Music In The Air

I watched the Country Music Awards last weekend and am looking forward to the American Music Awards on Sunday. As I watched all the great acts (Carrie Underwood, Rascal Flatts and Jamie Foxx, The Eagles, Brooks and Dunn), it made me think of the concerts that I have gone to. They are:

Richard Marx (It was the 80's)
Little River Band and America (outdoor concert with a bunch of people way older than us)
Garth Brooks (joined on stage by Trisha Yearwood)
Dixie Chicks (they rocked then and now)
Jodee Mecina (opening act was Rascal Flatts)
Hootie and the Blowfish (so fun, their last concert of the tour)
The Gaithers (with my mom)

It's not a huge list, but it's a good one. There are so many that I would like to see, though. Like:

Daughtry (my favorite)
Bon Jovi (good old stuff, good new stuff)
Aerosmith (Hello! Steven Tyler)
Brooks and Dunn (great songs)
Dave Matthews (more great songs)
Alison Kraus (and hope a little of her talent travels through the air to me)
Santana (amazing music)
Duran Duran (They have new music!)

I'm sure there are lots more, but these are the top of the list. Until they come to Spokane I'll just have to enjoy their performances on the small screen. Daughtry's up for a bunch of AMAs and is performing at the show. Yeah!

Today's "5 Things to be Happy About"

*visualization
*sneaking a kiss
*chandeliers in a hotel
*making progress on a project
*fail-safe dinners for busy days

Realization

First, let me say that I promise that every post between now and June will not be about being pregnant. But this one is.

Yesterday I went in to have blood drawn for routine prenatal tests. I got right in but was dreading the procedure. I have had it done many times and know it's not a big deal, but still. There is a needle and blood involved. As the lady was preparing my arm for the needle, and I sat there worrying over the little poke, I realized that this was so just the beginning of what is going to be done to me over the next 6 1/2 months. There will be stretching and numerous other things happening to my body that you know about if you've been there and don't want to hear about if you haven't. The baby is going to sit on my bladder and kick me in the kidneys. There will be all kinds of poking and prodding done by doctors and nurses. They are going to measure my belly. And weigh me ALL THE TIME. And then, to top it all off, they are going to stick a needle in my spine, cut me open, and pull a person out of me.

So, now that I think about it, having blood drawn isn't so bad.

Questions, Questions

Here are the questions you get asked when you are a 35 year old mother of two elementary aged sons when people find out that you are pregnant.

1. Was it a surprise? (No, it was planned. It was, however, postponed for a year due to the craziness of the last year.)
2. Do you want a girl this time? (It might be nice to see what it's like. But I already have the boy thing down, so another boy would be okay, too. Plus I would be able to refer to "my three sons.")
3. Do you still have your baby stuff? (No, except for a couple of diapers I found under the bathroom sink and few stray sippy cups. When Adam was two, we sold everything thinking we were done having kids. Plans change I guess.)
4. Are you going to find out if it's a boy or girl? (Yes. We didn't find out with Josh, which was really fun. We did find out with Adam, which helped me bond with him before he was born. And this time everyone is wanting to know as soon as possible, including me. We should be able to find out sometime around the beginning of the year.)
5. When is the baby due? (The due date is June 6th, but it will be scheduled a week or so earlier. I'm really hoping to be able to wait until June. We'll see what happens.)
6. Are you excited? (Yes, more and more every day.)
7. Are the boys excited? (Very. They are already planning what they can teach the baby and giving name suggestions.)
8. How are you feeling? (Mostly good. There's some morning and evening sickness. But it hasn't been too bad so far.)
9. Are you going to have more? (Umm, no. I'm already at advanced maternal age. This one is it!)
10. Are you crazy? (Mostly I ask this of myself and the answer is yes, just a little bit.)

Five Good Things About This Weekend

1. A whole Saturday and Sunday with nothing planned.
2. The majority of time was spent in my pajamas.
3. I got a nap both days.
4. I was finally able to get Mexican food which I've been craving for days.
5. I watched movies and played games with my family.

Thanks

I remember when my boys were babies and were first learning to talk. As soon as they could say anything, we tried to get them to say "thank you." We even taught them baby signs before they could talk and they both used the one for thank you. I would remind them to, "Say thank you," if someone gave them a graham cracker or said they were the cutest thing they'd ever seen or when I picked up the toy they threw from the high chair for the 27th time. And then when they were two or three years old I'd remind some more, but every once in a while, they'd say it on their own. By the time they were four or five, they would almost always remember to say "thank you." And now it's just a given. It comes naturally. At the grocery story. At restaurants. And grandma's house. At school. Even to me. They say thank you when they should. All those reminders over the years have paid off. They both have pretty good manners.

As I thought about this, it reminded me of how God does the same thing for us. His word is full of thanksgiving scriptures. It's like he's telling us over and over, "Say thank you. Say thank you for what you have and who you are and what I've done. Say thank you to each other and to me." And I know that with me, he's had to remind me over and over. But as I've gotten older, his reminders haven't had to come so often. It comes naturally for me to look at my husband or my children and just feel this strong sense of gratitude. And sometimes with a quick prayer to heaven, I say "thank you." I couldn't fit the list of what I'm thankful for on this page. My life is so full of blessings, seen and unseen, that it would take me all day just to put them into words.

One of my favorite ways to pray is a "thank you prayer." It's when I say thank you to God. I don't ask for anything. I don't say anything but thank you and tell him just what I am grateful for. It's not as easy as it sounds. It is easy to say thank you, but there's always something that could follow. "Thank you for my sons. Could you please..." Then I remember. No requests today. Just thanks. This kind of prayer is also the longest. I never run out of things to thank God for. "Thank you for giving me all that I need. Thank you for saying that I'm beautiful in your sight. Thank you for picking me up for the 27th time."

And I know, now more than ever, that living a life of thanksgiving is the only way to live. And why wouldn't I? I'm going to heaven! And until then I can practice saying thank you for the day when I see the Father face to face, and with tears in my eyes, whisper, "Thank you."

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. --Psalm 18:1

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. --Psalm 100:4

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. --Philippians 4:6-7

Conferences

Today is parent/teacher conference day. It's always good to sit down with my students' parents one on one and discuss their child. Sometimes it's the only time I really get to see or talk to them. Even some kindergarten parents drop their kids off and pick them up without ever getting out of the car. And a few only step into my classroom a few times a year. So, even though conferences aren't my favorite part of teaching, they are a good thing for the students and the parents.

I have a few challenges in my class this year, both academic and behaviorally. But the good thing is that usually the parents know what's coming. They know their child, so when I tell them that they have trouble focusing or have been in trouble for hitting, it's no big surprise. But sometimes I will give a really good report to a parent and they are speechless. They look at the name on the report card just to make sure that we're talking about the same child. Some kids who are little angels at school apparently aren't at home.

So Monday starts a new quarter with new lessons and new things to learn. And a few new things for me to try to overcome those challenges. I'll let you know how it goes.

Happy

On my desk I have one of those calendars that you tear a page from everyday. It is "5 Things to Be Happy About." I like it because everyday there is at least one thing that I really am happy about. Here are some of my favorites from this week so far.

*matinees
*apple pie and ice cream
*time to be quiet
*a room filled with loved ones
*the right to vote
*sketches in your journal
*meditating on the morning commute
*chicken pot pie in a flaky crust
*standing up for a friend
*collapsing on a soft mattress
*dipping a finger in the peanut butter
*sliding into slippers

All such good things to make me happy. The one that would make me the most happy at this very moment: collapsing on a soft mattress. (I really need a nap.)

More Cupcakes

Today's birthday treat: cupcakes baked in ice cream cones and "birthday party" ice cream (vanilla ice cream with blueberry swirls and party shaped sprinkles).

I'm so glad that tomorrow is a teacher work day. Not only will I be able to do all those things that never seem to get done during school days, but I am guaranteed that there will be no cupcakes in my classroom.*

Kathy, don't even think about putting a cupcake on my desk before I get there!

Cupcakes For Everyone!

