More Please

Just the usual....

Mike and I went to Outback for Valentines day. Gib and Mariah went to Steak & Shake. Guess canned soup wasn't an option they were willing to consider. I got a kick out of them taking off together for sustenance on a "couples date night".

Yesterday was a high school shadow day for Mariah. Gib was an awesome big brother and took her where she needed to go. It was so nice to know he was looking out for her. I told him that even if he walked ahead and they pretended not to know each other, I wanted her escorted to where she needed to be. Mariah said it wouldn't matter; they look too much like siblings. Gib was either trying to ignore me, or it was too early for him to do more than grunt, so I mentioned that chicks think caring big brothers are hot. Gib just shook his head at me, but promised to take care of his sister. Even having to get up earlier than usual didn't cause him to complain. He is such a great guy. At times like this I get a big glimpse of my dad in him. It's a wonderful thing.

Mariah has a birthday coming up this weekend. She found out she shares the birthday with yet another cool person - the new youth leader. I took in a special birthday dinner last night for the youth group. Chick Fil-A, homemade macaroni & cheese, salad, and cheesecake. The salad was virtually untouched. Hahaha. It made for a big rush to finish after work, and luckily my mom helped with cooking the pasta and getting milk warmed before I got home. Later, Mike and I watched American Idol which is a favorite way to unwind around here. We also noted with excitement that the new season of Survivor! starts next week.

When the kids came home from church, Gib worked on his computer in the dining room. I don't know how he could be doing about 3 things at once a few feet away from the TV but he did. The important work was writing the bill he and a friend will submit today for the Youth Government conference. I'm not sure when it takes place, but I imagine Gib will let me know when it comes time to pay for the hotel weekend. I gotta say though, I had a hard time paying attention to Idol when I kept hearing words like preschool, child care centers, and CPR. The day before, Gib had a few questions for me in the drafting of this bill, and I was proud that I had a little bit of knowledge he actually wanted to know :) Their bill is about requiring all child care providers being CPR certified. Right now, state law only requires one individual per child care center to be CPR certified. That's crazy. I suggested they consider every child care center also having an AED (automated external defibrillator) on site because more likely than not, if CPR had to be performed it would be on an adult dropping off or picking up a child. What if the one person who knew CPR was sick that day, stuck in a classroom until another worker could trade places, or what if they freaked out under pressure and couldn't handle it? Even more likely, what if they tired while doing CPR and needed someone to take a turn? I know when we get certified, we have to do CPR on the dummy for a full minute and it is exhausting on the arms and back. Your knees get kinda sore too. At least they do when they're 46 years old. It's gonna take alot longer than a minute for emergency responders to arrive. I think it's a good premise for a bill and hope they do well.

Mike's workload is pretty heavy right now. It's a good thing he is still there doing what he does! It's his first week on the job as their guy and it's been a doozy. He is proving his worth many times over.

I helped teach kids to tally by hashmarks and count by 5's yesterday. Then I helped get them rolling and flipping during recess. I was amazed that some needed to be taught, step by step, how to do a somersault. We teachers remarked we should have started this sooner for a few of them. I had fun teaching cartwheels and handstands. My best advice I thought was "don't think about it - just do it! And do it fast!". The kids were soooo proud of themselves and loved it when I told them things like "that was your best one so far!" The other teachers were amazed.... that I didn't go home with a black eye. I was pretty tired at the end of the night though! And now it's time for me to head on to work. Wonder what I'll do today?