April 30, 2008

It's the last day of April. How did that go by so quickly? I have 29 days of school left until I am on summer break. I am actually very anxious for it to get here. I'm just really tired lately and finding it hard to stay motivated at work. The kids are getting antsy too and I don't blame them. It's been kind of a long year.

This week they have to take the Gaits-McGinitie test. We took this in the fall as a pre-test and now we're taking it as a post-test. Next week, my students have to take the Terra Nova. This is mandated by our Reading First grant. It is a little more involved than the Gaits. We take it every year. Then, the week after next I have to do the DIBEL's end of the year bench mark with ALL of my students. My poor kids are going to be so burned out by the third week in May it won't even be funny. We still have two theme skills tests to complete and two Integrated tests to finish also. It's just insane how much testing I am required to do with my students.

Tonight I finished the scrapbook page I completed earlier in the week. I'm REALLY happy with the way it turned out. It's a page about Abby. The pictures are from Thanksgiving time 2006, so they're kind of old, but they are some of my favorite pictures of her. She had just been groomed. It was the day before Thanksgiving and we'd just gotten the steps vacuumed. She's sitting one step down from the top with her chin on the top step waiting for Daddy to come home. She's so cute.

It really did not turn out how I had planned at first. I think it turned out much better. I'm really not good at planning a page before I start. I pick out the colors, papers and a bunch of possible embellishment ideas and then I play around with it all until I find something that fits together in a way that I find pleasing. I'll never be in a magazine, but I do pretty good. Especially considering I'm pretty much completely self taught in that area.

Again, I was really tired tonight so I was up here in the bedroom by 9:10 or so. I've been trying to watch CSI: NY, but I just cannot get into that show. I love CSI and CSI: Miami, but for some reason CSI: NY just cannot hold my attention and I really like the actors that are in it. I just don't understand.

April 29, 2008

Today I had a meeting off campus. It was a Reading First meeting. I really like our Reading First trainers. They are a lot of fun. It was my principal, reading coach and me that went to the meeting. It was a nice easy paced day and they fed us breakfast, lunch and a snack.

We were finished by 2:00 pm and my principal told me that I could go home. That was so cool. I was home by 2:30. Michaela had choir practice today so I had about two hours to myself before I had to go get the kids. I worked on my paperwork for Career Ladder some. It was nice to have the house quiet and to myself unexpectedly like that.

Tonight I worked on some scrapbook stuff some more. But, I was really tired so I did not do much. I've really been motivated a lot. Joining the online scrapbooking group has really helped me. I really should focus on finishing at least one album, though. I've just been scrapping whatever draws me in lately. I've got a bunch of pages that need to be put into albums now.

April 28, 2008

It was back to work for me today. I found out today that tomorrow I will be out of the building again for a Reading First meeting. It's a meeting for the principal, reading coach and one classroom teacher from each building. Our Reading Coach picked me. I really wish she was not leaving us next year. I'm really going to miss her. I told her that when I see her at our all district in-service next August, I am going to make her feel really bad for leaving us. She laughed at me.

Tonight was gymnastics night. I guess I say that every Monday. But, then again every Monday is gymnastics night. It was time to pay for next month. Michaela got her t-shirt for their performance day in a couple weeks.

I took the clothes that Michaela and I had taken from her closet and drawers yesterday over to Stacey's house. Lauren was thrilled. She was having a ball going through them all. Some of them she will have to grow into as she's a very petite little girl and she is two years younger than Michaela, but we're definitely keeping her in clothes!! She was hoping the outfit that Michaela had on at church yesterday was in the bag. *LOL* Um, no that one still fits.

I sat and talked with Stacey for a while. I really enjoy talking with her. She's just a lot of fun and has a great sense of humor. Plus, it's nice to get to talk to an adult who I don't work with or am not related to.

I was going to get myself a burrito at Taco Bell before picking Michaela up, but the Taco Bell close to her gymnastics place is closed now. It looks like it's gone for good. I'm very sad about this. I hope her gymnastics place gets moved soon. The building they are moving to has an Arby's, Wendy's and Taco Bell close to it. I know I shouldn't eat fast food and I am trying really hard to cut back, but there are some things I'm going to enjoy once in a while no matter what.

It's Monday evening and I'm so wishing this week was over already. Tomorrow I don't think I'll have to go to the staff meeting, but I might. Hopefully, my principal will not expect me to go back to the building after our Reading First meeting. He usually doesn't.

