TOP 10: BEST THINGS ABOUT MY BIRTHDAY THEN AND NOW

In honor of my upcoming birthday, I thought I would share the 10 best things about my birthday from when I was child until now.  Hope you enjoy!

10.  As a child, we use to always have swimming parties at the City Pool in Hereford in honor of  my sister's  and I's birthday (that doesn't sound right, but I never said I was a writer).  My sister and I have birthdays 12 days apart and we use to always celebrate our birthdays together.  As a child this isn't always the best thing...sharing a birthday with someone and your sister no less.  But, I can remember having sooo much fun at these parties and fondly remember how much fun my dad was swimming with us and jumping off the high dive.  The high dive at the City Pool was pretty awesome.

9.  Having a birthday in the summer......got to see my friends that I was missing from school...That was until they moved school starts so far back that I was in school on my birthday (that almost teeters on the bad things about my birthday).

8.  Turning 16 and finally being able to drive. If you haven't heard me complain about it before, I was one of the youngest kids in my class and all of my friends turned 16 before me (MONTHS before me).  I had to bum rides until I started my Junior year of high school!  Double fun..I got the coolest car to drive...does anyone remember????  I think the first night I got to drive all by myself I picked up a few friends and we drove to Sonic and got a Pink Lady to drink.  I haven't had one of those in years!

Sorry..this is the only pic I had of the green  "jeep" with my friend Renee!

7.  Having friends come to my house and celebrating my birthday with my family!  I had some pretty great friends in high school.  Good times!

My 17th birthday at my house with my friends and family!

6.  In the past few years, I have enjoyed celebrating my birthday with friends by going out to eat all together or having them over for dinner.  Whether it was bowling, cramming in my small house,having a lunch date or going out on the town I have some great friends who always seem to make me feel special on my special day.

5.  Homemade birthday cards from my kiddo!  Enough said!

4.  Getting birthday cards in the mail!  Whether it is from my insurance agent or my sweet sister or grandmother, its just fun to get something in the mail that isn't a bill.  Even better when there is a little something special tucked inside!

3.  Getting something special from my hunny!  He always tries to go out of his way to find the perfect gift for me.  He even solicites advice from Alyssa and they usually do a pretty good job.  He always makes me feel special and I can see the time he takes in finding the right gift!  Sometimes I can even con him into cleaning for me and bypassing the gift! XOXOXOXO

2.  This really is my #1 but......The WORLD FAMOUS (really not, but I think it should be)STRAWBERRY CAKE!!!  If you have not tried it you are missing out!!!!  My momma makes me the very best strawberry cake that has a strawberry cream cheese frosting with coconut and nuts!! YUMMY!!!!!!  Can you tell I really like it!  She has made this for me every year since I think I was 17!  I usually try and share..but I am pretty sure I could eat the whole thing by myself!  It is not always the most beautiful cake but I never care what it looks like.  Is it bad to say I would eat it off the floor if I had to?

My Strawberry Cake from 2010!

1.  The best thing about my birthday is having just 1 day the entire year that can and should be all about me.  It should be a day where you feel special..even for a little bit.  People acknowledge you and wish you well.  I have always been very blessed to have great people surronding me on my birthday and wishing me a great year!  Thank you to all my family and friends for always making me feel special...even if it is for only 1 day of the year!!!!

Looking forward to this birthday and many more to come!!!

SUMMER IS OVER!

Uniforms have been bought, backpacks have been packed, bedtimes are back to normal...we are back to school!  Alyssa was super excited for her first day of 3rd grade and for a new teacher. 

This year we have nuns teaching in our Catholic School (I know you are thinking well of course you do) but we have not had any nuns teaching there for quite some time.  Alyssa's sweet little class was split this year and she was put in one of the new nun's classes.  She was a little concerned at first when some of her bestest friends were in the other class and she had the new teacher but it didn't even seem to bother her when we arrived at the school.  When I picked her up she could not quit talking about her new teacher and her class.  She couldn't wait to go back!  What a relief! 

We are so glad to be back to our normal school routine and schedule.  The summer break is nice, but I am glad to have a little more structure in our lives.  I may not have this same attitude come April or May but right now it is super nice!

Happy Birthday Caleb!

A few weeks late but her it goes......Caleb turned 1 and we had a nice celebration with family and friends.  Wew had a circus/carnival theme and had hotdogs and cupcakes.  It was a lot of fun and Caleb enjoyed walking around and just beign outside.  Of course his party was on one of the hottest days we had seen in the middle of the afternoon, but we all survived!

Caleb is now saying mama (or ma), dada (or da), and believe it or not sister!  He is walking or should I say running everywhere!!!  He now weighs 25.5lbs and is in the 86% for weight but he is also in the 93% for height!  Since his birthday he is now on regular milk and transitioning well.  He loves to have his cuppy with juice and now milk.  He will carry it around with him all day long if you let him.  He is still not the best sleeper but he is getting better.  He now dances when he hears music and points to the things and blows kisses.  He is still a very cuddly little boy.  He giggles and laughs at his big sister.  I swear his smile will melt hearts!

I can't believe he has been with us a whole year....and what a great and trying year it has been!  I can't imagine life without him!!

