Kindergarten

I finished substituting Mrs. Woods Kindergarten class this week. It was nice to wake up and know what I was going to be doing with my day. It was also nice that I was able to get to know the students. It is so much easier to teach when you know the children's names.

Preston had fun with Mike putting on door knobs in the basement. I'll get to spend all next week with him. Mike will be taking a Red Hat class. I'm looking forward to being with Preston. The only thing I'm not looking forward to is the carpool line. Preston will for sure fall asleep when we go to pick up the kids. I usually spend two hours in the car, waiting for them. I try to be one of the first in line. Stockton needs me to be at the beginning of the line. One of the teachers that monitors the carpool line stresses him out. She always gets upset with him, and it feels like he can do no right. One day this week I noticed them talking. I hurried up to them, she looked at me and said, "mean, mean, mean". The problem was he was trying to get to Reading Bowl practice. He was trying to get into the teacher's work room, where they had been practicing for quite awhile. The door was locked, but he could see the buzzers set up. When Mrs. Appleby asked him what he was doing, he told her. She told him that there wasn't any Reading Bowl practice that day, which wasn't the case. She is quite scary for a little kid, and Stockton was in tears by the time I got to him. Stockton stayed up until 9:30 that night with his eyes wide open. He couldn't sleep and kept saying, "I don't want to go to school tomorrow." I asked him why and he would say, "Mrs. Appleby is so mean."

Anyway, long story short...I spend two hours in the car to pick up the kids. I leave at 2:00 for Stockton and Jorja. They get out at 2:45. I then drive down to get Maysen. I get in line at 3:00 and she gets out at 3:40. I am home by 4. I don't mind it though. I get to read. Next week, with Preston, he is going to fall asleep. Then our nights are going to be miserable - and Mike will need to be in north Atlanta every day. Oh boy.

Personal Progress

Maysen has been working hard on earning her Personal Progress award. She has a goal to earn it by the time she is 14. She decided she wanted to have this goal when she learned that her cousin Jessica earned her Personal Progress award when she was 14. This January they made a few changes to the program. One of the changes is that the girls' moms can earn the award along with their daughters. Maysen is really excited about this. She got me my own book, and she gets to sign off my achievements. There are eight values in the program. Seven of the values have six experiences that need to be passed off (one of them has only four). They each have a value project that needs to be accomplished. The value project needs to take at least 10 hours to complete. The values are: Faith, Divine Nature, Individual Worth, Knowledge, Choice and Accountability, Good Works, Integrity and Virtue.

Anyway, I have decided to start working on my virtue value project, which is to read the Book of Mormon. That will definitely take more then 10 hours! As I read, I am suppose to record my thoughts in a journal. Because I haven't written in my journal in about 13 years, I thought I would do that here. So, every once in awhile I will write about my personal progress . . . . it will be a little awkward for me to write it on a blog, but I will put more thought in it than I would if I knew I could just tuck it safely into my drawer.

I started the Book of Mormon today. I have read this book many times. We are reading it as a family right now. The goal is to have it read before Jorja gets baptized. We did this with both Maysen and Stockton. I love reading it with them, it's pretty funny to simplify the teachings. For example, the other day we were reading in the Book of Mosiah. We were talking about Mosiah 2: 33 "...(he) that remaineth and dieth in his sins, the same drinketh damnation to his own soul; for her receiveth for his wages an everlasting punishment...". We were explaining to the kids that the verse meant that just as a dam stops the flow of a river, damnation means that you will never be able to progress. We talked about how we lived with Heavenly Father in the pre-existence. When Heavenly Father presented his plan for us to go to earth and get a body, we sided with him. Satan and his followers did not, so their progression was stopped. They were not able to have the blessing of getting a body, and they never will. We have passed level one, and we are on level two. We talked about how everything on this earth grows into its parent. Heavenly Father wants the same for us. He wants us to become like him. But, if we are not faithful and endure to the end while we are on this earth, our progression will be stopped. I don't believe that 'hell' is living with the devil. I believe it is knowing what could have been and knowing I was capable of more, but I did not live to my potential . . . and as a result, I can't receive the blessings Heavenly Father wants to give me. I was trying to teach my children that the choices we make determine a lot in the eternities. The knowledge we gain in this life will help us in the next. We want to pass this level with our best effort and not just squeak by. I told them that they could always ask Heavenly Father for help, because he has already completed this level, knows what you are going to face in this life, and what you need to do to "level up". After I got through explaining all this, Stockton says, "Heavenly Father has the high score." I laughed and laughed. Stockton is SO funny! But he's right. I do believe Heavenly Father has the high score.

