Lost Count

I've lost count of how many bales of pine straw mulch we've put out. Today I almost finished. It was a ton of weeding the front and side yard and spreading the mulch. Ugh, weeding is not my favorite, especially grass that has crept in. I got to feeling really ticky after seeing one crawling on my glove, I had to take a 5 minute break to give lizards and I think a snake time to leave the scene, and I know I stepped through poison ivy so I decided to call it a day and shower. There is just a very small bed in front of the sidewalk left to do. That's pretty tame; I don't think I will even break a sweat to finish. Last week, I got a little help. Mariah texted me during school and begged me to come get her because her standardized testing was over, reviews for the next test were over and the rest of the day was lame fillers reheated from the previous day. I was just about to go outside and do the other half of the 3 terraces in the backyard so I figured why not make her day, and get myself a little slave labor too?! We made great progress, took an hour for lunch, and finished up. She enjoyed it and was happy to get out of school. I think we all need those mental health days. Especially after she read on facebook about her older sister's skip day. Nothing like a little sibling rivalry.

She also had a recent incident with a teacher that left her shaken up. It was a small part of why I took her out, but she is not the first child I have excused from school after mid-terms, finals, or TCAP testing is done for the day. I am lenient that way. The time they have at home really is fleeting and then they are grown up and off to college. Busy work in school drives me nuts; so if they will spend some of their free time at home on the next day's work, I am all about skipping and enjoying the day with them.

The problem at school was a typical boy behind girl making alot of noise and pulling on ponytail. BOYS! Mariah and her friend exchanged a look of extreme annoyance that was mistaken as the source of the interruption the lesson. The teacher went off on them - two girls who have never caused a problem and are amongst the best students in the class It probably didn't help that Mariah wasn't willing to just let her friend take the demerit and tried to explain they weren't making noise. All of a sudden, they had a very angry man, hands on their desk, inches from their faces yelling at them. I think it was the literally in your face, 2 inches from your nose, screaming that bothered her the most, although her sense of justice was certainly offended. After class, another girl ventured to the teacher and told him what had happened and he took back the demerit but the girls were still feeling quite traumatized and he failed to apologize at that time which I think might have helped defuse the situation somewhat.

I was actually very sick when this all went down so the ferocious Mama Bear that emerges when my cubs are threatened barely grumbled. Which was probably a good thing. After sleeping on it, something I probably wouldn't have done if I could have gotten out of bed sooner, I sent a brief email (another nod to the virus) the next day indicating that Mike and I would be more than happy to discuss in person if needed (but I really hoped I didn't have to because I wasn't sure I could). The other girls parents called which helped get attention on the matter immediately. I feel it was dealt with promptly and fairly, although Mariah is not a big fan of her principal. However, her principal sent me an email afterwards full of praise for Mariah's maturity and ability to communicate articulately. I laughed when I read that - not the maturity part but the articulate part. I bet Mariah really told her EXACTLY how she felt!!! I was told the girls were questioned separately. The teacher was spoken to. The girls were called back in one at a time after the teacher spoke to the Principal. Later that afternoon, they received an apology from the teacher with the principal present. And then he called each set of parents. When the teacher called I treated it like I do when my kids have already been punished at school. He opened the call with an apology, I accepted it, and said we all have days where we wish we could take back stuff we did or said, but as long as Mariah's personal space is respected in the future and all communication is conducted in a reasonable tone of voice from now on, I was all about finishing the year on a positive note. I decided after reading the principals email to get Mariah as a car rider that day rather than having her on the bus. She appreciated being able to walk out of school and collapse in the car and heaved a giant sigh. Hard day.

Which brings me to today, I've been bothered all weekend because Mariah is anxious about the feeling of "what if" - both she and the other girl, as well as classmates, felt that the situation was close to physical abuse. It's really shaken her up. We talked Friday about not going into the what ifs and making it a bigger emotional burden than it already is. By worrying about what might have happened you are placing blame on someone for something that didn't actually happen, so you don't really know IF that would have been the case at all. I have been mulling it over and this morning I told her I felt she would feel much better if she would forgive her teacher. To pray that her anxiety would be lifted and her burden removed.

