Field Trip

There are parts of teaching that I miss, parts I thought I would NEVER miss.  I could not wait for the day I was able to eat lunch with adults and not 20 students.  I daily miss sitting with my class, talking to students and getting know them a little better.  I don't miss field trips on a daily basis, but I do miss them from time to time.  We had a teacher out on the day of the first grade field trip, so I was able to go as an assistant teacher.  I have made no attempt to cover up my love my assistant teacher, Mrs. Bridget, I even posted a few years back that I cried wanting her to come back from an extended leave, because I missed her so much, she is my friend not just a teaching partner.  So to say she made my life easier is an under statement.  With the knowledge of everything she did to make my life easier on field trip day I set out to be the best I could be.  

 I found a backpack in the Homeless Closet at school to carry my supplies, garbage bag, candy to bribe students, water bottles, snacks, extras, germ x, and the like.  I was ready.  I broke a sweat before we loaded the bus.

 I'm lucky enough to work with my cousin, Anna, and she knows I love her because at 10:30 the night before the trip I was still awake making shirts for us and her teaching partners.

And because I love my child, I lugged my trusty cooler with me on the bus.  If only I kept a log of all the wonderful places I have to hide out to pump or nurse him.
The field trip was to Hernando to a farm.  It was a beautiful location and the weather held off so we enjoyed an overcast morning.  The students were great and well behaved. I have had my fix on field trips for a while and hopefully can wait until next year to do it again.  I slept like a baby that night and thankfully so did Baby Boy.

Baby Girl turned 4

 Ellie's birthday wish was to go eat at Chuck E Cheese's.  So on her actual birthday they celebrated there.  I happened to be in Jackson for a work conference and was able to go visit them.  It was my first time ever in a Chuck E. Cheese.

 Note Ellie's silly face.  NO she doesn't actually have cross eyes just a four year old being silly.

 On Saturday of the same week, she had her first real party, with friends invited in addition to family.  It was at Pump It Up in Jackson, another first for me.  Jett and my mom made the trip with me to be with the birthday girl.

 Everyone had to get a picture on the inflatable throne.

 Ellie wanted a princess cake, so she got one. 

She had a great time and there were tons of kids.  The gift exchange, made my nerves a complete wreck.  They would jump up each time she would open a gift.  Ellie would stop to tell them, "Everyone, sit down.  Everyone please sit down." And surprisingly they would sit.  Then the next gift would be handed to her and like jumping beans they would bounce right back up.

It was so worth the flying trip to be with her.  I loved seeing her around children her own age.  She and her best friend, Reagan, were like 14 year olds, as they ate, chatted, and played.  I can not believe Baby Girl is 4.

Eleven Weeks

 This week has been a big week for Jett Boy.  

He was away from his Mama for the first time.

He rolled over from his front to his back, to the left and to the right.

He is napping less frequently and for shorter periods of time.  

He loves his Play Mat and his Bouncy chair.

This little outfit was given to him at my church shower and it says, "Thank Heaven for Little Boys."  If you had asked me around Thanksgiving last year if I would be so thankful for little boys, I don't think my answer would be the same as it is now.  I am ever so thankful for this precious little boy.

Foodies

 My friend, Tiffany, and I are a lot alike.  We have the same wallet, the same love of McAlister's sweet tea, the same affinity for honey mustard, and sometimes we share the same love of all things indulgent.  Note the donuts before bed time....

 Our Superintendent is the vice president of MASA and so he was front and center the entire conference.

 And every chance we got we sat outside to soak up some Vitamin D...meaning every second between meals.  What I noticed about administrative meetings is that at teacher meetings you get a boxed lunch, at administrative meetings you eat filets and stuffed chicken which happened to be on the bone.  So if you know me you know that I missed my box lunch with no steak and no meat on the bone.

