Here are some pictures of Braylee from Saturday (after the movie incident) when we decided to make cookies!

What a day!

Brecca came home from my moms this morning with a rash all over her body. It was bright red and really itchy so I decided to take her our to the ER and see what they said. She complained Thursday evening about having a sore throat but seemed fine on Friday. My cousin Monica was working in the ER when we got there so she took Brecca's temperature (99.8) and blood pressure (normal) and told us it would be awhile before the doctor could see us. Two hours later, the doctor came in and gave us a diagnosis - Strep Throat! She prescribed her some antibiotics and sent us on our way.

I got home just in time to take Braylee and Avrey to the movies. I had promised all three girls I would take them but since Brecca was sick, it ended up just being the two of them. Today was a special day and you could get in for a canned good. We waited in line and got up to the counter to get our tickets. The girls were trying to decide which candy they wanted when all of the sudden.... Avrey threw up all over the floor! I called Kenny (her dad) to come pick her up while Braylee and I waited patiently for him to get there. By the time he got there and we got back in line, there was only one ticket left for the movie we wanted to see. Braylee said she would sit on my lap, so we went ahead and gave them out canned good and got the ticket. When we got in the theatre, guess where the one available seat was??? Front and center. Front row, middle seat. Great for a concert or maybe a theatre production - but not for a children's movie in a crowded movie theatre. It took about 1 minute for Braylee to decide it was a little too much for her and we decided to call it a day! We ended up coming home and making Monster Cookies! It was a fun (and warm!) way to spend a cold afternoon!

Star Award

Ms. Methvin told me on Thursday that Brecca was getting a Star Award on Friday afternoon. It is an award for "exemplary performance above and beyond the ordinary at Chanute Elementary Schoo." It just so happened her best friend/cousin Avrey got one on the same day. They have a little ceremony and call their names and then they have to go up front and accept it. Brecca was suprised and said even though she saw us all there with our cameras she still didn't know it was going to be her. She was excited and said it was the first award she has ever gotten! We were very proud of her!

Does Anyone Recognize This Guy????

Don't pay any attention to the crib bumper and duct tape sticking out from under his coat!

Sandy Roecker asked Nate if he would be willing to be the Santa Claus for the Kindergarten classes this year. Nate said he would do it but we just weren't sure what to tell Brecca. She knows that there is one REAL Santa Claus and that he has helpers to help him around Christmas because the real Santa is just too busy at the North Pole to come down and visit all of the children who want to visit with him. We decided that we would tell Brecca before Daddy went to school that he was going to be one of his helpers this year. This is how the coversation went:

Nate: Brecca, Mommy and I have something important to tell you and it is a big secret just between the three of us, ok?

Lindsey: Well, you know how Santa is so busy at the North Pole that he sometimes asks helpers to help him out????

Nate: Like the Santa at Kam's program.....

Brecca: Yeah, he was fake. Me and Braylee and Kam and Larsen all knew he was fake. He was just too thin to be the real Santa.

Nate: Well, he wasn't actually fake. He was a helper. And Santa asked me to be a helper at your school tomorrow. Isn't that cool? But it is a big secret and you have to promise you won't tell any of your friends at school, OK?

Brecca: OK, but it really isn't just between the three of us because Rally and Max (our dog and cat) were in here too and they heard too.

OK, that went well! Actually, it did go pretty well though. She didn't tell anybody (although a few kids knew - Avrey and a couple of kids that Nate coaches in basketball) and she honestly still seemed a little shy on his lap. Nate is just sure he is going to catch something from having 140 kids on his lap so if he gets sick, he'll be blaming that. He heard a few interesting requests. One boy just wanted his sister to be quiet! And a couple of sad ones as well. One boy just wanted a Christmas tree and another wanted a bike for his little brother. Lots of Wii's this year. I think Nate enjoyed himself although I won't promise he'll volunteer his services again next year! I guess we'll see!

Wanted : Webkinz

Brecca made a list of the Webkinz she wants for Christmas. See if you can sound out all of the words????

OK, I'll help you out.

-Panda

-Reindeer

- Snowman

-Bear

-Lion

-Zebra

Christmas Trees, Gingerbread houses, and more!

Since I am officially finished student teaching, I had the chance today to go help Brecca's class do some Christmas projects! They were supposed to go to Ms. Methvin's house but since the weather is still not great, she decided to just do it at school today. They did Gingerbread houses, Christmas Trees, Reindeer, and Angels. They were all so cute and the kids all seemed to have a great time. It was neat to see Brecca in a little different setting. She was on her best behavior - I wish she would act like that at home. :)

I wonder why people like gum?

