Worst Mommy Award

And it goes to none other than myself. I made the video for Sadie's birthday. Last Friday was Katie's. She asked for a video as well. The problem is, to make a video for her I have to condense 6 years. Plus find the right song (I refuse to use Hannah Montana). So it isn't done yet. Ah well. Hopefully it'll get done this weekend. Along with more painting, yard work, financial analysis, ant killing, flyer posting, power washing, shelf building and other fun things I have on my agenda. I'm praying for rain on Saturday morning so that we can skip Katie's soccer this week. Three days in a row two weeks back to back is enough.

So, yeah, Katie is 6! She decided she'd be kind enough to share her festivities with her sister, and we had a joint party this year at the local air-jumpy-place (JumpZone - they were great!). We ended up with close to 20 munchkins in attendance, after much whittling of the guest list. Katie didn't get to invite kids from her Kindergarten class this year - I had to put my foot down somewhere or we would have filled the darn place. Sadie didn't get many on her list at all, thanks to Katie's ever-growing social network. That kid has more connections than I do! Sadie ran around like a mad woman, trying to keep up with her sister and the other big kids. All in all, a good party - especially since it wasn't in my home.

In fun news on the home front, we've had an invasion of ants in the last 24 hours that rivals something out of a horror movie. I bought 8 bait traps, some spray, gel and outdoor treatment and got down and dirty spreading it all. Tomorrow I look forward to the joy of emptying cabinets to remove all their tiny little carcasses. I've already gotten rid of the honey bottle full of them (how DO they get in there?!), a couple of pounds of sugar and a ziploc bag of lollipops. Nasty little buggers. I have to admit I hate to kill them, though. The pest guys said not to interfere - to let them take the bait back to their nests. So I've spent some time watching them travel in their little lines along my backspash, stopping to chat with their passing neighbors. "Hey George, how are the kids?" "Fine Mary, just taking back this nice bit of (poison)grub to them - check it out! It's in cabinet three and there's tons to be had by all!" They seem much more intelligent than the crazy cricket spider things that will invade later this fall.

Also on the homefront, Three Oaks Montessori School opens on October 13! I've hired on an AMS certified teacher, and we're busily prepping the classroom area. Still having problems with the county and DSS, but I'll find a way, I'm sure. For now I'm going to open to 5 lucky students until we finalize our DSS application and can add others. I've been loving getting out there and experimenting with the girls and our neighbor kids with the different materials, and amazed with Sadie's progress already. I'd been worried about her age and ability to cope in the classroom, but she is better behaved in the classroom than at home by far. Katie is excited about the "big kid" materials we got, too - I purchased an entire primary to elementary classroom kit, so there's lots of work with fractions, geography and language that she's been dying to get into. I do what I can with her, but I have tons to learn - I can't wait for OUR school to start! I'm nervous as heck about filling up the classroom and waiting list(s) quickly - our marketing materials arrive tomorrow, and it just all makes it so real. Of course, the loan payment to do all of this slaps me into that reality as well.

And on the other business front, I continue to plug along with my clients. It's been a tough few months, and one is facing a situation much like the one on Wall Street (only nano-sized in comparison), so I've had a permanent case of heartburn over it for the last few weeks. A "bailout" may be in sight, though, so I'm hanging on and hoping for the best. I figure something has to break soon! (Hopefully it won't be within the synapses of my brain!)