At School

It is 5:53 pm and I am at school. OPEN HOUSE. 6-7:30. I did go home and eat dinner, but I still am very tired and want to be at home with my girlies relaxing. (yeah right, more like frustrated because Sarah cries every time I leave the room, but still, I'd be with them)
A big thank you to Jean for coming over and watching them for me. See, her being at a different school is very convenient. If she was still at my school, she would have to be here tonight.

have a great night!!

P.S. A great big Happy Birthday to my dad!! He turned 55 today!!

Bekah singing and Playing the Piano

Sarah's Laughter and Bekah's Dancing

SOOO BIG....5 MONTHS OLD!!

Friends of ours did this on their blog, so I just had to do it. Look how big she has gotten!!
She is rolling over from her belly to her back extremely well, almost immediately after she is put on her belly. She really doesn't like it yet. I think she thinks she can't see everything as well as on her back. She is giggling like crazy, especially at Bekah. (I will post a video soon!! Blogger has added a new way to upload videos without going through another service.)
She is eating a lot of rice and only a little bit of veggies. She eats a couple bites and then decides she wants her bottle. She is still clingy when I get home from work, but I love playing with her, so it's usually okay.
She sleeps from between 7:30-8:30 PM until 6:00 am -7 am, but twice this week she got up before 5 am thanks to Bekah. (Bekah woke up and turned on their light one early morning, and another morning, she came out of their room and shut the door really loud)
She is still only sleeping between 30 minutes and 60 minutes for each of her naps, but every once-in-a-while, she sleeps for more than 60 minutes.
Overall, the last 5 months have been wonderful, and I can't believe that it has been 5 months already!! Before I know it, school will be out, and I will have another summer with my girlies and hubby.

Severe Lack of Adult Conversation

Now that I am back at school full time, I hardly ever have any adult conversation. This is how my day goes:

6:30 am- wake up, shower, eat breakfast, watch the news (sometimes Sarah gets back up or up around 7 am, so I play with her while eating and watching the news)

7:30 am- wake Bobby up so I can dry my hair, get dressed, put on my makeup, etc. He deals with Sarah while making my lunch.

7:50-8:00 am- leave for school (reminding Bobby of things that need to be done that day while I walk out the door)

8:10-9:00 am- get my room ready, check my mailbox, drop my lunch off in the family/consumer science room and say hi to Laura, the teacher.

9:00-10:40-teach 2 7th grade classes (theory and chorus)

10:45-11:05- short break where I check e-mail, go to the potty, eat my snack, while rarely seeing another teacher (because I am an arts teacher and my room, along with all the other arts teachers, in not located in a pod)

11:05-1:15- teach 2 6th grade classes (theory and chorus) and take my 6th grade theory class to lunch. (11:30ish-11:50 eat in media center with a few other arts teachers who have alternating lunch periods so we actually only eat together about 12 minutes, most of the time we are eating, not talking)

1:15-1:50 pm- another short planning where I work in my room and rarely talk to anyone. There isn't enough time to get anything done let alone chit chat.

1:55-3:30 pm- teach 2 8th grade classes (theory and chorus)

3:30-3:45 pm- wrap up in my room, get my boards ready for tomorrow or check e-mail.

4:00- when the girls decide to go to bed- feed, change diapers, clean up pee, read books, play, etc with an almost 5 month old and an almost 3 year old.

Sometimes my mom or dad or sister will call, or I'll call them, but because of taking care of the girls by myself while Bobby is going to work, the calls are short.

I miss talking to my friends everyday. I had Jean at school and I saw her several times per day, then she took the year off to do her masters, and now she's teaching at a different school, still in the district, but a different school. And it's much harder for me to do stuff with her because of the two girls.
Then, when Jean was doing her masters, God provided an amazing friend, Amy, at my school. She was teaching 8th grade science, so we didn't have much time together, but we're tried to talk every morning, and sometimes she would hang out at my house after school if we had an event in the evening. Now Matt and Amy have moved to Minnesota, and I really miss her. I am really looking forward to going and seeing them for a few days in October on our fall break, but it is still 7 weeks away!!
I am craving adult conversation!! But after my girlies have gone to bed so I don't have to feel like a bad mom for not playing with them for the 3-5 hours I have with them every week day.

Thanks for letting me vent.

