Yesterday the boys had Early Release from school. Every Wednesday school is out at 2:00 PM. They get off the bus at about 2:20 PM. We had tacos for supper. Enjoying them made us think of our friend (and Jackson's kindergarten teacher) Miss Dhom. She would often join us in Janesville for supper - especially Taco night! After supper the kid watched "The Amazing Race" while Jeff and I had a visit from Pastor Terry for "Living Faith UMC". It was an informative visit. We will be taking some small bible study classes before we 'officially' join the church. Later that evening I submitted my teacher application to the Gretna School District. It is a smaller district than Millard (where we live and the boys go to), but it is close by and looks like a good 'fit' for me.
Today Jenna and I found the DMV. What a process....first we had to get a vehicle inspection from the Sheriff's department. After that we had to bring our paper work to the Treasurer's office and pay WAY TOO MUCH to register the van (over $400). Next I had to fill out driver's license paperwork and get back in the DMV line to get my picture taken. I love the picture on my MN license....too bad I didn't get to keep it. My picture today was Ok...(about as good as a DMV photo can be). Now here's something interesting. When were lived in Wisconsin my van had the license plate RUAMOM2. I was able to get that same RUAMOM2 when we lived in Minnesota. Now I've found out that RUAMOM2 is also available in Nebraska. So, I'll be sending in my paperwork to get that on my license plate. It is my goal to collect as many RUAMOM2 from as many states as possible!
I now also have my official Nebraska "Standard Teaching Certificate". It arrived in the mail this week. It is good for teaching Kindergarten - grade 6 and expires on 08/31/2013! (Prior to this I was given a one year Conditional Teaching Permit.)
Tomorrow Jenna has kindergarten round up! She is so excited! She's been wearing her backpack around the house the last few day!
Tomorrow afternoon we drive to Ellsworth and Saturday Jenna has her dance recital! I can't wait to see my parents and my in-laws!
Have a good week and weekend!
Thursday, April 27, 2006
Jackson's 1st Grade Program
It has been a very nice week. Tuesday night we went to Reeder Elementary to see Jackson and his first grade classmates in "The Missing Tarts". Here is the program from that show:
Reeder Elementary School Presents…
“The Missing Tarts”
A Book By: B. G. Hennessy
Adapted for musical production by:
Kelly Brinkman and Karen Benson
Tuesday, April 25th, 2006
WELCOME, WELCOME to our program!!! We have created so much of this production including, everything spoken by our characters and our readers. We hope you enjoy the show!
The Queen of Hearts Arr. DeLelles and Kriske
Special Movers – Camryn Steckelberg, Emily Christensen, Preston Lau, and Tyler Hahn
(Movement created by these students)
In this song, listen for how the instrument players can keep a steady beat. Some of our students are also playing their instrument only on the rhyming words. Our movers are listening very closely to the high and low sounds of the instruments. When the instruments play high, only the soloists moves. When the instruments play low, everyone else gets to move.
Jack and Jill Arr. DeLelles
For this piece, we get to use both our speaking and singing voice. Our instrument players are doing a great job of playing a steady beat while some of our instrument players only play when we say “water” and “after.”
Old King Cole Arr. DeLelles and Kriske
Rhythm Readers – Ethan Dougherty, Kirkland Jens, Nathan Nevarez, Emily Brandt, Rebekah Younts, Sara Miller, Lois Corey, and Dana Clements
(Rhythms created by these students)
During this nursery rhyme, we get to use our speaking voice! Listen to the rhythm that we play on our laps while we say the poem. It does not always match the rhythm we are saying! We have also been working on reading musical rhythms and creating our own. We hope you enjoy them!
Old Mother Hubbard Arr. DeLelles and Kriske
Poem Readers – Justin Xiong, Luke Parks, Mary Parr, Eric Meiser, Madelyn Biniamow, Colton Sliva, Alexis Novacek, and Saeda Aman
(Poems created by Mrs. Holstein’s Class)
We worked so hard to come up with the rest of this nursery rhyme! All of the first grades discussed things Old Mother Hubbard could buy and what we could rhyme those words with. We hope like our funny ideas! Listen to how we can keep a steady beat on our lap and with our hands.
Jack Sprat Arr. Karen Benson
Middle Text: Kelly Brinkman
Wow! There are a lot of tough things we had to learn for this nursery rhyme. Listen to those instrument players! They have three different parts going on at the time same! When we get to the middle of the song, we all have to do three parts at the same time. This teaches us to listen carefully and not get distracted while someone else is doing something else!
Little Jack Horner Arr. Karen Benson
Middle Text: Kelly Brinkman
The instrument players have to do a special beat pattern on this song. They have to put a rest after every beat! Listen to all of the great pies we came up with in class. Our classes decided that chocolate pie was the best!!! Listen to how we can pat a rhythm in 6/8 time!
Little Bo-Peep Arr. DeLelles and Kriske
Instrument players – Dillion Murman, Nathan Phipps, Brooke Artz, Ashley Wagner, Destiny Dickerman, and Kylie Wrage
We worked very hard to play the rhythms in this poem. Listen to all the different instruments we chose to play. The rhythms we play on the instruments match the rhythm of the poem. We get to use our magic lips on this poem. This is where we have to say the words but no sound can come out of our mouth.
Little Boy Blue Arr. W. J.
This was our toughest song even though it is not very long. First of all, we have to sing up in our really high voices and the melody is very different from our other songs. Then, the instrument players have to play a special beat pattern that we normally learn in 2nd Grade!!! Listen for the part of the song that we sing the whole thing on one note!
