Best and Worst

Seeger's worst - 5th graders destroyed the 4th graders snow fort at recess
Nick's worst - flipped 6th and 7th periods so he missed half of band instead of math
Natalie's worst - dealing with students who are arguing their grades
Mike's worst - forgetting his lunch
Seeger's best - turned out to be one of the royals for the snow fort
Nick's best - watching Survivor finale tonight
Natalie's best - leaving work early
Mike's best - super productive before, during, and after school today so he will be able to watch survivor tonight

Best and Worst

Natalie's worst - Nick's pictures didn't come with actual pictures
Seeger's worst - hit his head on the bleachers
Mike's worst - still have to grade
Nick's worst - doesn't have god birthday 100% figured out
Natalie's best - crossed several things off to-do list
Seeger's best - found a new project to work on in art
Nick's best - last Monday before break
Mike's best - family activity tonight

Best and Worst

Seeger's worst - has extra homework
Nick's worst - Tigers lost
Mike's worst - Tigers lost
Natalie's worst - not taking all the clothes I needed to work
Seeger's best - same as dad
Nick's best - family dinner
Mike's best - Amazing Race?
Natalie's best - when Mike texted that dinner was waiting

August and September

I'm biding my time until I have to pick up the boys from school so I thought I'd do a quick post. Here are some photos from August and September.

In August.....

My mom and I watched the Madison Scouts practice one last time before the DCI Finals....

 I drank some of the bacon soda we bought during our trip to Nashville...

The Polack and I went to Hillbilly Haiku Music Fest...

The family went to a wedding of a friend....

I bought fabric and a pattern to make a dress. (A to-do item from my 50 before 50 list.) It didn't turn out so well so I went back to the store and bought MORE fabric and ANOTHER pattern and made a skirt. I've actually worn it a few times....

I snapped a few shots of campus....

 (I love these impromptu sculptures found in Jordan River.)

And in September....

We went to an IU Women's Cross Country Meet....

And an IU Men's Cross Country Meet....

We enjoyed fresh eggs from our friends who have 9 chickens. I love the colorful dozen...

We went to the IU Cardboard Boat Regatta....

The Polack and I had a date night in downtown Bloomington during Lotus Fest....

And Nicklas discovered a mistake on ESPN....

There were other activities - lots of tailgating, my uncles wedding, time with friends and family - but I'm saving that for another post. Happy Friday, everyone!

Preachy iPhone

More god texts.

Subliminal Autocorrect

Emporer and Son Assignment

For social studies, Nicklas was given several words that he had to integrate in to a story. I laughed when I read the first few lines and I wanted to share them:

Emperor and Son Conversation

Son: Dad, when will I get to be ruler?
Emperor: Not for a long time son, I’m still serving my duty.
Son: Hehe, duty.
Emperor: Stop! You must be more mature if you want to be emperor like me.  
Son: When will I know? Will there be a sign?
Emperor: There will be a big ceremony! You will go through some big rituals and you will be given the fate of the gods!
Son: Cool!
Emperor: Indeed, afterward, you will dance and sing and you will pray to the gods.
Son: Is there nything else I must do to worship the gods?
Emperor: Yes, if want your prayers to be answered; you need to give them many sacrifices.  
Son: Whoa, I can’t wait to be emperor!
Emperor: I know that you are eager. Now, I must go to an important meeting regarding our city-states.   

Beef

We purchased half a cow from a co-worker and I picked it up from the meat processing plant in the next county. Very southern Indiana; complete with their support of the Second Amendment.

