just kept saying "Allison GO! Allison GO!" She did however have a lot of fun at old navy. She was throwing things in the cart left and right. And of course she had to try them all on in the dressing room. I'm sure interested to see how this manifests though the years...
Posted by terri at 10:41 PM | Comments (0)
Dull (quick what comes to mind?)
So one of Quinn's vocabulary words is "dull". Good thing they provided the expected definition as I would have gone in the direction of "not sharp" for a 1st grader. However in this case it was "causing boredom, uninteresting".
I think I've only heard the word dull used in that context by a 60+ year old co-worker (and too frequently if I might add). Well actually I think his usage was in another direction entirely "somewhat stupid". Anyway, I've spent way too much pondering about him for how much he annoyed me.
So the next time Quinn's vocabulary gives you a laugh, it's not entirely my fault.
Posted by terri at 10:33 PM | Comments (0)
August 28, 2010
whoops, so it wasn't Mars?
On the way home from the mall last night (it was late) we saw an AWESOME looking full moon. It was really cool and Quinn and Allison were mesmerized by it. Well last night when I got home, someone had posted on facebook that Mars was going to look like a double moon yesterday... so without any research I thought that must have been what we saw since it was so spectacular, so I ran up and told Quinn what we thought was the moon was really Mars. I even told him that it was a once in a lifetime thing - that it would never be this close to us again. He was so super psyched. In fact it was after midnight before he could fall asleep (I think the m&m sundae at dinner was also partly to blame). So tonight I thought I'd dig in and check it out and it seems it's a big farce.
http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/will-mars-appear-as-large-as-a-full-moon-in-august-2010
So do I fess up?
Posted by terri at 11:07 PM | Comments (0)
August 26, 2010
The meatball hierarchy
On the way home from school today:
Me: "How was your day today Quinn?"
Q: "AWESOME. I love first grade."
Me: "That's good! What happened today?"
Q: "I stayed on green and guess what... I got FIVE meatballs."
Me: "Wow, five meatballs?"
Q: "Yea! I can't wait to get in 5th grade, then you get TEN!"
Me: "What makes you think that?"
Q: "In kindergarten I only got 4 meatballs. Every grade they give you one more. Everyone in my class got 5 today and Kyle told me his brother who's in 3rd grade got 7!"
Posted by terri at 09:55 PM | Comments (0)
August 21, 2010
Baby, why are you BLUE?
Baths were over, I was hanging up laundry, Jason was on the computer, and the kids were quietly playing. That should have been our first hint that trouble was around the corner. Suddenly I hear Jason scream "WHY IS ALLISON BLUE? What did you DO?". I stroll over fully expecting her to have blue marker all over her arms and legs - which would be annoying, especially given the already completed bath, but not atypical. I stop dead in my tracks "WHOA.... What did you do to yourself baby?!? What is all over you?!?" Allison was dressed in pj shorts and every part of her exposed body was solid blue (aside from her face and hair, thankfully!). Think Mystique from Xmen. It was amazing how thoroughly she covered herself. Arms, legs, hands - front AND BACK. The substance was slightly tacky and smelled pretty good. Think you got it figured out? Toothpaste. A brand new tube of Kids Crest Blue Sparkle toothpaste.
After the triage was over - another bath for allison and a quick scrubbing of the carpets - Jason asks "did you get a picture? this is a good one. you've got to post it on facebook". Well sorry folks, I didn't have my wits about me enough to pause and snap a shot. I know, I know, that's totally not like me but let me tell you, she was BLUE!
Posted by terri at 09:42 PM | Comments (0)
August 20, 2010
surprise from Papoo
So tonight the kids got a package from my dad (Papoo). The box was a medium size flat rate USPS box, about the size of a DVR or 12" x 3.5" x 14" if you want to be exact. It was so heavy I actually had to weigh it ... it's 17 lbs! My dad is infamous for taking advantage of every last bit of space in his packaging so I was pretty interested to see what was in there....
I don't even think I had the box fully opened before the squeals of excitement. There were a ton of rocks (polished gem stones) in there that Quinn collects. That's actually a funny statement since I'm not sure what Quinn DOESN'T collect these days. Either way, per Quinn "this is the best stuff ever!". [Sorry Theo-Billy, you've been trumped for today]. Amongst the rocks were a couple of fossils and a tiny bottle of water and (per the label) 24 karat gold flakes. "It's REAL GOLD MOM!". There was also a very large hardback pirate book that Quinn also quickly snatched up. He handed Jason a large hardback football book that was obviously for him and pretty much left the rest for Allison to pilfer through while he unbagged and relished in his large (did I say large?) assortment of rocks.
