Summer projects!

Summer has officially begun for us now that I am off school so Kelly and I have started our summer projects. This year things are very different for a few reasons. Of course, Bean is the biggest change in our life. We are so excited to be spending our first summer with her. Our second big change this year is that Kelly will leave in July, so he will not be around to help with things after that. He is actually hoping to have all his big projects completed by the end of June so that he can enjoy a few weeks around here without things hanging over his head. Both of these things have thrown a loop in all we are used to.

Kelly and I are both very outdoor-sy, if you didn't know. I have a garden that is very large and usually feeds us through the winter with many things. Kelly has a tractor that NOBODY thinks he truly needs on our little piece of property, but he does put it to good use around our house and on our long private road. This year, we knew we had to make some changes.

The garden is still as big as always, with 4 kinds of squash, cantalope, onions, garlic, strawberries, green beans, tomatoes, 3 kinds of peppers, 2 kinds of cucumbers, tomatillos, fresh herbs and corn. However, we turned a portion of it into a community garden of sorts. Our neighbor Don planted peas, beans, corn and tomatoes in the last 6 rows. And our friend Rosi planted pumpkin, peppers and tomatoes in another row. It's great because it really fills out the garden. They have also offered to "bean sit" whenever the garden needs weeding, which I truly appreciate.

Kelly didn't have too many options for his projects. He had to repair some damage to our property, mainly our retaining wall. This was demolished when the sewer was put in and our hill was running down Don's hill, which wasn't good. We also needed storage space, hence the tremendous barn project. This past weekend Kelly worked on the wall, and almost finished it! Our goal is to eventually tear out the existing upper deck that is slowly sinking into the ground and replace it with patio and a retaining wall. His work this weekend showed us that it is possible, once we have the money and time.

The garden... well, we shall see how it fares. So far only the strawberries have come in and Bean hasn't let me pick them too quickly. (she won't even sit still for that too long.) As for picking tomatoes once a week and then spending all day canning them, we shall see if that happens at all. If it doesn't, they do freeze very easily. Or, if that doesn't work, we do compost quite a bit. It's all a learning experience isn't it! We still love you Bean, and wouldn't trade you for ANYTHING!

Next school year

As some of you know, I was called to the Coop office Tuesday for a meeting with the boss. Basically she offered me a position at an Elementary school in Washington, which is about 30 minutes away and in the opposite direction from our baby sitter. Actually, she offered it, then recinded her offer, then offered it again. I will have to get an additional category on my license, but she assures me I can do this online through West Virginia University. Another teacher in the Coop just did it. It isn't ideal, but it is full time and it will have retirement benefits and all the bells and whistles of a REAL job. I will miss the Preschool terribly, but this position is also an established classroom with 2 experienced aides, so I won't have to reinvent the wheel like I did last year. I am excited and nervous and a little disappointed that I am not going to somewhere that I know. But, it will be a good thing, right?
As for our little Bean, she is great. She has been riding around on my back most of today which she loved. I, of course, am beat. Hope everyone out there is well.

Growing up!

I am sure not the last time Kelly and I will think this, but Jenna is getting so big already. She started eating solid foods at 4 months old and now she has just gotten so good at it, she might not need us anymore:-) (okay, not that good)

She eats solid foods at least once a day, I try and feed her solids twice a day, but it depends. Her favorite food is sweet potato, but she also loves peas, green beans, and oatmeal. She isn't a big fan of banana baby food strangely enough, but she will eat it. We haven't tried real bananas yet. I bought some that need to ripen little more before we can try it. She also didn't like the strawberry, apple combination. She does like applesauce alone or in her oatmeal.

Figuring out when to give her food was a challenge. We started with dinner because that was when I was home from work, and it just seemed like we had the most time then. It worked well, so she gets solid food every evening around dinner. She also gets some for brunch, if we are home. After lunch is usually her long nap so that doesn't work. We also tried first thing in the morning, but that didn't work. After a long 10 hours of sleep, she just wants her bottle and doesn't want to mess with the spoon. When I moved it to brunch, around her 9 AM bottle, that was better. The problem is, we aren't always home at this time. I am hoping with summer I can get her on a more regular schedule, but who knows with Kelly being gone. I think Jenna will have to learn to be flexible, which she probably is more so than I am.

So, what does she eat? At this point she is up to Stage 2 baby foods, mixed flavors (corn and sweet potato or broccoli and chicken). I plan on working through all the store bought foods and then moving on to making my own. I didn't have time or desire to make them too early since I was still working. Now that I am off, I figure I can try it. She also drinks juice (Apple or grape so far) from a sippy cup. At first I had to basically pour it in her mouth, but now she will actually suck it from the cup. She can't really get the cup to her mouth yet, although she really tries. She will reach for it and I help her get it to her mouth. Of course, we are working on the sign for drink, but she hasn't picked that up yet either. She also gets small bits of cereal that dissolve in her mouth. These are kind of like the crackers she was eating before, but they are little pieces so she can pick them up and put them in her mouth herself. Some of the cereal bits miss the mark, but she can get them in as well. She also has yogurt melts, which are the same concept in that they melt in her mouth. She gets these for breakfast and she really likes them.

