When It Rains, It Pours...

Well, now the OTHER twin has whatever this crud is Tootie has. Lia's fever spiked today, along with a cough and now a sore throat. I called to see if I could just give her the same antibiotic that Tootie has, but no... I'll be taking her in to the pediatrician in about an hour! My brain is so fried! In the last two days, I have had a total of three hours sleep. Tonight's not looking too good on the sleep front, either. Plus, I'm starting to run a low-grade fever. Too bad, though, because I don't have time to be sick. I'll just have to try to keep it at bay until I get my girls better.

Anyway, please keep the prayers coming because we really need them right now.

Keep My Baby in Your Prayers...

My youngest child, Tootie, spiked a fever during the night last night. Her temperature was 104.1. I've been giving her Motrin every six hours and took her to the pediatrician today. She is now on an antibiotic and I hope she is feeling better by this time tomorrow. As I type this, my baby is asleep, totally spent from her latest fever spike. I am too tired to go to sleep after being up almost all night last night, and I will probably have a repeat tonight.

It's funny, though, because I have been inundated with praise and worship for the last few days. When she got sick, I did not stress. Yeah, as a parent, I was and am very concerned. Hence, the no sleep last night, but I spent much of that time singing praise and worship songs that I had been listening to over and over. God is so smart in the way He gives us just what we need when we need it!

One thing that has truly blessed my soul, though, has been watching Lia, Tootie's twin, while Tootie has been sick. Lia has been the little mother hen. She does everything from making sure Tootie has a light covering when she gets chilly to holding Tootie's cup to her lips so she can get a drink. Their relationship is so beautiful to watch. Although my girls are not identical twins, they do share an amazing bond. Today, Lia was so sad that Tootie had to go to the doctor that I had to promise to call home from the doctor's office so the girls could talk to each other on the phone. Before we left, Lia and I joined hands and Lia asked God to heal her sister. Can you say precious moment?!!! Then, when we got home, I noticed Lia looking through the blinds in the foyer, just watching for us. As we got out of the van, I could hear Lia squealing with delight, "Tootie's home! Tootie's home!" Lia opened the front door and ran out to meet Tootie. Then, Tootie told Lia that she missed her so much, and the two embraced. Aw, man! If you only knew how that touching moment got me right in the heart!

So, I know my baby is going to be just fine. The faith of her sister, more than anything, is seeing to that. With Lia's love and faith, God can't help but be moved to compassion for Tootie. I'll keep you posted on her progress!

My Son...

Happy Birthday, Ry!

I cannot believe you turned 18 today! Where has the time gone? When you first came into my life, you were a rambunctious six-year-old who bore an uncanny resemblance to the video game character, Yoshi! Well, at least by the walk!

We have gone through so many changes over the years-- school, puberty, girls (yikes!), our "dates" so you can learn how to treat a young lady, driving, and so much more. I can honestly say that you are the type of child parents dream of having. You're smart as heck, funny, thoughtful, hardworking, respectful, and kind. You are growing into quite a young leader who is destined to do great things in this life. You, Young Man, are success just waiting to happen, and Dad and I are so proud of you!

Although you were not born from my body, Ryan, you were truly born in my heart. I hate the label of "step"son. There is no "step" or lessening of my love for you. You are my SON, plain and simple.

So, have a wondrously blessed birthday, knowing that Dad and I love you, pray for you, and have your back forever!

All my love,
Mom

Honor Your Father and Mother

Like I said earlier, I had to defriend someone from my FaceBook account because she was being disrespectful to her mama.

Now, the Lord knows that I have not made the best decisions all the time when it comes to dealing with my own mother, but despite how angry she has ever made me-- and she has done so A LOT!!!-- I have never, never, never, EVER called her out of her name or in any way threatened her.

