I'm considering starting a team blog that would be about different recipes. I'm tired of making the same thing over and over again, but my recipe might be new to you and yours to me. I'm such a dork that this idea actually woke me up last night. The post I wrote in my head at 3AM was so much better than this one, but I'm just happy that I remembered this idea at all. So here's how I'm thinking it would work...
1. You could only post recipes for things you've actually made or are going to make.
2. While I'm thinking that, eventually, it would be awesome to have a plethora of recipes (or meal plans), you only post one or two at a time so as to avoid recipe burnout.
3. You'd have to use post labels for each recipe/post. That would help if someone wanted a chicken recipe...you could just click on chicken and find all of those recipes. If you don't know what a post label is, look at the bottom of each of my posts. There should be a post label indicator there. If you click on any of those labels, it'll direct you to all of the posts with that label.
4. You could post helpful hints and suggestions for cooking.
5. You could post cooking related items, such as a cooking disaster that happened to you.
6. Find a new nifty kitchen tool or gadget? Make a post about it!
Let me know if you'd be interested in doing it. I think it could be a lot of fun.
Oh, and you'd actually be posting instead of just commenting since you'd be part of my team. You'd have your thoughts out there for all of the world to see. Here's a brief list of people I expect to hear from (with a "yes" LOL!) Sue, Debbie, Michelle, Bobbi, Evelyn, Donna, Dad (I know you must have something up your sleeve), Sara. Come on...you know you want to!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
A Fine Line
We've known for a while that Hannah has some speech issues. So, why is it that when someone confirms it (even just confirms the suspicion), I get get upset and defensive?
The Speech Therapist met with Hannah during Kindergarten Roundup last week. She pulled me aside and said that she felt that Hannah needed to be screened so that she could start right when school started. She said she'd leave me a voice mail with the instructions on how to set up the screening. A week went by and I forgot about it.
Until today.
She apologizes for leaving me the message a week late and then goes on to tell me that she feels that Hannah is really behind in her speech development. Then, she gives me the low down on how to get her screened. She tells me to keep her in the loop...if she doesn't need help, that's great, but if she does, she needs to be part of the IEP process. This is where I got upset. IEP? Ummm...for a speech problem?
Ever since, I keep thinking that Hannah's fine and that she doesn't need to be screened or have speech therapy. I know, in my head, that it's wrong to think that way...if there's an issue, we need to get on it now. But my heart wants to believe there's nothing wrong with my baby girl. This is just the dumbest and craziest thing to be feeling right now.
Tomorrow, I'll set up the appointment for her screening and keep my fingers crossed that it comes back normal. Even if it doesn't, it's not the end of the world. I mean, come on, it's speech therapy. Big whoop.
The Speech Therapist met with Hannah during Kindergarten Roundup last week. She pulled me aside and said that she felt that Hannah needed to be screened so that she could start right when school started. She said she'd leave me a voice mail with the instructions on how to set up the screening. A week went by and I forgot about it.
Until today.
She apologizes for leaving me the message a week late and then goes on to tell me that she feels that Hannah is really behind in her speech development. Then, she gives me the low down on how to get her screened. She tells me to keep her in the loop...if she doesn't need help, that's great, but if she does, she needs to be part of the IEP process. This is where I got upset. IEP? Ummm...for a speech problem?
Ever since, I keep thinking that Hannah's fine and that she doesn't need to be screened or have speech therapy. I know, in my head, that it's wrong to think that way...if there's an issue, we need to get on it now. But my heart wants to believe there's nothing wrong with my baby girl. This is just the dumbest and craziest thing to be feeling right now.
Tomorrow, I'll set up the appointment for her screening and keep my fingers crossed that it comes back normal. Even if it doesn't, it's not the end of the world. I mean, come on, it's speech therapy. Big whoop.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
I Was Beeped At...and other thoughts
I took Hannah to her usual Monday gymnastics class and as we were walking in, I hear a horn. It was one of those that makes you jump...not a little beep but a HONK!!!!!!! I whipped my head around and saw my friend, Bree, waving furiously from her huge Yukon (good to know that they don't have a wimpy horn...that would have been funny). After I realized she was waving at me, I put on a big smile and furiously waved back. It's been a long time since I've been beeped in public (get your mind out of the gutter...I know you all went there). It made my day.
Last night, I remembered that it was my MOPS table's turn to bring breakfast this morning. I had signed up to bring a warm dish and some fruit. I went through my potluck cookbook while the kids were in the tub and asked Mike for his input (I tend to overthink things like this). I decided that I would just wing some egg and hashbrown dish (which also ended up having mushrooms, bacon and cheese...and turned out very tasty) and some fruit salad that has the marshmallows and fluff (who knew it had vinegar and eggs in it as well?), but had to go to the store to get the ingredients. While at WalMart, I remembered that I had to get something for my secret sister and decided to make her an Easter basket. However, I couldn't bring myself to get her an Easter card just yet, and my table found that very funny.
Anyway, on my way home, I noticed that it was not only incredibly windy, but snowing as well. I really need winter to end. Now. I need to get out and into my garden. But I digress...
This morning, I pop the egg casserole into the oven (I put everything together last night) and showered. I got the boys up and went through our normal morning routine. We left a little later than normal because I wasn't able to closely watch the time since the oven was on (we really need another clock in the house). Daniel's mad at me because I asked him to put his shoes on and don't I know that he's busy reading a book? I seriously never thought I'd have that problem. LOL! Anyway, we pile into the car and head to school.
The roads were fine, except for around certain corners where the sun hadn't been able to melt the ice that had accumulated last night. Luckily, I've driven this so many times that I'm pretty aware of the usual spots that get icy. Most of the time, I have to make a loop around the school to get into the carpool line. I turn onto the street before so that I don't have to turn around. Anyway, the car in front of me was doing the same thing, so we both slowed down on the main road to turn onto the side street. The intersection was heavily iced over, but I (and the car in front of me) could clearly see it and slowed more than usual (almost to a stop) to make the right onto the side street. Halfway through my turn, I looked in my rearview and I was more than a little amazed. The car behind me didn't slow at all (nor did it appear to swerve) and should have rear-ended me. Seriously. I can't see how he didn't. Both lanes were completely full and he was moving right along, in his lane (there is no turn lane), at the same speed as the rest of traffic. He really should have hit me. I can't stop thinking about it. I shared it with my MOPS table this morning and Shanna leans over and says, "Barbara, you had an angel with you this morning. Most of the time, we never even notice...and you probably wouldn't have if you hadn't looked in your rear-view mirror. What a blessing to have witnessed." There is no other explaination for it. It's still giving me chills just thinking about it.
Last night, I remembered that it was my MOPS table's turn to bring breakfast this morning. I had signed up to bring a warm dish and some fruit. I went through my potluck cookbook while the kids were in the tub and asked Mike for his input (I tend to overthink things like this). I decided that I would just wing some egg and hashbrown dish (which also ended up having mushrooms, bacon and cheese...and turned out very tasty) and some fruit salad that has the marshmallows and fluff (who knew it had vinegar and eggs in it as well?), but had to go to the store to get the ingredients. While at WalMart, I remembered that I had to get something for my secret sister and decided to make her an Easter basket. However, I couldn't bring myself to get her an Easter card just yet, and my table found that very funny.
Anyway, on my way home, I noticed that it was not only incredibly windy, but snowing as well. I really need winter to end. Now. I need to get out and into my garden. But I digress...
This morning, I pop the egg casserole into the oven (I put everything together last night) and showered. I got the boys up and went through our normal morning routine. We left a little later than normal because I wasn't able to closely watch the time since the oven was on (we really need another clock in the house). Daniel's mad at me because I asked him to put his shoes on and don't I know that he's busy reading a book? I seriously never thought I'd have that problem. LOL! Anyway, we pile into the car and head to school.
