2010 - A Year in Pictures

February 15, 2010

2010-02-15T19:22:00.001-08:00

What better way to watch Blue's Clues with your morning snack...

February 14, 2010

2010-02-15T19:22:00.000-08:00

Ashley insisted on wearing ALL of her jackets/sweaters that she could find Sunday afternoon. When she put them on, I thought she would quickly ask for them to come off, but no, they stayed on until it was bath time! I love her pose in this picture - she is so proud of herself!

February 13, 2010

2010-02-15T19:19:00.001-08:00

I didn't forget to take pictures this weekend - just didn't get around to posting.

I love it now that Ashley is able to play with others. She loves her big brother and they had a great time building Saturday afternoon.

February 12, 2010

2010-02-12T18:15:00.000-08:00

Watched my little girl eating dinner tonight, looking so big. She was sitting at her table using a spoon and it hit me that she will be 2 in just five months!

February 10, 2010

2010-02-10T17:02:00.000-08:00

Shocking...you mean grades and behavior in class are connected?

February 9, 2010

2010-02-10T16:54:00.000-08:00

I couldn't get myself to post this picture last night. This is a picture of the new attendance boundaries for our part of the county. It's hard to see why this would make me so upset if you aren't from this area, but we live just above the "d" in Sherwood in the red area of the map. For years, our area has been zoned for Sherwood Elementary. My son has been attending there since Kindergarten and will be entering 5th grade next year. We are less than a mile from the school and Robbie walks or rides his bike often. We will now be zoned for Creel Elementary. What you can tell from this picture/map is that Creel is not nearly as close. So, our district has chose to take children who can walk to school (costs them nothing) and bus them to a school 3 miles away (which I'm sure is a waste of money).

February 8, 2010

2010-02-08T18:26:00.000-08:00

We joined yesterday and my first goal is to make it at least once a week. I start Wednesday...

February 7, 2010

2010-02-07T18:21:00.000-08:00

I had to pick a few pictures for today because one just wouldn't do this story justice.

Ashley decided she needed to roll around with several stuffed animals today - smiling, laughing and giggling as she did it. It was so cute that I wish I had thought to have one camera recording video and the other taking pictures!

February 6, 2010

2010-02-07T18:00:00.000-08:00

Many years ago, 2003 to be exact, I met an amazing young man while working with Big Brothers Big Sisters. Just to show how small the world is, he was the son of someone I graduated high school with (but knew only by name). In my search for a Big Brother for him, matching him with a Big and through various BBBS events, I built a relationship with his family. Several years later, I left BBBS and he attended McNair Magnet School. During all this time, Robbie developed a great relationship with him. Although we don't see him often, Robbie thinks of him as a Big Brother. He came to watch Robbie play in his basketball on Saturday. He hung out with us for several hours later and we went that evening to watch him play in his last basketball game for this season. His team is one of the top teams in their division within the state. He's such a cool kid - funny and hardworking. He's the only freshman on the team and is already a top recruit for his graduating class. One reason I said that he is amazing is because he's hearing impaired and in spite of that, he hasn't let the fact that he's completely deaf in one ear and has an implant/aide in the other stop him or slow him down. Even more, I'm so glad that my son has such a good role model to look up to in his life - literally and figuratively (he's 6'6" already at 16 years of age!).

I Suck...!

2010-02-07T17:57:00.000-08:00

I made it a month and then found myself with no inspiration and absolutely no desire to even touch my camera. I did pick up my camera again on Saturday, however. I really hope that I can do better.

January 31, 2010

2010-01-31T18:27:00.001-08:00

Even with her snotty nose, how can you not love her???

January 30, 2010

2010-01-30T19:22:00.001-08:00

I went to a baby shower today for a high school friend that I haven't seen in years (which is a shame since until recently, she lived in the same town that I work). I'm super excited for her and the journey she is about to begin as a mother with her son, Austin James. Her aunt made her shower cake and it was delicious, not to mention very creative.

January 29, 2010

2010-01-29T18:50:00.000-08:00

As I was out purchasing a gift for a friends baby shower, I came across some bathtub crayons and decided to buy them for Ashley. She LOVES to "draw" and "color." My decision to get these for her was very much appreciated (at least I believe by her focus and the look on her face!). Also notice that she is using her left hand. When it comes to coloring or drawing, this is always her preference. However, she usually uses her right hand when eating with a spoon. (We are both righties; although both of my parents are lefties!)

