Report Cards.. Ouch..

I have been debating posting something about this, but I need to get it off my chest.  My oldest son is in third grade and my youngest is in first.  Their first report cards of this year were not the best.  Sure, while everyone celebrates their children here are mine with mediocre report cards :/  I have been thinking long and hard about how to approach this with them.  They know that making good grades is important to me and they know that they need to do well in school if they are going to grow up to be successful and to do what they want to do with their lives.  When I got their report cards last week I was in complete shock.  Their progress reports mid-semester came back fine, nothing out of the ordinary, in fact, making steady progress!  So why does the report card come out and say otherwise? 

I see their work come out of their book bags every day and I check everything over.  I speak to them about what they did and what they could have done better.  I always encourage them to do the best they can and if something looks like crap I crumble it up and make them do it again.  I feel that I take an active role in helping them with their homework, but maybe I could have done more. 

Of course, I think I can confide in my mother and share this situation with her and immediately it’s my fault.  It’s my fault because I CHOSE to get a divorce and I CHOSE to agree to the custody situation that I agreed to, which left the kids half the time with their father.  I’m sorry, but I know a handful of people who grew up in broken homes and they turned out to be JUST FINE..  Plus… I don’t consider my home broken at all.  Sure… I’m not with the boys’ father, but my house is very complete, loving, and caring.  Sure.. I’m not able to control what goes on at their father’s house, but I do know that from asking the kids, he does look over their homework and has to sign off on it every night, so he’s at least doing the minimal.  Anyway.. I cannot believe I have do deal with her ignorant accusations.

The main problem at hand is that I their report cards weren’t great and I know we need to somehow do more.  I cannot remember being back in first grade, but I can remember my oldest son being in first grade and all of the kids in that class had terrible handwriting.  Since Christian’s lowest marks were in handwriting and writing understandably, am I wrong to print out pages for him to trace letters and numbers and make him complete the same sheet over and over every single night until his handwriting improves? I don’t want to be too hard on him but I’m not going to have him bring home another report hard with an “N” in handwriting!  I might make the older one do it too just to improve his too.   Dang.. and I remember  growing up in grade school, the boys in my class ALWAYS had terrible handwriting.  

 

I also know I wasn't a Straight A student by any means. I worked hard and my parents encouraged me the best the could and I got in trouble if I brought home anything under a C... but it happened...  In fact, I was terrible at reading comprehension in elementary school. I was even worse at math!! I did better in math in college than I ever did in earlier school.  Thankfully Austin is a whiz at math and that is his strong subject.  He had great teachers in kindergarten and first grade which I think propelled him in a good direction.  I'm worried about Christian though. He is not as sharp as his math as Austin was in first grade and I know that's bad to compare kids, but I am not sure he got the same boost that he desperately needed. They both had the same kindergarten teacher, but not first.

I refuse to believe having had a divorce almost four years ago and having successful report cards since then – has anything to do with them having “Not so good” report cards this time around.  It just means I have to work harder and try to encourage them the best I can.  Anyway…  I just really want what’s best for them in life.. I want them to have it easier than me and I want them to not let anything get in the way of their success like I did.  Hard example to set for them when their father didn’t even finish high school and makes 4x more than me.  What a jerk.  I wonder if it’s too late for me to take up the air conditioning trade.  Sure I would crawl around sweaty in an attic to quadruple my pay.

Sticky Notes :)

Tonight my love finally got to go to a Ray's game this season. He's been UBER jealous that my team at work won a contest which paid for our team to go to a Rays/Yankees game a couple weeks ago.  I understand why he was frustrated, but unfortunately, it was our hard work and a little luck that our team won!  Not to say that he and his team didn't work hard, but it just wasn't a fair opportunity for them and we all know that. 

Anyway... I come home after picking up the kids this afternoon and there were the sweetest little sticky notes all over the apartment in little random places.  It was a treat to come home to!  Telling me and the kids how much he loves us and misses us and can't wait to be back home with us:)   It's just the little things like that - that make me know that no matter how much grief I go through, that getting out of the terrible situation I was in three years ago was the best thing I could have ever done.  I have someone that appreciates me and appreciates all the things I do and does little things like this to show he cares back.  

Love him.

