Busy weekend

Saturday morning started off bright and early for the two little girls. Lala was coming to pick them up at 9:30 to take them to a birthday party. So once again I hairbowed ‘em up and sent them off!

As you may have noticed, Dogos was not in a smiley mood. I offer the following two photographs as further proof.....

While The Boss and Dogos were gone, Grandma Sandy got on the treadmill and set a personal record for herself.

7 miles in 95 minutes and I ran most of it. Including warm-up and cool-down, I think I walked 2.5 miles and ran the rest. I was proud of myself and I felt great. Until about 30 minutes after I was done. I hadn’t eaten nearly enough the night before or for breakfast Saturday morning to sustain pushing myself that hard. Rest assured that Grandma Sandy will never make that mistake again!!

I’ve done 6 miles plenty of times on weekends but the walking/running time was split pretty evenly. I’d "walk a song," then run a song. I’ve been gradually increasing my running time and I could tell that my body was ready for more, so Saturday I decided to go for it. Run more and longer than ever before. I tend to be compete with myself that way. However, next time I will make sure I eat plenty first!!

On Sunday I ran 3.5 miles and then had to get ready for church.

(With all this talk about exercise, you’d think I’d be a twig. I’ve lost about 11 pounds but unfortunately, I’ve still got a loooong way to go!)

After determining that the nature of my ill-being was a need for food and that I was not, in fact, having a heart attack, Peanut, Middle Man and I started getting ready to meet Lala and the littles at the pool.

Unfortunately, our efforts were temporarily halted upon the realization that I’d lost my debit card.

Cue heart attack #2.

Fortunately, it was soon located (at the store I’d last visited) and we were off to the pool for our weekly visit with friends.

With Labor Day being next weekend, the pool will soon be closing. We also had to say goodbye to Toph, our favorite lifeguard who also happens to be Lala’s brother. It was time for Toph to return to college life for the Fall semester.

After leaving the pool and upon returning home, Peanut seemed to be in a....hmm....how should I put this.....mood.

One of those moods that in spite of the fact that your mother just took you swimming for 3 hours after you were supposed to clean your room which you sorta did but only to a level that was barely passable upon inspection (and yes, The Chef did later find clothes wadded up and stuffed in a desk drawer) and only when faced with the fact that you would, indeed, be left at home while everyone else went swimming did you buck up and clean and then upon your return home you still chose to pout that life is no fair, you never get to do anything fun and your life is soooooooo boring.

You know.

One of those moods.

And then, Grandma Sandy had a brilliant idea.

Peanut, come here a minute.

It seems to me that you’ve worked really hard at thinking up all the things that you deem to be unfair and unsatisfactory about your family and WOW, you have done an **outstanding** job in that area.

However, I’m going to give you a new challenge. Take this paper and pencil and I want you to start listing all of the reasons you have to be grateful.

Yes, yes, you do have reasons to be grateful.

I’m sorry you think this is lame.

No, I’m positive you can think of more than 3.

Just take this paper and start listing. I think you’ll be surprised.

I was hoping that if she changed the direction of her thinking, a change in attitude would result.

Isn’t it true? If all you think about is how nothing is the way you’d like it to be, then it clouds everything else in your life.

BUT if you look around and begin to notice all that is right, a lot of the wrong begins to fade. The wrong still may be there, but the focus has shifted.

So she did it. Begrudgingly at first, but then she really got into it. She even listed 4 pages worth and wanted to come read them all to me!

After supper, she even said, “Hey Mom, I made my lists and I don’t even have an attitude now. Did you notice?”

Uh...yes, Peanut. I most certainly did! And thank you. I’m proud of you!

Saturday night we missed an annual, really cool community function with the symphony that is held on the grounds of our church. I had intended to go but after a busy day and narrowly escaping 2 heart attacks I just wanted to stay home, so we did. We did, however, hear the cannon that is shot at the end of the evening and that is always cool!

After church today, we had a pot luck luncheon.

It was “membership Sunday.” The room is semi-dark because there was a slide show of church family life pictures from the past few years.

All Dogos cared about was her cupcake!

Grandma Sandy was glad to see that her smile had returned.

Naturally, since Dogos had her picture made, The Boss wanted me to take one of her too, so here you go...

Guitar Boy was annoyed at first when someone took his seat at the table with the rest of the youth but when the “cool (and hot) youth chicks” came to sit with him at our table instead, I think he changed his mind. Of course you can’t tell by his expression. Gotta be cool around the cool chicks. By the way, I’ve determined that the coolness factor is directly linked to the length of hair and the ability to swoop it out of your eyes. He’s got a pretty sweet swoop going, don’t you think?