Wednesday is just a regular Wednesday, although I do need to make sure I get my Career Ladder paper work done by then. That's when it's due. Because, on Thursday the other Career Ladder rep in my building and I have to go to the meeting where we go through everyone's paperwork. We have to decide if it is done correctly or if it needs to be fixed. This documentation determines whether or not we get paid for all the extra stuff we've done since last May. I'm sure that's going to be a long meeting.

Friday is a regular Friday and I'm leaving work as soon as I can. It's only Monday and I'm already ready for the weekend.

April 27, 2008

It was another day spent mostly at home today. That is once we got home from church. We went out to eat at Chuck A Burger for lunch. It was good. I like that place as long as we only go once in a while.

Michaela and I spent a good two hours cleaning out her closet and drawers today. I think we got rid of half of her clothes. I did this in my own closet and drawers yesterday and ended up freecycling 3 very large garbage bags full of clothes. Michaela's took up two bags. I will take them to Stacey for Lauren tomorrow night. It feels good to have that accomplished. I'll do Caleb's next weekend.

Michaela will definitely need shorts this summer. After the purge she only has four pairs left. Two of those are "nice" shorts that I'd rather she not play out in the back yard in. We will also need to get her a couple more one piece bathing suits. Other than that anything we buy will be gravy.

I worked on scrapbooking stuff again tonight. I got 8 page kits made. Then, I started on a page about Abby. The pictures on it are about a year and a half old, but they are some of my favorite pictures of her. I can't wait to see how it turns out. I've got the preliminary design laid out. I'll finish it sometime this week.

April 26, 2008

It's been another good day. Most of the day I've basically just been around home. I did clean up the kitchen some and got most of the laundry done. The kids have argued most of the day and pretty much driven Michael and I crazy, but if that's the worst we have to deal with then we're ahead of the game.

Michael took his motorcycle to the shop today. A friend of ours helped him because it could not be ridden. So, he came over with his trailer and they loaded it up on that. Hopefully, we'll have it back soon. We're going to have to pay extra on the license because we won't get it back before April is over and that's when the license is due on it.

Caleb had a birthday party to go to this afternoon. Michael took him to it. It was a swim party at a local recreation complex. I did not want to go and Michael hadn't been to a party lately so I "let" him go.

I spent a lot of time working on pictures this afternoon. I wanted to get the ones I took yesterday taken care of. Tonight I worked on a couple scrapbook pages. I finished two of them. I have really managed to do pretty good getting pages done lately. Maybe I should be more focused on which pages I do so I could actually finish an album. I need to finish our vacation album from last summer. Probably it would be a good idea to finish it BEFORE we go on vacation this summer.

The kids watched a movie in Michaela's room tonight. Michael fell asleep early. Caleb fell asleep watching the movie and I think Michaela was dozing on and off. I did not make them go to bed until a little after 10 pm tonight. Now, it's time for me to go to bed.

April 25, 2008 (De Je Vu)

I really enjoyed today. I did not go to work. I used my last personal day so that I could pick Michaela up from school. She had a half day at school today. This also meant that the kids and I did not have to get up quite so early and we did not have to leave the house until 8:00 am.

While Michaela was at school I did a lot of just nothing. I've now been introduced to Facebook and now understand the addictiveness of it. I played around on it and chatted on it way too long this morning. I did however manage to get bills paid. And, I went up to the park to get Caleb signed up for t-ball. Then, I enjoyed Arby's for lunch. I just love their roast beef.

After I picked Michaela up from school we went to Walmart. I got the weekly shopping accomplished and started buying her some summer clothes. She ended up coming home with three tops, a pair of shorts and a pair of capris. We stopped at Petsmart, too because that seems to be the only place that can keep the slim rawhide chew sticks in stock lately. I got two packages because Abby goes through them like crazy.

When we got home Michaela said she wanted to take a walk with our cameras. We went to the park instead. One of the parks close to our house has a garden trail that's just gorgeous. I've taken the kids there a few times to take pictures of them in late summer and early fall. In spring there's a lot of colors as things are beginning to bloom and bud, so we had a lot of fun photographing the spring colors. We went to another park across town that also has a garden area. But, they are more set up for actual flower garden stuff and nothing is growing there yet. The trees are blooming though. We enjoyed the time together very much.

By then it was time to go get Caleb from school so we headed that way. This has become a pain in the butt. They are reconstructing the main road that goes down to Caleb's school. You can drive on it coming back home, but the direction towards his school is closed. It's annoying, but hopefully it will be an improvement because that street was just horrible.

