Mama when I am getting homework?

My first born son Graysen Avery has started the long road of education. He is in kindergarten! Monday was his first day. He rised and shined at the butt crack of dawn singing "I start school and you don't" and then pointing at Maddox who in turn would cry. We packed his snack and put on his back pack and walked to school. I teared up as we walked to school hand in hand and my brave five year old looked up at me and asked if I brought my camera. We got to room 4 and wiped away my tears. I tried to say hi to some other parents.

Then this sadness over took me not only was I turning over my first born child but I was standing alone. I wanted to cry, scream, and lay in my bed and watch the day pass me by but instead I watched my son hang up his belongings turn around hug me and walk over to the magic circle. Then I went on my own brave journey the PTA Back to School Coffee. I signed up for a couple of volunteer positions, drank my coffee and looked around. I felt like I was in high school. Parents grouped together talking and laughing about summer. Other moms and dads whispering to each other, and then there was me.

Ok while I know in my heart of hearts that I am NOT THE ONLY single parent at the school at the moment and time I felt that way. I never felt more alone...more afraid...more vulnerable. I wanted to be a pair. I wanted to turn around and see Bailey there. I wanted to hear his smart ass comment about how the PTA president is a man and wants to be called PTA Captain. I wanted to be a double digit not a single.

Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer had a very dirty nose!!!

So all this bitching and moaning made me forgot..My baby had his first school performance! And while it was short I loved each moment that my almost 5 year old stood there singing his heart away! And for a short moment Bailey and I stood arm to arm and we were a family again. We beamed as our son, our first really great thing, our heart and soul wore a Santa hat and walked back and forth on a makeshift stage.

Last Friday night Graysen's school has their "Gingerbread House Night". We decorated (and may I add had the best) Gingerbread house and then Graysen along with his class sang Must Be Santa and Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. Each kid wore a green santa sweatshirt they had made and had a differetn part for the must be santa song. I am not sure what Graysen's part was cause he wore a Santa's hat and walked back and forth smiling behing all the kids. He was the star of the show!!! :)

I live a real life version of If you Give a Mouse a.....

Tonight the boys and I bundled up and went on a walk looking at Christmas lights, we have a 2 block stretch of houses that place lights on every free space of their houses. It is really pretty and fun to take the kids there... Plus I really enjoy brunt retinas Eye sight is so overrated!

I tried to compose myself as best as I could cause OF COARSE going there made me sad (can I mention for a moment that I am a tad bit sick of being so damn sad all the time and I am TRYING not too be...) and I would make this big deal about the wind and cold making my eyes water. :)

On our way back home we made a pit stop at Starbucks to get hot chocolate and something yummy. I am pushing Maddox in the stroller and Graysen is walking behind us; he tells me that he has to pee. Now it isn't a "Hey mom I have to use the bathroom" it is a " I HAVE TO PEE SO BAD OHHHHHHHHHH I HAVE TO PEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE MAMA THE PEE IS GOING TO COME OUT AND I AM GOING TO FREEZEEEEEEE CAUSE MY PANTS WILL BE WET WITH PEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE"

Me: "Oh Graysen honey if you have to pee so bad let's walk on the sidewalk quickly and not didly dadly"

Graysen as he is climbing on the teeny tiny ledge to walk to the plank while trying not to spill his hot chocolate "Oh but Mama I love didly dadlying"

I had to stop and laugh it was funny....So we walked the plank which reminded Maddox that he likes to walk planks too so he had to climb out and hold onto his drink and walk only to then scream cause Graysen was first and he was first last time when they walked the plank. Which made Graysen stop so that Maddox could spiderman over him cause YES HE DID WALK THE PLANK FIRST LAST TIME which made Maddox bump into him cause he wasn't looking and spill his chocolate, which then reminded Graysen that he had to pee and was going to pee his pants.....The whole time this is going on I can see our house and I got the bright idea to tell the boys that if we got home in two minutes we could watch The Grinch movie. Which only led to a fight over who liked the Grinch more....We finally made it home dry pants and all!

Happy Holidays!

One Zero Zero

Today I had this conversation with Graysen while we were in the car going to lunch. We had JUST pulled out of our driveway and hadn't even drove off our street.

G: Are we there yet?

Me: G how could we be there if we can still see our house? We will be there in 15 minutes.

G: We turned off Elm Street! Are we there yet?

Me: G we have to be in the car for 15 minutes....See the clock? Right now it says 12:45 when it says 1:00 then we will be there and you can ask if we are there and I will say "Yes we are!"

G: Ok ok ok One Zero Zero..One Zero Zero one Zero Zero. Mama when will the clock say One Zero Zero?

Should I sign him up for Clean House now?

