Sunshine

My Baby

2011-01-11T20:55:00.002-05:00

So there is this wonderful new addition to our family that I haven't told you too much about...Chase.

Chase...

1) is 9 months old.

2) can snap his fingers.

3) can clap.

4) can wave bye bye.

5) sleeps through the night. All night.

6) smiles a lot.

7) wears 18 mo. clothing.

8) started off with black hair and is now blond.

9) likes to run us over in his walker.

10) likes to look at that baby in the mirror.

At one point I didn't want anymore children. I had been hurt too bad. But when I look at Chase it makes it better, not perfect, but better. Chase was exactly what this family needed and I am thankful everyday for the family that I do have.

Everything's Fine

2011-01-10T08:46:00.002-05:00

Imagine this: Police are dispatched to a domestic dispute. The neighbor being the comedian that he is, decides that he's going to set up a booby trap for the officer when he arrives on scene. Funny, right? The other neighbors will get a good laugh at it. The officer will find it funny. But we all know what will happen. The man who set up the trap will be fined, possibly arrested. Perhaps the women in the domestic dispute will have a broken rib, the man a black eye, all because the officer didn't get there soon enough to restore the peace.

Police officers provide a public service - "to serve and protect"

I too provide a public service - to educate.

What happens when someone gets in the way of me doing my job? AKA the class clown. The student is disciplined by the school, perhaps suspended for a few days, then right back to their old tricks. We are responsible to teach these children, because the state says so. Just like the police are responsible to protect all neighborhoods.

Once in a while these "trouble" students are removed to another classroom where there are less students in a class and the disruptions are kept to a minimum. Now the public is punished. That student has just become more expensive to educate. Likewise, when students are required to serve detention, all the taxpayers pay the proctor, not just those who are being punished. Just like the "funny" neighbor. He pays the fine, not the rest of the city. Why don't schools do the same thing? If a student disrupts education, fine him. If a student needs to be in a smaller class size because they won't stop talking, fine her. Don't fine the taxpayers by wasting their money to educate these students specially.

To make myself clear, I am not speaking about special education students. I am speaking only about the students who constantly disrupts class for attention, or to talk to their friends, or to make the rest of the class laugh. When are these students going to be held accountable?

Last thought. And this is only a thought. We know they are out there. Those people who have children, not because they like children, but because they want more government money. I have no data to back this up, but here's a thought. These people don't pay much attention to their kids, let alone back up discipline from school. What if these are the children causing the problems at school? What if they are causing these problems because they don't get enough attention at home? These parents who have children for more money will be the ones paying the fines and losing the money they thought they deserved. Just a thought.

Scary

2011-01-08T11:53:00.002-05:00

I'll admit it...the internet scares me. I did a search this morning of my name and couldn't believe the amount of accurate information that appeared. It listed my husband's name, my half-brother's name, books that I wrote, by facebook page, my "rate your teacher" information, even my amazon wish list. Okay, maybe the information wasn't completely accurate. For one, the facebook page was of a much older woman with the same name as me. Also, that most certainly is not my amazon wish list - I'm no artist.

This leaves my blog so limited. There are so many things that I would like to share with my readers (yes all 2 of you). I would love to show you pictures of my children, but I'm scared. I'd love to share with you events in my community that I attend, but I'm afraid. What are the chances that something bad will happen to me if I tell you too much....they are probably very small....but I'm certain that I would hear about it from my husband....yes, I afraid of him too :)

As of Late...

2010-09-06T07:21:00.002-04:00

1) Jared can write his name the correct way: Capital J and lowercase a, r, e, and d. I tried all summer to get him to do this. He spends one week with his Kindergarten teacher and does it correctly. Why is that? Maybe I could have her speak to him about cleaning his room.

2) Chase needs a napping schedule. My husband is going crazy and this weekend we're trying to establish one. More to follow...

3) Three co-workers and I are trying to walk to Chicago by the end of the month. We started a pedometer challenge for September and we've gone about 100 miles so far. Windy City here we come (hypothetically).

4) Brianna is a senior in high school. When did this happen? When I met her she was this little 7-year-old and all limbs. Unbelievable. In less than a year she'll be off to college.

10 Things My First Born Taught Me

2010-06-17T08:41:00.002-04:00

1) Do not cross your legs when feeding a baby. I bottle-fed my first born and for every meal I crossed my legs in order to give him more support. Once he was about 5 months old, I really started to feel the pain. My husband and I went to a Penn State game and had to walk about a mile to get from our parking spot to our seats. I could not keep up with our group. I had such pain in my knees. So, please do not cross your legs when feeding children.

2) Do not sleep in the same room with your child. Not even a bassinet. Our first baby sleep right next to me for 6 months and every little noise he made I was right there to stick that nuk back in his mouth. Our second born sleeps much more soundly because the first night he was home he slept in his crib and had to go to sleep on his own.

3) I still struggle with this little piece of advice, but SIDS isn't as common as they make it sound. There are many ways to reduce the chance of SIDS but it seems to be something that many mothers lose sleep over. I still do. I no longer poke my baby to see if he's sleeping, but I do look for his chest to rise and fall if I can't hear anything. Back to my point. Once I was able to let go of the whole SIDS thing, I was able to let my baby sleep in a different room.

4) Get into a routine NOW. Babies want routine. They love it. It makes them feel loved. Both you and the baby know what to expect and you can plan around naps and mealtimes.

5) Go ahead and read a parenting book. I refused to read a parenting book with my first born. I was too embarrassed. If I'm reading one then I must be admitting that I'm a bad parent, right? About 2 weeks after my second child came home, my husband's back went out. I was on my own. Every feeding for everyone, all the laundry, all the dishes, all the meals, all the errands, everything!!! I needed help, but mostly I needed sleep. I bought a book to help get my second born sleeping through the night. What an incredible difference that book has made on our household. I can't help but kick myself for being so close-minded with our first child.

6) Take many pictures and write everything down. You are so busy with a baby that you basically remember nothing. Years from now you will wish you had taken more pictures and remembered moments.

7) Ask for help. We are so blessed to have the 4 grandparents live within a few blocks of us. If we need a break we ask for it.

8) Don't take advantage of any help that you receive. I hope that we have never done this, but I see people who do. It's not fair and you want your help to enjoy your children, not resent them.

9) Take advice. Many people are willing to give unwanted advice. Don't worry about who is giving the advice, worry about considering the advice. There are some people that we don't know or even that we don't like who have great advice.

10) Laugh. Laugh at the mess, laugh at the crying, laugh at the notion that you forgot to brush your teeth today. If you stay happy, your baby is more likely to be happy. Enjoy the ride!

Banana Muffins

2010-06-16T15:15:00.003-04:00

We have changed everything in our cabinets....everything. My husband has been advised to reduce his sugar, salt, and cholesterol intake. Also, we have been advised to increase the fiber intake of Jared. We decided to clean out the pantry and just start over. (*Side Note* My husband has lost 20 pounds and I have lost next to nothing! I'm not bitter.)

Here is a recipe that can't be too terrible. Notice the missing muffins? My 5-year old kept stealing them.

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 eggs (I used 1/3 cup egg substitute)

1 cup sugar (I used 1/2 cup sun crystals)

3 over ripe bananas

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup applesauce

2 Tablespoons mini chocolate chips

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Combine flour, baking soda, and baking powder.

Cream eggs and sugar. Add bananas, vanilla, and applesauce.

Stir in dry ingredients, 1/3 at a time, until combined.

Fold in chocolate chips.

Makes 24 mini muffins.

Bake for 14 minutes.

I even figured out the nutrition information:

1 muffin:

80 calories

6g fat

0 cholesterol

75mg sodium

16g carbohydrates

2g fiber

7g sugar

2g protein

Sunday Paper Coupons

2010-04-11T12:25:00.002-04:00

I have to admit that I enjoy a great deal. Then again who doesn't. I like to sit down at my dining room table and cross reference my recipes, the grocery store's weekly sales, and my current coupons. Every Sunday, I take a walk to the nearest newspaper box and pay $1.75 in quarters for my coupons. But as of late, the coupons are missing. Are people really stealing these? Really?
I have to say that I'm upset...I need to get a grip, but I feel that this has ruined my morning. Not only did I pay for a paper without the coupons, but I'm forced to realize that people are stealing something so simple. Why?

We use to subscribe to the paper and the coupons were always there. But, then the other days started to be delivered. We were only paying for the Sunday paper, but then it started to appear on our door step Wednesday through Sunday. What an incredible waste of paper. Did you know that there are no coupons on holiday weeks? This is why we decided to stop our subscription. 1) We actually end up saving money. 2) We don't waste as much paper. 3) I get a small walk in every Sunday morning.

So, what's a girl to do? I suppose that I'll have to take a longer walk to the nearest store that watches their papers for thieves.

What a big baby!

2010-02-28T07:40:00.003-05:00

Every few weeks, I like to google "week by week pregnancy" just to get an idea of what is going on inside there. I'm currently a little more than 34 weeks. One website mentions that the average fetus at 35 weeks is about 5.5 pounds. Just out of curiosity I looked at week 40 and the average baby at 40 weeks is about 7.5 pounds.

This past Thursday I had another ultrasound to find out that my baby is already 7.5 pounds!! Yes, that's 2 pounds heavier than average...and the same weight as a newborn. Am I scared out of my mind? You, betcha. And here's partially why...

We purchased our current house about two years ago and one of the reasons was how close we would be to the hospital. We are closer to the emergency room than the main hospital parking lot is. I can even see the maternity room windows from my front porch. Then, they shut down the maternity ward. Now the closest maternity is about 45 minutes away. You've heard the stories where mothers had their babies and weren't in labor very long. What if this child is too big? Too big that the shoulders get stuck you-know-where? What if I can't get to the hospital in time to have a C-section? What if I do get to the hospital in time to have a C-section? That's major surgery! Am I rambling? Yes. Am I making much sense? No. But that's how my mind is running right now. I'm damned if I do and I'm damned if I don't. Where does worrying get me? Nowhere! Does anyone know how to shut this worrying off?

Grocery Shopping Round 2

2010-02-22T17:38:00.002-05:00

Do NOT take your husband or child grocery shopping with you.

Remember my grocery bill last week? $23.36. Right. $99.69 this week. Did you know that my husband bought a small round of cheese for $6! Do you know how much cheese I could buy for $6? Jared got cupcakes, marshmallows, chocolate covered pretzels, lunchables, goldfish, and fruit snacks. Hmmm....I suppose that I'll leave them at home next week.

Brand New Nephew

2010-02-18T18:30:00.001-05:00

I have a new nephew, and I didn't have to wait 9 months for him. My brother and sister-in-law adopted a 7 year old boy and will be bringin him home tomorrow. I am super-duper excited. I doubt that I'll get to see him this weekend as I don't want to overwhelm them, but I can't wait!! So excited!

Things might be a little tight - round 2

2010-02-14T09:43:00.003-05:00

If you remember, my husband was laid off last year due to a business fire....It's possible that he'll be laid off again but this time due to the economy. No one wants to pay a plumber anymore. They'd rather try to fix it themselves. And I can't blame them.

While my husband is looking at the end of the world, I see it as a game. Can I buy groceries for a week for $40? What's out there to do that fun and free (lots of stuff, by the way)? Do we really need cable? Now is a great time to clean out the house and have a huge yard sale. I call this game, How Low Can We Go?

As scary as it might be for my husband to get a new job/career, it's that point of being uncomfortable that makes up grow as people. He is leaving his comfort zone of working for his parents and being a plumber (maybe) and finding a new career. Easy enough for me to say, huh?

Today is the day I make my weekly trip to the grocery store and I plan to spend a lot less money than usual. Perhaps we could be vegetarians for a while....oh my husband will love that idea :)
I'll keep you posted.

Update:
I did it! I did my grocery shopping for $23.36. Okay, okay, I cheated a little. When there's a sale I stock up, so our pantry is loaded with lots of staples. However, my usual shopping trip is anywhere from $90 to $120 per week. What did I do? I did some of the shopping at Aldi's, I bought the store brand rather than the name brand, I bought only what I needed and not extra for the pantry (that may come back to bite my in the you-know-what), and I planned cheap meals for the week. How do you keep your shopping bill down? Or don't you?

Don't Sweat the Small Stuff - Part 2

2010-01-17T19:28:00.002-05:00

I want to share with you what I am learning from this book. Of course, there are chapters that do not apply to me and other chapters that hit my issue right on the head.

Cutting my friends some slack: This, like so many things in this book are obvious, by worth repeating. Sometimes we say or do something that offends or irritates our friends and family. Doesn't it make sense that we should understand when people do this to us to be more understanding and cut them some slack? Everyone has bad days, everyone is stressed once in a while, and everyone lets a bad decision get by them once in a while. If these people are truly our friends we will cut them some slack.
I find this advice helpful when thinking of a friend of mine who interrupts me and tells me her opinion before I'm done with my thought. But, she is a really good friend who is extremely supportive of me. In my opinion it's more important to keep our friendship and be okay with her quirk, than to do anything about it. I will cut her some slack when she is over eager to be that supportive friend.

Pot-stirring: The book suggests that we not bring up old situations that may be hurtful to other people. I honestly believe that I don't do this to other people, but I do do it to myself. If left alone with my thoughts I can bring up previous conversations and confrontations and turn a perfectly good mood into a miserable one. Why do I do this? The problem is long gone. Since reading this book, I find myself starting this thought process and I am actually able to push those thoughts aside and focus on the here and now. How refreshing.

