Age Difference

Lilli: "Mama, how old was Daddy when you got married?"

Me: "Daddy was eighteen when we got married."

Lilli: "He was a teenager?"

Me: "Yes."

Lilli: "And, how old were you when you married Daddy?"

Me: "I was twenty-two."

Lilli: "Mama, why didn't you wait until Daddy was twenty-two?"

At the Barre

This is the second year the girls have taken ballet. They really wanted to skip ballet today and jump on the neighbor's trampoline. Every time they complain about "having to go to ballet" they owe me a dollar... so, the complaining is minimal. 

They move with such grace in their class. I giggled today as Eden copied everything Ms. Rebecca said while they were at the barre. She has obviously memorized their routine and I found it hilarious. I was impressed she didn't miss a position...

The girls were practicing today for their upcoming stage performance in May. They really shine under the leadership of Ms. Rebecca!

Lil listens to Ms. Rebecca

Stella, Lilli, and Eden at the barre.

Love the light on Lilli's face...

Caught Eden with her hands down her skirt...

Nearing Ninety...

I love listening to you tell me about your crochet pattern. I love listening to you laugh as you show me where you "messed up" and saying, "No one will ever know!"

Edu"mama"cation

In early February, Asher brought home an interim report with 2 A's, 3 B's, and a D on it. As a former speech pathologist with a master's degree I can assure you my son doesn't have a learning disability of any sort and is fully capable of making straight A's. I looked at his interim report, saw his D was in Spelling, read the note from his teacher ("incomplete assignments"), looked straight into Asher's eyes, and said, "Son, in our house a D is for dumb, doesn't care, and/or didn't do the work. I know you're not dumb. I know you care about school. So, the question is... why didn't you do your assignments?"

Asher answered me in a whiny voice... "Moooooommmmmm.... I already know the spelling words. I know how to spell them. I know what they mean. I know how to use them in a sentence. I know them. Why do I have to do the homework? It's so boooooooooooring."

I looked him in the eyes again and answered, "Because. Because your teacher assigned you the work. You may already know all of the words and their definitions... however, you have to do the work because it is required. You can be the smartest person EVER and if you don't work you will go hungry. So, get with it and get your assignments done. School is your job. And, your boss is telling you that you are not doing your best. Make it right. There better not be a D... or for that matter... a C on your upcoming report card. In fact, YOU should be making all A's."


Fast forward one month...

I attended his parent/teacher conference and returned home after getting his report card. When I walked through the door, he was there. He looked at me and asked, "How was the conference?"

I looked at him and asked, "How do you think it went... what do you think you made on your report card?"

He said, "I don't know. But, I think I know."

"Well," I said, "You made all A's."

He smiled, walked toward me, and hugged me tight. In his hug, I could feel his pride. I could feel his inward motivation brought to fruition in good grades. I could sense his satisfaction of a job well done. I knew he had learned the lesson I was trying to teach him. The lesson of personal responsibility, no excuses, and hard work. That was enough. I didn't need to tell him, "See what a little work gets you," or "I knew you could do it," or "You're so smart."

I just hugged him back.

Feeding the Chickens

Lil throws the chicken feed...

Stella does too!

Wyatt found an egg!

"This is what the chickens say... Brrkkk..."

Pony Fashion

Apparently, ponies wear dirty socks on their front two feet...

They also seem to prefer "Perry the Platypus" hats and use jump ropes for a lead ropes.

2:10:50

I ran the Little Rock Half-Marathon on Sunday. It was a chilly morning and I was full of self-doubt. I had trained fairly faithfully for the race but I had missed a few long runs because of weather and sickness. So, I started the race on Sunday with a goal of "just finishing." (Well, under 2:30!)

I ran with my sister, Mandie, for the first seven miles or so... we enjoyed chatting with each other and with other people on the course. Being in a race always conjures up a sense of camaraderie. We're all on the same course. We all have the same goal. Being in a race also highlights our differences. We all have different strengths and weaknesses. We all run at different speeds. It's a symbol of life.

From point A to point B with many miles between...

I always meet new people in a race. I always find a new pacer. I always pass and I'm always passed by people. I always feel a range of emotions. I usually ask someone if they need something or if they're okay during the race. I usually learn something new about myself during the course of 13 miles.

I learned Sunday how important having a sister is... I also learned how to go out on my own to reach an uncertain goal. I used my reserve to run a fast final 3 miles of 13 and I earned a new PR! I learned that experience is worth more than I realized. Even though I only ran one 10-mile training run, I ran faster than last year when I ran all of my long training runs. I also learned the value of some intermittent treadmill training (speed training for me... I made myself run at 8 1/2 to 9 minute miles for 5-7 miles) to increase my speed.

I really surprised myself on Sunday and I'm encouraged to go for an even bigger goal in my next race. I especially want to use this experience to encourage my trainees in the "Women Can Run" clinic. "You can do it!" will be repeated many times this year during training because I want other women to experience the joy of running that a certain someone gave me five years ago...

Thanks, Dyron.