I don't know what to title this post.......perhaps amazing?

We closed the office for the "sing-in". (On Friday the "sing-in" was held twice for parents.)

Our principal had all grades sit together in a circle around the gym. The little kindergartners were on the steps to the stage. (That's a cute sight.)

He had a piano in the middle and 2 6th grade boys with the CD's using the sound system. (they were perfect)

Each grade stood and sang their song which they have been working on for about a month. Some had hand motions. (2nd grade always sings "All I Want for Christmas" and trust me they all have toothless grins!)

Santa came in during one of the songs. The kids yelled and held up their hands for high 5's and he ran the circle. He listened to the songs while the teachers came up and got bagged candy canes that we had already counted out per class to pass out to their students later.

Then, this was the best part all, the 1st grade teachers (5of them) stood in a circle around the gym and they lead the whole school as they all sang the first grade song, "Hippopotamus for Christmas" So many kids have been at our school for their school lifetime and they knew it!

They were then dismissed and Santa visited each of their class rooms.





Before I moved to Utah, I lived in Washington and I worked in an office in Southcenter. They were very generous at Christmas and I always got great bonuses. I was telling Kim that I was going to miss that this year. Little did I know what kind of "bonus" I would get this year. I was overwhelmed with gifts from teachers, co-workers and PTA staff and even parents who I have become friends with. Then, yesterday it was party day in the classes I was overwhelmed with the sheer amount of people who came in the school to help with class parties carrying armloads of things to make the parties fun. Just tons of happy families!

At the end of the day after all the children had gone home I was out in the halls and the teachers were leaving. They all left with a box of gifts from their students. I have always been on the parent/teacher gift end of things and have never seen it from the other way around. As I was leaving, finally at the end of the day there was a red bow laying in the hall, fallen from a box, I bent to pick it up and thought about what a great day it had been. A real bonus for me.

Goose egg!

A 3rd grader comes into the office around 12. He has his hand over his eye and up on his forehead. I ask what is wrong and he says I fell and I hit my head. I think, fell outside on the ice, so I am surprised when he says he fell in the class room and hit his head on the desk.
By now he is coming around to where I am sitting and he takes his hand off his head and it is the biggest, purple raised goose egg. I say as my eyes fill with tears I am not supposed to hug you but you need one. He is and has been crying during this.
I get him an ice bag and have him sit by me so I can watch him while I try and find a parent.
His sister sees him in there and comes in to comfort him. She was a 6th grader. It's amazing to me how many times brothers and sisters are handy to comfort each other.
We find a parent, fill out an accident report and then he tells us how it happened. It should not be funny but it is.
He has decided when he walks through the door after lunch recess that he will pull in knee up inside into his zipped blue puffy coat. (The one he is still wearing when I hugged him so I know how puffy it is.) While his knee is up in his coat he will hop around on one foot. Yep, that is when he falls forward and hits his head on the corner of the desk. And yes, he was afraid to tell me that.
He will be ok, maybe a black eye and it makes for a good Monday story.

what a surprise!

Got home tonight
Saw presents under the tree
For me, dad and sister
Purchased and wrapped by all 3 boys together on a fun afternoon outing
They said they looked crappy
I thought they looked like something I have never seen before
Love, thinking of others, Christmas spirit, joy
Seen through the tears of a mom

(this has never happened before from one of my children which makes it so much sweeter)

Doers and Dreamers

The woman who slouched in the front seat of the bus distressed me. Her hair was matted,her face dirty, and though it was a cold night outside, she was wearing only a flimsy cotton dress and a blanket through which she had torn holes for her arms. What should I do? I wondered. She was so obviously in need. And at Christmas time, too. Wasn't there some shelter I could direct her to, some place where she'd get all the attention she required? No, I finally reasoned, her problems were too much for me. As I pondered - and rejected- possible solutions to the woman's plight, the bus came to a stop. A young man, poorly dressed but neat, rose to leave. He had got out and the bus had started up again before I really noticed what he had done. He had slipped off his black knit gloves and laid them on her lap.
John R. Sisley, Jr

"What will you and I give for Christmas this year? Let us in our lives give to our Lord and Savior the gift of gratitude by living His teachings and following in His footsteps, It was said of Him that He 'went about doing good.' As we do likewise, the Christmas spirit will be ours."
President Thomas S. Monson

Tender loving care

A little Kindergartner was in the office because his nose was bleeding. We had a hard time getting it stopped. His teacher stopped by and said she had just sent the class to PE and when his nose stopped bleeding he could come into the class room and read a book with her. She was afraid that running around in PE would not be good for him. It touched me that she would be so caring and seek him out and treat him special.