The Man in the Moon Arr. DeLelles
Instrument players – Lois Corey, Dana Clements, Sara Miller, and Rebekah Younts
This was one of our favorite songs! We get to use both our singing voice and our speaking voice. Look at our great actions for this song…guess what? We made them up! The beat pattern for this song is very slow. It was a little tricky for us to play a beat so slow because we all like to go really fast!
Star Light, Star Bright Arr. Kelly Brinkman
Instrument players – Lois Corey, Dana Clements, Sara Miller, and Rebekah Younts
Soloists – Megan Schmidt, Kylie Zeschmann, Joey Nelson, Paige Clark, Alyssa Pitzer, Brooke Staashelm, Danielle Tyler, and Hayley Addison
Wow! We are done already! We hope you like this last song. We all got to try out the solos and figure out what we would wish for if we had a wishing star. The three notes we sing for our solos are three very important notes. We need to know those three notes very well before we go into 2nd Grade!
Readers
Stacy Scissom Tyler Hahn Justin Xiong Brianna Sis
Kirkland Jens Emily Brandt Alex Haynes Hannah Sage
Cassidy Bruns Nick Nguyen
Characters
Queen of Hearts ~ Azaria Ahl King of Hearts ~ Avery Owen
Jack ~ Matthew Battaglia Jill ~ Amber George
Old King Cole ~ Colin Hansen Servant with Pipe ~ Sam Harter
Servant with Bowl ~ Jonathan Engelbart Fiddler #1 ~ Antonia Giebler
Fiddler #2 ~ Rachel Baker Fiddler #3 ~ Maddison Marnin
Old Mother Hubbard ~ Sierra Eastridge Dog ~ Will Schertz
Jack Sprat ~ Joel Meyer Wife ~ Lauren Marcuzzo
Little Jack Horner ~ Brandon Batchelor Little Bo Peep ~ Alex Vondra
Little Boy Blue ~ Spencer Hogancamp Man in the Moon ~ Brandon McClintock
Wishing Star ~ Jennifer Love
A HUGE thank you to Mrs. Suzanne Hinman, Mr. Trevor Templar, Mrs. Heather Mead, Mr. Brad Ketelsen, and all of the Reeder Staff for all of your time and support! Another HUGE thank you to all of our first grade students and parents for all of your support for music here at Reeder! Parents, your students are SO amazing!
Reeder Elementary School Presents…
“The Missing Tarts”
A Book By: B. G. Hennessy
Adapted for musical production by:
Kelly Brinkman and Karen Benson
Tuesday, April 25th, 2006
WELCOME, WELCOME to our program!!! We have created so much of this production including, everything spoken by our characters and our readers. We hope you enjoy the show!
The Queen of Hearts Arr. DeLelles and Kriske
Special Movers – Camryn Steckelberg, Emily Christensen, Preston Lau, and Tyler Hahn
(Movement created by these students)
In this song, listen for how the instrument players can keep a steady beat. Some of our students are also playing their instrument only on the rhyming words. Our movers are listening very closely to the high and low sounds of the instruments. When the instruments play high, only the soloists moves. When the instruments play low, everyone else gets to move.
Jack and Jill Arr. DeLelles
For this piece, we get to use both our speaking and singing voice. Our instrument players are doing a great job of playing a steady beat while some of our instrument players only play when we say “water” and “after.”
Old King Cole Arr. DeLelles and Kriske
Rhythm Readers – Ethan Dougherty, Kirkland Jens, Nathan Nevarez, Emily Brandt, Rebekah Younts, Sara Miller, Lois Corey, and Dana Clements
(Rhythms created by these students)
During this nursery rhyme, we get to use our speaking voice! Listen to the rhythm that we play on our laps while we say the poem. It does not always match the rhythm we are saying! We have also been working on reading musical rhythms and creating our own. We hope you enjoy them!
Old Mother Hubbard Arr. DeLelles and Kriske
Poem Readers – Justin Xiong, Luke Parks, Mary Parr, Eric Meiser, Madelyn Biniamow, Colton Sliva, Alexis Novacek, and Saeda Aman
(Poems created by Mrs. Holstein’s Class)
We worked so hard to come up with the rest of this nursery rhyme! All of the first grades discussed things Old Mother Hubbard could buy and what we could rhyme those words with. We hope like our funny ideas! Listen to how we can keep a steady beat on our lap and with our hands.
Jack Sprat Arr. Karen Benson
Middle Text: Kelly Brinkman
Wow! There are a lot of tough things we had to learn for this nursery rhyme. Listen to those instrument players! They have three different parts going on at the time same! When we get to the middle of the song, we all have to do three parts at the same time. This teaches us to listen carefully and not get distracted while someone else is doing something else!
Little Jack Horner Arr. Karen Benson
Middle Text: Kelly Brinkman
The instrument players have to do a special beat pattern on this song. They have to put a rest after every beat! Listen to all of the great pies we came up with in class. Our classes decided that chocolate pie was the best!!! Listen to how we can pat a rhythm in 6/8 time!
Little Bo-Peep Arr. DeLelles and Kriske
Instrument players – Dillion Murman, Nathan Phipps, Brooke Artz, Ashley Wagner, Destiny Dickerman, and Kylie Wrage
We worked very hard to play the rhythms in this poem. Listen to all the different instruments we chose to play. The rhythms we play on the instruments match the rhythm of the poem. We get to use our magic lips on this poem. This is where we have to say the words but no sound can come out of our mouth.
Little Boy Blue Arr. W. J.
This was our toughest song even though it is not very long. First of all, we have to sing up in our really high voices and the melody is very different from our other songs. Then, the instrument players have to play a special beat pattern that we normally learn in 2nd Grade!!! Listen for the part of the song that we sing the whole thing on one note!