The kids played outside quite a bit tonight and Michael went to sleep early. I just kind of relaxed and worked on the pictures I took today. I've been watching "Ghost Whisperer" and "Moonlight" tonight. I enjoy those shows.

April 25, 2008

It's been a really good day off for me. I have enjoyed it a lot. I did not put a lot of pressure on myself to get a bunch of stuff done, like I usually do. Most of the morning I spent messing around on Facebook. I finally gave in and joined after listening to several online friends talk about it. It is addicting. I chatted with a friend on there for a long time this morning.

Then, it was time to get something productive accomplished. So, I paid bills. That's always so much fun! NOT! But, I always feel much better when I'm done with that. I also went up to the park and got Caleb signed up for t-ball. It starts at the end of May. He'll be playing at the park up the street on Saturdays through July. Which means he'll miss two weeks of it when we're on vacation.

I've contemplated signing up both kids for day camp at the park that week that that I'm still in school and their school is over. That would mean no Guppy for that week. It would be less expensive. Michaela does not want to go to Guppy. I'm a little hesitant, probably because it would be something totally new for all of us. I'm going to think on it some more.

I've also contemplated getting the kids and I season passes to Six Flags this summer. But, I don't know if we'd really go all that much. Again, it's something I'm going to have to think on for a little longer. It's not like we're going to be out of school next week so I've got time to decide yet.

Michaela had a half day at school today so I picked her up after lunch time. We went and did a little shopping. She ended up coming home with three new shirts, a pair of shorts and a pair of capri's. This means I need to get serious about cleaning out her closet and drawers. I think everything that is size 7 is going. She's now into size 10! She's getting so big.

She started asking questions about sex today. Gosh, I am not ready for this. I am proud of myself, though. I gave her very straight forward and honest answers without flinching too much. She was very eager to listen. She did say it was all really gross. I told her I hope she feels that way until she's about 30!

After we went shopping we went to two different parks with our cameras. This is what Michaela wanted to do. We really enjoyed ourselves. We just wandered around the garden areas taking pictures of all the pretties. I don't know if it is because it was a long winter and I'm just noticing it all more this year or what, but it just seems to be an extraordinarily beautiful spring this year. And, my allergies are going crazy! But, that can be controlled.

Tonight was very quiet around here. Michael fell asleep before 8:00 pm again. That's becoming a habit for him on Friday nights. Caleb fell asleep on the couch around 8:00 pm. Michaela was in her room making her mouse costume for the trial they are doing for her SOAR class. She did a really good job with it. I'll have to take a picture of her in it before she goes to SOAR next week.

Caleb was bummed that Michaela and I went to take pictures without him today. I reminded him that he and I were going to go just the two of us soon. I want to take him to get some pictures of him in his KG cap and gown like I did Michaela when she graduated from KG. That time will just be the two of us.

April 24, 2008

Today is Friday for me! I am using my last personal day for a day off tomorrow. Michaela has a half day at school so this way I can take her to school and pick her up. Yeah!

It was a pretty good day at work. My students and I seemed to get quite a bit accomplished. I'm proud of how hard they worked today. We had computer lab, too so that meant I got to talk to the computer lab teacher. I really enjoy talking with her. She's a great lady.

Tonight was quiet at home. The kids watched survivor with us and then went to bed. I ended up watching Supernatural and LOST and will be going to bed real soon. I've also taped Grey's Anatomy, CSI, and Without a Trace. Why are all the good shows on on the same night? I should have done some scrapbooking but I did not. I've been lazy about that this week. Maybe this weekend I'll get some done. Maybe even tomorrow. We'll see what happens.

April 23, 2008

It was a beautiful day today. I think spring is finally here for good. It's been a long winter, but that makes the coming of spring that much more special.

I've had some disturbing news given to me at work this week. It's nothing I'm going to get specific about. But, it's caused me to be a bit disillusioned. I just will be very happy when the school year is over. I'm very ready to put this year behind me.

A co-worker and I had a family curriculum night, today after school. We had about 15 parents sign up for it. Only four showed up and one of those had not actually signed up. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, but it is just frustrating when parents will not get involved. In any case, it's time I can log for Career Ladder.

April 22, 2008

Not much went on today. It was an uneventful day at work. Tonight was spent hanging out at home. I need to get some scrapbooking done, but have not done any since this weekend.

Here is a picture of a magnolia blossom I took about a week or so ago. I used photo editing software to make the sepia tones on it. I think it's pretty cool.