All under one roof!

When the Grandchildren turn 12 grandma makes them a demin quilt. This Monday Colby came home for the holidays and all my children were sleeping here under their demin quilts.
Let me tell you I sure sleep better when they are all here.

$$

At the start of November we had to fix my car so it could pass the state emissions...cha ching

Then at the end of November, Kim's car had a horrible noise coming from the front wheel area, fixed it.....cha ching.

Last Sunday while helping Logan collect fast offerings he had a little accident.......big cha ching.

And the brick mailbox he hit......a future cha ching.

Car totals for the past 2 months........a whopping cha ching!

thoughts

I remember the story from my teenage years....Alexander and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.


today was a bad day...... sure I had it coming for one of my behaviors yesterday...... but it all heaped on ...... could not stop crying ...... have to decide if I am cut out for this job ...... I am VERY task oriented ......and this is more of a customer service job ...... and I am a counter I just count so when I have counted how many kids I help I cannot talk about it aloud .....an example of this yesterday I had to walk home with a large Christmas box and I was embarrassed I wonder how many people would see me so I counted -10 cars passed me...... came home took boy to basketball ...... put on running clothes ...... WHY is gate locked at high school track ...... did not discourage me ...... came back home and ran my usual route ...... 2.25 miles in 24 degrees ...... picked up boy from basketball ......no wait too late he got ride home so wasted time there ...... making dinner ...... so sad ...... don't handle stress and interruptions well at work ...... was told I could take medicine? ...... Do I need to be medicated? ...... Do I make people nervous? ...... I thought I was keeping it all inside ...... can't anyone I help ever say thanks?

From the end of the book...."mom says there are bad days like this,even in China."

Seen it from the other viewpoint!

3 duty guards usually
Playground teeming with kids
Running, jumping,sliding, pushing,choosing teams for games
Yesterday I experienced it!
One duty guard was at 5th grade camp at Clear Creek
One duty guard was running late
So I donned on a orange safety vest, grabbed a new whistle
And helped out

I loved it, the sun was out, it was not that cold, I could see the lake where I had my duty staked out and the kids, oh so cute. One group of boys playing football reminded me of my own boy back in the day. He lived for football at recess and one even looked like him... short sleeve t shirt, sweats and gloves on hands that's all....no coat or sweatshirt.

But I saw what it looks like out there and saw what it's like on the other side of recess before they come in to me hurt. From now on if they do come all the way in hurt to me I will know that they have come a long way and they have been playing hard. I will know that it is just a few that I actually see hurt and there is so much more that goes on out there.

Those 3 duty guards that are out there everyday deserve my upmost respect. They should get double pay for that hour they are out here, there should be more of them and they are the BEST!

Right Place, Right Time

A 3rd grade sister escorted her Kindergarten brother into the office around 2 yesterday. He was bleeding from a straight cut across his chin, not too long, not too deep but a little worrisome. She did all the talking for him. We took him in, laid him down and found steri-strips to close it. She waited out by me while I called the mom. I left message on home phone and then called mom's cell. She just stood there waiting until we found someone. While we were waiting we asked the sister how it was that she brought the brother down and she said, " I was just out in the hall cause I used the bathroom and he came down the hall so I brought him here." I told her that she was in the right place at the right time and she had taken good care of her brother.
When mother called back it was suggested she come and get him and she chose no. We told the sister to take good care of him on the bus ride home and not to let anyone bump his chin. We sent her back to class. The little boy wanted to lay there for a while so we gave him a small tootsie roll for his pocket for being so brave and then after a while he went back to class.
One of the things I see in my job everyday that I love is the siblings taking care of each other and how the younger ones look to the older ones for reassurance.