It went well. She did see a few little kisses and a fight but everything else was okay.  I said “did someone kiss you”? and she said “GROSS, no”…lol

The Office

 Well, I went to the office at Ellie’s school today. the lady I talked to (not real sure if she is a counselor or principal) took the note very seriously. She said she would call the girl to the office to talk and that they RARELY had to be called twice because they get scared….so, let’s just hope and pray that this ends here….

so….

 We are still having a few issues with middle school. Well, with kids.

 Last night Ellie had her YUC farewell at church. It is where they move from the “youth under construction” to the real “youth”… it is a fun night with lots of memories shared.

 When we first got there, one of Ellie’s friends handed her a note from a girl at school that was really hateful to Ellie last May in the 6th grade.  I have blocked all contact from this child so she had to resort to going thru another YUC…(this child does not attend the same church as we do)….

 The letter was nasty…it ruined Ellie’s night for about an hour.  The cool thing was Ellie’s close friends cheered her up. Not because they had heard about the letter but because they are all so sweet and they love her.  Sometimes, having a talent (singing for Ellie, other things for other kids, too) can make kids target someone.  Ellie doesn’t care because her passion for singing is ENORMOUS! The kids last night embrace that and encourage Ellie to sing.  The meaning of true friendship prevailed and the night was a success.

 That leaves me with the mean note.  I am taking it to the principal on Monday to have the matter dealt with because the letter was written on school property and it is harrassment.  I am also praying for this child. God loves her too, no matter what. Ellie is praying for her too.  Life can be hard and lessons have to be learned. Good d will come from everything eventually…but it doesn’t make it any easier to have someone be mean to your child. LOL….

Middle School

 This has been an adjustment.  Ellie will be 12 next week. She is still so young. She has been tormented in middle school by some mean boys.  They have called her “ugly” and said other mean things.  It is heart breaking to a parent.

 After much prayer by lots of good friends….Ellie had a better day yesterday. Yay! Her teacher moved her away from the bully boy. She didn’t even mind walking in today.

 Life is hard when you have a middle schooler. It is like you have to wait until 3 pm for your heart to get home.

Emma gets Her Tonsils Out

 I have to say….I had my tonsils out when Emma was a baby. That is 8 years ago. It was awful and the MOST painful surgery I have ever had. Most people told me the surgery would be awful but I was losing my voice and I was having strep throat every month.  As soon as I woke up in the recovery room I was thinking “what have I done”…I can’t even accurately describe how it felt. Just horrible.

 Emma has needed her tonsils out for a while. I just couldn’t stand the thought of her going through what I did.  She wasn’t getting enough sleep because her tonsils were so big and her voice was sounding very nasally…so I read up on the surgery. All the info said that the surgery is easier on kids and the recovery time faster.  So, we scheduled a tonsillectomy and an adenoidectomy.

 Emma was nervous. She took her big Whale (Wally) she had won with Ms. Wendy the week before. They let her take Wally in the room with her.  They told us that they were going to put a mask on her with gas and let her breathe in the gas until she fell asleep and then they put the IV in with the anesthesia (why can’t they do this for adults) so that made it easier for me to let her be wheeled off to the operating room.

 I was a nervous wreck while waiting and I was getting irritated at Kyle for not seeming nervous at all. I just kept remembering what it felt like for me…

 Finally, it was over. We went to the recovery room and there was Emma, asleep in a chair, cuddling Wally.  She woke up and went back to sleep a few times. She didn’t understand why she was dizzy. She looked so pale and I felt so bad because I had let her have surgery. I wanted to just go back a few hours and change the plans.

 We got home and I put her to bed. They gave her Lortab liquid for the pain..I was about to lose my mind. I just sat on the bed beside her for hours because when she would wake up she would want “mommy”…It was hard for her to swollow…and I remembered the feeling.

