Outside My Mind

It's August.

Where did the summer go?

I had so many plans for the summer and very few of them got done. I guess that's OK because I was in dire need of some down time.

August is when I start working in my room. Since the 1st was on Friday, I waited until Monday to start work. Probably a big mistake since we're going to Alabama to see Birdie and I'll be gone at least 5 days.

The reason I'm outside my mind though is SMAK (Summer Music Activities for Kids). Way back in June, during Bible School, Angela asked if I'd help with SMAK. Of course, I told her to just put me where she needed me.

When SMAK is over, there's only two weeks left before school starts.

She needed me to help with field trips every afternoon.

I despise field trips.

No teacher should volunteer to go on multiple field trips in the same week on school buses in August in Texas unless, of course, they love field trips. (is that a sentence? :)

I told her I wanted to work with my 3rd graders.

I didn't know that was the new 3rd graders.

Now I know several kids I am happy are not in my tripod (we have our lists).

Today is my last day with SMAK because we leave in the morning - hooray!!

Going to California

We're heading to California next month for Chris' Chief Petty Officer ceremony.

I found tickets for $198 if we fly out of Austin. Since they were $303 if we flew out of Houston, we're driving to Austin. With taxes, fees and travel insurance, it's $507. A great deal with the high gas prices and a very small price to pay to see Chris installed (is that the right word?).

It's been way, way too long since we've seen Chris and Audrey so we're really excited.

Should I do a countdown?

Memories

When we lived in Alabama and were so broke we couldn't see straight, one of our payday treats was to take the kids to Krystal's. The itty bitty burgers were .39 ( I think) and the kids could have as many as they wanted. We'd share some fries and everyone was fed and we had a treat.

I miss Krystal's. The burgers weren't that good but there are good memories for me there.

For a very short time, there was a Krystal's in Lake Charles. We only ate there once when we went to see Jennifer and Daniel but it was great.

During all my driving around in Killeen (Fort Hood), I found a Krystal's. It was the middle of the afternoon and I wasn't really hungry but I had 2 Krystal burgers just for nostalgia's sake.

We're heading to Alabama next week to see Birdie. I hope there are still Krystal's there so Steven can have some. If not, he can have his the next time we go see Rowdy.

Fort Hood

Stephanie, Greg and Rowdy are moving to Fort Hood. Greg has to report on August 1.

They ask if I'd be willing to go with them and watch Rowdy while they search for a place to live.

Since Rowdy has been in Virginia for 6 months, what do you think I said?

Actually, I was a bit concerned since Rowdy tends to have a fit if his mom gets out of his sight or he thinks she might be about to leave his sight but what the heck, I can handle fits.

I said I'd be happy to put him in his stroller and cruise the mall while they're looking for a place to live.

Not exactly. Rowdy hates his stroller. But he likes to ride in a shopping cart.

OK, we can hit a store or two or three and let him ride in a shopping cart.

We had the best time!

Our first stop was HEB. He loved looking at all the fruit and anyone that was stocking was of great interest to him. We got bananas, watermelon, a light avocado (I'll make some guacamole with it tomorrow and report on flavor), a cantaloupe, a deli sandwich for me and some tea for me

We found a shady parking lot and ate our lunch. He was exhausted so we rode around till he fell asleep then I found a parking lot and read till he woke up.

We also hit Target, Dollar Tree and Petco. He loved looking at all the animals.

I got a great tour of Fort Hood and now know where all the important things are for when we go visit.

Stephanie and Greg found a place to live, I got to spend some time with Rowdy, he didn't have the first fit and all is well.

AAA Rocks!

In less than a month, with only 2 uses, AAA has paid for itself. How awesome is that?

Steven called yesterday afternoon. He was broke down on the HOV lane in Houston. He'd called AAA and the wrecker would be there in about an hour. In about 15 minutes, he calls back to say the wrecker is already there.

I head to Houston to pick him up.

Have I ever said how much I hate driving in Houston? I'd almost rather give birth. Almost.

Come to find out, the only wreckers allowed on the HOV are wreckers contracted with the City of Houston.

It cost $143.50 for the wrecker to take him ~2 miles.

$143.50.

It only cost ~$63 to have the bike towed about 15 miles to Huntsville the last time he broke down.

I'm very frustrated because we paid for AAA and we've had to fork out $143.50 for towing. But, it's just money and like Steven said, the good news is that we can afford to pay it.

Actually, this is how he put it:
The good news - we can afford to pay for it
The bad news - the bike will be in the shop for 2 weeks
The worst news - it cost $143.50 to get towed

It actually works out this way:
The good news - the towing costs nothing
The bad news - I have no vehicle for 2 weeks
The worst news - we have to pay for gas for Steven's commute for 2 weeks in the truck
The good news - we won't have to do without anything to afford it

So, how does the cost of the towing go from being the worst news to being the best news?

One phone call to AAA.

One reimbursement form.

$143.50 to be reimbursed.

If you don't have AAA Premier, go get it.

I Have the Best Husband!

I've been having an overwhelmed kind of day today. So what does my most wonderful husband do?

He stops on the side of I-45 in the 99 degree weather (I just looked it up). He dials my phone and lets me listen to Ring of Fire ( my favorite song) in its entirety because he knows it will make me smile. He never says a word because he still has his helmet on. He hangs up his phone and continues on home to help me.

How awesome is that?!?

Getting Older

I'm officially getting older.

I've been wearing reading glasses for several years now because my arms are no longer long enough. My distance vision is still OK. Not 20/20 but the only thing I was having any kind of problem with was reading road signss at a distance.

A couple of weeks ago I went and got glasses. I found some really cute ones and got a lined bifocal becuase I've had a progressive lens before and couldn't get used to them.

Big mistake. First off, the guy never got the glasses adjusted correctly and I wasn't happy with them. Second off, I had no intermediate vision at all. So, I wasn't wearing them. Not to mention that I wasn't wearing them because it was such a hassle with sunglasses. I *have* to have sunglasses, my eyes are super sensitive to sunlight.

Lenscrafter has a 30 day guarantee so last week I went and took advantage of it. The cool glasses I had chosen weren't big enough for a progressive lens so I chose different glasses and got them today.

I went to W-M to get some clip on sunglasses. I was sure I wasn't going to be happy with them because I need large sunglasses that don't let in light on the sides and I didn't want fit-overs because they are UGLY.

I tried on clip-ons. Jenny reminded me that I wasn't going to be happy with them so I looked at the fit-overs. Come to find out, they had some that weren't huge but still covered well and were somewhat stylish. Did I mention that they're polarized? Polarized sunglasses are awesome!! Everything is so crisp and clear and there's no glare at all.

So, I have progressive lens glasses and fit-over sunglasses. Somehow that says getting older to me...

I think I have to take the glasses back though because the left eye is fine with the intermediate vision but the right is blurry. I'm going to give it until Monday and hope that it's just a matter of getting used to them.

Memory

My brain makes me crazy.

I know there are over a thousand children's names stored there but don't you think it come come up with a recent name easier than an older name?

The first year I worked at the school, I was the cafeteria clerk. I knew the name of every single student at the elementary school, PK-3 - about 500 names. The next 3 years were pretty easy because I knew all the kids except the new ones when they got to 3rd grade. The 4th year wasn't too bad because lots of them had gone to PK. The year I went back to the school, I was only in 1 classroom and it was Rachael's group so I knew them all already. The next year I was back in 3rd grade and learning ~150-170 new names every year for the next 5 years.

Usually, I remember their faces until they get older and their facial features start changing. Sometimes I can come up with either a first or last name. Sometimes not. Depends on how well I knew them. Sometimes I come up with their name minutes or hours later, just out of the blue.

Luckily, calling them sweetie when they're still young or just speaking to them when they get older works well. They just like to be acknowledged.

So what brought this on?

I was at W-M earlier this week. I saw one of the students in my homeroom cross the end of an aisle. Luckily, she didn't see me because I *could not* come up with her name. I remembered her last name, I remembered her sister's name but hers just wouldn't come. I actually stood in the aisle determined to remember her name in case I saw her again. I'm of the opinion that if that student was in my homeroom less than 2 months ago, I need to say her name when I speak to her. I finally remembered her name but never saw her again so it really didn't matter.

As I was leaving the store, I saw a student who will be in 6th grade next year. His name came to me immediately. Now, he wasn't a troublemaker (you always remember their names!) nor was he anyone that stood out for any other reason, just another student and his name came to me immediately.

There is something wrong with this picture. My brain should work better than that. It doesn't though so I guess I'll continue to muddle through. The good thing is that I only have 60 names to learn every year now and about 20 more if I do after school tutorials.

POP!

I love the sound of jelly jars popping as they seal.

Actually, I love making jelly.

It's been several years since I've made any. Working full time and going to school was grueling and jelly making was one of the things that fell by the wayside.

Jenny had some blueberries and wanted to make jelly so today we did. I've never made blueberry jelly before but it's not any different. :)

We also made peach jam - I'd never made that before either.

Steven is picking up some more plums because I grossly underestimated the amount of plums needed. I love the color of plum jelly. It's a beautiful, rich shade of red. I can't wait to finish the plum jelly.

