Sunday, May 31, 2009

Touching Moments and Publix


This past week there were three particularly touching moments in my life. Of course first would have to be going to the ultrasound to see new baby girl Courington posing for the camera. All appears to be well and she waved hello to us. We are thrilled to have a new granddaughter. You know whether a boy or a girl, to see that perfect little spine, hands, fingers and toes, that is the important thing.
This past week, of course, was the end of the school year. As with most schools, we have honors and awards day. Our 8th grade class, which is our "senior" class, has a particularly grand ceremony. We had about 4 8th graders who took most of the academic honors, 3 girls and 1 boy. As the young man continually made his way across the stage to receive plaques and trophies, I could not help but to think of the day that his mother came to enroll him. She came in the gym door where we were letting the children in one morning, and she had her 2 sons and little daughter with her. She had tears in her eyes. I was standing with the principal and she came up with her family. She looked at my principal and said- "Would you take my children in your school? We are homeless and living in our car. They are smart children and will not cause you any problems." Of course we took the 2 oldest, who were 6th and 7th graders. The mother might not have known, but a school has to accept homeless children without address checks or proof of residence. The mother stated that she just wanted her children to have a chance at a good school. The family has since secured housing and the mother, who is obviously not a deadbeat but someone who fell on hard times, has a job. The boys have done well- both are in the gifted program and the 8th grader truly made his mom proud this week. He motivated me to do better by his example of overcoming hardship to excel.
The third moment came on Friday, which was my last day of school. Several of the teachers were in the library, which at my school is the place to be. The teacher's lounge is seldom used as most of my teachers spend their breaks in the media center working on plans, visiting, etc. One of my co-workers, a guy that I have worked with for about 15 years, had his 2 children with him. He has a son who is going into 6th grade and a daughter going into 2nd grade. This year has been tough on him as his wife left him. They gave the appearance of being a perfect family. They spent a lot of time together, they traveled, spent time with the kids at sports, etc. He was blindsided when she told him she was leaving, but that is a long story. She has primary custody of the kids, and he has them for his designated times and some of her time as she is apparently out partying. He would take them full-time, but the courts, well that is a story for another time, although I think they tend to side with mothers, even if they are sorry! Anyway, the little girl was sitting in one of my desk chairs and we were loading the laminating machine. We were laughing and having a good time when we heard this pitiful little voice say-
"Daddy, do you miss me?" Then the tears started to flow. My co-worker grabbed her up and hugged her and told her that he missed her every day, but that today they were going to have a lot of fun together. She had her little arms wrapped so tight around his neck, the message being don't let me go!" I was so touched and at the same time so mad at her mother for being so selfish- for wanting to "find myself" (that is her quote, not mine). Of course "finding myself" has included the partying and new boyfriends. Her little sweet voice and those tears have tugged at my heartstrings all weekend. We are living in a nation of little girls and boys who have selfish parents. We need to pray that this generation can overcome their upbringing!
On another note, I hit the Publix today and I DONE GOOD! I spent 31.45 for all that you see above- saved $98.44!!! Even the cashier was impressed. It is really hard on a picture to see what all I got, but I had 4 bags of dog food (I made money on these), 2 cartons of Blue Bell, Crystal Light, Electrasol, Spray-n-Wash, etc. I had to buy hotdog buns for VBS tonight, and they were out of their brand so I bought the next cheapest which to me was not cheap- $4.00 for 2 packs. If you took that from my 31.45 I would have only spent less than 28.00! The only thing I did not have coupons for were my steam fresh veggies- which were on for 1/2 price. I had some coupons on them, but they expired yesterday. We really love those- they are quick, simple to fix and taste great. I left Publix on a high- if that makes sense.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Coupon Savings


All this for $33.00! I saved almost $80.00. I had one gallon of tea not shown and the only thing I paid full price for was the hamburger buns (99 cents). Thanks Katie and Chicks With Cents http://www.chickswithcents.com/)(for reminding me of how much fun this can be.


