Mini-vacay '08

We are in the middle of a little mini-vacation down at my parents' house this week.


Parker went to kids' camp and is doing really well from all reports.

Alex is playing in the USSSA World Series (or World Serious as Luke calls it) down here in Granbury and we decided to just stay down here instead of driving back and forth every day. He is playing on a different team than his regular season team and even though they are a great little team, they are stinkin' it up at this tourney!! They've posted 2 losses so far but still have at least 2 more games to play. Hopefully, they'll find their groove and play ball like we know they can. It's still fun, but it always more fun when you're winning!!

I would post some pictures, but I didn't bring my cord to upload the pics!! Maybe next week!


Aside from baseball, we've spent a lot of time at the pool, which is right where we like to be in the summer!! Luke has finally abandoned his life jacket and floaties and has progressed to where he'll jump off the diving board and swim to the side unassisted!! Yay for Luke!!

So, we're just enjoying a slower paced life this week!! It's definitely something I could get used to!! It will be over soon enough, so I'll just enjoy it while it lasts!!

Happy Birthday, Good Friend

It's a little late in the day to be wishing a happy birthday, but my great friend, Shellee, has about one and half more hours left in her big day!!


I spent a good part of my afternoon looking though old pictures on the computer, looking for a nice one of Shellee. I couldn't seem to find one except this:

That's her - second from left. (what is that pink thing you're holding??)

Anyway, to the point. . .

Shellee is a really great friend and one of the best things about her is her awesome sense of humor. I am rarely with Shellee that I am not belly laughing about something she's said. Her blogs crack me up - most of the time - her comments on other people's blogs crack me up - her expressions, mannerisms, dances, and on and on.

Sometimes, life isn't that fun, but with a friend like Shellee, I can always keep things in perspective.

Thanks for doing life with me, Shellee. You make the road a little easier to bear!!

Exciting Nothingness

I feel like I'm not really blogging so much . . . it's probably because there's really not that much going on!!

We've had 2 days of pretty much not leaving the house, and you know how the kids love that!!

In fact, about 5:00 on Monday, the kids all had that grumpy/end of the day/it's dinnertime kind of feeling going on and I happened to be talking to a friend of mine whose church was starting VBS that night. She told me I should bring the boys - they'd have a great time, of course! I asked her what time it was and she told me it was a magical 3 hours - from 6:00 to 9:00!! I hung up the phone and thought about it for about 1.5 seconds, threw supper on the stove, and made everyone put on decent clothes!! I reminded them that they'd been whining all day long about not going anywhere, so now was their big break!! They were going to VBS!! Woo-hoo!!

I took them all in, they found their friends, I talked with the snack ladies about Luke's issues, and Landry and I headed to the mall!! When I picked them up, they had all had a great time. Parker said it "was the best VBS I've ever been to in my whole entire life" and they were all pumped about going back . . . until today!! Luke decided it was a little too long (can't wait till he stays all day at Kindergarten) and that he would go one day and skip one day. He's very into patterns right now!! Parker didn't really see the need to go back to the best VBS he'd ever been to in his entire life. He was, after all, "totally kidding" when he said that!! Alex had ball practice tonight but insisted he go after it was over at 7:15. All these details to say that Alex and Parker went to VBS and had another great time!! VBS is so cool when you drop your kids off there!!

Meagan and Lexie are coming tomorrow and we are headed to The Rave to see their free movie. Should be exciting!!

Here's a cool link to a blog that tells about a group of people from our church who are in Mexico on a missions trip this week. If you haven't already seen this, go check it out and pray for these guys! We have some great friends on this trip!

A day for Dads

We have had a very low-key Father's Day around here!

Church...lunch...nap...golf tourney...Putt-Putt !!

That about sums it up!!

Scott is a great dad to our boys. He is a lot more fun than I am, a lot more adventurous, says yes a lot more, is a lot more free spirited!! While I don't always enjoy those aspects of him, they are probably a good balance for me and especially, for the boys!

I have been blessed in my own life to have an amazing Dad. My Dad and I could argue till the cows came home when I was younger, but I also knew that he would do absolutely anything for me if I asked. That is still true today. He goes out of his way on a regular basis to help me do/fix/create/finish any number of projects. His wisdom is always right on and is usually given whether or not it was asked for!! :)

Ryan reminded me today of the fact that Dad always encouraged us to choose a career path that would allow us to serve others. Now that I'm an adult, I can see that that was a great idea. I didn't really have any qualms about it at the time, but I do remember thinking I might not make as much money as I could have otherwise. (I guess I knew I would be a teacher!!)

So, thanks Dad, for all the wisdom and for pouring your life into mine! As the boys would say, "YOU ROCK!!"

Summer fun!

Summer is in full swing around here - heat and all!!

We've had a pretty fun week so far, swimming every day until today. We went to the free movie at The Rave yesterday - Alvin and the Chipmunks - cute and totally unrealistic!!

We went to the library on Tuesday and we are going to work very hard and becoming book lovers this summer!! Parker is totally on board and has hardly put his first book down since he got it!! Yay!! Alex is getting there. They've been baited with a trip to Hurricane Harbor at the end of the summer if they meet their goals so, hopefully, they'll learn to love the adventure a book can bring!!

I learned from Deneise (and the CiCi's website) about a little reading club that CiCi's and Half Price books are doing this summer. If your child reads 15 minutes a day for 5 days, they can take their little log back to Half Price Books and either get a $3 gift card for a new book, or a free kid's buffet at CiCi's. Since we don't eat at CiCi's much anymore, the boys can get a new book every week!! How cool is that??