Look in the mirror: This chapter presents the idea that the things that we find irritating in other people are actually behaviors that we ourselves possess. Interesting. Here is what I find irritating about a few of my friends: they interrupt, they act like they have all the answers, and they are competitive. Oh my. That's a lot to swallow if this is how I act. If I interrupt people I am not aware of it, so I need to pay more attention. Maybe I do act like I know it all...so I tried something at work the other day. A colleague of mine was having trouble with a family member and wanted to vent a little bit. So I listened, and even though I had a few suggestions I kept them to myself. Unlike other times we've had these conversations where she gets slightly defensive, she opened up more when she realized that I assume to have all the answers. Now I realize why she reacted the way she use to...she was reacting to my suggestions not to her original gripe.

I suppose that's enough for one day.

Step-Familly

2010-01-16T12:16:00.002-05:00

Perhaps I spoke too soon. My step-daughter is in the hospital. As much as I would take the illness for her, I can't. I can't even keep her from being bored. Her family isn't having too much luck. My step-daughter (16) has three siblings on her mom's side, a three-year-old brother, a two-year-old sister, and a two-month-old sister.

Even though Brianna has been admitted into the hospital, she knows her roommate rather well...unfortunately, it's her two-month-old sister. She's never alone at night, her mom and step-dad have been sleeping in the room with the two girls. My heart aches for them, but every family has there difficulties to get through...and they will.

Being Sick instead of your Child

2010-01-14T19:39:00.004-05:00

How many times as parents have we wished to be able to be sick instead of our child? Every time right? I've often felt terrible for Jared when he only has the sniffles. This past October I had the rare opportunity to be sick instead of my child. Let me explain....

You know how woman pass their immunities on to the fetus that they are carrying? This past October I started a weekend with a head cold. As Monday drew near I started to feel weak and nauseous. Since I was pregnant I didn't fool around and went to my family doctor to find out I had the flu. Geez that was scary. With H1N1 going around and all the stories about pregnant women dying from it. However, I survived...obviously, and instead of thinking poor me, I'm pregnant and have the flu, I came to this conclusion: Since I had the flu maybe someday my baby won't because I've help him build up an immunity. Every time I felt weak or nauseous I thought of this and was more than happy to have the flu.

Restaurant Savings

2010-01-10T16:58:00.002-05:00

Have you discovered restaurant.com? It is a cool website where you can purchase gift certificates to local restaurants. But you're getting a deal because they offer $25 gift certificates for $10 or $15. Check it out!!

Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

2010-01-06T18:16:00.002-05:00

You may not know this about me, but I am very sensitive. My skin is not thick. Just looking at me the wrong way just might send me away crying. Because of this I spend a lot of time thinking about how I have been wronged and I can hold a grudge FOREVER. Not that this is ruining my life but I'm sure I could be happier if I could let these insignificant things roll off of my back.

That's where the book Don't Sweat the Small Stuff comes in. I stopped at the library after school and picked up the book so I'm not too far into it. Hopefully this book will have some suggestions to 'get over' these things.

What is the point of this post then? The chapter entitled "Get off to a Peaceful Start" has already helped me have a better day. I'm not going to tell you anything you don't already know. Your mornings set the tone for the entire day. It's true.

Here is my typical morning. The alarm goes off and after 20 minutes of hitting the snooze button, I finally get out of bed, get ready for work, then a few minutes later I argue with Jared to use the bathroom, get dressed, eat breakfast and I'm often leaving the house frustrated and feeling rushed.

This morning....I woke up 20 minutes earlier and didn't feel rushed getting ready. A bonus was that my son woke up with his alarm clock and came downstairs on his own. He got ready for school without any fighting and I have to attribute this to my attitude. I didn't feel the need to demand that he get dressed this minute because I had time to spare. Since I requested rather than demanded his cooperation, my morning was fantastic.

Even though I wanted (REALLY wanted) to hit the snooze button I asked myself if I feel more rested when I take those extra 20 minutes. And the answer is no. So why not get my butt out of bed and have a peaceful morning?

I am in need of advice...how do you let things go? What do you do when someone has wronged you, but it's not worth your energy to do anything about it or even think about it?

Being Neighborly

2010-01-05T18:33:00.002-05:00

I've been inspired with a post idea from Country Mouse. She has a few interesting neighbors and asked about ours....okay, I'll bite.

First, let me tell you about the type of neighbor that I am. For 5 years I lived in my first house as a home-owner and never learned the names of my neighbors. Except for the people behind us, but that's only because I went to school with them. I like to keep to myself. One reason for this is that what if things go horribly wrong? Then what? Did you ever have a neighbor that you didn't get along with? I figure that if I don't get to know my neighbors then there is nothing to dislike about them.

Currently our neighbors are great. I know them only by name. To the North is Marie who has an in ground pool that we have been invited to use but never took her up on this offer. It seems to personal to me. To the South is Gordy. Gordy is the cutest old man that I ever met. My husband is much more social than I am and cuts his grass and clears the snow for him. In return, Gordy brings our trash can back after the garbage truck has come through. Across the street is my high school Biology teacher. Nice man, but I think we all like our privacy.

On to the more interesting stories...
Beatrice and Jerome. The neighbors of my childhood. Dum...dum...dum (that's suppose to be the evil noise).
I don't know if it was out a pure evilness or if they were jealous, but they were not the nicest neighbors.
For starters, when my parents were having their stone driveway concreted, Jerry decided to mow his lawn and wash his car. Sounds harmless enough, unless you aim the grass clippings into the wet cement and then throw your garden hose in said wet cement also. Jerk!
Another example was when my mom was hanging her work cloths out to dry. My mom is an RN who wears white scrubs. Beatrice decides that it's time to repaint her patio posts....black....right next to my mom's uniforms.
Well, those are my memories of Beatrice and Jerry.

There was also Lucille who was our neighbor growing up....she was like a grandmother to me. Actually, she babysat me more than my real grandmothers did. What a blessing she was.

And Krista...the girl that lived behind me and is a good friend of mine to this day.

As far as neighbors go, you have to take the good with the bad. However, I've learned to leave it at that.

The Turkey Game

2009-12-31T11:05:00.003-05:00

I have always loved to play games and my son is no different. I've decided to take advantage of this and create our own board game. I call it the Turkey Game because the game pieces that I found lying around the house are the shape of turkeys.

In addition to my 4-year-old son, I have a 16-year-old step-daughter. I remember studying with her for tests and it was so boring. This is my solution to studying without the boring.

For our game we read a question and when we get it right, we roll the die and move that many spaces. You can send people home by landing on the same space. The first person to get all of their pieces home wins.

Of course you can make up your own rules.

You will need:

Cardboard to create the game board. If you want to get a little fancier you can buy a blank game board online. There are also sites where you can print a template to use.

Index Cards to write the questions on. The questions for my 4-year-old include simple addition, spelling, what street, town, state, and country he lives in, drawing simple geometric shapes, etc. This game could also be adapted for my 16-year-old when she is studying for, let's say Anatomy. And we can all play together at the same time!!

Game Pieces. I was lucky enough to have these 14 turkeys lying around the house, but you could use buttons, coins, or buy pieces online.

Paper and Pencil for the drawing questions for solving math problems.

Dice.

I was able to pull my son away from Wii for a few minutes to give this game a try. I will say that the game was successful. And the added success was that I used the same question cards as he did. So he was able to see/hear the answers to questions he may get the next time around.

2010 To-Do List

2009-12-30T08:24:00.002-05:00

1) Have a baby - I suppose I'm doing this one whether I like it or not.
2) Redecorate the living room. That room is in need of carpeting, new windows, a little paint, and some wall art.
3) Increase Emergency Fund - Hope for the best but prepare for the worst.
4) Lose the baby weight - I've done it before (twice) and I'll do it again!
5) Update scrapbooks and keep them updated. I guess it's about time to have another workshop.
6) Research local things to do this summer for our stay-cation. This will help with #3.
7) Update my curriculum. I will need a little help from the district on this one.
8) Fix up the back yard. Have trees cut down, pour patio, and remember to water plants.
9) Fix up bar room enough to have a party!!
10) Take advantage of the library more often.

What is on your to-do list for the next year?

For the Greater Good

2009-12-29T08:19:00.006-05:00

There is a dangerous intersection in my community. The cost to make this deadly intersection safer is apparently $155,000 for a traffic light and 1 human life.

When the township decided to replace the blinking light that has been there for decades with a traffic light, they knew that things would get worse before they got better. Twelve days after the initial operation of the new traffic light, a woman was killed.

Of course I feel awful about the woman...but I have other thoughts too. The person driving the other vehicle...his life is ruined whether it was his fault or not. The woman's family will never enjoy a Christmas holiday without remembering these events. And worst of all is all the people that will be safe because of this woman's sacrifice and never know it or think about it.

Mom Was Right - Leg Cramps and Lip Pinching

2009-12-25T06:52:00.002-05:00

I'll get right to the point. When you have a cramp in you calf, pinch your upper lip as hard as you can and the cramp will go away - so my mom says.

My mom read this somewhere, tried it, and it worked for her. Wow, did make a fool out of her when we were kids. We joked that of course you won't feel the leg cramp anymore, your lip hurts too much. Either your lip or your ego from looking like a fool....hopping around on one foot while pinching your lip.

I did some research online:

eHow suggests this...
1) Rub your leg and put your leg out straight and flex your foot.
2) Stretch before exercise.
3) Diet - Get plenty of water and calcium, avoid sodium.
4) Take a carnitine supplement

Articlebase.com says...
They also agree to rub your leg and watch your diet...then the very last paragraph of the article states:
One pressure point is between and to the front of the space between your big toe and the second toe. Firm pressure with one or two fingers at the onset of cramp will stop it instantly. The other pressure point is the Septum? Which is the lower bone between the nostrils? Firm pressure on this point with the inside of the forefinger at the first sign of lower leg cramp will stop it dead. This last one sounds silly I know but please try it as it nearly always works.

My Personal Research:

Since I'm in the second half of my pregnancy, I have the pleasure of almost nightly leg cramps and get do conduct my own research. Now, the pain usually makes me forget my mother's advice, but after a few seconds I remember and think, "Ah, what they hell, it can't hurt to try". Ladies and Gentlemen, she was right. Within a few seconds the pain slowly goes away and I am able to flex my foot and rub my leg. Thanks mom! You were right....sorry I laughed at you.

The Rabbit Died....Over 5 Months Ago

2009-12-22T18:32:00.004-05:00

That's right...I'm pregnant. This is not exactly a planned pregnancy, but it certainly is a wanted one. Since I'm a teacher we usually try to time things so that I don't need to take time off of work. A due date of the end of May/beginning of June is ideal for us. However, this child is coming in the beginning of April. When I say that this was not exactly planned, the baby will be coming a little earlier than expected.

The day we found out I remember feeling a huge wave a relief in not having to try. Everything was done and we didn't have to feel the pressure of a deadline for our specific window. Whew!

It's another boy and we are beyond excited. No names yet, but I will keep you update...I promise.

Holy Flying Bats Batman!!

2009-05-24T08:35:00.002-04:00

Just this past week I started reading the Harry Potter series and I am on the second book. Last night I was home alone reading in bed. In the book it is October and Harry and his friends walk into the great hall and start describing the Halloween decorations one of them being real bats flying around. Just as I read that I saw a shadow out of the corner of my eye.

Oh Ha Ha imagination - I'm not falling for it. You just want me to believe that there is a real bad flying around my bedroom. But the shadow was not relenting. So, against my better judgement I look....and scream! There is a bat flying around my bedroom...

I throw the quilt over my head and begin to wonder how I'm going to get my phone without the bat getting me.

I do get to my phone and call my husband who made it home in record time by the way.

I crawl down the steps (yes crawl) with a queen size quilt over me.

Dan comes home to find nothing. Nora, are you sure that you saw a bat?

Breakfast as a Class?

2009-05-17T07:55:00.002-04:00

I have something to say. There has been something bugging me for a while - Public Education. I have been teaching for 9 years and I have often encountered the situation where I am blamed for a student's failing grade. And not only by the student, but by their parents. Many of these parents see no responsibility in their child's education. Honestly, by the time their children are in high school the parents shouldn't have to be too involved.

That isn't even the point of my post...I read an article in the paper this morning about public schools serving breakfast. Serving breakfast is not the issue either. It's breakfast counting as educational time for the students. The example the paper uses is about a 7th grade student who is too lazy to wake up early enough to eat breakfast. So then the poor child can't concentrate during his morning classes. One question - Where are his parents? Why don't they make sure his butt is out of bed? And now the responsibility falls on the schools again to raise their children. The article goes on to say that there are families struggling to feed their children due to the economy - and I get that. But there's no reason we have to give up instruction time to feed them. At our school we serve breakfast, but it's before the morning bell rings - no instruction time is lost.

Not only do we have the talk with them, and test their eye sight, and test their hearing, and teaching them how to interact with each other, and provide free sports activities, but now we will also give up our time to feed them. Why don't we just set up a few dormitories and have them live at school? Then the parents wouldn't have to pretend to do any parenting.

Whew! I feel better. Thanks. That won't happen again...for a while anyway. What do you think? Am I out of line here?

Looking Back

2009-05-13T15:53:00.003-04:00

What do The Bucket List and The Last Lecture have in common?

They both refer to the to-do list that people make. The list of things to do before they die. For this post I've decided to work this idea backwards. I am going to look at what I have accomplished, both planned and unplanned, that I am proud of none-the-less.

If you remember I was rather upset about turning 30. Don't remember? Click here.

So, let's take a look back into my golden twenties in no particular order:

I suppose the biggest thing was buying my own house when I was 22. After one year of my 'real' job I wanted to move out of my parents' house. I had my mind set that I would not rent. My thought process was that I have to make a monthly payment regardless, why not pay myself? So, I did some research and the median age of first time home buyers is 32 (according to realtor.org). That's 10 years older than I was. That's 2 years older than I am right now. So, yes. I am pretty darn proud of that fact.