Graysen is a collector! Right now we have 3 different collection going on (listed in order of gross factor):

CANDY WRAPPERS!
Anytime he finds a candy wrapper from anywhere he must pick it up, save it to bring home and put in his special box. I caught him going into the garbage at the park the other day to grab a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup wrapper that had Batman on it! I swear everyone there thought that we were some homeless family. I saw one mom pity Maddox,who was staring at their pears, give him one.

POPSICLE STICKS!
For the last few months Graysen has been keeping each and every popsicle stick that he has eaten (at home at least) so that he can "count how many he eats his whole long life" Ok this one wouldn't be so bad if I didn't catch Maddox under the train table sucking the last bit of orange of some month old popsicle stick. These sticks are kept in the special box too.

MOVIE TICKETS!Ok so this one isn't so gross, strange, or even annoying other then it shows was shitty parents Bay and I are by what movies we have taken our 4 and 3 year old to. IRON MAN, TRANSFORMERS ETC. I did put my foot down on the Mitchell's Brothers All Day Movie Explosion though! :)Now the movie ticket thing wouldn't be so bad if Graysen didn't beg every family member for their movie tickets. Now we have envelopes full of old ripped half readable tickets! Also keep in his special box

Now to the special box. It is a corn dog flip top box that Graysen drew G's all over so that everyone in the world will know that it belongs to him and if it is ever lost they can look up G for Graysen and know to bring it back to him on Elm Street.

What Is A Boy?

He's an imp and an angel, a dreamer, a tease.

An explorer of meadows, and a climber of trees.

A runner of errands, and doer of chores.

Who tears his best trousers, and tracks up your floors.

He's a solemn young man with some mud on his feet, and a daredevil riding his bike down the street.

A bundle of questions, who wants to know "why" the world goes around and the stars fill the sky.

He's adventurous, timid, excited or quiet, there's nothing so new that he won't care to try it.

And just when your temper and patience wear thin, he'll look up at you with an innocent grin.

And your heart melts again your pride and joy.

That mischievous, wonderful treasure---your boy!!

A friend sent this to me today and when I was just about to google: Boarding School-Preschool! Five words: Graysen, Maddox, early morning, and fridge!

It is only days away before he wire taps me

We got this build-a-safe kit from Micheal's and we put it together today. It was really easy and lots of fun. This 20 minute project lead to hours of fun here at our house. Graysen and Maddox each had a section to screw together while I used all my muscles and held it tightly until it started to take shape of a box.

It has a lock door front and a top slit that you can easily slip "secret" papers into it. Since putting it together Graysen has gotten a spy kit together: The tools from the safe kit, the safe, his binoculars, a pad of paper, pencil, and his camera. How he knew to add these items to make a spy kit I have no idea?

While I was making lunch G and M were spy's. Taking notes and "pictures" of me making lunch and then locking up the info in the safe. I pretended to be extra sneaky so they would have something to spy on...I also did a silly dance so they could "photograph" it. They boys each worked out a sharing schedule so they could each have a turn putting their special secret stuff in the safe. Graysen gets it for 100 days and then Maddox gets it for 3 days.

I did finesse the schedule a bit and gave them each 3 days to have it before they had to pass it along to the other one.

I didn't learn anything I learned EVERYTHING

Yesterday Graysen started his school! We enrolled him in a parent's co-op: Mon, Wed, and Fri for 3 hours int he morning. Fridays I am there with him slaving away in his classroom.
He was so excited when he woke up in the morning singing "I AM GOING TO SCHOOL". As we walked there Maddox ate a banana and Graysen carried his lunch, skipped, and told me everything he would be doing there. I nicely reminded him to hurry so we wouldn't be late.

As we walked to the school his teacher "Teacher Nancy" was ringing a massive old school bell and welcoming all the kids to their first day. We walked up the stairs and put his lunch in his cubbie and went over to the carpet to hear a song and have Teacher Nancy give us some reminders and then Mondays working parents went to their stations and the kids had free time....All other parents were asked to leave. I stood around chit chatting with some other mothers, meeting them and staring at my son who kissed and hugged me went off to start his day of playing and meeting new friends. I picked up Maddox and off we went downstairs..

Maddox started to scream as we reached the stroller crying "WE LEFT GRAYSEN!!! MY GRAYSEN MY GRAYSEN GO GET MY GRAYSEN MAMA GRAYSEN IS UP THERE GRAYSENNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN"

When it was time to get Graysen Maddox was happy and Graysen was happy to see us. We walked home where Graysen gave me a play by play of his day, friends, snacks, and told me he was so happy!

When Bailey came home Graysen informed him that "He didn't' learn anything. He learned everything!"