January 28, 2010

2010-01-28T18:36:00.000-08:00

Along with my headache last night, Robbie had a writing assignment that he needed to finish and turn in today. When I picked him up from school yesterday, he started by saying that he needed extended time for his writing assignments. Students in Florida take a writing assessment in 4th grade called FCAT Writes. They have 45 minutes to write something based on either a narrative or expository prompt they receive. He swore up and down the entire way home that he is a horrible writer and there is no way that he could pass the Writes test. I, of course, told him otherwise and tried to encourage him to do better. He was given a prompt on Monday and the final draft was due Thursday (today). I'll be honest, his first draft was not good at all. He had a good idea but then went all over the place with it. I made him re-write it after that point where he started pulling strings. I gave him some ideas and sent him off to write. In total, he probably worked a good 2 hours on this assignment. Obviously he won't have this much time when the assessment comes but I think my re-direction helped him realize some where he needs to focus and expand in his writing. Anyway, long story a little bit shorter, he came home today with a high score. Students are scored on a 6 point scale. If you notice in the top left corner, there is a green 6.0 circled. I have a feeling this is Robbie's handwriting. He told me that the teacher went back and forth on how many points to assign. Over on the right side, there is a 6.0 that is circled and crossed out that is his teachers handwriting. In between those two is a 5.5 and a 5. I didn't notice before bed that this was probably his handwriting so I'll have to investigate that more closely. However, whether it is truly a 6, 5.5, or 5.0, he still did an awesome job. (Students need to earn a 4.0 to be considered on grade level.) We'll have to deal with the possibly falsified grade later...

January 27, 2010

2010-01-28T18:32:00.001-08:00

Sorry...no picture by me for the 27th of January. I had a splitting headache and there was no way I was going to force myself to do anything but be lazy! Not to mention that I had to struggle with Robbie to complete a writing assignment!

January 26, 2010

2010-01-28T18:22:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday, January 26th, the school I work at celebrated its 50th anniversary. The history of McNair Magnet School is amazing and I am so proud to be part of it. Our advanced band, chorus, dance troupe and World Drumming group performed. I took several pictures that evening but my favorite is of our World Drumming group. This group is a big reason I want Robbie to attend McNair for 7th and 8th grade. You can't help but move once this group starts banging on those drums!

January 25, 2010

2010-01-25T18:36:00.000-08:00

Went back to the doctor today to review my blood work for my thyroid. Still within the normal range but things not what he wanted to see. My dose was increased once again but he also highly suggested I add Green Tea Extract, Chromium Picolinate, Cinnamon, and CoQ10 to increase my metabolism. We'll see how it goes...

January 24, 2010

2010-01-24T20:00:00.001-08:00

One of Ashley's favorite things to do is stand in the cart while we are shopping. She will hold onto the front, stick her butt out and smile away. We call it her "queen of the world" stance. We know it is the not the safest of things but we stay close.

January 23, 2010

2010-01-24T19:51:00.001-08:00

I missed Friday's picture. We were out late getting first dibs at a friends garage sale items. However, I did take pictures this weekend but failed to get them posted. That just may be the way it goes, though.

Robbie had a basketball game on Saturday and I finally remembered to bring my camera. I was able to try the sports mode which would take many pictures in sequence. It's a pretty cool feature. I wish the lighting was better in a gym, but I'll take what I can get. Robbie's team ended up winning 23-13 and Robbie scored 13 of those points. They are 4-0 for the season, with 4 more games left in the season. Here is a shot of one of his first lay-ups of the game.

January 21, 2010

2010-01-21T18:44:00.000-08:00

You get two pictures today! Same thing, different angles, but I wanted to be able to show how my crazy cat, Moochie, can sleep just about anywhere, in any position. I guess she felt the need to be curled up close to me and was going to find a way to make it happen. She found a way to squeeze in between Robbie's lunch box (not quite sure why it was left on the couch but that's where his backpack had been) and one of Ashley's stuffed animals. She seems amazingly comfortable even though it looks anything but!

January 20, 2010

2010-01-20T18:47:00.000-08:00

How could my child ever get bored? Glad we don't need this room for anything!!

January 19, 2010

2010-01-20T16:28:00.001-08:00

Ahhh...I totally took a picture yesterday and was so tired, I forgot to post it!

We are FINALLY done with Robbie's science fair project. Here is the final product!

