A happy anniversary in Napa Valley

Our nine year anniversary was yesterday and we decided to take advantage of my parents being here and took off for an overnight trip to Napa Valley. It was a much needed rest after a busy December and we had a wonderful time. Nate and I aren't into fancy stuff or being really busy. We are just happy to have time to sit and talk at Starbucks or so something new that we've never done before.

Below are some pictures of our adventures from today . . . we ended up at Sterling Winery, which was recommended to us by a local guy named Chuck. We ate at this little deli in Calistoga and made friends with the guy sitting at the table next to us. Actually, he tried to get us to give him a piece of our pizza because it looked good to him and we ended up talking to him for a good half hour. Chuck is actually my kind of guy, and I wish we could have talked to him some more. We talked about politics, all the diferent places we've all lived, and even got a mini history of Calistoga, CA. I knew I loved him when he said he would choose to live in Texas if he could choose any place in the country to live:)

Anyway, Chuck recommended this winery, so we checked it out. Everyone had to take a gondola type tram to the top--which was so cool. Once we were up there, we took a self-guided tour and had great views of the beautiful Napa Valley.

It was a great ninth anniversary:)

A Pleasant Surprise

As many of you know, I teach a GED preparation class. I have so many different kinds of people all in one classroom every day. There are those on probation, those who have to be there to receive their state aid check, those who really want to get their GED, and young adults who have to pass the CAHSEE.

The CAHSEE is the California High School Exit Exam. There's an English part and a Math part. I have a few students who are not preparing to take their GED, but need to pass this CAHSEE test in order to receive their high school diploma. And let me tell you, the CAHSEE is one hard test. Teaching high school math has surely challenged me.

I have this one student, M, who is in my class for the CAHSEE test. He is there almost every day--I think because his father makes him come, but he hates every second of being there. For the first two months, he wouldn't even say hi to me. He tells me that I'm boring and that all the stuff we learn is boring---which doesn't bother me because I know he has a motivation issue and everything related to learning is boring to him. So we joke about me being boring and I do my best to keep him on task.

For the first three months, M "pretended" to be stupid. He seriously failed every assignment I gave him. I thought he had some sort of learning disability until I threatened to kick him out of class for lack of effort. Ever since then, he's shown that he can learn and is doing much better. And in fact, he passed the math part of the test, and I am so proud of him. So now, we are working hardcore on writing essays and getting him to pass the English part of the test.

I must say, that I am super patient with him. There were several times that I should have kicked him out, but I have put way too much time and energy into him and have seen some positive results. But I know he hates being there and will celebrate the day that he is out of my class.

The students in my class got me a Christmas gift and in the card, M wrote something that was so surprising to me. He said,"You are the nicest teacher ever and I am learning." Wow! (Just so you know . . . I am not the nicest teacher ever . . . and I sometimes struggle with my ability to help him.) Teaching is not a glorious profession, but one sentence of affirmation can give you all the energy to go on. It will give me the patience and energy to get M to write that five paragraph essay if it's the last thing I do:)

Picked Out By Jenna

I love modified birthday cards. They're my favorite!

What I Miss

My kids don't know snow. Jenna begs me to take her to play in the snow; maybe we'll venture into the Sierras for some sledding. I just think it's funny that you have to drive to snow to experience it here.

I grew up with four seasons and there's something I like about each one. Here in California, we really only have summer and kind of cold. I can't even call it winter because it doesn't snow and I can't call it fall because the leaves barely change. Kind of cold means that it gets cold enough to have to wear a jacket, but I still don't get by people buy gloves or earmuffs or scarves around here. Unless they are visiting the snow.

One of the greatest joys that I miss is snow days. I miss the anticipation, the joy when you hear your school's name called on the radio at 6:30 in the morning. (Although since our district didn't bus, it had to be a blizzard or an ice storm before school was called off). I miss the fact that you have an excuse to stay huddled in the house with the tv and pajamas. I try to explain this to my students, and they have absolutely no idea what I am talking about.

My Bon Jovi loving friend, Tamara, sent me a copy of the book, The Shack. I am only on p. 25, so please don't tell me what happens. But in the first few pages, the author, Wm Paul Young, describes this phenomenon that I love so much. Here's how he explains it . . .

"There is something joyful about storms that interrupt routine. Snow or freezing rain suddenly releases you from expectations, performance demands, and the tyranny of appointments and schedules. And unlike illness, it is largely a corporate rather than individual experience. One can almost hear a unified sigh rise from the nearby city and surrounding countryside where Nature has intervened to give respite to the weary humans slogging it out without her purview. All those affected this way are united by a mutual excuse, and the heart is suddenly and unexpectedly a little giddy. There will be no apologies needed for not showing up to some commitment or other. Everyone understands and shares in this singular justification, and the sudden alleviation of the pressure to produce makes the heart merry." The Shack, Wm. Paul Young

So that's what I miss and it's the best way I can explain to my California friends what they are missing.