I missed blackberries so I'm going to get some frozen ones for more jelly. Actually, I just talked to Steven and he's getting them now.

I'm pretty sure I've missed grapes but I think we'll take a drive down the dirt road and see...

Did I mention that I love making jelly? :)

Mmmm, Mmmm Good!

I've been using my crockpot a lot this summer, inspired by A Year Of Crockpotting.
Last night we had Peppercorn Steak and it was delicious! Probably the best thing I've ever cooked in the crockpot. We don't care for mushrooms so I left them out and I only used a little more than 1/4 cup of the W sauce (not even going to try to spell it!)

I've also fixed these:
Tamale Pie
Salsa Chicken

There are lots more things there I want to try, especially some of the soups.

I've also fixed some of my tried and true crockpot recipes and have made the salsa chicken either 2 or 3 times. Once I added some cream cheese but didn't like that as much.

The real delicioso thing I've made this summer though, has nothing to do with the crockpot.

Back in May, we had a First Place celebration/orientation and someone brought the best, light key lime pie. She said the recipe was on the back of the label of the reduced fat graham cracker crust.

I promptly went out and bought a reduced fat graham cracker crust to get that recipe. The best $2.00 I've spent on a recipe in a long time.

Imagine my surprise when I discovered that the recipe calls for yogurt.

I detest yogurt. Let me rephrase. I detest the thought of yogurt. I've never eaten yogurt because it smells horrible and I have a mental block about putting it in my mouth.

I am so shocked that this delicious pie uses 2 containers of yogurt and I love, love, love it!

I want to try some different flavors but then again, I don't want to leave my key lime...

What prompted this, you ask?

I made the pie yesterday. We each had a piece after we ate. We both had another piece before we went to bed.

After lunch, we had another piece. Since there were only 2 pieces left, we went ahead and ate them.

Less than 24 hours after I made the pie, it's gone.

Did I mention that it's delicious?

Rachael at Camp

Rachael finally had a day off today and called. The camp she's working at does not allow the workers to use their cell phones except on their days off. They keep them in the office, turned off.

She's having a good time and working hard. She's a "kitchie". She does all the grunt work in the kitchen - setting out the food, refilling things, sweeping, mopping, doing dishes, taking out trash - you know, all the fun stuff. :)

Her address, if anyone is interested:

Rachael Last Name
K-Klassic
1380 Eternity Lane
Shell Knob, MO 65747

I Heart AAA

I joined AAA when we went to Missouri. With as many miles as we have on the truck, I wanted to be safe. It cost about $210 for the 3 of us to have the Premier plan.

Our membership cards came Saturday. I glanced at the synopsis of benefits and put it aside.

Monday, out of the blue, it hit me that one of the benefits was a locksmith. It just so happens that we're in need of a locksmith. The benefit is $150. Guess how much it cost for the locksmith to come out and make a key? That's right...$150.

We are now the proud possessors of two brand spankin' new motorcycle keys for free.

AAA has almost paid for itself and we haven't even had it a month.

It took several hours for the locksmith to come out but it didn't make any difference since Steven had to work.

If only we'd had AAA before Steven had to have the bike towed a couple of months ago, it would have already paid for itself.

AAA, you're a wonderful thing! :)

It Gets Better

Steven had to go to Houston Friday night for a Conroe team get-together and then work on Saturday at the Houston office. He asked if I wanted to go. I decided not to since I would just be sitting in the hotel room Friday night and I detest driving in Houston so I'd probably just sit at the office with him Saturday.

When I got up Friday morning and called Steven, he had some distressing news.

On his way to work that morning, he was passing a car in the left lane of I-45. As soon as he got around the car, there was a piece of tire rubber that he could not avoid. He didn't lose control of the bike but it jostled him around pretty good. When he got the bike lined back out, he noticed the metal plate right below the keys was up. He put it down and discovered that his keys were missing (the keys come out easily even when the bike is running).

He was just past FM 2989 so he turned around and went back to the scene of the "crime" to look for the keys. No can do...

Of course, he'd lost his spare key in the trailer when he lived in Austin and never found it and never bothered to have another key made.

A locksmith is going to be a couple hundred of dollars and he can't get to it until next week. The bike shop can maybe get another key, depends on whether they can read some number on the ignition. If not, they have to replace the entire ignition (several hundred dollars). The bike shop is moving and can't get to it until Wednesday. That means Steven will be taking the truck every for a few days. So in addition to the cost of getting another key, we've got a couple of tanks of gas to deal with.

It's just money, right?

I was scheduled to work in the kitchen at church for the Kairos prison ministry until 3:00. I left there, packed a bag and headed to Conroe to pick up Steven and head to Houston.

He goes to his dinner, I watch TV and stitch and all is well.

Steven's calling me at 10:30 to make sure I'm up and ready to go by 12:00 when we have to check out of the hotel. He calls and tells me to open the hotel door. It's only 9:30.

He can't get logged on to a computer in the Houston office and there are no tech people working to help him. We decide to go to Conroe and he'll work there.

We get to Conroe and the custodial office has locked his office door. His key is on the side of I-45 somewhere. He'd left the door open Friday night because he didn't have a key (he has a key card to get into the building).

So much for working on Saturday...

So as to not waste the trip, I go to the resale shop (bought nothing), Card and Party Factory (bought nothing), Dollar Tree (bought nothing) and the teacher supply store (bought stuff!). When we got to Huntsville, we went to Home Depot to get cinder blocks for my compost heap.

Tile is on sale.

We now have tile for the bathroom floor, the tub surround and a bathroom light fixture.

We don't have any cinder blocks.

They were out of cinder blocks.

They won't be in until Thursday.

What kind of home improvement store runs out of cinder blocks?

When we get to 2989, we exit and look for keys. Steven says he heard a jingle when he exited there.

No luck.

A couple stops and asks if they can help. They live just down the feeder road and have a metal detector. They don't know how to use it and neither do we. We figure it out but it's not very sensitive to keys (we tried it on the truck keys). Off we go to the off ramp again. No keys.

We go back to where the rubber is. Steven uses the metal detector and I use my eagle eyes. They almost never fail me. Today they did. I walked all the way to the bridge and back on the other side of the interstate and the only thing I found that was of any use was a single dollar bill.

Do you have any idea how very exciting it is to walk down I-45 with big trucks whizzing past at 70+ mph? It's not really.

We gave up, came home and decided that it's just money and what the heck...

Isn't That Special?

Yesterday was Wednesday and Steven had a test seminar in Dallas. I go with him to drive home so he can sleep since he has to get up early to go to work. When he got home about 2:15, he was in a tizzy. Steven is *never* in a tizzy. He had left his billfold on top of a gas pump at HEB in Conroe. He called, they had it and would hold it for him at customer service. No problem.

We stop at Subway to get something to eat. I give Steven my card to pay and I fill up our drinks. He puts the card back in my billfold and off we go.

I start off driving so Steven can talk to someone at the office in Houston. We stop for a bathroom break in Ennis. Steven drives and I reach in the back to get my glasses out of my purse.

My purse is not there.

We're almost in Dallas. Neither one of us has our driver's license, neither one of us has any cash, neither one of us has a credit card, neither one of us has a debit card. Isn't that a fine kettle of fish?

Luckily, we had plenty of gas, the seminar provides pizza for the people attending and there's always enough left for me to have a piece and I had brought water.

The bad news is that I didn't put any reading glasses in my stitching bag so I can't stitch or read. I don't do well just sitting and doing nothing, especially for 3 hours. I was able to get the book far enough away to read somewhat comfortably so I wasn't too frustrated,

I called Jennifer and she went to Subway and picked up my purse. Yes, I left it sitting on the counter there. Thank goodness it was in Madisonville.

On the way home, Steven called HEB to find out what time they close and open so he could get his billfold. What I didn't know was that he needed to be in Houston at 6:00 this morning. He also had to have his billfold because he had to pick some things up from the Conroe office and his key card for his office was in his billfold. HEB closes at midnight and opens at 6:00. Yep, you guessed it. We're heading to Conroe when we get home at 10:30 (the seminar only lasted 2 hours instead of 3 - thank goodness!!).

But wait!! Becky had a wonderful idea! Since Steven needs to be in Houston at 6:00, why doesn't he just spend the night in Houston. That way he can get his billfold, be in Houston at 6:00 and we don't have to go to Conroe and back in the middle of the night.

That's what we ended up doing and it all worked out. Unbelievably, both our contents were untouched. I'll monitor card usage over the next couple of days to make sure cards weren't used but it doesn't look like they were. We are fortunate and very happy there are still so many honest people in the world.

Date Night

Steven's been working long hours the last 3 weeks to get a project ready to print. They printed today and he promised me a date Saturday after we took Rachael to the airport to go to Missouri.

There's been a change of plans.

We're having a date in Branson tonight. We're going to see Bill Medley and Paul Revere and the Raiders (if there are tickets available). We got a hotel for $40 plus taxes and fee ($52) plus the tickets to the show (more than we should pay but what the heck).

You're probably wondering why we're going to Branson and that would be an excellent question.

