Since we last joined each other I have done some reading. Much of it has been magazine and Internet articles, but I have also begun reading two books. One is "The Essential 55" by Ron Clark and "The Quest For Character" by Charles Swindoll. I will comment on these as I get further into them. If you are in education, I hear that Ron Clark's books are phenomenal. So far he is right on target. This was a must read according to my aunt (she gave me the book) so I thought I would give it a chance.
A lot of my reading has been about adoption. Bryan and I plan to adopt internationally, so I have been looking for as much info as I can find. Adoption has become a passion of mine over the last 4 or 5 years. I had never considered it before, but God ever so politely smacked me over the head with the thought one day as I was listening to the radio. It didn't take very long for God to move Bryan the same way. It breaks my heart to know that there are precious children out there with no one to dry their tears or to applaud and encourage them. What a blessing children are!!! I have never seen my Lord manifested more clearly than in the face of some of the many children that I have worked with.
Just last week I was faced with one of those precious ones. At school I received a call from DSS saying that they were sending a child to register. He was in their custody and they were allowing him to live temporarily with a family member. When he walked in the door all you could see were his perfect white teeth. He was so happy to have a new start. The little boy was sooo cute, sweet, and friendly. He was whisked away by a counselor to have a placement test. After about 30 minutes he returned with her to the main office and he was quite proud of himself. It almost seemed that his goal was to add a little sunshine to our day. Mission Accomplished!! He entertained us for the next 15 -20 minutes as the Principal worked on placing him in a classroom. In a room full of women, he was definitely the star. We couldn't resist telling him how cute and smart he was. He insisted that he had taught himself his shapes and colors. This precocious little fella just may have. Soon he was escorted down the hall to the Kindergarten class chosen for him. I am most certain that his two teachers picked up where we left off with the doting.
One of the other ladies in the office was going over his paperwork and saw the DSS documentation. It absolutely broke my heart to hear what this poor baby had been dealing with in his five short years of life. He certainly deserved a new chance at life and all the doting a boy can take. Later in the week his teacher came to us and shared with us about her time with him. The first day, she walked him to the bus and made sure that he was safely inside and that the driver knew where to take him. The sweet little one looked up at her and said, "this has been the best day of my life." The next day before loading the bus he told her that he loved her.
The best day of his life... He just came from DSS. He is in the custody of an agency, not a person, an agency. How could this possibly be the best day of his life? Oh, to have the heart of a child. Each day is new and yesterday doesn't matter. All I could think about was taking him home with me and giving him a real family. A family that would love and protect him. A family to guard his heart and show him why each day is new.
I can't wait for the day that God blesses me with the one that will come home with me. It is such a wonderful reminder to me of how he loves me and how he adopted me. I can't think of any better example of what he has done for me than the gift of adoption.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Shampoo Snob
Ok, so this is a totally pointless blog and it is probably a waste of your time. I hardly ever post though, so I thought I would share my latest random thought.
You see all these crazy shampoo commercials on tv and wonderful how amazingly exciting shampoo can really be. Does shampoo really make a difference? If your hair is clean isn't that the point. Who needs all the hubub. Your average person walks in Wal-Mart, Target, or Walgreens and looks for what smells good and is on sale. Of course they want their hair to look clean and healthy and to smell pleasant, but they realize that they are not going to become amazing attractive simply because of that shampoo.
Truth be known, I am a shampoo snob. I used to buy the Target special and even Target brand at times. However, I decided a few years ago to indulge myself and stray from my normally frugal ways. I bought salon shampoo! Many people find it absurd to spend $10 or more on shampoo, but not me. I am a believer! Shampoo truly does make a difference.
As you know, I have a curly mop on my head. Those curls used to be either uncontrollable or just plain flat. Though I am not a sissy girl, I do have a prissy side and that prissy side makes me care about my hair. However stupid or shallow it is, my hair does affect my mood. Now, notice I said affect, not control. If my hair does not cooperate I will be aggravated for an hour or so and I will be a little more self conscious throughout the day, but my day is not crushed. I can get over it and move on. When I feel like my hair looks good, it gives a little extra boost for the day, and who doesn't need that?!
So what brought on this shampoo obsession and why do I share it with you? Occasionally I like to give my hair a break and I will try a different shampoo. The last one that I sampled was Matrix curl life. (I hope I don't get sued!) Knowing that I am picky about such things I bought a small sample sized bottle and only spent $2 each for the shampoo and conditioner. That was the biggest waste of $4!!!! I hated it. My hair was so flat and heavy. It was totally wrong for my hair. Thank goodness I only spent $4, that made it a lot easier to trash the half that was left.
After about two weeks, I made the trip to the salon to buy my good ole standby. And yes, the standby cost me $20, but it will last me the rest of the year. (We don't share shampoo in my house! I buy him his own salon brand.) Less than a week after the switch back my hubby Bubby even noticed the change. He commented on hair my hair looked different and better than it had for a few weeks.
Don't tell me that shampoo doesn't matter!!! By the way, my favorite is Curls Rock by Catwalk. I have to give props to Ashley Rogers for suggesting it about 3 or 4 years ago. It hasn't done me wrong!
You see all these crazy shampoo commercials on tv and wonderful how amazingly exciting shampoo can really be. Does shampoo really make a difference? If your hair is clean isn't that the point. Who needs all the hubub. Your average person walks in Wal-Mart, Target, or Walgreens and looks for what smells good and is on sale. Of course they want their hair to look clean and healthy and to smell pleasant, but they realize that they are not going to become amazing attractive simply because of that shampoo.
Truth be known, I am a shampoo snob. I used to buy the Target special and even Target brand at times. However, I decided a few years ago to indulge myself and stray from my normally frugal ways. I bought salon shampoo! Many people find it absurd to spend $10 or more on shampoo, but not me. I am a believer! Shampoo truly does make a difference.
As you know, I have a curly mop on my head. Those curls used to be either uncontrollable or just plain flat. Though I am not a sissy girl, I do have a prissy side and that prissy side makes me care about my hair. However stupid or shallow it is, my hair does affect my mood. Now, notice I said affect, not control. If my hair does not cooperate I will be aggravated for an hour or so and I will be a little more self conscious throughout the day, but my day is not crushed. I can get over it and move on. When I feel like my hair looks good, it gives a little extra boost for the day, and who doesn't need that?!
So what brought on this shampoo obsession and why do I share it with you? Occasionally I like to give my hair a break and I will try a different shampoo. The last one that I sampled was Matrix curl life. (I hope I don't get sued!) Knowing that I am picky about such things I bought a small sample sized bottle and only spent $2 each for the shampoo and conditioner. That was the biggest waste of $4!!!! I hated it. My hair was so flat and heavy. It was totally wrong for my hair. Thank goodness I only spent $4, that made it a lot easier to trash the half that was left.
After about two weeks, I made the trip to the salon to buy my good ole standby. And yes, the standby cost me $20, but it will last me the rest of the year. (We don't share shampoo in my house! I buy him his own salon brand.) Less than a week after the switch back my hubby Bubby even noticed the change. He commented on hair my hair looked different and better than it had for a few weeks.
Don't tell me that shampoo doesn't matter!!! By the way, my favorite is Curls Rock by Catwalk. I have to give props to Ashley Rogers for suggesting it about 3 or 4 years ago. It hasn't done me wrong!
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