An Ending and a Beginning

Today is Aedan's official last day at preschool. He'll go back on occasion but today he is a preschooler and the next time he shows up he's considered a *camper*. It is so bittersweet. Come Monday he'll be what we refer to as a *Big Kid* . I get butterflies in my stomach when I think of his 1st day of Kindergarten. I think about the nervousness he'll have walking into his classroom for the 1st time without me. I can tell he's nervous. He has this unsure look in his eyes when you mention it and then he gets that look like he's on the verge of tears. I know that look well and I hate it. I have been doing my best to talk it up and make sure he knows its supposed to be a fun time. From the bus ride to the playground right outside. His classroom is seriously cool. His teacher loves being a K teacher and has been for 18 years, 11 at this particular school. She is currently in the middle of earning her masters degree. She has a such a wonderful attitude and I am glad Aedan got her for his 1st teacher. The first week is only 4 days long as is the 2nd week due to the Labor Day holiday. We have pictures, market day, and an Ice Cream social in those 2 weeks. And We also have the pond installation to look forward to in the outdoor classroom. Here are the plans. outdoor classroom plan

Everything is so exciting and new and confusing at the same time. The confusing part is mine. All mine. Between all the forms I filled out for registration, the ones we got the other night to fill out and the ones I will get Monday night to fill out I am about knee deep in paper. And they are going green so that's not even 1/2 the paperwork we'd normally have.

I'm just hoping that we can all settle into the new routine quickly and without too much drama.. but knowing my family, there will be plenty of drama. So here's to the end of preschool and an exciting new beginning to big kid school.

Are you serious?

I was stunned. Speechless. Dumbfounded.

I have a health assessment paper that I need filled out for the day care that Aedan will be spending his mornings at once Kindergarten starts. I lost the sheet for a bit so now I'm scrambling to get it done by Monday.

I know there is a $2 processing fee. So I call the office to see if can fax the form over and simply pay the $2 when I pick up the forms.

"NO." Wait.. What ? "No. We have to have the $2 before we can fill the forms out." Um.. Are you serious? "Yes."

I proceed to hang up, stir from my stupor,and mutter expletives that shouldn't be posted here as steam shoots from my ears.

The Countdown to Kindergarten

The first day of school is just about a week and a half away. I think I'm more nervous than the boy. I just keep running the day over in my head and thinking about how I'd feel. I'm a grown woman so I can handle it.. kinda. I know he's nervous even though he doesn't put it out there for everyone to see. I'm just hoping his 1st day is the most exciting day ever for him :)

Double Standard

OK.. I need to get this off my chest.
The Eagles signed Michael Vick. Everyone that could care less is hooting and hollering that he did his time and he should get a second chance etc. How about I toss a few tid-bits their way. Michael Vick was making $$$ hand over fist with his little operation and only regrets it because he was caught. Statistics show that most of the more obscene and heinous criminals started out abusing animals.

So I pose this question. If it's true that he did his time and should have a second chance why not all criminals. For example. That Sexual predator that likes to video tape himself sexually assaulting young children. Why not give him a second chance .. hell why not let him get a job at YOUR child's school ? I mean as far as you're concerned everyone deserves a second chance and he was sorry (he got caught) so why not let the predator have the job as a janitor at a day care center?? or to coach your kid's football team?

No you say ?? Well why the hell not?!?! I mean everyone deserves a second chance right??

Screw second chances. Lock their asses up if they hurt or murder people and animals.. or better yet.. zap their asses and toss them into a landfill. That's what they do to most of their prey.

I have no patience for all of you that find football and winning more important than a human or animal's life. Shame on you.

Walking for the Cause

I have signed up to walk in the Race For Hope on November 1st. Race for Hope
And also the Purple Stride walk on November 7th. Purple Stride

Both are super worthy causes to get me off my ass and moving. And at the same time raise money and awareness for Brain Tumors and Pancreatic cancer.

I've never done this type of thing before so I'm just hoping I can make the 5 K. hahaha...

Flash Back

I got a serious flashback to my teens and early 20's when I got out of the shower yesterday and saw a huge ass hickey on my neck. In a split second I cold see the steam shooting from my ears and I flew into our bedroom where my loving husband, the offender in this case, was sleeping in due to some medical testing he had appointments for. I said "look at this! WTF !?! " He chuckled and said .. "put some makeup on it" Yeah sure.. the person who rarely wears makeup and ceratinly doesn't own any foundation that isn't expired shold put some makeup on it... Ass..

So as a result I was tormented at work.. one co-worker didn't say anything because she thought maybe I had a skin condition.. then proceeded to post it in her status on FB..

It's all fun and games til someone gets a hickey.

Sharks... um.. no.

We picked up our sharks and 2 fish for Chloe. All 4 are semi-aggressive and their names sound vicious. That's about the only scary things about them. The Bala Sharks are technically NOT sharks.. they are large minnows that have fins like sharks, thus the name. And the Tiger Barb are called that because they are striped in orange and black like tigers.

I wish the Man and the Boy did a little research before picking. Everything I'm reading says that the bala sharks need at least a 55 gallon tank.. yeah .. our 5 gallon might not cut it.

I'll be one of those poor souls that has a reptile too large to keep that lets it loose into the sewer system and it terrorizes the neighborhood til animal control comes and captures the thing. Just great..

The hamster (I've downgraded my wishlist from the guinea pig) is looking better and better.

A cuddly companion? I think not.