Potty Training is Going to Kill Me

I know some people say that girls are easier than boys, but I don't know. If this is true, I am really, really glad that I didn't have any boys.
Ever since I have been back at school full time, about 7 days, Bekah is reverting back to not getting to the potty on time. She had 3 or 4 accidents on my first full day while I was gone.
Tonight she got herself to the potty several times without telling me, and then all of a sudden she was releaving herself on some blankets on the floor. She eventually stopped and ran to the bathroom where she finished. We have been potty-training for almost a year now. Bekah will be three in less than 2 months. We had some real breakthroughs starting back in late June, and things have been going reasonable well since then, but now it feels like we're back to square one.
Most kids, when they have a few accidents and get themselves wet, don't want to get wet again. Not ours. We clean up after Bekah, but we're probably going to have to get the carpets professionally cleaned when we move.
Any suggestions??

Amazing

Back to Normal

I got the "all clear" this afternoon to stop wearing the surgical boot. Yeah!!!!!!! A special thank you to my friend Jean who came and watched the girls while I was at the podiatrist so I didn't have to take them with me. Thank you!!!!

Side note- Both girls in bed by 8 pm. I love spending time with them, but I also love my alone time. I spend the majority of my day with 160+ middle schoolers, and it is really nice to have time to myself sometimes.

Have a great weekend!!

Play time today

Here are some pics of the girls as they played today. Sarah is really starting to love her bumbo!! Bekah is such a good big sister. Sarah is still extremely clingy in the evenings. I think it has to do with me being gone for almost 8 hours during the day. She misses me!!

Monday

Monday was my first day back to school. It was the day that all the employees of my school district met at one of the high schools for a few hours. The superintendent talked, we got to see all the new teachers in the district, and the teacher of the year was announced. This is a picture of me and the girls before I left that morning. It was really hard to leave!!

Overhead Last Week

Last week, Bobby and Bekah went out for a bit. A few minutes after they left, Bobby called and let me know that there was a hot air balloon passing by. I stepped out the front door and snapped these pictures.

In about an hour

I'm off to my first day of school with kids. The only class I'm a bit worried about is my 7th grade chorus. There are 47 kids!! I can handle the big number, it's my room that can't.
Have a great day!

Fun Outside and In

Tomorrow

Tomorrow is my first day without my girls (and Bobby.) :~(

I will post later about the fun we've had this weekend. Now I need to go spend time with Bekah and do a bit of planning for school.

Fun Around the House

A couple new toys in the Fannin household this week. First, the bumbo, which I've already showed you, but Bobby has found a new use for it. Introducing Pharaoh Bumbo.
Second, I wanted to show you how much Sarah likes Bekah's "Cars" cars also. I gave her two other toys besides Lightning McQueen to play with, and within 20 seconds the other two toys were on the floor and she was pushing the car around.Bobby was laying on the floor talking to Sarah this afternoon after we got home from working in my classroom again, and this is how Bekah decided to sit on him while she watched something on TV.Last, but not least, I won a Baby Bjorn on ebay the other day, and it came today. Yeah!! We have a snugli from Bekah, but is so hard to use by yourself. Also, the legs area is getting snug on Sarah. The Bjorn is amazing!! I think I still need to adjust it a bit so Sarah sits a bit lower, but she is doing so great holding her head that I don't think it'll matter if I don't. Both my girls have such long middles, so even though it's at the correct setting for her height, it might need to be longer to hold her a bit lower.

Hang in there, Amy

We love you and miss you!! Hang in there, take care of that baby!! We can't wait to hear what it is on Tuesday!!

It's Pretty Sad...

That I just finished watching the Series Finale of Gilmore Girls that I recorded on our DVR for the umpteenth time and still was choked up and teary eyed for a majority of the episode.

Anyone else think they need to do a reunion show that takes place 5 years from now where Luke and Lorelei are finally married and have at least one baby??

Both Girls in Bed.....

And it's 8:15ish PM.

Bekah was so exhausted that she walked herself back to her room and put herself in bed. When I came in to lay Sarah down she was asleep with her sheet pulled up over her.
It is very nice having them go to bed early when Bekah doesn't take a nap. She's a bit grumpy at times during the day, but 8 pm sure beats 10 or 11 pm.

Off to do house work/mommy time before Daddy gets home in a few hours.

Last Post of the Night..... My Classroom

Today the whole family joined me in my classroom to help get ready for next week. They have changed our schedule for the 3rd time in three years. Last year I taught three music theory classes (6th, 7th, and 8th), had my planning/lunch, then taught three choirs (6th, 7th, 8th). I taught theory in one room and then chorus in my "primary" room.
This year, I will be teaching a theory class, then a choir, have a planning, teach a theory, then a choir, then a planning, and finally teach a theory class, then a choir.
Instead of running back and forth between both rooms, I am rearranging my room so that I can have both classes in the same room. I have flipped the risers around to face the small white board, and I will put desks behind the risers facing the bigger white boards for the theory classes. I am excited to teach with this setup. I am still not ready to go back next week, but I'm getting excited about the classroom setup.