Second on my list is learning to drive stick shift. I know that this doesn't seem like a big deal, but when I was first learning it just seemed so impossible. So, that first year of teaching I needed to buy my own vehicle. There was no need to drive my parents' car any longer. My choice? A toyota tocoma - stick shift of course. Yup, I bought a truck that I couldn't drive. Sounds a little crazy, but I have this incredible father who totally understood and could drive standard. So until I learned, my dad and I swapped vehicles. And every evening my dad took me out driving until I was comfortable with my new skills. I'm happy to inform you that I now drive a little kia spectra - standard transmission - and this little car is SO much fun to drive. I will never regret the decision to buy that truck. THANKS DAD!!

Here's a good one...earning both my bachelors and masters degrees in my twenties. I graduated high school in 1996 when the graduation rate was 83% (http://www.epi.org/). And I graduated from college in 2000 with my bachelors degree, only about 24% of the national population has done that (http://www.census.gov/). I also earned my masters degree a few years ago (can't remember exactly when) and only 9% of the population has accomplished that (http://www.census.gov/). I've never been in the top ten of anything - least of all my high school graduating class - but when I look at these numbers, it appears as though I've finally made to the top ten percent in my education.

Getting married to the right person is next on my list. Have you ever fallen in love with your best friend? If you have then you know where I'm going with this. When I see my husband there is a weight that is lifted off my shoulders that I didn't even know was there. I see so many relationships around me fall apart and I can't help but wish they had what I do. I don't know that this is something to be proud of as much as grateful for. I'll word it this way...I'm proud that I was smart enough to marry him.

Becoming a mother. Being a mother is nothing to sneeze at. Warning! There is a cliche coming. Motherhood is the hardest yet most rewarding job I will ever have. I love being Jared's mom. Being given the opportunity to guide a human being in this world is so incredible. Being a mother makes he want to be a better person. I absolutely love my little buddy!!

Lastly, surviving a tragedy. I don't really want to go into detail on this one, but surviving this it is something I'm proud of. At the onset of this situation we were prepared to get professional help for me if there was a need. I wondered about how this would effect my mental health, my marriage, my relationship with everyone, and my ability to work. It seems as though I made it. Our marriage is stronger than ever and all other aspects of my life have strengthen, the ones that matter anyway. By surviving this, I feel strong and I have a new view of the world and how I fit in it. I'm proud that although I could have curled up in a ball and died (figuratively) I didn't. I allowed this to only strengthen me rather than weaken me.

If you haven't seen the movie The Bucket List or read the book The Last Lecture I do recommend that you do. Time is ticking...

7th Grade Geography

2009-05-09T17:30:00.002-04:00

My 7th grade geography teacher, Mr. Beagle, use to tell us that he was so mean so that people would remember him after he died. In the school district where I grew up we had a junior high that contained the 7th and 8th grade students. We were only a few weeks into my 7th grade year when this story takes place.

As I'm walking to school one morning a friend of mine offers me a jaw breaker which I cannot turn down. Now, it's against the rules to eat candy or chew gum in school. But, this was okay because I wasn't at school yet. As you know, jaw breakers cannot be eaten too quickly and I was just finishing mine as I was entering the building. Mr. Beagle stops me and asks me to spit out my gum. I inform him (politely I might add) that I was eating candy and I swallowed it. He told me that I could sit in his room until I was ready to tell the truth and spit out my gum.

So there I sat...alone...in his room...panicking. I was panicking not because I was afraid of being late to homeroom, I was afraid of the attention that being late would bring upon me. So I gave in...I took a tissue from my purse, balled it up, and told him that the piece of gum was in there and threw it away. Every time I saw him after that he called me 'the liar'. Ah, there she is, the liar. Oh, look, the liar is in my study hall. This devastated me. Obviously, my reputation as a goody-two-shoes did not in fact follow me to the junior high school.

All 7th grade students were required to take one quarter of geography and there was only one 7th grade geography teacher....Mr. Beagle. I had my mind set on changing his opinion of me and showing him what a great student I was. One day Mr. Beagle sprang a pop quiz on us about States and Capitals. I started to freak. But, what's this? He left the map of the united states up in the front of the room. This is not a test about the states and capitals, it's a test to see which students are observant enough to look up! This is it! This is my chance to show him that I'm smart and have common sense, and to show him that he was dead wrong about me. I start to copy down the answer and I see him walking toward me with a big smile on his face. Yes, he is smiling because he is proud and I am the only student smart enough to look up. When he reaches my desk he takes my paper and throws it away. What the hell just happened? He then says to me, "Not only are you a liar but you are a cheater as well." And he quickly takes the map away before anyone else has a chance to see it.

I'm almost happy to report that Mr. Beagle is dead and I still remember him.

Yard Sale Season

2009-04-18T15:10:00.003-04:00

One day when I went to pick up Jared from preschool he asked, no begged, to eat lunch at Burger King. I told him that we couldn't...I didn't have money for that. He cried and begged and my heart broke. Then I had an idea, "Jared, why don't we go home and pretend that we're at Burger King. I'll make a happy meal for you."

I was surprised when his eyes lit up and he said OK.

Once we got home I made a counter between our kitchen and dining room and asked him for his order.

"I would like a cup with juice, a straw, chicken nuggets, french fries, and napkins."

While his food was in the oven I got some card stock and made containers for the fries and nuggets just like they do at the fast food places. I made sure he had some juice with a straw and served it to him on tray. He ate everything! I was going to share pictures of our lunch with all of you but I couldn't find the camera. Dan took it to take picture of the garage clean-up.

Jared enjoyed playing 'fast food' so much that I was set on painting a large cardboard box to look like Burger King for him to play in. Until I went to a yard sale this morning. Here are all of our great finds from this morning...

A McDonald's play set - without the play food - cost $5. A pair of boots for $0.50. Four book that cost $0.80 all together.

Jared has been playing with the set all morning. I can't tear him away from it.

Mystery Reader

2009-04-15T19:23:00.002-04:00

This month Jared's preschool had a different mystery reader come to each class and read a book to the children. The mystery readers are the parents of the kids, even the child of the mystery reader has no idea who would be reading. There was no way I was going to pass up this opportunity. I took a personal day from work and prepared myself for the reading. I knew one of two things was going to happen. Either Jared was going to be excited to see me there and yell, "Mommy!" or he was not going to be happy that I was at 'his' school and yell at me to "Get out!"

After he went into his classroom (never looking back mind you), I waited in the lobby for the teacher to come and get me. Now, I talk in front of over 100 teenagers everyday without a second thought. That's no problem at all. But, as I stood there waiting I started to get butterflies in my stomach about reading to a bunch of three- and four-year-olds.

Finally Miss Donna comes to get me and tells all the students to close their eyes. I walk into the middle of the circle and sit down. "Okay, everyone open your eyes!"

Jared looks up at me and yells, "Mommy!"

Whew! As soon as I started reading the butterflies flew away. I have to tell you , if you ever have the chance to read to preschoolers jump at it. They are so lovable.

My Husband's New Parakeet

2009-04-13T19:01:00.002-04:00

Here's a story that my husband shared with me and I knew I had to pass this gem along....

My husband was about 10 years old and at that time his sister was 7 and his brother was 5. Their maternal grandmother had a parakeet that she no longer wanted. So, she asked Dan and his brother and sister if they wanted said parakeet. They were ecstatic. My husband remembers thinking that having a parakeet would be so cool. Just think about it, he would be the only kid he knew that owned a parakeet. All his other friends only had dogs or cats.

It was all set then. His grandmother would deliver the parakeet on her next trip to town and bring the parakeet. A few days later as promised she brought the parakeet. Dan went with her to her car to receive his new responsibility with much anticipation. However, instead of opening the back seat of the car as he assumed, his grandmother walked around to the rear of the car to the trunk. My husband thought this was unusual but didn't give it another thought. She unlocked the trunk to reveal... a dead parakeet. The poor thing died of heat exhaustion. Well, that's what they assumed, they didn't have a autopsy performed.

Me? Run?

2009-04-08T18:05:00.002-04:00

I've never been a runner. I was even on the basketball team in high school and even then I didn't think I had any running skills - nothing that I could hold out for any length of time.

I started to get inspired last year while watching Invincible. I did blog about that movie earlier. You can read about that here. The movie isn't about running, it's about football. But there's this scene where Vince seems to be running away from the past and toward the future and I remember thinking...ah, that would be so nice...just to run.

So, I consulted with colleagues who are runners to get advice and tips. You know what I found out? Runners are the nicest people, the want to encourage you to run, they want you to succeed. I never got the impression when talking to them that we were in competition. I was further inspired to join the community of runners.

I started out on my treadmill and was doing well (for my standards anyway). So, I upgraded to the high school track that is about one block from my house. I ran about 2 or 3 days a week until I had company. I will admit this....I have trouble running in front of other people. Typing this I can see how stupid and childish I sound. When I went to the track and was met with stares of teenagers that I didn't even know, I lost my nerve and didn't go back. I'm a coward. But, I plan to be a coward no more. When I put myself outside the situation I realize that no one cares if I run or not.

Sooooo....I've started running again...on my treadmill. Once track season is over I will venture over to the track and not be afraid of a few imagined stares from teenagers.

Bella's Lullaby

2009-04-06T18:33:00.004-04:00

As you know, I'm crazy about the Twilight Series. I've been trying to find sheet music for Bella's Lullaby. It's wasn't too difficult to find...for about $15 for a movie score. Then my husband lost his job and I had to improvise.

In the back of my head I heard a colleagues advice from a few months back, "You can learn songs from youtube". So I gave youtube a quick search and not only did I find a tutorial on Bella's Lullaby, I found sheet music. I've been playing the piano since I was in 2nd grade and I am not one to memorize. I need to see the music to get through piece. So, seeing someone else play a song on youtube didn't sound like something that would be easy for me. But, sheet music...oh, I can play if there's sheet music.

Check this out:

The Bad Guys

2009-04-03T20:15:00.004-04:00

My little boy is all about the bad boys. He likes to roll play and every character he pretends to be is a bad guy. Like Swiper or the Grumpy Old Troll from Dora, Brutus and Victor from Geo Trax, and the Dirty Bubble from Spongebob.

Tonight our free fun thing to do was to watch Spiderman. Jared has never seen this movie before and we thought it would be fun. During the scene where the Green Goblin makes his debut, the scene at Times Square, there was a lot of mayhem...police officers are injured, a little boy was almost crushed, Harry was knocked unconscious, and MJ almost fell from a fatal height. At the end of this scene Jared looked very concerned about what he just saw. He looks over at Dan and me with one of the saddest faces that he is capable and asks, "What's the matter with the Green Goblin?"

Fun for Free!!

2009-04-01T16:44:00.003-04:00

So, as you know my husband is out of work and I have this challenge in front of me to find fun free things to do. I love a good challenge. My first idea was for the whole family to take a trip to the library. I realize this book is a little out of season but I read Glenn Beck's The Christmas Sweater. I wanted to share a few lines with you from this book...

Life is what you make of it. There's always fun and laughs right under your nose if you're willing to open your eyes to see it. Most times we're so focused on what we think we want that we can't appreciate how happy we already are. It's only when we forget about our problems and help others forget theirs that we realize how good we really have it.

I'm sure we've all been there, feeling sorry for ourselves when it really wasn't necessary or even justified.

Anyway, about the fun right under your nose part...

As you know today is April's Fool's day and every year I place a rubber band around the sink spray hose to get my husband or he does it to get me. This is such a great prank because it's the same one year after year. This year was no exception.

Before leaving for work this morning I put the rubber band in place and was on my merry way. Once I got to work I realized I had a voice mail from Dan. hee hee I got him! I was so excited and pleased with myself. To make a long story short - he didn't call about the prank and I spoiled it by reminding him what day it was.

My husband more than made up for it. While at his parents' house he placed a rubber band on their sink spray hose (tee hee). My father-in-law was the first victim. But instead of taking the rubber band off, he let it there for my mother-in-law (tee-hee-hee). However, he forgot it was there and became a victim AGAIN!

So, while he was all pissed off from pulling the prank on himself he yelled over to his wife, "Donna get over here a look at this!!"
"I'm busy! You're going to make me get up now!"
So, she walks over to the sink and he tells her, "Turn on the faucet!"
And she does, but instead of turning the water off right away, she jumps back allowing the water to spray all over.

I am practically doubled over in laughter. It doesn't get any better than that - and - it's FREE!!

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

2009-03-30T16:35:00.002-04:00

Wow! 34 years. I'm sorry, but I don't have any photos to show you...I forgot to put my memory card in my camera :-(

We made steaks and potatoes on the grill for the big event. And for dessert....porcupine cakes! One day while my mom was watching Jared he took pretzel sticks and stuck them in a cake. She dubbed it a porcupine cake. So, what would be more fitting than a porcupine cake for their anniversary?

Fire update:
Here is a post that my husband did on the emergency forum for this county:

I woke up responding to an unknown type fire. Then upon leaving the house I hear from police on scene it was my father`s business, Oswald Plumbing and Heating garage, fully involved.
Needless to say I went directly to the scene. I was not a firefighter this time, but a victim. 25 years in business gone in no time. It was one of the few times I had seen my father cry in my life. He lost everything, 2 service vans, tools, and a large inventory which he built up over his time in the bus..
When he started, he worked from our basement. I remember having to move pipes and fittings when I want to get my bike from the basement. 5 years later he expanded to this garage. I remember how empty it looked inside and how I wished it was when I arrived on scene.
Sometimes we respond and brush off an incident as it was just another call, now I know how it feels on the other side.On behalf of my family I would like to say THANK YOU to everyone involved there that night and all emergency services who take the time from their families to help others.

