Last Week

This is the last hurrah of summer vacation! I think I'll only be heading to school on Thursday...a required meeting day for all teachers. Last year it was a bit blah so I'm hoping they have something more exciting planned. Since we don't have a teacher store here, I've ordered all my stuff online and luckily the most important order (my lesson planner) should be arriving on Thursday. The school is still in a bit of chaos due to the construction in the main building. The teachers residing there will hopefully have access to their classrooms tomorrow....but the kitchen wont be ready for at least a week after school starts! So there will be a make-shift kitchen in the the staff lunch room which will displace all the teachers during lunch.......so looks like I'll be calling my room the party place until the staff room is void of the make-shift kitchen. I'm really hoping they will be able to move the laminator, die cut machine, and paper cutter from the computer lab and cafeteria back to their home in the basement of the main building.

Oh totally different subject and a FYI, if you ever find yourself setting off the detectors in the front of stores (such as Target) when you enter AND exit the building....check your jeans! I've been setting off the detectors at all sorts of stores around town not knowing what was setting them off for the past six months or so. Well, today Dennis and I tried figuring out what exactly was setting them off with absolutely no luck!.....until we folded laundry. When I grabbed my jeans to fold them I decided I would take a good look at them to see if there was something on them that would do it.......and sure enough, I found it! On the inside of my maternity jeans, down on the right side there was a tag that said "Remove before wearing and washing".....um I don't ever remember having to EVER remove a tag on the INSIDE of a pair of jeans. And inside that little tag was the little activator thingy to set off the detector and prevent you from stealing them! Crazy, crazy, craziness! So from now on, I suggest people watch out for this tag.....otherwise you'll have to endure the embarresment of setting off the detectors EVERY TIME YOU ENTER AND EXIT A STORE!!!! :)

Big Brother

The B-man is going to be a big brother to a little sister!!!!!! J and K found out this morning and when they called to tell us the news I was in tears before they even said what they were having! Then when they said it was a girl, the tears just came pouring out.....like big crocodile tears as Nancy would say. It would be exciting no matter what they were having, but since we're both having girls within weeks of each other, it's even more exciting!

Congratulations you guys! Dennis and I couldn't be happier for you!

Workshop Day 2

Same old, same old. It's unfortunate that the workshop was so blah. I was really hoping I would get a lot out of it. So today I headed down to school to put up a new bulletin board for the hallway. I wanted to make a swing with monkeys swinging on it, but it wasn't turning out the way I wanted so I made two trees and connected them with vines. Then I put the monkeys swinging from the vines with books in their hands. The caption down below then reads "Swing into Reading!" I should have a picture of it by the end of next week. In the meantime check out the pictures below:

Here is Dennis's quilt design! Isn't it super neat!

Okay, so here is my belly at 25 weeks. The picture turned out a little blurry and I'm extremely sleepy! I was actually ready for bed (contacts out, teeth brushed) when we realized we hadn't taken a picture yet. So I threw on my glasses so I could see where Dennis was standing and so I wouldn't look cross-eyed!....This is one of the very few pictures (if not the only picture) that anyone will see me wearing my glasses!

Workshop Day 1

A little disappointing I would have to say....although, there is one day left for me to change my mind. I've gotten some good ideas from today but time just dragged on and on. I really hope tomorrow will be a little more fast paced and energetic.

Tonight I made red beans and rice and it was really good! Maybe a little too spicy for me but pretty darn good over all. Dennis found a recipe online the other day and we thought we'd try it out. Next time I think we are going to add shredded chicken or something like that AND I will try not to make it as spicy. Odd thing is that sweetened ice tea worked better at cutting the spice than chocolate milk! You should try it sometime! :)

Fabulous Weekend

My dad and Chi-Sai came over this weekend to visit us and my baby belly. We had an awesome dinner at a local brewery and then went to the horse races the following day. Now I have never been to a horse race in my entire life and I had an absolute blast! It was sooooooo exciting and even though we didn't win any race, we still had a terrific time. I can't wait to go to another one!

Officially, there are only 2 weeks before school starts. I'm kinda not ready to go back but I have 3 workshops in the next two weeks and they ALWAYS seem to get me excited for school to start. I'm especially looking forward to the Kim Sutton workshop. Her workshops focus on Math and fun ways to get the kids into it and remember basic skills. It's going to be so much fun!!!! Tomorrows work shop is on differentiation and should be pretty good.

Today I worked on getting my chaotic room under control. I put all my desks back where they should be and located a missing bookshelf. I also ordered classroom materials and got some really good deals on the Scholastic website. I probably should head back down on Thursday to come up with a bulletin board of some sort. Wish me luck!

My Quilt

Isn't it bright! I just finished the top today and began working on the design that Dennis came up with. His will take much longer and require a longer thought process. Oh and I just finished making a peach pie! We're taking it over to a friend's house for dinner tonight. I can't wait!

Happy Birthday Nancy!!!!

I would like to wish my friend a very happy birthday today! As I began to write this post, I realized I don't have any pictures of her! So I searched her blog and found this picture that captures her oh so fun and happy personality! Because of the lack of photos and since she is the photography queen, it is my goal to get some crazy and wacky pictures of her before school starts! He he he. She is a blast to hang around with and I hope she has a wonderful birthday!

A Crib, A Crib, A Crib!

Today we got a crib!!!!...and changing table!!!! One of Dennis's co-workers has a friend who was selling her old crib, changing table, and rocker.....so she asked Dennis if we were interested and after seeing the pictures of it, we couldn't say yes fast enough. We got a great deal too! It's exactly what I'd been looking for!....white, sleigh style with a drop-side. I'm just so excited about it!!!!! Plus, it's two big ticket items we can cross off our list! Woo hoo!!!!

Water Kitty

So this is what Big Kitty likes to do when she sees a big container of water....she played in that water for over 20 minutes today! I've never seen a cat who likes water as much as she does. In fact, if you turn the hose on, she'll chase it just like a dog! She's always been crazy about water...even when she was 8 weeks old! Dennis and I thought there was a hole in her water dish, but then we saw her one day playing in it. Therefore, her water dish has been located in the bathtub ever since.

Ooooo

I swept and mopped today!!!!! Tomorrow I will design a quilt for our little girl.

Wish me luck!

His and Hers Quilts

On Friday, Dennis and I went to the fabric store to pick out quilt material for our little girl. Well, the first one I chose Dennis didn't care for so he decided we would just have to make a daddy quilt and a mommy quilt. I'll post pictures as soon as I finish them. Although, we haven't even designed them yet so it'll be a while before there done.

Oh and on Thursday night we were able to SEE when our little girl kicked my stomach! It was so cool and bizarre at the same time. I can't wait now till she sticks her foot out and keeps it there for a bit. She's kicking so much now too! Last night it felt like she was beating me up and I couldn't get to sleep! She's so cute!

one down, a million to go

As I said the other day, I dedicated today (Wednesday) as a cleaning day. Well, I actually didn't clean as much as I needed to...but rather am doing one or two things a day to keep me busy. For instance, today my goal was to vacuum and I accomplished it quite nicely. I also organized some drawers in my closet and changed the sheets....bonuses really. Tomorrow I will either tackle the shower or sweep and mop. Oh, and I must get to my DVR'd stuff...I have days worth of shows recorded and must watch them BEFORE school starts otherwise I'll never keep up with new seasons starting!!!! Ahhhhh!

Scan Scan Scan

So, as this was my first official day of vacation, I registered for baby stuff. I spent about 2 hours at target and then another 2 hours (at least) at various other online sites. I just love registering....not because I want people to buy us stuff...but because I feel so powerful with that little scanner in my hot little hands! Super, super fun!....And if anyone out there does not like registering, I would be more than happy to assist.

Today we saw the baby doctor too. He said our little girl is growing exactly at the rate she should be and everything looks really good. In about 3 weeks I go in for the glucose tolerance test. It's where you get to drink this oh so lovely (and super sweet) orange drink and then wait in the office for an hour to get your blood sugar tested. Imagine drinking an orange soda that has 5 times the sugar.....mmmmmm, so appetizing isn't it?!

Tomorrow I think I will do the dinner dishes from tonight and then return a few things at the mall. Afterwards, I might catch up on some DVR shows. I'm reserving Wednesday for cleaning....I'm so looking forward to it.

TTFN

Smokey the Bear

We went to visit the B-Man and family and boy, oh boy was it smokey!!! We've had horrible fires around here and had to drive through them to get to the B-Man. It was so bad that you could barely see the river and in some parts, you could still see the flames burning. They say that the smoke could stay around till October, that is, if there aren't any new fires during the fire months...August and September.

Smoke and all, we still had a wonderful visit. We took Brady to this awesome park with a small water park (sprinklers and such). It was so fun to watch him play in the water! He also had a great time running all around and up and down the structures.

