Back in the saddle

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With the kids back in school, their other lessons and activities are getting back into full-swing too. And now that Rachel is five, both girls are taking riding lessons. Oh - and they are loving it...,

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Amending the record...,

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OK - remember "For the Record" ???

Well - let me set that record straight. A little kiss, a little wipe and it disappeared. Yep, it was nothin' but dirt.

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She needs a hole in her head....

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Rachel's surgery is becoming more real. No longer some nebulous thing that's going to happen some day - off in the future. No longer far enough off that I can leave it in the box, safely on the shelf with all the worries tucked nicely inside.

We've started selecting physicians and facilities, insurance carriers and plans, looking at photos, pouring through internet resources, and making decisions on which procedures and when.

It's the process that keeps me balanced. Going through the necessary steps and staying focused on the details keeps the worries at bay.

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Interested in learning more???

Understanding Unilateral Hearing loss:
http://www.boystownhospital.org/hearing/info/unilateral.asp
And the speech banana...,
http://edschool.csuhayward.edu/departments/ted/instruction/howe/5500/AAL-speechbanana.html

Blogs
http://www.kelleysearsurgery.blogspot.com/
http://www.milestrip.blogspot.com/
http://www.missionlittlebrother.blogspot.com/
http://belle-josh.blogspot.com/

Our doc;
http://www.americanhealthandbeauty.com/procedures/doctors.asp?doc=345
http://www.cedars-sinai.edu/14064.html?gclid=CMbwpOTy7JoCFQVxFQodW10QBQ

Learning the Rules

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For a person who isn't much of a rule follower, can someone tell me why I've become a leader of one of the most rule based organizations around?

Yep - I've become a Girl Scout leader. Not once - but twice. One for each of my girls. And, as always, I've learned it's really not about following the rules, so much as it is making the rules work for you. (Just to be clear, this isn't something I'll be teaching the Scouts. They'll figure it out during their teen years - maybe.)

Today we had 14 girls, 8 moms and 3 extra siblings here for a fabulous little initiation ceremony for the new Kindergarten troop. Alex's troop, the first grade Daisies, welcomed Rachel's Kindergarten troop into the the Girls Scouts. During the ceremony, each girl was presented with her new vest. Smiles, giggles and squeals all around. Good times.

After the Girl Scout meeting "officially" ended. We broke out the pizza. juice boxes and wine, and the Moms had just as good of time as the girls. Great group of women, raising a great group of girls.

Life if good.

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Monday Morning Ramblings

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The girls were both extra clingy this morning - snugly until the moment I nudged them off to class. Alex gave me the saddest little look and complained of her tummy hurting. It's so hard to tell. Is she really feeling bad? Is it just a longing for mommy? Is it gas?

As mommies, we just do our best and send them off to school or keep them home based on sometimes nothing more than a mother's hunch - and always wondering, "is this the right decision?" In the end - they survive, we survive and they know that we love them.

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Yesterday, Alex and Rachel and I went hiking up Twin Peaks with their little friends and Miss Betty, then came back to our house for lunch. It was great fun - then after nap and crafts, we headed out to check out pianos for Rachel, and then to dinner.

I am constantly amazed at how different my life experience was, and wonder if every generation feels the same. I'm so happy we're able to give them what we do, and that my hubby and I are almost always on the same page, enjoying life together with our girls. Our little family unit - there is no greater gift.

OK - I've got to run. These are just the ramblings of a mad woman on a Monday Morning.

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Saturation

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OK - I believe I've reached the saturation point. FaceBook seems to have lost some of it's luster for me. Still peaking every now and then - but it's shimmer has definitely faded.

Back to life and back to blogging.

It's nice to be home again...,

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Science - It's a party!

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At 7:00 a.m. I woke up with a messy house, the knowledge that 7 little girls would be arriving at our house at 2:00 p.m. for Rachel's science party - and absolutely no plan. No plan - just a theme.

OK - time to get moving. Dave and I gulped down some coffee, made our lists and shifted into gear. Several hours and one clean house later....,

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Daddy's Girl

The Smack Down

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12:35 p.m. on a Friday afternoon, "Hello, Mrs. Hart?"

I had to stop a minute. Hmmm, no Marcella isn't here. Oh wait. That's me.

"Yes. This is Casey."

"Casey, this is Cheri from the elementary school."

And my heart skips a beat. The worry hackles go up. What's wrong? What's happened to my girls??

"We have Alex here in the Principal's office."

I remain silent.

"She's fine. She's here because there was an 'incident' on the playground. She punched a little boy in the chest, so she'll be here until the end of the day. The principal is at a meeting or he would have called you himself. He will 'deal with this' when he gets back." (That last part sounded a little ominous.)

Alex? Seriously? The girl who is "everybody's friend?"

"What? She HIT someone? What happened?" I say.

"Clearly she MUST have been provoked. Alex wouldn't just HIT someone. Not Alex," the protective mom voice echoes in my head. I, wisely, keep these thoughts to myself.

"Apparently they were all playing," Cheri explains, "and one of her friends said, 'Get all the boys out. Get all the boys off of our base!' So, Alex punched one of the boys. A second grader."

OK - is it wrong that a little piece of me was proud of her girl taking on the bigger boys?? OK, yes. Wrong.

I asked to speak with Alex on the phone, and she was sooo upset by the whole thing, I couldn't understand her through her tears.

"OK - babe. I'm coming down to the school so we can talk about it - OK? I'll be there in 10 minutes."

Once I got to the school, she looked at me with those big brown eyes, as sad as I've ever seen them, and began to cry again. I sat and held her until she calmed down enough to tell me what had happened, which was pretty much what Cheri had already told me.

It was one of those tough times in parenting when you really just want to let them off the hook. She was sad, embarrassed and clearly remorseful. She wanted me to take her home.

Sorry, sweetie. These are the lumps and you've got to take them. Consequences for poor choices. This is how we learn. Mommy's heart hurts for you - but it is what it is. Hitting is never OK.

So we sat and talked about why it was wrong, why hitting is never OK, and alternate choices that she can make in the future. Then I helped her write this note:
After school I spoke with her teacher and the principal, and they were as surprised as I that Alex ended up in the principal's office. Apparently there's been a run of "good kids gone bad" in the past week, so "we're not alone."

Hmmm, not sure that makes the situation any better, but it does make me wonder what's going on - as it does the principal apparently. A week of 95 degrees + may have something to do with it. But whatever it is - we don't want to see one of these again


After I told all of this to Dave and commiserated over the fall of our 'perfect child,' he asked, "After all that, did you tell her that sometimes 2nd grade boys are wusses? Especially when they get beat up by a little 1st grade girl?"

Yeah, I think a little piece of him was secretly proud of his tough little girl too.
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Catch up...,

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I've been spending so much time playing with my new software (CS4), taking pictures and then playing with those, FaceBooking and Tweeting, that I've neglected my blog. And, while the other things are fun, this has a permanence that will resonate long after all the rest have been forgotten.

So. It's time to catch up. I've got China to write about, summer fun our 10th anniversary, and soooo much more. Getting caught up is tough because life just keeps right on happening and won't slow down to wait for me.

Oh well, here goes.

I'm going to start with the present and work backward. I was going to start with China - but I've got 500+ photos to sort through!

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