This child (teenager, going to 12th grade) is the daughter of a friend of mine. At first I thought it was cute when I received her friend request. But that changed QUICKLY! See, my friend and her daughter are having a hard time relating right now for a number of reasons. There seems to be so much more to the story that I am not privy to, but that is their business and I respect that. Anyway, I have been noticing the daughter writing things in her status that are, in my opinion, extremely disrespectful towards her mother. I know she intentionally writes those things to hurt her mom since her mother can see everything she writes. I wrote her a private message letting her know that, although I do not know what all is going on between them, life is so short and is not at all promised to us. I asked her, essentially, to ask herself this: If your mother died today, would you be forever okay with the way things are between you? If your answer is yes, then there is really nothing else I can say other than to just keep it moving. But if the answer is no,then you need to make sure that you take the necessary steps on your end to start making it right today. Once we are gone, it will be too late the say the things we should have said or to take back the things we knew we should not have said. I left it there and went about about my business.

The child did not respond to my message and, in fact, continued to post disrespectful status messages toward her mother. I guess, in her reckless youth, she made the decision she felt she needed to.

The last straw for me, though, was this final exchange (paraphrased): (Warning: foul language)

(apparently, the mother had written and told the child she loved her)

Friend's daughter's status message: Seriously, just leave me the f*** alone!
Daughter's friend #1: What's going on? Whose ass do I need to kick?
Daughter's friend #2: So, your (sic) gonna kick her mother's ass? LMAO!
Friend's daughter: LMAO!!!

Okay! I was HOT I tell you! I had reached the end of my rope with this little girl! The level of disrespect was just too much! So rather than beating her with a red hot poker or saying what was REALLY on my mind, I just deleted her from my friends list so I'd never have to see her disrespectful posts again. I understand that it does, indeed, take a village to raise a child, but I also understand that not everyone in the village has permission to beat the child's butt.

It does seem, though, that somewhere along the way the message of honoring your father and mother (Ephesians 6:2-3) got missed. I'm just saying...

These Girls of Mine

It is not often that I am surprised by most people-- well, other than my twins, that is. It seems that I am always seeming to be amazed by something they say or do. Now, i know part of it is because they are mine, and like most parents, I think my girls are a couple of the smartest kids on earth. But more often than not, it is that they do something that seems to be ahead of where I, as an educator, think they should be developmentally.

Take today for example. I've been teaching my girls how to play the game of pool. Since they are waaay too small to play on a regulation sized table, I have been showing them the basics on a game called Pool Geometry on the Internet site CoolMath4Kids.com. (I know most people would not think of the relationship between pool and mathematics, but the game does require an understanding of Geometry-- specifically triangles). Anyway, they are good about telling me when either they (or I) scratch. They're also getting pretty good at aiming the cue stick so that the cue ball goes where it needs to go.

But I digress.

I told them that it was almost nap time, so they asked if we could play one game of pool. We did, and all was well. I then told them that it was time for their nap. Lia, the older twin, promptly told me that she was not planning to take a nap. Being the mom that I am, I politely gave her a choice. Here is how the exchange went:

Lia: I'm not taking a nap.
Me: Well, then, you have a choice to make. You can take a nap or get a spanking and take a nap.
Lia: Ummm, I'll take the pink one.
Me: What?? (accompanied by blank stare)
Lia: I'll take the pink one.

Now, for a few seconds I was totally confused. Then it hit me. When I buy something for them, I try to buy different colors to help them to distinguish one's property from the other. This is a MUST in our household. Usually, when there are things that are clearly girl items, I usually get one in pink and one in purple. They get to choose who gets what, but 99% of the time, Tootie chooses purple while Lia's choice is pink.

Without missing a beat, though, that little girl of mine burst out into a fit of laughter. She quickly said, "I'm just kidding. I'm going to take my nap."

Doesn't that sound like the humor and wit of someone much older than 4 years old? I knew it-- genius!

My mommy is NOT a teacher...

So, I'm not a teacher it seems... at least that is the story my four-year-old twins daughters are telling.

Once a week now, my girls go a fabulous in-home daycare that they've been at since they were 9 months old. They used to go there fulltime until my husband lost his job back in January. Since we could no longer afford it, she offered to keep the girls one day a week to give my husband a break and to allow him time to go on interviews. If he had to go more often, she has offered to keep them for the hours of his interviews. I love her so much because she loves my girls- and us- so much that she would do this for us.

