Day 11 - The gift of a dream

When I was little, a trusted family member told me that I couldn't sing. I was bummed to hear the news and even though the cassette recorder said otherwise, I chose to believe him. I moved forward with Piano lessons, became one of the best piano players my teacher had and didn't sing until I became a Girl Scout Leader. Unfortunately, I started singing by default. None of the moms wanted to teach our girls scouts how to sing the Brownie Smile Song..so guess who had to teach it to the girls. Yeah, me! So...there I went. Me and my "bad" voice. As the parents watched, I didn't see the same reactions as Simon, Paula and Randy when they have a really bad contestant on American Idol. In fact, no one started cracking up, making faces or covering their ears (because there is a way to do this very discreetly without making a scene). It was then that I began to think the what if...what if the trusted family member would have said something positive or encouraging? What if? The problem with what if is that it's always the what if. You never get a chance to figure out the what if..you don't get to dream the possibility because you never know what could have been with that what if. Some people go their entire lives chasing the what if, being miserable and sad about that what if. So..for my RAK, I decided to give the gift of a dream. The gift of you can do it and the gift of why not! Three gifts all tucked into one. A mom called me and I told her she could do it. She could move to a new place with her family and survive. Another mom called me about starting school..and I told her why not, go for it! And when my daughter asked me if she had a great singing voice..I told her that it was awesome to me..and that with singing lessons, she could be great! She walked up the stairs singing Ain't No Mountain High Enough. A song that her 2nd grade teacher taught everyone in the class to sing. Until tomorrow, offer the best RAK ever..the gift of a dream, the gift of hope and the gift of yes, you can!

Day 10 - The truth and nothing but the truth...

I guess I've always known this but have chosen to ignore the obvious..but a good teacher really does make a difference in your kids life. For my oldest son, it was his 5th grade teacher. He opened his world up to Science and Math, taught him life lessons that he still quotes to this day and encouraged him to love learning new things. It was during this year that he committed himself to being an Honor Roll student and an out of the box thinker. My son is in 8th grade now and along the way, he's had some amazing teachers that have encouraged him to read, taught him to run and believed in his abilities that he skipped a whole year of math last year. So..for my RAK, I decided to thank his 5th grade teacher for all that he had done for my oldest son. I told him how much he meant to my son and how thankful his dad and I were for the inspiration and encouragement that he gave to our oldest son during his 5th grade year. It certainly made a difference and to this date, my son continues to be in Honors, getting As and A+s on his report card. Better write that now..because we just got back his College prep Geometry test on Friday night and it wasn't pretty. Until tomorrow..thank you child's teacher for everything positive that they have done for your child. It will make them smile and let them know that they have made a difference in a child's life.

Day 9 - Pay It Forward

I remember watching the movie on HBO several years ago and thinking what a great idea it was to Pay It Forward. I didn't like the end of the movie (I like happy endings), but the stuff in the middle was inspiring...well, at least the idea anyway. So on Sunday, I asked my entire Religious Education Class to get involved and complete some RAKs over the next few weeks. One student asked me if he HAD to do it..and I said, "yeah, it will make you feel good". So for the next few days, make an effort to make RAKs a part of your daily schedule. It really will make you feel good.

Day 8 - Making the zzzzs count

We have a rule at my house. The kids get ready for bed around 8 p.m. and after all of the questions about tomorrow, telling my pre-teens to brush their teeth twice (because you know they didn't brush them the first time) and making their beds because "they can't reach that corner to pull the sheet", it's time for mommy and daddy to get ready for bed. Part of that ritual is trying to fall asleep before my husband does. If I get to sleep any later than a milli-second, I am toast (not real toast..but in big time trouble). Last night, I fell asleep more than a milli-second too late... which means that I didn't get to bed before hubby. 10 seconds later, the Snore Fest of 2011 started. I tried ear plugs, the old put the pillow over the face trick and then the hand cup against the ear trick..nothing worked. Usually, I bring out the big guns and do this gentle shove, light leg tapping or mild poking routine. It usually works and then it gives me an extra 30 seconds to try and fall asleep before he falls asleep. But last night, I decided to practice the art of RAK. Instead of lightly prodding..I let him snore away. Poor guy is at the height of the Tsunami cold of 2011. He needed all the sleep he could get. So for Day 8 RAK- let hubby sleep without waking him up every minute until I get to sleep first. I never got to sleep, but I did get to update my blog which is so nice because I don't think anyone is reading it ;-). Until tomorrow, forget Day 8 RAK and just poke or gently prod your significant other until you get to sleep first. When that happens..you barely hear the snoring. Here's hoping that you get or got a good night's sleep.

Day 7 - 2 birds with 1 grain

Have you ever heard the saying..killing 2 birds with 1 stone? Well, I got a new one..feeding 2 birds with 1 grain. I know it's impossible to do..if anything, these birds would get mad at each other and probably fight for that 1 piece of grain. But let's pretend it's a big grain, big enough to feed 12 birds. For Day 7 RAK, my daughter and I decided it would be super cool to give our Room Mom some Girl Scout Cookies (Thank You Very Munch) for all of her hard work on being a totally awesome room mom. This mom goes way out of her way to make classroom parties fun and to deliver all communications to classroom parents. She is amazing! So..since my daughter has been out of commission for a while to sell Girl Scout Cookies, thanks to the Tsunami cold of 2011, we gave the gift of a box of Girl Scout cookies. It was all to say thanks and a double bonus because we got to feed 2 birds with 1 very gigantic grain.

Day 6 - RAK begins at home

It's hard not to feel the RAK when your kids are sick. For Day 6..and really Day 6 - Day 16..I've been extra kind to my kids. I'm usually a good mom, but on some days, I get stressed out and get upset with my children for fighting. I think my parents secretly wished that I would get some sort of payback for all those fights in the backseat of the car with my brother. It was seriously his fault that we got into those fights. You see there was an imaginary line that I drew and he always crossed it..with his fingers, his legs, his hands..his face. Most of the fights were verbal, but every now and then..and I'm ashamed to admit this, I got a nice swat in there. So..I think this is one of those Karma things, right? So for Day 6 RAK..I was extra kind to my kids while they were sick and while I was sick. Although I hate having really bad colds, I gotta say, our family really connected during this cold..we bonded as we shared the same tissue box, fought less as the kids got to play video/computer games and ate dinner together...on the couch while watching t.v. so that my daughter would stop coughing all over my dinner plate because no one else would sit across from her. I hope we can keep up the RAK at our home between all of us, even when we're sitting back at the dinner table together and playing a whole lot less video and computer games..oh yeah, and watching less reruns of Pair of Kings, Phineas and Ferb and Big Time Rush. Seriously, I think I know all of the lines for some of those episodes. Until tomorrow..try and create a little bit of RAK in your home...even during those stressful days.

Day 5 - The $1 bill

The dollar bill is in the wallet..sometimes, it comes in the form of 4 quarters or change after buying a small Vanilla STARBUCKS Frappucino. For Day 5, RAK, donate $1 everywhere you go. I did it and it felt good to donate to the Salvation Army, the Homeless Shelter, does tipping the person who makes your Starbucks drink count?..donated to that tip jar too. I guess I should have gone to more places, but that last cold wiped me out..until I picked up a new, awful cold which will go down in the history (of my life) as the cold Tsunami of 2011...with one wave, it knocked down my whole family. I am buying stock in Kleenex and Tylenol..maybe NyQuil too.