Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Christmas Eve

As I sit in front of the tree, a million presents underneath and beautifully lit, I'm trying to find my Christmas cheer still. There's been lots of actions... Mass, one present open for Christmas Eve (and lots of presents at my mom's yesterday), baking for Santa, put cookies and milk and beer out... But it still just doesn't feel like Christmas. Tomorrow I'm excited for the kids to open their presents. With four of them it's hard to have that perfect thing under the tree for each, but I do think they'll all be really happy. That will definitely help my spirit!

I am so excited for Ava too. She simply loves all of this, and opens things and exclaims, "I've always wanted one of these!" Every time we're in the car she wants to turn the music and movies off and sing Christmas songs, so we've sung more versions of jingle bells loudly and off key than I care to admit. I haven't listened to many other Christmas songs, but those are certainly better than Johnny Mathis anyway.

Silent night... Will lead to a crazy morning!


8 crazy kids and a Gram and a Grumpy.


Ava's new pjs say Official #1 Puppy Hugger. It's so true... Even if she doesn't look happy about it and Buca's eyes are crazy!


Reading 'Twas the Bight Before Christmas.


And to all a good night!

Friday, December 13, 2013

Why I had 4 kids

(I published this on November 26, but in the wrong place! I don't want to lose a post... they are too few and far to come by as it is!)

Tonight was a fun night. So often it's get home, throw food in your face, rush off somewhere. And even if it's not that, it's eat and then kids watch movies/play video games/do homework until bed. Sometimes Dave and I sit in the front room and try to have a conversation, but always there ends up 1, 2, 3, 4 kids interrupting, yelling, crying or wrestling. I usually look at the clock and wonder when bedtime is, really wanting adult conversation (or just some moments of peace!). Sometimes I suggest they go watch tv to grab some sanity.

But not tonight. Tonight we started playing music and we listened to everything from Katy Perry to Jimmy Buffet. Christmas music and lullabies from when the kids were little. Then we started watching videos through the tv and we had a family dance party. We ended with Rainbow Connection, Return to Pooh Corner, and Pure Imagination from Willy Wonka. Nolan danced with Ava, and Max had his own groove going on. Abby sang her little heart out.

The kids went to bed a scootch late. They were a little tired and a little wound up. But we had fun, all six of us together. I hope some day they remember their mom and dad singing Baby It's Cold Outside as a duet. I hope they remember having three siblings as a good thing. That no matter how cramped we may sometimes feel, that once upon a time, we loved to all six of us hang out in one little room together.

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Wisconsin... Gotta love it?

This is the message I got from Abby's science teacher today, which went out to all parents of the middle school:

From: stier@west-bend.k12.wi.us [mailto:stier@west-bend.k12.wi.us]
Sent: Thursday, November 21, 2013 10:55 AM
To: Jill Gawrych
Subject: Attention Deer Hunters!!
Sent: Thursday, November 21, 2013 10:55 AMTo: Jill GawrychSubject: Attention Deer Hunters!! This email is regarding: ABIGAIL GAWRYCH.
-----------------------------------------------
Our 7th grade science classrooms are in need of deer hearts for a science dissection lab.   If you are able, please save the heart and place it in a plastic bag and freeze.   If you are able to save the aorta, even better!!   You can send it along with your child to deliver to Mrs. Stier at school.

Wishing you all a successful and SAFE hunting season!

Judy Stier 

Yes. Please save the aorta. Nothing worse than deer hearts without the aorta.

Friday, November 15, 2013

Friday night dance party!




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Location:Creekside Dr,Jackson,United States

Thursday, November 14, 2013

It's hard

This week was a big week at school... 1st quarter is done (already!) and report cards came home. Middle school apparently works well for Abby. She's doing great, with an A- as her lowest grade in... ART! I think that's funny. Dave is offended. Nolan is also doing great. I also had a parent teacher conference tonight for him. He has the same 4th grade teacher Abby had, and I really like her. And, she really likes Nolan. She tells us he's a good student, he works hard, he really gets it. Yeah Nolan! (Sometimes we're not too sure!)