Bedroom Makeover

2009-03-29T12:27:00.003-04:00

Below you will see picture of how we lived for over a year. No curtains, we did have sheets, but there were in the wash the day I took these photos, no pictures on the walls, just blah.

I had enough of looking at this white pallet. I gave myself a budget of $100 to redecorate. Once I started doing my homework I realized that with a budget of $100 I could basically buy curtains. But I was determined to work with $100. At lot of the improvements you will see below are handmade or found around the house with what we already owned.

I took a trip to Walmart and bought fabric for the curtains - total cost for curtains: $24.

The quilt I made and already owned. I just needed to finish putting the binding on. So I got my butt in gear and finally finished the quilt. Jared and I made the two matching pillows with leftover fabric.

The photo hanging on the wall was in our living room and I needed a change.

The hamper - $20

The quilt rack was downstairs too - free.

New Lampshades from Big Lots - $24.

Painting - I made two - one that you see below and one for the living room bare spot - $15.

Hat boxes - from my grandmother's estate - free.

Wall hanging - sitting in a box from our last anniversary.

Wooden Bench - this was sitting awkwardly in our dining room - fits great at the foot of our bed.

Bed Skirt - $10 from eBay.

Total - $93.00

Having a Bedroom you can be proud of....priceless!!

The Shack

2009-03-28T16:44:00.003-04:00

Wanna read a thought-provoking book? Read the shack. Although this is not a difficult read, I found myself reading about one chapter a day. I needed time to think about what I just read and what that meant to me.

Fire

2009-03-27T16:20:00.004-04:00

I'm sorry to say that my in-laws and husband have suffered a great loss. My in-laws have their own business and my husband works for them (or he did). This past Tuesday the business went up in flames, literally. Here are a few pics...

My father-in-law has been in business for 25 years. I know that this is just a building and no lives were lost or even injured, but this was a huge part of his life.

Rusty

2009-02-08T12:24:00.002-05:00

The summer between my Freshman and Sophomore years of high school we bought Rusty. She was a beautiful Irish Setter and 6 months old. There were a few signs that maybe this wasn't the best idea.
For one, when we went into a little room the meet the dog, she was literally bouncing off the walls. She ran from one wall to the other jumping off of them. We thought it was cute...until she did it in our house.
The second clue was when the pet shop shut down a few days after we bought her. I hope that was just a coincidence.
Then she threw up in the car on the way home.
We had a cook out that evening and she stole the hot dog right out of my hand.

I joke, but Rusty was lovable. Those huge brown eyes looking up at you with her head on your lap. All she wanted was a little attention. I also feel good about buying her because they were going to put her down soon (she was 6 months old already).

We had to put Rusty down about 4 years ago due to cancer. She was in a lot of pain. There is one story that sticks out in my mind with her and that is the day I murdered the baby bird. Bird slaughter!

My mom had a hanging plant on her back porch and you know how birds love to nest in those. I loved to step up on the wall to check on the eggs' progress. I did this just about everyday. One day I stepped up, looked in and all the baby birds jumped out. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I had Rusty out with me and she grabbed one and only held it in her mouth.

The mother bird came flying over and if I were capable of understanding the language of bird I'm sure it would have been close to the vocabulary of a sailor. Her panic brought many birds from the neighborhood over to 'yell' at me too. There were robins, blue birds, cardinals, all there looking at me. Accusing me of murder. I wanted to cry. I felt so horrible. Aren't these the same birds that fight - they came together to yell at me.

Rusty killed the baby bird. She didn't mean to. It wasn't like she bit the poor thing, she held it in her mouth and it suffocated. In any case the blame is all mine. I should have kept her in the house while I looked. It's not her fault, she was a bird dog.

Would you Listen to Me Already?

2009-02-01T06:36:00.002-05:00

A while ago I noticed that I had a loose tooth. You know how annoying that can be. I kept nudging it with my tongue until I made it worse, and then finally FELL OUT! Naturally, I poked at my other teeth with my tongue and they were loose too. All of my teeth were loose and when I wouldn't let up, they ALL fell out.

What the...??

I couldn't believe it. So I poked around with my tongue some more...they were fine. All my teeth were there, sturdy as ever. What the hell is going on? Then it dawns on me...I was sleeping a minute ago. But it felt so real. I felt it with my own tongue.

This dream happened to me often. It was getting to the point were I almost expected to have this at least once a week. And it fooled me every time. I never caught on that it was a dream until I finally woke up and felt it for myself.

Once I moved out of my parents house the dreams stopped. I couldn't stand it anymore...I needed to know what these dreams meant.

I don't remember where I found the information so I can't site it properly, but I found out that when you dream about your teeth falling out, you feel as though you are not being heard.
That's it! It makes total sense.

My dad is a typical male (no offense dad). But, when I would go off on one of my typical teenage girl stories, my dad's eyes would glass over and the occasional 'hm mm' would be mumbled by him. He wasn't listening, only being polite.

Once I moved out of my parents house well two things happened. For one, I believe that I get to the point a lot quicker now (except for this post), and two, I met Dan who is a better actor than my dad and it really does seem like he's listening to me.

It was quite a relief to know what these dreams were about, and finally to have them end. Anyone else have a reoccurring dream?

Here We Go Again...

2009-01-31T08:34:00.003-05:00

My husband thinks I'm pathetic. So does Mike, that man I co-teach with. I can tell that other people are holding back from rolling their eyes at me, at least until they turn their backs, when I mention the series. But, then there are those who are all too willing the discuss the series with me. It's bad....really bad. I started reading the Twilight Series again. I can't help myself. I even told myself that I would go slowly and savor it this time around. But I just can't do that. I cannot put the books down.

So, that is the reason for my lack of posts and now that I think about it...it was the reason before. There are four books in the series Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn. However, she did start writing a fifth book called Midnight Sun and this book is the same as Twilight but written in Edward's voice. You can read a few chapter of it here - it's free - a legal.

I would like to promise that this is my last entry about Twilight, but I can't make that promise.

I am about halfway through The Story of Edgar Sawtelle and I have to say, it's not bad. I absolutely love Edgar - he is such a sweet boy, as I'm reading I picture my own son as this character. Except that Edgar doesn't yell - EVER!

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas- This book can be read in about a day. This is a very easy read - another book geared toward teenagers, but it does have a powerful message. It would be a great book to discuss with my own students. This is also a movie - I haven't seen it...yet.

Jared's Report Card

2009-01-28T13:19:00.002-05:00

My husband and I were a little surprised when our son's preschool was holding parent-teacher conferences. A good surprise. Maybe.

I understand what a handful he can be at home and the fits he can throw, so I was a little apprehensive about what his teacher would tell us.

When we went into the classroom she handed us a sheet of paper....his report card. I noticed a pattern. For the items that required knowledge or a physical activity, he mostly scored high. However, for the items that required interaction and sharing with his classmates..well...those weren't as high.

The teacher tried to reassure us that it is very typical at this age and also because Jared is one of the youngest members of the classroom.

One last thing...she did mention Jared's singing abilities. Everything would be quiet in the classroom, the children playing quietly, then all of a sudden Jared would break out into song. Usually Snow Miser, his favorite.

A Whole Lot of Nothing

2009-01-26T18:08:00.003-05:00

Here I am....I know that I want to write something, but it's just not coming to me. I remember when I was in my 8th grade composition class and we needed to keep a daily journal. We were told that if we couldn't think of anything to write about, to write just that. So, here I go. I don't know what to say.

What's going on right now...
Jared is watching the Mighty Bee
Dan is at the fire company, probably still wondering what happened to his SOP book (whatever that is). He thinks he may have left it at his ex-wife's house when he moved out....8 years ago.
I am sitting on our living room couch typing.

Here is something that's been on my mind lately...the school district in which I live...
My step-daughter is entering her geometry class this semester and was informed that she NEEDED to purchase a TI-89 calculator...oh, only about $100. Now where I work, we provide the calculators for the students...isn't that obvious? Anyway, my concern is about the student who really does come from a poor family, whose parents aren't even living paycheck to paycheck where it's worse than that. How do they have a equal opportunity for education? It breaks my heart.
Then, my cousin and I were talking, and it came up about her daughter's classroom (same district). She just went to the store to buy tissues for her class. Tissues? This school district doesn't even provide tissues? What the?
Am I wrong? Did I miss something? Is the district's budget that tight that they can't afford these things?

I guess I was able to find something to write about. One more question before I go....Is it wrong to allow your child to eat cookies, goldfish, marshmallows, pudding and a banana for supper?

Strange Doctor

2009-01-24T09:14:00.004-05:00

There is this man who lives in the same town that I do...and well...he's a little on the strange side. I was reminded of him this morning on my drive to work (yes, even teachers have to work on the weekend).

Now, this man is strange to say the least, but the way I saw him this morning takes the cake.

Where I live it is very hilly, perhaps that's not the correct word, mountainous I believe better describes where I live...the Pocono Mountains. Anyway, this man is a doctor and he live in the same town that I do and works in a hospital that is 2 mountains away or about 20 miles.

Does this man drive his car to work? Nope.

Does this man catch a ride with someone else? Nope.

This man rides his bicycle.

Please imagine this, you are sick and in the hospital and in need of a doctor. But the doctor that is assigned to you just rode 20 miles on his bicycle to work and over 2 mountains and did not get a shower.

The way I usually see this man, of course, is with him on his bicycle and looking a lot like a wild man, a man that lives off the earth.

This morning when I saw him I could not look directly at him as I was afraid that I would not be able to look away. He had an object strapped to his back and I could not believe that he made it over 2 mountains and 20 miles on a bicycle with this strapped to his back. Are you ready? I can't believe this....Here it goes. You asked for it.....

.

.

.

Yes, a wooden pallet.....strapped to his back!

High-Maintenance

2009-01-21T14:32:00.003-05:00

I was never THAT girl. You know the one who spent an hour in the bathroom putting her make-up on, the one eying up jewelry, the one want 100 pairs of shoes. In high-school my closet looked a lot the the comic Nancy's, but my wardrobe was jeans, a baggy tee-shirt, and sneakers, not a a black and red dress. That's what I wore everyday...even throughout college.
Today I was at work minding my own business when one of the girls walked by. When I saw her handbag I thought, "That's a nice handbag, that would totally go with my one shirt." I froze right where I was...Did that thought just come from my brain?
The other day my husband and I went to the mall and when we passed a jewelry store I slowed down to see what they had to offer. Really?
I NEVER wore pink...it was too girly....looking at my closet now, 1/4 of it is pink. What happened to me?

When did this change occur? I don't remember seeing this change and then all at once, just by looking at a teenage girl's handbag, I saw myself. At first I thought my 16-year-old self might yell at me if she were able to see me now, but I think I might be wrong. If I know her like I think I do, she would be proud of me. I no longer look like a slob. My uniform is not longer jeans, a tee-shirt, and sneaker (except of weekend mornings).

Did you ever look back and wonder, When did that happen?

I have some explaining to do

2009-01-19T09:57:00.003-05:00

I'm sorry. I don't really have a good excuse for being away for so long. But I'm back. I guess it's the weather...is that good enough an excuse?

Today is Martin Luther King day and tomorrow we will receive our first black president. What a turning point in history. I don't want to talk politics so I will leave this topic at that.

Updates:

1) I finished the Twilight Series and LOVED it. But if you've been reading, you already know this.

2) I read Water for Elephants and enjoyed that as well. I'm all about happy endings in books, and although this did have a 'happy' ending, I was left with a feeling of guilt for some lost characters. I know, I know, real life isn't always about happy ending. Trust me, I am fully aware of that. And that is why I love happy endings in books.
I do have to say this about the book. It felt real. Sometimes I lost myself in her words. I could easily picture the scenery in my imagination. A very talented writer.

3) My next project: the book The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski. I will let you know.

4) My emergency fund is coming along nicely. My goal for the end of the year is $2000. So far I have almost $300.

5) Jared recently declared that he is The Master of Discuss! I believe he meant The Master of Disguise. And yesterday he told me that he is Captain Pickles. I think that was from a cartoon.

6) I started a quilt as a gift for a relative with cancer...a teenager. Doesn't that break your heart?

7) I redecorated my bedroom. Before and after pictures will be available soon.

8) The Steelers are going to the Super Bowl!! My husband is one happy camper.

Until next time!!

Josephine

2009-01-07T12:47:00.002-05:00

Who is Josephine? That's been a pressing question for my family lately. My grandmother on my mom's side passed away recently and my mother and most of her siblings have been going through the estate. There were always rumors that my grandfather, Allen, had a girlfriend, possibly a wife, before he married my grandmother, Rachel.

As my mom and her siblings are cleaning, they come across some interesting things. The first time they found information it was contained in a small green tin and it contained mostly Christmas cards. The cards were address to a woman named Josephine and send to a hospital in Philadelphia. Some of the cards were addressed to Josephine Ramsey, others were addressed to Josehpine Keller, Allen's last name. From the information found in this tin we came to this conclusion...
My grandfather fell in love with a woman who developed cancer. She was admitted to the hospital and my grandfather married her there before she passed away. Doesn't that just touch your heart?

Then the next time my mom and her siblings went back to the house they found more information. Apparently, they had a rather long engagement and were married before she was in the hospital. She was from East Stroudsburg and I'm not sure how they met, since he was from Kresgeville. She was an educated woman, a columnist, and frequented New York. I was impressed as most of my ancestors were mostly farmers who never left home.

The eerie part is this... my mother mentioned that my grandfather seemed to take to me unlike the other grandchildren. Not that I was a favorite, but he was just different with me. As I was looking through the information that my mom presented to me, my heart jumped when I saw the date she died... my birthday.

I would love to find out more about her. I know that she had a young daughter when she passed away. A daughter from a previous relationship. The daughter's name was Mary Ramsey, but I have no more information than that. One day, my mom and my aunt when on a little scavenger hunt and found Josephine's tombstone..."Josephine Keller". My grandfather buried her in the same cemetery that he and my grandmother are buried.