Tonight Brecca was chewing a piece of gum and asked me "Hey Mom, I wonder why people like gum?" I said, "Well, why do you like gum?" "Because of it's flavors," she answers. "And because it's chewy and I like chewy things." And then she just walks away. OK, where did that come from??? :)

After dinner tonight Nate told Brecca to do something and she told him no. He told her that she wasn't the one in charge. Braylee says, " But I know something Brecca IS in charge of?" I had a feeling I might know where this was headed. "Brecca is in charge of her eggs in her belly." I thought we were past that!

Brax wanted our cat to play ball with him. Needless to say, the cat wasn't too interested!

I PASSED!

I found out this morning that I passed both of my tests. I had a feeling that I had but you just never know with those things. It was definitely a relief to find out. A lot of districts won't hire you until you have passed so it is a good thing to not have to worry about it anymore. I also found out yesterday that I got an A on my Teacher Work Sample that I turned in a few weeks back so that was good news as well.

I was able to go eat lunch with Brecca at school today. That was fun. They had Chicken and Noodles, which was always my favorite thing when I was in school. They weren't too bad today either. I picked a good day to go. Brecca was excited I was there although she did have the choice of her and I sitting together in a special booth or sitting with the rest of her class. Guess what she picked????? Sitting with her friends, of course. I wasn't suprised though. Last time Nate and Papa Dave went to eat with her, she got through the line before them and didn't even save them a spot at her table. Once they hit Kdg., they are just too cool!

More Birthday Pics

Brecca and Avrey

Eating cake and ice cream

Good cake Larz?

Cheeeeese!

Nate and his nephews, Kam and Larsen

Addie Mae

Do they look a little ornery?

Happy 4th Birthday Braylee

Today was the big day. Bray Bray turned 4 years old today!!! She was about as excited as she gets about things! :) Not overly thrilled with it but still seemed to enjoy herself. She got a lot of neat presents and had a really cute Tinkerbell cake. I'm not overly creative nor am I a great baker, so we ordered it and it turned out cute. She did get a Baby Alive doll and after Grandma told her that she had to change its diaper, she decided she wanted to return it to Wal-Mart. No diaper changing for her! We got lots of cute pictures so I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking. Happy Birthday Bray!

Sisterly Love

I just had to put this picture on here! The girls are actually sitting next to one another AND smiling. That just doesn't happen very often so I had to get proof.

My last day!

Our classroom

A few of the girls

The entire class

Well, today was my much dreaded but also exciting last day of school! It actually was a little bittersweet. I am so happy to be finished but also so sad to leave. I have really gotten attached to the kids in the last few months and am really going to miss them! They were sad to see me leave but I do plan on subbing next semester so I promised I'd be back. I go back to Pittsburg on Monday and then I am officially finished. Woo Hooo!!!

OK, scratch the fact that Brecca was on the playground when she threw up. She was still in the classroom - getting ready to go out to the playground. She said Miss Claiborne got the trashcan and Ms. Methvin held back her hair. What great teachers! Sorry for all of the details. I just feel we need to tell it like it is! :)

Still sick!

I almost posted on here last night that Brax was on the mend - and then he threw up! Not fun! Luckily it was only the one time and seems to be feeling fairly well. Not his usual self but not too bad. Luckily Grandma Julia was available to watch him today so he didn't have to go to the babysitters. Around noon, she got a call from the Elementary school. Brecca had thrown up at school! She was on the playground when it happened, lucky for them! So they went and picked her up. She slept most of the day and is asleep again so hopefully it won't take her too long to feel better. Keep your fingers crossed for the rest of us! :)

Sick day!

Brax and I are home from school and the babysitters today. Brax isn't feeling well. His nose has been running the last few days and he's had some sinus stuff going on but not really feeling too bad. I could just tell he was miserable this morning and just wanted his mommy so I decided to stay home with him. He had a sinus infection right before Thanksgiving and was on antibiotics. I called the dr today and told him I wasn't sure if this was a new one or the if the last one had never really gone awat and he was able to just call in a stronger antibiotic. He has a serious history of sinus problems so the doctor wasn't suprised. He actually seems to be feeling a little better already after just one dose medicine so hopefully he's one the road to recovery.

This weekend is Braylee's 4th birthday! She is so excited and asks everyday when it is going to be her birthday. She wants to have a birthday party with her friends this year. She does have a few friends from dance but mainly her friends consist of Kam, Larsen, Avrey and Addie. I'm not sure if Brecca and Brax are included in that or not but they are also invited. She didn't have a choice about that! :) I remember the Christmas after she was born and was only 12 days old on Christmas morning. She slept from about midnight until 6am and I remember sitting in the living room all by myself on Christmas morning, looking at the Christmas tree and feeding my new baby girl! I can't believe that was almost 4 years ago. Time really does fly when you're having fun!