I have had 3 birthdays in my class in the past 4 days. I only have 14 students, so three birthdays so close together is kind of strange. But more than that, it means 3 days of cookies or cupcakes or parties. Not to mention invitations to weekend parties. This all adds up to kindergarten overload. To combat the sugar and excitement, I have created a new seating chart, shortened free time and declared war on any talk of birthdays except by the actual birthday child.

On the up side, most parents send an extra cupcake for me. Today's cupcakes are chocolate with chocolate frosting. And they're homemade, too.

Bargain Of The Day

I like to share bargains. So here's a good one. If you go to Albertson's and buy 10 boxes of General Mills cereal and/or fruit snacks, you get a certificate for two free tickets to "Bee Movie." Even better is that these products are on sale for $2.00 each. So for $20.oo today I got 7 boxes of cereal, 3 boxes of fruit by the foot, and two movie tickets. Not bad considering the tickets would cost $19.oo at the theater.

But a word of caution. Be sure to get the right products including the size of the boxes of cereal. I had to go through a refund and re-ring to get my tickets. But it all worked out. And I'm pretty sure that tomorrow is the last day of the sale.

Oh yeah, and save your box-tops and send them to Coeur d' Alene Christian School.

AMA

It's been brought up in a couple of previous posts that I'm pregnant. I am almost 10 weeks pregnant which isn't long for most people, but for me it's been 10 weeks since I've known. I remember on the drive to church one Sunday thinking to myself, "I'm pregnant." There were no signs and it could have only been a few days after conception, but somehow I knew. And if you think about it, I'm over 1/4 through my pregnancy. Especially since it will be a scheduled c-section somewhere around week 38. I'm really hoping that the doctors will let me wait until June. The actual due date is June 6th and I really want to have a June baby since I already have a May baby (Adam). But we'll see what happens. Either way I will miss at least the last week of school which wasn't really what we had planned, but God answers prayers on his timing, not mine. So here I am. A mother of an 8 year old and a 6 year old and expecting a baby. I really thought we'd only have two children, but, once again, my heart didn't listen to my mind. And I really felt like we were meant to have another child.

So now to my story. A few weeks ago I went to my first doctor's visit. I only saw the nurse and it was really just to fill out paperwork and give her my medical history. After pages of names and dates and yes, I have asthma, no, I don't have diabetes, she took me into an exam room to go over her list of stuff. She asked me about my other pregnancies and deliveries. (Even she was surprised about the 32 hours of labor with Josh.) And she told me a whole bunch of stuff that I already knew. "Whatever you eat or drink, the baby eats or drinks." "If anything weird happens call the doctor." I remembered most everything from before. And everything was going just fine until she brought out the AMA paperwork. AMA stands for "advanced maternal age." ADVANCED MATERNAL AGE! I know that I'm 35. I know that I'm probably a little older than most other pregnant moms. But come on! Advanced! I don't know about that. Basically what she told me about being AMA was that I have the option for genetic testing and counseling and other tests that might determine if there are any problems with the baby. Since then I have come to accept that I am AMA and that's okay. I knew how old I was when we made the decision to have another baby. (We were actually trying to have the baby last year before I was AMA, but that's a different story.) So what if I'm 35. So what if I will have two children in middle school and one in kindergarten. So what if I will be 54 years old when this one graduates....Okay, I'll stop there.

I admit that it's scary. Just like the first two times. But also like before, I already love this child that God has so graciously loaned to me. And no matter how old I am, I pray that I can be the mother that all my children need. Even if I do need a walker to attend his or her wedding.

Seattle

After the ACSI conference, four of us drove to Seattle to spend Friday night and Saturday. I just have to say that I love Seattle. I don't like everything about it, of course, but there is just so much to do and so many interesting places and people.

On Friday night, we did something that none of us had ever done before. We ate dinner at "Sky City," the restaurant at the top of the Space Needle. There are a few unique things about this restaurant. First of all, it is 500 feet in the air overlooking downtown Seattle. And secondly it rotates so that over the course of dinner we were able to see the entire city of Seattle at least twice. It completes a full circle every 47 minutes although it seemed much faster to me. I have to admit that it was just a little unnerving when we first sat down. You can definitely feel the rotation and I was a little worried about being able to eat while spinning. But it all worked out just fine and made for great memories.

This is the Space Needle at about 8:30 on Friday night just before we went up to have dinner.

You might be a redneck if you take pictures of your $36 chicken dinner before you eat it. There is a $35 per person minimum at Sky City, otherwise you have to pay the $16 fee to ride up to the top. We thought we might as well eat up there. We had to eat anyway. The chicken was good and I saved half and had it the next night, too.

I never got a really good picture from the restaurant, but this gives you a little bit of an idea of our view. It was pretty amazing.

On Saturday we headed down to the piers. It was a gray day (no big surprise), but we had a lot of fun shopping, eating and watching people. One of my favorite things on the piers is Ivar's. It's a seafood restaurant with a sit down place inside and a fast food stand outside. We really just wanted fish and chips, so we ordered outside and sat at the tables they have available in a little pavilion. Ivar's has the best fish and chips and I wasn't disappointed this day. There are lots of gulls around, which is to be expected, and we saw a guy trying to feed a fry to one. Which wouldn't have been unusual except that he had the fry in his mouth! The gulls were smarter than he was and he wasn't successful.

One of my very favorite places is Pike Street Market. It's crowded and loud and smells like fish. And I love it! It also makes for great pictures.

I really wanted to buy flowers this day, but wasn't sure how they would do on the trip home. Look how beautiful they were.

This is a monk fish that one of the seafood vendors had on display. They had a string attached to the tail and when someone got close, they'd pull it and move the fish and scare the poor person to death. (It was pretty funny.)

The fish mongers are great. It's half market, half show. They throw twenty pound salmon around and call back and forth and play for the crowd. It's really fun to watch. I was thrilled to get a picture of the fish in midair. Pretty cool.

I love all the colors in the produce markets. And on this particular day I was craving fruit and bought strawberries and satsumas. They were delicious.

This vendors display of hanging peppers and garlic is just beautiful. The colors and smells are amazing. I bought one of these for my mom and dad for a souvenir. The peppers dry in nine months and you can eat them fresh or dried.

Later Saturday afternoon we went back to the Space Needle and walked around the park that surrounds it. More shopping and people watching. Our hotel was only three blocks away which was very convenient. (Can someone tell me how to rotate this picture?)

We spotted a Starbucks and just had to have Starbucks in Seattle. But as we walked in, we saw that we were in a big mall kind of a thing with a food court and stage. They just happened to be having a Turkish festival that weekend and we were able to enjoy a show while we drank our Starbucks. See, you never know just what you might see in Seattle!

So, as you can see, we had lots of fun in Seattle. There are more stories like the hugging street musician, the midnight walk, the half-off souvenirs, and the visit with Sylvester. But those will have to wait 'til another time. Now I have to go see if I can find some fish and chips in Coeur d' Alene that will begin to compare to Ivar's. Wish me luck.

Today's Show and Tell

*1 "lipstick" complete with demonstration on how to apply (actually it was chapstick that I think her mom found in her purse before school)
*1 stuffed polar bear named Siberia that does tricks
*1 Hello Kitty flashlight (with 3 minute explanation on how to turn it on and off)
*1 Batman figure, 1 robot, a magnetic Frankenstein and zombie, and 1 electronic game all pulled from a variety of choices in a backpack
*1 Bratz movie in a purse (An argument ensued on whether there is 1 Sasha or 2 in this particular film. I have a feeling that 1 Sasha would be enough.)
*1 stuffed horse (white and pink, of course)
*1 Spiderman web shooter with all the webs "wasted"
*1 stuffed penguin from the book fair
*1 toy police car with opening trunk and doors and a Lego guy that fits inside
*1 stuffed dog with a purple carrying case (also does tricks)

1 Down, 29 To Go

Today starts NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month). And the fact that I knew just what Katrina was talking about when she reminded me earlier this week was just a little frightening. I have been a blogger for almost a year, so I guess it's okay that I'm the tiniest bit of a blog nerd.

