Futbol, Volleyball, and Flamenco

The kids are signed up for some extracurricular activities at a school that is just down the block from us. As you walk down the streets here you see lots of big wooden doors and wonder what lies behind them. Every now and then you get a glimpse. It can be any number of things; an apartment building, a church, a museum, a music academy, a school, a department store. You have no idea based on the look outside. This school looks just like any other door, but opens up into a huge stone courtyard with two levels (outdoor) surrounded by all the classrooms. Many of the private and semi private schools around here are convents or monastaries that have been converted to schools. As a matter of fact, the school we thought might have an opening for Cassy was called "Las Eslavas" as in "The Slaves". Our Spanish friend, Ivan, assured me that it is actually a very forward thinking school and not to worry, it was just called Las Eslavas because it used to be a convent called Slaves of the Lord.

Anyway, our first day of activities was yesterday. Luckily, all the kids have activities at the same school, on the same days, and between 4-6pm...I wish that could happen at home! We went yesterday and everyone was a little apprehensive. Cassy is signed up for volleyball (which is not her first love). Apparently girls do not play soccer in Spain, so for her age group there is not a girls soccer league. She was so nervous and when the girls showed up all together with their matching outfits to practice I could see her panic, but she was very brave and joined right in. The coach was really nice, although he did not speak English and the girls were very accepting and wanted to know all about Cassidy, especially if she was a Justin Beiber fan...to which she was very P.C. and just smiled and said, "Do you?"

Alex was really nervous because he does not speak much Spanish at all, but he started playing and pretty soon there was a group of boys gathered around him all saying "Alex! Alex!" and trying to speak to him in English (the two or three words that they know). They were so cute and kept saying, "Good job Alex!"

At home, I have resisted putting Addy in the shake your booty dance classes. We have kept with the 'pretend you are a raindrop and hop across the floor' type of dancing. Well, call it Flamenco and a Spanish cultural experience, and bring on the booty dancing. I have never seen anything like it, it was so cute. Next time I will be ready with video and camera in hand. I really don't know much about Flamenco and haven't seen any performances yet, so I didn't know what we were getting into. Addy loved it and she was the best booty shaker out there in her pink tutu skirt with her brown boots.

Connor is also signed up for futbol, but his coach couldn't be there, so they just played a scrimmage with their team. He played goalie and decided that he is good at goalie. Cassy asked if she could play and the boys were very impressed that a girl had such soccer moves. They kept giving her a thumbs up, "You good!" Connor was happy to have his sister playing too. They play on a stone courtyard, rather than a grass field and the kids do not wear shin guards. The boys had them on and the nuns kept walking by and pointing and giggling and exclaiming something exciting about the shin guards.

Everyone had a good experience and they are excited to make some new friends. Hopefully they will become a little more familiar with the language this way too. And best of all....mom gets a break!

Overheard

Connor and Alex got new hoodies the other day (Alex forgot his and we need a jacket here). As we walked away Alex said to Connor, "The girls are going to think we are hot in these!" WHAT??!!!

I noticed that Connor's two week old tennis shoes were showing some wear and tear, so I asked Connor how he is so hard on his shoes. He responded, "It's because I'm an adventurer, Mom."

Bad JuJu

I took Connor to Farr's Fresh for an ice cream and a little chat the other day. Actually it was the big chat about the birds and the bees. I decided to follow the advice from the Talking To Your Kids About Sex book by the Eyre's. They present the idea in such a positive manner and I think in a way in which it inspires your child to realize the importance of being married to share something so wonderful. It went well. Of course Connor was embarrassed somewhat and we read the book "Where Did I Come From?" But he was a good sport about it. "I bet your are going to do this with all of my siblings aren't you?" "What?" "You know, take them to get an ice cream and tell them all this stuff." He knows me so well. When we left we went to get a movie at Redbox. The line was too long at two different places, so we went to Smith's. Then someone stole my parking space. As we hopped out of the car, Connor replied,"Mom I think we have got some bad JuJu going on because of all that stuff we have been talking about..."

