Mrs Paragi. . . Mrs. Paragi

I love the look of excitement when a child gives you a present.  As I walked down the hall on the last day of school before Winter Break, I heard an excited yell, "Mrs. Paragi!!  Mrs. Paragi!!  I got you something!!"  The little guy was about ready to burst.  He could hardly contain his excitement.

Early that day, a student arrived in my room bouncing up and down while I opened a present from her. She was so proud.

I am thankful for the joy in the eyes of children when they GIVE presents as well as when they receive.    May they never lose that excitement for giving!

Dancing in the Morning

I am thankful for the administrators in our building who play music over the intercom system on Friday mornings.  They play it after teachers are to be there but before students  arrive.  It is so much fun to dance with our own children in the hallway.  It always puts a smile on my face and sets the mood for the day!

Whether it be "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" or the Friday song - I love morning music and dancing!

Raise Your Hand If You Are Sure

This evening, I am thankful for whomever invented deodorant.  I do not understand how boys can get so stinky during a regular school day.  Seriously!  I expect it after a sports practice, lifting, games, playing outside, bike rides, etc.  I did not expect to have boys that smell so nasty that I have to roll down the windows in the vehicle due to the stench of "boy"  when they come immediately from school.

So today - THANK YOU to the inventor of deodorant!!

Night Tight Cuddles

I am thankful that at least two of my kids enjoy "cuddling" with me regularly.

For Lizzie, that means actually cuddling up next to me in bed with her head buried in my arm as she drifts off to sleep.

For Jacob, that means laying on the bed and talking about "stuff."  May be good parts of the day.  May be things he is concerned about.  May be a time for him to question me about something.  Basically, just a nice time for talking.  However, he too enjoys staying there long enough that he starts to drift off and I have to send him off to his bed!

Then there is Zach.  He is a freshman  and "cuddling" is not something he is overly excited about on a regular basis.  However, he will occasionally come into our bedroom, lay across the end of the bed and start talking to us about something.  It might be something deep - someone at school is using drugs.  It might be something funny - guess what happened in health today.  It may be something he is concerned about - the shooting in Connecticut.  It may be about a sporting event.  But, it might just be chatter.

I treasure these night time cuddles and talks.  I know they won't last forever.

Wow!

Wow!  It has been a week since I last posted.  It has been a crazy week.  Zach was home ALL week with a virus.  Lizzie woke up with a temp of 102 on Friday and ended up starting on Tamiflu.

I felt as though I was chasing my tail most of the week.  Round and round in circles.

Believe it or not, during that chaos, I was thankful for things.  Here are just a few:

*  The people who invented Tamiflu

*  The people at convenient care and the lab who work odd hours to care for those who are sick

*  The pharmacists who prepare the medications

Then, on Friday, all my chaos came screeching to a halt.  I listened to the news coming out of Connecticut.  No longer was I just thankful for the things above.  I was thankful to be dealing with the flu, fevers and vomiting.  I was thankful to have my babies to hug and hold onto for another day.

It may sound trite, but I believe it to be true:  We do not know what tomorrow holds.  So hold everyone tight, show your love and appreciation and be thankful for the day.



 

PJ's and Popcorn

I am thankful for evenings with no planned activities.   I love nights cuddling on the couch with the family in our PJ's, eating popcorn and watching movies!

Thankful for relaxed evenings!

Photos

I am thankful for Johann Zahn and Joseph Niepce.  Johann Zahn designed the first camera in 1685. But the first photograph was clicked by Joseph Nicephore Niepce in the year 1814.

I enjoy taking pictures.  I appreciate recording memories for generations to enjoy.  Flowers?  Yep?   Old barns?  Yep!  Baby toes?  Yep!  Family?  Triple yep!  

Whenever I get the camera out, my kids groan and roll their eyes.  However, they certainly enjoying looking at old pictures of themselves.  

Today, I am thankful for Zahn, Niepce and all the others who have worked on creating photography and cameras.

I love old barns.  I can only imagine what kind of stories they might tell if they could talk.

Found this guy at Lake of the Woods

Old meets young in generation shots

A close up of a Hollyhock

My sweet baby niece

Love this shot

Recording memories like this one - Lizzie's first sled ride.  She didn't appreciate falling off and getting snow up her nose!

Memories of Lizzie putting chapstick on her Great Grandma

The beauty found in nature

The Ferris Wheel on the Navy Pier

The excitement of victories recorded forever.

Water Lily from the park

Memories of laughing and playing at the Wonderlab recorded.

My Puppy

I am thankful for our dog, Sadie.  She is a very hyper rat terrier/poodle mix who loves to yap when someone comes to the door.  Or walks down the road.  Or even think about walking down our road!