Best and Worst

Seeger's worst - doing bad in dodge ball
Mike's worst - found out he's losing part of his prep for a case conference tomorrow
Nick's worst - homework
Natalie's worst - too busy at work
Seeger's best - boys and girls club
Mike's best - finding out that we might have another guest for our tailgate on Sunday
Natalie's best - bought the latest US Weekly
Nick's best - thinks he aced his social studies quiz

Best and Worst

Cherry's worst - didn't have her fabric at Jo-Ann's
Seeger's worst - accidentally ended up with someone else's worksheet
Nick's worst - couldn't get two fruits at lunch
Natalie's worst - didn't get to sleep on today
Mike's worst - had to miss a whole day in the classroom do to a teacher in-service
John's worst - driving from Greenwood to Bloomington in the rain
Kathy's worst - knees were hurting during all the walking around Bloomington today
Cherri's best - family dinner
Seeger's bet - John and Kathy visiting
Nick's best - TIE time was about IU
Natalie's best - family dinner with yummy burgers
Mike's best - family dinner; seeing the Ranshaw's
John's best - working to establish a scholarship in Katie's name
Kathy's best - being on campus and going to Nick's and coming to dinner at the Kubat's

First Cross Country Meet

Last week was Nick's first cross country meet. I was so nervous for him.

His goal was to run the entire time - no walking.

 My goal for him was to not finish last.

He achieved both. I'm a proud momma!

It was a hot day and he felt like he started too fast. But he still did great. 

Getting ready to cross the finish line. Go Nicklas!

Best and Worst of the Weekend

Natalie's worst - didn't make it to the Fourth Street Art Festival
Mike's worst - boys got a longer weekend than he did
Nick's worst - IU lost their soccer game
Seeger's worst - same as mom
Natalie's best - spent a lot of productive time at sewing machine
Mike's best - spending so much time with family at home
Seeger's best - playing with Liam
Nick's best - seeing family and friends visit

Random Thought Thursday

1. Today is IU's first home football game. I really hope we have a winning season this year.
2. Today is also Nick's very first cross country meet. I'm nervous for him but also so proud of how hard he's working.
3. Yesterday, Nicklas went with me on my morning run. Since he runs a faster pace, I asked him to ease up and stick with me. As we were jogging along - me huffing and puffing - he says, "This is what we call a conversational run." I'm so glad he felt like he could converse while I just had to focus on breathing.
4. My goal for this school year is to attend at least one of each of the 24 IU sports events. I've put all the fall sports in my calendar. 
5. I'm especially looking forward to attending my first field hockey game ever.
6. Other goals I created for myself this year have been going well. I've been running a 3-4 times per week and I've been listening to more NPR and Pandora and less iPod music. (I'm trying to be more healthy and cultured. It's the little things!)
7. Seeger is really in to the Origami Star Wars books he's been reading. They all come with directions on how to make the different characters out of origami and over the weekend, he made all the ones he had directions for. The Chewbacca is my favorite. It's so cute! I'll have to post some photos.
8. The class I'm teaching on campus doesn't start until the second 8 weeks this semester. This has never been an issue but for some reason, all my students this year are confused and keep contacting me to figure out the start date. 
9. Each year, I volunteer to type up the student directory for Seeger's school. I have it printed and the PTO sells it to families as a fundraiser. It's tedious (there are over 500 families) but I've been on top of it, plugging away a little bit each day, so it's been much more manageable. I want to get it completed soon because I also volunteered to lead the school fundraising campaign. (I felt pressured in to it because I was originally approached to be PTO President and there is no way I'm taking that on. The fundraiser seemed like a happy medium.
10. So things are going really well on the personal and professional areas of my life but things with extended family members are not so well (illness and drama and frustrations and all sorts of family related issues are popping up right and left.) I'm doing my best to manage expectations and move forward in the best way possible. I don't expect everything to be perfect all the time so I am very thankful for the good things I have going on right now. I'm feeling very grateful for my life.

Top 10 Reasons Why My Weekend Was Awesome

1. Attended the Bloomington North football game with the family.
2. Ran on campus with Nicklas and the Polack.
3. Finished a quilt top.
4. Made an awesome dinner.
5. Operation Clean-the-Garage was a success.
6. Saw a movie with some friends.
7. Caught up on Project Runway (and shared some tears with Tim Gunn).
8. Seeger chose to go grocery shopping with me and the Polack (instead of staying home alone).
9. Nicklas had a study session with a friend.
10. Helping Seeger with some art projects.

