Merry Christmas from the Colemans....and Will??

Merry Christmas!

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School Stuff

With the girls being at a new school this year, we have had a lot of adjustments. Don't get me wrong, we LOVE their new school and cannot say enough good about it...

BUT....the difference academically has been a bit of a shock to Brit's system! One of those differences being projects. They constantly have a project a new project due!!

Now, if you are one of those Mom's who is just good at this stuff....stop reading! I am not. I have NO creativity! And as for Brit, her motto is "just get it done!"

So, I thought I would share a couple of the projects we have done so far...

This was a family heritage project. She had to pick one side of her family and research their heritage. She chose Matt's mom's side....Czechoslovakia....I can't even spell that word if that tells you how much I know about it! Matt is WAY more into his heritage than I am, so about 3 weeks before the project, I asked if he would take the lead in this project. He and Brit could do the research and then I would help her with the large paper doll that had to be dressed in traditional Czech clothing.

Needless to say, that will be the last project I ask Matt to take the lead on since we were up until 10:00 the night before working on it (I got a little glimpse of Matt's mom life with him as a student!). :) The above picture is of the doll dressed in traditional Czech clothing. This is before it was completely done....I guess I was too tired and frustrated to get a picture of the completed project!

Another project was a book report and mobile on a historical figure. Brit chose Betsy Ross. Matt's mom was in town when we started the mobile. She is crafty and creative...I am not. She came up with the idea and got Brit started and then Brit and I finished it after she left. I wish she were around more often for these projects!

Lastly, I thought I would share Brit's report card! Although it's hard to read in this picture, she got all A's!! Like I mentioned before, the work and homework has been a BIG change from last year and we are sooooo proud of Brit for getting all A's!!! She has worked really hard and deserved it!

Fall Recap

I originally started this blog as a "diary" of my life with my husband and kids...something I can look back on in the future and remember. Unfortunately, it takes time to keep up this diary of memories and I'm not doing a very good job! Anyone who has been around me at all over the past 3 months knows I am a bit overwhelmed and am just lucky to get done what HAS to be done each day! Anyways....since I haven't had time to blog much lately, here is a recap of our fall, which included.....


A fun Halloween as a Snow Princess and Twister Board Game....

A very restful, wonderful, much-needed family trip to Red River Gorge, Kentucky (what a beautiful place)....
















Avery's first school friend birthday party at a tea room...so much fun!!...














A great Thanksgiving with Matt's parents...any time with Matt's mom always
includes a craft project with the kids!....












And TONS of school project (more on that to come)!

Christmas is just around the corner! Hopefully I can post again before that!

A is for Astronaut....or Avery

Since Avery has started preschool, her conversations have changed....one of which has become what she will be when she "grows up."

The other night Matt was putting her to bed and she informed him that she wanted to be an Astronaut when she grew up! "Really?!" he said...quite surprised. Avery then said, "Daddy, what is an Astronaut?" Matt told her it is someone who goes into outerspace...like to the moon. After a moment of silence Avery said, "Will Mommy be at the moom?" Matt said, "No, Mommy won't be there." Avery's response...."Forget it then....I don't want to be an astronaut!"

Another thing that Avery has discovered is that "A" is "her" letter. She truly believes that because her name starts with A...it is her letter. I tried to convince her that my name starts with A also....she's not buying it! :)

A Day of Firsts...

First day of preschool

First day of 3rd grade

First day at a new school

First day that I read a book for 2 hours...uninterrupted!!

Here are some pictures....

Both girls have done remarkably well and are really enjoying school. Although there was some sadness with sending my "baby" off to preschool, she LOVES it and it is nice to have a few hours each morning to myself! Britlyn has already made new friends and that is such an answer to prayer.

Now....if we could just sell our house and get closer to school....until then....it's lots of driving for me! UGH!

Do you know how to tell when you are REALLY out of shape??

When you get on the exercise bike and before you hit the 1 minute mark, your legs are burning and you are wondering if you can possibly make it! Sad...very sad!



P.S. I did make it 20 minutes on the bike and did 40 crunches....I probably won't be able to walk tomorrow (sigh).

A $5 Bed...

We have a new term in our house...it's the $5 bed. As you may know from previous posts, we have a rule in our house...your bed MUST be made EVERY day. I just think the whole room looks messy if the bed is not made....it's just one of my things (that I got from my mom)!

Anyways, Brit is my, how should I say this, "not so neat" child! She does everything fast...to get it done...including making her bed. When I would tell her that it was a mess, she would say "that's the best I can do!" So I decided to see if that was the truth.

