Movin' On

Here she is! Our 9th grade graduate! Macie graduated from her middle school today. She technically should have moved on last year, but her teacher felt that another year with her and her staff would be good for Macie. She has done so well at Bristow. She has learned great things, become more independent, more talkative with more words, and has made good friends.

Here are the graduates with their cake at the luncheon the day before.






She's receiving her certificate from her teacher.









Gabby was exceptional, sitting on our laps for 2 1/2 hours!





As you can see she tried to make friends!



Macie did great walking across the stage to shake hands and take the photo.



The proud papa.

I have to admit that I think all the "graduating" these days from every single grade is a little silly. This was a very nice production though, and Macie had a great time! We celebrated at the new Japanese steak house in town. It's like Benihana. Todd and I love those places, and Macie laughed and laughed at the chef. It was a great night!

Macie's Program

Today Macie's class had a Thanksgiving lunch and a small program for the kids and their parents. The kids decorated place mats for everyone, and set the tables. The room looked very cute with lots of fall leaves and pumkins.

We had a pot luck "Thanksgiving" meal, that was pretty good. I'm usually a little skidish about eating food from people I don't know, (I know it's weird) but everything was ok. Except to say that for dessert there was a store bought bundt cake. I'm just saying, people had to make mashed potatoes, stuffing and turkey, and this person could not make SOMETHING! It's not like cooking a turkey and making stuffing are super easy tasks. It just always bugs me that someone can't spend 1 hour and MAKE something. (Sorry, a little tangent there.)

After lunch the kids told us what they were thankful for:


Then they sang a turkey song. It had actions, and was darling!

Sadly Todd couldn't make it, but Gabby and I had a great time at Macie's school!

Feeling Guilty in California

Hey, sorry for not posting. Apparently I've left my cord that I use to download my pictures at my mom's house. So I have no new pics yet.

I have been reading some of my friends' blogs regarding their children returning to school. For the most part they are sad, and have even shed tears about this. I understand the tears for the kindergartner. I'm sure I'll be crying over that one too. I'm just wondering about the older children, and why I don't feel that way about my child.

I love and enjoy Macie, but I love that she's back in school. Macie does so much better when school is the major part of her day. She loves her friends, the activities, the LUNCH, and especially the bus!

I don't want her gone for 12 hours or anything, but the 7 hours is nice. I get to get things done, spend some quality time with Gabby, and then focus on her when she gets home.

Reading the other posts has got me wondering though... why am I happy she's in school? Maybe I'm not a good enough mom yet. Does it have anything to do with the fact that I didn't give birth to her? Does it take more time to miss them? What am I doing wrong? I'm not sure, but I definitely feel guilty about it. I know almost everyone who reads this is a mom, so what should I do differently? Any advice?

Good Girls

 

The Young Women in our ward began a Book of Mormom read-a-thon today. They began at around 1:00 p.m. and will end sometime tomorrow afternoon. I don't take Macie to a lot of YW activities because they usually don't start until 7:00, and she goes to bed around 7:30. If it is a special one, we will, but otherwise I keep her home because she gets too tired and cranky the next day.

One of her leaders reminded me of the activity on Sunday, and said I should really try and bring her, even if only for a little while. I said ok, but I thought to myself: "she will be bored just listening to them read and she doesn't understand it". I kept thinking about it though, so I decided we'd come over for an hour or so and then go.

I brought her in the house and all the girls were spread out like a slumber party. Everyone had blankets and pillows, and were listening to the reader. It wasn't totally quiet, there was some whispering, but those girls were definately there for a purpose. I sat with her for a minute, and then left for about an hour and a half. They had lots of snacks, and were going to take breaks every hour or so, and jump on the tramp. I knew Macie would love that.

I ran an errand, and oddly enough couldn't find anything else to do, so I went back to the activity. I brought in my scriptures, (and Gabby of course) and sat down. It sounds kinda funny, but I wanted to be there with them, listening, learning with a pure feeling in my heart.

I read for them for awhile, and then listened. The girls were probably wondering why I was still there, but I didn't want to leave yet. Pizza was coming soon, and Macie knew it, so I told her we would stay until then.

The pizza got eaten, and still Macie wanted to stay. So I left with Gabby, and told her I would come back when Dad got home. Gabby needed food and sleep immediately!

When I came back she was snuggled in with the girls eating a sucker, with a huge smile. I was sad to tell her to come home.

One of her leaders came to the car with me and told me she was grateful that I brought her. She said; "the girls need her in their lives, they learn from her".

I felt so dumb and selfish. I have never thought about that before. A lot of times I don't think she'll like the activity, or she won't understand it, so why bring her?