Allison's first excitement is over a large bouncy ball, a disney princess book with sounds and a couple of decks of Cars cards. That is, until she notices a wallet. I can't remember what was on it, but it was a little bit "loved" from it's previous owner. The next thing I know, Jason is telling Allison to be careful with the money she pulled out of the wallet. Quinn and I turn to look and as Quinn's eye's round with greed (and regret) we both realize she's holding a $50 bill. Looks like the little sister who easily accepted the "leftovers" won this one. :-)
Posted by terri at 12:55 AM | Comments (0)
August 11, 2010
Ice Cream
Allison loves ice cream more then *almost* anything...
me: "Which do you like more: Ice cream or pizza?"
Baby: "Ice cream!"
me: "Ice cream or watermelon?"
Baby: "Ice cream!"
me: "Ice cream or nah-nee?" [nah-nee (sp?) = bedtime]
Baby: [with a chuckle] "Ice cream!"
me: "Ice cream or swimming?"
Baby: "Ice cream!"
me: "Ice cream or Mommy?"
Baby: [pause, then with a huge smile] "MOMMY!"
This one sure knows how to work it... I LOVE IT!
Posted by terri at 01:30 AM | Comments (0)
July 30, 2010
Terri
Allison is really into calling me by first name lately. Sometimes she'll start off with a "Mommy" and then escalate into "Terri" if she doesn't get a response. My mom thinks it's funny since I did the same thing to her. The big difference is I was a teenager and Allison is 2. Oh, and to add insult to injury, Allison calls Ms. Brenda (the lady who watches her) Mom.
Good thing I'm not sensitive about stuff like that. Plus, the way she says "Terri" is super cute, it's kinda like "Tear-EEE!".
Posted by terri at 03:57 PM | Comments (0)
vanity
The anomalies of a 6 year old male...
Lately Quinn has been very self conscience of having a clean face. Before getting out of the car, he'll ask "Is my face clean? Do I have anything on it?" and make sure I attentively check his front and profile views. It's seemed most obvious to me when I'm dropping him off at Kumon, so maybe he's got a little crush on someone? He has also declared he no longer likes donuts because "they are too messy". He had a "handsome" moment in the bathroom mirror the other night, followed by closer inspection to see if a red mark (kid pimple?) had gone away. It had, whew...
Now keep in mind, this is the same boy that comes out of the bathroom with his pants pulled up all twisted, shirt half stuck in his shorts.
Perhaps his vanity is starting from the top and slowly working it's way down? LOL
Posted by terri at 03:46 PM | Comments (0)
July 27, 2010
the dream of perfect attendance
Quinn discovers tonight that we are "making" him miss two days of school for a short trip to Myrtle Beach:
Q: "WHAT? I'm going to miss school days? AGAIN?!?"
Me: "You are only going to miss two days. I'll talk to Mrs. Baucom and we'll take your work with us."
Q: [after a short silent treatment] "Can you just promise me that when I'm in 2nd grade I can go to school EVERY DAY and you won't do this to me another time?!?"
No parenting awards for us this year...
Posted by terri at 12:46 AM | Comments (0)
July 14, 2010
song critic
In the car with Allison tonight I was singing "Zippity Do Dah" loud and probably obnoxiously off key when I hear from the back seat
"top it. TOP IT!"
Me: "Did you just tell me to stop it?"
Allison: "Thank you"
LOL
Posted by terri at 09:43 PM | Comments (0)
July 10, 2010
Art Camp
A chat with Allison as I was getting her ready for bed this evening:
Me: "Did you have a good day?"
Allison: "YEAH!"
Me: "What was the most fun"
Allison: "CAMP!"
Me: paused and puzzled because she didn't go to 'camp' today...
Allison: "DUCK!" as she mimes painting.
Me: duh... we went to the Clay Studio where Quinn took art camp. She never actually went to drop off or pickup so I didn't expect her to get any correlation, but my was she proud of herself for having gone to 'camp'. That's either really cute or pathetic... or probably both... poor thing!
For the record she was a NIGHTMARE at the pottery place. She worked hard decorating a plate until "accidentally" dropping it on the floor (when I turned my back for literally less then a minute to help Quinn). To keep her entertained while Quinn finished up she moved onto a ducky. Let me just say it's going to be a 'colorful' ducky. Then she saw Quinn doing handprints on his plate so of course she HAD to do a[nother] plate WITH handprints. In between painting the two plates and duck she painted the table, tray, her clothes and mine. Her arms were pretty messy too but I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt that that was avoidable for a 2 year old.
While we were there a set of grandparents and grown grandchildren were commenting how fun and relaxing it is to decorate pottery (this was before Allison broke the plate). I was sure we (Allison) were annoying everyone in the store but on our way out the grandmother called out to me "Thank you so much for bringing them in. They are so precious. It made my day.". That made me feel a ton better but I'm still not taking Allison back to another pottery place until she's at least 5!
