A Surprise Shout Out

Ahhh....testing season is upon us.  I spent the hours between 9:00AM and 1:00PM the past two days cooped up in a classroom with 24 children watching them take the benchmark editions of the state mandated exams.  

No reading a book.  No surfing the web.  No checking emails.  Just.  Watching.  Kids.  Take.  A.  Test.

If the term "watching paint dry" pops in your head, that would be an accurate assessment of testing.

Needless to say I was happy to get home today on my very long afternoon conference period to eat some yummy leftovers and catch up on all the blogs, news and gossip I had been deprived of this morning.  My happiness turned to surprise which melted away into sheer flattery (flatteredness?  Okay, whatever....I was flattered) when I checked up on my sorority sister, Meagan's most recent blog posting.

Say what?!

Me?!

Wow.

I'm like Meagan.  I write and I blog for me.  I'm selfish that way.

I don't do it for the traffic flow; I don't do it for freebies and giveaways and I certainly don't do it for any type of monetary compensation.  I do it because apparently.........I've got a lot to say.  And the scary thing is?  As much STUFF that I put out here on the web, there's just as much that is written down in my super-duper-top-secret journal that is hidden in a very special spot in my bedroom.

Wouldn't you like to know what is written in THERE?!

But in all sincerity, I was really honored by Meagan's words because that kind of stuff is not what I'm seeking when I type a post.  I just kind of word vomit whatever is racing through my brain at the time and cross my fingers that people can relate or understand.....and maybe even giggle every once in awhile.

Oh.  And then there's my mom - I do Natalie posts because she likes to read my perspective of parenting my child.

The best kind of praise is the kind that you don't expect.  The ones that come out of left field.  When that kid in the back row who usually has his head down, concentrating on his doodle pad....you know the type.....when THAT student tells you that his favorite time of the day is your class.  Or when a parent sends out an email just thanking you for taking the time to sit down and chat with their student - which happened to be on a day when their child really needed a listening ear.  Or perhaps when you're just going about your daily business cleaning and straightening up the house and your husband, sitting on the couch like the king of a castle, says...."you do a really great job keeping our home organized and pretty."  That's the good stuff.  The praise that happens when you're just living your life, just doing your thing and someone gives you that pat on the back.

So thanks for the shout out Meagan - and thank you for giving me the inspiration to be open, direct and honest about my struggle with PPD.