This brings a smile to my face

I know it's early.

And I know it may not last.

But at least I have this one picture...

of all these A's.

I hope it lasts.

I know he's capable. And smart.

I know he has a game plan.

I know he wants it.

We will keep working at it - because he's a good boy.

Nic's First Day of Pre-K

Try explaining "PM class" to an anxious 4 year old.
I dare ya.

He was roaring and ready to go to school at 6am.
He even offered to walk himself, promising to use the cross-walks.
His school is 2 miles away. But I do trust him. It was a hard decision, but for the sake of showering you with the obligatory pictures, I decided to go ahead and drive him. At least for his first day. Tomorrow? I may not feel like leaving my office. We will see.

Here is my Nickelbutt...

HE LOVES [L.O.V.E.S!!] when Daddy comes home in the van (which is not often, Dish Network corporate people, if you are wondering). He decided to use his lunch break to see Nic off. Nic also loves that his "name" is on the van (give or take a letter). He always says his "second" name is Nick Jr. No, really. He does! It drives me INSANE! I gave him a perfectly lovely middle name - Joaquin - and he prefers Junior. Too bad, kid. Your daddy's name is Junior. Well, it's Marcos - but he's a Junior. As in a second Marcos, not as in me = cougar. OK....Moving on..

As you may [or may not] know, this tree was planted this year.

I decided to claim it as Nic's tree - and we will use it as his Back 2 School backdrop each year going forward. Can't wait to see how he they grow!

He LURVES his Bumble Bee [Transformers] back-pack!

That FACE!!

This last one?

I spy something..........

Tune in tomorrow!! 

And here we go again...

It's back-to-school Monday.
Can you believe it?!
Not me.

I was up until 1:30 working on something for... well, work. So, it's been a rough morning so far.
I had to rush to get pictures... They are so not impressed with me... and it shows. lol... Oh well, it captures their personality.

Nic doesn't start school until NEXT Monday... [long story]...
But, the two of us are off to Isabel's school.
I forgot to send a check for lunch money.

Epic Fail.
Mother of the Year.
Yep, that's me!

Happy Monday, peeps!

It's Official

I miss my camera.
But that isn't the reason for this post.

It's official!

Nic is officially registered in Pre-Kindergarten... He starts August 8.
He will go on Monday's, Tuesday's, Thursday's, and Friday's from 12:30pm until 3:30pm.
Are there supposed to be apostrophe's on the end of the days of the week? Hmph.

We picked up Alex's schedule and books today. Spent $150 in fees and yearbook...

I promise he hasn't failed Freshman English twice before. He had to drop it the first time around and then didn't do so hot during summer school. Thankfully, he only needs to take the first semester of it - he passed second semester with no problems!

But look how hard he has it - he has to take TWO English classes at the same time. I hope he's learned his lesson.

The kids and I went school supply shopping last week - and we are done! Now it's just about getting them organized (which will last all of one day)... and ready to start a brand new year!!

All three kids will be in school this year - one way or another - I could get used to this. =)

=)

Isa's Concert de Navidad & Nic's First Dance Class

Okay, they didn't really call it a concert de Navidad...I was just trying to impress you with my Spanglish skills.
Impressed?

This was my view for the first hour - I was stuck WAY in the back of the gym.

Seriously? Not just the antlers, but the book!?

lol.

There's Isa.

Do you see her?

Middle row, red flower in her hair.

The entire 6th grade.

This poor guy looked like he was crying the whole time.

Had to zoom lots to get this pic.

Ha! That's about the only kind of snowman we get here in Phoenix.

Isa after the concert.

They did a wonderful job singing Christmas Carols!

------

Here are two random pictures of Nic on his way to his first dance class from last Friday.

He's taking Hip Hop... and he was so very excited to go!

I got to watch from the lobby - we could see them on large TV monitors. I couldn't get any pictures. But they will have a recital in June, which I am sure I will be able to get some pictures then.

In the meantime, trust when I say he his absolutely adorable on the dance floor.

He must take after me.

So Tired...

Last night was the second night in a row where I've had to stay up until 11pm helping Alex with homework.
If he had it his way, he'd be done with it - and in bed.
I [how dare i?] double check ALL of this work... and if it isn't right, I make him re-do it.

New Rule: All Math homework must be done on a separate piece of paper - and ONLY once have I checked it and he's corrected any mistakes can it then be transferred onto the Math worksheet.

[This was taken the 1st day of school in 2008. Alex dropped Isa off, before he made his way to his new Jr. High.]

We have some Science and Spanish flash cards to make tonight... and some studying to do.

First Spanish quiz is on Tuesday...

Not sure about the Science test...

In other news...

Work has been... tiring.

Nic has been...tiring.

Dealing with our lender has been...tiring.

The sty in my eye is... tiring.

Thank gosh tomorrow is Friday... Maybe I can sleep in on Saturday morning...

Maybe

The Third Day wasn't a Charm for Us

There was a lot to do today... so much so, I tried to get us prepared for it last night.
It didn't help much...

I got up early and made sure the kids had stuff for breakfast.
By stuff I mean bagels, or toast, or Frosted Flakes.

I ended up helping Isabel straighten her hair. Alex got dressed then helped to get Nic up and ready.