Here's a question that I've always wondered about. If my grandfather was truly in love with Josephine, but his family was with Rachel, then how do you decide who you will be buried next to?

I am in Love

2009-01-05T15:45:00.002-05:00

My wonderful husband took me to see Twilight at the theater yesterday. And I have to say I wasn't disappointed as I usually am. I love to read books and then watch the corresponding movie but all too often the plot is changed so much that's it's a totally different story. Not the case here. Obviously, a few things needed to change but these were details. The plot was exactly the same.

My husband would have enjoyed a little more violence or blood, but this is geared toward teenagers. What did he expect? I left the theater wanting more. Fortunately, my mother hates to see me suffer and purchased the 2nd book of the series, New Moon. I am afraid. I am afraid that I will finish these 4 books and then it's over. I need to slow down and savor.

I spoke with my students today about the series and the girls agree with me. They love the series.

Enough about the series. I did start the book, 'Water for Elephant' but I had to set it to the side once my mother introduced 'New Moon' to me. I do enjoy this book so far, much more adult-like. I will let you know my thoughts once I am through.

Thank you for letting me ramble on and on about Twilight. Has a book ever done this to you?

Great Find

2009-01-03T09:21:00.003-05:00

I am so excited! I frequent this hidden gem of a shop only 5 minutes from my house. This is an antique/quilt shop and I love both. I went to the shop with the intentions to purchase fabric to make a quilt for a relative with cancer. I will definitely show it to you once it's complete. Before I looked at fabric, I decided to walk through the antiques and this one piece jumped out at me. You will need a little more information...

For Christmas I was able to buy my husband a new recliner with the money that I made from direct sales business. This gift is a little selfish in that I wanted his old recliner. I fit perfectly into it and he was too tall for it. So, we rearranged the living room and I was without an end table. I was heartbroken and couldn't wait until yard sale season to buy one.

For Christmas, my Mother-in-law gave me a $50 visa gift card (among many other thoughtful gifts) and at first I was overwhelmed. I LOVE gift cards, the possibilities are endless, endless. So, first I bought myself a book (no, not New Moon, you'll see) and I bought this table....

Here's a closer picture...

And the best part...the book shelf underneath. This table matches my passion for red. Are you looking close County Mouse? Yes, Water for Elephants. I can't wait to start it! Thanks for the tip.

Twilight

2008-12-31T12:41:00.003-05:00

I heard the buzz about the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. But I wasn't interested. I am not about to scare myself out of sleep by reading a book about a bunch of vampires.

Then I spoke to Krista. Krista has been a friend of mine since childhood and came for a visit one day with her super-cute son, Jack. The conversation goes something like this...

K - Have you read Twilight yet?

Me - No, I don't think I can. I can't read horror books. Is that about vampires.

K - Oh, you have to read it. It's a love story. The vampire stuff is secondary.

My tone changed immediately. My 16-year-old cousin is reading the series, by 15-year-old step-daughter wanted the books for Christmas. So, I ask myself, should I jump on this bandwagon? I'm not typically a bandwagon jumper. I decided this, I would read the book if they had it at the library, I was not about to buy the book when I could read it for free. The next thing I know there's the book on my mother's end table.

So I read the book in 24 hours. Incredible. I loved the book and cannot wait to read the 2nd, New Moon. I hope the library has that. Should I venture out in the cold snow and wind for this book? I can see why teenage girls fall in love with this story. It's a easy read. Great even when you're too tired to concentrate.

Have you read any good books lately?

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T06:46:00.001-05:00

Good Morning!

It's about quarter of 7 where I live and everyone else is still asleep. Ah....the quiet before the storm. I loved Christmas morning as a child. My parents were such great sports. I use to set my alarm to wake early in the morning. When I say early, I mean like 3 or 4 in the morning. Did my parents tell me to go back to bed? Did they get mad and order me away? No, they got out of bed and watched me open my presents. Of course, a nap was in order for the afternoon.

Luckily, Jared does not have an alarm clock in him room. Luckily, Jared understands what to do when I say, "Santa was here!" He jumped out of bed and was a perfect little angel getting out of bed and downstairs.

Christmas is totally different with a 3-year-old. He really makes the day. Thank you Jared!

How I met your Father...

2008-12-23T09:57:00.002-05:00

I have been good friends with Jason since 7th grade. I loved to go to football games and watch him play, he was the quarterback and I enjoyed that he basically controlled the game. Once Jason was old enough, he joined the fire company. It was inevitable, most of his uncles and cousins were members and I believe his father was too until he was injured. Since Jason and I spent a lot of time together, his fire house friends became my friends too.

We use to go out every Thursday night. Usually we went to Frank's. Frank's was once a one-room school house that was converted into a restaurant-bar - I even went there for my 21st birthday, but that's a story for another time.

When I turned 22 I decided that I wanted to buy a house. I was dead set against renting because I wanted all of my money to turn into equity...not someone else's equity. So in 2001 I bought a house on 1/4 acre of land for $64,000. It was about 10 minutes from my parents' house and it needed some serious TLC. It only had a bathtub, no shower, and that tub stuck out about 6 inches past the door frame. I could live with this...at least I could take a bath. But the part I could not deal with was no washer hook-up! I needed a plumber and I needed one now.

There were two plumbers that I knew of...Dan and Dave. They were brothers that worked in the plumbing business for their father. Since I knew Dave better than Dan I expected to ask for his help. Oh, I forgot to mention...Dan and Dave are both firefighters and regularly attend the Thursday night outings. So, the next time we went out, Dave wasn't there but his brother Dan was. I asked him for the office number and he was extremely helpful.

The rest is pretty much history. I have had many plumbing needs since that washer hook-up. So, I've kept him around. Just to make sure that I am first priority I married him and started a family. Dan, I'm just kidding. Thank you for taking care of me. If it weren't for you I'd still be washing my clothing by hand and taking baths instead of shower....oh, and paying a fortune for oil from a oil-guzzling 40-year-old furnace!
You're the best!

No More Karate

2008-12-19T15:37:00.002-05:00

Dan and I decided that Jared was no longer going to karate class, at least anymore this year. This past week was....embarrassing.

At this particular Karate school, everyone receives a free month to determine if they like the school. Until that time the students (children or adult) don't have a karate uniform. Jared was the only child in the class that was still in his free month and stood out like a sore thumb without a uniform (more than usual).

We finally decided that enough was enough when Jared left the gym floor and started running through the other parents to hide from us. I guess it is our fault, well, my fault. Jared told us that he didn't want to go there that evening. He insisted, "I don't want to go to karate class!" as he crossed his arms, turned his head away, and closed his eyes. Dan looked at me and asked, "Well?" I was taking him. He wasn't going to join something and then quit. I should have listened. Why oh why don't I listen to Dan? Why?

So, picture this....

There are all of these cute little 3 year old children down on the gym floor doing their front kicks all in their little white karate uniforms. Then there's Jared. In his black tee-shirt and gym pants. Yelling, "Mommy! Look at me!" As he pirouetted.

New Year's Resolution

2008-12-16T18:45:00.003-05:00

It's that time of year again when we need to think about our New Year's Resolution. When I was in Junior High and High School, my resolution every year was to stop biting my nails. I never did...until I went to college and didn't have time to bite my nails. Then in college, my resolution was to lose weight every year. Then I met Dan, got serious and lost the weight. So as of the last few years my resolutions have been things like: have less clutter around the house, put myself in other people's shoes, and other things like that.

This year, I'm going to increase my emergency fund. I would like to see it grow up to $10,ooo one day, but this year I'm going to focus on....hmmm....how about $2000. That's a decent start.

I figure there are two ways to make my fund reach $2000. One way is to spend less money. The other way is to bring in more money.

How am I going to spend less money? Here's what I've come up with so far. We are going to eat at home more often. In fact, we haven't eaten out in over 9 days. I know that 9 days doesn't seem like a lot, but for a family that eats out at least twice a week, this is huge! I also starting using the clothes dryer less - I hang most of my clothing on a rack in the bathroom near the radiator. I clip coupons like there's no tomorrow. We found local discounts....I found out that our wireless provider will give us a discount just because I'm a teacher. No bottled water for this lady...straight from the faucet...I'm not scared. And the library. Who needs a bookstore?

Now, where do I find more money to bring in? Well, I did mention earlier that I am in direct sales. Perhaps I will put a little more effort in that area. I can create my little heart out and list my creations on etsy (I will let you know when I do this one). There are so many opportunities at work for extra money. Detention monitor, after school tutoring, bus duty, curriculum, summer school, etc. I will definitely take advantage there.

I promise to keep you updated and we'll see if I can reach this goal.

What's your resolution?

A Long Winter's Nap

2008-12-12T17:41:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow is the Christmas party at my Mother-in-Law's house. This is a tradition and so much fun because Santa makes an appearance at this party and everyone gets a chance to sit on his lap and get a present. So, my part is to make the cheesy sausage meatballs for this gathering.

Here's the recipe....

1 40 ounce box of bisquick
4 Cups shredded cheddar cheese
5 packages of jimmy dean sausage.

Mix all together and form into meatballs and bake at about 400 degrees for a half-hour.

Anyway, back to the point of this post. It took me about an hour and a half to make these in conjunction with supper.

Everything was quiet in the living room and I decided to see what was going on. I found Dan asleep on his recliner. And I was a little envious. Not that Dan curls in his chair, but I found myself wishing that I was curled up on my couch for a little nap.

Then I wondered why Jared was so quiet. I looked over at Jared's recliner and he too was sleeping. All curled up in his chair. But, not like you would think.....

Here's another view....

This poor child. Do you think that Santa should bring him a bed?

Classroom Technology

2008-12-11T17:24:00.002-05:00

Our school is making the switch from the old-fashioned white boards to the new fan-dangled interactive white boards. I have both in my classroom. And the more I learn about this new technology the more I like it. I know, technology doesn't come without it's own problems. I also know that the benefits outweigh them.

I've had my interactive white board for almost a year now and I am able to place all of my classroom notes on my very-own webpage. This is exciting stuff. Not only can my students get the notes and homework from the internet, their parents can see what we are doing in class everyday and so can my administrators. Some of you may be cringing, but I love this idea. I love that parents can never say that we do nothing in class, not that they did before, but they certainly can't now. If I could have a camera put in my classroom I would do that too. I would love for some of these parents to see what their 'angels' are really doing.

Want to see what a digital classroom looks like? If you said yes, click here. This is my class website. Yup, that's a picture of me, taken by a student last year. You can't really see it, but I'm about 6 months pregnant in that picture!

My First Job

2008-12-09T08:26:00.002-05:00

You'll never guess what my first job was....that's it, McDonald's. And to this day I claim that that was the best job I ever had. Not the best paying or the job that utilized my skills, but definitely the most fun.
My cousin, Erik, worked there and was one of the reasons that I too filled out an application. I remember my interview with Kelly. One of the things she mentioned to me was that I needed to shower or bathe everyday. Hmmm. I guess when you apply to an entry level position, they tell you about personal hygiene.

My cousin and I like to fling pickles at each other. We would place a pickle on the end of a spatula and pull it back for extra speed and let go, much like a catapult. One Saturday morning we were doing this - his back to the customers and me facing him. He flung a pickle at me and I of course retaliated and flung one back. But, I missed. As soon as I saw the pickle fly past him, I ducked down. Erik however did not duck, he decided to turn around to see where the pickle landed. His eyes were met with a gaze from an angry customer with a pickle on his face. hahahaha. I'm still laughing about this and it happened over 10 years ago. hahahaha.

I never minded getting up at 4:00 in the morning for this job. And the food...a teenagers dream! I ate french fries and fried chicken all the time. There is something I want you to know. I did lose weight by working there and did learn how to eat healthier. Before working there I never, I mean never, ate a salad. Once I started working there and was making the salads, I figured, why not give it a shot? I fell in love. And now they have such awesome salads. My favorite it the southwest salad with the vinaigrette dressing. Once I realized that the bad foods were always at my disposal, I didn't feel the need to eat them.

I learned a lot about teamwork by working there too. I had been playing basketball since I was in the 5th grade. But, since I'm not much of an athlete, I spent the majority of the time on the bench. Teamwork was shoved down our throats but I didn't truly understand it until I took that job. I am still friends with a lot of people I worked with there. Of course, Erik! I encourage any teenager to go out and get that job. It is so worth it!!

What was your first job?

My Favorite Christmas Movies

2008-12-06T20:52:00.002-05:00

I love December. I'm sure that's it's my favorite time of year because it was my parents' favorite time of year too. My mom ALWAYS goes overboard with decorations, but I wouldn't want it any other way. We also had a tradition of watching Christmas movies starting on Thanksgiving night.

My hands-down favorite Christmas movies is Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas. This is the first movie that we watch for the Christmas season. Last year I found an old copy of a book of Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas on eBay and bought it for my mom. We didn't even know that there was a book.

Jared likes to watch The Polar Express. As you know, my little boy is in-love with trains so I'm sure this makes sense.

Dan made the comment one year that it didn't feel like Christmas until we watched It's a Wonderful Life. Believe it or not, he never saw that movie until he met me. How can a person go for 29 years without seeing that movie? The poor man.

I know that my dad is a big fan of White Christmas. For as much as he enjoys it, I've never seen anything but the end of the movie. Maybe this is the year.

A few other Christmas movies that I like to catch each year are:
Garfield's Christmas Special
There's one on cable with Tony Danza...let me google that quickly...Stealing Christmas
Charlie Brown Christmas
The Grinch (animated and the one with Jim Carrey)

What are your favorite Christmas movies?

