Playing Catch-Up

Thank you to everyone who expressed concern for the Munch's bout of pink eye last week. Luckily, I caught it early enough to start the drops right away and no one seems to have caught it from her. Also, she was so good about having the drops put in and I don't remember a time that she ever touched her eyes after I told her not to while she was goopy.
I've spent the last week or so buried in the Twilight series. I am so hooked! I'm currently working my way through #3 and I'm fortunate AudioDad doesn't seem to mind that I've constantly got a book in hand lately.
We finally also got to have our very good friends over for dinner after several months of not seeing each other. Munch was on her very best behavior and made my friend a lovely sticker bracelet. Dinner was so yummy- roast chicken (my very favorite) and buttermilk mashed potatoes. Dessert was a simple fudgy brownie with some really addicting peanut butter cup ice cream. I think it's calling my name right now...
Big news! We finally purchased Munch's new bed. She'll be switching from her converted crib/toddler bed this weekend to a twin. I've been giving away most of her baby stuff to anyone who'll take it-the stroller, the infant car seat, and I've got the crib promised to some neighbors down the street. But I have to admit, there's something about giving away the crib leaving that feels so final (in terms of expanding our family, or not)- and I'm having a harder time with it than I expected. Anyways, watch for pics of the new big-girl bed next week!

Short and Sweet

Munch.
Pink-eye.
Yuck!

Thank goodness AudioDad's staying home with her tomorrow!

Responsibility

As a teacher, I try to instill in the children I work with an appropriate level of responsibility. Show your best effort, clean up after yourself, take care of your belongings, etc. I often have to remind my students that they, not their parents, forgot their homework, or jacket, or backpack. So I was especially gratified to hear Munch say in the car yesterday, "Oh no, Mom! You forgot to..no, wait..I forgot to brush my teeth!"
For three-years old, we're off to a good start!

Going Undercover...

I've been going back and forth since the creation of this blog regarding the use of aliases for my family. Early on, when I had an audience I could count on one hand, who knew us really well, and I didn't really know how long I might stick with it, it seemed a little contrived. Also, I wasn't feeling creative enough to come up with good nicknames. But I've definitely been considering it on and off. And I've always used initials for other children, whether family or friends, to give them some anonymity. A recent discussion on the Mom Bloggers Club, in which moms discussed privacy (and potential embarrassment), fear of online predators, and the very real possibility of schools and employers doing searches on various family members in the future validated many of my concerns. I've finally decided that the little time it would take to edit past posts is worth it in the long run, allowing me to just put this issue behind me. The little one also has chosen her own favorite nickname- "Munch", short for "Munchkin", but also quite fitting given the name of the blog.

My Life as a SAHM

I consider myself really lucky to have the job that I do. Although teaching kindergartners takes quite a bit of energy and patience (both of which I somehow have to dredge up reserves for when I start my afternoons with Munch), it allows me a good amount of time to spend with her. I know how quickly the time goes, so I try to make every minute count. Even our commute hours in the car are great opportunities to chat, play games, sing songs, and tell stories.
I've been home this week-Spring Break- and as usual, I've been busier than ever. Today was especially jam-packed. We started our morning with a tour of the Jelly Belly factory-

she loved seeing the Jelly Belly Volkswagen Beetle- the Beetle's her current favorite car and she loves trying to spot them on the road.

They were having a Mrs. Grossman Sticker Day, so we purchased a couple of assorted packets to do a little sticker art-

After lunch, a short workout, and a quick game of Mario Kart-

we headed to the library. It was Munch's first visit and they were having a special wildlife presentation. She got a front row seat for seeing some beautiful animals. Her favorite was the porcupine-


we also made sure to walk around the duck pond after checking out our books-

Once we got back to the house it was snack & project time. I decided to combine the two after Munch's interest in Purplicious and seeing the way pink and blue made purple at the end of the story.
We read the story, Mouse Paint, and I mixed up a small batch of white frosting. After dividing it into 3 bowls, we added a few drops of red, yellow, and blue food coloring to each.

Then we chose different pairs to discover what new secondary color they created.


Munch spread her colored icing on vanilla cookies to enjoy with some nice, cold milk.

Now, she's busy making imaginary cookies while I blog and get dinner together. I know I'll be pooped later, but what a fun day- I feel like we got good quality time with a lot of learning built in.