It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

So, Halloween is over and I have Thanksgiving and fall on the brain. I even revamped my blog colors to reflect the season. I went out shopping for some fresh fall decor yesterday and guess what I found?

C.H.R.I.S.T.M.A.S!

Everywhere!

ACK!!!

I have been bitten by the fall bug only to have Fa-la-la-la-la shoved at me everywhere I turn! Bah humbug! Ok, not really, but where the heck are the turkeys and the leaves?????? Apparently they morphed out, overshadowed by pumpkins and frankenstein and huge bags of candy and straight into Rudolph and Santa....

So, what's a girl to do? She hit the clearance section, where shockingly enough I managed to cull through the dredges and pull together something prety good! I already had an assortment of mini gourds and pumpkins from the trip to the pumpkin patch. I found a grapevine garland with acorns and berry effect. Next I headed for the basket section and I found a lovely dark brown to load up with the gourds and pumpkins.

Not what I had envisioned exactly, but nice none the less. I assembled it on the dining room table, gourds and pumpkins in the basket with the grapevine garland woven throughout. Not one comment from the members of my family. Apparently the men in my life (all six of them who live with me) are completely unmoved by my decor. But, I shall press on and gaze upon it's loveliness...at least until I put it aside for Rudolph!

Conversations From The Backseat....

DS #4 (7)...
"Mom, you can't run over the skunk. If you do your car will stink, and then WE will stink, and THEN, we'll have to take a bath in tomato sauce and I don't like tomatoes!" (After Mom notices a raccoon in the road. Apparently DS #4 is confused...)


DS #1 (9)...
"Every kid who's popular in the fourth grade has it. I'm popular, that's why I have it." (Speaking about his new book, The Diary of a Wimpy Kid, to DS #3, age 7)

History.....

Last night we as a nation made history....

We elected our 44th President...

I voted...

I am curious as to what will come form this...

Crazy squirrels...

So, I get it, it's nut hunting season and the squirrels have, well, gone nuts, but come on. Don't cross the road UNDER my tires dude, all that work gathering nuts, gone to waste!

I am a mile and a half off the main road. It's takes a few minutes to get up there. How many squirrels can I kill along the way? Apparently the three that were dumb enough to run under my tires...

Enough already. I was tempted to turn around and go home after all the carnage, but seriously, it was safer on the main road, away from the squirrels.....

Observations of the day, a parents perpsective!

Want a glimpse?

DS #1 (16) when I asked him to log in to his email so I could check his activity he looked at me and asked if I was going to yell or speak calmly about what I would find. Um, guilty? Nothing bad, but he had broken a couple of limitation rules (which I already knew about from parental control reports, but...). Yep, we talked calmly and then I blocked his access for the rest of the week. No pouting, no fussing. Admitted guilt and accepted punishment...something is going right!

DS #2 (9) is up in his bed singing songs from the 70's and 80's (lots of Jackson 5). Why he isn't sleeping is beyond me, he's been tucked in for two hours and the house has been quiet for just as long. On the other hand I love listening to him...

DS #3 (7) On the ride home from school: "Mom, I will love you forever if you buy me a milkshake!" You know what, I did buy milkshakes and I do think that he will love me forever!

DS #4 (7) After consuming the milkshake prompted by his brother proceeds to look at me as we get out of the car and says, "Don't watch me, I have to throw up! I'm going behind the tree!" and he did, go behind the tree that is, where he proceeded to hurl multiple times. Lovely. Fortunately he was OUT of my van! Fast forward to bedtime...he brings me a note (he loves to write notes) "Dear Mom, sorry I threw up my milkshake. It was good." Um, which part, the milkshake or the hurling???

DS #5 (7) While running through the house DS falls, emits a high pitched scream followed by a wail. DS #3 calls out, "It's okay Mom, there's NO blood!" Alrighty then. I walk over to the injured one, "DS #5, are you okay?" "Yup, see, there's NO blood!" Perfect!

