WOW

I am a slacker. I didn't realize it had been 3 weeks since I posted. Well let's see.

Jman seems to be hanging in there with grades. He isn't getting E's in everything, but is getting mostly S's. Not too many M's and N's. (needs improvement). He started indoor soccer recently and seems to be loving that, but it also seems to me that it is a very aggressive sport. First practice I saw 2 head injuries..........and a busted elbow. IN ONE HOUR! So now Soccer Mom has instant ice packs.

And me, well I am trying to stay afloat. I am working on finding us a house. Which means, we are probably going to stay here a few years (AHHHH) I will keep you posted if I find one. :)

Halloween

Jman got to go trick or treating door to door for the first time in the US. Nerve racking for me, but he liked it.

We did that for an hour then went to the church festival.

Scooby and Batman fought a little............ but I will never tell who won..........

HSM3!!!!

Okay. It finally came!!! HSM3! Jman has been very eagerly awaiting this movie. I promised him months ago that I would take him opening night. So earlier this week I fandango-ed some tickets to last night's opening night of HSM3. We go there 10 minutes before the movie stared and I sent him in to get us seats while I got us popcorn.

Jman was glued to the screen! It was well done in keeping with the HSM theme. Great songs, and let me tell you when it was all over, Jman was dancing in the aisles! He loved it! We hadn't even made it to the car when he was asking when does it come out on DVD and so I am guessing we will see it in the theater again soon.

We are off here in a few to the last soccer game of this season followed by a quick trip up to cheer the runners at Marine Corps Marathon. (pictures coming soon of soccer and maybe of the cheer squad)

Feeling somewhat better

Hi all.

Fever is gone, sore throat is gone and I am guessing that I am on the way to "normal" whatever that is.

Jman's dad is here visiting this weekend. They are eating pizza downstairs, enjoying father/son bonding. Wrestling and such.

:)

Flu and short fast trips

So last weekend we flew up to PA to meet with my parents who flew in from Germany. We drove up to my grandparents spent a day with them then drove back to Chester on Sunday. Mom and Dad flew back to Germany Monday afternoon! Nothing like a quick trip. BUT the reason for the trip (partially) was to celebrate my grandparents 68th (yes that is the nubmer) wedding anniversary. In a time when marriages don't seem to last, theirs has endured. And they are as happy today as they were when they got married.

I, of course, came back to VA and promptly got some funky bug. Sore throat that made my airway feel like it was closing off. NO NO NO. Doc says it isn't strep! Yea ME! But that this bug sticks around and is nasty for 7-10 days. NO NO NO. I refuse to be sick that long. It can have yesterday and today. THEN DONE!

I am off to bond with bleach. KILL THE GERMS!

Early to bed

Jman stay the night at a friend's house this weekend so I could go run the Army 10 Miler. Jman has always been one that when it is time for bed, it is time for BED! His little buddy had plans to keep him up all night......... I guess at 9 his buddy's mom looked over at Jman who was struggling, and asked him if he was sleepy. He said "YES, it is past my bedtime!" She laughed and helped him to get a bath and go to sleep. My boy doesn't play. Sleep is important.

Fun being the attentive mom

From time to time I wonder if trouble just follows me. Jman has had a few days (try several) where he REALLY didn't want to go to the Y. So I asked why............ only to find out that one of the counselors has been telling him he was writing him up........and I have not seen a piece of paper. So I addressed it with the person I deal with daily when I take Jman in.......... then this weekend he tells me a story about the same counselor breaking a clipboard by slamming it on the table. UM??? Why am I the only one it seems that hears these things.......... oh the fun. SO. I addressed it up a higher level. We will see what comes next.

But my question is always, is it just me? Or is it that because I actually pay attention I see things differenly than other parents? I cannot believe that I care more than other parents.......... we are all parents, we all love our kids.........

A good cause

http://www.active.com/donate/teamsemperfi08/TunTavern

I have a friend who is going to run with these guys. Check it out. And then realize that it is a fundraiser for those men and women who are injured while defending our freedoms.

Soccer Game

Okay, so today had to be the hottest day EVER. Jman went out there with 2 pair socks on and in the beating sun! The parents sat on the sidelines dripping sweat and trying not to pass out. Thankfully we survived. It was a tough game. Our kids only had ONE practice before this game and most of the kids have never played before. Jman was complimented by Coach Matt at the end of the game for being aggressive!!!! He said we need more aggressive players who are willing to get out there and PLAY! (for once his mama's personality has paid off!) He did well. And was dripping sweat too by the end of the game. No score cuz they don't keep score..........

but for those of you still reading, we didn't have any goals and the other team did.

1st Soccer Game.

So tomorrow is the BIG DAY. Jman's first soccer game. :) Check back tomorrow for the report. Bearing in mind they do not keep score.......... so they are ALL winners. (yeah right!!)