The Man in the Moon Arr. DeLelles
Instrument players – Lois Corey, Dana Clements, Sara Miller, and Rebekah Younts
This was one of our favorite songs! We get to use both our singing voice and our speaking voice. Look at our great actions for this song…guess what? We made them up! The beat pattern for this song is very slow. It was a little tricky for us to play a beat so slow because we all like to go really fast!
Star Light, Star Bright Arr. Kelly Brinkman
Instrument players – Lois Corey, Dana Clements, Sara Miller, and Rebekah Younts
Soloists – Megan Schmidt, Kylie Zeschmann, Joey Nelson, Paige Clark, Alyssa Pitzer, Brooke Staashelm, Danielle Tyler, and Hayley Addison
Wow! We are done already! We hope you like this last song. We all got to try out the solos and figure out what we would wish for if we had a wishing star. The three notes we sing for our solos are three very important notes. We need to know those three notes very well before we go into 2nd Grade!
Readers
Stacy Scissom Tyler Hahn Justin Xiong Brianna Sis
Kirkland Jens Emily Brandt Alex Haynes Hannah Sage
Cassidy Bruns Nick Nguyen
Characters
Queen of Hearts ~ Azaria Ahl King of Hearts ~ Avery Owen
Jack ~ Matthew Battaglia Jill ~ Amber George
Old King Cole ~ Colin Hansen Servant with Pipe ~ Sam Harter
Servant with Bowl ~ Jonathan Engelbart Fiddler #1 ~ Antonia Giebler
Fiddler #2 ~ Rachel Baker Fiddler #3 ~ Maddison Marnin
Old Mother Hubbard ~ Sierra Eastridge Dog ~ Will Schertz
Jack Sprat ~ Joel Meyer Wife ~ Lauren Marcuzzo
Little Jack Horner ~ Brandon Batchelor Little Bo Peep ~ Alex Vondra
Little Boy Blue ~ Spencer Hogancamp Man in the Moon ~ Brandon McClintock
Wishing Star ~ Jennifer Love
A HUGE thank you to Mrs. Suzanne Hinman, Mr. Trevor Templar, Mrs. Heather Mead, Mr. Brad Ketelsen, and all of the Reeder Staff for all of your time and support! Another HUGE thank you to all of our first grade students and parents for all of your support for music here at Reeder! Parents, your students are SO amazing!
Monday, April 24, 2006
Monday, April 24, 2006
We had a wonderful weekend! On Friday we attended at Cub Scout meeting at Reeder. After the informational meeting we tried out a suggested Chineese restuarant.....it was ok food, tasted better the next day.
Saturday we did work around the house. Jeff and Jackson put in a flower garden. Now the question is - what do we do with our sod???? The weather was beautiful and I got a little sunburned! I also had a nice talk with "Grandma Linda".
Linda and her husband Glenn are very dear friends from Janesville. Linda has a special place in my heart. Not only does she remind me of my wonderful Aunt Jean......but she was there to take me to the hospital when Jenna was born. Jeff had just started a new position in Racine and was over an hour away. I didn't want to wait that long, so I called school and asked for "Grandma Linda." Without hesitation, she was there for me - as she always had been and countinues to be.
We put up Joe's curtain rod and hung a few more things on the wall. Leftovers for supper. We enjoyed watching Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Jeff and Joe had not seen it, but I took Jackson and Jenna with my niece Ella and nephew Isaac earlier this fall. Of course, we had to have popcorn to go with the movie!
Sunday we went to "Living Faith UMC" again. Jenna and Jackson had fun at Sunday School. We had a special donut treat afterwards. After lunch and a few more tasks around the house we decided to go for a bike ride. Here is the trail we went on: http://trekomaha.com/page.cfm?PageID=209 It was about 8 miles long. It was so much fun, but a bit rough on my out of shape body. I realized I need a gel seat and a new pair of knees. After the ride we had a great supper of burgers on the grill and then a great game of 'spoons'.
Everyone was exhausted, so it was early to bed for all!
Saturday we did work around the house. Jeff and Jackson put in a flower garden. Now the question is - what do we do with our sod???? The weather was beautiful and I got a little sunburned! I also had a nice talk with "Grandma Linda".
Linda and her husband Glenn are very dear friends from Janesville. Linda has a special place in my heart. Not only does she remind me of my wonderful Aunt Jean......but she was there to take me to the hospital when Jenna was born. Jeff had just started a new position in Racine and was over an hour away. I didn't want to wait that long, so I called school and asked for "Grandma Linda." Without hesitation, she was there for me - as she always had been and countinues to be.
We put up Joe's curtain rod and hung a few more things on the wall. Leftovers for supper. We enjoyed watching Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Jeff and Joe had not seen it, but I took Jackson and Jenna with my niece Ella and nephew Isaac earlier this fall. Of course, we had to have popcorn to go with the movie!
Sunday we went to "Living Faith UMC" again. Jenna and Jackson had fun at Sunday School. We had a special donut treat afterwards. After lunch and a few more tasks around the house we decided to go for a bike ride. Here is the trail we went on: http://trekomaha.com/page.cfm?PageID=209 It was about 8 miles long. It was so much fun, but a bit rough on my out of shape body. I realized I need a gel seat and a new pair of knees. After the ride we had a great supper of burgers on the grill and then a great game of 'spoons'.
Everyone was exhausted, so it was early to bed for all!
