New Year's Eve 2009

Another year has come and gone, and it all seems to go faster each year. It has been a pretty good year for us. I feel very blessed by the past year. I hope 2010 is a good one, too.

I started out today not feeling well. My stomach was really bothering me but by late morning I was hungry. However, at that point my head was killing me. I had a lot to do today, too, to get ready for tonight. The kids really helped out a lot.

Michael's dad took me up to Pundman to get Michael's truck. They had to replace a fuel pump on it. So, I paid for that and brought it home.

My mom, Griff, my brother and SIL came over between 6:00 and 6:15 tonight. We had all kinds of snacky type foods. Probably more than we needed but we managed to graze all night long. It was a nice evening. We all talked and played Wii. Michael made a fire in the fire place so it was nice and cozy downstairs while we were playing Wii.

Everyone stayed until midnight so we were all awake until late. I hope the kids sleep in late tomorrow morning.

December 30, 2009

Well, Christmas is put away in our house now. I started putting things away this afternoon. I started with my International Santas because they take a long time to put away. I keep them in their original boxes with the packaging inside each one of them. I now have 45 of them.

The kids played outside while I did this part of it. It snowed today. They were able to make a snowman. I think they used up every bit of snow that was in the front yard because we didn't get a lot of snow. They put the snowman on the front steps so it looks like it is greeting people who come to the door. It's cute.

I worked on putting away Christmas stuff until 5:00 and then stopped to make supper. The kids helped by taking the ornaments off the tree. After we ate supper Michael and I worked on putting the rest of the stuff away. We finally put the last box (the tree) in the back room downstairs at around 8:15.

I did leave out a couple snowmen, since it is still winter. The wreath will stay on the door until the weekend is over and the Scottie pillows can stay out for a little longer, but everything else is put away. The furniture in the living room is put back in place. And, my pictures are back out.

I love Christmas and I love having the house decorated, but putting it back to normal is not horrible. I have mixed feelings about it. I am sad when Christmas is over, but I am glad to see my house "normal" again. I miss my pictures when they are put away so the Christmas decorations can be put out.

December 29, 2009

Today the kids and I went to the dollar show. We watched two movies there today. We went in for the noon showing of "Where the Wild Things Are." I wasn't really impressed with it. Actually, I was a bit disappointed in it. I expected more.

It was really kind of dark. I do not like the method of having the camera jump around with the character, either. I makes my head hurt and makes it impossible to focus on anything. As for the story line, it's a kids movie so I expected it to be a little more lighter in mood. Even the book ends a lot lighter than this movie did. I got bored with it, too, which is very unusual for me. I found myself checking the time on my phone to see how much longer the movie would last.

After "Where the Wild Things Are" we went across the lobby to one of the other theaters to see "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs." That was a really cute movie. It made us laugh. They did a really good job with the story line for this movie. There are references to other movies in it, too.

Maybe it's just me and was not intentional, but there were parts that looked like they came straight from horror and/or adventure movies. I saw references to "The Decent," "The Day After Tomorrow," and "Journey to the Center of the Earth." There is another movie, that I saw referenced, but I cannot remember what it was now. The cop also reminded me of "Lazy Town." In any case, it really was a cute movie. The kids loved it and want it on DVD when it comes out.

December 28, 2009

My day started at about 6:30 a.m. I got up when Michael left for work. I paid bills while the kids were still in bed so they would not bother me while I was working on those. I also managed to eat some breakfast before they got up. Caleb was up and out of bed by 7:00, of course. Michaela got up about 30 minutes later.

I decided to take the kids to Monkey Joe's for a while this morning. We were going to meet one of Caleb's friends there, but they didn't make it until later. Caleb was a little bummed that we missed them, but he still had fun. We took Sami with us this morning, too. I love having her with me.

When we left there we met Angie and Louie for lunch. We went to Cracker Barrel. The kids were great. We even had a man stop by our table and compliment us on our children's behavior. That was cool.

This afternoon, I managed to squeeze in a nap. I got to curl up with my new blanket. Abby curled up with me. It was a great way to spend a couple hours this afternoon. Michaela and Caleb were so good about letting me sleep this afternoon, too. I'm really proud of them.

This evening Michael managed to get Caleb's television working. Yeah! We are going to have to get ahold of AT&T because Michael is not able to figure out how to get the U-verse remotes to turn on the television on and off. But, I'm sure that will not be a big deal.

December 27, 2009

It snowed today! We got MAYBE an inch, but it was so pretty coming down. It did have the roads kind of a mess for a while this morning. I just love the snow. I hope we get more. I would have not been upset if it had snowed all day instead of for just a little while this morning.

Michael went duck hunting this morning. The kids and I hung out around home. I got some more pictures on CD's. I'm almost finished with August now, but I ran out of CD's. I managed to move the rest of my pictures to the bigger hard drive. I also defragged both my hard drives. Then, I got my new software put on my computer. I am going to have to read to learn how to use it. I am a bit nervous. I'm not used to having to read to learn software, but I think I can figure it out.

I also worked on laundry and went to Wal-mart again today. I got some more CD's. I also got a few necessities and another CD case because the one I have is almost full. And, I got a couple birthday cards for Michael's dad.

Michael spent most of the day working on getting Caleb's television set up. He had to go up into the attic and run wires from downstairs. It's been a big job. I am so glad to have a husband who can do things like this.

We went out to Red Lobster with Michael's side of the family tonight. It was to celebrate Michael's dad's birthday. It was a good evening. We had fun talking and eating. I got crab legs. My nephew tried some of the crab meat and he liked it.

This evening Michael tried to finish getting Caleb's television hooked up and realized he needed a different king of cable. He'll have to get it tomorrow. So, Caleb will have to wait another day, but I think he'll survive.

I messed around a little bit with my new software. It seems to move very slowly on my laptop. I'm not sure why. I may have to put it on the PC. We'll see how it goes for a while first, though.

December 26, 2009

I think the day after Christmas is a great encore to the holiday. We don't really have any traditions for this day, but it's usually just spent mostly at home and just the four of us. Anyone that knows me knows that's when I'm happiest, at home with my husband, kids and Abby.

We didn't get the present mess cleaned up as much as I usually do, but it isn't bothering me at all. We'll get to it. I spent most of the day working on laundry and trying to get my pictures from 2009 off my hard drive and onto CD's. I made it half way through July. I guess I take A LOT of pictures. But, it is important to me to keep them in more than one place.

I am doing this to clean off my hard drive. I plan on deleting all I can from my hard drive. Then, I'm going to defrag it because I've not done that in a long time. This is all in preparation to put my new software on my computer. I am anxious to learn how to use it. Hopefully, tomorrow I will be able to finish getting these pictures off my hard drive.

Michael worked on getting the kids' new t.v.s up today. Michaela's is up and working, but he really only had to put it on the wall. All the cables and wires were already in her room. He got Caleb's up on the wall and some power run to Caleb's room, but has to get the Uverse cable run to his room and the Uverse box hooked up in Caleb's room. He's really working hard to make sure the kids can enjoy their gift from Santa. He's such a great dad.

Caleb has spent most of the day in the basement with his new Wii games. Michaela has spent most of the day in her room with her American Girl doll. She did get to talk to Anikca on the phone for a little while. I think that made her day. She misses not getting to see her friend much because of the way their school schedule is set up.

We went out to eat tonight. We went to Trailhead and had nachos! It was really yummy! It was just a really good day all around.

December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas to everyone! I love Christmas. I love everything about it. Although I've been a bit tired today because Caleb came in around 5:00 a.m. to tell me he couldn't sleep because the rain was pelting his window so hard. I let him get in bed with me for a little bit, but that did not last long. I made him go back to bed.

Before 6:00 a.m. he was back in my room waking me up again. So, I went into his room with him and was able to get him to lay down and be quiet enough for me to at least doze until 7:00 a.m. Then, we got up.

We always do stockings first. The kids dig into theirs first. Then, they help Abby dig into her stocking. Next, Michael and I get into our stockings. Then, it's time for presents.

The kids open their gifts from Santa first. They both got small flat screen televisions this year. They also got PEZ sets. Michaela got Wizard of Oz and Caleb got Mickey Mouse.

After that they pass out the presents. We watch the kids open their presents first. It sure does not take them as long to unwrap them as it does for us to wrap them. They seemed very happy with what they got.

Michael opened next because Michaela had started to open one of his presents because she thought it was hers. The tag was a little smeared.

When Michael was finished I opened mine. I got very spoiled again. I got a sleep set with the Nickelback logo on it, Night at the Museum II DVD set, Nickelback CD, Photo Shop Elements 8 and a Dummy Book to go with it and my blanket. Oh, and my stocking came with a bottle of wine.

After we opened presents, Michael went to take a shower. The kids got out some of their new toys and played for a little while, but not for long. I made them eat some breakfast and get dressed so we could go over to Michael's parents' house.

We were over there by 10:30 a.m. Jeremy and Kelly and their kids got there a little bit after we did. We did family pictures and then it was time to open presents again. Michaela got her American Girl doll and was thrilled with it. I'm sure it's her favorite present this year. Caleb got more Bakugan, his Club penguin DS game and a really cool Nerf Wii game. Michael got two big toys. He got his leaf blower he wanted and a chain saw on a stick.