April 21, 2008

I think I'm suffering from burn out. I'm just not interested in work right now. I usually go through this toward the end of the year to some degree, but this year it's worse. I think all the crap that has gone on with the adults in my building has me just really needed my summer break. I hate to say this but I just don't want to look at most of my co-workers right now. Just having to be in the same room with some of them irritates me. No, it's not like that with all of them, but with enough of them to really make going to work difficult right now.

As for the kids, behavior has deteriorated some. It does every year at this time. They are getting tired and restless for summer, too. But, so far it's not nearly been as bad as they usually get. I will miss this class when the year is over, but I really will be glad when the school year is over.

I do have to say I'm feeling better than I was this morning. It took all I had to force myself to go to work. Of course once I'm there and interacting with my students I feel better. But, then after school I had a long talk with one of my co-workers that doesn't get on my nerves. As a matter of fact she's one of my favorite people. It felt good to talk to her and she is understanding what I'm going through and what I am feeling. So after talking her ear off, I feel a lot better.

Michaela has not been feeling good today. I think she's having trouble sleeping. She's been really tired and very irritable. She did not want to go to gymnastics tonight and I could tell she was really feeling some fatique so I did not make her go. Of course it's probably not helped that she's not had her medication since Thursday. Michael and I have had a really tough time remembering to go get it.

This happens every once in a while. And, honestly it's ok that it does because we're hoping that sooner or later she'll grow out of it so sometimes we need to see how she's going to react without it. Although, I have to say she's getting to the age where I'm starting to think she won't grow out of it. At least she's not near as bad as she was when she was little. And, we don't have to use an ihaler at all. I think we've had the nebulizer out once in 18 months, which is great for her. But, if she goes without her Singulair for a few days her body gets fatiqued and she catches upper respiratory diseases VERY VERY VERY easy.

April 20, 2008

Today was pretty much a normal Sunday around here. We went to church and then out to eat at Pantera's. We had an extra child with us from Church until late afternoon. Michaela wanted Lauren to come over. Lauren's brother had a baseball game, so her family went to that and Lauren came out to eat and then home with us.

The kids played outside a lot. It was such a nice day. Michael even took the three of them to the park for a while. He said the park was packed. Doesn't surprise me any since we've all been waiting for weather like this for so long.

This evening we went to watch a little of my nephew's baseball game. My SIL was talking about our vacation. She's as excited as I am. My MIL is so funny. She was trying to act all nonchalant about it, but I KNOW she's looking forward to it, too. She's brought the subject up with me a couple times. Just 87 more days and we'll be there!

Anyway, my nephew seemed to be doing pretty good last night. He got two hits when we were there. One advanced a runner and the other he got on base. It was a pretty good day.

April 19, 2008

It's been pretty good Saturday here. Most of the day was spent at home. I spent two hours cleaning the kitchen from top to bottom, even those places that only get cleaned once in a while. I even turned the cleaning cycle on the oven. I've done about 2/3 of my laundry. And, I got to scrapbook most of the afternoon. I got four pages done! Yeah me!!!!

The kids cleaned their rooms and did their other jobs. Caleb is going to have to revisit his room tomorrow, though. Nothing that will take him long, but still.

Michael worked on his motorcycle some today. It needs some major work done to it and soon. He has to have it inspected and the license renewed on it this month. He also went and got some grass seed and straw for the side of our house. We have to plant there every year because it's so shady.

Abby got groomed today and looks and smells so much better!!!

We went out to eat at one of our favorite restaurants here tonight. It's a restaurant that we've been going to since we were dating. The owners know us pretty well just from us going in to eat there. So, they watched part of our courtship, our engagement, getting married and both kids being born. It's kind of cool to have a place like that. The funny part is, the place is called "Hatfield's and McCoy's." They named it that because the wife owner's maiden name was Hatfield. So, way back when, right about the time we got married and they realized that we both now had the last name of McCoy they gave us baseball caps with the restaurant's logo on them, to "keep the peace." *LOL* They are fun people.

April 18, 2008

An earthquake woke us up this morning. Or, I should say it woke Michael up who woke me up. I had a hard time getting to sleep last night and had finally just gotten into a good sleep sometime after 3:00 a.m. Then, at about 4:37 in the morning Michael bolts upright in bed and shouts, "What the hell was that?"

At that point I realize the bed had been shaking and hear the mirror and television rattling on the wall. I was too annoyed at been woken up to even care that it was an earthquake, but Michael seemed to know what it was. I think it scared the dog some, too.