 The day after surgery was the worst day. Emma would sit and cry because of the pain but she would talk or move her head so she just sat there, with tears running down her face with her big blues eyes looking at me. She started throwing up and we had to give her a suppository for the nausea. That worked and things have been slowly getting better ever since.

 It has been a week since the surgery and she started eating again. She is still weak and in pain but it is so much better now.  I learned something through all of this. Emma is strong. She is amazing!  I am in awe over how well she took everything..she even looked at me twice and said “it will be okay Mommy” because she is so empathetic that she picked up my stress.

 I wanted to write this for the parents who are facing tonsillectomies for their kids. It is hard but if it has to be done you will get through it and you will be amazed at the strength of your kids.

 

Merry Christmas Friends!!!

God Knows

 We got back home last night from the VBS kickoff and the kids were all sweaty. They took their baths and Emma got out of the tub, put on her pj’s and sat beside me. I said “emma, did you wash your hair”? She said “yes”. I said “it doesn’t smell like shampoo, it doesn’t smell good” and she said “I just used a tiny bit of shampoo”. I said “Emma, it is best to tell the truth, God knows your heart and he knows the truth” and Cara said “yes, because he can SMELL”.

 I can always count on Cara to make the whole family laugh!!!

The Velveteen rabbit

 I’ve had this blog for over a year now.  One of my first blog post was on the Velveteen Rabbit story.  It is my favorite children’s story.  Now I know it is probably because ,as a kid, I was constantly searching for people who were “real”.

 Here is a little bit of the story again. I love the symbolism. Maybe I should post it once a year.

 The velveteen rabbit asked the skin horse if it hurts to be real and the skin horse replied, “Sometimes, but when you are real, you don’t mind to much”.  “Once you are real, you can’t be ugly except to people who don’t understand”. “Once you are real you can’t become unreal again. It lasts for always”.

 I love it!!! Forgive me for quoting it from memory. I’m sure I left a few words out. 

 What do you think “being real” means? What does it feel like to you?

 Happy afternoon!!

The Prescott Family on Supernanny

 I loved seeing Kadi Prescott on supernanny last night.  She was so real and honest. I love that.

 I am so glad Kadi and Daniel were able to restore the relationship with Kadi’s dad.  Forgiveness is so essential for us to move forward in life.  It was great to see a family willing to work on this HUGE issue. Now, he will be able to be a grandad to all of those kids!

  I was in tears much of the show.

 Thank you Kadi for being REAL on television.  I know you helped millions of families!!

 Oh, and you are all so cute!!!

Treating everyone the same

 I was about 2 years old when my parents divorced.  My dad had a successful business with a factory overseas.  My mom decided to remain at home and take care of me. She worked part time jobs until finally settling down and becoming a teachers aid.

 My dad visited me regularly and sometimes I would spend the weekend at his house.  When my friends from my neighborhood would go with me they all thought he lived in a mansion.

 My daddy was (and still is) very friendly and talked to everyone when we were out.  One thing I began to notice early on was how different people acted around my dad, since he had the expensive car and he had the successful business.  My mom was treated nicely but people went out of their way to do whatever my dad asked. I flip flopped between the two worlds for years.

 My dad dated a lot. The women were so kind to me when he was around. They were the perfect little “dates” for him when I was along. One day he sent his girlfriend to take me to get ice cream. The friendly, loving lady, turned cold and silent as soon as we got in the car.  I was 10 years old and I learned a lesson that day.  For me the lesson was this: certain people will do and say anything to be around people with money.  It also sent me on a lifelong search to find people who were “real” for me to trust.

  I watched this happen over and over again as I grew up.  I know it happens everywhere.  People are treated differently if they are deemed important.

 Now, the reason for me sharing this tiny bit of my life isn’t because I want to whine. It is because I want to share a child’s eye view of life.  God has given me a heart for change and the desire to treat everyone equally. 

 We can all try to treat people equally and teach our kids to do the same.  Let’s treat people with kindness, and build people up instead of knocking them down.