Thanks Brianna!

So, for Christmas last year, Brianna got a digital camera designed for kids. Today, I got around to downloading the pictures....

Here's a blurry one of Aunt Jamie showing off something....

Here's a decent one of Grant, just a LITTLE off center....

There were a LOT that looked like this....

"Baby Carole" showed up quite a few times....

As did lots of AWFUL pictures of mommy...

Just because...

It's been awhile.

I have been working 2 days a week on a new program for our school... Educators out there... PBIS? I'm a little stressed about work, but not really because of the new school year. I am NOT excited to start again, and that stresses me out. I know that boredom is a common problem in teaching... this is my 8th year doing EXACTLY the same thing. I am going to have to spice this up somehow!

Grant is doing pretty good in his new bed. We do have to check on him more because he has a tendancy to get out to play... then fall asleep somewhere else. Once we found him basically standing, but leaning on an ottoman for his rocker! If we don't catch his strange places, we get VERY short naps!




Brianna is getting excited about Kindergarten but is still cautious. We found out her teacher's name and next weekend we will get to go see the classroom. We meet the teacher for an "interview" on the 28th and she starts class on Sept. 3. I just know the time will FLY!



Adam ran his second triathalon this morning and everything went very well. We will have to wait to see if he beat his brother again but I'm just glad that he's happy with his performance. He's decided to keep training through the off season and try and do a longer triathalon next year. I am so proud of him! From couch potato to triathalete in 8 months!

I'm sure it will be a while again now... school next week.
And lets face it... I'm not good about updating anyway!
:-D

Monumental Day

Tonight, my baby is sleeping in his big-boy bed for the first time! (Hopefully pictures soon)

And my crib, which has cradled my 2 children for the last 5 years is in many pieces in the hall. Where it will end up is still a battle....

I vote for the basement.
Adam votes for the curb.

It's looking more and more like he's going to win the big argument.
And I'm going to be really sad for a while.

Assvice central!

Also known as... how to give advice about something you (thankfully) know nothing about!

Saturday, after enjoying a lovely evening with my mom, dad, and sister, I received a frantic phone call from a friend. She wasn't even making sense at first. She babbled about not knowing who to talk to and she thought of me and she couldn't tell her mom...

I finally got her to just tell me!

That evening she'd found out her husband of almost 5 years had been cheating on her. She found some inappropriate text messages and photos on his phone. Turns out he'd been fooling around in some form or another (including everything) with a co-worker for almost 6 months.

She kicked him out of course, and is desperate to figure out what to do. They have 2 little girls (2 and 9 mo). He of course had to give a lame-ass reason... their sex life at home just wasn't hot anymore, it was like a job.

HELLO. TOGETHER 12 YEARS. MARRIED 5. 2 KIDS. JOBS. WORK. LIFE. DUH!

So anyway...
What do I say to that? I found myself saying stupid things like;
"Take it one day at a time."
"Write down what your feeling to get it off your chest."
"Try and sleep, you need to stay healthy."

Well, really, I just listen a lot but...What the heck should I say?
Can anyone help me here?

And to think, last week I was going to complain about my husband. Thank God for my boring little issues!

plans change

I was going to post tonight about feeling sad, and having no one to talk to, but then I was skimming my "usual blogs" and following some links and I found this.

I never read this blog on a regular basis before tonight, but now I've read some of the archives, and cried a lot.

I still feel sad, and maybe sometime I'll feel like talking about it.
But I also feel SO DAMN LUCKY to have my children and my husband and my health.
So life's not perfect... I'll get over it.

Best Laid Plans...

Yeah.... so I said I was going to post more often this summer since I am home and have a much faster Internet connection... clearly, that was a pipe dream!

Updates since the last post:

1. Cleaned house like a mad fool for a week to prepare for Brianna's 5th Birthday party.
2. Successfully coordinated 2 birthday parties for Brianna. One for kids at a local bouncy place and one for family and close friends at our home. ALL IN THE SAME AFTERNOON!
3. Took a whopping 1 day off.
4. Attended major birthday party for cute niece who is actually one day older than Brianna.
5. Cleaned house some more... did some working out... threw surprise birthday party for mother-in-law (with help from all her kids, I just hosted), and had not one but 2 "girls nights" in the same week.
6. Took hideous wall paper down from Grant's room... which people... seriously, there should be a law! If you put up hideous wall paper, you must remove said paper PRIOR to new ownership! We spent large portions of 4 days on this and we still have to repair, prime, and paint!
7. Decided not to go for new job as assistant principal. The timing and situation just don't seem right. I'm taking it as a sign...
8. Prepared for big vacation of the summer!