I was very spoiled again, too. I got a really cool fleece sweat shirt I wanted, LOST season 5 on DVD, Rabbids Go Home Wii Game, Ice Age III DVD, and another Tri-pod. Now I'm going to have to decide which tri-pod I want to keep. But, I was really happy with it all.

I was also really happy that our niece seemed to really like the case we got her for her iPod touch. And, Michael's mom seemed very happy with her computer game and her candle snuffer that we got her. It means so much to me when we are able to judge correctly and get things that people like. My nephew was a lot more thrilled receiving the points card for Xbox and the Game Stop GC than I was giving it. But, it's more important that he liked it than that I did. I'm really glad he liked it.

Dinner was delicious. Michael's mom outdid herself this year I think. I really enjoyed the meal. The conversation and company was really good, too. It was a very good day.

We came home around 6:30 p.m. The kids got into their pj's right away because they got new ones as Christmas presents and couldn't wait to wear them. We just kind of hung out around home. The kids played with some of their new toys. Caleb has had his Bakugan out a lot. He and Daddy tried to figure it out. I curled up under my blanket and watched television. If we had a working DVD player, I'd have watched one of my new movies. But, that will have to wait.

December 24, 2009

I love Christmas Eve. It is my favorite day of the year. It was always special when I was growing up. It still is. The weather was crap today. It rained all day and we were not able to put out the luminaries this year, but it was still a great day.

I did some errands this morning. I had to get a few things to take to my mom's tonight. People were crazy out and about, though. I was really glad to get home.

I did take a nap this afternoon. I'm thinking my blanket will be great to take naps with once I get to use it. I may have actually bought it but Michael says I cannot have it until Christmas day. Oh well, that's tomorrow. I have a feeling I'm going to have to share it with Abby some, but it's big.

Tonight was Christmas at my mom's. We had good food, yum! Then opened presents. I got a black long sleeved t-shirt, a gold sweater, a tri-pod for my camera, EZ combs, Mama Mia DVD. I think we all got pretty spoiled tonight. Michaela was thrilled with her Apples to Apples game and her dress making set. Caleb loves his robot and Bakugan.

Griff got an Xbox for Christmas so the kids were given gifts that had two Xbox games in them. It was funny when they opened them because they both said, "We don't have an Xbox." Then, Griff pointed out the one he has and let them know that those were their games to play when they were over there at their house. Of course, Caleb had to try his out right away. He loved it.

Michaela, mom, and Karen started playing Apples to Apples. I ended up being judge for that. It's a cute game and can be really funny.

We came home around 8:45 or so. The kids got ready for bed, but watched some of 50 Frist Dates with Michael and me. They went to bed around 9:30 or so. Michael and I finished watching the movie and then put out the presents and stockings from Santa.

December 23, 2009

This morning the kids and I did some errands. We stopped and had lunch at Burger King and then came home to get started on the cookies. I took the easy way out this year. I just did not feel like doing baking this year. Some years I'm really into it, like last year and the year before, but this year I just couldn't face it all. So, we did the place and bake method this year.

We baked:

• 80 brownies with Christmas swirl chips
• 4 dozen chocolate chip cookies with Christmas swirl chips
• 2 dozen chocolate chip cookies with mint swirl chips
• 4 dozen chocolate chip cookies
• 4 dozen round sugar cookies with sprinkles
• 6 dozen shaped sugar cookies decorated with store bought icing

That's a lot of cookies! And, they were all baked in one afternoon!

We got a phone call from a lady that lives over on Mallard this evening. She said that UPS delivered a box to her with our address on it. So, I went to go get it. It was the wine gift box (which actually only has cheese and stuff like that in it) that Michael's boss sent to us.

Then, after the cookies were done, we went to see Christmas lights. We went through Fort Zumwalt park in O'Fallon and then went to look at a couple houses with cool lights. One house we went to has a website neverenoughlights.com. It was really cool. We sat and watched the lights through about 5 songs. I really enjoyed it.

December 22, 2009

I have been so tired today. I did not sleep well last night again. I even took a sleep pill, but it did not work. I need to go find the other pills I've used before, they worked better. I really hope I can sleep tonight.

This morning the kids and I went to the grocery store for our weekly grocery shopping. I am really not into baking this year, but they want to make cookies so I was going to get those holiday cookies that Pillsbury puts out during each holiday, but they didn't have any at Shop and Save. We did get some sugar cookies and chocolate chip cookies, though.

We stopped at Dierburgs on the way home to see if they had any holiday cookies. Not only did they have those, we found cut outs with icing, cookies with red and green chips, brownies with red and green chips, and cookies with chocolate mint chips in them. I think even though we're doing it the easy way we'll still have a good variety and I can still send tins to the neighbors. We'll bake them tomorrow.

Before we came home we had to stop at Quick Trip. Michael needed gift cards and scratch off lottery tickets for his employees so we stopped to get those for him.

When we got home the kids let me nap. They were really good about letting me nap today. Probably because I was so grouchy at the grocery store.

I only allowed myself to nap for an hour. After that I made myself some lunch. The kids had eaten their lunchables earlier. It was my plan to fold some laundry and then wrap presents after eating, but I really had a hard time getting myself motivated today.

I finally got myself downstairs around 1:40 p.m. I was down there wrapping presents until 4:40, but I am finished wrapping. The kids helped me clean up the family room down there as much as we could. I couldn't put the wrapping stuff away because Michael still has to wrap presents yet. But, we got it clean enough so they could play on the Wii again.

We had toasted ravioli with sauce, green beans and chips for supper tonight. They all helped me clean up supper, which was very nice. After supper, Michael went in search of giant bows and I folded a load of laundry. Now, I'm sitting on my butt for the rest of the night. I really hope I can sleep tonight. I am so happy my kids were so good today and hope they are like that the rest of the winter break.

December 21, 2009

It was a busy Monday even though I did not have to go to work and the kids did not have to go to school. We had to take Abby to the groomer first thing this morning. After that we went to get Sami. Angie had to work today so Sami spent the day with us. I loved having her with us today.

We went to PetSmart to get Abby's Christmas presents. We got her two indoor frisbees. I got two because the two pack was cheaper than the single. We also got her a big candy cane shaped bone. She gets one of those every year. Then, we got her doggie cookies. I had already bought her a new place mat for her bowls. And, she'll be getting a package of rawhide chew sticks as well as pup corn and puppy oreos from Santa.

Next, we went to Wal-mart. I needed ink and a folder to put the family tree print outs into for my grandma. We also ended up getting a few other things including milk because Michaela had put the milk carton back into the fridge empty so I had to eat dry cereal this morning.

When we were finished at Wal-mart we came home. The kids played while I got the rest of the family tree stuff printed out that I wanted. About that time the phone rang and it was time to get Abby.

After we brought Abby home we went to Wendy's for lunch. I love Wendy's. We enjoyed our lunch very much. I REALLY liked having Sami with us. She's a great kid. I just love her to death.

This afternoon I worked on wrapping presents. It just seems to never end. I am so not into it this year. Very few gifts I wrapped got more than a bow for the finishing touch. I just want the wrapping done.

After supper tonight I went to the post office to mail the Christmas cards and my grandmother's gift box. Then, I stopped at Walgreen's and got some more gift boxes.

When I got home I started wrapping again. Michael went to his parents' house to wrap the gifts from Santa. I think I should be able to finish wrapping tomorrow. When Michael got home I stopped because I was tired. I did not sleep last night so I'm hoping to sleep tonight. Michael wrapped my presents when I came upstairs. I will be glad to get it all finished so I can put that mess away downstairs.

December 20, 2009

It was a busy day. We went to church this morning and stopped at Steak 'n Shake for lunch. Then we came home. I did some laundry and then went to get some tape because we did not have any to wrap presents.

I came home and tried to print out some more of the family tree I've been preparing as part of my grandma's Christmas present. I am still having problems getting my laptop to talk to my printer. I guess I'm going to have to buy ink for the other printer and print from the PC instead. It's really starting to get frustrating. I also wrote my letter to my aunt that I write every year.

This evening we went to Olive Garden for Michael's mom's birthday dinner. All the McCoys were there and it was an enjoyable dinner. Michaela and Caleb were in heaven getting to have time with their cousins. Michael's mom seemed to like her birthday gifts.

This evening Michael and I wrapped presents until almost 10 p.m. My back really hurts. I just cannot sit on the floor like I used to, but I think still not feeling 100% does not help matters much.

December 19, 2009

So begins the last minute preparations for Christmas. Christmas is just 6 days away now. It is so hard to believe that Christmas is so close already. Each year seems to go by faster than the last.

I feel some what better today, but still not great. Michael got up and went hunting this morning. He shot two ducks but lost one. I thought the idea was to kill them, not shot and chase them.

This afternoon we had to take Michael's truck to get a fuel filter replaced on it. I went out and did the last minute shopping. I had to finish shopping for Michael and get stocking stuffers. It wore me out today, more than usual. It's probably because I'm still not feeling great.

This evening we went to Applebee's for supper. They have the 2 for $20 special going right now so Michael and I both got steak. It was yummy. Michael's parents were there and we talked to them a little before the food came.

After that Michael needed to get something at Lowe's. We ended up buying a new garage door opener, too, since mine broke. Now, I'll have a quiet one on my door like Michael has on his.

Michael went out shopping after we came home and I managed to fold a load of laundry and wrap four presents.