J and K had a super incredible surprise for us when we arrived. First, the door was covered with a HUGE banner that said "baby"....way cute! Then when we walked in the door, their dinning room table was COVERED with super cute baby gift bags......all for our little girl! They are always super sweet, caring, and thoughtful people...but this was even over the top!!! They picked out the cutest little girl clothes and practically tripled our little girl's wardrobe! We are so appreciative of all that they have done for us. Thank you guys!!!!!....Brady too!!

Cold A** BBQ!

Oh my goodness! We practically froze during our BBQ today! If the cold weather wasn't bad enough, we also had to put up with heavy mist and freezing cold winds! Thankfully, I convinced one of our people to make a coffee run....it totally saved all of us and warmed our frozen bodies. However, the kids didn't seem to mind. Oh, and the hot dogs took a while longer to BBQ than expected so we didn't get back to school until 12:05 (school gets out at noon)! Tomorrow will be nice. It's PJ day and we are going to watch a movie and then have our prize drawings.....a very nice way to end summer school.

Give it a try!

So Dennis and I have tried a really great cream soda and root beer made with honey. We heard about it on Food Network and recently found it at our local co-op. If you haven't tried it already....you should totally do so....or you can order it from www.specherbrewery.com

Oh, by the way, Steve (our hedge) got another hair cut today. It's not as bad as the last time, but still, we don't like it short. I ran over (or rather hobbled) to the neighbors to let them know we (all the neighbors) like Steve to be tall. They said they completely understood and weren't going to cut him that short....true, they didn't...but they still cut him!!!!!!

Chili Festival

Mmmmm....chili! Tonight Dennis and I went to a chili festival....actually, it was more like a chili cook-off. We got there just when they started so we were able to sample most of the chilies. We'd always talked about going in years past, but we just never got around to it. And now I'd have to say we'll make it an annual event for sure. It was a lot of fun (we met our friends there) and had our own little judging event after every sample. Some lacked flavor and some had way too much (cumin specifically). There was one that had either apple juice in it or apples.....I think that was one of Dennis's favorites. Then we tried this one cooked by the Allstate team that tasted pretty good, but the more you ate the spicier it got until you just couldn't eat anymore without tears streaming down your face....okay, I may have exaggerated that last part a bit, but it was pretty darn spicy! Unfortunately, the last one we tried had WAY too much liquid smoke and we were unable to finish it and all I could taste for the next 20 minutes was liquid smoke....eeewwwww. And imagine eating all this chili without something to drink! So while everyone was listening to the band (a pretty good one at that too), I was on a mission for something (anything) to drink. I found it about 2 blocks away at a little Mexican restaurant. I bought the biggest fountain drink possible!!!!....and gulped away until I couldn't gulp anymore! We had so much fun! I just can't wait for next year....although, in the fall we'll be heading to the apple festival!!!

We have power!

Several weeks ago, PG&E sent a letter saying the power would be out in various locations in our town from 5:30am to 4:00pm. To prepare, Dennis and I did laundry yesterday and planned to be out of the house most of the day. Well the power was turned off at about 6:45am and the house was eerily quiet. Without power I wasn't able to make the usual Sunday pancakes and cereal just didn't sound that great....however, we didn't leave the house until 10:30ish (empty stomach and all) and I wasn't very pleasant to be around. So we decided to check out a baby store 20 minutes away, but wouldn't you know it.....it was CLOSED.....but it was to open up at noon. So at 12:20(and after some much needed food) we headed back to the store....and it was still closed!....so we gave up and headed to our other destinations. Today felt like a marathon day of shopping!!!! We went to every baby section in all the stores we went to and checked out all the adorable girlie stuff. We got some pretty cute things...including some summer dresses for next year that daddy picked out :) At about 6pm we were completely exhausted!....and we just wanted to go home and have dinner. But when we walked in the door, we didn't hear any fish tank motors running or any flashing clocks!!! So I quickly put our refrigerated stuff in the fridge as fast as I possibly could and we decided to head back out (argh!) to find some dinner. Thankfully, when we returned (a little after 8pm and with 2 bags of ice for the fridge)the power had finally come back on!!! Woo hoo!!!! It was such a long day for both of us and we are just exhausted.....in fact I'm having much difficulty typing correctly.....so I think I will head to bed now.

Good night.

Journey to the Center of the Earth

So this movie is entirely in 3D! It's pretty cool and the theater we watched it in had stadium seating (it's been years since we've been to a theater like that). Our little girl must have enjoyed it too because she was kicking up a storm practically the whole time!

Next week is the last week of summer school! On Thursday we are going on a fieldtrip to the local park to have a BBQ and then on Friday we are having a movie and PJ party! Then the countdown really begins for back to school. I have so many things I need to do to get my room ready for next year! Way too much paper work to organize! Anyone have an industrial shredder to loan me?

Happy Friday!

So Beautiful!

Isn't she beautiful!!!! We so can't wait to hold her! Our sweet little baby girl!

It's A Girl!!!

Yup! We're having a healthy baby girl! We are so excited!...and the ultrasound tech was 100% sure that we're having a girl! I'd have to say close to 90% of people we talked to said we were having a boy, so for the past few weeks Dennis and I both started to think maybe we were having a boy......so it kinda came as a real shock to hear "It looks like your having a girl!" The whole right side of my face was soaked in tears (I was looking to the right you see) and I had to control myself so I wouldn't completely start sobbing away! We have some ultrasound pictures and as soon as we scan them, I'll post them. :)


A girl, a girl, a girl!

Summer School

Before I dive into S.S., I must vent on how much I can't stand summer road construction! I'm totally over it! Last year it started the day after school got out and didn't stop until November! We were reduced to ONE lane on a busy freeway, which gets really, old really quickly. This year I thought "Hey, what could they possibly do?" Oh, the horror....and I thought the ONE lane was bad. For the last week of school and for the several weeks that followed, MY EXIT WAS CLOSED!!!!!!! So either I had the choice of taking the exit beforehand and going the back roads - or - I could take the exit past mine and loop back around on the freeway.....either option is annoying.....especially since I still have to work. So earlier this week I thought I was out of the woods....well, my on ramp was closed today! So, so, so annoying! I just wish it would be over....like a band-aid....just rip off in one quick motion! Now that I have vented, I feel much better...thank you.

So, summer school. I have the most amazing class! They work sooooo quietly and are incredibly helpful....especially 2 of my fifth graders. They are more than willing to work with a younger student who is having trouble with their work. I'm just so thankful for them! I think today was only the 2nd time I had to ask them to quiet down during working time....that in itself (during summer school nonetheless) is amazing! Next week is out last week of summer school, and although I'm happy to begin my summer vacation, I will truly miss my class.

Until next time!

20 Weeks

Here's the latest picture of my belly. I will be 22 weeks on Wednesday, which is the same day as my ultrasound!...we're super excited to see the baby! Yesterday was the first day a stranger asked me my due date. It was pretty neat, but she was a bit odd...nice, but odd. She said she had 4 kids and she looked my age...crazy!

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July. Dennis and I went to 2 different street fairs and had some really good food...rice with peanut sauce and plantains, meatball sandwich, and a BBQ tri-tip sandwich....ooooh not to mention the fabulous caramel apple! Since we had such a late lunch, Dennis ended up eating Cheerios for dinner and I had yogurt! We tried to watch our local fireworks, but they set them off really low so we couldn't see them....oh well. I absolutely love 3 day weekends! It so feels like Sunday, but it's totally still Saturday!!!...it's awesome!

Oh, I got a really good beverage recipe from my Rachel Ray magazine. You take raspberries and blackberries and blend them up, add sugar to taste, and strain. Then fill a glass with ice, add club soda and pureed juice to taste, and viola'! It's pretty tasty I have to say...very simple, but tasty.

Well, I will try to post more often than I have been. I've been such a bad blogger!

Corn Dogs, Curly Fries, and Caramel Apples

If you hadn't guessed it already, our fair started today and these were the foods that I was craving (actually I crave them most of the time, pregnant or not). Unfortunately, this fair is rather on the sad side and thank goodness we went today because we got in free....otherwise it would have been a ridiculous $10 each! The food was all that I had hoped for, although, I'm saving the caramel apple for dessert later....mmmmmmm.

Summer school has begun and I'm very thankful we get out at noon. My students are working very hard and are extremely quiet! I'm totally not used to that! I think they may spoil me! I have a wonderful class with quite a few kids enrolled. In fact, every grade level has a higher enrollment than last year....especially junior high...their numbers doubled this year compared to last year!

So Dennis planted a garden last weekend...he's such a hard worker...and oh so cute! Anyway, he planted corn, tomatoes, lettuce, chives, cilantro (yuck), watermelon, cantaloupe, another blueberry bush, and zucchini. I hope they all grow well...we'll just have to wait and see.