Annual Christmas Cookie Decorating

This is an all day event! Baking and cooling and making frosting and decorating and cleaning up. Such a task, but so much fun! Here are a few pictures to show you our fun:

Abby holding the mixer all by herself!

Jenna carefully applying the frosting.


Beautiful cookies!

Come on, you know you want to eat this one . . . the one with three inches of blue frosting and two inches of pink sprinkles. Really, you know you want it:)

Magic!

We've had a tough time in the behavior department with Jenna lately. It was like one night she decided to turn sassy and nasty and refuse to listen. I even asked Nate if we had turned into some lazy, awful parents lately or if this change I had noticed was real. Well, it was definitely real!

So we broke out the reward charts. If you look closely, you can see that the girls have things they must do in order to be able to draw in their box. Jenna draws faces and hearts, while Abby draws Xs. If they have six good days in a row, meaning that they get 5 out of six spaces full each day for six days, they get to go to McDonalds.

I'm thinking that bar might be a little high for a two and four year old to reach, but for right now, it's working like MAGIC! Jenna's behavior, especially, has been awesome:) We may tweak the reward chart as we go, but for now, we are loving it!

Our First Successful Trip to See Santa

This will be our fourth time attempting to visit Santa. Year 1, Jenna was terrified and screamed the entire time we were in line to see Santa. So we left, and I was really disappointed that we didn't get a "Santa picture" with her.

Year 2, Abby was here too and I was so excited to get a picture with my two little sweethearts and Santa. Abby was too little to object and Jenna was all for it. We stood in line for at least a half hour. It was almost our turn--we had one other family in front of us. Unfortunately, we had to leave because Jenna threw up all over that family. She had the beginning of a stomach bug and I was mortified. Some nice guy helped me clean up the puke as all the other mommies tried to stay as far away from us as possible. ( I don't blame them!)

Year 3, we were back to being afraid of Santa and settled for a wave to him from afar.

But this year, we did it! There was no line and we had a really great Santa. He sang Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer to the kids, played along when Jenna asked him where his sleigh and reindeer were, and made sure to tell them about the being naughty or nice deal. Which is great, because now I have leverage for a few weeks. Jenna's really afraid of getting coal:) (Not that we would ever give it to her, but it's nice to be able to say, "I'd like to see good behavior or Santa will know that you haven't been good lately . . . ")

It's nice to finally have a picture of the girls with Santa--and so wonderful that they smiled!

Cheeeeeeeeese!

My sweetheart, Abby. So silly . . .

Please Go Away

This is directed to all serious, not so serious, and just down right annoying illnesses that have invaded our home in the past few months.

Here's' what's been going down . . .

Nate--flu
Nate--pneumonia
Jenna-fever
Jenna-ear infection
Abby-fever
Nate-more pneumonia that wouldn't go away
Lots of coughing by everyone.
Jenna-pink eye
Jenna-pink eye, again
Jenna-Fifth's Disease (common childhood illness that is actually a virus and causes fever/rash)
Jenna-fever
Abby-pink eye
Abby-fever
Abby-possible ear infection (doctor's appointment tomorrow)

Notice that my name is not listed there? Yay for staying healthy. I somewhat attribute this to my new love for the supplement, Airborne. Have any of you heard of it? I have been taking it over the past few months and have stayed pretty healthy. Healthy enough to take care of all the sickos in our house!

Also notice that most of these illnesses aren't anything serious, other than the pneumonia. They are just annoying. And I am thankful for annoying because the girls could be much sicker than they are. But I still am requesting that they leave our presence.

I suspect that all of this has something to do with all of us being exposed to different people all day. I work at a school, Jenna is in preschool every day, and Abby is in daycare in the mornings. Maybe we're just building up our immunities .. . who knows.

I am hoping that tomorrow's doctor's appointment is the end of it. You'll know I've gone crazy if you see a post about me getting pink eye. Now wouldn't that be lovely?

So Very Proud

Over the past few weeks, I have seen Jenna's gifts, talents, and personality unfold more and more. As her mommy, it's so exciting to be a part of. And I am proud of her.

I love that she is compassionate and eager to learn and that she loves her sister so much.

I love that she loves music. I love that she has Nate's musical gifts and can't get enough of "Row Row Row Your Boat" or "Happy Birthday" on the piano.

I love that she takes the job of keeping Abby in line at the children's message seriously.