Flower mosaic

This is my first attempt at a mosaic. I {love} flowers and I really wanted to capture the beauty of them!

Summer Harvest!

It's a wonderful thing living in a farming community. I feel richly blessed in a way that the average city or even suburb dweller can't compare. I live in an area surrounded by farms, traditional, organic, Mennonite, Amish, and I am able to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables year round.

That said, I do miss out on things like regular exposure to the theater and amazing restaurants, but seriously, as I wipe the fresh tomato juice off my chin I think I'll live, for now, and relish (pun intended) the bounty that surrounds me.

Thursdays are magical days here. Our Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) box arrives. For about $29 a week, we get a box of seasonal fruits ad veggies plus a dozen eggs. Sometimes we get a stewing or a roasting chicken as well. We've been doing this for three years and I am amazed at the transformation of myself and my children. We always ate veggies, but not like this.

This week included white eggplants, two quarts of cherry tomatoes, a quart of ugly (seriously, they are ugly, but they are the BEST in flavor) tomatoes, a generous allotment of cucumbers, okra (um, yeah, not my favorite...) a sweet baby watermelon, and a dozen cage free eggs. Oh, and the best part of the week was the extra box of cukes for any subscriber to help themselves too. Oh my, it you have not eaten a freshly picked cuke you have not lived. Seriously. There is NO comparison to the cukes you find in a grocery.

Today's lunch consisted of and ugly tomato and a cuke, sliced up, tossed in Kosher Sae Salt and a slice of Havarti cheese tossed in for good measure. YUM! I just had some more for my afternoon snack...heaven, pure heaven.

Tomorrow is the Farmer's Market. I'll go and bring home the most amazing array of delights! On my list: peaches from the T. Farm (like no other peaches I have ever eaten), corn on the cob, watermelon, cantaloupes, plums, a couple of jars of local jam, a jar of local honey, peppers, more cukes, potatoes, bread and scones from the Organic baking lady, etc. Sigh.....who needs chocolate when you have tomatoes and sea salt?

Oh, just in case your interesting in finding great locally grown produce near you, you can check out this site: Remember good eating is just a click away! What are YOU hungry for?

Remember Me??

Yeah, I have been a bloggin' slacker. Guilty.

So, let's see... DS #1 has turned 16! YIKES! Let's leave it at that. DS #2 has glasses for reading. Poor thing, a genetic nightmare from two parents with poor eyesight. He never had a chance! DS #3-5 will be seven years old in just.three.weeks!
DH has a new job, well, same building, desk, etc. just working on a new program, but it came with a cool nice sized raise, happy about that! Me? Well, enjoying the slower pace of the summer. LOVIN' the neighborhood pool!

I've been looking at beach houses to rent for our annual trip to the Outer Banks! I found the best house! Three master bedrooms, king sized, with outstanding bathrooms. All with jetted tubs! FUN! Oceanfront again! My brother and his family, my parents, and my SIL's mom will be joining us again. This is our annual trip and I am so looking forward to going!

I got new bedding for my bedroom. A duvet cover that is black with a white vine pattern that reverses to a white with black vine pattern. For sheets I got a soft blue. Very crisp together. Haven't decided if i want blue on the walls. I am thinking not, that way I could change the sheets and easily transform the bedroom... I am thinking about red.... possibly a limey green....or, how about a soft, buttery yellow? The possibilities!

A blank canvas...

So, we've been in the "new" house for two years now. I haven't decorated out master bedroom. All the furniture and bedding we have came with us, which is fine, I like it, but I am feeling like starting fresh. The room is a blank canvas...literally. The walls are white. Ok, the trim and the doors are some horrible shade of, well, not sure what to call it exactly....maybe coffee with a bunch of cream added? Anyway, that's what I have to work with. The walls can be painted anything and the doors are the old bifold style so they are coming down anyway, so they'll be a lovely crisp white. As for the trimwork, yeah, it's gonna change!

