I needing to remind myself to 'focus' all day today.
A result of what's happening in my state today.
I need to remind myself to 'focus' today.
I'm not sure what to 'focus' on first.

Where do you find your focus?

I've been reading quite a few blogs lately and it's clear we are all ready for sunny warm weather minus the snow. It's comforting to know so many of us are feeling the same and have the same concerns, a connection of sorts.

I've been trying to keep my head down around here lately. It all started when we moved into the school district a few years back. Many parents seen us as the outsiders, crazy liberals from out west. I attended our schools PTO meetings with enjoyment. Volunteered not only ideas but my time beyond what the board had seen before.

I soon began to hear rumblings from the PTO board. Perhaps having a parent volunteering for so many things was uncomfortable to them? I was hearing things like I was doing too much. My ideas were big 'out west liberal' ideas, 'we were only a small school therefore they wouldn't work'. End of discussion.

What they didn't know: I grew up in this very area. Our move was a move back to my roots, our family homestead. I indeed did know many of the less active parents because we attended school together. The school district we moved from was a small school district within a small farming community much like the one here. My ideas were not from a over populated misconception of CA they had seen on reality TV. They were ideas from other small schools around the nation.

Many parents outside of the PTO circle watched what was happening and stated they 'had my back', 'supported the small group of parents who were trying to make small changes'. However, when the time came those same parents were no longer there. They had become frustrated in the status quo. They were done. I volunteered to end my involvement with the PTO and focused on my kids education inside the classroom as well as extra curricular items not offered in the school.

Fast forward four years later. The PTO is on the verge of shutting down due to lack of parent involvement. The current board claims they are ready to walk away. I have parents calling me to discuss the previous nights meetings. How they and their ideas were treated. They ask of my past experience dealing with the PTO as well as my personal and professional advice on how to handle what is happening.

I'm keeping my head down. It doesn't mean I don't sympathize with what is happening or don't applaud the parents who are trying to make changes despite repeatedly being shut down. It just means I'm keeping my head down and holding my heart a little closer these days.

I'm concentrating on ensuring my kids classrooms are all they need to be, the teachers are focused on ensuring my children get the education they need and involving my kids in extra curricular actives no longer deemed important according to the schools budget. I'm keeping my heart a little closer these days.

Thanks for listening.

It's happened again ~ I've got people around me on the left side and some on the right side of the debate but I'm looking at things from the middle.

I seem to find myself in the middle more often than not. It's a blessing and a curse all in one really. Why is that? How is it that some always find the courage to look past the rhetoric and find the true source of the issue instead of jumping on the quick fix bandwagon? Many times more than I care to mention the people truely affected are not acknowledged when all are in a rush to impose judgements or changes and this always stops me from picking a side. I now know this is the reason why I was never part of the 'in crowd' or 'popular girls' in high school.

My state is in utter turmoil this week and I find myself standing on the sidelines wanting to jump on to the field in an effort to bring the anger down a notch; perhaps even get both parties to acknowledge the underlining fear issues but I know I will get trampled by both sides of the argument. There is just too much anger on both sides. I fear politics and many other things in our lives have been turning into this type of situation lately right down to the local PTA.

My little passive aggresive voice has been sneaking up onto my shoulder and whispering into my ear more often than I care to admit. I wonder if this is how the revolution started in Eygpt ... lots of passive agressive voices whispering into all the ears of the people helping them to find courage, helping them to realize waiting for their leaders and controling business zars to do the right thing is no longer an option.

Do you hear it in your ear?

This year will be our first venture into outdoor 'summer' sports in our community. Both my kids are very enthusiastic about playing baseball (T-Ball) this summer so we signed them up for community leagues. We were told our registration was the last they were accepting - they have been swamped with kids in their age groups.

When dropping off our registration info I was expecting to see a practice schedule, game schedule and coach information but nadda. Checked their website and they posted the game schedule a couple of hours ago but we still haven't been contacted by a coach for either child's age group. I find it odd that the games are posted to start in less than 3 weeks yet we still haven't been told the practice schedule. Is this normal or am I just an over organized parent who believes in running an organization or company not by the seat of my pants?

Another looming question is how often will we be subjected to 'those' sideline parents who are living out their sports dreams through their children? We've all seen them played out in the media - the parent who screams at the coaches and umps or worse yet their kid from the sidelines not to mention the ones who actually pick a fight.

I know ... I know - it's for the kids and I will be there with camera in hand to capture every proud moment. I just can't help having this sinking feeling. I hope I am wrong. I hope my kids have the time of their lives and as parents we can enjoy the moment.