When I turned on the television at 5:00 am it was all over the news. It was centered in West Salem, IL. That is about 127 miles from St. Louis. It was a 5.4. Supposedly it was felt as far away as Chicago and Iowa. Most people around here felt it. Some say they were scared, but I don't know how you can be scared when something only lasts about 15 seconds. Some people say they heard a popping noise, too. I heard a weird noise, but it wasn't popping and I'm not sure how to describe it. It was sort of a rumbling, but also had the quality of an airplane that is very close.

We had a cover of one of the lights on our entertainment center break. A couple pictures were knocked over and a magnet had fallen off the fridge. I guess it did shake things pretty good.

Then, today during late morning there was another one at about 10:15 this morning. I thought I had felt something while I was sitting in my classroom and thought I heard a noise, too. But, in a building that has concrete walls, it's hard to tell. I did look at my cellphone thinking maybe it was vibrating because I heard that noise again, but it hadn't vibrated.

It was a long day at work as I only had 4 more parents show up. So, I had a total of 8 parents out of 23 come to parent teacher conferences. That's just so sad.

April 17, 2008

I'm tired. Tonight was parent teacher conferences. I only had 4 parents show up tonight. I spent some time trying to work on some lesson plans but did not get far as I could not concentrate. I did managed to sharpen every pencil I could find in my classroom.

Earlier in the day during the hour I had between school and conferences I managed to take some pictures around work. I got some taken of my school building. I figured if we are going to be getting a new building in a couple years, it would be nice to have pictures of the old one before it's "gone."

I also took some pictures of a house across the street from my school. This house was boarded up and abandoned for as long as I've worked over there. But, a couple weeks ago it burned pretty bad. It's kind of a sad sight. However, it just really intrigued me structural wise. I've been wanting to take pictures of it because it's just very interesting to look at. I guess I do have at least a little bit of an artistic eye for photography because I think taking pictures of stuff like that is interesting.

April 16, 2008

Tonight was my night out. Four of us ended up going to Trailhead Brewery. It was such a nice evening out. The sun has been out and the temperatures are going up. I got lucky and got a parking spot on the street just half a block from the restaurant. The Old Mill Stream restaurant that burned a couple years ago has finally gotten their bar open. This is right next door to Trailhead. I'm glad to see them finally getting back to normal. The sign said that the kitchen would be working soon.

We had a lot of fun tonight. Three of us got the nachos and Stacey (the oddball) got Quesadillas. But, she munched on nachos too. It was really good. We sat and laughed and just enjoyed each other for over two hours. The restaurant was not busy, so I don't think they minded us sitting there. We did not make any definite plans about the husbands but we do all agree they need to go out without us sometime. I hope we can figure out what to do with them.

I still need to have all the couples over for a game night. I know we would all have a lot of fun. Maybe in a week or so. I'm going to have to do some major cleaning. Well, the kids and I will have to do some major cleaning.

April 15, 2008

It was spring like today. I hope this means that the cold weather is gone for good until next winter. It's time for it to just be warm and get warmer and warmer.

The kids played outside after supper tonight. Michael had them practicing with a wiffle ball and bat. I got a few pictures of them. It was sunny even. It was so nice to watch the sun set and not have any clouds in the way.

I'm going to try to sleep in bed tonight. I think I may be able to. I still have a little bit of a cough, but it's going away finally. My voice is getting back to normal, too. It will be so nice to lay down and sleep in my bed.

My principal announced over the intercom this afternoon that he'll be out of the building the next three days. This means he will not be there for parent teacher conferences on Thursday night and Friday. I really wish he'd not said that so all the kids could hear.

We have a regular day tomorrow. On Thursday we have a regular school day and then have to be at work after school until about 7:30 pm for parent teacher conferences. Then, on Friday we don't have students but have to be there during regular hours for parent teacher conferences.

This means that the next two nights Michael is in charge of family stuff. Tomorrow I'm going out with the girls. Then, I'll be at work on Thursday night.

April 14, 2008

It was a busy evening for me. I had to take Michaela to gymnastics. While she was there I went and did the Walmart shopping that I did not do over the weekend. When we got time it was time to get the kids in bed.

Then, I spent the next 2 1/2 hours I worked on scrapbooking stuff. I got two layouts done. I'm not super happy with them, but they'll work. I also managed to clean out one of my supply boxes and got my two layouts posted at scrapbook.com.