Rachael piddled around about getting her plane ticket to Missouri and it was going to cost the entire amount of money she was going to earn at camp. Her loving mother (me) offered to take her if she paid for everything - gas, food, hotel. We figured about $400 - lots cheaper than the ticket. The camp she'll be working at is 45 miles from Branson. She has to be there no later than Saturday but we have to be back for church Sunday so we're taking her tomorrow.

We decided that since we were going to be that close to Branson, we might as well go see a show since we may never be that close again and we won't make a special trip there.

Steven's going to have a difficult time topping this date...

We're leaving early so we have some time to see some sights in Branson soI have to get up in 4 hours and 45 minutes. I'm totally wound up and won't sleep much but I better go try...

Yes, we've lost leave of all our senses...

Debt Reduction

Yesterday I listed 7 books for sale at amazon.com. Before I went to bed last night, 4 of them had sold and another one this morning. I now have $55.20 more towards debt reduction. Hooray!!

Two books were textbooks that I never got around to listing, one was a book that ended up not being what I thought it was and the other four were fairly current novels that I have no interest in rereading.

Maybe, as I'm cleaning house, I'll come up with some more books that will be worth more than 1 cent on Amazon. I really need to get the camera out and figure out how to sell things on ebay. Maybe that will be my next project. It would only be for the summer because I don't think I really have time for it during the school year. But then again, I'm sure this year will be easier and I'll feel like I have more time so we'll see.

Off to package up my debt reduction items and put them in the mail to their new owners...

Happy Dancing!

Steven got a mid-year bonus today and it's enough to pay off our house with a little left over!! He's taking off work early so we can go to the bank and take care of it today.

I'm so excited that the house payment can now be used for debt reduction every month and we're that much closer to being able to flip the house.

It's a happy day here!!

**Update**

It's done!! We'll be having a mortgage burning party in 4-6 weeks when the paperwork arrives.

The next credit card should be paid off in 2-3 months now. Debt free is getting closer even though it's still a ways off...

Why I'm Voting Democrat

Why I'm Voting Democrat

I thought this was great! This young man seems to have a great head on his shoulders.

Wii Fever

Yesterday Kevin and Diane had their housewarming. They have a beautiful 22oo sq. ft. house on 1 1/2 lots with a monster garage. The backyard is huge and has a covered deck with a covered walkway from the garage to the house. It's 3 bedroom, 2 bath with a huge utility room and game room with enough room to really play pool. I forgot to take my camera so I don't have pictures. :( It was like a Santos family reunion. Everyone was there except Megan, Brandy and Chris and all my kids. That's the first time so many have been together since Gaile's funeral in February 2000. I got to spend lots of time holding Arin and Celeste's baby Xander who is one month younger than Rowdy.

Kevin and Diane have a Wii. Steven played bowling with Sherrill, Tara and Jeremiah and loved it.

We looked at W-M in Huntsville on the way home last night but they didn't have one.

We looked at W-M in Madisonville today and they did have one.

We are now the owners of a Wii.

Steven is hooking it up right now.

Yes, we've lost leave of all our senses....

Mmmm, Mmmm Good!

Jennifer's birthday is tomorrow and she wanted me to make FS since hers never tastes as good as mine. Now I love FS but it is the biggest pain in the rear to make. So, since it's her birthday and she asked for it, I made a big batch.

I must say that it was quite delicious...

If you love FS and want some, drop on by on your birthday and I'll fix some for you.

Thank you so much Terry for making me try it 24 years ago even though it looked absolutely disgusting and I swore it would never pass my lips.

(If you don't know what FS is and you grew up in my house, just think for a minute and you should get it :) If you didn't grow up in my house, just ask and I'll tell you :)

RIP

RIP dear Samsung phone.

You served me well.

I loved you and no other phone will ever be able to replace you.

Plants

What has happened? I love plants but my entire adult life, I've been able to take a beautiful plant and turn it into a dead stick (in direct contrast to my dad who can take a dead stick and turn it into a beautiful plant). I always tried really hard to keep plants alive but they never made it.

Now, my porch is full of plants that are all doing well. I even have 2 plants from Gaile's funeral in 2000 that are still doing well. What's up with these plants? I don't feel like I'm doing anything differently but apparently I am. I now have to stop buying plants because I have no more room for them!

Movies

We've subscribed to Netflix for about a year now. For the longest time, we did 1 movie at a time with a limit of 2 movies a month. We don't watch tons of movies but do enjoy one sometimes and $4.99 was really cheap for 2 movies. Since Rachael is home, we're doing 2 at at time, unlimited. She has a queue and we have a queue so she gets movies she likes and so do we.

Last night I was in the office and thinking how we needed a DVD player for the office TV because I wanted to watch a movie and Steven and Rachael were watching softball on the big TV. Suddenly, I had an AHA moment and remembered that Netflix has movies on demand that you can watch on your computer. We have unlimited on demand movies so I proceeded to check it out. It only took about 2 minutes from the time I went to the website until I was watching a movie. The quality was great and you can pause when you want to. I'll probably be doing this more often now. Our computer screen is about the same size as our office TV so I might as well save the cost of a DVD player for the office. :) Not all movies are available but there's still a good selection. This is also an option for when we're traveling and staying in a hotel.

Riding the Bike

Steven has to have some work done on his bike tomorrow in Austin (he prepaid for some services before he went to work in Conroe) so we're heading out late this afternoon and are going to spend the night. We got a room at a Marriott through PriceLine (love PriceLine!) and will enjoy the amenities there instead of our usual Motel 6.

This will be our first real ride this year. School has been so difficult and I've worked so late every evening and been so stressed that I haven't even wanted to ride. Steven probably should have made me go on some rides though since it really does help relieve my stress.

Steven will go to the Austin office and work while they're working on the bike. I'll go along and either stitch or read (better than sitting at the bike shop!). After they finish, we'll mess around for awhile and head back late in the evening.
On the agenda:
- a trip to my favorite thrift shop (I always find Steven nice dress shirts and ties for well under $5 as well as books in OK condition for my classroom library for 25 cents)
- a trip to Ginger's - conveniently across the parking lot from my favorite thrift shop
- a trip to a great Goodwill store - they always have great kids' books, in great condition for 99 cents
- if there's time, I want to check out the new shopping center/mall (can't tell from the feeder road what it is for sure) that is where the airport used to be
- maybe a trip to the teacher supply store but probably not
- a meal at Panda Express
- whatever else strikes our fancy

Luckily, I have a wonderful husband who will take me wherever I want to go and shops with me with no complaint. He holds stuff so I get to shop with my hands free. Have I said recently how wonderful he is and how blessed the kids and I are to have him in our lives? If not, here it is. :)

I survived!

My last post was the morning of the first day of school, way back in August. I thought it only appropriate that the next post be after the last day of school here in May.

All I have to say is that I survived! It was a long, difficult year but I survived. I'm already looking forward to next year and everyone says the second year is much better than the first year.

I plan to spend some time this summer getting the house in order, stitching, reading, quilting, working on lessons, sleeping, playing with the grandsons, and whatever else suits me. It's been 3 years since I've had a summer off and I'm really, really looking forward to it!

I'm happy to be blogging again, look for more posts to come...

1st Day of School

Today is the first day of school. I have a really sick feeling in my stomach. Can I call in sick?

I slept relatively well last night. Not good but much better than I thought I would. That is, until right before I woke up at 5:30. Can we say nightmare?

I was dreaming that it was the first day of school. When my kids came into the room, most of them were the size of 5th graders and a couple of them were as big as me. I didn't have my overhead projector set up so I was trying to get it right (it wasn't cooperating) while the kids were just milling around the room talking, moving desks and writing on the board. Of course, once you loose control of them like that, there's no getting it back, at least for that day and if you do get it back, it's very difficult. I finally gave up on the projector but that was how I was doing my warm up so I was having to go to Plan B. Since the kids were already out of control, every time I passed a student in my travels around the room, they would be up writing on the board or moving their desk. I put the desks back in order more than once. I had to leave the room a couple of times and each time, when I got back, the room was a shambles. Once, the ceiling (it was a chalkboard) was completely covered with writing. I finally resorted to yelling and pounding desks, the worst thing to do. At one point, the elementary principal came in, looked around my room, apologized and said there was nothing that could be done, they were all like that.

At some point, it occurred to me that I had rearranged my room to accommodate the overhead projector and I no longer have an inner loop to work so I need to go in early and redo the room. Since I was awake at 5:30, that should be no problem.

The day has to be better than my dream...doesn't it??

Yikes!

We were out and about today and Steven tried to pull a hair off my chin. Ummm, it was attached. I HAVE A CHIN HAIR!!!! I think this means I'm getting old....

Meet the Teacher

Today is my first Meet the Teacher.

I did sleep some even though I was sure I wouldn't sleep at all. It wasn't good sleep but it was sleep, much better than the alternative. :) My stomach is already churning and I'm really stressed out.

The good thing is that the 3 (I'm in a tripod) of us are talking to parents together and I don't have to talk first!! I don't have any problem getting up in front of kids and talking, peers don't bother me much any more but talking in front of a group of parents terrifies me. I know it will be fine but I'm really, really ready for 11:00 to arrive so it will all be over.