Finally, Grandma Sandy took the 3 girls to meet with some other moms and Playschool kids to play in the church gym. We had intended to play on the playground but it was raining so we met at the gym instead. It’s almost time for Playschool to start back (finally!!) and we wanted to get the kids together to play and give the other children who are not members of our church a chance to reacquaint themselves with the church facility.

Too bad I didn’t think to take a picture until after they were gone and I was locking up the building.

In case you’re wondering what our empty gym looks like, here you go!!!

It was a fun afternoon, the kids had a good time and I had fun meeting some of the other moms and especially chatting with

J & G’s mom. Turns out we have similar view points on some things!

Busy weekend!

What about you, out there in internet-land? What did you do?

Home

Home

I’m curious.

When you think of the word, home, what picture comes to mind?

Since leaving home and going to college, I’ve lived in Hattiesburg, Jackson (MS), Baton Rouge, Natchez, McComb, Hattiesburg (again), Laurel, and now Tennessee. Graduate school and the nature of my husband’s job has taken us to many places. Some felt more like home than others.

Of course, whenever I’m with my husband and children I feel like I am home, but if I think of home in terms of a place....somewhere that is truly a part of me and where I have roots, there is no question that home is...

here...

This is the place that my entire family: parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, brothers, friends, etc call The Lake.

This is my parents’ home.

It was built by my grandparents as their retirement home. It’s actually in LA, just across the bridge and a 30 min drive from where we all grew up in MS.

For my brothers, cousins, and me, The Lake was our favorite place to spend time as kids. We would work with our Mimi and Pop in the garden digging potatoes, picking beans and tomatoes. We would eat homemade peach ice cream made with peaches that Mimi grew on her peach trees. We would spend time on the front porch in the big swing or in the rocking chairs, shelling peas and listening to my Uncle David play guitar and sing.

Believe it or not, Grandma Sandy actually learned how to cut the grass at The Lake. (please don’t tell The Chef I ever knew how to do that!)

Yes, yes, as a young teen, I’d jump into my swimsuit and ride the riding lawn mower while singing The Star Spangled Banner at the top of my lungs. I’ve no idea why I chose that particular song and it didn’t occur to me until years later that sound travels incredibly well over water so lord only knows who heard me.

OMG actually, now that I think about it, I’m certain that a well-known CNN anchor with the last name of Brown and the first name of Campbell (I knew her as Cami) who lived right down the lake more than likely heard me. I’m trying not to have a slight panic attack as I have just now realized this as a 41 yr old woman. I kid you not...I’m very close to breaking out into a cold sweat.

Deep breath....moving on now.........

My cousin Sarah and I would spend weekends with Mimi baking Christmas cookies. We had our family Christmas and Easter meals at The Lake. It was in this house that I first learned to sew. It was on this lake that I learned how to bait a hook and catch fish. As the oldest grandchild, I am blessed to have clear memories of my youngest brother and cousins being infants at family gatherings in this house.

I was 7 years old when my Mimi and Pop moved in. I am now 41 (eek! sorry...still freaks me out that I’m in my forties). If I’m not mistaken, it was about this exact time of year, 34 years ago, that this house became their home.

Now it’s my parents’ home but it’s really still all of ours. So many memories!

In fact, The Lake is really more of a family member, rather than location, with a personality all its own.

Allow me to introduce to you some of the things that make The Lake, The Lake.

Some good, some fun, some beautiful, some to be admired from a distance, and some really horrifying.

I’ll start with the horrifying.....

We kill huge, disgusting snakes at The Lake!!

(but not that often and it gets better from here, I promise!)

We catch HUGE catfish!!

We observe interesting...creatures...ahem...from afar....

Thankfully, these ‘gators were photographed by a family friend, on the north side of the lake and not actually by our house. I like to pretend that they don’t venture too far.....

And during crawfish season, we eat as many crawfish as possible from Joe’s Crawfish spot.....

Joe has the best crawfish around.

Hey Joe!!!!

One of my favorite views is the one I see from the front porch..

However, the very best view is only witnessed if you’re up very early.

or very late.....

At times I wonder if my Mimi and Pop knew what a special place The Lake would become to us all. I’m sure they hoped...it was without a doubt a magical place for them. I can only imagine the satisfaction they experienced as they watched my brothers, cousins, and me loving being there and I love seeing my own children fall more in love with The Lake each time we are able to visit.

And every time I see something like this.....

I’m reminded of these verses:

The heavens declare the glory of God;

the skies proclaim the work of His hands.