Baby is kicking quite a bit now. I'm 20 weeks today (half way there) and my next ultrasound is July 9th. I have a belly picture to post, but it is locked away in my camera as I have been too lazy to transfer them to the computer. I've really got to get on that. Oh, and the majority of people we've talked to say they think I'm having a boy...so we'll see!

Have a great day!

Mmmmm

All I have to say is Blackberry and Peach pie!

Even Better the 2nd Time!

So yesterday on my day off I went to watch the SATC movie again with my friend. It was my second time and her fourth.....and I tell you, it was even better this time than the first!!!! I so can't wait until the DVD comes out....I really hope they put TONS of bonus stuff on it too!!!

While out gallivanting around with my friend, we went into a store so she could look at some wedding dresses. Well, while we were there (and in the middle of a conversation) I completely starting freaking out because I saw a purse that I haven't seen for over a year! I'd seen in once while Dennis and I were on vacation and always regretted not buying it. I even searched all over the internet with no luck at all! So after a while I just gave up......so when I saw it in the store I was beside myself!!!! I called Dennis right then and there and he said the most wonderful thing, "Well, aren't you going to get it?" So of course I squealed and snagged it back up off the rack. It is a small iridescent white beaded purse with a round silver (metal) handle.....really it's not my style but I just love love LOVE it!!!! I'm taking it to work with me on Monday!

Back to watching my adorable husband play the Wii Fit!

Crunch Time

So much to do and so little time!

Project

I have a project that I don't think I'll finish. I haven't even started it yet. I know what I'm going to do and how I'll go about getting it done, but that's about it. My procrastination has taken a hold of me and I just can't shake it loose. I thought today would be a good day to begin because (unfortunately) Dennis has come down with a cold and while he's napping, I could work....it didn't quite work out like that. I started laundry and took my time while shopping at Target. Then, I was craving potato salad so I had to make that....which took FOREVER and didn't taste exactly how I wanted it to. Afterwards, I began going through Sex and the City withdrawals so I retreated to the bedroom (while Dennis napped) to begin Season 5, disk 2. After that it was dinner and dishes and rice pudding....which I kinda found revolting but Dennis seemed to like it. There will be a lot of leftovers for him then. Now it's blogging and soon my 16th week belly photo. I promise I will have one up soon.

So, until tomorrow and another day of procrastination.

Absof***inglutely!

It was absolutely fabulous!!!! I loved practically every minute of it!!!! There was only one issue I had about the relationship between Anthony and Standford....I was a little puzzled when I saw that. It felt like a really long episode which was exactly what I wanted it to feel like. Although it had quite a few more dramatic (sad) parts than I expected. The show was completely sold out and there was only 2 men in the entire audience! There was a lot of laughter and squealing and all together excitement! I can't wait to see it again!!!!

Only 25 hours 10 mintues to go!!!!

I'm talking about SEX AND THE CITY you silly people!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I so can't wait to see it!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It has been really hard (especially the last 2 weeks) not to read, hear, or see anything about it. And I really have to be careful if I watch a show that I didn't DVR because the previews are EVERYWHERE!!!!!!! Ooooooo! I was on the radio today!!!! They asked people to call in and give their opinion of all the hype......so, I called in!!!!! I was sooooo nervous but I said I was a huge fan and talked about how I went to New York and went on the tour, I own 2 copies of the complete series, a book, and a trivia game. The DJ then asked why I thought people liked the show and I said it probably has to do with the variety of women and situations on the show, plus we can live vicariously through the girls!!!! He asked if I thought a lot of men would be dragged to the theater and I told him no because this is a show you gather your girlfriends around for and watch....no men allowed (except for you JT$). After I told him I was seeing it tomorrow night he said he wanted me to call in on Monday to give my review.....and I think I totally will!!!! I was so jazzed after I hung up that I called Nancy and Barb so they could change the station so they could listen to me (as they are not country music radio fans). Thankfully when they played it on air, I wasn't all squealy as I can get sometimes....I was just more on the really excited and lively side of the spectrum. Anyway, tomorrow is the big day and I just can't wait!!!! I hope I'll be able to sleep tonight.

Brady Weekend

We went over to see Brady and Co. this weekend. He's getting so big!!! I think Dennis said he was 34 inches tall....and he's only 15 months! Surprisingly, it wasn't incredibly hot over there. I was expecting it to be in the 90's but it actually rained and was pretty cool......therefore, I didn't have to wear shorts!!! Woo hoo! No one needs to be exposed to my blinding white legs if it can be helped. Kelly and I went maternity clothes shopping on Saturday. I ended up getting a blouse, 2 pairs of jeans, and shorts (I may not want to wear them, but there will come a time I MUST wear them to avoid heat exhaustion....and for that I apologize....just remember your sunglasses if you are with me). It's kinda weird because maternity pants fit me so much differently than my other jeans. I'm used to them being form fitting (but definitely not that painted on look)....I guess you could say they hug my curves. Anyway, maternity jeans are a little bit looser everywhere....so I feel like I'm in sweats and not jeans.

Because sweets make me queasy, I haven't been baking at all! However, someone who will remain nameless but teaches the only straight 4th grade class at my school, gave me Amish bread starter.....And who do you think gave her the idea that I LOVE that starter and don't have anymore of it as of 5 months ago...and need some again??????? Why the only Kindergarten teacher at my school who hatched ducks that is!!! See, no names. :) So anyway, I made two batches of the stuff today.....2 loaves and 22 muffins. I saved 1 cup in the fridge so I can make waffles next weekend, 1 cup of regular starter, and the rest you ask????......down the sink. Really it was because I didn't have any 1 gallon ziplock bags and I didn't want to go through the hassle to find someone to take the rest off my hands. I completely understand why Nancy is against the stuff.....it's like rabbits.....it just keeps multiplying!!!!!!!

There being taken away!!!!

Ducks I mean!!! The cute little ducklings in Nancy's room will be no longer come Friday afternoon!!! Two were taken to a good home yesterday and I almost cried!!! Only three are left and they are soooooooooo adorable....but very VERY messy I do have to say. Poor Nancy has had to clean up after them and the bigger they get, the bigger their mess gets! Oh, you should see them swim too! Super cute!!! Nancy brought in a little kiddie pool and they just swim and peep-peep all around it!!! The kids are so fascinated by them and just love them!!!...I mean come on, who wouldn't? I so wanted Dennis to see them, but as they got bigger and more adorable, I just knew he would want to take one home! I used to have a duck growing up. Her name was Daisy and she was a Mallard duck. In the winter she flew away and then when spring came she came back! But I do remember how messy she was! Our driveway was always a mess and had to be sprayed off all the time!!!!.....that is why I don't necessarily want a pet duck again. Anyway, I'm going to miss those ducks (sniff, sniff). I just have to look forward to next year.....I hear it'll be chickens.....I just might take a few of those home!

200th Post!!!

I can't believe this is my 200th post already! Remember my exit issue yesterday? Well, because I had a baby dr. appointment this morning I was able to take my time with the blasted exit and finding my way to school. This time, I just let the road take me where it must and I eventually ended up where I needed to be. Tomorrow I may take the exit BEFORE the blasted one because I don't think I'll have to take any funky turns.

Baby is doing well and has a strong heartbeat. We'll be able to (hopefully) find out the sex of the baby around the third week in June. It seems so far away! But by then, I'll be half way through my pregnancy.....and in that respect, time has flown by!

Oh my...

It's all Monday's fault! Today was....well...just one thing after the other. It started off by me taking a different exit off the freeway (because I thought mine was closed) and then realizing, I had no clue where exactly I was going or if I was even going in the right direction!!! Frustrated, I flipped a U-ie and took my regular exit (thankfully it was opened). Then it was kinda just one thing after another so by the time I got home I felt like I'd been run over. Not by a steamroller (I wasn't feeling that flat), I think it was more like a gianormous SUV......maybe a Hummer? Thankfully, tomorrow is just a little over 4 hours away!!!! Plus, I actually have a good lunch tomorrow...cous cous (today I brought chips and nacho cheese.....I don't think I'll be doing that again any time soon).

Best wishes on this maddening Monday!

I tried, honest!

I totally tried to blog yesterday, but for some reason it wouldn't let me post! It's been sooooooo hot here!!!!!....in the high 80's to low 90's for some places. Now to the average person this might seem like a wonderful temperature.....well for people who are used to the highs being in the 60's, we're melting!!!!! The students at my school were dropping like flies because it was so hot! I live in jeans weather, not shorts weather and my white legs prove it!!! Since I'm starting to show, I have no shorts (of the 2 pairs I own) that fit, nor do I have any tank tops that cover my baby belly! So I resorted to staying indoors as long as possible on Friday to avoid the heatwave directly. It didn't quite work as well as I'd hoped.....and I've realized my annoying little headaches that I've been getting for the past few days are coming from the heat. I had a gnarly one today, but a few minutes after we were in the wonderfully air conditioned store, it had gone away!!! Woo hoo!!!