Proud of Myself

So... I have been working out pretty regularly lately and I have definitely been noticing a difference.  I have been trying to get an hour or so of cardio in every day and it's becoming quite satisfying to see my progress.  While I was pregnant with Cheyenne I watched a lot of infomercials and saw this one for Turbofire, a BeachBody product (same company that does P90X) http://www.beachbody.com/product/fitness_programs/turbofire.do?code=SEMB_GOOGLE_TF&s_kwcid=TC|17312|turbo%20fire||S|e|11398648573&gclid=CMnDqvfv3bACFQiynQodf2Lo0A  and I saw something I knew I would enjoy doing and I got it.  It came in the mail a few days later but I wasn't able to start it until about a month after my c-section.  Once I started though, I wasn't sure if it was 1) overdoing it after major surgery or 2) working out on tile floor or 3) wearing crappy tennis shoes or 4) combo of all of the above, but I ended up hurting my hamstrings or some ligaments on the backsides of my legs and I had to stop.  Even after I started feeling better one video put me out for another couple weeks.  So I thought I had put it down for good. I was almost scared to start it back up fearing I would injure myself again.

The last month or two, I started it back up, and have been keeping to it pretty regularly.  I am noticing I have more and more power and stamina to get through the routines and I am able to go crazy where when I first started I was gasping for breath and taking breaks.  I have lost about 15 lbs and my clothes are starting to fit looser too!!  I have great motivation since Joe is a health and fitness freak and he works out nearly every day and we even try to get the kids involved as much as they can hang too. 

I entertained the thought of getting some friends together after work to do some Turbofire or P90X workouts and I might do that here soon.  In the videos they encourage you to surround yourself with people with your same goals and with people that will work out with you and be healthy together so I think it's time.

Working out more lately has really helped me feel better in general, not just about myself, but in dealing with crap at work and pounding out the stress in a healthy way rather than mentally putting my fist through someone's face (which I do so very often).  Today especially I feel like I have turned over a new leaf and I'm going to be unstoppable!  Can't wait for the alarm to go off at 4:30am to get my workout on!

WOOT WOOT

Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

It is amazing to see Cheyenne grow more and more each day.  She is just so adventurous and loves to get into things.  Right now, one of her favorite things to do is to open dresser drawers and hand over head, toss each article of clothing out on the floor behind her, will put her sippy cup inside and close the drawer.  She also likes to open large storage bins.  She is only ONE and she has already figured out how the little side latches open and close.  She knows when she wants attention, she will walk over to the bin (that we currently have acting as a make-shift baby gate, will open the latches, remove the lid and take out a little baggy of wall hangers that is lying inside the bin.  She like the way the little baggy sounds when she shakes it, so it's not long before I hear that, no matter where I am in the house that I have to come running! 
Yes, a make shift baby gate... the hallways and area to my kitchen is JUST wider than the average baby gate so yes, we have large plastic filled storage bins to block her from going into the boys room where she is certain to get into trouble.  The boys even enjoy the little blockades as they get a running start from the front door, getting three good strides in before they hurdle over, sometimes making it, sometimes not.  A few feet from the blockade is the back of the couch which certainly stops them abruptly too if they overshoot their landing. 
Anyway... Cheyenne has also figured out how to use my MyTouch smart phone.  I always had to time-out the screen before giving her my phone because she would certainly find a way to jack up my home page or move shortcuts around or select a app that I don't feel like subscribing too (but can't delete - god that's annoying).  But now little miss "I-just-turned-one" knows how to turn the screen on, and puts it up to her head and says "Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii" and it's so stinkin cute.  If she wasn't walking off with my phone I would most certainly have snapped a picture of it... I'll have to try to get one with my regular camera soon.   

Is honesty always the best policy?

So we moved into this apartment the last week of October 2011.  Around December while I was contacting the office regarding some maintenance, I advised I had not received a water bill yet and I was concerned.  The girl told me not to worry about it, that a full month would have to go by before I would receive a bill, that that was normal.  So... here we are in the first week of February and we have not received a water bill yet.  I felt like I have brought this to their attention already and seems like they weren't worried about it, so should I be?  