Day after day they pour forth speech;

night after night they display knowledge.

Their voice goes out into all the earth,

their words to the ends of the world.

Psalm 19:1-4

Isn’t that so true??

So, The Lake is home to me.

I’m curious. What, where, and why is home, home to you?

*credit for the beautiful sunrise and moonlit pictures goes to my brother!

Things I wish I could say in Spanish.

I have several ESL children this year, four of whom speak little English. I have no idea how I’ve managed to find myself in my 20th year of teaching without ever having a student that speaks so little English. My previous students have been more than able to communicate. These 4 are precious, sweet, smart, and will learn English in no time. However, it’s just really weird to look at their little blank faces and big brown eyes staring at me when I’m trying to glean the most basic of information. So, this blog post is devoted to the things I found myself wishing I could say in Spanish, this week alone.

*Just because I learned the word mochila from Dora the Explorer does not mean I have a clue what you’re trying to tell me.

*Guess what. I still don’t have a clue what you’re trying to tell me. And in 3 minutes, I won’t have a clue then, either.

*We don’t use scissors to cut hair or clothes. Your Mama would be very upset.

*Huh? WHAT made you throw up at the lunch table??

*Yes, I know your Mama told you to eat all your lunch but that doesn’t mean you can eat fruit cocktail while going down the hall.

*Make sure you aim for the toilet and not the drain in the floor.

And my all-time favorite from today:

*Yes, I know your Mama spanks you when you don’t clean your room but you can’t spank your classmate because you want her to go faster at the water fountain.

My mercy me, you’ve no idea how long it took to figure out why my student “spanked" her classmate, much less why she continued to refuse to apologize. My student was adamant that her Mama spanks her when she is in the wrong, so she did nothing wrong by spanking her classmate who was hogging the water fountain. (and I was only able to piece that all together with the aid of Athziri, the 5 yr old child next door who is thankfully able to translate. Sorta.) Of course, I guess if the only way you know to tell someone to hurry is by repeating rapido, rapido, rapido, to a water fountain-hogger that has issues of her own, god love her, then I can see why you might resort to a spanking.

By the way, the spanker is also the fruit cocktail-in-the-hall-eater and if you’ve guessed by now that she is a 100% s-p-o-i-l-e-d-p-r-i-n-c-e-s-s, then you are 100% correct.!!

I’m glad it’s Friday, and as luck would have it, The Chef planned an evening of chips and salsa, queso, tacos, enchilada casserole, margaritas and Corona with some friends. Fits right into my natural inclination as a K teacher to embrace all things thematic and integrated. My week is complete!

odds and ends

We started off the weekend by going out to eat with two of our favorite people, The Pastor and The Gentleman.

It was The Gentleman’s birthday so the 4 of us went to eat at The Old Town Spaghetti Store while Lala kept the kids.

This is my plate. It was seriously so much food that the 4 of us could’ve split it and been satisfied! After dinner we went back home for ice cream and caramel cake made by The Pastor. I wish I had a picture of the cake, but it’s just as well. No way would any picture ever do that cake justice. I kid you not when I say that after the first bite I took, I literally had to pause just like the folks on The Food Network, in order to completely appreciate how awesome that bite was. It was seriously THAT good.

Saturday afternoon, the kids and I went swimming.

Did I have laundry to do? Yes.

Did I have floors to sweep? Yes.

Did I have furniture to dust? Yes.

Did I go swimming anyway?

YES!!!

The pool will only be open for a few more weeks so I figure we might as well make the most of it while we can. You can never go wrong with getting the kids out of the house and making them burn as much energy as possible for 4 hours, right? The way I see it, it’s a win-win situation for everyone, especially The Chef who has been busy with projects around the house. Projects are much easier to complete without 5 kids underfoot.

Speaking of projects, The Chef has been busy the past few weeks refinishing a chest of drawers. The chest has been used in the kids’ playroom to house the tv, dvd’s, Wii games, and Wii accessories.

It’s taken quite a beating over the years, bless it’s heart.

If you think that looks bad, then wait til you see fronts of the drawers....

Nice, eh?

In spite of all the dirt, grimy handprints and chipped paint, my favorite is the blue magic marker. I choose to view it as the culprit’s attempt to improve the look of the poor old chest because let’s face it...there’s not much that could make it look worse. I’m pretty sure that Dogos was the perpetrator, although I can’t be sure. However, it sounds a lot better to say that the 2 yr old was the guilty party rather than an older child who should definitely know better. Besides, I’m also sure that if one of the older ones had done it, they most likely would’ve written words and signed their name. I love my children dearly, but they’ve never been the best at covering their tracks, to say the least.