*UPDATE*

Of course it wasn't as bad as I'd worked it up to be. The 3 of us met together and each of us took 2 topics to talk about. I did fine - no throwing up or even stuttering. :) It helped that I have connections with several of the students that are in the 3 classes. Let's see if I can remember all of them:

• One girl is the cousin of one of Jennifer's friends. I remember when she was born. I was working in the office when her grandmother called to say she was coming to get her children because their sister was having her baby.
  
• One girl is the daughter of a girl Chris went to homecoming with one year. Her great-grandmother was one of my 5th grade teachers. I know her entire family.
• One girl is the cousin of one of my favorite male students and her great-aunt is one of my favorite people.
• One boy is the nephew of a guy in my class.
• One girl is part of the Bedias Smith clan.
• One girl is the sister of another of my favorite students. (I've been working with kids for 10 years now so I have lots of favorites)
• There were several that I've taught computer to their siblings.
• One boy is the son of a guy I gave recorder lessons to when I was a teenager.

I think I got them all and I'm sure I'll find more connections after I meet them all on Monday. I think I'm going to love teaching in my hometown.

Empty Nest

At 5:29 this afternoon, we walked out of Rachael's dorm and officially became empty nesters.

I was excited because after almost 28 years of parenting, I'm tired. After leaving though, I was sad because it's all over. Well, not over but the day-to-day parenting is over.

The good:
The TV and radio will stay on the channel (station) I put it on.
Any mess will be mine.
I don't have to share the truck or computer.
I only have me to worry about.
I don't have to worry until Rachael gets home at night.

The bad:
The dogs are all my responsibility.
The trash is all my responsibility.
I have to get the mail every day.
I'll find out how much of a slob I really am.

I think I can handle this...

I Guess I Really Was Tired

I worked late every night last week, till 10 two nights and almost that late the other 2 nights. I'm also officially at the "I can't turn my brain off and go to sleep" stage so I wasn't sleeping well even after I got into bed.

Steven came to help me do a couple of things in my room when he got home and I had some other things to do but was so tired I just left about 4:30. I was able to stay up until 6:00 and went to bed. Steven rubbed my back and feet and I was asleep well before 7:00. I got up at 8:30 to go to the bathroom; up again at 8:30 am for the same thing and then back to bed. I finally got up at 10:30.

I think I was tired. I don't think I'll work that late this week since it's in-service and I have to be up and at 'em early every morning.

One Word

1. Where is your Cellphone? - pocket
2. Relationship? - married
3. Your Hair? - brown
4. Work? - teaching
   
5. Your sister? - none
   
6. Your favorite thing? - grandchildren
   
7. Your dream last night? - none
   
8. Your favorite drink? - water
   
9. Your dream car? - Jaguar
   
10. The room you’re in? - office
    
11. Your shoes? - Asics
    
12. Your fears? - darkness
    
13. What do you want to be in 10 years? - retired
    
14. Who did you hang out with this weekend? - husband
    
15. What are you not good at? - waiting
    
16. Muffin? - blueberry
    
17. One of your wish list items? - house
    
18. Where you grew up? - Texas
    
19. Last thing you did? - worked
    
20. What are you wearing? - clothes
    
21. What aren’t you wearing? - makeup
    
22. Your pet? - dogs
    
23. Your computer? - laptop
    
24. Your life? - changing
    
25. Your mood? - tired
    
26. Missing? - kids
    
27. What are you thinking about right now? - sleep
    
28. Your car? - truck
    
29. Your kitchen? - wreck
    
30. Your summer? - hot
    
31. Your favorite color? - blue
    
32. Last time you laughed? - today
    
33. Last time you cried? - dunno
    
34. School? - graduated!
    
35. Love? - unconditionally

Adios Motel 6

We stayed at Motel 6 for the very last time this weekend. It has served us well over the years but it's now time to say adios.

Now that I'll be making more money, we'll upgrade to Super 8 or something.

What were we thinking?

I told Steven that I wanted to go somewhere for the weekend, just us to celebrate the end of college. We needed to wait until after I got my summer school pay at the end of July but I still wanted to go. Originally, we planned to go to Alabama to see Birdie but that trip is so hard to make in a weekend (we couldn't afford to fly) and I wanted it to be relaxing and I wanted Steven to plan it.

He decided on Tyler, to see the Rose Gardens. A perfect trip for us. We love to do things like that and the distance is good. Not too far but somewhere we've never been together (Steven spent a year at Tyler Junior College). There was no rain forecast so we decided to ride the bike. We had a nice ride there, a little warm but not unbearable. Saturday we went to the cross stitch shop and the mall after we got up. So far so good. Today was a totally different story. Somehow we didn't think about having to check out of the hotel at noon and walk around the Rose Garden in the heat of August. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

We did the nostalgic drive through TJC for Steven and went to eat. I don't handle the heat well and by this time I was not feeling well. We decided to come on home and go back in the fall for the Rose Garden.

The ride to Palestine was miserable, to say the least. We'd planned on a break there and another one in Crockett. We downed 3 bottles of water in Palestine's Wal-Mart and spent about 30 minutes wandering and cooling off. We thought about seeing a movie to kill some time and let it cool off but decided we'd rather just get on home.

About 10 miles before we got to Crockett, it had rained so it was much cooler and the ride became bearable. It stayed that way until almost Midway where the heat came back with a vengeance.

It was a long, miserable ride home and put a bad ending to good weekend. Oh well, it will be a trip we'll always remember.

I can't KLUV my oldies anymore. :(

I *LOVE* music from the 50s and 60s. Terry introduced me to it well over 20 years ago and I've loved it ever since. One of the best things about going to Houston, Dallas, San Antonio or Austin was getting to listen to an oldies radio station. Not anymore. Quite awhile ago, the Houston and Austin stations both switched formats and now play 70s music. Not the good stuff like disco(that I also *love*) but the 70s music I don't like.

I went to Six Flags on Wednesday and was devastated to learn that KLUV has also switched to the 70s music format. There were occasional good songs thrown in but overall, it stunk.

I guess I'm going to have to break down and do the CD thing. I don't like CDs, I like the radio. I like that you never know what song is going to play next and you sometimes get to hear obscure songs you love. Those obscure songs as well as your favorite songs remain special and exciting when you only hear them occasionally rather than having them become mundane by hearing them regularly.

If I had a 5 CD changer in my truck so I could burn all my favorite songs and have them randomly play, I might be OK with CDs but as it is, I'll just be sad that all my oldies stations are now gone.

We were in Tyler this weekend and they had a pretty good oldies station there but we never go that direction so that doesn't help my quandary much.

Getting Started

I went and worked in my room today for 5 hours. I got quite a bit accomplished but still have soooo much left to do! I moved my desk back to the hallway side of the room. I think it's staying there because I'm sick of moving it back and forth. Not to mention that once I get the bulletin board up, I'll pretty much have to leave it there.

It's getting closer and closer...

Don't I Feel Special?

I got my hair cut Wednesday. 3-4 inches shorter and layers so it has more body. I also had highlights done to help with my increasing number of grey hairs. Subtle highlights but highlights none the less.

Today is Friday. Rachael still hasn't noticed. Yesterday I went shopping with 7 other people and no one noticed. This morning I went to school and 3 other people didn't notice. Steven's been home 30 minutes and he hasn't noticed.

Guess the change wasn't drastic enough.

I'm going back next week and have her work on it again. It's longer in the front than in the back and I'm not liking that very much. I hate having to find a new hairstylist! I'm going to give her a couple of times before I try someone else.

*Update*
3 1/2 hours after he got home, Steven finally noticed. He was beating on my back and was about to stop before he finally noticed...

Shop Till You Drop

There are big changes in our family that are requiring lots of shopping. I have to get my classroom ready, upgrade my wardrobe some and get Rachael ready for the dorm so there's been lots of shopping going on. I worked Summer School so we would have money to do all this shopping without all the money anxiety.

Hopefully I'm about done with my classroom shopping. I'm going to Houston Thursday with a group of teachers and will pick up some things there and may have to order some racing stuff (our theme this year is Racing For Success) online but other than that I should be finished. I still need to do a little bit of clothes shopping but if I don't get that done, I'll be OK.

Rachael and I shopped for her yesterday and got everything she needs except for a few things she needs to talk to her roommate about so we don't have duplicates. Rachael's favorite purchase was her *cool* tool kit. She was excited that she got to open it and use it before we even got home to put the lock on her bike so we could keep shopping.

The living room is a disaster. Her stuff is on the loveseat because her room is a disaster from SonPower and mission trip. My stuff is on the couch because I can't get into my classroom until after Thursday. There are also tubs of books everywhere that need to go to my classroom. I'll be really glad to get all this school stuff out of the house!

So Frustrated

First of all, I take horrible pictures. Always have, that's why I don't like my picture taken or maybe I really do look that bad and I'm just kidding myself. Anyway...

College graduation is a big deal and I wanted my pictures. I wanted some receiving my diploma and some with my cords because I'm really proud of that accomplishment.

