Here We Go Again...

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

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

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

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.....

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

High-Maintenance

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

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

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

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

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

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

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...

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

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

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?