Nonetheless, after hours of TLC and more than likely a few choice words later......

Looks great, don’t you think?

Tomorrow is Monday again and I tackle another week with my Kindergarten students. Let’s just say that Grandma Sandy will be brushing off her Spanish skills at a fast and furious rate this year.

Also, those of you that have read my blog for a while will know who I’m talking about when I mention Special. Yes, I’ve seen her and yes, she seems to be fine. She hugs me every chance she gets. I’m always grateful when I see her coming because it gives me a chance to run sit down first before she attacks me. Little did I know that all of the hours I’ve spent on the treadmill in an attempt to lose weight have actually served a dual purpose. The increased strength in my thighs has more than likely been responsible for keeping me from being knocked over when Special gets a running start from the cafeteria door.

Lord have mercy, that kid is huge.

Wordless Wednesday

Grandma Sandy is a sucker again

I said I would never do it.

It would never happen.

Not in a million bajillion years.

No way. Never. Not even. Forget it.

NONONONONONONONONONO

Having been a mother for 14 years I have at times, eaten my words.

But this time was NOT going to be one of those times.

Nope.

Until.

A few weeks ago, The Boss started saying that she wanted some new shoes for when she starts back at Playschool in a few weeks. Little did she know, I’d already purchased a new pair of leather Keds for both her and Dogos.

As it turns out, The Boss already had a specific type of tennis shoe in mind.

I kind of put her off, only half-listening to her description of this new shoe she wanted. Every few days she would mention this shoe and ask if she could have a pair. Again, I would put her off saying that we would just have to see. You’d think that after 4 1/2 years of being her mother, I would remember that this kid NEVER FORGETS ANYTHING. EVER.

Finally, one Sunday afternoon, The Boss is shuffling through sale papers (yes, weird, I know) in the Sunday newspaper and she starts shrieking and runs through the house to find me, sale paper clutched in her hand.

Mama, Mama, Mama, Mama look what I found!!!! It’s my favorite shoes ever that I want and they sell them here in our paper! See, Mama? They don’t just sell them in only super duper faraway places like you thought!!! Can we get some, Mama??

I take the sales paper from her and take a look.

OH. MY. WORD.

They are without a doubt the most hideous, godawful, atrocious, ghetto-looking, pimped out shoes I have ever seen.

And my daughter is head over heels in love with them.

Without even thinking first I hear myself saying,

Absolutely not, Boss, I will not buy those shoes ever, ever. I can hardly stand the thought of shelling out my hard-earned cash for such a thing. I’m sorry, honey, but we’ll just have to find some other shoes for school. I simply cannot have any child of mine ever wear such a thing.

"Well, I just love them, Mom," was her reply and she skipped off.

Last Sunday evening, The Boss runs in the room and asks, “Mom, when I turn 5 will I still be a girl?”

“Yes, Boss, I’m pretty sure you’ll still be a girl. Why do you ask?”

“Because when I turn 5 I bet I’ll get those shoes for my birthday or Santa will bring them and since they’re pink I wanna make sure I’ll still be a girl.” she says.

Ok, so Grandma Sandy’s heart started to melt a little bit with that statement.

Then I started thinking to myself that you know what? I’m glad my daughter knows what she likes and has a strong opinion about something. Especially when it comes to shoes! Her Grammy Clinton would be so proud.

Finally, this past week would you believe what I saw on a student’s feet? A pair of the dreaded shoes. The very same.

And you know what? They weren’t nearly as ghetto as the ad depicted.

They were still totally pimped-out but in a cute, flashy, girly kind of way.

ohmygoshgrandmasandyisfallinginlovewiththedreadedshoestoo

And then the real clincher....the name of the dreaded shoes?

Twinkle Toes

So, this morning when Peanut and I were out taking advantage of tax-free TN weekend, we went in search of the dreaded shoes as a surprise for The Boss.

The child is so proud of these shoes!!!

(Can you believe I actually paid $$ for these things?!?)

With every step they light up with an enthusiasm and intensity that could rival the star of Bethlehem. Every time The Boss walks through the room, the flash is so bright that The Chef thinks a light bulb nearby must’ve blown and he starts checking lamps. I’m so totally serious. It is really funny.

So there you have it. I’ve eaten my words again. It’s just one of those things about being a parent. And the funny thing is I kind of secretly wish they made them in adult sizes. Can you imagine what a rock star I would be to my Kindergarten students?!?

(almost) Wordless Wednesday

The Boss made a new friend this summer.....

and with this new friendship.....

also discovered the joy of girl talk!!!!