I've lost count, not only of how many bales of mulch (although I'd venture to say it's near 60) that I've handled, but also of how many cares and concerns I've been praying about. Big Sigh. Although I'd venture to say 100% of the time prayer has helped.

Spring Pics/Vids Catch Up

Playing catch up from Taryn's spring break with some pics and vids of Spoons. And today's pics and vids of Easter. Sometimes that's just the way it is!

This is a very fuzzy Taryn, however, she was

CLEARLY MAKING A WALK OF SHAME...

from the bathroom back to the table.

After a boisterous round of spoons wherein Tim bounced her, they scrambled, and finally she ricochetted against the box you might see in a video and onto the ground. Poor Taryn. Things didn't work out so well. We laughed. So did she so I gotta say, Yay to her for that!

This is obviously the first photo, but I didn't put them in order.

EASTER 2011

"I'm FILTHY rich!!"

Anyone need a bottle opener?!

Spoons videos and Easter Money Egg videos. Completely mixed up. Nice, huh?

This would be Gib finding his cash in the fireplace.

Since the gas pilot is now off, it was a great spot!

Haha. This one is Mariah's money egg video moment. I was going "psst" to Gib and pointing right, no left, and Mariah catches on and tries to glance at me to figure it out.

Easter Blessings

I haven't blogged all month, so I'm going to get a little caught up while Mike attempts to get me past a level in Angry Birds Seasons that has defeated all my attempts to conquer. I figured it was time to pull in some logic. After this I'm giving it to young people. If Gib or Mariah can't do it I figure a preschooler might. I know just the young lady I will ask too. Haha. I've seen her playing it on an iPad. I don't know how good she is, but we'll find out who's better. Probably the kid.

It's been a busy and difficult month. All of that, plus aches and pains have kept me away from blogging. Been busy gardening with Grammy, getting the last of the patio punchlist items crossed off the list, and there's been alot on my mind. I have been fighting a cough since December's bronchitis that just does not seem to want to go away completely. It has really affected my sleep. Poor Mike, it has probably affected his too. It knocked a rib in my upper back out of whack and that started a upper back ache/muscle spasm that lasted nearly 2 months. There have been days where I can barely move if I stop moving... if you know what I mean. I am hopeful that it is just about to "let go" of the hold it has on me. It has been 2 days since I have been pain free. There was another time last weekend when I was pain free and it came back, so I am guarded about celebrating. I have been fantasizing about a massage, and have come ever so close to breaking a personal rule about going to the mall for a cheapie chair massage which I hear is wonderful, but oh my, do people look horrible in those chairs. The really fantastic news is that my chiro sent a coupon in the mail as part of his new expanded practice for an hour long massage for $29. I AM SO THERE!!!

Kids have a way of taking alot of your time, especially if they use your computer all the time, but even if they don't currently live here. We had some spring break fun, and we have had some post spring break illnesses that were big time stressers. As a matter of fact, on the same day, both Indie and Taryn were quite ill. It is something when you are considering what you will do if you are needed at the same time in different states. Taryn has recovered and will hopefully not put me through any more appendix scares. Indie is still working her way around to full recovery. I think it was the kidnapping and forced march home for a weekend that might have put the fear of mom into her. Or it could be the 17.3 lb box of TLC I mailed to her full of food I thought she could eat since she was unable to eat for a couple of weeks prior to that and I was freaking out. I did that in reverse and had to laugh because I snatched her up a couple days after UPS delivered my box. Then when I took her back, there was a box, more of a fatherly size, in the trunk packed by her dad. She says she will be bringing alot of that food right back home with her! (And Taryn, lest you feel deprived, I am pretty certain you don't want to be kidnapped by me, and I KNOW your Sour Patch TLC pkgs have weighed more if they were put all together! But go get yourself some right now - you deserve it after almost having appendicitis!!) Indy has been put through the wringer and now has a team of doctors working on her who are 99% certain all the scary stuff is ruled out. We are hopeful that her trip to Ethiopia will not be compromised and that her immune system can take that typhoid fever shot in the next couple of weeks. She has come so far from where she was a month ago. We may never know more than that she had some "funky virus" but I am just thankful that she is much better and that trend seems to be continuing. Prayers to get to Ethiopia is what is #1 on Indie's list!