I love that she finally put her head under water at swimming lessons last week. And for those of you who have been following this blog, you know that this accomplishment has been almost a year in the making. After sitting on the steps of the pool for 16 weeks and then refusing to put her head under water for a good three months, this is a huge feat for a little girl who was terrified of the water.

I love that she spells out every store sign that she sees and asks me what it spells when we go out.

I love watching her self-confidence grow as she matures and tries new things.

These little things don't matter so much to anyone but me and Nate, but I notice them and love watching this little person unfold into the beautiful girl that she is.

Some Random Thoughts

1. Either you are all in cahoots with Nate and are lying to me about brown being a good color on me or I need to accept that blonde is a thing of the past for me.

2. I have been a bit obsessed with Christmas already. I know . . . it's not even December yet. I love Christmas. I mostly love that we celebrate Jesus's birth, but I also love that my family will be here. I love that for the first time, we are putting a "blinking Frosty" in our front yard because the girls are dying for one. We spent lots of time driving through neighborhoods last year looking for "blinking Frostys." Now we will have one of our own. I love that we will sleep in the family room by the tree on Christmas Eve. I love giving gifts to people. I love that we will offer Santa milk and beer on Christmas Eve. I love decorating Christmas cookies with the girls. I love addressing Christmas letters.

3. My class has had its share of craziness lately. I have a new student who falls asleep every few minutes and snores until he wakes himself up. I have another student who tried to bring his 2 year old to class today. I have another student who told me this week that he has been faking "being stupid" so that he would be liked in the class. He's failed every assignment until I discovered his scheme. On a more positive note . . . I teach a GED preparation class, and most of my students who take the GED are passing it. That's rewarding.

4. I know that some of you might think I'm crazy because we live in an area where flip flops can be worn all year round. But I desperately miss the beautiful fall colors and the crunching of leaves on the ground. I miss snow flurries and snow days.

5. We are getting a piano from a friend tomorrow, and I am going to attempt to teach Jenna to play the piano. No, I am not crazy (my kid has to be in every activity) mom, she has been playing short songs by ear on her play piano, and I figure that I should explore that area of interest if she has it. I think she has Nate's musical ability and talent. We shall see.

6. Jenna tells me every day that she prays that God will give her 10 little brothers. I keep telling God that I am good with two redheaded girls.

7. I am considering writing a book on new pastor's wives. I have no idea how to do this or if I will actually even do it. It is always in the back of my head these days.

Here ends the random thoughts for the week:)

Here It Is

I Have Brown Hair and Am Not Entirely Thrilled About It

It's been a week since I went to the hairdresser intending to get a cute cut and a highlight, but coming out with brown hair. I'm over it, but have decided that I don't think that I make a good brunette.

Here's what happened. I went to my hairdresser, who is very good and trustworthy. He suggested that I put an all over color in to even the color out from the damage that has been inflicted on my hair by highlighting. Before Bruce (my current hairdresser), I went to a woman who turned out to be awful. She damaged my hair by #1 cutting it at the wrong angle that resulted in "shaggy hair" and #2 would highlight all of my hair instead of just the top that needed done. This resulted in a large band of bright blonde hair at the bottom. The top and middle of my hair is okay, but instead of highlighting it again, Bruce suggested that I go all brown.

I'm not sure if he was in a creative mood or not, but I still can't figure out why I just didn't turn him down flat. Or at least insist on a lighter color.

Bruce promised that the color he put on me would fade, as it is a semi-permanent color, but it's still pretty dark and I can't wait until it lightens up so I can gradually move back to my blonde hair again.

The first night after I had this all done, I laid awake in bed feeling so anxious. I didn't necessarily care that everyone would notice a new do on me, I just didn't particularly like it myself and I felt like someone had stolen the hair that I've known all my life (real or fake) and replaced it with a foreign color.

It didn't help that when I walked in the door Nate said, "What did you go and do that for?" And Jenna said, "I want blonde Mommy back. I don't like brown Mommy."

Nate eventually figured out that lying would be a good alternative and started to tell me that he liked it and even went so far as to say he liked it better. I really am grateful to him for lying to me, otherwise, I would have been back at Bruce's demanding more chemicals to ruin my already too chemically treated hair.

So I have brown hair and I am still trying to get used to it:)

And no, I will not post a picture!

An Abby Prayer

Too precious to forget . . .

Abby: Dear Sheshus. Fank oo for getting me my mommy. I wuv Mommy I wuv Daddy I wuv Duh Duh I wuv Dee Dee. You're a good Sheshus. Amen.

Translation: Dear Jesus. Thank you for getting me my mommy. I love Mommy I love Daddy I love Jenna I love Dee Dee. You're a good Jesus. Amen.

A Time Out Rant . . . by Jenna

Jenna had a rough day yesterday and was in time out a few times. She was hysterical in there at one particular time . . . here's what we heard.

