If You Don't Like the Weather...

wait five minutes and it will change. Right? It was warm and sticky all day long. I came home and took a nap--and when I woke up fall was back! Not only that, but when I went to Wal Mart this evening, they were playing "There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays". Puh-leeze! I am NOT ready for that. I have to somehow get through a book/costume parade, trick-r-treating in downtown Runge, going to the pumpkin patch in Karnes City and to the park in Kenedy followed by a pep rally--THEN going to a football game tomorrow night. Hard to think about Christmas when Halloween is still looming. Oh well, better get some things done. Caleigh is dressing as a zebra for the book parade tomorrow and I think I have to wash something...

On My Heart

Lots on my heart tonight, but the words are stuck. Our preacher, otherwise known as the man in my life, talked tonight about how God is on our side. What more could we ask? Really, when the storms are raging and it is hard to take a deep breath, He is all we need. I have been reading some amazing stories on other blogs this week. There are families going through some trying times right now, that are inspiring countless readers with their faith and trust in the One on whom we can depend. I need to be more like that. Less complaining, more praising; less worrying, more trusting; less fear, more faith. Less critical, more loving. Fewer regrets, more cherishing the moment. After all-- as the saying goes, "life isn't about the number of breaths you take, but about the moments that take your breath away".

Cold Front and Kindergarten Collide

Oh. My. Goodness. The day started out rather well for a Monday and turned on me. Wow. There really isn't anything else to say. Don't you love it when I quote Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse? If you haven't read it you should, it's by Kevin Henkes and it's one of Caleigh's all-time favorites (and mine!). I am feeling somewhat better after all the sleep I got Sunday. I really think that is the only way my body was going to start healing. I have felt much better overall today, though the cough is back now that it is nighttime. I am going to go to take the knockout medicine after I post this and try to get a good night's sleep. Millie and I had issues last night. Evidently she was cold and we fought over bed space all night. Who knew a small Boston Terrier could take up so much room? I knew they were snugglers but Sugar never slept in the bed with us. This dog is s-p-o-i-l-e-d. Shh...don't tell her. When we got home from school the kids put her sweater on her that we bought on clearance last summer when the temp was 143 degrees. She is much more appreciative now than when they insisted on trying it on her in July.

For those who don't follow me on facebook (Mom & Dad!) I will close tonight with something truly amazing. Several days ago Conner mentioned that he was really considering playing basketball this season. My heart and stomach lurched at the same time (all moms know that feeling). I didn't say much, except that we would support him whatever he decided. All I could think about were the endless nights that I watched him writhing in pain on the floor due to the pain he was in. I pictured him as he was just 2 short years ago, in a wheelchair unable to put weight on his feet/legs at all. Today he got in the car and announced that he will be #12 on the basketball court. He starts practice on November 6 and has a game the following Monday. I don't know exactly what will happen--I feel that he will pass the physical. He has been doing some conditioning and has made quite a bit of progress. Whatever happens, I know he will give it his all. Oh, and he will be playing tennis and golf as well. How can anyone not believe that God is alive and well?

It's 2:15 a.m. and all is not well...

...due to the fact that I have bronchitis AND insomnia. I finished making 50 or so goodie bags for the Yellowjacket Band a little while ago and sleep is evading me. I did take a nap earlier in the evening which could be part of the problem. This illness has been coming on for several weeks and I am ready to bid it adieu. We will hope that with the antibiotic I was prescribed, and the knock out cough medicine I can get over it soon. Conner is already on antibiotics for the same thing, and Caleigh came home and went to bed about 5:30. She is still asleep, so I hope she isn't next. She is generally my healthy child when it comes to things like this so hopefully...

That's about it for tonight (this morning!) but I am working on putting some thoughts together about the wonderful training that I experienced this week. I hope to post pictures tomorrow night of a very excited group of kids headed to State Marching Contest. Whatever happens, they are giving it their all and we are very proud of them. I'm going to go try to sleep for a little while.

