A week in review

A few happenings around our house this week:

Concerts.  Sarah had a band concert.  Rachel had a choir concert.  Sitting through concerts with a 19-month old is hard.

Math.  I am teaching Ben math.  After a long and frustrating two years of trying to get Ben's teachers to give him math that will challenge him, I have finally decided to teach him myself.  Every afternoon I make up homework for him to do.  His teacher (and the district math specialist) give him worksheets at school to follow up with what I am teaching him.  Last week we reviewed 3 digit by 2 digit multiplication and learned about simplifying fractions.  This week it is on to decimals and more fractions. 

Ben is in third grade and his class is only doing beginning multiplication right now.  (This school is about one to one and a half years behind what they were doing in Maryland, so my kids have been bored A LOT for the past (almost) two years).  Ben definitely needs something more, but the teacher does not have time to teach him individually.  His teacher tried to give him some extra workheets, but he would be frustrated because no one showed him how to do the math.  He came home one day and said, "I am really bad at adding fractions."  I asked him why, and he told me that he was given a worksheet at school with fractions to add and he got every single one wrong.  I asked him how he did it, and he told me that he added the tops and added the bottoms and he couldn't figure out why they were all wrong.  So I had to tell him that he wasn't bad at adding fractions, he had just never been taught.  So after a meeting with the counselor, and another one with the district math specialist and his teacher, we came up with a plan:  I would teach him math.  And...so far, so good.  Ben is much happier and is learning a lot.  It is really rewording to teach him because he learns so quickly. 

Nutella.  My kids have been asking me to buy some nutella.  I had never eaten it before, but I saw some at Costco, so decided to try it.  Can I just say, YUM!  Too bad it is so high in fat and calories.  The kids have been loving having nutella on all sorts of things for their after-school snack.  Unfortunately, one of the children introduced William to nutella, so he will no longer eat Ritz crackers plain. 

Yep, he's pretty happy about that Nutella.

April Fools Day:  My kids woke up to hot dogs, spinach and blue milk for breakfast on April Fools Day. 

I really intended to feed them cereal, but wanted to surprise them with a joke.  Funny thing is, all the hot dogs ended up getting eaten anyway.  For dinner we drew papers with crazy utensils on them and had to eat our spaghetti dinner with those utensils.  I think I lucked out with the rubber scraper--it wasn't too hard.  David wasn't so pleased with the jar lifter and asked the question:  "Why are we making ourselves look like fools on April Fools Day?"  Good point.  Not sure that this will become an annual tradition, although the kids (at least some of them) thought it was hillarious.

General Conference.  Loved, loved, loved watching General Conference this weekend.  The talks were wonderful and inspiring and I feel a new sense of renewal in who and what I want to be.  And as always, it was so nice to have a relaxed weekend and stay home for church instead of rush around from meeting to meeting.  Even better to have my mom come for the weekend.

Savior of the World.  Sarah, Rachel and I started rehearsals for this musical play that we are going to be performing in at church.  I haven't done anything like this in a long time, and I really think it is going to be a great experience for all of us.  My diaphragm was sore from singing last night.  Fun! 

Other happenings:  One violin lesson, three piano lessons, two piano team practices, helping out with Rachel's Activity Day, volunteering in two classrooms on two different days, one baseball practice, one ballet class, one gymnastics class, one primary presidency meeting, one meeting with women of ward council to plan ward activities (no activities committee means more work for the ward council!), one visiting teaching visit, one Shakespeare class (no, we have not started Taming of the Shrew yet) one visit by home teachers, and one shopping trip to two grocery stores (Why, oh why doesn't Costco carry everything I need?). 

Yep, life is busy.  But life is good.  Very good.