Jaxson and the hoop

Oops

I don't know where my mind is lately. I signed up for a CPR class at work weeks ago, wrote it on the calender, got a babysitter for the kids, and woke up early to get ready. Before rushing out the door I grabbed the papers they sent me only to realize that I was already a half hour late to the class!!!!!! I wrote the wrong time down on the calender and missed the class. I hate being an airhead.

True Love

Last night we decided to give Dallas the dog a haircut. Because of his inability to sit still it turned into a shave. Jade and I had locked ourselves in the bathroom to do the work and when finished we were laughing at the poor sight of our dog. We both thought he looked a little terrible. We began to feel anxious about what Connor would think of his beloved Bichon.....we opened the door and Dallas ran out and down the stairs. We hear Connor lovingly reply, "Oh Dallas, you look so beautiful"

We both burst into laughter....that is true love.

Update on us

I started my day early today. I got up at 6:30 Am and went running. I think it is nice to get up before the kids and have a little quiet before the rush of the morning starts. (I will let you know later at 3 Pm when I am REALLY tired if I still think getting up at 6:30 AM was a good idea)

I went for Connor's kindergarten evaluation yesterday. It is amazing to see how much progress he has made over the past year. He has really grown. At the beginning of the year he couldn't write more than just scribbles and now he is making sentences. His math skills continue to excel and I am convinced that he will be more of a science/math man than English. When we ask him what he wants to be when he grows up he still says, "a hockey player". He has made friends in the neighborhood and from 3 PM to 8 PM he enjoys playing outside with his neighborhood gang.

Jaxson still enjoys playing inside, close to him mom and dad. He recently has developed an interest in the Wii fit. He will play it for hours and beg everyone around him to play too. He seems to be outgrowing his TV obsession and doesn't seem to spend as much time lounging on the couch watching Spongebob. He is almost as tall as Connor now and is really starting to thin out. This is the hardest part of watching your toddlers turn into preschoolers. They lose all that remaining baby fat and they begin to look more child like. No more baby.

Jade is dreaming of a new camero. My graduation and future career plans bring images of shiny cars into his head. We went Saturday to look at one and they were SOLD OUT! The dealer didn't even have pamphlets to show us. Right now the way to get one is to custom order and if ordered right now, we will receive the car in September.

Since school is finally out I have taken on more hours at work. I have discovered that I really HATE working overnight shift. I don't think it is natural to stay away all night long even when you are forcing yourself. Once the boys get out of school I will be changing my shift. I cannot work overnight and then come home and take care of the monkeys. I have had a few nursing jobs come my way and I am beginning to feel more confident that I will be able to get a job soon after passing my test.

Helene Fuld graduation

The evening graduates of 2009
Carrie, Amy, Rachel, and me!

Waiting to walk out

Me, Rachel, Nick, Amy, and Carrie. The whole study group

I found this picture of Jaxson and my heart melted. I remember this time of his development and I miss it. Look at the rolls in his arms.......and his chipmunk cheeks. I wish for just a minute that he could go back to this age but I am enjoying his preschool independence.

Jaxson being silly ***I posted this and while reviewing what it looked like on my page was shocked to see my picture to the right with this picture. It was one of those moments where I thought, wow---Jaxson really does look like me.****

Jaxson making his mad face

Growing up my parents often played a song by The Doors that said, "This is the end, my only friend, the end. Of our elaborate plans, the end. I'll never look into your eyes...again"

And those few lines sum up my whole experience with nursing. They explain how I feel about the nursing school, some of the people, and the feeling of freedom of finally being done!!!

I will NEVER forget my first nursing test. I started nursing school with a 4.0 GPA so I was d-e-v-e-s-t-a-t-e-d when I got my first test back and discovered that I got a 78%. I cried. I called friends and family and cried. Then, I worked hard and NEVER got even a C again. That was the beginning of the end of being an overachiever.