Anyway, I'm excited to start reading the Book of Mormon again. I haven't read it by myself for years, so this will be a good way to get me back in the habit of personal scripture study. It's exciting for me to think about the people that lived thousand of years ago. I have always loved these stories, I loved learning about them when I was little . . . my dad made the stories come alive. Especially when I didn't want to take a bath and he would say, "Okay, but if you don't the mean men from Babylon are going to come and get you." Scared me to death!

In other news, the Sister missionaries came over today and taught Justin the first discussion. I had never sat in on a first discussion before. They are Sister Bowlby (from Oregon) and Sister Mosimane (from South Africa). Sister Mosimane compared the Church to a beautiful mirror that was held up by 12 ribbons (the apostles) and a strong nail (Jesus Christ). When the apostles were killed, this mirror shattered into millions of pieces. The Church was not complete anymore as the keys had been taken from the earth. Many people would see the former pieces of the beautiful mirror and try to recreate it. They would grab onto one piece and form their church around that one belief. Such as baptism. While the intentions were good, they did not have the keys so they could have the complete gospel. The Church couldn't be restored by trying to piece together fragments of the truth. The Church needed to be restored. This restoration began when Heavenly Father and Jesus appeared to Joseph Smith in answer to his humble prayer. The keys to the gospel of Jesus Christ were later restored. Today President Monson holds the keys and has the authorization to use them as a prophet of God. I know with all my heart that Joseph Smith was an honest man. That he was a humble servant of the Lord. I know that he saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I know that God is a God of miracles and that he loves his children. I know he loves his children as much today as he did in ancient times. I know he is there when we need him. I know President Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God. I love being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I love my life. I love my family. I am so very blessed.

Sorry for the super long post. Do not feel obligated to read my ramblings!

Stockton's a Webelo

I can't believe Stockton is a Webelo. I remember when Mike taught the Webelos back in Washington. They were so big. Now my little, tiny baby is one of them. He seemed to enjoy his first meeting. I think he'll like Brother Nutter. He told me I need to get him a book. I'll get right on that. Maybe next week.

Last Pottery Class

Maysen had her last pottery class today. She has loved it. I'm glad she was able to learn from Brooke, even if was only a few months. It seems like Maysen has had a lot of things end recently. Pottery, reading bowl, babysitting . . . I wonder how she will choose to fill her time.

I am teaching Kindergarten all this week. I have a great class and have really enjoyed it. Preston seems to have enjoyed it as well. Today when I left, he no longer cries, "Mommy don't leave me!" instead he said, "Mommy just be gone." Nice.

I took Preston with me to pick up Maysen from pottery. We like to do that so he will fall ASLEEP! He screamed the entire way saying, "Turn around!" He did fall asleep right before I pulled into Brooke's driveway. When I brought him inside our house once we got home, he started whimpering "turn around" in his sleep. Luckily he went back to sleep because I am sure tired.

My Brother Stockton

My brother Stockton is my poet,

My brother Stockton really knows it.

With rhymes so great and words so real,

Inventing things I can almost feel.

With some inverted colors and presidential aliens,

My brother's world sparks my imagination.

Add, subtract, solve mysterious letters,

Creating worlds to make them better.

My brother Stockton's the frugal one,

Saving money, stickers, and so on.

But spending words for use in poems

I love the world my brother roams,

He loves poetry so very much,

Words flower with my brother's touch.

I love my brother Stockton's poems,

I love the world my brother roams.

--Maysen Smith

Two Little Climbers

Preston is making me type this with the lights off. That's right, he is still awake. It is 10:00. I hate it when he has a nap. Especially a late, long nap. Preston helped Mike make scones this morning. They were yummy.

Preston

We played Bananas while we were waiting. Jorja won this round. She was very proud.

Jorja Maysen used all the Bananagram tiles

Mike put the harness on Jorja and Preston. They loved it. The problem is, the harness doesn't work well with a three year old because they are not strong enough to sit in it - so they end up flipping over. Although, Preston and Jorja both think that is so fun.

Jorja

Preston

Mike & Preston

My Little Muffin Man

I didn't take any pictures today, but I thought about it a lot. This morning I woke up to Preston crying saying he wanted chocolate chip muffins. We were out of the little bites, so I asked him if he wanted to help me make muffins. He loved that. He put in everything except the eggs. Then he stirred it up. It was so cute. He loved it.