Friday, April 21, 2006
A surprise in the mailbox
I just have to tell you how excited I am about a surprise I received in the mailbox yesterday. During my time at the YMCA, I was fortunate to have a volunteer from the College of St. Thomas help in my classroom. Megan is a cousin of my friend Jen. (Jen and I taught together in Janesville and she now lives and teaches in the Twin Cities.) Megan had to complete a project during her time at the YMCA Pre-school. She chose to do a quilt. We traced the children's handprints on fabric squares and they were able to color it in and write his/her name. Megan told me she was going to donate it to a charity......Happily, this storyline was just a cover up. She intended to give it to me all along.....
Well, it arrived in the mail and it is BEAUTIFUL. As soon as I locate my digital camera....I will take a picture of it and post it here. The front has the handprint squares alternating with a bright aqua blue butterfly pattern. Those 5 blocks by 5 blocks is framed by a two tone orange striped pattern. Finally, a deep red material is framing that. It is binded by the same orange striped pattern. The neat part is the quilting - itself. On the quilt (except for the special handprint squares) is a multicolored tread sewn randomly (on the butterfly squares) and red thread sewn randomly on the red material.
I can't wait to show it to my mom and mother-in-law. They are both quilters and sewers and will love to see it! I might need to have my dad make me a wooden quilt holder that hangs on the wall.
Today was a beautiful day. Not so windy and nice and sunny. Jenna loved riding her bike up and down the street. I appreciate having a sidewalk here and a flat street! I put most of the winter gear away in the basement and organized our front closet. Laundry got folded and brownies were made for an after school treat.
The boys brought their weekly newsletter home today. I found out that their last day of school will be Friday, May 26. The district over plans for possible snow days and they didn't use all that they planned for. I'm so excited the boys will be done before Memorial Day. Perhaps the early start in August is a good thing? We will start making our summer plans for a big trip to WI, now!
We are going to locate a Chinese restaurant for supper tonight....I hope we find some good sesame Chicken!
Have a great weekend!
Well, it arrived in the mail and it is BEAUTIFUL. As soon as I locate my digital camera....I will take a picture of it and post it here. The front has the handprint squares alternating with a bright aqua blue butterfly pattern. Those 5 blocks by 5 blocks is framed by a two tone orange striped pattern. Finally, a deep red material is framing that. It is binded by the same orange striped pattern. The neat part is the quilting - itself. On the quilt (except for the special handprint squares) is a multicolored tread sewn randomly (on the butterfly squares) and red thread sewn randomly on the red material.
I can't wait to show it to my mom and mother-in-law. They are both quilters and sewers and will love to see it! I might need to have my dad make me a wooden quilt holder that hangs on the wall.
Today was a beautiful day. Not so windy and nice and sunny. Jenna loved riding her bike up and down the street. I appreciate having a sidewalk here and a flat street! I put most of the winter gear away in the basement and organized our front closet. Laundry got folded and brownies were made for an after school treat.
The boys brought their weekly newsletter home today. I found out that their last day of school will be Friday, May 26. The district over plans for possible snow days and they didn't use all that they planned for. I'm so excited the boys will be done before Memorial Day. Perhaps the early start in August is a good thing? We will start making our summer plans for a big trip to WI, now!
We are going to locate a Chinese restaurant for supper tonight....I hope we find some good sesame Chicken!
Have a great weekend!
Thursday, April 20, 2006
Thursday, April 20, 2006
Good Morning! I want to first of all thank my brother, Don, and my sorority sis, Rae, for writing a comment on the blog - glad to know someone is reading!
It made me think back to our days at UWRF, when Rae won a trip to NYC for Winter Carnival. She had no one else available to take - so she was going to go with Don.....how crazy is that???? However, as it turned out she and Don didn't go together. She allowed Don to go with Rachel (girl friend at the time - now wife). Interesting enough....earlier in our UWRF days the Student activities office gave away a trip to Hollywood and Don's roommate won that trip....later in my college years Student Activities gave away at trip to New Orleans and I won that trip and took Jeff.
Now on to our Omaha Happenings.....Jeff left Monday for the Twin Cities. He came back home last night and boy did we miss him! Jenna went to the dentist on Wednesday and had a cavity filled. It was just the start of one, so she didn't need any shots. Our dentist office is cool - it is for children only. TV screens on the ceiling, a train running around the ceiling, video games in the waiting room as well as a train table. Kids love it!
After the dentist I ran to target....much to the dismay of my husband. I needed to find a curtain rod for Joe's room. He has shades, but no curtains. Luckily, the curtains from our Janesville house are a perfect size!!!! They have a planet design on them and Grandma Gruber made them. While at Target I was able to find a few other necessities! I found a great table runner with lots of interesting colors and patterns in it. I also used 2 place mats and made a small curtain for my kitchen window - using a tension rod and some clips (Got the idea from Starla).
I'm still in need of curtains for our room and living room. I have to find the sheer fabric for our family room - I packed it, but can't find it yet. In fact, there are a lot of things I can't find - digital camera, the base for one of our phones. I've already lost our new zoo membership card. I called today and had to pay $5.00 for a replacement. Watch...it will turn up in a week!
I was feeling a bit 'homesick' this week. I tried to cure myself by walking in Shopko...it helped! I called my friend Karen in Janesville (to have her read some questions from her reading book - because Joe forgot his reading book at school and we had the same book). She was getting ready for the Spring trip to the JSOL (Janesville School's Outdoor laboratory). I loved going out to the school forest.....made me miss Adams School.
This morning some concrete guy is fixing part of our driveway. There was a crack in it and now he's digging it up!
Jenna practiced her dance recital dances. I joined in on 'Buttercup'....it was a lot of fun. She has 9 days until her show!
