Schoolin' Life

Early Father’s Day Tribute to My Daddy

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As a kid, I used to get so mad at my dad for the shyt he made me shovel (literally).  Those were the 100 degree days of shoveling dog crap for lawn customers or the even hotter days he had me (and rod) throwing shingles off the top of a house when he had to do roofing jobs (that was the summer I was nicknamed Tar Baby).  One of my aunts recently said, she used to feel so bad for me because he worked me like a boy.  And he did… all before the age of 13.

Today I’m thankful for all the hard work and, the unforeseen lessons I learned along the way.  I ran out for lunch today to pick up a to go order, got back in my SUV and it wouldn’t start.  I just knew it wasn’t the battery since I recently purchased it but there was no power to my vehicle.  I sat there thinking to call my coworker, next I thought, let me call AAA then go sit down in the AC and eat my lunch. Then my survival skills kicked in and I popped the hood to see what the heck was going on.  That’s when I noticed the cable off my battery.  It was a simple fix but one a lot of women don’t think to check.

During my transition to “trying” to become a responsible adult, I didn’t have money for simple car repairs. I remember daddy first teaching me how to change a flat tire.  I brag on being able to change a tire in less than 10 minutes.  Then there was the time my car was misfiring and he talked me through changing the spark plugs and wires.  He was no Ward Cleaver or Heathcliff Huxtable but WHO IS?! lol  There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think of him.  Happy Father’s Day, Daddy.  You were amazing in your own special way.  Love Your #1

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Only Me!, That Awkward Moment

Did I really say that?

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I seriously need to be more mindful of how I word things.  This morning, I was talking to my manager and assistant manager, complaining about something the ass. man. (haha — ass man, see what I mean!)  the asst. mgr. asked me to do.  He always provide this assignment in an email instead of excel document and I have to spend 30 mins reformatting.  Well, this morning, I told him exactly how I’d like for him to submit it.  As I complained to the manager, I said… it should only take me 60 seconds to do this but “he likes to give it to me the hard way.”  UGGHHHHHHHH, that did not come out right – so in an attempt to not bring attention to the wrong use of words, I started to talk faster then changed the subject.

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Only Me!

Hotel, Motel, Holiday Inn…

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At my job we have small conference rooms that are called hotels.  Well today, I requested a meeting with someone, he agreed to the meeting and said for me to let him know the time and the location.  I didn’t realize he was unfamiliar with the “hotel” terminology, as it applies to this building.  I emailed back and said, great.. let’s meet 3pm in one of the nearby hotels.  I kept waiting for a confirmation on the time; it took him a long time to confirm.  After 2 hours, he said… “sounds good.”  During the meeting he confessed, my email original confused him.  He said, “you confused the crap out of me.  I thought I was going to have to report you to HR.”  I asked for what.  He said… Ummmm, meet me in a hotel!  LMBO – We have got to change the name of these rooms. 

 Just last week, the receptionist stopped me and said, one of the coworkers called her from Motel 6.  Now this just so happen to be the same coworker that had a makeover on her lunch break.  As the receptionist explained what happened, I was trying to figure out why this chic would’ve been at Motel 6.  I went over everything that happened that day, and thought… was she gone that long.  I asked the receptionist, was she sure it was “Motel 6” and not “Hotel 6”.  She said, well it could’ve said Hotel 6.  lol  So then I explained the whole hotel thingy.  And of course asked ole girl what was she doing at Motel 6.

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Chronicles of Kelsey, Parenting

When it’s okay to say “NO” to an adult.

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I’m so proud of my child for standing up for what’s right, even if she risk getting her butt whipped!

Today, I told her we were going out to celebrate Cinco de Mayo and she could be my designated driver.  She told me, she will not drive me drunk.  That she has her learners, not her license and she can only drive with a RESPONSIBLE adult.  I was really just kidding when I told her that she would be my designated driver but to listen to her go on and on about being responsible made me proud.  I hope she’s just as responsible if faced with these type of situation with her friends.

Thank you God for blessing me with a child that’s so much better than me because Lord knows I needed her to keep my balance!  Now off to celebrate… don’t get me wrong, I’m gonna have 1 drink.  What y’all thought?!

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Chronicles of Kelsey, Parenting, That Awkward Moment

No, No, NO!!!