The roads were fine, except for around certain corners where the sun hadn't been able to melt the ice that had accumulated last night. Luckily, I've driven this so many times that I'm pretty aware of the usual spots that get icy. Most of the time, I have to make a loop around the school to get into the carpool line. I turn onto the street before so that I don't have to turn around. Anyway, the car in front of me was doing the same thing, so we both slowed down on the main road to turn onto the side street. The intersection was heavily iced over, but I (and the car in front of me) could clearly see it and slowed more than usual (almost to a stop) to make the right onto the side street. Halfway through my turn, I looked in my rearview and I was more than a little amazed. The car behind me didn't slow at all (nor did it appear to swerve) and should have rear-ended me. Seriously. I can't see how he didn't. Both lanes were completely full and he was moving right along, in his lane (there is no turn lane), at the same speed as the rest of traffic. He really should have hit me. I can't stop thinking about it. I shared it with my MOPS table this morning and Shanna leans over and says, "Barbara, you had an angel with you this morning. Most of the time, we never even notice...and you probably wouldn't have if you hadn't looked in your rear-view mirror. What a blessing to have witnessed." There is no other explaination for it. It's still giving me chills just thinking about it.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
From Worst to First
Tonight was the Blue and Gold Banquet for our Cub Scout Pack. Both of our boys got their new ranks tonight...Jacob's officially a Bear Scout and Daniel's officially a Tiger Scout. It was a really big deal...there was a nice catered dinner, door prizes and a guy from a show called Mad Science who did a science show for the kids. They also announced who won the centerpiece contest. We (Den 6...Daniel's Den) were the only den that picked up on the Year of the Rat thing (everyone else did dragons) and ended up winning first place (out of 9 dens). So, Daniel's den won a pizza party at Chuck E Cheese...Mike and I won redemption from the Pinewood Derby! LOL! I suppose I can now add "maker of large papier mache rat" to my resume. Yep...I made the huge rat. I made the rat form out of flower foam and then put the papier mache on. The boys painted it all by themselves and then made the little rats that are around it. It was so cute. Now, we don't exactly know what to do with the rat. I don't have the heart to just pitch it. I'm sure we'll find something to do with it, though.
Jacob's den made a huge dragon, which they used when they walked in to give the invocation. Mike drew cariacatures of each of the boys in the den that are on the yellow spots on the dragon.
Jacob's den made a huge dragon, which they used when they walked in to give the invocation. Mike drew cariacatures of each of the boys in the den that are on the yellow spots on the dragon.
Jacob's den discusses how to set up the dragon.
Back of the dragon
Bonus points to anyone that can pick out Jacob just from the pants! LOL!
The Den 6 Pack Rats. Yep, that's papier mache...and I made that. I still can't believe I did it. The boys made the little rats all by themselves.
The Den 6 boys and their award
Chili Cook-Off and Fun Fest
Last night our synagogue held it's 11th Annual Chili Cook-Off and Fun Fest. Since we've never been to one before, we weren't sure what to expect. Jacob was worried that there would only be chili to eat (not a big chili eater) and that he'd have a horrible time. Needless to say, everyone had a blast. I figured we'd be there an hour or so and then head home. We ended up staying for almost the whole thing and only had to leave when Hannah freaked out because she was outbid for a Webkins basket in the silent auction (I was not going to pay $80 for a few stuffed animals...even if it was for a fundraiser).
I have to say that this was such a fun and interesting idea for a synagogue fundraiser. You get a few people to make some chili and sell some tickets for voting for a dollar. Then you get people to drop another few dollars for dinner. Then, sell some tickets for games for the kids. Meanwhile, set up a silent auction and put in a wine garden for the adults (it was strange walking around the synagogue with a glass of wine, though!). Viola! You've got a great fundraiser. I can't imagine how much work this must have been, though. They really utilized the youth group for the Fun Fest, and you could tell that they were having fun doing it.
When we first started tasting, I was very pleased to see that the chili with the chocolate in it was first up. Jacob really wanted to try the chocolate chili. After that, he tried almost all of them, even the one that was more like stew than chili. He and I agreed on the same chili as the winner, while Mike went for the chicken chili. I now have a chili eater, which is awesome since I tend to make it often and he never eats it. The other two would eat rocks if I told them they were food, so they chowed down through the line as well.
I must say that next year, I'm definately entering the chili cook-off. No doubt about it. What a great family evening. Here are some pictures (of course)...
Hannah, Daniel and Jacob try the chili
Is Jacob trying chili with corn and carrots in it? You betcha!
Hannah gets her face painted.
Jacob shows off a bead thing he made.
Daniel plays a form of dodgeball.
Daniel, Jacob and Hannah decorate graham crackers.
A youth group member shows Daniel how to make a special necklace.
I have to say that this was such a fun and interesting idea for a synagogue fundraiser. You get a few people to make some chili and sell some tickets for voting for a dollar. Then you get people to drop another few dollars for dinner. Then, sell some tickets for games for the kids. Meanwhile, set up a silent auction and put in a wine garden for the adults (it was strange walking around the synagogue with a glass of wine, though!). Viola! You've got a great fundraiser. I can't imagine how much work this must have been, though. They really utilized the youth group for the Fun Fest, and you could tell that they were having fun doing it.
When we first started tasting, I was very pleased to see that the chili with the chocolate in it was first up. Jacob really wanted to try the chocolate chili. After that, he tried almost all of them, even the one that was more like stew than chili. He and I agreed on the same chili as the winner, while Mike went for the chicken chili. I now have a chili eater, which is awesome since I tend to make it often and he never eats it. The other two would eat rocks if I told them they were food, so they chowed down through the line as well.
I must say that next year, I'm definately entering the chili cook-off. No doubt about it. What a great family evening. Here are some pictures (of course)...
Hannah, Daniel and Jacob try the chili
Is Jacob trying chili with corn and carrots in it? You betcha!
Hannah gets her face painted.
Jacob shows off a bead thing he made.
Daniel plays a form of dodgeball.
Daniel, Jacob and Hannah decorate graham crackers.
A youth group member shows Daniel how to make a special necklace.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Roundup and Other Thoughts...*Updated* (at the bottom)
I just found out that one of my new favorite series...Life...has been picked up for a second season. They won't shoot any new episodes for this season, but just knowing that it hasn't been cancelled is awesome!
*********
I woke up this morning to the sound of sleet hitting the window. I turned on the TV and our local NBC was running their version of the Today Show instead of the national one...that's never good since they usually only do that when it's really bad outside. Tons of schools are scrolling across the bottom, but not ours. I get the boys up and Jacob's crying that he doesn't feel well. I can't tell if it's that he just doesn't want to go to school or if he's really sick. I send him to school, telling him that I'll be there until 10:30 and if he still feels sick, I'll take him home then. He reluctantly agrees and I drop him and Daniel off at school.
The roads were terrible. Not just the side streets, but the main streets as well. If we ever really needed a snow day, today should really have been one but that's okay (we probably have over an inch of graupel on the ground on top of a layer of ice). Sleet is the most bizarre thing...it's just pouring out of the sky, even now. And, it's so darn cold out there. I'm so ready for winter to be over. Bring on Spring!
Anyway, we head to kindergarten roundup and Hannah's excited because she knows most of the teachers/paras that were there. Mrs. L (the reading para that worked with Daniel last year) walks Hannah into the library while I head down to the cafeteria.
Mrs. R, the principal's secretary, greets me there and tells me that this should be old hat by now. I laugh and begin filling out some paperwork. Katie from down the street comes in and sits by me, as well as Lynne, who's my MOPS table leader. Early on, Mrs. P (the school's wonderful counselor) comes in and reads some poem that sends me into tears. Lynne makes kind of a big deal about it and gives me a hug. Apparently, I'm the only one crying because all eyes are on me, which makes me laugh. At the end, I walk up to get Hannah's birth certificate and Melissa comes over to tell me that she's glad she wasn't the only one that cried. Since most eyes were on me and I was busy being embarassed, I didn't even notice that she was crying as well. Her kids are the exact same age as mine...Nicole's in Jacob's class, Michael is in Daniel's class and Katie goes to the same preschool as Hannah, so we've become friends.
