Belated BTS Haircuts!

The girls all got haircuts on Friday. I am so lucky to have Frances as a bonus mom for my girls. She took them all in and got them taken care of. Even brought them by after to see me and took before and after pictures for my blog. Didn't even mock me and call me a nerd like others have. Anyway, here are the before and after pics. 

McKayla 

Natalie 

Alivia

Quarter One

It is the end of the first quarter for my girls and that means we just had parent teacher conferences. I love the time I get to spend talking to my children's teachers about them. For posterity sake, I like to record some notes here as well.

Alivia

Report Card:
English/Language Arts - B
Math - B
Social Studies - C (mostly due to a group project done while she was out)
Science - B
Health - A
PE - M (Meets grade level standard)
Music - M
Traits of successful learners - M

Notes from her teacher: I love having Alivia in my class again this year She is an enthusiastic learner who arrives at school with a smile each day and embraces new challenges with a positive attitude. Alivia is a kind and caring student who is always willing to participate and share her wonderful ideas. The enthusiasm she shows for school, friends and life in general energizes our whole room. Alivia puts a lot of effort into her assignments and tries her best through out the day. Keep up all the great work you are doing! You are a third grader who truly shines!

Conference notes: Fantastic conference! Alivia is doing amazing and her teacher loves her. Since this is her second year in Mrs. Dallas' class, that helps. We love Mrs. Dallas, she's known the girls' dad's family for generations. Anyway, Liv doesn't have much to work on. She's really got nothing to work on and not a lot of habits she needs to change.

Natalie

English/Language Arts - B
Math - C
Social Studies - B
Science - A
Health - A
PE - M (Meets grade level standard)
Music - M

Traits of successful learners - M

Notes from her teacher: Natalie is a bright light who makes our classroom is a better place! She has had an amazing amount of growth as a reader this year. She also continues to show growth in math. Natalie should continue reading every night, for at least twenty minutes. If she could read with an adult a few times a week, it would benefit Natalie's comprehension. I am so proud of Natalie. She is a compassionate and friendly student who perseveres in her daily work. Natalie, than you for being a shining example of what it means to be a hard and dedicated worker. You are a magical unicorn!

Conference Notes: Natalie's reading 64 words per minute, very close to the 70 wpm goal set in her IEP. She is doing great in school. Natalie seems to have a love of writing like her mommy and is showing a knack for it already. Even though her spelling is phonetic she still tries and does amazingly. Her teacher loves that she gets in there and works hard. She only asks for help when she really needs it. We will have an IEP update meeting in December to see where she is sitting for her goals this last year.

McKayla

English/Language Arts - B
Math - B
Social Studies - A
Science - A
Health - A
PE - M (Meets grade level standard)
Music - M
Instrumental Music - A (Pleasure to have in class. )

Traits of successful learners - M

Notes from her teacher: It has been lovely getting to know McKayla this quarter. McKayla is a sweet, hard working individual. She constantly has a bright smile on her face and she tries her best at each assignment that she is given. She is excellent at following directions, completing tasks and helping her classmates on anything that they need. I would encourage McKayla to voice her opinions more and share her ideas with her peers. Communicating her understanding will only help McKaya's confidence and knowledge base grow. McKayla shows a strong interest in writing, especially when she is able to create her own story. However, I have noticed frequent misspellings and grammatical errors. I look forward to seeing McKayla's growth throughout the remainder of the year.

Conference Notes: McKayla is doing well overall. She is quiet in class but does well in groups. There is one concern though: her spelling and grammar errors may not be random. Her teacher is concerned there may be an underlying cause. Before we jump to conclusions, she is having a nearly certified teacher work with M for 15 minutes every day until Christmas break. The teacher will document what she's doing and M's progress. If there hasn't been a lot of progress, we will move into testing to see if testing is necessary for an IEP (Individualized Education Plan - what Natalie has) or possibly a 504 to accommodate to her personal needs (for example, she might require a computer to be successful at writing, just an example). 

McKayla Turns 12 FNF Style

12th Birthday - Missed posting here, but I am stealing pictures from facebook so I don't "miss" it! I might not have posted on my blog, but I did post in my bujo. I included that entry at the bottom of this post.

31 Days of Free Writes: Work

I love where I work. There might be days where I don't love the work that I do, but there aren't many days I don't love the people I work with. Some of my work friends I consider my best friends and some of my former coworkers are now some of my best friends.