Do you have any idea how expensive those stinking pictures are?!? So, I really don't know how many and what sizes I want and really can't decide. I scroll to the bottom of the page and lo and behold, there's a digital option. I call to find out if it's all three poses or just one. Of course, you have to pay for each pose. Since the package I was looking at costs $58 and the digital image is $65, I choose the digital image so I'll have it and can make prints of whatever size I want, for whoever wants one (probably no one except me but that's OK). I order a couple of actual prints with the cords, just for me.

Today I go and actually look at the digital image (receiving my diploma) and am sick at my stomach and very frustrated. The proofs they sent out didn't show that *MY FREAKIN' EYES ARE CLOSED!!!!!*. I paid $65 (non-refundable) for a digital picture of me receiving my diploma and MY EYES ARE CLOSED!!! Won't that look good hanging on my wall?!?

Oh well, there are worse tragedies but right now it's really frustrating me...

Are You Sitting Down?

The dogs are just about out of food (Steven was sick so I didn't stop at Wal-Mart on the way home from Louisiana). At W-M here, it's $17 something. In Huntsville, it's $13 something. Normally I would just ride to Huntsville and get it and do some grocery shopping while I was there.

Instead, I paid the $17 something here. I decided that with gas being $3 a gallon, my time and the wear and tear on the truck it was actually cheaper to buy it here. Not to mention that I would have spent lots more money in Huntsville.

It was really tough for me to do that but I did and I'm really proud of myself for getting past that *hump*

4th of July

Since the 4th was on Wednesday and Steven only gets off for the one day, Bailey and I went to Austin to spend the day with him so he wouldn't have to make the drive and be exhausted or spend the day alone.

We went up Tuesday after we got up and got ready. It rained off and on the entire trip and was supposed to rain all week. Steven got off work early so by the time we got there, he was at the trailer already and I didn't go to Ginger's (shucks!). I did need to go to a bigger teacher supply store than the one in CS so we did that and went to Hobby Lobby and grocery shopping. By that time it was time to eat and settle in for the night.

Wednesday morning, Steven had promised me breakfast at Waffle House (Mmmm...). There's one right across the street from the trailer park but the line was to the door. We drove over (in the rain) to the one on 290 but the line was to the door there also. We went back did something (can't remember what) and then went back to the one by the park. There was a table available so we got to eat. It was lunch time by now but it doesn't matter, we always get the same thing. :) Bailey ate 3 pieces of sausage and a grilled cheese. I didn't think he was ever going to get full!

Since it was raining and the trailer is so small, we decided to head to the mall to walk. Bailey had the best time just riding the escalators and looking in all the windows and walking around. I did some teacher clothes shopping at Penny's (they had a great sale).

We wanted to go to the Botanical Gardens but they were closed. :( We went to the complex where Steven's office is and fed the ducks and fish. Bailey didn't like the geese, he said they were too loud. He loved the fish though, they would swarm when we threw food. After we ran out of food and were just walking, it appeared that they were following us, it was really cool! We climbed the stairs through the "jungle" to the actual building where Steven works. There are some cow sculptures there and Bailey "rode" one of them. Then we had to follow the path of the water to the fountain until we found the beginning. Then it was time to head back down the path. Since it had been raining, the path was slippery. Bailey had a "fake" fall and grandma had a real fall. Nothing hurt though.

After that, we headed over to the Nature Conservatory. We hiked forever it seemed. It says there are 2.5 miles of trails but it sure seemed like we did more than that. we went up and down hills and did lots of what Bailey called "exploring". We saw a rabbit and a deer and a waterfall. Bailey says that rabbits aren't aminals (his pronouncation). Only things like tigers and elephants are aminals. The reindeer (Bailey's word) that we saw stood and looked at us for the longest time. She was absolutely beautiful with huge brown eyes. She was about the distance from our house to about 3/4 the way to the street from us. After we watched her for the longest time, Bailey and I crept torwards her until she ran off. Bailey said she was going to her little boy down the hill. By the time we found the waterfall and started back, dusk was coming and we were hungry. We were also sweating like pigs and grandma and grandpa were tired. It was really tough making that last climb!

We went back to the trailer and grilled steaks and had shells and cheese and asparagus with some watermelon. It was delicious! We headed to the fireworks. Originally we were going to stop somewhere on Riverside Drive and watch them from a parking lot so we didn't have to deal with the crowds and traffic. That didn't really work so we headed closer. We crossed the river and exited. I saw a good vantage point so we parked and headed off. We had a great view at the Mexican American Cultural Center. There were only about 4 families there so no crowds and we missed all the traffic. Bailey didn't want to hear the loud noise and we didn't except for some people lighting Black Cats close by.

We had a wonderful day and didn't spend a penny except for some drinks and gas. Bailey had a great time (he wants to go explore some more) and so did we.

I wanted to take him to the capitol building today before we left but it was raining and we wouldn't have been able to see the statues out front so we'll save that for another trip. (I know, you're all groaning but I love the capitol building and can't wait to introduce to another generation).

Bailey goes home tomorrow. :( We had a wonderful visit and I can't wait until he gets to come again (hopefully Christmas break).

Austin

Have I mentioned recently that I love Austin? If not, well, I do! There are so many things to do there that don't cost a penny (details in the 4th of July entry).

Austin is absolutely beautiful. The hills, the trees, the rivers, Zilker Park, the Botanical Gardens, the Pfluger Bridge, the houses (the old ones, not the new ones). Ginger's is there and there are awesome thrift stores and a great Goodwill.

The one thing I don't like is the panhandlers that seem to be on almost every street corner. One last night had a sign that said "Why lie? I need a beer". I guess he gets points for honesty but he sure didn't get any of my money.

I wish we could afford to live in Austin but right now we just can't. I also don't think I'm real crazy about teaching in Austin for the same reasons I didn't want my kids to go to school there: crime, drugs and gangs. I know we have those things here but not as bad as there.

Hog Heaven

Yesterday was the Corley family reunion. I look forward to this weekend every year; food family and fellowship -what could be better? This year was especially wonderful. Layne came for the first time ever, Shane came for the first time in awhile (can't believe he'll be a senior next year) Cheryl came for the first time since the 90s and Judy came for the first time in many years. (If you don't know these people, come to the family reunion every year and get to know them like I did! )

We had some people missing also. Lynda had a sick child, Johnhy Wayne's Linda was sick, Wesley and Linda were not there again, Johnny Wayne's daughter and son (their names are escaping me right now) weren't there, Grace had planned to come and didn't get to and Beth died last year. I'm so glad she made the trip to Texas last year and came to the reunion.

Judy brought pictures, lots of pictures. She has Aunt Margrace's photo albums and shared pictures from there. Aunt Margrace was meticulous about writing names on the backs of pictures so we knew who they were. I was able to identify pictures that I have as well as getting lots more family pictures. She also brought and gave me old tax notices, insurance policies, my great grandfather's eulogy and some other things I don't remember off the top of my head. There were also some things of Aunt Margrace's (she didn't have children) that I got including perfume Uncle W.A. brought her from France after the war and her makeup case that is in perfect condition. I was so thrilled to be looking at all this stuff that I pretty much ignored the people at the reunion. Shame on me.

I love all things old, especially if they belonged to family. I told Judy that anything she didn't want, I did. I have unofficially become the official keeper of the family legacy and that thrills me. I'm so glad I'll have some time now. I want to do something with some of these things. I know I'm going to frame my grandmother's high school diploma (she graduated 75 years ago last month) and I'll either do a scrapbook or put things in sheet protectors for some of the other things.

I also did my annual trek to the Bedias Baptist Cemetary. It was especially tough to visit Steven's grave because his daughter Miranda just turned 18 and graduated from high school. He would be so proud of her, she's a wonderful young lady.

I found out some more family connections so I was able to find a couple more graves that belong to our family and that was exciting. I always visit each and every family member's gravesite when I go. I want to remember where they all are in hopes that one day one of my children will be interested in the family history and it won't be lost forever. I usually also go to the Methodist cemetary but didn't yestereday because I had jello pudding cake in the truck and didn't think I needed to have it out that long in the heat. It's been several years since I went to the Zion Methodist Cemetary in Iola, I need to do that and I need to write down directions to the cemetary where Ardis is buried so I can get back there when my mother is no longer here to give me directions. :)

Anyway, it was a wonderful day filled with things I love, my family, good food, pictures and a trip to the cemetary.

Oh My Goodness

On Steven's 50th birthday in 2003, a lady ran into me in Bryan. I was driving down the street and she was turning left, right in front of Wal-Mart. I was on my way to meet Steven at Stephanie's to take her the car. We had a big day planned the next day for Steven's surprise 50th birthday celebration. The wreck but an end to those plans. Stephanie had to find another way to Houston and we had to go in the car. Me, Steven, Rachael, David and David's friend (anyone else remember his friend? :) in that little bitty car all the way to Houston. It was horrible!

Anyway, when the officer got there, she only had her liscense in her hand and I knew immediately that she had no insurance. Since I was not at fault, we only had to pay half our deductible. The insurnace company assured us they would get the deductible from the lady but we just wrote it off.