I go up to get Hannah when I'm stopped by the speech therapist (probably the only support person in the school I haven't met). She tells me that she thinks Hannah needs to be screened and if we do it now (through the district), she'll be able to start working with Hannah from the first day of school. If we wait, then it'll be between 8-12 weeks from the first day of school before they can give support. I ask her if she can voice mail me the information on how to get her screened (because she really does need speech therapy, in my opinion) I get Hannah and ask her how roundup was for her. She tells me that she's set up about 5 playdates with her best friends (she has about 15 best friends) and that I need to call their moms. LOL. She's such a social butterfly.
I go into the office to see if Jacob's with the nurse. I don't see him, but I do see Mrs. H, the nurse. I ask her if she's seen Jacob today...she says no. Mrs. P comes around the corner and tells me that she saw Jacob this morning and he could hardly pick his head up off of his desk. Mrs. H says that she'll go get him if I want her to and I tell her to go ahead. I sign him out and suddenly, there's Jacob. Mrs. H tells me that he was already walking up to the office as she was walking back. Good timing. So, I have a doctor's appointment for him at 1:30 because there's so much going around here and I'm not going to wait to see if it gets worse. He's hardly gotten up off of the couch and has told me that he's dizzy when he does. Hopefully, it's nothing too bad.
*****Update...Just got back from the doctor...Jacob has strep again. His pediatrician told me that he's the first positive case she's had all week. At least it's not the flu. So, we'll be picking up antibiotics after picking up Daniel and Jacob gets another day off of school. He's not happy about that since he has Jump Rope for Heart and Chat 'n' Chew (book club) tomorrow. Maybe he'll get lucky and it'll be a snow day.
*********
I woke up this morning to the sound of sleet hitting the window. I turned on the TV and our local NBC was running their version of the Today Show instead of the national one...that's never good since they usually only do that when it's really bad outside. Tons of schools are scrolling across the bottom, but not ours. I get the boys up and Jacob's crying that he doesn't feel well. I can't tell if it's that he just doesn't want to go to school or if he's really sick. I send him to school, telling him that I'll be there until 10:30 and if he still feels sick, I'll take him home then. He reluctantly agrees and I drop him and Daniel off at school.
The roads were terrible. Not just the side streets, but the main streets as well. If we ever really needed a snow day, today should really have been one but that's okay (we probably have over an inch of graupel on the ground on top of a layer of ice). Sleet is the most bizarre thing...it's just pouring out of the sky, even now. And, it's so darn cold out there. I'm so ready for winter to be over. Bring on Spring!
Anyway, we head to kindergarten roundup and Hannah's excited because she knows most of the teachers/paras that were there. Mrs. L (the reading para that worked with Daniel last year) walks Hannah into the library while I head down to the cafeteria.
Mrs. R, the principal's secretary, greets me there and tells me that this should be old hat by now. I laugh and begin filling out some paperwork. Katie from down the street comes in and sits by me, as well as Lynne, who's my MOPS table leader. Early on, Mrs. P (the school's wonderful counselor) comes in and reads some poem that sends me into tears. Lynne makes kind of a big deal about it and gives me a hug. Apparently, I'm the only one crying because all eyes are on me, which makes me laugh. At the end, I walk up to get Hannah's birth certificate and Melissa comes over to tell me that she's glad she wasn't the only one that cried. Since most eyes were on me and I was busy being embarassed, I didn't even notice that she was crying as well. Her kids are the exact same age as mine...Nicole's in Jacob's class, Michael is in Daniel's class and Katie goes to the same preschool as Hannah, so we've become friends.
I go up to get Hannah when I'm stopped by the speech therapist (probably the only support person in the school I haven't met). She tells me that she thinks Hannah needs to be screened and if we do it now (through the district), she'll be able to start working with Hannah from the first day of school. If we wait, then it'll be between 8-12 weeks from the first day of school before they can give support. I ask her if she can voice mail me the information on how to get her screened (because she really does need speech therapy, in my opinion) I get Hannah and ask her how roundup was for her. She tells me that she's set up about 5 playdates with her best friends (she has about 15 best friends) and that I need to call their moms. LOL. She's such a social butterfly.
I go into the office to see if Jacob's with the nurse. I don't see him, but I do see Mrs. H, the nurse. I ask her if she's seen Jacob today...she says no. Mrs. P comes around the corner and tells me that she saw Jacob this morning and he could hardly pick his head up off of his desk. Mrs. H says that she'll go get him if I want her to and I tell her to go ahead. I sign him out and suddenly, there's Jacob. Mrs. H tells me that he was already walking up to the office as she was walking back. Good timing. So, I have a doctor's appointment for him at 1:30 because there's so much going around here and I'm not going to wait to see if it gets worse. He's hardly gotten up off of the couch and has told me that he's dizzy when he does. Hopefully, it's nothing too bad.
*****Update...Just got back from the doctor...Jacob has strep again. His pediatrician told me that he's the first positive case she's had all week. At least it's not the flu. So, we'll be picking up antibiotics after picking up Daniel and Jacob gets another day off of school. He's not happy about that since he has Jump Rope for Heart and Chat 'n' Chew (book club) tomorrow. Maybe he'll get lucky and it'll be a snow day.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
An Update...So Mike Will Get Off My Back...LOL!
I got a call from Mike this afternoon, gently reminding me that there's been no new posts since Saturday. It's just that it's pretty much been the same old...same old. But, I'm sure I can think of something.
Hannah has kindergarten roundup tomorrow. She's not nearly as excited as she was for the first go-round. I'm sure that once she gets there, she'll have a great time and won't stop talking about it for days. She was confused because she normally has gymnastics on Thursday mornings and she had it today instead (since she'll miss for roundup). It's always strange to go into another class...even with kids that are in the same class level. It was obvious that Hannah was a little further advanced than these kids, since Christy often used her as the example of what to do, but what was annoying was how plain rude some of these kids were. One girl kept asking just how many more of each thing she had to do (with sassy voice) and would only do that amount. Another girl kept telling others to get out of her way. More than once, Christy had to say something to these girls. I was never more happy to see a class be over than today.
Hannah has finally discovered Hannah Montana. I guess there are worse things she could be watching but I was kind of hoping that we'd completely miss this craze. She wants all of the CD's and has begged me to TiVo it for her. Still got my fingers crossed that we miss the whole High School Musical thing. So far, so good. LOL!
Bobbi sent us a digital photo frame for our anniversary and I've been having fun playing with it. I've uploaded about 50 pictures to it and they just cycle. The kids love looking at themselves. I already can't wait to take more pictures to put on there. Thanks Bobbi and Ed!
I had to open my mouth about helping Master Johnson do a newsletter for TKD. He absolutely took me up on the offer and now I'm just waiting for some content to put in it. I get to do this every month. Actually, I'm quite sure that I'll complain and whine about doing it, but I'm seriously happy to do it.
Jacob was invited to join Jett's summer baseball team and he decided that he wants to play. Just like in Virginia, they meet twice a week...once for practice and once for a game. I'll probably hate myself for signing him up since we'll be continuing TKD, but I think it'll be okay. At least Daniel doesn't want to play, too. LOL!
Hannah has kindergarten roundup tomorrow. She's not nearly as excited as she was for the first go-round. I'm sure that once she gets there, she'll have a great time and won't stop talking about it for days. She was confused because she normally has gymnastics on Thursday mornings and she had it today instead (since she'll miss for roundup). It's always strange to go into another class...even with kids that are in the same class level. It was obvious that Hannah was a little further advanced than these kids, since Christy often used her as the example of what to do, but what was annoying was how plain rude some of these kids were. One girl kept asking just how many more of each thing she had to do (with sassy voice) and would only do that amount. Another girl kept telling others to get out of her way. More than once, Christy had to say something to these girls. I was never more happy to see a class be over than today.