Kelly and I are so proud. We try and have her eat with us as often as we can. We want her to learn about family meal times, so we sit together, eat and talk in the evenings. What else do you do without TV?

By the way, neither Kelly nor I really miss the TV much. Last week he was out of town and, although we still have our PVR, I made a point not to watch the TV. It wasn't that bad. I got some reading done and even cleaned the bathroom one night after Jenna went to bed. Something I usually try to do when she is awake for some strange reason. The thing I miss the most is the weather. I check weather.com, but I don't think it is as accurate as local forecasts. Guess I will just have to talk more to friends and find out from them. Or watch the weather forecast on the local TV website in the morning. I just don't think about it.

Yes and no

Okay, not much to tell, but I know people are anxious to hear, so I will tell you what I learned about the job. I spoke to the boss at the coop today and she told me that the Board approved 2 retirements for next year, so that did open 2 positions for the coming school year.
HOWEVER.....
She must post the openings internally first before she can offer me a position. So, there will be 2 jobs open next year, but depending upon who transfers, if anyone transfers, that will determine which jobs are open. (I hope that makes sense.) Anyways, I don't think anyone will want the one position, including me. The other job that I do want might be more appealing to people, but it might not. It is a traveling job. Part time at North Daviess, and part time at the private schools in Washington, mainly the Catholic school there. Most people don't like traveling positions because you never really seem to feel like you fit anywhere. But I think I would really like it. I know I would like ND and the morning is working with preschoolers mostly, so that would be just like this year, right.
Oh well, we shall see what happens.

On another note, our field trip to Holiday World went well. It was a little wet to start with. We got 2.5 inches of rain the night before and it did continue to drizzle on us for about the first hour. But after that it did clear and the kids seemed to have fun. We didn't have any injuries, that I know of, and we got a chance to play with the kids and just have fun. That is always a good thing. I will try and post a picture tomorrow. They are still at school and I haven't had a chance to even see them.
Wish us luck on graduation tomorrow. (don't know what kind of luck we need, but...)

Tuesday night!

The picture is from this weekend. Jenna and Kelly playing on her swing set in her swing from Grandma Cleveland. She loves to swing.

Pretty good day today. Last day of school for about 5 of my students and that couldn't be too soon for them. Our "toughest/youngest" kids come on Tuesday and Thursdays to be able to see the therapists so those days are always more chaotic than the others. Anyways, one more day of Preschool and I am actually starting to get sad about it. I know, last week I was dying for the end of school now I am on the verge of tears. Okay, I am not that bad.

Anyways, I did talk to the boss at the SPED coop and she told me that she expects to have a job to offer me on Thursday afternoon. Basically, there are 2 teachers retiring and that retirement has to be approved by the COOP Board, who meets on Thursday morning, since these teachers are going through with a buy out. Anways, she can't imagine why the Board wouldn't approve their retirement, but until they do, she doesn't have any official jobs open. She told me that I could call her Thursday afternoon and she would let me know what the plans were for the following school year. So, I guess I will try to post here Thursday or Friday to let you all know.

So, off to finish my work. Tomorrow is the last day of school, Thursday is our field trip to Holiday World and Friday is Preschool graduation. Busy week here.

Trial Run

The weekend is over and this is the last week of school for my little students, YEAH!! We have 3 days of class, a field trip to Holiday World and then graduation on Friday. I can't wait! This year has really left me exhausted. I would say it is because of the life change I had at home, but my assistant is feeling it as well. I think it is partially due to my life changing, but also due to the group we have this year. They are very tiring and we are still seeing behaviors that we thought we extinguished months ago! The joys of special needs children. Never a dull moment! Either way, I will be happy when this week is over. Of course, I will work another week after that to get the school cleaned up and organized for next year, but it won't be so hard with the children out of the building.

Jenna and I will have a little rougher week than we thought anyways because Kelly is on travel this week. He left this morning around 3 AM and will return Thursday night around midnight. Usually a week of travel doesn't bother me. It's kind of nice because I don't worry about cooking dinner, I can get some time to myself, things like that. But this time, I am thinking about him being gone for 4-6 weeks at a time which is what will happen in a few short months. I guess it kind of seems like a trial run.
Of course, we knew when we moved here that Kelly might be transferred from this area, but at the time we really didn't THINK about it. Now that we know it is imminent it has become a little scary. Don't get me wrong, I know I can handle being alone. Even with a little one. I was alone for such a long time as an adult it was actually harder being with Kelly at first. I just worry about he and I emotionally. We both keep thinking that in the end we will get such great benefits that all military get. We really SHOULD sacrifice more like typical military families. But no one really wants to sacrifice. Besides, it won't be Iraq or anything that scary. Virginia will be as safe as here really. I just know that I will miss him terribly. He is my best friend as well as my husband and talking on the phone just won't be the same as him coming home each night.
We will get through it though. We have agreed that we will still be a couple in the end, that we are totally adamant about. We will be a family on the other end of all this.
Okay, off to bedtime with the Bean. Have a great night everyone.