Sweet dreams.

Labor Day

For Labor Day, Jman and I went to VA Beach so I could run with 16000 of my closets friends (including my best friends husband since my best friend is pregnant). It was great. Well by my standards. L (my best friend) hung out with Jman and the cheering signs to ensure that we didn't pass out on the race way. El Bob finished in 1:45 and me, well, I finished in a lot longer. It was humid and in the 70's, but not too bad. I relaxed (after a while) and just enjoyed the race.

After the race and a little food, we hit the beach to fight the waves and I guess to find out exactly how much sand can make it into Jman's swim trunks (thru the mesh on the lining) before his trunks fall off.

Pictures coming later.........(when I get some)

All in all we are doing well.

Jman started back to school today and it was a rough start. Some days just don't go well. Tomorrow will be better.

Summer Beach Days

It is about dang time

FINALLY. I get to go get my kiddo. I fly out at noonish tomorrow and won't be back for about 10 days. I promise to bring pictures to post and stories to tell. Mostly I promise to try not to cry when I see my son.

7 weeks is a long time.

My hat is off to every military member who deploys and leaves family behind, if I had trouble with 7 weeks when I was safe at home and my son was safe, I really don't know how they do it. Thanks to each and every one of you.

Kbear

Final few days.........

So you saw the frog I painted.........check out my other frog.

And then we also went back and had a ladies night......... see how much fun we are having............ at ALL FIRED UP!!!!!

http://www.getallfiredup.com/ Check them out and if you are local, come out and play.

On a more serious note, the last few days have been pretty hard on me. I have really been missing Jman. Thankfully I am flying out this week to get him. I have been feeling pretty lost. Friday morning. That is when I see him.

One more week

I fly out a week from today to get go get the bugger............ and I still don't feel like I have gotten anything done. But look what I made with my best friend came down for the weekend. We went to a local paint your own pottery shop. And this is the first of my items that I painted. :)

So if you are in the Richmond Area.............. www.getallfiredup.com

Week Four

So I am late again. But eh..........

Jman is doing well. And I am getting closer to having a more clean house.......

17 days to go until I fly out of the country to get him.

My best friend is coming down this weekend, that should help keep me busy. :)

Jman is going to be in Go Go Jonah this friday night...... he is in a Broadway Camp this week. Funny kid. I thnk he is loving every minute of being in a musical ............

Week Three

So I am a little late in posting this. But basically it is because I have very little to share. The highlight of my week was a Bastille Day Party (14th of July) on the 12th. (hard to "party" on a Monday)

My days are consisting of working, running, relaxing, maybe eating dinner if I am hungry. Oh and working on cleaning out some closets and other fun stuff.

This morning I got up normal time (4-430 am) to make stuff to take for a breakfast this morning at work. Hated to give up my snooze time, but eh............

Jman's days on the other hand consist of eating (evidently a TON as the kid has put on 4 pounds in 3 weeks......... or about 8% increase in body weight..............) and shopping for more (notice I didn't say replacement...........) clothes. I hear he is also getting a few legos. (Papa, take me back to the PX after work today okay? Why......... I need another legos!)

Week Two

So I have survived the second week. And 4th of July. What I couldn't bear the thought of was sitting at home by myself for 4 days looking at the walls alone. So I didn't. I left!

I drove up to see my grandparents up in PA. Loved every minute of it. I got to see my cousins, 2nd cousins, aunts, and uncles. It was great. I love the closeness of our family. There aren't many families out there like that any more.

Jman is still having a blast in Germany. He sure didn't have but a few minutes to spare for his dear old mom. But at least I know he is having a good time. He has gotten to see his dad some and has loved that. Poppa comes back tomorrow after a long time away. Jman and my mom are looking forward to picking him up tomorrow. That will be way FUN for all of them.

I will try to post pictures soon.

Week One

So many of you know that Jman went to Germany for the summer. And I K have managed to survive the first week alone.

I haven't done anything outstanding by any means, but I did manage to work out a bunch and run oodles of miles (well more than I had been). So now the push begins. :)

I only have 5.5 weeks to go before I see Jman again. Well in person, I have seen him 3 times on the webcam. He is doing great. Loving every minute of being with Grandma and he got to see his Dad this weekend too which made his weekend.

I will just continue to keep busy. :)

I hope..............

Star Wars Weekend

Jman and I got to go to see the Mouse for a few days to meet up with my mom so she could take him to Germany for the summer. So I am all alone, BUT, we had a blast. I thought you might like to see.

The update

So after some harrassment, here is the update.

We have had a busy couple of weeks, we went to see my grandparents, then Jman's grandparents, then L & R in MD. Tomorrow we fly to meet up with my mom and she will take Jman back to Germany for the summer. It has been busy. Jman also got pretty sick on me for a few days and looked like this a lot.

