Day One, Back on the Wagon

OK, Many of you know that on Christmas Eve a very dear friend whom I haven't seen in a while asked me if I was expecting. To which I replied..."NO YOU BEEEEEEEEEEEP, BEEEEEP, BEEEEEP, BEEEEP, YOU DON'T SAY THAT TO PEOPLE WHAT KIND OF BLEEEP, BLEEP, BLEEEPITY BLEEEP ARE YOU?????

That's what I wanted to say instead as my ego slowly deflated before my eyes I said told them politely that I was just overweight blah, blah, blah. I turned to find my husband and told him that I wanted to go home post haste. I had a baby to feed!

We had a Merry Freaking Christmas that evening. I ate my weight in pecan pralines as I opened presents filled with clothes that I wasn't about to try on.

Seriously people, I understand that many of you did not know me before I had Sophie. So you would not think that I looked pregnant. Sadly, this is the size and shape that I am when I am 5 months along.

Needless to say, I started a fearce workout the following day. I did cardio or yoga for 30 min each morning and my Slim in Six video each afternoon. I also joined Jenny Craig. I lost 7 lbs after about 4 1/2 weeks. Then I got sick, really sick. I still worked out while I was sick but only once a day and at a very low intensity. The next week we went to Jamaica and I worked out 2 times. Then as soon as we got home I became really sick again. I could barely walk up the stairs much less exercise and the only thing I wanted to eat was powdered sugar donuts. They are very nutritious.

So, it has been three weeks since I have really exercised and I started over today. You will be happy to know that I have kept off the 7 lbs., but my tummy remains large and rounded. I am commited to once and for all get back to my fighting weight. Once I am there, I dare you to ask me if I am expecting. You can expect a swift kick in the head!

I no bloggie muchie

So, I haven't blogged in a while. There are several reasons...1. I was dealthy ill then we went to Jamaica when we came back I was deathly ill again for 9 horrible days. Last week was my first week back to reality and I had to catch up on a pile of bills, emails and responsibilities and Clay was deathly ill. So I had to the kids all by myself. The other thing is I haven't had much to say! So let me think of something and I will get back to you! STOP BUGGING ME LITA!!!!!!!

Martin Luther King Jr.

Landry is learning about Martin Luther King Jr. this week in school. We talked about him today in the car. I told him about segregation and all of the important changes that MLK helped to bring about. He summed it up for me by saying, "So, now we get to play with black people." Yup, you gotta fight for your right to play with black people.

On our way home today we passed a stinky smell. Landry said, "Okay, who farted?" Sophie, very matter of factly said, "It's just my breath."

Sweet Nothings

I love the way Sophie says "Momma". It's very southern and very little girl. I can't describe it, but it is sweet. Landry has called me mom since he was about three. Unless he is sick or being very sweet. So, when Sophie talks to me and she says, "right momma?" I just love it! I remember when Landry used to call me "mommies" he was one or two and oh so sweet. I also remember when he started talking in sentences. Right after his 2nd birthday we were shopping in a store. We started to leave and he looked up at me and said, "We not going to buy any little boy toys?" I stopped in my tracks and told him not today. He looked at me with these questioning eyes and said, "Little boy have enough toys at home?" I can hear it like it was yesterday. He was so edible!

Last week he told me he learned about "penstofalys" in school that day. He meant apostrophes. Sophie had a headache last week and told me that her head was beeping all day long and she had a tentature in her ear because it was beeping, too. She did have a temperature in her ear. I am glad we don't use the rectal thermometer.

Talent Show is Over!!

Talent Show is over, Talent show is over, talent show is over!!!!! Yeaaaaaah, Yeehaaaw, WoooHoooo! As you may know, this year Landry and 4 friends did a "dance" to Ghostbusters for our 2008 Wood Cruise Line Talent Show. We had 5, 2nd grade boys all decked out in Ghostbusters outfits complete with Protonpacks and Guns who did a dance choreographed by the moms that included a chair routine, fog machines, and a light that projects ghosts swirling around the stage and if that was not enough we also had a bigger than life size Staypuft Marshmallow man who made an appearance on stage only to be shot to death. The part of the marshmallow man was played by non other than my brave and selfless husband. The part of dresser of the marshmallow man was played by me, so neither one of us got to see the actual performance, but as soon as we get the DVD I will put it on the blog. I may actually blog more since I will have more time now. We'll see!

School is in session and no one died!