We all had somewhere to be by 8am.

Isabel had NO interest in posing for me today... =(

But Nic did...

He wasn't really posing...
Just standing there with his hand in his pockets.

And look at his new shoes.
Super cute.

We left the house...

Alex and Isa went to school...

Nic and drove to his Pre-School screening.

Look at this sky on the way to his school... 

This was at 7am.

It was a bit brighter out than the picture lets on,

but still so stunning to look at.

We drop off the older kids, and Nic and I make our way

to the Pre-School room.

We are having him checked out by a Speech Pathologist.

We think there might be some articulation issues.

There are about eight other kids there...
After we get the kids settled, the parents are

sent off to an adjoining room.

Fifteen minutes in, the loudspeaker comes on.

"Attention: The school is in a lock down...
Staff, we are in a lock down!"

Next thing we know, teachers come flying in,

turning off the lights, locking the doors,

and covering the windows with paper.

No explanation.

I texted a few peeps (mom and the husband) to see

if maybe they had heard something or if they could check the news.

Nothing.

No one knew what was going on.

In the next room, the kids kept playing... there was some light

by which to continue to evaluate the kids.

After about an hour, the lock down ended...

Eventually my mother found out that there was

an intrusion in the neighborhood...

they weren't taking a chance.

Worse part of it all?
I couldn't connect to Facebook via my BBerry.
Not sure why.

/sigh.

We are all okay!

Nic, however, wasn't really cooperating today - I don't think he feels well still.

We are going to take him for a 1:1 session.

They weren't concerned with his speech;

rather, they saw small issues in the Cognitive and Social areas.

After all of that craziness, mom called and said
"Let's do lunch!"

So I picked her up in my swagger wagon...

and off to Chick-fil-A we went.

Gosh, I love that place.

After a tasty meal...

We decided to head to Barnes and Noble.

Nic was tooo cute...

For all of 5 minutes...

Then he turned into a very energetic rascal.

I think between being tired and not feeling well,

it was all too much for him.

I had to leave the stuff I planned on purchasing

in a stack somewhere

(sorry B&N peeps... won't happen again)

and take Nic to the car while mom checked out.

He was behaving that badly.

Of course...

a mile from home, he fell asleep.

So, he's a cutie pie again - all curled up in his bed.

I think I am ready for a nap...

I cannot believe it's only Wednesday...

/sigh

The School Supply List that never Ended & Other Stuff

I am not sure how it is across the country, but here in our little world schoolbooks have become a scarcity.

Moreover, school lockers? Non-existent. To be honest, I am not sure of the real reason behind getting rid of lockers. I can assume it had to do with safety. However, maybe it had to do with the fact that our schools are slightly overpopulated and there just were not enough to go around. Either way, the kids have to keep everything in their backpacks.

When I say everything, of course I do not mean their books. They actually get to borrow a book during school hours. At the middle school level, they do not have enough books to give everyone an extra copy to keep at home. Makes it hard to do homework, huh? Most of the teachers say they give the students time to do the homework in class. When are they ever learning new things if they are constantly trying to keep up with their homework on past lessons, I wonder?

This year, Isabel's Social Studies teacher said they will be learning from an Atlas. She showed me a copy. Then she said that the students won't actually have a copy to refer to, but we could purchase one on our own, if we wish.

Her school supply list? It's long. Besides all of the day-to-day items the students will need, the teachers would like the following:

Copy Paper
Kleenex
Wipes
Hand Sanitizer
White Board Markers
Extra pencils
Crayons
Markers
A Slew of Sciene-like materials
and the list goes on.
Really.

About the Copy Paper... the schools have none. NONE. It's embarrassing. And sad. Last year, I purchased a large box (5000 sheets) and gave it to the teachers. This year, I will do the same.

At the high school level, I was grateful to learn they did have extra books to keep at home. Which I am glad for as Alex will need to maintain a B average to stay on the Football team. I can help him study in the evenings... Having the books will make a huge difference.

I spent hours last night meticulously putting together Alex and Isabel’s school supplies and backpacks. As I scanned the hundred dollars worth of goodies, I got worried for Alex. He is going be swimming with the big fishes now. I remember high school. I went to this high school. I know this community. There are many students starting school on Monday that will not be in line to graduate come May 2014. Along the way, there are going to be many kids who refuse to do their work, who interrupt class, and who are just plain unprepared for school each day.

I am scared for Alex to see that type of behavior on a larger scale. I am scared he will join in. Alex is not perfect... and frankly, he does not like school much.

We have made it perfectly clear to Alex that he WILL graduate. Moreover, that he WILL attend college.
It is going to take a lot of work on his end.
It is going to take a lot of work on OUR end.

Which is crazy.... We did our time in high school.
I earned my Bachelors degree.
I have just spent the last 2 years earning my Masters degree.

While my parents were great and supportive - and all that jazz, they were NOT up every night forcing me to do my homework, or giving me lectures about paying attention, staying out of trouble, and turning my work in.

I hate that we have to do that for Alex. I wish he could understand how SERIOUS this is. That fun time during high school should be during lunches or before and after school; NOT when the teacher is trying to teach lessons.

Normally I am excited for the new school year; this year I am worried.

All of this started with a simple school supply list.