I think prayers to help get them through finals and projects with flying colors in the next two weeks for both Taryn and Indy would also be helpful I'm sure!! We are still awaiting news as to who and how we will pick them both up on the same weekend.

Gib, Mariah and I observed the season of Lent. Mariah gave up sour patch; Gib gave up Dr. Pepper. It may not seem like much, but I assure you it was not easy for them. Gib especially had many days of sheer temptation and agony without his "Fix". One of the youth leaders gave up chocolate. I have never seen someone suffer so. We baked him oatmeal cookies one day just to help him get past the hump! Today he brought us chocolate chip M&M cookies. He had some in his car for after Easter services when he breaks his Lenten fast! He is a cool guy. I decided to do a Lent devotional, and add something on rather than do a take-away. Although it involved a bit of a sacrifice because I lost two mornings a week of computer time. I went to Good Shepherd for early morning prayer service on Tuesdays and Stations of the Cross on Thursdays. It was a very interesting, and a deeply personal experience. To finish off my Lenten devotional, I attended each of the Holy Week services: Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and of course, Easter Morning. I also helped my mom with the flowers for Easter Sunday. It would seem like alot of church, but it was not too much; rather it was incredibly touching and peaceful. Something it turned out was needed desperately to get through the last of winter and beginning of Spring. There is always challenges, sometimes more than it seems you can handle and then next thing you know, prayers are answered to get you through it.

I got to tag along in a business dinner at Stoney River, my favorite steak house. Remember when Mike mentioned the big ISE award that was a really big deal? Well everyone involved from 3 companies was there and some dude from N'vell took 'em all out to celebrate. We had a great time. The only faux pas was when I forgot to pass down the table a bite of my steak that I apparently promised. Oops. Hope he's not involved with any pay raise decisions there Mike.

Easter Surprises

We have just finished celebrating our Easter afternoon. Gib and Mariah enjoyed their egg hunt. Their dollar eggs were hidden in sufficiently crafty locations as to make for an extended egg hunt. Even Mike had to search awhile to find them. Gib finally found his before Mariah found it for him! I didn't count but was pretty close to guessing that the kids had between 24-25 eggs each. It was 25. And they both had the same number for a change!! The best part was the look on Mike's face, and Gib's face, when Gib opened one of his money eggs. He knew from picking it up that it was significantly heavy to be more than the usual amount of coin. He poured out all that silver with a huge grin. Mike dryly commented "that's the last time I hand over my coin jar to you to fill the eggs". Well, I only had two kids to divvy it up for which made me sad because I had "I" and "T" eggs I had to leave unfilled :(( I looked at the pile of coins and thought, I could sit here and count out a certain number of quarters, dimes, and nickels.... OR I could just reach into a huge pile of coins and fill the smaller half of a big egg and see who gets more coins... Gib or Mariah!!!! Well, guess which idea seemed like more fun to me!!! I thought for sure I would be busted when Mike heard me empty the jar. So the $5 see thru egg was actually less valuable in the end, but way more exciting to find.

Gib and Mariah are buying dinner tomorrow. And no, Dad's Rootbeer, Milky Way and Reese's are NOT for dinner!

Africa II....

As Indy wraps up her second year at Mercer University, she will be home for a week and then heads back to school for another 5 week service learning opportunity. For those that are interested, here is the outline of the program:

Mercer on Mission. Crossing Cultures. Changing Lives.