Fast forward to last night.....my final test of nursing. I had to end nursing school with a bang so.........I got a 73 on my final. Not even passing. In nursing school anything under a 75 is a fail. I was shocked because all my other grades were in the 90's. I went from a 90 average to a 73?? This time, I didn't cry. I wasn't even really upset because I have grown in so many ways from school. I realized that I have become more humble and I can accept the disappointments along with the achievements. And more importantly, I am still graduating!!!! I accomplished nursing school. I made a goal, worked hard, and accomplished it.

It really doesn't hurt

*Charity, this is for you! I DO wear my hat everywhere!!*

A Typical Saturday.....
Checking emails
Brushing teeth
Fixing the toilet that is always broken

Never ending laundry
Hmmmmm. Dinner at Mexican restaurant.
A little after dinner shopping.....

Relaxing before bed.......

Tooth Fairy---do not read if you believe in the tooth fairy

Connor lost another tooth tonight. The count is now at three. This time it was his upper front tooth. I think Jade was relieved because as Connor is getting older and his jaw is getting wider, his teeth are getting farther and farther apart. Especially his front teeth. He has a HUGE gap in between them. It really bothers Jade.

Connor carefully wrapped his tooth in a napkin and placed it in a sandwich bag for the tooth fairy. He was really curious this time and has started asking a lot of questions. He wanted to know if the tooth fairy is a girl or a boy, if Dallas the dog would eat the tooth fairy, and the most important question......Would the tooth fairy know how to find the tooth if he hid it. Well people, take notes because I learned tonight that if your six year old is asking questions.....there's a reason. I tucked Connor into bed and we placed his tooth under his pillow.

Fast forward to two hours later. Jade collects the money and heads into Connor's room to make the exchange. He soon comes out looking confused. He says, "I can't find the tooth" So, I go in and start feeling around under his pillow and sure enough......it was gone. He hid it. I spent the next 10 minutes quietly searching around his room for that tiny little tooth. I finally found it tucked under the side of his mattress.

So, I learned a lesson tonight.....if the child is asking questions that seem innocent---listen because although he is six, his questions have meaning.
And Connor learned a valuable lesson tonight too (though he doesn't realize it yet) You can't fool the tooth fairy. She is a sneaky little fairy!

Carnival

The carnival is in town!!! I took the boys to the carnival on Thursday night. We had so much fun. I bought handstamps so they could go on the rides as much as they desired. We ended up being at the carnival for 3 hours!!! Connor has become so adventurous. He wanted to go on every ride. Even rides I didn't want to go on. While on the top of the Ferris wheel he would swing the cart while I would grip the bars in fear. Jaxson was more like his mother and preferred to sit in the stroller and eat french fries. He did NOT like the Ferris wheel and everything we could round the top he would yell, "I want off!!!" The view from the top of the Ferris wheel

Jaxson with his coveted french fries. He kept his hand over the top so that no one else could reach in and steal one.


Connor went on the swings over and over again. He seriously has no fear. They went high and fast and he didn't mind. His little friend refused to go with him and yelled at him from outside the ride, "Connor, are you scared?"

Connor brought his friend Jesse with him and then he ran into numerous friends from school. I can't believe how popular the kid is. I have found that I am no longer Shannon. I am now Connor's mom.
And if you have read this far, you deserve some humor. I was surprised to notice how many carnival workers do not have teeth. I began to wonder why they do not have dental benefits and if they do, why they don't use them. I really felt bad for them but they didn't seem to mind that they didn't have teeth. They were happy. I was still thinking about it when I came home (if you know me, you know I am obsessed with teeth and TERRIFIED my teeth will fall out) so I went to bed thinking about it and had dreams filled with dental instruments and torture. I dreamt I went to the dentist to get my teeth cleaned and instead of cleaning my teeth, she stuck her instruments in my feet! (another obsession/dislike of mine is having my feet touched. Especially between my toes) What brought on this horrible dream that combined two of my biggest fears/dislikes? Being at the happiest place (the carnival) and seeing the poor underpaid workers with no teeth because I am just like that.


UPDATE: Spell check is not always perfect. A friend kindly pointed out to me that ferris wheel was spelled farris wheel. While I did in fact type ferris when writing the post, my spell check told me it was spelled wrong and suggested I change it to farris. So, I trusted my spell check because technology is NEVER wrong. Right???

WRONG!!!