But don't tell him I told you that or he will look at you like this..............

all in all. Things are well tho.

For those of you wondering what ever happened with that dang squirrel......... we (the people who put the traps up there, discovered today that he had chewed thru the floor in the attic, well sorta, and got stuck and electrocuted. YUCK. At least I don't have to worry about the dang squirrel any more!!!! EEEWWWW!

Jman passes 1st GRADE!!!

Hi everyone. I got Jman's report card today. He struggled a little bit after the move, but rose to the challenge and passed 1st grade!!!! I am a very proud Mama. He is an amazing kid.

Jman's favorite vid clip!

They think I am superwoman!

There is a lot going on. Not all of it will I post on here. It has been one of those weeks. But tonight while I was doing my normal routine of getting on the computer and checking a few things there was a POUNDING on the door. I get to the door and it is one of the neighborhood kids, Jman has been hurt, come quick!!! I took off running, (thankfully I still had my running shoes on) they said, he broke a tooth and is BLEEDING! I ran down picked him up and headed back to the house where I could look to see what was going on. He had fallen off his brand new scooter. He now has scrapes on his face (nose, forehead and chin) elbow, knees, and a slightly loose tooth. Scared me to death.

But when I went outside to tell the kids he was okay, (they were waiting on the porch) they said YOU RUN FAST!!! And you are REALLY STRONG!!!! You picked him up!!!

Adrenaline will do wonderful things for you............ not to mention he doesn't weigh much........

Mother's Tea

Yesterday was the Mother's Tea at Jman school. It is always fun to go to these events and Jman has been practicing hard to sing certain songs and such. It was a beautiful performance.

We were also presented with a cookbook. I was a little hurt because it was of mom's recipes and I was never asked, until I started looking. The teacher asked the kids for the recipe of their favorite thing that mom makes............... and I guess my culinary skills are limited to popcorn. That was my recipe. It goes something like this "my mom puts it in the pan for 4 minutes and when it gets hot she gives it to me. She puts butter and salt on it" So there you have it folks, Kbear's famous popcorn recipe. (no this is not related to Jman's popcorn events from earlier entries)

Laura's Fund Raising

Okay, so you know I am going to run, but my best friend is not only running but is doing it for a cause, she is going to run for Team In Training. For those of you who don't know, it is a organization that is The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) Team In Training. Cancer has touched so many of us, some of us closer than others. Take a look and you can donate if you would like. Laura is really excited about doing this. Support her if you can.

Think you know what is going on next...........??? :)

Trials and tribulations

Today I am sitting here wondering why kids say and do some things. Jman said something that got him suspended for 2 days. I am not sure where he got it, or why he would say it. I surely don't understand why he said it when he did.

Just keep me in your thoughts and prayers as we go thru a few struggles.

A father wanted to read a magazine, but was being bothered by his little girl, Shelby. She wanted to know what the United States looked like. Finally, he tore a sheet out of his news magazine on which was printed the map of the country. Tearing it into small pieces, he gave it to Shelby and said, "Go into the other room and see if you can put this together. This will show you our whole country today." After a few minutes, Shelby returned to her Dad and handed him the map, correctly fitted and taped together. The father was surprised and asked how she had finished so quickly. "Oh," she said, "on the other side of the paper is a picture of Jesus. When I got all of Jesus back where He belonged, then our country just came together."

I got that the above as an email and liked it so much I wanted to share it. Sometimes when the puzzles are too much for us, we need to just flip the paper over...and focus on the real stuff.

History Abounds

So we had the great pleasure of getting to meet up with some friends from FL this weekend. They were up on their spring break and were exploring history in the Williamsburg area. We joined them for lunch and a quick romp at the Yorktown Battlefield.

What a race!

So here is the Jman after "winning" his first "official" race. He was however one of the kids who got to be the first EVER kids to race around the monument. It was a cooler and wet day.

My race was a tough one for me. I wasn't ready but was determined to finish the race. I did it, even if the clock didn't register me.

Cherry Blossoms here we come!

Some of you know that DC around this time is blooming. :) With Cherry Blossoms. This weekend is the 10 mile race and festival and stuff. We are heading out here shortly and will hopefully get a few pictures.

Jman will also be running a race. :) He wants a TROPHY!

It never looks like the picture

So I was trying to make an Easter bread that my mom has made for years.

Here is the picture in the cookbook:

And here is how it turned out: And I DOUBLED the recipe to make 2. Maybe it did rise like it should have or something. :(

Ready for the runners.

Last weekend we went to watch some our of best friends run in Shamrock's 1/2 marathon for St Paddys............

WOOHOO it is DONE!