Hannah has finally discovered Hannah Montana. I guess there are worse things she could be watching but I was kind of hoping that we'd completely miss this craze. She wants all of the CD's and has begged me to TiVo it for her. Still got my fingers crossed that we miss the whole High School Musical thing. So far, so good. LOL!
Bobbi sent us a digital photo frame for our anniversary and I've been having fun playing with it. I've uploaded about 50 pictures to it and they just cycle. The kids love looking at themselves. I already can't wait to take more pictures to put on there. Thanks Bobbi and Ed!
I had to open my mouth about helping Master Johnson do a newsletter for TKD. He absolutely took me up on the offer and now I'm just waiting for some content to put in it. I get to do this every month. Actually, I'm quite sure that I'll complain and whine about doing it, but I'm seriously happy to do it.
Jacob was invited to join Jett's summer baseball team and he decided that he wants to play. Just like in Virginia, they meet twice a week...once for practice and once for a game. I'll probably hate myself for signing him up since we'll be continuing TKD, but I think it'll be okay. At least Daniel doesn't want to play, too. LOL!
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Happy Birthday Daniel and TKD Tournament
Last night Daniel had his birthday sleepover. Three little boys showed up (one was sick and couldn't make it). I was amazed at how well behaved everyone was. Aside from going to sleep around 1:30am, they were great kids. Unfortunately, I couldn't find my camera (I finally did this morning) so I didn't get many pictures, but I did get this one...
(l-r)Josh, Michael, Daniel and Ryan. It's hard to believe he's 7! Where has the time gone?
After the kids left this morning, we headed to the TKD tournament. It was just a small one, mostly for the kids in our school. It was cute. They got different medals for each event. Hannah went straight 3rd places, Jacob had 4 second places and a first and Daniel had 2 first, 2 seconds and 1 third place. They really enjoyed the board breaking, especially since they've never done it before and they're going to have to for their (the boys) next testing. Jacob was the only one in the first round to break his board...even Jett (almost a black belt) struggled to break his and didn't do so until the second round. He was pretty shocked about it.
Waiting to compete...Daniel, Quinn, Jacob, Brandon, Jett and Hannah
Master Johnson decided to surprise Daniel for his birthday. He took him in the back room to try to wake him up (he was sleepwalking through the first few events) and everyone met him at the door and sang Happy Birthday to him.
Daniel was very surprised.
And he loved it.
Hannah does her musical form.
(l-r)Josh, Michael, Daniel and Ryan. It's hard to believe he's 7! Where has the time gone?After the kids left this morning, we headed to the TKD tournament. It was just a small one, mostly for the kids in our school. It was cute. They got different medals for each event. Hannah went straight 3rd places, Jacob had 4 second places and a first and Daniel had 2 first, 2 seconds and 1 third place. They really enjoyed the board breaking, especially since they've never done it before and they're going to have to for their (the boys) next testing. Jacob was the only one in the first round to break his board...even Jett (almost a black belt) struggled to break his and didn't do so until the second round. He was pretty shocked about it.
Waiting to compete...Daniel, Quinn, Jacob, Brandon, Jett and Hannah
Master Johnson decided to surprise Daniel for his birthday. He took him in the back room to try to wake him up (he was sleepwalking through the first few events) and everyone met him at the door and sang Happy Birthday to him.
Daniel was very surprised.
And he loved it.
Hannah does her musical form.
Daniel's musical form
Jacob's musical form.
Daniel tries to break the board.
Jacob gets last minute advice from Master Johnson (standing in the back on left) before actually breaking his board.
Master Johnson holds the board for Hannah while Stephen talks her through it.
Mike (after already breaking a board with his hand), tries to break through two boards with his foot.
He makes it through both.
Posing for one big picture
Master Johnson writes on the board Jacob broke
And on Daniel's
And on Hannah's (hers says, "I may be a yellow belt now, but I will break you!!"
Tonight, we're going out to dinner with Stephen, Roxanne, Jett and Quinn to celebrate Daniel and Quinn's birthdays. Hopefully we can all stay awake through it!
So Sad
Tonight is Daniel's sleepover birthday party. About an hour before the guests were to arrive, Mike went down to change Bumper's cage litter and discovered he'd passed. We dug a hole in the yard and buried him and when we asked if the kids wanted to say anything, Jacob said, "come on guys, he's a pet. They die. Can I go in now?" Hannah just kept saying, "he was a good bunny." Indeed, he was. A very good bunny and a very good pet.
We'll miss you, Bumper. Hop along little guy.
We'll miss you, Bumper. Hop along little guy.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Okay...Random Post
Did anyone see Project Runway last night? I'm sad to see Sweet P go, but she just didn't step up her game. Christian is my favorite right now, followed by Chris. I really think they should have let Romy go...I'm so tired of the same thing over and over from him. He did make a beautiful dress, though. Can I just say that Jillian needs to stop making coats? They criticize Romy and Chris for doing the same thing over and over, but no one comments when Jillian makes yet another trench coat. I hope that Chris comes back and makes an outstanding line and sends Romy home. But, my bet's on Christian to win it all. He's fierce! LOL!
*******************************
Daniel...what can I say about my little guy? He's such an awesome kid and I'm so tired of these meetings at school. Granted, he can be a little high strung and he's kind of impulsive, but he's 6 (almost 7!) and aren't most boys his age that way? The school psychologist spent a whopping 20 minutes with him back in October (I wonder if he could pick him out of a crowd today) and can make a grand diagnosis. Yep...you got it. ADD. Not AD/HD, but ADD. He also says that Daniel has anxiety issues and is clinically depressed. What? I agree with the anxiety issues, but clinically depressed? Mrs. P, the school counselor ("I'm just a cheerleader," she tells me) tells me that she's concerned about Daniel's ability to be socially normal and then tells me that he has a ton of friends. They gave me a report from the Reading Specialist at the school and her assessment is that he's completely normal. She has no problems at all with him or his behavior. She says he's a great kid and that he's making great progress (he's at grade level or above in 3 of the 4 areas they test...he may be able to be removed from the reading program at the end of the year!). Mrs. P says, "of course we expect him to do well there, it's a small group setting...like 2 other kids." Mrs. H (Daniel's teacher) says, "no, he's one of 7 or 8 kids in there." I felt like she was looking for exceptions to the glowing report from Mrs. K, the Reading Specialist. At the end of it all, the school psycologist (I don't even know his name!) hands me the report and says that I can do with it what I want. I can tell you this much, I'm not medicating him so that he'll fit into their mold.
I vented a little at TKD with Stephen, Roxanne and Jim. They gave me some good suggestions (Stephen tells me, "child psychologists are wanna be psychiatrists that couldn't make it, or are too lazy to make it through school...I know because my dad is one."). Roxanne tells me that I should talk to Frank, a friend through TKD who is a psychologist at KU Medical Center. She says that he's great to talk to, if nothing else, but he should be able to steer us in the right direction. Jim tells me that we should have them start IEP (Individualized Education Plan) proceedings if they think he's got such problems. He went through something similar with his daughter and insisted upon it because it's essentially busy work for the staff. Lots of paperwork and it holds them accountable. I love that idea. Roxanne asked me how long it was going to be before she saw Daniel at their school (theirs is actually closer to us than the school we currently attend but we are not in their attendance zone). I told her that I seriously considered switching him, but I don't think that moving him would do him any good. I think it would be too hard on him and I certainly think that moving to this school contributed to his "problems" in the first place.