Now that Jeff is home, I hope to get some bigger jobs done around the house. We now have the hardware from IKEA for Jackson's dresser - so that can be put together! Joe's curtain rod needs to be put up, I have a shelf in my room I want put up, and I bought an organizer for my ironing board and iron. On top of that we want to get a flower garden planted. It will be a busy weekend!!!!
Have a good day!
It made me think back to our days at UWRF, when Rae won a trip to NYC for Winter Carnival. She had no one else available to take - so she was going to go with Don.....how crazy is that???? However, as it turned out she and Don didn't go together. She allowed Don to go with Rachel (girl friend at the time - now wife). Interesting enough....earlier in our UWRF days the Student activities office gave away a trip to Hollywood and Don's roommate won that trip....later in my college years Student Activities gave away at trip to New Orleans and I won that trip and took Jeff.
Now on to our Omaha Happenings.....Jeff left Monday for the Twin Cities. He came back home last night and boy did we miss him! Jenna went to the dentist on Wednesday and had a cavity filled. It was just the start of one, so she didn't need any shots. Our dentist office is cool - it is for children only. TV screens on the ceiling, a train running around the ceiling, video games in the waiting room as well as a train table. Kids love it!
After the dentist I ran to target....much to the dismay of my husband. I needed to find a curtain rod for Joe's room. He has shades, but no curtains. Luckily, the curtains from our Janesville house are a perfect size!!!! They have a planet design on them and Grandma Gruber made them. While at Target I was able to find a few other necessities! I found a great table runner with lots of interesting colors and patterns in it. I also used 2 place mats and made a small curtain for my kitchen window - using a tension rod and some clips (Got the idea from Starla).
I'm still in need of curtains for our room and living room. I have to find the sheer fabric for our family room - I packed it, but can't find it yet. In fact, there are a lot of things I can't find - digital camera, the base for one of our phones. I've already lost our new zoo membership card. I called today and had to pay $5.00 for a replacement. Watch...it will turn up in a week!
I was feeling a bit 'homesick' this week. I tried to cure myself by walking in Shopko...it helped! I called my friend Karen in Janesville (to have her read some questions from her reading book - because Joe forgot his reading book at school and we had the same book). She was getting ready for the Spring trip to the JSOL (Janesville School's Outdoor laboratory). I loved going out to the school forest.....made me miss Adams School.
This morning some concrete guy is fixing part of our driveway. There was a crack in it and now he's digging it up!
Jenna practiced her dance recital dances. I joined in on 'Buttercup'....it was a lot of fun. She has 9 days until her show!
Now that Jeff is home, I hope to get some bigger jobs done around the house. We now have the hardware from IKEA for Jackson's dresser - so that can be put together! Joe's curtain rod needs to be put up, I have a shelf in my room I want put up, and I bought an organizer for my ironing board and iron. On top of that we want to get a flower garden planted. It will be a busy weekend!!!!
Have a good day!
Monday, April 17, 2006
Easter Weekend
We have survived the drive to Wisconsin for Easter. The drive was well worth it, but it was a very long trip home! After school on Thursday, April 13 the kids and I went to get Jeff at his work. I should know better than to drive how I think we've gone there before (watching Jeff do it) - as I got lost. I didn't get a little lost....I got lost BIG TIME! We ended up in a very scary part of Omaha. Good thing I had Joe with me. He called Jeff on the cell phone and we eventually figured out our way out of the tough neighborhood. Jeff did the rest of the drive to Wisconsin. We arrived at Grandma and Grandpa Gruber's about 11:30 PM. We all went right to sleep.
Friday, April 14, 2006
Happy 7th Birthday, Jackson!
We celebrated with a trip to MOA (Mall of America). The kids went on rides with their cousins - Mac, Erin, and Eden. Auntie Sarah and Auntie Beth joined in on the fun! They rode the Pepsi Ripsaw, the Log/Water ride, the Frog Jumper, and Jaci took Joe and Jack on the Timberland Twister (which is like a Tilt-a-whirl on a roller coaster!) Even Auntie Sarah went on the water ride!
We enjoyed the rest of the day with an awesome fish fry at Grandma and Grandpa's house followed up by DQ ice cream cake!
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Easter Egg Hunt today in Ellsworth for Jackson, Jenna, Erin, Eden, Cade, Mac, and Anna. It was a good thing we brought cousin Ella along to help watch all of the kids! Joe went to Big River with Grandpa Gruber and the Dzubay family. He loved riding the 4 wheeler. Jeff had to run into work in Edina so Jaci and the kids went with Uncle Nate and Uncle Andy and their kids to Big River. We collected some rocks, walked on trails, rode 4 wheelers and walked in the river. Kids had a great time! It was a beautiful sunny day. That night we had another fantastic meal followed by coloring of the Easter Eggs. Imagine 8 kids dipping their eggs into cups full of colored dye. It was crazy...but fun! The eggs turned out beautiful! I went to visit with Starla that evening in River Falls - it was great to see her and the kids. Made me realize how far away we really are!
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Happy Easter!
We made it to church - early - all 16 of us!!! All of the kids were so very well behaved and adorable with their Easter clothes on! I loved watching how nice Jenna and Eden, Jackson and Erin got along. Joe was adorable when he would hold his little cousin Anna. She loved to touch and feel his hair. The kids found their Easter baskets. Joe's was very difficult - way on top of the kitchen cabinets. He need assistance from Uncle Nate and a broom handle to get it down.
The rest of the cousins came over for Easter dinner. Can you see all 12 cousins....running around looking for their Easter eggs? The meal was delicious. The sad part was knowing we had to leave it all. I had a hard time with the good byes! Luckily I know we will be back in 2 weeks for Jenna's dance recital. That time my parents will join us!
