Are You Ready?

This question floats around a lot this time of year. Are you ready? for Christmas; for New Years, for school to be out, for school to be in. Are we really ever ready for anything in life? You just do the best you can, and it comes whether you are "ready " or not. Besides it's not very satisfying to be ready. It leaves nothing else to do but wait. I'm not very virtuous when it comes patience. So Christmas came. 

 I got some fabulous homemade presents from school. They are the best kind after all.

 We decorated the tree, bought some presents, and celebrated our one year anniversary with Coco.

We had an entire candy village that lasted for the whole holiday season mostly thanks to our trusty glue gun and Wes' mad engineering skills.

 In an effort to get Sophie off the couch, Santa brought her a bike and scooter. In an effort to keep the boys on the couch for a minute or two they got a Kindle Fire.

 So the good news is that the kids are totally entertained long into the morning hours, allowing for some blissful sleep-filled mornings. Once I am up though, this is pretty much how I spend my days. Sophie has yet to fall, but only because I hover beside her endlessly. I recall just shoving Dylan on his bike and that was pretty much it before he was off and riding. It's funny how it's different with a girl. At this point I'm just holding her back. She even said "See ya, mom" at one point. It's kind of a metaphor for the whole process of raising kids, don't you think? Letting go is harder than I thought.

Chicken Pock

It's been quite an eventful month for Sophie. She passed the first half of Kindergarten with flying colors, including her first book report, the recitation of two poems in front of the whole class, and the lines in her first play in front of hundreds of onlookers. She also performed in two holiday dance recitals. I'm awfully proud of her accomplishments and wish that I had half the confidence and poise now that she has at age five.

 She performed in a community holiday event at the park.

 It was followed by a snow storm. You pay good money for snow in these parts. I'm sure this is amusing for the majority of folks battling the elements this time of year, but the kids ate it up. (Some of them, literally.)There were some causalities such as a errant snowball in the nether regions for one of my boys. Apparently fake snowballs are not as forgiving on real balls if you catch my drift.

Lani came along to take in the performance. She loves to watch Sophie dance but will not consider doing it herself. She's a girl after my own heart. Somehow Lani managed to get more of my genetics than my actual daughter.

Yes that is a St. Patrick's Day shirt she is wearing for her Christmas play.

Yes those are Dylan's church socks on her feet. (I was out of the running for mother of the year a long time ago, so I don't worry about such things anymore.)

 Hudson came to visit Grandma Ruth for a few days while James and Tiffany were on a cruise. It seems like yesterday that I was mostly unsuccessfully trying to wrestle little DB at church parties and otherwise. It was quite vindicating and amusing for me to see Dylan get to experience what he put me through. He was quite exasperated by the end of the party. Tiffany should consider borrowing him every so often. He's a pretty attentive babysitter.

It's not a church party without a turn on Santa's lap. Here is my only true believer left. According to her, she knows because there are always bites out of the cookies we leave out on Christmas eve. Sounds like irrefutable evidence if you ask me. It may be our last year of having anyone around here believe so I am cherishing it while it lasts.

And why not round out December with a the vaccinated version of Chicken pox. Here is what is left of the one chicken "pock". She's felt pretty punky even with the muted reaction, but I'm sure not regretting getting her that one. It could have been much worse I am sure.

30 Day Rule

There is a phenomena known around our house as "The 30-Day Rule." It's a simple yet virtually universal premise that when you move, you have about a month to make the changes that you said you would make to your new home. If you still haven't taken action in that time frame, chances are pretty good that you will never do it. It reasons that if you can tolerate the offending thing for that long, you can tolerate it forever. After 30 days you don't even see it anymore, much less get bothered by it. It helps that moving has a tendency to leave you tired and broke.

When we moved into our home a year and a half ago, we had several items that we for sure were going to do right away. The stark white walls had to go. Check. The "Always Kiss Me Goodnight" taken off the wall. Check. (Not that there is anything wrong with vinyl lettering..it just seemed like a  back omen since we knew the previous couple had divorced forcing the sale of the home in the first place.) Landscaping the backyard. We had great intentions on that one, but landscaping isn't free and this neighborhood has lots of great parks so sure enough we let it slide and a year and a half later we were still looking at dirt. With a dog and the good weather finally here and kids who fully utilize grass fields, it was time to push through the 30-day rule and get it done.

