Happy Halloween

This morning since it was so chilly, we stayed in bed till 8a even though we were up by 6a. Once we were up, we hung out at home so we could watch the Monster High cartoon on tv at 11a. Once that was off, I set the vcr to tape Shrek Halloween special and of course Keree's favorite Monster vs. Aliens Halloween special, so we could run to the store. We needed to pick a few things up but Keree was dying to spend her Halloween money, $1 from her Great-Grandparents and her Great-Great Aunt F sent her $2. It took her forever to decide on anything and we were about to just save the money for another time. But suddenly she saw some FP Little People who were a wedding couple and came with a wedding cake. It was a little more than her $3 but I had never seen them before and since she obsessed with weddings, it was a perfect toy. Once we got home, we ate lunch and settled in to watch the two Halloween specials I had taped while we were out. It was so nice to curl up on the couch together. I was hoping Keree would take a nap but of course she was too excited for our last night of Trick or Treating. So our 1st stop was our new neighbor's house, she just happened to be outside and we've felt awful we haven't come over and introduced ourselves before now (they've lived there for almost 2 mos now). She was so excited to have a Trick or Treater and I told her we would probably be her only one since we do live out in the country. Our second stop was the Little Country Church a few miles up the road from us. They ended up setting up their Trick or Trunk a little different this year, so the kids had to play games for their treats. The downside, they were set up for the bigger kids and if you didn't win, you didn't get a treat. Of course, Keree was trying her best but there was no way she could handle an adult fishing rod or pick up a huge 4 lb pumpkin and run back and forth with it, trying to beat the best time. So needless to say, we didn't stay too long. Our next stop was the next town over the local Church there was having a Fall Festival and we were invited by several of the families from Keree's pre-school. We had attended this Fall Festival last year and had a blast. This year it was set up a little different, where almost every Trunk had a game that you could play and then they would give you a treat. These were some of the best Trunks, I had seen decorated this year. I was also so surprised by how many participated, there were almost 30 cars. What is also amazing about this Fall Festival, is that they feed each family that comes through. So we stood in line and enjoyed hot dogs, a bowl of chili (a choice of 6 different kinds), chips, dessert and of course a choice of 5 different drinks. After we enjoyed a nice dinner together, our final thing to do was get in the Balloon guys line. He is amazing and I swear he adds a good 20 different shapes to his list every year. This year he's newest creating was a rain stick but he added a small twist to it and inside it 2 rubber balls that go up and down the balloon tubes. It's so cool and a picture just doesn't do it justice at all. Once we were finished there, we drove to the town just North of our house. Another church was having a Fall Festival. Right as we were arriving, they were calling all the kids up to participate in a Costume Contest. Keree and I hurried over there and she made it just in time to be judged. There were 3 awards, one for most creative, one for most elaborate and best costume overalls. The girl who one most Creative was Flo from the Progressive commericals, it was an awesome costume. The Best Overall Costume went to Lugi from Mario Bros. and Keree won Most Elaborate costume. She got a certificate and $5 gift card to Steak n' Shake. They then gave each child a big bag full of Treats and a Caramel apple. Before we left, they were also fixing Free Funnel Cakes. We were so excited because this was the 1st time Keree has ever tried a Funnel Cake. Yep, I have deprived my child of their fried goodness till now. Needless to say the moment she tasted it, she couldn't get enough of it. Thank goodness both my Mom and I got one because Keree ate the majority of my Mom's and I didn't want to share mine. I know, I know, I probably would have shared if I had too but it was so nice not having too. On the way home, I had to stop by the store and pick up some allergy/cold medicine for myself. With all the weather shifts from 80+ on Friday & Saturday and then in the low 40's today, it's just making everyone miserable. Of course since Keree missed her nap, she ended up falling asleep shortly before we got home. She stayed asleep until I had to change her out of her costume, she then asked if she could have one piece of candy before bed. So after she was in her pajamas, she choose the super long tootsie roll to enjoy. Even though we had such a full day, she was still asleep by 8p. So I took the traditional pictures of the candy she got, broken down by where she collected it at. I started taking pictures her very 1st Halloween of her Candy loot and have continued every year since.