So Dennis and I went to the annual Coast Guard yard sale today. It was mediocre and I didn't see anything I couldn't live without. Then we went up to the farmer's market. We had breakfast at a bar (yes, it's odd, but it was really good and inexpensive) and then strolled through the plaza. I was really hoping for some fruit or something, but it's too early in the season for that yet. My mouth is already watering for the peaches that will show up in July sometime!!!

Until next time!

Baby Bump

I'm at the stage in my pregnancy where my jeans don't fit and to the average Joe I look like I have a bit of a gut. However, to those who know I'm pregnant, it's like "Wow! I can tell your pregnant!" It's quite exciting but I feel a little self conscience in public because I don't want people thinking I'm just fat.....I think I need to wear a button that says "It's baby belly, not belly fat." Whatever. I'm just really excited I'm starting to show!!!!! And I'm even more excited because my sister-in-law (Brady's mom) is having another baby!!!!! She's due January 2nd which puts me about 7 weeks ahead. It's so very exciting!!!! We're gonna go maternity clothes shopping on Memorial weekend which is going to be a lot of fun! She knows where all the good spots are!

STAR Test Day 2

Completely chaotic! The second grade began their testing and I was in complete panic this morning because I couldn't find my testing manual in the principal's office.....and since he wasn't there this morning, no one knew where it was! This immediately put me and bad, BAD mood. Then my students' teacher didn't have their test, so I had to go back up to the office to figure this whole f*#@&^* thing out! Finally, I found them in a little pile on the floor in a corner. Relieved, and in a better mood, I was able to gather my children and give the test. In the second grade there is a LOT of verbal instruction!....and I forgot how tedious it can become. It was also frustrating watching students just fill in bubbles when you know if they took the time to actually read the passage, they might do okay. Anyway, tomorrow is a new day and I just hope it'll start off a lot better than today.

STAR Test Day 1

Yup, it's that time of year again....and it sucks, for everyone involved. One of the things that the kids love about taking the STAR is that they can chew gum. So you have rooms filled with peppermint and wonderfully sweet artificial fruit flavors! Because I had some 4th graders in my room I didn't get to take lunch until 12:20pm....an hour later than normal. It really isn't that big of a deal, but I didn't get my scheduled snack, and you know what happens when a PG lady doesn't get her food. I survived my munching on trail mix. Tomorrow, I will be prepared!

Cake Batter

Mmmmm....cake batter! That is the new Ben and Jerry's flavor we bought today. It is really good. It even has that floury consistency that regular cake batter has. Plus it has a chocolate frosting swirl! Dennis felt it overpowered the yellow cake batter taste and although I kinda agree, I really liked how chocolatey is was.

And that's about it.....for now.

Tootles!

Bad Dinner

Today I had (or rather, still have) a headache. It started around 3pm and has just kinda lingered on like a bad hangover. Anyway, it was in full swing while I was making dinner (fajitas) and the bell peppers and onions were making me nauseous too.....so I wasn't cooking with "love" as Dennis likes to put it. He said he could tell because apparently I had left on the thin skin on the outside of the onion that never cooks and has the consistency of paper. He also said it was on the bland side, which makes since because I really didn't taste anything as I was making it. I felt bad, but being the wonderful husband he is, Dennis said that's just gonna happen from time to time and I make so many other good dinners that it really doesn't matter. Isn't he so sweet?! I think I'm making pasta tomorrow night so I know I can't screw that up! :)

Costco Cake

So the day before my horrible neck injury, I bought a birthday cake at Costco. I bought a white cake with an apricot filling. I read the label SEVERAL times to make sure I was getting what I wanted.....a WHITE cake with APRICOT filling. Anyway, I called Nancy on Tuesday afternoon to complain about my neck and ask how my questionable tortellini salad was. That was when she informed me that carrot or spice cake wasn't her favorite. Puzzled, I asked what she was talking about and she said the cake was a carrot cake!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was so upset, frustrated, annoyed (you get the picture)!....and I was so glad I wasn't there because I probably would have been even more annoyed. So I called Costco to tell them about the incident and (thankfully) they said if I brought in my receipt they would give me a refund. On Saturday, I got my refund and ended up ordering another cake for 2 birthday celebrations on Monday at school. This time they got it right and it was wonderful!!!!! It actually was the first time dessert tasted good and I didn't feel like I wanted to yak it right back up! :)

As for Nancy's suggestion, I will start posting belly pictures as soon as it is obviously baby and not just a beer gut. :)

Baby Makes Three

Yup, it's true! Dennis and I are having a baby! I've known since March 7th which has made blogging oh so difficult! I'm eleven weeks and due mid-November. My original due date was November 11th, but the ultrasound I had at 6 weeks put me at November 19th. We are so excited!!!! My morning sickness began on Good Friday ( at the post office to be more specific). All of a sudden I felt like I was going to get sick all over the guy....luckily, it didn't happen. Working has been challenging especially since I didn't tell them until last week. My students must think I'm crazy because I'm always eating something while teaching to avoid (or get rid of) that horrible queasy feeling. The last two days have been somewhat better. I haven't felt as queasy and it seems to go away a little faster. But enough of that....I'm just so excited I don't have to keep this a secret any longer and I can shout it from the rooftops!!!!!

Pain in the Neck

Literally that is what I have....a pain in the neck!!!! I woke up Tuesday morning around 5am with a sore neck. Slowly, I moved my head to readjust it and then WHAM! I was in total pain and could not for the life of me move my neck!!!! Freaking out, I didn't move hoping it would settle down...but oh no. Around 5:30 I got up (which took like 5 minutes) and got an ice pack. I iced my neck for about 30 minutes and then tried desperately to get some sleep....that didn't work out so well. The alarm went off at 6:30 but I couldn't reach it to turn it off. Finally, I scooted over far enough to turn it off and realized there was absolutely no way I was going to be able to go to work. Annoyed at having to use a sick day, I told Dennis the news. Then I realized, I WAS IN CHARGE OF BRINGING A BIRTHDAY CAKE TO SCHOOL THAT DAY!!!!!!!!!! So slight panic mode set in and I called Barb (the first grade teacher) to ask her to pick up the cake and my pot luck contribution. Because she is so wonderful, she agreed. The rest of the day was a blur... full of pain and discomfort. However, I was absolutely certain through the miracle of sleep, that I would be feeling good enough to work on Wednesday.....wrong again! I almost attempted it, but Dennis said I was crazy and there was no way I could drive in my condition. Disappointed that he was right and furious at taking another day off from work, I stayed home. Desperate times call for desperate measures........enter the CHIROPRACTOR!!!! Chiropractors completely freak my out and I had only been to one 12 years prior (I only have a vague memory of it). Anyway, my neck popped so loud and so many times that I wound up just laughing on the table because there was no way all that came from me! Then he put these heated electrode thingys on my neck and shoulders, which felt really good. I felt pretty good the rest of the day and not so stiff when I woke up the next morning (Thursday).....so I headed off to school, thank goodness! Friday was pretty good, but today is not fairing out so well. I got a Chinese massage from the mall guys and I felt pretty good for a while but then I developed a bad headache and was getting all stiff again. I have another session with the chiropractor on Monday and I hope that will help. The worse thing is I haven't been able to sleep very well AT ALL!!!! I'm starting to feel a little cranky.

Thank you Sashi!

I must thank Sashi ( an elementary school friend and the first vegetarian I met) for pickle sandwiches! She introduced them to me in 7th grade and I have loved them ever since! It was such a strange combination at first and I thought she was crazy. But then her mother was making them for me and I knew I needed to let my mom in on my guilty pleasure. I never ended up making them as often as I wished (as I didn't have the ingredients), but the pickle sandwich has never left my mind. Within the past several years, I've switched to buying pre-sliced pickles which has saved a LOT of time and prevented funky thicknesses. Well, today I decided to have one using the only white cheese I had, shredded mozzarella. This cheese difference didn't seem to make one bit of difference because it tasted as good as I remember. So good in fact, I began to dance while eating it......I didn't realize I was doing that until Dennis asked me if everything was okay....and why was I dancing. I concluded it had to be the deliciousness of my pickle sandwich to cause the dancing. So, if you want to do the "Pickle Dance," then make a pickle sandwich.

*Two slices of bread (one if your making a half...but why?...you'll end up making a second have anyway because the first was so good)
*Enough sliced pickles to cover the bread (dabbing off the liquid will prevent icky soggy bread)
*Mayo and mustard
*Lettuce (if readily available...I go without most days)
*Jack, Provolone, Mozzarella, Munster, or any other white cheese you like....EXCEPT processed....that should never EVER go anywhere near a pickle sandwich!