We picked up Stockton from Clayton's house and went straight to the church. We cleaned the church for a couple of hours. We are having stake conference there tomorrow. The kids worked really hard. Everyone was pretty exhausted when we got home.

We played the Clue game Seth and Max gave Stockton. It was pretty fun. It took us awhile to figure out the rules, but once we did it went much faster. Stockton won the game by a lot. We also played Bananagrams. Stockton, Maysen and I all won a round. Mike didn't win a round, but he was playing while cooking crepes. Now that's talent.

The crepes were really yummy. Preston dug the peaches out of his, then insisted on the peach jar. He finished every peach in there, then proceeded to drink the juice from the jar. At least the boy eats!

Preston is so funny. He was eating a piece of cantaloupe and wanted to use a fork to eat it. He didn't want the little plastic fork Mike tried to give him. So, he went over and got his own fork out of the drawer. He got back to his seat and looked so proud for getting the fork he wanted. Mike noticed there was no more cantaloupe in front of him and asked Preston if he already ate it. Preston said, "yes". He thought for a minute then promptly returned his unused fork to the drawer.

That kid cracks me up. He spent a large part of the day running on a hard surface, then falling straight to his knees so he could slide. It hurts my knees just watching him. Crazy kid.

Derby Day

The Pinewood Derby was today. Stockton was so excited for the race this year. He vowed to sand his car one hour a day. He worked hard on his car this year. He even was late to Clayton's birthday party so he could participate. Stockton ended up taking 2nd out of the Webelos. He only lost to the Mauzy boys. Their cars were fast! Stockton actually won Taylor. Taylor won first place over all. He had a pretty great time.

Weston's #13, Stockton's #22

This picture is so funny. They forgot to bring a flag in, so Brother Duce asked Stockton to stand up and be the flag. Stockton stuck out his shoulder so everyone could see the flag. It was cute watching him try to salute the flag.

Jerome was in charge of placing the cars on the track and starting the races. He takes the Pinewood Derby very seriously. He's great.

Below is a video of Stockton winning Taylor. Stockton won 7 of 10 races. Pretty good. Now he is at Clayton's sleeping over. Maysen stayed home with Jorja and Preston. Both were asleep when we got home, although Preston was in Stockton's bed. Guess he missed his brother.

Stockton told me today that he gave Maysen $20. I asked why and he said, "Because she was so nice to give me $5 of her babysitting money and I wanted to help her save up for her laptop." That boy has a heart of gold. I love my children! They are such wonderful examples to me.

Stockton ~ The Big 1-0

Stockton is 10! This morning he said, "This is going to be a great birthday. I'm turning a decade old, I'm having a party, it's the 100th day of school and isn't it a full moon?" To top it all off, I got to substitute his class today! I was so happy. I was actually scheduled to teach another 4th grade class. When I found out Mrs. Catlin had to be out as well, I begged Nancy to let me switch. It was so fun to be with him. He actually had Guidance or CHAT (which he hates) and music (which he doesn't like either). I had Stockton stay with me during CHAT. Although when I came to get the class, the principal was teaching. I asked him if he wanted to stay with me during music. He said that he didn't think it would be fair for him to miss both. He's so sweet and considerate. Actually watching him interact with others, I was amazed at how kind he is. Not really surprised, but very proud.

After school we had a birthday party for him. We brought Mason & Trevor (and Hunter) home with us after school for a couple of hours before the party started. They had fun playing with all the toys we had set up before the crowd arrived. Stockton had about 12 boys come over. They had a great time. Rock climbing wall, bowling alley, air hockey, wii, sardines, cake, pizza, presents..... Stockton gave his birthday a 9 1/2 out of 10. We declare this birthday a success!

Chocolate cake, chocolate ice cream, chocolate chips

Rock climbing
Presents
Preston & Stockton
Seth or Max, Preston & Stockton
Preston sad that he didn't get to blow the candles
Stockton, Maysen, Jorja, Preston
Opening Grandpa Millburn's present

My dad sent Stockton a package. In the package was this poem:

Stockton's Birthday Poem

By his Grandpa Millburn

In case I don't recall to phone

I thought I'd send a birthday poem,

And tell you what the heck you'll find

Within this box you'll find confined.

Hot chocolate packets are inside;

I only wish that Thursday I'd

Have opportunity to make

Hot chocolate with your birthday cake.

I'd also like to make you scones;

(They're really light, but look like stones)

And so inside the box you'll see

A box of scone mix (thanks to me).

And thanks to Cathy, nicely wrapped,

You'll see two packages entrapped

In paper all decked out with cars;

You'll look at them and say, "My stars!