Today was the first day back to school after winter break. It was strangely uneventful. I wasn't sure how today would go since the last day of school before winter break was truly one of the hardest days of my life.
As many of you know, my favorite person at Wood Elementary, Ms. Sandy McNutt, retired on that day. Ms. McNutt is my friend, she is my favorite teacher, she is the only reason I drive my kid 20 minutes to school instead of going to the school down the street. She is my family and I love her way too much.
She is the most empathetic person I have ever known. She has the ability to make every person that she knows feel like they are the single most important person to her. I have often watched her talking with people and I marvel at how she never takes her eyes off of them. She focuses on what they are saying. She really listens to them. Her attention makes them feel special and to her they are.She sees potential and she coaxes it out. Kids just beam when they walk away from her. I am not the only person who loves her and considers her personal property. Our whole school is full of love for this woman. So, I knew this would be a sad day. I just didn't realize how hard it would be on me, personally.
We started the day with what I thought was going to be a fun Christmas carol sing-a-long in the school cafeteria. I brought my happy self and my happy daughter up to the school and sat there with Landry's wonderful teacher trying not to cry as each grade level sang a specific song for Ms. McNutt. She cried and cried. My heart just broke watching her hug every kid.

As I was leaving the sing-a-long someone told me that the school was going to line the halls at the end of the day and do the "clap out" for Ms. McNutt. The "clap out" is a Wood tradition where the students line the hallways on the last day of school and clap out the 6Th graders who are on their way to Jr. High. I went to it last year. Mind you, I only had a kindergartner but, I cried like he was leaving for college. So, when I found out the plans for that afternoon, I lost it. I completely broke down sobbing. I don't generally sob. I tear. I sniffle, but I don't sob. But, I could not imagine how unbelievably hard that would be for Sandy. I wanted to take her away right then and say, you don't have to do this. You can stay. I will take care of everything. Actually, I did say that. No luck!

Needless to say, that was a ridiculously hard day. I cried the whole day. People kept asking me if I was okay and I would just break down and try to explain.It was really crazy for me. My head hurt. My eyes were swollen and I had to go get a massage the next day to get rid of the tension I was holding in my body. See people...I have compassion!
I don't even want to know what Sandy had to do the next day to get back in working order.
Anyway....that terrible day was over and I have dreaded today for the past two weeks. I know in my mind that it wouldn't be different. That everything would remain the same, but my heart has a little empty feeling when I think of going up there and she isn't in the building. I also wondered if maybe she would change her mind and show up chained to the front door with a shirt that says, "Hell no I won't go!" Hee Hee...now that would be funny!

It didn't happen. As a matter of fact life went on. Landry did wake up with a stomach ache today. I wondered if I would be going up to the empty, hollow halls of the school to pick him up early today, but he made it through the day and forgot about his stomach ache. The halls weren't hollow or empty. No new regime is coming in to shake things up. It is just another day at Wood. I didn't even have to get out of the car today. Which is a good thing because it is cold as a witches nose! I will miss plopping my butt down in her office and just shooting the breeze. I will miss the security I feel being under her wing, but I am so thankful that she invited me to come to the school that she has made into the amazing place that it is. I don't know what I have done to be so blessed, but God has really put wonderful people in my life who love me as much as I love them. He has guided my steps even when I wasn't aware of it. I hope he keeps doing it. Landry and Sophie, you don't know how blessed you are!

They will go back to school

Come hell or high water, they will go back to school tomorrow. My kids are bored. The $25,000 worth of toys they got for Christmas have been played with or ignored completely and they are now considered old and boring. Their neighborhood friends started getting on their nerves and they have seen every ridiculous episode of SpongeBob known to man. It is time to go back to school. It is time for schedules and planned activities. It is times like these that reinforce my conviction that I should never home school my children.

Talent Show

Someone please remind me next year that I do not want to do talent show again! Seriously, the whole rehearsal process makes me not like my kid. It makes me not like any kids. I do not know what happens to them, but they act like they have been raised by wolves! The adults do all of the work finding the right song, choreographing a routine, putting together the stage props and costumes and finally getting everyone to the various rehearsals, auditions, rehearsals, ass whippings and so on and so forth. Only to be met with dissension, aggravation, broken props and then bull if the kid doesn't say...."I don't even want to be in the talent show!!!!!"

Next year I am putting together a group of moms to perform in the talent show. I am bypassing the kids altogether!

I give

Have you ever "volunteered" yourself out. Do you know what I mean? When you have said yes to several volunteer tasks that people have asked of you as well as some that you really want to do. Then all of the sudden there comes a time when every one of them seem to converge at the very same time and you are doing everything you possibly can to do the best job and not let anyone down. I am a little volunteered out. I have had to ask God what he expects of me right now and you know what he keeps telling me? His old stand by...BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD. Which right now means for me to quit trying to control everything and roll with the punches. I did this today and he told me to resign from a volunteer postition that I was just asked to do and reluctantly agreed to yesterday. I did it and I feel a huge, HUGE weight lifted off of my shoulders. Also, today was relatively smooth. Except for my run in with the crossing guard at school. I just have to say that she is so very lucky that I am not PMSing today and that she was standing beside my car and not in front of it. I may have been blogging from my jail cell this evening.