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Dean

2008-12-05T06:49:00.002-05:00

Dean is my brother. Well, my half-brother...and that's a story in itself. Anyway, I want to share of story with you about the time he got me lost in the woods...

I remember that I was in 1st grade when this happened, so that would make me, what, 6 years old. My parents went to visit friends of theirs and took us along. Their friends didn't have children our age so that meant we had to entertain ourselves.

Now, since my brother was 7 years my senior I trusted him and so did my parents foolishly. Dean and I decided that we were going to play hide-and-seek in the woods behind their house. The woods weren't really woods. It was maybe an acre of trees that seemed like a complete forest to a 6-year-old. And hide-and-seek wasn't really hide-and-seek. It was more like Dean ran behind a tree and I would giggle all the way to that tree, once I reached it he ran behind another one. I felt safe because I could always see him or I knew which tree he was behind. Here's where the trouble starts. Deans started to do this faster and faster and I got disoriented and I couldn't find which tree he was behind and before I knew it, I couldn't find him at all.

So, I didn't want to just stand there, actually that thought never occurred to me. So, I kept looking for him and finally came up to a road. This car stopped and I got in. Yes, I think about that now and I can't believe how incredibly lucky I am. Anyway, I remember sitting in the back seat behind the driver and I couldn't put my feet on the floor because her guitar was there. So, we drove around the development for a while and the next thing I can remember is my parents standing in the front yard of their friends.

I don't remember either one of them being hysterical. And I also don't remember my brother getting into trouble. That's not to say these things didn't happen, I just don't remember if they did.

But here I am today, safe and sound.

Karate Update

2008-12-03T14:55:00.002-05:00

So, this week was our third week at karate class. Just to recap...

The first week was horrible. I was so embarrassed. Jared kept running around the gym. He even got some of the other children to not pay attention.

The second week my husband went along. His thoughts were that if things don't get better by the end of the free month we're not paying money. Jared was better for the 2nd week, but it wasn't good. This time he only ran in one-half of the gym. At least he was in the right area, right?

The third week (this week) was super! Dan's thought's...I would pay money for this. Jared did awesome. He stood in line and tried to do what the instructors wanted. He waited his turn in line to hit 'Bob', one of the dummies. I was so proud. I wanted to yell to the other mothers who rolled their eyes at me during week one, "Look, I am a good mother! Take that!"

Who knows what our last free week has in store for us.

Every Monday Matters - On a Tuesday

2008-12-02T14:30:00.003-05:00

Oops! Looks like I missed a Monday.

Okay, so eating healthy for one week should not be a problem. Well, it was. There was way too many desserts, and just unhealthy things at my disposal. I will try this week again in January. I will not even try to lie to you and say that I will try again this month, because I will not.

This week you are suppose to get rid of junk mail. I honestly do not receive that much junk mail. I will try to rid myself of those credit card offers though.

By the way, I tested my Wii age again and I am happy to say that I am 27. I am in my twenties again!! We wii, do you wii?

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Christmas Comes Early This Year

2008-11-29T14:24:00.003-05:00

My parents bought a Wii yesterday! Oh, what fun it is! I am considering selling all of my exercise equipment to buy one, just kidding (I think). Anyway, we played bowling and boxing the most and, my goodness are we sore.

I think that I'm hot stuff knocking out my opponent in the first round, turns out that as more score gets higher the opponents get tougher. My score currently is 650 something. I don't remember my exact score. Please don't tell me if that's not a great score, I still think that I'm hot stuff.

We went back over to my parents' house this morning to fine tune our skills and I notice that area that tells you your fitness age. Well, I'm embarrassed to say that my age was determined to be 56. After seeing that 30 don't seem so bad anymore. Ha!

Anyway, I'm convinced that my husband won't be able to get an age younger than mine. He always proves me wrong. His age was 44. 12 years younger than me. I'm going to sneak over in the middle of the night to practice!

Wii system - $250
2 year protection plan - $20
new flat screen TV - $700
Having your Daughter and Son-in-Law over everyday to beat each other's score - priceless!

I will keep you updated on our Wii adventures!

Mr. Snowman

2008-11-25T06:22:00.002-05:00

This is Mr. Snowman. He has been in our family for a few years now...and Jared LOVES him. Last year he made Mr. Snowman sing so much that the batteries needed to be replaced at least 3 times. The good news is that Mr. Snowman lives at my parents house.

My mom was afraid that one day Mr. Snowman would just stop working and bought a back up. I couldn't find a picture of this back up one online but he's sitting in a sleigh singing "sleigh ride".

Are you familiar with the lyrics? One line is..."Outside the snow is falling and friends are calling you hoo!"

My son believes that the lyrics are this....

are you ready?....

"Outside the snow is falling and friends are calling you poo!"

And he will argue with you. Some friends he has :/

Every Monday Matters #4

2008-11-24T06:19:00.005-05:00

For those of you who are not familiar with EMM check out this website.

Prepare for an emergency. Where I live there aren't too many emergency situations that may arise. However, it's always a good idea to be prepared. My husband and I are buying extra supplies the next time we go grocery shopping and storing our supplies in the basement. The book suggests these items:
fresh water, food, first aid, towelettes, garbage bags, flash light, batteries, local maps, a whistle, dust masks, tools, a can opener, and cash. Also, make sure to rotate your stock!

This website has a plethora of information about preparing for an emergency.

The next challenge is to eat health. However, Thanksgiving is this week, but you know what? I can do this. I'm not making any promises about Thanksgiving day though.

Holiday Giveaway

2008-11-22T07:58:00.003-05:00

Have you heard about the Holiday Giveaway? If not go here or click on the button on my sidebar. Coloradolady is giving away lots (I mean lots) of holiday Cheer! Here is just a sampling of what is being given away. All you need to do is go to the blog and leave a comment....that's it...and you will be entered to win. Hey, what do you have to lose?

Horseradish Fire Alarm

2008-11-21T06:27:00.002-05:00

Yes, you read that correctly - The Horseradish Fire Alarm.

I first heard about this on my way to work while listening to the radio. And at first I thought These people are crazy! But once you think about it, I guess it makes sense. So I told my fireman husband about this. He was quiet at first and then he said yes, that's not a bad idea.
You can read about this little gem here. It is designed for deft people.

Here's my thought: If these people are deft and are asleep (therefore their eyes are closed) why not rig something up to vibrate their bed?

Of course, my husband gets all technical and reminds me that a smoke alarm would not have enough voltage to carry out such a process. But, I sure they could come up with something even if it needed to be plugged into the wall.

Did you know? Your local fire department may have smoke alarms for free. If you are in need of one and cannot afford one, please go to them and get one! So easy to save your life. Don't go expecting the horseradish one though...they won't be available for about 2 years.

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Karate

2008-11-20T06:20:00.003-05:00

First, I'd like to talk about basketball camp. This past summer we enrolled Jared in a week-long basketball camp. I was thrilled that the flyer mentioned ages from 3 on up. Jared just turned three! Yippee, he can participate. My one girlfriend from high school (we played basketball together in school) raved about this camp. She informs me that they bring in all these little nets for the kids, they show them the proper way to shot, etc. I was impressed.

Do you see this picture? That is our week at basketball camp in a nutshell...

The cost for the camp was minimal. It cost $50, but then each child received a certificate, an imbroidered T-shirt, and a quality basketball at the end of the week. But, I still can't believe that I paid money to chase my son around a basketball court and fight with him to listen and pay attention. I could have done that at home for free.

I was embarrassed, and annoyed that there weren't more activities geared towards a 3-year-old who doesn't even understand what a basketball is.

Remember those self-defense classes that I've been taking, well the instructors have a karate school only blocks from our house. My husband and I have been debating whether or not to sign Jared up for these classes. The first month is free, so I figure that I have nothing to lose but my dignity.

This past week I took him there and he did it again. He didn't listen to the instrutors and ran away, but here's the best part....the instructors went and got him and brought him back, and when he ran away they did it again. I couldn't believe my eyes. Instructors that instruct! I will try again next week and see if Jared does better. I can't wait until he gets his little robe thing (I don't know that proper name for it yet).

Wish us Luck!

2008-11-18T05:48:00.004-05:00

I am taking 8 students to a math competition today....Let's hope for success.
I will update you later.

Update:

We didn't place in any of the competitions, but this was our first year there. So, we didn't really know what to expect. Hopefully within the next few years we work our way up to the top. Although we didn't place, we did have a lot of fun, and I got to know 8 of my students even better. That alone made the trip worth while.

And if that wasn't enough, we received some cool T-shirts:

They are incredibly nerdy and that's why I LOVE them.

Here's the front:

Here's the back of the shirt:

Every Monday Matters #3

2008-11-17T06:16:00.003-05:00

This is the week that we have amber alerts sent to us. Go to this website to get details. I looked over the website and it is amazing how effective the amber alert is. For example, from the 2007 report there were 278 amber alerts in the United States. - 48 recoveries were from the issue of amber alerts. That's 17% of the cases. If you don't include those missing children that were reported due to a prank, then the percentage increases to 21%.

I don't know about you but those are some pretty good percentages, but we can make them higher. If you go to this website you can have amber alerts sent directly to your cell phone. There is a button on the website that is quick and easy to use.

I just registered my cell phone number for amber alerts and you can narrow it down to a certain region. I will only be receiving text messages for amber alerts in 5 zip codes around me. Once you enroll, you will receive a text supplying you password, your zip codes, and how to change your setting.

Next week:
Prepare for an emergency.

The Answer is Right in Front of Me

2008-11-14T06:07:00.002-05:00

Yes, the answer is right in front of me. In this very blog. Last night I went back and read the previous 2 entries. And right there, in order none the less, was my answer. My twenties were a golden moment. I can't stay there forever or I will ruin it. I will trudge forward and look back on my twenties and be proud of all that I have accomplished. I can only imagine what the 30s have in store for me. More children? Who knows. More wisdom? Yes! I was smarter yesterday for sure. Let me share a math problem with you....

Given: log (base 8) 10 = P, log (base 8) 12 = Q, and log (base 8) 11 = R
Find: log (base 8) 5/256.

Sounds greek doesn't it? But I solved it yesterday and I'm positive that I would not have been able to solve such a problem in my twenties. Then again, I never tried the problem in my twenties either, but that's not the point. Anyway the answer to this problem is P - 3.

My feelings have not changed overnight. I am still mourning the loss of my twenties. And no funeral would be complete without flowers:

A friend at work gave these to me and the card of course said something along the lines of happy birthday, but for this post we are going to pretent the card read, "Sorry about the loss of your twenties. I know that the two of you were close."

Goodbye Twenties! It was great while it lasted. I will always remember you!

20-Something

2008-11-12T15:46:00.003-05:00

I have thought about not posting this as I don't want the 'happy birthday' comments or people telling me that I'm not old, blah, blah, blah...but I do feel the need to get something off of my chest. I usually like to write things down and then return later to determine if that's how I really feel. I'm not going to do it this time. I am going to be risky and post before I've had a chance to come to my senses.

Today is the last day that I will be in my twenties.....EVER. I will never be twenty-something after today. Tomorrow I begin the thirty-somethings...and yes, I'll admit it....I'm upset. I didn't think I would be, but when I came home from work today there was a card waiting for me in the mail. HAPPY 30TH BIRTHDAY! I started crying.

I know, I know, I KNOW:

It's only a number.

You are as young as you feel.

With age comes wisdom.

And the million other saying I can't think of right now.

There is nothing wrong with being in my thirties...I just liked being in my twenties. I graduated college in my twenties, I bought my first house in my twenties, I got my career in my twenties, I got married in my twenties, I had children in my twenties. These are all HUGE things. Why would anyone want to leave their twenties?

Golden Moments

2008-11-12T06:12:00.002-05:00

Did you ever hear that saying about golden moments? I don't remember exactly how it goes but it's along the line of people get upset because they let golden moments slip by, but some moments are golden because we let them slip by.

I understand now. I love the fireman's banquet. I haven't been to one in about 8 years, back when I was 21 and it was so much fun. I actually won the limbo one year. Yup, but I can only be that flexible when I've ingested alcohol. It has been bothering me that I haven't been to one in almost a decade and I'm married to a fireman for Pete's sake. So, this year he broke down and bought tickets for us.

I bought a new dress, we found a baby-sitter for Jared, and we were off. Yippee!!

After the meal the DJ turned up the music and yelling to the person 2 feet from you was necessary. Now, you would think that a bunch of drunk fireman would result in a lot of fun. I suppose it could, but it mostly involves them standing in a circle around a keg of beer laughing about old times - not dancing and making fools of themselves. Except for one, but that's a story for another time.

So, as my husband and I are sitting at the table we yell this conversation back and forth:

Me - DAN!

Dan - WHAT?

Me - WE CAN DO THIS AT HOME AND HEAR EACH OTHER!

Dan - YOU'RE RIGHT!

Me - IT'S STARTING TO GET LATE TOO!

Dan - I KNOW. IT'S ALMOST 10:00!

Me - PLUS WE COULD GO HOME AND PLAY SORRY!

Dan - OKAY! LET'S GO!

I want to comment on a few things....yes 10:00 is late for us. I am usually asleep at 9:00 if not earlier and you always have to wake up early when there is a toddler in the house. Sorry? I love that game. Nothing makes me happier than to send one of my husband's pieces back home. *evil laugh* hahahahahaha.

My husband and I leave the fire hall, get into the truck, and look at the clock. HAHAHA it's not even 9:00. They never changed the clocks at the hall. How old does this sound? We left because the music was too loud and it was getting late at 9:00.

I learned my lesson...not that the banquet was terrible, it just wasn't golden this time. Had I let it go (and listened to my husband) the banquet would have always been a golden moment for me.