April 13, 2008

I still feel like crap. I did not go to church again this week. Michael and the kids went without me. Then they went to Applebee's with Michael's parents for lunch. I did not even do the weekly Walmart shopping this weekend. I guess I'll have to do it tomorrow night when Michaela is at gymnastics. I managed to get laundry done today, but that's all I did. I'm so wiped out. I'm so tired of this stupid cough.

April 12, 2008

I watched the movie "Girl with a Pearl Earring" today. What a joke! They massacred the characters. The main character, Griet, was almost non-existant in the movie. The portrayal of Jans Vermeer was horrible. He was completely 1-dimensional. The mother-in-law, had none of the humor that her character portrayed in the book. Peter's father had almost no lines, so they did not give him any humor, either. Tonica was much harder and angrier in the book than in the movie. It did not even end correctly. Hell, it didn't begin correctly. Griet's sister and brother were not even mentioned. They just destroyed the book with that movie. I am so disappointed in the whole thing. Read the book, don't watch the movie. The book is awesome, the movie is an insult to the book.

April 11, 2008

I'm do glad it's Friday. I'm still fighting this darned cold. It would not be so bad if this horrible cough would go away. This cough is keeping me awake at night. It has made my throat raw and my stomach muscles sore. I just hate when I get a cough like this. It's been a while since I've had one and as far as I'm concerned it can go away and never come back.

I managed to get two more scrapbook pages done tonight. It took longer than I was expecting. One of them just was very stubborn and I could not figure out how I wanted it to look. That is so annoying. It's like writer's block, you can feel the idea nagging at the back of your mind, but it just won't come out and show itself.

Michaela is wanting to do some scrapbooking. I told her she could do some tomorrow. I hope I feel better tomorrow.

Michaela's girl scout troop is having a cook out at a park up the street from us tomorrow but I had to tell her we were not going to go. It's supposed to be cold here tomorrow. I just cannot be out in that cold air with this cough and besides, she'd get to running around. Whenever she's out in the cold like that and takes in a lot of cold air, her asthma ends up acting up in the form of an upper respiratory infection.

April 10, 2008

I have joined an online scrapbooking group. There is a challenge going on in this group to help us use what we have in our stash without spending money on new things and get what we have organized. One of the things they were talking about on this group is making page kits ahead of time so you've got several layouts just waiting to be made.

I decided to give the page kit thing a try. Tonight, I put together 10 page kits with pictures. I started with the pictures. This is usually how I start a page anyway. I pick my card stock and paper colors according to my pictures, so I figured this was the best way to go for me. Now, I have 10 pages waiting to be created. It took me about 2 1/2 hours to do this because I went through almost all of my stuff to add things to the kits. I put more than what I'll need in each kit because I like to change my mind and I like to build as I go.

As I was doing this I decided I really need to purge a couple of my boxes and I need to do something different with my ribbons. My daughter and I just went through the ribbons not long ago and straightened them up and they are already a mess again. So, hopefully this weekend I'll be able to get that accomplished.

Other things that happened today: Our dishwasher finally came (the right one), Michael finally got his truck back, and I had a very enjoyable conversation with my MIL.

April 9, 2008

OMG, what a freaking day it's been. I had to write three behavior referrals today. I've not had to write that many ALL YEAR and now three in one day. I don't have any idea what has gotten into some of my students. Two of my boys have been in trouble for throwing paper wads the past two days.

Michael went to get his truck today. It was finally done. He went out to look at it to find that they had painted it a totally different shade then the rest of the truck and then got an attitude with him because he wouldn't accept it. So, we're still using a rental car.

My dishwasher was supposed to be delivered today. They didn't get here until supper time (nice timing, eh?). They got the old dishwasher out and then brought in the new one. As they were taking it out of the box, we could tell something was wrong. First of all it was white. We ordered black. Second of all it was not even a Maytag. It was some cheapo brand. We've looked it up and that brand only costs a couple hundred dollars. Um, wrongo!!! So, it has to be reordered. No telling when we'll get it.

A valve broke when they were taking out the old dishwasher so Michael and his dad have been rushing around this evening trying to get that fixed just to have another one break.

Then, just a little while ago I spent an hour typing a response to an email to a friend just to have gmail log me out and NOT save what I typed except for the first couple sentences.

My plan had been to quickly shift through some emails and then get started on a scrapbook page. I was going to do the one that I have to do for Caleb's class. And, here it is over an hour later and I've not started yet. So, now it's time to get to it.

April 8, 2008

I've got a cold and I cannot stand being sick. I'm tired and I just want it to go away.

