Go Figure

Yesterday while supervising kindergarten recess I asked a boy not to touch some of the teacher's supplies that were outside her door.  His response was immediate, polite, and came in the form of a question:  "Is it OK if my hand hovers above it?" 

Kids these days.  Go figure. 

Politics

My spunky 16-year old is running for student council.  Things like student elections, cheerleader/dance tryouts and sports tryouts make parents nervous.  But sticking your neck out is good for kids and life lessons can be learned. 

Here are some slogans we've used:

Bark if you're voting Clark!
Don't be left in the dark, vote Clark.
Vote Clark, give PineView some spark.
Make your mark for Clark.

Here are some slogans that got vetoed:

Vote Clark, or get eaten by a shark!
Vote Clark, she's endorsed by Tony Stark.
Vote Clark, you'll be as happy as a lark!
Vote Clark, she'll hit it out of the park.

Perhaps she should just say:  Change We Can Believe In.  That seemed to work. 
 

Carpe Diem

Seize the day.  That's my goal.  More often than not I'm just trying to get through the day.  If I can just get to tomorrow, the weekend, the end of the month.   But I don't want to live for tomorrow.  I want to live today.   Days keep turning into nights and nights into days and I'm left wondering if I just went through the motions.



Not today.  Today I will complement cashiers and fast food workers.  Today I will help a coworker.  Today I will make a meaningful connection with my husband and make time to communicate individually with my children.  Today I will smile and look for opportunities to laugh.

My mom gave me a picture for my home, I'll bet you have one like it.  It says "Live.  Laugh.  Love."  Today I plan to.  She also reminds me regularly that the present is a gift.  Today I plan to embrace the gift.  Today I will find joy in the journey!

Miracle

Miracle is defined as "an extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to a supernatural cause."  We experienced a miracle this past Friday. 

The time had come to check my boy's back to see if the brace he wears 18 hours each day is doing what it's supposed to.  It's supposed to keep his curvature from getting worse.  We visited with Dr. Smith and he explained to us that bracing works for 70% of kids who use them.  The other 30% continue to experience more curvature despite the brace.  Oh how I prayed to be in that 70 percentile.  He also explained how bracing can't fix curves, only stop them from getting worse. 

Here's where it gets interesting.  My son's curve has been measured at 33 degrees since it's discovery during his first year of life.  This past Fall we found his curve has worsened to 39 degrees, making the brace a necessity.  So you can imagine my shock this past weekend when his x-rays showed his curve to be 29 degrees! 

I looked to the doctor for explanation.  He had none.  I asked if we could toss the brace in the dumpster on the way out.  He said no.  We'll continue to wear the brace as long as the boy's growing to help prevent further curving and quite possibly to straighten the curve more, even though it's technically not possible. 

Hallelujah is defined as "praise the Lord!"

Cool

Don't know about where you live, but where we live it's warming up.  Matter of fact, we flipped the thermostat switch from "heat" to "cool."  Yeah baby.  In celebration I'm posting a summertime recipe here.  Enjoy!

Dear Old Dad

My dad was the best.  Nicest guy you'd ever meet.  Humble.  Full of love.  How I miss that guy.  He was 53 when we noticed his behavior was a bit strange.  He'd get lost coming home from work, not know how to get familiar places, and forget a lot of things.  Many doctor visits confirmed his diagnosis of Early Onset Alzheimer's. 

It was a difficult diagnosis to come to terms with, especially at such a young age.  Dad called it "Big Al."  He faced it courageously and became my bosom buddy so mom could keep working and provide their income.  For two years we did everything together.  Did I say everything?  I meant EVERYTHING.  It was awesome.  Two years I wouldn't give up for anything.  Difficult?  To say the least.  Rewarding?  More than you will ever know.  At 55 his battle ended and now my bosom buddy is my guardian angel.

Mom wrote a book about "Life with Big Al."  It was her greatest desire, still is, to help others who care for loved ones whose lives have been interrupted by a visit from Big Al.  The book is a diary of dad's decline and ways we coped with it.  It is also a grand expression of love. 

If someone you know or love is negotiating Alzheimer's, feel free to get in touch with the woman I am blessed to call "mom."  You can reach her, and order her book if you like, at her website. 

Just Keep Swimming

The hamster wheel I'm on is going about 90 mph these days.  Here is a list of activities I was involved in last week:

Primary activity
Young Women camp hike
Soccer game
Basketball game
City service project
Senior Ball
WalMart grocery shopping

And that was on Saturday alone.  The other days of the week keep me running just as fast.  In fact, there were a few times last week when I felt like tears were imminent.  It was at those times that these words came to my mind:  just keep swimming.  If you haven't seen Finding Nemo, you can see what I'm talking about here. 

Funny how a quote from a Disney movie came as my inspiration.  But it did.  And I did it, I just kept swimming.  And you can too.  And if you do, relief will come.  Prayers will be answered.  Hard work will pay off.  You will be strengthened.  I promise.

A Recommendation

I'm reading this book because my brother-in-law suggested it.  I think you might like it too.

Icing On The Cake

Sung to the tune "On The Good Ship Lollipop" chorus

He's a good kid,
Alex Clark
Journalism -
where he'll make his mark.
Off to B-Y-U
on a half-tuition scholarship!

I'm bursting with pride for my boy.

Rules To Live By

Lately I've been breaking all the rules, rules I've set for myself to live by.

One rule is bed by nine o'clock.  We're up at five, so early to bed is important.  Lately, little league is pushing back bed time.  I'm also tired of the bed time and feel like I ought to be able to stay up and see who gets voted off Celebrity Apprentice if I want to.  So there.