When all is said and done, June FLEW BY! I can absolutely NOT believe that it is July. We leave on the big vac-a tomorrow. First time the kids will see Disney World, I am very excited, they think they are excited but really just don't know what to expect.

Maybe I'll get around to an update when we get back... Ya'll are used to waiting for me, right?
:-)

There has been a request from the peanut gallery...

to hear details about this little job interview (?) which I threw into my last post.

We found out on Wednesday that one of our assistant principals in our building is leaving for a principal job elsewhere. While I would very much like to move to administration, I had settled myself for another year of teaching and taken on some projects I would like to finish... maybe...

I don't know for sure if I will be pursuing the job but I might... or not... or I might....

My gut feeling is they will want someone from outside the district for this job. Besides the fact that this is the AP in charge of my husbands team so if I were seriously being considered, it would force some systematic changes at the school.

Or maybe I'm just rationalizing because I am scared. It would definitely be easier to stay with what I know and not rock the boat right now.

Or maybe rocking the boat is exactly what I need. When I didn't get that silly voted-on thing last week, a close friend told me it was because something better was in store for me. Is this it?

Lets just say I've started the application... but who knows....

FINALLY!!

School is out!

The students went home.
The classroom is all packed up.
The grades are final.
The files are backed-up.
I e-mailed myself all my favorite links from work.

Nothing ahead of me for 8 weeks but sun and summer.
Well, Except:

Unpacking
Working on committee work (14 half days, paid)
Painting
2 small needy children
A job interview?!?

I can't wait!!!

once again, just a nerd

So, last week some time I think I mentioned that I was running in an election at work for a new position. Maybe? I don't remember now and am too lazy to go back and check.

ANYWAY- I really wanted this new position because I already do a lot of the work, and I really care about the job, and it's more money. (It's one of those things I'd do on TOP of what I already do, not a new job). Unfortunately, our higher-ups felt that the staff should choose the person...

SO- an election! In which I had to submit lots of information about myself, in which I actually gave a "brief biography" when asked for it! My competitor, gave her whole stinkin' resume, so needless appeared more qualified than me! I didn't get it.

I feel like the prom queen runner up... just not quite good enough.

As a teacher...

And as a human being who cares about the world around us...

I find this to be amazing, and distressing!
What must they have thought? Just by simple picture taking, how much did we disorder their lives?

WOW!

Parenting Dilema

In the course of parenting, there are dilemma's to deal with and decisions to be made everyday. It can be tough but it is important to make the right decision for the future of the children.

Grant loves Dinosaurs.
He pronounces them DinoROARs.

I love it! I think it's cute and funny and it makes me giggle.
I call them DinoROARs too!

Will he be scarred for life? Will he be a teenager and still calling them DinoROARs? Like the friend of a friend who called butterflies "flutterby's" until she was 18!?!

Do I really care? ... Nah, too cute to care!

I hope my mom doesn't read this

No... it's not about THAT!

Can someone tell me when your biological clock STOPS ticking?
I was just sitting here in my (empty) classroom crying over how cute a friends new baby is... and wishing SO hard that I could have another beautiful baby.

I have 2 beautiful, wonderful (if rambunctious) children. God has blessed me more than I deserve. And I can list 20 very practical reasons why I probably shouldn't have a 3rd baby.
(Whining) BUT I WANT ONE!

This week it was announced that the Duggars are having #18. That's right, 18!!
I only want 3.

I'm willing to make some sacrifices. I'm willing to puke for 12 straight weeks and have back pain and be up all night for the next 6 months and eat nothing but pasta for a year. Whatever it takes to feel butterfly kicks and watch first smiles and hear first words again.

Adam is having none of it. And I can't fully say I blame him. 2 kids is a lot of work! It takes both of us to deal if they both decide to be horrible at the same time. But as Brianna grows, that is happening less and less. She is as reasonable and logical as any 5 year old I've ever seen. 90% of the time, she "gets it". And as Grant grows, he becomes more reasonable, for a 2 year old. I keep trying to convince Adam that by the time we have the baby, Grant will be 3 1/2! That is a huge change from now at 2 1/2! It won't be like this forever!