Christmas Carols

Miss Braylee is a singer! She is loving Christmas music and sings constantly. It is not unusual to be cooking dinner or folding laundry or driving in the car (pretty much anytime!) and hear Braylee just singing away. Her favorite seems to be "Deck the Halls with bows and holly." She also enjoys Santa Clause Is Coming To Town and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. The thing is, nobody else is allowed to sing with her. So, if she starts and Brecca joins in then she'll stop and yell at Brecca not to sing with her! Now, that's the Christmas spirit!

You're not my boss!

This is Brax's new phrase lately! He has said it several times to several different people. It is hard to believe sometimes the things that he says. Remember, this is the same child who didn't talk until he was over 2 yrs old and now he doesn't stop! Everybody warned us about that and we didn't believe it would happen. We wouldn't trade it for anything though and he constantly cracks us up with the things he says! As I sit here typing this, he and Nate are playing ball. Well, actually Brax is throwing a ball at Nate and Nate throws it back at him. Not to him- at him. Then Brax says, "Miss me, now you gotta kiss me." It is pretty amusing!

Nate had his Ash Grove Christmas party last night. We had a good time. They always give away some good prizes but Nate's name never get's drawn until most of the good stuff is gone. I think last night we came away with a fillet knife for cleaning fish! Just what we have always wanted! Nate says he really needed one though and was actually pretty excited about it. My dad and Dave actually won something too so everyone came away a winner!

I wish...

Brecca has been lucky enough this semester to have a student teacher in her classroom this year. Being a fellow student teacher, I feel she is very fortunate to have the extra person in the room. Lucky for me, she is also a student teacher that I get to see occasionally in Pittsburg when we go back for classes on Thursdays. This past Thursday, I ran into her and asked how Brecca was doing. She said "Oh, she is great! I can always count on her for answers." Then she said "I just have to tell you a story from the other day. We were reading a book about a woman who planted flowers to make the world a better place and I asked the kids what they would wish for if they could make the world a better place." She said Brecca was sitting there with her hand raised the entire time and when she called on her Brecca said, " I would ask God to make the sun shine bright every day!" Ahhh, isn't she sweet! :) I told Nate the story and his first response "What was she in a pageant or something?"

Phonics lesson

Brecca informed us the other night that Nate and I had spelled her name wrong. Since she started Kdg. and has learned all her letter sounds, she is a spelling expert! She writes me notes and leaves them around the house (usually reminding me to do something - one said "dont frgt mi wadr bodl" Translation - Don't forget my water bottle). So, the other night she tells me that her name is spelled wrong. Since her name is Brecca, it should be spelled B*R*E*K*K*U. You know, Brek Ku. We tried to explain to her that the letter A can say other things besides the A in Apple but she wasn't buying it! So, if you are lucky enough to recieve anything in the mail from Brekku, you'll know who it is from! :)

Third Graders

Today at school I was discussing my Praxis Test with a para that was in our classroom. We were discussing how it was outrageous that they charged $90/test and that two of them are required. I was saying how I hoped I passed so that I didn't have to pay to take them again. Shortly after that, one of our students came up to me and said, "Mrs Peter, I am sorry your tests cost so much. I hope you pass." I told him thanks for thinking of me and that I hope I passed too! He said "Why do they have to charge $90 - why can't they just charge $20 or $30?" Another student overheard the conversation and said "Wow, it costs $90 to become a teacher. It's a good thing I am going to be an eye doctor!" :)

Tired Boy!

I have been meaning to post these since last weekend but haven't gotten the chance to upload them. Brax was pretty tired after Brecca's basketball game, as you can tell! That is his Sit and Spin that he was playing on. Apparently it just wasn't entertaining enough!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Belated Thanksgiving to everybody! What a great weekend! It has been so nice having a few days out of school. Just a much needed break! Thanksgiving Day was great. We went to Kenny and Monica's to celebrate with the Finley's. The food was delicious and it was nice to see Aunts and Uncles and cousins that we don't get to see too often.

Nate, Matt, Kara, and I braved the Black Friday crowds and went to KC on Friday. I admit, it was a little crowded but we got a lot accomplished and got some great deals. I recommend it to anybody who isn't afraid of a little line! OK, a long line but you know what I meant!

As I am typing this, we are in Parsons at Chelse's. It is Saturday afternoon and we are eating another delicious meal in about 30 minutes. I can hardly wait! :) Tomorrow, we are heading out to Dave and Julia's for another great meal. I am so thankful for such wonderul family and the times we get to spend together.