For NaBloPoMo, bloggers are supposed to blog every day for the month of November. It doesn't sound hard because I have a blog running through my head at least ten times a day. The hard part, though, is actually putting words to keyboard and getting it posted. But I'm going to try. I certainly don't have a lack of topics--kids, kindergarteners, 7th graders, pregnancy/morning sickness/mood swings/cravings/baby names, Thanksgiving, weather changes, parent/teacher conferences, family, etc.

I have never blogged everyday for a month before. I don't even think I've blogged everyday in a week. But I do enjoy a challenge when it comes to writing. So wish me luck. And be sure to comment so that I am motivated to keep writing.

And I also want to take this chance to say thanks to all of you who stop by my blog. It's fun to share my life with all of you.

Mmm, Tacos

There are times throughout the school year that are more challenging than others. The first day (and week) of school is a challenge because five year olds don't have a clue about anything at school. Any day with a field trip or assembly is crazy because it's out of the normal routine and causes extra excitement. The first day of snow creates a buzz in the halls and the classroom that causes kindergarteners to bounce off the walls. And then there are holidays. Not President's Day or Columbus Day or Memorial Day. Those are fine. But the other holidays that include gifts or parties or candy. Those holidays are not fun for a kindergarten teacher. A regular kindergarten day is enough to suck every ounce energy from Wonder Woman. But as soon as you throw in costumes or sugar or Santa or wrapping paper it's like that myspace video with the coke and Mentos. And so here's where we are. The day before Halloween. (I have to be careful, they can sense just the thought of it.) I have actually banned the word from my classroom. I know, I know. It's just a fun holiday that lets kids pretend and get treats. Blah, blah, blah. It is the bane of my existence this week and I'm not happy. If you've read my blog for any amount of time you know that I really don't complain much. But today I am suffering from morning sickness*, craving a crunchy taco supreme from taco bell, and having to deal with 13 five year olds, who if I could choose their costumes, would all be dressed as those flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz.

Oh, well. A few more days and it will all be over. At least until mid-November when Christmas trees appear.

*Yes, I'm pregnant. That's a blog for another day.

ACSI

I've been trying to write about my trip to Seattle for a few days now and decided that the conference was something that you had to attend to really appreciate. So I'll skip most of the details and just tell you some of my favorite parts.

*Our fearless leader wanting to stop in Tri-Cities for gas on the way to Seattle. Umm...Tri-Cities is not on the way to Seattle.

*Learning more about my co-workers. (Maybe more than I wanted to know.)

*Worship time spent with hundreds of Christian school educators.

*The classes. Especially "Music in the Christian Classroom" and "Hands On Teaching."

*Learning that there is a thought that there were, in fact, dinosaurs on the ark with Noah.

*Meeting the teacher who I want to be when I grow up.

*Freebies from the venders at the conference.

*The 40 minute quarter mile trip to our hotel from the restaurant because of the power outage. (Mostly because it made for good stories when we called home. With every call the distance got shorter and the time got longer.)

*Truth or dare during the power outage. What's told in Bothell, stays in Bothell.

*Mom's Teriyaki Restaurant.



Things that weren't so fun.

*Having the worst sore throat of my life for the first two days.

*Hard hotel matresses.

*Not being able to find chicken noodle soup anywhere in western Washington.

*The amazingly frightening traffic in western Washington.


On Friday afternoon we left Bothell for Seattle. This was the part of the trip where we played instead of worked. That'll be my next blog.

Teacher School

I'll be back in a few days. We're going on a trip to Bothell, Washington for a Christian educator's conference. Should be lots of fun. Especially the two days we spend in Seattle playing afterwards. Have a good week and I'll tell you all about it when I get home.

"Show and Hotel"

As challenging as my kindergarten class is this year, they still make me laugh everyday. Like today when one little girl was so excited that it was "show and hotel" day. So here's what came to school today to be shown and hotelled.

*one artkit with a book in which you can color anything

*one spiderman sticker book that brought "oohs" and "aahs" from the crowd

*one story about vistiting grandparents who apparently can do backflips and somersaults

*one dinosaur playset with dinosaurs that try to eat cars

*one soccer trophy

*one set of orange and red pom-poms

*one little bag of "thousands" of polished rocks (more "oohs" and "aahs")

*one stuffed polar bear

*one "Bedtime Bear" Care Bear

*one leopard print umbrella in a case that matches

*one stuffed, blue Scooby Doo

*one story: "It was my birthday and now I'm this many (5 fingers) and then I'm going to be this many (3 fingers)."

Ahh, Kids

Nathan, a guest at Josh's birthday party, was glad that the party was at "Skatema Plazma."

A first grader told me that there was "evidence that a boy has been in the girl's bathroom." That evidence was that the seat was up and they didn't flush!

While discussing pets and veterinarians today in class, one little girl claimed that her baby brother was her pet.

Contrary to what one 7th grader thinks, 7492.57 divided by 32.71 is not "fries."

8 Years Ago

Today my first born son turns 8. Eight years old. It seems so impossible. We waited a long time before we had kids and it took awhile after that for him to come around. And I remember how extremely happy I was to find out that I was pregnant. I knew right away because I'm one of those "lucky" women who knows pretty much the next day if I'm pregnant. Instant naseau all day long. That lasted for about ten weeks then I felt great the rest of the time. Being pregnant is exciting and wonderful and scary and miraculous. And I enjoyed almost every minute of it. And then the day came. Well, labor came. Josh didn't actually come until the next day after 32 hours of labor and a c-section. But it was so worth it. He was this adorable little bundle with tons of black hair that stood up every which way. Not to brag, but all the doctors and nurses told me that he was a cute baby and that not all babies are as cute as their parents think. (Please don't tell me if they told you the same thing about your newborn.) He was a good baby. He didn't cry much and loved being held which told me right away that he was going to be a snuggler.


And here we are eight years later and he is smart and funny and mostly sweet. He likes dinosaurs and animals and movies and girls (yikes). He has this magnetic personality and therefore lots of friends. He does really well at school but likes recess best. He still has crazy hair that sticks up everywhere and he likes it that way. And he still likes to be held and will crawl up on my lap to snuggle. Except now, everytime he does, I breathe in the smell of his hair and hold on tight because I never know if it might be the last time.

Happy birthday, Josh. I love you more than words can say.

Did You Know...

...that it takes exactly the same amount of time to say the pledge of allegience as it takes me to make sure 13 kindergarteners are all standing and putting the correct hand over their hearts.

...that picking the perfect pumpkin at a nearby farm can take some 5 year olds a loooong time.

...that no matter how many times I do dishes, there are always more to do.

...that even though my son is two days away from turning eight, I still feel like he was born yesterday.

...that regardless of what my six year old does at one moment, he can melt my heart in the next.

...that when discussing television shows with alarming plots, you should make sure everyone listening knows that it's just tv.

...that seventh graders will eat anything. Even sunflower seeds that they harvested, soaked, cooked...and burned.

...that it's still possible to genuinely surprise people. :)

Conversation

This morning on the way to school...

Adam: "A lot of people murder."
Josh: "Don't talk about that, Adam."
Adam: "But look at all the trash by the road."
Me: "Umm, Adam, do you mean litter?"
Adam: "Oh, yeah. A lot of people litter."


At lunch...

Me: "Adam, do you know where Josh is?"
Adam: "Am I my brother's keeper?"*

*We've been studying Cain and Abel in Bible class this week.

Persuasion

Yesterday at church I taught the elementary Bible class for the regular teachers who were out of town. Both of my boys were in the class and very excited that I was their teacher. I was teaching a lesson on Noah and how he made the right decision to live for God. One of the activities was to hold some little plastic stars behind my back, half marked with tape and half not marked. The class had to guess if they were marked or not and got to keep the ones they guessed right. They won the game if they had the most stars at the end. The trick was that there were two persuaders who tried to convince them which way to vote. Adam was the persuader who I told to always tell the truth and Josh was the persuader who I told to always lie. It didn't take the kids long to figure out what the persuaders were doing and they won 4 to 2. After the game, I asked them how they knew which persuader to believe. One boy said, "Well, Adam is younger and cuter so he must be the most honest." Obviously Josh took offense at that. Especially the cuter part! But he wasn't too upset and even told his dad the story after church. I personally think they are both the cutest kids I know and am proud of how honest they are. But I might keep the "younger and cuter" advice in mind the next time I vote.