Well this was a lesson for me.

#1. Macie loved being with the girls.

#2. She didn't understand the scriptures, but she understood the feeling of acceptance and love from those girls.

#3. She has a lot to give and teach people, and I need to let her.

Macie came home talking about the coloring she did, the PIZZA, the chocolate cake and her friends. She had a great day, and I'm going to make sure I allow her the opportunity to have many more.

Graduate!

Today was Macie's 8th grade graduation party. All the families of the children were invited to a little luncheon and a presentation of certificates. They had the classroom decorated up and it was a nice lunch.

It's fun to watch Macie with her friends in the classroom. She especially loves the boys. Well she is 14, so I guess that's expected. One of the boys she talks about a lot is Victor. He is one of her good friends. I however, notice a lot of flirting... hmmm.

Macie has done so well in school this year. Her balance is better, her speech is better, and she can make her own PB&J sandwich! She is progressisng so much it's exciting to watch.

Macie has such a magnetic personality, the kids like to be around her. We are so proud of Macie and all the great leaps she has made this year. I can't wait to see what 9th grade brings... hopefully not boys though.

Sisters

I wanted to talk for a minute about sisters.

Now as most of you know, I'm not an expert on this subject, mostly because I don't have any. So, one might get the impression that I don't know very much about them. "One" might be mistaken. Even though I do not have blood sisters that my mother gave birth to on this earth, I actually have many.

I have 6 that grew up 5 houses away from me. The oldest was my best friend, and all the other ones were annoying....at that time. A short example:

When I would go to their home, it was fairly chaotic sometimes. My friend and I would go outside on the trampoline (usually at night) to escape from all the little ones. When they would come out and want to jump and hang out with us, we would tell them that no one under 12 was allowed on the tramp, and anyone younger could be eaten by the monsters on the grass around the tramp. They would cry and run back to house for safety of course, and we would remain happily outside ALONE! (They, much to our dismay, remember these evil activities and have received extensive counseling on the subject.)

Now that they've all grown up, I love, absolutely love to be with every single one of them. They are the closest thing I have to real sisters.

I have 3 sisters at my old job in Utah. I spent 10 years working with them. You spend more time at work then you do at home, awake, so you get to know people. I consider these women my friends, my mentors, my sisters. They are honest, loving, truly good people and I love them.

I believe I have 7 or 8 other sisters in Utah, that I met at work, or in my ward.

I believe I have 4 that I've met here in California. Wow, was it hard to find friends here. It was much harder to be away from my sisters in Utah than I ever thought. I wasn't quite the "lone wolf" I thought I was. But once you find them...life is so much better.

I have 2 beautiful daughters. Macie is 14 yrs old, and Gabby is 7 and a half months.

When we first brought Gabby home, Macie didn't really want much to do with her. (What fun is a little lump that doesn't talk anyway!)

As the months go by, Macie spends more and more time by her sisters' side. She gives her her binkie, toys and her bottle when she drops it.

She laughs and talks with her, and lots of times just watches her. I wonder so many times if Macie knows things about Gabby that we don't, and vice versa. They seem to have such a connection already. Gabby looks up at her and just smiles. Her eyes light up and she knows that's her sister.

I love that connection... I love knowing they're going to be there for each other. I love knowing that each of them has someone besides Todd and I who will always be on their side. I love that they're sisters.

I'm sure in the future they will get on each other's nerves, and probably fight. But in the long run they will be forever connected to one another.

I love my sisters so much, and feel very lucky to have them, but I also love that my daughters have each other... real sisters. Which ever kind of sister you have....love em!

Mother's Day

May 11, 2008
Well technically, this was my first (real) Mother's Day. I was with Macie last year, but I don't usually refer to myself as her mom. She has a mom, so sometimes I think I'm just the lady that takes care of her and loves her. It's still weird to think of myself as a mom. Sometimes I look at Gabby and have to remember actually giving birth to her to believe she's mine! I'm so grateful for my 2 girls! What an adventure these last two years have been. I've learned a lot about quite a few things, but especially motherhood. WOW! It's wonderful and terrifying at the same time. It can be tiring and exhilarating in the same hour. I feel like I always appreciated my mom, but now I do on a different level. You just never stop working. Even when you physically stop, your mind keeps thinking about what you've got to do or should be doing now. I'm not sure how moms continue to stand up at the end of the day. I guess those are the times when your children say or do something amazing... or not. When they say something that touches your heart, or smile in just that way that only they can. Then you realize that the Lord has given you a gift that you will work tirelessly, until you cannot move or speak any longer, to make them into their best selves. We are blessed to be moms.....