More than just a great daycare teacher

As a Mother of two young children, it was important for Dave and I to find a good quality daycare we loved, and one the kids loved too. After R-man was born we switched to Generation Next. If any parent has ever made a daycare switch, you know it's nerve wracking and you wonder if you did the right thing. Well after the first week at Generation Next, we knew we did. We loved all of the teachers both of the kids had. When either Dave or I would pick them up the morning and afternoon teachers would always say, Little-C (well they said her real name), "How are you today?" As a parent, I often times had no idea who the teacher was, but the kids did because they got huge smiles on their faces.

Every fall the kids typically move rooms, similar to how elementary schools move you up to the next grade. Last fall, Little-C got moved to a new room and at first it's kind of like starting at the daycare all over again. You have to get to know the teacher, and you hope your child will love them.

Well, there was a teacher in Little-C's class named Kelsey Beadle. Little-C absolutely fell in love with her. As a parent, I've realized a good daycare teacher involves more than just watching my child everyday. Kelsey always made sure the children are safe, they assure the children are feeling okay and not infecting others, they watch the children's development skills advance, they provide proper nutrition during breakfast, lunch and their afternoon snack and they have a curriculum to educate each child.

What I loved about Kelsey is her ability to make Little-C feel welcome in her room. She always gave her a hug each morning and made sure she got comfortably settled in before Dave or I left the room. There were times before we left our home for daycare that she would be throwing a fit. I mean what three year old doesn't do that? But, it never failed by the time she got into her room and before Dave and I ever left, she was usually in a good mood and smiling. This had to do with the passion and care that Kelsey not only gave Little-C, but all of the kids in her room.

Weekend Wrap Up (4.24.15-4.26.15)

This weekend was spent recovering from this past week. Dave returned home on Tuesday from a work trip and I came home Thursday evening. We had some major laundry to get caught up on and some yard work.

On Friday evening, my brother Ray came up and brought an entire truck load of "good farm dirt." We are eager to have a garden at our new house so we wanted to build some garden boxes. As you'll see in the photos below, we only have one because we didn't have enough dirt. We'll have to wait until my brother can bring up another load.

The good black farm dirt!

Thankfully the cold wet weather didn't bother Dave and Ray because they did get one box built and filled with dirt.

A wreath for almost every holiday

The panty door in our kitchen was looking plain so I decided to have someone make some burlap wreaths to spice it up a bit. I posted a message on the Ankeny swap page and Tara's Decor n More was the first person to comment. I'm glad I found her because she made custom wreaths for me that are amazing. I may need her to make a Valentine's and St. Patrick's Day one to make my collection complete!

 

Easter weekend 2015

Shortly before Easter, we did our annual Easter Bunny photo. Neither of the kids seemed to really like the Easter bunny this year.

Wondering if her brother will protect her from the bunny.

Thankful and blessed by the power of prayer

Many do not know, but on January 28, I lost my job. At first, it was extremely stressful because we had just built a new home and I honestly enjoyed the work I was doing. It was unfortunate, but I am extremely thankful to be surrounded by great friends and family. Many of my friends and family kept me in their daily prayers so that the Lord would open another great door for me. After the first few days went by, I looked at my job loss as a blessing. I was blessed that me and my family were healthy, we had a supportive family and a roof over our head.

Growing up, our family never had a whole lot since we had six kids and my parents farmed, so I knew I was a strong woman and could endure this hardship. During the past 51 days, I was able to spend more quality time with my kids, meet up with friends that I hadn't seen in a while, organize our new home and reflect on what I really wanted to do, through prayer.


We were thankful that our daycare worked with us to take the kids to part-time. We absolutely love the daycare center our kids go to, but we couldn't afford the full-time rate we were paying. We sent the kids every morning so they kept a routine and I picked them up shortly before noon. I always thought I would get so much done in the morning, but it's crazy how quick those mornings go.

Through this process, I realized there are still caring people in this world. When I lost my job, I called my hairstylist Erin Virchow-Perrine and told her I needed to cancel my appointment because I couldn't afford to have my hair done right now. She said, we are keeping your appointment and your hairstyle is on me because you can't go to an interview with bad looking hair. Seriously, I teared up when I got her text message that day. It made me realize that there are good people in this world! 

Family day at the zoo

A week ago, we took the family to the Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo. We weren't sure what the trip would be like since it was technically still winter, but there were quite a few animals to see. We arrived around 10:30 a.m. and it was actually beautiful weather.

Enjoyed the 80 degree weather on March 16

It's hard to believe it was 88 degrees in  Iowa on March 16, but we took full advantage of it. The kids and I took a long walk to the park and they enjoyed it until it started getting busy. It was hard for me to keep track of both kids so we went to a smaller park closer to our new home. We spent nearly two hours outdoors today and the kids were wore out tonight. I keep thinking, bring on spring and summer!

Ready for the trip to the park.