And more

My stepdad came to spend a couple of days this week also, arriving while the Lone Star Girl and I were on the road Tuesday and leaving Thursday afternoon. He couldn't come for a weekend so we didn't get to see much of him, but it was nice to get to see him at least some and he got to spend some time with Jazz and with the Lone Star Baby, who adored him. He put a gravel and sand floor in the playhouse he built for the Lone Star Girl years back so that the mud won't be a problem for the Lone Star Baby. She is really loving it. He scrubbed junk off of my toilet and stove that I had never been able to get off, even the time my dad hired a house-cleaner for my birthday one year. And this was his vacation.

My stepdad is an impressive guy. He is the only impressive stepdad I know about, as it happens - most are not only not impressive, but are definitely shitheads. Sorry, but I've been working with kids a long time and that is just The Truth. If, God forbid, anything ever happened to Lone Star Pa, I would not marry again until the kids were grown at least - it is not a safe bet, in my book. Thank God for the exceptions and that I was lucky enough to get one. My stepdad rocks. It was great to get to see him.

The Lone Star Baby enjoyed preparing Dora valentines with M&Ms for her class. She is totally jacked up on candy. Still. The Lone Star Girl navigated her first middle school Valentine's Day with no drama - what more can we ask? I took tiny chocolate hearts to my classes and received a surprising amount of candy from my students - they act like they hate me most of the time.