So, what do I do? What colors shall I use? I am far more adventurous than DH. He's fairly boring really (in this sense anyway!). I could go a bit with with black and white toile and add brightly colored sheets in blue and be thrilled. Or a red and white checkered quilt with crisp white linens and billowy curtains. I like cottage style, vintage looks, even chenille. Not crazy about modern styles or bed in a bag theories...

Any ideas? Any color schemes?

Tonight I Wanna Cry...

So, have you heard this song? It's by Keith Urban. Sad, haunting at times, wistful, and so very appropriate for me right now. You know those days, weeks, where you simply feel more and more overwhelmed, where everything is compounding and there doesn't seem to be any relief in sight and crying might be your best bet? Yup, that's where I am. I'm fine, just passing through, but that's where I am...

GOOD morning!!!

This happened last week, but it is oh so relevant....


Last Friday, I awoke to a missing six year old and a bed/floor/rug/blanket covered in vomit....

Found said six year old in the basement watching tv. He vomitted during the night sometime and then found a couch to sleep on (in barfy clothes, so as not to WAKE us up! Nice....

While I appreciate the full night's sleep, the ants have discovered said bafy areas, I have a full load of barfy laundry to do and now I have a mattress that has vomit soaked into it.

The other boys had the lovely opportunity to breathe in barf fumes all night....

Special....

I feel pretty, oh, so pretty. I fell witty, and pretty, and gay!!!

Sing it with me....

Fortunatelty it ended there and no other DS fell victim to the barf wars!

Reason # 2,647 to LOVE your teenager!

DS #1 (soon to be 16) apparently decided he wanted to start texting even though we told him no. We have him on a $10 a month add on to our cell plan, but don't think he needs to be texting, etc. He's had the phone for almost a year now. This is where it gets interesting...

Last month there was $68 in texting on our bill....

We're peeved, but calm and tell him that the first $70 of lawn mowing money earned is ours....he has moved three lawns so far this season so his debt is down to $10!

Yup...well, today DH got this month's bill and while he did stop the day we told him to, another billing cycle had started (yes, we, the smart parents hadn't thought of that) and so on this month's bill....

$150 of texting.....

I . love . my . life .

So...we're not yelling at him or anything, but we did disable texting, which disables ring tone and he is soooo bummed about not having the "COOL" ringtones!

But, um...yeah....

HELLO!?!?! $220 in texting bills!!! YIKES!

He will be mowing lawns most of the summer....and instead of putting it in his savings account or spending it, he will hand it over to me to pay back his debt.

The sad thing is, he was going to get Timberland boots next week. He has been waiting and waiting to get them (they lower the price way down in the Spring) and I had told him we would look at it again when we were at the Spinal Rehab next week. We often visit a mall on our down time...I planned to buy them. He has been so patient and really respectful of our decision to wait until spring for the lower prices...

Yeah, well.....Mama thinks maybe NOT!

However, I might get them for his birthday....which is in June.

But you'd be proud, we didn't yell or flip or anything. We spoke calmly to him both times and discussed what happened, the choices he made, the disrespect of our authority, the consequences of his actions, etc. Frankly I am surprised by our calmness...

Should I worry?

ME ME ME!!!

Kerry just tagged me!!!!

The rules are as follows:

1. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
2. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves a comment letting them know they've been tagged and to ask them to play along and to read your blog.


What I was doing 10 years ago - 1998
1 - Raising a six year old while pregnant with twins!
2 - Learning way too much about the local public school system.
3 - Thinking about selling our cottage sized house in hopes for a bigger abode.
4 - Contemplating turning thirty...
5 - Did I mention being pregnant with twins??

Five things on my to-do list today
1 - Soccer games and track practice for three boys.
2 - Clean house. 15 minutes per room, at least the main living areas.
3 - Work on school documents - registration is a week out and I need to get some forms finished so they can get printed next week.
4 - Make and take dinner to a friend undergoing chemo. This is her BAD weekend. So, I am planning Meatball Veggie Soup, wheat rolls and some Mac n chees with Chicken fingers for the kids!
5 - Dinner for us....hmmm.....haven't thought that far ahead. Guess I should have doubled the soup recipe....