GOD, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Which is this?!?

When the obvious hits me over the head!

Today at work, I am applying for an additional leadership position for next school year. It is a position which is voted on by the school; someone to be like a lead-teacher in certain areas. While I have no doubt that I am qualified, I need my application to make that clear to the rest of the staff.

One of the questions asks me to select an "Area of Growth" for next year... ie... what is my weakness, or at what do I suck!? They give us the following list to choose from:

Group facilitation
Long range planning
oral communication
written communication
compromise
recognizing alternatives
decision-making
taking initiative
preparing an agenda
Attention to detail
task prioritization and delegation
sharing ideas in a positive manner
showing genuine interest in individuals
fostering organizational change
working toward consensus

I had to e-mail some coworkers who know me well to see what they think my weakness is.
AND THEN IT OCCURRED TO ME... If I can't even decide on my own weakness, then decision making must be the one to pick!

DUH!

This morning I took pictures...

Just because Brianna looked cute and Grant was mostly smiley... and it had been awhile!


He is asking for "Uppy!"

And the other 6 dwarfs hid under the beds!

I am GRUMPY.

It's a "up on the wrong side of the bed" and "don't even look at me like that" kind of a day.
I don't know why... The morning was crazy but no more so than usual.
The kids were sleepy and cranky but not much more than normal.
My co-worker is annoying but it's the same way she always is.

I just need a break.
I need Adam to go somewhere by himself and leave me alone for a few hours, or a day.
I need NOT to be reminded that there are 9000 boxes still to unpack.
I need to find a new babysitter.
I need a quiet day at work where I can surf the Internet and ignore my paperwork in peace.
I want a new purse. (I don't know how that will really help, and it might make Adam kill me, but I just know it's the answer to some of my stress!)
I want to finish my book without dirty looks from my husband or screaming children.
I want a massage! for a week!

If you see me coming today people, you'd better be able to provide something from the second list... or just run the hell away!

15 excuses for why I don't blog

1. Packing up old house
2. Cleaning new house
3. Crying about old house
4. Saying good bye to WORLDS BEST neighbors
5. Unpacking at new house
6. Helping 2 kid under 5 understand "new house" vs. "old house"
7. Drying tears of said kids
8. Crying some more
9. Taking multiple days off school to prepare for and move
10. Cleaning old house
11. I do sometimes work at work
12. Making 90 bazillion phone calls to cancel old services and set up new services
13. Sleeping a whopping 4 hours per night
14. New committee/team at work which needs lots of attention
15. Stressing about combining numbers 1-14

And 5 reasons why I hope to get better about it...
1. New house has upgraded Internet! (Dial-up house is dust!)
2. New house computer is right off family room so I don't have to isolate myself to use it.
3. Got new camera with phone for mommy's day so will have pictures to post!
4. Summer is coming and work is slowing down.
5. I miss my blog buddies!!!!!

During the silence...

Yes, I am well aware that long silences are more the norm for me and you probably weren't wondering what was going on but anyway...

Here is what has happened since the last post.

-Student didn't just leave for month, she left until August! More work, less accountability for me.
- Went to wonderful workshop with group that has now become implementation team for new initiative. Fun and challenging! I love it.
- Settled repairs on new house.
- CLOSED ON NEW HOUSE!!!!! WAHOOO!!!!!
- Assessed empty new house and noticed all the flaws we didn't see before. Started having flashbacks of the movie "Money Pit" but am trying not to stress.
- Took today off work to wait around new house for locksmith and carpet cleaners.
- Thanked God for neighbors unsecured wireless connection which I am borrowing.

Happy Friday Everyone!

S.T.R.E.S.S

I read somewhere recently that moving is the 2nd most stressful thing an adult can go through, second only to divorce.

STRESS.....

I have SO much to do this week before we close next week and my over-involved self volunteered for a workshop on Thursday and Friday so I will be totally out of touch for most of those 2 days and then I found out today that one of my students is leaving for Europe this weekend and will be gone A MONTH visiting a dying family member and I have to give her enough work to do to keep caught up for A MONTH and did I mention I won't be able to do anything productive on Thursday or Friday?!?

Rejuvinated... sort of.

