Not my week

This week:

I sliced my finger open cutting apples and had to clean up my blood from the kitchen walls, fridge, sink, and counter.

I had to kick two kids out of program.

I ran carnival by myself...and it got rained out.

Two kids fell and busted their heads open.

A kid stuck a bead up his nose.

A mom complained about a towel being on the front porch...and then later apologized about being a "Bitch" in front of her 3 year old daughter.

A kid pegged me in the head with a ball.

And another kid referred to me as "the tan girl who gives us snack

A mom from last week called and asked Kanuga to refund her for her daughter's "birthday shirt" because the Tempura paint won't come off.

A kid peed herself all over the bathroom floor.

And more than one kid stripped in the middle of the Baker Building floor.

Welcome to the Children's Program at Kanuga Conference Center.

"Don't be alarmed if..."

Story time!
So, a few weeks ago, we had what has been my favorite group of kids. They all were really sweet, and most importantly, we didn't have any major allergy or medical issues...or so I thought. You see, on each registration form, there is a big area that says "medical or dietary issues we need to know about". You can't miss it. Really. Now, keep this in mind during the rest of this.
So, one day while walking our kids to the lake, one of our counselors approached a dad and asked him if his daughter (let's call her Jane for anonymity) should take her glasses off to go swimming. He politely told her that yes, she could, but...and I quote "Don't be alarmed if her eye comes out. She has a prosthetic. Just don't let her rub it too much, and she should tell you if it falls out" WHOA. This wasn't on the form! Can you imagine what would happen if I HADNT known and it had fallen out? Do those things float? Luckily, the lake went fine and no eyes fell out of any body.
Now, fast forward a day or two. Our counselors took our little 3-4 year olds on a rather long hike. Jane, falling into this group, was one of the smaller kids, so about half way through the hike, she asked one of the counselors to carry her because she got tired. From the point of where she was picked up to the Baker Building was approximately a fourth of a mile or so...nothing too huge. So, Counselor A returns to the Baker Building with Jane and politely hands her over to the parents. With all of the counselors and a lot of the parents standing around, Jane's mom exclaims, "Honey, where is your eye? It's not in." I COULD HAVE DIED. right there. The next hour and a half, Counselor A and Jane's mom, in addition to half of Kanuga maintenance and staff, hiked the lake trail looking for the eye and FINALLY found it right back in front of the Baker Building.
Anywho, lesson to be learned here. PUT EVERYTHING ON MEDICAL FORMS and read them...you never know when you may lose a fake body part.

Top 5 Things I've Learned So Far

1) Always Be Prepared

Vague? yes. I meant to do that. I've learned to be prepared for any and everything...like being stuck inside for 3 hours with 30 screaming 3,4,5, and, 6 year olds because of a massive thunderstorm. Or like being promoted to Director of your program and being given a week to transition and hire a new assistant director. Cool. Or...be prepared to have a 5 year old who isn't potty trained. According to Mom, "we just haven't gotten to it yet." Okay. Orrrr even being prepared to search for a fake eye around the lake.

2) Sleep. Sleep. Sleep.

I am so beat! Seriously, I chase toddlers around for 8 hours a day and I honestly could go to bed at 8 every night...I'm starting to feel like my mama. I have really learned that you need to take care of yourself in order to do a good job...two hours of sleep really does affect your ability to safely care for kids.

3) It's okay to miss home.

Homesickness has never really been a problem for me. I can honestly never remember a time that I was extremely homesick. This summer has definitely changed things. My family has definitely undergone so extreme challenges in the health department which has really made me want to be home so much. I miss my family, my boyfriend, and my friends so much. I may not get to talk to my family every night, but I really try. I've learned not to take one of them for granted.

4) I'm still a kid at heart. And that is perfectly okay with me.

Self-explanatory I believe. I still like playing with side walk chalk and playing house. I still like making sandcastles by the lake and playing jump rope. So what?

5) The mountains are seriously amazing.

I think it's been established that I don't consider myself to be the "outdoorsy" type. I seriously think the mountains are beginning to change that. On my way to the gym today (that's right...ya girl joined a gym) I seriously got teary eyed thinking about the amazing place I get to work. I see the most amazing sights every day and I completely take them for granted. I feel so close to God here. I see him in everything from the eyes of the kids I get to work with to the lake side chapel to the green mountains I walk through every day. I've loved every minute of it and I can't believe it's half way over. YIKES!

I'll leave you with a quote that my dad said over the phone the other day. Our convo went a little something like this:

Me: "I don't think I'm a diva anymore. seriously!"

Dad: "Baby, being a Diva is all about attitude....you're a diva."

Cool Dad.

Friendly Faces

Here are some of the friendly faces that have been surrounding me these past few weeks, and, more importantly, the faces that have already taught me so much about myself and what it means to be a kid.