School Spirit Days

There have been a few more Spirit days....

One was Sci-Fi - somewhere around Valentine's Day

Gabi was Princess Leia

Jeremy was Flubber

Beth was Valentine Girl (she made that up herself... her own superhero)

The other one was Crazy Hair Day and happened to just be last Friday.

Gabi wanted to do something with three braids and then pulling it up on her head - "like a tent" she had said.

Beth did her own... she has lit clipped under her chin.

Jeremy wanted a mohawk - so lots and lots of mousse and hairspray, this is what we got. It looked better when it was fully dry - but his hair just doesn't stand straight up - he looked like he had a large wave no the top of his head! (And it stayed like that, even through sleep, for three days before I forced it down for church)

Nose-Sault

A week and a half ago, Bethie invented a new move.... I call it the nose-sault.

Recess is never as boring as when you need to get a drink - so you amble inside to a classroom (with a water fountain) because the one outside is just not to your liking. There is no teacher around, just a few close friends, and well, it'll only take a minute. Get a drink and then work your way back through the maze of desks... wait, this is by far more fun then recess. Hands placed squarely (or close enough) on two separate desks and begin swinging. Before you know it, feet swing too far back, hands slip off, and down goes the head making the nose-sault complete!

Yes, this would be Beth! She landed on her nose - it started to bleed, so she and friend went to the office. The bleeding was taken care of, no explanation given, and off they went to class (at this point, it was not obvious there was a problem). Bob (who works in the same school) saw her later. She had a black line across her nose and going down into her right eye. The rest of the nose was swollen and red -a true Rudolph! This all happened at morning recess.

No ice was given - no tears shed - and home she came happy as ever and ready to play with friends. She was watching a movie (which came earlier in the week then planned) when Bob called to ask me if I'd seen Beth yet. I had no idea - four extra kids, getting snack out, and Beth running off to change made it a little less than obvious that I need to take a look. So, on the phone I walk to the other room and stand in front of her - curtains closed, room nice and dark (so the movie could be better seen) and I saw the mess right away (of course, I've also already heard the story from Bob) and am trying not to laugh as I say "She broke her nose!"

Well, it was straight, it had happen HOURS ago, and she appeared to be fine. So I figured, no reason to head in to the doctors and possibly re-break (the nice term being, "set") her nose. Bob took her to see Dad, it was decided that she was probably fine but that she ought to have it checked just in case of breathing issues. So, the next morning (the black now being contained just to the nose) I get her an appointment and in we go... doctor couldn't tell right there if it was broken or not, but the one side was more swollen then the other, so he wanted an X-ray... nix that, a CAT scan (apparently it makes it easier to see such little bones and differentiate between growth plates and fractures).



That afternoon she went in for her CAT scan (the first of the 7 of us to ever do that) - all smiles, but trying to "not be happy". I had to laugh... it is fun to have the attention, even if it wasn't planned and even if it did mean you had to do normally 'scary' things. She's a middle child... can you tell!

*I took the picture the second day - it was healing well... it did blacken more a couple days later though.

Gabi Really Did Have a Birthday

I seem to get later and later at this stuff... don't remind me....

Mid March was Gabi's annual celebration. Like her sister, she went without a theme and planned her own games and things. I just put together treats and called it good. It was really easy, she had tons of fun and that's all that matters... right?

She didn't want cake, she wanted brownies... oh, let me back up.... for her Class treat, she wanted to do the mini cheesecakes with strawberries again... no problem... except, well, our oven had been a little on the fritz off and on. Still, things were going well.. until the last batch, and then I wasn't sure what really happened, but they were still yummy.

When I tried to make her brownies the next day, they were perfect on top, so I pulled them so they could set up. By the time it was time to have the "brownie sundaes", well, the bottom had never really set up. I was glad she was doing sundaes, so we just scooped the brownies and called it good enough. Everyone loved them.


I was a bit frustrated... when Bob came home, he took a look at the oven... the element was in need of replacement (I so should have taken a picture) - when he removed the bottom element, there was a whole section about two inches long that had fallen off - the circuit was thus broken and there was no heat coming from it. I vaguely remembered once a "spark" that I thought I had seen from just that spot when baking earlier in the week. But when I had "double checked" I had figured it was my imagination... I guess that's when the element really died. (Yes, it's been replaced and the oven works fine now.. thank goodness)

Gabi loved all her gifts, which were, of course, mostly books! But was most happy to have been able to have several friends over to play while I kept the other kids out of her hair - most of the time.

We did have our FHE birthday too - which was full of hyped up kids - because what's better on a Monday night than cake and presents?

Buried

Well, it's been while, and it all melted away and we only have a little today - which is new, and that's why I'm blogging this now.... seemed a good reminder.


I know there are many of you who think we don't get snow... or at least not much... that's okay, having lived in Maine for just over 12 years and Vermont before that, well, I can certainly attest to the LACK of snow in comparison.... however... we do, on occassion, get snow... even enough to be "buried"... although it doesn't seem to "add up" pile upon pile upon helpless, miserable pile.


These pictures were from a couple of "large" snow storms we had out this way - I think, if I remember right, between the storms (which were only two days apart) we had about 4 feet, maybe more. The kids had fun... I liked to see the snow "pictures" before tracks and kids had knocked the snow about... okay, before they stomped it down - it was, after all, a very heavy, very wet snow.... we do like wet around these parts... we'll take all we can get!



Like the "chair"? That was on our deck, and Beth decided to just "hang out" and created this chair from all the snow. The next day, Gabi discovered the chair and, with her own addition, made it into a lounge chair.



Strangely enough, though the kids started snowmen at different times this year, they never did make any. Which, with so much wet snow, we should have been able to make an entire neighbor of snowmen... oh well... and I never took Jacob out in it... he can wait until next winter when he can enjoy it more!