Wednesday I decided that I think I felt a little spring fever coming on and that I (cough, cough) would need to take Thursday off to "recover". IE- I called in sick to work on Thursday so I could enjoy one entirely wonderful day to myself!

Now... I think I cursed myself...

I mean, my day was lovely. I got some much needed things done for the move, and I read for 3 consecutive hours without interruption or screaming in the background, I took myself to breakfast at Panera and played on the computer, thank you free wi-fi!

However, now I am sick. I mean actually might go to the doctor later sick. My left sinus feels like a rock and now my ears ache and I generally feel like I'm moving underwater. To top that... I am dizzy on and off if I try and look down and read. I look a little strange reading/grading papers with the paper held directly out from my face!

Oh Well, It was worth it!

Lessons from Elementary School

Boy and Girl, Sittin' in a tree.
K-I-S-S-I-N-G!
First comes love,
Then comes MARRIAGE,
THEN comes a baby in the baby carriage!

Someone, and someone else, and someone else, and someone else forgot to listen though!

Engaged, not engaged, Tomato, Tom(ah)to....It's just too much!
Am I officially old now?

But I might need it!

Adam wants me to start packing. Actually, he would even do the packing if I just tell him what to box up. (He's a GREAT guy!)

FYI- we can start moving things into the new house in just under 3 weeks. We have to be completely out of our current house in about 5 weeks.

I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT TO PACK! What can I live with out for 5 whole weeks (more like 8-10 by the time I actually unpack it again)? We packed up a bunch of mommy's kitchen toys... We packed up some kids toys (6 days ago and no one noticed yet... sad huh?). I could probably pack up linens or something.

I'm just convinced that whatever I pack, I will need it the next day. Yes- I know I haven't used in in months or years, but tomorrow I WILL! but only if I pack it today.

a link kind of day

Creepy!

I am sad

I admit, I have my own religious struggles but I can never, will never, understand faith that does not advocate for itself. God would not want this.

I need to go hug my kids!

quiet, lazy, day

One of the luxuries of teaching middle school, is that when directed properly, the children can work for extended periods of time on their own. IE- I can plan activities that are both educational and allow me to have a whole day "to myself".

The problem with this plan is when I plan a day like this... say for instance, TODAY... I very seldom actually use my time wisely. I get the kids started each class period, and then sit down to do my mountain of paperwork and grading, and then the strangest thing happens.

The Internet CALLS MY NAME! Literally, I can hear my computer calling out to me...
Come check your e-mail....
Search for furniture...
Check out summer vacations...
Send stupid chain e-mails...

So here it is 10:30... I've been at work for over 3 hours... and have gotten no work done.
Oh Well.

The battle is won, the war continues

I would like to document, for prosperity and the good of my brain, the events of the evening of Tuesday, April 1. And while this is a long frickin' story, it is no joke people!

The family was having "catch-as-catch-can" for dinner. AKA- when your hungry, eat what you want. At approximately 6:15 pm, Brianna decided it was time to pick her dinner. This is no easy feat when mommy won't let you have plain noodles (because it takes to long to cook). So Brianna stands in the door to the pantry. And she swings the pantry door. And she hangs on the pantry door. And she bangs the door into the refrigerator. And she accidentally bangs the door in to Grant. And she hangs on the door some more. All while muttering "hmmmm".

Mommy is getting annoyed so I calmly got down on one knee, held Brianna's shoulders gently to get her attention, and said "Please stop playing with the door".

Brianna says "OK Mommy."

Within 3 seconds flat, she is playing with the door. Now, rationally, I know she isn't doing it on purpose, she probably doesn't even realize. However, she knows better and I am getting really annoyed now.

I again took her by the shoulders and asked her to repeat after me. "I won't play with the door". She silently refused.

I tried to explain that mommy has already asked her once and she knew better. Silent refusal with some wiggling.

I explained that if she says the words I will know she heard me. I explain that I need her to be a "good listener" and say the words. Enter lots of wiggling and angry face. She says angrily, "I'll say it if you let go of me". I let go, she runs away silently.

Perhaps I will summarize a little here... I am pissed! I take her shoulders again, progressing to a baby like cradle hold when squirming becomes thrashing. For about 10 minutes I hold her and repeat calmly that she can get up when she says " I won't play with the door". She cries. She screams. She makes the angry grunting noise and shoots daggers with her eyes. (Meanwhile Grant thinks this is alternately fun and wants his turn, or he screams because I am not paying attention to him.)