January 18, 2010

2010-01-18T20:18:00.000-08:00

Ashley received a new outfit from her Grandma Rose for Christmas (I think originally intended for her birthday, just took a bit of time to get to us) but we weren't sure when the weather was going to warm up enough for her to wear it. Well, that day came today and I'm so glad it still fit. I was able to snap a quick picture so that we could print it out and mail it to Grandma Rose. We might have to wear it once a week over the next few weeks to feel that she got the most of it, though! But, darnit, she's cute. I can't believe she will be 18 months old in less than a week!

January 17, 2010

2010-01-17T13:14:00.000-08:00

Today my house was divided...and I won!!! (Love the v.s by my son. Told him I needed a VS to put inbetween and this is what he made me!)

January 16, 2010

2010-01-16T19:38:00.000-08:00

Jacq's current yummy-ness. Looking forward to breakfast tomorrow morning - the house smells amazing!

January 15, 2010

2010-01-16T19:34:00.000-08:00

I've been in a haze for the past couple days and this is why. I've been on some kind of thyroid replacement hormone for almost 10-years now. I take it daily and when I have a lapse, I'm often in a fog. I usually do okay while I'm up and moving but when I stop, I'm done. I have a short temper, I'm tired, my body is exhausted, my mouth is dry, I become extremely sensitive to the cold and several other things. One of these days I hope to have my dosage correct.

January 14, 2010

2010-01-14T19:00:00.000-08:00

Plain and simple - the most amazing man! I'm so lucky to have him in my life. I am far from a great wife (he does 98% of the cooking and any and all baking!) but I have been blessed with not only a wonderful husband but the best friend a gal could ask for! Not only that, but he is a kick ass father. He accepted my son as his own. He is absolutely wonderful with him and I'm so happy that Robbie has a positive male role model in his life every day. And with Ashley - talk about a proud Papa! She has him wrapped around his finger! I don't say it nearly enough - I love you!!

January 13, 2010

2010-01-14T18:51:00.000-08:00

I didn't forget about my daily picture for the 13th. I knew exactly what I was going to take a picture of but fell asleep on the couch while waiting for Robbie to finish his homework. When Jacq was done checking it, I tucked him in and headed to bed myself. Not that there are many who would notice, but I apologize!

Several weeks ago, I caught the tail end of a Dr. Phil show where he was talking about how entitled today's youth believe they are. There was a quick flash of a book across the screen and I knew I had to read it. I'm so glad I picked it up - Generation Me has been rather interesting and I recommend that anyone with children, or who has to work with children, read it.

January 12, 2010

2010-01-12T18:06:00.000-08:00

Ashley is sick again, probably the sickest she has been in a long time. Granted, it is just a nasty cough, runny nose, and fever, it's still pretty bad. If you didn't know, Ashley had RSV (Respiratory Syncitial Virus) when she was about 3 months old. This can be a pretty nasty virus for young infants to have. Fortunately, she recovered from it fairly well but was diagnosed after with childhood asthma. While dealing with the RSV, she was placed on a nebulizer. With her most recent illness, the nurse detected a slight wheeze on the lower right side and suggested we start back up with the nebulizer treatments. This requires the use of Albuterol. Sadly, one of the possible side effects of Albuterol is difficulty sleeping. These treatments make her so hyper! I know that Ashley needs this treatment AND she needs her sleep. So, since this nebulizer has been my focus the last two days with Ashley being sick, you are the lucky ones to see a picture of it!

January 11, 2010

2010-01-11T19:12:00.000-08:00

I really struggled to find a picture today with Ashley being sick and hyper because of her Albuterol treatments. Don't get me started on Robbie and his science project. So, to avoid putting it off any longer, I just took a picture of the newest thing in my house. Well, it's not really new (it belonged to a friend of ours), nor is it the newest thing in my house (that would be the groceries brought home by Jacq this evening), but it is new to me. One of our friends is moving in his with his girlfriend. Jacq helped them combine households this weekend and was one of the first to have pickings at their garage sale "duplicate" items. We were able to obtain two tall faux indoor trees and two small faux shelf plants. I really like what they have done to the look of the rooms we added them to. This is the one that stands closest to me in the living room.

January 10, 2010

2010-01-10T17:25:00.000-08:00

I caught a rare moment on camera today - it was literally over by the time I snapped the picture. Ashley was laying down, not moving, while watching TV. It caught me so off-guard that I had to grab my camera. Sadly, I found out later that she had a fever which could explain her increased amount of down time today. I was able to snap another picture later in the day of her sitting on Daddy's lap with her head on his shoulder - another moment that rarely lasts long enough to be caught on film!

