head> Happy Hayes Family: August 2007

Happy Hayes Family

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Second Day Of School

Andrew's second day of school, and the transportation issues of yesterday seem to be resolved. It took more phone calls, but I think we have it straightened out now. I knew everything was OK, when Monica gave me a thumbs up sign as she rounded the corner to our house.

He was so excited to go to school today! He was hungry early, so he ended up having lunch around 10:30 this morning. What started as a snack evolved into lunch. He was one little sweat-ball when he got off the hotbox they call a bus. He had a snack then, ate supper, and then fell asleep on the way to church, which means he was asleep by 6:15. He slept through church (on a couch in the foyer), through a rainy walk to the van, through a rainy walk into the house, and straight to bed. Poor little Noodle! I had him out late last night doing our weekly grocery shopping and errands, so I think he's set for the night - making up for lost naps and a late night!



The new backpack we bought last night.
The Thomas backpack he had yesterday
wasn't big enough for his daily folder. He's
loaded down with a box of snacks and
some supplies for the classroom.


Little boy/Big backpack!


Too busy to look at the camera!


Here comes the bus - this time Andrew's on it!


Monica helping Andrew down the big stairs.
posted by Robin Hayes, 8:17 PM | link | 6 comments |

More About My Cousin, Losha

Losha is my new cousin. I got permission to post a link that explains about his adoption and a little bit about who he is. We are getting to know him and love having a new cousin in the family! You'll notice that his name is spelled "Lyosha" on the website, but he prefers to spell it "Losha."

P.S. Losha is already living with the Fosters - the information on the link does not reflect that.
posted by Robin Hayes, 7:01 AM | link | 0 comments |

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Andrew's First Day Of School Part 2

After some misunderstandings and mis communications, Andrew is home. The shuttle bus driver (from Stillman to MC) didn't think that Andrew was supposed to be on her bus, so she pulled him away from his bus buddies and sent him with an aide to figure out where he was supposed to go. The MC school tried both my phones, but I was standing outside with video and digital camera poised to take footage of him arriving home on his first day so I missed both calls. They also tried to call my mom, and were finally able to get a hold of Chris. By this time, the bus was in front of my house with no Andrew. We quickly figured out where he was, and I had sent Steven inside to get the house phone, which was ringing with Chris on the other end. Chris had told the school that I would come get Andrew, which I did. The Joeys (Nick & Joe) were VERY upset, and so was their mom. Nick and Joe were upset, because they knew where he was supposed to go, but were not able to take him there. Their mom was upset, as any mom would have been, because no one knew where Andrew was. I discovered after we got home that Andrew had a sticker on his back stating what his buses were, but it was obscured by his backpack. In the end though - he is home safe and sound, and I'll just have to get "off the bus" pictures tomorrow. The second bus driver (where Andrew was supposed to be) got on her radio and found him at the same time I was finding out what to do from Chris. She's a really nice lady - a mom of five, a veteran bus driver, and a friend. Hopefully tomorrow we'll be able to straighten everything out. There's always bumps on the first day - especially when you're dealing with such little kids!
posted by Robin Hayes, 3:50 PM | link | 0 comments |

Andrew's First Day Of School


Cheesy Boy!


Silly Boy!


Not so sure...


Finally, the bus is here!


Big Boy!

Well - it's official - Andrew got on the school bus around 12:45pm today. And I didn't even cry! The bus was about 45 minutes late, so I had other stress competing with the emotional stuff. Did we miss it? Did Shelly skip his stop, since the older boys aren't riding the bus this year? Am I going to have to take him to school today? A phone call to the bus garage, and then later to the office...and then there it was. Andrew was acting like he wasn't going to get on the bus, until it came around the block, and then he was ready. He was a little confused that I wasn't going to ride the bus too, but he didn't cry - at least while I was looking on!

He has been obsessed with penguins lately. We saw penguins at the zoo in Omaha, and there is a Wonder Pets episode that has penguins in it. He keeps saying that he wants to go see penguins. While we were waiting for the bus to come, he wanted to talk to Dad, so we called Chris. “I go on the bus. I see penguins. Bye, Dad!”
posted by Robin Hayes, 12:15 PM | link | 7 comments |

Monday, August 20, 2007

Andrew's Latest Quotes

Chris: "Do you want to go to the zoo?"

Andrew: "No, I want animals!"



Chris: "Are you hungry, Andrew?"

Andrew: "No, I want to eat!"



Andrew: "I make it quiet."

(He goes and turns off the lights).
posted by Robin Hayes, 7:33 PM | link | 2 comments |

Andrew's first day of school is tomorrow

This Mama is full of emotion tonight as we anticipate Andrew starting school tomorrow. It is not going exactly according to my plans, but I know that my Heavenly Father knows what is best for our schedule and for Andrew. We had a parent orientation this evening, and I expressed my concerns to the teacher. We are going to try it out and see how it goes. He will be going to the afternoon session of Early Childhood class and riding the big yellow school bus all the way to Stillman Valley. Coming home he will have the neighbor boys, Nick and Joe, as bus buddies. Andrew calls them "the Joeys," which I think is very cute. They will get off one stop before Andrew, so all should go well, even with a bus transfer. I have a lot of trusting and praying I have to do here! My "big picture" vision is blocked at the moment. I'm sure everything will work its way out in the next couple of weeks, but this is a big step for me. When we sent Steven and Ryan to Pre-K, they were each already four years old, and they just had to go to the school here in Monroe Center. Andrew is only three and still takes an afternoon nap, in addition to the fact that the school district has moved all EC and Pre-K classes over to the grade school in Stillman Valley.

