My 11 yr old wants to be GROWN-Sigh!

I'm having a hard time with it because he is still my baby boy but I know this is happening. This year he is in the 5th grade and just recently they had a puberty info class.   Ever since he has been pointing out things that he has been going through.  His voice is changing- I'll give him that, his body odor has changed- need to remind him to put deodorant on these days, his face is breaking out a bit, and there is more but I'll take his word for it.

He is obsessed with having hair though- really dude that is peach fuzz that everyone has.  He wants everyone to see the one black hair he has over his lip.  I still can't see it but his dad can.  This weekend I couldn't find my razor- wasn't in the bathroom anymore.  Weird.  Later that day I find it in the kitchen- WTF!  I knew exactly who to ask- my son.  He informed me he wanted more hair on his legs so he heard if you shaves the part of your body than the hair will grow back and more of it.  Insert ROLLING EYES when I heard his response. I let him know first not cool to use MY RAZOR- ewww but in nice mothering way!  Then I told him to please wait until this process happens and not to be in such a rush to grow up.  He thinks with his body changing that he will be able to do more grown up stuff- like what dude I ask.  He wants to be able to go places by himself- nope, we live in OAKLAND no roaming the streets yet! He is not ready.

I'm not trying to keep him a baby and I do give him more responsibilities than his sister BUT this is a process and no need to rush it! While his dad is away on training he has been the MAN OF THE HOUSE in a way- the first couple days he was playing the part to the tee but this weekend anything and everything I asked his response was "I'll do it later" which really means~ "I'll forget and then my mom will do it."

So not looking forward to the next couple years and his growing pains- however I'm sure this will be easier than when my Lil Mama gets to this age- that I'm not looking forward too!

Proud Mom Moment- My Son Rocked His Presentation at School!

My Beautiful 11yr old Son Ronnell! 

Last week my son's 5th Grade Class did presentations in front of all the parents.  My son was so nervous and worried his voice would crack but he did AWESOME.  He smiled big and made the audience laugh several times during his presentation.

What I loved the most was he wrote about his DAD and watching the Super Bowl this year.  The presentation had so much detail that it made you feel like you were right there with them on the couch in front of the big screen TV.  When his dad read it later- he had a smile on for hours.  He was impressed and overjoyed his son wrote about him. Ronnell is a mama's boy all the way but he sure does love to hang out with dad when it comes to sports and video games.

Here is the picture he drew of his dad:

He did such a great job!  

My 10yr old son and GIRLS! UGH!

We went to a friends house last night and there was a girl he hasn't seen for awhile and someone told him that she likes him.  He was being shy but I noticed she was being a bit mean to him  (girls do that) so then he came whispered to me "mom (insert name) doesn't like me so now you don't have to worry about that"- oh geez thanks kid! I have to say I've been a bit discouraging him about girls- I want him to stay a boy for a bit longer.  He has had a crush on this girl for awhile now and when he found out she might like him too , he was all excited.  Thank goodness when he found out it wasn't true he just moved on and didn't get upset.

Driving home I was thinking he was over this girl now since she didn't want anything to do with him and so no more girlfriend talk or I like a girl talk for the night, right well I was wrong he dropped a bigger bomb on me.

He comes over and sits with me and says  "What if I marry my best friend after college? Let's say we go to elementary, middle, high, and college together and we just fall in love would that be ok?"  I had to think about this and then I realized I knew who he was talking about and I told him "Baby, lets just worry about being  10 and loving Lego's not girls right now- you will have so much time for all that in the future"  He looks at me and gives me a huge hug and says "You are right, Lego's are so much easier than Girls" and runs off to his room.  If he only knew what he was in for he would play with Lego's FOREVER!

Let the games begin!

Back To School 2011

My little buggers are enjoying their first week of the school year.  Hearing them talk about what they are learning and going to learn is exciting for all us.  Dinner time is full of conversation now. 

