Ms. Monaghan's Message - August 24
Challenge, Inspire, Empower, Serve
Important Upcoming Dates
Aug. 30: PIE Night (K-5 Parents @ 5:00; 6-8 Parents @ 6:00)
Sept. 3: No School - Labor Day
Sept. 4: 8th Grade Retreat
Sept. 5: Youth Group Begins
PIE (Partners in Education) Night Babysitting
PIE Night Babysitting
Thursday, Aug 30, 2018, 05:00 PM
St. Patrick School Cafeteria
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
Using Planners
If you notice that your child's planner has gone missing, or he/she comes home with a note saying a new one is needed, you can purchase one for $5.00 in the school office.
Building Resiliency
So what can we do?
1. Be caring when times are tough. One caring adult can change the way a child views a stressful situation. Be empathetic, but don't "rescue".
2. Encourage mindfulness. Teach your child to note when he is frustrated and acknowledge it. Don't pretend it isn't there. Stop, saying, "I'm frustrated because....", and, "it makes me feel....."
3. Teach them to problem solve. If your child did poorly on a test, talk to him about what steps he can take to do better the next time.
4. Let your kids make mistakes. It happens. They're human, and they're KIDS! They will forget homework, fail a test, strike out at the baseball game. Allow them to make mistakes, and react with empathy when they do.
5. Allow them to feel their emotions. "I can understand being angry that you failed that test. Maybe we can try a new way to study for the next test. Is there anything different you think you could do?"
Just remember, there is NO shame in making a mistake and there is NO shame in failure. I don't know about you, but I would have never learned many great lessons in life if I hadn't first failed at something. Teach your children that failure is a normal stage in the learning process and that is not the end of the world. Teach them that their response to failure is what decides their character, and that there is always, always, always a way to pull yourself up and start again.
Afternoon Dismissal
- Please do NOT park your car and walk into the building to pick up your child.
- Please do NOT pick up your child early if it can be avoided.
- Please do NOT pull around cars that are loading children on the opposite side.
The safety of our students is the #1 priority, and I know that together we can keep our kids safe at dismissal time.
Mulch is needed!
Please contact the school office if you can help!
September Lunch Menu - Due Monday
The Rosary Project
By the end of the year, every person in the class will have had a chance to pray with the rosary multiple times and our classes will then choose someone to whom they will give their rosary.
We are so grateful to Mrs. Georgia Thomas for making these beautiful bags for our rosaries!
Weekend Mass
If you haven't had the chance to hear Father Matthew speak, you are seriously missing out. His homilies are always engaging and biblically based, and I ALWAYS leave mass feeling restored and energized for the week ahead.
Even more importantly, setting a habit of weekend mass attendance is so good for our kids. If your family is like mine, you spend much of your weekend running from event to event and by the time church rolls around, you just want to stay home! Yet, bringing your children to mass each week reminds them to always make time for God in their life and that attending mass is an important part of our faith.
I hope you will take some time out of your busy week to come to mass, rest, and be restored for the week ahead! Check out the video below to see what you have to look forward to when you attend mass. Believe me, you do NOT want to miss out!
Birthdays This Week
What I'm Reading
This week, I began the book "Make Your Bed" by Admiral William H. HcRaven - U.S. Navy Retired. It's a short book, which is always nice for me during the school year, full of inspirational things you can do to change your life..."and maybe the world". One of my favorite quotes came in Chapter Two:
" If you want to change the world, find someone to help you paddle."
I don't know about you, but my "tribe" is what keeps me going and motivates me to be my best each and every day. Life is hard. As parents, our worlds are a constant juggling act trying to balance work with family and often feeling like no matter what we do, someone gets the short end of the stick. It's hard to give your all at work, and watch your family lose out on precious time with you, or to choose family first, and then suffer the consequences at work. Some days it feels nearly impossible to get everything done during a work day, run kids to practices and other activities, make dinner, ensure homework gets finished, clean up around the house, and connect with your spouse before crashing into the bed at night.
No one can go at this life alone. We all need someone to help us "paddle". This chapter really spoke to me, because I find it so important to reach out, find my people, create a tribe who I can talk to on those rough days, who will remind me that I am ok, and will balance the negativity I place on myself with the positivity that truly surrounds me.
"Make Your Bed" is full of easy reminders that you can do daily to truly inspire and bring out the best in you and those around you!
Transitions
When my kids were younger, I committed to raising them to be close. There were four of them in four years, and people knew they were a package deal. "The Bees", they called them, or even "The Monaghans". Whatever it was, our "tribe" has always been very close, very connected, and very strong. I wouldn't have it any other way.
Except now, they're graduating one after one and leaving home to fulfill their dreams -- as I've always inspired them to do. I have always encouraged them to find their "thing", that one thing that makes them happy and makes work seem less like work. The good news, is so far, they have done it. They've made good choices and good decisions, and I couldn't be more proud.
So what's the problem, you ask?
Me. I am the problem. Because while my Bees have done it and have left the nest to go fulfill their dreams, and of course I am SUPER proud, my heart is also breaking. Our tribe, for the first time in 20 years, is separated and not living under the same roof. Two important members of Team Monaghan are living on their own and learning to take responsibility for their own lives. Meanwhile, I'm sitting here praying day after day that they make good choices and that the world is good to them.
What I've learned in the last week is that transitions are hard. In the days ahead, your child may come home from school and cry. He may make a mistake, forget his homework, have a problem with a friend. As a parent, it hurts when our kids are struggling. But it's important to remember that there's a very high chance that any emotion that our kids are facing this time of year might just be due to transitions. They're tired, they're nervous about a new class, new teacher, new year, and sometimes that magnifies small problems.
When I left my daughter standing in her dorm room today, knowing that for the first time in her life, she wasn't going to live under my roof, I didn't see an almost 19 year old. Instead, I saw the little curly blonde hair, blue eyed girl with freckles on her nose that stood about 3 feet tall and dreamed of being Hannah Montana. I remembered every transition in her life, some good, some bad, and every time I had to talk her down from an emotional day. And in the perfect full circle moment, there I stood with tears in my eyes, begging myself not to full-on ugly cry, while SHE comforted ME.
Transitions are hard. It's a new year and it takes a minute to work out all of the kinks. Be patient, email your child's teacher if you have a concern, but understand that easing into this transition might just take a minute. And during that minute, it's okay if there are a few stumbles along the way.
St. Patrick School
Website: stpatrickkc.com
Location: 1401 Northeast 42nd Terrace, Kansas City, MO, USA
Phone: (816)453-0971
Facebook: facebook.com/St.PatrickKC
Twitter: @StPatrickKc