Mama's Boy

I had to leave Jett for the first time on Sunday, for a work trip.  When I got the email about the trip, I was a bit excited.  Teachers and administrators alike love a chance to get away from school.  Even if the trip will cause you to do extra work to prepare for the absence, it is fun and exciting to do something a bit different.  I called Cullen to make sure he would be okay with Jett by himself.  He said sure thing and I confirmed my trip.
I spent all weekend writing down his schedule, and planning out his feedings, and his outfits, and I was just a bit sad when Sunday afternoon rolled around and the clocked clicked toward the time I was to leave.
I may have been gone a total of an hour before Cullen's parents came to help watch Jett,  they stayed until bath time and his mom came back bright and early the next morning to watch Jett for the day and again stayed until bath time.  The next morning she came just to see Jett while Cullen got ready for work and then went to work herself, and Jett went to Mamaw's for the day.
Total Cullen maybe had Jett for 3 waking hours by himself, but it was a start.  When I got home, he talked about not being able to sleep the first night, worried that something would go wrong, or just worrying about having to get up by himself.  The second night he said he slept like a baby from being tired from no sleep the night before.  Now he knows why when my head hits the pillow at night, I can be in a deep sleep in less that 60 seconds.
I missed my boys while I was gone, but I didn't cry or drive 90 mph to get home to them.  They were well taken care of.  With all that said, I'm in no rush to leave them again until duty calls again, because it is a job itself, getting everything together and planning...and as long as Jett is still nursing, being away is no vacation.

Like Butter

All these faces, these grins, these winks, these coos, these smiles...melt my heart like butter.

No lie, Cullen and I fall all over ourselves some days, when he gives us a big fat grin.  

Rolling Over

Jett Boy has learned to roll from his front to his back.  

I got a call from Cullen, while I was in Wal Mart.  My first thought when I heard Cullen's excited voice, was "oh great...I'm about to have to leave my buggy and go back to the house, Jett has gone rogue on him."

But Cullen tells me that Jett rolled over twice...I begin to tear up in the frozen food section and then he says don't worry, I have it on video...tears avoided.

 I didn't get to see him do it that night, but with continual practice I have witnessed it several times since.  He goes from front to back, both to the left and to the right.

Now we are working on from back to front...we are at a complete stand still.

 

Jett's method is to get at a 45 degree angle or greater, and use his hand to push off with.  He throws his head back and there he goes. 

Ten Weeks

Time is flying by.  The weeks seem to just slip away.  By the time we get home in the afternoon and feed him, cook dinner, and he naps, our day is done.

He still loves his bouncy seat.

His play mat is a new favorite toy, too.  

He wears a size one diaper.  He wakes between 1 and 3 to eat, again at 5:30 and then goes to Mamaw's.  At her house he takes three bottles and I pick him up by 4:15 everyday.  I feed him around 6 each night he plays and takes a nap usually at 7:30.  We give him his bath at 8 and I feed him again.  He is always down for the night by 9.  And we start it over again the next day.

Cookie Time

 This little girl is like her Fifi and her Sadie in that she has a mouth of sweet teeth.  She loves anything and everything sweet.

They came up from Jackson for Easter and I had to have a little project for us to do.  My mother in law sent me a cookie recipe mid week and so that was my cue to make cookies with baby girl.

You just never know when my brother and his family will roll into town.  It might be late one night or early in the morning or mid day.  Until becoming a parent, I thought this was crazy, now I know you can't predict arrival times with children, it is what it is.  So knowing the uncertainty of things, I woke up Saturday morning and made the cookie dough and the icing, so that we would be able to complete this project regardless of arrival time and other plans.

Ellie seemed to have a lot of fun deciding colors, but this icing was a bit thick and a little difficult for her to push through the bag.  She was very grown acting this trip.  She has learned to delegate unpleasant tasks, she would politely ask if I would get something for her, or her mom could throw something away for her, so she wouldn't have to get down and do it herself.

Kathy seemed to enjoy the decorating, too.