Assemble: bread, condiments, cheese, pickles, lettuce, bread......and ENJOY!!!!

Bad, Bad Blogger!

I know, don't tell me....I've been a very bad blogger recently. What with Brady visiting and work, I just haven't had any desire to regurgitate what's been going on......But today, I have gained back my....my...whatever it is that makes me ( or anyone else for that matter) want to blog.

We had so much fun when J, K, and B were visiting. We went to the park, zoo, and beach. We ran out of time for the mall, but that's okay. We were very lucky because we had one of the sunniest and warmest weekends this year! It was so beautiful which made going to the beach all that more fun! Brady just loved stomping around in the water and only fell down once! The zoo was fun too, but it was close to nap time and the B-man wasn't too interactive with the animals or us for that matter.....but Uncle Dennis made his day with a stuffed fox. It was rather cute and the look on his face when he got it was priceless!. So here are a few pics from our weekend!

I'm so handsome!

I wonder if this flower is edible?

Look! It's the Donny Darko bunny!

Awe! How sweet!

It's MY big stick Aunt Cindy!

Coming Soon

J, K, and B may be coming over this weekend. They have a few kinks to work out, but I'm staying optimistic. There is 3 things on their to do list while they are here:

1. Go to the ocean.
2. Go to the zoo (Brady's second zoo visit).
3. Go Brady clothes shopping!!!!

I'm pretty excited about #3 because children's clothing is always so adorable, but #2 is going to be pretty fun. The B-man seemed to like the zoo last time and now that he's older and more interactive, I'm sure he's gonna have a blast!!!!....along with the rest of us!

New Flavors!

To our surprise and delight, Dennis and I discovered two (yes, TWO) new Ben and Jerry ice cream flavors. One is yellow cake batter with a chocolate frosting swirl and the other is brownie cheesecake. We bought the brownie cheesecake and it is quite good....mmmmmm. It's always so exciting to find a new flavor! It kinda feels like Christmas! Woo hoo!!!

Garden

Yesterday and today Dennis planted our garden. He mowed, weed whacked, and rota tilled a new garden spot. He planted a dwarf Fuji apple tree, 2 blueberry bushes, and 12 strawberry plants (from our friends Nick and Becky...thanks!). He still has 2 thornless (yes, you read correctly) blackberry bushes. I'm really excited about them.....I've never seen a thornless blackberry bush EVER! I hope the berries are good and produce a lot!....I'm totally craving a blackberry pie.

Happy April Fool's Day!!!

I wish I could come up with really cool stuff to do to people on this day, but I can never think of anything to do....so I always end up helping someone else out. Today we made our principal think no one was showing up to the staff meeting by going to a different room. I'd say it was about 70% effective. We weren't all there yet and one of the staff was going to tell him we were all heading up to the county office for our meeting. But just that fact that no one had shown up so close to the meeting time, came as a big shock anyway. It was really all Kris's idea (the 4th grade teacher) I just helped coordinated it with the primary staff and our guest presenter.

Well, it's off to clean the fridge (it's trash day) and to watch a movie.

Best Mini Golf Game...Ever!

Today on the way back from Y-town (which we had a blast), we stopped by the Family Fun Center to go miniature golfing and so Dennis could race on the go carts. I had my best game ever!!!! On the last 9 holes I actually scored under par which brought my total score to par....I've never done that before!!!! I had a rough start with some holes in the 7 stroke range....but then I pulled through! Dennis had a good time with the carts. He was the only one racing which was kinda funny when you watched, but he thought it was pretty cool.

My sisters b-day part was really fun. Lots of people showed up and it was really nice hanging out with my brothers and sister.....and Dennis too! My oldest brother made 2 pies...walnut (which is very much like pecan) and blackberry. They were both pretty good, but the blackberry was absolutely AWESOME!!! I wished I would have grabbed another piece to save for later.

Well, it's back to work tomorrow. It'll be nice getting back to the grind of things. Happy Monday......and remember tomorrow is April Fool's Day!

Final Day of Vacay

Today I lost track of time by watching my much loved SATC (Sex and the City) series. It was so relaxing getting lost in the world of Carrie, Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte. I watched season 5 disk one and am already longing to put in disk 2. I can't wait for the movie to come out, but I am desperately trying not to read, see, or hear anything about it.....you could say I'm like those famous monkeys.

Tomorrow we hope to go to Y-town. Although, Dennis isn't feeling that well and there is a storm coming in. So I don't think we'll make up our minds until tomorrow. My brother and my sister's husband are throwing my sister a birthday party on Sunday. I miss going to family birthday parties, so Dennis suggested we go. So if I don't end up blogging for the next couple of days, Y-town is probably where we are.

Have a great weekend!

Trees

As my wonderful husband pointed out, I forgot to tell you about our new trees! This weekend (Saturday to be specific) we went out to get 2 trees for our naked front yard. I didn't think it was going to take as long as it did to pick them out. I went there with a pretty firm idea of what I wanted, but couldn't find it. Then when we found a tree that was very similar to what I wanted, Dennis didn't really care for the shape of the tree and I didn't like that it cost $72!....EACH!!! So after going back and forth, BACK AND FORTH, we decided on 2 crabapple trees. They are very pretty and have very dark red leaves and trunk. I even think that they will have pink blossoms which I so desperately wanted! We planted them that afternoon ( and when I say "we" I mean Dennis did most all of the work). I helped by watering the trees and adding cocoa mulch......and if you've never used cocoa mulch, I suggest to go NOW to your local nursery and pick yourself up a bag or two. It smells sooooooo good....just like chocolate chips!.....It took all I had not to nibble on one of those cocoa nubs. Mmmmmmm. Anyway, they look so pretty and we can't wait till they get bigger! I envision Christmas lights in them this year!

Day 2 of Vacay

It felt like I did a lot more today than yesterday, but looking at my kitchen and living room, it appears that I did less! I was able to deal with the stupid WaMu issue in 5 minutes by visiting them in person. I really should have done that in the first place. Anyway, I went to Target and then almost took a nap. Instead, I went to Carie's and we went on a walk. Caleb seemed to enjoy it because he fell asleep pretty quickly. Then I spent the next 30 minutes or so on the phone until Dennis got home. So I guess even though the day went much faster than yesterday, I actually didn't do anything around the house like yesterday. What will tomorrow bring, I wonder?

Day 1 of Vacay

1. Woke up at 9:30

2. Ate a cream cheese and jam bagel

3. Watched "Cat People" while paying bills online

4. Called Dennis at 11am

5. Took a shower at noon

6. Emptied the dishwasher

7. Called lame a** WaMu

8. Called Dennis at 1pm

9. Called Carie

10. Ate some macaroni salad

11. Bought strawberries at Safeway (onion breath and all)

12. Had a yogurt and some strawberries

13. Vegged on the couch until Dennis walked in the door around 4:30pm

I have a feeling tomorrow will follow much of the same pattern. Although, instead of getting strawberries, I have to get tortillas and make an appearance at WaMu, Los Bagels, and the Post Office. Woo hoo!

Hoppy Easter!

I hope everyone enjoyed their Easter celebrations. We had a gorgeous day followed by some unexpected rain. Because I didn't make brunch, we had breakfast for both breakfast and dinner. Waffles and eggs this morning (actually I was the only one with an egg...on top of my waffle too!) and biscuits, gravy, eggs, and REAL bacon this evening. Normally I buy the microwave bacon, but today I thought we'd splurge and eat the real stuff. Along with our normal Sunday chores we dyed Easter eggs. So very fun! I then proceeded to make macaroni salad and a deviled egg for myself. I love most anything that calls for a hard boiled egg and I would make them all the time if it wasn't for the horrid smell. Actually, I don't mind it so much, but poor Dennis practically yaks at the first whiff of them. So I only make them on Easter.

Enjoy the day!

It's Finally Here!

The Other Boleyn Girl has made it to our tiny town!!!! I'm so excited, but am afraid I will be disappointed as I most always am if I read the book before the movie. To avoid this I've realized if I know a movie is going to be made I will watch that FIRST then read the book. This way I avoid any disappointment.

Open house went well. I didn't have any "cup" incidents but I did have some accidental visitors. They were looking for the sample Math textbooks that were looking to adopt for next year. I did also have some students wonder in to say hello and one who wanted me to buy some coffee for a fund raiser for the eighth grade trip. Oooh, this Thursday was also the day we finished The GATE Gazette! I'm so proud of my students and so so happy we finished on time! I need to try to figure out a way to get it on my blog. I may need to talk to Nancy about this.....I think she may know.

Well, off to buy some trees!

