Mexico 16

Wow - What an adventure.  All I can say is amazing!!!  The first day we get to McAllen, Texas my wallet is stolen.  I lose my debit card, driver's license, ss card, etc.  That's pretty crappy - you'd think it would just go downhill from there, but no.  Once we get to our site and meet our family and start work - everything else moves to the back of my mind.

I was supposed to be in Mexico.  It was an amazing experience for both me and the boys.  getting to meet the families - getting to know my group - moving outside my realm of comfort was unbelievable.

I feel like I have found a little part of me that I didn't really know was lost.  Trying to talk to our maestro my spanish tarted coming back -it was so fun.  Soon we all started doing the half spanish/half english thing with each other!  It was too funny!  See ing our group interact with the Mexican children near our work site was so uplifting.  It was just people with people - 

Working hard all day - getting up at 5:45 and going to bed at 11:00 or so - sheer exhaustion has never felt so good.  We got home late last night and Mitchell looked at his bedroom and said - "You know Mom - my room is about the same size as the houses we were building - it really makes you thankful"!

Mission accomplished!

Almost Time to Go!!

Two days and counting until we leave for Mexico! Right now I'm a nervous Nelly about the details. Is all of the laundry done? Do I have everything on the list??

Evidently I am the biggest dork who follows rules too carefully!! I read the packing list and it specifically said shorts - no shorter than 1 inch above the knee. So - me being me - pulled out the ruler and measured my shorts. First might I say that looking at myself in shorts made me want to gag!!!! But - I found out that my shorts were too short - not Dasiy Duke short, but just not 1" above the knee either. So - like a good little rule follower I went to target and bought a couple of new shorts and dug out old capris to add to the packing. Then when I get to our Mexico meeting last Sunday and confess my concerns I was laughed at. Yes - laughed at! All those "done it befores" said no-one really cares that much about the length of the shorts as long as they aren't too short. Oh well - now I have some new cute bermudas - too bad I will be using them to build cement houses in!!!

My other dilemma is when to say no. We were asked to bring school supplies to leave at the church so I went shopping last week and loaded up. There is also on the list things to bring for the children of the families who we are building houses for - like toys, stuffed animals, balls, etc. We have changed our building location and now are going to be building around a school. So now I want to load up on toys to bring. However - between the school supplies and the traveling supplies (and the new shorts) its getting a little expensive.....So - I settled on bubbles. Bubbles are cool aren't they? I bought several packages of bottles of bubbles. All kids like bubbles right?

Composting Dog Poop - is it going too Far?

Okay - so I'm into the "green" thing. We recycle as much as we can. I love the new PlanetGreen channel 102. "Living with Ed" is one of my favorites! I'm trying to convince my husband a hybrid is worth the cost. Anyway - I have two rather large dogs - and they produce a large amount of waste - what do you do with it?

So - I'm reading - watching and I come across this website that has a solution. A dog poop composter! How cool is that? So - you take a trashcan - with a lid and cut off the bottom and put several holes in it. Bury it into a hole into the ground unti the top is just a fe inches above the ground. You need to put some rocks and sand in the hole to help with drainage.

So - you scoop the poop - put it in the can - the lid keeps it from smelling. Each week add some septic starter and a little water. The poop breaks down - filters through the rock and sand and seeps back into the ground. Safe for the environment!

What a deal!

http://www.plantea.com/dog-waste-compost.htm

ARRRGGG!!!

Why is it that the two weeks BEFORE spring break (your supposed vacation) are always the most stressful?? I feel like I am working up enough stress that there is no way possible for just one week off to ever unwind it all!!

Remind me again why we choose to do an interdisciplinary unit in the spring right before testing right before spring break? Oh yea - that's right - we're crazy!!! And as if that's note enough we decide it would be even better to shoot for a Success Day the following week - the Friday before spring break!! Lord - what were we thinking???

Then there's Mexico - not that that's a bad thing - jsut details! And when I can't get the details down - I get worried. Like - what do I pack? Normally by now I have a list of what I plan to take on the trip - but noone has told me what I should be taking. I'm a newbie here for this mission trip deal. What exactly does one take to Mexico? I need a list - instructions! I'm anal! I need to be packed at least a full 4 days before we plan to leave!!!

Then we have the hearth and home details. How exactly do I clean the how well enough so that it might still be reasonably clean by the time we get home???? I need to get the spinach planted which means I need to get the garden turned and compost added! Do I have shorts that I would be caught dead in? Then again do I care? How do I convince my husband to have a new car waiting for me when I get home? (That's one that I'm really working on!)

See - details - it's all in the details! What's an anal retentive control freak like me supposed to do?

Mexico Here We Come!

Okay - - so maybe I'm crazy - but that's nothing new. My oldest gets talked into to going on a mission trip to Mexico during spring break with his friends and I think - What a great idea for him. He needs a break - he needs a little lesson in humility as well as a reminder of how fortunate we are and a reminder of the meaning of "doing for others".

Then - a couple of weeks ago amidst a minor personal breakdown a friend says "why don't you go to Mexico too? At first I think NO WAY...how could I? What about the house? The dogs? The world? Then I think...wait...I could..... SO I very quickly see if my youngest could go too, and sure enough he can and within the span of 24 hours not only is Mitchell going to Mexico, but Peyton and I are too.

Now - normally this is the sort of the thing that would cause a planner like me to panic. I'm not in charge of anything! Arrgg!! There are teenagers in charge of my team - oh no! But guess what? I feel amazingly at peace! Imagine that. Ever since I made the choice to go all I feel is calm and relaxed about the choice. Its the strangest feeling - almost as if this is something I'm supposed to do!

In our Team Meetings I just sit back and watch the dynamics of the kids/semi-adults as they lead and its refreshing - I don't feel compelled to jump in an do anything!

