Loves of My Life

Newtown

Eta I started this post yesterday As I sit to write this post today I'm about 10 miles from Newtown. Newtown is a quaint, sleepy little town not too far from our new church. Two of my coworkers live here. When I saw Newtown for the first time I remember thinking how cute and peaceful it was. Now 20 babies lay dead in the area morgue.

I found out about the shooting at the end of my third period class yesterday. We teachers talked in hushed tones about it. We wondered if our coworker's son was old enough to be in school yet. What about his wife? Did she still work in the system? I'm sure my colleagues were thinking the same thing I was thinkng~ what would we do if that had been us? We have a plan, a signal, and a procedure. But will anything really save us from a madman(a mad man?) with a gun intent on shedding blood?

My babies....what about them? I knew at that moment that they were safe. Still, the what ifs haunted me, and still haunt me right now. How do I keep them safe in this world? Realizing that that isn't totally possible is frightening and it leaves me feeling hopeless.

When I picked my Peas up yesterday, I couldn't stop hugging and kissing them. I doted on them the whole night. I couldn't help but think about those parents, 20 sets of them, who weren't able to do the same. Then I thought about the family members of the teachers who lost their lives. After all, aren't we always our parents' babies? My daddy called me when he first heard the news. I had a class, but I answered his call because I knew what he was thinking: please let my baby be okay. I wept for those families and I'm sure there are more tears to come. I'm challenged as a teacher too. I can absolutely think of a few kids who have similar traits that the media is reporting the shooter had. How do I deal with them and not be afraid? I know it's not right to presume, but these are my honest thoughts. What if this happens to us? Will I know what to do? Am I as brave as those teachers who sacrificed themselves for their kids? Would I be able to keep calm? Could I think fast? Would I just freeze? I don't know. I went to church today and there was a heaviness in that place. People were crying; it was sad. But just being in the house of the Lord, feeling his presence, hearing the encouraging words from our pastor...I realize that I still have hope. There is still hope for us all. May the Lord rest the souls of those who we lost senselessly and way too soon. May the Lord wrap his loving arms around the grieving parents and loved ones and comfort them as only He can. May the Lord keep us all.

Latest Obsession...

is watching Michael Jackson videos on YouTube! What can I say, he was the greatest entertainer of all time!

Now, can we have our iphones back? Please and thank you!

Out of the Mouths of The Peas

I need to keep a notebook of all the hilarious things the boys have been saying lately. I'll put a few here for safe keeping:

Ryan: 
Thank you, Princess! (when I handed he something that I can't think of right now)
I'm Ryan to the rescue! (donning his Batman pjs!)


Evan:
Mommy, do you have any money? (he whispers this to me when we were out to dinner with a large group!)
No, Mommy. It's not good for me. (as I try to feed him broccoli!)

I'm certain there will be others! I always hear things and say that I need to write them down and then of course I forget. These are few of the latest laugh out loud, make your heart melt, and or side-eye worthy humdingers R & E have come up with!

Where Shall I begin...

It's been a long time since I actually sat at the computer and wrote a blog post. Life seems to have gotten in the way of my little ol' bloggity blog, but if you've been checking back over the last few weeks thank you so much. Please know that all is well with the Parker four. Ryan and Evan are growing like weeds and growing UP even more! Oh my, three is a tough age! Ryan and Evan definitely have their own opinions and they are more than happy to let us know what it is they want, don't want, will do, and won't do! Case in point? Before I snapped this picture this morning I had a two minute argument with Evan about the shoes that he would wear to church. He insisted that he would not wear these shoes, that he would wear his "brown" shoes. But, Evan these shoes are brown,  I tried to explain. He was having none of it! Well, of course I got my way, but the drama! And Ryan?  Ha! He'll inform us in a minute that, and I quote, "I'm mad! I'm going to my room!" Oh boy! It gets real around these parts folks! BUT, I must say that they are still super sweet and funny. Sometimes I just listen in on their conversations and crack up laughing. And the questions they ask us? Let's just say I won't be posting those on the web, but let me tell you! You can't pull anything over on these two. They are smart as a whip. They know their full names, how to spell their own names and each others, they know our full names ( I'm Mommy Mistee Joy Parker), how to count to 100, they know their birthday, their address, and we're working on their phone number. They can identify all the letters in the alphabet and we're working on a few sight words. We're working hard (along with their teacher) with these two. 

They are excited about Christmas this year! Though they are not exactly sure what this means, they kinda get it. We asked them what they want and Ryan is pretty easy to please. He wants a birthday hat, of all things. Evan wants an Ipad with a blue cover O_o  . Guess which one of these he won't be getting! We drive all over our neighborhood each evening to look at Christmas decorations. Ryan, especially, gets really excited. I love to hear him say, "It's Christmas time, Mommy." It's our favorite time of the year!

Flashback

I was going through my drawer and found these pants this morning. It's funny how memories come rushing back at you when you least expect it. Evan wore a pair of blue pants just like the ones he's holding home from the hospital. If you don't believe in God, ask me about my miracles.

Early Bird

Thanks to Evan I've been up since 5am.
Me: Evan why are we up so early?
Evan: I don't know!

Gotta love a kid this cute!