Our drive home went fine. We devoured 23 buns - most filled with ham, some not. (Thanks Frank for the ham!!!) Kids stayed awake until we got to Jeff's work to pick up his truck (about 8:45 PM). As soon as we left ConAgra - everyone was sound a sleep. We got home shortly after 9PM. Tucked the kids in bed and poor Jeff had to pack up for a flight - where to.....The Twin Cities!!!!
It was a fun packed Easter Weekend!
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Jaci's interview
I got the call from the principal I interviewed with - they went with another candidate. I look forward to more interviews this spring and summer.
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Neighbors
It is so fortunate that everyone in our neighborhood is new. We have met so many wonderful people. Allow me to describe them to you. Charlotte and her husband Scott just moved from Chicago. They live right next door to us. They are originally from CA. They have 3 year old Kelen. I've really enjoyed getting to know Charlotte (who is now a stay at home mom). Down from Charlotte and Scott is Prem. She has lived in Omaha for about 2 1/2 years but in the neighborhood since December. She moved here from India. Both her and her husband are computer programers. She has promised Charlotte and me an Indian meal. We both are looking forward to that. Next to Perm is Chris and her husband Chad. Chad is a cop on the OPD. Chris stays home with their 3 girls. Morgan and Sarah are 9 and in the 4th grade (twins). Hannah is 4 and Jenna's new buddy. Across the street is Matt and Sasha. They just had a baby on Saturday. They named him Jack. They also have 2 dogs and one is named Jackson. I hope when I call for my son, Jack - that the dog doesn't come a running! Matt and Sasha are originally from Omaha, but just moved back from West St. Paul. I brought over some of my choc. chip/butterscotch chip cookies from a welcome home baby gift.
Finally, at the other end of the street is Ingrid and her two sons, Alec and Max. Alec is in 2nd grade and Max will be in kindergarten next year.
It was a beautiful day here in Omaha. I have been told, however, that the wind doesn't stop blowing. I'm sure I'll get used to it....but I think I'll need to start wearing a ponytail from now on. I'm getting tired of that 'wind whipped' feel.
Finally, at the other end of the street is Ingrid and her two sons, Alec and Max. Alec is in 2nd grade and Max will be in kindergarten next year.
It was a beautiful day here in Omaha. I have been told, however, that the wind doesn't stop blowing. I'm sure I'll get used to it....but I think I'll need to start wearing a ponytail from now on. I'm getting tired of that 'wind whipped' feel.
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Today is Tuesday, April 11, 2006. The boys got on the school bus just fine today. Jackson was smiling at me out the window as the bus went off to school. I think I'm going to enjoy not having to do the drive - especially the crazy pick up! Jenna and I did a little shopping today. We checked our a new store called Gordmans. It seems to be like a TJ Maxx. We found some cute decor to add to Jackson's hunting/fishing/ cabin room. Then we went to a cute toy store and purchased a lot of birthday presents. We have Jackson's birthday on Friday, Cousin Anna and Cade will turn 2 at the end of April, Cousin Claire will be 9 at the beginning of May, and our friend Dane will also turn 2 on the same day at Cade. Our good friend Kayley will have a birthday soon to - on May 1st. We aren't sure what to get her, yet. I thought Jackson would like to be with when we go to get it. Finally, we went to Bakers grocery store. I love that place. It is like Logli's in Janesville. Great deli and bakery!
Jenna and I came home to grilled cheese sandwiches and left over lasagna. I've been working on finding a Pediatric ophthalmologist for Jenna. Luckily, Dr. Struck (our doctor from Wisconsin) has suggested some doctors. I've notice that Jenna's eye is going crossed more often and I'm not confident with what the MN doctor had done with Jenna (using bi-focals).
I've been trying to get a hold of my Aunt Jean. I want to get a pork chop receipe from her that uses stuffing and apple pie filling. She isn't home right now. I'll have to keep trying.
Jenna and I came home to grilled cheese sandwiches and left over lasagna. I've been working on finding a Pediatric ophthalmologist for Jenna. Luckily, Dr. Struck (our doctor from Wisconsin) has suggested some doctors. I've notice that Jenna's eye is going crossed more often and I'm not confident with what the MN doctor had done with Jenna (using bi-focals).
I've been trying to get a hold of my Aunt Jean. I want to get a pork chop receipe from her that uses stuffing and apple pie filling. She isn't home right now. I'll have to keep trying.
Monday, April 10, 2006
First Day of School
Monday, April 10, 2006 - 17 years ago today Jeff and I met and had our first date!
The boys had a happy and successful first day of school. They were both full of smiles and good news. I'm so happy for them. Tomorrow they will start taking the bus to and from school. Jenna had Hannah from down the street over to play - then went to her house to play for a while. Kids had fun with the garden hose tonight. They were to water the sod, but I think they got watered more than the ground. No news on the interview, yet.
The boys had a happy and successful first day of school. They were both full of smiles and good news. I'm so happy for them. Tomorrow they will start taking the bus to and from school. Jenna had Hannah from down the street over to play - then went to her house to play for a while. Kids had fun with the garden hose tonight. They were to water the sod, but I think they got watered more than the ground. No news on the interview, yet.
First week
Well, the boys are home with Jenna and me. They had spring break for their MN school the last week of March and for their new NE school the first week of April.
Monday (4-3-06) the kids accompanied me to a meeting with the recruiter for Millard Public Schools. I will have my name submitted for teachers interested in a 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade position for the 2006-2007 school year. The unpacking continues.
