Amanda Saves the Day

I woke up Saturday morning feeling eh. I knew I wasn’t sick but I didn’t know what was wrong. I decided to take it easy. I’d enjoy some tea on the couch while watching some TV. Still not better. Some water while reading a book. Still no luck. I think I have acid reflux, I thought to myself. I don’t usually have to worry about this but I think this is what people have described to me.

I decided moving around would be a good idea. So I went to the grocery store. Moving around did seem to make it a little better. But then it came back. Of course I didn’t think of it while at the store… I should have gotten Tums.

Next up… distract myself and have a playdate with my 20 month old nephew Duke! Worked like a charm until dinner when I complained to Amanda (Duke’s mom) about this all day, on and off, eh feeling. “I agree it sounds like reflux. Buuuttttt, the red sauce we’re eating probably isn’t helping. Neither is the wine we’re drinking! Do you want to try Tums?”

4 Tums and an hour later and I was cured! Thanks Amanda!

It Finally Happened

I’ve lived in my house now for about 11 years. I love every inch of it. The custom closets my uncle built. The frosted bathroom door my dad dreamed up. The hutch that I had my uncle and Eloi move and then move right back to its original location. The bathroom and kitchen tile work that was the project of group effort. Everything!

The stairs in my house are another favorite. They are no easy feat though. They are windy and dark. I take them slowly and carefully. But for the first time (9 years in and never since)…

I fell down them.

Thankfully, I was ok… except for the nice bruise on my bum.

Zinger

I’ve been playing golf now for several years. I wouldn’t say I’m good. But I’m not bad either. Every year I learn more and get a little better. So when I was asked to play 9 holes on my vacation to Florida in February I said “of course I’ll play!”

Starting with the first drive of the round I was feeling good about my game. I was getting distance on my drives and aiming my putts decently (my middle game could still use some work).

The sun was starting to set. The temperature was dropping and the wind was picking up. We arrived at a shorter hole, maybe hole 7 or 8. I took out my 7 iron to use from my tee box. I teed up the ball and took my stance. I swung and…

ZING!!!!

The ball went flying but the vibrations went right through my finger tips all the way up my arm! Owwwwwwwwww!

I guess I “hit it perfectly.” It’s never happened to me before. And I certainly hope it doesn’t happen again.

My golf partner

Milestones

Earlier during this challenge I got an “award” that I had passed 10,000 all-time views. Today marks slice number 500! Both of those put together means that I’ve been doing a lot of reading, commenting, and of course writing!

It also means that others have been reading, commenting and giving me ideas for writing. So thank you! Thank you for the motivation from near and far!

Mismatch

This is a picture of chromosomes which some say look a little bit like pairs of socks.  Sometimes people have an extra ‘sock’ or chromosome and a person with Down syndrome has an extra copy of chromosome 21 as you can see in the picture. 

Every year on March 21st people around the world celebrate World Down Syndrome Day by wearing mismatch socks. This year my school decided to join in the celebration.

Some kids came in with mismatched socks, others with fun socks. It was nice to highlight people who are often overlooked or avoided or made fun of.

C in my class has a sister with Down Syndrome. She led us in a wonderful discussion about how she is lucky to have her sister in her life. C knew why we wore mismatched socks today and that Dr. Down was the one who first discovered this condition. More importantly (in my mind) C talked about how her sister is great at some things and needs help with others (like all of us). How H needs reminders (like all of us) about certain things too. C talked about the love she has for her sister and vis versa. We ended morning meeting with smiles on our faces, some questions answered, ready to make everyone feel like they belong.

Running Out of Steam

Do you ever feel like you’re just done? Done with the day? Done with the task at hand? Just done!

That’s how I have kind of felt the past 2 days with this writing challenge. Really I don’t want to be done, I’m just running out of ideas. I’m running out of steam… But also super impressed I’ve made it to day 21 without making a slice like this.

But today at work I was invigorated. I met with some teachers to teach them about this challenge. Hopefully I inspired some writing of my colleagues. If not, they inspired me.

So maybe I’m not running out of steam just yet!

Dr Dave

Dear Dr. Dave,

Growing up, no offense, I did not like coming to see you. But really what kids likes going to the dentist?! I especially disliked you when I was told that I had to get braces when I was in high school… when everyone else was getting theirs taken out of their mouths. And to make matters worse… my appointment for that was moved up by hours (aka was forced out of bed on a snow day very early) when you wanted to go home early.

But really you did me a favor. I don’t know exactly how you did it but you actually made me not be scared of the dentist as an adult (like many friends). I am calm when I have to get a cavity filled or just my teeth cleaned. I’m so not scared that I even opted to get my wisdom teeth pulled years ago without being knocked out.

So thank you Dr. Dave for being a little bit pushy and a lot of bit quirky when I was a child! You made facing the dentist office every 6 months easy!

Sincerely,

Elena

Will I like it?

On Friday I was invited to a new (for me) restaurant. I’ve been wanting to try it for a while but was “scared” as I am not always the most adventurous eater. Luckily, I was going with an expert to make all the ordering easier. When my friends heard I was going they were even skeptical for me. So we played a game… I took a picture of everything I was served and had to text it to them. They had 2 jobs… guess what it was AND whether I would like it or not. Below are just some of the courses we had. I’m happy to share… I liked them all and went home stuffed!

Stick With It

Jill has always been my friend who is a “Jack of all trades” type person. She is a doer, a helper, a creator. At one point she owned a cupcake business (one of my favorites of her creations), another point she was “Jill of all trades” helping people with odds and ends, she’s taken stand up comedy classes (hilarious) and creates videos of what’s on her bookshelf.

One of Jill’s ventures years ago was about affirmations. She called it Stick With It. The concept was simple, one affirmation on one post-it note to hang somewhere in your home or office to remind you to be positive. The hard part was filling a stack of post-its. She made it even harder by then making these stacks personalized. Have a teacher you want to give them to as a gift? Jill had that. Have a friend who just went through a breakup? She had that too! Have someone else you were thinking about that she didn’t have made already? She’d make it!

Recently, I came across a stack of these post-it note affirmations in their neat box with a ribbon tucked inside. I thumbed through them, putting a smile on my face. I not only smiled at the affirmations themselves but also at my amazing friend and the leaps she’s taken in life.

Jill, keep dreaming and scheming!

Luck

Parent teacher conferences bring on a whole new “beast” for teachers. It means shortened days so changes to schedules. It means hyper kids who don’t always do well with change. It means sitting more than usual and talking in a different tone. It means exhaustion and using every minute of your day carefully.

In our school it also means the Book Fair is in town! The kids love it! They ask a million times a day if they can go shop (mostly for the stuff not the books). The parents are so generous at the Book Fair too, both for their kids and their teachers.

This year parents had the option to buy a book for the teacher based on a wish list I created OR donate money for the teacher to spend later. Throughout the week I received books from kids but by Friday I hadn’t received all the books from my wish list (no big deal) and had $60 to spend. Where would I find the time to shop before the fair closed?

Luckily, Mr. B arrived to read my class a story and I was able to sneak out for 10 minutes. I started to shop before remembering...what books are still on my wish list for purchase? The pile was still intact. I decided to take a gander and went to the cashier to see how much the pile of wish list books would cost.

Luck was on my side… my pile of books cost $60.57! Score! How easy was that?! Now I had 6 minutes to enjoy some quiet time instead.