Day to Day

One of our biggest challenges is to stay on top of chores. Our current system is that the kids have morning chores, except Cassy because she can barely get to school on time as it is. Connor unloads the dishwasher, Addy unloads the silverware, and Alex feeds Biscuit. Everyone is supposed to make their beds, put clothes in the dirty clothes, and brush their teeth. sometimes we are better at this than others. It seems like when we catch up on everything and the house is in order we can get to our chores on a more regular basis, but when everything is crazy we are crazy all around! In the evening everyone is supposed to rotate through chores monthly and be in charge of a zone in the house that they tidy up. Here are the current categories: vacuum kitchen floor after dinner, feed dog & upstairs family room; set table, get drinks for dinner & clean mud room and little bathroom; load dishwasher after dinner, downstairs family room & bottom of stairs (including the collection basket of toys); hand wash dishes, wipe counters, tidy upstairs hallway and laundry room. It doesn't get done all the time, but at least we have a system and we keep trying. We have tried all sorts of different incentive schemes and cleaning rotations. This seems to work the best for us because we only rotate once a month (I can't keep up with changes more often than that), plus it gives them a little time to figure out the chore and to master it in that amount of time, yet they change around and don't get bored either.

Last night I was helping Connor with the hand washing and I had been running around and cleaning and just trying to be a taskmaster all day that when it came time to do the dishes I was approaching it in much the same way, but I realized there is fun to be had in the doing and kids always show you how. I had to slow down and decrease my intensity and remember to just be happy to spend some time with my cute son who is growing up so fast. He washed a dish and then he would do soap bubbles on his face to make a beard, then he would wash another dish and squirt the dish water across the room and try to do that a few more times to see how far it could squirt. The other day I was about to put away the mixing bowl in the KitchenAid mixer when I realized the dough hook was propped on the arm. I thought, "What is this doing here?" Then I realized the paddle attachment was propped on the other arm. I recognized Connor or Alex's work right away and couldn't help but take a picture. They had turned the mixer into a pirate or some Star Wars figure....

The kids do get an allowance [which isn't really tied to work, I feel like kids should learn how to handle money whether they are behaving or not. Our kids lose privileges if they don't get their chores or homework finished (like no video games, computer or friends.)] Everyone gets $1 for every year they are old. Currently Addy gets $5, Alex $7, Connor $10, and Cassy is on a special system. They get paid this once a month. Ten percent goes to tithing, twenty percent to savings, and the rest to spending. I read a book called the parenting breakthrough and they suggested this plan for allowance and saving, so I have pretty much followed that. When the kids turn 11, they start putting money toward a long term savings account. At age 11 I think they put $8 toward the account and they are also earning an allowance. At 12 they no longer earn an allowance. They actually have to find ways to work and to earn money. At this age I think they pay in about $15 a month, at age 13 it is $25 per month. Each year they pay more and more until when they are 17 it is like $150 a month. Although they no longer get an allowance, they do earn a monthly match to this long term account from their parents. When they turn 18 they will have about $11,000 saved up for college or a mission. Much of that they will have worked for themselves, so hopefully they will have respect for all the work it takes to earn that much money and not just go and blow it.

I hope that all the gnashing of teeth and wailing we go through will eventually help my children know how to work and take pride in accomplishing things. I pray that they will know what responsibility is and that they will be proud of a job well done. Most of all, I just hope my kids know and feel how much I love them and that I want them to reach their full potential in life.

Back to School

Having everyone go back to school this year has been bittersweet for me. I am excited to hear the sound of silence on occasion and to have the house stay clean for more than five minutes. I am really excited to have some of the bickering stop (at least until 4pm). But this year it will be extra quiet because Addy is starting Kindergarten! She has been so excited to go to school this week. I am so excited for her. I think she is so ready to be at school learning and interacting with school friends. I will miss my little buddy though. It is easy having one child home with me, especially because Addy is so eager to do the things that I am doing throughout the day. She loves to cook and garden and read together, and she also likes to do things on her own like coloring and crafts, playing with her hodge podge mixture of Littlest Pet Shops, dolls, princesses, legos, and whatever else is on hand. As a side note....the other day she handed me a pink play dough ball with lots of glittery beads and some little tube beads stuck in it. I asked her if it was a porcupine and she said it was actually a bomb and when it goes off all of the pokey things will fly all over and get you (obviously she has been spending a lot of time with her brothers). So anyway, it has always been fun to have her around, and she is such a momma's girl that she doesn't ever get too far away. We have been working to get her to at least go to bed in her own bed with Cassidy this summer, with the contingency that if she has a nightmare that she will hop in bed with us. So about 95% of the time she would sneak down to snuggle with us in the middle of the night. Now that school has started, she is so tired that she has even been sleeping in her own bed most nights and we have to wake her up to go to school. There are so many joys of having school age children. It is nice to have some time to myself so that I can get some things done and maybe be able to do some of the extras that I have been wanting to do , but just haven't had the time for. It is easier to go places when everyone can just go hop in the car (for the most part). And it is much easier to go out to dinner! I think it is just kind of hard to say goodbye to babyhood and to realize that we are past that phase in our lives. Especially hard because I just LOVE babies! I like the quote, "Some days can seem like forever, but the years go by in a flash" or something like that. It is so true. Some days with little kids, when you can't even use the restroom without little fingers poking under the door and someone begging to come in, just seem to go on forever and you feel like you are in survival mode. But looking back, it seems it went by in a flash. It is kind of hard and scary to have your kids out in the world and see how influenced they are by their environment. Cassidy's attitude always shifts a little when she is in school and she gets more intense (which is not fun for any of us:) The boys always moan and complain as we try to get back into the school routine of homework, chores and piano. And most of all I do miss having them all around and running for to our next adventure!