Snacks I enjoy
1 - Popcorn
2 - Fuji apples and cheddar cheese
3 - Orange italian Ice
4 - Frozen grapes, cherries, and blueberries
5 - Pistachio nuts

Things I would do if I were a billionaire
1 - Remodel my existing house, not overboard, just nicer.
2 - Build my mom and dad a cool retirement cottage in the woods like they dream of
3 - College / life funds for kids
4 - Set up a foundation to be benevolent to others
5 - Invest

Five of my bad habits
1 - I procrastinate
2 - I am not organized
3 - I return library books late
4 - I drink too much soda
5 - I'm on the computer waaaay too much
(I am WAY too similar to Kerry!)

Five places I have lived
1 - OR
2 - MD
3 - VA
4 - MD
5 - MD

Five jobs I've had
1 - Parks & Recreation Building Attendant
2 - Nanny (four years)
3 - Scrapbooking Instructor
4 - Preschool Teacher
5 - Children's Books Visit my bookstore: ubah.com/n1927

Now for the tagging.....I choose......
Milissa at howeslife.blogspot.com
Andi at andisperfectgravy.blogspot.com
Christine at totalwasteofmytime.blogspot.com
Jen at jensmack.wordpress.com
Laura at barelyhanginon.blogspot.com

Boys are....

DS #1, 15 years old, has been trying to reach this girl all day, she finally calls him back and within ONE minute of the call he says, "Can I call you back?"

She hung up on him...

Smart girl!

State Testing and Threatening Kids...

I was at a propaganda meeting about mandatory state testing of third graders tonight. I bit my lip for a long time while they told us how HAPPY our children were preparing for the tests and how relaxed they were.

Finally I couldn't take it anymore and I had to mention my kid, the one who got 35 pages of mandatory homework (study prep) to complete OVER Sprink Break. The work was mandatory and oh, if they completed it they could take part in the Ice Cream Sundae party. If they didn't finish they could sit and watch the others.

Oh, and then last night we got 13 MORE pages to complete that night...

So, remember my kid...he's 9 years old, in tears every day about the work load...not understanding the work (some of the homework is on stuff they have NEVER been taught), etc. Last night he didn't want to go to scouts (for the third week) because he said he HAD to work on his math practice for the test...

So, last night after he had gone to bed we hear sobbing coming from his room....he was hysterically crying about the tests and the work and how if he doesnt get it done everyone will know and he won't get to have ice cream and....

I.am.livid.

So I asked how forcing homework in this manner on children was not contributing to the stress in the children. Yeah, ok...here's the response I got from one of the teacher's. "Well, I have had parents call me telling me their children are in tears, but I just don't see it. They're so happy and they are all getting their work done..." Yeah, because you keep telling them they have to or they WON"T GET TO PARTICPATE IN THE PARTY. You are threatening them...bullying even....

ARGH.....

Thanks, I feel better now.....

Honestly....

Spring Cleaning....

Yup, it's that time....ugh....I love a clean house, but with working more and having five boys and a fairly messy DH, it just seems out of reach sometimes. So, I hired someone to help. No, she's not a housecleaner, she's a "kick you in the butt, work along side you, decluttering queen!" So, for $15 an hour she is pushing me to get stuff decluttered and out of here! Yesterday we tackled the laundry room. Sorted, cleaned, moved, consolidated, put in the trash, bagged for donation, etc. for three hours. DS #1 pitched in to move trash, load donation bags in the cars, and vaccuum. What a HUGE difference we made!

Today, we tackle the playroom and the school room/art room adjacent to it. I am not looking forward to this task....not at all..... Well, I am looking forward to the end result, just not the process. Wish me luck, and if I don't return, look for me under a pile of art paper and pastels....

S.T.R.E.P.