School & Cheer

Keree this morning was up and ready for the day to start before 6am. As for me, I just wanted to crawl under the covers and pretend it wasn't morning yet. Heck, Keree didn't even make a fuss getting dressed for school or even heading out to the car. I did find it a little ironic when we arrived at school that the rest of the kids were pitching fits and begging their Mom's not to leave them. Today, Keree was so ready for school, that she didn't even wave good-bye to me once she was in the classroom. I did hang around a little bit outside the door and watched. Now, I did see something interesting. When the Bully Kid (back from the helicopter throwing incident) came towards her and he was like 1/2 inch from her face, she did suddenly freeze. I saw her hands tense into fists and she planted her feet. He didn't do anything except scream "good morning Keree" at her, she just stared back at him and didn't say a word. It was weird because in that split second I saw my Brother in Keree. The class is going on a field trip tomorrow, so it's going to be interesting to say the least. When I came to pick Keree up, the summary said that they made pumpkin cake, answered the question if they had even been pumpkin picking and every one except on child said they had been, and finally they visualized what it was going to be like at the pumpkin farm tomorrow. So when Keree came bounding out the door, she goes "Mommy the field trip is tomorrow, you can't be late and you have to be here at 830a." Needless to say there was about a dozen nasty words that came to my mind in that second because I knew this message came from her Teacher. The thing is, I'm the Mom who is always early, like way early to a field trip or school event. So why is my daughter telling me I can't be late? The rest of the Mom's looked at me and didn't say a thing. I really wanted to go, well at least I'm going with my daughter, you all, are too freakin' busy with your workout at the Y, you won't take any time out for your kid. I mean these Mom's go and work out while the kids are in school, then pick up the kids, stick them in the daycare at the Y, so they can work out some more. How hard is it to take a few hours out of your day, every few months to go on your kids field trip? Well I'll get off my soapbox. So once we got home, I fixed a quick lunch and Keree was ready for a nap. I was able to get some work done, while she slept. I also decided to call my Step-Mom and see if she wanted to go Trick or Treating with us Saturday morning. The first time I called, she rejected my call and sent it to voicemail, which right as that was happening, I had to take a business call. So, I called back after that and this time the phone rang and rang and finally went to regular voicemail. I left a detailed message, going Keree really wants to see you, she really wants you to go with us, my Mom isn't going with me, so you'll be the only Grandma there. When I got off the phone, I was pissed because she had rejected my call earlier. I mean she stood out there in the Funeral home parking lot begging me to let her stay in Keree's life and now you act like this! I'm really starting to think that even though my Dad stayed away and didn't make an effort, that she was just as bad as him. I had purposely not called her since our last visit at the end of July because I wanted to see if she would really call us. She never has, she hasn't put forth any effort. I have emailed her at least 5 times since our last visit with Keree's cheer schedule and pictures...she's never once written me back or acknowledge even receiving them. I'm so frustrated and hurt because she's the last tie I have to my Dad and it seems like she wants nothing to do with her Granddaughter or me. So this evening, Keree had cheer practice. There was only 4 kids who showed up because 1 quit, 1 had prior stuff and 2 are sick. The Coach gave us an update on the 2 competitions and we discussed the end of year banquet. She wasn't going to have practice but we talked her into it. She taught the girls two new cheers and since it was super dark, we called it a night. When we got home, we watched the tv shows we had taped. Keree was so excited to get to watch the Middle, she is so in love with Brick off that show. She was asleep on the couch by 845p and I need to get to bed also. Nothing like 40+ pre-schoolers at a pumpkin farm.

