April 2018

April started with spring break.  We decided not to go anywhere for spring break and just work on the house and spend some time getting things done.  I jumped right in with the work on Sunday.  We went and got some vegetable plants and created a garden off the front porch.  CJ was funny, she said it was a lot of work to turn the dirt over and get rid of all the weeds.  She did a really good job helping as get the soil ready for the plants.  She was not as good with digging the holes for the plants but she will get the hang of it.  She only stepped on one plant.

CJ decided that she wanted to turn her playroom into an office.  She said that it was time to get rid of her doll house and all of her dolls.  She said that her American Girl stuff was not going and she was keeping all of that, but everything else had to go. CJ worked very hard on her room and went through everything.  Many toy and bags of trash was taken out.  I was very proud of how hard she worked.  It took her two days to go through everything.  It was a very sad realization that by baby was going up.  Jay was very happy to see all the toys go.  I invited some people over to look at the toys and take want they wanted.  Also CJ want through her clothes and get rid of a lot of stuff as well.  It was nice to see things leave the house and a little less clutter.  CJ know should like to get a couch, desk, and book shelves for the new office.

On Monday CJ and I made some Matzo Brittle and worked on the house.  I feel liked we worked hard all week but nothing really got finished just started.  I was able to get the stairs painted, the laundry room picked up, the spare room cleaned, and the kitchen floors hand scrubbed.

By Wednesday I thought that we needed a break from working on the house.  So I took CJ to Gravitopa so that she could jump and have fun.  We went with Rabbi's daughter Perry.  CJ had so much fun playing.  After we got a bit to eat at Calver's and CJ went to Bat Mitzvah tutoring with Rabbi.  We then went and got the car washed looked at flooring and doors at Surplus Warehouse then can on home.

Our looking at a Door and flooring paid off.  By the weekend Jay went with us to Surplus Warehouse and we got new flooring and a new front door for the house.  I wanted a new front door that had a window so that it would let in lots of light into the stairwell.  Jay and I on Sunday spent the morning working on putting the door in.  We were surprised how easy the old door come out and the new one went in.  After pulling out the old door, I now understand why we had to keep the old door locked so that when the wind came up it did not fly open.

Saturday CJ's friend from Hebrew School had her Bat Mitzvah.  It was a very nice small event and after the kids want roller skating.  I love that everyone's Bar/Bat Mitzvah have been very different.  It has given me great ideas.

 Monday we went back to work.  Friday night the youth group preformed services.  It was funny how political the services were.  I was very disappointed with it, but the kids did a nice job with the prayers.  I know that the older kids in the youth group are very political they get that from their parents.  I hope that CJ does not get that way.

Sunday was ShalomFest 2018, CJ brought her friends Millie with her.  Most of the time they spent watching the magician.  I was not sure that Millie had fun doing that but CJ loves watching the magician.  Since that she has been wanting magic books and wanting to learn different trick.  The Choir sang, but CJ did not sing in the interfaith Choir which was ok.  They had a lot of practices and worked very hard.  I could not get CJ to all the practice and CJ has been not enjoying the Choir that much these days. 

Wednesday starts the best 3 days.  At 3 in the morning CJ and I got up and got ready to go to school.  We had to be at school at 4:15 in the morning to get on the bus to leave for Jekyll Island.  After working in Anderson district 5 for 11 years I have always wanted to go on his field trip.  I have not been able to until his year because CJ was going to go on the trip.  I was so excited but that morning I got a migraine.   I was not sure if I was going to make it. I started to get sick but took a ton of medication because I was not going to miss this.  CJ was not happy that I was going on the trip.  She did not want me with her and did not like that I was her group leader. The first day we got there at lunch and then started our classes.  Jekyll was amazing and all the things we saw and learned were great.  After lunch we had a Sough class.  The kids go to test the water and see want was in the water. 

The next class we took was the marsh walk.  The kids had so much fun getting in the mud and playing with the crabs.  I had so much fun watching the boys being silly.  CJ did not want to put mud on her face or get really dirty. Her friends finely get her to put some mud on her face.  Poor Millie at the end of the walk she ended up slipping and falling in the mud.  She was covered with mud from head to toe and had to ride but to the cabins covered in mud. In the evening we went for a beach walk and then off to the cabins for sleep.  I went right to sleep and do not remember everything because after starting the day with a migraine I just took medication and crashed.

The next day we we got to go to the North beach which was also called drift wood beach.  It was so beautiful.  The boys had so much fun climbing the trees.  They climbs so high that it was making me nervous but I just let them have at it.  At one point when they were getting down one of the boys were having trouble getting down and everyone thought he was going to fall.  So the boys get out their cameras and were going to film his fall.  He got down safe with out falling and all the the boys were disappointed that they did not have a fall on camera.  Boys are so silly.

Some of the other classes that we took that day was a class on reptiles and amphibians, CJ got to go seining.  She loved pulling the net through the water. 

In the afternoon we went to the Sea Turtle hospital and then had a s'more bonfire in the evening.

Friday we got up and the weather had changed.  It want from being hot and beautiful to being cold and windy.  We had a beach walk first thing in the morning and it was so windy the kids were losing their hats and we could not see well because of the sand blowing in our eyes.  We we had to cut in short and go in a classroom.  Our guide for this class was Jewish and she was happy to have us in her group.  She talked to CJ about NFTY and her own Bat Mitzvah.  She also talk to CJ about being a Zoologist. Our last class was a walk from the forest to the beach. Again the boys loved climbing the trees and running around.

It was a long drive back but I did not mind we had such a great time.  We got home not to late and through all our muddy clothes in the laundry room.  We got up the next morning and went to CJ's friends Bat Mitzvah.  This was a very fancy one.  The service was early and short. The party was in the evening and it was very elaborate.  The party was not at the temple and they must have spend a fortune.  I told CJ this was not what hers would be like. CJ did not what me taking pictures of her.  I told her that if she did not let me take picture I would get out on the dance floor and start dancing which will embarrass her.  She told me that my dancing would not embarrass her because I was not a bad dancer. CJ had a lot of fun with her friends and at 9:00 I was tired and so was CJ.  So we went on home but the party was still going strong.

 In the last couple weeks CJ has been getting a lot of  awards. She received one for being a good role model at school (Gold Jacket Award), One for Making Principals Academic Honor Roll (Having a 95% or better average on her report card), and one for being part of the Duke Tip Scholar program int he top 15% of her 7th grade class. So proud of my smart baby.

CJ entered the school talent show again this year.  She wanted to do a Pop song and a duet with her best friend.  She sang "Pray" by Kesha and did an amazing job.  She always seems to have some issue during a Talent show.  This time it was that they forgot to turn on the piano before she began.  She did not know it until she started the song and no music came out.  She kept her cool and it was not problem.  She just found were to turn on the piano and continued on like nothing.  CJ and Millie sang "Hallelujah" for their duet it was not a good song for either of their voices and I hated the CJ's mic was so quiet.  The school talent show is not who does not best job but who has the most family and friends at the show that will put a ticket in their basket. So of course CJ and Millie did not win, but they had a lot of fun getting ready for the show and preforming.

We finished off the month of April by finely putting down the new flooring.  It was a lot of work for Jay and his knees were sore for days.  But the kitchen looks brand new.  CJ said that we finely have a modern kitchen.  We all just love it, the color is great and the kitchen looks so much cleaner just with the new flooring.