Leah's First Day of Pre-K

The morning started with 2 or 3 less presses of the snooze button. I got myself ready, then woke Leah up. She was resistant at first, but the next thing I know, she is barreling down the hallway with her "first day of school dress" in tow. After brushing teeth and hair, donning the new clothes, and eating breakfast, it was time to go to school.

After signing her in and getting her name tag on, it was time to find her cubby and drop off her Elmo backpack and her jacket.

A few minutes of looking around and watching the other kids and the teacher was shooing us parents out the door. I hugged and kissed my little girl and told her good bye and to have a great day. She was, essentially, kicking me out!

Just when I thought I had made it through the ordeal without losing it, the teacher's aide, Mrs. Seltz, handed me a little baggie with a bright yellow note attached. Inside the baggie was a tea bag, a single kleenex, and a cotton ball. The note read: "Thank you for entrusting your child to me. I promise to do my best everyday to be your child's companion in learning. After you have wiped your tears, make yourself a nice warm cup of tea. Put your feet up and relax. Then hold the cotton ball in your hand. The softness will help you recall the gentle spirit of your child. I will work alongside you this year to help your child grow."

Needless to say, the single kleenex in the bag wasn't nearly enough!

In loving Memory of my Memory

I have always been amazed with Ryan's ability to remember stuff. Not the location of his keys or why I just found his wallet in the fridge (seriously)per say. But he does remember the majority of his teacher's names all the way back to kindergarten. He remembers classmates names, tiny details of a restaurant that we ate at on our 3rd date, what clothes either or both of us were wearing when such and such happened. To me, it really is a phenomenal thing because I have very few memories of my childhood...or maybe I have them but the mechanism my brain needs to find them isn't working...not sure what the problem is...but it has always been an issue for me...and something that has been a bone of contention between Ryan and I more often than you might expect.

Its weird, really. There are lots of bizarre things that I do remember with vivid clarity. For example: The reason I know what SCUBA stands for (self contained underwater breathing apparatus) is because there was an episode of "The Facts of Life" in which Joe, I think, was studying for a test. She also had to remember some of the chemical abbreviations. For Gold, the trick she learned to remember it was "A U ! Give me back that gold watch you just stole!".

Why should this information get top billing in my brain and squeeze out the important stuff like when Leah has a Doctor appointment that I promised to be at but forgot? Doesn't seem right, does it?

I am also pretty good at remembering where I saw things. So, when Ryan asks "Have you seen my watch?" I am actually able to see the whole snapshot image in my head from when I was walking past the refrigerator earlier in the day and did not even realized that I had seen and say "Yeah, actually...It is on top of the fridge next to the playdoh container and behind the carpet spot remover." And then in the same day i can find myself leaving work only to realize I totally forgot a really important thing to do?!?!

I mean, I guess I should be grateful for being able to remember anything at all. When you think about how amazing it is that we hold and carry all of this information inside of us all the time, it is quite humbling. It certainly wasn't me that created such an amazing being..I'm just along for the ride.

I can not tell you how many times I have gotten up from my desk at work and started walking down the hall way only to realize that I have no idea where I am going or what I intended to do when I got there. The worst part is that it will inevitably come back to me the moment I sit down at my desk...and then it starts all over again.

But lately it seems I've been forgetting and/or screwing up more and more things. I recently schduled a work trip which falls on the same day as my parent's in law 60th anniversary party. I made long and extensive plans to meet friends in Boston...only to realize I'd written down the wrong date and ended up missing the whole weekend. I've been losing my keys, misplacing my purse...just this morning I allegedly threw a $1500 piece of diabetic equipment ( i say allegedly because I don't want it to be true) into the garbage and have ZERO recollection of doing it! I've gone to the store with one thing in mind and come home with 10 other things but no the one thing I wanted.

Its really starting to bug me! Anyone have any advice?