Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Really???

If something is going to happen to a person it will happen to me.  I think I attract strange people and accidents.  Or accidents and strange people...I don't know what the order is...

Strange people -- I think I must have a look about me that says, "Hey...you should come tell me some random stuff that I really don't care about."  This often happens to me in the bathroom of public places.  Really?  Who wants to talk to a stranger in the bathroom?????

Or, I have kids in my class that like to talk to me about random stuff...

Today's conversation:
Kiddo: (who is reading a book about diseases - what kid does that?) "Mrs. Lackey, I found a disease that can't be cured."
Me: "Really?  What is it?"
Kiddo:  He shows me his book.  "It's like two diseases in one.  HIV and Aids.  There isn't a cure for it."
Me: "You're right.  There is no cure."
Kiddo:  "Have you ever had it before Mrs. Lackey?"
Me:  "Uh...nope.  That's not curable.  I'm not sick and I'm still here."
Kiddo:  "Oh.  Okay."  And then he walks back to his seat.

Accidents - We all know about the dog pee accident I had in May.  Since May, I have been accident free until yesterday. As I was walking down the hall, a kid flicked a magnet right in my path just as I was taking a step.  I stepped right on that dang magnet and it caused me to kind of twist my ankle and I FELL DOWN.  In front of ALL THE KIDS!  I was embarrassed and mad all at the same time. I was ready to explode, but it was truly an accident.  When I fell down, I landed on my left knee.  The left knee that is connected to the left ankle/foot that spent the summer in a nice hot black orthopedic boot.  It hurt like CRAP!

Some of the kids that were with me could obviously tell I was upset.  One of them said, "Mrs. Lackey, you sure are pretty."  I said, "Thank you.  Did I look pretty when I fell down?"  She just grinned at me.  Another kiddo said, "I sure do like your hair.  How do you get it all spikey in the back?"  I told her with "lots of hair junk".  She seemed to like that answer.  Funny how kids try to fix a situation sometimes and they don't realize they even do it.

Well, my knee still hurts.  As the day went on today, my body slowly but surely got a little more sore than it was this morning.  My lower back and legs have ached like I worked out.  (I guess that's what a fall will do for you.)  My ankle and foot have hurt today as well.  I'm wondering if I did something to it when I fell.  I guess I'll just have to keep my eye on it over the next few days.

This morning the kiddo that was playing with the infamous "make Mrs. Lackey fall" magnet, sent me a note asking me to forgive him for what happened.  I wrote him back and told him I truly knew it was an accident and I was in no way upset with him.  I also told him that I was just embarrassed about falling.  That is not something I like to do often.  When I took him the note, I asked his teachers which room he was in so I could give it to him.  As I turned around and saw him, his face had a "deer in headlights" look.  He obviously didn't know what to think about me coming to his classroom looking for him.  I hope my note to him made him feel better just as his made me feel better.

I am positive that I will continue to run into "bathroom talkers", crazy kids at school (they make my day) and will continue to find the accident waiting to happen.  My life wouldn't be quite right if these things weren't a part of it.  I think it'd be pretty boring.  Don't you?  :)

Monday, November 7, 2011

This girl...

This girl makes me crazy.  This girl frustrates me.  This girl teaches me.  This girls makes me smile.  This girl makes me laugh.  This girl is my mini-me.  This girl is my Ally...

Ally has always been "my" girl.  She really hasn't been a Daddy's girl too much in her 12 years.  She's always been a Momma's girl.  I kinda like it that way.  :)

When I say she is a mini-me, I mean that.  From the time that she was really little, she always seemed to have the same interests as me and always wanted to do what I was doing.  To some extent, she even wanted to eat the same stuff as me.  She and I have several similarities, the most obvious of those being her creative side.  This kid likes to create stuff.  Not just any kind of "stuff", but artistic "stuff".  When she was little, I would give her scrappy supplies to use while I was scrapping.  It was funny how often she would watch me to decide what it was that she was going to do.  Even now, she does this.   She truly has a creative soul.  I kinda like that.  It's pretty cool to see some of the things that she comes up with.  (You should see what she does with duct tape!)

One way that we are complete opposites is when it comes to reading.  As a kid, I couldn't read enough.  I would hide under my covers to read, and after getting caught doing that several times, I found a better place...in my closet with the light on and the door closed.  I could stay up all night reading a book.  Still can.  I can finish a thick book in a matter of just a few days.  I LOVE to read.  Allison, not so much.  If you asked her, she'd say, "I HATE reading."  Well, that makes me kinda sad.  I get such enjoyment from reading.  I wish that she did.  Maybe one of these days she will learn to appreciate it and not think of it as "work".  I'll keep trying.

Tonight I had the pleasure of spending some time with my big girl.  After her swim practice it was just me and her because Whit and Daddy had an end of season soccer party to attend.  So, Ally and I enjoyed eating dinner together.  We had been on her case for the past month about her grades and attitude.  Both have needed improving.  (Does this happen with all 12 year olds???)     I really wanted to spend some time with her, and I needed to let her know that all her hard work over the past 2 weeks to get her grades back up hadn't gone unnoticed.  It was past time to let her know we were proud of the hard work she had been doing.  I think she really enjoyed herself.  It was nice to spend some time with her by myself.

For my big girl, I wish this:

*to continue to work hard and strive to always do your absolute best
*to have a heart for others -  a tender place that lets others know that you are a person they can trust and depend on
*to continue to work on appreciating your sister (I know sibling rivalry is "normal", but my wish is that you'll see Whit as your best friend and confidant at some point in the future.)
*to continue to learn about God and share him through your words and actions with others

Ally, I love you more than you could even imagine.  I hope that when you see this, you'll see that you are a very important part of my life and our family.  You are an amazing young lady.  DO NOT ever forget that!  I love you!!!