Spring Sprung Snowy & Super Slow

Here in the Northern Black Hills we have a cyclic system of springs. They can be snowy, super snowy with multiple blizzards, rainy, super rainy with floods, or super hot with temps in the mid 80s sure to be a super fiery summer to follow. Rarely do we get mild. Most spring soccer games are cancelled and most tball/baseball games are rained out. Some years the fields are under a foot of snow or a few feet of water at the start of the seasons. The past few years have been as follows.....

 2008...super rainy & flooded,
 2009...super snowy with 3 blizzards in 2 weeks,
 2010... a bit rainy, not too bad, some great storms,
 2011....super rainy, flooded out the last day of school,
 2012... super hot, 80-90* days in March, extrremely hot, dry summer followed with TONS of fires,
 2013.... snowy, only one blizzard, slowly sprung spring into moderate rain, nothing extreme in any way.


In theory, 2014 should be another flood year??



Here are some wacky weather pictures......

It was warm for a week and we played in the dirt and mud. Jake ate lots of it....

Playing Some Catch

Then we got a great blizzard in April. We were excited. We hadn't had a good blizzard for a couple years.

In the "calm before the storm" we went on our first family bike ride and played outside until the clouds rolled in....

Putting the baby seat on for the first time in 4 kids

getting strapped in

Here we go...

Backs back up for the impending blizzard...

I like walking with these now (11mo)

Here it comes.....

Let's make Chex Mix and watch a movie while the storm rolls in :)

It started slow with freezing rain...

Then the flakes flew....

Jake scraping the window

Jake's 1st Blizzard

Wayne used his snowblower toy.....

I am not sure how this truck plows through the snow, but I felt bad for them!

We jumped off the deck into drifts......

Wayne snowbombed me after a shower and new warm clothes.....RUDE!!!

Andy wanted the camera for a little bit..... I think I was set up!!

We made a snowman and a snow fort.....

The boys went sledding down the hill out back.....

And of course I walked around taking fun pictures. Check out SNOWMEGGEDON SD 2013 entire post HERE

I LOVE this one. It's Zach looking out the window at me taking his picture through the window & he only shows up in my reflection.

Mark & Jenn's in Gillette

Mark & Jenn's in Gillette

Spearfish High School

We also made our first batch of SNOW ICE CREAM!!!! There is a post with the recipe HERE...  

 Easter.......

 We have stayed home for Easter for the past 7 years. We went to Holdrege for Andy's 1st Easter in 2005 and about didn't make it accross "The Table" between Alliance & Chadron through a blizzard. I got chewed out for making Wayne go. Then in 2006 we went to Hot Springs for Easter and made it home hours before a thunderstorm that turned int a HUGE blizzard (you know they are going to be good when they start with a thunderstorm!). One year we had an "Egg Drive Through" at our church instead of an egg hunt due to snow, they began the egg scoops indoors after that. Most other years we have had at least 6" of snow in the Spearfish City Park for egg hunts. This year the city hunt in Belle was bombarded with freezing temps and sleet. We have learned Easter is a good time to be close to home. We had devised a routine and traditions that we enjoy and always invite our families up. Usually it ends up just us.... nice & fun as well.


There's egg dying.....

We do our church's egg "scoop" hunt on Saturday. Age 4 and under are upstairs and 5 and up are downstairs. They get TONS of eggs overflowing their bags and baskets, then we all have fun emptying the eggs into candy bags, leaving behind the eggs for next year. We love it as then we don't have to store the eggs or worry about wasting them to the trash. It is often our big debut back to church after wrestling season too. It's great to see everyone and we all have fun.

Sunday we prep our food, then go to church, being sure not to linger too long as one year the food got too dry. We almost always have ham, cheesy potatoes, mushroom rice, green bean casserole, rolls, cranberry sauce, deviled eggs & pie. YUM!!!!

Easter Lace Cards while we wait for Dinner

A Happy Easter Picture from Maddie & Megan

This year we had brisket, mmmm. 