And then there's Max. I had Nolan's conference first and then Max's, and I sat talking to Nolan's teacher and told her I really didn't want to go to Max's. She made me feel better because her daughter is in 1st grade too, she also can't read great, and she's a little, ahem, disruptive in the classroom. On top of that, she feels like every day is a parent teacher conference since she's a teacher too and sees her daughter's teacher every.single.day. I definitely realized that things could be worse.

Max's teacher starts with, "Max is a really nice boy." Ugh. That's like "she has a really good personality," right? He just really struggles with reading. We do flash cards. One time through he knows the words, and the next time through, no idea. He makes up words if he doesn't know it, and adds letters that aren't there. Last night it took him 32 minutes to finish the flash cards, and tonight it took him 12 minutes. It's just crazy. She also said he gets math fine, when he pays attention. Yup, that's Max. He's always off in his own world. I love that because he can spend hours keeping himself busy, entertaining himself. But it doesn't work so well in school. I told her to tell him Focus your mind, focus your eyes, focus your body. It's what they use in Tae Kwon Do and it seems to work. We'll see!

Bottom line is she's not overly concerned yet. The end of Q2 is when kids usually "click." I hope so. For our sanity if nothing else!

Thursday, November 7, 2013

And it looks like Christmas!






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Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Are you ready for some football?

I was ready for some football, but apparently my Packers weren't. I hate it when they lose. Even worse when Rogers get hurt. And even worse when they play the Bears because then I wake up to this...






My least favorite child ever!

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Trick or Treat!

I really, really, really hate that we have trick or treating on Sunday night. Especially since it's Sunday night after fall break, when I really just want to get the kids relaxing and to bed early. Instead, let's let them run around and hype them up on sugar! It makes no sense to me that if you're going to have trick or treating on the night before a school night, why not put it on actual Halloween? But, whatever. At least the weather was really nice (no rain! no sleet! no snow! no wind!), so there was a ton of kids out. But still...
 
Buca wanted to show off his costume first.


This was at the pumpkin patch a couple of weeks ago.




I think this is funny, with Ava peeking out the bottom.
 Yup. It's a big rooster.
 Hay ride!

Trick or treating! Isn't the cowgirl the sweetest cowgirl you've ever seen?

And here's the crew that called our house home base. We had a few people over, Dave made chili and pumpkin ginger soup (from the kids' pumpkins!! How industrious is that??), and then the kids toured the neighborhood.

Just my kids. Nolan was a banana, Ava a cowgirl, Max some crazy something, and Abby... big kid. She decided she was too old to trick or treat this year, and instead volunteered to take Ava (and any other little kids who tagged along). I just can't believe it. How could she possibly be old enough to not trick or treat??
 

 Nolan won his class costume contest with his banana outfit. He went trick or treating with a friend on Saturday in a neighboring town and got 10 pounds of candy. Then went again on Sunday around our house. Needless to say, he got a LOT of candy. (And Buca only ate a little of it. But more than Nolan would've preferred.)

Happy Halloween!!

Monday, October 28, 2013

I've got a ticket for the long way round...

Last week I had the opportunity to go to Loveland, Colorado for a training session. Loveland is an hour north of Denver, and really quite beautiful. Training was long and a little arduous, as there were 5 of us, with 2 trainers, and it felt like we spent all day every day together. Literally. We would start at 8 in the morning, go until noon, walk from the conference room to the private dining room to eat from 12-1, then training from 12-5. On top of that, we had dinners together on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. The people were nice, but that's just a lot of time with people!

Fortunately, on Wednesday night we had off, so I went to Golden, CO to go see my friend Holly. She moved there two years ago, so I haven't seen her since then. I used to work with her at West Group, and it was just really nice to catch up.

And another fortunate was that I got into Loveland early enough on Wednesday to change and go hiking for a bit. After the floods last month, we weren't able to be at our initially scheduled place, with views of the mountains and a river, so instead we saw the inside of the Embassy Suites all day every day, so was very grateful for the trail I found to walk around. I thought I was going to be foiled as I was driving to Rocky Mountain National Park and I realized that the road was closed, but I made a turn, and one more turn, and then just kept driving up, and up, and up. I was definitely not disappointed!