St. Patty's Day

So yesterday I forgot to blog.....Yes, I know it's a tragedy, but I'm back tonight. St. Patty's Day had all the kids bouncing off the walls! I think they were even more hyped up than on Valentines Day! I, along with Nancy, had way more sweets than usually.....I think around 4....but due my sugar rush, I cannot be completely positive about that. I also spread the rumor around in a certain 2nd grade classroom that I saw a leprechaun (it caused quite a ruckus)....but I really and truly did! Then a leprechaun caused all sorts of mayhem in Nancy's class.....(s)he got glitter EVERYWHERE, knocked over cereal, got footprints all over the room, and messed with all of the student "Leprechaun Traps" looking for gold.....I wonder what kind of leprechaun could have done such a thing......hehehe.

Today we worked on The GATE Gazette. I really don't think it'll be finished by this week.....it would be nice, but I don't think it'll happen. But I've realized that it is OKAY if it doesn't get out until after spring break. It's our very first one and we had a lot to do.

I have to go to a student site council meeting tomorrow and I'm a little nervous about it. I haven't been before and I really hope they are not going to ask me any questions. Then, on Thursday, we have Open House. This is another day where I sit in my room (all by myself) and watch people walk by.....I just hope I don't have another "cup" incident.

Don't Forget

Don't forget to wear green tomorrow (otherwise, you'll be pinched into a bruisey mess)!....It's St. Patrick's Day after all. Not sure how the students will be tomorrow.....I think they'll either be no different from last week or over the top with excitement. The trouble with not working on Friday's is that I can't judge what Monday will be like.

Oh, don't forget to stock up on some Guinness or green food coloring!

Nothing Much

Nothing much has been going on, except I got a haircut on Friday and I don't think I like it too much. It's like the picture day haircut.....in fact, she really didn't take much off. I think we had a communication issue and she didn't quite understand what I wanted. Maybe it's because most every time I see her, she's cutting guys' hair.....plus she talked WAY too loud....I don't know what was up with that. Anyway, I don't think I'll be going back.

Our friends came over with the baby tonight. We had Chinese and then oohed and awed over the baby. He's smiling now and has recently discovered his hand makes a good pacifier.....just adorable.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Girl Scout Cookies

This is the season for Girl Scout Cookies if you didn't know already. It is always around the end of February that I begin to have a strong craving for them.....thankfully, they arrived on my desk Monday morning!!! I ordered more than I should have, but I can save them by putting them in the freezer (like that'll actually happen though).

The GATE newsletter is coming along. We don't have as much in there as I would like, but oh well. I really hope we can get them out by next week.....it'll be close....otherwise, it'll have to wait until we get back from spring break on the 30th.

Off to enjoy some GS cookies!!!!! Mmmmmmmmm.

Math Adoption

We went to the county office of education to further research math programs to adopt for next year. I didn't really need to go since I'm not a classroom teacher.....yet......but I wanted to know what they were thinking and what program(s) I would be assisting with next year. Ideally, we are supposed to adopt a K-6 program, but the needs and wants of primary is totally different from the middle grades. So basically primary wants one and middle grades wants another. The whole process really sucks and is stressful.....but then again I'm looking at it more from an outsider point of view.

Anyway, Dennis and I are going to watch No Country for Old Men. It should be pretty good.

Buh, bye!

Happy Birthday Brady!

Today is officially Brady's 1st birthday! It was a great party and Brady got to munch on his own personal cake (above). Kelly made it from a diabetic cake recipe. It really didn't taste very good but we didn't think Brady would have a problem with it. Kelly also made some diabetic frosting and it was really bad so the boys picked up some 50% less sugar frosting at the store....it was actually pretty decent. It was really fun to watch him play and eat his very first cake. The day was beautiful and warm....perfect for a birthday party. And now I will leave you with some pictures.

Cautiously testing his cake...........

Okay, this is good AND fun! (Frosting ended up on the wall by the time he was done)

The cutest cowboy in the world! And yes, that is a real roppin' rope and cowboy hat!

Brady's Birthday Party

Today we are celebrating Brady's 1st birthday!!!! His actual birthday isn't until tomorrow, however, because of leap year, he is 365 days old today! You see, it all works out. The boys are out buying a sandbox and sand for his birthday. Kelly is putting the B-man down for a nap and then we are going to decorate the house. It's all very exciting and I can't believe he is a year old already! They just grow so fast!

Don't forget that tomorrow we set the clocks an hour ahead. This is a bitter sweet event for me. I love having more daylight, but loosing an hour wrecks havoc on my system.....thank goodness it happens on a Sunday rather than Monday. Can you imagine if we changed them on Monday? It would be complete chaos! Okay maybe not complete chaos, but things would definitely be more wonky.

I Finished!

Last night I finally finished The Constant Princess. It was soooo good and I can't wait to read other Gregory books....but first I must read Shakespeare's Secret for my GATE novel study class. I passed out all their class assignments today and some of them didn't get their first choice on the first class offering and they were whining like babies and asked if they had to go to the class. It completely irked me that they said this. I specifically told them if they didn't get their forms in ASAP, they may not get their first choice. And of course it is those who never get their stuff in on time that it affected and complained about it......but enough of my griping.

Tomorrow Dennis and I will be heading over for Brady's 1st birthday party!!!! We are really excited and can't believe he'll be a year old on Sunday! I still remember when we got the call (or voice mail rather) that they were headed to the hospital....and when I called them back he had JUST been born and were handing him to Jonathan!!! We were bummed we couldn't be there for his delivery, but we left at the butt crack of dawn the next day to welcome our beautiful nephew into the world.

Off to pack and what not. Hope y'all have a great Friday!

Bad Case of the Monday's

No post yesterday because I had a very bad case of the Monday's. It seemed like I hit one obstacle after another. The first thing I discovered yesterday morning was that my desks were raised WAY too high.....too high even for me. Now can you imagine a little first grader working at a desk like that? Talk about torcher for all parties involved! Then I had a note from my principal that made me feel like an idiot and I didn't know how to do my job. It basically came down to a misunderstanding, but I'm kinda concerned that he really thinks I didn't know what I was doing.....but I really do! Then I had a teacher tell me something about a student that kinda grated me the wrong way. By that time (10 minutes before school even started) I was in a very VERY foul mood. It was so bad that I ate in my classroom all by myself because I didn't even want to be around people, let alone be social....I really didn't even want to be around myself! Thankfully when I called my husband on my way home, he brightened my god awful day. He had one of his coworkers answer the phone and tell me that he "Henry" had taken over my husband's job. Dennis does this all the time, but has never had this guy answer the phone before. He was so good and kept it going without any hesitation that I was laughing so loud and hard I thought I would need to use my inhaler! And then when I got home and we just chilled out together, it was like my whole day just melted away and I was a completely a different person. Thank you honey.

Today, even though it was as long as hell, was better. I subbed for a 3rd grade teacher while he gave his 4th graders the STAR writing assessment. I was plunged into a world I haven't visited in a long, LONG time. Of course I have been in and out of classrooms (almost everyday) but I haven't subbed in a very long time. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I long for the day when I have my own classroom. With the current state budget, I'm concerned on how long it will be till that day comes.

I hope tomorrow will be another good day. I'm not wanting perfect, I just want good.....I'd maybe even settle for fair.

Happy Tuesday!

New Cell Phone

We braved a new cellular store and were successful! This time the sales people (a young guy and an old guy) were so friendly and helpful. When he looked up my information he ran into the same problem, however, we was able to figure it out within second. I told him I wished the other lady at the store in the mall could have figured it out as easily. Then I told him everything that happened. He felt bad and thought maybe that person was new......but when we described her he was like "whoa," she's been there forever! We were so thankful that this guy was so nice....especially since I was being very indecisive. I decided on the same brand (Samsung) and chose function over style. The other phone I liked was a slider and looked better, but since it was shorter and didn't have a curve when open like a flip phone, it wasn't as comfortable against my ear. The really cool thing about this whole process was that they were able to transfer all of my contacts from my old phone to my new phone. That alone saved me at least a couple of hours! I really hope this phone lasts longer than 2 years....I really don't like having to buy new ones.

The warm chocolate cookies are calling my name....plus, the squeaky space bar on my laptop is starting to annoy me. :)

A New Light

Dennis successfully installed a brand new dining room light today! However, remember how I hoped he would do in unscathed.....well, it almost happened. Everything went just fine when he was in the attic and when he was working in the dining room....until he dropped a screw. The screw landed over by our fireplace, so naturally he bent down and picked it up. Sadly, he forgot about our mantle and hit the top of his head on it! So hard that it knocked him out!!!! Now (poor thing) he has a gnarly red bump on his head. But now we have a beautiful new light over our dining room table. It's so weird, but it's so awesome too! I just love, love, love lots of light!

