The One and Only You

(hastily jotted down from a twin magazine in the doctor's waiting room)

The One and Only You

Someone will always be smarter. Their house will be bigger.

They will drive a better car. Their children will do better than yours in school.

And their partner will fix more things around the house than yours does.

So let it go – and love you and your circumstances.

Think about it: The prettiest woman in the world can have hell in her heart.

And the most highly favored woman on your job may be unable to have children.

The richest woman you know – the one with the car, the house, the clothes –

Might be heartbreakingly lonely.

So love YOU. Love who you are right NOW.

Tell yourself, “I’m too blessed to be stressed.”

Be blessed, ladies, and share this message to encourage another woman:

“To the world you might be one person, but to one person you just might be the world.”

Snails

The girls have become fascinated with snails. Though I'm not crazy about the critters, I have no "flowerbed" so to speak of (thank you Crazy Cat Lady next door) that they could devour, so for the most part I just leave them be. They've become a source of endless amusement for my girls though. The same poor 3 snails get mauled repeatedly - slid off whatever they happened to be climbing at the time and plopped unceremoniously into a bug catcher.

You may think I'm unhinged for allowing, nay, even encouraging, my girls to play with snails. As long as they wash their hands when they come inside or before they have a snack, I really don't see the harm. Have you ever placed one in a clear plastic container & just watched it? The undulating muscles of its pseudopod (read - big, slimy foot) is amazing to watch & their faces, with the long eye stalks & shorter I-don't-know-what stalks can almost look expressive. But I digress...

This evening they were observing a pair of snails they had collected while I was getting dinner ready. Caleigh, in her endless wonderings asked me why some people don't like snails. I explained that a lot of people, like Grandma & Grandpa, work very hard to make their gardens look beautiful and that they don't like holes in their flowers - besides that, some people are kinda grossed out by the slimy part, I added.

Caleigh mulled over this for a few minutes while she observed the snail travel across the Glad container. Then she turned to me.

"I like snails. They look like they could be cute & cuddley... but mostly slimy."

My Hero!

Caleigh spilled yogurt on one of Alessa's stuffed animals & Alessa, completely distraught, came running into the office.

"Don't worry about it, Lessa. I'll clean it up tomorrow," I told her.

She walked back to her room and told Caleigh, "Mommy will fix it. OxyClean is my hero!"

:::sigh:::

Go Ahead, Call My Bluff

Rik was chosen to travel today to L.A. view the Museum of Tolerance with 30 other dispatchers, officers & other police personnel and return tomorrow evening.

After saying goodbye to Daddy, the girls & I started our day. I dropped them off at kindergarten and then headed to work, just like any other day. I let my boss know that I'd need to take a longer break so I could zip back to pick up the girls at 11:40, but it shouldn't take long. :::dun dun DUN:::

I continued my crazy all-children-cooped-up-inside-because-it's-rainy day not thinking any more about it. As I served my students lunch, I happened to glance at the clock and noticed it was 11:30. I all but tossed my aide the bowl of hard boiled eggs I was serving and with a chant of "PEACHES!!! Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh..." I virtually ran out the front door to go pick up my girls. I knew that even though Alessa would eat the hard boiled eggs, Caleigh would turn her nose up at them and neither of them would touch the blanched broccoli. I decided I'd permit myself a quick run though the drive-thru and be back at work within 20 minutes. So much for THAT part of my New Years resolution huh?

I reached the school in record time and waited with the other parents who were huddled under the small awning - hoping my children would appear among the first few students so I could get back to work. No such luck. Alessa appeared & started chatting with another child for a moment before I asked, "Where's your sister?"

Their teacher looked at me with a look on her face & said, "She's probably dragging her feet."

"Oh? Any more than usual?" I asked.

It was at this moment that Alessa, in all the "my sibling is in trouble and I'm relishing the fact that I'm not in trouble" glory said, "She's in trouble! You'll be getting an email."

What? My stomach dropped as I looked back at her teacher and received a confirming nod. Her teacher explained that Caleigh had been talking quite a bit in class today, had been asked to stop, continued to do so, and when she was reprimanded for it (go to her desk while other children were on the carpet) she pitched a royal fit. MY little one was the subject of one of THOSE notes home. :::sigh:::

Caleigh trudged around the corner & followed me forlornly to the car. I couldn't very well give her a happy meal now. Heck, I was debating whether or not to even go through with the sleep over they were supposed to have at Grandma & Grandpa's. I knew what I had to do to prove to my child that there were consequences to our actions.

I ran back home with my children, threw together a jelly sandwich and quickly sliced an apple and threw them in a brown sack. I then DID go to McDonalds, BUT only one happy meal was ordered. We broke sound barriers getting back to my job & I sat the girls down for lunch... and I only missed 30 minutes of work. A grand total of $6.50 (minus taxes) to prove to my challenging child that my bluff cannot be called? I'd say it was worth it.

The Frustration of Parent/Teacher Conferences

I had my most dreaded conference today - my "both as his teacher & if he were MY son, I would not send him to kindergarten next year". :::pours drink:::

After my student's mother rescheduled 4 times - which irks me to no end, seeing as I view that as 2 hours worth of spots the other parents could have been filling - it was a complete waste of a half an hour.

She says she doesn't know how to control him at home when he demands to play with toys instead of doing what she asks him to do. He has free rein of the tv & DVD's. She's a stay at home mom, but doesn't spend any time with him - no real conversation, no reading to him, no sitting & teaching through play. What the hell is the use of being a stay at home mom if you won't interact with your child! I would KILL to be in your shoes. I would give ANYTHING to be able to have those years back & do them all over with my girls. Not do them differently, just again.