1st Easter Dinner

Cleaned my plate

The boys find the Easter Bunny's eggs usually before church. They each have their own area of the backyard. The first year here it was too snowy and the yard was still mud instead of grass, so they each had an area in the house. The first year in the backyard the EB left their areas roped off with color coordinated easter caution like tape. Andy blue of course, Zach green of course, and Lukie had yellow because he didn't have orange. Their areas stay the same every year. Andy gets under the deck amongst the tikes toys, Zach on and around the playground, Luke in the yard between the playground and the garden, and Jakers on the deck. This Year is was too wet and the forecast called for rain and snow so the EB left Andy's eggs in the kitchen.....

 Zach's eggs in the living room.....

 Luke's in the dining room......

 and Jake's on his toys between the living room and kitchen .....

I made silly faces when I ate the jelly beans

They were sweet tart jelly beans ;)

The EB leaves the same amount of eggs with the same contents for each boy, plus a nice Easter basket full of stuff. The eggs have jellybeans (bunny poop), money, socks, putty, squishy animals and sometimes chalk.The basket itself is usually a new hamper or trash can, or other useful container. He puts something science-esk inside to do or try, something fun, something to read (usually Kohls Cares for Kids book & creature), and something yummy to eat. Our "Gaurdians" like to follow the 4 gift rule and of an educational and useful purpose.

This year the boys got a candy item, new chopsticks, new big fun erasers for school, a Kohls creature, bug jars and bug nets, ear buds & a fun Easter straw to use at Easter dinner. They also got their squishy creature, socks, putty, candy and money in their eggs.




We also had to get new Easter egg collecting buckets this year as some of ours were from 2004!!! Others 2007 & 2008. After some searching around, I got large hard plastic buckets for $5 each at WalMart. I could have waited until after season and gotten them cheaper, but we needed them now. I did not like the small cute fabric ones because although they were cute, they held all of 6 eggs and if you bent over, they dumped. There were many choices, but most presented with the same two issues....small and/or dumped easy. I normally don't like to get character things either but there weren't many choices. I did get 4 different character ones and each were in an interest area of the boys' except I would have liked more of a dinosaur or alligator or shark type theme for Zach. He seemed okay with his Spiderman one though. Next time I need to buy new ones, I plan to get color coordinated 5 gallon buckets and have them either paint them or put stickers on them.

 The cost per kid for all things Easter was less than $25 including the eggs, the fillers, the baskets, the buckets, the contents of the baskets and the eggs and dye. We spent about $100 including the food for Easter dinner, excluding the meat as we buy that by the 1/2 animal (1/2 cow or 1/2 pig) and I don't itemize the cost of it out. I was highly impressed with myself on this. Wayne grumbled a bit, but he always does. He would spend $20-25 total tops on absolutely everything child related if he could. I thought $20-25 per kid was pretty good and would love to hear others' ideas, agendas & spendings.





Zach lost his tooth the night before Easter and had 2 "Gaurdians" visit in one night!!!

When Zach finds a loose tooth,
 he will get it out that day, ready or not!

One of my two front teeth.

Jake got tubes in his ears (April 1st).....

I will get this off you know

Another day, another Dr

what. is. that?

okay, I don't think so

well.... if you are going to give me a toy

Nope, not fun anymore

Ready to go back. :(

1st surgery

waiting in the lobby

Spearfish is pretty good about giving kid patients a stuffed animal.

When we got home the boys & Grandma T had an April Fools Day joke for us..... they all had mustaches!!!! 

Jakers Masters Stairs.....

Faculty vs. Senior Basketball Game...

Referee Kevin O'Dae

Here come the seniors...

Faculty/Staff

Senior Huddle

Faculty/Staff Huddle

The goal is always to get the wrestling coach to make a basket. They tried and tried but it didn't happen this year. ;) When they announced the players, Wayne went to "bump" JD and body slammed him, laying him out entirely. Grubb announced the first injury ;) There was a senior who caught a bad elbow and bleed all over though. It was fun to watch and the faculty/staff won as usual.