One day a few weeks ago, I told Brit to go make her bed and if it was done perfectly, I would pay her $5. (Of course, I did not tell her why I was offering $5.) So....she made her bed...it took her a few minutes longer than normal, but it was perfect...I could not have done a better job!

So...I handed her a $5 bill and told her that now that I know she can do it perfectly, I expect a "$5 bed" every day! You should have seen the look on her face!!!

All About Brit!!

This post is way, WAY overdue!! I wanted to post some pics from the last few weeks of Brit's 2nd grade year! She had a great year! She is growing up so fast!

This is crazy hair day during Spirit Week. Brit said she had the craziest hair in her class!

This is during her Spring Concert. This is her doing the sign language for one of her favorite songs...The Lord is Great. I tried to post a video but it was too big!

This is Britlyn with her teacher, Mrs. Cole, on the last day of school. She was a GREAT teacher. Her teacher was crying in this picture...she loved her class so much!

This is Brit with all of the 2nd grade girls...and Avery!

Brit with 2 of her good friends!

The end of the year was bittersweet for us as Britlyn will be going to a new school next year. We are leaving a lot of good friends....to make a lot of new friends!

P.S. More posts to come soon of our Florida vacation, flooded basement and more!!

You know what really bugs me??

Friday was Britlyn's last day of school and she was having a friend spend the night. So, I decided to take the kids to a local place where they have a big room full of inflatables that they can jump on, climb on, slide down! The kids were excited. I was excited to take them. When we get there I see the sign with the prices...

Children ages 3 - 11....$5.50
Children 2 and under.....Free
Adults...................$5.50
(2nd Adult free)

You have GOT to be kidding me!! I have to pay to watch my kids play on inflatables??!! What if I promise not to go near the inflatables unless my 3 year old gets stuck on the rock wall and can't get to the top. I will even turn around and climb back out instead of getting the full enjoyment of going down the inflatable slide! I promise not to enjoy myself one moment so as not to cost you anything while I am there!

Nope...adults have to pay. Ridiculous!

Random Thoughts

1. I am VERY blessed!

2. I am trying to concentrate ONLY on what God thinks about any given situation...and less about what others think.

3. If Britlyn as an 8 year old is any indication of what her teenage years hold, we are in BIG trouble!

4. Avery informed me the other night that she likes "hotdogs, salad and not yucky stuff"!

5. I consider it a true blessing that I have the opportunity to work from home so that I can stay home with my kids.

6. I hate it when people say "you are so lucky to get to work from home"...they have NO idea how hard it is!

7. I REALLY dislike winter!

8. I REALLY love spring...even more since I have lived in Florida and then moved back to experience a LOOOOOOONG Cincinnati winter!

9. Having a clean house actually puts me in a good mood!

10. Having a dirty house puts me in a bad mood!

11. If I could "splurge" on one thing...it would be to have a housekeeper come to my house each week!

12. It is hard to make good friends as a couple....where we BOTH enjoy being around both members of the other couple!

13. I wish my sister and brother and their families lived closer. Sometimes I "dream" about going out to lunch and shopping with my sister....sigh...maybe some day.

14. I miss "Pa" a lot.

15. Being a parent is the hardest thing I have ever done.

16. Being a parent is the most rewarding thing I have ever done!

17. I would love to go back to Hawaii some day....it is truly beautiful!

This should make you smile...

I loved this video...hope you enjoy it too!

Do you know your ABC's??

A Sign from God

On Monday, Matt's school made the announcement to staff and coaches that he would be resigning and going to another school in the area. This was a VERY difficult decision for us as he loves his current school. The new job is an opportunity he felt he couldn't pass up and will be good for our family. We have prayed about it...A LOT...and both decided Matt taking this new job was the right thing to do.

After the school made the announcement, he/we have been flooded with e-mails, calls and people approaching us to let us know that they are happy for us, but very sad that he is leaving. It has been such a blessing, but through it all, I started to doubt if we were making the right decision. How could we leave a place that we were so loved? I know how much we had prayed about it and how we were both in total agreement that this is what we felt was God's will...but I was starting to have doubts.

Today, I saw this sign in front of a church...

"Don't put a question mark where God has put a period."

That was my sign from God. No more doubting. I love a God who knows exactly WHAT we need and WHEN we need it!

Threading...OUCH!!!

Today I went into a store at the mall to have my eyebrows waxed. I had never been to this store before. When I sat down, the lady pulled out a spool of thread instead of the usual wax. I had heard of Threading before, but had never had it done. She said it wouldn't hurt that bad. She was wrong.