I've been doing a lot of research using the key words they gave me in the report. I've also talked a lot with Daniel (who does feel that he has a hard time staying on task). Since Daniel feels he needs some help, I'm going to do what I can to help him out. While I'm still going to talk to Frank to see what he says, some of my research says that some problem behavior and loss of concentration (ADD symptoms) can be attributed to dairy. Huh. Who knew? Seeing as I've had a few friends who've seen what changing a child's diet can do, I've decided to give the no dairy thing a try. If it helps, we'll continue, if not, we'll try something else. So, now I've got to figure out some new things. Luckily, most of the dairy in Daniel's diet comes from drinking milk and eating cheese (the omission of cheese is going to be really hard), so the easy switch has been to soy milk. The kids actually like it in their cereal better than regular milk. The really hard part is reading labels to find the hidden milk products. I do have to say that he had a much better morning than usual. I don't know how much of that is in my head or how much of that is real, but I do know he spilled his juice and didn't freak out. In fact, when Jacob was criticizing how Daniel was cleaning it up, Daniel stopped, looked at Jacob and said, "it was an accident and I'm fixing it, okay?" Those are not typical Daniel words. If this is the magic bullet, I'll be thrilled. Keep your fingers crossed for us!
*******************************
Daniel...what can I say about my little guy? He's such an awesome kid and I'm so tired of these meetings at school. Granted, he can be a little high strung and he's kind of impulsive, but he's 6 (almost 7!) and aren't most boys his age that way? The school psychologist spent a whopping 20 minutes with him back in October (I wonder if he could pick him out of a crowd today) and can make a grand diagnosis. Yep...you got it. ADD. Not AD/HD, but ADD. He also says that Daniel has anxiety issues and is clinically depressed. What? I agree with the anxiety issues, but clinically depressed? Mrs. P, the school counselor ("I'm just a cheerleader," she tells me) tells me that she's concerned about Daniel's ability to be socially normal and then tells me that he has a ton of friends. They gave me a report from the Reading Specialist at the school and her assessment is that he's completely normal. She has no problems at all with him or his behavior. She says he's a great kid and that he's making great progress (he's at grade level or above in 3 of the 4 areas they test...he may be able to be removed from the reading program at the end of the year!). Mrs. P says, "of course we expect him to do well there, it's a small group setting...like 2 other kids." Mrs. H (Daniel's teacher) says, "no, he's one of 7 or 8 kids in there." I felt like she was looking for exceptions to the glowing report from Mrs. K, the Reading Specialist. At the end of it all, the school psycologist (I don't even know his name!) hands me the report and says that I can do with it what I want. I can tell you this much, I'm not medicating him so that he'll fit into their mold.
I vented a little at TKD with Stephen, Roxanne and Jim. They gave me some good suggestions (Stephen tells me, "child psychologists are wanna be psychiatrists that couldn't make it, or are too lazy to make it through school...I know because my dad is one."). Roxanne tells me that I should talk to Frank, a friend through TKD who is a psychologist at KU Medical Center. She says that he's great to talk to, if nothing else, but he should be able to steer us in the right direction. Jim tells me that we should have them start IEP (Individualized Education Plan) proceedings if they think he's got such problems. He went through something similar with his daughter and insisted upon it because it's essentially busy work for the staff. Lots of paperwork and it holds them accountable. I love that idea. Roxanne asked me how long it was going to be before she saw Daniel at their school (theirs is actually closer to us than the school we currently attend but we are not in their attendance zone). I told her that I seriously considered switching him, but I don't think that moving him would do him any good. I think it would be too hard on him and I certainly think that moving to this school contributed to his "problems" in the first place.
I've been doing a lot of research using the key words they gave me in the report. I've also talked a lot with Daniel (who does feel that he has a hard time staying on task). Since Daniel feels he needs some help, I'm going to do what I can to help him out. While I'm still going to talk to Frank to see what he says, some of my research says that some problem behavior and loss of concentration (ADD symptoms) can be attributed to dairy. Huh. Who knew? Seeing as I've had a few friends who've seen what changing a child's diet can do, I've decided to give the no dairy thing a try. If it helps, we'll continue, if not, we'll try something else. So, now I've got to figure out some new things. Luckily, most of the dairy in Daniel's diet comes from drinking milk and eating cheese (the omission of cheese is going to be really hard), so the easy switch has been to soy milk. The kids actually like it in their cereal better than regular milk. The really hard part is reading labels to find the hidden milk products. I do have to say that he had a much better morning than usual. I don't know how much of that is in my head or how much of that is real, but I do know he spilled his juice and didn't freak out. In fact, when Jacob was criticizing how Daniel was cleaning it up, Daniel stopped, looked at Jacob and said, "it was an accident and I'm fixing it, okay?" Those are not typical Daniel words. If this is the magic bullet, I'll be thrilled. Keep your fingers crossed for us!
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Ugh!!!
Well, it's taken me 3 days, but it seems that I can finally log into Blogger. I couldn't even open my page let alone post. Blog withdrawl is not a beautiful thing.
Lots going on this week. The kids should get their new belts tomorrow instead of next Tuesday, so that they'll have them for photos and for the tournament on Saturday. Saturday...that's going to suck. Big time. Daniel's having his first sleep over on Friday night so I'll be shuffling kids out the front door so we can make it to TKD in time for the tournament Saturday morning. After that, Daniel has a follow-up den meeting to finish their centerpiece for the Blue and Gold banquet. Thank goodness it's a three day weekend.
I didn't know if I was coming or going yesterday. I dropped the kids off at school at 8:20, came home and got Hannah dressed for my MOPS meeting at 9. I got home around 11:45 and cleaned. At 2:15, I raced to Target to pick up supplies for the den meeting that was going to be at our house (which is why I cleaned) and made it to the school by 2:55 for the 3pm powwow between me, Daniel's teacher, the school COUNSELOR (she's not even a psychologist!!!!!!!) and the school's psychologist (whom I've never met, or even seen before.) We're talking about stuff that's over 4 months old...I'm not in the mood to get into this right now, so I'm going to drop it before I get myself all worked up. After the meeting, I picked up Daniel and we went to put gas in the car. We headed back to the school to pick up Jacob from math tutoring and then headed home for 45 minutes. Then it was TKD time and we headed there. Mike took Daniel home a little early because of the den meeting and I took Jacob and Hannah to pick out Valentine's cards for them to take to school. I was never so happy to see 9pm come as I was last night.
Today was a down day and I certainly needed that. I'm really looking forward to Friday when my MOPS table members and I get together...I'm quite sure that I'll be venting a lot there.
Anyway, I just thought I'd put in a quick post to let everyone know that we're still here. Oh...priceless quote from last night...
Mike (to the kids in Daniel's den): Okay everyone, since we couldn't do a radio station tour here, we're going to do one online. We're going to be looking at a radio station in Maine.
Daniel: Oh No! We're going to get lost!
Lots going on this week. The kids should get their new belts tomorrow instead of next Tuesday, so that they'll have them for photos and for the tournament on Saturday. Saturday...that's going to suck. Big time. Daniel's having his first sleep over on Friday night so I'll be shuffling kids out the front door so we can make it to TKD in time for the tournament Saturday morning. After that, Daniel has a follow-up den meeting to finish their centerpiece for the Blue and Gold banquet. Thank goodness it's a three day weekend.
I didn't know if I was coming or going yesterday. I dropped the kids off at school at 8:20, came home and got Hannah dressed for my MOPS meeting at 9. I got home around 11:45 and cleaned. At 2:15, I raced to Target to pick up supplies for the den meeting that was going to be at our house (which is why I cleaned) and made it to the school by 2:55 for the 3pm powwow between me, Daniel's teacher, the school COUNSELOR (she's not even a psychologist!!!!!!!) and the school's psychologist (whom I've never met, or even seen before.) We're talking about stuff that's over 4 months old...I'm not in the mood to get into this right now, so I'm going to drop it before I get myself all worked up. After the meeting, I picked up Daniel and we went to put gas in the car. We headed back to the school to pick up Jacob from math tutoring and then headed home for 45 minutes. Then it was TKD time and we headed there. Mike took Daniel home a little early because of the den meeting and I took Jacob and Hannah to pick out Valentine's cards for them to take to school. I was never so happy to see 9pm come as I was last night.