Hurricane Storm

This morning, Keree had no trouble getting up and actually wanted to go to school. When we walked outside, to head to school, we saw the full effects of the storm last night. The wind had picked up Keree's playset and moved it a good 10 feet, it was crazy. As I was unlocking the car, Keree exclaimed "Momma, the wind is going to knock me over." Nothing like 20-30 mph wind and gusts up to 90+ mph. After dropping Keree off at school, I ended up having to run some errands and actually had some time to spare, so I got to head home and get some work done. When I went to pick Keree up, the summary on the board said that the Fire department brought a fire truck today and explained all the gadgets on it. The made a collage with fall colors, painted on paper plates, read a book Red Leaf, Green Leaf and learned a new song about leaves. Keree was excited when she came out the door to show me the spooky monster face she had made on her paper plate. When we got home, we decided to finally hang up a few Halloween decorations outside. It honestly wasn't a very smart idea since we are in what the Weather forecasters are calling a Hurricane storm and the worst storm they've seen in 70 years. When we went inside, I finally checked my email and the Cheer Coach canceled practice tonight. No reason why, guess she didn't want to be out in the weather. I guess more than anything it's perplexing because of how many times she's canceled or not show up. So since we didn't have practice to interfere with our evening, we spent it entirely upstairs working. We were all so involved in what we were doing that we didn't even realize it was almost 9p and we hadn't ate yet. So I fixed Keree a hot dog and some black olives for dinner. I know the nutritional value wasn't there but some days you just got to go with whats easy. Oh and I almost forgot, Keree got a Halloween card from her Great-Grandparents today, inside the card was $1. She was so funny when she saw the money inside the card, she held it up and exclaimed "Look, it's a bill, is it a Hundred Dollar bill?" She then looked at it a little closer and goes "No, it's even better, it's a Dollar Bill." Hmm, guess I'll have to work more on money.....at least she can name which President is on which bill or coin.

Muffin Tin Monday

Keree woke up and with some convincing she wanted to go to school. Partially because I told her if she didn't go to school then I couldn't work on her Muffin Tin. She was so happy when I showed her what she was wearing today. I would never have imagined the impact of Keree's brace on her life at age 4. I guess, I should be thankful that she hadn't endured any bullying until now. While Keree was in school, I ran a few errands that my Brother wasn't able to finish over the past weekend and also a few of my own. Since I finished up early, I decided to go and observe Keree out on the playground at school again. I'm trying to figure out if the bullying is all day, does it increase in the classroom or is it worse on the playground? The Main Teacher is oblivious to it, which at this point doesn't surprise me, I mean, honestly, should I remind you that this is the same women who told my daughter I'm not her Real Mom because she wasn't born to me. So I watched Keree outside, she was playing duck, duck, goose with a few of her friends (2 of them have been her classmates for the last 2 yrs). What I did observe on the playground was another little girl shove Keree and knock her down. Even though there were 7 teachers on the playground, one within 2 feet of where this was happening, none of them did anything and I'm honestly not sure if they even saw it. Or if they did, I guess they thought because Keree wasn't crying they weren't going to do anything about it. I waited a few seconds after that happened to see if they would do anything and then I made my appearance onto the playground. I hate feeling like I'm sneaking around trying to observe what is going on but I feel like I'm not doing my job as a parent, if I'm not taking an active role in all this when the Teacher isn't doing anything. Once we got home, I started on Keree's Halloween Muffin Tin. I had so many ideas that I ended up using a 12 cup tin. So in the first 3 cups are body parts, first is Finger - they were made out of carrots with cheese finger tips. Next is Eyeballs - green olives with pimentos and finally I cut a 3 toe-Ogre Foot - out of bread and made the toe nails out of black olives. The next row is a Witch - the face is a snickerdoodle, her hair is green apple laces, her eyes are M&Ms, her nose is a chocolate peanut, her mouth was a black olive slice and finally her hat is a tortilla chip embellished with spray cheese to make the lace and buckle. Next is a Spooky Spider - the spider is made out of black olives, his eyes are little bits of spray cheese and he's sitting on a hard boiled egg. The next row is a Vampire mouth - made out of an apple wedge and almond sliver teeth. The second to last row starts out with Mummies - I cut a hot dog in half and wrapped a croissant around it, I then used edible pens to draw on the eyes. Next is the Pumpkin Patch - in the bottom of the cup is butterscotch pudding topped with cookie crumbs for the dirt, the pumpkins are made out of circus peanuts smooshed and shaped and the stems are slivered almonds, I used my edible pens to draw little leaves on the pumpkins. The last thing in that row is some Ghosts - which are bananas I cut up and drew eyes on. The last row, starts with the Graveyard - I used chocolate pudding and cookie crumbs for the dirt and a milano cookie for the tombstone. Next is the Grassy Knoll - which is a green colored hostess snowball, I then cut a moon and two bats out of colby cheese and put them on picks so they look like they are flying. The last cup is the Skull - it is carved out of the other half of the apple that was left over from the Vampire teeth. Keree ate all the regular food and left her dessert parts for after her nap. She said that this was one of the best muffin tins we had made. I have to say, I'm thrilled that almost everything I made is edible (everything except the 3 picks). After nap, we spent the rest of the day working, we still have to finish up Keree's halloween costume and of course we have shows every weekend in November.

