I Have a Grandma Purse, and Other Happenings

This is a picture of my purse. I don't think it's a horrible purse - it's pretty functional. I hate big purses, ones with lots of shit on them, like glitter, sequins, or feathers, or ones that are so tiny that I might as well not have a purse at all. Last week, I was working with a group of third grade girls who made this observation when they saw my bag: "Your purse looks just like my grandma's!" Out of the mouth of young girls who are way more hip than me. I really didn't think I was THAT out of style, but apparently I've been neglecting my appearance in more ways than just continuing to wear my maternity shirts (hey, they're comfortable!), not bothering to mask the dark circles under my eyes, or putting off that haircut that I needed 6 weeks ago.

It does not help that I've reached a certain milestone that was a harsh reminder that I'm aging - I got my first gray hair! At first, I thought it may have just been leftover highlights, but when I yanked it out, it was definitely whitish-gray and wiry. Decision time - do I just accept defeat and wait for more gray or do I start coloring my hair? Not sure what I want to do yet.

In other news, work is crazy. Conferences are coming up and teachers and parents are freaking out about their students. Most of the time I'm pretty understanding, but I have a hard time with the teachers and parents who insist that if their child does not do x, y, and z by a certain point in the year, they must have either a speech/language delay or a learning disability. Never mind the fact that some of our students who are "at risk for retention" have only been speaking English for a year, or at home they receive no stimulation besides the tv or video games, or their attendance has been spotty and they've missed important instruction. It's the same thing each year, which leaves me shaking my head at times and wondering what in the hell happened to parents taking some personal responsibility for the education of their children. Granted, there are many children out there who need more help than what they're getting, but when I rant, I'm not talking about the kids who attend school on a regular basis, have involved parents, and who still are not making progress in school. There's a big difference. All in all, working in the schools again, even just as a private contractor, is a big reminder of why I like early intervention so much.


Jellybean is now three months old and is growing and learning new things daily, it seems. Everywhere I go, people come up to me and want to touch Jellybean. It probably doesn't hurt that he's entering the most enjoyable phase, where he's not old enough to say inappropriate things or run off, and he smiles and flirts with almost everyone. At the end of the month, he'll take his first plane trip to Spokane to see my family, which is exciting and daunting at the same time. I'm going to have to get myself more organized if I'm going to pull this off with as little pain as possible.

Lastly, I may have a long-standing dream of mine fulfilled at some point in the not-so-distant future. I've always wanted to be on The Price Is Right, and my sister-in-law says she may be able to snag some tickets. I didn't think I'd like the transition from Bob Barker to Drew Carey, but I have to say that I've been pretty impressed with what I've seen so far. Drew is not cranky with the contestants, he inserts amusing anecdotes, and generally keeps the show moving at a pretty good pace. Since I've decided that Drew is an acceptable host, my desire to be on the show has not waned. My challenge is going to be working up enthusiasm outwardly so that if I go to the show, they will pick me to be in the audience. I better start practicing now!