Mr. C.’s Random Thoughts

I just wanted to take the chance to wish my mom a happy birthday today!   (And, no, I’m not going to tell you how old she is!)

…and in reality it probably isn’t but I’ve actually had a couple of people ask me why I haven’t been blogging much lately.

Well, the long and the short of it is that I have been (as my students call it) hella-busy.  Of course, everyone says that but I think I really have been.

The school year started and I have to say that I generally like all of my classes.  Which isn’t to say I don’t occasionally get the compulsion to sell students to the gypsies but on the whole everyone is pretty easy-going, respectful, and compliant.  And yes, that is a change from the classes that I had last year.  My most-rowdy class this year is easier to manage than the most-compliant class I had last year.

I don’t have my classroom during one of my classes (Web Design–last minute change in my schedule after I had already farmed out the software needed to other teachers) and my conference.  I know that having your room during your conference is a luxury but it’s been one that I’ve enjoyed for several years and I forgot how much it helps in getting things done.

My other big black hole of time and effort lately has been Key Club.  We have been keeping very close track of hours, projects, etc. and here’s the results:

September - Total Hours:  447 5/6 hours
September - Total Community Service Hours:  327 1/3 hours

October - Total Hours (to date):  299 1/6 hours
October - Total Community Service Hours (to date):  267 2/3

Needless to say, I am VERY PROUD of my kids.  Our major project has been the Big Boo, a haunted house in Amarillo.  We’re helping with it both as a fundraiser for our club and as a community service project (its proceeds go to Crimestoppers and the Downtown Women’s Shelter).  The majority of our hours for September and October have been dedicated toward this project (you have NO IDEA how much work this entails but it’s A LOT) .  But we’ve also done projects with the Ronald McDonald House, Kiwanis Flag Distribution, made personalized hall passes for new teachers at CHS, coordinated the CHS Homecoming Parade, participated in the Homecoming Pep Rally, started Key Clean-Up (a project that is dedicated to grounds clean-up and improvement),  did prep work for Fair on the Square, and are currently doing a fundraiser for UNICEF, gathering volunteers to work the CHS Blood Drive on Friday,  and were planning for a booth at Halloween Happening.

I’ve also been working on some self-improvement.  On August 31, I had blood drawn for a lipid panel (happy 35th birthday gift from my doctor when all I wanted was a renewal of my allergy medication prescription).  The results came back and I had high LDLs (bad cholesterol), high triglycerides (curse my love of chips and chicken fried steak!!), and low HDLs.  So I’ve really been trying to watch my diet and get some exercise.  Since Labor Day weekend, I’ve lost almost 20 pounds (I was at 21 pounds but have gained some back) and managed to give myself a good case of tendonitis in my left knee and have been hobbling around like Quasimodo for the last 2 weeks or so.  That’s what I get for listening to my doctor when he said, “You really need to provide an example of exercise for your children to see.”  Ungh.  Anyway, I had another lipid panel done last week and I’m waiting on its results.  If I don’t see some progress in the right direction I think I will have to find some naturally skinny person and smack them around until I feel better! ;-)  My “official” (this panel that I’m waiting for was a part of my school’s wellness program and doesn’t count as far as my doctor is concerned) lipid panel is scheduled for December 28.  My doctor said if I can make it through the holidays with my blood levels going in the right direction then we would know the lifestyle changes that I’m implementing are positive.  It is my sincere hope that I won’t need to address my cholesterol levels with medication.  None of my levels are astronomically out-of-norm so I am really hoping this will do the trick.

Well, I hope all my readers (both of you!) are having a great fall.  Let me know how life is and what is going on with you!

Go here to find pictures of Duncan’s first birthday party.

…and now I really like him. His song “Daughters” is so eloquent in how it describes how fathers can affect the lives of their daughters.

If you’ve heard the song but not really paid attention to the lyrics, click here.

Thirteen Things I Want to Remember About My Kids When They’re Older My daughter is 3 1/2 years old and my son is 10 months old. The following are things about them that I want to make sure I remember. My wife and I happened to be watching “Supernanny” the other night and our daughter, who happened to be up a little bit later than usual, started crying. She said, “Why is that boy so mean to his mommy?” I am so thankful that she has a loving spirit. Even though it drives me crazy, rocking my son back to sleep at 3:00 a.m. is one of the most peaceful times of the day. My daughter genuinely likes her teachers. She can’t leave preschool or Bible class at church without giving her teachers a hug. My son laughs easily. But no one can make him smile and laugh like my daughter can. My daughter still misses the dog that we had when she was born. We had to put him to sleep almost 1 1/2 years ago, about a month and a half after her 2nd birthday, and she still asks about him. In fact, as we were watching the televised funeral services for President Ford, she asked my wife, “Is President Ford playing with Jack in Heaven?” My son is so blessed with people that love to give him gifts. But for the last week, his favorite has been an empty Dasani bottle that we left out in the living room. My daughter’s classroom at preschool is at the end of the hall. When we pick her up, she has to poke her head into every room we pass and say goodbye to a special friend. She has at least one in every room! My son, at 10 months old, already has a little group of buddies that he likes to play with at daycare. One of his teachers playfully called him a “bully” because he can army crawl over the other little guys. My daughter loves to sit with Jennifer, who is one of her preschool teachers, at church. Jennifer is a local college student and is always good to let my daughter sit with her and be one of the “big kids.” My son has a gentle spirit and quiet intelligence in his eyes. My daughter loves to go fishing with my dad. My son reminds my mom of the son she and Dad lost before I was born. My son and that brother share the same initials. Although my life is certainly more hectic, it’s a lot richer since my daughter and my son came into it.