Fall Party

We got a slow start to the morning since we got home so late last night. We decided to check out a local show (which we have been apart of the last 2 yr but was told they didn't have room for us this year) because we were curious. Keree was a little confused because we have never been to a show just to walk around that she can remember. Keree rode in the MeiTai because they don't allow strollers inside the building and I didn't want her to get stepped on because it's crowded. It turned out that it was basically the same people as usual that was there. We were excited to run into our Friend who does Photography letters since we had lost track of her after last season. Keree was thrilled to see "her Friend", then decided to act shy and wouldn't talk to them. We also ran into our Friends who make beautiful wood furniture. They were so excited to see Keree. They became our close friends last year and have recently lost custody of their granddaughter after she lived with them for 8 years. It just breaks my heart that after the parents abandoned her at 1 month at the Grandparents house, the Mother came back to claim her 8 yrs later. We said our good-byes and headed home. We grabbed a quick lunch and then everyone except for me took a nap. We ended up then having to wake up my Brother and Keree from their naps so we could attend our local Adoption group Fall get-together. It was nice to see a few Families we knew but it was also nice to meet some new Families. It had been over a year since we had been able to attend one of the get-togethers because of other obligations. After enjoying a nice fellowship dinner, we gathered all the kiddos outside for a group shot and then it was onto the craft. Each child got to paint their own pumpkins. Keree's pumpkin has two faces, one is sweet and nice and then the other side of the pumpkin has mean eyebrows and glasses. Keree and my Brother spent some time outside playing with the other kids, while my Mom and I visited and listened to the other families. Finally it was getting late and both Keree and my Brother were tired. On the way home, we happened to pass a house and sitting on the curb with a big Free sign was a Little Tikes Jungle Climber. At think at the exact same time, my Brother and I thought the same thing. So after dropping my Mom and Keree off at home, we drove back to where we had saw the climber. We both talked that if it was still there, it was meant to be ours. And we were shocked that it was still there. What we quickly found out, it was a pain to take apart. So instead, my Brother and I hoisted it to the top of the van and after securing it with some straps, we were on our way. We are both so excited for Keree to see it in the morning and play on it. When we got home, we unloaded it and spent a little while marveling at our find before heading to bed.

Thursday

Keree didn't want to go to school again today. But luckily, once we are there she happily walks in. When I came to pick Keree up, the summary said that they made paintings with spray bottles. When we got home, I fixed Keree some samosas for lunch and we ate outside while we waited for our Homeschool Coordinator to show up. Needless to say, we sat outside for over an hour and she never showed up. To say I was not happy is an understatement. I was going to call her but decided I would wait, so I'm very calm, cool and composed when I speak to her. Otherwise, we spent the evening finishing up Keree's costume for our friend's birthday party tomorrow night. While she was trying it on, she suddenly get super excited and goes "no one will see my brace, so they won't be concerned!" Both my Mom and I looked at each other puzzled and asked her what she meant. She said "well people will see my brace and be concerned." So we dropped it for that moment. When I was getting Keree ready for bed, I asked her again what she meant. I asked her if someone was making fun of her brace, she said no. So I decided I wasn't phrasing it right, because if your not dead on with the question, you won't get the correct answer. So I asked her was some of the kids talking about her brace. She goes, yeah, she then names off a few kids, they are always telling me I need to take my brace off and they are always trying to mess with it. I tell them no but they don't stop. I asked her what the Main Teacher does? She goes, nothing. So I ask Keree, does she tell her. Keree goes, I use to tell her but she called me a tattle-tell. I had to hide my emotions from Keree. I then promised her that we would figure out a way to cover her brace. She told me, they don't bother her if she's wearing pants. So I told her that if she is wearing a dress, I'll make sure she has leg warmers on, so they cover her brace. She started to freak out and goes but they don't cover it up. It then hit me she was talking about tights, so I explained to her that she had worn tights and that the leg warmers will cover her brace. I thought, I could speak with the Main Teacher but it's like beating a dead horse because she just doesn't get it and honestly would probably make it worse. She really doesn't understand a delicate situation, I mean you can tell that by my previous Family related rants. I thought about speaking with the Directors but I decided to wait a few days and see how things go with our new plan of covering up her brace. I still breaks my heart that this is happening and when I told my Mom, I also said that it makes me want to yank her out of the school system completely instead of leaving her there for socialization.