Boston Marathon Bombing.....

I have been working for the past couple of years to get back into running. Some of you may not know, but I was a track and cross country runner in my younger years. I vowed when I had my last baby, it was time to get back on the horse. I did my first 5k pushing 7 week old Jake in a stroller on July 4th, 2012. I have since finished many 5ks, a couple 2 mile races, a 10k and am doing my first Volksmarch this fall. I have not met my running time or pace goals yet by any means, but each time I get out there, I am one step closer and it feels great. With that said, I do consider myself a member of the running community. I am a runner. One of my friends, who also is our babysitter, and her husband, are hard core runners. They have ran in Boston before and often do marathons, Chris even does 100 mile races!! I went to pick up Jake who happened to be at their house that day and she was a bit frazzled, responding to texts and calls from friends and family making sure she was okay and wasn't there or hadn't heard of a friend being in the carnage. I felt so helpless toward her and everyone involved. It gave me chills then, and even now as I write this thinking back. 

Wednesday April 17th was "Run for Boston" day.
 I participated meekly from home by running up the stairs a few times ;)

Tonsager Spring Reunion in Rapid.....

MARK!!!

TONSAGERS 2013

May Day......

The boys chewed me out for putting who it was from, but I wanted it known darn it, that was some time and money!

No one caught them and kissed them. Few!

Shellhammers Move......

On May 3rd our neighbors of 4 years who had been our closest friends and the boys' first Belle friends, moved to Olathe, KS. We hadn't been as close their past few months here, but we wanted to send them off with good memories from our years together, so we made going away gifts for them and had them over to say good-bye. 


Some of our first memories together...

We gave Lexi & AJ the pictures of our first memories together and wrote good-bye notes on the back. We also gave them sucker bouquets and "happy trails mix" for the road. We gave Tracy a photo book of all our murder mystery parties and a card. It has been quite different since they left.

Cinco De Mayo......

Homemade Taco Seasoning

Homemade Mexi Rolls

They turned out good, but didn't taste like Taco John's which is what I was going for.

Cream Cheese Sopa Pilla Bake

This is one of my favorite desserts.

YUMMM!!!

Happy Cinco de Mayo

Another Family Bike Ride.....

Wayne's saddle bag he used to take his computer into the Young Center with can carry a gallon jug of water and a picnic for six!!!

Cranberry Almond Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Ranch Ramen Noodles & Melon Ball Salad

Zach's bike chain kept coming off making it a very slow going ride for him an dad :(

We also bought a bike hauler for the van. Unfortunately the biggest we could find was a 3 bike, but we have used the heck out of it this summer.

Kandi starts Subbing at the Schools....

And interviewing....

My 1st interview was in Gillette at Hillsview Elementary where I had been offered a job years ago and tuned down for Belle (hindsight says wtf were we thinking, we didn't stay in the same district anyway). The principal there is young and fun and remembered me. The position was for Junior Kindergarten, a dream job for me. I later learned from a relative of someone on my hiring board that they had planned on hiring their student teacher all along (This is the only specific classroom training you can get as a teacher and only makes sense. Most teachers end up hired by the school they did their student teaching in. Wayne & I both did.), however when I interviewed I made them second guess and almost change their mind, yay me. This was a possible life changing event for us. We prayed hard about it, for guidance in where our paths should go from where we were. We had been looking at moving to Gillette for a number of years. We decided this was it, now or never, fate be with Mr. Winter. When I didn't get the job we decided it wasn't meant to be and focused back on Belle but didn't keep our eggs all in one basket (good thing). 

Next was my Kindergarten/Elementary Ed interview in Belle. I knew everyone on my hiring board. I had a great time at the interview, it felt like a friendly gathering where we swapped stories and had many laughs. We heard all over town how great I interviewed and how going in I was pegged for a spot already and coming out it was decided upon which one as I walked out the door. It was rumored to be a K spot until I spoke of my experience in a self contained classroom in Sped, something they were going to try next year. They decided I would be a perfect fit fo that classrroom and I said I would not be opposed. We were excited at this and happy to be in the same district with the same schedule for everyone and not having to move, pull up roots, leave the house we picked as a hole in the ground and made our own, picking all the interiors and sculpting the landscaping with our bare hands. 