Before vacation while shopping at Petco for yet another snail to clean Dip & Dots' (frogs courtesy of the OC boardwalk) cube aquarium Jim and the Boy came across sharks. Small freshwater sharks. So Jim tells him that after vacation we can pull out the aquarium we have from our last foray with aquatic pets and set it up for the sharks.

This past Sunday we head to Petco to get the sharks. We have to pass the furry little rodent pets on the way to the back. So we stop and I check out all the ferrets and hamsters and bunnies and rats.. and I come to the Guinea pigs. Oh how I want A GP. A super cute little furry guy that I can cuddle and squeeze and not have to walk in the rain. Oh how I love the twitchy little face. So I think I finally have Jim caving. I want to wait a bit and keep going over things in my head so I'm sure .. really sure. But I am getting excited at just the thought of that little rascal running through the house in an exercise ball..

Back to the sharks.

Found them and another AGGRESSIVE fish to put in there, that is slightly cute and won't get eaten by the sharks, for Chloe to call her very own. Spoke with the Petco person and found out we need to set up the tank for at least 48 hours running the filter before we could drop those bad boys in there. So we browse the fancy tanks and stands and rocks etc. If we don't manage to kill these off too soon we may just invest the $$ and put a large tank with a stand in the corner where the Littlest Midget has her high chair currently. That's going as soon as I can get to my Dad's and get our extra chair. :)

So tonite is pick up the sharks night. Send me some willpower so I can refrain from snatching up the black and white GP I saw on Sunday that I want to name Flower.

Some Cheese with that Whine ?

I can't remember the Boy doing this or maybe I simply blocked it out because it was so traumatic to me. The whining and moaning and screaming and tantrums literally drive me to drink. The 3 year old has hit a stage that I cannot mentally handle. I snap after a while. Not a proud moment and I'm doing my best to keep my wits about me in these trying times. But Gooollllyyyy.. she can reduce a sane person to a drooling jittery mess in a matter of seconds with her whining and screeching.

Pleas let this be a short phase.. because neither one of us may make it through.

Loyalty be damned

Backstory.. with the flooding downpours last weekend our Daycare was under water. It took all week to get back up and running.

In the interim the kids spent their days in another branch of the DC. A bigger.. much nicer branch. All 3 kids LOVE it. So much so I'm considering moving them (the girls) to the bigger center after Aedan starts Kindergarten. I wonder if they would be as happy without their transplanted friends with them? And in addition to their happiness I feel very disloyal (is that a word?) to the teachers at our current center. They love my kids and they really are easygoing when it comes to certain rules.. but still the size and the perks at our temp center are to die for... bigger and better outside playground, larger classrooms... Chic-fil-a on Fridays . yum.

So many decisions. I suppose I can wait and see how things are when we get back on Monday.

Paging Dr. Rizzi

Alexa's tube Surgery went off without a hitch. Well except the part where they told us to be in Philly at 6:15 am. And the she wasn't rolled back to the ER til 9 am. She made out fine and was only gone for about 15 minutes.. Dr. Rizzi called me on the waiting room phone to tell me how she did. And 2 minutes later we joined her in recovery.

The funny part, that I actually felt a little bad about laughing about in retrospect, was how she was after they gave her the *giggle juice*. In lay terms.. a sedative to keep her from freaking out when they took her away from us. Ten minutes after they gave it to her she was happy as can be. She was overly friendly to the anesthesiologist which is not her at all.. she follows the Stranger Danger Rule to the nth degree. She was laughing and rolling around on the gurney like a drunk and high little midget. I so wish I had a video camera so I could have taped it to view when she was 21.

Hopefully this will be the end of the torturous ear infections and subsequent seizure. Let's all hope so.

The Latest and Greatest

Haven't updated in over a week due to vacation. :)
Vacation was fun and extremely exhausting. I now need a vacation away from the man and the midgets. Too bad I have a job otherwise I might be on a plane today headed someplace warm and relaxing. :)

Short version. We hit the beach everyday. Aedan loved it sand and water. Chloe loved the sand and a little water. She'd venture in up to her knees. Alexa loved only the sand ... screamed bloody murder if her toes even hit the wet sand let alone the water.

Ate way too many goodies and hit the boardwalk in Ocean City 3 times. All 3 kids enjoyed riding the rides and I even braved a few bigger ones much to the Man's surprise.. I'll never get on one of them again... but hey .. I did it without throwing up.

Alexa took a dive down the wood stairs. and luckily my niece caught her about 6 steps down so she had a fat lip and a bump on her head. No concussion thank goodness.

Brother in law is doing better and will hopefully be moved to Rehab today. We continue to pray and hope for the best for him and the whole family.

While on vacation the Man's Dr. called and left a message that they would like to schedule follow up tests from the CT Scan he had back in May. Of course my thought run straight to the negative. He called today and they saw a lesion on his liver too small to diagnose. So he goes next week to have an ultrasound so they can check the lesion and see what it's all about. Worrying here as I always do.

Last night we got a call from Daycare. The facility got flooded with about an inch of water from the horrid rainstorms we had. So no DC for them. I called and enlisted my niece to babysit today and tomorrow also. We have tube surgery for the Littlest Midget tomorrow. My biggest fear is that she will wake up overnight and want a bottle of milk and I won't be able to give it to her. So I pray she gets the 1st appointment for surgery and won't have to fast more than a couple hours.

I think that's it for now.