Saturday, May 23, 2009

Feeling Blessed

Today is one of those days when I am enjoying life. It is one of those days that I feel very blessed. Do you ever have days like that- days that seem to make you realize how fortunate you are? I went to fix myself a sandwich for lunch- and my cabinets are not just full- they are overflowing. I started the laundry and the laundry pile is not just a mound, but a mountain- meaning we have more than plenty of things to wear. I looked outside and it was sprinkling rain, but I was dry. I am still employed- with 2 jobs-how blessed is that???? I know there are others around me who have lost their jobs, and I am going to designate this week as a week of prayer for those people. Will you join me? I am going to make an effort to pray daily that these wonderful people will find employment and that the country's economy will start to improve. Life is good and I am thankful.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Goat Extravaganza

Well, if you follow David or me on Facebook, then you know that we are now the proud owners of 2 cute little baby goats, Leslie and Sally. Leslie is solid white and she is part milk goat. Sally is brown and white and a little bigger than Leslie. David has long wanted some goats. It seems like for as long as we have been married (over 32 years) he has talked about getting some goats. We have 9 acres of land, and most of it is covered by brush and weeds, so they will have plenty to keep them busy. David basically fences in about 1/2 of an acre to let them eat it and then he will move the fence. It has been a big operation, more than expected. David had to build them a shelter, as well. Then when we got them in the fence on yesterday, out they came! The fence was supposed to have a good charge but we discovered that the charger had gone bad. We chased the goats around the neighborhood and finally our neighbor James came out and helped us. We cornered them and got them back in the fence and then David just sat down on a bucket and watched them to keep them in the fence. Then James and Josh came and helped, as well. That is when they discovered the charger (brand new) was bad. James keeps his dogs in an electric fence and by chance he had a new extra charger. They put it on the fence and I am happy to report that the goats have remained intact! They were standing looking at me this morning when I left for work. They are really cute. We were afraid that Bandit would bark all night, but he didn't. Oh the joys of goat ownership! I am certain David will have to Blog about this, so stay tuned!

Monday, May 18, 2009

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Fun







Found this neat site- try it out.




I am on my new laptop and do not have any photos saved, so I used some from prior entries.






Saturday, May 09, 2009

Mother's Day Thoughts

Tomorrow is Mother's Day. I feel so fortunate to be a mother to three great kids. They have made me so proud and as I have said many times, I can't imagine my life without them. It has been an honor to be their mother.
I am also thinking of my mother-in-law today. What a special person. She has been through so much in her life and yet her strength continues to be evident. She has loved me as her own and in over 32 years, we have never had one harsh word between us. She is indeed worthy of honor, every day. I have to also commend my dear husband. The past several years he has had to devote a lot of time and energy to the care of his aging and sick parents. He has truly been an excellent caretaker to the matters that they are no longer able to handle. His love for his parents is just testimony to their love for him.
This is also the day I think of my own mother. I miss her every day. I think of her in some way, every day. I long to hear her voice, every day. I have things I want to share with her, every day. I am thankful for her, every day. Her love to her children and family was so evident. She, herself, knew the feeling of loss at losing her own mother and she knew that we would feel that same pain and she so wanted to spare us those emotions. Yet most people, given normal circumstances, live to the point where they lose their parents. I understand her feelings now. I so miss her and I understand that she missed her own mother in the same way. God blessed us with a wonderful mother, and today when I think of her I am going to say a special prayer of thankfulness to God for her life and her love. I love you, Mother.

Monday, May 04, 2009

Levism


Levi stayed with me today while Kim carried Lila to the doctor. He had a good time at my school. Of course everyone doted on him, which made him feel pretty special. He was so good, in fact, that my co-workers declared that he could not get into all the mischief that we tell about. Of course he was only there about 3 hours! On the way home this is the conversation:
Levi: "Granna, where did you get Gramps?"
Granna: "What do you mean, Levi?"
Levi: " I mean did he come from the Gramps store?"
Granna: (Laughing) "Well, I guess so, Levi!"
Levi: "Well, then you came from the Granna store!"

What a boy!

Sunday, May 03, 2009

Side Bar Breakdown!

When I set up my side bar where it would display the time that one of the blogs updated, it worked pretty well. I have noted lately that it is no longer accurate. It might show that someone updated one day ago and it has been 3 months! Does anyone else have this feature, and if so, how does yours work?