PrEsChOoL bLuEs!!!oom

Today was Jaxon's first day of preschool. He was ever bit as excited as Ashlin was to start Kindergarten. We had his clothes laid out the night before and he wanted them in my room like we do Ashlin's school clothes. He woke up early jumped right up and put them on. If any of you know Jaxon he is my late sleeper and it takes awhile for him to wake up. He put his back pack on which his siblings copied and they danced around in the living room with their backpacks and had a great time.
We got to preschool and he was quiet but you could still see his excitement. He walked right in and started the preschool routine. We forgot to put his hearing aids so Shawn had to bring them into him. Jaxon was fitting right in. We picked him up and he had a big smile on his face. We called Nana when we got home. Jaxon was quite talkative. He told her he played, ate a snack, and went potty. We told him we would take him to dinner for his big day. He chose Colton's (much better choice than Ashlin plus they had hamburgers & all you could eat fries for $5...score for the parents). Shawn's student works there so the kids really enjoy going there. He was such a big boy during dinner and you could tell he was proud of himself. Bradley pretended it was Jaxon's birthday and he was able to get dessert for free. What more can you want from a celebration....yummy ice cream covered in chocolate!
His first note home from preschool said, "Today I was good eater at snack time. I listened quietly at story time. I played nicely & shared with my friends. I played in the library & games during learning center. Outside I rode trikes & climbed the tower & raked leaves.

This was Jaxon showing his new back pack off to one of the student workers.

This is Jaxon with a big smile on his face when we picked him up.

He loved his name tag & wanted to wear it all day.

Celebrating with our Prince for his first day of preschool!

You know he loved preschool because he smile for so many pictures.

He usually turns away from the camera.

Jaxon pirating it up the day before preschool. Notice he is turned away from the camera.

I can't believe my little boy is so big. I am so proud of him and am excited for the many experiences he will have this year.

KiNdErGaRtEn BlUeS!

Today was Ashlin’s first day of Kindergarten. I can’t believe this time is already here. It seems like only yesterday we were going through fertility treatments and wondered if we would be lucky enough to be parents. Look us now, we have three precious children our hearts are full of gratitude for the joy of having such sweet spirits in our care.
My first Mother’s day Shawn & Ashlin gave me an Anne Gedde’s picture and a quote was written on it “The decision to have a child is to accept that your heart will be forever walking about outside your body.” Never has that quote rang more true. Ashlin is now taking an important step into independence. I am so happy for her and her excitement for going to school. On the other hand, a little anxiety creeps up as well. Questions run through my mind. Did I spend enough time with her enough? Will she still want to snuggle and give me hugs? Will she remember how much I love her? And…… I miss her as well. The house is quieter without her laughter and singing. The housie is emptier without her dancing. There is more time because she is not running up and saying, “Look what I did/made.” And…… Of course on the bright side, I won’t miss her fighting with her brothers. Also, the house will be cleaner.

To say Ashlin was excited to being Kindergarten is an understatement. She spoke with her Nana on several occasions to share her excitement. Shawn gave her a Father’s Blessing last night. We asked what she remembered and she said, “Heavenly Father is excited I am starting Kindergarten. She woke up bright and early with a big smile on her face and said, “Today is Kindergarten!” She got dressed in the outfit we picked out and was ready to go. We all walked her into the cafeteria until where the kids wait until it’s time to go to class. She sat down by one of her friends in her class. She was so sweet and wrapped her arms around me and said, “I love you, Mom.” She was ready to start her day and I was ready to let the tears flow.

We picked her up at the end of her school day. She had a big smile on her face. She jumped in and told us it was a great day. She had music and her teacher’s name was Ms. White. She told us that sang and danced. She had a great lunch and a rest time. She didn’t give us to many details. We asked her if they worked on the alphabet. She said, “no.” We asked did you work on your numbers. She said, “No.” Joking Shawn said, “No wonder the school system in Arkansas is so bad.” We told her in honor of her special day we would take her to wherever she wanted to eat. She thought about and said, “Taco Bueno”. Are you sure Ashlin we could go to Colons, Chile’s, or even Ruby Tuesday’s. Ashlin insisted on Taco Bueno. Whatever makes her happy right!

She ended the day with a phone call from her Aunt Heather. She brought in the phone when she was done and said, “I am so looooveed today!” All in all, Ashlin’s first day of Kindergarten was a success. She felt loved and happy and I survived the tears!

Her Very Empty & Quiet Room!

The lightening strikes...

What a day we had yesterday. I was really looking forward to spending the day with the kids and enjoying Ashlin's last day at home. We played and had fun in the morning. I gave Ashlin a manicure and pedicure. We painted her nails to match her outfit for her day at school. Nap time arrived and I was laying down with Jaxon and a good old Arkansas came rolling in. Lightening flashed with a very loud gunshot sound. Ashlin came running in and took cover under the bed. She came out and asked, "Mom can we say a prayer?" After things had calmed down with the little ones, we looked around to see the damage because we heard a beeping sound. I thought it might be the fire detector going off. Our bedroom tv would not turn on. Our The lights shorted out on our fans. The wireless box was dead which meant no telephone, not cable, and no internet. We were practically living like the pioneers. :) We had the AT&T guy out to fix our box and he went out to check our phone box and it was apparently gone as well from the lightening. I have always wondered what it would be like if your house is struck by lightening. Now I know!

In the evening, we had a graduate student picnic to attend to. It's at Toad Suck Park. It's a nice little place with covered picnic tables and playgrounds. Ashlin was playing. I looked up and she started clutching her hand saying, "it stung me, it stung me! I don't like this." Poor thing I felt so bad for her. 2 little girls later were stuck as well from the wasps in the same location. I tried to see if their was a nest but didn't see one. I didn't want to get to close.

