Boyd Bear Tracks

For being rainy season we really haven't had as much rain as I thought we would have (or even probably should have had). This past week has had some beautiful days! Especially Sunday. When we got up it was all cloudy and dark (a stay-in-bed kind of day :-)!) so I wore a nice warm sweater. I really wished I had not worn the sweater when the day turned out to be sunny and nice (I thought we were going to have "baked Holly" for lunch! :-)

Last week Karina and I started painting the nursery. Previously it had been painted with the handprints and names of the children and teachers in the class. Note to self (and anyone else listening): Don't put names on the wall. They go out of date really quickly! I think out of all the names on the wall there are only two people who still go to the church and only one that is still in that classroom! The other difficulty is that the names were written in permanent marker. I discovered that paint doesn't cover permanent marker very well (it keeps bleeding through). So, we're going to have to literally SCRATCH the names off the wall!

Also, one of my Sunday School teachers resigned last Sunday. She's a student and she discovered that she couldn't do all her homework and prepare adequately for the Sunday School class. I am glad that she realized her limitations and was honest. I am disappointed because there aren't any teachers to replace her. So, I'm back to teaching again! At least I had a couple of weeks of break :-)! And, it's only one class instead of two or more combined!

Lucas only has six weeks of school left. I figure (with the week of vacation in May) that we'll go to the middle of June. He only needs to learn three more letters Q, X, Z. He just learned his last vowel (E), and now he really has to think about how to pronounce all the vowels. Have you ever noticed that a lot of the vowels have similar sounds (depending on how you hold your mouth)? Lucas pronounces the word "get" as /git/. Obviously, he has trouble sounding it out to spell it. Or, as Jon always teases me, if you're from Iowa you say /tu/ instead of /too/ (you know, ya git tu, right?;-)).

Yesterday, I took Ellie to get a haircut. The second one she's had in her lifetime! It actually was only a trim. She doesn't have that much hair to cut. She was so proud. Lucas and Jon get them all the time, but it was a treat for her. She's so excited that it's her "bearthday" this month :-). We went through her toys and picked some out to give away in preparation for the "new ones". I was surprised, she actually wanted to give them away. It probably helps that one of her friends doesn't have a lot of toys, so she wants to give them to her. I thought it was very sweet of her to think of her friend! With me being a packrat and all, now I have hope that I didn't pass that along in her genes ;-).

Now, all of the shrimp have died. I don't know what happened. Maybe the water PH wasn't quite right or something. I am now planning their replacement :-) (after vacation). Well, if you have an aquarium setup, why not use it? :-)

Mijke has gotten over her fear of Boomer. They now play happily together! She has turned out to have a much better temperament. She doesn't have the propensity to bite like Bungee did. The only thing that aggravates me is that she has discovered the fireplace. She also discovered a little ledge up the chimney, and she likes to jump up there. Of course, she gets covered with soot and dust. Last night I finally stuffed a box up the chimney so she can't get up there. Now, she's going to get a bath! It's no fun for her or for me, but the kids really enjoy the show!

Speaking of show. . .I finally painted Lucas' wall! It wasn't even as hard as I thought it would be! Thanks Heidi (or mom?) for the star stamp. It was fun! Lucas likes all the glowing stars in his room. Now Ellie is asking when I'm going to paint her room!

















One sad/happy happening. . .Amy Wheeler graduated, and has now gone to college. She was our babysitter and she was wonderful! We're really going to miss her. Fortunately, Amy's mom said she could watch the kids if we wanted to go out in the afternoon. She has already watched them once and they had a blast with all the toys. Ellie especially liked "Miss Amy's" doll! Before Amy left, we had a "goodbye party" for her and I offered to make the cake. I've thought about starting a cake business. . .just kidding! Staying up half the night decorating is fun, but only if it is not too frequent! :-)


I just realized that this entry is pretty long! I guess I should write more often so that it's not so long! (And all the relatives say. . .YES! PLEASE) :-)