December 18, 2009

Today was the last day of work before Winter Break. My Winter Break began at 3:30 pm today. Michaela and Caleb both had half days at school today and went to their grandparents' house after school. It feels so good to have two full weeks and an extra weekend (16 days total) off from work. There will be a lot to get done when I get back to work, but that's ok, it too shall pass.

I still do not feel well at all. Michaela has not felt well today either. She and I had soup for supper and Michael and Caleb went out to Burger King to get away from us sickies. They saw my mom and Griff at Burger King.

I am going to bed early tonight. Hopefully, I'll begin feeling better tomorrow since I'll have had two full days of anti-biotics in me.

December 17, 2009

I feel like crap. I am getting a sinus infection again. Tonight was the last night of water aerobics for this session and I almost did not make it through it. I really am not sure how I managed to get myself dressed and home without falling asleep. I have taken meds and am going to bed now.

December 16, 2009

Tonight was Girl Scouts. The girls got to make Christmas bracelets and picture frames. We also did an ornament exchange. Michaela ended up with a cute little doggy ornament. We gave the girls little goody bags with an activity pad, small box of crayons, a little stuffed snow man and a candy cane in each. They did a great job tonight. It was a fun evening.

Michaela and I came home and I got to work on the Christmas cards. Using my work laptop went much better. The cards actually printed pretty quickly tonight. I am finished with them. They are all addressed and just waiting stamps at this point. I'm just glad they are done, finally.

My garage door opener broke tonight when I was leaving for Girl Scouts. Great, something else we need to replace now. Michael's truck has been acting up, also and he needs to take it in to have it looked at. Also, I need new tires on my van.

Michael went Christmas shopping for his dad tonight and came back with a couple things. I managed to get one last thing for him mom on the way home from work. I've also decided what else we're going to get our niece. We just may finish shopping before Christmas. Except I'm not sure Michael has gotten anything for me yet. Hmmmmm.......

December 15, 2009

I tried working on Christmas Cards again tonight. There is something wrong with my computer, I think. I try to print and it just sits there forever. Then, it'll print one and sit forever again. It took me over an hour to get the inside of 6 cards printed. It's very frustrating and annoying. I even tried to download new drivers for the printer, but my computer would not let me download them.

I began addressing the envelopes by hand because I just don't want to deal with trying to print them after all of this. I am going to bring my work laptop home tomorrow night and try printing from it to see if it works better. I hope so because at this rate it could take me a week to get these things printed.

I did manage to get the goody bags for Girl Scouts, my class and Caleb's class filled tonight while I was waiting. I am going to stop and get candy canes for them on the way home tomorrow. But, other than that they are ready. We need the Girl Scouts ones tomorrow night. Caleb will take the ones for his class to school on Thursday and I'll give mine to my students on Friday.

December 14, 2009

Today was the beginning of the last week or work before Winter Break. Our Winter Break is two weeks long again this year. I like it when we have a long Winter Break. I only have to go back to work one day before my kids at the end of it and that is only because their teachers have a PD day the same day we do right after Winter Break.

Tonight I finished laundry that did not get done this weekend. Some how the hamper in the kids' bathroom is already full. I had it empty yesterday morning. Of course Michaela went through three outfits yesterday. I don't think she went through that many outfits a day when she was a baby.

I also worked on our Christmas card tonight. I needed to get them printed, but did not get many finished. I have 17 completely printed and another 12 or so with just the fronts printed. For some reason it was taking forever. My computer was not playing nicely tonight. I guess I'll work on them some more tomorrow night. I want them done. I really am not enjoying this process as much as I used to enjoy it.

December 13, 2009

It was a really busy day for us. I did a little bit of laundry before we went to church. After church we went to Pantera's with Michael's parents. Then, we came home and changed clothes.

While we were at home, I did a little more laundry. I also got out the Christmas presents I have already bought to see exactly what I had. Then, we took the kids to Michael's parents' house and left them there so we could go to do some Christmas shopping.

Michael and I started out at Toys R Us. We only got one thing there for Caleb. Then, we went to Best Buy. We ended up getting a couple stocking stuffers for the kids and an Xbox points card for our nephew. After that we went to the mall. We got Michael's mom a gift while we were there. We also got something else for our nephew.

Next, we went to Wal-mart out on 94. We got the kids' big gifts there. We also got something for Michael's mom and something for our niece.

After that we went to the Wal-mart closer to home so I could get some ink. They were out of the ink I needed at the other Wal-mart. We looked for lights, there too, but did not find any. It seems they are sold out of lights.

Our last stop was Lowe's. We bought a spot light for our snow man that is going to be put out in front of our house while we were at Lowe's. They were also out of lights.

Michael decided he'd go and shop for his dad later, so we came home. We brought all the stuff we bought inside the house, then we went to eat. We had Arby's.

When we were finished eating we went to Michael's parents' house. Michael and his dad snuck the big presents into the garage over there. We are keeping them over there until Christmas Eve. We'll wrap them over there, too, probably.

We came home around 8:30. The kids went to bed and I folded two loads of laundry and put another load in the dryer. I am going to have to finish laundry tomorrow evening while I print Christmas cards. Now, it's time to shower and go to bed.

December 12, 2009

It was an eventful day for us today. The kids and I started the day by going to buy them shoes. Both of them needed new tennis shoes and Michaela needed some dress shoes. We found what we needed at Payless.

Then, this afternoon when we were finishing up eating lunch there was the sound of screeching tires. Michael was able to get up from the table in time to see a teenage boy in a Jeep hit the light post in front of our house, spin back out into the street, hit another car and causing it to go up into the yard across the street from us and spin to a stop in front of our house. The other car had a lot of damage to it's door, fender and the back window was shattered. The Jeep had a caved in front end.

I called 911. Evidently the man in the other car called to and said he did not need an ambulance. I'm not sure that was such a good idea. Michael said there was a big red spot on one of the kids' face that was in the car with the man. This was not the man's son, he was someone else's child. I'm not even sure they called the boy's mother.

Michael went outside to wait for the police to arrive. The teenage boy said he'd lost control on the wet pavement, but we know he peeled out by the sound of the tires. Michael to the police officer what he knew. The boy got a ticket for driving recklessly. It's the type of ticket that requires he appear before a judge.

After that it was time for us to get ready to go to the Trans Siberian Orchestra concert. We took the kids this year. It was their first time going to any kind of concert. Caleb was so excited you would have thought it was Christmas Eve. TSO added some cool stuff to their light show. They have all these t.v. screens and a net of LED lights now. I thought it was really cool. Michaela and Caleb loved it. It was a good afternoon.

We came back to town and had a late supper at Applebee's. It was a good supper. I think we were all pretty tired, though. We came home and just chilled at home for the rest of the evening.

December 11, 2009

Yeah, it's Friday! We had our first Fun Friday at work today. I ended up having to do detention. I don't like doing detention. But, it ended up not too bad once I made sure all the children who were with me had work to keep them busy. I was actually able to get one of our students that can be a bit of a challenge to sit still quietly for over 15 minutes and work on a handwriting packet. I was pretty impressed with the fact that he accomplished that. It was a big thing for him.

Tonight the kids, Michael and I went to Red Robin for supper. I had the soup & salad combination with French Onion soup. After Red Robin we went to Wal-mart to get a few things. Then, we came home.

I worked on our Christmas Card for quite a while tonight. I could call it finished, but I'm not sure I'm happy with it. I just can't seem to get any good ideas for them anymore. Anyway, I am done for the night.

December 10, 2009

Tonight was swimming night. Michaela and I went to the Y. She has swimming lessons and I have water aerobics. It was good. The water has been kind of cold the last couple weeks, though. I've had to go sit in the hot tub for a few minutes both nights to warm up so I didn't freeze before getting under a shower head. I was really tired after class tonight, too.

December 9, 2009

Tonight I went in search of card stock so I can make our Christmas cards. This is usually a painful endeavor. Usually by this time you cannot find ivory card stock. But, I found it at Office Depot. That was the second place I went to tonight. I started at Hobby Lobby thinking maybe they'd have it since it's usually hard to find at the office supply stores. But, they only had note card size. I found what I wanted right next door at Office Depot, though.

Then, I went to Deals and found some things I am going to give the person I am Secret Santa for at work. I also found a few things for me. Nothing big, mainly paper plates and things I can use in my classroom.

After that I went to Dollar Tree and found the rest of the small gifts for my person at work. I don't know what I'm going to do for the big gift next week, though. I'll figure something out over the weekend. For now I'm all set to give my small gifts starting tomorrow and will not have to rush around in the mornings finding things for this person.

I finished Caleb's photo book tonight, finally. I think it turned out pretty good. I ended up adding 8 more pages to the original book, but he's worth it. I am anxious to see it. I also got the photo collage gifts I ordered in the mail today. The blanket I got my mom was not exactly what I was expecting, but it's cool.

December 8, 2009

We had a staff meeting after work today. It wasn't a real long one, but it could have been so much shorter if we didn't have people that needed to discuss everything to the ground. But, it wasn't a bad meeting and it was about actual things we are going to be doing over the next few days.

Tonight was nasty coming home from work. It's cold and raining. The temperatures are in the upper 30's, so there's no snow, just cold rain. And, since it's December, it just meant it got darker even faster. That is the only thing I do not like about this time of year. I hate the long hours of darkness.

December 7, 2009

The work week has begun. Just two weeks and then I'll be off for Winter Break. The kids and I have the same break this year with the exception of the first day back. They get one extra day because their teachers have a PD day that first day back like we do.