My Children are My Inspiration

It is Monday, April 7, 2008. I am 39 years old. I hate to say things like, “Where does the time go?” Because it sounds so cliché, but there it is. I’m of the age now where the passage of time just baffles me. I hate that. It makes me feel old. I don’t think I’m old. I mean I know I’m not a kid anymore, but I’ve still got a long ways to go before I die. At least I hope so.

I was watching my daughter walk from the van to my mom’s house this morning and just could not reconcile that big kid with the little four pound baby we brought home from the hospital. How is this the same child? She will be 9 years old in about seven weeks. She’s getting so tall already. Her legs are really long. I am so proud of her it’s unreal. But at the same time my hear breaks when I realize she’s never going to be that little child that needs me completely anymore.

Ah, but that is the catch 22 of parenting isn’t it? You want them to become independent and it actually is a help when you realize they can do things for themselves and do things to help you. But, it also means they don’t need you quite as much anymore.

I loved it when all my kids wanted/needed was to be in my arms. Knowing that they needed me that much was very gratifying. However, it was also stressful. Having to do everything for another person takes a lot of time and physical and mental energy. Caring for a baby, toddler and younger child is definitely a labor of love.

Now that they are getting older, it is so much fun to play games with them that they could not play when they were younger. There’s something bonding about doing household chores together and the teaching process that goes along with that. Giving them these responsibilities and sharing new fun stuff with them makes them develop and blossom. I can see both of my children becoming incredible people right before my eyes.

Caleb is one of the most loving and caring people I’ve ever met. He wants so badly to just have time with all of us and to have someone around all the time. He does not like to be alone, but at the same time he is becoming more independent and is developing his own interests. This means sometimes we have to do things we’re not interested in just so we can spend time with him and get to know him on his level. This can be annoying and joyful all at the same time.

Having children has taught me that it is possible to feel a hundred different emotions all at the same time. It’s taught me to take each day and enjoy the little things in it. It has taught me to love my children for who they are and be patient with their learning process. It’s taught me that each day is precious and that each smile is precious.

Being a parent has taught me that sometimes I have to have heartache in order to teach them something they need to understand. It’s taught me what my parents meant when they said, “This is going to hurt me more than it will you.”

Becoming a mother has taught me exactly what the word love really means. Love is realizing you want time to stand still and move forward at the same time because you want to hold on to those precious moments forever, but you can’t wait to see what new adventure there will be to share with your children.

(Note: This was written during my lunchtime at work after thoughts started swirling from watching my daughter walk from the van to her grandmother's door. It's also started giving me ideas for at least two scrapbook pages.)

April 6, 2008

I have not felt good today. I did not go to church. However, I did manange to get a few things around here done. I have not made it downstairs to get any scrapbooking done, which I really wanted to do this weekend. This week I'll need to work on averaging grades and getting report cards and packets for parents ready for PT conferences on the 17th and 18th.

It has been a beautiful day here as far as the weather is concerned. I would have loved to take my camera for a walk and get some of the blooming trees, but I just felt so icky I could not get myself to do it. However, I did get a few pictures of the kids taken outside. They spent most of the afternoon out in the back yard.

April 5, 2008

We spent the greater part of the day shopping for a new dishwasher. Ours died earlier this week. It was about 10 years old so it lasted a good amount of time.

We looked online at Consumerreports.com at the ratings and then went off to look at some in the stores. We went to Home Depot first and saw two models we liked. One was a Maytag and one was an LG. But, we decided to look further before making a final decision.

We stopped for lunch at Culver's. I'd never been there before. I was very leary of it because it just did not sound good. Butter Burger sounds like a stomach ache waiting to happen. But, it wasn't too bad. I got a Mushroom & Swiss burger and wish I'd gotten at least mayo on it because the mushrooms are not in a sauce like most places. The kids enjoyed it, too. Michael had eaten at one before out where he works.

Then, we went to American to look at dishwashers. We saw the same two models that we saw at Home Depot. But, still could not decide. So, we came home to look them both up on the Internet again. On a side note here, American had this deep freeze that was so huge you could put a body in it. I've never seen one of those that is that big. It just amazed me. The sales person told us that it was the model that Jeffery Dahmer had bought to put his victims in. He was serious, but I don't know if I believe him.

Anyway, we came home and looked up both models online again. It didn't really make it easier. There were just enough complaints about the LG to make me weary, but the Maytag is a brand new model so there are no customer reviews of it yet. We decided that we'd go with the Maytag since that's what we have now and have been happy with it.