Today...

Today I learned...

...five year olds can need two bandaids in the first five minutes of school.
...I can tie shoes with my eyes closed.
...a gillion is not a number.
...aloe belongs to the lily family.
...I know who's stomping in line without even looking.
...there are only two lego "humans" in the bucket, but three boys who want them.
...kindergarteners can, and will, cheat at Candy Land.
...casting out 9's is easy once you get the hang of it.
...kindergarteners love guinea pigs more than guinea pigs love kindergarteners.
...if your forehead is hot and you don't feel good you might have a "feber."
...it is possible to say "don't do that" a gillion times in one day.

Well That's New

I've been teaching for a while. I've taught every age from kindergarten to 8th grade. I've had many, many challenging students and two whole classes that have made me reconsider my choice of careers. (Not to mention the parents!) But I've hung in there because I love teaching and most days the rewards far outweigh the trials. This is my third year teaching kindergarten. The reason I took the kindergarten job is because Josh was in kindergarten the first year and Adam was the second year. But this year it's just me and a bunch of other people's kids. (Except one who feels almost like mine.) And of course I love each one. How could I not. They are completely adorable. And I truly understand that their mommies love them just as much as I love my own boys. And so I try to treat them as I want Josh and Adam to be treated by others. But here's the trouble. Out of the 13 kids in my class, at least 6 of them have to be watched every second of every day. As soon as they're out of sight, they're in trouble. Yesterday is a prime example. I had hitting, arguing, and fibbing. Not all that unusual really. But I also had three things happen that have never happened to me in all my years of teaching. First, one of the boys colored all over my white board with a non-white board marker. Luckily I was quick to catch it and was able to wash it off. Then one of the girl's was chasing another girl around with a push pin from the bulletin board. What?!?! I'm still not sure what possessed her to do such a thing. Then, just in the nick of time, I caught one girl about to give herself a haircut. To this I responded, "I have taught kindergarten for two years without anyone cutting their hair. Do not mess up my record!!" (And then I took away her scissors for a week.) All this and it wasn't even a full moon. Each day I'm having to re-evaluate my management techniques and adapt them to rogue colorers, pin chasers, and hair cutters. So I have to ask myself two questions. What will happen on Monday? And how many days 'til June? :)

It Can Happen

We have been seeing a sign on our way to school the past week or so. It says:

LOST TURTLE

704-****

*REWARD*

Lost turtle? It would be funny except that two summers ago we lost a turtle. Some people think that turtles are slow, but I'm convinced that it's all an act to fool everyone. As soon as you turn your back on these wily creatures, they take off running. Okay, so they don't run all that fast (with the short legs and carrying a house on their backs), but they are faster than the average population may think. This fact combined with leaving a 5 year old in charge of said creature is just asking for trouble. But the turtle we lost wasn't your average, everyday pet shop kind of turtle.

The turtle who ran away was a hillbilly, cross country traveling, turtle. When we were in West Virginia visiting relatives*, my uncles thought it would be great fun to bring box turtles for the boys to play with. And it was. They loved them (all 4 of them). And even my grandparents got involved. Grandpa found the perfect box for them and Grandma gave the boys veggies to feed their new pets. It really was fun, so when we got ready to head for home, we decided to bring the smallest of the turtles with us. We didn't tell the boys so that they wouldn't bug us for 2,347 miles about holding it. We quietly put it in a shoe box and hid it under the van seat. Without the boys ever suspecting a thing, we fed and watered our secret passenger and he safely made it all the way across the country to his new home. The boys were of course thrilled when we revealed what was in the box. And this free turtle only cost us about $100 (tank, heater, light, bedding, food). He was a great pet until that fateful day. Josh loved to take the turtle out into the yard to wander around in the grass and eat bugs. So one day in the late summer, he was doing just that. I got busy doing outdoor chores and Josh got busy chasing butterflies and before we knew it the turtle was gone. We own five acres with no fences, so finding a six inch long, very well camouflaged turtle was nearly impossible. We did look though. For quite a while. And still didn't find the turtle.**

So when I saw the "LOST TURTLE" sign this week, I thought of our own lost turtle and wondered if there was any way that they had found our lost turtle and that he had escaped again. Not likely, I know. When I told my mom this story, she told me the way to find out. She said, "Call the number and ask them if their turtle had a southern accent." Very funny, mom.

*The story of this trip would be a whole other blog. Maybe someday.

**Josh got a new turtle for his next birthday. We still have that one.

5 Ways To Tell That A 6 Year Old Is Sick

1. He falls asleep on the couch in the principal's office at school and sleeps through the lunch rush going down the hall.
2. You take him into the store to get some medicine and he doesn't ask for a toy or candy or pop. Just for a bottle of water.
3. He doesn't utter a peep the whole 25 minute drive home.
4. He lays on the couch watching old Tom and Jerry cartoons so quietly that you think he's asleep.
5. His mommy can't even appreciate the quiet because her baby is sick.

Show and Tell--9/14

*a nintendo magazine with all of L's favorite "charavers"
*a coloring picture of K's pet kitty named Princess
*a car, transformers named Jetfire and bumblebee, and a ninja turtle who does "that" when you squeeze his legs
*a tiny treasure chest filled with "treasures" (polished rocks and marbles)
*a pink poodle purse with magic coins (a quarter and penny)
*a stuffed cheetah with a baby doll face and hands
*a guy with "one of these and a belt and a necklace and a green thing on him and a thing to look at"
*a story about catching butterflies while camping (no show, just tell)
*an angel pin that "is so teeny"
*a monopoly junior board game that C loves very much

Ahh, kindergarten.

A Sign With Antlers

This morning I chose to take the back roads into town to school. I did this for two reasons. One, to time the trip to see how much longer it was than taking the highway. And two, to avoid said highway which often causes my anxiety to soar first thing in the morning. On the drive I discovered that the trip only takes an extra minute or two. Kind of what I thought, but I wanted to make sure for future mornings. I also discovered that there is a flock of wild turkeys that spend their mornings in a field off Ramsey Road. This was the second time I had seen them there. (Adam called them roosters, but then remembered that they were turkeys.) And the third thing I discovered was that back roads aren't always safer. Here's why.

I almost hit a deer, a big one, just after leaving home. Had she not chosen to run parallel with the car for a few seconds, which gave me time to slow down, I surely would have hit her. Strike one for lowering my anxiety.

And then shortly after that, a truck passed me and a squished pop can flew out of the back of his truck right in front of me. Not a big deal, but it caught my attention and startled me. Strike two. No sooner had that happened than out of the corner of my eye in the rear view mirror I saw a big brown tarp fly out of the back of the same truck. At least that's what I thought it was. Until I focused on my mirror. It wasn't a tarp at all. It was a moose!* A huge moose with huge antlers. And it hadn't flown out of the back of his truck but was tripping and staggering across the road right between the truck and a car going the opposite direction. If I had been three seconds earlier it would have crossed right in front of me. Strike three.

So, here's my dilemma. Do I take the highway and put my life in the hands of all the drivers going 65 mph around me (including numerous logging trucks)? Or do I take the back roads and risk encountering a thousand pound animal who doesn't look both ways?

We have actually been trying to decide whether or not to sell our house and move into town. It's a hard decision because we love our house and living out where it's so quiet and beautiful. But then there's the drive. Rolling your car a few times makes driving a little difficult, so it's been a real issue. So today, as I drove the back way to avoid the danger but had to dodge wildlife along the way, I began to wonder if it was a sign. Either way I go, it raises my anxiety. So what do I do? I just don't know, but for now I'm going to go clean my house just in case we call a realtor in the next few days. And I'm going to pray for wisdom and answers and a big bubble of safety around my minivan. And that all future signs are bunnies or kittens or at least don't have antlers.