Yesterday a small piece on my cell phone broke off shortly after I hung up with Nancy. I have a flip phone and the piece that broke hold the phone together while it flips open and closed. Now, when I open it it's all crooked and I have to hold it together. So we went to the cell phone store to get me a new one.....but we encountered 2 problems. One, I didn't really like any of the cell phones available and the ones that I kinda liked were really expensive. Two, the sales lady was completely rude! We were basically told to leave the store. It all started when she was looking up my information to see if I was eligible to get a new phone. After I gave her all my information including showing her my ID, she said there was nothing she could do for me and I needed to call customer service. I asked her why and she said she couldn't give me any information. I asked her if she could recheck the info I gave her and she kinda just shook her head and said she couldn't do anything. I told her I was confused and I didn't understand what exactly was going on and she again said there's nothing she could do.....But this whole time she was so rude! Her tone of voice was mean and she didn't even attempt to fix or look into the problem! It turns out (after I was on hold for 15 minutes with customer service) the zip code needed to gather my info was from when I lived in Ashland 6 years ago! When I had moved from there they had to cancel that phone and issue a new phone number.....so I have 2 accounts when you pull my info up. The crazy thing is that it took maybe 5 minutes for the customer service rep to figure everything out.......and she was sooooooooo nice about it all! She also said that if I go back to the store to buy a phone and they run into the same problem, I need to tell them to look again because I have 2 accounts. Oh, she was so helpful and I totally appreciated it in my frustrated and pissed off state! So tomorrow I will head to a different cell phone store to hopefully buy a new phone.

Peace out!

Bummer

Today The Other Boleyn Girl came out in theaters today, but, we didn't get it at any one of our theaters!!!! Such a bummer! Nancy was really bummed to because I was going to tag along with her and her in-laws. Now it looks like we won't get it for a couple of weeks! Bummer, bummer, bummer.

So I (or rather Dennis and I) did the next best thing....we went over to our friends house (Chinese food in tow) to hang out and see baby Caleb. We had a really great time and the Chinese food was really good. We brought home the leftovers and I'm totally going to inhale them.....not TJ's BBQ inhale, but close enough.

Tomorrow Dennis is going to work on installing a new light fixture in the dining room. I'm really nervous because I don't want him to get hurt or even worse, fall through the ceiling!!! Wish him luck!

.......

To be continued.......

Funny Story

But first some background information:

First, if you didn't know already, I have a fear of snakes (not as bad as my mother's though). I can be in the same room as a pet snake, but I like about 5 feet of space (at least) between me and the snake....the distance gets much further if it is a real snake....you know, one found in nature.....I don't want to be anywhere near one AT ALL. Second, the second grade teacher at our school as a room full of animals like lizards, birds, and snakes. All students may hold the animals as long as they are kind to them....this happens all throughout the day.

Now, the story:

I was walking down the hallway about 15 minutes before school started. It drives me batty to have kids hanging out in the hallway (a school rule, not just my craziness) so I am constantly reminding them to head outside or be in a classroom with a teacher present. So today I approached a group of boys to tell them they needed to go outside. Well, I had stopped about 2 inches from one of the boys (whose back was to me) and then he turned around and was holding the snake!!!! It totally freaked me out and I yelped and jumped back. The boys got a good chuckle out of it as I walked away as FAST AS I COULD....I hid out in Nancy's room. Anyway, I walked down the middle of the hallway to go to my room after the bell had rung and the same boy (still holding the snake) was walking directly toward me. I veered right to get as far away from the snake as possible and the boy (seeing my discomfort) moved to the other side of the hallway too. This was a very sweet move and thanked him several times. When I told the second grade teacher what happened she thought it was so funny.......she has also witnessed my freakouts when faced with a reptile.

Freaky I say.

First GATE Newsletter Meeting

Today we held our very first GATE newsletter meeting. I chose a representative from the 4th, 5th, and 6th grade. We (or rather they) hashed out what should be in the newsletter, how long it should be, and who will do what. They came up with great ideas and seem really dedicated to the project. For the next week, the will also be working on a name for the newsletter and a motto.....The motto thing was their idea and I thought it was absolutely fabulous! I'm so interested in what they are going to come up with. We plan on having our first issue go out at the end of March. The newsletter will basically be made up of current GATE classes and how they are going, up coming events (both GATE and school wide), a photo section, and a fun page that will include crossword puzzles, jokes, games, and a contest. They also want to have a section for questions and comments....this too I thought was awesome. I told them that this is their project and I am only there to support them and give guidance when needed. I also let them know they will be on the committee until the end of school. I thought about switching kids around, but since it's so new, I wanted to get a strong foundation for the newsletter before having a variety of kids write it. As soon as we have a finished copy, I'll have to post it. I'm just so excited about this project and can't believe I didn't think of is sooner!

All in all, another great and busy day!......So busy that I didn't get home until 5:45 and we didn't eat dinner until 7pm!!!!

Glad to be back at work

Oh, it was so nice to be back at work today! I'm feeling better and actually had something to do for the first time in almost a week! I hope this will help my sleeping because last night (due to my inactivity from being sick and without Nyquil) it took me forever to fall asleep and stay asleep! However, my day was packed!....which means I should be pretty tired by my bedtime. Also, I got my scholastic book order in today and added 3 more books to my list of books to read. Once I finish The Constant Princess, I'm moving on to all the chapter books I want to read. Because I ordered a set of Shakespeare's Necklace I may choose that for my next GATE novel rather than Letters from Rifka.....but I have to read both to see which one fits better. Ooooo, I also got a good chunk of work done on the GATE application too. I'm not nearly finished, but it feels good just to get anything written out. Plus, I formally decided I am going to be teaching the middle grade summer school (this years 2nd-4th graders) and the theme will be "World Cuisine." I'm pretty excited because I'm stepping out of my box and this will give me new challenges. Alright, that's enough blogging for tonight. My DVR and rice crispy treats are calling my name!!!

Tootle loo!

Feeling Better

I can breathe!!!!! Although, my ears are still plugged and I have an annoying cough. But I feel like I can actually teach tomorrow. You can actually tell I'm feeling better just by walking into my kitchen. I've made peanut butter cookies AND rice crispy treats.....yum-o. I'm even going to make dinner tonight...vegetable pasta. I didn't think I would feel up to chicken fajitas yet.

So Klitschko was victorious last night....woo hoo!!!....but it wasn't that great of a fight. It was almost boring because Klitschko just single jabbed this guy instead of throwing a lot of right hand power punches....therefore you never saw a big explosion resulting in a knockdown (which Klitschko is known to do a LOT). Plus the other guy was about 6 inches shorter and 20 or so pounds lighter so they really looked mismatched. Oh well, I just have to look forward to the next fight.....not sure when it is yet, but I'll keep you posted.

Until tomorrow!

Still Under the Weather

.....but I can see the sunshine through the clouds! Today is the first day I actually could fake that I feel okay.....that is until I talk. I got coffee today from starbucks, and I had to repeat myself so many times I almost gave up on my tall, non-fat, decaf mocha with vanilla.....that's a lot to remember let alone say when I sound like "one of those old ladies with the raspy smoker's voices"...quote thanks to Nancy :) But it was all worth it because my voice and throat are better thanks to the hot liquid goodness. I have only 1 more day to feel like crap before I have to buck up and go back to work. I just hope I don't have a set back like my sister did.....or everyone else I've been hearing about for that matter.

Anyway, tonights another exciting night for boxing. Wladimir Klitschko (my favorite boxer if you didn't already know, and the man on the left) is taking on Sultan Ibragimov on HBO at 6:30. I suggest you tune in for some exciting action! I don't think I've seen Ibragimov fight, but I can tell you without a doubt, Klitschko will be kicking some heavyweight ass! Woo hoo (cough cough)!!!!!!!

Yucky

I'm still under the weather and feel yucky. Today I went to Target, the bank, and the post office to get out of the house.....However, I think Dennis was right, I don't think that was the best idea. After I got out of Target I just wanted to go home and crash on the couch.....but I had checks to deposit and our tax return to mail. I'm hoping this cold goes away soon and doesn't develop into anything worse....like pneumonia, which is what 2 of Dennis's coworkers have now. I'm certain I'll be just fine in a day or so......thank goodness I had this week off. Just like most of the students at our school, I needed this week to recover from a sickness.

Wishing everyone a healthy Friday!

Head Cold

Unfortunately, I have one. I felt it coming on yesterday morning and hoped it wouldn't fully develop.....but it has. Regardless, I went clothes shopping my friend, a fellow teacher at my school. She's super tiny and cannot find clothes that fit her. But today, she was successful. We also ran into Nancy while we were at the mall. Afterwards, Kris got a pair of really cute dress shoes AND a super fabulous pink purse!!! It is so adorable!!!

My Nyquil hasn't kicked in yet, so I'm gonna go lay back on the couch.