Fast forward to today. There's a letter in the mail from State Farm Insurance. It says:
We are pleased to refund the full deductible you incurred as the result of your loss of October 2, 2003. Payment is enclosed.

There was sure enough a check enclosed for the amount of half our deductible. Even better, we changed insurance companies a couple of years ago so State Farm isn't even our insurance company. Almost 4 years later and we get a check from a company that's not even ours any more; I'm impressed!

I'm so damned aggravated!!

Yes, I cursed.

I just went to get the mail. There was a stiff cardboard envelope with Do Not Bend in big, orange letters. Of course, it was bent into my mailbox. It was my diploma. My diploma is curled and has a crease on one side from being bent in my mailbox all day.

Guess where I'll be as soon as I get up and get going tomorrow?

*Update*
I just called the university and they told me to send it back and they'd send me another one. I'm going to be there this afternoon so I'll just drop it by and have them hold it for me to pick up. I'm still going to talk to the postmaster though.

I'm Way Behind

so I'll try to catch up...

My Graduation:

What can I say? Graduation was absolutely perfiect!

• All the kids were here, Mother, Robert, Susan and all his kids (and Angel too) and Layne and his entire family were there. The only thing I wanted for graduation was for all the kids to be there and they were.
  
• I was sitting on the end of a row and the family was on the side I was sitting on, could we have planned that any better?
  
• We went to eat and the kids surprised me with cake and a gift certificate to have my diploma framed. I was overwhelmed that the kids would all chip in and do that. I know they really can't afford to do that so I'm very appreciative. (I still haven't gotten all my thank you's written, I need to get on that).
• I was one of only 6 people that graduated summa cum laude, I thought there would be more. My transcript says that I was 37th in a class of 1089.
  

There actually were a couple of things wrong with graduation but they were just blips and didn't amount to much. I didn't know to bring bobby pins so I had to keep adjusting my cap and that was annoying. The speaker stunk, to say the least. I did not spend 6 years in college to be lectured about obesity.

The third grade teachers gave me a teacher shower and I got tons of gift certificates to the teacher supply store in Bryan, $286 worth. I can't wait until I know for sure what I'll be teaching so I can go shopping!

End of School:

The last 2 years, I haven't been at work the last two weeks because I was taking a minimester class so I forgot how crazy those last 2 weeks are. It was time for school to be out!

Michele, our secretary, got pneumonia and was out an entire week two weeks before school was out. Not a problem except that end of the year certificates weren't done. Guess who was chosen to do that chore? If you guessed me, you'd be right. I'm sure you don't want to hear the gory details. Suffice it to say that I did about 1000 certificates and only had to redo about 12 before the ceremony and there were only 3 problems at the ceromony and 1 was not my fault. Pretty darn good if I do say so myself.

Rachael's Graduation:

Rachael's graduation was wonderful. Renita Schroeder was the speaker and even though she talked 90 miles an hour, she was absolutely awesome! I have been to 7 high school graduations and 2 college graduations in the past 10 years and she was by far the best speaker. She spoke the truth, in love, to those kids and every one of them needed to hear what she had to say. I need to see if she will let me have a copy of the speech, it was that awesome.

After graduation, Frances had reserved the Family Life Center and we had a party for Miranda and Rachael. Frances said something to me last Sunday about doing a party for Miranda and she wanted to include Rachael. That was very kind of her and I appreciated it. She bought all the stuff, Steven and I did most of the set up and clean up and I'll write her a check for my part of everything. Rachael and her friends went to the midnight showing of Pirates of the Carribean III and had a good time.

I'm really glad graduations are all over!

Rachael started her job at Shell today. It's a good thing. She was going to be working for Mom if she hadn't. Mom's job is for children that won't get a real job. It consists of working mostly outside from 8-5 with a 30 minute lunch and 2 15 minute breaks, 1 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon. The best part is that I don't pay anything! David got to work for Mom one summer. It didn't last but 2-3 days before he decided a real job would be easier. :)

I'm sure there's more I wanted to write about and if I remember, I'll write it later. I'm going to do my best to keep up now...

Scholarships

Tonight was the scholarship ceremony for the graduating seniors. Rachael is in a very small class that is full of very smart kids. She didn't get even remotely the most scholarship dollars but in my opinion, she got the most prestigious one,

The National Honor Society Scholarship. This scholarship is based on scholarship, leadership, service and character. The teachers are presented with a list of the graduating seniors and turn in 3 names that exemplify these traits. The top 3 students are then voted on my the membership of the National Honor Society. Rachael said there were more than 3 names on the ballot but the lady presenting the scholarship said there were 3. Nonetheless, this scholarship is based on the respect of the teachers as well as peers so I feel like it's a great honor to receive it. I'm very proud of her.

With the A&M scholarship, she's received $2850 for her first semester, which should pay for tuition and books. The A&M scholarship will be $1250 per semester as long as she keeps her grades up, basically.

Graduates also have the ability to earn up to 4 academic awards to wear at graduation in the form of collars and cords. These awards are:
Beta Club
National Honor Society
Distinguished Graduate (based on the degree plan they followed)
Honor Graduate (top 15%)
Rachael received all these awards. She's worked really hard and deserves them. She's also starting college with 18 credit hours, more than her first freshman semester.

Comedy

One night last year I was channel surfing and something caught my eye on ABC Family. I was intrigued and finished watching the show, Whose Line is it Anyway? These guys are hysterical and I love it every time I watch. I can never keep up with when it's on so I just sometimes happen to catch it. Tonight is one of those nights. I was watching a movie and then there it was. I need to be in bed but instead, I'll be up until 10:00 watching Whose Line is it Anyway?

Finished!!

It's over! I'm finished!! No more classes, no more homework, no more papers, no more reflections, no more justifications, no more driving to The Woodlands, no more anything!!

I'm excited but at the same time I'm feeling strange. For six years now there have always been assignments that needed to be done and now there aren't any. I know the reality of it will settle in soon. For now I'm just going to enjoy...

My Fish Reflection

In science, we had to reflect on every activity we did. I turned this in and Dr. Foster told me I wrote really good reflections when I was stressed. She gave me full credit (10 points). That really upset one of the girls in my carpool because she wrote a real reflection and only got 7 points. What can I say? I wasn't expecting any points. So, here's my reflection after we did fish painting...

How does fish printing promote interdisciplinary teaching? To be completely honest, I have no earthly idea right now. I am exhausted beyond belief, completely stressed out, completely overwhelmed and feeling like I am not going to make it through the remainder of the semester. I have reflected until I am blue in the face and simply can’t deal with another reflection this weekend. I feel like I am on the verge of a nervous breakdown and there is no way on the face of the earth that I can complete the assignments I have left this semester. I’m neglecting my family, my home, my job and my health to be able to survive this semester and I simply am unable to write this reflection. I work 7.5 hours every day and commute to class 1.25 hours 4 days a week. In addition, this semester I have had to deal with the following life happenings:

1. My husband had to take a job in Austin so he is only home on the weekends. I don’t sleep well when he is gone so I stay exhausted. I was also depending on him to be home to take care of things like cooking, feeding the dogs, etc.

2. I’m dealing with menopause. Hot flashes every 2 hours most nights which wake me up and contributes to my lack of sleep.

3. My youngest child is a senior this year and I’ve missed every Tuesday softball game her senior year. I swore I was not going to miss any of her games her senior year but I can’t put off graduating an entire long semester just to go to softball games.

4. At the end of January, my oldest daughter informed us she was pregnant and getting married in March, in Corpus Christi. Because of school, my only contribution to the wedding was paying for things and dress shopping. I’m getting docked a day’s pay, which I cannot afford, to have been able to go to Corpus Christi and help set up for the wedding.

5. I had the flu, missed an entire week of school and 3 days of work. I have never missed 3 days of work in a school year, much less in one week.

6. My 37 year old brother had emergency quadruple by-pass surgery so I missed 1 day of work and 1 class to be with him.

7. My grandson had his tonsils out so I missed 1 day of work and 1 class to be with him.

8. I had food poisoning, missing a day of work and a night of class because I was deathly ill.

9. My youngest daughter now has a boyfriend so I have the stress of worrying what they’re doing while her dad and I are gone all week. I trust her but she’s 18 and alone all week and I know what can happen.

10. I’m having to depend on my husband to pay the bills and take care of our finances this semester and that is his biggest weakness. I have no idea what I will be faced with in May when I take that job back over. The thought of it stresses me out completely but I can’t deal with doing it until school is over. I’m doing good just to get through the days.

11. There are various and sundry other annoyances that would not be a blip on the radar screen except for the fact that my life is falling apart right now.

So, reflecting on how fish printing promotes interdisciplinary teaching means absolutely nothing to me right now. Reflecting on this will in no way impact what kind of teacher I will be and I simply cannot deal with thinking about it.

I know I will get no credit for this reflection but that’s OK, it sure felt good to get this all on paper and have someone “listen” even if it was involuntary listening.

My Last Night of Bondage

I'm working on finishing up my portfolio. I won't finish tonight but will have it done in plenty of time tomorrow. I think I still have 3 competencies without artifacts but I'll come up with something...