Anyway, today her daughter was talking with the kids about their moms and the jobs they do away from home. She told my girls that their mommy is a teacher who goes to work at a school every day. Although my girls visit my school quite often after school, and have even been there at one point or another during the day, I guess it never really quite dawned on them that I was, in fact, a teacher. I don't know what they thought I did in my classroom. Regardless, this is how the exchange went:

Ms. C: So, Girls, your mommy is a teacher. She goes to work at a school every day.
Tootie: My mommy is NOT a teacher. She is a MOMMY!
Ms. C: Well, yes, she is a mommy, but she is also a teacher. She teaches kids.
Tootie: Don't SAY that! My mommy is a MOMMY! She is not a teacher.
Ms. C: So, where does she work?
Tootie: She works at school in her classroom, but she is a MOMMY!
Ms. C: Well, that's true, but she can be a mommy AND a teacher.
Tootie: Humph!

So, when they got to school with Daddy to pick me up today, the girls asked to visit my classroom. As we approached the door, Lia, the other twin, was bound and determined to get to the bottom of it all.

Lia: Mommy, are you a teacher?
Me: Yes, I am.
Lia: You ARE?
Me: Yes, I am. I teach kids who are in the 4th grade.
Lia: You DO? But you're a MOMMY!
Me: Yes, you are right. I am a mommy AND a teacher.

I guess they were satisfied with it and were able to accept the fact that I am both their mommy AND some other kids' teacher. Neither said anything, but I know Tootie is NOT going to want to tell Ms. C that she was right! LOL.

I love those little girls!

Freaky-Deaky

I'm teaching a media literacy unit at school right now. I love doing this unit because I believe in the importance of teaching young people to be be knowledgeable consumers of products and information. It has been going pretty well with all of my classes, so I've felt good about everything.

Reality check!!

I thought I was doing some serious teaching today. A couple of boys who hadn't really paid attention without coercion all year seemed to be fully engrossed in our discussion. Well, what I found out later was that, since I had on a v-neck top today, they were looking at my cleavage.

Little pervs!

I told my husband when I got into the car this afternoon. Instead of wondering what was wrong with the boys like I did, he just laughed and said, "I'm just saying... I would've been looking, too." Big perv!

I'm not surprised, though. Anyone who teaches fourth grade can probably tell you about the hormone surge kids seem to go through between fourth and fifth grades. Kids get taller over the summer, girls start developing a little and going through their bodily changes, and boys get kind of mannish. What am I going to have to put up with next year when I move up with my classes?

Sheesh! I guess I'm going to have to wear turtlenecks every day!

My Twins are Four Years Old...

and I don't know where the time went. If you happen to see it, please let it know that I would like it back!

It seems like yesterday that I was having my (unexpected) c-section to bring them into the world. They were so small, and I was so scared to even touch them at first. They both fit into my shirt for kangaroo care, and we bonded like that for hours upon hours at a time. Me afraid to move a muscle for fear some magical moment would be forever lost. Them nestled in cozily trying to match the wild beating of my heart. There was something truly magical about those first couple of weeks. Something that could only have come from Heaven. I didn't speak loudly or want anything to steal that magic.



Oh, how times change!

This morning, Eliana and I had it out. See, both of my twins are strong-willed. This quality will serve them very well in the future, and I thank God that they were created just the way they are. However, their mother is also strong-willed. Ummm, yeah. So, those great qualities I see in them now are quite infuriating at times for me since they're only four! You know where I'm going with this, don't you?

Well, I asked Eliana to do something and she totally blew me off. I raised my voice with her very sharply when I told her to do it again. This little heffalump raised HER voice and said, "Mommy! I will do it, but don't don't yell at me like that!" Ooooookay! Now, if you know me well, then you know this created a LOT of problems. I was actually quite torn because I DO want them to be able to stand up for themselves, BUT Lord, have mercy because I had to catch myself before I worked that hiney out!

I said a little prayer and took a few deep breaths before I calmly began the following exchange:

Me: First, let me say that I am sorry for yelling at you because I don't want to be a mommy who yells at you.
Lia: It's okay, Mommy. It was an accident.
Me: (sighing) That said, if you ever talk to me like that again, Baby, I am going to build smoke in your pants from tearing your butt up!
Lia: I'm not a baby! I'm four years old now.
Me: Go away.
Lia: Mommy, I'm sorry for being rude to you.
Me: It's okay, Baby. It was an accident.
Lia: Humph!