*The moose was fine and continued on his way with no more than an increased heartbeat and a story to tell his buddies.

100

Here's the thing. This is my 100th post on my blog and I've been racking my brain trying to come up with something that would symbolize the significance of that. But I've got nothing. I thought about "100 things about me" or "100 things I love" or "100 things I've done 100 times (or more)." But nothing feels right. I even missed my first day of school blog waiting to have something special for my 100th post. All I can think of is the day I sat in front of the computer and created this blog. It was spur of the moment although I had considered it a few times before. But the truth is, I did it as a distraction. A distraction from the terrifying pain in my chest and my brain telling me that I was going to die. It was right in the middle of the worst of my anxiety disorder and I couldn't do anything but pray and wait for it to pass. I couldn't clean house because of the exhaustion. I couldn't play with my kids because of the pain. I couldn't even take a shower because I was afraid I would have a heart attack and no one was home to find me except the boys. Wow. I was really sick. Thinking about it now it's easy to see. But then I just thought that I was dying or crazy or both. So I sat and wrote as best I could. I don't even remember what my first few posts were about but I'm sure I hid most of what was going on in my writing just as I did in real life. But the writing helped. It did distract me. And that distraction somehow lessened the anxiety and the symptoms it caused.

So, here I am, 10 months and 100 posts later. Mostly well. 100 times healthier. A million times happier. Now the only thing my blog distracts me from is dirty dishes. And for that I am 100% thankful.

Summer 2 School

I have spent the last week or so getting ready for school. I am going to be teaching kindergarten in the mornings and 7th grade math, science, and music in the afternoons. I am looking forward to it even though it means no more days at the beach for a while. I am a teacher. Through and through. I love the feeling of knowing that I have taught a student something new. And there is no better reward than seeing the eyes of a 5 year old light up when they finally realize that t+a=ta. As of today I have 12 kindergarteners, but my class limit is 14 and the numbers usually change the first week of school. I have three 7th graders so far, which will be great and give me a real chance to make sure they are ready for upper level math and science.

I thought I would share a few pictures of my cute classroom with you.

This is the library and reading corner. I also use the table in the back for reading groups, art projects, and other group activities.

This is one of my bulletin boards. On it there are a variety of educational posters, the birthday graph, and yellow felt used for a felt board to do counting and games on.

This year instead of desks, I am trying tables and chairs. I do have an extra desk just in case someone can't quite handle being so close to other classmates. Hopefully I won't have to use it.

On Thursday we had open house. About half of my students came with their parents to see the classroom and meet me. It was great to see so many anxious faces.

But they also saw something that I bet they weren't expecting. This...

Yes, this is Boys 2 Men circa 1986. My "friends" and co-teachers, Kathy and Marci, thought it would be really funny to put this up on the back of my classroom door complete with hearts. Now don't get me wrong. I was a fan of the r&b group back in the day, but I never had posters of them. At least not until now. When I discovered this the day of open house I laughed like crazy and racked my brain trying to remember the words to one of their songs to sing as I walked down the hall. (I didn't think of any.) And when I saw my "friends" I told them what a good joke they had pulled. All the while reminding myself to take it down before parents arrived. Well, guess what. I forgot. I forgot all about it until the last parents were asking questions and their younger child closed the door. Oh my goodness. I explained that it was a joke and we laughed together. But I didn't get to explain to the half a dozen other families who had obviously seen it. I could have told them it was for my music appreciation class. Or that I was encouraging diversity. Or that my "friends" think that they are SOOO funny. Anything other than them thinking that I have some kind of freakish teenage crush on this harmonic quartet.

So first thing Friday morning (well, after I took pictures), I carefully took it down and put it in a safe place. Because you can bet that my "friends" will someday walk into their classrooms and find the adolescent faces of these "boys" staring back at them. And don't be a bit surprised if it's on conference day!

Also Known As...

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Very Lady Jen the Harmonious of Withering by the Wold Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

What's a wold* and why am I withering by it? I like my peculiar aristocratic title, though. Very cool. (Thanks Scots.) I think I will make my students call me this. Well, maybe not the kindergarteners. Just the 7th graders. And my friends. All my friends must now address me as Very Lady Jen the Harmonious of Withering by the Wold. Okay, just Very Lady Jen the Harmonious.

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Duchess Jen the Innocent of Fiddlers Green

Wait, I actually like this one better. I am innocent. (No laughing Katrina and Kathy! You know it's true.) I like fiddle music. And I have lots of green (Irish) blood. So you may address me as either of my peculiar aristocratic titles. :)

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Entirely Miss Reverend Lady Jen the Disheveled of Menzies on the Minges

Okay. They just keep getting better, don't they? I love this one. This is the one. I want this one.

*wold: a tract of open country; a low hill

Catty

There are some things that they don't tell you about in parenting books. One is that when you are raising boys you should be prepared to have all kinds of creatures come into your house. I have had bug boxes full of grasshoppers, ladybugs, butterflies, moths, and other varieties of creepy crawlies spend the night on my coffee table. I don't mind. Really. It's been quite interesting seeing these fascinating creatures up close.


A few days ago the boys found a fat, furry caterpillar. They were so excited. They fixed up their biggest bug box for it with sticks and grass and leaves. They played with her (they decided it was a her...I didn't ask how they knew) and named her "Catty." Catty became their pet. They took her with us wherever we went and showed her off to kids and adults alike. They took her out of the box and let her crawl over their hands and arms. That's what Adam was doing on Tuesday night. He was sitting on the couch looking at Catty as she crawled on his arm and asked me all kinds of questions about her like "What kind of butterfly would she be?" "When would she make a cocoon?" and "How long did she have to stay in the cocoon?" I answered as best I could. Then we went on with our night. We watched cartoons together and had Popsicles for dessert. I put the boys in bed around 8:00 as usual and was lying on the couch trying to enjoy a few minutes of peace before doing end of the day chores. Around 8:15 Adam came out of his room and said, "Mom, did you put Catty back in the bug box?" "Ummm, no," I answered, "Didn't you?" "No. I forgot. I sat her on the couch arm when I got up." I jumped up since the couch arm in question was the very one my head happened to be lying on. Thankfully there was no squished caterpillar under my cheek. We looked all around the couch for Catty but she was no where to be found. She wasn't under the cushions. She wasn't under the couch. I felt like she was crawling in my shirt, but she wasn't there either. I told Adam that it wasn't very responsible for him to leave Catty out of her box to which he responded, "I got distracted by the Popsicle!!"

Adam was so sad. He had become quite attached to Catty and couldn't understand why she would run away to where there was no grass for her to eat when she had a perfectly fine home that he had made for her. I finally got him settled down and back into bed, but I continued to look for Catty because now instead of being a fat, furry caterpillar in a bug box, she was a big, hairy bug crawling around my house. I just knew she was somewhere in the couch and as soon as I sat back down she would attack. I'm not necessarily scared of caterpillars, but I don't want one on me. Especially when I least expect it. So I continued to look to no avail. Catty had disappeared.

Adam has since accepted that Catty is gone. And I have since accepted that there is a creature loose somewhere in my house. And every morning from now 'til winter I will be looking for, not Catty the caterpillar, but Catty the butterfly.

Everything by Number

What does it mean when a kid counts everything? My Adam does that. When we were at "Walking with the Dinosaurs" he leaned over and said "15." 15? "15 what?" I asked. "15 teeth on that big dinosaur mouth," he answered. I never would have thought to count the teeth in the huge mouth that framed the curtain where the dinosaurs appeared, but he did. Since then he has also started counting many more things, including the train cars that pass whenever we get stopped at the crossing. I didn't even know he was doing it until one day he said, "What comes after 99?!? What comes after 99?!?" Once I told him, he hurried and caught up with his counting and ended up on 257. Wow! That was a long train. Who knew? He has also apparently been counting the days that his brother has had the "American Dragon Jake Long" game boy game. A million. As in, "He's had that game for a million days. When do I get a turn?" I'm not so sure that one's accurate.

