Spencer on a Saturday morning

Spencer checked out the third Harry Potter book at the library on Monday. He's 3/4 of the way through it today and has been reading all morning. I think he'll be ready for the next one come Monday. No Saturday morning cartoons here!

Gym membership? Why bother?!

I was just thinking that I didn't get any exercise time in today. Then I remembered doing squats to play with the parachute with the kids in gym class, teaching music with full-body motion songs with pre-schoolers, taking a walk in the rain, and chasing a ball and the child who threw it down the hall.

My Body Hurts

All over, every day. Some days just a little, some days (like today) a lot. Long-term stress and not properly caring for oneself can do this to a body. My nervous system is torn and tattered and just beginning to heal.  I finally have the time and space to let myself feel the pain. I believe that's the first part of the healing process. It's worst at the beginning. Slowly and steadily it will improve. Every time I honor my physical being by taking better care of it I give it permission to heal. Each little step (dancing for 20 minutes, cutting back on caffeine, eating more vegetables) is one step closer to being rid of this constant pain.

Birthday cake!

I love my pretty cake!

Visual Prompts at Work

"First 1. Get dressed. Then 2. Computer."
-by Alex

Whoa!!! First Grade???

Seeing it printed in black and white on orientation materials makes it so much more real. Kindergartners are still little boys, but first graders . . . they're not little anymore.

We had Spencer's open house yesterday. He kept telling me he didn't want to go to open house and didn't want to go back to school, but once we were inside he was bounding up the stairs with a big smile on his face to show us his new classroom. He is in a 12-1-2 again this year, 1st through 3rd graders (which is called E1 in the Montessori program). He already knows half the students in his class, one of whom is his bus driver's grandson and a good buddy of his. His bus driver was there and told us she'll be driving him again this year, which I was hoping for.

Spencer's new teachers are young, energetic, and positive people. They will be great facilitators for his learning. He will continue to have lots of opportunities to learn about the things he's interested in and work at his own pace on the things he struggles with, with lots of support and encouragement. I'm so excited for him and can't wait to see how he grows this year.

Count Your Blessings and Pass Them On

I really appreciate my step-son's positive attitude in the wake of his "tragedy" caused by Hurricane Irene. He matter-of-factly informed me that his hard drive was fried. No swearing, no tears, no sweat.

Here we are complaining about the power being out, the phones not working, etc. Have we already forgotten all of the people in Haiti who are still homeless almost two years after the earthquake? It's times like these that I'm reminded of my belief that the Universe sends hardships to remind us that we are really blessed, that things could be a lot worse. Even those who have lost their homes and businesses in the last 48 hours will have a much better chance of recovery than anyone in Haiti or any third-world country, in part because of our public and private relief agencies and in part because of the helping hands of neighbors and community members. I hope we all, myself included, can remember to put our energy into helping others instead of focusing on our minor inconveniences and losses.

Peace and healing to all.