Yesterday began the third year of teaching Sunday School.
A new wrench has been thrown into the works, because, Kaila has graduated from Sunday School, and now we have no idea what to do with her. Also, Bearded Man dozed through most of it, while hotly denying he had been asleep every time we woke him up again.
It promises to be a long year. On the "up" side, the student that has argued every single thing I ever uttered for the last two years, and who has now moved up, came into my classroom and said "I miss this class so much!!!!" mournfully. So, I suppose we must have done some good along the way.
One of the other Sunday School teachers and her sons sat in front of us during church yesterday. One of her sons had a notebook and a pen, and spent the entire mass drawing devils and monsters, and my personal favorite, some poor clueless man in a boat, unaware that an enormous sea monster with gaping jaws was just about to come up out of the water and eat him. Anyhow, his mother finally realized what her child was drawing and told him it wasn't nice to draw devils in church. So, the young man compensated by writing "Jesus is the Savior. Follow Him, not me." above his last devil drawing. My kids giggled through the entire mass as they watched him, and, I was relieved to find that I am not the only mother who's children do crazy things in church.
Because, while idly watching the illustrator in front of me, wrestling with George, and listening to a sermon about forgiveness, I happened to notice that Joe, my little alter boy, was on the alter making faces.
"Jasin! Do you see what Joe is doing?"
"What. Is. He. Doing?" Jasin whispered back, now that he noticed what was going on. I watched in fascination as Joe made faces that looked like he was twitching, because they were so fast. It dawned on me that I could hear Lexi snickering at the other end of the pew. Leaning forward, Lexi confessed that she was making faces at Joe, so Joe was making faces back at her from the alter.
Anyhow. It's only just begun.
Also this weekend, I took the children grocery shopping with me. I have this mental thing I have always done, where, I decide on my budget, and then keep a mental running tally in my head through the entire store. I am usually within ten dollars of the total, and, I get a weird satisfaction, keeping my totals below budget every week.
Kaila was out babysitting, so, the other three children along, we went grocery shopping. I doubled my grocery bill, and, watched in amazement as things I had no idea were even in the cart suddenly appeared on the checkout conveyer belt. Joe, my normally quiet child began to speak to the cashier:
"Do you see all the ingredients for tacos? I love tacos. I am the most Mexican person I know. I am very Mexican."
"ummmmmm....." said the cashier.
"I even look Mexican. I have dark skin and I can speak some Spanish, and I am very Mexican." My tanned from the sun Joseph, continued.
"I don't even know what to say." said the cashier, looking at me oddly.
"The child is NOT Mexican. There isn't an ounce of Mexican in him." I announced. "Joe, You are not Mexican, for heaven's sake."
"Yes. I am. I love Mexican food, and, I am pretty sure I am Mexican."
"JOE! Seriously. You are. not. Mexican!" I said in exasperation, "He really isn't Mexican." I tried to explain to the cashier.
"I really have no words." she said.
Way over budget, I dragged my kids, whatever nationality they identified with, out of the store, and took them home again.
Where the texts from my babysitting kid began. Kaila was asked at the end of the last school year of she was going to get a summer job. She haughtily replied that she is "self employed." She is booked most weekends anymore, and frequently non-school weekdays, as well. The kids she babysits love her, and she has a good time with it.
Apparently one of the kids she watched this past weekend announced that Kaila was going to die.
"Like, tonight?" Kaila asked casually.
"Yep." the child confirmed.
"Okay. Let me make some calls, and alert my mother, so we can commence with it." she said, rolling off the trampoline they were bouncing on.
"NO NO NO!!!!!" The child yelled in panic, "I was only kidding! Please don't die!"
"Alright. I suppose we can put it off till another day." agreed Kaila.
And that, pretty much sums up my eldest. Probably some of the best text conversations I have ever had, have been with Kaila.
Last week I thought I was having a heart attack. My heart started to beat really hard and really fast. It was so hard and fast, that I could not breathe. I sat at my desk at work, trying to catch my breath, and wondering if I could put off this possible heart attack until later, because I was completely swamped, and honest to goodness, the extra work that this could potentially cause was just not acceptable. And then, it stopped. It had beat so hard, that my chest hurt for hours after. I rolled my office chair back to my vitals machine, and grabbed a quick blood pressure and pulse. Both were fine, so, in relief, I went back to work.
The next day, I had a doctor appointment anyway, so, I brought it up. "Oh! Sounds like you had a panic/anxiety attack!" she announced.
"What? No. Not possible. I am the calmest person ever!" I hotly protested.
"And, how is work?"
"Oh wow. It's insane. But, I can handle it most days."
"Uh huh. Better figure out how to distress. If you don't, you could start having panic/anxiety attacks frequently throughout the day. It can get bad."
Well. Fabulous. I am so disappointed in myself. I don't DO anxiety. I am calm! I am the person that the people with anxiety COME to! What the heck! Just last week, I ate my PB&J with the phone between my shoulder and ear during my entire lunch break, as a patient regaled me with one of the freakiest stories I have ever heard. Calm calm calm. Never batted an eye.
So, anyhow, I have decided to try and de-stress. Not sure how to accomplish this, but, we'll give it a go. Suggestions are always welcome!
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