Ethiopia -

Academic Courses

* AFR 300 Africana Studies
Special Topics: Challenges in the Development of Rural Ethiopia

* ENP 390 Environmental Studies and Policy
Special Topics: Water and Sanitation in Sub-Saharan Africa

Faculty

* Laura Lackey (Professor, School of Engineering)
* Randy Harshbarger (Associate Professor, College of Liberal Arts)

Program Highlights:

The project will be focused on the area around Lake Langano in south central Ethiopia, about four hours by road south of the capital Addis Ababa. There we will work with a local Ethiopian organization and a team of CBF missionaries who have founded and operate Water Is Life International (WILI), an organization dedicated to providing clean drinking water to some of the world’s poorest people. Our goal will be to dig a well in concert with the inhabitants of the area. In addition, we will work in a local primary school teaching English (a high priority of the Ethiopian government), animating sports and games with local young people, and working with women’s self-help groups (SHG’s) which have recently been established in the area.

Living conditions will be rather rudimentary. We will need exceptionally mature, responsible, and culturally sensitive students. The mission will involve some hard physical labor, but the main requirement is a willingness to contribute. This experience will transform your life... in a positive way.

Travel Dates: May 30 - June 21, 2011

Approximate In-country Itinerary:

May 31: Arrive in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
- Staying at Red Cross Guest House
- Visiting Fistula Hospital

June 1: To Camp Langano. (Our work will be in a nearby community)
- Well drilling
- Langano Farms Work Project (Community Co-op Farm)
- Community Sports Activity
- Swimming
- Local church visit
- Health and hygiene activities
- Rehab site visits
- Self help group visit
- Bishengari school activity

June 10: To Awassa.
- Staying at Pension. (Our work will be in Girma's Orphanage)
- Fish market
- Climb Mt. Tabor
- Teaching English
- Computer training
- Garden project
- Construction projects/painting
- Visit Mother Teresa's home

June 18: To Yirgalem.
- Staying at Aregash Lodge
- Sidama Cultural Exposure
- Hike
- Relax

June 19: To Addis Ababa.
- Staying at Red Cross Guest House
- Half day historical tour (Red Terror and I Museum)
- Shopping
- Packing

June 20: Evening, Depart for USA.


Classroom Studies:

May 16 - May 26, 2011
Mercer University, Macon Campus


Map: Ethiopia



A: Addis Ababa
B: Langano
C: Awassa
D: Yirgalem


And, just as a teaser for a future blog post. Indy, will again, be traveling in late July through mid August for a Mercer sponsored service learning opportunity in Armenia. Details to come...

Taking Back the T's

Taryn, Tim and Tiffani returned to Missouri today. Mike took them this time. He is now back at home after making the trip there and back. He left on time, unlike when I did it on Monday. He didn't stop at practically every rest stop AND take a walk AND pester his brother on facebook, unlike someone else we know. He also did not stop twice for food, plus one ice cream run, and I bet my volvo went farther than Grammy's CRV on gas, so I probably had to stop at least twice more for tank refills than he. Our differences in style equated to him returning at 7:30 and me rolling in after midnight. Of course, the Triple T's didn't want me to arrive to get them on Monday until 4 pm so I couldn't leave here at 8 am like he did in the first place, but nevertheless, I surely added mucho tiempo to my journey that day! Oh well, I was in no particular hurry. I only bring it up because it made me laugh when he got home so early in comparison!

Here they are, bright and early.

The game plan was to roll out of bed and go straight back to sleep in the car. Totally thrilled I am making them stand up for a picture.

Gotta get a cute daddy daughter picture!

Spoons footage will need to be edited and carefully screened prior to blogging. It was a WILD game! Taryn may be under the size requirement to play from now on. Sorry babe - tiny humans with mean brothers and tall boyfriends are seriously at risk!