There is a part inside me that feels like I should go ahead and call them about it again. Honesty is the best policy, right?  But there is an another part of me that thinks that this is part of their responsibility as property managers to establish accounts for their tenants and I shouldn't have to beg them to bill me.  Another part of me thinks if they finally catch the mistake and then try to bill me 5 months all at once I would be in big trouble.

Then.... there's another part of me that thinks.. hmmm... the ice maker line from the freezer constantly leaks into my fridge which if I'm not careful, leaks all over everything in my fridge, finally settling on the bottom shelf, ruining everything down there. So, I leave nothing on the bottom shelf and I have gigantic bowl on the top shelf that doesn't give me room to keep much on the top shelf either.  I have to be quick to empty the bowl I have in there to catch the water or else stuff gets ruined.  They have already been out four or five times but it is never fixed.  I keep telling myself that they are not worried about me wasting water because they are letting this water dripping go own day in and day out. 

Then... there is the last part of me that thinks that the one really cool lady from the office sympathizes with me that they have moved me under the Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey circus and they feel sorry for me so they are keeping my water on their tab.  I don't know...  I'm pretty conflicted but then again maybe I'm not :) 

What would you do?

The circus is in town!!!

No... not the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus... I'm talking about the upstairs neighbors!!  OMFG!!!!!!!!!  All day and all hours of the night this particular group of people are absolutely unbelievable!  After one of my most recent apartments, I was hoping that I would never have to deal with the over-the-top noise again, but those hopes were crushed the first night we had stayed the night in our new place.

I am not racist by any means, but please know when I use the adjective "ghetto" that I am solely describing the manner in which these people conduct themselves.  A normal family with children will come home after school or work and kids would be in bed by let's say 8 or 9pm.  This group of people have their children up to all hours of the night, stomping around and carrying on til sometimes 1am to 3am in the morning. 

The adults too.... stomping around slamming things down on the ground slamming doors, etc at all hours of the night.  Sure... people can be on different schedules... I'm not saying that because I work 8-5 and my kids are in bed by 9pm that your kids have to be, but if you are in an apartment, and there are people living above, below, and beside you, that you would have some consideration for others.

My recent apartment before this had PAPER-THIN walls and the idea of any type of privacy there was diminished.  I could hear things I would never want to hear.. like "what" you are actually doing in the bathroom when you're sitting on the toilet, and what you are talking to someone in a normal voice.  Not to mention, escalated voices when you have people over and are having a good time.  The normal walking there of people above us sounded like they were literally going to fall through the ceiling at any given point in time.  The creeking of the wood was frightening for me and I'm an adult.  I remember some of the first few nights there the stomping around upstairs would actually wake my kids up and they sometimes moved into the living room!   There, my bedroom was also adjacent to the staircase in which we heard young college kids and other "ghetto" (adjective only) families with ten kids stomping up and down the stairs at all hours of the night. 

Honestly, is it really necessary to stomp in a stairwell?  As an adult, do you not teach your kids the idea of being courteous to neighbors and realizing that people could be trying to sleep?  During the day, I'm all for being as noisy as you can.  You allow your kids to play outside during the day, that's great!!  At night, have a little respect for others around you.   Oh yeah... and being outside completely unsupervised with a small pet?  Why don't you give them a little direction and tell them they shouldn't be playing in the street with people flying around the corner in their cars while texting..  Why don't you tell them to shut their F-ing loud as mouths while they are in the stairwell as I can hear them behind two closed doors in my apartment. 

I'm sorry I refuse to accept that I have to be the brunt of excessive noise and unruly people around me just because I've chosen to be in the first floor apartment.  I refuse to believe that just because you live on the second floor or third floor that you have the right to stomp carelessly up and down the stairs at all hours of the night.  

I am thinking that since we are all up very early every day, all of us around 5:30am every day, that I'm no longer going to try to quiet the boys from speaking beyond a whisper in the morning and asking them to keep it down outside in the common areas... maybe this should be a free-for-all.  I want to tell them to be as loud as they can possibly be, but then again, I don't want to be IGNORANT like the degenerates that live above me.    

PS... I'm sorry.. by the way... the tacky ass PINK AUDI (aka the ugly pink pimple) you drive with leopard print seat covers, steering wheel covers and dice you have hanging from your rear view mirror really accentuate your ghettoness....