Busy as a bee...that's been my reality since school opened almost two weeks ago. Since school OPENED? Heavens! I've been busy as a bee for several WEEKS BEFORE school opened!!! I ask myself, "What would my reality have been if I had NOT done all of the prep work those weeks before school started?" I shudder, and refuse to complete that train of thought.

We're been making student ID's, testing reading levels, issuing equipment, setting up new software programs (to name a few things)...and multiply this by over 1,000 students. Mind bloggling, isn't it?

But that's OK. I love what I'm doing...and what's the alternative? Eating bon bons? Relaxing with my feet up? Visiting my grandchildren? Hmmmmm.....now THERE's a thought that would take priority over this other stuff! My granddaughter recently told her mom: "Boys have short hair. Girls don't have short hair. But I have short hair and grandma has short hair and that's Okay. Girls have earrings, and diamonds, and makeup like me." Sounds like I need to hug that sweet child...and her little brother!!! (Who's pretty amazing, too!)

It's time! Although I've already been back at school working every day for the past three weeks, tomorrow is THE day. Teachers will gather to get "inservice" (a fancy term for ho-hum mandatory meetings). Two days of (yawn) meetings, then the kids come back. Know what? I'll be glad to see the little munchkins!

My library seems big and empty without the kids. But I've been working hard and everything is ready! I'm even up to speed with our new web-based reading program...(after spending over 40 hours merging student data bases and tracking down missing enrollment information)!

I've spent today making sourdough cinnamon rolls for my friends at school (just to pretend that I really DO know what a kitchen is used for!) and finishing a rather trashy romance novel. When the kids come back, will I show them my pig picture? Hmmmm...we'll see!

Today I kissed a pig. Twice. On the nose.

"Daisy" weighs 125 pounds, and was at our public library for the children's reading program. So guess who got to kiss the pig! The Library Goddess, of course!

Words cannot describe the experience. Or the face of the kids who were watching the spectacle. (Or the face my husband made when I told him that I had been kissing someone else...but he didn't have to worry about it, cause he was a pig!)

So far this has been the highlight of my summer...(not counting the birthday weekend with the grandkids).

Everyone should do it...once...(tell me again why I did it TWICE??????)

No matter what age you are...money is a worry. It's easy to say, "God will provide." It's harder to really believe it.

But in the past few years God has proven to me that He has his "finger in my pie!" Ever heard that expression before? To me, it means that God is in total control. He knows what is happening, when it will happen, why it happens, and how it will turn out.

So why are we spending so much time worrying? I guess we're just human! So say a little prayer right now and thank God for your many blessings...it'll be OK...it always is....

I discovered something that should have been obvious. Probably WAS obvious to everyone else....(sigh)....

I cleaned the kitchen last night (not that I don't do that anyway...and quite frequently!) - but last night I cleaned it for the first time WITH MY GLASSES ON.

Funny how wearing glasses brings the world into focus, isn't it? Focus???? Is that what I'm calling this epiphany????

OK...Ok...ok...(this is my meek tone of voice)...from now on I'll wear my glasses WHILE I clean the kitchen. Sorry to my family and friends that have put up with....well..."substandard" conditions prior to this revelation.

When it comes to my mother-in-law I am blessed. I am REALLY blessed. You know how comedians love to rip mothers-in-law apart? I don't have one of those.

This sweet, wonderful lady adopted me with no reservations and total love. When my parents moved away and left me behind to complete college, this angel on earth would come by my duplex and offer to DO MY LAUNDRY!

Other women talk about their moms-in-law...ranting or despairing about how impossible it is to communicate or get along. I just nod my head in sympathy and say a prayer to God to thank Him for the lady that DID become my mom. Not just a mother-in-law...but a MOM.

She just called, and my husband is out on the back porch telling her about his week and exchanging news. And I'm in here at the computer sharing the news that this lady has my heart and my love...she's the BEST! And I let her know it...

My youngest daughter (a senior in college) has a pretty serious boyfriend. This guy is a nice guy...the first time he came to the house for dinner, he brought ME flowers! But best of all, he treats my daughter with respect.

They really like each other a lot. They are even using the "L" word. So it didn't surprise me today when my Joy-girl wanted me to go with her to look at some promise rings...just because...

She was quick to tell me not to worry..."After all, mom, it's just like going steady!"

But will she share with her boyfriend the story of the clerk in the store? The clerk who asked, "How old is your boyfriend?" "Oh, he's 29..." Wish you had seen her face! You could TELL she was choking back what she REALLY wanted to say! So...this mom came to the rescue with, "And how old do you think my daughter is?" (smile) -- The clerk admitted that she thought my daughter was a sophomore/junior in HIGH SCHOOL! No WONDER she got that funny look on her face when we mentioned Joy-girl's boyfriend is 29!!!!

It's a miracle that this sweet clerk didn't come bounding up over the jewelry counter screaming at the top of her lungs...."CRADLE ROBBER! PERVERT! MAMA...YOU GET YOUR DAUGHTER OUT-OF-THERE!!!!!"

I guess there are times when looking young can be a bad thing...As for me, I'm GLAD that the women in our family tend to look young...like I tell everyone..."I get my hair colored every four weeks - whether I need it or not!" I pride myself in being the youngest looking grandma on the block! After all...can you picture me with blue hair????

School's out...the kids are home for the summer...the teachers have filed their final grades...WHY AM I STILL HERE?

You'd think I would be thrilled to sleep late, start my mid-morning time with a cappuccino and a magazine, then plan a relaxing day of - Oops! Relax? Actually, it's time for all the things I haven't done...cleaning bathrooms, changing sheets, washing dishes...(sigh)...

Is that why I am STILL going to the school even though the only people left are the administrators (filing their final reports and setting schedules for next fall) and the janitors (deep-cleaning the rooms for next year's onslaught)????

I tell everyone that I am just "finishing up" projects that I can't do when books are circulating. Partially true...but there's something calming about quiet. No bells. No kids. No phones. No conversations...

So what do I REALLY do? QUIET? Who's kidding WHO??? I slip the first CD into the computer, crank up the volume...then B. B. King starts ROCKIN' !!! What's next on the agenda? ...how about "Phantom of the Opera"? ...how about Patsy Cline? ...how about Old Blue Eyes? (I know...I know...my taste in music IS eclectic, but that's how I was brought up! ...with a dad who was a jazz piano genius, a mom with a love of classical music, a husband with country through his entire soul, and two daughters who run rings around me musically...)

Anyway...I do have work to do at school...but I won't spend my WHOLE summer there...just a few weeks (or so I tell myself). Listening to music, singing to myself...and making my school-world a bit more organized.

What's after that? Probably several trips to Houston. The grandkids need me...don't you know?