We are now done with Science Fair. Thank the heavens. Jman did his project on how kittens grow and we survived it. We took the "boys" as we call them to the fair for him to use as examples. He loves the boys. (i know this isn't the best picture, but this is all I have)

He was also a big helper this weekend and helped me to put together some furniture I had bought for his room. (it is a three tiered thing that you slide storage bins into for like legos and stuff). He worked steadily with me for quite a while to get it together and then we put it in his room and he started to fill it up. :) I think he likes it.

Yeah, I know I know

I don't get on here often enough to keep everyone up to date.

Well that is because even tho we don't have any activities, I dont' ever seem to have any time. We have all those fun things on hold hoping that Jman can make it thru the first grade (anyone remember the struggles with Kindergarten homework at Wednesday night suppers????) He is making progress but seems content not to be doing much else.

I will try to remember to get the camera out and take pictures of the science fair on Saturday (whose idea was that???). His project is on how kittens grow but he told his teacher that he doesn't know anything about kittens. (he really does he just doesn't realize it) (like did you know that they have 26 baby teeth? and that they are born blind and deaf?)

I love my job. Thank you Jesus for blessing me with a job that I love. I think we may be settling in at a Baptist church here locally, but I am not sure yet. Jman loves it. And as far as he is concerned THAT IS OUR CHURCH! We will see. He picked out KABC for us, so who knows.

oh and I guess the dating scene is a little better here as men are interested in me, not sure if that is good or bad..............

Oops I forgot the popcorn story!!!

Jman is utterly embarrassed by this and screams at me everytime I tell it........ so of course being the great mom I am, I keep telling it.

For the first few weeks here (after my stuff was here and we were moved in) I didn't have a microwave. The house in FL had one built in so I didn't need one. Well you never realize how much they do for you until you don't have one.

SO for Valentine's Day (yes I have no life) I bought myself a microwave. It is very nice and pretty and white and has a round inside and lots of other cool features. What it does not have is an internal smoke detector.

Saturday after V-day the cable guy comes to set up our cable internet and phone.......... you guessed it, someone (not me) got HUNGRY. He asked for popcorn. I told him to wait and I would make lunch. Well he didn't wait.

He put a snack sized bag of popcorn into our brand new microwave......... and proceeded to turn it on for 45 minutes. You guessed it............ he fell on his butt on the way to turn it off when we realized that there was SMOKE and LOTS of it!!!! I had windows open, fans on......... everything.

Okay, let's see catching up a little......

So we got here in Mid Jan......... well late Jan but who is nit picky like that? Anyway, my Mom came to help (THANK GOD) and we looked at every apartment complex/rental community in the area that wasn't income restricted (read LOW INCOME)........ and we were not impressed. The very last one we looked at was it, PERFECT. Lots of storage, good layout, I can see the playground from the kitchen window.......... and Jman has found lots of friends out there.

Now the job, well the job is just great!!! I am much happier here job wise. The office mates are very welcoming and friendly and have helped me a great deal. I am already upto my elbows in alligators (nope not the FL kind) and happy to be working my booty off.

We are looking for a church, tried one last weekend and Jman wants to go back. Well since he had such great taste in churches the last time, we will go again. We made it to the service and not to sunday school, but we should make it this weekend. I am going to try out the singles class. They have a membership of about 1000 people so maybe just maybe I will meet someone. Who knows.

Jman is in a private school and we have had a few moments. They wanted to demote him. So pray for us that he keeps working hard (cuz you know this Mama Bear stood her ground and said, nope you are NOT demoting my child........... you are not the only school in this area) I would like for him to make it thru first grade....... I know he will. Smart kid I have. :)

Other than that, we are just waiting for our washer and dryer to be delivered and then we should be pretty well set.

Those of you waiting for invites, COME ON DOWN! It is cold as $#*()$# here and I LOVE IT! I will make room for any of ya. (granted it would most likely be in Jman's spiderman sheets.......)

Okay I think that covers everything. Holla if you think I forgot something.

I'm here I am HERE!

Okay, so I am finally some what up and running, I will try to update everyone. Today's fun was when Jman decided to put a snack sized bag of popcorn in the microwave for 45 minutes. NICE. Pretty SMOKE every where. But I will catch you all up soon. Promise.

The move

Okay, so most of you know that we are moving to VA. So that is why I have been up and down and not on the blog. Well the computer packs up this week, so this will reall y be it until Jman and I find a house or whatever in VA.

Last night we had a party at Chuck E Cheese for Jman. A farewell for his buddies to come and play and say good bye. It was worth every minute, but for a while we didn't think that we were actually going to have a party.......... MAN. Jman got really sick for about the first 45 minutes to an hour we were there. He got pretty sick and then all of a sudden it was all good. It was very strange. I don't take kids to the ER very often (like not since he was under the age of 2) and that is where I thought I would be last night.

We had a really good time and got home after 9.......and of course Jman was asleep!

Thanks to all who came out to say good bye. Of course, I don't believe in those........ just see you next time.

I will be back online when I can..........