I enjoyed the 1st day way too much I think because 3pm came very quick and I almost forgot to get them.  I was about 10 minutes late.  Last year school ended at 3:15 and this year it's 3pm so I blame it on the time change, not that I was enjoying the quiet so much.  The past 3 days have been very nice!  I get up early and do the housework while I'm juiced up on coffee then I have the day to do work online and other projects. 
My Lil Mama is in a split 1st/2nd grade class and at first I was WTF....no that's not going to work.  She is way too smart to do 1st grade over again.  She was top of her class in 1st grade and I just don't want her to be bored.  Lil Mama and boredom doesn't mix at all!   Her teacher and principal reassured me that it will be fine and she will be challenged.  Okay, I hope so! 

Lil Man well he feels all grown now...4th grade and all!  He asked the teacher if he could sit up in front because he wants to LEARN a lot this year.  Let's see how long that will last.  Lil Man is also in a split 4th/5 class but with 2 teachers.  I wasn't as worried because I want him to learn UP.  I know double standard. LOL! He is very excited to have 2 teachers and new school subjects.  He said today..it feels like I'm in Middle School- not sure I how he knows how that feels but I'll give it to him.

So Cheers to 2011-2012 School Year! 

We Need a LOCK on the Fridge!

Guess what it isn't for me either!  It is for my 9 year old son.  Dude has been eating us out of the house.  I can't keep up with it.

Yesterdays Menu:

Breakfast:
Bowl of Cereal
Bagel w/cream cheese

Snack:
Banana
crackers

Lunch:
2 Sandwiches
Apple
Rice Cake Chips
BBQ Chips
Fruit Snacks

Snack:
Orange
crackers

Dinner:
Full plate of Chinese Food

Dessert:
3 Popsicles (only had permission for 1)

That what I know of!!!  I tell him to cool down because we can't go thru food this fast but he keeps telling me he is hungry.  What DO I DO?  If he keeps this up I might have to go on a hunger diet because we can't afford to feed him like this everyday.

Is this NORMAL for a 9 year old??  He isn't overweight but he isn't a skinny mini either.  I don't want to put any weight issues on him but is he in training for becoming a football player?

Thankful Tuesday!

The strangest thing happen this morning that had me speechless for a second.  My son got up and said "Mom I want to take a shower"  the key word is WANT! 

But the the strangest part was this would make it 2 days in a row.  That hasn't happen since he was maybe 4 and LOVED bathes.  When he turned 5 he was too old for bathes, he told me.  So from that day on showers it has been but for the past 2 years (he is 9 now) its like pulling fricken teeth to get this boy to even shower!!  We would have outright meltdowns in the morning/night and after so many of them I just gave up...he had to take at least 3 showers a week- no ands/if/buts dude!  That was our compromise to stop the meltdowns.  He got to pick the days- I know kind of a soft mom there but I wanted him to want to do this on his own instead of me threatening bodily harm (just kidding but you know I thought it).  I would let him know he was stinking and left reminders but this was his thing. 

So WOOHOO my boy took a shower 2 days in a row and I'm very thankful!  Now family and friends don't share to him that I posted this because I know he would be sooooo embarrassed but hey isn't that what moms are for :)

Do any other moms have such a hard time getting their son's to take baths/showers?

Halloween Over....WOOHOO!

Don't get me wrong Halloween is fun but a lot of work!  This weekend I was non-stop to create a wonderful weekend for the kids.  Halloween arts n crafts, parties, sleep-overs, trick/treating....we were busy ALL weekend.  Then on top of it I had to work too.  I'm exhausted! 

We have the excited princess and the cool SWAT officer!

I was so busy I didn't take that many pictures....bad mom!  Today I am dragging and just want to crawl back into bed!  Not going to happen but hey its all good, my family had a awesome time.