Y'all pray for me, please, 'Cause she's going to get hurt if she keeps playing with me like that. I'm just saying...

An invitation: Please Read!

A really close family member has a teenage daughter who is pregnant. The daughter just turned 16 and is very happy about it. The family's emotions have run the gamut, everything from shock and outrage to devastation, particularly since the girl admitted that she had indeed chosen to get pregnant so she could have someone to love her.

By all accounts (except hers, I guess), this child has been well-loved her entire life. What was it that could possibly have been missing? How could she possibly feel that bringing a baby into the mix would be the answer?

The girl I'm talking about comes from a good family. So does the boy. They have parents that are active in the church and in the community. The parents-to-be are very plugged in to their church youth groups. The Word has been firmly planted into them. Yet, they are still going to be teen-aged parents. Statistics. What happened here, and how do we address these issues in our community? And when I say our community, please do not think for a minute that I'm talking about race.

Maybe we need to open good, honest, dialogue here so we can address these issues before they crop up in our spheres of influence.

Have you ever been in the situation these two teens are in?
Have you ever felt you were unloved and, therefore, wanted to have a child to fill the void?
If you have been in this situation, was it really a feeling of wanting love or something else?
Knowing what you know now, what do you wish someone had told you as a teenager?
Do you feel the Church has a responsibility to address teen issues and sex in youth groups?
If yes, how do you feel the Church should go about meeting these needs?
Anything else on this issue you're wanting to add?

Feel free to comment on this post (and any of the others) with thoughts you may have on this subject, as I honestly feel we need to get to the bottom of this issue.

Spring Break

I'm a really good teacher. I've said that many times before, I know.

But I am so glad to be on Spring Break.

I love my job. I love my students. I love the smell of a school. I love the cacophony of sounds. I love interacting with my peers. I love wearing the various hats I'm required to wear each day. No two days are the same and I love that about my profession.

Sometimes, though, it is all just too much and I need to get away to refresh and to refill my internal bucket that has to give so much that it often runs empty. I need a break from everything I love about my profession. The kids, the smells, the sounds, the peers, the hats. It. is. all. just. too. much. sometimes. (I probably shouldn't admit that, huh?)

Although quite wonderful, teaching is an increasingly difficult profession to last in. That is, if you really pour your all into it. I know people often hear of teachers who enter the profession lacking basic morals in addition to basic grammatical, spelling, and social skills. But for teachers who pour their hearts and souls into the students entrusted to them, teaching can be physically and emotionally draining. More and more often, students enter our schools lacking social and basic readiness skills. More and more often the parents who send such kids seem to be increasingly detached. As a result, a significant increase in teacher workload occurs. Not only do we teach Little Johnny or Little Lucy to read, write, and do arithmetic (the easy part), but we also end up being the keepers of little souls.

I am still surprised by the number of kids who reach my classroom door desperate for attention and validation and... love. I know part of it is just a natural part of child development. But for some, the need goes far beyond that.

Every year, there seems to be at least one student (some years way more than that) who does not have the basic level of Maslow's hierarchy of needs met. They show up at school the first week wearing the same shirt and pants every day. Or they show up without a lunch or lunch money every day, yet the application for free and reduced lunch is never returned from home. These are the kiddos who show up at school each day without basic materials needed for learning. These are the kids who wake up at 5:00 am so they can get breakfast and clothing ready for their siblings and themselves before seeing those siblings off to school because no adult showed up at home to see about them. These are the kids who are sleepy at school because they fled with their families in the middle of the night from a parent's abusive boyfriend or girlfriend. These are the kids who know their only meals for the day are the breakfast and lunch they will get at school since there is no food at home. These are the kids who take off their socks in class because their teacher looked down and noticed the holes in the dingy socks that reached far above their tattered shoes. These are the kids who may have a parent or family member at home, but they are so lost in their own despondency that they rarely utter a word to their children.

And this is in the suburbs.