Wes spent what was left of his "free" time between Young Men activities, coaching football, after hour contract jobs with the city, and family affairs on getting sprinklers and curbing put in and prepping for our new grass. 

 Ready to go!

 You've never seen more excited kids. Even Coco stretched out on the first piece we laid down.

 I assured Wes that I had measured..twice. However I do recall spending a lot of time flirting with the basketball team in Geometry class.

The story of our lives lately...close but not quite..

Sock Monkeys, Giant Mirrored Beans, Mustard, and Wrigley Field

 One bonus that I did not think of when I moved to San Tan Valley was the fact that there is a tiny regional airport relatively close by that offers ridiculously cheap fares to other tiny regional airports on the outskirts of other cities. One of these cities is Rockford, Illinois. (I am certain you have heard of Rockford since after all it is the home of the sock monkey. At least it says so on the giant statue of the sock monkey in the airport.) Life as a mom, fabulous as it is, can get a little mundane and I get antsy every so often and get the itch to go somewhere, anywhere. There are two seasons in Phoenix - freaking hot and not that hot, and because of this it is virtually devoid of any traditional indicators of fall. Autumn is my favorite season and is it too much to ask to see a few leaves? The opportunity to tag along with Cheryl and Christopher to Chicago presented itself, so we jumped on it.

 We hopped on a 45 minute train ride to downtown Chicago and spent the day exploring. I can honestly say I did not expect to run into a ten story statue of Marilyn Monroe and her granny panties. Whatever floats your boat Chicago. This would explain the high sales tax.

 Speaking of boats, did you know that downtown Chicago has a beach? Well, sort of; there were a few joggers, but no swimmers. We happen to land in between two winter storms and enjoyed beautiful weather, but I can only imagine how painfully cold the air is coming off Lake Michigan during the winter. But it does add character and beauty to downtown for sure.

 We ordered pizza but got this odd pizza pot pie concoction instead. No complaints here. It was tasty.

 We visited Wrigley Field because it would blasphemous not to if you are married to Wes.  When ever the conversation of "if I had tons of money..."  spending a summer in an RV visiting all the MLB home fields always tops his wish list. It's not baseball season and we were to cheap to shell out the cash for a tour, but at least we got to peak in and get the obligatory photo in front.

 

And this is what a hot dog means in Chicago. Apparently, putting ketchup on a hot dog is profane, but pickle spears, tomatoes, peppers and lots and lots of mustard is totally normal. They are actually on to something..again, tasty.

And yes I did get to see my fall leaves. Gorgeous, don't you think? And there is this odd mirrored bean thing in Millennium Park in the heart of downtown. You can take your picture in the reflection. Of course there is a camera covering your face, but kudos for originality, Chicago.

We arrived back to disappointed kids because of the extreme fun that their Grandparents provided.  A million thanks to them for holding the fort down.

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Oh and lest we forget about my least favorite holiday...this year's Halloween photo is strangely like the past two years, but still I must post.

 Rapunzel and whatever the dress up of the day was for Sophie.. (It was a little skanky for a five year old, but isn't that the true meaning of Halloween?)

 Look out, there are so pro athletes roaming the streets asking for candy.

Candy coma makes it all worth it.

Fall Happenings

We've been a little negligent about our visits to Joseph City of late with all the craziness of life, but we hitched a ride with Grandma Karla and Grandpa Jim last week for a quick trip. We were able to attend a farewell of Wes' cousin Zack and pay Great Grandpa Miller a visit.

My kids always enjoy their visits to Joe City especially when it is still so blasted hot at home. The ride up takes you through some gorgeous fall scenery and if you look close you can see the ever so faint hint of fall in the leaves behind Sophie.

It's an added bonus that the twins made the trip as well. Sophie loves to dote over Pepper and Izzy.

The Queen Creek Mighty Mite Dragons played their last game of the season on Saturday. They won more than they lost and my boys managed to avoid any major injuries which is always a sigh of relief as a mom.