Take Cover

This morning we are experiencing torrential downpours here in North Texas. There has been lots of thunder, lightening and flash flooding. On our way to school we listened to the weather reports and the DJ said that the Fort Worth Fire Dept. had already reported three house fires. These fires, they believed, were started by lightening. The DJ warned us to be careful. At first, I thought, "yes, she's right we should be careful." Then I realized what on earth can I possibly do to prepare my house for random lightening strikes. I guess I can't pick up the mail while holding a big metal pole. I often do this. I just like to test my luck but, if the lightening is serious enough to warrant a warning from the knowledgeable DJ, I think I will leave my big pole in the house today. Better yet, since houses are obviously being targeted by random lightening today I think Sophie and I should go to the mall and stay there. You never hear of malls being struck by lightening. Come to think of it you don't hear of anything bad happening to malls. No one bombs malls. Malls do not usually get tornadoed or hurricaned. That settles it! We are going to the mall. See ya there!

Flu Shots and More Language Arts

Landry and Sophie had some follow up doctor's visits today and at the end we all got flu shots. Last year we did not get flu shots and I will not do that again, no matter how much my kids protest. Luckily, this year Landry was able to get the flu mist. This you inhale up your nose and it is not at all painful. I could have opted for the mist myself, but poor Sophie isn't old enough so if she was brave enough to get a shot so was I! It hurt though. The nurse told me to relax and I just looked at her and said, "ya, right." I am about to poke a needle in your arm and push some stinging liquid into your muscle. Just think of the beach and the sound of the WAAAAAVVEEEESSSSSS! Anyway, we all came through it beautifully and since it was too late to take the kids back to school and they deserved a prize, we went to Alley Cats. It was awesome! We were the only people there. It wasn't noisey. I new where my kids were at all times. I bought them each a ten dollar card and it lasted almost an hour. They walked away with about 2500 points and several treasures that I am sure I will throw away in the next couple of weeks.

As we were leaving Landry started to ask about homeless people who have to eat out of the trash can. He said, " you know mom like the poohos." It took me a minute to realize that he meant hobos. Poohos. Fabulous!

Language Arts

This morning Sophie said, "oh, mama, you crap me up." It reminded me of when Landry called me a "crack head" instead of a nut head. Funny kids

Me so Funny

Sometimes I forget how funny I am. Not often, but sometimes I do forget. Then I read my profile and I crack me up.

I need to say that the only reason I do this blog is for my kids. I want them to have ample evidence that they need counseling when they actually have to go to counseling. I also want them to know that they are weird and they come by it honestly. It runs in their genes. It's genetic. It goes back generations. The other reason I do this blog is so Lita and I can live next door to each other even though we don't live next door to each other. She think me so funny, too.

The Master

I picked up Sophie and her precious little friend Jaye Caroline at school. As soon as we got in the car they had an interesting story to tell me about their adventures that day. Well, Sophie did, Jaye is a quiet, observing little girl. She rarely says anything to adults. She just stares and possibly shakes her head, but on this day while Sophie told the story, Jaye sat there wide eyed and chimed in every couple of seconds. Here's the story...

Sophie, "There was a mouse on the playground today, it was sleeping.'
Jaye, "It had ants on it."
Sophie, "Well, it wasn't really sleeping it was kind of sleeping."
Jaye, "It had ants on it."
Sophie, "Well, it was really pretty dead."
Jaye, "It had ants on it."
Sophie, "Everyone was touching it except me and Jaye."
Jaye, "It had ants on it."
Sophie, "Ya it had ants on it so we didn't touch it, but the master came and got it and took it inside so we didn't see it again."
Jaye, "It had ants on it."

Me, "Who is the master?"
Sophie, "The master is a guy who goes to my church school. He comes and talks to us about books and stuff. He is kinda like Doc."
Me, "Oh, the pastor."
Sophie, " Mrs. Kathleen calls him the master."

Much ado about Nothing

I have spent the last couple of weeks culling throught our closets, dressers and various bins of hand me down clothes. I have been doing this for two reasons.
1.) To find out what fits and what doesn't
2.) To take the clothes we have grown out of to the school for the clothing drive.

I had 4 very large bags of great clothes piled up in the back of the Expedition. I loaded up Sophie and her friend Jaye and headed off the Wood a good 30 minutes earlier than the picking up crowd. I hauled the bags in only to find out that the clothing drive was two weeks ago. Seriously, two weeks ago. Oh well, here we come Mission Arlington.