Monday, August 29, 2011

What is your best?

The world tells us what success looks like





None of these are bad...... I hung similar posters in my classrooms for encouragement!

What if you don't live according to the world.....
Do you really have to reach for the extreme?
Do you have to hope you make it and that everything will fall into place...or that you just continue?


I think your best is what happens when there is not an audience. 
How do you respond to your children when nobody is looking?
How do you interact with your spouse when you aren't around friends, peers, or others?
How do you serve others when it will never be known to another soul?




I love to observe other people. 
A couple of days ago I was in the grocery store. 
I was fortunate enough to secretly observe a man being GREAT with a teenage boy.....and he didn't know he was being GREAT!

 A man grocery shopping and a boy about the age of 15 tagging along....this could be a disaster!

Boy: "have you seen the commercial for the new Subway sandwich?"

**most men at this point would mumble a "...really...." or pretend to be interested....

This man (still shopping) (not fake voice): "no, what is it?" (an interested voice)

Boy proceeds to describe the sandwich in great detail! He obviously loves Subway and wanted to try this sandwich.

The man did not interrupt the boy, let him finish....but did add some "mmmm" at correct points!

Then the man said 
"you better not try that sandwich before I get to try it! (humor)
 Do you see the canola oil?"

Boy: "here it is"

Man: "how bout the new pizza at...."

Then they turned the aisle and I could not hear the conversation.

Why does this make the man GREAT?

...because he was connecting with this teenage boy! I don't know if it was his son 
(probably...who else would torture themselves by taking a teenage boy to the grocery than a parent??)
He wasn't forcing a weird conversation about a topic the boy didn't care. 
He didn't stop shopping and make the boy feel awkward when the boy started the conversation on his own. He didn't pretend interest by mumbling words back to the boy.

He spoke like the boy was another adult in an adult conversation and kept it on the topic that interested the teenage boy WHILE shopping so the boy did not feel awkward with the extra attention!

It takes coordination to converse and attend to a teen! That is why this man is GREAT!! He did all this and probably thought it was just he and that teen boy on that grocery aisle! (I was behind a large stack of toilet paper.....not being creepy or anything)




Friday, August 26, 2011

Whatever you say.....we trust you......HA!

Jack is turning 14 this Sunday!

For the past 6 months, we have given Jack freedom to run free in the city.
I know that my Jack is making wise and mature decisions!

He has a nice, well-mannered group of kids that he hangs with....

and he is involved in several exciting service projects.....



He is gone all the time with various leaders, mentors, friends, etc....and I never have to worry!!


Jack never ceases to amaze me. He is brave, daring.....some might say.....clever!


Everyone knows you should always trust your teen!! The "good" ones always tell you what you need to hear.....the truth of course!

So for Jack's 14th birthday, we bought him a homing device! 
Now we can reach him on all his missions, goodwill, and service....


Thursday, August 25, 2011

instant sleep!

I inherited "horrible sleep" from my mother.

I can't go to sleep.

If I go to sleep, I am easily woken...

If I wake up, I can't go back to sleep...

I might be drowsy all day but if it is bed time, I am wide awake!

Horrible sleep cycles...horrible feeling to have all day...
(if I take a nap, I get a migraine!)


Recently, I was VERY SLEEPY on a Saturday afternoon...I was working on some lesson plans at the kitchen table.....Jeff was lying on the couch and surfing TV channels...

He landed on the ONE show that is INSTANT SLEEP FOR ME!! It might as well come packaged in a bottle as a sleeping pill....




I know...I know....mesmerizing, entrancing.....

T i  t  a  n i u m    W  h  i  t e

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz


Tuesday, August 23, 2011

too soon?

sorry....is another post too soon?

 I have kept some great information in my skull for over 3 weeks!!

LIKE:

My dream house is up for sale!!
Isn't it gorgeous??

You can find it here at this link $1.15M on Long Island 

You might recognize it as this house...

Amityville Horror House
That would be AWESOME!!
(maybe a birthday gift for me? October 13th...you have over a month)




NEXT, the greatest disappointment of the summer!
I have a "thing".....an admiration...if you will...like admiring a Ferrari...
or an Aston Martin (my new favorite)!