So, we went back to Home Depot. Michael's dad went with us while the kids stayed with him mom. The plan was to bring the dishwasher home. But, they do not keep appliances in stock at the store. So, it's ordered and will be delivered and installed on Wednesday. Michael's dad will come over to supervise the installation since Michael and I both be at work.

April 4, 2008

I spent this evening sorting through and organizing two years worth of pictures. I had two photo boxes stuffed with picture envelopes. There was no rhyme nor reason to how they were shoved in there, they were just put in there to get them out of the way. So, they needed to be sorted and filed correctly in a desperate way.

Part of my problem is I take TONS of pictures. I've cut back lately, but still there are some events that I will just take hundreds of pictures at. My camera I got last summer makes it hard to delete any, too, because it takes such good pictures. Although, I've had a couple times I've put it on the wrong setting and oh boy did I get some bad pictures.

Then, there is the fact that I seem to order tons of prints at one time. When I pre-pay for prints at www.clarkcolor.com I can get them for 9 cents a print. You won't find them any cheaper anywhere else and the quality is good.

And, of course, the fact that I will never be able to scrap fast enough to keep up with my life means that I'll always have tons of photos sitting waiting for me. Especially since I am a procrastinator and have a tendency to just let things sit somewhere until they are driving me crazy. So, I had a mess.

It took me over two hours to get them in decent order. I ended up filling up the two empty photo boxes I had. At some point I will put some in just plain photo albums. But, that will have to wait until I know I've used what I wanted for my scrapbooks.

I do have a goal to do two layouts a week during April. I also want to finish the one layout that's been laying on my table for a month now. And, I need to make a get well card for my SIL. So, that is my plan for exercising my scrap booking creativity. Next is to make a plan for my writing and my photography.

April 3, 2008

There are times I feel like something is supposed to be happening or is about to happen. Or, I feel like something is trying to just bubble out of me. I've been feeling like that a lot lately. I am pretty sure it's a muse trying to happen, but nothing is actually coming out. I've got myself so blocked I'm not sure how to come out of it.

I'm embarrassed to admit it's been a long time since I've written anything other than a lesson plan, blog or grocery list. I know part of it is because I've gone so long and now I'm afraid to even try to start. I know that doesn't make sense, but it's the way it works.

However, the fact remains that my creative muscles are in desperate need of some flexing. I've not even done any scrap booking in well over a month. I've not taken any artistic type pictures in a couple months, either. No wonder I'm feeling pent up. I seriously feel like I'm going to burst. I have not exercised any of my creative outlets lately.

April 2, 2008

Tonight I went to Michaela's girl scout meeting. I stayed around for the whole meeting. I hadn't really planned on it tonight, but I was there anyway. I don't know maybe I'm too picky, but the girls in Michaela's troop have a real problem with showing respect by listening when the troop leader is talking. They have their meetings in a room in a church where sound just bounces and echos and of course they are girls so they tend to get noisy.

But, tonight it really got to me. The leader was trying to explain the procedure to putting out the April Showers bags and none of them were listening. They were giggling and talking (loudly) amongst themselves and interrupting the leader. I finally stood up and yelled "TIME OUT!" Mainly to get their attention. They quieted down and looked at me and I preceded to tell them they were being rude and disrespectful and that we needed them to listen. They all looked at me like I had two heads. Maybe I'm too used to being in the classroom, but I just cannot take that kind of behavior.

What gets me is there were four other moms there that told me they were happy that I did that and that the girls needed someone to reign them in, but I seem to be the only one there out of 6 adults that was willing to put my foot down. I guess I'm just the mean grouchy mom.

April 1, 2008

I stayed home from work today with Caleb. He had a fever when he woke up this morning. I really had not planned on taking anymore sick days this year. I do have one personal day I’m going to use later this month, but you have to plan those ahead of time.

Anyway, Michael did not know if the one person who could fill in for him was going to be at work and his parents have been sick themselves. So, I stayed home. Once the Tylenol did it’s thing, of course Caleb wanted to play.

I took him to the doctor. She gave him some Zithromax. I guess he has a sinus infection. I’ve kept him dosed with Tylenol today. It seems to have helped. He’s got more energy than I’ve got. Although it comes in bursts and then he lays down for a short time.

He and I played Raving Rabbids 2 on the Wii for a little while. Other than that we didn’t do much but hang out around the house.

By the time Michael got home I was not feeling great. I’m getting a sore throat, but I think it’s from sinus drainage. Yeah. It’ll get worse before it gets better. The minute the oak trees start blooming my nose will start going crazy. At least it’s not as bad as the ragweed in the fall.