I'm Still Kicking...Just Not Very High

Sorry I haven't written much lately. We have had several different things going on that have really taken my attention away from my blog. To make a long story short (stop laughing those who know me well!)--I just cannot find the time for any quality thoughts, much less the time to record those thoughts. Between being under the weather, dealing with some major stresses at school, and being out of town 3 days this week, I am just swamped. Did you know that it is a hundred times harder to prepare for a sub for three days than to be at school? No joke, it is just way too hard to be gone from the classroom. I am fortunate to be able to attend the Capturing Kids' Hearts workshop and I KNOW I will be blessed. I just have to get past waking up at 5, leaving at 6 to get to SA, participating in a challenging and emotionally draining training from 8-4, plus a 1 1/2 hour trip home. So, I may not be writing much for the next few days. Next time you hear from me I will hopefully be healthier, more rested, and more emotionally stable. Or you could hear from me tomorrow if the spirit moves me. Stay tuned.

The Day I Slept Through Blogging...and everything else.

You know you must be tired when you come home from work early to take your child to the doctor, return home from said appointment and collapse in bed only to wake up 8 hours later. I was OUT! The only thing I did at 11:30 when I woke up was eat a small snack, take my daily medication, and go back to bed. So how does one feel after about 13 hours of sleep? Tired. You heard me, I am still tired. My job is taking every bit of energy I have, plus a large amount that I DON'T have. The result, I am just tired all the time. I am tired of saying I'm tired, I am tired of being tired. I love teaching, I love kids, I don't love the stress or the neverending nature of my job. My quest for perfection and the very nature of what I do cause an imbalance in my life. I have a small class, and we have some big problems. Out of respect for privacy and a sense of professionalism, I can't discuss the problems. Just know that they weigh heavily on me. If you are one of those people who think that teachers play all day, please say a prayer for yourself and one for me. I really need it right now. Tomorrow is Friday and I will think of some blessings to count.

Welcome to My Monday, No Tuesday, Wait...

It really has been a Monday kind of day. It seems that a three day weekend doesn't bode well for Tuesday in Kindergarten. Oh, it was an interesting day to say the least. My usually sweet little students had glazed over, strange looks on their faces all day. They were somewhat mean to each other and not so nice to the teacher either. It is always a battle at math time regarding who gets to sit by the teacher on the floor, today it was World War III. Walking in line is a challenge still, even after 7 weeks, today it was seemingly impossible. The two worst words that kindergarten students know (stupid & shut up) were both heard in my room today (not by the teacher--come on now!), and much scribbling was seen on papers. All I could think of at 3:20 was a line from The Cosby Show when one of Rudy's teachers had a hard day at school..."You go home, and YOU go home, all of you go home. And I am going to go home, and take a bubble bath, and re-examine my life." And I am going to eat a brownie, because that helps. (my words, not Cosby's) I KNOW tomorrow will be a better day.

Help! Someone Stole My Weekend!

Where did it go? How can an hour of math go by sooooo slllowwwlllyyyy, and three days of weekend fly by like nothing??? I don't get it. I will say I enjoyed it, in all of it's quickness. I got some extra rest and some laundry done. Oh and coming up, it's sure to be an interesting week this week... it's homecoming. Great, kindergarten just NEEDS a reason to get excited. I might as well face it, with homecoming, Halloween, pumpkin patch visiting, Community helper, hospital visiting, Thanksgiving, week off, Christmas play, winter vacation coming up...we are going to be a little excited in Room 12. Does anybody have a good vitamin to recommend for this slightly older kindergarten teacher? I suddenly feel so. very. tired.

Life Just Doesn't Get Any Better Than This...

I LOVE cool rainy Sunday afternoons. There is no school tomorrow, so I don't feel the pressure to do anything there. My house has been messy for so long that it really doesn't even matter anymore. I can just BE, at least for this afternoon. I found my comfiest puppy dog pj's (Caleigh and I have matching!), sent Russell off to prison for the afternoon, and I am headed for some blissful solitude. My kids are now old enough that they have no problems finding entertainment for themselves. The one thing that is bugging me at the moment is that I didn't get any pictures at marching contest yesterday. I had my camera, but at Judson early in the morning it was SO COLD that I couldn't think straight. Plus, I was as nervous as the kids. Then, somehow between the two shows, I got really sick. I'm not sure what happened but I couldn't even get out of the car at Harlandale. I listened to the performance. So, on one of the biggest days of my son's life thus far, I totally failed to get pictures. C'est la vie I suppose. There will be many more days to commemorate. His aunt Gigi did get one picture, and thanks to her his baptism a few years ago is on video and YouTube. I try. My peaceful afternoon is calling to me now.......