Last night at motocross at the North Idaho Fair he said, "Mom, did you know that there are 8 of those bumpy things on the track?" "No I didn't know that." But I do know how many times he asked for a snow cone. A million.

Moose On The Loose

Ever since I read about Marmitetoasty's love for moose, I have wanted to show her these painted moose that we have in town. There were originally lots of these moose statues that were painted by professional artists. They were placed all over town and then sold to benefit local schools. They appeared in parades, in front of businesses and in parks. A few were purchased by locals and are still here. I found six of them.

This one is on a condo balcony on the corner of Government Way and Sherman Ave. It seems kind of out of place, but you never know where you might see moose these days!

This one stands outside the school district building on 4th Street. Check out the victorian boots.

This one is standing in front of Kootenai Medical Center. I love that it is surrounded by a huge flower garden.

This one is in front of Cafe Doma on the corner of 5th and Sherman. Pedestrians can get up close and personal with this one since it's right on the sidewalk. This was the most dangerous picture to take. I had to parallel park!!

To get the picture of this one I had to go through the drive through at Del Taco. The boys were thrilled because they got root beers. And I got a diet coke. The cartoon character theme is especially fun.

I think this one is my favorite. I love the mini moose riding on top and the nature theme of the painting. It stands in front of Forest Steel on Government Way.

It was really fun driving around looking for moose and taking pictures. I'm probably lucky I wasn't in an accident or at least yelled at (or worse) by other drivers! It was quite a little adventure, in the spirit of Marmie herself.

Already?!?

This morning I have a staff meeting. That means three things.

1. It's not long until school starts. (Aka summer's almost over.)
2. I should start thinking about school shopping, lesson planning, and classroom set up.
3. I have got to go to the beach tommorrow!

Hairspray

I can't tell you how much I love this movie. As the opening scene began, I started smiling and I don't think I stopped for the next hour and forty-seven minutes. I love the music. I love the characters. And I love the story of "Hairspray."

Tracy Turnblad is played by the amazing newcomer Nikki Blonsky. She does a terrific job getting Tracy's passion for dance across to the audience. And that passion comes out in all of the scenes she's a part of whether she is doing a solo or dancing and singing in a group. I love that Tracy is confident, determined, open-minded and accepting. She's who I would want my daughter to be if I had a daughter. The cute-as-can-be Zac Efron* plays Link. The relationship between Tracy and Link is so sweet to watch as they realize that, despite their differences, they are meant for each other. The scene where Link sings to Tracy's picture is one of my favorites. The incredible Elijah Kelley and the ultra-adorable Amanda Bynes are also among my favorite characters as friends of Tracy and Link. Not to mention Christopher Walken, "The Queen" Latifah, Michelle Pheiffer, and James Marsden.

But my favorite character is Edna, Tracy's mom. She is played by the buxom beauty...John Travolta. Yep. John Travolta. I have to admit that when I heard that he was playing a woman in the movie I thought it might be bad. But I was wrong. I love Edna and Mr. Travolta played her to perfection. Edna is just wonderfully sweet and entertaining. She worries about her daughter, frets over her own appearance, and loves her husband. And she overcomes her fears to step out of her comfort zone to stand with Tracy, protect her marriage, and shake it like she's never shaken it before on live t.v. Go Edna!

When you put all of these amazing characters together with the terrific soundtrack and the feel-good plot, you get a movie that I can't wait to own. It just makes me happy! It made me happy on the night I saw it and it makes me happy now to think about it. And I love it when the chubby girl gets the guy!

*Don't tell anyone, but I love "High School Musical" even though I haven't been in high school for 17 years. High School Musical 2 premieres on August 17!

Close to Home

This past weekend we had planned a weekend trip to Montana. But we were reminded that there was a big festival taking place just outside Missoula, where we would be staying. (I'd tell you the name of the festival, but Arrty said that my use of the word involved has reached its limit, so you'll have to check out the link.) There would be 15,000 extra visitors to the city, so we decided to stay home. The boys were already excited about our trip and were disappointed when the plans changed. To make it up to them, we let them choose many of the weekend's activities. So here's what we did.

Friday:

Skyhawks (the boys sports camp) finale. It was great fun to watch them practice all that they had learned during the week in tournaments with their campmates. And Arrty got to go watch, which thrilled the boys. They love to share these kinds of things with both of us.

Lunch at Red Lobster (Adam's choice). We all love Red Lobster, even though Adam usually orders mac and cheese.

(Friday night I went to see Hairspray with my girls. But that will be tomorrow's blog.)

Saturday:

We spent the morning doing chores like cleaning house, mowing lawn, doing laundry, etc. Then we made a quick visit to my folks' house and had a late lunch at Outback (Arrty's choice). The boys had ribs, Arrty had the porterhouse, and even though I wanted to try the chicken, I couldn't resist the Outback Special. Then we went to see "Underdog" (the movie). It was really cute and the boys loved it. I love taking Josh to funny movies because he has this wonderful laugh that fills up the theater. Very cute. Adam giggles and shakes, and is just as cute. Then we went to Home Depot with a short list of home improvement items.

Sunday

We spent Sunday morning, just as we do every Sunday morning, at church.

Then we went to Silverwood Theme Park which is only about five minutes from our house. The boys wanted to go to the water park first, and since it was their day to choose the activities, that's where we went. (Here's where I wish I had a digital camera so that I could share some of my pictures.) They spent an hour and a half playing in the water while Arrty and I sat in the sun and talked about life, our family and all of the body art we were seeing. Then we went to the ice skating show, the magic show (which the boys loved so much that they bought magic tricks for their souvenirs), and on the train ride. After that it was time to hit the rides. We went on the raft ride and the log ride twice each, the Ferris wheel, and Arrty and Adam went on Timber Terror. (Josh isn't much of a roller coaster fan.) And the boys went on the last ride of the night on the Red Baron kiddie planes. Then we had to make a trip to the candy shop where the boys bought huge tubes of colored sugar that they got to fill themselves. They had a great day and so I had a great day.

So we didn't get to go to Montana, but we sure had fun close to home. And we got to sleep in our own beds, which is always a bonus if you ask me.

Hurried

Every month I publish a women's newsletter at our church called Grace Notes. It contains ministry news, upcoming events, a getting to know you page, and an article that I write. I thought I would share this month's article.

Hurried

“Hurry up, Adam.” “Let’s go, Adam.” “Catch up, Adam.” These are all things that I say several times a day. Adam is just one of those people who takes his time. He’s never in a hurry for anything and has the tendency to get distracted by the littlest thing: a bug or a feather or a flower. It’s one of the things about him that drives me crazy and it’s one of the things about him that I love. This particular personality trait in my youngest son causes all errands to take twice as long as they should. It causes me to practice patience when I sometimes don’t want to. And it reminds me to slow down and enjoy life a little more.

This week Josh and Adam have been at Skyhawks, a sports day camp where they have been learning and practicing baseball, soccer, and basketball. I’ve stayed close by walking in the park and sitting in the shade reading and writing. And from the very first day, all over the park, I could hear Adam’s coach saying, “Come on, Adam.” “Hurry up, Adam.” “Let’s go, Adam.” I couldn’t help but smile. Hearing it from someone else has helped me to understand and appreciate my little slowpoke a little better. But I began to wonder about his coach. It he getting frustrated at his straggler? Is he tired of hurrying him along? He doesn’t know and love Adam the way I do and, although he’s been very patient, I’m sure he hasn’t had the time to grow to appreciate Adam’s lack of hurriedness.

This, like so many other things in life has caused me to consider my relationship to God. How many times has he said to me, “Hurry up, Jen?” “Come on, Jen.” “Let’s go, Jen.” There are things in my life that I’m supposed to be doing but haven’t quite gotten around to yet. There are places I’m supposed to go and people I’m supposed to see, but have gotten distracted by urgency instead. But I’m blessed because, like I know and love Adam, God knows and loves me. Even more. And lucky for me, he has unending patience and teaches me, even on the soccer field, to listen to his voice. So now when I hear that voice hurrying me along, I’ll try to pick up the pace. And the next time I’m rushing Adam, I’ll be a little more patient.

