V-Day

After seeing a fun Valentine's Day card project on Pinterest, I took my kiddos to the mall to snap a few pics. It was a little tough getting them to cooperate, especially since the pose was so particular and a tad awkward. After a ton of attempts I gave up and just prayed for at least one good shot of each of them.

Upon completion of the editing adding words and borders courtesy of one of my favorite sites Picnik, I was super excited to show the kids my creations. To my dismay, Carson and Olivia were apparently not impressed with my creative genius because they both started rattling off a long list of what they "wish" their Valentine's included. After a few seconds of self-pity we started from scratch. They each chose a photo effect, border, saying, stickers, fonts, etc. and designed their very own cards for their friends, family and teachers.

 
 


My moping was long forgotten when I sat back and took a look at just how creative my kids are. I am so very proud of their imagination, creativity, and knack for design.

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My Life on the D-List

Diabetes, that is. When I was pregnant with Carson, I failed my glucose tests miserably. With Olivia, I passed with flying colors, even after eating a slice of chocolate cake from the hospital cafeteria twenty minutes before my appointment. Between pregnancy two and three, I had a full blood work-up through a wellness check at work, and was very surprised to find out that my sugars were too high. I began watching my carbs because I was so fearful my kids might grow up without their mom. I guess my fright dissolved once my sugar was in a safer range because I started sliding back into my old eating habits and gained back everything I had lost previously. Early on in my last pregnancy, I was hospitalized because my sugar was so high, so I guess I should not have been too surprised with my most recent diagnosis. Sugar detection in my urine meant that something was up, and more than likely that something was my glucose levels. The doctor ordered a complete blood work up, and low and behold my A1C (measure of blood glucose levels over the past three months) was a whopping 9.2. Normal levels are between four and six, and seven is when organ damage usually begins. Although I had struggled with high blood sugar before, I was never formally diagnosed because I had always gotten the problem under control. This time, however, my A1C was the highest it has ever been and I heard those dreaded words, "You are an uncontrolled diabetic."


I cried off and on for several days partially because it was such a struggle to find something I could eat. Because I was diagnosed by my gynecologist, I was not placed on medication, so I was trying to control my sugars by cutting out all carbs not naturally found in foods; however, the main reason for my tears was because the doctor's words were exactly what I had been dreading hearing for several years. No matter the warning signs or my previous health issues I never thought such a diagnosis would actually come, so when actually faced with such a disease, it threw me for a huge loop.


After finally seeing my primary doctor, I am now taking medication to help control my glucose levels, but I am still eating very few carbs, if any. In the two months since my diagnosis, I have lost twenty-five pounds and gone down two pant sizes. I bought my first pants from the misses section in about ten years. It is so exciting to get on the scale and see that my struggles are not in vain. It is also encouraging to have my family supporting me in this complete lifestyle change. That, in itself, makes an enormous difference. With such drastic changes in diet plus the added medication, I now have my sugars under control, but it is also possible for diabetes to be altogether reversed. This is definitely the biggest goal I have set for myself.


Although I am disappointed with this diagnosis, I view it as a wake-up call. I do not want to live my life with the ill effects of diabetes such as vision loss, circulatory damage, foot ulcers, etc, but most importantly, I want to live my life. I want to grow old with my husband, see my kids graduate high school and college, get married and have my grandchildren. I want to see my sweet niece, nephew, and all those future little Delcambres, Pettys, and Piersons grow up to do great things. I want to see my parents travel on their matching pair of motorcycles  and help them celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. I want to finally bite the bullet and fly on an airplane. There are so many things I have yet to accomplish, do, and see, so for now, I choose to live my life on the d-list to the fullest rather than let this ugly disease consume me.

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Kids These Days

I was, in no way, a wonderfully behaved teen. I did some things that I am not so proud of. I rebelled against my parents' rules and behaviors they had taught me. I was very curious about some things they never talked about. I made some mistakes that changed my life forever, but I definitely learned from them. As I think back about all the times I did not make good choices, I constantly remind myself that I have a merciful and loving God who has already forgiven me and because of this, I no longer have to regret those things from my past. I do, however, want to continue to learn from them and use them to teach my children to walk with the Lord even throughout those tough teenage years when no one else seems to be. Working in the public school system has really helped me to understand how blessed I am to have parents who did all they could to support me academically, athletically, and spiritually.

In my job, I am in charge of lab reservations and the overseeing of the open computer lab. I also received a new duty this year, Pi Sigma Advisor. Pi Sigma is a group of the top junior and senior students in the school who go into classrooms and assist the teacher in giving students extra help with assignments. For the most part, these are the "good kids" who do not cause trouble, who make good grades, and who are involved in several extracurricular activities. I do, however, have to deal with more challenging students at times. I have had a student open inappropriate content on the computer that contained sexual acts being performed on an animation software. I have also had a student trying to post pictures of herself in her bra and panties on a social networking site. I have students all the time trying to play online games that consist of blowing stuff up, shooting people in the head, and fighting, but each and every situation was handled with appropriate disciplinary action and there have definitely not been any repeat offenders. 

Out of the classroom, I have encountered dress code violations (girls' tops too low, boys not shaving, holes in jeans, etc.), cell phone use in the building (it is usually the parents calling/texting the kids), and one student punching another in the ribs. Just last week, as I walked down the hall, I discovered an empty condom wrapper on the floor. In most of the dress code issues, my co-workers and I ask each other how they kids even got out of their house looking like they do. My parents were both very strict when it came to modesty, so I could have never gotten away with any of that stuff. I hear from students asking me all the time why they have to shave, cut their hair, not wear hats, earrings, etc. and they complain non-stop about the rules being so stupid. I understand that some things seem so petty, but in life, their are always rules/laws we don't like. Does that make them any less necessary to follow? I always tell them, "No matter how stupid you think the rules are, you still have to follow them." These conversations take place at least once a week if not once a day.

Such instances are not as troubling to me as some of the other things I have encountered while working here. In my former position, I actually had classes assigned in my computer lab, so I saw the same kids every other day until they completed the program. Through the four years in the classroom, I had many students warm up to me so much that they would really open up about their home life, friends, job, and even their love life. They would tell me about their drunken party experience the previous weekend, their plan for a repeat the next one, getting arrested, fighting with their parents, and how their boyfriend/girlfriend was cheating on them with their friend. I was really glad they were opening up to someone who would really listen, but it sure was hard not to just jump down their throats for their stupidity. Now that I have not quite had the same interactions with students these past two years, I seem to have forgotten that they still face the same dilemmas and tough choices. So, as I address students who are breaking school rules, I have to choose my words carefully. I can't possibly be that adult who is their friend all the time allowing them to do whatever they see fit, as long as they aren't hurting anyone, but I don't have to be that tough as nails authority figure who they want to avoid at all cost and who makes them hate getting out of bed to go to school each morning. I only hope when I interact with each and every student that I am a voice of guidance rather than condemnation, a voice of reason rather than threats, and most importantly, I hope that I can be an influence on their future choices. Thinking back, this could have made the difference for me in my teenage foolishness.