A Wee Bit Chilly Here!

Hello Friends!

TGIF!

Whoa -- seems like it has taken forever

for Friday to get here!

 

In weather news, we

went from a balmy 60 (loved that) last weekend

to a brisk (!!) 5 degrees

(BRRRRR)!

 

Soooooo, to keep our

mind off the frigid temps, I thought

I would share a couple photos

from our recent fall photo shoot.

 

 

What do you have planned for the weekend?

 

Shopping and decorating

are at the top

of our lists!

I promise to report back next week.

 

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

 

Finally Friday!

Hello Friends!

 

Did you have a good week?

I hope so!

 It was really cold here one morning -- like 15 degrees

but has warmed up every day!

I like that!

 

What are you all doing this weekend?

 

Belushi and pals!

 

Mr. Tennis and I are going

to see Jim Belushi and the Chicago Board of Comedy!
Hilarity will ensue I'm sure!
But . . .

I'm a wee bit nervous as our seats in the

very front row and they often pull

folks out to get on stage with them
for some real life hi-jinks!

I think Mr. Tennis could handle that

just fine! 

Me? 

Not so much!

 

In other super good news --

my son and his wife and kiddos

will be here on Sunday for

some family photos
they have had to reschedule twice due
to weather!

Can't wait to see them, hold their little hands, hug their
little selves and sniff the baby goodness of  

Baby Harry  --
3 months old already!!

 

Hope you have a fun weekend too!!

 

See you Monday!

 

 

A Picture is Worth A . . .

You know how they say, "a picture is worth a thousand words?"

Don’t doubt it – it is so true!
Recently I was perusing some old photos looking for one of my Dad from his younger days when he was a railroad engineer. I found it among some others that I had scanned and put together in a little birthday video for him five or six years ago. One of the photos I found really made me smile. I’ve seen it before, but I had totally forgotten about it. Here it is – my Mom and Dad holding me and my twin sister [my Mom is holding me!]. Don’t they look so calm and happy?!

And really, how calm could it have been – they had twin baby girls, two boys that defined the word "terrors" aged almost 2 and 4 years old, and a six-year old girl! Plus, we were born in the middle of a hot summer and they moved 10 days after we got home from the hospital! Holy smokes – it had to be crazy busy! It’s such a sweet photo! I loved it as soon as I saw it. To see my Mom and Dad looking so young and happy warmed my heart.

So, here’s the lesson I learned – don’t forget to be present and actually be in some photos with your family. Moms especially seem to be busily getting everyone else’s picture and are often left out. I know I often try not to get in any photos as I think my hair looks squirrely or I look tired, don’t have any lipstick on or I want to lose 5 or 10 pounds before I get my picture taken.

But later, when the kids are grown, they will have forgotten what you (by you, I mean me, of course) even looked like in younger days! Quick – another lesson (two for one today, I guess), since nearly all photos are digital these days, be sure and actually print your photos!! They don’t bring back memories very well sitting on someone’s hard drive or a CD.

Alrighty then, must go put some lipstick on and get in some pictures! :)

Climb Every Mountain (or Boulder)

Really now, you know there are no mountains in Nebraska, right?! Heck, truth be told, there are very few hills around here and even less as you go further west. Warning, do not attempt to drive I-80 across Nebraska without a big ole' pot of coffee. The flatness will make you very, very sleepy!

But there are mountains and challenges to be faced everywhere, aren't there. Lately, we've had a bit of a math challenge going on. Miss M has had the darndest time since school started with math -- mostly addition and subtraction of larger numbers. Being a parent can be such a balancing act -- trying to help your child, build some self-confidence and still not become one of those neurotic mothers! Oy -- parenthood is not for the weak of heart!

Already, Miss M looks down and says "I'm no good at math." Oh man -- that kills me. And she's a bit of a shy girl and very tender-hearted. She doesn't want to ask her teacher for help or tell her if she doesn't understand, so she'll just take a wild guess. We've talked to her teacher, we work on math worksheets and flashcards, and we also have a tutor come over every week. Oh, gosh, I do sound a bit neurotic, don't I!

During the summer, she and Courtney (the tutor) worked on and practiced reading together. Maddy really, really likes her. I wasn't sure if I should keep the tutor for the school year too, but I'm so glad I did. They spend nearly the whole hour going over math and doing fun math-related problems. They do a bit of reading too and go over any papers that had mistakes on them. Probably at least partly because it is somebody else (not Mom), Maddy thinks it is fun and looks forward to it every week. Guess who else attends tutoring sessions - Mickey Mouse and sometimes other random stuffed animals. Second grade is so different than first grade. In 1st grade, it was all about learning to read. In 2nd, it's more reading to learn and figuring things out on your own . . . a bit more of a challenge and that's a good thing, right?!