One of the things that cemented into my work family was when my mom collapsed. I remember when I got the call from my best friend, she was telling me how bad things were, one of the doctors overheard how upset I was. He knew how bad things were and he knew I would need to go home. Unbeknownst to me, he was finding me a flight home. My coworkers all pitched in and had me on a plane less then three hours after I got the call. Not only did they get me on the plane, they got me home, had someone to help me pack and get me to the airport. Also someone helped get my car home so it was ready for me. It was simply amazing to not worry about that when I was dealing with my mom's crisis.

The people I work with are my second family. I spend more time with them then I do my actual family. God has blessed me with a second family who loves me just as much as my blood relatives do. I am so very grateful for the people I work with.

31 Days of Free Writes: Light

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. 

Matthew 5:14-16.

I cannot look at the word light without thinking of this passage of scripture, especially the last part (in bold). This is something I really pray for in myself. When people look at me, I want them to be able to see that there is something different in me. I want them to wonder what is different and maybe even ask me about it. 

The passage above are words spoken by Jesus while he was on earth, teaching and preaching to the people. While he was here on earth, he often used every day things to teach about much bigger topics. In this case, he used the light of a lamp and a bowl as well as the light of a city on a hill to show the light of God's love in our hearts. He talks about people being the light of the world. We are expected to let the light of His love shine out of us, like a city on a hill. 

His love in us is like a lamp being lit within, we should want to display it up high and make use of it. Instead, some choose to hide in inside them, under the cover of a bowl, so deep in their hearts that is isn't able to be used. We cannot allow our fear of rejection of our faith get in the way of sharing it with others. Our world needs Jesus. Each of us is called to be the city on a hill, shining the light to those around us, sharing Him with anyone who cares to wander into our lives. Others will see the light of Christ in us, the difference it has made, and know it is because of God. That in turn will bring glory to our Father in heaven. 

31 Days of Free Writes: Give

In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive. Acts 20:35

In a world motivated by greed and driven by teh "almighty dollar," the "me me me" and how much can I get? It is a really difficult thing to teach your children how to balance what they want with what they need and how to give to others.

Having three children, reaching this age of the "gimmies" it is becoming a bigger issue. When they were younger, we made a big deal of helping others whenever we could. When we were grocery shopping and noticed a beggar on the way in, we would buy him or her something to eat and drink while shopping.

Once Natalie happened to notice someone while we were at McDonalds. She decided that he would want a hamburger meal so she asked if we could by him one. So we did. Unfortunately, this story didn't end well, the man didn't want the food and rejected the gift from my child's hands. She was so upset. I can still remember how angry I was. To this day, I'm not sure I used the right words to explain why to my girls, but I hope so.

We still try and feed people who need it. Natalie hasn't lost the spunk to want to help others and I am so glad. I hope she never does. One thing I hope my girls never forget is to give back. We have been so incredibly blessed by others, I pray that I am able to give them the ability to see that.

What do you do to teach your children to give? 

31 Days of Free Writes: Brave

The word for today is Brave and for this one I have to share a review of a book I did in October of 2015. Although I was given an advanced copy of this book in return for my honest review, all opinions remain my own.

This book is a fictional young adult novel. It is from the viewpoint of Georgia, a high school senior who recently lost her mom, trying to figure out how to "be brave" as her mother told her to do. 

It goes back and forth between the story and memories. The memories are all in a more poetic format, broken short lines. I found it a refreshing break between the story of her senior year.

Set in Chicago, most of this story revolves around Georgia and best friend Liss and new found friend Evelyn. It also involves a bit with Georgia's father and classmates. I found the characters very relate-able and easy to understand. Being that Georgia had recently lost her mom, she became a character I was very attached to, able to relate to and understood what she was going through.

I think at it's core, this book is about making mistakes and learning from them and finding a way to live each day bravely.

As I mentioned above, having recently lost her mother, Georgia's story really got to me. There were parts of this book that were hard for me to read, it almost felt like the author was there when my mom died. This made the book really emotional to me.

There are a few parts of this book that I wanted to remember and also share, parts that really touched me. This is a part of Georgia's memory of her mom's final days.