Wes was the offensive coordinator which added some extra excitement in the games for the spectators because we could place bets on how long it would take for him to throw his clip board down.  It takes a lot of patience to coach football especially on a team that is long on seven-year-olds who haven't played before. He did a great job with the kids with the highlight of the season being a come from behind victory in a night game which they trailed by three touchdowns at the half. Dylan had a fumble recovery, which set up Jake for a long run to the end zone in the next set. That is about as fun as it gets as a football mom, and I can tell you they will be talking about that game for a long time.

Proud mama with #54.

Sophie is smiling because she knows the 100 degree three hour games are over.

You know you are big time when Kurt Warner's kid plays in your league and an imposter Suns gorilla makes an appearance at your game.

At first I thought Uncle Burke had decided to throw back to his mascot days, but come to find out that wasn't him in the gorilla costume. He showed up in regular clothes to cheer his nephews on.

Dylan played his heart out every game. He had the play of the game with another fumble recovery in his last game. It's tough to lose, but he had a fun season. It's not easy to be a 60 pound lightweight going against ninety pound kids two years older than you, but fear is not in Dylan's vocabulary. He took down several big kids and it didn't take long before he started getting some respect from players and coaches.  I couldn't be more proud. He's been on a major growth spurt lately, so "little DB" is quickly becoming a thing of the past.

 Shifting gears, no one ever accuses us of being environmentalists, but we do our part to recycle thanks to contraptions like this that I find in random corners of the house. It used to be a box and now is a spooky two story haunted house. I love that my children are creative but exactly how long is the statute of limitations on how long I have to keep this around? They are awfully proud of it.

The kids were looking spiffy for the Primary Program yesterday. They managed to say their parts and after I threatened Jake he even moved his mouth ever so slightly in an attempt to sing. Good job!

Substitute Chronicles

My sister's mother in law who is an assistant principal and has an advanced education degree casually mentioned the other day at Chick-fil-a that "you know substitute teaching is the worst job in the world."
I knew it was bad but I thought for sure that maybe coal mining in West Virginia, or emptying port-a-potties might be worse. Why would I subject myself to such a job? Well the answer is complicated. The pay is pretty poor. I made three times as much in my pre-Jake, DB, and Sophie job ten years ago, not adjusted for inflation, but that seems like a long time ago in a far away place now given this economy. It is stressful and taxing, but you are never allowed to lose your cool or you are "mean." You are also mean if you actually require the children to do something or heaven forbid show some respect to authority. You are stupid if you can't magically memorize 30 kids names instantly. You are offensive to the kids if you aren't a mind reader or possess the exact same personality or teaching style as the real teacher. If some kids decide to collaborate to  ruin your day and the Dean of Students happens to show up at the worst possible moment, then you don't have effective classroom management.  It really is a no win proposition. Teachers don't like you, kids don't respect you, and the administrators consider you a necessary evil. I have always viewed teachers and noble and kind, so I have been especially surprised by the treatment from fellow teachers.

As a sub, there is no way to know all that you need to know or that the real teacher has the advantage of knowing, so you rely heavily on your instincts to deal with all the crazy and unpredictable situations you are faced with in a day. I try not to be too needy and to figure things out on my own to the extent that I can, because I get that the regular teachers are already in over their heads. But it's not that hard to just be civil and dare I say compassionate to someone who is in need of some direction. Some teachers are down right disdainful to me as a sub.

A couple weeks ago, I subbed in a second grade class. I introduced myself to the neighboring second grade teacher just so she would know who I was, but left her alone besides that brief encounter. At afternoon recess the office paged her and had her send one of my students home from the playground. There are some kids who you know are missing immediately because they are such an enormous and constant thorn in your side. He was one of these kids. (It helped also that he had a mohawk.) As soon as the class lined up and I noticed how quiet and well behaved they were being, I knew he was gone. Based on his behavior all morning, I assumed that he either had jumped the fence and robbed a bank or was enjoying a smoke in the boys' bathroom.I sent two students to go look for him, and was getting ready to report him missing to the office. I decided to just poke my head next door to ask the ever so pleasant teacher if she had seem him. Without even looking up from her desk she says, "Oh the office called me at recess and he went home."

After all I'm just a stupid sub. It's not like I would notice a missing student...WITH A MOHAWK! It's true what a Facebook "friend" said.."they will hire anyone with a pulse to sub." Apparently a brain is not required, or they assume. The reality is that there is an enormous amount of patience and intangible skills required to have any success whatsoever.