This child is allowed to stay up until 9 & his mother brings him to school "when he wakes up" (usually 10). I CAN'T TEACH YOUR CHILD IF HE ISN'T IN CLASS!!! I suggested that maybe she might want to bring him at 9 (allowing him to be in BOTH groups) in an attempt to catch up & then perhaps she pick him up at the "half-day" mark and work with him while his sister naps. No, she says she likes to have time in the afternoon to get things done.

I explained to her that he should at least know the letter that his name begins with... she countered with "well one of the teachers can work extra with him in the afternoon". I told her that I was concerned that he didn't know the difference between numbers & letters, let alone what you do with them. "He's just not interested in learning at home so I let him play." I told her that his lack of fine motor skills is extremely concerning - she says he doesn't like to color or use a pencil so she doesn't make him. I told her that his social and verbal and coping skills are hovering at about a 2 year old level & she asked if we had workbooks we could give him to work on. Workbooks? For social & verbal skills?

:::sigh::: Lady, I'm beginning to come to grips with the fact that I can't fix in 5 months what you've taken 5 years to screw up.

I have to realize that there are just some instances that you try as hard as you can & no matter what, the outcome will be unfavorable. I have to accept that even wishing it & willing it & working at it with all your heart doesn't magically make things happen. I have a hard time letting go of the "well, what if I did____" and "what if I had pushed him harder".

But then I look into the shining faces of my other 21 kids and am amazed at how far they've come. My rag-tag bunch of monkeys that I love with all my heart - the reasons I continue to teach with sub-par wages & waves of wet pants and biting that come with a full moon or north wind. One of my students was a left in a dumpster when born, one was abandoned in the streets of India before being adopted & coming to America a year ago, 2 have autism & one was born with massive head abnormalities. We've worked on individual goals ranging from sitting still for 4 minutes to dealing with sensory overload to abandonment issues to reading Step 1 books. Even with all the frustration & hurdles & challenges, I look at my little ones & see that the only child I'm recommending stay back is a child of privilege whose every whim is catered to.

I'm overcome and humbled at how strong & spirited & absolutely brilliant my class is.

My class has taught ME this year. ♥

The Bunny Show

From 6:45 - 7:15 tonight I got another "rollercoaster" that comes with parenthood - the kindergarten play. Alessa was Betty Bunny and gleefully got to call her sister naughty and stubborn on numerous occasions while Caleigh managed to land the lead as the "naughty & haughty & wild" Bunny Sue - a part that was not all acting to be honest.

I was told by her teacher weeks ago as they were casting for the different parts (yes, the 5 year olds had to audition for the parts they desired), that they really wanted Caleigh to be Bunny Sue - that "she'd make the perfect Bunny Sue - but they weren't sure about casting her. You see, Caleigh likes to do things HER way. I know, very surprising - I don't know where she has inherited the strong will from. Her teacher went on to say that they wanted it to remain the BUNNY show and not become the CALEIGH show - if they ask for one twirl, it means ONE twirl; if they ask for 3 hops they mean THREE hops & if directions were not followed - both during class & rehearsals - that a giant hook could very well show up from the wings & drag the little ham offstage.

I agreed with her teacher & told her, "Hey, it's a learning experience. I hope she behaves herself - we'll emphasize the importance of it - but if she doesn't, maybe it's what she needs to drop the stubborn streak."

With that being said, my child became an angel for over a month. All I had to do at the slightest hint of misbehavior was say, "What, Bunny Sue?" and it would cease immediately. It was glorious.

On the other hand, when your child is chosen for the lead of a play, they don't just have a line or 2 or the same line repeated over & over again. Caleigh had quite a few lines to memorize along with 5 or 6 songs, choreography & cues. About a week into the practicing, her teach approached me, concerned that she was having great difficulty with her cues. Alessa, on the other hand, knew her lines, most of the lines of the students around her & could feed Caleigh her lines. Their teacher suggested that we make a copy of the video from the year before & let her watch that a few times. A few times soon translated to "a few times a day". We worked constantly, every day for 5 weeks, until I thought my very soul would turn black if I had to watch "Get Hoppin'" even one more time.

But I did get to see it "one more time" - the time that counted. They could not have looked any cuter up there in their bunny ears & cotton tails. Alessa had a smile that would melt even the hardest of hearts & kept flashing "I Love You" signs to us. Caleigh felt oh-so-important with her headset mic - I'm pretty sure she was envisioning herself as Pink or Katy Perry for a few moments.

The cast was on their marks on stage, the audience began to quiet, and who is the child who causes everyone to wait because she desperately had to use the bathroom? That would be my little Bunny Sue. I turned 18 shades of red & I'm sure her teacher wanted to strangle me.

I think Caleigh wanted a big entrance.

They remembered every line (Alessa mouthed EVERYONE'S lines), they sang every song with gusto (or maybe that was just because of her headset mic), and they hit every cue like seasoned pros.

I couldn't have been prouder of my monkeys.

Mommy, The Wino?

At dinner, I carried cups out to the girls with a pitiful amount of milk in them. They looked at the cups & then to me with an expectant look.
"Sorry girls, that's the last milk in the house."
Alessa, concerned, asked, "Are you going to have water then?"
"Nope."
"Soda?"
"Nope."
"Wine?"
:::blink blink::: Pardon?

I've NEVER had wine, and I make an effort not to have them see us drink (an occasional social drink after the girls go down for the night if we have friends over). Where on earth do they get this stuff?!?!?!