Swimming, S'mores and Wii

Today was the first day I left the girls home alone while I went to work.  I told Cotton to keep an eye on them ... and he did a good job :)

This morning I left the house at 9:30 to take the Prius to be tinted.  Gullo was nice enough to give me a loaner so I could run some errands while I waited.  

Errand 1: Get Rx refill at doctor.  OMG.  My beloved doctor left the Conroe Wellness Center.  The doctor that is (hopefully) temporary was HORRIBLE.  I'm not even sure she was breathing!  It took her at least a minute to produce "How can I help you?"  She stared at me like I was sprouting horns.  

Errand 2: Run up to school to print some paperwork for my ARD meeting.  I printed my paperwork and then helped Sara hook up her teacher computer and chatted for a few minutes.  The parent who I was meeting at another school at 1:00 texted to say her electricity was off and couldn't get her car out of her garage.  So I ran over there to pick her and the kids up and drive them to BWE for an ARD.  The ARD was painless ... I wish all ARDs were as easy as that one :)  

Errand 3: Go get the girls and drive them to Driver's Ed.

Errand 4: Go pick up the Prius and pick up prescription.  Easier said than done!  It started POURING down rain and lightening like crazy!  The guy at Gullo was nice enough to pull my car around so I wouldn't get wet!  How sweet!  I had to wait in the drive thru at Walgreens for 45 minutes!!!  Silliness!

Errand 5: Go pick up the girls from Driver's Ed.

After Driver's Ed we went over to a teacher friend's house for dinner.  She wanted my help on her school website and connecting to VPN.  So we had a fantastic dinner (fajitas) and then the girls swam while we worked for a bit.  The awesome thing was they planned on making S'mores for dessert ... and that was something on our "to do" list!  FUN!!!  After S'mores the girls went upstairs and played "Dance Dance" on the Wii.  MORE FUN!  

We are exhausted!  The first question Aline asked in the car "Can we sleep in tomorrow?"  The answer: YES!  

Tomorrow we will go up to my school to start on my room.  Before we go up to work we will eat breakfast at the Waffle House!  Hopefully we will make some progress on setting my room up!  

I start back to work on Monday.  On that note ... I'm going to bed ;P

Later ... zzzzzzzzz!

Procrastinating ...

Really it should have my name in the definition! My middle name is procrastinate. I procrastinate procrastinating :) So right now I should be finishing up some IEPs (Individual Education Plan) for an ARD meeting tomorrow. That's teacher talk for paperwork. We had a great day today! I SLEPT IN and so did the girls. Beth, Sara's mom, invited us to a tea party at her house. It was a lot of fun! There were a lot of girls there and it was fun watching all of the girls talk and giggle over Harry Styles and One Direction. They live on some land and have donkeys and chickens! Unfortunately I did not get any pictures but the girls did! Hopefully they will add them to our Shutterfly share site soon! After the tea party the girls attended driver's ed. While they were in class I went over to Sara's house to chat. When I picked up the girls from Driver's Ed we headed to ... can you guess? ... the mall! Emi wanted to get her ears pierced! After getting her Mom's permission we went to get it done! I couldn't believe how many people were at the mall to get their ears pierced. Three people went before her! One little girl was so nervous she cried waiting in line :( Poor thing! She wanted to get her ears pierced so badly but was so scared. I ended up leaving the girls at the mall for 45 minutes to help Terry buy an iPhone at Verizon. She "needs" a smart phone so she can use a free international texting app to keep in touch with her son who is in New Zealand for a year. When I came back to get the girls they discovered Forever 21 has a second floor! So they want to go back soon to explore the 2nd floor :) Now ... well ... I should probably wrap this up and finish up my work. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day for me! The girls are going to stay home for part of the day while I go to a few meetings. Hopefully Cotton keeps them company!!! Until then ... LATER! :) Jen

Procrastinating ...

