Construction Begins!!

The Chapman Elementary students will be attending a ground-breaking ceremony this morning at the new elementary location. All students and staff will be bused to the site. The news media has been invited to the ceremony. They ask all students to were their green tornado shirts from last year or a green shirt if they do not have one. This is an exciting time for all of the students and staff. We are one step closer to the future of Chapman Elementary!

First Day of School

I so thought that I had been ready for this day ALL summer long. We went to "Meet the Teacher" last night and that is when things really became real to me. I have known that this day was coming for well at least 5 years. I should have planned better and maybe this wouldn't have been such a emotional day. So back to "Meeting the Teacher" we made our way to Tammara's classroom and began getting her all set up for class tomorrow. We dropped off all of the school supplies, Kinder Mat and back pack. The last bit of business was to fill out a few more papers. Then we were off to meet Mitchell's teacher! It is hard to believe that he is already a 3rd grader. We got Mitchell all set up for his first day back at school. We put all of his school supplies away and took a quick look around the room. Then we were off to get ready for the BIG DAY! School outfits were all picked out and put on the dressers nice and neat the night before. Thus making the 6:30 wake up call that much easier! The storm that had been developing all night long decided to wake us all up with a bang this morning! We were up and ready for the day.......even if it was a bit dreary outside. The kids got up and dresses for school, had breakfast.....the entire time We were praying that the power didn't go out so that we could enjoy our yummy oatmeal. We didn't have any added drama........thank goodness! Then we of course had to take some pictures! We managed to get this done and have time to say a quick hello to our Nana! Then it was time.......the bus was here and Mitchell and Tammara were off to school for their first day! Karrie must have been looking forward to this day ALL summer long........as we walked back inside the house Karrie let out the loudest most hillarious, yet evil laugh you can imagine.........then she wanted to hear mine! That made my day.......that ended the emotional roller coaster and I was happy and excited for what the day might bring. Who knew that Karrie was such a character........really who knew?! I can't wait to hear all about their first day when they get home!

Night with Nana!!

Last week Nana decided that she would take one child for one night. She worked monday and was off tuesday so that we could go to the Zoo. Then she worked wednesday and thursday and was off friday. Karrie and Nana decided that Monday night would be all about Karrie. It worked out well for me because that meant that I would only had 2 children to get ready for the Zoo instead of 3! Karrie spent the night with Nana, she slept in the middle of Papa and Nana....that was the highlight for her! Nana painted her nails PINK of course....is there any other color SO beautiful?! Nana made oatmeal for breakfast and of course hot chocolate. Nana even had the pleasure of fixing little miss Karrie's hair for the Zoo. It must be said that Karrie just loves her Nana! Thursday rolled around and it was Tammara's turn! She was VERY excited to say the least. I think that is ALL she could think about all day long. Tammara also slept in the middle of Papa and Nana....she promised me that she didn't even MOVE! Nana painted Tammara's nails pink also.........not sure if she was as thrilled as Karrie....but she loved to be pampered. Nana and Tammara ALWAYS bake together. So for breakfast Nana made blueberry muffins and bran muffins, and of course more hot chocolate. Then they were headed outside to water! Tammara loves to do MANY different things with her Nana. She also helped steam clean the floors. She was VERY sad to have to come home. Tammara really is a Nana's girl! Friday was Mitchell's night! They had planned a special night since Papa would be going out of town. Mitchell was excited but sleeping in the bed with Nana just wasn't something this boy thought should be done. He decided that he would sleep on her chase lounge! Nana made Mitchell a special shrimp dinner. He wants to try lobster and My understanding is that if he likes shrimp he will like lobster. If so then Papa and Nana will take him out to dinner at Red Lobster.....so this was a big deal for him. He liked it fried but not boiled. Then they went to Dairy Queen and he was treated to a thin mint blizzard. I am told it is really YUMMY! They watched the movie Willow and really that is all I know! This time they spend with their Nana really is special and I just can't get too many details out of them. I love that we live this close to my parents and that they each get to have some special one on one time with them. I am sure fun was had by all!

Oh what do you do in the summer time?? Zoo anyone?!

My mother informed me last week that I needed to pick a day and be ready for some fun. She wanted to take the kids to the Zoo! That sounds simple enough right?! We decided that we needed to head out as early as possible because it had been such a hot day on Monday. We wanted to leave the house by 7 a.m. so we could be there by 8 when the Zoo opens. Which means that is at least a 6:30 wake up call for the kiddos. Karrie had spent the night with Nana so I only had myself and Mitchell and Tammara to get ready, pack lunches and get on the road. We did have a few meltdowns early on but really WHO wants to wake up at 6:30? Kids and I ate breakfast, got dressed and then it was on to making the picnic lunch. We headed for the door and up to get Nana and Karrie. Then we hit the road. We did have to make one stop before the Zoo. We can't go anywhere without going to Wal-mart first! Of course we needed batteries so that I could capture my kids with Nana and proof that we in fact did make it to the Zoo. Then we were off to the Zoo! As we got closer the kids began to get more excited. Mitchell who had been there on a field trip was sure to let us know that we were in fact getting close. The kids were just so excited to see the signs pointing us in the direction of the Zoo. We arrived in one piece! The kids couldn't get out of the car fast enough. They were ready for this wild adventure! Mitchell would have to be the tour guide since he had already been there.....so we started with the flamingos. Although they were still sleeping that didn't stop us from watching them. Karrie LOVES pink so she didn't want to leave these beautiful pink flamingos! Mitchell wanted to show us the HUGE catfish next. We all couldn't get over how big they were. Lions, Leopards, Tigers, Bears, Camels, Rhinos, Monkeys, Lizards, Snakes.......oh the list goes on and on! As the kids got tired and hungry we just found a bench and had a snack here and there . To avoid a HUGE meltdown we decided to stop and enjoy our lunch while watching a Camel sleep. The last thing we had to do was go through the section called Kids Country..........that was a blast! They had chickens, goats, a cow, sheep, bunnies & ducks. My kids wanted to tell everyone that we had some of the same chickens at our house! They fed the goats and sheep. Then we headed to the gift shop to spend the money Nana had given them at the beginning of our trip. They each had $5 to spend however they wanted. Well that just didn't happen, $5 isn't much at the Zoo gift shop.....so we opted to save it and spend it at Wal-mart the next time we go. We loaded the kids up and headed back to Salina to hit the bread store before heading home! We did make another stop in Abilene at Dairy Queen. We had to end our wonderful trip with a BANG! It was a wonderful trip and fun was had by ALL! I am sure that we will venture back one day in the near future for the Museum! I am told that is the place to go next!

CHUCK E CHEESE

You are reading this correctly......we ventured out to CHUCK E CHEESE!! We decided that since we had a 2 year old around for a while we NEEDED to have some fun. SO we loaded up the van and headed to Topeka for our FUN filled day. We decided to NOT eat at Chuck E Cheese's we ate at CICI'S instead. The kids LOVED it, that is once they found the kind of pizza they liked, oh and don't forget the desserts! Oh the fun could have ended there but nope we ventured across the street and headed to the FUN ZONE!! If fun was had by ONE it was had by ALL!! The ride HOME..........Not SO Much! I guess 2 can be terrible after all!! The kids had a great time and well so did we!! Unfortunately I forgot the camera SO we don't have any evidence that we actually did make it there and did infact have fun! I guess we will just have to make another trip! Stay Tuned for more excitement and adventure.........we are off to the ZOO this week!