Tuesday (4-4-06) Jenna decided to give herself a 'big girl' hair cut. She found a pair of school scissors and snuck off to the basement to give herself a bang trim. Unfortunatly, the 1x1 inch chunk of hair didn't go un-noticed. Jeff saw it at supper time and boy was Jenna mad at dad for brining it to mom's attention! Needless to say....mom was mad!
Wednesday (4-5-06) We took a trip to "Pony Tails and Buzz Cuts" to get Jenna's hair fixed and for Joe to get a trim. Jenna looks much better and Joe smells better since he got some new hair gel that smells like grape jelly. Joe spent some of his birthday money / Christmas gift cards at Target and got a new LEGO airplane. He spent the rest of his day playing LEGOs in his room. I got a call for an interview for a 3rd or 5th grade teaching position. Interview will be on Friday.
Thursday (4-6-06) Hummmm, boxes boxes are my life. Joe was a great chef tonight and made supper. His pick: lasagna. It was delicious.
Friday (4-7-06) I had my interview today. Jeff spent the morning with the kids so I could get to the interview. It went so/so. I think I answered the questions well, but it appeared to me that the other candidates were known to the interview team. I guess it is wait and see. YEAH the weekend is here! More boxes to undo. We ate our last package of Alaskan Halibit from my folks.
Saturday (4-8-06) What a big day. We started out by going to the ConAgra company store. We stocked up on a few items. Manwich, popcorn, pudding. After that we went to Menards to return a window blind. We wanted white - it was ivory with a red tone. Menards didn't have any more white. We headed to Lowes to get a blind there - they, too, only have ivory. Yes, we are crazy and bought it....we thought "perhaps, since the blinds are fabric, they can't be 'true white'. Jeff put the blind up with assistance from Joe and it is great!
Sunday (4-9-06) We attended church again at "Living Faith UMC". This time Jenna and Jackson attended Sunday School. Afterwards we did more jobs around the house. We decided it was about time to get out of the house and do one fun thing for spring break, so we went to the movie "Ice Age 2". Kids loved it. Before the movie Jeff went to "Sportsmen Haircut" and got a cut. It was like walking into Cabella's. ESPN on the flat screen TVs at each chair.... he loved it.
After the cut we all went to Scheels All Sport to get an "Alley Cat" bike attachment for Jenna to ride on the back of my bike. We used it and it works great! Joe played chef again and made supper for the kids. He got a Chef-Boy-R-Dee Pizza from the ConAgra Company Store and did a great job at reading and following the directions. The kids loved the pizza and ate the entire thing. Meanwhile, Jaci created a delicious deep dish pizza for the adults. After a little Extream Make Over - Home Edition, it was bed time for the kids. The boys had school in the morning!
Monday (4-3-06) the kids accompanied me to a meeting with the recruiter for Millard Public Schools. I will have my name submitted for teachers interested in a 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade position for the 2006-2007 school year. The unpacking continues.
Tuesday (4-4-06) Jenna decided to give herself a 'big girl' hair cut. She found a pair of school scissors and snuck off to the basement to give herself a bang trim. Unfortunatly, the 1x1 inch chunk of hair didn't go un-noticed. Jeff saw it at supper time and boy was Jenna mad at dad for brining it to mom's attention! Needless to say....mom was mad!
Wednesday (4-5-06) We took a trip to "Pony Tails and Buzz Cuts" to get Jenna's hair fixed and for Joe to get a trim. Jenna looks much better and Joe smells better since he got some new hair gel that smells like grape jelly. Joe spent some of his birthday money / Christmas gift cards at Target and got a new LEGO airplane. He spent the rest of his day playing LEGOs in his room. I got a call for an interview for a 3rd or 5th grade teaching position. Interview will be on Friday.
Thursday (4-6-06) Hummmm, boxes boxes are my life. Joe was a great chef tonight and made supper. His pick: lasagna. It was delicious.
Friday (4-7-06) I had my interview today. Jeff spent the morning with the kids so I could get to the interview. It went so/so. I think I answered the questions well, but it appeared to me that the other candidates were known to the interview team. I guess it is wait and see. YEAH the weekend is here! More boxes to undo. We ate our last package of Alaskan Halibit from my folks.
Saturday (4-8-06) What a big day. We started out by going to the ConAgra company store. We stocked up on a few items. Manwich, popcorn, pudding. After that we went to Menards to return a window blind. We wanted white - it was ivory with a red tone. Menards didn't have any more white. We headed to Lowes to get a blind there - they, too, only have ivory. Yes, we are crazy and bought it....we thought "perhaps, since the blinds are fabric, they can't be 'true white'. Jeff put the blind up with assistance from Joe and it is great!
Sunday (4-9-06) We attended church again at "Living Faith UMC". This time Jenna and Jackson attended Sunday School. Afterwards we did more jobs around the house. We decided it was about time to get out of the house and do one fun thing for spring break, so we went to the movie "Ice Age 2". Kids loved it. Before the movie Jeff went to "Sportsmen Haircut" and got a cut. It was like walking into Cabella's. ESPN on the flat screen TVs at each chair.... he loved it.
After the cut we all went to Scheels All Sport to get an "Alley Cat" bike attachment for Jenna to ride on the back of my bike. We used it and it works great! Joe played chef again and made supper for the kids. He got a Chef-Boy-R-Dee Pizza from the ConAgra Company Store and did a great job at reading and following the directions. The kids loved the pizza and ate the entire thing. Meanwhile, Jaci created a delicious deep dish pizza for the adults. After a little Extream Make Over - Home Edition, it was bed time for the kids. The boys had school in the morning!