Really it should have my name in the definition!  My middle name is procrastinate.  I procrastinate procrastinating :)

So right now I should be finishing up some IEPs (Individual Education Plan) for an ARD meeting tomorrow.  That's teacher talk for paperwork.  

We had a great day today!  I SLEPT IN and so did the girls.  

Beth, Sara's mom, invited us to a tea party at her house.  It was a lot of fun!  There were a lot of girls there and it was fun watching all of the girls talk and giggle over Harry Styles and One Direction.  They live on some land and have donkeys and chickens!  Unfortunately I did not get any pictures but the girls did!  Hopefully they will add them to our Shutterfly share site soon!  

After the tea party the girls attended driver's ed.  While they were in class I went over to Sara's house to chat.  

When I picked up the girls from Driver's Ed we headed to ... can you guess? ... the mall!  Emi wanted to get her ears pierced!  After getting her Mom's permission we went to get it done!  I couldn't believe how many people were at the mall to get their ears pierced.  Three people went before her!  One little girl was so nervous she cried waiting in line :(  Poor thing!  She wanted to get her ears pierced so badly but was so scared.  

I ended up leaving the girls at the mall for 45 minutes to help Terry buy an iPhone at Verizon.  She "needs" a smart phone so she can use a free international texting app to keep in touch with her son who is in New Zealand for a year.  When I came back to get the girls they discovered Forever 21 has a second floor!  So they want to go back soon to explore the 2nd floor :)

Now ... well ... I should probably wrap this up and finish up my work.  Tomorrow is going to be a busy day for me!  The girls are going to stay home for part of the day while I go to a few meetings.  Hopefully Cotton keeps them company!!!

Until then ... LATER!

:) Jen

Settling in ...

I didn't realize anyone would actually read this blog ... but I've heard from two people that I haven't blogged in days ;P  This is for my LOYAL followers!!!

Where do I start?  We have done SOO much in the last week!  

Here's a quick summary (of what I can remember, haha!)

Friday:

The girls attended "Camp Cavalier" at The Woodlands College Park.  I also attended my FIRST parent orientation.  The Woodlands College Park is a really nice school!  The principal was a great public speaker!  I think the girls will have a great school year!

Saturday:
Aline had to report to film her part in the music video.  Emi and I dropped her off and went to meet Sara and some friends at Starbucks.  We went back to see what Aline was up to and afterwards we braved tax free weekend and went to the mall.  We met up with Sara and her family and walked around with them for a bit.  Saturday evening we went to Terry's house for a pool party.  We had fajitas and ice cream cake!

Sunday:
Aline had to go back to the abandoned house set to film more of the music video.  It was HOT and about to start raining.  Emi and I sat in the AC with our new best buddy Peyton.  When Aline was finished we went home for a few minutes then back to Terry's house for left-over fajitas and more swimming!  We swam from 2:15 - 6:15!  We came home exhausted!

Monday:
Hmmm ... well I know the girls went to drivers ed!  We baked cookies before ... and ate at Genghis Grill after :)  LOVE Genghis Grill!

Tuesday:
WE GOT A NEW PRIUS!!!  Then drivers ed ... then we met up with Kristi and her boys at SK8 town.

TODAY:
We slept in!  That was nice!  We have been super busy lately, so it was nice to sleep in.  At 1:00 we had our first visit with our new IEC.  It was an experience.  We love Natasha so it was hard for someone else to come in.  We were lazy up until it was time for the girls to go to driver's ed.  When I got them there and headed home it started STORMING!  Luckily when I went back to get them the storm calmed down.  The fun part of the day ... we headed to Incredible Pizza for dinner and games!  We sat in the movie room and watched "Kung Fu Panda" while we ate.  The girls have never ate at a buffet before, so dinner was fun :)  We bowled, played mini golf, ice skated (one lap for me!) and played a variety of video games.

So now we are enjoying time on the couch relaxing with Cotton!  I need to synch my iPhone because I ran out of memory :)  I have way too many pictures and video!