From the kitchen floor we progressed to the "time-out" spot. I instruct a crying Brianna to think about being a good listener and I'll be back when she's ready to say the words. Every 2-3 minutes for the next 30 minutes, I check on her. She does some fake crying, she sneaks out of time out to see the TV, she says shes ready and then refuses to say it, she says it in her meanest voice and yells at me.

People, this was not fun. This was torture.

Eventually I won. She said the words nicely and around 7:15 settled in to some Cheerios for dinner. Holy *&%#.

I think I may start researching boarding schools. If this is 4, I am not looking forward to 14!

Still Kickin'

I just felt the need to post something to recognize that I was still alive.

Since my last post:
1. We had a nice spring break at home. Sure everyone was sick but we relaxed a lot.
2. We are officially under contract on both homes... the one we're buying and the one we're selling. A few hurdles remain but it might be time to buy some boxes!
3. We stopped cleaning our house. (see #2)
4. We drove 3+ hours to swim in a pool and do nothing. Well actually, we went to campaign for my aunt who was running for local political office. It was a long boring day and unfortunately it didn't seem to help much.
5. Back to work... enter frantic-ness.
6. Found out that THIS SATURDAY is kindergarten registration for the new school district; became more frantic because we NEED to get in to the extended day program and that is first come first serve and we aren't actually residents yet and can we even register at all and if we wait until we are resident's there is NO way we are getting into the program we moved for!
7. Made a few phone calls... We can register by showing our contract on the new house. AND we don't even have to wait our turn... as a district teacher I was able to bend the rules and we can register at 8am. (We were originally assigned by last name and couldn't register until 3:00pm- Exactly when we had planned to be 1 hour away!)
8. WHEW!
9........

Well actually that might be it. I'm sure there is more but now I'm tired from typing without ever pressing the period. Maybe tomorrow I will tell you about my 4 going on 15 year old and her 40 minute temper tantrum/stubborn streak!

Lucky 13

13 years ago today I went on a blind date with someone I met on the Internet. We squeezed in a quick first date at Subway before I had to report to play practice. Later that evening I told my best friend/college roommate that he was "OK" and that "I guess I'd go out with him again".

Tonight we will recreate that first date. This time we will have our 2 adorably rambunctious children in tow and will probably spend the entire time planning our big move into our new home.

13 years can go so fast... and so much can change.
Luckily the important things are the same... and everything else is so much better!

I hope I don't jinx it....

We sold the house!!!!!!!!

We have accepted an offer on our house... well actually we've been negotiating since Monday afternoon but late last night we left our emotions out of it (mostly) and decided to accept the offer.

I am feeling quite a few emotions today. I look at what has been MY house for 6 years and know that in about 2 months, it won't be MINE anymore. It will be some other family's home.

Some other family will put their children to bed in the nursery where my children first slept through the night. Someone else will bathe in the tub where my children had first baths and water fights and blew bubbles. No one will know that the flowering tree in the back yard was "The Brianna Tree" because we planted it to celebrate her first birthday. No one will remember when the living room/dining room was empty of furniture and Brianna used it learn to walk and run. No one will look out the bedroom window and remember all the nights I sat there and nursed the babies throughout the night.

I try to remind myself of all the memories we are about to make in our new house. It will be the place I take pictures of Brianna and Grant before taking them to the first day of school. They will learn and grow in this new house too... a new house we LOVE and can't wait to live in. But it won't be the house I brought my new babies to when we came home from the hospital. It won't be our first home, that home now belongs to someone else.

I can only hope they love it as much as we did.

Where did my pictures go?

Sorry about the below post, I don't know where my pictures went... they were there when I checked it earlier.... This is THE MOST adorable baby being hugged by a gigantic dog!

If you want to give me your e-mail, and I actually know you or can verify you exist, I will forward you the e-mail.

In an e-mail I received today

Instructions for properly hugging a baby:

1. First, find a baby.

2. Second, be sure that the object you found was
indeed a baby by employing classic sniffing techniques.

3. Next you will need to flatten the baby before actually beginning the
hugging process.

4. The 'paw slide'
Simply slide paws around baby and prepare for possible close-up.

5. Finally, if a camera is present, you will need to execute
the difficult and patented 'hug, smile, and lean' so as to
achieve the best photo quality.