Yup, strep has hit our home. I have fallen and I can barely get up...no pun. Was having a great day Wednesday, went to meetings, did the mom thing, but then around dinner time I started feeling really bad. Went to bed early, but by 1a.m. was in the htroes of chills and sweats that lasted all night long. Dragged myself to the doctor the next afternoon. Wicked case of strep, wicked. So bad my tonsils were bleeding. So, they gave me some serious antibiotics and something new and fun, liquid lidocaine to numb my throat so I could swallow fluids. I felt like I had been hit by a Mack Truck.

Five days of keeping nothing down but minimal fluids, five days of chills and sweats, five days of rapid weight loss - 17 pounds. So, I am now reintroducing foods. I have discovered that graham crackers, jello, and popsicles stay down. I have no real desire to eat. This is good and bad. Love the weight loss, however, sheesh, too much too quickly! So today was exciting, I ate part of a banana!

I am going to lay back down now...

Stay healthy...

Therapy...and thankfulness!

So, here we are again, sitting amongst the patients at the Spinal Cord Rehab center. I am constantly reminded that the true measure of faith and strength and perseverance is in places like this. Places where people are fighting against all odds, places where people struggle to return to normal, or to create a new normal, places where extremem effort is rewarded in the tiniest of ways and often after only a long struggle.

Today is Monday...the day that new families arrive with their children. It is a combination of fear, fatigue, and determination, mixed with excitement at the possibilities that I see on their faces. You can quickly spot the first time parents, their eyes dart from side to side, taking in the environment, the equipment, the other parents, and the other children.

DS is on week two of our visit. We come here every 2-3 months for 2 weeks, staving off what is a progressive debilitating disorder. It's origin is uncertain...residual effect from the brain tumor? Progression of the Syringomyelia? In a nutshell, small cysts are beginning to fill his spinal cord, displacing the nerves and altering their ability to fire messages correctly. Cellular changes indicitive of the presence of a new tumor forming? No one is sure, perhaps a combination?

I look around me and I realize that whenever my life seems challenging, my burden heavy, I am fortunate. My struggles are minimal in comparison, my life is easy. Look around you, somewhere others are struggling more. Remember how fortunate you are...

Dear High School Principal, part two

Dear High School Principal,

Recently I visited two of your classroom with my son, his teacher, and a vice principal looking for a new elective class for him to attend. I wanted to share with you my impressions.

The first class, Art Theory, was fascinating. I was impressed that the class size was small, only 14 students. They were studying the color wheel, many students engaged in a great discussion on tretiary and complimentary colors. The room, while cluttered, was filled with art samples and textbooks. Unfortunately half of the class was completely uninvolved. Four of the students were listening to their iPods during the lecture, two were smacking each other with rulers, and another one appeared to be sleeping. At no time during my 15 minute visit did anyone correct the students behavior....

The second class was a music class. The students were supposed to be learning keyboarding skills. Well, hmm....when we walked in the teacher was sitting at her desk reading a book. Several students were simply sitting at their keyboards fiddling around or doing something else. A handful of students, think four, were actually working on their compositions. At no time during the 15 minutes I visited the class did the teacher engage the students. NOT ONCE... Again, I was accompanied by my son, his homeroom teacher, and a vice principal.

So, which class should I enroll my son in you ask? Neither! Honestly what do you expect me to choose? The keyboarding class where the teacher isn't even speaking with, directing, or engaging her students OR the art class where half of the students
aren't even participating in the class? Why would I choose either of them? Why would anybody?

Thanks again for reinforcing how fabulous high school is...

Dear High School Principal.....

Dear High School Principal,

Thank you for your educational efforts. I am happy to report that utilizing videos in Adaptive PE to occupy the students when the Adaptive PE teacher isn't on site is definitely improving my son's coordination. So glad they didn't take a walk or do something physical. Yes, sitting and watching a movie is definitely a good idea.

In addition, the capable substitutes that were placed in my son's classroom last week presented the students with a rousing example of basketball when they partook of watching the game (I am sure they were able to relate it to math skills). Oh, and the online research of basketball scores was very enlightening to my son. He is ever so thankful for the increased knowledge he has now. Your substitutes are top notch.