It's got mountains, it's got rivers, it's got sites to give you chills... (for anyone who knows the Cup song)

 Snow! Brrr! But it was 65 and sunny all week, so not really cold.

 Me, at the top of the mountain.

 I loved the rocks that were there for some reason. I just kept thinking Max would love them. So I brought some home for him.
 This is where I was. Could probably never find it again!
 I just loved they way this guy looked. Totally a rancher in Colorado. I was listening to him talk, and apparently he was displaced in the flood. Not sure if he's staying at the hotel indefinitely, or what the scoop was.
 Ok, even though we had to go out with the group at night, at least we had a nice ride!
 And this was my rental car. If nothing else, Nolan was impressed!!

And that's that. Another week down... and I'm happy to be back home!

Monday, October 7, 2013

Happy birthday, Buca

Buca is 1 year old today. Don't worry, I'm not nearly as nostalgic about this as when the kids have milestones. But it does just seem like we brought him home, a tiny little pup. He's come a long way... He doesn't pee in the house anymore, he rarely chews things he's not supposed to, his tail is strong enough to wreck havoc wherever he goes. Sometimes he's a pain, but there's no denying he's the perfect dog for us.



See mom? I blog about all the important things!

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Ewwwww

On Sunday I got a juicer. I've read lots of great things so thought I would try it. Amazingly enough, I (usually) like it! I really never thought I would drink a green drink... Kale and spinach with my apples? No thank you. But, turns out it's not so bad. And the funny part is I have to share with the kids, especially Max! He and Ava both like to drink what I have to the point where I'm fighting over breakfast. Carrots, spinach, ginger, apples, who knew Max would like it so much? But their favorite thing is to make their own. Max had one called Guinea Food because it literally looked like what we fed the guinea pigs. And then there was this one, with plums and grapes and blueberries.



He called it liquid poop. And still drank it. Ugh.

But then there's Ava, who made this concoction:



It's root beer, shredded cheddar and Parmesan cheese and crushed up Doritos. And someone dared her to take a drink and so she did! Ick. I thought we were all going to die when she brought the cup down and she had a piece of cheese hanging out. I shutter at the thought even now!

I guess I'll be happy they're good eaters. But seriously. Ewwwww!

Monday, September 9, 2013

Appropos of nothing

I do love that the school communicates quite well. And even when I ignore it and completely miss things, I still appreciate that I got it and they tried. But sometimes I have to scratch my head at the random things. The email below, for example, came on the third day of school. I'm not exactly sure what to do with it. Do I need to buy those books? Talk to Abby about them? Read them myself? Or, is it just for my information to stay a little more tuned in? Who knows. But, it does make me want to go back to 6th grad Language Arts just so I can sit and read all day!

This email is regarding: ABIGAIL GAWRYCH.
Class: LANGUAGE ARTS 6 ADV Prd: 3 Teacher: J SCHOENBECK
-----------------------------------------------
Here is a list of books that Advanced students will read in LA this year.
A Long Way from Chicago
Gulliver’s Travels
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
Out of the Dust
Ulysses (The Odyssey)
The Witch of Blackbird Pond
Inside Out and Back Again

This is not a complete list because some units allow student choice.

Mr. Schoenbeck


Monday, September 2, 2013

Hello? Anyone there?