Good teachers are the ones who stretch their family's already tight budgets to buy several additional sets of school supplies in anticipation of the students who will inevitably show up without them. Good teachers scour consignment shops as well as major stores during the winter and summer months in search of new or like-new clothing and shoes for the child/ren who show up without appropriate clothing for the seasons. Good teachers devise a plan to send clothes home in the backpacks, an outfit a day, until said child/ren have them all. Good teachers buy hygiene kits ahead of time to meet the needs of the kids who will show up without a bath and with uncombed hair. Good teachers stock up on crackers and trail mix and other non perishable items for students who come to school hungry or will go home to a hungry house. Good teachers have the school counselor on speed dial or email favorites to address any issues that crop up from day to day. Instead of visiting the lounge, many good teachers eat with their kids to keep their fingers on the pulse of the class, making mental notes of the kids who need extra attention.

Good teachers are now the safe place to run for many kids, a sanctuary as it were. By some grace of God, we are endowed with the ability to mix just the right salve to heal bruises to little hearts and bring encouragement to fledgling dreams. What a responsibility.

What an awesome, terrifying, and utterly draining responsibility.

Teaching is a difficult, yet rewarding profession. The course content, though a huge undertaking in and of itself at times, is really the easy part. Being the nurturer of a young person's dreams makes it so much harder and so much more precarious. How does one do it all and have anything left for their families at home? Why would anyone want to enter and remain in such a profession?

Just ask a good teacher and he or she might tell you that seeing a student open wings they never knew they had makes it all worth it. Or maybe it's when you receive a letter from a student telling you that if it were not for you believing in them, they would never have made it. For some, it may be seeing the face of a child the moment he "gets" a concept. No matter what the particular story is, most good teachers will agree that the reward is in knowing that you, in some small way, at some appointed time, made a profound impact on someone else's life.

And that, my friend, is what it is all about.

So please take every opportunity you find to fill up the bucket of a good teacher you know. This can be done through a kind word, a note of encouragement, a simple compliment... The sky really is the limit. The profession needs it, and our children need it, too.

Three Year Olds' Christmas Lists and Other Problems

Would someone please, please, PLEASE help me to understand how and why my three year olds climbed into bed with me this morning with the big toy books from Toys R Us and Walmart, a notepad, and a pen so we could make out their Christmas lists. I honestly don't know where they get these things. I mean, one twin perused one book while the other twin was careful not to miss anything in the other book. Whenever they found their "must-haves", I had to write it down on the notepad (with the pen they also supplied, mind you). Ummm, yeah...

So, if anyone is interested in the must-haves of the season for children aged 2-4, please let me know. No, really. I have the ENTIRE list.

Oh, and just an aside... If you're able to explain the aforementioned events to me, could you also explain why they are currently sitting under the desk eating a slice of pizza and looking through the circulars? Thanks in advance!

Are You Smarter Than a Three Year Old?

Okay. I know most parents like to believe that their children are geniuses and everything they do is ahead of the curve. I am no different, and I am always amazed at the things they come up with. Take this morning, for example.

I am home from work today because I've been VERY sick and tried to ride it out. Finally, I just couldn't make it any further and had to break down and go to the doctor. Well, this morning Eliana (Lia) came up to me and said, "Mommy, E is for Eliana." I responded, "Why, yes it is. E is for Eliana." At the time, I was sending another copy of my substitute lesson plan to my partner teacher and giving her some instructions to pass along to the sub. Since I was on the computer, I asked Lia to point out an E to me (She knows all of her letters and numbers, mind you). To my surprise, she pointed to the number 3. I said, "No, Lia, that is incorrect. That is NOT the letter E. That is the number 3. Where is the letter E?" Lia looked at me with doubtful eyes, almost as if she thought her mommy, the teacher, was an idiot. She then pointed to the letter W. I said, "No, Lia, that is NOT the letter E. That is the Letter W." At that point, lia had had just about enough of me. She said, "No, Mommy. That is an E. See?" She then turned the computer keyboard to the right so that the W looked like an E (actually it looks like the Greek symbol Sigma, but you get it). Then, she turned my keyboard around until the number 3 looked like an E. At that point, she said, "See, Mommy. It's an E."

My response, you ask? There was nothing I could say but, "Well, I see that you are right when you turn the keyboard around. But just out of curiosity, if you didn't get to turn the keyboard around, which letter would be the E?" She replied, "Here's the real E" and pointed to the letter E. Then she got off my lap and announced that she was going to play with Daddy instead.

Sigh. Whatever!