This morning though Lil Man was very difficult to get out of the house to school.  He didn't want to go to school because "he didn't get to relax all weekend".....translation " I didn't get to play video games"  Oh cry me a river dude, like I'm going to let you stay home so you can play video games- NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!  He didn't want to walk with me and told me not to talk to him.  He is sooooo lucky I didn't have all my coffee in my system because it might have gone bad!  LOL...big bad momma that I am :)

Decorations coming down tonight.  Lil Mama wants to help. 

Growing up fast!

My babies are doing their STEP-UP Ceremony on Monday and I am so proud of them.

Lil Mama....wow she sure has grown up over the year. She started Kindergarten in September and that was her first time in school. I kept her home because I loved being a mom and loved being at home with her and she was my last baby. I know I should have put her in school just to get that "social" aspect but of course my selfish reasons come first. LOL! She lasted a couple months in her first class but she was not liking school. She came to me and said "Mom I can't focus in my class, can I change classes." Well as a mom I was torn because I LOVE her teacher but my daughter was struggling with other students. The class had some very loud kids. Well it all worked out and my daughter flourished when she went to the other class. Lil Mama LOVES to read. As a reader you know I was happy to hear that she is reading now at a end of 1st grade level. She is looking forward to 1st grade.

Lil Man....wow he has found the love of reading in the 2nd grade. He has some wonderful friends that are really good readers and I think he wanted to keep up with them so he pushed himself. He was into reading the Wimpy Kid series and now loves the Percy Jackson books. He also loves to draw a lot and I find his drawings on papers everywhere. Artist like his Daddy-love that! He is looking forward to 3rd grade and a certain teacher so we are keeping our fingers crossed he gets him. Next year will be hard on him because his 2 close friends are going to a different schools. I'm hoping he will connect with others and not be sad. He has been at the school for 3 yrs and I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure my kids stay in one school.

Bad Words and Lil Man!

I saw F**K head and B**tch in his journal.  He saw the look on my face and ripped out the page real fast and started tearing it up in pieces.  I wasn't invading his privacy he had the notebook and was holding it to his chest while talking to me. I asked him to talk to me about it and he started crying and said he wrote it about a girl who is at his school who is really bad! Pretty much every kid has issues with her.  She loves to pick on Lil Man.  Ugh!  Then it hit me...where did you learn to write those words.  Guess what the answer was....the bad ass the kids that we used to live by.  So happy we moved!

My hubby and I had a talk with him about using those words. We want him to express himself and gave him suggestions on different words to use instead of the adults words.  He thought he would be in a lot of trouble but as a parent I felt this was a learning experience for all of us.

Lil Man and GIRLS

Oh my and he is only 7! We were at the park the other day and he comes running over to me and says "Mom, every time I fall down those girls coming running over to see if I'm ok, I think I want to fall down more often." The look on my face I know was WTF....no your 7 no girls please. This is just the beginning and I'm not looking forward to what I'm going to have to deal with, lol! Of course as a mom I wanted to tell the girls to leave my son alone but I couldn't do that, he would be sooo embarrassed. Or maybe I should have ;)!

Lil Man's School

Yesterday, I was at his school from 8:30-3:30 and WOW! His teacher has a lot to deal with her class on a daily basis. She is a great teacher and has control of her class for sure. I personally would go crazy dealing with all the different personalities. 20 kids is a lot to handle but she does a WONDERFUL JOB! She is also expecting in June so I give her even more props.

I helped with their writing, reading, and centers. Lil Mama was with me and she had her preschool workbook but the teacher gave her some class work to do too. She showed all the classmates she could do the work and they were impressed since they didn't think she could talk. She is quite shy until she is comfortable with ya and then she is non stop, lol!