Every Monday Matters #2 (EMM)

2008-11-10T06:23:00.004-05:00

As you know, this past week's challenge was to turn off the TV. Well, my schedule wasn't interrupted too much. I rarely watch TV and when I do, I like to watch the food network or home and garden. But, I do enjoy a good episode of Spongebob with Jared.

I was able to get my husband to participate some of the evenings. We played trains with Jared, or if he'd let us we played Sorry.

I also tried to work on the things that I wanted to improve on from the first week of EMM. I slightly improved my exercise percentage. There's nothing I can do about work right now other than increase my retirement contributions (I will do that today!). I did socialize with friends more. I did notice that my percentage of housework is low...and you are all going to be jealous of this one...

My husband is a huge help around the house. I don't know if help is the right word. It's more like I help him. This man is not afraid of laundry, or dirty dishes, or scrubbing toilets, or vacuums, or even cooking. I love this man. Did you ever see that book Porn for Women? If not you need to google that and take a look....that sums up my husband.

Oh, and let's not forget this week's challenge for Every Monday Matters:
Have AMBER alerts sent to you. I will do my homework and see what that takes and I will let you know.

Meatball Soup

2008-11-09T16:59:00.004-05:00

Here is another one of my husband's favorites. And so easy to make...throw it all into a pot and heat it up. How much easier can it get? I usually have all the ingredients on hand too, so that's a plus.

1 cup uncooked pasta (shells are nice)
32 frozen italian meatballs (if you are wondering, yes, I do count them out)
2 cans of chicken broth (14.5 oz each)
1 can diced tomatoes
1 bag of frozen soup vegetables
1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 jar spaghetti sauce

Put everything in a pot and boil until noodles are done!

What have I done?

2008-11-07T06:09:00.004-05:00

I am totally stealing this idea from Learning to be a Wife. Feel free to steal it from me. Below is a list of things and I have bolded the ones that I have completed. Then you can copy the list from me and paste it into your blog and bold the ones you have done. Here we go...

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said "I love you" and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby's diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and didn't care who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Taken a midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Played touch football
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theatre
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class (if Billy Blanks counts)
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on a television news program as an "expert"
83. Gotten flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark8
8. Kissed on the first date
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror
96. Raised children (I'm in the process)
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Passed out cold
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn't have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray
110. Broken someone's heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a TV game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for 30 hours in a 48 hour period
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. States
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad and The Odyssey
135. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone's life

Ah...Life with a 3-year-old

2008-11-05T11:31:00.003-05:00

You've heard of the terrible twos? Well, every mother that I've talked to had a worse time with the terrible threes that the twos. My family included.

Every morning I wake up at 5:30 and leave for work at 6:30. My husband wakes up around 7:00 and leaves with Jared around 8:00. I don't help to get Jared ready as no one else is willing to wake up when I do to receive my help. Anyway, yesterday Dan was attempting to get Jared ready for the day, but Jared would have no part of it. I've only had the pleasure to get Jared ready in the morning a few times, and I know that when he resists you the whole time, it really sets the tone for the day. It sucks!
At dinner yesterday I decided to go over the morning routine with Jared. Just to have him verbally go through our expectations.

Me - Jared, what is the first thing that you do when you wake up in the morning?

Jared - I pee potty.

Me - Good. Now, what do you do right after you pee potty?

Jared - I give Daddy a hard time. (With a serious look on his face).

Me - Noooo.... you get dressed.

Jared - Oh, I get dressed. That's right.

Me - What do you do after you get dressed?

Jared - I sit in time out. (With a serious look on him face).

Me - Noooo...you brush your teeth.

Jared - Oh, I brush my teeth. That's right.

Can you believe this child?

The other day Jared was not listening (again :-/) and Dan called him over and pointed to spot right in front of him. Jared looks over and says......

What......is.........the PROBLEM.

I lost it. I think my husband's head exploded.

Socks!

2008-11-04T06:09:00.004-05:00

Here is a photo of the scarf (yes, that's a scarf) that I was working on. But, I ran out of yarn. So, I went back to the store and it's all sold out, I keep checking...it never comes back. I check online, it's not there. Sigh. I only had one more row to go to finish this little project and could not find the right yarn. So, I improvised and used yellow to finish. You can see it pretty clearly in this picture.

My mom being my mom went out and bought yard for me that she believed was the correct color. It wasn't, but that's how awesome my mom is.
So, I asked her "What should I make for you from this yarn?"
"Socks!"

I went to my favorite knitting website. Lion Brand Yarn. And found a pattern for a pair like this. Although my colors are much nicer.

Here is my progress so far. I have never made a pair of socks before. My mom will love that she is getting my first pair of socks ever!

Every Monday Matters #1

2008-11-03T06:11:00.005-05:00

Did you ever hear of Every Monday Matters? No? Well, check it out here. The book picks Monday because it is usually the worse day of the week. It is for me anyway. But, it jumped out of bed this morning on time so that I could write this entry.

Here's the idea:

Do something every Monday to make the world, your world, a better place. The book starts the first Monday off making your world a better place. The first week's challenge is to determine what matter most to you and then find time to make it happen.

Steps:

1) Write a list of what matters most to you.

2) Write down your list of weekly activities and determine what activities are required and which ones are a complete waste of time.

3) Rearrange your schedule.

What matters most to me:

1) My Family

2) My Health

3) My Job

4) My Finances

5) My hobbies (reading, knitting, sewing, scrapbooking,and of course blogging)

So, for almost one week I kept track of all the activities that I did and determined the percentage of time that I am involved in said activities.

Sleep - 36% (I sleep a lot)

Work - 32% This percent would normally be higher, but we had an early dismissal and a two hour delay last week.

Family - 21%

Hobbies - 4%

Housework - 3%

Part time job - 3%

Exercise - 1%

These results were a rude awakening. Do I really only exercise 1% of the time? Really? Okay, I see a need for change there. Also, it bothers me that I spend more time at my job than I do with my family. Why is that? Which is more important? My job is important to me, but not more important than my family. I noticed that socializing with friends isn't even on the list.

The challenge for week #2 is to turn off the TV. Or if you are unable to do this watch educational programs such as the history channel, or the food network, maybe I should watch FitTV. The book suggests making a list of things that you could do instead of watching TV. I will let you know the results of my week without TV in one week.

Beer & Bean Burritos

2008-11-02T07:42:00.003-05:00

Yummy!! This is a great meal for a few reasons.

1- It contains beer. This is a favorite of mine especially when I was pregnant. The one thing I use to crave when pregnant was beer. Oh, the smell would do me in and I would have to cook with it then.

2- It's vegetarian. So, when I cook this for people (if I ever cook it for people) I don't have to worry if their vegetarian.

3- My husband loves it. One of the best feeling I get is when my husband complements my cooking. When we first started dating I didn't even know how to make macaroni and cheese from a box. Seriously, I know there are directions but I couldn't believe that a tablespoon of milk was even necessary.

Here's the recipe:

Gather these items:
Tortilla Shells - I like the cheddar jalapeno ones.
1 can of black beans
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 can of corn
red pepper flakes
1 bottle of beer (corona works well, but any one will do)

Drain and rinse your beans and put into a skillet with a little bit of beer. Mash the beans with a fork. Do this for about 5 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, corn, red pepper flakes, and a little less than half of a bottle of beer. Drink the rest of the beer, unless you are pregnant.
Increase heat to boiling for about 10-15 minutes. You want to let this boil until the mixture is not so watery, you want it to have a paste-like texture.
Spoon onto tortilla shells and wrap like a burrito.

Now, what do you do if there are leftovers? Well, eat them with tortilla chips the next day. I would have taken a picture of this recipe for you but it was all gone before I could find the camera. Enjoy!

Trick OR Treat

2008-11-01T11:34:00.002-04:00

As you know my son was the Incredible Hulk this year for Trick or Treat. For the past two years we've been having this certain problem with him. He doesn't seem to get the hang of going for candy. For those of you who know that children hate to leave anywhere, that is my son to a tee. If he's at home he doesn't want to leave. When it's time to go back home, he doesn't want to do that either. If his skin would turn green and be able to tear off his shirt just by flexing his muscles, I'm sure he would. He is certainly incredible.

You can imagine our frustration last year when trying to take him trick-or-treating and everytime we went to a house he cried that he didn't want to go to the next. I don't know how thing work where you live but in my town, we go trick-or-treating for 2 hours. Jared did not catch on to the idea that he was getting candy until about an hour and a half into it. ARGH! That was last year. This year he caught on after one house. Sort of.

The first house was my mother-in-laws, Nana. Jared cried that he did not want to leave Nana's house. We even told him the truth, 'If we leave, we'll give you candy!' That's not a bribe, is it? The poor child, even though we're going through town getting candy, he still insisted that he wanted to go back to Nana's for her candy.

Maybe next year :-/

Blanket Huts

2008-10-29T06:25:00.003-04:00

My colleague, Mary, and I dubbed yesterday the Best Day Ever!! Out of the blue we received an early dismissal from school. I took advantage of this extra time and immediately called my husband...

I met my husband for lunch at our favorite little pizza shop. I miss having lunch with my husband during the school year. During the summer he comes home for lunch practically everyday, unless he's working out of town. Yesterday was certainly a treat for me.

After lunch I picked up my son up from my mother-in-law's house. For all you wondering why we didn't take Jared to lunch with us, it's because he already ate. Anyway, I picked him up and we went home to make this...

That, my friends, in my living room. We made a blanket hut...we pulled in all of the dining room chairs, I found every blanket in the house and we (meaning me) made this hut. Yes, that is his head poking out of the top to watch TV. I actually fell asleep while in said hut and woke up to a little boy's giggle...you know, the giggle where they think they are getting away with something. My eyes popped open and there through the blankets I can see that Jared is about to walk on top of the hut! No one was hurt in the making or use of this hut. Everyone is fine.

I love when I am gifted a few extra hours with my family. Yes, I love a good snow day to sleep in and not have to go to work, but mostly I love to be with them.

Self-Defense

2008-10-28T06:22:00.003-04:00

A group of women at my school pulled together to take a self-defense class. Very interesting. Some of the things were a little scary when you think about it. One thing the instructor kept saying was, "And this is the thing that will change your life." Meaning when a person approaches you in an unfriendly manner. Then I started looking around the room and wondered, why aren't ALL of the women here. Come on, it's $50 for the knowledge to save your life. Why would you not be there? I know that you all can't be there, so I will try to teach you what I can.

How to get out of a one arm hold:
If someone is holding your wrist with the opposite hand, for instance they are holding your right wrist with their left hand. Twist your wrist to the right and you will be free. I know you don't believe me, I did not believe my instructor either. But then I tried it with my partner and I was able to break away from her. Then I thought that maybe it was because she is a woman. So, I came home and tried it with my husband and I broke free from him. Yes, my husband!! My husband is no wimp.
This also works if they are holding your left wrist with their right hand. In this case you will need to twist your hand to the left. Always twist it out.

If you are being held with two hand (your one wrist is being held by both of their hands): Interlace your fingers together and pull back as hard as you can (don't hit yourself in the face). You would also do this if they are holding your wrist with the same hand and you can't twist away.

Your homework assignment:
Try both of these with a partner, preferably someone stronger, and see if you can get out of it. Let me know the results.

This is my Dad...

2008-10-25T19:05:00.002-04:00

This is my Dad. In this picture he is wearing his new hat. Wish you had one don't you? Growing up I thought that my dad was the funniest man in the world. I use to argue with my friends about whose dad was funnier. My dad is quick to laugh and make a joke. He taught me what a great sense of humor is.

Now, I am unable to write all the funny stories about my dad as they would make a book. I will give you two high school stories.

The wig story:
One day when my dad was in high school he decided that he was going to wear a wig to class. He put the wig on before the teacher can into the room. Now, this wig had long hair and of course made my dad look like a girl. He sat at his desk looking down so the 'hair' would hide his face. When the teacher came into the room she asked the 'new girl' to introduce herself. My dad started laughing silently and of course it looked like the new girl was crying. The teacher came over to the desk and told her that it was okay, she should introduce herself to the class. I'm not sure what happened when my dad finally took the wig off, but I can only imagine what the teacher's thoughts were.

Graduation:
My dad was in danger of not graduating high school. He was called into the principal's office during the spring of his senior year and was informed that if he missed any more days of school we would not graduate. My grandfather passed away when my dad was 16, and my grandmother always told her boys (5 boys that is) that it was their dad's wish that all of them graduate high school. Well, my dad being my dad skipped the next three days. I suppose they decided to graduate him anyway as he was the youngest of the 5 brothers and they would not have to deal with him anymore. Can you believe that he now works in that very school? Who would have thought?

Pumpkin Carving

2008-10-24T05:58:00.005-04:00

When I was in high school I loved to carve pumpkins. My parents would buy those kits and I would tape the paper to the pumpkin and poke holes, the whole business. When I was done, it looked like a butchered mess to everyone but me. But then you lit it up with a candle and all became clear. Sorry about the pictures, they were in my scrapbook and I didn't want to tear the pictures out of it...

Now it's your turn. Try carving this online pumpkin. Warning...do not open at work, you will become addicted.

Pumpkin Simulator

Life in a Nutshell

2008-10-23T06:23:00.002-04:00

We hired a new math teacher this fall, Mary. Her classroom is directly across from mine and we see each other a lot between classes, even during classes. One day I confessed to her that I loved to scrapbook. It so happens that she has a book of the first 18 years of her life. It was an assignment in one of her classes when she was a senior in high school. She was so kind as to bring it to work and let me see it. I read every word she wrote. That book is amazing. It is a 3" 3-ring binder with writings from her parents, pictures, memorabilia, and her recollection of her life up to 18 years.

