The way I see it...

Having Kids...

I have concluded that the best part of having kids is that they make you feel like a kid! My little ones, who will turn four and two in March, are like little bundles of energy and fun and curiosity. No matter how stressful of a day I have at the office, when they run towards me with their arms out and give me a big hug, it melts away all the crappy stuff that might have happened that day.

Don’t you think their fun-loving attitudes are contagious? We were playing out in the snow over the weekend, and although I liked snow pre-children, I had a blast with them outside. Jenna, my oldest, wanted to make snow angels, so I helped her. Then, she said, “your turn mom!” When’s the last time you laid down in the snow and made a snow angel? I couldn’t personally remember the last time I did, but it was great and kind of a freeing experience.

After the angels, I was showing Brody, my youngest, how to make snowballs and he loved that. He kept trying to throw them at me, but with his big gloves he just couldn’t get a grip. Nevertheless, the smile never left his face.

Remember the days when we couldn’t wait to grow up? I can’t wait until I’m done with high school. I can’t wait to be done with college and can get a job so I don’t have to study anymore. My dad always used to say that he would give anything to be back in school and I thought he was crazy. Turns out, he was pretty darn smart. The days of not having to worry about going to a job or paying bills or having real grown-up responsibilities, those were the days...

I think that’s why kids are such a blessing. They make you forget, if even for a minute here or an hour there, about all the serious stuff you’re faced with as an adult. They take you back to when life was simple, where the smiles and laughter flowed easily. And, even though you may be getting older, they definitely always make you feel young at heart, but that’s just the way I see it.

Coach Burdorf- All-Star Coach

Over the weekend, Aaron attended the Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association clinic in Cedar Rapids. While he was there it was announced that he was selected (1 of 12 coaches for 4 teams) to be on the coaching staff for the All-Star Series coaching the Small Schools-East team. The series is held each year to honor some of the best seniors in Iowa Baseball. This year's series will be held Aug. 5-8 in Cedar Rapids. The first day they will play at the Kernel's stadium, day two at the University of Iowa, and day three and four at Kirkwood. Congrats Coach B!

The way I see it...

A handwritten thank you

Guess what I received in the mail the other day? A thank you. That was handwritten. Isn’t that so, I don’t know, old-fashioned? And, guess what? I loved it!

I have to admit that I’m not very good when it comes to writing thank yous. I always have this idea in my mind that after Christmas or the kids’ birthdays I will do something and send them out to family. Even better! I will have the kids color them or something creative like that. Well...it doesn’t happen. If it was the thought that counted when it comes to thank yous, I would be good to go. But, we all know that it doesn’t.

I think I went through a phase after high school graduation, then wedding showers, the wedding and baby showers where I just wanted to pull my hair out because of all the thank yous I had to write. I know that’s really, really bad to say, but when you’re faced with a huge number of them, it’s hard (at least for me) to stay upbeat about having to sit down a handwrite that many thank yous.

Well, that was over two years ago, so I feel like I have no excuses anymore. It’s February 2nd and I am announcing that I have added a New Year’s resolution to my list. Take the time to handwrite a thank you to let someone know that what I received, what they did, etc. was special and meant something to me and I am very grateful.

I’m thinking that it will not only make me feel good to show my appreciation, but the person that receives it will feel equally good, but that’s just the way I see it.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

We had parent-teacher conferences last week for Jenna. Unfortunately, because of the darn weather, we had to reschedule so Aaron wasn't able to go with me.

So, I had a nice chat with Jenna's teacher, Mrs. Randall. She went through Jenna's progress report and she was "good" in everything except using scissors and waiting her turn to be called on. Mrs. Randall was quick to point out that she marks all of the three year olds the same way on those two things - needs work. That made me feel better!

Next year there is four-year old preschool and you can either choose to send your child three mornings a week or four afternoons a week. Who would have thought it would be such a tough decision? Different times, different schedules, different costs, different classmates...UGH!

After talking to Jenna's teacher, she was very confident because Jenna loves school and is where she needs to be or above, that she would do great in the afternoons in the four day a week program. So, it looks like that's where she'll be next year. I can hardly believe she is over halfway done with her first year of school!

The way I see it...

This Weather!

Isn’t it crazy that in this day and age with all the technology that we have that what happened with Monday’s weather happened? I heard words like “light dusting” or “under an inch.” Well, that wasn’t the case, was it? I heard one meteorologist say the storm “surprised” them. I’ll say!

We woke up to several inches of snow and that wind. I guess that’s the bad part of living in Iowa is that it’s so darn flat and just a little snow and the wind can cause blizzard conditions very quickly.My cousin’s husband works for the sheriff’s department in O’Brien County (Northwest Iowa) and she said they were just swamped all day. He was supposed to get off at 6 PM...then 9 PM...then 1 AM. I’m not sure if he got off of work then or not. He said they couldn’t see more than a couple of inches past their windshield and this was the worst storm they had ever worked in.

When Mr. Barry called our house this morning (Tuesday), he said that West Marshall had missed eight days now because of the weather. It will be interesting to see how many days end up being tacked on at the end of the year. I feel bad for the teachers because I’m sure it’s hard to get the students into a routine with all these late starts and snow days.

Just remember spring will get here sometime. We live here because, for better or worse, we get to experience the four seasons. Think of the beautiful colors in the fall, that Iowa humidity in the summer and the rows of corn along the roads. Iowa is definitely not for the light-hearted, but everything we endure during the winter makes us that much more grateful for the rest of the year, but that’s just the way I see it.

*Brooke, if I messed up where Brad works I'm sorry! I didn't have time to call you. :)

Scar #1

I'm a little behind here, but Brody got in a little fight with a shelf and lost! Poor kid had blood oozing from his nose and I'm pretty sure he'll have a scar there for a really long time, although I'm sure it will be just the first of many. I felt bad for him, but at the same time he looked so tough and cute with his camo band-aid!

My little model

Ok, so my first born is currently obsessed with being a model. It is hilarious!
As I've said before she is a three year old who acts like teenager. She has such a good imagination,which is a good thing! Jenna asked me to take some pictures of her the other day being a model. When she really is a teenager, we're going to have our hands full...

The close-up...notice the chocolate pudding on her face leftover from lunch!


Imagination...the blanket is her "dress". What a little poser!


I told her not to smile and this is the look I received. :)