I wonder what these two could be!"

I'll tell you that they're books to read.

And if you find them awfully boring,

And in a wink, you find you're snoring,

Just pass them on to Jorja Ann--

She'll stay awake if anyone can.

And finally there's a Mormon game

To make all those who play insane.

I do not know if it is fun;

The times I've played? Zip, zero, none.

It's major use was to provide

A box so the other stuff wouldn't slide.

So that's my birthday poem to you;

I hope your birthday's happy, too.

Thanks dad! We got a good laugh at it. Stockton didn't say, "My stars!" but the rest of us did. The package came today, so nice timing.

Stockton raked in the dough. Most of his friends brought money. Seth & Max bought a cool Clue game. We love Clue, and this is a game we don't have. We gave Stockton Bananagrams and a few other things. One of his favorite presents was three coupons. A free eaters club, tasters club, and leave the table club. Stockton said, "I'm going to save this for Thanksgiving!"

My favorite present that Stockton was given was a poem Maysen wrote for him. It was so sweet. She also gave him $5. The $5 she gave him was her babysitting money. I don't really think he understood what a nice present he was given. I'm going to put Maysen's poem up in a few days because I think it deserves its own post.

I love Stockton so much. He is one of most unique individuals I have ever known. He has such a loving, tender heart. There is so much good inside him. I am so proud and honored to be his mother. I hope he knows how much I love him and how much he means to me. I love spending time with him, learning from him, watching him and just being with him. I can't believe he is already 10. Happy Birthday Stockton!!!

Jorja's Haircut

Today I was finally brave enough to cut Jorja's hair. I just trimmed her bangs. It has always been too scary for me to cut my children's hair, but Jorja asked me to today. That actually surprised me. She had told me before that I would mess it up. Today she said, "It will save money if you cut it yourself." How sweet!

The Porge

Dad's Store

We have been trying to simplify the amount of toys the kids have. So . . . Mike set up a store. A little background information: Everyday the kids earn points for different chores. If they earn 100 points at the end of the day, they earn a sticker. Stickers can be redeemed for prizes. (Stickers are worth approximately 33 cents.) They also have to earn their sticker in order to play the computer or the wii the next day. If they fail to earn their sticker, the next day they have to earn all 100 points before they are allowed to play those things. (It motivates them pretty well.) Anyway, back to the story . . . Mike was interested in getting rid of some things the children were having a hard time parting with. He set up a store and told the kids they could bring anything (that was theirs) and turn in their toys. He would pay them in points that would be redeemable whenever they chose. That was huge! We have never let them carry points over before! Anyway, Jorja earned a lot of points. Maysen only traded in a few things, but they were things she really liked and Mike had really wanted to get rid of them - so she earned a lot of points. Stockton didn't trade anything.

I have a funny Stockton story though. Stockton and I went to the mall. I had a free coupon for a webkinz, so I wanted him to pick one out for his birthday. We were walking around Hallmark when Stockton looks at me and says, "Do I have my backpack on?" He did! I didn't even notice. I guess when I tell him to get his coat, he automatically puts his backpack on as well. We laughed and laughed.

Preston also stayed dry all day!

Video Game Tester

Preston helped clean windows today. He loved it. The only problem was we couldn't convince him that we were done cleaning windows. He had fun going around the entire house spraying any window he could find. Then he started spraying the carpet. Then he sprayed our bread. Luckily everything was wrapped up nicely. I guess the clear bread container looked like it needed to be cleaned?

Preston

Preston also stayed dry the entire day! He's done this a couple of days now. He sure likes his "special treat" at the end of the day. (If he stays dry the entire day he gets a treat from the treat bucket - usually a small mint 3 musketeer.)

I had to laugh at Preston when he was eating his icecream. He eats it just like Stockton!

Mike had a job interview today. He also applied for several jobs (which he does everyday). Anyway, one of the jobs he applied for today was video game tester. Not that he thought he would get it, but just because it sounded fun. Stockton was so excited. He said, "I want to be your assistant!"

Maysen came home from school and said they announced that her team finished fourth in the Reading Bowl. I had no idea they did that well. Congrats Maysen!

Homemade Bread

Takes awhile - but worth it.

2010 Reading Bowl ~ First Place

That's right! Stockton's team took first place in the reading bowl competition today. Their team was unbelievable. I am so proud of how hard Stockton worked. He was amazing. (Their school has now won the reading bowl two years in a row. Maysen on the first team and Stockton on the second. Quite an accomplishment.)