Here's a recap of the first week:

Cassy was given an extra two weeks to complete an assignment that was due the first week (that she was cramming to get done) and i think she will still be cramming to get it done by Wednesday. She is in Publications this year and loves it. She is excited to take Spanish, but doesn't love her teacher. She has one teacher that reminds her of the annoying lady who takes Dumbledore's position at Hogwarts in Harry Potter. And she has soccer everyday after school and just found out she made the varsity team, which she is very excited about! She is also working on a very hard piano piece called "Be Still My Soul" that she is going to play with Gabby and Isabella on the violin. Of course her friends play a major role in her life..

Connor has Mrs. Costley for fifth grade and loves being in her class. It doesn't hurt that his best friend, Ford, is in the class with him. They sent home a questionnaire that he had filled out and almost every answer was "Ford". "What was the best advice you have ever been given?" answer "Ford". He must have thought it said "Who gave you the best advice?" When I asked him about it, he got a big smile on his face and said,"I should have put your name down, but I wanted her to know that Ford is my best friend so that she will let us sit by each other." We will see how that works out. Connor wakes up early to read his Star Wars Boba Fat (is that how you even spell it?) or to play Lego's with Alex. He hates piano, but after grumbling he sticks with it and has even found two songs he likes to play..."Ode to Joy" and "When the Saints Come Marching In."

Alex told Grandpa Cola on the phone the other day that he doesn't like school. He has Mrs. Stettler this year and has already been working on memorizing his poems. He does like to drag his feet when it comes to homework, making a 10 minute assignment go on for 2 hours. We are working on different strategies to overcome this. Alex loves hanging out with friends. Sam and Danik are two of his friends he really likes to be with, but most of all he likes to hang out with Connor. They are both Lego masters and Alex just got his Lego magazine this morning and put it in his bag to take to school. He is doing so well with his reading and is attempting to read the first Harry Potter book (with a few picture books thrown in for fun). He is a sweetheart and very protective of his little sister....when he isn't terrorizing her.

Addy is loving Kindergarten, although I think it wears her out a little bit. She has started back to Virginia Tanner dance and loves it. She gets to go with her friend Matisse this year. We had to fill out lots of paperwork before starting school. One of the questions asked what name you would prefer to go by. I asked her if she wanted to be called Addyson, Addy, or Addy Jane. She replied, "How bout I be called Diamond?" We asked her if she had any friends at school. She said she has three. Elise and two others that she doesn't remember their names. This morning when she was getting dressed she did let me know that one of her boy friends had told her she looked pretty in her dress yesterday. She is a very girly girl and loves wearing dresses. She can't stand short sleeves, so she usually wears tank dresses or long sleeves. She is a girl who knows what she wants.