Remember to take your vitamin C!!!

Presidents Week

No school this week!!! Woo hoo!!! I'm planning on working on some GATE class stuff. In May I'll have a watercolor class so today I got a gardening book with pretty flowers in it so the kids can recreate them in watercolor. I've made one example so far which looks decent, actually. I'm also working on a second one that is more involved. Maybe I'll figure out how to scan them in or something. I might have to talk to Nancy about how that works.

On a sad note, my very good friend's husband was recently diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease. They don't know how far it has spread yet, and let's hope to God that it hasn't gotten too far. Her and her husband need your thoughts and prayers to get through this.

Happy Valentine's Day

A day filled with cupcakes, chocolate, and sugar galore! Each room had a different aroma depending on what treat was being served. Our teacher's lunch room smelled of frosting from all the cupcakes being stored there....mmmmm. The third grade classroom smelled so strongly of chocolate (from the chocolate fountain) you could almost taste it in the air. Then in the kindergarten class, it was all about the strawberries! Oh, it was wonderful! The energy level was so high, you really didn't need any coffee or caffeine......you could just absorb the energy from the kids!

Tonight Dennis and I made homemade pizza which turned out pretty good. For a V-day present, Dennis let me place an order on scholastic.com for books for my classroom. :)

Hugs and Kisses!

Good Observation

That's what it came down to today. My principal said I did a good job and the only critique he gave me was that I need to some how wrap up the lesson.....I didn't think that's too bad considering how nervous I was. Plus, 3 of my most vocal students were out sick and the remaining 4 were pretty nervous having the principal watching them do the lesson with me. Needless to say, it was a pretty quiet and uneventful lesson.

On another note, today was also the day for the 3rd grade cupcake sale. I've been looking forward to this since yesterday because I have been craving cupcakes. And to my surprise and delight, I discovered that Costco makes GIANORMOUS cupcakes!!! I bought one for the bargain price of $1 and savored every last crumb! Their regular cakes are my favorite and the cupcake was exactly the same, just without the cream cheese filling. YUM-O!!!!

Due to the rather large cupcake at lunch, I wasn't quite hungry when I got home and really didn't want to cook dinner. So we grabbed some food from Stars and went to our friends house to visit them and baby Caleb. He's 5 weeks old now and has begun to loose his hair and has filled out a bit. He looks so much bigger and he's even snugglier than before!

Till tomorrow (my Friday, hehehe).

Parking Wars

That's the new show I've been watching. Dennis actually turned it on a few weeks ago and it's pretty addicting. So after Jon and Kate Plus 8, I turned it on. Tomorrow my principal is doing an observation of one of my lessons. My anxiety level is so high that I've been having nightmares for the last 3 nights.....They're mostly about my class not listening and being completely out of control. I know it'll all be fine, but I'm so nervous!

Wish me luck!

Productive Day!

One of my goals I set in early January was to plan out all my GATE classes for the rest of the year....And today, I accomplished that goal!!!! I even have the sign ups ready to give to the students. I was so excited I was woo hooing up and down the hallway and in my room! This was a great accomplishment today and I really didn't think that I would have gotten it finished.....with the GATE renewal application and all. But now that I've reached that goal, I'm moving on to completing the GATE renewal application. This is a huge undertaking and I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing......after all, I've never written anything like that. I think I need to talk with Kris our current 4th grade teacher and the former GATE teacher. She wrote the application last time, so I'm hoping I can use her experience to help me. There's a new addition to the renewal as well. I have to write about the strengths, weaknesses, and improvements since the last renewal for 8 different categories! Yikes! Oooooo, that's a word I haven't used in ages.

To productivity!......Cheers!!!

Zzzzzzzzz

That is what I will be doing soon. I already had a catnap, but after I sleep on a couch for 2 days I'm suffering from a wee bit of sleep. We used to sleep on the hide-a-bed (where I slept like a baby), but Dennis gets super hot so we've switched to separate couches. Thus, I welcome my bed with open arms!

I made another new recipe tonight for dinner. It was from the latest issue of Rachael Ray. The recipe was for a BBQ pork burger with apple slaw, smoked bacon, and smoked cheddar. I replaced the pork with ground turkey and substituted microwave bacon for the real stuff (I didn't necessarily want our house to smell like bacon for the next 3 days). It turned out pretty well, plus I think our BBQ likes all the recent attention. Later in the week I'll be testing out a shallot spaghetti from the same issue. I really hope it doesn't suck. :)

Happy Sunday.

BBQ and Racing

I've never eaten (or rather attacked) meat like I did tonight! We got dinner from the BBQ place again, except we got the family sampler. It included a slab of pork and beef ribs, 1lb of tri-tip, half a chicken, BBQ baked beans, macaroni and cheese (with bacon), coleslaw, chili verde, and 7 cornbread muffins w/ honey butter. I don't remember the last time I ate that much meat! It was soooo good......and the fact that I thought it was good says a lot.......just ask my family. Typically, I'm the one making the weird face when a chunk of meat is placed in front of me. I don't know what got into me tonight, but it was fabulous!!! The tri-tip and the BBQ baked beans were my favorite. MMmmmmmm!!!!!!

Tonight, Dennis discovered the indoor racing track here. He absolutely loves racing go-carts and does so when ever he has the opportunity. So when his brother told him about the track, we couldn't get there fast enough. He had so much fun and it was a blast to watch him! I'm sure we'll make a trip there every time we visit. Here's a pic!

Brady Town

Yes, that is where we are!!! We got here around 6pm and headed straight to dinner. We were starving and looking forward to the BBQ place we hadn't tried yet. Dennis had tri-tip and I had a chicken sammy. Very yum-o!!!

Brady is getting so big!!! He's walking even better than he was back in December (he no longer looks like a zombie trying to attack you). He's also trying to talk a lot more and has a drool river running down his chest! I'll get pics up as soon as we get back.

8pm Already!?

Tonight has flown by. With my Tuesday staff meeting, voting, and cooking dinner this evening has gone by in a blink of an eye. Thank goodness because I'm so sleepy......I've been nodding off and on for the past hour now......just like my father. It's so funny to watch him sit in his chair and move in and out of sleep just after dinner, all while sitting in his chair. Then, around 10pm, he'll head up for bed.....but really he has been sleeping for at least the past hour......it's just so funny.....it makes me smile and chuckle to myself every time I observe his evening routine.

Well, as I am preoccupied by the election results on MSNBC, I must be headed back to the couch to give both of them (the couch and the news) my utmost attention.

I bid you good evening.

Whoa...Caffeine!

Rather than making my own (half caf) coffee today, I stopped by the local coffee shop and bought one of theirs with a shot of hazelnut...mmmmmm. Anyway, my body was in shock from the full amount of caffeine in my cup. So by lunch time, my foot was twitchin' away under the table. It wasn't bad enough to create a Jurasic Park water effect, but close. Tomorrow, I think I'll stick with decaf!

Unfortunately, I'm not going to be at school on Wednesday or Thursday and will therefore miss the 100th day of school! It's a wonderful celebration (especially in Kindergarten and 1st grade) where the concept of 100 is explored in every which way possible. Some projects include putting together 100 piece puzzles, decorating hats with 100 things, and counting to 100! I'm sorry I'll miss it. :(

Only 4 more hours till Monday's over!

Super Bowl Sunday

Since the weather kept us from visiting J, K, and the B-man, Dennis and I had our own little super bowl party hear. Our friends Scott and Carie came over with their son Caleb. Dennis pretty much held him the entire night.....even while he ate a chicken and apple sausage......that was an interesting event. I used my Crockpot for BBQ meatballs....it's been neglected for the past oh, let's say, 12 months or so. It's a gianormous Crockpot, not fit for 2 people really. I also made stuffed mushrooms for the first time. They turned out pretty well considering I didn't even have a recipe. I didn't really watch the game....I was too preoccupied with watching Caleb. Babies are oh so cute....now that he's a bit older he's taking in his surroundings too.....super adorable! If the weather holds out, I think we are gonna try to go out and see the Brady man next weekend.

See ya!

Happy Anniversary.....Oh, and Groundhog Day!

Today is my 6th wedding anniversary! Six years ago I married a wonderful man.....and man oh man did he look good! My dress was more of an evening gown (navy blue with sparkles from head to toe, plus it was backless and had a very very small train). I just love that dress! Funny thing was, I was so sick on our wedding day. Luckily, I didn't feel it until we got home later that night.....but I had no voice. Miraculously, I had just enough voice to say my vows and then it was gone for the next 36 hours. We had ice cream cake and Italian sodas. To go with our winter theme, we had made a Gingerbread house out of graham crackers.....it even had a candy Lego drive way and a Jello pond (shark and all). It was a fabulous and wonderful day!!!!