Stress is my shadow

SO- I don't talk about work much. It's not a good idea to blog about work... I mean, you know I'm a teacher, but not where or who...

But I have to put this out there...

Yesterday, at school, in the middle of the school day, a child tried to hang himself from a stairwell/landing. Thanks to the quick actions of one of his friends, and some nearby teachers, he didn't succeed. The child was known as a little disturbed but no one knew it was like this. Even his friends didn't believe him as he started to put the thing around his neck. One friend reportedly helped him slip it around his neck thinking he was joking... that same friend who tried to save him by lifting him back up seconds later.

Some of this is rumor, some is validated but not yet public information, some is public. I didn't even know this boy but I am having a hard day. In 9 years of teaching, and as a future administrator, I've been brought in on some hard kids/cases. This beats all.

Why does this world have to be so hard?

When I went home, I told Brianna I was sad. She's 4... she doesn't ask questions, she just gives the world's best neck-breaking hugs!

Like sanity and time for myself...

Jamie's Tag will just have to wait!

Love you James!!!

The typical morning car ride

In this scene, the characters are:
Johanna: The harried mother who is trying to eat breakfast and drive.
Grant: The 2 1/2 year old boy who is learning to talk and like attention.
Brianna: The almost 5 year old girl who is part patient saint and part victim.

(For the sake of the script, the strange garbled language of the 2 year old will be translated into real English.)

G: Pancake, Pancake mommy.
J: Are you eating your pancakes Grant?
G: Pancake, eat pancake mommy.
G: Pancake in bag mommy.
G: Eat one pancake mommy.
J: Good Job Grant, Eat your pancakes.
G: Moon, Moon, Moon, Moon, Mommy.
G: Pancake moon mommy.
G: (progressively louder) Moon Pancake, Moon Pancake mommy.
B: Mom, he's trying to tell you he took a bite out of his pancake and it looks like a moon.
J: Oh, Thank's Bri. Did you make a moon pancake Grant?
G: Yeah, moon pancake.
G: (louder and louder) Moon, Moon, Moon, pancake, moon pancake mommy.
J: Eat the moon Grant.
G: Bite Moon Mommy?
G: I eat moon pancake mommy.
G: (still louder) Boat, Boat, Boat pancake mommy.
J: Is your pancake a boat now Grant?
G: Yes mommy.
G: Boat, Boat, Boat in water mommy.
G: Boat in water mommy, water, water, boat in water mommy.
J: OK Grant, you made a boat.
G: Boat water mommy.
J: Yes Grant, Boats go in the water, good honey, eat the boat.
J: How are you doing Brianna?
B: (answer overlapped and eventually drowned out by Grant's next line)
I want more pancakes mom; mine are gone already.
G: (LOUDER) I eat boat pancake mommy. Eat boat, Eat boat, Eat boat mommy.
J: (LOUDEST) OK Grant, you ate your boat.
Brianna, I'm sorry, I don't have any more. You can eat cereal at school.
- a few seconds of silence-
G: another pancake in bag mommy.
G: pancake, eat another pancake mommy, pancake, pancake
J: (rolls eyes) Yes Grant, you have another pancake, eat it.
G: pancake, eat mommy?
G: Moon pancake mommy!
- repeat for each of the next 5 pancakes!-

I felt like talking to no one in particular

I was looking at Amalah's site today and thinking how big Noah is getting... and pondering when it was between 2 and 3 that they stop looking like big babies and start looking like little children.

Grant is totally changing in that way. He doesn't really look like a baby anymore, and hasn't for some time, but especially recently he seems to look like a real live boy! Something about their faces and they way they carry themselves, and the way they look at you like "yeah right mom, I am so NOT doing whatever you just asked me, and HA!"

Grant has such a personality now, he talks A.L.L. THE FREAKIN' TIME. He never wants to do or eat what the rest of us have. His teacher told me the other day that he had "a severe case of the Two's". I think that's the nice way of saying my son is a holy terror one minute and a sweet little angel the next minute. Especially if you give in to what he wants!

Brianna has been trying so hard to help us because she's old enough to know when mommy and daddy are getting frustrated. She wants to be a good big sister but she's 4 1/2, she just can't sometimes. She tries to stop him from taking things out of the drawer, and ends up closing the drawer on his fingers. She comes to tell us he's making a mess and he throws hard plastic toys at her. She tries to get him food out of the pantry, but all she can reach is the chips and fruit snacks, and mommy said "no more".