Mid-week

This morning Keree didn't want to go to school. It seems to have become a common theme but once she gets there she loves it or at least that's what I like to believe. While Keree was in school, I had to run a few errands, nothing like a good trip to the $1 store. When I came to pick Keree up, the summary said that they said good-bye to their friend, Jaxon. (from what I gathered he's going to a new school) They read the book Moving Day. Fixed Corn Dog casserole and then made bracelets for their dexterity. As, Keree walked out of class, she gave Jaxon a great big hug good-bye. I gotta say it was a little sad. When we got home, Keree ate a quick lunch and then she played, while I worked. She took a late nap, which has also become the norm. We were suppose to have Cheer practice without the Coach this evening but I was having a rough day and we didn't make it. I felt bad but I knew they weren't going to be doing too much without the Coach being there anyway. Keree was excited because that meant she got to watch Brick on tv. Since we've had practice the last few weeks on Wednesday, we have missed some of our favorite shows. I know, I know what the experts say about television but other than Wednesday night tv, I'm very strict about what she watches.

Tuesday

Keree slept pretty lightly last night and I'm pretty sure it's because we were in the car almost all day yesterday. Of course, she fell into a pretty deep sleep right around 6a, so instead of waking her up and her being super grumpy because she didn't get enough sleep, I let her sleep. So, that meant we didn't make it to pre-school today. Which honestly, I don't think she missed much other than some social interaction. After she got up, we spent the morning running some errands and picking up some much needed supplies. By the time we got home, it was after nap time, so after a quickie lunch, I finally laid Keree down around 3p. Luckily, she was still trying to catch up on her sleep from this weekend that she fell asleep rather quickly. Once she got up, there wasn't much time before we had to leave for cheer practice. They ended up learning 3 new Cheers and it just amazed me how the Coach is now wanting to really work on teaching them. Keree also taught them the new cheer that our Cousin taught her two weekends ago about getting R-O-W-D-Y. Of course, the Coach had to change it a little bit but it was still cute. After practice, we got some McD's because there is nothing in the fridge to make dinner. Guess I should have added grocery store to those errands this morning. And now, Keree is in bed and I'm so ready to get some sleep also.

On the Road

Well this morning we got up and finished up the last minute things around the house before we could take off. We finished packing the van and securing some stuff to the roof rack. It took us so much longer than we expected to get going on the road. When we finally took off, it was past lunch time, so we grabbed some lunch and got a few last minute things before we hit the highway. Keree did really well on the trip, she slept almost the entire drive. She woke up, when we were about an hour away. When we arrived at my Grandparent's house, it was actually a little after 5p and we were ready for dinner. We all enjoyed some potato soup, even though it was close to 90 degrees outside. After we finished dinner, we carried in a few more bags and then got back to work. My Mom had a ton of stuff to finish sewing and I had quite a few projects also. Keree spent her time walking between where my Grandparents were sitting and where we were. During part of the evening, she convinced her Great-Grandma to play hide and seek with her. I think they played for almost 2 hrs. At first, Keree had a hard time finding a place to hide but then she started to ask my Mom and I for help. I can't count how many times her Great-Grandma couldn't find her. We finally headed to bed a little before 10p. It was strange not to be able to sit in bed and watch the news on tv. Actually, even Keree found it hard to deal with the silence. She laid in bed next to me, muttered over and over for the longest time "it's too quiet, it's too quiet." Thank goodness she finally fell asleep.

Work day

This morning, after dropping Keree off at school, we headed home and started working. When I went to pick Keree up from school, the summary said that they worked in their journals, read a book about Halloween and played. What I find ironic is the school doesn't allow celebration of any holidays and they aren't suppose to discuss it. But here they are reading a book about Halloween. I just don't get it and honestly, I'm tired of trying to figure it out. When we got home, we spent the rest of the day upstairs working on sewing, cutting, ironing, sewing and sewing some more. Keree spent her time playing, she played with her Little People play sets and played with some of my Brother's old toys. I'm so blessed that she plays so well by herself letting me get my work finished. We finished our night quite late, in hopes that we could maybe get on the road tomorrow. But we just didn't get enough done to be able to leave tomorrow.

