Christmas parties and more............

Well, last night we had our Sunday School Christmas party, and it was a blast! We drove about an hour in 4 separate cars to drive through Christmas lights, and while the lights weren't exciting to me at all (no colored lights!!!) the drive there and back was GREAT!! There were 8 of us in our car, and we laughed the entire time. That made up for the lame light display.

Then we went back to the teacher's house and ate and did a white elephant gift exchange. That was pretty amusing as well.

Here is a bad picture of some of the people--my camera is really acting up lately:

And here is one of our church deacons at his finest:

(He's the one in the cowboy hat.....) Our fearless teacher is the one on the right in the baseball cap. He's a FABULOUS teacher!

I am not close to being ready for Christmas. I need to make oreo balls tonight, but I also need to take Melissa to piano lessons and cheerleading and finish getting the craft ready for her 3rd grade class party tomorrow and make 3 different kinds of mini muffins for said party. Guess I don't need sleep tonight???

And I just realized that I've only bought my husband 1 Christmas gift. He's so hard to buy for, I don't know what to do. Guess that'll require some last-minute shopping on Tuesday or Thursday!

I need to get some work done, since this is really my last day until January. We work 1/2 day tomorrow, but I'll be gone for Melissa's party and then our boss is taking us to lunch and then we're off!

Isn't this the cutest boy? We took him to Build A Bear so he could make an Alvin, and I wish I had taken a picture when it was done, but my camera was put away. He's so sweet!!!

Don't mess with this momma!!!!!

So my husband is on the school board at our kids' school district, so I will try and be careful what I say here.

Our daughter is in 3rd grade, and we absolutely ADORE her teacher. This Monday, she passed out notes from the music teacher, but only to certain kids. There are 21 kids in Melissa's class, and from what she says it has to be about 15 of them who got this note. Apparently, the music teacher is starting a "special" choir called the Tiny Tigers, and she was inviting children into this choir via this note. Here are my problems with this:

1) She invited every girl in her class except for Melissa and 1 other girl. She invited boys who don't behave, and one of those boys ALWAYS harasses Melissa, and this gave him a new reason to do so. He has been teasing her now since Monday about how she must be the worst singer since she didn't get "invited". I would like to hurt this boy.

2) This is 3rd grade, not some competing honor choir. I say she should have sent a note home to the parents informing them about this choir, that way if their kid wanted to participate they would know about it and it would have been fair. I heard one of the moms say that these kids who got the notes have to "audition" for the choir? I don't know if that's true, but if it is then that is RIDICULOUS!!!

3) This teacher is infamous for only allowing certain kids to have big "parts" in the kids music programs each year. I know that last year and this year, she chose the same students for solos and speaking parts. There are like 11 3rd grade classes, so she has PLENTY of kids to choose from, but she wants to make herself look good.

4) This teacher was very rude to my husband upon being introduced to him at a Halloween function at my church, so I guess I don't have a lot of respect for her. I guess she's one of the teachers who didn't want him on the school board, and she feels it's acceptable to treat him as a non-human because of that. That's JUST the type of person I want influencing my kid.

So I emailed her Monday night, asking how she chose kids to "invite" and letting her know that I really felt it was unfair the way she chose all the girls in my daughter's class except for 2 of them. Of course, I didn't hear back from her. So I saw Melissa's classroom teacher last night at a band concert and I told her that I was upset, and she said she had several parents and teachers call her as they were upset too, and that I should go over the head of the music teacher if I don't get a response. So guess what--that's what I'm doing!! Seems crazy, yes. But this teacher needs a reality check--she is working with elementary children in small-town USA, and if she wants to work with professionals she needs to go somewhere else.

I know, great Christmas spirit!!!!! I hope to be back in good spirits later today, after I call the school and see how much trouble has to be stirred up before this choir thing is nipped in the bud.

I'm also praying for a friend of my husband--his son is 9 (I believe, he may still be 8) and was born with a heart condition. I saw on Facebook last night that he needs a new heart. I can't imagine what this family is going through, and they just need prayers.

Pictures..............

So my kids have been having Christmas concerts at school--OOPS--I mean HOLIDAY concerts. I have some horrible pictures of them, horrible because in order to get a decent seat you have to arrive at school 1 1/2 hrs prior to the concert, and I can't do that.

Here is Nathan with some of the cutie-pie girls from his class:

Yes, I know he has tennis shoes on. I have been too busy to buy him some dress shoes, so he looks a bit goofy, but still cute!

And here he is with Mikey, a boy that he was with in daycare from the time they were babies until preschool last year:

I think it's TERRIBLY unfair that they have always been the same exact size, and now it looks like Mikey has grown a few inches, while my Nathan remains short. I sometimes despise having the smallest kids in the class. Well, except for Stephen, who is perfectly normal:

This is Stephen with his girlfriend, Danielle, at homecoming this year. They are absolutely adorable together, and she seems like a very respectable girl. I've never seen her belly button, which says a lot for teenage girls these days.

Here is a picture of Melissa from her concert:

The girl on the right is one of her bestest friends, Hayley.

So not the greatest pictures, but I hope to get some awesome ones on the holidays. And maybe some of me with my wonderful hubby, Mike???? I have lots of pictures of me with the kids, and lots of him with the kids, but not so many of he and I together. We really do like each other, I promise!!!!

New blog, will I keep up with it?

Well, I have decided that I am going to start a new blog. I have so many things to say, but my old blog just bothers me, so I thought it would be better to start fresh. I had to find a way to document some of the many things that happen in our family, and I can't keep up with a journal, so this seemed like the most logical way! I hope I can keep up with this one, though. I have always been horrible about remembering to blog, yet I have about 20 other blogs that I read daily! So I figure if I can keep up with reading what other people have to say, surely I can keep up with saying some things of my own!