Stockton with the 1st place trophy

Waiting to start

Maysen also competed for her school in the reading bowl. They didn't get first place, but they held their own. Actually they won the team that tied for first - so they did really good. (The scores are cumulative). Mike and I had to split up since both Maysen and Stockton were competing at the same time. I went with Maysen and Mike with Stockton. I was able to see Stockton play one round when Maysen had a bye. Both Maysen and Stockton did so well today. It is hard to explain the intensity of this competition. It is so cool!

Maysen's team

Maysen

Maysen sits like her dad

Maysen & Jakob

One weird thing that happened to Maysen's team. There was a question: In the book Secret Lies and Algebra, what symbol did Tess tattoo with a red pen on the inside of her ankle. The other team answered a minus sign. The judge conferred with the scorekeeper and they decided that was correct. I was thinking in my mind, I thought it was an infinity sign. Anyway, come to find out it was an infinity sign. I was shocked that two adults would not know that an infinity sign is completely different than a minus sign. Maysen's teacher was MAD. Pretty funny.

Stockton and Mrs. Collins

Mrs. Benton, Stockton, Maysen, Mrs. Collins

Maysen, Stephanie, Stockton

Maysen, Mike, Stockton

Mike is obviously the better photographer

Here is a quick video of Stockton's team being announced the winners. Too bad someone jumped up in front of Mike. Should have seen that one coming. Oh well, at least we can still see Stockton.

We had such a fun day with Maysen and Stockton. I have loved sharing this experience with them. I wish Utah had a reading bowl. It is quite the thrill ride.

Tears

Today was a bad day.

Worn Out

Mike got worn out today. He agreed to watch the children during Relief Sociey. I didn't go. He ended up watching eleven children. Most of them only spoke Spanish - by himself - in a small room. I think he will sleep well tonight.

Spasms

Stockton had his school spelling bee today. He was so excited. He has waited so long to be old enough to be in the school spelling bee. He did great. He was so nervous, but when he spoke he was clear and everyone could hear him. He got out on the word spasms. I think there were only two words he didn't know how to spell, and he got one of them. The other word was skillet. Luckily I had a talk with Stockton before we went. I told him the spelling bee is part skill, but mostly luck. After Stockton got out, the next word was freckle. Maysen got out on her school spelling bee on the word surround. She only put one r. She said as soon as she said the o she realized her mistake, but it was too late.

The judges

Mrs. Collins, Mrs. Cantrell, Mrs. McLendon

2010 spelling bee
Stockton & Stephanie

Mike took a couple videos of Stockton. One is of him spelling a word. They made the participants face away from the audience. The other video is a cute one of Stockton while he is waiting for his turn. Actually he had just finished one of his words.

Maysen had a YM/YW combined activity tonight. They did iron chef. Mike was one of the judges. The secret ingredient was mint. Each of the three groups had to do a drink, a salad, and a dessert. Mike said that they all did really well - much better than he expected them to. Seems like everybody had a great time.

Random Happenings

Mike has started working on his trailer again. He finished two benches! Preston loves working with his dad and TOOLS!

Preston, Mike, Jorja

I took Stockton to the store today to look for birthday invitations and get free ice cream. He received a coupon for a free 1/2 gallon because his grades were so good. I didn't even look at his face before I asked if I could take his picture. I knew he would have chocolate all over. I don't know how he does this when he eats ice cream, but he looks like this every time!

Stockton

Maysen brought home three new dishes from her pottery class. She does not like the one in the back. Her other two are really pretty. Maysen called me a little half way through class and asked if she could come home. She said her stomach hurt. Poor girl. I know it really is bothering her if she was willing to leave pottery early. Hope she's better for tomorrow.

Maysen's 12 Year Old Pictures

For the last several years, I have taken my kids to MasterPortraits to get their picture taken when they have a birthday. I like to use four 5X7's. MasterPortraits would run a birthday promotion that if it was within two weeks of your birthday, your sitting fee and eight 5X7's would be $14. This worked out great for me. Unfortunately they are now out of business. So . . . we decided we would try to take the pictures ourselves. Maysen was our first victim. We took her pictures in front of the green screen so we could figure out what to do with backgrounds later. I don't think she felt quite comfortable. Maybe she thought it was too weird? Anyway, here are some of the shots.

This one is Maysen's favorite

We got a few cute pictures, but most of the 'photo shoot' was spent with pictures like this . . .

Come on Maysen, it's not THAT bad! At least she was happy while we were torturing her. I'll put the final pictures up when they are done. Although at the rate we go, Maysen might be in college by then!