Alyssa and Caleb

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EASTER 2011

I hope you each had a wonderful Easter.  We spent the weekend back home with our families.  It was the first time Caleb spent the night in Hereford and he did well!  We had a great time.  Alyssa got to color eggs at her Nana's house and on Sunday we went to church with Stephen's family.  We ended the weekend with a big easter egg hunt at Nana's house.  I hated that the weekend went by so quickly. 

 

10 things....

10 things I love about Family Fun Night!

10.  Watching movies like Hannah Montana, Flushed Away, Space Chimps and other movies we would not normally watch together!

9.  Pillows and Blankets in the floor of the living room.

8.  Popcorn, pickles, and a coke can make any childs eye light up!

7.  Sleepy heads carried to bed.

6.  Competition at its best--especially when playing UNO.

5.  One word...Wii!

4.  A clean bedroom before the weekend  (requirement for having FFN).

3.  Moments of quiet when the movie is on.

2.  Watching my husband be silly with his little girl.

1.  Seeing my child having fun with us and knowing that she knows how loved she is!

Why I choose to send my child to private school…..

                Every year around this time we have to make a hard decision on whether to leave Alyssa in private school or send her to public school for the next school year.  This is always a struggle for me because having that extra money would be sooo beneficial to us—especially now that we have 2 children instead of one.  The decision is not an easy one and not for everyone.  I put it in Gods hands to show me and guide me in the direction that is right.  It is a decision that is not always easy to make and we literally were signing up for public school last year and at the last minute changed our minds.  How did we get into this whole public/private school debacle anyway??

    Our journey with private school began when she was 2.  Alyssa never went to day care.  Stephen worked evenings when she was born and so he kept her during the day when I was at work.  What a blessing!  The year she turned 2, Stephen changed jobs that summer.  We had to find daycare and it just killed me.  I could not imagine sending my child with someone else to take care of her all day.  Stephen’s sister was kind enough to keep her for awhile that summer until we found someplace to put her.  We checked into a couple of options, but I kept thinking about our church’s Montessori program.  It was more of a school type atmosphere with an “extended day” program.  The director met with us and showed us around.  She was very nice and helpful and we signed her up and waited the few weeks until school began. 

After a few really hard weeks adjusting to her new envirnment, she began to enjoy her “school”.  She had the BEST teacher who really cared about her and her well being.  She understood our situation and that Alyssa had not really had much contact or play time with other children and she worked with her.  It was the best decision we ever made for her.  She started learning so much!  She was interacting with children and was enjoying being there everyday.  She would come home singing songs that her teacher had taught them about the days of the week, the months of the year, songs in Spanish and in English!  She learned much more than she would have staying at home.  She stayed in the Montessori program until it was time to graduate to Kindergarten.  Stephen and I were never planning on her staying there after Montessori.  The more I thought about changing her the more uneasy I felt.  So I justified leaving her there in Kindergarten because they had a full day program where as the public school only had a ½ day program.  She had an awesome Kindergarten teacher and of course she was attending school with all of her friends she had met and played with in Montessori.  These kids have a really good relationship together.  They have bonded and seem to watch out for each other. They have a kindness and sincere love for one another that I have not seen with my nieces who attend public school.

 This leads me to one of the main reasons I choose to leave her in public school.  They are teaching my child about love and service to others.  Alyssa has a caring and loving attitude towards everyone.  She hurts when someone else is hurting.  She sees the good in everyone—even those kids in class that are the “trouble makers” or the ones you wish your child did not hang around with.  I love that they are teaching her about her faith and that she can openly praise and worship while at school.  She understands more about her faith and religion than we do at times.  She teaches us! 

                Here are a few other reasons I choose private school for my kids.  Smaller Classrooms-granted Alyssa’s class is large, but compared to public schools and the budget crunch they are in, I think her class will remain small in comparison.  She also is around the same group of kids every year.  Her class does not change much from year to year which is a big deal if you don’t do well with change.  Education and Quality teachers—her school  has some really great teachers who care for their students and want them to succeed.  They are all experienced teachers who have taught for many years and with many of those years at her school.  These kids are ahead of most public school kids in the same grade.  They use the best teaching resources and educational materials.  They recently received a donation for smart boards and laptops for each room.  I remember hearing a few years back that of the graduating high schools in our city—3 of the Valedictorians were products of her private school.  Wow—what a great basis for a lifetime of learning!  Activities—she participates in many activities through the school(most recently PSIA—the equivalent of UIL in public school) and through other organizations (but with her classmates).  She is able to help raise money for good organizations like St. Jude and the  American Heart Association—but also collect things for the local food pantry, nuns, meals on wheels, deployed soldiers, as well as her owns schools playground fund.  What a great learning experience for a child.  To me, they are not just education my child in the basic math, reading and writing, but are forming her as a whole person to love and care for others.  Stewardship and Education rolled into one built on religion and love of God. 

Needless to say, Alyssa has continued at private school and will be entering the 3^rd grade next year.  When the school sent home the intent to return form I felt that pain in my heart I feel each year at this time.  But when I think of all the positives, I say “yes” and patiently wait for Caleb to be old enough to start too!  We may have to sacrifice the things we would like to have (the nice vacations, new cars, big house, new clothes, BIG savings account), but we are sacrificing for our children and for them to be the best they can be!  Isn’t that what we are suppose to do as parents?