And then, in the CCU that last time:
the glare of the cold white walls from the long fluorescent bulb that fell hard against her grey skin against the cold metal and plastic wires.
The mask on her face the steady, careful pulse of machines, monitors,
mechanical boxes that lived for her that sustained whatever was left.
Her body was broken.
She was like a butchered animal with her arms limp and her chest heaving with the push of the machine.
Her eyelids shifting, her feet trembling.
Automatic responses, they're called.
I wonder what was there, inside, the moments before her heart stopped.
I wonder if she could hear what I said how sorry I was just so deeply sorry.
This memory of Georgia's was so like my own that I actually had to stop reading for a while. The memories I have of that time with my mom were awful. Just thinking about another person going through that, made me feel a little less alone. Even though realistically I know that this is a fictional character. The author's insight was just so vivid. It was remarkable and a very life like story.

Life without mom is a little like that. At first, it was all pain and tears. Every day was hard. I'd wake up and the sun was there, still shining in the sky, but the world didn't make sense anymore. Then little by little... that pain faded even more. I cried only once a week instead of every day. And then I stopped crying. I moved forward.

Again, so much like my own experience that it gave me pause. Made me think of how much I have moved forward.

The book ends with this statement from Georgia:
I'm doing it all, mom. Even more than you could have ever imagined.
For me, and for you.

Again echos how I am feeling now. I want to live my life to it's fullest for me and for mom.

This book is a must read. Even if you haven't suffered a loss like me, I feel it gives you an insight into what grief really feels like. Georgia is forced to basically do it on your own. By reading this book, I feel like it gives you a little more of an idea of how someone might be feeling. There is so much more going on in people's lives, you need to stop and pay attention, give them grace. We all make mistakes, we also all need to learn how to move on and learn from them.

31 Days of Free Writes: Share

I have to share something else I did this weekend. My amazing sister was here and it was a surprise to me visit. Little did I know, along with the visit she had already booked and paid for our sister tattoo appointments. So, Sunday afternoon we went to Resurrected Tattoo and got inked by the lovely Donna.

We had already decided not to go with the traditional sister tattoo but instead went with something more us.

Since we were both born in Florida (Navy babies!) we picked Florida animals, made them cartoonish (isn't that just more fun??) and gave them both baby blues. Now we have a coordinating pair of Florida natives adorning our lower legs.

That makes four tattoos for me! Only two more in the planning stages but who knows. Tattoos are certainly addicting.

31 Days of Free Writes: Grow

Growing is hard. It is painful at times and requires change. My girls have all had growing pains at one time or another. McKayla's have been the worst. There have been nights she has awoken from a dead sleep in pain because of the cramps. I can't imagine what her insides are doing, what is going on in there that is so painful. Makes me wish I could help her with that. I can't, but I can help make it as comfortable as I can for her by being there for her.

There are other ways of growth then just the physical though. My children are growing emotionally and mentally as well. As they are growing emotionally, I have to help them to learn to deal with those emotions. That part of growth I can help them with. I can teach them ways to deal with their emotions that are healthy and helpful.

Even I am still growing. Hopefully I never stop. The growth in my life should be helping me to be a better person as I get older. I want to be continually finding ways to improve myself and the way that I act and react in situations in my life and things I encounter.

Just as I am helping my girls to grow into good, responsible adults. Not only are they growing up, they are growing into the women they are meant to be.

31 Days of Free Writes: Read

I love to read. It is one of my favorite past-times. Since I have been able to read, I have carried a book with me, just in case I had free time to read a few pages. Lately, I have been listening to more books then reading because I can listen at work while I do my job, but I have still be reading. Here are a few of the books I have finished lately that I loved (all links will take you to the goodreads book profile.)

A Man Called Ove - this is such an amazing story. Not something I would have normally picked up, but I am so glad I did. It is a story about a grumpy old man and basically his life story. Seeing the world through his eyes was just moving to me. This is one I am going to add to my personal collection. Seriously loved it.

Renegades is a book that is set to come out next month. It is a new one by the author of the Cinder series and it lives up to the hype. I loved it just as much as Cinder. Beautifully written and keeps you guessing. Something that is new and not like everything else that is saturating the market. New kind of superhero book. Look for it in stores November 7.

Our Dark Duet is the second book in the Monsters of Verity This was just such an amazing second act for this pair of novels. Seriously just amazing. While I didn't love how it concluded, it was a fitting end and wonderful finale. I loved this one so much that I am planning to buy it as well. The first one came in one of my upper case boxes, so the second one will be going right next to it in my bookshelf.

31 Days of Free Writes: Remain

I love that I found this word art for this prompt word. This is the first thing that I think of when I hear the word remain. I want to spend as much time with God that it is hard to determine where he ends and I begin. My lifestyle will be a reflection of Him.

