Being a Momma

Being a momma is H.A.R.D.  Not just hard, but HARD.  Do you know what I mean?  Can I get an Amen?  No matter what we do to love, help, encourage, nurture, cultivate, etc.  Today our middle daughter had a day out with a friend.  Then when she came home expected me to drop everything and send pictures to the store because she needs them for school.........TOMORROW! Not that it was just the weekend or anything.  And that I spent the afternoon at the store and could have definitely added that to my list right alongside the bread and milk.   I tried, tried, and tried to talk with her about the situation.  You know us teachers have to discuss what happened, get to the root, diagnose, and fix. Then, she told me....."Why are you being so bossy."  I mean seriously.  All I asked her to do was to come and talk to me like 12 times.  I guess after the 2nd time I moved from momma to bossy momma.  It just makes me feel like such a failure. And I know this is just the beginning of what we will face in the tween and teen years, but I hate the feeling of letting my kiddos down and feeling like the worst.mom.ever.
After dinner she was fine and went to bed happy, smiling, and giving me hugs and kisses.  Those earlier moments are right now just a memory, but the little hole in my heart is still there.

Craving

Today I spent the day with my youngest sister. This is not something that happens often and our time together was wonderful. Our day started out with snow and Starbucks.  The snow was unexpected but the Starbucks was planned. :)  I'm not a usual Starbucks person but when I go I get a Carmel Apple Spice... minus the spice. hahahaha So it's really steamed apple juice with caramel and whip cream in a grown up cup. After we grabbed our drinks we purchased a donut and headed to The Cincinnati Catholic Women's Conference.  It was a day for both of us to recharge our spiritual wagons.  This was a day much needed for her and for me.... I was just the Lord's vehicle to get her there.  I enjoyed every moment.  We laughed, cried, prayed, confessed, and ended the day with Mass.  This was a day that was spent with over 650 women, all women of faith.  I need more days like this because as I'm getting older, my desire for a better relationship with our Lord is at the top of my list.  I crave this relationship, more than pizza. 

What's in My Lunch Bag?

Have you ever played that game at a shower?  The one where they ask who has foreign money in their purse or who has a pair of tweezers? etc.  Well yesterday we were at lunch and a little firstie had a good looking sandwich. I politely asked him to ask his momma if she could make me a sandwich everyday because he didn't want to know what was in my lunch bag. This prompted our music teacher to ask, "What's in your lunch bag?" Are you intrigued?  Do you want to know?

Here is goes:
Lorissa's Kitchen Chicken Teriyaki Chicken Jerky
Rice Krispie Treat (My second one because I had the first one for breakfast... healthy, I know)
Gobstoppers
Baked Cheetos (That's a win, right? I mean they're baked)
Swedish Fish
Sweet Tarts
Extra Watermelon Gum
Lemon Drops (remind me of my grandma)

I need an eating coach....... bad!

Hit the Ground Running

As soon as my feet hit the floor today, we were off and running.  Maybe I should say..... sprinting.  I dropped off the girls at the sitter, late of course.  I mean it was 7:15 a.m.  I have to be at work by 8 and it's a 25ish minute commute, but there's always traffic.  I must have done something right because the heavens were smiling on me today because traffic wasn't too bad.  I called my sister on the way in to "catch up" because that's what I usually do on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. At 7:55 I pulled into the parking lot and headed in to school.  Taught writing to beautiful little firsties all day.  We're tabbing and taking notes for our research writing.  After school, which ends at 3:20, I grabbed a quick bite to eat, thanks to our principal.  Phew!  That was a relief because you don't even want to know what was or wasn't in my lunch bag.  Maybe that should be the post for tomorrow. :)
My conferences were supposed to start at 3:30, but my first conference was a no show. :(  I had conferences all they way up until 6:20 when I had to excuse myself from my last conference in order to make it to the concert for our youngest daughter.  It was the cutest thing!

           
After leaving the concert I headed to the funeral home because one of my Sisters in Christ passed away.  She was such a light and a beautiful spirit.  She brought so much joy to our group and we will miss her dearly. Finally, I pulled in my driveway at 8:35 p.m.  Dishes... check.  Trash and recycling out... check. Everyone dressed and in bed.... check.  Me on the couch slicing.... check. I guess the only thing left is.....bed. (wishful thinking) :)

Day One

Well.... It's day one.  The first day.  The day that'll enhance my life for the next month.  The start of me getting inspired by a beautiful writing community.

This is the start of my 2nd Slice of Life challenge. And I think it starts on a perfect day for me.  Today is the start of Lent, so it's Ash Wednesday for me.  I love this time of preparation.  I love heading to church with my girls to do the Stations of the Cross.  I love the readings each Sunday that lead up to Easter.  One of the most joyous times of the year.

Today was the start.  We were marked with ashes.  We made our Lenten Promises. Now I just pray we can all stick to them. :)

Does it get any better than this?
Here's to an amazing month SOLers. :)

Knee Deep in Opinion Writing

Have you ever sat down to write a story?

Writing stories is one of my favorite things to do.

Stories help the world to get a little glimpse of you.

They also help to free your mind of thoughts that are in your head.

When you write a story you can be whomever you want to be.

This is why I think you should sit down and write a story!

For the past few weeks we've been working on opinion writing, so I thought it would be fun to write a piece myself. :)

Panic!

OH NO!
I forgot my dress!
OH NO!
What am I going to do?!
OH NO!
I only have workout clothes with me!
OH NO!
I can't believe I did this!
OH NO!

This is how my evening was coming to a close yesterday. My friend/colleague and I were heading up to C-BUS (Columbus, OH) for a presentation.  I mean, WE were presenting and I FORGOT MY DRESS!!!!!  A hint of panic set in only for a moment when she said, "Let's go shopping!"  So this morning we looked a little matchy, matchy, but we didn't care!  There was a story and an adventure that was perfect for our Oral Storytelling Presentation today.