Nothing too exciting going on here but thought I'd update anyway. Basketball started last Saturday for Brecca and it went a lot better than expected. They actually scored some baskets! I will say it is a good thing they don't call traveling! No baskets yet for Brecca but there have been a few attemps so hopefully she'll land one by the end of the season. It was funny yesterday because Brecca had the ball and was determined to pass it to Avrey. She ran around the court (without dribbling) past several other open blue shirted players and finally made a not so good pass to a not so open Avrey! They were both happy about it though so I guess that is all that matters. Who really cares about scoring anyway - as long as you pass to friends!

I had to miss her game last week so I could go to my Praxis test at Pitt State. It was really a lot tougher than expected! Let's hope I passed so maybe I can get a job sometime in the near future! I will update when I know anything. They said it could be a month before we hear anything. My thinking may not have been the best on it. I figured I would take it once without studying for it whatsoever and if I failed then I would know I needed to study more next time. Why study if you don't have to??? Some things never change, huh? :)

We are looking forward to the Thanksgiving break and then I only have 9 days of school left. I really am going to miss my kids in Erie. I have gotten pretty attached to them in the last few months! I am sure I will be subbing next semester and my cooperating teacher said she would take a personal day so I can come back and sub for her!

Hey Diddle Diddle

ABC's

Nice save Poppy!

Yesterday was Poppy's birthday so we called to wish him Happy Birthday. Brecca happened to ask Poppy how old he was and Poppy said 77. He then adds "I bet you can count that high." She says "I can count to 100 - wanna hear. 1, 2, 3, 4......" Being the quick thinker that Popster is, he says "Why don't you wait until the next time that your out here and then you can count for me in person." Apparently, Popster wasn't up to hearing a 6 yr. old count to 100 over the phone! Honestly, who can blame him!

Witches and Ghosts

One night last week Braylee came downstairs after being put to bed. She tells Nate and I that Brecca keeps trying to scare her by laughing like a witch. Brecca is not far behind so I ask her "Brecca is that true?" "Yeah," she says. I asked her what a witches laugh sounded like and she does an almost exact imitation of the witch on the Wizard of Oz. We told her no more laughing like a witch and trying to scare Bray and to get back up in bed.

Last night, Braylee comes downstairs once again. This time Braylee says "Mom, Brecca is pretending to be a ghost and saying in a scary voice "I am a ghost. Braylee, you are so pretty and I want to marry you." I couldn't help myself! I had to laugh a little at that one!

Just a quick, funny story about voting. Brecca came home from school on Tuesday and informed us that a boy in her class said his mom voted for Barack Obama. I asked her if she knew who else was running and she said "Yeah, John McCain." (Duh!) I asked her who she was going to vote for and she said "Well, I don't really know either of them and I don't like to vote for people I don't know, so I'm not going to vote for anybody!" :)

Trick or Treat

Spook Parade

Brecca was in the Spook Parade Thursday night. Well, I am not actually sure you could say she was in it. Let's just say she walked down Main Street hiding behind Nathan's leg the entire time! we tried to explain to her that Hannah Montana would not be shy about being in a parade but she wasn't buying it! She wouldn't even let us take her picture as she walked by! She says she doesn't know if she will be in it next year - it depends on if she is scared or not! She did have quite a fan club there though watching her parade debut!

Birth to 3 Visit

Well, we had our B-3 visit today. They were really impressed with how well Brax was doing with his speech since their last visit. At our last visit, we decided he was doing well enough that they would only check up on him every other month instead of every month. So the good news today was that he had met his last goal and that they would move him up to another goal. His last goal was to start using 2-3 word phrases. His new goal from today is that he is more understandable (is that a word??) to people other than those who are around him a lot. They said his language is much better now - we just need to concentrate now on the actual speech sounds. He needs to work on k and g mainly along with a few others. He is age appropriate now though and not delayed in any way so that is a great thing! They still believe that he was so focused on so many other things that he just didn't have time to talk and I completely agree. I remember people telling us that once he started, he would never stop! I am no longer doubting those people. :)

Brecca had a soccer game this morning. Nate said she did a really good job today! She is usually not the most aggressive child on the field (I know this is hard to imagine - she is usually a real go-getter!) but Nate said she was after the ball a lot today! Unfortunately, it was her last game for this year. Moving on to basketball next - which I am sure she will excel at! (NOT) Nate has the priviledge of coaching that too. He is really looking forward to it! :) Did you pick up on a hint on sarcasm????

Tonight is the big Halloween party with Grandma Ann. It was getting a little too big for her house so she moved it to the Knights of Columbus this year. She can invite a few more people too so that works out well. I attached a few pictures of the soccer game this morning.