It was a pretty calm Monday at work. I like that. My students seem to be getting distracted already. It's hard to concentrate this time of year, I guess. But, we keep going and I keep reeling them back in.

Tonight was pretty quiet at home. Michael had to work late so it was just the kids, the dog and me. We just hung out after going to get Wendy's for supper. I worked on Caleb's photo book I'm making him. It's of his football season. I was hoping to finish it, but Snapfish was not playing nicely tonight.

December 6, 2009

It's Sunday already. The weekends go by so fast.

This morning the kids (all four) and I hung around the house for a while. Michael was gone hunting. Around 8:30 we went over to feed Zoe and let her out. They all liked helping with that and Zoe loved all the kids being there.

Then around 10:15 we took Chase home. I called Angie and told her that she could come get Sami whenever she wanted.

When Angie got here we sat and talked for a while. It was nice. I got to show off my Christmas decorations, too.

The rest of the day was spent on laundry and doing lesson plans and paper work for work. Michael worked out in the yard and brought the fire wood down to the patio for the winter. The kids were outside with him most of the afternoon.

We did go to Steak 'n Shake for supper, but other than that it was just a day at home.

December 5, 2009

It was a really good day. It was busy, but good.

This morning, Michaela and I went to the VFW Post. Our girl scout troop helped them with a Christmas Party that they throw for the residents of a veteran's home. We helped them play bingo and served them lunch and beverages. It was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed being there and interacting with the veterans.

Early this afternoon, I went to Sam's and Wal-mart. I needed to get a few necessities, but I was also on the hunt for a DVD player. Michael decided to move the Wii downstairs. I'm happy about that. I had a hard time deciding on one, but finally found one and got home just about a half an hour before we had to leave again.

Michael was working on cleaning up the family room. The kids both had cleaned their rooms and done some other chores for me.

We headed down to Main Street around 3:30 or so to go to the Tintypery. We had a 4:00 p.m. appointment to have our yearly family picture with Santa taken. It is an even quicker process than it used to be as they print the pictures while you're changing back into your own clothes. We left with two 8x10's today.

After that we came home and switched vehicles. Michael drove to his parents' house and we left him there to take care of Zoe. The kids and I went to pick up Caleb's friend Chase. Then, we went and picked up Sami. We are having a double sleep over tonight. I think I'll be tired tomorrow. After we got both guests, we went back to get Michael.

then, we went down to Main Street and waited for the Los Posadas procession. It was COLD down there, especially when we followed the procession down to the riverfront. It was cool, though. Not something I think I NEED to do every year, especially when it's so cold, but I'm glad we did it.

We took all four kids to RT Weiler's for supper. We walked down the street until we got there. My hands were frozen by the time we got there because I just had those little stretchy gloves on my hands. It was pretty busy, but we did not have to wait long for a table.

Now, we are home. The kids are all playing Monopoly together. I think that is cool. It's fun to see Michaela and Caleb playing with their friends all together.

Michael has the Wii working downstairs now, but I don't think he's told the kids. If he had Caleb would have run down there as fast as he could. We'll wait until tomorrow to tell them. I'm going to make them all settle down around 10:00 pm, because I need sleep.

December 4, 2009

I have felt icky most of the day today. I get hungry, I eat and then my stomach just rolls. When I'm up and moving around it is worse than when I am sitting. I feel a little bit better this evening than I did earlier, but I am really tired from it all today. I think I will be ok by tomorrow. I've had this before and it usually doesn't last long, or it's very mild the next day.

December 3, 2009

I am really tired tonight. I did not sleep well last night. I'm hoping this is not going to be a long bout with insomnia. Tonight was my water aerobics class and it was good, but kind of tough from not being there for two weeks, so hopefully, that was enough work out the fatigue so I can rest.

December 2, 2009

Tonight was a lot of fun. Michaela and I missed Girl Scouts, but it was to be at Caleb's football banquet. The banquet was held at a skating rink and the kids had so much fun. The adults did too. I kind of wish I'd skated, but I'm scared to anymore. I'm not sure I can still do it. I may have to try next time I'm at a skating rink. We'll see.

We had pizza and soda for supper there. And, there were cupcakes for desert. YUM! The head coach put together a really cool video for the boys and a great slide show for the cheerleaders. We had a TON of people there tonight. At one point I stood up on a bench to take pictures and was amazed at how many people we had there. It was cool.

I really enjoyed the season and really like the people we spent the season with. I hope next year is as good. Although, we will be without the younger boys. That makes me a little sad.

December 1, 2009

I cannot believe it is December already. This whole year has just gone by SO FAST. I love December, though. This is my very favorite time of the year. I love all the holiday stuff that goes on this time of the year.

We had a staff meeting today, but it was so NOT stressful. We played Christmas Jeopardy from Pete's Power Points. It was fun. It's nice to just get to laugh and just be adults with my co-workers at times. We also turned in our Secret Santa forms. We are going to pull names on Friday. I love doing that. I cannot wait until I find out who I get this year.

November 30, 2009

It was back to work for me today. It seemed to go pretty smoothly. My students did a good job getting back in the swing of things. It actually felt kind of good to be back. It was a nice break. I am ready for the three weeks we have until Winter Break.

So, it was a pretty uneventful day for me.

November 29, 2009

It was a perfect day. This afternoon, Michael and I took the kids down to Main Street. Every weekend between Thanksgiving and Christmas, there are different Santas and Christmas Characters that wander around down there. They will talk to the kids and they hand out trading cards with their pictures on them. The shops stay open later during this time and there are other things like caroling and a train display. This year they even have an ice skating rink down in Frontier Park.

We wandered around Main Street letting the kids collect the trading cards. They ended up with 27 out of 29 cards. We stopped in at The Tintypery to make our appointment for our yearly family picture with Santa Claus. We'll be going back next Saturday for that. We watched the ice skaters for a while and bought a new Nutcracker for our collection. We stayed down there long enough to see the characters gather to sing Christmas carols. It was so much fun.

After that we went to Fazoli's for supper. Then, we came home and put up the tree and finished decorating the inside of the house. I just LOVE family time like that together. I even remembered to take my camera with me this year so we have pictures of the kids with the characters.

November 28, 2009

Today I started out doing laundry. I got about half of it done. Considering I did laundry every day Monday through Thursday this week, that's not a big accomplishment. I tried to do some online shopping, too, but I just don't seem to know what to get anyone this year.

I also got out the Christmas stuff. I got most everything out except the tree. I moved the nativity set to the table that usually has snowmen on it this year. Since Michael's parents helped us increase our nativity set last year it is big enough for that table and my snowmen have outgrown that table. They are spread out a little more now. I have my Santas in the same place, but I put the big Scottish one on top of the entertainment center. I put everything but the books from the entertainment center in the storage boxes that I took Christmas stuff out of. In any case, it's a good start on the Christmas decorating.

Michael and Caleb were up working on the yard at the duplex most of the day. Michael's dad was with them. Michaela was with my mom until after 2:00 pm. So, I had about an hour or so to myself. Michaela went outside to ride her bike when she got home. She and Caleb both need new bikes. Caleb has been riding hers because he's too big for his and Michaela has been riding mine.

Tonight we went to Trailhead for supper. We had to wait a while, but thankfully we didn't get there any later than we did. It got packed and there were A LOT of big parties there tonight. Main Street was really busy because the weather has been so mild. It is cool to see all those people down there and the shops still open at supper time. I love Main Street during Christmas time.

After supper we went and got some things at Wal-mart and then came home. It was a good day and night.

November 27, 2009 Black Friday

I got up around 3:30 this morning and was at Wal-mart by 4:30. I did not realize they were open all night. This wouldn't have been such a big deal to me except that they did not let anyone check out until 5:00 a.m. this morning. This meant that there were tons of people there who had gotten in line hours before I got there and were just standing in line waiting for the check out lanes to open. It also meant that it was impossible to move in the store. You could not get down isles because people were just standing in front of them. It was awful. So, I left and went to Target.

I found a few things at Target, but not a lot. I did see Kelly and Jeremy, there, too. It was nice to talk to them for a few moments. I stood in line there for about 45 minutes or so before getting to check out. It wasn't too bad there.

I went to a couple different places after that and again did not get a whole lot. I stopped and had breakfast at Jack In The Box because I was starving. Then, I ended up at Toys R Us last. I got a few things for Caleb, there, but again did not find as much as I usually do on Black Friday. I did manage to find a really nasty head ache while I was out, though.

I spent the rest of the day laying around in bed trying to nap and fighting the headache. Around 4:00 p.m. I took Michaela up to my mom's. She is spending the night up there with my mom and Griff.

Tonight, Michael, Caleb and I went to Red Robin for supper. I had French Onion soup there. I like their soup. After that we went to Garden Ridge, Lowe's, Target and Wal-mart. Michael is searching for new lights to put outside on the house. He's not found what he wants yet. I managed to find a snowman for outside, a snowman/penguin snow globe and the Santa Clause that goes with the snowman and reindeer I've already bought for this year. Caleb got boots and gloves.

Now, I'm watching the new version of Halloween and getting very sleepy. I cannot believe there are only two days left until I have to go back to work. This break has gone by way too fast.

November 26, 2009 Thanksgiving

Today is Thanksgiving! It was a really nice day. My mom, Griff, Brandon and Karen were here with us. My turkey was not as good as last year's, but it was still good. We definitely had way more food than we needed, but we all enjoyed it very much.