Ashlin wanted to call her Nana, which she did quite frequently all day with her excitement over school beginning. She told her Nana, "You know, this has been a really TERRIBLE day here." You have to love our little drama queen. To be honest, we have had better days. That's the latest excitement for Arkansas Charlton's. We survived lightening but will we survive Ashlin's first day of Kindergarten!

Friends...

A good friend is a connection to life - a tie to the past, a road to the future,

the key to sanity in a totally insane world.

~Lois Wyse

The recognition she deserves...

So, Veda keeps everyone up-to-date on this blog, but she always forgets to mention one member of our family...her! I'm certain she does this out of modesty and because she is typically so busy keeping everything running smoothly in our family and home that she rarely has time to think of herself. Still, she really should get some acknowledgment from the family.

As I am the closest to literate of any non-Veda member of the family, the task falls to me.

Veda is, as most of you know, quite awesome (I don't like this word, but sometimes you have to ignore personal preferences for the greater cause). She works her tail off. Most days I figure that concerns about the kids hair, clothing, and general hygiene can be overlooked so long as the children are alive. Not Veda. She has a checklist of something like a million items that she is always monitoring. While I go into overload if my list has two items on it (feed the children, then do the dishes), she completes all ten million items on her list and still has time to check on friends and the primary children.

And just to avoid calls from CPS, let's suffice it to say that her patience with the children is infinitely greater than mine. It is insane how even after she has completed 100 million things in an hour's time, she still has the energy and committment to play with the Trio.

Well, I don't want to get too nausea-inducing, but we sure do love our Veda. Thanks to her, the Trio rocks! Thanks to her, the Trio is clean! Thanks to her, all of us are better, happier, and more organized!

So, Mom/Veda even when your to-do-list has a billion items on it, remember that we love you!

Thanks for everything you do for us!

Kindergarten Meet & Greet

This evening Ashlin's teacher had a meet and greet where the kids could get to know each other. It was such a great idea and you could tell the kids were excited to meet each other. They also practiced lining up from recess and they have the cutest cheer. We then went to her class room and they practiced circle time with criss cross apple sauce and hands in the lap. The prepared a little bag for each of them with little things in them. She had this letter on the front of it. She explained why she put each item in their. The kids absolutely loved it.

Welcome to Kindergarten I am so happy that you're in my this year. You are officially a part of a new school family at Ellen Smith School. This is a special care package I made just for you! This is what each item means.

1. Starburst: "You are a star in my class.

2. Eraser: "Remember it's ok to make mistakes. Even grown ups make mistakes."

3. Smarties: "You are going to get even smarter this year."

4. Hug: "We all need a hug sometimes. If you need one at school, I'll always have one waiting for you.

5. Sticker: "To remind you that we all stick together in Mrs. Harbison's room."

6. Lifesavers: "To help you remember that you can come to any adult in our school family if you need someone to talk to."

7. Cotton ball: "So you know kindergarten is a warm, cozy place!"

8. Tissue: "To let you know that I will always dry your tears if you need me to!"

9. Ribbon: "To remind you that friendship ties our hearts together and we are all friends in kindergarten."

10. Gummy Bears: "Because kindergarten is just like you beary nice."

11. Kindergarten Pencil: "Because I am so glad that you're here."

I'll see you on August 19th for our first fun learning day!

Love, Mrs. Harbison

The boys loved being able to play at the school playground and seeing Ashlin's classroom. We are so glad to know that Ashlin will be in safe hands while away from us! It is such a comfort!

Kindergarten Screening

Last Monday, Ashlin had her Kindergarten screening and met her teacher, Ms. Harbison. She was very excited to meet her. She flew through the screening with flying colors. Ms. Harbison came out after the screening and told us she a doll. Everything is looking great for her first adventures of school. I can't believe I only have one more week with my little princess. Wow, time flies by when you are having fun!

Auntie J's home rocks!

We love our visit's to Auntie J's house. She and my uncle always welcome us with open arms. They just smile as the thundering trio takes over. The kids adore both of them and are always delighted when we tell them we are going to visit. Jeron loves toting around all of the stuffies when we are there. Ashlin spends endless hours playing in my cousin's old dance outfits and putting on dance shows for us. Jaxon loves to sit in his uncle's lap and watch man movies. They love Lacey their dog. It took Jaxon awhile to warm up, but he he has learned not all dogs are scary. He even gave her a hug before we left last time.

Once again, we had another great visit to Texas full of many memories to cherish!

We owe it all to Facebook!

Facebook as most of you know has been a great resource. It's given the opportunity for people to get together and catch up with people they haven't seen in years. I know this has been the case for me on several occasions. Early March, my mom's second husband added me. They were married when I was 1 until I was around 7. Imagine my surprise, when I had a friend request I had not talked to him in years. Since then we have been able to reconnect. We talk at least once if not twice a month and comment here and there are facebook. We were able to get together and have lunch and play at the park when we were in Texas. We had such a nice visit. The kids loved David and Katie. We look forward to many more visits with them.

Another thanks to facebook for making this relationship possible!

Farm Living is the Life for Me!

As part of our Texas get-a-way, we stayed with my grandparents in Canton Texas. They have a pecan orchard with over 400 trees. The kids loved walking around picking up the pecans that had fallen from the trees. They also have a grapevine that entertained the kids for quite some time. Their favorite part was driving Grandaddie's tractor. They had the biggest smiles on their faces. Although Jeron was hesitant at first it did not take him long to change his mind. Of course, my favorite part was my Grandaddie's pecan pie. It is the BEST! He is always so good to me and has one for me every time he sees me! It was so fun to be able to take the kids to my grandparents house. Their home was a safe haven for me growing up. I have so many wonderful memories there that I will treasure always.