As I'm reading her stories I am reminded of so many of my own. Like my friend Jason slipping on the ice in the gutter every morning when I picked him up for school. I haven't thought about that in years. Or the time when my dad was in high school and wore a wig so the teacher thought there was a new student. Or what about my entire basketball "career" in school. I never wrote any of those things down. I think I need to do this.

What a treasure that Mary has. Everything in one place. Her grandchildren will thank her for it, I'm sure.

A day with Jared

2008-10-22T06:19:00.003-04:00

I took a personal day yesterday so that I could spend it with Jared. I followed him with a camera and noted the times that he did things. Here are the results...

7:40 - I woke Jared
8:00 - Breakfast - waffles
9:00 - 11:00 - Pre-school
12:00 - Lunch at Burger King with Dad and Nanner
1:30 - 4:30 - nap (This is incredibly rare that he even took a nap)
5:00 - supper
5:30 - Bake a cake
6:00-8:00 playing trains on the floor with Mom and Dad
8:00 - up to bed to read books and watch a little TV

He also spend a great deal of the day singing Old MacDonald.
Here are a few of his quotes:
Jared was stiring the cake batter when I put the eggs in, after a while he looked into the bowl and asked, "Where did the eggs go? Now how are we going to find them?" He threw his hands up in the air in disgust.
While in a time out, between sobs he says, "Ah, tartar sauce!" - Perhaps we're watching a little too much Spongbob.

I had a great day with him. I miss him when I have to go back to work, but I know it's good for us. Come August, I think we've both had enough of each other. Those first few weeks that I went back to work he started acting out and straight out told me that he missed me. Oh, how he can break my heart.

On a totally different topic - I learned something about housework yesterday. I put off emptying the dishwasher until the afternoon. When I finally did empty it, I timed myself. And do you know what? It only took 6 minutes to empty and refill that sucker. Yes, only 6 minutes. Next time I have to empty the dishwasher I'm going to remind myself that it is only 6 minutes. Why do I spend hours with that chore looming over me?

Pet Peeves

2008-10-21T07:25:00.005-04:00

I'm not sure why, but the mood has stuck to let you know my pet peeves. To other people these things are nothing but they irritate me to no end.

I hate when people chew with their mouth open. It's one thing is they have a head cold and can't breath, but there are people who do it all the time. ALL THE TIME!

There are driving laws for a reason people! That stop sign, yeah that one, it means stop, not yield. Oh, and the speed limit, I guess that is just a suggestion. I hate that other people take my safety and the safety of my son in their own hands when they decide not to obey the law.

It drives me crazy when people mispronounce words. Like mattress, the word has a T in it. It's not pronounced ma-ress. The state of Illinois. For some reason the s is silent. Here's a trick my parents taught me - There's no noise in Illinois. There are other words but I can't think of them right now.

I know there are more but all I can focus on are the three I wrote about. ARGH!

RAKC

2008-10-19T18:32:00.002-04:00

So, you are looking at the new advisor for the RAKC at my school. That's the Random Acts of Kindness Club. It happened on the very day is listed my last entry. I could use some ideas or website that have ideas. Our club has a little bit of money, but the emphasis here is low cost ideas. We're trying to start simple and grow from there.

Random Acts of Kindness

2008-10-17T06:21:00.003-04:00

I love to commit random acts of kindness. So simple, so easy, and the pay-off exceeds the effort. Here is a random act of kindness that I committed a few months ago and I am still feeling the high from it.

I was grocery shopping and I HATE grocercy shopping. However, I never give the chore to my husband as I am unable to give up the control as to what food enters our house. Anyway, I was done finding my purchases and got into line. As I'm standing in line with my shopping cart overflowing with food an older couple gets in line behind me with two items. I still remember those items to this day - a bag of lettuce and a can of whipped cream (kinky). So, I figure - why not?...and allowed them to get infront of me in line. As the cashier is ringing up their order I tell her to just put their stuff on my bill - she doesn't bat an eye. The older couple didn't hear what I said and stood there waiting for the total. When the cashier explain that I was paying they starting saying things like God bless you and thank you so much, when they left the store the cashier looked at me and asked, "Did you know those people?" Nope, did not know them. As I was bagging my groceries I could overhear other cashiers and customers talking about me (in a good way).

So, there it is...I paid an extra $2.50 and made an old couple happy. I doubt that I'll ever forget that experience.

Happy Birthday Hubby!

2008-10-14T16:04:00.003-04:00

Today is my husband's birthday. We don't do much for each other's birthdays. You know what, I'm very happy about this. There is just so much pressure. Why the extra effort on just one day? I've notice other couples and for some of them - it's just not a happy birthday unless their spouse went all out and killed themselves for the other's birthday. Now that's love :-)

Anyway, my husband and I have a great relationship. I feel (since I can't speak for my husband) that you need to make everyday extra special. My husband works hard and is a busy man. I don't expect him to go to great lengths for my birthday. Actually, I prefer that he doesn't.

I left little notes around the house this morning for my husband to find when he woke up. Little notes like, Happy Birthday, I love you, have a great day with my typical doodle on them. I know that he appreciated it because he called and told me. It cost me no money to write those notes. It barely took me any time. I feel that means more to him then me attempting to buy him a power tool he either already has or doesn't need - then return it to the store - to either get what he really needed or a refund. What a hassle. We buy what we need/want when we need/want/can afford it.

I remember our first Valentine's Day together - I told him weeks in advance to not buy me anything. I informed that I too would not buy anything for him. He couldn't believe it. He kept asking me Are you sure? I was getting annoyed - why couldn't he accept that I didn't want anything for Valentine's Day? Here's why...it happened to him before - he was told in a past relationship to not buy something, he followed directions and didn't buy anything, then caught heck for not buying anything. Argh...I hate women like that.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! LOVE YOU!

S-A-T-U-R D-A-Y Morning!

2008-10-10T15:26:00.006-04:00

I loved Saturday mornings when I was a kid. I knew when it was a Saturday long before I knew the days of the week. Everything was different...the sun was a little brighter, my parents were more cheerful, and dance class!! I loved dance class. We sang songs like Animal Crakers in my Soup. Here are a few pictures for you to enjoy...

The Incredible Hulk

2008-10-10T06:16:00.004-04:00

So, the family and I went to Wal-mart and bought a costume for my son. We held up a superman costume, a power range costume, and a hulk costume. He chose the hulk...

He was so cute...look at the sleeve on his left arm...he kept looking in the mirror making growling noises. haha...kids are so much fun.

Piano

2008-10-08T06:19:00.004-04:00

I know that I mentioned in an earlier entry what great parents I have. This entry is going to help hit that idea home. Out of the blue my parents bought me a piano. It's not my birthday. It's not Christmas. It's just October. My dad did make the comment that my husband has been very helpful to them with their new home. Dan helped them with a few remodeling projects. So, the way I see it, I am rewarded with a piano because I have good taste in men. Thanks Dan!!

This picture is bad, but the lighting in my dining room isn't that wonderful.

The piano was delivered on Monday and I haven't stopped playing since. Don't let me fool you...I am not that great a player. I think I saw Dan cover his ears out of the corner of my eye one time.

Football Season

2008-10-04T07:50:00.003-04:00

I love football...well, I use to like football...ah, who am I fooling? I hate football. At one point in my life I actually had myself convinced that I liked it. I like the idea of football. I have great memories associated with it.

For one, when I was in high school, that was the highlight of the week. I went to the games and saw all of my friends there. I went to every single football game. I know this for a fact since I was in the band. I loved Friday nights.

For two, most of my friends when I was in high school and college were guys. They watched football. If I wanted to fit in, I had to watch it too. Looking back, I don't understand why it was so important to be one of the guys. I guess maybe because I could.

For three, my mom is a fan of football, and my paternal grandmother was too. So, I thought it was in my blood. nope, it's not.

However, did you ever watch the Disney movie Invincible? It's based on a true story about Vince Papale. Love it!! Mark Wahlberg is so hot!

Knit-Wit

2008-10-02T16:20:00.007-04:00

I love to knit. I don't watch TV anymore...well, for one I'm busy, for two I have a husband who is bigger than me, and 3 I have a toddler son who is addicted to SpongeBob. So instead, I knit. Here is a bag that I made for me, my step-daughter, a friend. I love this bag. So, much fun to make.

I have even made myself a pair of arm-warmers but I don't wear them in public since it looks like I'm wearing two casts.

Are you ready to learn how to knit? Yes, you can. I did. I had no one to sit down and show me. I just made up my mind one day and I learned how to knit from books. No, it didn't happen in one day, but it did happen. Here is where you go for all of your knitting needs.

How Can I Help?

2008-10-02T16:12:00.003-04:00

I've been thinking. I should use this blog for good...not evil. Anyway, I've been looking for sites where I could help people out. I remember this first one from Country Mouse's husband (I use to work with him). It's called free rice. You can improve your vocabulary and feed hungry people. How great is that?

Here are a few more sites that all you need to do is click to help:

This one helps 6 different areas.

And this one benefits children.

I challenge you to find a helpful site and post it on your blog!

Nuff Said...

2008-10-02T06:32:00.002-04:00

S.O.B.

2008-09-29T15:58:00.002-04:00

Last weekend my husband, son, and I were grocery shopping. I don't remember what made my son say it, but he said Son of a !@#$!. My husband and I looked at each other in disbelieve, so I asked him, "What did you say?"
In the case he wasn't speaking loud enough, my son yells "Son of a ^%$#$!" My husband being the mature adult scolds him and informs him that that is a bad word and he should not say it. I however, am not as mature as my husband and start laughing. I did remember to turn around to hide it.
As this is all taking place there is a older couple in the same aisle as us listening to all of it. The woman walks past me and under her breath says "Oh my god."
Oh give me a break lady. Don't even tell me that your children never cursed. If she even has children.
I haven't heard my son say SOB lately but he does enjoy saying "What the..."

Jenga

2008-09-28T08:23:00.003-04:00

Jared decided (yes decided) that he was sleeping over at Nanner and Pappy's house last night. It is not often that Dan and I have the whole house to ourselves. No, it's not what you think. We NEVER are allowed to do anything adult, like play board games, when Jared is around. He insists on participating and making his own rules. So, that is what we did last night. We played two rounds of SORRY, two games of CHESS, at least 20 times we played CONNECT 4 (sadly, I one connect 4 maybe 4 of those 20 times), then JENGA. You all know the rules to JENGA right? Whoever knocks the tower over loses. Well, we need you help. We have no idea who won. Here I'll show you....

See that? There are no more moves remaining. This tower started as 18 levels and ended at 37. The tower never fell down...until we forced it to. Has this ever happened to you?

Ammendment to the games posted earlier. I just couldn't waste an evening without Jared and this rare opportunity to play games. So, my husband and I decided to play the game where you hit each other's hands. I know we've played this before but I guess it's been a few years and Dan didn't remember the rules...here are 2 rules I didn't mention before.

You do not have to take turns

You may move you hands away when the other person goes to hit them. This is very funny to watch as the other person waves their arms in the air as they try to regain their balance. haha.

Try that game, let me know what you think...

I was laughing so hard that I was crying. Once we started to pay attention to our surroundings we noticed that we were standing infront of a window that faces the street while hitting each other and I was crying and screaming. Hmmmm....

The Library

2008-09-26T15:39:00.003-04:00

I love the library. I've been wanting to go there for a long time but I was always too busy. Then I took my son there for reading hour one evening and fell in love. There I was standing in the middle of a building with tons (is that the right word? How do you measure information?) of information all around me.
Yesterday I picked up this book "Simple Fun". It was written over 10 years ago, but it still applies today. Let me show you some of the book's ideas and a few of my own.

Here is a game that my family plays while on a long drive - We call it the Alphabet Game. As we drive along the road we look for words that begin with the letter of the alphabet. For instance I might yell out "Apple" if I see a sign that states "Apples for sale", then we're looking for the next letter. We cheat a little bit for letters like x, q, and z.

Here's a mealtime game from the book...
During the meal ask one person to close their eyes. While their eyes are closed remove something subtle from the table (the salt shaker, a fork, etc). The person opens their eyes and tries to guess what is missing.

From the book...
For 2 people
Each person wears their socks on their hands (clean socks preferably). Whoever is able to get the socks off the other person first wins!!

Here is a game that my husband and I play when we are waiting around...
He will name someone famous, such as, George Bush, then it is my turn and I need to name someone who's first initial is the same as the last initial. So, I might say Barbara Streisand, and back and forth until we are sick of it.

My dad first taught me this game - I love to play this with my husband since he is so much bigger than me, he just pushes me around.
Stand facing your opponent about 2 feet apart. Hold your hands up as if you are going to do a push-up off of the other person. Hit the other person's hands to try to move them. Whoever moves their feet first loses.

Here's another one from my dad...I told you he was fun.
Hold you hands out palms up. You opponent will place their hands on top of yours but palms down. You will try to slap the tops of their hands quickly before they remove theirs.

I will keep reading and keep you posted. I hope that I didn't break any rules of plagiarism...

How nice...

2008-09-26T06:25:00.003-04:00

I was recently thinking about my 6th grade moving up ceremony. When I was about to enter junior high our elementary school held a ceremony or graduation for us (no caps and gowns :-( We had to vote on who was the smartest boy, smartest girl, funniest boy, funniest girl, you get the picture. Well, I really wanted to be voted prettiest. At that time being pretty was important. I didn't win prettiest girl - I won nicest girl. I was happy about being the nicest girl but I also remember staring daggers into the back of the head of the girl who did win prettiest. I immediately started picking out all of her flaws. (Why do girls do this?) Nicest? Ha! Here I was hating the girl who won....
Fast forward about 20 years.
I am so proud to be nicest. I still have that adjective used to describe me. I do try to live up to my name. Last year a few students asked a fellow teacher, "Who is the nicest person you know?" He took a few moments to think then announced my name. Isn't that nice?