In the bible, Jesus used the example of the vine as a metaphor for his kingdom. This was an easy thing for people of the day to understand. It's something I can understand as well. When I was growing up, we had a grapevine in the backyard. Every time I hear this verse, I think of that vine. I imagine our father God pruning that vine, clipping off the branches that aren't bearing fruit. He then took those and tossed them into the fire. The branches that were fruitful he took care of, ensuring that they were able to remain so.

Thinking of that vine reminds me of the reason I am to remain in Him. I am to remain in his word, spending time with him so that I remain fruitful for him.

31 Days of Free Writes: Try

I am one of those people who is stuck in a rut and I am okay with that. Mostly I stick to the same things, not really trying many new things. When we go out to eat, I usually order the same things on the menu. I pick the same places to go out and eat, pick the same places to go and do things for fun.

My friends and family can easily predict what I am going to do. Not one to try new things often. It is something I am working on. Bullet journaling is something new that I tried. It is something new that worked out wonderfully for me. If I hadn't stepped out of my comfort zone, if I had kept worrying about my lack of artistic abilities, I would have never found that release.

One other thing that I have tried recently and loved is Lipsense. I'm probably the last one on the internet to find this stuff but I freaking love it. My "dealer" helped me pick a few good colors for my skin tone, tame ones since I was unsure of how I would like it. I have since picked a few bolder colors and freaking love them. This is a lipstick I can wear almost all day without having to reapply. The color lasts (for me) through eating and drinking, through work and at church and going out. I love that I can go simple with just gloss or glam it up with a bold color and some glitter gloss. So glad I decided to give this product a try.

What is something you have given a try lately? Did you love it or hate it?

31 Days of Free Writes: Invite (FMF)

I'm not really sure how this story will tie in with the prompt word, but I am going to make it work!

Today something strange happened. Before I tell you what happened, I need to give you a little background. I work with a bunch of wonderful people. When I really like people, I hug them. One of my coworkers doesn't appreciate my hugs so much. She tolerates them, because she likes me. Well, today she comes up to me ans says "today is Friday the 13th and anything can happen, bring it in." and she hugged me.

Before I could even realize what I was doing, the tears were creeping into my eyes. I remember saying out loud, "I'm going to cry" and then I actually did it, I really started crying. Not little tears rolling down my cheeks, but full on snotty crying. I have no idea what happened. It isn't like I was some abused child who wasn't hugged. Just made me feel really loved to have her hug me. By hugging her, uninvited so often, I opened the invitation for her to hug me. Little did she know how much I obviously needed it.

Another thing I got to do today is invite my sister and daddy into my home again. They are able to visit for the long weekend. Got here yesterday night and will stay here through Monday morning. Love these visits.

31 Days of Free Writes: Write

I am a writer at heart. It is something I have loved most of my life. Even as a grade school kid I liked it. In fact, I have a book that I wrote as a project in third grade "If I Were Principal For A Day" Pretty sure I won some kind of school level award for that because it has a sticker on it.

Writing has become a part of who I am. Not sure what I would do with a bulk of my time if I didn't write. I do quite a lot of writing in my bullet journal, more then a lot of users do in the groups I follow. My bullet journal is less art and more words. That works well for me.

Writing has given me an outlet. A way to document the lives of my children. Ways to remember the small things and keep them fresh in my mind. I can go back (this blog is especially helpful) and read stories about when they were little and put myself back into those moments for just a few moments.

That is why I write. Sometimes I write just to get the words out of my brain. I call it a word dump. I allow the words to just flow freely. Sometimes it is with a pen and paper, sometimes with a keyboard and a blank word document. It isn't meant to be read by other people. Often it isn't even saved. Its my venting session. An easy way for me to clear my mind.

Do you like to write?

31 Days of Free Writes: Remember

I have a horrible memory sometimes, especially lately. For the first time in six years, I forgot a work meeting last month. Its another reason I use my google calendar so much. If I don't put something on the calendar, I usually don't remember easily.

This for me has been a difficult thing to get used to. My memory was pretty good before children. Its one of the things they must have sucked from me. Either that or I have so many memories of them that I no longer have the space for mundane things like appointments or schedules.

I'm okay with having to use the calendar to remember the doctor's appointments or the parent teacher conferences, as long as I remember the things that are important to my girls. There are things I never want to forget, like the days each of them joined my life.

I saw this comic on facebook last week:

I hope as my girls grow, they remember that I was there.

