Mason's School Performance

Mason "graduated" from his class on Wednesday night. In the photos posted here you'll see his little diploma scroll that he received and immediately turned into a megaphone and sword.

Mason's class had a performance where they sang some songs and Mason was a hoot. He clearly loves to perform. I was literally laughing while I was videotaping them sing because he was being so animated. Teacher Tammi thinks he has a future in theater.

Barclay, Joe and Talan all came to the graduation party with me at Noah's Ark. It is so nice having support and people to share moments like this with. Such a change from the Christmas Pageant! :)

Hiking Tubbs Hill

We all hiked Tubbs hill last weekend. The boys were so whiney. Mason kept saying "I hate this idea. I hate hiking." Yet, the pictures that we took make it seem like we were all very happy. Well, we were happy while at the beach and resting. :) We all fell in love with a puppy named Jack.

Talan is making strides in talking in two word combos. I found out today that he is too high functioning to receive services past mid-June. So, I am going to get what I can out of the therapy we are in for now and keep up what we have learned when it all ends.

I am borrowing B's computer to write this so I don't have too much time to go into great details about much of anything. We are decorating and getting ready for Heather's arrival tonight. We are very excited about her visit!

I have no computer

My computer started saying "fan failure" and I couldn't access the internet. I took it to my repair main and he said it would be more economical to buy a new computer as replacing the fan would mean replacing the whole motherboard. So, I am without a computer for awhile. Barclay was kind enough to bring her laptop up here so I could try to look up some info on the party we are supposed to go to this afternoon. Unfortunately, and I am sure this is obvious to everyone but me, my favorites do not come up when I logged on to her computer. Consequently, I don't remember the web address for the party info. I called a classmate and she'll call me later with the directions etc. If my cell phone died I would be really up a creek without a paddle. I don't know any one's number. I am very lazy about transferring things to my paper address book. Well, if my cell phone died I don't have a home phone so that wouldn't really even help. Wow, dependence on technology really pays a price.
So, to recap, the past week has been fun and busy. We see Aunt B every day. Sometimes not until the evening but the boys light up when we see her. Talan shouts "b" until she picks him up. I asked the boys if they missed Daddy and they said "no". :( Sorry Joe. I think B is filling the void. :) Well, its going to be in the 90s today so we are going to go hike Tubbs Hill today and then go to a party with some people from my Anatomy and Physiology class. Whew hoo. What excitement.

Mother's Day Party at Mason's School

I am so glad Aunt B got to go with me to the Mother's Day party at Mason's school. It was very cute. The kids made muffins and wrote cards for us. They also sang some songs about obedience. :) I love all the kids in Mason's class. I teach sign language to them every Friday for 10 minutes and they have blossomed and it is amazing how far they have all come in one year. It is bittersweet to see my little guy move through almost an entire year of school. Needless to say, he was a bit rambunctious today and I think it is because he was just so excited. In the video, you will see how animated Mason was while singing. He has been singing all week to himself and I realize now that he was practicing the entire time. God I love my kids.

Baby Talan, as always, loves to be in Mason's classroom. He ate two muffins. Thoroughly enjoyed everything about the party. He will love school when it is his time. This I have no doubt.

I took lots of photos of the party. Some of the mom's forgot cameras. It is so hard to take photos and participate so I don't blame them. If Aunt B had not been there to assist there is no way I would have been able to take photos, participate with Mason and look after Baby Talan. So extra thanks to Aunt B. One of the many many perks of having her so close by. :)

Finished with my Class

Well, I got a B. I am happy with that. I took Test #5 on Thursday and because I scored high enough to get a B but can't possibly earn enough points on the final to get an A, I am done. The final is optional to improve a prior exam score and all my scores are decent. Where I didn't do so hot is in lab and that has always been a weak area for me so I am happy I got a B.
Joe and Barclay took me out to celebrate Thursday night for a wonderful dinner at Red Lobster. Barclay's realtor gave her a $75 gift card there and so we spent that. :) It was really nice especially without the kids! Of course, when we came home we learned Mason had drawn on the wall and sofa with crayon (no, it does not come out).
Joe left yesterday for the long drive to CA to pick up our 5th wheel and go to his race in Laguna Seca. They are all going to camp in it for the week saving his boss hotel fees and of course it is a lot more fun to camp! Joe will visit with his dad in Marin before driving back up here late next week. Fred is doing better than he was last week but the treatments for his throat cancer have taken a toll on him and he is quite weak. He was sweet enough to call me for Mother's Day yesterday and the boys were very excited to talk with "Grandma Fred". :)
The remodel of Barclay's house is going at a snails pace and we have already encountered water damage in the downstairs bathroom so that has now been prioritized so that she can have a functional bathroom. So far she has taken all her showers here at our house. It is so nice that she is only .4 miles away. It is awfully convenient. I love it. I think it is awesome and better than I had imagined having her nearby. Last night we watched the movie "Awake" together which was a nice treat. We tried to watch "American Gangster" but it got to be too late. It was a bit slow too so I am not that engaged by it.
Today Barclay is going to join me for the Mother's Day party at Mason's preschool. We are both very excited to see what that is all about. My camera is charged up and ready to go!

Bloomsday Race Photos

Ok, I found our photos. I am wearing a lavendar top and lime green baseball cap. Joe is wearing a dark blue shirt and a grey baseball cap. We are in different pictures obviously as he was much faster. Here they are: me http://www.racephotos.net/551912 and http://www.racephotos.net/551914 ( I am in the center basically on the yellow line)and http://www.racephotos.net/551916. For Joe's photos http://www.racephotos.net/551529 (he is just right of the center) and http://www.racephotos.net/551531 (just behind the guy with his arms up) and http://www.racephotos.net/551534 (front of picture). Enjoy! Use the magnifying glass to see how red and tired we are! :)
On a different note, I finished my last signing class today. I am relieved it is over. :) Now it is crunch time to finish my class.

Busy Bee

Barclay has arrived. It has been wonderfully hectic since then. We unloaded part of the truck Saturday afternoon, some after the race on Sunday and the rest was done today. The truck needs to be returned tomorrow morning which has pushed us to do more than we probably have collectively wanted to do. Tonight Mason is spending the night with Aunt B. This is the second sleepover and this is only her third night here. :)
I am too tired to get into too many details but it is all coming together in bits and pieces. I am putting a link to my results from the Bloomsday run on Saturday. http://www.bloomsdayrun.org/results/ResultDetail.asp?Bib=43149&YEAR=2008 and Joe's results http://www.bloomsdayrun.org/results/ResultDetail.asp?Bib=27743&YEAR=2008. It was a 12K so that is 7.46 miles. It was very crazy and too many walkers for my liking as it was really challenging negotiating around that many people. Joe felt the same. Not sure I'd do it again because of that fact alone. Otherwise, it felt great to hit a goal that I was nervous to accomplish.
I'll write more soon. I am just beat. I tried to access photos but I couldn't get the link to them open. Look for them in a later post. I'll keep trying. :)