Then poo hit the fan. I didn't get a phone call in the time period they had assured me I would. When I called to check up one administrator passed me off to the next. I was made to interview again and it was said just as a formality, I was already pegged for the job. Then at the end of the interview, which again I knew everyone at and had gone extremely well and fun, I learned that the administration had had a "miscommunication" and one had hired student teachers thinking the other had hired me and he had already hired that spot thinking he wouldn't find anyone else not knowing I was supposed to get it. It spread through town like wildfire and even today we get condolences for how we were "screwed over" as most put it. It was very frustrating for sure. Thank goodness there were still jobs out there. Not many though, it was already the week before Memorial Day.....

Newell called in the mean time and I had interviewed there. I had handed them a folder with my resume at the teacher job fair at BHSU back in March. I honestly was surprised to hear from them as I never formally applied and hadn't ever heard back from purely a resume at a job fair without a further filled out online app. The position was for Birth - Fourth grade Special Education. I would have between 20-30 kids on my case load, do home visits, Early Intervention & Resource for k-4. While some of this was very appealing to me, I felt I would never have any actual teaching time and be doing an extreme amount of paper pushing. It was also a 25 minute drive with good weather and clear roads. I had never been there before and it was a pretty drive, but a shabby road I feared in winter weather. The school and the interview, which did also go well, just didn't feel right and was a turn off from the start. I was offered the position in less than 24 hours. In the mean time, I was called by Spearfish....

Bustling Town of Newell

Spearfish had actually called for an interview time before I had heard back from Belle. I about didn't take it because I was getting tired of interviewing and had already been promised a job where I thought I wanted to be. I did hear back from Belle before the interview though and was very glad I hadn't turned it down. Wayne had now applied and gotten interview times in Gillette (and possibly Sheridan before revoking apps). We had started to collect boxes and planned to move on. 
Then came Friday and my Spearfish interview. When I drove over there was a storm building with perfect form. I parked and no sooner got inside when it started up. Thunder, lightning, rain and hail, the whole shebang. My interview was delayed because Mr. S. just had to make sure every child was safe and picked up. I respected this greatly. I have had some less than enthusiastically involved administration in my past and to see how much he wanted to make sure everything went smoothly and everyone was okay himself was very respectable and assuring that he was great at what he does. While he did this, the Sped director, Early Intervention teacher and I looked up the radar and watched the excitement. We spoke student teaching and mutual friends. This interview went well too.... what can I say, I DO interview well, they don't bother me. It's fun to talk about yourself and your philosophy. ;) 

After my interview I headed to WalMart for a couple things and the storm caught up to me again.

WalMart had a display of umbrellas near the door on a stormy day. Well Played.

no one wanted to go outside and clustered in the entry way for another round of hail

 

Wayne and I had discussed what to say upon a call back as we were again faced with a move or not to move decision  We had decided to say we needed a day to discuss, we would call back Monday. Wayne was to leave for "Camp T" (for testosterone) out of cell service for 36 hours with "the guys". I got a call and an offer for the job right before he left. I couldn't decipher his lip movements and stuck with the call back. The Sped director sounded nervous at this and Wayne and I quickly spoke when I hung up as he jumped up and down like a little kid. The job was for Kindergarten Resource Room. I quickly called her back and accepted the job. Wayne pulled all his WY apps and cancelled his interview in Gillette for a 7th grade split school position he didn't like the sounds of. It has been an amazing and busy adventure ever since. It feels like a great fit and is helping me to clean out my basement of all my preschool stuff. It's an amazing group of old and new faces. The building has been renovated just for us and it will be the first year of all day kindergarten and I will be the first ever K resource teacher. I get to pave the way and create the wheel. Our nervous motto has become, "you can't mess up what hasn't been done before". What a wonderful journey. I feel we have been led down this path for reasons and can't wait to see what lies ahead. 

