Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Very Fun Game

On Wednesdays we have the Mott kids come over to play and then the next week my kids go to their house. Its so cool because all of her kids are the same ages and sex as my kids and they live closest to us of all the familes in the ward. A while ago Andrew revamped the game of musical chairs to work on the tramp and the kids loved it. Its so much fun! I usually have them put a sticker down on the pad for each child playing as the place to land when the music stops and then we take one sticker off each round till we have a winner. I always have candy or something for the winner. I hate moms that expect you to just play for the fun of it. Up the anti a bit and get some real competition going! Every time they come they beg me to play it. I don't mind. I have nothing better to do.

the vote for the song choice was from the movie Tangled. Naturally all the older boys opted out of playing. Derek was the only one man enough to stick around.

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This is Derek's version of a bathroom break. He does this ALL THE TIME! (i shoudn't have laughed cause its a real problem)

Rule #1 Just because you got out doesn't mean you are allowed to stop dancing. I have yet to think of a consequence for breaking this rule cause every one seems to just go along with it. LOL!!

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Good News



This morning we took Olivia to have her hearing checked after her big surgery she had at the begining of the month. The doctor wanted to give her ears at least a couple of weeks to drain and clear out. This morning she did all the tests and passed for the most part. She has a hard time with low level frequency sounds. So she can't hear you at all if you wisper ect. What it means is she has decent enough hearing to go to school but she is kind of like and old man where she might ask you to repeat yourself if you don't project your voice or speak clear. They will keep her under watch for the next 8-9 months but she can hear! I could tell the surgery was working cause we were at a restaraunt one day and she covered her ears and was very annoyed with the music and all the people talking. She has been very very moody lately because she can hear everything and she is not used to it. She can't seem to fall asleep or stay asleep because she is woken up by noises she wasn't able to hear before. She does have a small speach delay but I know we can fix that this summer with speach therapy. I am so happy and excited. Its hard for her to hear all this extra noise and I can tell it overwhelms her. Yesterday her brother was having a fit in the car and she was crying cause she hated how loud her was screaming. But its a small hurdle to jump compared to her possibly more than 50% deaf. I bought her ear plugs to cover her ears when she can't handle it. And we require her brother and sister to wear ear phones when they practice piano or play games on the computer or Dallin's DSI. My hope is over time she will gradually get used to it. The best part is the doc said she can go swimming this summer with ear plugs! Such a cute girl!

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Add it all up $$$$$




These pictures might be disturbing to you but let me explain. My kids are literally costing me a fortune! I don't know how people with 6-10 kids can possibly afford it. Dead serious. Andrew has been in public accounting for 9 years now so he makes a pretty decent wage. Lets just say well over the national average. We are shelling out money on our kids health like it it grows on trees or something. People that make less must have to draw straws for who will skip dinner. We have gotten to the point where we have Ramen Noodle Sundays. I do my homework and try to find the cheapest doctors but its still allot of money. This year Olivia had $200.00 worth of Dental work (on teeth that will fall out mind you but don't say that to the dentist they will give you dirty looks) and her ears have added up to over $700.00. Then there are co pays for urgent care visits and her physical therapy. We were quoted $600.00 for Dallins dental work. That's going to be starting up soon. So call me dramatic but yeah I will do whatever is needed to save a buck or two or 400 on any type of dental work or health problem. I stock up on multivitamins and push new healthy foods in front of my kids all the time. And yes I sit on the younger ones to make sure to get any areas they might have missed while brushing. If they would just sit still and let me do it then I wouldn't have to now would I? For those of you that have kids that hold still and think this is a bit extreme I would like to introduce you to Derek. And trust me you would do the same if it were your pocket book getting hit.

Monday, January 10, 2011

Home School

Ok. I don't like moms that home school. I just need to put that out there. Yes there are exceptions to my rule. But very few so check in with me before you think its you. I have hung out with a few fun ladies and had a great time with them only to find out after the fact that they home school and been surprised they are so normal. I have this stereo type that the kids of these ladies are really super weird and anti social because their moms are super looser and weird. You know the kind of ubber protective moms that cut the crust off their child's PBj and makes homemade Popsicles with toothpicks in ice cube trays. God those women annoy me! One woman was talking about how her kids were so smart the teacher didn't see it. Or they learned curse words at school ect.. as their reasoning for pulling them out. That's so narrow minded and lame I don't even try to argue with that kind of dis functional personality.
In general I feel like you should have a teaching degree to teach. There are some big important things that educators learn whilst getting a teaching degree. I doubt any homeless guy on the street could just walk into a school and get hired so why do these moms give themselves the green light so quickly? You have almost the same skill set as the homeless guy when it comes to educating others. The biggest and most important aspect is the social skills they learn. No matter how smart you are you will achieve very little with out people skills. And though some moms add field trips and play dates to their home school regimen I still think its not as diverse as the experiences they get in public school. I am talking about the kind of experiences they will encounter later in life in the work force. Going to work in your pajamas sitting at the kitchen table, meeting deadlines the women that breast fed you has set forth, and playing with kids your mom has pre selected isn't going to cut it. I will be straight up honest with you too. I don't have the patience or the will power to home school. I wouldn't know how to separate mommy "me" from teacher me and laundry folding window washing me. It would be like wearing too many hats. Studies show the more you take on you do poorly in each situation vs taking on very few things and Mastering them. I would hate to fall short on my child's education cause I am taking on more than I can handle. And since by nature most people are not very self introspective I doubt they realize what a shit job they really are doing.
This year I am homeschooling Olivia. If you can even call it that. I prefer to call it tutoring. She is only 4 and this is preschool stuff not real school stuff. I had her in a preschool last year and the most she got out of it was how to glue cotton balls to construction paper. Of the five hours she was there 2 were nap time. I knew I needed to push her more than the preschool was and bridge the gap because she could be behind with her hearing loss. I added Derek into the mix as well. And the whole thing is stretching me beyond what I thought I could pull off. I get overwhelmed when they don't seem to pick up on what I am teaching and we have had full on war some days. A teacher would be more patient and also probably has an understanding of the way children their age comprehend. I am so glad to get to spend more time with them because of it. Olivia will start Kinder next year and Derek will be old enough for real preschool. I am impressed and humbled by what school teachers do. I think they choose their profession cause they have a gift(a gift I do not posses). I will never be stingy with thank you notes and Christmas presents for these people that light the way for my children. NUFF said!

Saturday, January 1, 2011

New Years Eve




We went to the Firework show at sea World on New Years eve. And let me just say it was pretty damn awsome. My kids had a really good time. We went out to eat at Red Robin and then headed over to get in some rollercoaster rides before the big show. Props to our brave Dallin for ridding the scarriest coaster there and thanks to Aunt Rachel for saving us the best seats in the house.

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