Posted by terri at 10:18 PM | Comments (0)
already preparing me for an empty nest?
We picked up Quinn's sculptures (from Art Camp) today and he informed me on the way home "I made one for you so you can keep it and remember me when I don't live with you anymore."
I can't bear the thought... what will I do when that day finally comes around. Especially since he also informed that he is going to live by Theo Billy (in Santa Monica, CA). Or if that doesn't work out, in Florida by Mickey's house (Disney World).
Posted by terri at 10:14 PM | Comments (0)
too much reality tv
Yes, it's true... I've scarred my kids...
On the way home this evening:
Quinn: "Mom, do you want to be on TV?"
Me: "No"
Quinn: "I am. That's how you make a lot of money. I'm going to have 10 or maybe 15..."
Me: "15 what?"
Quinn: [in a condescending voice] "kids! that's how you can get on TV. actually, maybe 23. You know baby Josie is sick because she came early... not because her mom had too many kids. i'll just have my life (aka wife) keep my babies in day longer then she did."
Sidebar: too much "Jon and Kate Plus 8" or "19 kids and counting"? You think?!?
And now for Allison...
Allison's favorite show is "Raising sextuplets" which is about sextuplets (duh) that are about 1/2 a year older then her but probably about her age in the episodes we are seeing. She LOVES it and asks for it all the time. She calls it "babies".
Posted by terri at 10:07 PM | Comments (0)
July 03, 2010
God bless poop butt
I always end bedtime prayers with "God bless: " and Allison fills in the blank. She does a pretty thorough job covering her extended family and friends. Tonight right after mentioning Quinn she said "pooh bah"... it took me a second to try and figure out the translation and then I repeated "Boohbah?" (a character that Quinn was nuts about but whom she doesn't really know). Her reply "uh-uh". Hmmm... oh.... no... "Did you say Poop Butt?"! Allison with her eyes glimmering and her mischievous grin fully spread across her face "Uh huh!".
I guess that's just how things go when you have a 6 year old brother. So for any Poop Butts out there... you are protected for tonight.
Posted by terri at 10:10 PM | Comments (0)
wrinkles
Quinn is drawing a really detailed face on a punching balloon. He asks "Now what am I missing? Let me take a good look at your face." After a studied glance at my face, he goes "oh, I need these thingies." as he proceeds to draw wrinkles along the forehead of the balloon face. I don't remember laughing so hard. Aging with an artist in the house is going to be fun... but maybe not the best for my self esteem :-)
Posted by terri at 09:47 PM | Comments (0)
July 02, 2010
No Shop!
So, at least at this moment, Allison doesn't appear to be very into shopping. On our way out of the mall last night (for our anniversary dinner and stop by the new toy store) I took the kids through a shortcut via Sears. Allison started freaking out as soon as we were about to enter the store. "No Shop! No Shop!..." It was quite funny, especially since she hasn't really been to the mall very often (she's a HORRIBLE shopper). Well come to think of it, she has been on some marathon trips to Kohl's, so ok, maybe it WAS justified... I will note that she seems to really enjoy the baby girls clothes section at target. She loves to grab clothes for herself and seems to really favor them once we get them home. I'll have to put up another post about the bikini she picked out and LOVES.
I transgress, back to the story...
So we make our way through Sears with a quick stop to check out their pajamas for Q and A when we notice some little girl outfits that come with matching baby doll dresses. Allison was mildly interested but Quinn was insistent that we get at least one. He nagged insistently during a lengthy pit stop to the restroom (potty training is fun) and so I relented (no real surprise). He wanted to buy all 4 variations but I was able to get away with getting just one after I pointed out that the other 3 were not EXACT matches. The differences were insanely insignificant but enough to sway him and his OCD :)
Posted by terri at 04:40 PM | Comments (0)
June 10, 2010
thank you
Allison: "peeing!" (independently on the potty)
Me (to Allison): "You're awesome baby!"
Allison: "Thank you"
lol
Posted by terri at 06:10 PM | Comments (0)
June 09, 2010
the value of money
I thought we were doing a better job at teaching Quinn the value of money and that it doesn't always just magically appear. He now has various ways of earning money and most often is required to use his own money if he wants to purchase something. Today's conversation makes me question if maybe we are paying out a little too generously?
Quinn: "We need to buy Kyle Disney Silly Bands. He wants some."
Me: "Sure, if you want to buy them with your money."
Quinn: "How much are they?"
Me: "$5"
Quinn: "WHAT? Five dollars? That's SO EASY? Just five dollars? Really?!?"
*Note*: If you don't know what Silly Bands are consider yourself lucky :-)
Posted by terri at 04:12 PM | Comments (0)