What's also really strange is that right now the news is fell of panic and worry over Mexico which would normally have me freaking out, but somehow I still feel calm....

I think one of the things I have been needing or missing is my own sense of community and maybe this is giving it to me. Mitchell and I went to church this morning and had a very nice time - again I felt peaceful.

We'll see if it lasts.

They way I'm figuring it is that if rebels or whoever try and kidnap me they will decide within minutes that that "crazy white woman" is too bossy and they will want to get rid of me immediately so I figure I'm safe. And Peyton - well he's Peyton - he would wear them out in a heartbeat so he's pretty safe too! Mitchell? Well we'll have to keep him safely hidden!

Crap, Crap, and More Crap!!!!!

Just when you think you're done with it it keeps popping up - kind of like a wart that you thought was gone so you stopped putting medicine on it, stopped wearing the band-aids, and sure enough just as you started to forget it it pops up again~ CRAP!!!!!

My husband's youth was crap, his family was crap, and dealing with it now is still - you guessed it - CRAP!

Shortly after I started working at Alcott, I guess its been almost 9 years his brother shot and killed a highway patrol officer during a no-knock drug warrant. It was a lovely affair where he and his then 16 year old son fired upon a car full of officers who drove onto his property with the lights off and their weapons loaded - one of the shots went through the car door and killed the officer.

That began the CRAP of the century. You then have a trial and then a sentencing - then you have an appeal of the sentence and another and another. A death sentence was handed down, but that has been in appeals for several years.

The real crap of the situation is that my husband is one of very few in the whole family (several generations) to get any education beyond high school. He is a professional - and unlike the brother in prison and the other brother - he neither does, sells, or makes drugs - imagine that. needless to say he makes a good character witness so he's called in every time.

Anyway - trying to tie up a long story. Every time a new lawyer comes on the scene they want to sit down with Steve and have him dredge of the horror of their youth as an explanation as to why Kenny would behave the way he did as an adult. Of course that's just the defense side - when they start talking there is always the prosecuter's side who wants to hold Steve up and say "If he could crawl out and make something of himself - then everyone should be able to". It's a tug-of-war with Steve in the middle fighting a personal moral battle of his own.

Anyway - I am going on again - the point is - the phone call came again this evening. new lawyers in town this Friday - Steve has to meet them Friday afternoon and Saturday for interviews - These guys are from Ohio - OH Goody!!! So he gets to drive to Salisaw and spend the weekend dredging up unpleasant memories.

The real trouble is I'm not sure how to help him - right now we as a couple are rocky at best - mostly because he keeps everything in and can't deal with feelings and relationships - I know after what I just wrote it's real no wonder why. But - after these meetings we used to be able to talk a little and at least I felt like I helped - but now we don't really even talk - what do I do? Mitchell's worried about him.....he'll come home and be more withdrawn.

CRAP, CRAP, CRAP!!!! I had plans for starting the new year on a better footer - out smoother, calmer, maybe even a little closer? And now - CRAP!

What Did The Break Bring?

Hmm....What did the break bring? I would have thought the break would have brought more time to blog - but as I was "chided" today - guess not - but it did bring several things!!!

Let's see - rest - YES!!! I think I needed that almost most of all. Those who know me know I'm a morning person, my time at school around 7:15 AM is my favorite time of the day - no-one around - I get so much done. However, I think I ran my tank a little dry because during the break there was MANY a morning where I was still alseep at 9:00 AM - sometimes even 10:00 - that's unheard of for me - I think it's been since high school since I did that - definitely PRE-Children!!!!

Quality time - definitely!! The boys and I did do that - "Catch-Phrase" was fun, quite a few rounds of poker, even a new game - "Fact or Crap" - sounds bad, but it was really fun!!! Of course the boys - all three enjoyed the 360 and the Wii - Dad bringing home a LCD projector and clearing the pictures off one wall didn't hurt either!!!!

Spending money? Always good at that - got a little extra money from the farm so I spent too much for Christmas - isn't that how it always works? But the look on Mitchell's face when he opened the new Ipod touch that I had convinced him he wasn't going to get was definitely worth it!! Mom is GOOD!!! He thought the box was clothes!! I rock!

Enjoying the dogs - you bet. Poor tubbo Max had trouble keeping up but we had several outings to Sutton - Maggie has energy to spare, Max...needs some work!! The trips IN the lake though - GROSS!!!

Driving - or rather letting Mitchell drive?? Scary!!! It kills me to think I have a child nearly old enough to drive... he backed out of my mother's driveway and drove the block to ours and pulled in to our driveway!! I was a little nervous about the whole driving through the house possibility..but he pulled in safe and sound - a little crooked, but no smashed house!!!!

Reading - My favorite thing. My "secret Santa" gave me a gift certificate to the "crazy Ladies" Used Book Store - What a great idea for someone who reads 5-6 books a week!! I read 22 over the break!! Yes - I even read "Twighlight" - I know - how could I, but not only did all of my kids read it but all my friends did too so I had too - surprisingly good - although now I have to read the rest of them - that's the bummer about series! So watch out Lori - I'm going to fight you for Rhonda's books!!!

Anyway - it was a good break - not necessarily a lot of progress on the marriage front, but then again we didn't do a lot of damage either so I guess that's good.

New Rules for the new Year -

1. Eat Breakfast - Going without is not doing me too well - dropping a size is good, but 2?? Probably not a good idea!

2. Chill - I need to breathe a little more - Breathe before I act or react.

3. Have more faith in my kiddos - My children are good kids - I need to try not to be so hard on them - accept that they (like all of us) are not perfect.

4. Enjoy each day!!

It was great to be back at school!!!!