Top 10 Things I've Learned in the Last Four Hours

(It's 7:30 am and I'm at work early today, having been woke up at 3:30 am by smoke detectors going off in my house.)

Top 10 Things I've Learned in the Last Three Hours

1. Smoke detectors will go off even when there is no smoke being detected.
2. When smoke detectors go off in my house, it's very difficult to get them to stop.
3. Smoke detectors that are hard wired to a house make it hard to determine which one of the eight is actually malfunctioning.
4. My dog does NOT like smoke detectors.
5. It takes several minutes of incessant and loud beeping from eight smoke detectors to wake Seeger up at 3:30 am.
6. Smoke detectors that hard wired to an electrical system can't be turned off by the circuit.
7. When Nicklas is awoken at 3:30 am, he thinks it's time to drive to Florida for a vacation.
8. Smoke detectors can be very annoying.
9. According to Google, smoke detectors can be activated by bugs, dust, or humidity.
10. When I'm awoken by smoke detectors at 3:30 am and I spend 30 minutes trying to deactivate them, it's nearly impossible for me to fall back asleep.

Good morning, everyone. Happy Tuesday!

Best and Worst

Mike's worst - has to go back to work tomorrow
Nick's worst - tomorrow is Monday
Natalie's worst - Seeger hurt himself while cooking
Seeger's worst - same as mom
Mike's best - productive but relaxing day
Nick's best - relaxing day
Natalie's best - playing dominoes with the boys
Seeger's best - cooking

Random Thought Thursday

1. School for the kids has been underway for over a week now and I love being back in to a routine.
2. I have a cold sore on my lip; the first I've gotten in a long time. It's very annoying.
3. Nicklas is doing great in cross country. I'm so proud of him. He has been going to every practice and running on the weekends and working hard at getting better. He's not always able to "run with the pack" but I think he'll make it there soon. Oh, and his time continues to improve. Yay, Nicklas! I can't wait to experience my first cross country meet.
4. Speaking of running, I've been trying to keep up with my own running. Nicklas, the Polack and I started a couch to 5K program and we made it to week 7 (of 8). Now that school has started and Nicklas is running during cross country practice, I'm left on my own to run. I didn't think I would stick with it but I have been and I'm proud of myself. I want to keep it up so that I can continue to run with Nicklas once the cross country season ends. (Of course, he's already faster than me so I'm not sure how that will go.)
5. I felt bad for Seeger last week; I was so focused on Nicklas and his first day of middle school. Seeger's first day just wasn't a big deal. (Not that he even noticed the lack of attention.) Last night was the parent night at his school so I was finally able to meet his teacher. I'm very excited about all the great things he's going to learn in fourth grade.
6. Life is really, really good right now. I feel organized with my personal affairs, I'm busy at work (but not too overwhelmed - yet), I've gotten to enjoy some wonderful family time with the Polack and the boys, and I have awesome friends who are so supportive and giving.
7. I decided to tackle something from my 50 before 50 list over the weekend and it didn't go well. I bought a pattern to make a dress and after cutting it out and putting some of the pieces together I realized there was no way it was going to fit me. I'm super bummed because I was excited about the project and I LOVED the fabric. I basically had to scrap the project or start over. I decided to scrap the project for now. I'll still attempt making a handmade article of clothing but I need some time to recover from the disappointment of my first attempt.
8. The Polack and I signed up for Netflix so that we could watch season 4 of Arrested Development. (Which we did and it was pretty good.) I'm excited because there are so many other things I want to watch on Netflix BUT as a family, we're always so busy and we can barely keep up with the shows we DVR that I think there's no way we'll really get our use out of Netflix.
9. After all our trips and vacations this summer, the thought of driving more than an hour in the car is very unappealing. It will be a long time before I'm ready to plan anymore trips.
10. The temperature has dropped to the 70's this week. It's been awesome and there's an autumnal feeling in the air. I can't wait for football season to start.