The funny part about it is, I forgot to take the stuffing out of the bird so we did not have stuffing on the table for dinner time. It's so funny because we did not even realize it. I warmed it up at supper time, though so we did get to enjoy it.

My mom, Michaela, Brandon, Karen, Caleb and I played electronic Monopoly tonight, too. That was fun. Mom left before we were finished so Brandon and Caleb ganged up on the girls. Big mistake, there were three of us and only two of them. Karen and I helped Michaela win.

I did buy a Christmas gift online today, too. Amazon.com was having specials all day today. I found an MP3 player for Michaela for $44.00. I found some reviews on it that look good so hopefully, it will work out well for us.

After everyone left and the kids went to bed, I looked through the Black Friday ads. I guess I will be getting up around 3:30 in the morning.

September 25, 2009

Today the kids and I cleaned most of the day. They even scrubbed down the cabinets in the kitchen and the walls in the hallway. We cleaned until lunch time and then left to go get Wendy's.

We stopped by my mom's house on the way. She went with us. It was a nice lunch. After lunch we came home and cleaned a little more. Then, we took a break until late afternoon.

I made spaghetti for supper. This evening, Michael and the kids made the cranberries, pumpkin pies and cheesecake. I got the veggies and potatoes ready to go for the morning. Then, I dressed the turkey and had it in the oven by 10:30 p.m. It will cook slowly all night. Now, it's time for bed.

November 24, 3009

Today the kids had a half day of school. I spent the morning talking to Angie, dusting and folding laundry. I picked up Caleb at 11:45 and we went to Angie's house to wait for Michaela's bus. We were at Angie's until around 1:00 and then came home.

The kids and I cleaned until about 3:15 and then headed to the dentist. Both kids are cavity free!! I'm very glad to hear that. Michaela needs to brush near her gum line better and Caleb is getting his back teeth better than his front teeth now. Michaela has 6 baby teeth left and 4 are getting ready to come out.

Tonight I went and finished grocery shopping (I think) for Thanksgiving. Michael put the new light fixture in the dining room and cleaned off the dining room table. I also folded some more clothes. Laundry just never ends.

November 23, 2009

I have this whole week off so this morning I dropped the kids off and then came home. I worked on some stuff for work this morning, but that's about all I did this morning. I did take a little nap too. I'm really tired because I'm still hurting. It's not quite as bad, but still bugging me.

Abby had to be at the Groomer's by 11:45 so after I dropped her off I went and did some shopping. I went to Toys R Us because they had DS games on sale Buy One Get One 1/2 off. It was a pretty good deal for those games.

Then, I went to Target. I had to get my nephew a birthday gift. I also took some time to look at MP3 players. I think I found one that would be good for Michaela, but we'll have to see what Michael says.

After that I went to Dierburgs to get our Turkey and some of the other stuff for our Thanksgiving meal that I had not gotten yet. I had to get a couple candy bars because when I checked out I'd not met the $50 necessary to get the sale price on the Turkey. I don't think I've ever done that before.

When I was finished there it was time to pick Abby up from the Groomers. She's always so gorgeous after being groomed. She really loves going there, too.

We came home and I put things away. Then, it was time to go get Caleb. Caleb came home and did his homework and then we went to get Michaela.

This evening, Michael put the new faucet in the bathroom. It's so nice to not have a drippy faucet in there anymore.

November 22, 2009

Today is my nephew's 15th birthday. He's growing up so fast. I cannot believe he is only a year away from 16.

Ok, so I've been in a lot of pain this weekend. I woke up Friday morning with my neck and shoulder hurting. It kept getting worse through out the day. I did not sleep well on Friday night. So, Saturday was pretty miserable for me. By night time I was having to hold my elbow just to keep from tearing up. It really was hurting me pretty bad. I could not even lay my arm on the table without having sharp pains in my shoulder and back.

I slept better last night than I did the night before. When I first go up it felt quite a bit letter, but only for a short time. I was still hurting today. It wasn't AS BAD as yesterday, but it's been pretty uncomfortable. I bought a moist heat therapy hot/cold pack at Wal-mart today. It's like the one I used to have from the hospital. It's tube sock type material with rice in it and you heat it up in the microwave. It's helped more than anything. Last night when I got out of the shower and put Banalg on when my pores were still open it burned like hell, but it also made the ache and pain in my shoulder go away for a while much better than when my pores are not open.

I hope by tomorrow it'll be almost gone. Tonight is much better than last night.

November 21, 2009

Today was Caleb's last football game of his first season. It's been a long season, but I still cannot believe it's over. He waited three years to be able to play and now his first season is over. He loved it. I am so happy that it was such a positive experience for him. I think Michael and I enjoyed it as much as he did. It was so much fun seeing my little man out there enjoying himself so much. We've created a football monster, though. He is just football crazy now. It can be a little tiresome, but I am thrilled he's found something that he loves so much.

Caleb's team lost their game, today, but they put up a good fight. They finished their season with a 4th place trophy for their division and in 6th place position in the league. That is 6th place out of 17 teams. That is quite an accomplishment for their first year. A lot of the boys had never played football before and some of them had never played any kind of sport before. They did GREAT. As a mom, it's a dream come true when something your child wanted so badly goes so well.

November 20, 2009

Today was my first scheduled observation with our new principal. I was really nervous about it. Since he's never observed me before I really have no idea what to expect from him. I taught a vocabulary lesson while he was in the classroom today. I was kind of excited because I've been able to put together a lot of fun activities that differentiate vocabulary.

I think it went well. My students seemed to stay engaged. I tried really hard to call on some students that were not raising their hands to keep them in the lesson. During the part of the lesson where the children were working in groups, he went around as most principals do to see what the children were doing. But, instead of just watching he got involved with them. That was really cool. I enjoyed the fact that he was working with them. It was helpful to me, too. I told him so later. I told him that I was going to have him come to our room more often because I liked having the extra pair of hands. You can tell he really likes being with the kids.

In any case I am happy that my observation is over before Thanksgiving. This means I do not have to worry about it the three weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I can just teach and enjoy my students for those three weeks. I'm really looking forward to that. Three full weeks of just my students and me. That's the best part of my job, getting to be with them and not having voyeurs interfere.

What really blows my mind is that once we get to Winter Break (which is just 4 weeks away) our first semester will be over. Of course 2nd semester is longer, but it does mean we get to start "fresh" when we come back from Winter Break.

November 19, 2009

Tonight was Michaela's DARE graduation. She was very excited about it and I'm really proud of her. She has taken everything she's learned in DARE very seriously and I'm so happy about that. I'm just really proud of the young woman she is becoming.

She loved the officer that taught the program. I wasn't real impressed with his skills with parents. You can tell he has his favorites and the rest are just fluff for him. He talked way too much tonight. He said about a million times "We're going to move this along." But, if he'd not said that he could have shaved about 15 minutes off the program. If he'd stopped claiming to have baked the cakes he could have shaved another 5 minutes off the program.

After the ceremony he was letting kids come over and take pictures with him. Michaela wanted to have her picture taken so we went over and got in line. When we were next there was another family that had stepped up after us, but were kid of off to the side. The officer looked at us and then stepped over to them because he knew recognized the parents. Michaela was very aware that he skipped over us. He also called the girl by name.

When they stepped away he finally acknowledged us. He never did call Michaela by name so I'm guess he could not recall her name. He did not ask me who I was or anything. He did pose for a picture and was concerned when the flash did not go off so I know he wanted to make sure that Michaela got a good picture, but I do know Michaela's feelings were a little hurt. I don't think she caught on to the implications of his behavior the way I did, but it kind of put a damper on things. I had been looking forward to meeting him because Michaela was so fond of him and I feel really short changed.

November 18, 2009

It's hump day! Just two more days until my Thanksgiving break. I wish they'd not given us a week, but I'm still going to enjoy it. I will have a lot to do so I'll be able to put the time to good use, but it will be nice to be kid free for a day and a half next week. It'll also be nice to be able to pick Caleb up right after school, too.

Tonight was our Girl Scout meeting. I think it went really well. We let the girls know our expectations and I am hoping this means that we'll be having more good meetings. It really is a lot of fun being with the girls when things go smoothly and we are able to have a meeting without all the craziness.

November 17, 2009

It's raining again. Caleb's practice was canceled again tonight. It's the last week of practice and it doesn't look like he'll get to go to any of them because Thursday night is Michaela's DARE graduation.

Work went well today. My students worked hard and our staff meeting was actually productive. At least I think it was. We discussed building business and it was not too long. Well, it wasn't for those of us who do not teach 3 - 6th grade. They had to stay for acuity stuff and the rest of us got to leave.

November 16, 2009

It rained all day today. I had a hard time getting to work because there was residue of two accidents on the highway. I had to drive about 20 miles an hour all the way down 70 this morning and that sucked. I am so tired of accidents. There have been more accidents on my way to work this school year so far than in the previous 16 years combined. It's getting ridiculous.

Since it rained all day and is still raining, Caleb did not have football practice. It's supposed to rain all day tomorrow too. I wish it would get cold enough to snow. But, that is very unlikely in November. Hopefully, it'll stay wet this winter and we will get some snow.