I will say that there have been a few teachers who have not done the eye roll when I tell them that I'll be subbing next door, but they are most definitely the minority.

There are a few redeeming qualities of subbing. There is no commitment involved. You can decide if you want to work that day or not. If you decide you hate it altogether, you can tell them to take you off their list. If there is particular school, teacher, or grade you don't care for you can conveniently not be available for those assignments. It is different and challenging and no day is ever the same. That is great for my ADD, given that boredom is my nemesis in life. And when you are not bored, time flies. So you may not be making much per hour, but if the day goes quickly, it seems worth it. I get home most days the same time as the boys, and if the stars align right, I can even sneak a lunch date in with them during my break. (That's still cool to them.) Plus it has added some good stories to my arsenal. That's a teaser for future posts, assuming anyone still reads this blog.

Photo Book

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Ward Talent Show

You never know what you are going to get when it comes to ward talent shows. We had quite the smorgasbord of acts, and I'm talking more like Golden Corral rather than a five star resort, but props to those willing to put themselves out there. You are braver than I am for sure. Cheryl and Wes by virtue of working with the youth in the ward got roped into doing a flash mob dance with Lauren, Ellyse and the rest of the youngsters. (Well Wes says he did it but he didn't actually didn't make his way to the stage and he didn't actually really dance but he still claims to have marked it off his bucket list.) Dancing is not really his thing so much or mine, but Sophie isn't so bad turns out. I recorded it for your viewing pleasure. And Cheryl and Wes, you're welcome for not posting your "dance."

Baptism Day for Dylan!

It was an eventful weekend for the Whittaker Family. When we signed up for Pop Warner Football last July, we thought for sure we would have to miss a game knowing that Dylan's baptism would fall on a Saturday during the season. Well the stars aligned for us to not only have most everyone in town, but we also were able to get the last baptism time slot of the day. So at 10 am the Dragons kicked off and at 2 pm Dylan and Wes were dressed in white. I almost didn't even want the boys to play because my paranoia about injuries, but it comes in handy when your husband is the offensive coordinator. He conveniently did not call plays that would draw the defense to my boys, for which I was thankful. The Dragons suffered their first loss of the season, but more importantly Dylan came out of it unscathed and excited to be baptized.

I really should start subscribing to the Church News to keep up with the latest, but apparently the whole stake baptism format is optional, at least in QC. Or maybe having a sympathetic primary president with kids also in Pop Warner, she pulled some strings for us.  I didn't ask for fear of drawing attention to our good fortune, but either way Dylan was able to have an old school personal baptism. It was only him, which meant we were able to choose the entire program. I won't lie; I was thrilled. Especially because it was Dylan, who as I eluded to in the previous post, has a tendency to get the middle child shaft occasionally.

 Here is a rare genuine smile from Dylan. I suspect it's because he genuinely loves his primary teacher, Sister Kemp. She might be the best primary teacher in the whole world, honestly. The move to San Tan Valley was a little tough on the boys. I credit Sister Kemp with turning their attitude around about attending primary. Jake had her last year, and Dylan this year. I seriously owe this sweet lady big time. She may never know the lasting impact she has had on not just my boys, but all the kids lucky enough to spend a couple hours with her each week.

The obligatory pre-baptism photo with Dad.

 And a typical family photo. Yet another one we can't use for the Christmas card. (Luckily sweet Lirio came to the rescue, and got some professional quality pictures for us.) Sophie insisted that this was THE dress that she had to buy for DB's baptism. I tried to talk her into something a bit less red carpetish, but she would not hear of it. I guess I should be grateful. She could have taken a page from her cousin Kiki's book and chosen a bikini. You can't appreciate by this picture the sheer volume of pink sparkles that a single dress can shed in a 40 minute event.. But trust me, not a soul in attendance went home without at least a few sparkles on themselves.

 We were thrilled that the twins made an appearance. They always make a splash with their cuteness...as do these two below.

Because we were exclusively planning the program, Dylan was lucky enough to have both grandmas speak. They did a fantastic job. Poor Grandma Karla had just returned home from a three week cruise around the Arctic Circle. I gave her less than a day's notice to plan this talk. She's a good sport like that. I'm so happy that Dylan will always remember the sweet and personalized messages from two of the women besides me who love him most in this world.