When one of us is not feeling well, she lays beside the one who is sick and protects.  Often, after having my weekly shot, I get flu like symptoms.  I can always count on her being right by my side.  When one the kids is ill, she is right beside them.

While she may be little, she takes her job of protector very seriously.  This past summer while Brian and Zach were gone, she became very agitated one night.  Pacing down the hall, running from my bed, to Lizzie's bed, to Jacob's bed.  She would stand at the end of the beds facing the doorways growling.  She was relentless.  Finally, I got up, walked to the living room and turned on the lights.  Soon after, I heard a car accelerate and saw its taillights through the window.  What was that car doing idling in front of my house?  No clue!  But I sure was thankful that Sadie alerted me to it.  I eventually went back to bed, but Sadie didn't come in right away.  About ten minutes later, I heard her go into Lizzie's room, then I heard her jump on Jacob's bed.  Finally, she jumped up on my bed, settled at my feet, put her head down and sighed.  She was confident we were safe.

Brian never wanted a dog.  He tells everyone that he does not like dogs.  I don't think that is quite accurate.  He is ok if other people have dogs. He just never wanted to have one in his house.  He will tell you that he finally caved in and said "Fine!" to a dog because I nagged him for sixteen years.  I agree.  I was a nag.  However, Brian recently said that "If we have to have a dog, Sadie is the perfect dog for our family."

I think so too!!  I am thankful for Sadie and thankful to my mom and Jim for letting us have her!

She loves to play in the water with the kids but does not swim in the pool.  She hates being IN the water.

They were so young when we got her!

Jacob loves her.

Jacob doesn't feel well and she is right by his side.

She loves playing in the snow.

 Napping with Jacob

She loves running through the snow and chasing rabbits.

Our Sadie

Poor Lizzie was miserable, but Sadie stayed right with her.

Now that is some deep snow!

A young Zach and Sadie.

My mom and Jim made sure Sadie had been spayed and was all up to date on her shots before we brought her home.  Zach would NOT leave her side as she was recovering.  Here he is loving on her.

The Christmas we met her for the first time.

Indoor Plumbing

Seriously, I am thankful for indoor plumbing.  As I was grumbling while cleaning the bathroom, it dawned on me - Could be worse.  Could have to walk outside to an outhouse.  Could have to clean chamber pots every day.  Instead, I will clean the pee off the seat and around the toilet with the nice hot water from the tap!  Yep, I am thankful for indoor plumbing!

Legos

Legos provide hours of entertainment for our family.  The kids enjoy building things from Lego kits.  However, they enjoy building and designing their own creations as well.  This summer, we attended Brickworld in Chicago.  It was amazing to see all the things that were created out of Legos.

Thank you, Legos, for the hours of entertainment you have provided for our family!

Jake and Brian work on a Lego vehicle

What to do when it thunderstorms in the summer or we are snowed-in in the winter?  Legos!

Zach gets a little help from a family member with the White House

One of the cool exhibits at Brickworld.

This building at Brickworld was amazing!

Lizzie builds her own city at Dodo's house.

Those Lego games?  They are FUN!  We enjoy playing them.

Tylenol

With Christmas just around the corner, the excitement in our house is growing.  With the growing excitement comes growing noise.  No longer does Lizzie crawl into bed with me if she awakens early.  Now she jumps on the bed shouting, "I found Jack, " our elf on the shelf.

I am thankful for Tylenol to help counter balance the new level of noise and excitement we are experiencing!

My Co-Workers

I am extremely thankful for my co-workers.  They are an amazing group of women.  They have shown compassion for me when going through the initial MS diagnosis.  They provided food for our family when I was so sick prior to the diagnosis.  They are all an amazingly kind and compassionate group.

 I am not alone in those who they have helped.  I have seen the staff wrap around and care for families on our staff who have experienced death, illness, family issues and beyond.  Their willingness to go the extra mile for people is evident daily.

And. while I truly appreciate what they have done for me (I can't even begin to put my thanks into words), I am even more amazed when I see them in action everyday.

They wrap around the students in our building and care for them.  Whether it be feeding a student who is hungry, giving a sad child a hug, teaching a class of 23, or even disciplining a child, it is all done with love and professionalism.  They see children as an entire child and understand that they have to nurture and teach them as whole children.

I am thankful to be a part of this loving and compassionate staff.

Pizza!

It is not the actual pizza for which I am thankful.  It is the fact that we are able to go out to eat.  While we take it for granted, it is a luxury.   I was reminded of that fact this week and was humbled.  There may be a time in our lives when we are not able to enjoy this luxury. I am thankful, that at this point in our lives, we are able to go out to get pizza.