Our first NE weekend
Saturday, April 1, 2006
It was a busy day with everyone continuing to put their things away. Jeff put Joe's IKEA dresser together and started to do Jackson's when he realized there was no hardwear to go with it. We will have to make a trip to IKEA when we are home for Easter to get the missing parts.
We decided that after a busy day of unpacking - no one wanted to cook supper. We decided to celebrate Jenna's 5th birthday (one day early) with a trip to Famous Daves. We had a great time. Joe decided to be like Uncle Andy and order the XXXL rib dinner. 12 ribs in all. Do you think he could finish it.....NOT. Jackson, Jeff, and Jaci decided to lend a hand and try to help, but there were still about 3 ribs that got put in a 'to go' box. Unfortunatly, the 'to go' box got left on the table.
Sunday, April 2, 2006
Happy 5th Birthday to Miss Jenna Lee!!!!! We decided to go and check out the local United Methodist Church. It was a great experience. Jenna loved Sunday School and the boys were well behaved in church with us. We wanted to get a nice bite to eat so we drove for 30+ minutes to find a Perkins! The brunch was well worth the drive (although Joe was still full from his big rib dinner the night before). Our next stop was to Wal-Mart. Jenna's gift was to be a bike. She had picked out a pink Barbie bike with training wheels and a pink princess helmet. She can really cruise now!!! Dinner time was complete with a delicious cake from Bakers. It was chocolate and white cake with a raspberry filling inbetween the layers. Tomorrow is Jeff's first day the ConAgra home headquarters.
It was a busy day with everyone continuing to put their things away. Jeff put Joe's IKEA dresser together and started to do Jackson's when he realized there was no hardwear to go with it. We will have to make a trip to IKEA when we are home for Easter to get the missing parts.
We decided that after a busy day of unpacking - no one wanted to cook supper. We decided to celebrate Jenna's 5th birthday (one day early) with a trip to Famous Daves. We had a great time. Joe decided to be like Uncle Andy and order the XXXL rib dinner. 12 ribs in all. Do you think he could finish it.....NOT. Jackson, Jeff, and Jaci decided to lend a hand and try to help, but there were still about 3 ribs that got put in a 'to go' box. Unfortunatly, the 'to go' box got left on the table.
Sunday, April 2, 2006
Happy 5th Birthday to Miss Jenna Lee!!!!! We decided to go and check out the local United Methodist Church. It was a great experience. Jenna loved Sunday School and the boys were well behaved in church with us. We wanted to get a nice bite to eat so we drove for 30+ minutes to find a Perkins! The brunch was well worth the drive (although Joe was still full from his big rib dinner the night before). Our next stop was to Wal-Mart. Jenna's gift was to be a bike. She had picked out a pink Barbie bike with training wheels and a pink princess helmet. She can really cruise now!!! Dinner time was complete with a delicious cake from Bakers. It was chocolate and white cake with a raspberry filling inbetween the layers. Tomorrow is Jeff's first day the ConAgra home headquarters.
The last week in MN - first weekend in NE
Our last week in MN consisted of the mover coming to pack our things on Monday, March 27 and Tuesday, March 28. He came back with reinforcements on Wednesday, March 29 to load the moving van. After all of the boxes were loaded we finished cleaning out the house and started our drive to Nebraksa. We decided to only drive 4 hours to Des Moines, Iowa. Jeff took Jackson in the truck with the boat while Jaci hauled Joe, Jenna, and Mr. Whiskers. We were exhausted by the time we arrived at the hotel. We ate dinner at the hotel restaurant and went right to bed. We had to wake up early to get on the road. Our closing was scheduled for 10 AM in Omaha. After driving through one bad storm, we arrived in time. The closing went quickly and smoothly and we were eager to get to our new house.
Later that day the frig, washer, and dryer were delivered by Lowes. We also took care of assorted jobs like: picking up the mailbox key, grocery shopping, and putting up blinds. At the grocery store Jaci was informed that there was a tornado watch going on. Later that afternoon the watch turned into a warning and there we all were in the basement sitting on a carpet square listening to our hand crank radio for weather details. (Love that radio, Don and Rachel!)
We all settled into bed in our own bedrooms, but the kids didn't want to sleep alone and all ended up dragging their sleeping bags in Jackson's room for the night.
Friday, March 31, 2006 found the Moving Van arriving at 7:45 AM. As crazy as things seem - our new neighbors were also moving in this same day. Imagine two semis parked on the street next to each other. Since this whole neighborhood is new, everyone has boxes in their garage and is used to unpacking.
We got everything unloaded in 3 1/2 hours. Later that day the cable/phone/high speed internet guy arrived. We spent the rest of the day unpacking and having fun in our new house.
Later that day the frig, washer, and dryer were delivered by Lowes. We also took care of assorted jobs like: picking up the mailbox key, grocery shopping, and putting up blinds. At the grocery store Jaci was informed that there was a tornado watch going on. Later that afternoon the watch turned into a warning and there we all were in the basement sitting on a carpet square listening to our hand crank radio for weather details. (Love that radio, Don and Rachel!)
We all settled into bed in our own bedrooms, but the kids didn't want to sleep alone and all ended up dragging their sleeping bags in Jackson's room for the night.
Friday, March 31, 2006 found the Moving Van arriving at 7:45 AM. As crazy as things seem - our new neighbors were also moving in this same day. Imagine two semis parked on the street next to each other. Since this whole neighborhood is new, everyone has boxes in their garage and is used to unpacking.
We got everything unloaded in 3 1/2 hours. Later that day the cable/phone/high speed internet guy arrived. We spent the rest of the day unpacking and having fun in our new house.
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