Jenna: Mommy, come get me! Daddy is making me stay in my room and won't get me. Please come get me!

Me: No response.

Jenna: Abby, please come get me! I'm in trouble. Daddy and Mommy won't come get me. Please get me out of timeout!

Abby: No response

Jenna: Somebody! I really need to get out of timeout! Somebody come!


Jenna: (at the top of her lungs) When I grow up, I am going to move to a new house in a new state so I can make all my own rules. Someday, I'm going to be a mommy and make the rules and not listen to yours.

A Public Booing

BOOOOOOO to pneumonia that won't go away.

BOOOOOOO to coughs that keep little girls up at night.

BOOOOOOO to runny noses that are yucky.

BOOOOOOO to fevers that leave and come back after a while.

BOOOOOOO to the flu that started this whole ordeal.

BOOOOOOO to insurance companies who are trying to mess with me and make this much more difficult.

The First Sleepover Experience

Sleepy girls. Such beautiful makeup, Abby!
Carefully putting nail polish on.
Friday was our first official sleepover! Jenna and Abby's friend decided to have a sleepover for her birthday, so we loaded up the blankets and pillows and sleepover gear and hoped that it would be a success. And it was! The evening started with pizza and makeup, followed by the movie, Tinkerbell. Unfortunately, Abby decided she wanted to jump all over the other girls, so we went home and had our own sleepover so the other girls could sleep:)

I was unsure if Jenna would actually stay all night, but she did just fine! This is good news . . . I think there might be more sleepovers in our future:)

A Children's Message Spectacle

I'm pretty sure that adults love the children's message because of all the craziness that can potentially happen. In our church, we've had chilren scale the communion rails, come to the children's message in dress up clothes from the nursery, and shout information that no parent wants their child to disclose. Today, Abby added to the amusement of many and the mortification of one . . . me.

Jenna usually is instructed to take care of Abby during the children's message at church and we haven't had any major problems lately. Abby was banned for a while (by me) because she kept trying to climb over the communion rails, but she was much younger then and didn't understand how to sit and listen to the adult talking. Now she knows. And today was a spectacle. It was all about Abby getting attention:)

It started with her refusing to sit next to Jenna. Jenna usually keeps her in line, but today, she got away and sat next to Brittany, her good friend. Next, Abby proceeded to pick her nose. Yes, you read that right. She picked her nose in front of the whole church. Brittany was so grossed out by this (as were the rest of us), that she grabbed Abby's hands and tried to pin them down loudly saying, "Ewwww, gross!" So this happened a few times--nose picking followed by the grabbing of hands and "Ewwww gross!"

I kept thinking that they would stop. If I got up and walked up there, I would draw more attention to the situation. But I had to get up when both Abby and Brittany proceed to roll back, kicking their legs in the air, allowing the entire congregation to see up their skirts.

I immediately got up, as did Brittany's mom and we both quickly walked up to retreive our children. I picked Abby up and walked straight out. I didn't even consider letting her stay with me sitting next to her. I knew that she was all about getting attention this morning.

So yes, my daughter picked her nose (multiple times) and flashed the entire congregation today. If anyone had the expectation that our children were well-behaved all the time because my husband is the pastor, that is surely gone after this morning!

So, Abby will have a chaperone from now on if she wants to go the children's message:)

Halloween 2008

A Nasty Visitor

I hope that the flu never wreaks havoc on our household again as it has in the past few weeks. It started with Nate. He looked deathly ill at church two Sundays ago. When he got home, he had a raging fever and spent the day in bed. He was quite the sight---all bundled up in his hooded sweatshirt (hood on) under a mountain of covers. He was freezing.

Over the course of the next five days, he would go from freezing to completely sweating through his clothes. His fevers were high and he had no energy. Going into the office was not even an option. If you know Nate, you know that he had to have been sick for him to stay away for so long. He didn't eat for most of the week, but did a good job at keeping fluids in him.

Then the cough started. It was a bad, bad cough and he started to feel tightening in his chest. After a visit to the doctor, it was determined that he had pneumonia. After a round of antibiotics, he's finally feeling better. Still pretty tired and a little pale, but better.

He had the full blown flu + pneumonia. Not a chest cold or a stomach virus. He had the kind of flu that could do a lot of harm to people. Probably the kind that makes doctors urge everyone to get flu shots.

Jenna, Abby, and I all got a piece of what Nate had. Jenna had an ear infection, Abby had a fever for two days, and I'm working on a minor cough, but I'm thankful that all four of us didn't have what Nate had. We would have had to fly my mom in to take care of all of us!

I have always been skeptical of flu shots, but not anymore. I will gladly have one every year if it lessens the chances of us getting what Nate had in the past two weeks!