Today was a down day and I certainly needed that. I'm really looking forward to Friday when my MOPS table members and I get together...I'm quite sure that I'll be venting a lot there.
Anyway, I just thought I'd put in a quick post to let everyone know that we're still here. Oh...priceless quote from last night...
Mike (to the kids in Daniel's den): Okay everyone, since we couldn't do a radio station tour here, we're going to do one online. We're going to be looking at a radio station in Maine.
Daniel: Oh No! We're going to get lost!
Friday, February 08, 2008
Hannah's First TKD Testing...and 700th Post
700 posts...that's just crazy!
Mike wanted me to ask if anyone else lost the left side of my blog because he did and didn't know if it was just him.
Anyway, tonight Hannah had her very first belt testing. She was so excited and couldn't wait to go. When we got there, we had to wait a little bit because they had a Hap Ki Do (I want to learn that!) class going on. Once she got out there, I couldn't believe how well she did. She breezed through her form and did all of the up/downs that the instructor told her to (series of different kicks and punches). When it was time for her to do her one-steps, she had the full attention of Grandmaster Lee. He was really impressed with how many one-steps she knew (5 of 6...most young white belts only know 3) and with how well she did in general. Before she was dismissed, she was asked how old she is and she holds up 4 fingers. Grandmaster Lee looked shocked. Mrs. Lee told her to tell Master Johnson that he did a great job with her. She was beaming from ear to ear. I would be surprised if she didn't get a decided yellow and not a recommended yellow(the recommended is what Daniel got when he first started while Jacob got the decided).
Hannah gets ready to test.
Doing her form.
Mike wanted me to ask if anyone else lost the left side of my blog because he did and didn't know if it was just him.
Anyway, tonight Hannah had her very first belt testing. She was so excited and couldn't wait to go. When we got there, we had to wait a little bit because they had a Hap Ki Do (I want to learn that!) class going on. Once she got out there, I couldn't believe how well she did. She breezed through her form and did all of the up/downs that the instructor told her to (series of different kicks and punches). When it was time for her to do her one-steps, she had the full attention of Grandmaster Lee. He was really impressed with how many one-steps she knew (5 of 6...most young white belts only know 3) and with how well she did in general. Before she was dismissed, she was asked how old she is and she holds up 4 fingers. Grandmaster Lee looked shocked. Mrs. Lee told her to tell Master Johnson that he did a great job with her. She was beaming from ear to ear. I would be surprised if she didn't get a decided yellow and not a recommended yellow(the recommended is what Daniel got when he first started while Jacob got the decided).
Hannah gets ready to test.
Doing her form.
Doing her various punches and kicks.
Hannah does one-steps.
Punching for another white belt.
More one steps. I love how she's up on her tippy toes to reach above the other kid's head.
Mike does his one steps
Mike spars.
I Just Love Peyton Manning
This is more for Mike than anything else...I'd never seen these before. Pretty funny stuff.
Bad haircut?
Problems with your social life?
Of course, there are the classics...
Bothersome gut?
Bummed about driving a minivan?
Bad haircut?
Problems with your social life?
Of course, there are the classics...
Bothersome gut?
Bummed about driving a minivan?
Friday Coffee Talk
The snow day we had on Wednesday has really thrown me off. I completely forgot that yesterday was Daniel's 100th day of school (although with the snow day, I don't think it technically was) so I forgot to send his 100 Skittles to school with him. Apparently it was okay because he said Josh had a lot of extras and shared with Daniel. That was nice.
Hannah has not stopped talking about the fact that she missed kindergarten roundup. I keep telling her that she didn't miss it, it was just postponed. She would then scream, "I'm not going to get to go to kindergarten!" We went through this about 5 times yesterday (many more on Wednesday) and was thrilled when I got a voice mail from Mr. L, the principal, saying that it was rescheduled for two weeks from yesterday. Hannah still didn't quite get the concept, telling me that she'd have "kindergarten ride-up" today. Apparently, she told Roxanne from TKD that it is on Sunday. I can't wait until she gets the concept of time.
Speaking of Hannah, she and Mike are testing for TKD tonight. Hannah's very first testing cycle. Normally, she'd test tomorrow with the boys but with Mike caucusing tomorrow, we thought it would be easier for her to test tonight. That, and Mike will be able to see her test. We're not sure how Daniel will do tomorrow since Master Johnson told Mike that Daniel still has some work to do before Saturday. I will just be so happy when the boys move to the every other (or more) testing cycle. This time, they're testing for low blue...in April, they'll test for high blue (assuming they get their belt promotion)...in June they'll test for low brown...then they can't test again until October at the earliest. I get the impression that once you hit low brown, it takes about 6 months to get to the mid brown belt and then another six months or so after that to get high brown. I think it can take almost a year after that to get your black belt, so this is no quick and easy thing. I hope the kids stick with it. Getting that black belt is quite an accomplishment.
I got a phone call last night from Mrs. P, the school psychologist. She was making a "much overdue call regarding Daniel and the follow-up to what we began in September." Considering that all of the "test" results came back in early November, I'd say that it was, indeed, a much overdue call (almost 4 months). I think she sensed that I was annoyed (I actually laughed a little) and basically she just wanted to let us know about the progress Daniel has made in the classroom. You think he's made progress? Seriously, it's called he's getting older! Of course there's going to be progress in his attention span and behavior. It'll be interesting to see if this meeting actually happens since we've scheduled this thing twice before. I'll keep you posted.
Now, I have to figure out how to make a papier mache rat for Daniel's den centerpiece for the Blue and Gold Banquet. Wish me luck!
Hannah has not stopped talking about the fact that she missed kindergarten roundup. I keep telling her that she didn't miss it, it was just postponed. She would then scream, "I'm not going to get to go to kindergarten!" We went through this about 5 times yesterday (many more on Wednesday) and was thrilled when I got a voice mail from Mr. L, the principal, saying that it was rescheduled for two weeks from yesterday. Hannah still didn't quite get the concept, telling me that she'd have "kindergarten ride-up" today. Apparently, she told Roxanne from TKD that it is on Sunday. I can't wait until she gets the concept of time.
Speaking of Hannah, she and Mike are testing for TKD tonight. Hannah's very first testing cycle. Normally, she'd test tomorrow with the boys but with Mike caucusing tomorrow, we thought it would be easier for her to test tonight. That, and Mike will be able to see her test. We're not sure how Daniel will do tomorrow since Master Johnson told Mike that Daniel still has some work to do before Saturday. I will just be so happy when the boys move to the every other (or more) testing cycle. This time, they're testing for low blue...in April, they'll test for high blue (assuming they get their belt promotion)...in June they'll test for low brown...then they can't test again until October at the earliest. I get the impression that once you hit low brown, it takes about 6 months to get to the mid brown belt and then another six months or so after that to get high brown. I think it can take almost a year after that to get your black belt, so this is no quick and easy thing. I hope the kids stick with it. Getting that black belt is quite an accomplishment.
I got a phone call last night from Mrs. P, the school psychologist. She was making a "much overdue call regarding Daniel and the follow-up to what we began in September." Considering that all of the "test" results came back in early November, I'd say that it was, indeed, a much overdue call (almost 4 months). I think she sensed that I was annoyed (I actually laughed a little) and basically she just wanted to let us know about the progress Daniel has made in the classroom. You think he's made progress? Seriously, it's called he's getting older! Of course there's going to be progress in his attention span and behavior. It'll be interesting to see if this meeting actually happens since we've scheduled this thing twice before. I'll keep you posted.