Please thank your substitutes for the wise use of my son's educational time.

Sincerely,

Me

Spam rocks....seriously!

Not long ago, my friend Kimber, suggested I send some writing samples to a Canadian magazine. She thought my writing would match what they were looking for in writers. So I did. I collected a sampling of material and sent it on it's way. And I waited....and waited....and then, a few days ag I found IT. In my spam folder. IT.

"Hi Cynthia,

Your creative writing samples came across my desk last week. You have a beautiful writing style and we would love some more information.

Of the writing that you sent us, how much of it is published? Have you worked with other designers before and paired your writing with their artwork? Is this something that interests you?

I will thank Kimber for telling you about Scrapbook & Cards Today.

I look forward to hearing from you and to reading more of your great writing."


Eeeeeeeeekkkkkkk, how exciting is that? I'll be pub; in the Summer or possibly Fall issue, pairing with Kimber for art work!

Sometimes SPAM rocks!

It's about friendship...

So, you know that feeling you get, the sick to your stomach, can't do anything about it but move forward feeling? That's how I spent yesterday. A close friend was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, not too bad, but it has spread to one lymph node. We've spent the last two weeks discussing doctors and treatment options, how to handle well meaning friends who are flocking to her side certain she needs broth, while in reality she is as healthy as me. Except she isn't.

Plans are made , chemo first, then surgery, then we'll see. Prognosis is good. She's going to lose her hair, she's going to get sick, really sick.

Will you go with me for chemo, she asks. Instantly I reply yes, how could I not. We have been friends for years, I get her, she gets me. I am not panicked by medical stuff, I have far too much experience with that as the mom of a medically challenged child. She knows this, she picked me on purpose. I'll go with her and hold her hand only if she needs it, I'll ask intelligent questions of the staff, I'll know what to pack, what to do, how to ask for help.

We head out early in the morning, a long drive ahead of us. Our first stop is the wig shop. I have never been in a wig shop, never contemplated such a trip. As we walk into the hospital, headed for the wig shop I wish I had taken a few minutes to do some research, to ask some questions, to prepare myself. We round the corner and there we are. She stops just inches inside the shop.

I pause behind her and wait for her to move. She doesn't. I am uncertain. What must it feel like to be in her position? She feels fine, really fine, and yet this cancer, this horrible disease, is spreading inside her. How does one contemplate themselves going bald? How does one contemplate what to choose? It isn't really about hair, it's about identity.

She begins to move into the shop, cautiously at first, and then with a sigh, a sense of resignation. Resignation to the reality that is her life. We move about, looking at wigs perched on styrofoam heads lined on shelves. She looks at me, with a glimmer of panic. "How does this work," she says. I am unsure what to suggest, I feel woefully inadequate, totally unprepared.

I look at the shelves and say I don't know. I grab one that looks similar to her hairstyle. We look at it, we touch it, we put it back. We move about the room, pointing, touching, putting back. Slowly a pattern emerges. I am looking at wigs that remind me of her today, she is looking at wigs that will be her after treatment, when her hair is short, in the growing back stage. I realize she is right. We can't hold on to now, we have to look at where we will be when she is done. I am hanging on, she is letting go.

We chat with the shop's owner, a woman who has guided many women through this stage. She is kind, she is soft spoken and encouraging. She guides us in some wig selections and leads my friend off to the side of the shop to try them on. As I stand there and listen to her offer gentle instructions, I am overcome by emotion. Turning away, the tears roll silently. I let them.

Soon she is ready to show off her new "do". I like it, looks better than I was expecting. She is pleased and yet not sure. She tries on more and then she puts on the "one". You know that feeling when you found your wedding dress? It was THE ONE! When she slipped that wig on and turned to me for approval. I beam. She looked so good! I told her so, the wig shop lady told her so. She turned and looked at herself again, happiness spreading across her face. She realized she did look good. "This is good," she says. "Really good."