Summer Camp

AAAHHHH!!! Summer camp week. I will be happy to have a little break from the running around and the sibling fights. However, I will miss my kids and my hubby a ton. Connor left this morning for Astro camp. He will spend part of his week at the Astro Camp here in Ogden and a couple of days in Pleasant Grove at another camp (it is all part of one camp). My little man will be gone from Monday to Saturday! I was talking to him about if he gets homesick and he looked at me with a quizzical look and said, "Mom, I am not going to get homesick. Tanner's brother's wife got homesick for japan and so they had to take a trip to Japan. I'm not going to be homesick!" Well, I hope that is true. He wanted to got to the camp with Ford, but they didn't register in time, so he is going it alone. I am so proud of him for being willing to try something so unfamiliar (and for such a long time)! He really is growing up. The tuition for camp is $450 and Connor has almost earned his half that he is required to pay, he just needs another $50. He has been working hard to earn the money. I want to teach my kids that they can do anything they set their minds to if they just work for it. Another idea I hope to instill in my children is the motto, "We do hard things". I read about this on another blog and it summed up how I feel. When you are able to do hard things, you feel such a sense of accomplishment, more than anything else, especially more than if you are just handed an experience. I still remember hiking 10 miles up to Ben Lomond peak when we were at girl's camp and the exhiliration I felt just for sticking with it, when almost everyone else (including my friends) had turned around long ago. Once you learn how to do hard things and overcome obstacles, it is easier to challenge yourself to do other hard things and to accomplish great things in life.

Cassy leaves for our ward Girl's Camp tomorrow. They are going to stay in Island Park and do some fun "roughing it" activities, which I think will be good for Cassidy. She has to have her bags packed and over to her leader's house tonight. There is a pile of laundry the size of Mt. Everest in her closet, I hope she can get it all together in time! Alex and Addy will be going to stay at my mom and Wayne's Tues and Wed night so that they can have their own little camp. And Matt will be leaving for a bike race Thurs through Sat. Like I said, a week of summer camps. It will all wrap up with a birthday celebration for Matt and some fireworks at Weber State on Sunday...

June Birthday Party

Aaaahhhhh! The birthday party season is almost over. I love to have fun birthday parties, but at the same time it is a lot of work! Tonight we had the extended Howard family and my mom and Wayne over for a celebration. Connor turned 10 (which he informs me means he is now officially a tween) and Addy turned 5 today. We had some yummy brownie pizzas (peanut butter, chocolate with pretzel m&m's, and mint) with homemade vanilla ice cream. It was all yummy and we even made some ice cream in the roll around ball...which is fun for the kids for about 5 minutes and then the adults get to take on the task for the next 20 minutes. The kids had lots of fun kicking around the soccer ball and flying some styrofoam planes that the Gloeckner's gave Connor. The older girls snuck off to Cassy's room, but we tempted them back with a game of table topics, a little conversation game in which you each get to answer different questions. We ended with everyone answering what your ultimate birthday dinner would be. Some of the answers: Ralph-wild salmon, baked beans and real key lime pie; Connor-top ramen, bread pudding; Alex-cereal; Cassy-bruschetta, brie, margaritas (non alcoholic of course); Grandma Bennion-roast beef dinner (which we then all agreed is the best, especially if your grandma makes it for you :)

Jazz with the boys...

When the kids play basketball with the Junior Jazz program, they receive two free Jazz tickets (nosebleed section, of course). I had two tickets in my purse so that I could take Connor to his game, but in the meantime I had taken Cassy out to breakfast at Mcdonald's and there was a BOGO coupon for a McMuffin on the back of the Jazz ticket. I totally forgot that the ticket was for an upcoming game rather than one that I had already been to and I used it up. I realized this mistake the night before the game and had planned on just buying another nosebleed ticket (really, how much could they be?). We called Glen Draper (the Jazz expert) to get the scoop on where to get a ticket and such and he said that all the cheap seats were sold out. AAAHHHH! He said the cheapest ticket was $40. So...it was 5:05 the day of the game and it started at 7. I got a hold of Ogden city rec and they had some spare tickets. It turns out that I got enough for our whole family! Matt wasn't up for it, so I ended up taking Connor, Ford, and Alex.

We had a great time! Alex was doing some serious jamming to the music... I am sure if we would have had tickets close enough for the cameras to see us we would have been on the Jumbotron. After a jam session finished and Alex sat down, the Jazz resumed their game, and Alex leaned over to me... "Mom, will you sign me up to play with them next year?"

I love that he thinks I have the ability to do anything for him....and if I could, you know I would!

p.s. The Jazz lost, but it was a close game. It was sold out because Boozer ( a former Jazz player) was playing for the Bulls and it was his first time back on the opposing team. It also turned out to be coach Jerry Sloan's last game....he announced his retirement the next day.