The World According to Leslie

I know I keep posting about the countdown for the Princess to finish 8th grade. We have had some trials and struggles this year, but who hasn't? It really is going to be bittersweet. She's finishing 8th grade. It was like this when she finished 5th grade too. (Our transition years, 5th and 8th) have been struggles.  :(  But, she always does really well with it. She's going to be in high school in the fall. How did that happen?  Before long, she's going to be taking Driver's Ed and wanting to drive the car.  (Please note I said WANTING TO.... no guarantees we're letting her drive!! That might be more than I can handle!) This year, I've seen her change from the kid who didn't want to go back to school because she was being bullied last year to the kid who can't wait for this year to be finished because she's ready to go to high school. She's taking 3 high school classes. She's already ahead of the game, in that department. We ar...

"Yesterday's the past, tomorrow's the future, but today is a gift. That's why it's called the present." Bil Keane Over the past couple of weeks, I have still been on autopilot . I have just been going through the motions. Mother's Day is bittersweet for me. On May 9, 2002, Tony's mom passed away. That was on Thursday before Mother's Day. We buried her on Saturday, May 11. Now, every year, it's hard to face Mother's Day. Don't get me wrong, I love my Princess! This year, she got me an awesome card.  It said to relax and have time for myself. Then on the inside it said, "for about 10 minutes because I need a sandwich!"  Loved it!  We got together with my parents on Friday night for Dad's birthday!  Then on Saturday, the whole family was together for Mother's Day.  All of us, including my brother's kids were there!  Papaw Paul even got to come hang out with us! The quote I chose for today is one we h...

Most days, there are just not enough hours to finish the "to do list" I have. There just isn't enough time to do all the things I want to do. I really don't even know where to start with my "to do list" most days. However, I'm learning quickly that there simply isn't enough time to do all I need to do with the Princess. In just a couple weeks (34 days), she is going to be finished with 8th grade. We've already enrolled her in high school for next year. But, what scares me the most (in a good way) is that tomorrow morning, we are going to do our FIRST (of many, I'm sure) college tour!  We are going to be touring Appalachian State University. (I went to school there my first year of college, so I wouldn't be opposed to her being there!! Plus... we could get season passes to Tweetsie so when we go visit!!)  It's crazy to think that there are only 4 short years before she is graduating from high school and going to college. ...

There are a lot of things I want from life. Some of them, I am working toward. Some of them, I just dream about having/doing. Some of them are on my "Wish List". If you go on Amazon.com or eBay, you can add things to your "Wish List". Naturally, I have lists on those... but some things just can't be bought. Here's just part of my "Wish List": I wish I could win the lottery (that I don't play)! I wish I could DVR more than 2 shows at a time without having to pay more on my cable bill! I wish I had enough money to help everyone who truly needs help. I wish I could come up with the right idea to write a book. I wish I could lose these last 12 pounds before I go to the doctor in June!!  (Personal choice, not doctor's decision) I wish we could find The Princess a dress for her Me and My Guy event (for Girl Scouts) and her 8th grade semi-formal.  (One dress will work for both....but seriously, she's worse at making decisions t...

As you all know, I have a 13 year old daughter. Sometimes, she's a handful. Sometimes she seems to have everything together. Her grades are awesome. She has everything when she needs it, where she needs it. Sometimes, she seems like she would lose her head if it wasn't attached. That has been our house the last couple of weeks. Last week, she forgot her Spanish notebook. Luckily for me, she remembered it (and yelled, "I don't have my Spanish notebook" and scared me to death) as we were pulling in to the school parking lot for drop off. Then there was the lunchbox that we had to turn around to get. She remembered it before we got too far down the street. Yesterday, it was her flashdrive, her pencil bag (one of those zipper bags that holds pens, pencils, markers...everything), and flash cards for Social Studies. So, I came home from dropping her off and rounded up all of her stuff and took it to school before I went to work at the daycare. Today, well, tod...

I've known for a long time (you know, forever) that my daughter wouldn't stay little forever. In fact, she's 13 now! It's crazy! She's in 8th grade. She's so smart. She's so pretty. She's becoming so independent. She's taking high school classes, while still in middle school. In short, she's growing up too fast, and she's AMAZING!! Last night, however, she proved that she's even more amazing than I could have imagined. We went to the College Fair sponsored by the local school district. There were about 200 schools there. She grabbed this list/map and decided on the schools she wanted to visit. She already has a chosen major. She walked up to the reps and introduced herself and asked about the program she wants. After talking to the reps for a few minutes, they all offered for her to give information and "be sure you apply early." So, the Princess says, "How early can I apply? I'm in 8th grade." Out of the...

Yesterday, we had another appointment with the Sports Medicine doctor. The Princess can now bend her knee.  However, she is not playing softball yet. It's ok. She wouldn't have time to do the workouts anyways. The last practice is today, and, unless they win, the last game will be tomorrow. We should be ranked next to last. That means we will be playing the 2nd place seeded team. As of right now, the 2nd place spot is held by a team that has walked on the our team twice already this year.... like 17-0 and 18-0 games that only went 3 innings. The Princess has 4-6 weeks of physical therapy. I have to get that scheduled. She has to go 2-3 times a week for 45 minutes to an hour each time. That's going to be a workout!! For now, we will keep the knee rested, therapied (is that a word?), and iced. Hopefully she can do winter workouts and get back to doing Karate! 

Yesterday, the Princess had her last home game for middle school softball. Although she can't play, she's still attending every practice and game... just in case the doctor releases her on Monday, when she goes back in to visit. Yesterday, the 8th grade players were recognized. They were given a bouquet of yellow flowers wrapped in white paper with black and gold ribbon on it. (The school colors are Black and Gold!!!) WE BLEED BLACK AND GOLD!!! (It will be her high school colors also.) Anyways, after the game, our minivan didn't want to start. We went to Cici's Pizza with the family--13 of us (not even 1/2)!!! After dinner, the van didn't want to start again. So, we drove straight to the AutoZone. The guy there checked the battery. It was dying. Then he checked the computer to show that we had just put that battery in the van in March of 2014. That means that the warranty ran out in March 2016!!!!  GO FIGURE!  So.... just a few minutes later, the guy insta...