Now, I have to figure out how to make a papier mache rat for Daniel's den centerpiece for the Blue and Gold Banquet. Wish me luck!
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Snow Day
Well, we got one. Another snow day. I'm thinking that it's not because of the snow because we only got 2 inches or so (just north of us got 8+ inches). It rained/sleeted all day yesterday and I'm sure it froze under all that snow. I haven't talked to Mike to see how his ride into work was, but I'm sure it wasn't fun. It's all blowing around now, so there's very little in the driveway and I'm sure that if I tried to shovel it, more would just blow in. So I'm just going to leave it and see what happens. The road in front of our house is completely covered and it doesn't look like many have decided to go out. I know that I don't have any plans to go anywhere today.
Hannah's mad about the snow day because she was scheduled to have her Kindergarten Roundup this morning (can you believe that? Hannah in kindergarten!). She was so excited about "going to kindergarten" and now she thinks she's never going to get to go. I keep telling her that I know that they'll reschedule it and that she'll get to go on another day but she doesn't believe me.
Daniel lost another tooth yesterday and was more than excited to find out that the Tooth Fairy had visited him (despite the threats of sending an e-mail to her telling her not to come because he wouldn't go to sleep). The Tooth Fairy almost forgot about it (it's happened before) but remembered in the nick of time. So I was woken up this morning by Daniel, baggie with a dollar in it in hand, letting me know that he loves the Tooth Fairy. He's too cute.
So, that's about it from the Frozen Tundra. Man, it's cold outside. The bright side is that I have a pot of chicken soup on the stove and if I can find some yeast, I'll be making a challah later. It seems like we eat chicken soup a lot. Okay, so we do. LOL!
Hannah's mad about the snow day because she was scheduled to have her Kindergarten Roundup this morning (can you believe that? Hannah in kindergarten!). She was so excited about "going to kindergarten" and now she thinks she's never going to get to go. I keep telling her that I know that they'll reschedule it and that she'll get to go on another day but she doesn't believe me.
Daniel lost another tooth yesterday and was more than excited to find out that the Tooth Fairy had visited him (despite the threats of sending an e-mail to her telling her not to come because he wouldn't go to sleep). The Tooth Fairy almost forgot about it (it's happened before) but remembered in the nick of time. So I was woken up this morning by Daniel, baggie with a dollar in it in hand, letting me know that he loves the Tooth Fairy. He's too cute.
So, that's about it from the Frozen Tundra. Man, it's cold outside. The bright side is that I have a pot of chicken soup on the stove and if I can find some yeast, I'll be making a challah later. It seems like we eat chicken soup a lot. Okay, so we do. LOL!
Monday, February 04, 2008
Here We Go Again...
Will it materialize this time? I'm not counting on it. At least it's in the 70's today. I've got all of the windows open wide!
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE: Johnson (Kansas)
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO222 PM CST MON FEB 4 2008...
SIGNIFICANT WINTER STORM POSSIBLE OVER NORTHERN MISSOURI ANDEASTERN KANSAS TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING....A POWERFUL UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM WILL LIFT FROM SOUTHERN KANSASTHOUGH MISSOURI AND ILLINOIS LATE TUESDAY INTO WEDNESDAY. A COLDFRONT WILL HAVE PASSED BY THE REGION TONIGHT...ENSURING THATTEMPERATURES WILL BE AT OR BELOW FREEZING AS THIS STORM APPROACHES.AT THE SAME TIME...AN UNSEASONABLY MOIST AIRMASS SOUTH OF THE COLDFRONT WILL SURGE OVER TOP OF THE COLD AIR TO THE NORTH. CONDITIONSARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY FAVORABLE FOR MODERATE TO SIGNIFICANT SNOWACCUMULATIONS ACROSS A LARGE PORTION OF KANSAS... NORTHERN MISSOURITUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING...WITH THE POTENTIAL FORMORE THAN SIX INCHES OF SNOW ACCUMULATION. IN ADDITION...BEFORE THEHEAVIER SNOWFALL MATERIALIZES...THE POTENTIAL FOR A PERIOD OFFREEZING RAIN OR DRIZZLE...AS WELL AS ACCUMULATING SLEET EXISTS OVERMOST OF THE WATCH AREA.
KSZ057-060-103>105-MOZ021-022-028>032-037>039-043-044-050615-/O.EXB.KEAX.WS.A.0002.080205T2100Z-080206T1200Z/
MIAMI-LINN KS-LEAVENWORTH-WYANDOTTE-JOHNSON KS-CLINTON-CALDWELL-PLATTE-CLAY-RAY-CARROLL-CHARITON-JACKSON-LAFAYETTE-SALINE-CASS-JOHNSON MO-INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...PAOLA...MOUND CITY...LEAVENWORTH...KANSAS CITY KS...OVERLAND PARK...OLATHE...PLATTSBURG...KINGSTON...HAMILTON...POLO...PARKVILLE...PLATTE CITY...WESTON...LIBERTY...EXCELSIOR SPRINGS...RICHMOND...CARROLLTON...SALISBURY...KEYTESVILLE...KANSAS CITY...INDEPENDENCE...LEXINGTON...CONCORDIA...MARSHALL...RAYMORE...
HARRISONVILLE...PLEASANT HILL...WARRENSBURG
222 PM CST MON FEB 4 2008...WINTER STORM WATCH IN EFFECT FROM TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGHLATE TUESDAY NIGHT...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PLEASANT HILL HAS ISSUED A WINTERSTORM WATCH...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGHLATE TUESDAY NIGHT.A MIXTURE OF LIGHT SNOW...FREEZING DRIZZLE...AND SLEET WILL BEPOSSIBLE ACROSS THE REGION TUESDAY AFTERNOON IN THE WAKE OF APASSING COLD FRONT. LATER IN THE DAY...A BAND OF SNOW IS EXPECTED TOOVERSPREAD NORTHWEST MISSOURI AND ADJACENT EASTERN KANSAS...WITH SNOWBECOMING MODERATE TO HEAVY AT TIMES DURING THE EVENING HOURS. ARUMBLE OR TWO OF THUNDER CANNOT BE RULED OUT EITHER.MODERATE TO SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS...POSSIBLY EXCEEDINGSIX INCHES...ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE WATCH AREA BEFORE ENDING BYDAYBREAK WEDNESDAY.A WINTER STORM WATCH MEANS THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR SIGNIFICANTSNOW...SLEET OR ICE ACCUMULATIONS THAT MAY IMPACT TRAVEL. CONTINUE TOMONITOR THE LATEST FORECASTS AND STATEMENTS.$$
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE: Johnson (Kansas)
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO222 PM CST MON FEB 4 2008...
SIGNIFICANT WINTER STORM POSSIBLE OVER NORTHERN MISSOURI ANDEASTERN KANSAS TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING....A POWERFUL UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM WILL LIFT FROM SOUTHERN KANSASTHOUGH MISSOURI AND ILLINOIS LATE TUESDAY INTO WEDNESDAY. A COLDFRONT WILL HAVE PASSED BY THE REGION TONIGHT...ENSURING THATTEMPERATURES WILL BE AT OR BELOW FREEZING AS THIS STORM APPROACHES.AT THE SAME TIME...AN UNSEASONABLY MOIST AIRMASS SOUTH OF THE COLDFRONT WILL SURGE OVER TOP OF THE COLD AIR TO THE NORTH. CONDITIONSARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY FAVORABLE FOR MODERATE TO SIGNIFICANT SNOWACCUMULATIONS ACROSS A LARGE PORTION OF KANSAS... NORTHERN MISSOURITUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING...WITH THE POTENTIAL FORMORE THAN SIX INCHES OF SNOW ACCUMULATION. IN ADDITION...BEFORE THEHEAVIER SNOWFALL MATERIALIZES...THE POTENTIAL FOR A PERIOD OFFREEZING RAIN OR DRIZZLE...AS WELL AS ACCUMULATING SLEET EXISTS OVERMOST OF THE WATCH AREA.
