A Fan of Jane

Yesterday I wanted to watch Jane Eyre. I've never read the book but now I totally want to! I started it right when we got home from school. I told the little ones they would have to suffer through it. Hannah pranced around playing and singing and didn't mind it being on but didn't watch it either...but Joe was so into it!! My favorite was when he was telling Matthew about the end...(if you don't know the end then don't read the rest of this). He said something like this "Matthew guess what??!! The guy had a big secret!!??? He had a wife in the attic and she was crazy and she burned down part of the castle and the man got blinded and got a huge long beard but Jane still loved him." And now my son has become a fan of a classic!!

Every Girl's a.....

I'm just sayin'.....

The Wheels on the Bus

For school Hannah had a family project. We all worked on this together with Hannah being the creative designer. She chose all the beads and the colors. Josh did Zack's face and Hannah did our dogs faces. The rest of us did our own face. Hannah had a great time working with our family to finish her project and tomorrow she will turn it in.

Hard

Joe can be hard. He has always been so full of energy. Sometimes I just like to remember when he was easier. He really struggles in school and at home. He gets so angry and very often there is little or no warning to when this anger will present itself. I know he feels bad about it afterwards. Today I was reading a note sent home about how his class gets to have show and tell on Friday and I said something like "oh, how cool! You get to have show and tell on Friday" and he just blew up and was yelling at me to stop talking about it. I was baffled, as I am quite often when he gets so upset. After a while he told me he was sorry. I'm still not quite sure why he was so mad and I don't think he knows either. These situations occur everyday all day long. He is working with counselors at school and we are working with him at home. I started volunteering in his classroom and it's interesting to see him there. He doesn't participate with big group activities....he knows it will set him off so he chooses to keep a distance. He still listens and follows along but he chooses to stay in his seat instead of sitting on the carpet with all the other kids...his teacher is okay with this and I'm glad but it also makes me feel so sad. I think every mother wants their child to fit in and I know he's "different". I worry for him and his future. Will he learn to control himself, will he be able to fit in when needed.....will he learn to see the bright side? I just love him so much. I want him to be successful in whatever he wants to do or be. I want him to be happy.

Last Sentence

I found this author I really love. When I read her books I think to myself...now this is a woman I could be friends with. I truly enjoy her. I just read a book of short stories by her and the last story was especially nice. There is a time in it where the characters are discussing what they would say to their children if they could only use one sentence.....their last sentence....and I started to think, what would I say? I thought of all the moments with my kids...all the excitement, struggle, fun times, bad times, laughter, tears, sorrows, triumphs, hysteria, guilt, pride, disappointment, love, longing, playfulness, humor, stubbornness and utter sweetness......and just when I thought I could never come up with just one sentence, one came right to me.....

It's been worth every single minute!

*ps....Happy Birthday to my sweet little Grandma.....I miss you every day!

Conversations....on the way home from school.

Joe: I brought a graham cracker to school today to eat with my lunch.

Me: Oh really? Didn't it get broken in your backpack? ( I imagined this lone graham cracker floating around in a baggie in his backpack, my kids eat school lunch, so they don't have lunch containers)

Joe: I put it in my pocket (no baggie). It was just crumbs but I ate it anyway!

Me: Yum...(lint and all)