May 6th

Well, today is finally coming to a close. This year Kelly and I actually did okay with the day. I played hooky from work, but went ahead and took Jenna to the sitter because I just didn't know how I would do. It rained most of the day and of course, I was planning on working in the garden. But, since the rain was pretty soft, I went ahead and did some stuff anyways. I needed to get some plants in that were overgrowing their pots so I planted those. (cucumbers, tomatoes, cantalope, and 4 kinds of squash). It's really filling up over there. I also repotted several things in the greenhouse, trimmed some plants outside, and pulled some weeds. That physical labor was nice and relaxing.
In the afternoon, we decided to go to Washington and run some errands. So, I wandered Wal-mart and picked up dog food and things like that. We did get some time to have a nice somewhat leisurely meal before we picked up the Bean at the sitter. She was in a good mood most of the night and that really helped. I sat and played with her for most of the evening before her bedtime at 8.

It's hard. I miss Michael and Scotty every day, but I also know we wouldn't have Jenna if they had lived. People say, "God knew what he was doing" and things like that, but I just will never be able to believe that God wanted my babies dead for any reason. I don't think our God is that cruel. Personally, I think that free will and just general chaos in the world caused the death of my boys. I like to picture Jesus crying and asking his father "why?" when they died. God crying and wishing that it didn't have to happen to us, but unable to stop it because that is what happens when he gave humans free will. God putting his arms around Kelly and I saying that he wishes he could take this away from us. That to me is more of how I picture my God. A God that is all knowing, but not all controlling. I thank him everyday for the life I live. I know that feeling tremendous heartache is the only way you can learn tremendous love.
And so, on to another day.

Home made baby wipes

I was asked to post this as well. I received it from a neighbor and it is much cheaper. They only take a few minutes to make, depending upon how you want your wipes to come up.
Get a roll of quality paper towels (I use Bounty Select a size). Cut the roll in half using a bread knife or other sharp knife. The directions say to then remove the tube, place the towels in a Rubbermaid #5 container with the cut side down and pour the liquid over the wipes like that. You are done. I couldn't find a container that did this and I wanted them already ripped since I have a little one and usually need both hands when I am changing her.
So, I rip them apart and then interfold them and put them in a plastic wipes container so they pop up just like the store bought ones do. It sounds like a lot of work, but it only takes about 5-10 minutes per pack of wipes, which is 1/2 a roll of towels. Our wipes last at least 4 weeks, but of course, it depends upon how many you use at a time.
Once you fold them, boil 1 and 1/2 cups of water ( i do this in the microwave) then wisk in 1 tsp baby wash and 1/2 tsp baby lotion. Whatever brand you want. Personally, I like them wetter, so I use about 1 and 3/4 cups of water and a good squirt of lotion and wash for each set. Just pour the liquid over the wipes and you are done.
They are a little more delicate, and will rip a little easier, but they are definately cheaper and better for the environment. I was also told that they do mold if made too far in advance, but I don't know what the time frame for that is. Mine have lasted as long as 6 weeks. I hope this helps.

Jenna's quilt

I had a request to post photos of Jenna's quilt. It isn't finished, as far as I know, but my mom is making it. She and I picked out the pictures together from the internet, then my mom recreated them on a panel for the quilt. If you look closely, you will see the tractor is very similar to a John Deere. However, this one is a Jenna Deere. Made special just for our little girl.

Jenna's first sleepover

This past weekend, Jenna had her first sleepover. Her friends Grace and Ben spent the night while their mom and dad had an evening out for their anniversary. Fun was had by all, I believe. Even Ben, which surprised everyone.

Wa-Pa came over for dinner that night, since he was back in town after a month. I made Lemon Chicken, which is a favorite for Wa-Pa, Kelly and I. Ben and Grace really liked it as well. Jenna tried a few pieces of muffin that Grace made. She wasn't sure if she liked it or not, but she did push it around in her mouth a bit. Then the kids played, Ben's favorite toy was the one where you move the levers and make the animals pop up. I think he was trying to beat his childhood record of how fast he could get it to pop or something. Of course, it was a late evening for all the kids (and adults) but it was worth it. I snapped a few photos of Ben and Jenna playing. And many of Grace and Jenna playing.

The next day, Jenna slept ALL DAY or so it seemed.

Today, Jenna went back to the Dr. for her last 4 month shot. But, since she is almost 6 months they went ahead and gave her the 6 month shots as well. (minus one of course!) She is a bit more grouchy than we expected since we thought she would only get one shot today. Of course, she took it like a trooper and is rolling on the floor looking at all kinds of things. Now, she will have to go back at the end of the month and get a check up and her last 6 month shot. Hopefully, she will be on track at that point and we won't have to do any more split check ups.

Also, today Jenna drank from a sippy cup for the first time. It was suggested that we start drinking from a cup at meal times to make the transition from the bottle easier. And since she has been wanting to drink from my cup for weeks, I went ahead and tried it. She had some juice and loved it of course.

Nothing new for Kelly and I. He takes his Service wide test (to change rank) this week, so please think of him. If he does well, he would most likely be able to come back in one year! We are hopeful.

Off to bath time now to soak those sore shot-poked legs.