#celebratelu Quotes of the Week

This week I have "written" less than usual, perhaps because I was trying to cram two work-weeks into one to prepare for "Spring Break"!  Yet, this week was filled with words that etched my heart. So, I call this, "Quotes of the Week."

1) "Would you like to take some books to read over the vacation?" I asked.
"No thank you," she said politely, happily and confidently, as she skipped out of the room without looking back, "I'm not going to read a single word over the vacation. Not one single word!"
"I've still got a lot of work to do on that one," I thought to myself as I silently made a plan to hook her in with Pinky and Rex after vacation.  

2) "I'm gonna miss you on vacation," he said as he reached in for a bit of a hug, clutching a well worn copy of Danny and the Dinosaur in his other hand.  I looked at the book knowing that I would likely never see it again; yet, hoping, beyond reasonable instincts, that this child might just take a treasured book that he could now read on his trip.  I really was hoping that just maybe we wouldn't lose the progress made recently.  "Don't worry, I will try to read for 1 minute every day, even if I might be kind of busy surfing, sailing, swimming and playing video games," he assured me!
"A minute is a start," I thought to myself as he skipped out of the Reading Room!

3) "The kids were purposefully busy and happily engaged in meaningful activities," he commented.  "It was like they went for a 25-minute reading-writing work-out!  It was kind of like going to the gym, with some build-up, some really hard work, but with a feeling of great accomplishment at the end."
"That's exactly what I want them to do," I responded happily.
"It's too bad you don't burn calories doing this kind of a workout 9 times a day," I thought to myself as I skipped out of the office!

4) I've been reading Ruth Ayers 40 Stories, a series of posts that come from her heart, filled with stories of real family life with its ups and downs, pulls and pushes. This week, she wrote a post that was certainly earmarked for me as I have tried, not always perfectly, to balance my own hopes, dreams, wants, needs and those of the people in my life.
At the end, Ruth reflects,

                "I'm learning life, when lived to the fullest, is almost always 
                a moment away from unraveling. 
               We live at the tipping point between pure chaos and pure blessing." 

As I look ahead to my own week "off," filled to the brim with cleaning, cooking, raking, doctors, dentists, audiologists, lawyers, play-dates, shopping, errands, walks, and a day-trip to meet new family and friends, I thought to myself, "I really am blessed."