{February 9 - February 15}
Reading... Long Bright River, Terilingua Teacher and Wait Till Helen Comes. I'm listening to Long Bright River on audio, and it is captivating. It reminds me of the latest season (Season 20) of Intervention that I watched. It's called "The Hub" and covers the same area of Philadelphia that the book talks about. The main character, Mickey, is a police officer with a sister who is an addict. It's a gripping story about choices, family, and the effects of trauma.
I'm reading Wait Till Helen Comes to the boys at bedtime and we are loving it. It's a book I remember checking out of my school library many (many!) times in elementary school, and when I found it recently at our Friends of the Library book sale, I was overjoyed. It is a bit spooky, but since we are reading it together, it's been fine. (And it is age appropriate.)
Terilingua Teacher is a book my Grandpa Harold sent me along with a letter when we still lived in Alaska. In the letter he said that the book reminded him of what Josh and I were doing- teaching/living in an extremely challenging, rural area. He said we were heroes in his book. A HUGE compliment. Despite the compliment and the effort he put into sending me the book, I never read it. (It's been probably 5+ years, and he has since passed away) I made it a goal this year to read it, and I am so glad I did. The book was good, but more than that, I feel like I got a glimpse of my Grandpa that I otherwise wouldn't have gotten. For instance, when he reads, he marks the paragraph he left off on with a little cross, or small t. Also, he censored the book for me, blacking out the f-word. That made me smile.
Loving... the time the kids spend on the trampoline lately. They have all kinds of games they play on there. Some involve jumping over each other, playing with a ball or even taking pillows onto it, but they are all very creative and help them get lots of exercise out there. I also love how Grady thinks it's his job to sit outside the trampoline while they are on it. #guarddog
Stressing... about parenting this week. Some things went down that I won't go into here, but there was truth & lies involved and it was incredibly hard on my mama heart. Josh and I were able to talk through most of it, and by the end of the week together we had solved the problems, and feel we mostly have a handle on the situation... but I am telling you, I think back to the days when I was able to wake up and watch Doc McStuffins on Disney channel with the boys, not shove them out the door (backpacks on! did you get your lunch? don't forget to turn in your homework!) and I think how I had no idea how easy I had it. I had no idea how simple those days were, how I took for granted the straightforward answers that existed in response to any problems we had. Now it's all shades of grey and praying I'm doing the right thing, and winging it SUPER HARD.
Taking... a bath to help deal with the stress. The night everything imploded a migraine struck suddenly and I didn't know what else to do, so I took my weary bones and climbed in the bath. It was just what I needed. It's good to know a little self care goes a long way.
Running... errands with Wyatt, who was the best helper, when he was home sick with a cold. While in the car, he went through my center console and found all the sunglasses that were in there, and he and Carly put them ALL on at once. It was hilarious! On days like that, when running errands with them in tow is so lovely, I wonder just what I'll do with myself when Carly starts school in a year and half. {sob}
Loving... my new lipstick! I decided to try an actual lipstick after growing tired of reapplying lip gloss every ten minutes, and I'm so happy with the result. I went with Milani BOLD color matte lipstick in I Am Fabulous. It was just under $6 and I love it! I was nervous to try a matte color, but it actually stays on so much longer, and I can always add a gloss on top if I want a little sparkle.
(You can click on the link above and order it online if you can't find it in your local Walmart.)
Kicking... myself when Carly's cavity-filling appointment (with the sleepy juice, etc.) was canceled because she snuck two drinks of water when I wasn't looking. As one can imagine, mornings at our house are pretty chaotic. Everyone is up by 6:30am. Josh leaves around 6:40am and then the real crazy begins. Making lunches, eating breakfast, getting chores done, etc. Well, somewhere between the time I got Carly up and dressed and when we had to leave for her appointment, I found her with a water bottle in her hand, sucking on the straw like it was going out of style.
sigh.
Apparently the "sleepy juice" makes kids super nauseous, and to reduce the likelihood of throwing up (and aspirating on it) they require kids have no food or drink for 8 hours prior to the procedure. So we had to reschedule for two weeks out. Fingers crossed I can keep her out of the kitchen that morning!!
Volunteering... in Wyatt's {third grade} classroom to help during math groups & wondering how teachers anywhere do anything! You are all AMAZING! The 40 minutes FLEW by, and by the time we were really in the groove, it was time to move on to the next subject. Also, I only work with seven kids, and I feel completely inadequate when they all have their hands raised, questions to ask, answers to be checked... I can only imagine if I had 25 or 28 or 32 students I had to juggle. We put so many expectations on our teachers- to teach our children, to mentor them, to help them catch up if they are behind and to instill in them a love of learning... I am married to a teacher, so I thought I understood what teaching was all about- the struggles, etc.- but I had no idea until I myself set foot in a classroom. Now I'm pretty sure Josh has a magic wand hidden somewhere, because the job we set before our teachers is mighty near impossible, yet somehow he accomplishes it.
Laughing... this week when Carly told me she was drawing a picture of me, but I was grumpy. When I asked why I was grumpy and she replied, "I'm afraid it can't be helped!" I cracked up and then she told me that I was grumpy because she made a mess (she then drew the mess on the white board) and that was why it couldn't be helped. Some of her one-liners are too good!!!
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