On the Celiac front, my Grandma brought us a big box of Rice Krispie Treats yesterday and later on in the day, Luke came to me with about a bite left of his snack. He said, "Mom, can I have the peanut butter kind?" I told him I really didn't know but I didn't think so. So, I checked the box and broad as day on the nutritional info for that kind, it said CONTAINS WHEAT INGREDIENTS. Excellent!! Interestingly enough, Luke woke up in the night complaining about his legs (knees) hurting. Coincidence?? Possibly. Hard to say at this point!

I'm going to post some pics from all the fun, but maybe later!!

Questions

Here are a few interesting questions that have been asked here in the last 24 hours or so:

-- What is a word that rhymes with ORANGE??

-- Why can't everyone be off of work for the summer like you are??

And one that brings both laughter and a touch of sadness -

You know that surgery you had so you can't have anymore babies??
Well, why didn't you have it done after me?? (asked by son #2!!)

Since that was asked on Day #2 of summer break, I'm afraid we might have a long summer ahead!!

Any ideas for some brotherly team building??

It's done!!

The 2007-2008 school year is officially OVER!!

Let's have a moment of silence and thanksgiving!!

It ended well and everyone here is happy that summer has officially arrived!!

Here's Parker and Mrs. Deaton on the second to last day of school -

If you want to see what an amazing teacher she is, go here and read her thoughts about the end of the year. Parker finished strong and found out on the last day of school that he would have the privilege of being on the Character Crew next year. This is a group of fourth graders that are nominated by their teachers to help in various ways next year and serve in kid kinds of leadership roles at the school. He was totally pumped and it reminded me of how far Parker has really come at school.

Now we are free to sit around with birds on our shoulders . . .

. . . and watch our garden grow!!

Those are pumpkins!!

That's corn!!

And those are sunflowers!!

One more pic just for fun!! Amazing progress on Landry's part!!

Happy Summer!!

Changing the world. . . one kiddo at a time!

Tonight I had the privilege of attending the graduation of the high school where I spend my working hours. Throughout the course of this year, I worked with three seniors. One will graduate next December, one graduated at the alternative campus, and the last one, I got to see walk across the stage tonight.

This young man whom I'll call K (since he might not want me blaring his name and story across the web), has climbed the steps up my list of all-time favorite students.

K was in a horrible car accident on October 5, 2007. Though the details make the story more interesting, they aren't necessary here. Suffice it to say that after all the dust had settled, K had had his left leg amputated first below the knee, then above the knee. He had multiple facial fractures and other internal injuries including swelling of his brain, and had lost vision in one eye. He remained in the hospital for a couple of weeks and then in rehab for a few more weeks.

I didn't get to meet K until the week before Thanksgiving when he was finally strong enough to get started on his schoolwork again. I was a little worried going into his house that first day. I never know what to expect when I meet a new student, but there were a lot of stories floating around about K and I wasn't really sure what to believe.

I instantly liked K - he has a quick wit and a great sense of humor. I was amazed by the fact that he almost acted like there was nothing unusual about him - as though he wasn't sitting in a wheelchair, missing a very important part of his body. We talked through his schedule and he promised to do his best and work hard. Somehow, I knew he would, even with a grueling rehab schedule.

One of his assignments was to write a paper on any topic that interested him. He immediately chose to write about a prosthetic leg that he hoped to get one day. As we researched together, I was introduced to a whole new world that I had never really thought about before. This new world was now K's world.

As we spent more days together, he shared with me what he remembered about the accident and how he has processed it. He told me that he had not shed one tear through the whole process - no tears of pain or sadness. His attitude had been only looking forward -never back. He knew he couldn't change one thing about that day because he didn't have the luxury of turning back time. He knew it would do no good to dwell on the what if's of that day. He never harbored any anger or resentment toward anyone, including the driver that fell asleep at the wheel that night.

It took me a while to realize that K was the real deal. At first, I thought he might be putting on a good front for me - kind of keeping a good attitude when it counted. But then I realized that this was real. He was dealing with this life change in such a positive way, such a mature way for such a young boy. I wondered if I found myself in his situation, if I would have handled things as beautifully as he did? He definitely inspired me to think about things a little more - through his perspective.

I got to watch as he worked through his rehab, got fitted for his prosthetic leg, and learned how to get up on his feet again. It was truly an amazing process! Toward the end of the school year, his therapy slowed down and his therapist felt strongly that he should return to school, if only for a little while. Neither of us was really ready for this change - we had both assumed he would stay on Homebound until the end of the year. But as the days went on, all his doctors signed off on his return and he went back about 3 weeks before the end of school.

I was worried about how he'd last all day at school. Of course, he wouldn't even think of returning in his wheelchair. He would return walking and would walk all day every day.

I shouldn't have worried - he did beautifully!! All the worries and concerns melted away as he handled his classes well. Now I can see what a huge boost of confidence returning to school was for him. He had proven once again, that he could do anything he set his mind to. And as he walked across the stage tonight, I know his sweet parents and family could not have been any prouder.

Wednesday finishes my eighth year of teaching Homebound kids. I've had some doozies in those years. I've sat on some of the nastiest couches in the city, smelled like the cheapest cigarettes more times than I can count, seen some of the most deplorable conditions for kids to live in, but I've also had the opportunity to meet some amazing kids. Kids that get beyond the messiness of their lives to make something of themselves.

This young man, K, has inspired me to look beyond the small stuff of my days. When I get down on my life and my issues, I think about doing what I do - minus my left leg!

My good friend, Deneise, and I have always joked when I'm going to see a kiddo. One of us will always say something about me changing the world - one kid at a time. Usually it's done in sarcasm. But with K, I can definitely say that the kiddo changed the teacher!

Congrats to K - he deserves it!!