Running Behind

Keree woke up this morning in a grumpy mood. I can only guess it's because all we have done these past 4 days is go, go, go. My Grandparents headed half-way home today, my Grandpa has tests scheduled at the VA Hospital and they will have to stay 2 days in the big city. Before they left, they took us out to breakfast. Keree was off school today because it's Columbus day. I thought we would have some time to just sit and visit at the restaurant but I was amazed at how quickly our food was delivered. Keree was excited because the Great-Grandparents told her to pick whatever she wanted off the kids menu. She picked a baseball pancake. Keree was in heaven!! She was even more excited when her pancake arrived with a strip of bacon and a link of sausage. After we finished eating, we said our good-byes. Luckily, it wasn't all that hard because we knew we would be at their house by Wed or Thurs for a Show this weekend. When we got home, we started working at sorting, packing, tossing what was left from the yard sale. Since we seemed not to get much traffic at all, we had alot to go through. If we could salvage stuff off of a shirt or pants we would. I'm really excited at the thought of having enough zippers to attempt to make zipper bows and flowers! Since we spent basically the whole day outside working through everything, I missed making a Muffin Tin for Keree today. She reminded me right before bed that I didn't make her a special lunch today. And honestly, when she told me, she had complete and utter attitude about it. Thank goodness I know she's not feeling good, she didn't have a good nap and it was bed time. Otherwise, I'm running way behind for this weekend. I fill so unprepared and we have so much stuff to get done. This is the first time in a long time, I fill like I'm drowning with undone projects. I always feel a little stressed and feel like I've got a lot to get done before a show but usually we are prepared. This time, I am so far from feeling ready for this weekend or the trip down to my Grandparents.

"Only" Spaghetti

When we got up this morning, my Grandparents were disappointed that I wasn't allowing Keree to stay home from school. They also didn't understand why we weren't opening up our yard sale first thing. So again we explained to them that we were having our yard sale in the evening and that Keree is already going to miss quite a few days of school next week. I don't understand why it was an issue, when you consider that she's only gone 2 1/2 hrs. When I picked Keree up from pre-school, the summary said that they made spaghetti. The kids broke the noodles over the boiling water and then when it was ready helped to pour the sauce over the noodles. They read a book about a girl who lived in Italy and ate noodles. They also watched a movie about how people who live in Rome only eat spaghetti. Yes, I know Italian's don't eat only spaghetti and I also know they have alot of other great dishes that doesn't even involve pasta. I explained that to Keree also because all I could think was how stereotypical it was to assume that all Italian or everyone who lives in Rome "only" eat spaghetti. When we got home, Keree was excited to show off her artwork that she did this week. We also got the school fundraiser information. Unlike years past where the kids sold pizza, wrapping paper, etc. This year, they are relying strictly on the parents. They expect us to spend anywhere between $5 (for a magnet) to over $100 for an item with our child's artwork on it. Keree's drawing was cute but she draws me amazing pictures almost every day and they decorate my house. I then scan them all into my computer so I will have them forever. I don't need her artwork professionally mounted in a frame for $65. So I will mark my envelope "no thank you". My Grandparent's ended up leaving for the day when I put Keree down for her nap. When 230p rolled around, Keree was still napping, so I got the yard sale set-up to open at 3p. Keree was exhausted and didn't get up until almost 4p, when she did get up, I only coaxed her out of bed and outside with the promise of a rice krispie treat. Hey, don't judge me, sometimes you gotta give a little. After her krispie treat, she rode her tricycle up and down the sidewalk and I worked on business stuff. We didn't have a single person stop at the yard sale, which was a disappointment. When we got everything picked up and headed inside, we started back to sewing until my Grandparent's got home. It was really nice of them because they had picked up some fish dinners from the VFW for us. Which luckily, I was just about to start dinner when they got back. Since we were all exhausted, we pretty much headed to bed as soon as we got done with dinner.