Sweet Potato Gone Wild

Bought a few sweet potatoes a few weeks ago. We didn't use one. This is what it looks like now. We're thinking about planting it!!

Bumbo Chair

I've been trying to convince Bobby for several weeks that we needed one of these. Last week, Bekah had a play date and I had his mom bring their bumbo chair for his younger sister. Sarah sat in it for awhile while they were here and really enjoyed it. Two days later, these words come out of Bobby's mouth, "We need a Bumbo!!!" I ordered it from ebaby right away. It can today.. Here is Sarah enjoying herself in it. She loves being able to see the world, and we don't have to be right there with her on the floor with Bekah.FYI: Here is a picture of Bekah with her play date Patrick. He is exactly 2 months older than Bekah, and his sister Amelia is 2 months and 3 days older than Sarah. They are supposed to move somewhere, but if they stay, the kids with be great playmates for a while.

Green Beans

"Are you sure that I need to eat these green beans Mom?"

"I like this rice better Mom, and I really want to do it myself. Is that okay?"

Bunnies

"Mini" Mouse

At my staff retreat last week, my friend Erin, the language teacher, won one of the drawings for a mini mouse. I jokingly commented that she should give it to me for Bekah. She did!! It was so nice of you Erin!! It is so great for Bekah. She can use it sooooo well. Now, when she's playing her Sesame Street and alphabet games, she doesn't need any help. She moves the pointer around and easily clicks on the games. It is so neat to see her working with the small mouse!!

(FYI: Starfall.com is a great sight for 2 year olds all the way up to 1st and 2nd graders. It is great for learning letters, letter sounds, reading, etc. Check it out!!)

All Better

Bekah and I are about 100%. We've had a really good day with eating and energy. Yeah!!! So far, no signs that Bobby and Sarah were affected by the virus.

Almost

Well, we're about over this bug. I felt much better last night, not too wonderful today, but again better tonight. I think it's the Powerade. I have had about 1000 calories today with 360 of those being Powerade. It seems to calm my stomach and give me some energy. I have lost about 6 pounds since Sunday morning because of this little bug, and I'm ready for it to be over. I have to get into school and get something accomplished. School starts a week from tomorrow, and I am not even close to being ready. I have been off almost 20 weeks and I feel like I don't even remember how to teach. :~)
Bekah is doing much better, but is still not eating much. Last night she went to bed at 7 pm and woke up around 10 pm very, very warm. We took her temperature and it was almost 101. We gave her Tylenol and she fell back asleep around 11:30. This morning her temp was a bit below 100. She has acted pretty normal through out the day, but didn't eat much. Normally, we just put food out around meals and snack times and she'll eat when she's ready, but today, she didn't even want a cheese stick. Normally she wants 2 or 3 at a time, so we knew she still wasn't feeling well. She had a good nap, and fell asleep a bit ago.
Thank you for your prayers. Please remember us for a bit longer as we really, really don't want Bobby or Sarah to get this bug.

Under the Weather

It all started around 2:30 am Sunday morning. We were up in Indiana at Bobby's parents' house. I threw up 5 times between 2:30 and 8 am. Most of the day, because no one else was sick, we thought it was something I ate at McDonald's the day before.
I laid around most of the day, and against the counsel of my mom, we started to head home around 7:30 pm last night. I just wanted to be home. We stopped about halfway through for me to be sick on the side of the road. After this, Bekah proceeded to throw up 4 times while in the car. We decided it's not food poisoning, but a bug.
So far, Bobby and Sarah are fine. I am feeling better, but am still not keeping much in. Say a prayer for our family. Bekah got a bug last summer and got really dehydrated because of it and had to go to the emergency room to get an IV. We are hoping we can shake this soon without a trip to the hospital and without the other 2 getting sick.

A Quick Tidbit

Our daughters are both cover kickers. We've known that Bekah is for a while, but are surprised that Sarah already kicks her covers off. Every night, before we go to bed, usually around midnight, I go in to check on the girls. Every night, both of them have their covers around their ankles. SO CUTE!!

4 month stats

14 pounds- 50th percentile
25.5 inches- 90 percentile
16 inch head- 50 percentile

1/2 pound heavier than Bekah at this point
1.25 inches longer
and I'm not sure about the head.