Tonight Michael, the kids and I did some running around. We went to Michael's parents to return a pie plate and I talked my MIL into hemming some pants for me. We visited for a while and then left to go to Target. Michaela needed tights because she has to dress up tomorrow for school. She's going on a field trip to the symphony. Michael also got the new Trans-Siberian Orchestra CD.

I've spent the rest of the evening working on pictures. I am making some headway. Maybe by Wednesday evening I'll be finished.

November 15, 2009

It was a crazy, insane day for us. But, it was a good day.

Caleb had his 2nd playoff game today. We had to drive all the way down to SLU High School for the game. Life will be so much easier when they re-open highway 40 (or I guess it's going to be I-64 now) so we don't have to drive through the city to get to the south side of St. Louis anymore.

Caleb's team actually won by forfeit today. The other team showed up without their ID cards. In our league you cannot play without your ID cards. But, then they went ahead and played the game as a scrimmage anyway. We beat them 14 - 7! So, we would have won no matter what. The 7 year old Gold Titans got 4th place in their division because of this win. Next week they play again to see if they get 5th or 6th place in the league. I'm pretty proud of them.

After the game, we had to rush home and get some lunch. I made sandwiches for the kids and Caleb gulped his down and changed clothes so I could take him to a birthday party. He was so excited about it. It was at the RecPlex and although he missed the first part of the party because of his game, he still got to have cake and go swimming with his friends. He stayed there with Chase's family so Michael and I could take pictures at the mother/daughter banquet.

When I left Caleb at the RecPlex, I came home and got ready for the Girl Scout Mother/Daughter banquet. We had to be there by 4:00 p.m. Michael and I took the posed pictures at the beginning of the evening. I am a little nervous about them. It is not easy to take posed portraits indoors. Especially since I am not a professional and I do not have lighting equipment. I think I need to work on that.

It was a great evening, though. Michael stayed until around 5:30 and then left to go get Caleb. Michaela and I won a basket from the silent auction. It has all kinds of cool movies in it, movie theater size candies, popcorn, nacho chips and cheese and soda. It is really cool.

They had hula dancers there, tonight too. They were great and they taught the girls how to do some of the dance moves.

The food was really good, too. Vicky and Melinda (the leaders that put it all together) did a GREAT job with the banquet. I love that we do this every year. I look forward to it and I know Michaela does, too.

Now, I am completely exhausted and going to bed.

November 14, 2009

It was a busy day with just normal weekend stuff. I needed to get as much laundry done as possible because I won't have much time to do it tomorrow. I also did all the errands today. Wal-mart was CRAZY of course and they only had like 5 cashiers working. I also think they picked out the 5 slowest cashiers they had to work today.

Tonight we went to eat at Texas Roadhouse. It was our anniversary dinner. It was REALLY good but I ate entirely too much. It was hard to walk afterwards. It was a good evening, though. I cannot believe how tired I am tonight, though. I really need a weekend where we don't have to do anything.

November 13, 2009

It was Friday the 13th and there were no Jason moments in my life! LOL It was actually a pretty good day. Work went smoothly and it's been a nice quiet night at home. I made spaghetti for dinner. I did not feel like going out anywhere tonight. This is the first Friday in a long time that we just stayed at home.

November 12, 2009

Fifteen years ago today, Michael and I got married. I cannot believe it's been 15 years already. I love him more now than ever. I really am very lucky to have him in my life. Michael and my kids are my biggest dream come true. How many people get to say they are actually living their biggest dream?

I came home to a dozen beautiful red roses tonight. They are just gorgeous. Michael knows how to make me feel special.

Love you, babe!

November 11, 2009

Well, we've made it to the middle of the week. This week seems to be going by VERY slow.

I did the grocery shopping tonight. The store was kinda busy. At least more busy than normal. I picked up a few things for Thanksgiving dinner while I was there tonight. Not a lot, but at least something to get that shopping started. I can't believe Thanksgiving is only two weeks away. Christmas is only 44 days away!

Thank you to all the veterans and active duty military personnel. I hope you had a good Veteran's Day.

November 10, 2009

I had two meetings after work today. Somehow meetings make me more tired that actual teaching does, most of the time. I just feel like I could sleep for about three days. I'll do grocery shopping tomorrow. I'm really looking forward to it being Friday.

November 9, 2009

Today is Monday. We have two full weeks of school and then a week off for Thanksgiving. After that we have three full weeks of school and then off for two weeks for Christmas. Then, it will be second semester all ready.

I finally got my homework finished. It was interesting and I am eager to play around with Wikis a little more. I hope I get a good grade on it. I still have not gotten a grade on last week's assignment. I had to re-submit my Google Map because my instructor could not see my pin points. Hopefully, I'll get feedback on that tonight. I have two weeks left of this class. I can't believe it's almost over already.

We found out tonight that Caleb's team will be playing Normandy next weekend for his last game. I hope they win.

November 8, 2009

It was not a happy day for Titans, today. Caleb's team lost big time in their first playoff game. They lost to Kirkwood 31-0. It was a painful game. The boys really worked hard, though. They played tough and fought the whole game, but that other team was so much bigger and faster than us.

At least it was another beautiful day. We played on the field behind the middle school that is next to the Magic House. It was great being around fun people and watching my son play the game he's grown to love so much. We have one more game next week. Then, his first football season is over.

We stopped and had a very late lunch at O'Charlies before coming home. I think we were all tired. Caleb is the only one that really wanted to talk during the meal. No surprises there, he could out talk all three of us combined.

The rest of the day I worked on laundry, lesson plans and my homework. I still did not finish it. I'm still confused. I sent emails to my co-worker that is taking the class and my instructor, but they both seem to be offline for the evening. So, I put it away for the night. Hopefully I can finish tomorrow evening. I've really been enjoying what I learn, but some of it has been frustrating for me. But, I feel like I'm actually learning something new which is a GREAT feeling.

November 7, 2009

It was a BEAUTIFUL day outside today. The temps got into the 70's. The sun was out and it was just so nice outside. Michael went duck hunting for the first time this season and of course did not get anything because it was too warm for the ducks, but at least he got out and was able to be out where he loves to be.

It was a pretty typical Saturday. I did laundry, ran errands and worked on stuff for work. I tried to do some of my homework for my class, but did not get far with it.

We left the house by around 4:30 to go eat tonight. I wanted nachos from Trailhead so bad I couldn't stand it and did not want to have to walk away because the wait was too long again. We got right in and the nachos tasted SO GOOD!!!!! YUMMY!!!!

We tried to go to the AT&T store tonight. We have a remote that is not acting correctly. I guess it's got some bad connections or something. All the other remotes seem to work just fine. Michael called AT&T and they said we could just take the remote into the store and they would replace it for us, but they were closed before we got there so we'll have to do it later.

Still lovin' the U-verse, though!!!

November 6, 2009

Yeah, it's Friday! We got our AT&T U-verse installed today. Michael came home from work early to supervise the installation. We now have our Internet, television and land line through AT&T. So far I really love it!!! The modem that controls it all is HUGE! It's almost as tall as our computer monitor. We have receivers on 4 televisions. We have now joined the 21st century and have a DVR now! I'm SO EXCITED about that. It makes it so much easier to record television shows. The best part of all of it is that we get to say GOOD BYE to Charter!

November 5, 2009

Today was the first day of the NEA conferences. I rode with a co-worker on the Metro-Link down town so we would not have to pay for parking. It was a nice ride because we got a chance to talk. The conferences were interesting. I did spend some time in the rep meeting to see what it was all about. It was a bit confusing.

This afternoon I went to buy things for the basket that our Girl Scout troop is putting together for the Mother/Daughter dinner. I bought four plastic bowls for popcorn, popcorn, theater size candy, a Monopoly card game, the newer version of Miracle on 34th Street on DVD and three finger nail polishes. I got really excited about what to get and couldn't wait to tell Angie so I took it all over there to show her. I called Vicky tonight to let her know about it too. I really did not spend that much, either. I think total it came to about $25.00.

Tonight Michaela and I went to the Y to register for the Fall II session. She was supposed to get registered for Minnow class, but the only Minnow class that was available was on Wednesday nights and that's Girl Scout Night. So, she'll be with her same teacher and we'll both still be on Thursday nights still.

Caleb had football practice tonight. Michaela and I stopped up there for a little while on our way home from the Y. We didn't stay too long because Michaela still has a cough and the cold air makes it worse. So, we came home and she got in the shower.

November 4, 2009

Today was Friday for my students. Tomorrow and Friday are the NEA conferences. They are being held down town St. Louis at the Millennium Hotel this year. We get the two days off so we can have time to go to the conferences. I'm going to meet a co-worker at the Metro Link station and we're going to ride the metro link downtown together, then walk to the hotel.

Michaela had her last cross country meet of the season today. She came in 33rd. She had trouble running because of her cough. I think if she decides she wants to do this again next year, we'll see about taking her to the park and letting her train more.

Tonight was girl scouts. The meeting started out ok, but then at the end, the same thing as always happened. We have asked the girls repeatedly to not run around in the gym. Just because our meetings are held in the gym does not mean it's free for all time. I'm not sure how much help they gave in cleaning up before they started running around. It makes it hard for them to hear anything we have to say to them. It's also just not the right time for that kind of behavior. And, someone got hurt this time. It was an accident but that is not the point.