I'm mildly afflicted with ADD or maybe it's just old-fashion impatience, but I'm ashamed to admit that at every baptism I attend I find myself grumbling about the length of time it takes for the baptizee and baptizer to change back into their church clothes. I know, I should be basking in the glow of the spirit of the day..I said I was ashamed...but how long should it take? I swear some girls get their hair colored, styled and nails done while their captive audience waits not so patiently.We already spend a lot of time on Sundays in heels, so I suppose the fact that it usually falls on a Saturday makes me especially grumpy about it. So Wes and I have had several conversations about this topic on the drive home from baptisms, so he made a point to do the NASCAR change, as he called it. Being bald and making sure your son has a clip on tie helps the cause, but even so, it was impressive. The Bishop was so stunned by the swiftness of the turn around that he made a comment about it in his remarks. But alas, speed has it's consequences. I couldn't resist snapping a photo of the loop DB's belt missed.

Ironically, the one time that I wouldn't have minded a lengthier intermission, they were back in two minutes. Dylan's cousin, Lauren was nice enough to put together a little ensemble of hymns to play for us on her cello. It was beautiful and we appreciate her willingness to share her talents. Too bad she couldn't even finish it.

All in all it was a beautiful, sweet, and memorable day for Dylan. There are certain times when even after all these years that Wes misses his Dad more than others. Confirming his son is definitely one of those times. Wes is an emotional guy anyway, so it doesn't come easy, but he did an amazing job. I am thankful to him for being a great Dad, to DB for being such a sweet kid, and to everyone who took time out of their Saturday to be there for us..and to those who attended in spirit! We love you!

Eight is Great!

Dylan is a prototypical middle child. He never asks for much and for the most part keeps the peace (unless he decides it's time to torment Sophie). He is very much self-directed and is a great helper. If you start him on a project, he will be there until the end. He is growing up as all kids do, and I have had so much fun watching him come into his own this past year. He is quietly becoming an excellent student. He comes home and does his homework without asking. He has great handwriting, is a proficient reader and is intensely curious about science and religion ironically. He scored a near perfect math score on the AIMS test and had straight A's on his report card.

His ability to focus proved him a formidable pitcher on his little league team and he is my choice for most improved in football this year. Dylan doesn't require a lot of praise and is so quiet that he can get lost in the shuffle, but when I sit down and start thinking about his talents and abilities it's pretty impressive. My favorite thing of all about Dylan is his funny sense of humor. He can make us all laugh out loud with his antics. It's hard to explain, you just have to experience it. And if you aren't in his inner circle, you won't see it. He will play with Lani and Sophie for hours, and has a tender heart for animals and little kids. 

When I thought about what to do for his birthday, I wanted it to be special but it is so easy to cut corners with him because he doesn't really seem to care. One of our favorite stories about DB happen this spring at a Little League game he was pitching in. He was the starting pitcher and was just having an off night. Young pitchers are only allowed to pitch a certain number of pitches and they usually run out in the third or fourth inning. After throwing 12 straight balls and walking the first three batters in the first inning, Wes decided to pull him and try someone else. On the way home he asked me, "Mom, did I hit my pitch count?" He's so oblivious to some things, but so tuned into others.

So we thought it would be fun to do something a little different for his birthday. Thanks to Grandpa Jim's generosity, we were able to sneak him out of school a bit early and go use his boat Saguaro Lake.  The kids had a great time and I can't think of a better place to be on a record setting 117 degree day.

I love these boys and this girl. I debated on whether to even take Sophie, but she didn't even hesitate jumping right in the lake. She might have had the best time of everyone.

Here is a rare genuine smile from the birthday boy. Most of the time he goes to great lengths to make sure he appears mentally disabled in all photos taken of him.

Por ejemplo...., (That's "for example" for you gringos)

I think it has been about 20 years since I water skied, despite it being one my favorite things in the world to do. I was happy that I still had it in me. (That's a thumbs up, not a middle finger in case you wondered.)

It was a fun day that culminated with an ice cream cake and an insta party that we are able to pull off now with our little San Tan Valley commune.

Happy Birthday to my cute Dylan Buddy! Assuming he passes his baptismal interview, he will be baptized on September 17 at 1pm. Come one, come all! Let's show this middle child some love.