KSZ057-060-103>105-MOZ021-022-028>032-037>039-043-044-050615-/O.EXB.KEAX.WS.A.0002.080205T2100Z-080206T1200Z/
MIAMI-LINN KS-LEAVENWORTH-WYANDOTTE-JOHNSON KS-CLINTON-CALDWELL-PLATTE-CLAY-RAY-CARROLL-CHARITON-JACKSON-LAFAYETTE-SALINE-CASS-JOHNSON MO-INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...PAOLA...MOUND CITY...LEAVENWORTH...KANSAS CITY KS...OVERLAND PARK...OLATHE...PLATTSBURG...KINGSTON...HAMILTON...POLO...PARKVILLE...PLATTE CITY...WESTON...LIBERTY...EXCELSIOR SPRINGS...RICHMOND...CARROLLTON...SALISBURY...KEYTESVILLE...KANSAS CITY...INDEPENDENCE...LEXINGTON...CONCORDIA...MARSHALL...RAYMORE...
HARRISONVILLE...PLEASANT HILL...WARRENSBURG
222 PM CST MON FEB 4 2008...WINTER STORM WATCH IN EFFECT FROM TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGHLATE TUESDAY NIGHT...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PLEASANT HILL HAS ISSUED A WINTERSTORM WATCH...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGHLATE TUESDAY NIGHT.A MIXTURE OF LIGHT SNOW...FREEZING DRIZZLE...AND SLEET WILL BEPOSSIBLE ACROSS THE REGION TUESDAY AFTERNOON IN THE WAKE OF APASSING COLD FRONT. LATER IN THE DAY...A BAND OF SNOW IS EXPECTED TOOVERSPREAD NORTHWEST MISSOURI AND ADJACENT EASTERN KANSAS...WITH SNOWBECOMING MODERATE TO HEAVY AT TIMES DURING THE EVENING HOURS. ARUMBLE OR TWO OF THUNDER CANNOT BE RULED OUT EITHER.MODERATE TO SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS...POSSIBLY EXCEEDINGSIX INCHES...ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE WATCH AREA BEFORE ENDING BYDAYBREAK WEDNESDAY.A WINTER STORM WATCH MEANS THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR SIGNIFICANTSNOW...SLEET OR ICE ACCUMULATIONS THAT MAY IMPACT TRAVEL. CONTINUE TOMONITOR THE LATEST FORECASTS AND STATEMENTS.$$
Sunday, February 03, 2008
Super Bowl Favorites
Okay, so we're not even close to halfway through the Super Bowl but I thought I'd list my favorite commercials so far.
#1 Talking Stain. This just kills me! (ignore the beginning bit...the commercial comes on at about the 20 second mark)
#2 Audi commercial...just because it had a Godfather theme. I seriously thought that Mike had turned the channel and he thought I was tricking him. He turns "back" to Fox and it's the same thing. Pretty funny.
Also funny was the Terminator breaking through the wall and beating up the Fox football guy. The best part was when he leans down and looks into the camera.
#1 Talking Stain. This just kills me! (ignore the beginning bit...the commercial comes on at about the 20 second mark)
#2 Audi commercial...just because it had a Godfather theme. I seriously thought that Mike had turned the channel and he thought I was tricking him. He turns "back" to Fox and it's the same thing. Pretty funny.
Also funny was the Terminator breaking through the wall and beating up the Fox football guy. The best part was when he leans down and looks into the camera.
Lazy Weekend
This is the first one of these that we've had in a while. The kids didn't even get dressed yesterday, which they thought was really funny.
We took the kids to Sunday School this morning and Hannah had to dress up for the Pre-K Pre-Purim Ball at the JCC (say that three times fast! LOL!) They asked the kids to arrive in costume so Hannah was dressed like a princess...crown and all. We were sitting eating our bagels when Marcia (the Education Director for the synagogue) comes over to say hello. She looks at Hannah and says, "my goodness, Hannah! Don't you look beautiful this morning? Did you just feel like being a princess this morning?" I look at Marcia and say, "Ummm...wasn't she supposed to dress up today?" She slaps her hand to her head and says, "That's right! You're going to the Ball! Of course you are supposed to dress up! And you look great!" Then, she takes off. A little later, I run into Rabbi Vared (she has a daughter that's in Hannah's pre-k class) and she tells Hannah that she looks great and that Ellie (her daughter) has a very similar costume. I tell her about my conversation with Marcia and she laughs hysterically. She tells me that Marcia probably just had a long weekend.
After Family Service, I drop Jacob and Daniel off at their classrooms (Mike had taken Hannah to the JCC for her Ball) and I head to the store because we invited some friends over to watch the Super Bowl tonight and I needed to get some snacks. There had been some rumbles of thunder during the Family Service so I expected it to be raining when I walked out. I hadn't expected the sleet and hail that we were getting. I didn't mind so much, though, because I love thunderstorms and one this early in February is unusual.
After Sunday School, we come home and put away the groceries and finish cleaning the house. For the first time in a while, all three levels are nice and clean...vacuumed, mopped, and just clean. When I was all done, I pulled a message from Jim (from the family that was coming over) off the machine. Sorry, most of us are sick and won't be able to come over. Can we do something next weekend? Daniel starts screaming that we "cleaned for nothing." I told him that, no, the house is nice and clean for us.
Actually, I'm not all that upset that they aren't coming. The house has needed to be deep cleaned for some time now and now it is. I'm really not in the mood for entertaining this evening and now I don't have to. We're going to kick back, watch some Puppy Bowl on Animal Planet and stuff ourselves with snacks. Hopefully, another thunderstorm rolls through this evening. That would be awesome.
We took the kids to Sunday School this morning and Hannah had to dress up for the Pre-K Pre-Purim Ball at the JCC (say that three times fast! LOL!) They asked the kids to arrive in costume so Hannah was dressed like a princess...crown and all. We were sitting eating our bagels when Marcia (the Education Director for the synagogue) comes over to say hello. She looks at Hannah and says, "my goodness, Hannah! Don't you look beautiful this morning? Did you just feel like being a princess this morning?" I look at Marcia and say, "Ummm...wasn't she supposed to dress up today?" She slaps her hand to her head and says, "That's right! You're going to the Ball! Of course you are supposed to dress up! And you look great!" Then, she takes off. A little later, I run into Rabbi Vared (she has a daughter that's in Hannah's pre-k class) and she tells Hannah that she looks great and that Ellie (her daughter) has a very similar costume. I tell her about my conversation with Marcia and she laughs hysterically. She tells me that Marcia probably just had a long weekend.
After Family Service, I drop Jacob and Daniel off at their classrooms (Mike had taken Hannah to the JCC for her Ball) and I head to the store because we invited some friends over to watch the Super Bowl tonight and I needed to get some snacks. There had been some rumbles of thunder during the Family Service so I expected it to be raining when I walked out. I hadn't expected the sleet and hail that we were getting. I didn't mind so much, though, because I love thunderstorms and one this early in February is unusual.
After Sunday School, we come home and put away the groceries and finish cleaning the house. For the first time in a while, all three levels are nice and clean...vacuumed, mopped, and just clean. When I was all done, I pulled a message from Jim (from the family that was coming over) off the machine. Sorry, most of us are sick and won't be able to come over. Can we do something next weekend? Daniel starts screaming that we "cleaned for nothing." I told him that, no, the house is nice and clean for us.
Actually, I'm not all that upset that they aren't coming. The house has needed to be deep cleaned for some time now and now it is. I'm really not in the mood for entertaining this evening and now I don't have to. We're going to kick back, watch some Puppy Bowl on Animal Planet and stuff ourselves with snacks. Hopefully, another thunderstorm rolls through this evening. That would be awesome.
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