Again, I am overcome by my emotions and turn away. We leave the shop, wig in hand. "That was so surreal," she says. Yes, it was, it most certainly was.

She is hanging on...to hope. So am I...

Corn Chowder

Seriously one of the yummiest soups. You must try it! It's from Paula Deen!

Chef Jack's Corn Chowder Recipe by Paula Deen
Paula's Home Cooking


1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 small onion, diced
1 small carrot, finely diced
1 small celery stalk, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups white corn kernels, fresh or frozen
3 cups chicken stock
2 cups half-and-half
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Melt 1 stick of butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic, and saute for 2 minutes. Add the flour and stir to make a roux. Cook until the roux is lightly browned; set aside to cool to room temperature.
Meanwhile, combine the corn and chicken stock in another saucepan, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Pour the boiling stock with the corn (a little at a time) into the saucepan with the roux, whisking briskly so it doesn't lump. Return the skillet to the heat and bring to a boil. The mixture should become very thick.

In a small saucepan, gently heat the half-and-half; stir it into the thick corn mixture. Add the nutmeg and salt and pepper, to taste. Just before serving, cut the remaining stick of butter into large chunks. Add it to enrich the soup, stirring until the butter melts.

A conversation...

I was working a Preschool fair today, representing a local Charter School. I spent 3+ hours chatting with generally lovely, inquizative parents and delightful children, that is, until SHE came by my table.

"How is your school different?" she asked.

I waxed on about whole child learning, arts enrichment, community teaching etc. She listened patiently, seeming interested, until these words crossed her lips....

"Do you let those Special Ed kids into the classes with the normal kids?" Stunned, it took me a moment to formulate my answer...

"Yes, special education students are a part of our school and are integrated into our regular classrooms as providedfor and directed by federal law."

Her scowl grew as I spoke...

"We have a Special Education teacher on site as well as other support staff who assist not only the students but the teachers. They also provide intervention for children at risk."

Looking up at her face I realize, this is clearly a battle I will not win...

"Well, THOSE kids shouldn't be in a classroom with MY kid!"

No answer.....none....

I am thinking, I cannot be rude, I cannot speak my mind, I can not challenge her. I can only answer politely, calmly, and in a manner fitting my responsibility to the school. But, in my head I am SEETHING.

As the mother of a very Special Needs child I am stunned that she would lump all Special Ed students into the THOSE kids category. Those kids have needs that range from DS #1 who is in a self contained Special Ed class most of his day, to DS #2, who simply needs extra reading intervention and support, to DS #4 who has a speech impairment. All of my boys are delightful...how rude of this woman. She didn't care about the bullies or the foul mouthed kids or the kids whose parents expose them to violent media and allow them to duplicate it. No, she was full of hatred, and really, disgust for children like mine, children who are kind and loving and delightful to be around.

So, my reply...

"We are a caring community, fostering the individual learning of EACH of our students. We rely on a strong family partnership to help create this environment. We are bound by federal and state laws, but aside from that, we embrace EACH child and their unique abilities."

Thankfully she walked off after this. I walked off too, but in the opposite direction. We were, after all, very different people, with very different views...

Happy New Year!!

Well, another new year is here! What are your New Year's Resolutions? Mine are simple, some are probably on your list as well.

1. Lose another 25 pounds. 25 down...let's see where we can go.
2. Write more often, here, to ones I love, to be an encourager.
3. Play with my kids more, really play, on the floor, puzzles, art, etc.
4. Continue to make dietary changes. Doing great, but still room for improvement.
5. Organize. Let this be the year of change. I have it in me to be organized...really!
6. Improve my personal relationships. Take the time to enhance these relationships!
7. Pursue my Usborne books work with more vigor. I passionately love these books!
8. Continue working on my writing. I am good, I can be better, I can be great!
9. Finances, we're doing well, but I want to do more. Build more and give more away. Share the blessings.
10. One day at a time...practice patience with persistance!