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That awkward moment when, you take a break from your studies to pour a glass of wine… BUT as soon as you pour it, you hear your daughter that’s in the SHOWER starts to sing… “They tried to make me go to rehab but I said, ‘no, no, no’.” I don’t know if I should drink my wine, pour it back in the bottle or tell her to mind her own.. wait, let me quote Kevin Hart here… mind your own gawd damn…. business.”

BTW: She’s on a Amy Winehouse kick right now. I’m just on wine.

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Schoolin' Life

Weekend Selfie

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It’s the weekend before finals and I’ve been feeling terrible. I got up Sunday morning, looked in the mirror and decided that how I feel on the inside doesn’t have to effect my appearance. After a shower and a little eye liner, my spirits felt a little better.  And back to the books I went… #SchoolinLife

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Chronicles of Kelsey, My Kids, My Life

Let the music play!

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This morning on the drive to drop the kids off, I decided to play some music.  Lately, I’ve been jammin’ “Whodini’s Greatest Hits” so I played “Five Minutes Of Funk.”  I turned the music on , Kelsey reached over to adjust the volume to a level that I could barely hear.  I turned it back up, she turned it down.  I warned her to leave it alone or I would embarrass her, she continued to adjust the  volume.  So we pulled up to the shuttle location, where all the kids were waiting to get on their buses.  As soon as Kelsey got out the car, I let both windows down and blasted the music.  She stuck her head in the air and walked off.  I pulled off and blew the horn a few times as her and her friend walked towards the bus.  I bet next time, she’ll let the music play.

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Parenting

Happy Adoption Anniversary

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Exactly one year ago today, my sister/best friend Jeanie was awarded legal custody of her daughter Lizzie.

On this day, I’m resharing their story.

Lizzie was born with a chromosomal abnormality and has severe special needs. She was abandoned at birth, without even a name. The nurses dubbed her “Elizabeth” and we affectionately call her Lizzie. My friend Jeanie fell in love with Lizzie the moment she met her, the day she arrived at My House at two weeks of age. Jeanie was Lizzie’s devoted caregiver throughout countless hospitalizations, and visited her nearly every day of the five long years she lived at My House. Jeanie and her husband tried to adopt Lizzie in 2006, but through a very unfair and unfortunate series of events, they were denied. Instead, Lizzie was placed for adoption with a couple who abused and neglected her for seven years. Horrible things happened to Lizzie during that time, many of which we’ll never know because Lizzie cannot talk. One of many ways Lizzie suffered is that her femur was broken at the hands of her adoptive “mother.” She now has permanent bone/muscle damage and deals with pain on a daily basis. Lizzie is currently in a body cast, after spending nearly a week in the hospital following a surgery related to her broken leg that was never addressed properly by her previous adopters. Many, many people have let this child down — her birth mom, her first adoptive family, DFCS, and other agencies who should have helped but only caused more hurt. All the while, Jeanie never wavered in her love and devotion to Lizzie. She continued to care for her throughout all of those years when Lizzie had been forgotten by everyone else who was supposed to love and protect her.

But God promises us in His Word that He will restore the years locusts have eaten. In this case, Lizzie’s adoptive mother died, leaving her husband to eventually ask Jeanie to take full custody of Lizzie. Today, many years of heartache and sorrow were finally redeemed. Lizzie was officially adopted by Jeanie and her husband. A whole group of us who have known and loved Lizzie were there to celebrate this joyous occasion. She will forevermore be known as Elizabeth Siubhan “Lizzie” Kirksey, and I am confident that she will know nothing but love for the rest of her days.

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Parenting

It Takes A Village

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Let me tell all my “friends” now, if I see your kid out in the streets doing something wrong, I will jack them up. I do NOT spare the rod. Nor do I turn a blind eye to improper behavior. I was recently in a position where I felt, okay, you’re doing something to put your life in danger. If you’re not dead, I’m going to kill you. If you’re a parent, and you’ve ever really feared for your child or another child’s life, you already know there is no worst feeling than those seconds, minutes or hours that you are in fear. When you realize they are okay, you want to hug them and cry but you’re so freakin mad all you can do is chastise them. BUT at the end of the day, let them know that what they did was STUPID but you love them, you forgive them but if they do it again… well, it won’t happen again because they will always remember that ass whippin’! #SpareTheRod #ItTakesAVillage

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