January 9, 2010

2010-01-09T19:13:00.001-08:00

When Robbie was young there were two books that I really enjoyed reading to him - Wynken Blynken and Nod by Eugene Field and Clap Your Hands by Lorinda Bryan Cauley. Although I still have those books, they aren't board books, which Ashley likes and prefers. (As do I, since she likes to rip paper!) The first is a cute lullaby poem and the second is a book that the listener can participate with. I was so excited to find these two books in board book form for Ashley as a Christmas gifts. I can't say she has found as much excitement in them as I have, yet, but I'll keep trying.

January 8, 2010

2010-01-08T19:03:00.000-08:00

I'm a little late this year, but with good reason. Our Christmas tree will finally be coming down this weekend. I usually take everything down the weekend after New Year's but with Robbie not being here for Christmas, I wanted to wait until after we had our Christmas together. It isn't quite looking like it was when I first set it up, thanks to Ashley's interest in some of the ornaments, but here it is.

January 7, 2010

2010-01-07T17:19:00.001-08:00

I love dolphins. I collect dolphin figurines and if I see something with dolphins on it, I might just buy it (especially if it is purple!). I believe I have been collecting dolphin figurines for about 12 years now. However, by far, my favorite figurine is probably my newest one. For my wedding, we had a dolphin theme and our cake topper was this glass figurine with two dolphins coming nose to nose. What you can't see in the picture is that the nose and fins have gold plating on them. I fell in love with it the moment I saw it and just had to have it. I'm so glad Jacq was agreeable!

January 6, 2010

2010-01-06T18:03:00.000-08:00

It's science project time again. Robbie and Jacq have been talking about what they wanted to do since Robbie won in the school and district science fair last year. The project is due next week so this week (nothing like last minute) will be spent getting the experiment done and written up. The plan is to determine which cereal provides you with the most energy by burning cereal and using a calorimeter. (I'm so glad Jacq enjoys science!) I'll be happy when it is done but I'm excited that Robbie is excited about it. He wanted to get straight to work as soon as he got home and had to be pulled away to eat dinner. Of course, this may have something to do with the fact that there is fire involved... Boys!

January 5, 2010

2010-01-05T16:27:00.000-08:00

For those of you who don't know, I became part of an online group through iVillage when I was pregnant with Ashley. I met many wonderful women, all online, who were also expecting in August 2008. Some of us, like me, went on to give birth in July, most welcomed their darling "honeybees" in August, and a few went into September. No matter when our little ones entered the world, many of us formed a close online friendship and even became 'friends' on Myspace and/or Facebook. Last year, some of us participated in a Christmas card exchange and sent cards and/or photos. This year, we decided to do it again. I loved receiving the different cards and pictures this year and wanted a way to remember them all. Hence, my picture for today. It was so much fun sending out and receiving these cards. I did this many years ago with the online group I was part of when Robbie was an infant. I still have several of the pictures I received (and am even still in contact with a couple of the ladies I met online at this time!). It will be fun watching all the 'honeybees' grow each year for those of us who continue.

January 4, 2010

2010-01-04T16:17:00.000-08:00

There were many things I could have taken a picture of today to blog about, but nothing beats the fact that my son returned from spending Christmas with his father today. He's been gone for 13 days and no matter how often he goes or how long he stays, I am always ready for him to get home. Because he left before Christmas, we obviously didn't have much of a Christmas together. He was looking forward to returning home so that he could see what Santa, Mom and Jacq had given him for Christmas. He very loudly exclaimed as he was opening his gifts this afternoon, "This is the best Christmas ever!" I think he says that every year but it always makes me happy to hear - even if it is because he is getting spoiled and receiving most of what he asked for! He is always so missed and I think this picture shows why one might miss his presence. He's just so darn cute and goofy!

Janaury 3, 2010

2010-01-03T20:14:00.000-08:00

The reason losing weight is so difficult. My husband has an unhealthy relationship with baking. He likes to make brownies, muffins and breads. And really, would you turn these down?

January 2, 2010

2010-01-03T07:00:00.000-08:00

In catching up with my blog reading, I found that one of the bloggers I follow is starting a photo blog project. The project is to take a picture everyday and blog about it. I thought it sounded like a good idea so I'm going to start one, too. It will force me to blog every day at least for a short time and give me a reason to play around more with my new camera.

I'm a day late in getting started but I'll blame that on not stealing the idea until this morning. Fortunately, I did use my camera yesterday!

We rejoined Gymboree now that Ashley's age group classes are at a time that doesn't interfere with Robbie's sports schedule. She was so excited to be back...it was hard to get her to focus on us!