Here are some pictures of Andrew getting acquainted with his classroom.



posted by Robin Hayes, 6:50 PM | link | 3 comments |

Summer Time Pleasure

Corn on the cob is one of the sweet pleasures of summer!









Even Andrew tried it! And ate a few bites, too!
posted by Robin Hayes, 6:44 PM | link | 1 comments |

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Cousins Squished on the Couch



I have a thing I like to do - any time we have a bunch of cousins together, I like to get a "cousins squished on the couch" picture taken. The last Saturday in July, we had some family over, and got our first "cousins" picture with Losha in it.
posted by Robin Hayes, 6:35 PM | link | 0 comments |

Friday, August 17, 2007

Family Reunion


Clarinda, Iowa


Omaha, Nebraska







This last weekend we were attended a family reunion in Clarinda, Iowa. Following the two-day reunion, we spent some time in Omaha, Nebraska going to the zoo and visiting a family friend with my parents.

The family reunion was fun - we got to spend lots of time with family, and I tried to get better acquainted with relatives that I don't know very well, if at all. My parents hosted the reunion this time around, so they were very involved. They brought along my cousins, Clara and Kelly, to help out.

Chris, Steven, and Ryan visited the Omaha Zoo last year on their big vacation, and they liked it so much that we went back so that Andrew and I could see it too. We got there fairly early in the morning, and were able to see an IMAX movie and many of the exhibits before we met up with my parents. We went through the Desert Dome, the nocturnal animal exhibit, and the aquarium with them. Then we all went to eat dinner with Valeta at the assisted living facility where she lives. Valeta and her husband, Ross, who passed away last year, are very special to my parents, as they were instrumental in my parents getting together in the first place. Valeta is a very special lady, and we had a very nice evening with her. We were able to spend a little more time the next morning with her, before we left for home. On the way home, we stopped at a model train museum in Iowa, which was very cool.

All in all, it was a very nice trip.
posted by Robin Hayes, 9:25 PM | link | 0 comments |

My Visit With Val


My cousin, Val, came to Illinois for the second half of July. Ahhh, the bliss of two whole weeks of cousin time. Val was here to interview our Grandma Marian to obtain her oral history. Val is working on her senior thesis. I know that she has wanted to interview Grandma Marian for a LONG time, and it finally came to fruition.

Val stayed with us, so we had our mornings together before she left to go interview Grandpa and Grandma Marian. We spent the time drinking coffee, checking e-mail, writing blog entries, and chit-chatting, while sitting across from each other at the dining room table with our laptops. Val even IMed me once to be silly. I wish I had a picture of that, but it became so normal that I didn't even think about needing a picture of it.

I am so thankful for the time I was able to spend with her, and was very sad to have her leave. We were buoyed by the fact the two weeks after her departure, we would see each other again at a family reunion. Well, we saw each other this past weekend at our family reunion, but that time drew too quickly to a close, and now we have parted ways indefinitely. But we have gmail, IM, and blogging to keep in touch, so we will have to be diligent about it. We have IMed several times this week, and hit and miss a few more times. Not too shabby! I miss ya, Girl!

Val fit in so well with our family. She bonded with my kids and gave Andrew a cute nickname. She knew where to step in and help out instinctively, and just did it. She wasn't irritated or put off by the boys. Hopefully the futon was comfortable enough for her, and she'll want to come back again some day. We had fun celebrating her birthday, and enjoyed a number of family meals with my parents and our grandparents. Val's younger brother, Jon, came in from the suburbs six times, I think, while she was here. I even got to play "Hand & Foot" (a card game) for the second time this year. The last night Val was here, Jon came out to have dinner and pick her up. Somehow we ended up discussing games, and Jon was up for a game of "Hand & Foot." The last few years, I've only played the game once each summer when we are in Minnesota with Chris' aunt and grandma, so I was super excited. We played, which took quite a while, and then we ended up chatting for quite a while after that, and then we did the whole Minnesota good-bye for another while.

I think that Val and I forged a very deep bond as adults. We've had limited opportunities to spend extended periods of time together, so this was really special. It's impossible to put into words what Val's time here means to me, but let's just say that it was great, memorable, thought-provoking, and fun.

I appreciate you, Val, and hope you can come back again soon! I know, I know...come back as soon as you can!

P.S. Did I mention that she's making TWO quilts for me? She had started the first one before she came, and then she came up with the second one while she was shopping in a big quilt store in the Chicago area. In the time between her visit and the family reunion she put together the two quilt tops - one for my bed and one for a throw. They are both beautiful and have PURPLE in them, which happens to be my favorite color, and I think that Val is pretty fond of it too! When we arrived at the hotel in Iowa for the reunion, she met me in the lobby and took me to her room where she had both quilts laid out on the bed. It was so cute and such a surprise. She had e-mailed me pictures of the one as she was working on it, but the progress on the second one was a total shock.
posted by Robin Hayes, 6:12 PM | link | 1 comments |