After lunch I decided to do school outside. I know there are a lot of distractions outside, but my thinking is that my two little ones would be easier to occupy. That turned out to be partly true, but I sensed Caden was wanting a playmate. Sahara was clinging to me and sleepy, so she was not the entertainment for him that I thought she would be. He was fine, but used to having the older girls to run around with him. Savannah started with her math, but was so unfocused. She kept watching me and Sierra and listening to everything we were doing. Frustrating because I HAVE to speak to Sierra to teach her. It's not like we can be quiet completely. An hour later Savannah is still doing her math. !!! It should take no more than 30 minutes to do. She moved quicker through Spelling and her activity, then took F~O~R~E~V~E~R on her handwriting which correlates with Spelling. I finally had to change the assignment! Then, her daddy got home and I tend to lose her even more when he is home. I told them both that she would be having schooling the rest of the evening. And for the most part we did, except life happens and we have to have dinner. We had a special project for her to work on that, of course, the printer ran out of ink in the middle of. My teacher husband took her to his school to print there... had to go black and white. !!! Let's just say that Mexico is too colorful of a country to be printing out in black and white! You have to go with what you have got, though. They ran to the store to attempt to find a Mexican snack of some sort to provide for her co-op project. They did... it was not quite what I had in mind, though. Time was not on my side here, so it is what it is and it will have to do. So, the evening carries on and finally the kids get in bed by 10:PM... PM!!!! 10!!! TEN!!!! OH my GOSH!!! That is going to make tomorrow a bit harder... We have Co-op... I forgot nursery snacks... I need to pull off something more for Mexican snacks and things... We will need to be prepared for lunch at the park afterwards... looks like pizza pick-up.... and we are having a meeting while at the park... uh... who can watch four kids with a park that has a pond and participate in a "meeting"???????!! I want to say I am looking forward to tomorrow, but today was .... frustrating. And this is just a glimpse. I am leaving out some substantial drama... a foot injury for Sierra... some potty training failures for Caden... some messes in abundance for Sahara.... an incredibly WINDY outdoor school time with papers being chased across the deck... Caden doing his "art" and losing his stickers through the deckboards (after putting some of the stickers all over the deck chairs)... oh, and the earring thing (more drama... don't allow ear piercings!!! Such a pain!)... All in all it was a BEAUTIFUL, GOOD DAY... really....just now I am reflecting and looking back at all the things that feel through the cracks today... Whew!
On the upside.... Sierra is learning so much and amazingly I am the one teaching her!!! That is exciting. I must admit we are not doing a lot of crafty things, but we are driving the learning home in other ways. She wants to paint everyday and I want to let her, but I just can not bring myself to deal with paint times four. Thank God for Summer and waterhoses. They can paint when I can spray them down with a waterhose! I want to be more fun... really, I do... I try to use construction paper and markers... other ways to have some fun. I am really starting to figure out how to get all her schooling done. I know Kinder is not a lot, but we have a lot of distraction and Savannah is usually interrupting or I am having to redirect her back to her schooling. And yes, I have tried doing it all seperate and having Savannah also do Sierra's K work with her. We still pause Savannah's independent work, so she can participate in a lot of Sierra's K lessons. Everyday is a learning process for me, too.
And Caden... wow he is so cute. He makes the cutest animal sounds I think I have ever heard. He can really neigh like a horse! We are all impressed. He showed Cody today and it was quite impressive. Cody got a huge grin on his face over that one. And Sahara... our little "Goo-Goo" wants to be a student already. That girl is on a daily mission to get the markers! Sometimes she just writes and scribbles on and appropriate page... other times you turn around and her body is covered in marker... that seems to happen on Wednesday nights lately... just before we leave for church... and amazingly, Caden gets involved and it is like a marker bomb went off on their whole bodies. Seriously, last week they used the blue marker and after we quickly tried wiping it away they looked like they had bruises all over their bodies. Yikes! Not a lot we want to go for at church. Yesterday, their color of choice was green.... At least, that one did not look like bruises. ;)
Okay, now I have unwound enough to get some rest... off to bed! [This is the part where the baby will wake up wanting me... Hahaha....!!!!.. usually... maybe not tonight...please God let her sleep.] Goodnight all!
When is this going to end?! My girly showed me some more of her Poop Talent today. She was sitting on my lap cuddly after nursing with her back against my chest. My hand was across her belly and she tensed up and I felt air bubbling through her clothes... on my hand... on her BELLY... I thought, "Surely not!" The bubbling continued and sputtering sounds and as I peered around in horror I could see it bubbling up and seeping through her shirt! When the bubbly ceased I lifted the front of her shirt and she was covered in poop! Miraculously, it did not get on me. I yelled for help as I carefully navigated her to the tile floor and Savannah brought me some newspaper to lay her on as some of it splatted on the tile. Tip: Newspaper makes a wonderful disposable changing pad and I tell people my baby is "paper trained" (like a puppy... hehe!) :O Well, I think it is funny! Also, thank God for tile floors and the bleach to clean them with. Anyway, right at this moment my husband walks in... great timing for me. He is wanting to hose her down which I did not allow, because she has a high fever today... and I needed to wipe her down some to prevent dripping of more poop on the floor. ;) So, he warms the water at the kitchen sink while I remove the diaper (having to get my fingers in it to release the tapes) and the majority of the poop. It was obvious at that point that a spray down (with kitchen sprayer) was going to be necessary. Her daddy did the honors and bathed her while I disposed of the diaper (rolled up in the newspaper) and bleached the floor. 
Yes, this is a gross photo. No, Sahara's face is not in poop, but her sister took the pic and we only took time for one and we were not going for a pose or a smile. ;) Meanwhile, the other kids are laughing hysterically and Caden almost gets in the poop about three times. After that is when Cody walked in. How's that for Keeping It Real?!