I love my children very much. They are amazing little people who grow and change everyday.
They also annoy the heck out of me and does anyone want to borrow them for the weekend?

How can all these emotions happen simultaneously??????????

quickies

Go away perverts!

1. I made it to 31 without having braces. According to my fine dentist whom I trust, I will not be able to say the same thing at 32.

2. My children are SO annoying it's cute! The big one has a 13 year old sass mouth and the little one narrates his entire day! Maybe I will be bored enough later to bring you some of that.

3. I don't remember the last time I took pictures of my children. I am a horrible mother!

4. Work is settling a little, and I am counting down every day until spring break!

5. The new house is still up in the air because of attorney review issues.

6. The old house is not going anywhere. 4 months on the market and not a single showing. Looks like the price will be dropping yet again next week.

7. Without thinking, I just ate an entire box of Peanut Butter Patty Girl Scout Cookies! What was the last stupid thing you did?

8. I can't spell check my entries anymore because work internet is strange and moody.

Thrilled and Chilled

I have been reading Amalah for several years now, ever since Jamie got me hooked.

If you don't read Amalah, you should check her out. I connected right away because at the time she was pregnant with her son Noah. I was pregnant with Grant. CLICK. Noah is actually a scant 3 weeks older than Grant and I still read daily to see what he's doing and how she's holding up. She is funny and real.

Well, this week when her dream of a second pregnancy became a reality, I cried for her. And I cried for me. Because I don't think I will ever know that instant joy caused by a little pink line again. It is becoming more real that we can not afford, or should not afford, a third child. Beyond that, I think we are already outnumbered at 2-2. (The puppy dog face trumps reason every time!)

I will still read Amalah daily and live through her. I will pray for her and wish I lived closer so we could run into each other at the grocery store and I could confess that I'm stalking her.
Meanwhile, I will be a little sad that I'm not pregnant with her this time around.

But the kids are really good...

I was on a posting roll for a while there... and then....

-3 snow days out of 6 weekdays.
-A home inspection.
-My students turned in a research paper to be graded.
-I added that to the pile of homework and classwork.
(That wasn't getting graded due to house distractions.)
-Parent-Student-Teacher conferences.
-A major competition for the flag team I coach.
(Which was further complicated by said snow days.)
(However we got 1st so that was COOL!)

SO... I've been distracted and out of touch.
And as if that weren't enough, for the last 3 days our work e-mail system has been more down then not. When was the last time you went for more than a day with out comunicating via e-mail at work. I think this might be more detrimental then the snow days!

I feel buried alive.

Hurry up and wait!

So, it was a busy weekend.

Friday we had a "Snow Day" here in greater Chicagoland. Which was wonderful, except that I was already in the shower with shampoo in my hair when we got the call that school was cancelled... and we still had to get up sort of early because we had to be out of the house for the cleaning people, who never came because of the snow. But we had a nice breakfast out, and ran some errands, and went and worked out which was actually nice in the middle of the day when the machines were available.

Mid-day on Friday, we received yet another counter offer from the house sellers, we countered them... they came back asking us to come up $1000. Really people, $1000, is the "last word" that important to you... FINE! Take your $1000 and give me my house!

SO... if we can manage to find some sucker, I mean worthy family, to give us a contract our house within 60 days we will have our new house by summer. It took us only 3 days to hammer out a contract and now we wait 60 days to see if things will really work out.

In the meantime, this weekend was NUTS!
Saturday: Ballet class, Birthday party, Babysitting parents for Bill Engval performance ie Date night!
Sunday: SUPERBOWL!

I'm actually glad to be back at work!

Really and Truly, CRAZY- updated 2x

ORIGIONAL POST: 10:00am....
Soooooooo, Tuesday we put in a bid on a house! A beautiful home in a nice neighborhood with a park in easy walking distance and short drives to all the schools. We are in love with this house... a couple problems though....

1. WE HAVEN'T YET SOLD OUR CURRENT HOUSE!

2. The realtor representing the new house is dicking around with us. (Was supposed to have a respond to us last night and then claimed she didn't get the offer until 5:30 so we'd have to wait until tonight... we know they got it by 11am because it was time stamped! UGH)

3. Our own realtor is out of town and we are working with an associate of hers who just doesn't "get us".

4. I am PSYCHO about the whole thing and can't manage to get ANYTHING done at work or at home while waiting for a response.