Another rule is nothing to drink after dinner.  Not talking alcohol here, just liquid in general.  My bladder won't tolerate it unless I want a three AM wake up call.  But I like to have a tall glass of milk with those cookies gosh dang it - so I'm drinking it down and paying the price. 

Next rule, exercise.  Haven't done it in weeks.  Don't feel like it.  Too tired for it (see first rule).  I'll get fit in the summer when I'm not driving kids back and forth to school, dance, basketball, baseball and soccer.

This rule is a biggie, limiting intake of soda.  I don't want to be addicted, really I don't.  But for some reason, Coca-Cola is an emotional comfort for me and if I feel like I want one, I'm having one. 

So now that I can see it on paper (well, the computer monitor) I can see that my self discipline is weak.  I must have caught a little senior-itis from my graduating senior.  Time to take a deep breath, determine to do better, and get it done.  Wish me luck, I'll need it.    

Yes To Carrots

Whenever I endorse a product on my blog I feel like a door-to-door salesman.  Truth is, I'm really just trying to hook you up with a product I use and like, because I use it and I like it and I think you might like to use it and like it too. 

So today I'd like to introduce you to "Yes To Carrots."  Yes To Carrots, according to their website, "combines high-quality organic fruits and vegetables with a special mineral elixir derived from the Dead Sea to nourish and hydrate naturally."  I found Yes To Carrots C Me Blush Lip Tint while waiting for a prescription to be filled.  I'd recently lost my lip gloss and my lips cannot go dry in the desert environment I live in.  Well it wasn't long before I was lovin the way my lips felt and even looked while wearing this balm.  I even like the small size because I carry a small purse.

So if you want to say Yes To Carrots, and I know you do, click the pic above and you'll be magically transported to a nifty website where you can purchase your very own balm, lotion, shampoo and conditioner.

Did that sound too rehearsed?  I felt like I rushed it a bit.

Here's How It Went

This is how the birthday day went:

8:00 am   
Open presents - too excited to wait for family to come home at end of day
9:00 am   
Ditch school for birthday fun
10:00 am 
Buy glitter for toenails at craft store
11:00 am 
Meet brothers and sister for lunch and yogurt
Noon       
Go to school to distribute birthday treats
3:30 pm   
Come home from school and pick up friends for party
4:00 pm   
Paint pottery
6:00 pm   
Dinner at Roberto's Taco Shop
7:00 pm   
Family soccer game at park - girls against boys - birthday girl magically scores winning goal
8:00 pm   
Cupcakes, Birthday song, candles and wish
9:00 pm   
Bed.  Dreaming of what the 11th year will bring.

Double Digits

Today my baby hits double digits.  It's five AM right now and she's awake in her room anticipating the excitement the day will bring, but I told her she must go back to sleep for a bit longer.  That's what I like about kids growing up, you can give them instruction and they're capable of following your direction.

I loved when my kids were babies, but to be honest, I couldn't wait for them to be three.  Communication was important to me, still is.  It hurts where?  You ate what?  And I certainly wasn't one to cry when they turned five and I dropped them off for their first day of Kindergarten.  Most likely I did cartwheels to the minivan then caught a chick flick at the matinee.

Don't get me wrong, I adore my children.  I've loved every stage of their growth.  Some stages just make me more nervous than others.  I guess I feel like their self-reliance is a success for me.  What I want most is for them to be able to negotiate life using the skills my husband and I have taught them.    The skills we've worked the hardest to teach are selflessness, respect, kindness, and love.  I'm thankful that my baby girl exemplifies these qualities from day to day.  Come to think of it, she teaches me these skills better than I ever could teach her.  What a blessing these ten years have been. 

Comfort

Here is something that gave me great comfort over this past weekend.

2 for 1

Last week I made a visit to the boys down at Big O because my car was out of alignment and my front right tire was paying the price for it.  I walked in knowing exactly what I needed, an alignment and one tire.  The manager at Big O, John, kindly explained to me that getting an alignment and one tire is unacceptable.  He further explained how an alignment won't work well with one tire, thus two new tires would be required. 

Then it was my turn to explain a few things.  I explained to John that there was certainly no way I would be purchasing two new tires, when all I needed was one.  I stood firm, even as I saw the frustration on John's face as he grew more impatient with me.  Finally he said, "Look, I'm going to give you two tires for the price of one because I'm not doing an alignment with one tire."  I told him, with a smile on my face, that was fine by me. 

So here's my advice to you when you're negotiating car repairs:

1. Dress classy and walk in acting like you own the place.
2. Know exactly what you need and don't settle for anything else (unless it's a matter of safety).
3. Be kind, appreciative, and respectful. 
4. Get a second opinion.
5. If you're buying tires, ask if they have any used tires.  I've bought great used tires for 3-times less.

If you're lucky, you might just walk away with two tires for the price of one!

A Review

Allow me to review for you the Michael Buble concert.  It was wonderful.  Marvelous.  The kid can sing.  He was darling.  He's got some dance moves to go with that voice.  My sweet 16 daughter was my companion for the night and she was weak in the knees.  We sang and danced along with the music and definitely made it a night to remember.

A group called Naturally 7 opened up for Michael.  They were amazingly talented.  They sing acappella, but sound as if they are a band.  You hear drums, bass, violin, harmonica all as if they really were playing instruments.  Awesome.

So here is a list of tour dates for you if you'd like to see if this handsome crooner is coming to a town near you.  I don't know how you can go wrong with a good looking guy in a suit with a voice to swoon for.