Tomorrow we are attending a tea party then the girls have driver's ed.

OH, how can I forget???  Kristi sent us a "test reel" of Aline's music video!  It is amazing!  I can't wait until she's done to share it with everyone!

Hopefully I will be better at blogging in the near future :)  Every time I sit on the couch I start to fall asleep ... so once we get into a routine it will be easier!

Until then ... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz,
Jen

First Milestone

THEY PASSED!!!  Aline and Emi took their driver's permit tests in class tonight and they both passed!  I am so proud of them :)

We started this morning on our own with a quick "American" breakfast.  The girls made themselves cereal, fruit and pop-tarts.  We left the house around 8:50 for our 9:00 registration appointment at The Woodlands College Park.  Unfortunately we had to come back home because I didn't have the most recent health paperwork for Emi.  A quick call to EF and they emailed me what we needed and went back over to the school.  The nurse, registrar and both girls' counselors were super nice!  Both girls picked their classes.  They will have one class together first period.  It wasn't easy picking classes because their home school systems are so much different than ours.  In Germany and Japan they do not teach math the same way.  We separate each concept whereas they teach Algebra, Geometry, Calculus, etc. in one class and the levels progress as they age.

Emi is taking Fashion Design, Spanish and Basketball along with her core classes.  Aline is taking Photography, Psychology (first semester ... second will be a Nutrition/Cooking class) and Track along with her core classes.  There was a mention of Cross Country ... but she would have to be at school EARLY and let's just say I can't commit to getting her there that early.  So track it is :)

We met up with Sara, Toria and Gabe.  Our PLAN was to meet at Red Mango.  The girls and I got a sandwich from Pot Belly and then walked over to Red Mango.  Oops ... well ... it isn't there anymore.  So we walked over to Starbucks and ate our sandwiches outside while Toria and Gabe had smoothies and Sara her Starbucks.

After lunch we went to Vogel to check on my classroom and get my schedule.  There were a handful of people at school, so the girls got to meet a some of my teacher friends.  Telena had Grayson up at school so all three of us got to hold him!  He is a cutie!!!  We will go back up to Vogel in the coming week to set up my classroom.  This year ... I HAVE HELP :)

                

 

We came back home for about an hour (I fell asleep!) before I had to take them to Drivers Ed.  Aline said she was scared about taking the test.  I am so proud to say both Aline and Emi passed!  I know it must be difficult to "jump in" so soon after arriving, but they are both doing great.  We talked to their instructor and they are able to miss this Friday so they can attend "Camp Cavalier" at school.  They will need to make up that class September 13th.  We can do that!

I picked them up and took them straight to the Cynthia Mitchell Pavilion so they could attend The Jonas Brothers :)  Susan texted me yesterday and asked if they would like her 2 extra tickets for free :)  OF COURSE!  So as I type this they are hanging out at the concert.  Emi texted me to let me know they got their tickets and seats!  They will be TIRED tonight :)

I am thinking tomorrow will be a lazy day until they have driver's ed.  We have some stuff (like laundry) to do around the house ... so tomorrow will be a good day to stay home and get stuff done.

LATER :)
Jen

Sunday, Monday and Tuesday

Well ... I am just now settling in after three days of go-go-go :)

Here's a recap of the last few days!

Sunday:

• We had our first IHOP experience!  
• We shopped until we ... well, the mall closed :)
• For dinner I made chicken and plain quesadillas and served them with fresh avocado, salsa and chips.  It was a hit!

Monday: 

• The girls made their own fruit salad bowls for breakfast.
• We ventured to WALMART!  It was an adventure of many choices!
• We had sandwiches and Thai pasta salad for lunch.
• The girls had DRIVERS ED!  They were a bit overwhelmed with vocabulary, but were great sports!
• We drove to the Galleria area for Giorgia's 17th birthday dinner at Grand Cafe Lux.  It was a great time with a group of 13 or so of us.  
• We arrived home around 11:30PM from dinner and the girls crashed and went straight to bed.  Unfortunately this is when I found a drip-drip-drip coming from the ceiling.  The AC tray drain was clogged and overflowed.  Roy and Devin came over and blew the drain out.  It was a late night and in bed around 2AM.