I am soooo sick of justifying and reflecting I could just scream! There are 13 competencies. Each one has to have an artifact, a summary, a justification and a reflection. In addition, there were 12 disposition justifications and weekly reflections. All of that plus some other stuff for my portfolio. If this was something useful, I wouldn't mind doing it but I already have a job and if I go to another district later, I won't be a brand new teacher and won't need this stupid portfolio so it is a complete and utter waste of my time and effort.

This time tomorrow night I will be finished. I can hardly believe it's here...

Totally Overwhelmed

I sent graduation invitations to several people that I'm really not very close to anymore but I think a lot of them and thought they would be excited for me. Two of those invitations went to a couple of my stitching friends. One lives near Dallas and the other lives in Kansas. Last week I got a card from one of them with a $50 gift certificate to Ginger's (cross stitch shop in Austin) and today I got a card from the other lady with another $50 gift certificate for Ginger's. I am totally and completely overwhelmed by their generosity.

In other overwhelming graduation news, the 3rd grade team is giving me a teacher shower for graduation. That totally and completely overwhelms me also. I have no idea what I do to deserve such generosity so it humbles me beyond belief.

Poetry

Steven found some poetry I wrote for my Library Science class in November, 2004. I still have difficulty understanding poetry but these 4 poems weren't too bad so I'm going to share them.

5 sense poem:

Steven is blue; calm, cool and collected
He tastes like warm chocolate chip cookies.
He sounds like soothing ocean waves
And smells like the air after a rain shower.
He's dark, handsome and distinguished-looking
And feels like a rock, safe and secure.

Acrostic poem:

Baby no more,
Always on the move
Into everything
Living his life
Each day
Yearning for his dad.

Limerick:

There once was a leprechaun named Morty
He's having a birthday, oh lordy!
He's not telling a soul
Not even a mole
How he wishes he was still forty.

Diamonte:

Computer

Grey, square

Humming, working, frustrating

Metal, machine-wood, instrument

writing, erasing, flowing

yellow, round

Pencil

Sonic Vent

People who order food at the drive thru at Sonic annoy me to no end. Are they afraid they will have to park, actually push a button, put their vehicle in reverse and back out of the parking space? Is that too much effort for them? I really don't understand. It's not like they have to get out of their vehicle and go inside.

Yes, I understand that if I wasn't at Sonic buying a large cherry lime coke with a little bit of extra ice, this wouldn't annoy me. What can I say? It helps relieve my stress and untill school is over, I'm going to use that stress relief...

The End is in Sight

5 more class days, 1 Powerpoint presentation, 1 Science unit, 1 observation and a portfolia and I will be done. That's still a lot of work left to do but I'm beginning to think I may survive.

(Sunday evening update: the Powerpoint presentation is finished, I've done as much as I can on the Science unit until the rest of the group members email me their contribution. The unit still has to be printed and bound after I get their part so my Tuesday will be busy. That means I only have my portfolio, an observation and 5 more class days. Wow, it really is almost over!)

I took my PPR (Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities) qualifier this afternoo. I'll get scores no later than Wednesday then I can register for my certification test. I'll have to take this on on the computer because I don't want to wait until June and then have to wait 3 weeks for results. I don't like taking tests on the computer but such is life...

I guess I've learned something this semester after all. When I took the practice test over Christmas break, I missed 11 questions out of 90. When I took it yesterday, I only missed 5. There's no way I would have remembered questions over the course of this semester so I have to assume I've actually learned something. It has to be all those stupid competencies I've written...

Off to work...

College News

I'm exhausted and overwhelmed and don't really have time to post but there's exciting college news in this house that I just need to share...

I'm graduating summa cum laude. I knew I had the grades for it but until I saw it, it wasn't really real. I thought magna cum laude was the highest but it's not, summa cum laude is. I'm really proud of myself and I think Steven may be even prouder. He has a right to be, I couldn't have done this without his support and help. Thank you Steven, you'll never know how much I appreciate you.

Rachael got her acceptance letter from A&M today. We knew she would be accepted because she's in the top 10% of her class but it's nice to have it in black and white. I'm really proud of her and excited that she's going to the school she wants.

Until later....

Sick...

I rarely get sick but when I do, it's usually a doozy. I slept most of last Sunday, didn't go to work Monday, Wednesday and Friday and only went to class Wednesday (had a test). I have vitamin C'd, Nyquil'd, Zicam'd, Vicks'd, Musinex'd and slept until my body hurts from laying in the bed so much and I still don't feel better. I have never missed 3 days of work for ilness in my life (I don't think).

Well, I finally broke down today and went to the doctor. (I hope you were sitting down when you read that :)) It's just a cold but it's turned into an upper respiratory infection and my left ear is infected. Of course it didn't hurt until he told me that and now it's killing me but such is life... I am now the proud possessor of amoxicillin for the next 10 days and cough syrup with codeine. I'm still not feeling better but I'm heading to bed now at 6:30 (not the first time this week) and hopefully I'll feel well enough tomorrow to go dress shopping with Steph since this is the only weekend I really have available...

Seems like there was something else I wanted to say about this ilness but I feel too bad to remember what it was...

Unexpected Holiday

Monday was MLK Day and we were off work as well as no classes. A nice breather but not really necessary since we just went back to work on the 3rd. Then the bad weather blew in and we got an extra two days off and tomorrow is a short day, school starts at 10:00. I'll go in close to regular time though, I still have lots of time to make up (I think).

It was a lazy 2 days. Rachael and I just tried to keep warm and not go stir crazy. Well, Rachael anyway. I'm not ever bored. I was ready to go back to work though, I hate having to make up days. We lose the day off in February right after TAKS and we really need that day off. We also have school the day of graduation which means that we'll have a Saturday workday to make up our 2nd day. I guess I shouldn't complain...

I had homework to do and as usual, procrastinated until today. It was due at midnight and I sent it at 9:00. Normally I'd have done it on the weekend because I have class every night but I had Monday off so I put it off till then. Then we had Tuesday off so I put it off till then. Then we had Wednesday off so I put it off till then. I *hate* that I procrastinate so much but have seemed to not been able to change it. I'm setting a bad example for Rachael which is really not good. Just because I can do assignments well enough at the last minute doesn't mean that she can and she doesn't need to see me doing that so I better change it pronto!

I did get quite a bit accomplished today. I got my loan check and took care of several things with it. Paid Rachael's tuition, bought my books online, registered for my Special Education test, paid the phone bill, paid for the remainder of Rachael's graduation announcements, got information for David about registering his car, took a picture of me for my assignment and it's not too bad a picture (I hate having my picture taken), got my homework done and submitted, fixed my lunch and supper (just have to put it in the lunch kits in the morning), and I guess that's about it. It sure seemed like a lot while I was doing it. Yesterday I set up our online banking, we'll see how that goes.

Tomorrow it's back to the daily grind...

I guess I'll post the picture. I cropped it for my assignment, this is the original.

beckydale61

Various and Sundry Ramblings

Wow, where does the time go? I've sorely neglected my blog. Either I didn't have time to write or I just didn't feel like it. I don't feel like it now but decided I better write something before it's been too long and I completely get out of the habit.

Where to start...

We bought a travel trailer for Steven to live in. We ended up with a 5th wheel after all because it was all we could find that was in our price range and we had to have something ASAP. It's small and 12 years old but it will serve the purpose it's intended for. The guy delivered it, set it up and showed us how to do everything. Not that we're going to remember since we will never move it. :) It took almost 2 hours so we gave him some extra cash for his time and effort and felt it was well worth it.

Christmas was small and quiet. Stephanie, Jennifer, Daniel and Bailey were all here. We opened presents as soon as everyone got here because Rachael was having a cow. You'd think at 18 that she could be patient. Everyone knew it was a small Christmas because of Steven losing his job but she was still having a cow. Bailey was so cute. He kept picking up gifts and saying, " What's this one?". After he opened them all up, he went back to the ones he really liked.

Bailey stayed with us after Jenny and Daniel went home Monday. We had a blast while he was here. He is soooo much fun! It did make me remember why God gives children to young women, you have to be able to keep up with them! By the time we took him home Friday though, it was time for him to go home. Things that were really cute on Tuesday were not quite as cute by Friday. :) I discovered a great movie while he was here, Cars. I'd had no desire to see it but it ended up being a wonderful movie with lots of life lessons.

When we took Bailey home Friday, it was storming terribly. A couple of times we were creeping along because it was raining so hard. We were meeting Jenny and Daniel in Beaumont because Rachael had to be back Sunday so we really didn't see much sense in driving all the way to Lake Charles just to spend less than 24 hours there. There's an old Sears building next to the mall with a large covered area that is wonderful for meeting when it's raining. We discovered how wonderful it was when we first moved Jenny and Daniel to Lake Charles and it came in handy that Friday night. The only problem was that the roof leaks in several places and where we were parked was one of those places. Steven turned around and when he did, he brushed up against the sidewalk. I heard a noise like air coming out of an air hose and sure enough, we had a flat. On closer inspection, there was a huge piece of metal sticking out from the sidewalk that he hit. It tore a hole in the side of the tire. :( He got the flat off before Jenny and Daniel showed up. We went to eat and finished changing the tire afterwards. I think J&D were really, really excited to have Pooter home with them. I'll be glad when it's July and I can get him again! :)

I was worried about the cost of replacing the tire but luckily, Steven had purchased tire replacement the last two times he bought tires so all it cost was $14 and that was the cost of replacement on the tire we got. If we had declined that, it would have been $0. They didn't have the same tire in stock so they upgraded the tire. The amount of money we spent for replacement for 5 tires was still less than the cost of the tire we had replaced so I guess that was money well spent.

