I know... don't be frightened lol

Skip months and now multiple posts in one day! Just in case anyone out there is still following me at all and especially if they are following me for the SPD I wanted to draw your attention to something fabulous!!! I received a comment from an amazing Mom named Hartley (such a cool name) who among other things has written a book dealing with SPD and has amazing Sensational Links on her blog. I have added her under my Sensational Friends links over there so definitely check her out and pay it forward!!!

Good thing I am a much better mother than blogger...

So in our last post the boy was starting second grade and now he is almost finished with third. That picture over there is the first day of third grade. Where the hell does the time go and who gives it the permission to go there? It's wrong and rude and I disagree with the whole procedure. Ah well...

So here we are midway through the third grade and I am relieved to say doing well. Jack has come into his own in many ways including finally getting the hang of writing - can we say B on his report card!!! He is now learning to write in cursive and doing very well with it. I feel it has a lot to do with the fact that it is more like drawing but who knows - who cares really, he loves to write! YAY!!!

This lady is his teacher this year. She has been a gift from heaven for sure. As Jack says, "Mamma, she's just like you... she gets mad at me when she has to but I always know she loves me and she makes me feel excited to be learning." Yes, he did.

I spend an hour a week in his class helping - I love her because she lets me come and help. She actually welcomes me and lets me interact with the kids - we have a blast! The best part about it all for me is, let's be honest - we all know math is SO not my thing. These kids are doing ALGEBRA in third grade... yep, imagine the terror in my heart when he brings home his homework folder!! Luckily, I get one math class a week by volunteering on Wednesdays!!!! Yay me! I *am* as smart as a third grader lol

Since I am so far behind anyway...

How'd you like to hear about the first day of school? OK, so it's a rhetorical question. I obviously wouldn't have asked if I didn't intend to tell you and frankly if you didn't want to know - well you wouldn't be here now would you?

Everything started innocently enough. He got right up, put on his clothes with no fight, ate all of his breakfast and grabbed the 462 pound backpack and headed for the door. On the way to the door he reminds me not to forget my camera, he wants some good shots (his words, not mine) of the day.

Who the hell is this kid? Freaking future creative director or something... see and it always, always goes back to the whole thing about nuts and trees.

So Mr. Creative Director steps outside and the facade begins to crumble.

He: It is still DARK out here!! We will not get any good shots, I don't care how special the new camera is.

He: It is humid Mamma. I hate that. It makes me feel gross.

He: I don't want any pictures, just forget it. I don't care.

Me: HOLD IT NOW!

He: Dissolves into hysteria complete with flailing arms, flopping body, dramatic sighs strategically placed for total emphasis of the abject misery he is currently in.

All this Tony-worthy drama because it is 6:30am on a Tuesday morning, in Florida, in August which translates to dark, nasty, humid, yuck. He IS NOT new here, this is SOP. The only time we love it here is those few gorgeous days of 10% or less humidity and a temp at 70 or under... the rest is, well, gross.

I try to divert, cajole, bribe, plead and am close to hysteria myself. The clock is ticking and the ONLY thing I am asking for today is ONE LOUSY HALFWAY DECENT PHOTO. Doesn't he understand? Doesn't he GET it? In less than an hour I will be ALONE, utterly and completely. The house won't have multiple TVs on with him in a room away from any of them building things and narrating with his constant soundtrack of effects. The animals will actually go lie down and sleep meaning I won't have an obstacle course to deal with. There will be no whining, no strange noises that when queried about their origin will be attributed to "nothing Mamma". The phone can ring and be answered without any interruption... except for the trembling of my weepy voice missing my loud, dirty, rebellious boy and all the hugs, kisses, and "Hey Mamma lookit this-es" that I got so used to over the long hard summer.

It is a happy day to be certain. He is in second grade and excited. He has several of his buddies in his class and he loves to be at that school, loves to learn and it is exactly where he should be. It is a good day for me too, I need to have some alone time to try and get a grip on my life and make plans and accomplish things.

He looks so tall and grown up today, full of purpose, hope, excitement. The baby has all but vanished from him, chubby cheeks gone. The legs that were once so fat that we were worried he would never be able to hold his own weight now long, straight and strong. Chubby little fists have grown into beautifully graceful, long fingered, little boy hands... and I am blessed that he still holds mine in his as we walk together to school.

Scouts is once again underway...

Here is our Wolf in his uniform. It is crazy how much he has grown since last year. Thankfully though his shirt is still too big and his shorts still fit him... for now at least. Rob and I are both Assistant Leaders this year lol. Rob is still waiting for his patches to be sewn on his shirt. That will happen once my hands have healed from sewing mine on! Those suckers fight back!

The first "real" den meeting was hysterical. We were working on the first achievement which had the boys doing crab walks, flips, etc. We finally decided breaking them down into "platoons" would make it much easier to accomplish all we needed to. Unfortunately none of those pictures came out well...everything is a big blur. I don't know why I expected otherwise with 20 something 7 year olds cavorting about like demented wood nymphs.

I did manage to get a few pictures of our opening ceremony for your entertainment though.





They are a great bunch of kids, no matter how crazy they get. We have some new kids this year and they all seem to be really quiet. I hope they are just nervous and the quiet wears off lol!!

Ever see something so funny

that you HAVE to take a picture?


A friend of ours gave us a hammock swing the other day. I had to run a basket to UPS and as I was leaving I heard Jack begging Daddy to put the swing up. When I got home I looked out the kitchen window and saw Jack sprawled in the swing oblivious to everything and singing. I snatched up the camera to try and take a pic from the window but it wasn't working out. Then I snuck outside but he caught me. It was still a funny photo op until I saw him thru my viewfinder...


Ever see something so gorgeous it takes your breath away?




He is just so stinkin' cute sometimes. Of course you can't hear him screeching at me in pictures....

Jack and Blake have a playdate....

Via Webkinz.com lol

Pool Party!!!!

We had a Pack Pool Party in July. The rec center we went to had two huge waterslides!!!! Jack did not go down them but *I* did lololol Oh how I dread the day I become uncool!! Those boys sat on the side of the pool and cheered, hysterical!

Pics below.... yeah, don't get excited. I know that Gwen took incriminating photos of me on the waterslide but they won't be showing up here thank you very much.