Best and Worst

Seeger's worst - taking out boxes
Nick's worst - worked on the wall for so long
Mike's worst - everyone is so exhausted from working on the wall
Natalie's worst - thinks the dress she's making might be too short
Cherry's worst - Cindy is still in the hospital
Seeger's best - electronics time is awesome
Nick's best - running this morning
Mike's best - the wall is done
Natalie's best - the wall is done and got to watch the Madison Scouts practice
Cherry's best - in Bloomington, doing things with the family

First Day of School

School started early this year and with all the traveling we did this summer, I didn't feel nearly as prepared as I usually do. Nevertheless, we were all excited for the first day of school. (Actually, I can't promise that Seeger was excited. My homebody still needed a few weeks of chill time, I think.) Nicklas started middle school this year so the first day felt like a really big deal to me. He was nervous but handled everything like a pro. Nicklas has been so happy and positive and talkative lately (THANK YOU CAMP TECUMSEH!) and he's actually been listening and taking in the advice the Polack and I have shared on how to get through middle school.

Entering middle school seems like such a big deal to do me so I took lots of photos of Nicklas in the morning. As usual, he was the first one up in the morning (when will that change, I wonder?) and I found him in front of the TV, watching SportsCenter.

He requested homemade waffles for his breakfast (NOT frozen waffles!)

Seeger also wanted waffles.

Here is Nicklas getting his cross country gear ready to pack in his backpack.

And here he is getting his cello ready to put in the car.  (He's graduated to a full size cello; it's HUGE.)

Seeger is all ready for his first day.

Nicklas with his new backpack.

A group shot; I had to force them to put their arms around each other.

Nicklas putting his cello in the car.

Nicklas asking me why I'm taking so many photos.

Nicklas hugging his dad goodbye.

Nicklas asking his dad to make his mom stop taking photos.

Nicklas rolling his eyes at me.

Dropping Nicklas off at middle school! He's getting his cello out of the car.

Nicklas walking away without even a look back at me. 

A sad mom who has realized she has a middle schooler.

In all seriousness though, his day went pretty well. He had trouble with his locker and had to get a help a few times but by the second day, he was able to open his lock on his own. His first cross country practice was Monday and he said it was really, really hard but his teammates were so encouraging and supportive that he felt really good about his performance. I think he's going to stick with it and I'm so incredibly proud of him.

Here are some letters the boys had to write to their teachers. I loved reading both of them and I'm so happy they were willing to share.  Here is Seeger's letter to his teacher about himself. (I left the misspelled words.)

Seeger's letter:
I like vidio games and candy, while I dislike homework on the first day. My favorite siries of books is "The Heros of Olympus." My dad is a teacher and my mom is a worker at the indiana university school of HYPR. My brother is a student in middle school. I also have a dog named Freddy. I can drum and have been taking lessons for about a year. If you rewarded me with goodies every time I was awsome, I would have lifetime goodies.

Nicklas was supposed to write a letter to himself about what he wants to accomplish this school year. (I copied his mistakes and bad grammar.)

Dear Nick,

This is your past self. I first want to say hello; how are you doing? I know that alot has happend in the last 9 months. School wise I hope you are achiving your academic goals at having a 3 in every class and have done your cross country goal of not walking in any races.

Out of school, here are my goals I hope others met. I hope the Tigers won the world series. I hope IU football made a bowl game and IU basketball make the 2nd (3rd?) round of the NCAA tournament.

So you, that's it really. Was Thor 2 good? how about Captain America 2? I hope you enjoyed them and any other movies you watched. So yeah, see you. Win a race for me.

Sencerly, Yourself