Preschool & Homeschool

When we got up, I was having to work on some business so my Mom dropped Keree off and picked Keree up from school. My Mom said, the summary said that they played outside, made marble paintings and read the book about the women who could eat everything. My Mom asked Keree about the book and Keree could recite almost all of it word by word. When she got home, Keree also repeated all the things the women ate. Since we knew our Homeschool Coordinator would be here soon. Keree and I sat up the table outside and got everything ready. Keree spent her time waiting by riding her tricycle and I was flipping through a few magazines. Keree had joined me shortly before the Homeschool Coordinator got there and so she was super impressed that we were sitting together looking at a magazine. She said it was a "kodak moment". She showed me some of the curriculum we would be using, gave me a packed of papers and then Keree started to work. She made her write the entire alphabet. Had her say her colors and shapes in English & Spanish and then we read a book about going to school. I'm really hoping that she will speed up the lessons, because what we covered today, other than the Spanish, is stuff she already knows. I also have to keep track of all the Learning/Homeschool I incorporate into our lives and how much time we spend. The curriculum that they use gives us will give us a weekly packet of activities also we are suppose to do with our child during that week. Which I don't see a problem doing. After she left, we headed back inside to work on trying to organize the mess that is my house. Around 7p, my Grandparents arrived from out of state for their visit with us and the Family and to celebrate our Cousin's birthday on Saturday and their Birthday's on Sunday (how weird that they both were born on the 10th). Of course, they wanted Keree to stay up way past her bedtime and they also had to make comments about how messy our house is. They just don't get how my house is not only my house but my business. I have boxes stacked all over filled with my products for the shows and of course I'm not going to pack up the stuff I'm currently working on. It just frustrates me beyond belief, they make me feel like I'm a bad person because of the organzied chaos. My Mom keeps threatening to take down their bed and using it for our business storage. I'm all for it but of course, we become the bad guys when they have no where to stay.

Wednesday

When I dropped Keree off at school, my Mom and I then went and ran a few errands....actually we ran to Michaels in search of some bulk wood packs. Of course, we were meet with "I've never seen anything like that here" or "I guess we never carried it." Umm, yeah, you are the same store that we've bought about 20 packs from since last Spring till just a month ago. I don't know where they hire these people from because the ones in my store, seriously have no knowledge of their products or how they work. When I went to pick Keree up, the summary said that they made marble paintings, talked about put downs and how they can hurt our friends, also that they shouldn't tell people they aren't their friends and that they should all play nicely. It seems that the Same Boy who hit my daughter with a toy (who will now be known as Bully Boy), is also the child who is telling people they aren't friends anymore and just wrecking havoc in the classroom. Now, one interesting thing happened today, I saw who Bully Boy's Mom was. I've seen her before but didn't know who's Mom she was. Of course, it explained alot of Bully Boy's behavior. She is one of those "natural parents" (as she puts it), she lets her child do whatever, never says "no" and believes the child is always right and should not under any circumstance be punished. All I can say is a child should have boundaries and a sense of right and wrong, which this child doesn't have and probably never will. After we picked up Keree, we then had to headed up North and visited two County courthouses. I was needing a copy of my Dad's birth & death certificate. I gotta say it was all a little surreal, having these two pieces of paper in my hand. It felt like His whole life was summed up on two pieces of paper. I did find a few interesting things like, his Mom's name is wrong on the death certificate and I also found out that my Dad passed away a little after 5pm on that Friday but my Step-Mom didn't call me till around 7am on Saturday. She didn't notify any of his family until Saturday. I'm perplexed still, why didn't anyone call us until 14+ hours after he passed away? I guess it's a question I'll never have an answer for. Keree of course fell asleep while we were on the road, luckily my Mom was along, so she stayed in the car while I ran in and got the certificates. As we were heading home, we passed another Micheals. So, my Mom ran in and luckily, there was one bulk pack of wood. She was so excited that they had some. The downside, they didn't know if they would be getting anymore in. When we got home, of course Keree woke up. Since she still wasn't feeling well, she asked to lay down and watch cartoons and I happily obliged. Before too long, it was time to leave for practice. Of course, I wanted to make sure to leave early so I would actually have a parking space at this field. There is only 15 parking spaces and if you don't get one of these, you risk parking on a dead end street and getting trapped or have to park almost a 1/2 mile away and walk. As I said, how smoothly and awesome last night's practice was. This practice was a disaster! The Coach had no control, the girls were running everywhere, she would release them for a water break and instead they would go and play on the playground. I'm so lucky that Keree doesn't run off without permission, she so knows better that she would be in major trouble if she did the things the other girls do. Since practice was going so poorly, she released them early. When we got home, we were able to watch Modern Families before Keree proclaimed it was time for bed. Which was good because I'm exhausted too.