 Jason Statham
He would look his best if he would shave completely bald....like my Jeff!
He has fantastic mad fighting skills....
He has chosen movies that entertain me because they use his skills and physique to the fullest!




Except this ONE!!
EWWWW!!! you don't put hair on a superb bald guy!!

I don't think he even killed one guy with his hands in this movie.....I don't know.....I couldn't get past his hair!
I can't remember the movie AT ALL....it was horrible!

no really, it was!!

Don't watch The Revolver!

Monday, August 22, 2011

Peek-a-boo.....

I have some time to poke my head in the world and say HI!!!


Sunday evening, Max was lying on the couch...sick....I will address that in a minute...

I was sitting in my chair working on lesson plans....minding my own business and not making a sound...

He turns to me with a look of disgust....rolls his eyes and says in a slightly evil voice "you are a teach-a-holic"!


Well, I wouldn't call myself a "teachahaloic"...but maybe a PLANahaloic!

I love this part of the year! I love taking off the month of August, planning every lesson for every subject, getting the grade book ready for the new year, the lesson plan notebooks ready for the new year, etc...

I only hated one thing ...... and that was reading and WORKING Jack's Algebra.....to make sure I could remember and teach it to him!! That was like exercising muscles I had not used in ages!!

We have 15 days left before school starts and I am ready!!.....

Here is what I would have been posting if I were on FB and blogging during the month of August!!

August 1st: Jeff turned 41 (let the records show...I am still nowhere NEAR 40)
he picked this cake at Kroger...with pink icing....takes a strong old man to do that!!

August 2nd: one of the hottest days of the year! where do you go? Jerry's!! If you don't live in Memphis, it is worth the drive!!.....and I don't like snow cones! 
I love Jerry's Snow Cones!! They also have wonderful greasy burgers and fries!

For the non-Memphis readers: if you order wedding cake snow cone...it tastes like you are eating wedding cake!
My personal favorite is pina colada....and gettin caught in the rain....har har
ok, mirror says 105 at Jerry's.....but wait....


next day....114!
On this day, Max got new frames and bifocals...I got new frames and trifocals....Jack kept his same frames but got a stronger prescription...
Here is the conversation between my favorite EYE DOCTOR and Jack!
Doctor: "do you wear your glasses?"
Jack: "no"
Dr: "why?"
Jack: "I don't need them"
Dr: "read the last line on the chart" (w/o glasses)
Chart: E H I T O
Jack: S T I L D
Dr: "now with your glasses"
Jack: E H I T O
Dr: Looked at me grinning big!

The conversation continued and it came out that Jack used his glasses when he needed to read or SEE!



If you haven't been following the story about Max and his unknown illness, then you might want to read through some of my posts....

Max was well the first few weeks of August. 
On August 13th, he asked us if he could ride his bike on the Greenline!




After about a 45 minute ride, Max got tired and could not ride his bike. Jeff had to ride Max's bike back to the car and drive the car to Max! 
(I would have taken a pic of that but Max did not want Jeff to ride his bike and break it...so Jeff was sneaking and riding it....me taking a pic would have alerted Max that Jeff WAS riding his bike...I wanted to sing "big guy on a little bike")

Max drank water and took a nap. He thought he was better that night. The next morning, his symptoms of weakness and dizziness were back. He has been sick again for over a week. After speaking to two more specialist and our pediatrician ....we have an appointment to go to Lebonheur (pediatric infectious disease doctor) on September 1st!! We are praying for wisdom, guidance and clear answers!!
This is the picture Max drew to illustrate how he feels. The skeleton represents how weak his body feels. The big head represents the feeling of "lightheadedness".

The next big event will be this weekend................ when JACK turns 14 on AUGUST 28th!!
He has been in Trenton since August 6th. He comes home August 25th. I believe that is the longest he has ever been gone. I am pretty sure he is only coming home for his birthday present!

I always imagine me writing to my family and close friends...but then I learned of a few more readers that I never see......I LOVE IT!! I really like that people read my blog!! One day I plan to take over the internet (that Gore invented)....and when I do....ClassicMAZ will be the #1 read blog...because I truly believe that people are entertained by my "nothing"!