31 Days of Free Writes: Listen

I'm not the best listener. Most of the time I would much rather talk then listen. Often I have been told that God gave us two hands, two eyes, two ears and only one mouth for a reason. We are to watch, to listen and to help twice as much as we talk.

My ears need to be in tune with God' plan for my life. If I keep talking all the time, I am never going to hear him talking to me. Jesus is a gentleman, he won't interrupt us. He will just wait patiently for us to finish talking before he begins. And if we start to talk again, he will pause and wait again.

God isn't the only one who needs me to listen though, both my husband and my children need it as well. I am sure that my husband can tell you all kinds of stories about the times that not listening has gotten me in trouble. Communication is so key in any relationship, but it requires listening and talking ON BOTH SIDES! That means I need to close my mouth and let him talk. Even if he is saying something that I don't like, I need to listen, let him finish, then talk. Listen. Don't calculate my rebuttal, actually listen. Maybe he will say something that changes everything. I won't know if I don't listen.

Same goes with my children. I want them to always know that they can come to me with anything. That isn't going to be possible if I keep talking at them. I need to let them talk and tell me about things. Allow them to open up and talk to me about what they need to say. In order for them to be comfortable, it needs to be their decision. The more I allow them to talk to me and the more I listen the more they will be comfortable telling me.

Listening is important, I am a work in progress.

31 Days of Free Writes: Plan

I am a planner to my core. Calendars, planners, journals, notebooks and pens are my favorite things. Having a plan makes me feel like I am in control of something.

One thing that our family has done that I really love is a shared google calendar. We have one for the three girls. All events for the girls goes on the calendar from school stuff to appointments to church programs. Everyone has access to the calendar (myself, their dad, step mom and step dad.) By doing this, it makes us all aware of thing that are going on and also makes it easy for us all to be able to go to the events. This is one planning thing that I recommend EVERY blended family do.

Another planning thing I have been doing is bullet journaling. For me, my bullet journal is a blend of planner, to do list, and memory keeper. I use it as this visual record of my life. Each page is a reminder of what happened, what I was able to accomplish. My first journal I used was one I happened to have on hand. I am nearly finished with that one and getting journal two ready to begin.

Those are two things I have going on with planning my life right now. What is something you use in your life to make and keep your plans on track? Care to share some tips with me?

31 Days of Free Writes: Truth

I have to say it, the biggest thing I think of when I see the word is "the truth, you can't handle the truth!" I don't even know what movie it is from or what is talking about. Just a very memorable line, one that is repeated all the time.

The truth to me is the word of God. The words written in that book are the absolute truth, written by multiple people over hundreds of years.

Knowing the truth in the words of that book is so comforting to me. I can find anything that I need within the pages of my bible. When I am depressed, I can find other people in it's pages that have gone through the same thing and read their struggles and their joy.

One of the things I love about Psalms is that you see the mood swings of David. You see the times that he is way up on cloud nine and happy and joyful. Then in the next chapters, you see him at a very low point, crying out to God. I can relate to that. There are times in my life where I feel like doing the same thing, where I do that same thing. All I can do is cry.

Truth is found in his words and I will keep right on clinging to them.

31 Days of Free Writes: Hold

I hate holding. Not sure about any of you, but I have zero patience and being on hold, listening to that music (or worse yet, that voice telling you to be patient) just gets me fired up. I can be perfectly calm until you stick me on hold.

Most of the time, I can be patient for awhile but my patience is thin. It wears out quite quickly. Its something I've been working on, but it isn't easy.

You know what they say, when you pray for patience, God gives you the opportunities to practice patience. Here are just a few of the ways I have been practicing my patience lately: stoplights, stupid people in traffic, people walking slowly in front of me (and taking up the whole isle) at the grocery store, my children.

What about you, what is something that has been testing your patience lately?

31 Days of Free Writes: Story

This is also a five minute Friday post, so free-writing for five minutes about the word story.

Stories are important. Every person's life is made up of thousands of stories strung together. This blog is a compilation of my stories.

The wonderful thing about our stories is that they don't define who were are. For example, one bad story in my life doesn't make me a bad person. If I am the victim at any point in my life, it doesn't make me a victim for the rest of my life.

Single stories in the line of my life don't define who I am as a person. The stories in my life help to shape the person I am. For example, I am a motherless daughter. That doesn't define me as a person. I don't walk around telling people that. However, that does change the way that I interact with other people. Seeing how other people interact with their parents strongly affects me. So, that story in my life, of losing my mother, it doesn't define me, but it shapes how I see the world.