I am just so tired of having them ignore our instructions and directions. It is so disrespectful. We have explained it all to them and asked them more times than I can count, but they just ignore it. We can get them calmed down but if we turn to talk to a parent picking up or clean up something or even just pack up our things, they start in again. It's exhausting and makes me not want to be around them. I don't like feeling that way. Something is going to have to give. We can not keep having this stuff happen at our meetings.

November 3, 2009

I did not have to stay for a staff meeting at work today. It was nice to get to just come home on a Tuesday. I was able to pick up Caleb and be home in time to be here when Michaela got off the activity bus this evening.

Caleb and Michael had football practice again tonight. Michaela and I went to do the grocery shopping. And, then I came home and got my homework for my class finished. I had to make a Google Map and create a lesson to go with it for my class. I hope I did it right. I'm a bit nervous about it since I've not worked with Google Maps that much. But, I got it finished and got it turned in tonight.

November 2, 2009

Today was the beginning of a short week with students. My students will have a four day weekend. We get Thursday and Friday to go to the NEA conferences downtown.

It was a pretty quiet day at work. Not a whole lot going on. I was going to do my homework but our Internet was down all night. Yes, I am typing this post-Monday. So, I just chilled on my bed with the television on for the evening. Michael and Caleb were at football practice tonight.

November 1, 2009

I'm not sure how to feel with no football game this weekend. Our by week just happened to fall on the last week of the regular season. Playoffs start next weekend.

Today I mostly just did laundry and ran errands. Oh, and I got to take a nap. It was heaven.

Michaela and I stayed home from church because she's coughing quite a bit. We've had to get the nebulizer out this time around, but we've only had to use it a couple times.

October 31, 2009

It's been an eventful day. You'll have to forgive me if this is hard to read as at t his point in time I've almost (as in a few ounces away from) finished off a bottle of wine and it's hard to see what I am typing. I am floating.

I went to Target and Wal-mart today and people were crazy. But, I got done what I had planned. I also managed to get a few loads of laundry and a nap in today, too.

Michael, the kids and I went to Steak 'n Shake for supper. Then, we came home and got ready for trick or treating. Michaela has not been well today. But, we had her on meds and decided to let her go out anyway.

We went to Michael's brother's house first. My niece looked awesome as Cleopatra. Michaela was an Indian maiden and Caleb was a vampire this year. After we left Jeremy and Kelly's house we went to Michael's parents' house. The kids went to a couple houses over there and then we went to my mom's house. Finally, we came home.

Michael took the kids out trick or treating while I stayed home to give candy to trick or treaters. I guess it was too much for Michaela as now she's in need of a breathing treatment. Michael is on his way over to his brother's house again to get albuterol since what we have has a date in 2007 on it. But, Michaela only has a couple years left to trick or treat so it was just too hard for us to keep her home.

Now, I'm listening to the radio while surfing the net. I have pictures from tonight that I will share later. The kids are in bed. We'll give Michaela a breathing treatment when Michaela gets home. I've had almost a bottle of wine so I'm having a hard time seeing what I'm typing so I guess I'll stop for now.

I hope everyone has had a safe and happy night!

October 30, 2009

Today was a short work day. Since we were there late last night, we only had to be at work until 11:00 a.m. The students had the day off and we had three hours of parent teacher conferences. I had three more parents show up today. That was 10 total. For where I work, that's a very good turn out.

When I left work I went to St. Louis Bread Company. I love that place. I had half a Turkey Bravo sandwich and French Onion Soup. YUM! I got to sit in a quiet corner by myself and eat a peaceful lunch. I had planned on reading while I ate, but left my book in the van. It was still a very nice lunch.

After that I went to Angie's to wait for Michaela to come home from school. Michaela and Caleb both had half days today, too. Caleb went home with Chase so Michaela was the only one I had to worry about picking up. I got to talk to Angie for about 45 minutes before the girls got home.

Michaela and I came home around 1:30 and just hung out at home for a while. I took a nap this afternoon. That was heaven. I hardly ever get to do that.

Around 4:15 Michaela and I went to get Caleb. Michaela said she wasn't feeling great. So, when we got back home I took her temperature. She had a slight fever. She's complained of a sore throat, too, but has been eating and drinking ok. She took a shower around 5:00 pm and wanted to get into her pj's early.

Michael and Caleb went to see Jeremy Jr. play at his school's last home football game tonight, so Michaela and I have been home by ourselves. It's been very quiet at home. Michaela went to bed at 8:30. I figured that was best since she's not been feeling well. I hope she shakes this off, I really would hate for her to miss trick or treating.

Now, I am waiting for Amityville Horror to come on.

October 29, 2009

It was a very long day for me. I was at work from 8:15 a.m. until 8:30 p.m. We had a regular school day. Then, we had a 45 minute break. At 4:30 parent teacher conferences started and they lasted until 8:30 p.m. Since it takes me about 25 minutes to drive between work and home, there is no possible way I could come home between school and conferences.

I ended up having 7 parents come tonight. I think that's more than I had all year last year. It was nice to see so many of them. I only have 15 students this year so that was almost half.

I did get a surprise at work today. There seems to be an activity going on to surprise people. I got "ghosted." I got a trick or treat back with a few things in it on my door. It had a really cute little bat/ghost plush toy, a candle and a popcorn ball in it. Now, I'm supposed to surprise two other people in the same type of way. I like things like this, they are fun.

October 28, 2009

Last weekend a 15 year old girl was gang raped, robbed and beaten outside her school during the homecoming dance in California. This is really bothering me. According to news reports as many as 20 people could have been watching and taking pictures during the 2 hours that the victim was being raped. Supposedly, they lured her into a secluded court yard/alley with alcohol and after she'd drank enough to be drunk, started raping her and beating on her.

The people who hurt this girl are obviously horrid creatures and hopefully our justice system will give them the maximum punishment allowed by law. Honestly, the beast in me would like something more horrible to happen to them, but I guess that would make me just like them.

However, the people that stood and watched and took pictures are just as bad. How could someone just watch, take pictures, laugh about it all? How would they feel if it were them or someone they loved? Would it be a photo op then? Would it be funny? How would they feel if people just stood by and allowed something to happen to someone they loved?

To anyone who has just stood by and let something happen I hope you live with shame and guilt your whole life. I hope the fact that you did not help the person who needed it haunts you with every breath you take. It is not just because of rapists, murderers and other sick minded criminals that people feel unsafe in this world, it is also because of all of you that just sit there and watch that causes this world to be unsafe. There are so many things I would love to say to those of you who fall into this category, but one of the improvements I'm trying to make on myself is to not let anger and rage take over in my heart.

For anyone who has kids, hold them close. Let them know every day how much they mean to you and how much you love them. Talk to them about the dangers of going off with others into secluded areas drinking alcohol. Keep your lines of communication open. It is never the victim's fault when these things happen. Our only hope is to try and arm our children with as much power and knowledge as possible against people who want to hurt them.

This poor girl that was so brutally victimized may never be able to heal emotionally from what was done to her. The only way she would have any hope of recovering is if she has the love and support that everyone needs from her parents and family. I cannot even imagine the road she has ahead of her. She's only 15 and this one horrible night will probably effect her the rest of her life. She was victimized not only by her attackers but by those who decided it was a fun show to watch.

October 27, 2009

Caleb's practice was canceled again tonight. We have been getting so much rain this fall. I usually do not mind rain, but holy cow, I'm tired of it. I'm not sure if the rain is to blame, but driving to work has sucked so far this year. There have been more accidents on my way to work so far this school year than there has been in the whole previous 7 years I worked at my school.

October 26, 2009

Working on report cards tonight. I will really be glad when this week is over. We have parent teacher conferences at the end of the week. On Thursday I have to be at work until 8:30 p.m. Then, I have to be right back at work at 8:00 a.m. the next morning. The good part is I get to leave at 11:00 a.m. on Friday. I will be very glad when that time comes. And, this is the week between regular season and playoffs for Caleb's football team, so there is NO GAME this weekend. Of course it is Halloween this weekend, but that's ok. Next week is a short week.

October 25, 2009

Caleb's team won their last regular season game today. Troy lost their game, so that means Caleb's team goes to the playoffs this year! Yeah!

The game today was really something else. Caleb's team started out really great. They scored three unanswered touchdowns. Then, all of the sudden the referees got diarrhea of the penalty flags. They were throwing flags at Caleb's team for every little thing. They sure ignored all the face mask grabbing that the other team was doing, though. The coaches on the other team were being real jerks, too. They kept screaming about illegal formations. The refs never called that so I'm not sure what the hell that was all about. I think at one time the long haired hoosier coach on the other team was yelling at one of our boys. It was crazy. The person running the score board clock was not paying attention, either. He kept "forgetting" to start the clock during the last quarter.

In the end none of it mattered because we stomped butt anyway. The final score was 26 - 13. And, we are playoffs bound!

October 24, 2009

I spent most of the day working on grading papers. I also did laundry. We went to Wal-mart in the early part of the day. It was not an exciting day, but it was nice to have a weekend day at home.

October 23, 2009

It's Friday again. It was a pretty uneventful day at work. Tonight we went to Locos for supper and then came home and just hung out until bedtime.

October 22, 2009

All my students were at school today! Yeah!!! It really was a pretty good day in our class. They made pictographs and had to write a question to go with their pictographs. They did really well with it. I'm very proud of them. They are starting to show more progress. Yeah!!!