Post Without a Title

Up at 6, leave by 7, test again, raining HARD, no recess, running behind, pep rally, OUT OF CONTROL KIDS, leave school at 4, back at 5 (drop off Conner, pick up Caleigh), home for a little while, BACK to school for game at 7, work concession stand for Band Boosters, home at 10:30, COOKING DINNER (????), hope to get to bed by midnight, BECAUSE....Up at 4 a.m., school by 5 a.m., drive to SA, watch band march, drive across SA, watch band march again, home sometime tomorrow night, pardon me if I am yawning on Sunday AND please don't bother me on Monday.

What To Do On a Rare Day Off

How did I get a day off you ask? Because we are having to see Caleigh's neurologist more often right now while we titrate her medications, today we made that dreadful trip to the Medical Center. Instead of working this morning then making a flying trip to SA, I took the whole day. My plan was to sleep in a little, clean my house, do laundry, and casually drive to get Caleigh and make a NON-rushed trip to SA. Ha ha ha ha ha. I woke up feeling AWFUL this morning, achy body, sore throat, coughing. I dragged myself out of bed, made a puny attempt at cleaning the house, didn't get ANY laundry done, ran late getting to Runge to get Caleigh, and FLEW to SA, arriving 5 minutes late to our appointment. Thankfully our neurologist loves us and it was all good. She had a good checkup--he feels that we are on third base in our quest for a homerun in treating her epilepsy. We ran around SA looking for Russell a flu shot, didn't have any luck, then FLEW back to Kenedy to get Conner to band practice, 30 minutes late. So, on a rare day off, what did I do??? Nothing new.

Send the Yellowjacket band some positive thoughts on Saturday. They will be marching Saturday morning at Judson, then Saturday afternoon at Harlandale. We will be the bleary eyed people following them around all day. (Yes, another Saturday for the record books!) Go Band!!!

Wow, what a wacky Wednesday!

Up too late, slept through alarm, grumpy daughter, pants wrinkled, testing students, trouble with Palm, Palm better, flu shot, consult with counselor, missed half of lunch, chicken and dumplings, prepared for WRONG math lesson, kids ROWDY, made kids do QUIET table work, prepared for RIGHT lesson, second counselor consult of the day, science experiment, clouds ruined our hypothesis, kids running amuck, meltdown for one student, third consult with counselor....Asked them at the end of the day to share one positive thing about the day: "We had SO MUCH FUN today!" God bless them.

Count Your Blessings Name Them One by One

I have been trying to focus more on the blessings of this life and less on the struggles. It may not show here on my blog, but I will try to do better. Some things that come to my mind tonight...
1. The love of family, near and far, close and extended.
2. My marriage. He even took me to a $5 jewelry sale at the hospital this evening. What more could I want?
3. My children. They make me smile. Caleigh and I have cuddle time early every morning. Conner and I have TV/talk time every night. Needless to say I treasure early morning and late evening.
4. When my students' faces light up as I greet them at the door with a handshake every morning.
5. Friends. I feel especially blessed by the prayers of friends.
6. Church family, not just the ones here in Kenedy, but all over the place. Sweet fellowship.
7. Knowing that my basic needs are met and those of my family. I see examples everyday of how fortunate we are and how much there is to do in this world.

And on, and on, and on....

Another Crazy Busy Saturday

Last Saturday, as you will remember, I enjoyed a 21 hour workday. This week, only about 14 hours. I was blessed to be able to attend the 26th annual Kindergarten Teachers of Texas conference (KTOT) in Corpus Christi. The positives included a great conference with a lot of practical ideas as well as some validation for what I have been doing so far this year. Dr. Jean Feldman was there, and a wonderfully humorous award winning cartoonist and author, Mike Artell. The downside, I don't enjoy a 5 a.m. wakeup. Also, the drive home was treacherous. The weather was so bad that we felt fortunate to make it back. There was unbelievable cloud to ground lightening and rain that was torrential. The water runoff from the fields looked like raging waterfalls all along the highway, the ditches were overflowing and water covered much of the road. It made for a slow, tense drive home, but thankfully we made it safe and sound.

This non-stop craziness is going to have to end in the near future. I need some downtime. I feel like I have literally been on an out of control carnival ride for 7 days now, with very little rest. But how much fun to be a part of AFC Aggie weekend last week, and how blessed I was to attend a great conference, and Conner even got a haircut! And thank you God for the rain...which I hear again on my patio...which will be great to fall asleep to.