After lunch the whole school had a Valentine Day Festival and it was fun. Lil Man of course ran with his school buddies. I was suppose to be working the Dance Party but the person who was suppose to set up the PA system and had the IPOD full of Kids Dance songs didn't show up so it wasn't much fun. Lil Mama wanted to check out all the fun games anyways so we walked around a lot! She won a cool pencil she gave to her bro bro. At 3:15 we left for bowling with 2 other kids. That was 2 hr event so we didn't get home until 6:15 and boy was I tired. The kids were a bit hyped up on sugar from the Party so it was hard to get them calmed down.

I had a great time and now have new appreciation for teachers.

Oh My... Hamburger Helper Again

I have one child who is my pickiest eater and the other pretty much eats what I put in front of him. Tonight they tricked me. Lil Mama wanted Hamburger Helper for dinner and letting me know she LOVES it. Lil Mama is my picky eater so I was like really you will eat this and she said yes! Guess what we are having for dinner.

Lil Man got home from school and asked me what we were going to have for dinner. I told him Hamburger Helper and he made this face like he just drank some sour milk. He informs me that he is not eating that crap...um your 7, crap should not be coming out of your mouth or even telling me that your not eating. I ignored his many wishes of different things to cook, his whining, and his speech on how yucky Hamburger Helper. Well as much as he bitched guess who ate ALL his dinner...yep Lil Man! I don't cater to my kids...if they don't eat what I make then they don't eat.

Mom wins!

Lil Man's Surgery

will be done tomorrow. On Monday he woke up with his face all swollen so we were at the dentist by 9am. Our dentist looked in his mouth and said "he is going to have to have a child root canal" huh...Oh My poor baby! They sent us to another dentist and that dentist told us he has 2 abscess...ummm My poor baby. At that office I broke down crying because I felt like the worst mom ever! Next step is tomorrow getting them pulled. Daddy is even taking the day off to be in the room with Lil man.

A Beautiful Poem by Langston Hughes

I, Too, Sing America
by Langston Hughes


I, too, sing America.

I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.

Tomorrow,
I'll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody'll dare
Say to me,
"Eat in the kitchen,"
Then.

Besides,
They'll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed--

I, too, am America.
************************************************************************

I'm going to print this poem out for my son. He is very proud that President Obama was elected. He told me that now he knows he can be president someday too! He gets it!

Yesterday was HISTORY IN THE MAKING! My son will remember this exciting event for the rest of his life.

Don't Give Your Son Girl Yogurt.....

in his lunch. That is what my son told me yesterday. At lunch a girl bully made fun of my son who had a DORA yogurt cup. Well of course the yogurt came home unopened. This bothered my son so much that he got sick at school and I had to go get him early. He even had a play date arranged and he passed on that. So no more girly yogurt for my lil man! I feel I have a lot life lessons to learn for my kids to have a better day at school.

Funny-My Son

thinks his butt**** is called a butthog! I almost choked on my coffee. I told him that wasn't what it was called but just go ahead and say "booty". His undies were riding up his crack and he didn't like it.

Butthog....lol

Obama and my son!

Little Man was really into this election. He didn't want to go outside and play he wanted to watch the election. He did the happy dance when the numbers were coming in and they were saying Obama was going to be the next president.

The next morning I was driving him to school and he tells me that he is SO HAPPY that Obama won because now he knows he can be president one day. Big Dreams I know but my son is bi-racial and having a African American president was a big deal for him. He is one smart cookie. I cried of course. This race wasn't about color to our family UNTIL he got elected and it was like wow that race barrier is no longer there.

My son's best friend lives next door and they have grown up together, okay the last 5yrs. This kid who I'm not a big fan of but my son loves playing with him. Well this friend tells my son that the white people are going to kill Obama. My son came in here crying and I was WTF. I told him to come in and closed the door. I didn't think much about it because I know this kid and just chalked up to him being his snotty self. His mother came over a couple hours later and just wanted us to know they voted for Obama. So....just because we are a bi-racial family do you think we voted for Obama because he is African American. NOPE. We voted for Obama because out of the 2 candidates he was the one who gave us hope and change is what we need.

I just had to vent that out...thanks!