Well, hello there. How are you? It's been awhile! A long, long while, as some (you know who you are!) like to remind me on a regular basis. But I'm going to try to be good, I promise. First it was just too crazy busy. Then I just really didn't want to pick up the computer at all. Then once you go so long, it's just easy not to do. But we'll see... maybe a new leaf will be turned this month. Tonight is the eve of a new school year. This summer just went flying by, and I could personally use another month. Well, another month, as long as I could get the kids to bed at a decent hour. I just don't like the morning schedule that school brings. And poor Abby, starting middle school this year, has to leave for the bus at 7. I don't think she actually got out of bed that early the entire summer. Should be interesting! I also messed up last week in a transition she had to middle school called "Mini Night." Mini Night is basically the entire day rolled into two hours. So, you go and walk your class schedule (the building is on three floors), you meet your teachers, you find out what you need for that class, etc. On Wednesday I texted one of Abby's friends and mentioned it on Thursday night. At that point, she texted me back and said, "ummm, mini night was last night." WHAT??? I looked at the calendar and sure enough, it was on Tuesday, NOT Thursday. UGH! and Double UGH!! I told Abby, and she immediately cried. Which made me cry and feel awful. We had walked her classes at registration the week before, but this was just such a big deal. And we weren't doing anything. I even had it on the calendar the right day, but didn't look because I was so sure it was Thursday. However, we had the following text exchange later that morning:
Me: I am so sorry. Abby: It's fine! :) Me: :( I feel so bad. You'll be fine I know, and you'll be a fantastic middle schooler. But I still really messed this one up. Abby: I'm fine.. It's not that hard to find my way around the schoo, I can do it@ And holly will give me her information... It's all good! Me: I love you!! Abby: Love you too! Me: Hey, now you'll have a funny story to tell your friends on the first day about your crazy mom! Abby: She sure is cray-cray! Me: Ha ha! You made me laugh!! Abby: I always do! Me: Yup, you do. I love that about you. Kinda like your dad that way. Abby: Yes. I am!
While we missed one opportunity, I really hope we had another. Abby learned I'm certainly not perfect, and that likely everyone will disappoint at some point in time. That she will be okay, that she has the power to forgive, and we can laugh at it together. I guess the proof will be if she gets lost all day tomorrow or not! As for the others... tonight Nolan declared that he believes 4th grade will be his best year yet. That was a pretty dramatic statement for Nolan! His class has all of his friends in it except Elijah, and they see each other all the time, so I think he's ok with it. This will also be Nolan's last year at the elementary school. Next year he will go to 5th grade at the school being converted to 5th/6th grade. Max is also excited for 1st grade. I think he's happy to not be the littlest in school anymore, and I'm pretty excited for 1st grade too. I think (hope!) he'll come into his own for his reading. I think something will just click. And then there's Ava. How strange that last week was Alina's last week as our Nanny. Instead, Ava will be heading to her house for Nature School with Ms. Alina! It's good changes, but after nearly two years, it'll be a little bit of a shift. Today I realized I didn't have any Diet Coke, and I asked Dave how I would get it anymore? Alina always got my Diet Coke for me! But, I think they all went out with a bang, with plenty of activities this summer. I want to stay home for the summer with Alina! I guess that's it. It's nearly 11:00 on a school night. I guess I better get to bed. See?? This is why I don't post. It's very tiring!

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Six Flags 2013

I have so many posts started or in my head. It's just crazy. Here's one of them from earlier this summer... The first day of summer vacation we headed to 6 Flags with my sister and kids, minus Nolan who was at basketball camp. On the way down, I thought it was funny because we passed many traveling fair rides. Seeing them on these big trucks made me happy we were going to 6 Flags... permanent rides, not moveable ones!
I'm glad Kate tolerates Ava!
Ready to get wet, girls?

Wow, Abby. Could you be any bigger compared to Kate?

Jen and Cole are more than ready! (Sorry, Jen!!)

Let's go Max and Chad!


Don't worry, Kate. It'll be ok! Abby will save you!



A boat just Ava's size.

Max is such a cross between small and big. He went on everything big he could. And then went on the little kid rides. He was SO enthralled with these boats and the bells and the fake steering wheel. I could just hear the wheels turning in his head.



Our second annual Scooby picture! Just missing Nolan...

Awww, Ava. Loved by a skunk!



Can you read this? Cracks me up every time... Bullet #1 says "Riders must possess one (1) naturally fully formed and functioning arm extremity. The arm must have the ability to be flexed at the elbow and a minimum of three (3) full fingers with the ability to hold on with a firm grip. Riders must possess one (1) naturally fully formed and functioning leg extremity with a foot." It has so much thought put into it... there has to be a reason for each point. even more concerning is that it's changed since last year. Craziness!!