Ellie took the most joy in the sound the icing bag makes when it gets and air bubble in it.  She died out laughing and let me know it sounded like a poot to her, so of course we had to do it over and over again, with her giggling the entire time.  Memories made.

This cookie recipe makes a cookie much like you would buy at Emileigh's Bakery in Oxford, not super sweet and pretty thick.  I think next time I will add a bit more sugar.  The icing is DIVINE, but next time I will add a bit more milk to thin it down.

Cookies:

5 1/2 Cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, at toom temperature

2 cups granulated sugar- remember I will add more 

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup sour cream

Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup shortening

2 tablespoons milk

Directions:
1.  In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
2.  In the bowl of a stand mixer with the flat beater attached, cream the butter and sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated.  Add the vanilla and sour cream and beat at low speed until combined.
3.  Add the dry ingredients and beat at low until just combined.  Dough will be a bit sticky.  Divide dough into two sections.  Flatten into rectangles about 1 1/2 inches thick, then wrap with plastic wrap.  Chill in the refrigerator overnight or at least two hours until firm.
4. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Line large baking sheets with parchment; set aside
5. Flour the countertop and the top of the dough.  WIth a rolling pin, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness.  Using a 2 1/2 inch round cookie cutter, cut out circles and transfer to a baking sheet.  Bake for 7 minutes until pale golden.  Immediately transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool.  Cool cookies completely before frosting.
6. To make frosting, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cram together the butter and vanilla.  Slowly beat in the powdered sugar and the pinch of salt.  Once smooth and creamy, add in milk 1 tablespoon at a time, then beat at medium high speed for a minute or two until light and fluffy.  If desired, add food coloring and beat until combined.
7.  Once cookies have cooled completely, frost and add sprinkles.  Allow frosting to set, then store in an air-tight container.  Let cookies sit for several hours before serving to allow the flavors to develop.

Easter 2013

Easter marked Jett's first time at our church.  I had planned this day out in my head several times over.  I knew what he would wear, what I would wear, and of course what Cullen would wear.  I woke up with Jett about 5 and wound up getting back up around seven.  We played and talked.  At 7:30 Cullen was up and had eaten breakfast, and I told him it would be best if he went ahead and got showered.  My mom came to deliver some of the food for lunch while he was in the shower and held Jett while I made my casseroles.  

With Cullen back downstairs and semi ready I handed Jett off and began loading and unloading the dishwasher, picking up the downstairs, and getting things ready for lunch.  At 9:00 I sat down to eat a bite of breakfast and then jumped up to go ahead and get ready while Jett napped.  I fed him at 10:00 with my hair in rollers.  10:10 came and my brother and his family came in.  It hit me then, that I might be late to church.  How in the world could I be late, I live across the street and I had been up forever.  I turned the baby over to Cullen and told him to give him a bottle if he had to, but I had to get ready.  

Just as I was finishing my makeup, my inlaws arrived, Cullen began to change Jett and began to fuss about his outfit- it was to thin, his socks came up really high... and the like.  My mother in law oohed and ahed over the baby, my brother and his children were sitting on go to head to church, my hair was getting bigger by the second, and my bouncing baby boy was about to debut at church.

Across the street we went, and as I sat down and rested for the first time I thought about how glad I was to be back in church, all of us, not just Cullen to Sunday School while I kept the baby.  I thought about our new normal, and as I looked down, I realized I had none of my jewelry on, the mashed potatoes for lunch never got made, and it really didn't matter, because we were together, celebrating the Risen Savior.

This sweet girl melts my heart.

 My cousin Darla got to see the babies after church.  Can't wait for her little man to be here in June.

 Jett loves his new play mat the Easter Bunny brought him. He even christened it first thing with a little spit up.

And with his third outfit of the day on, he and Cullen sacked out on the couch.  I called him Tom Sawyer all afternoon, with his ankles hanging out.  Little man is growing.