Below is a picture of Threading, but I can guarantee you that my face did not look as peaceful as the lady in the picture while it was being done! It is something that has been done for a long time in Eastern countries like Egypt and India. It is supposed to be better for your skin and last longer than regular waxing. It hurts. I am just sayin'....maybe it's better for my skin...but it hurts!!! We'll see if it lasts any longer! I don't like pain.

P.S. For those of you with light colored hair who don't have to get your eyebrows waxed...be thankful you will never experience Threading!

A Lesson Learned!

My 8 year old taught me a valuable lesson. She didn't mean to teach me a lesson. She doesn't know she taught me a lesson. But she did.

Yesterday, Britlyn was home from school. After 4 snow days off of school, she was off for Teacher In-Service. (Ridiculous...I know!!) She was helping me with some housecleaning and the little 3 year old that I babysit (we'll call her Miss G), wanted to help too.

So, I gave the vacuum cleaner to Brit and asked her to vacuum the rug under the kitchen table. Then I gave the hand vac to Miss G and asked her to go around the edge of the kitchen floor and suck up the crumbs.

I was in the laundry room doing laundry but could see them doing their work. Once Britlyn was done and they had both turned off their vacuums, Brit took the hand vac from Miss G and started going over what Miss G had just done. She wasn't ugly about it...just matter-of-fact. I asked her what she was doing and she said that Miss G had missed a lot of the crumbs and she was getting them. Miss G looked on...a little saddened that she hadn't done a good enough job.

And then it hit me....I do that ALL OF THE TIME with Brit! She helps me. I go behind her and "fix" it. I don't tell her she did a horrible job. I just want it done the way I want it done. I am a bit of a perfectionist. I like things done perfectly.

Yesterday I realized that without ever saying a word, I am teaching Britlyn to do the EXACT same thing...and probably crushing her spirit. And she will pass that down to her kids.

So, I am making a commitment to relax. If my kids want to help me...and it's not done the way I want it done...that's OK! They need to know that I am proud of them and thankful for how they help me...no matter what!!

P.S. This DOES NOT mean that once my kids are in bed or gone to school, I won't go back and fix what was done to my satisfaction. Come on...perfectionism is NOT cured overnight! :)

December Recap!

I realized today that I have not posted an entry on this blog since December 15!! Well, let me be real honest here....I have been so busy since the beginning of December, I barely have had time to breathe!!

So....here is a quick recap of our VERY busy December!!

My friend Mel and I took Britlyn to see the Nutcracker. It was the first time any of us had been. Although it was REALLY good and something I think every mother should do with her daughter, I will not be seeing a ballet on a regular basis. By the end, I was in serious need of some dialogue!! Great music, beautiful costumes, talented dancers....but can't they talk...just a little bit!?!






















We got to decorate the tree together as a family (and with some friends)....TWICE!!! After we spent several hours on the first one making sure to get it just right (thanks Mel), we went upstairs only to have Brit come running up to tell us the tree had fallen. That's right, toppled over, broken ornaments, water everywhere (it's a real tree). UGH!!!! We found out the trunk was crooked and had to get a new one. It took me several days to work up the initiative to decorate tree #2, but it turned out beautifully!










Brit's choir from church sang at a nursing home ending with the big finale of Hallelujah Chorus. That's right....her children's choir of 10 sang the Hallelujah Chorus. Let's just say this: it was interesting and we were very proud of her! :)
The girls had fun at a PJ party decorating Gingerbread cookies at their friend Aiden's house. It was fun...and messy!











My sister and brother and their families came from LA for Christmas! My sister and her family basically moved in for 3 weeks!! I LOVE having them here! I hate when they leave. :( We need cousins nearby!
We then enjoyed Christmas with our kids on Christmas Eve morning. It was nice seeing their happy faces as they opened their gifts. We are so blessed!










Christmas Eve we spent the night at my parents so we could all wake up together on Christmas morning. (Matt thinks this tradition is ridiculous since we live in the same city, but he complies for the sake of the family!) We enjoyed a fun day and great food (thanks Mom!) with the family!

Christmas night about 10:00 PM, we headed down to Florida to spend a week with Matt's family. (Driving through the night is another topic for anther time!) AAAAHHHH!!! Florida in the dead of winter....there's nothing better!!! We really enjoyed the time there! We spent New Year's Eve at Daytona Beach and visited with Matt's grandparents, went to some movies, shopped! We always hate leaving...especially when we were leaving 80 degrees to go to 20 degrees! :(

So there's our December! January hasn't slow down at all, but that's another post to come later!