Tuesday:

• We slept in!
• I made french toast and breakfast tacos.  It was a hit!
• We lounged around and were lazy until Drivers Ed :)
• The girls had their 2nd Drivers Ed class and felt more comfortable!  
• Susan Armstrong scored the girls 2 tickets to the Jonas Brothers for tomorrow night!  SWEET!
• We stopped at Randall's and picked up more bread and a few random items.
• For dinner I made spaghetti, salad and garlic bread.  For dessert we had chocolate chip cookie dough BLUE BELL ice cream!  
• We watched "13 going on 30"

I wanted to jot down a few notes before I fell asleep and forgot the details of the last few days.  It has been busy but fun!  The girls are so sweet and I enjoy spending time with them!  The best thing so far is enjoying the little things ... everyday things you take for granted.  

Tomorrow we register for HIGH SCHOOL.  Wish us luck :)

Jen

Arrival Day

That day we've all been waiting for ...

Both girls arrived Saturday August 3rd from Language and Culture camp.  Lynn drove me to the airport to ensure their luggage would fit and to offer moral support.  We waited outside of security and were able to greet them and walk with them to baggage claim.  Around 2:15 we became a family!

There were a handful of EF students on the same flight.  It was a fun experience watching everyone meet their families.  Unfortunately two girls did not enjoy the same experience as their host parents backed out on them that same morning.  That was sad!  Hopefully in the next few days they will be placed and can start their American dream.

When we pulled up to the house we could see balloons on the front step.  Along with the balloons were a flag and two bouquets of yellow roses from their "Texas Grandparents".  How incredibly sweet Sara and Shawn!  I didn't decorate anything inside - just had my banner at the airport and a few red, white and blue gifts.

On the way home I asked the girls if they were hungry.  Aline, not so much ... but Emi asked for Subway :)  We came home and Lynn helped us flip a coin to decide on bedrooms because online they both picked the same room.  The funny thing is ... Emi won the coin toss but ended up in the opposite room she had originally picked online.

After unpacking for a bit we went to Subway.  I always go through the line and ramble off what I want.  It was interesting to see how many choices and the vocabulary that is involved in making a Subway sandwich.

On the way home we stopped at a Redbox and rented "Identity Thief".  This was their first experience renting a movie out of a machine.  They thought it was pretty awesome :)

Cotton has been nosing around their half of the house trying to figure out what's what.  He's stuck pretty close to me, but is warming up to the girls.

Later when we put in the movie Emi fell asleep within 2 minutes.  Poor thing!  Aline and I watched the movie ... and Cotton snuggled with her for short periods of time!

OH ... how could I forget???  So the moment we walk into the house it is HOT.  82 or 83 degrees hot with all of the ceiling fans running.  WELCOME TO TEXAS ... WELCOME HOME girls, ugh.  Long story short my neglecting the filters caused the outside unit to freeze.  So we had to turn the AC off completely for a few hours to let it thaw.  Then turn it back on and wait for it to eventually cool down.  It got to 85 in here ... so uncomfortable!  Aline says their houses are warm in Germany because they don't have ceiling fans.  I feel so bad their first night was muggy and miserable.  We had a jumbo fan going in the living room.  I fell asleep out here and sometime around 3:00 relocated to my room where the temperature had fallen to 77.  Waking up this morning it was down to 74 ... now just to pick a temperature to program into the thermostat for the rest of the hot months.  What does everyone else set theirs at???

I'm not sure exactly what today's plans are.  I think Aline wanted to go to IHOP or Waffle House.  Both girls have a few errands they want to run which includes getting their cell phones activated.  We will see what the day holds :)

Later,
Jen