This Little Booger Made it be Known he didn't like it that I was subbing and interviewing & cried the ENTIRE 5 hours he was at daycare the first time!

Over Mother's day weekend we headed across the state for a surprise party and to visit family. Jake let us know how he felt about the car. It brought back memories of Zach but not quit at his octave. There are some cool things to see along the way and we stopped at ToysRus on the way home....

packing for 6 for a weekend

Missouri River, we are now in "East River SD"

Hold your breath the whole way across

This could have been bad. Jakers!

There was a reason we stopped. Can't remember though. The boys had a blast in there.

Visiting Great G&G Feterl.....

Visiting Great G&G Tonsager....

Dust Devils all over all weekend...

Cousins....

Ken & Gayle's 39th Surprise Anniversary Party......

Look at how we all look alike!!!!

Jenn & Wayne

Megan

Mother's Day.....

Luke & Jake made me a flower pot, Zach got me a flower he grew himself & Andy wrote me a sweet poem. Love my boys!

Wayne got me a Kindle Fire for mother's day! Once in a while he does awesome :)

I wanted Guadalajaras for Mother's Day Dinner.

We had a trampoline for all of 6 days. We had the shop guys at the school make us some anchors to be done on Monday when we were back from SuFu. On the way out to SuFu we get an alert from weatheunderground saying there could be wind gusts. For some reason I screen shot it and about 20 minutes later we get a call saying our trampoline had hovered up in the air like a UFO, cleared the fence, hit the neighbors deck, turned on it's side and rolled down the street and half a mile away to a field. GRRRRRRRR!!! We are hours away at this point and had to make phone calls all over town to see if friends and neighbors could help track it down and return it to our yard and anchor it. We were so disappointed. It was demolished. I've been collecting pieces of used tramps ever since. 

Jake turns ONE   (Full post HERE)......

Hungry Caterpillar Party.....

Sign In Table with autograph caterpillar, maternity & baby books, skittles jar with 1 candle, Guess how Many Caterpillars & a basket full of bug finding tools (and some random other stuff I didn't notice the boys had sat there).

Food buffet with food from the book. 

More book food & a caterpillar cupcake cake. A few unfrosted for my non sugar boys & the head was Jake's cake & was supposed to have red frosting but as I went to put it on I noticed it had soy in it..... no go, bday boy is allergic :(  It made clean up a little easier though. 

We made a handprint caterpillar poster for Jake's door. Then we decorated bug catchers with foam sticker bugs & had a plastic bug hunt. There was also fruit to throw in the Hungry Caterpillar's mouth & eyes & a "sticky table" with contact paper & various sized lids & googly eyes to build caterpillars on. 

Cake Smash!!

Presents...

Andy won the guess the caterpillars game & got the gummie worms which he shared.

Camp T.......

The male teachers of the High School, or really of the district, decided to revive an old tradition called "Camp T" (for testosterone). Basically all the men go on a camping trip one weekend and bach it up. It sounds fun and boinding and comrodery forming and the like. Last year was year one revived, but I had Jake and Wayne missed. This year he was the only one to miss driving through the following storm just by good timing and luck. They stayed in a cabin by Nemo and ate good food and drank and lord knows what else. I head something about mt lion eyes in a tree with a voice box. Whatever the case, I guess it was Epic. 


















Hail Storm May 18th

2nd Grade end of year program.....

Kindergarten end of year program.....

Miss Marcie

Zach & his pal "Boxtin"

Zach & his Buddy Isaac

Zach & Mrs. Goodwin

Lil' Broncs End of year fun....

On the last day of school I picked up all the boys and took them for Pizza Hut Buffett. I also had the neighbor's son as she went into labor! People looked at me like I was crazy for taking 5 boys, two in high chairs, but you make it work or you miss out is the way I look at it. We had lots of fun. 



Last Day of School  (full post HERE)........

And here comes SUMMER BUSY!!!!!