http://missprofe.wordpress.com

http://shrewdnessofapes.blogspot.com

I just have to say that I had a wonderful weekend! My mother-in-law came to our house on Saturday and kept our kids while my wife and I went and did the following:

• went clothes shopping for our kids without having to keep up with them at the same time.
• ate lunch at Nothing But Noodles, one of our favorite restaurants. And we didn’t even have to get macaroni and cheese.
• saw “The Queen.” We both liked it but I thought it should have been called “The Prime Minister.” At any rate, it was a really good movie.
• visited the new tropical conservatory at the Amarillo Botanical Gardens. It was very interesting and beautiful. We are planning on returning once winter is over and we can look at the outside gardens, which were covered in snow for the most part.
• got coffee at Roaster’s.
• visited my wife’s grandparents. We got in trouble because we didn’t bring our kids but when we told them that they both had colds, it was OK.

On Sunday afternoon (get this), I got to take a ONE HOUR NAP!!!! It has been months since that has happened!

I hope you all had a good weekend, too!

Isn’t it easy to lose perspective? I don’t know about you but I find that the day-to-day details and drama of life make it so easy to take our eyes off of what it truly important. We get so involved in the thousands of things that crowd our schedules and our minds that we cloud over the true needs and sufferings of those around us. It isn’t until something hits us close to home that we realize how far off the mark we have been. Maybe this is one of the functions of tragedies and trials…to help us refocus our lives and truly take stock of what’s important.

We got word this morning that Geneva McNeill passed away after an extended illness. She spent the last few days of her life in hospice care in Amarillo so her death wasn’t unexpected. She was truly one of the kindest souls that I have crossed paths with. Even though I wasn’t “family” I always felt like she included me in her large family. I felt her influence through her daughter Ann Lee, who has provided me years of quiet encouragement, insight, and wisdom. Geneva was one of those special people who not only had plenty of her own grandchildren that she had through chance, but with hundreds of grandchildren that she chose.

We all know people like Geneva. And our lives are a little darker when they leave and go to that better place.

I hope that I can take a cue from Geneva’s life and remember to be kinder to those around me. If we all can take that and try to live it out, then a piece of Geneva will still be with us.

“The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning…”
Ecclesiastes 7:4

I’ve spent most of the evening (post-kiddie-bedtime, anyway) getting ready to go on a road trip with my Key Club kids tomorrow. We are going to the K-Family (K=”Kiwanis”) Fall Rally at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington. We are leaving from Randall HS after school, driving to Arlington, spending the day at Six Flags, and then coming back home at about 6 p.m., putting us back into Amarillo/Canyon at about 1 to 2 a.m. on Sunday morning.

I used to think that parents who didn’t like to occasionally leave their kids were overly emotional and just a little bit on the needy/whiny side. Well, whinyness, thy name is Lance. I have found myself really dreading being away from Kathryn, Duncan, and Heather. I think part of it is the events of the past week…Kane and Loryn’s tragic deaths, Sunny’s surgery, Mom’s surgery, Duncan and Kathryn coming down with the stomach bug, Kathryn injuring her shoulder on the playground (by the way, hearing a three-year-old say the words “muscle spasm” is oddly funny)…all of this just makes me want to have them close to me. I know they’ll be okay but my heart just isn’t into making weekend trips like it used to be. I must be getting old…

…in fact, I KNOW I’m getting older. One of my co-workers, Michelle, said to me yesterday, “You’re in your mid-30’s?!?” It’s continually a shock to me, too! Most of the time, I see myself as a 24 year old, as if I’m still a first year teacher. Having kids has changed that a little bit, but sometimes I just look at myself and have to ask, “When the h-e-double-hockey-sticks did I get old enough to have two children?!” But then I look at most of the other parents at daycare and preschool and realize that I’m actually a good five to ten years older than most of them. Heather and I are going to be the only parents at our kids high school graduations that have to have walkers!

Well, it’s getting close to midnight so I’m going to wrap this up. Here’s hoping tomorrow’s a smooth day!

The past few days have been extremely hectic. For the most part, we’ve been dealing with the stomach bug (some things you don’t want to share!) and playground injuries. So tonight, to unwind, I thought I would share some pictures with you.

It’s really a shame that Duncan doesn’t have any toys to play with!
Duncan is getting to the point where people are saying “He is a little baby anymore!” And I have to agree. It seems like just a few days ago when he was born but he’s already starting to look like a little boy instead of a little baby.

Duncan is getting real good at holding his head up. Also some of his expressions are just pricelss.

Duncan also loves the bath (at least, most nights he does!). He is getting to where he can splash most of the water out of the little tub and onto the mirror and countertop.