On to work...

The new year brought a new AR (Accelerated Reading) program that's web based and has all AR tests available, about 100,000. The district spent mega bucks on it and we were very excited to have it. That is until we started implementing it. The first day the students were back, I spent the entire day teaching them how to use it because it is *very* different. All day long, repeating the same information over and over. ICK! We've had issues with it since we got it. Let's see if I can remember them all...
*The student computers in the classrooms would not support the web based program so the students had to come to the lab to take tests. A major problem since I have classes all day.
*It's s-l-o-w
* We only had access to 13,000 quizzes and the librarian had marked books as having AR tests and they weren't activated.
* There was only 1 administrator for the district and she knew nothing about AR. I now have administrative access and am taking care of my camput.
* All the student imac computers had to have upgrades done and I'm the only person on campus that knows anything about macs. I finally got them done yesterday.
* All the student PCs had to have upgrades but they have a program that doesn't let you download anything. Got that turned off and I'm in the process of getting those taken care of. The other 2 lab people are helping with that.
*The students have to spell book titles *exactly* and 3rd graders are having difficulty with that. Before, they could get close and scroll to find the book but not with the new program.
I'm sure there were some more issues but it's been a nightmare. Sometimes it doesn't pay to be me. I've been crazy busy since we came back because I'm the only one with a brain, or so it seems. :)

Ms. Clark (principal) asked me the other day what I wanted to teach next year and I said 3rd grade. She asked if that was all and I told her I'd do 4th, resource or Life Skills but wouldn't be certifies for 5th (shucks!). Basically, anything that's available. SO, it appears that I'll for sure have a job on my campus next year.

College...

Classes begin tomorrow. I'm not ready. I don't have a single notebook ready, no paper, no pencil bag with all my stuff ( have it but have no idea where it is). Luckily, tomorrow night is just orientation and I'll be OK with just a pen (have to remember my reading glasses though). Since I'm driving to The Woodlands 4 nights a week, I was stressing about the gas. No need to now because I'm now in a car pool with 2 other people. We're looking for a 4th person so we each have to drive only 1 week a month. That's going to save me tons of money and stress. I'm looking forward to this semester since it's my last until I begin my master's program next year but I'm also dreading it because it's going to be sooooo stressful. I keep telling myself that I can do anything for a semester and I can!

Almost forgot...I passed my EC-4 certification test and only missed 5 questions. I was really excited about that. I'm now 1/2 way to certification!

I did some stitching over the Christmas holidays and it sure felt good. That was the last of my stitching until summer. I did something for Audrey and had thought I'd give it to her for her birthday but I'm thinking I'll wait until Christmas. I'm doing it for all the girls, Ihope they like them.

I wrote the check for Rachael's last braces payment last Friday, hooray!! She won't get them off until March, at the earliest but they're paid for. Now to pay for the remainder of her announcements, college classes and books and I'll be all set. Unfortunately, Steven getting laid off when he did threw a kink in my plans for taking care of all those things but we'll get it worked out.

I'm sure there are other things I've forgotten but I'm tired and I hear my bed calling my name. Since I don't sleep well when Steven is gone, I better get there...

Getting to Know Me - Christmas Version

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?
Hot Chocolate
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
He always just sat them under the tree.
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white?
White
4. Do you hang mistletoe?
No
5. When do you put your decorations up?
Sometime in December. They're still not up yet this year.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)?
My dressing with cranberry sauce.

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child:
The year Santa came and delivered our gifts in person.
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?
I don't remember but since I was the oldest, I knew long before my brothers.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
When the kids were all at home we did.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree?
It's always been ornaments the kids made as well as a few I stitched and things I've been given or from exchanges. The kids always put their own ornaments on the tree each year. It just wasn't the same as they all began leaving home. This year I bought red, silver and blue balls for a patriotic tree but I'm really sad that we're leaving the other ornaments behind us. I'll keep the ornaments though because I love them and they hold so many memories for me.
11. Snow! Love it or Dread it?
Love it! If I lived where it snowed, I'd probably hate it after awhile though.
12. Can you ice skate?
Never have.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift?
I loved the orange suitcases I got one year. My favorite though is the year I got my ring. I'm really sad that I've gained so much weight that I can't wear it.
14. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert?
That's difficult. Probably Praline Cheesecake.
15. What is your favorite holiday tradition?
Watching "It's a Wonderful Life".
16. What tops your tree?
Nothing right now. :) It's been an angel for awhile but I'm going to get a star this year.
17. Which do you prefer, giving or Receiving?
Giving. I really wish I was better at knowing what people want or like so my giving was more appropriate. Somehow, I seem to be missing that attribute.
18. What is your favorite Christmas Song?
Amy Grant's version of "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing".
19. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum?
They're OK.

A Couple of Funnies

Becky and Chris:

I had called Chris several times and was apologizing for calling so often. He said he was enjoying it because Johnny Cash was his ringtone. I asked which song and he said Ring of Fire. I laughed because Ring of Fire is my all time favorite song. I *love* it. The rest of the evening I would just look at Steven and burst out laughing. I guess this was just a location thing because it's really not funhy once I type it out. Part of the funniness is that Chris (to my knowledge) doesn't like country music, his tastes are much more, shall we say, loud.

Bailey and Jennifer:

Bailey asked Jenny if she had a baby brother or sister growing in her tummy because he wanted a baby brother and he would call him Buddy. That boy is the smartest thing around IMNSHO (in my not so humble opinion). :)

More Dog Adventures

I went to bed at 9:00 last night after reminding Rachael to let the dogs out before she went to bed. All is well, right? Not exactly.

It took me about an hour to fall asleep (I don't sleep well when Steven is gone). Sometime later I heard dogs barking. With earplugs in, it didn't sound like Paco and Mollie but it still woke me up. They continued to bark so I decided to get up and see if it was our darling dogs. Of course it was and it was midnight!. I let them in and told Rachael that it was not real cool to leave the dogs outside barking. She said she didn't hear them so now we have to have a discussion about not leaving them outside at midnight.

I took me awhile to fall back asleep but I finally did, only to wake up later in a fetal position because I was cold. I turned the electric blanket up and had difficulty falling asleep again. I purposely didn't look at the clock that time so I have no idea what time it was.

It's been a loooonnnnnggg week already.

I've got to go do the dishes and cook something. Steven has me really spoiled and I'm not liking this domestic stuff too much. Don't know what we're going to do in the spring when I have class 4 nights a week but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it...

Lesson Learned

This morning was the first morning with Steven gone. It stinks already.

The dogs are used to Steven getting up at 4 and letting them out. I got up at 5 to go to the bathroom and Mollie was dancing a jig. I didn't let her out because I wanted to go back to sleep for another hour and didn't want to wait for her. BIG mistake.

When I got back up at 6, I rounded the corner into the hallway and smelled pee. Mollie had peed right in front of the guest room. I grumbled a bit and cleaned it up (something Steven would have done if he was here). I showered and surfed a bit. I wnet through the dining room without turning on the light and stepped in some poop. All I have to say is that I'm really, really glad we spend the extra money for decent dog food so that poop isn't really soft and in large piles.

I don't know if she was just mad at me or if she really had to go that bad but I sure learned my lesson. If Mollie is dancing, I'd better let her out!

I have to remember tonight to tell Rachael to be sure and let the dogs out before she goes to bed and hopefully that will take care of that problem.

NOT a good way to start our new living arrangements. Have I ever mentioned that I didn't get married to sleep alone and take care of everything by myself? I know I'll get used to it and it's not even remotely the same situation it was 10 years ago but I'm really not liking it right about now...

1/3 of the Way

to being a certified teacher! Other than graduating, that is but since that's not a problem, I consider myself 1/3 of the way there.

Last Wednesday, I took the qualifying exam for my Special Education exit level test. I only missed 11 questions. I'm really happy about that because I left the test feeling pretty ambivelant about how I did. When I took the EC-4 test, I thought I did OK even though it was much more difficult than I was expecting. I was more prepared for the difficulty level this time so it seemed not quite as hard.

December 9, I take the actual EC-4 test and the real SPD test on February 24 (I think) After I pass those, I'll be 2/3 of the way finished. Can you believe it? I can but then again, I can't...

I wish I had gone on to college when I was younger but I have a feeling I wouldn't have taken it as seriously. Not to mention the fact that my life would have been totally different and even with all the stupid things I did, I wouldn't trade where I am for anything. I can't imagine my life without the wonderful husband I have, even with his faults :) and without the kids, in-laws and Pooter. :)

I am blessed...