Tonight football practice was canceled because of the rain. Michaela and I stayed home from swimming and water aerobics because I am just wiped out tired and she had quite a bit of homework. So, it was one evening that all four of us were home. I don't think the dog knows how to handle it. She's been very confused about where to lay down or what to do.

October 21, 2009

It was an extremely busy day today. Work was the calmest part of my day.

After work I was supposed to go see Michaela's cross country meet. But, I spent an hour and half driving around west county unable to find the stupid school they were at, so I rushed back to town to meet Michaela at her school. By the time I got there I had to use the restroom really badly, so I went into the school and found a restroom. Just as I was coming back out the bus pulled up.

Michaela and I got home in time to change clothes and go to girl scouts. After girl scouts we went through the drive through at McDonald's because Michaela was so hungry she was getting a headache. Then, we came home. I made soup for myself.

Now, it's time for bed. I'm so freaking tired.

October 20, 2009

It was a long day at work. We had a PD session after work. Then, I went to Caleb's football practice tonight because Michael is sick. He thinks he may have kidney stones. He's in a lot of pain and has a fever. I hope they are able to figure out what is wrong with him tomorrow. It was fun watching Caleb tonight, though. He and I don't get to do too much together. And, while this wasn't exactly us doing something together, it was Mommy being there without anyone else there.

October 19, 2009

The weekends just go by way too fast. I really was not ready for it to be Monday already. I hope this week goes by fast. I'm really looking forward to the first Thursday and Friday in November. We do not have to go to work that day. It's so we can go to the NEA conferences. It will be a nice break. It's not meant to be a four day weekend, but it's still a bit of a break.

It was a pretty good day at work though.

October 18, 2009

Today was Caleb's last home game. His team played Kirkwood. They won!! It was 6-0. It was a great game to watch. I'm so proud of him. He's really taken to football and he enjoys it so much. I'm so happy it's been a positive experience for him. It's really helped his attention span at school some, too.

If they win next week they will be in the playoffs. The first playoff game would be against Chesterfield, which is the best team in the league. But, it's double elimination, so they would still get to play two games in the playoffs no matter what. BUT, they have to win next week first.

After the game we went to Pantera's with Michael's parents and Jeremy and his side of the family. It was a nice lunch.

The rest of the day was pretty normal Sunday.

October 17, 2009

It was a family day. We spent the morning and early afternoon out running errands and shopping. I love being with my husband and kids like that. It may sound silly to some, but the small things like that really mean the world to me. I feel so blessed because I have a husband I totally love and that loves me just as much. And, we have two beautiful, wonderful kids. This is what I dreamed about the whole time I was growing up.

Tonight we went to my mom's for birthdays. It was time to celebrate Michael's, Brandon's and Griff's birthdays. It was a very quiet, calm evening and meal. This is a good thing because I'm feeling kind of tired tonight. All in all it was a good day.

October 16, 2009

I was SO GLAD to wake up and know it was Friday this morning. This week just seemed so very long to me. It was the last week of the quarter for my school district. I'm gonna have some major paperwork ahead of me over the next week or so.

Tonight Michaela and I went with the girl scouts to a play (musical) at the local community college. It was put on by a children's theater group that is made up of 3rd -12th graders. The kids worked hard on it, you could tell, but the script was so bad. It was a horrible play. I feel badly for the actors because they were not given much to work with but they really did work hard on it. The girls really enjoyed it. Michaela loved it and I'm really glad she enjoyed herself.

It was great getting to spend time with some of my favorite women, too.

October 15, 2009

Tonight was water aerobics night. We had a lot of people show up for class tonight. It was a lot of fun, but I'm exhausted now and really want my kids to go to bed so I can go to bed. Michaela is finishing up homework. Caleb came home full of mud from football practice. He showered and is now having a bed time snack.

October 14, 2009

This is my 700th blogger post.

Tonight has been a very quiet night at home. That's nice for a change. I think we all needed the down time. I actually fell asleep for about an hour after supper. I'm also going to try to be in bed by 10:00 pm tonight.

My online class for this fall has started. I was going to take two classes again, but one of the ones I signed up for was canceled. That happened over the summer, too. I picked another one, then, but I never did figure out what I wanted to replace this one with, so I'm only taking one class for this fall. It's a science class, using technology to enhance your science curriculum. It should be interesting.

October 13, 2009

Today is my brother's 33rd birthday. Happy Birthday Brandon!

Today at work we got a chance to work in our classrooms during what is usually staff meeting time. That was really nice. I'm really glad I had that time. I feel like I actually accomplished something.

Tonight I did the grocery shopping. Caleb did have football practice even though it was drizzly outside. He had a really good time at practice tonight, though. Michaela stayed at practice with Michael and Caleb. She was really cold when she got home. I told her she would get cold.

October 12, 2009

It was a busy afternoon/evening. I left work right away so I could get home to change clothes before picking up Caleb. I wanted to grab my camera, too, but forgot it.

After changing clothes, I went to get Caleb. He and I headed to the park. It was a MAD HOUSE there. There were people EVERYWHERE and there was not a parking spot left in the whole park. So we drove all the way around and then went and parked at the church next to the park. Michael got there when we did, too.

Michaela's race was supposed to start at 5:00. It started a little late, but it wasn't too long. She ran the mile in about 11.5 minutes. She did really good again and she seems to really be enjoying it. I'm so glad she's liking it so much.

When her race was over, Michael brought the kids home. Caleb got started on his homework and Michaela relaxed a little. I went and got McDonald's for supper.

After we ate, Caleb got ready for football practice. He and Michael left around 6:20 p.m. Michaela and I went up a little later. We stayed about 45 minutes or so and then came home so Michaela could get in the shower.

Caleb and Michael got home around 8:30 p.m. Caleb took his shower and now the kids are in bed. I won't be far behind them. I'm really tired. It is very tiring being so busy, but honestly, I love it. I love having kids old enough to be involved in activities like this and I love being there to see them enjoying their activities.

October 11, 2009

This morning we had to drive out to Ladue for Caleb's football game. It was at a private high school out there because O'Fallon's field flooded pretty badly this past week. The high school is beautiful. It's a very expensive place to send your kid, though. Caleb got to play most of the second half. I love watching him play. His team lost again, but for me knowing he is getting to do something he loves is the best part.

When we got home I started working on the laundry. I also cleaned up the kitchen. Then, I went through Caleb's closet and drawers. I took out all the clothes that no longer fit him and flipped the winter and summer clothes around. Michaela did the same in her room and I also did the same for my closet. I will get to my drawers later. I managed to finish laundry today, yeah!

I went to Wal-mart tonight because in the process of cleaning out drawers and closets I realized that both kids had no pj's that fit. So, I had to go buy them pj's. I got each of them four pairs. They should be good to go for now. They made need a couple more pairs each, but that can wait for now.

October 10, 2009

We did a lot of shopping during the first part of the day, today. We needed lots of things at Wal-mart. The, we also had to go buy a few more things for football. Caleb needed a body armor shirt to help keep him warm now that it's getting cold. Michaela got one, too. They will also be able to wear them to play outside when/if it snows this winter.

Abby got groomed today, too. She needed it badly. It has been close to 8 weeks since she was last groomed. She looks so much better and I'm sure she feels better too.

Tonight the kids spent the evening with Michael's parents because Michael and I had hockey tickets. It was the magnetic schedule night. We've not gone to that promotion for several years. Getting the magnetic schedule was the highlight of the night. The Blues SUCKED big time tonight. They lost 1-2 to L.A. It was really pathetic.

The Cardinals handed over the series to L.A., too, tonight. It's not a great time to be a St. Louis sports fan right now. I'm sure the Rams will lose tomorrow too.

October 9, 2009

I'm glad it's Friday. I may have only been at work three days, but having been sick makes me get tired a lot easier right now. I hope I get some of my stamina back soon.

We went to O'Charley's tonight because when we tried to go to Trailhead there was an hour and half wait there. O'Charley's was good. I could not finish my meal though, it seems my stomach has "shrunk." This is a very good thing. I'm happy about it.

On the way home we stopped to get Caleb's anit-biotics that the doctor called out for him today. It seems they did find strep growing on the test swab they did the other day. He's still eating fine and has been acting like himself. I guess we caught it at the very beginning. That's a good thing.

Tonight I watched this week's episodes of Flash Forward and Fringe online. Both shows are getting really good. I'm enjoying them a lot. I've been trying to catch up on The Forgotton, too, but just can't seem to get there. Hopefully, soon. I tried to watch Supernatural, but The CW's website would not cooperate with me.

October 8 2009

I went back to work today and Caleb went back to school. I was actually looking forward to it. I missed my students and missed being in my classroom. It turned out to be a pretty decent day, but I had to do a lot of catching up to do with my students as the sub did noting I'd left for them to do. My students told me he sat at my desk and ate most of the day and that he kept falling asleep.

Tonight was swimming/water aerobics night for Michaela and me. It felt good to get in the water and work out. I really enjoy it. It's weird, once you've been in deep water like that for an hour, it's hard to get out of the water. When you do get out you feel VERY heavy.

It's a big sports night for those of us that live around here. Cardinals played game two of division playoffs and lost because they played like idiots. The Blues are playing their third game of the season and at present time are losing 3-1. Mizzou is playing Nebraska and they keep handing the ball right over to Nebraska. Nebraska just handed us two points on a safety. WOO HOO.

Between all this I am still trying to watch Fringe. But, I'll probably have to watch it online along with tonight's episode of Flash Forward.