Meddling

I'm always interested to read bumper stickers on the cars in front of me as I drive. I have never been one for bumper stickers myself, but I think you can find out a lot about people from the ones they choose to display. For example, you can tell if they are political or religious or proud of their honor student. And you can sometimes judge their sense of humor or occupation or hobbies. But I saw one the other day that I absolutely could not figure out. I read it and read it again and wondered who would display this particular bumper sticker. It said..

Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons...
for you are crunchy and good with ketchup.

What?!? Who puts that on their car for the world to see. A dungeons and dragons geek (no offense), a medieval historian, a fantasy writer, Shrek? I still haven't quite figured it out. Maybe someday I will find the perfect bumper sticker for my minivan. But I'm pretty sure it won't have anything to do with dragons or ketchup.

Sweetest Wedding Ever

I just got home from the sweetest wedding ever. My sister married the love of her life. It was small and intimate, held outside in a friend's beautiful back yard overlooking Hayden Lake. But the real beauty wasn't found in the setting, but in the bride and groom. They are so much in love that you could feel it in the air. And they both so deserve it. The last few years haven't been easy for either of them. So now that they have seen and felt what real love can be, they appreciate it all the more. They stood in front of family and a few friends and declared their love to each other and their dedication to their new family that includes my wonderful nephew. It was wonderful and amazingly sweet.

My sister seemed to be kind of missing from my life for a few years while she was in a less than desirable relationship, but now she's back. She's smiling and laughing and so, so happy. She calls me and shares her life with me and tells me stories and I absolutely love it. She has always been my best friend and I'm so glad to have her in my life again. The real Ada is back. The fun, happy, life-loving one. Welcome back, sis. I love you. May the rest of your life be as full of love as tonight was. And call me, I love to hear your voice.

Time Flies...

I absolutely can't believe that it's almost August. It seems like I just finished school and it's been almost two months. We've been busy doing work around the house with a few fun things thrown in. But there's still so much I want to do. Like...

• spend a few more days at the beach
• go on a long weekend trip to Montana
• attend an Indians baseball game
• take a trip with the boys to Chuck E. Cheese
• make a visit to a T-Rex named Sue
• see more free movies at Riverstone
• enjoy Sunday concerts in the park
• spend a day at Raptor Reef
• go for our annual day at Silverwood

And all of this has to be done during the month of August when I also have to start getting ready for the next school year. Yikes. I have to go get started on my list. Today looks like a great beach day!

VBS

This week is Vacation Bible School at church. VBS is always busy and crazy and fun. We have about 100 kids attending this year, mostly visitors from the community. Our theme is Noah and my job is to teach the story, piece by piece, focusing on obedience, trust, faith, and hope. It's always exciting to share the Bible with God's children and especially those to whom it may be a new experience. I pray every morning that God will water the seeds that I plant and that these children will take something away from this week that will last them a lifetime.

And it's always fun to meet new kids. Being a teacher by profession kind of gives me a little advantage over those who only teach during VBS. I know within a few minutes the personality of the class as a whole and most of the kids individually. I've taught enough kids in my day that I can spot a "challenge" a mile away. That happened yesterday with one boy in particular. He wasn't disrespectful or especially disruptive. But I knew. I knew that if we spent anymore than our allotted 20 minutes together, there would be some issues. So I taught my class and he showed off and gave silly answers and I just smiled thinking about his teacher next year. Good luck whoever you are. You're going to need it.

I asked him at the end of class, "You get into trouble at school, don't you?" His answer said it all. With a mischievous little smile, he cocked his head and said, "Maybe." Yeah right, maybe. There's no maybe about it. But for some reason it's the kids like him that I remember most fondly. Not during the school year in which I see them everyday, but after. When it's only the memory that's left. The memory of their smile and silliness and sweetness under it all. So here's to all my "maybe" kids. Thanks for the memories.

It Will All Be Over Soon

I have a confession to make. I know that what I'm about to say is going to be hard to believe, but it's true. Every word. I just hope that this revelation won't make you think badly of me, but I have to get this out in the open. Okay, here it goes. I have never...read a Harry Potter book. Or seen a movie. I know, I know. It's unbelievable that I have completely missed out on the storm that is Harry Potter. When the books first came out I wasn't really interested because I'm not a big fan of fantasy and I have to admit that the witchcraft turned me away. And now as the whole thing has grown to have a gigantic amount of overexposure, it's just to much for me to get mixed up in. I have friends who are big fans and they often have conversations that sound like a different language to me. I just smile and wait for it to pass. There are stories in the news about these books that make me wonder what kind of a slow news day they have to have to report on if Harry is going to die. He's not real, people! And waiting in line to buy a book. I love books, but it would have to have pages made of money for me to wait in line for it. One good thing I will say about the whole thing. These stories get kids to read, so they can't be all bad. Right? And maybe, since I've heard a few million times that this is the last book, all the readers of the world can move on and meet some new people. So, Harry, I never knew ya. But the truth is, you have enough friends as it is.

Ramblings

My mind is full today. I don't know if it's med withdrawals or just one of those days. Here are a few of the things that are spilling out of my brain today.

I have great friends. We had girl's night out last night and it was a ton of fun as usual. I was reminded once again of how blessed I am to have this group of sister friends.

Josh is getting too tall. I'm not tall at all but he is catching up to me way to fast.

Adam is the cutest thing ever. And a little dramatic. As I walked into the living room this morning, he said, "Mom, you would not believe how hungry I am!"

I have a lot to do today: clean the playroom, go into town to run errands, work on VBS lessons, take the boys to Fun Friday at church, prepare the communion trays for Sunday, call the Indians baseball guy about church night, pay bills, and probably more I'll remember as I go.

What a blessing the Bible is. Today's favorite verse is Psalm 25:15, "If I keep my eyes on God, I won't trip over my own feet." (from The Message)

Day 1

Today is the first day in six months that I haven't been on anxiety medication. I have to admit that not taking it this morning caused me a little anxiety. But nothing like what I suffered before my treatment. It all stems from the car accident that I had in April 2006. It seems that thinking that you are going to die, even for a few brief moments, can wreak havoc on your brain. My neurotransmitters were all out of whack because of the stress of it all and made me think I was having a heart attack or going crazy or both. For months I suffered from anxiety/panic attacks and all the symptoms that came with them without knowing what it was. It took two weeks of major symptoms to finally make me realize that I needed help. Counseling, to help me see what I was dealing with, and medication (even though I fought it) helped me to slowly get better. Now here I am, off the meds and hopeful that I can stay off. And better able to recognize and deal with my anxiety.

I did some research this morning on how to control anxiety naturally. I found that diet (high in fresh food, low in anything processed) and exercise can help a lot. Also relaxation techniques and meditation/prayer are helpful. Sunlight, fresh air, adequate sleep and nutritional supplements (magnesium, B complex, and calcium) were also mentioned as natural ways to deal with anxiety. All things I kind of knew and don't always do well with.

So, today is a new day. I've already meditated and prayed on my front porch in the fresh air and had a healthy breakfast. Now I'll just need to throw in a little exercise, take my vitamins, and go to bed at a decent hour. Because, whatever it takes, I will get well and stay well.

So many people suffer with anxiety attacks and aren't aware of it so they don't seek help. Following is a list of symptoms of an anxiety/panic attack:

• heart palpitations or racing heartbeat
• chest pain
• hot flashes or chills
• cold and clammy hands
• stomach upset or queasiness
• frequent urination or diarrhea
• shortness of breath
• sweating
• dizziness
• tremors, twitches, and jitters
• muscle tension or aches
• headaches
• fatigue
• insomnia
• apprehension, uneasiness or dread
• impaired concentration or selective attention
• feeling restless or on edge
• avoidance
• hypervigilance
• irritability
• confusion
• nervousness or jumpiness
• self-consciousness and insecurity
• fear that you are dying or going crazy
• strong desire to escape

If you or someone you know suffer from panic attacks, don't suffer needlessly. Get help. Life is so much better without the pain.

Websites for more information:

www.anxietypanic.com

www.helpguide.org

www.womentowomen.com

Christmas In July

We had a yard sale at our house today and just like every other time that I have a yard sale (about every two years), I am vowing to never do it again and to just take the stuff to Goodwill and be done with it. That's where most of it goes in the end anyway. We did make a little money and our effort was mostly for Josh and Adam to encourage them to get rid of some of the bazillion toys we have scattered around our house. They got to keep the money for anything of theirs that they sold. (They made $32.75 and are so excited!) But despite all the work for very little reward, something good came out of it. I went down to the basement last night to look for last minute items to include in the sale and started going through some boxes of books. I knew that I had tons of children's chapter books that I had bought while I was in college and since the boys are just now getting old enough to read them, they have been in those boxes for awhile. I love books, which is probably why their are hundreds in my house. Literally hundreds. One lady bought 55 books this morning and I still had three boxes left to sell. And there are still two boxes downstairs to keep and one to go to school. Not to mention full bookshelves in every room in the house except the kitchen and bathrooms.

Going through the boxes was like Christmas! Each one contained books that I had read before the boys were born and it was like seeing old friends. So many of those books are so good and I can't wait to share them with my kids at home and at school. I couldn't help but smile as I pulled out some of my favorites: "Sarah, Plain and Tall," "Julie Of The Wolves," "Ella Enchanted," "The Secret Garden," "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," "Number the Stars," "A Taste of Blackberries," "Jacob Have I Loved," "Onion John." All so wonderful.

But in addition to those books, I came across a bunch of books by author's that I had studied in my American Lit class this spring. I have been meaning to get to the library to check out some of their works but haven't yet. And now I don't need to. I have a stack of books just waiting to be devoured. Among them are "The Red Badge of Courage," "The Sound and the Fury," "Life on the Mississippi," "The Red Pony," "The Great Gatsby." Some I have read and others will be deliciously new. I also found an old book that I read when I was a teenager called "Jubilee Trail." I remember loving it, so it goes on the list as well as "Jane Eyre." Now I just have to decide which to read first. Maybe I'll go alphabetically.

I always say that I don't collect anything, but I guess I do. I collect books...and the friends I meet in them. And so now I'm off to make some new friends.

Half Old

Today the boys and I went to the free movie at Riverstone. It was "Over The Hedge." We'd seen it before, but hey, it's free. Aidan, my 4 year old nephew went with us. We had fun and enjoyed the show with lots of other families. On the way home we had the following conversation.

Josh: "Mom, can we go play at the park?"
Me: "No, Josh, it's too hot."
Josh: "Not for us."
Me: "The news last night said stay inside. The hot weather isn't good for kids or old people. And you're kids and I'm old."
Josh: "You're not old."
Aidan: "Yeah, you're only half old."

Thanks, Aid.

15 Years

Today I have been married for 15 years. 15 years of good times and bad, rich and poor, sickness and health. And I am better for it. I am just as happy and in love as I was in 1992. Maybe even more so.

I am married to a man that I met when I was 11 years old. We went to school and church together. I'm pretty sure it was playing four square when we realized we were meant for each other. Actually we did like each other then, but we went to different high schools and didn't actually start dating until I was a junior and he was a senior. We dated for three years before we got married, but I like to tell people that we were engaged since middle school. It sometimes feels like it. We were married seven years before we had kids, so we had plenty of time together, just the two of us. It was fun. We worked and went to college and wandered all over the place trying restaurants and seeing movies and going to concerts. I hardly remember a time without him in my life.

In honor of our 15th anniversary, I thought I would share 15 things about my husband.

1. He knows me better than anyone, including myself.
2. He has wonderfully blue eyes that shine when he laughs.
3. He has seen me in all my craziness and still loves me more than anyone.
4. He knows what I'm talking about when I say "I knew it!" and "ice cream."
5. He likes to watch cooking and food shows on television. (Probably because he doesn't see anything like that at home.)
6. He is a great dad and makes me glad that God put us together in this family.
7. He believes in the power of prayer.
8. He loves and understands my family.
9. He's a great teacher in and out of the classroom.
10. He likes his music loud. And preferably from the 80's.
11. He knows the difference between trips and a set.
12. He has always worked hard to support our family.
13. He knows the lyrics to every song he's ever heard. Not to mention the artist, title and year it was released.
14. He's the only man I've ever kissed.
15. He is my best friend.

I thank God everyday for him and the blessing of our marriage. Especially today.

I love you, Arrty. Happy anniversary. And many more.

Differences

My sons were born 19 months apart. When Adam was born, he weighed a pound and a half more than Josh when he was born and quickly caught up with his brother. They even wore the same size diapers for a while. That's when I knew it was time to potty train Josh! Now Adam outweighs Josh by a few pounds and they are almost the same height. Over the years I have had lots of people ask me if they are twins. I guess it's because they are so close in size because they don't really look that much alike. And, in fact, they couldn't be more different. Josh tends to be more serious where Adam is silly through and through. Adam loves anything artistic but Josh willingly admits that he doesn't even like to color. Josh has this crazy, cow-licked hair that sticks up all over the place if it's not cut short. Adam has fine, smooth hair that never looks messy. Josh loves to sit on my lap and snuggle or have his back scratched. Adam has to be asked for every hug he gives. Adam likes everything vanilla. Josh prefers chocolate. But one of the biggest differences between the two is that Josh talks to everyone and has never met a stranger where Adam is very shy around people. Even those he knows well. I was reminded of this on Friday when we went to "Fun Friday" at church. It was a bike riding day and both boys were very excited. Adam has just started riding without training wheels so ended up on the ground pretty regularly. (9 times to be exact. He counted.) But there were lots of people around, so even when I knew he was hurt, he wouldn't make a sound. That would draw attention to him, and he hates that. So he'd just get himself up and dust off or lie there with his shoe stuck under the bike until someone rescued him. I can guarantee that if the same thing would have happened to Josh, everyone would have known it including the neighbors. I'm pretty sure that he thinks, "The more attention the better." So my Adam ended up with scraped knees, but no one knew. Heaven forbid that he would actually cry in front of people. And he only said a handful of words the whole morning. But believe me, he made up for it later when it was just us. He always does.

Loaded

How rich are you? >> I'm loaded. It's official. I'm the 55,394,943 richest person on earth!

4th

Yesterday morning the boys and I were driving into town to have breakfast at my folks' house. The boys were excited about the bbq we had planned for later in the day and the festivities to come. So I asked them, "Why do we celebrate the 4th of July?" Josh, without hesitation said, "It has something to do with Jesus." I had to laugh while explaining that this holiday, in fact, doesn't have anything to do with Jesus like most of the others we celebrate. But by the end of the day, I realized that I was wrong. Everyday has something to do with Jesus. We spent time eating and playing and laughing with friends. We sat out in our yard without having to be afraid of anything but getting sprayed by a stray super soaker. I held in my arms the 9 week old baby of friends and marveled at her tiny feet and lovely smile. I watched my two healthy, happy sons slip and slide and play in the sprinkler. I enjoyed blessings that many in this world can't even imagine. So I learned, that this day, just like all the others, has everything to do with Jesus.

"I have come that they may have life and have it to the full." John 10:10b

Asleep

Before I go any further, I just want to say that I am not a poet. I don't ordinarily write poetry and don't in fact even like to read poetry unless it's written like a story. But I have noticed that when my sons sleep, their little faces look just like they did when they were babies. And a few weeks ago, while I was lying beside them as they fell asleep, this poem came to me without even really thinking about it. I got up and grabbed my notebook and started writing and very few words changed from what I thought during those moments when their faces magically changed from six and seven years old to six and seven days old. So here goes.


Asleep

When he's asleep
His face is the same
As it was so long ago.

When he's asleep
I see the one
That I cradled in my arms for hours.

When he's asleep
His face looks just like the one
I studied those first few days.

When he's asleep
He's my baby again.
Not loose teeth and
Two wheeler bikes and
Video games and
Size 2 shoes.

When he's asleep.