I have SO much work to do today and just can NOT focus. I check my e-mail every 30 seconds and one ear is permanently applied to listening for faint cell phone ring from my purse. I will refrain from telling you more because I really can't focus on this and it has taken me 15 minutes to type this quick little post!

UPDATE 11:20 am... We got a counter offer! Thrilled but can't talk to realtor until next teaching break at 12:15... will update again!

UPDATE 1:15 pm... Decent counter offer, nothing too out of the ordinary except that as a home-sale contingency (meaning we have to sell our house by a certain date) they can make requirements for our current home... AND, they want us to drop our price by at least $10,000. Not sure about that part, lots of thinking to do....

Thanks Jamie!

39%

30% Geek

I couldn't get the other one to work.... Maybe I am not geeky enough!

The real me

I am considering getting a tattoo.

Several people whom I've told this too asked me if I'd been invaded by aliens or pod-people or something. Why is this so unbelievable?

Seriously, I am a fun person, I like spontaneous things, I have a sense of adventure!
I don't know why no one believes me but I DO!

I am thinking of a little solar system, planet, moon, stars kind of thing...
Or a heart/wings kind of thing...
Either way, It will have the initials A, B, G worked into it for Adam, Brianna, and Grant.
And I will leave room to add more initials but I'm 90% sure that is not going to happen.

I also know where... lower back/upper tush region. High enough that I could potentially show it if I choose too, low enough not to hurt too much. (I hear it hurts less on fleshy/fatty areas)

I think the strangest thing about all this is that it was my mom's idea. My over-60, church going, wait-until-your-married, not too many piercings please mom. My mom whom is lovingly and accurately described as "Sally Field" by my sister.

Adam is good with it, he'll even get one too.
Jamie is considering it.

An Interesting proposition to be sure!

The Frustration of the day is...

I joined a gym, a nice gym, a Health Club even! Adam and I are very proud of ourselves and have been going often (for the first 2 weeks). Said nice health club comes with exorbitant start up fee but said fee comes with "free" fitness testing including blood work, a cardio-stress test, 2 "free" personal training sessions, fitness counseling, a nutrition consultation, and some other cool stuff.

HOWEVER, they can't fit me in for this wonderful "free" testing for at least 4 weeks! People, why do I want my start up testing 6 weeks into my working out?!?! Why didn't they have more staff available if they have all these January Joiners? OR- Have the testing on a frickin' weekend already! I do work for a living and can't take off whenever the frick I feel like it!

UGH!

I want it bad...

First, a quick Hello to all the pervy Internet people... now go away, it's not about THAT.

I want to have a 3rd child. I want a third little person to love and grow and nurture. I want to watch another little person look more like Adam than me, and be deliriously happy.

I know that I should feel more than thrilled with the 2 beautiful children who already bless my life everyday. I know that a 3rd child is more work and more money and more headaches. All I can say to that is, bring it on! I was nauseous for months before, I can handle it again. Wake up for 6 months every night, multiple times, I can't think of anything I'd love more!

My loving husband thinks I am more nutso than a tree full of squirrels. He is SO DONE.
Before you even go there, I would never, n.e.v.e.r, knowingly try for a baby with out his knowledge and agreement. I need his full agreement, full patience, full happiness, full support. That being said, I still want one so badly I hurt a little.

I hurt to think that no other little person will get to be a sibling to the wonderful, beautiful, happy children we already have. I hurt to think that I will never feel those little kicks in the mornings, or watch my belly roll from side to side like a roller coaster, or again know what it's like to first hold that tiny little person who is part you and part the man you love more than anything.

I could go on and on, but I can't go on.
Lets keep this little emotional breakdown to ourselves okay?

Brianna

Brianna is a beautiful,


fearless (except for dogs),


Silly,


Monkey,


Princess!

Grant

Grant likes to play "hi-seek mama"
This means we spend much of our day seeking to find where he is hiding.
It's usually in the pantry!



Grant is a stinker and he knows it!




Hi-seek mama also has some fun perks.
(I swear people, this was his choice of a seat, not mine! Leave DCFS out of it, I have many witnesses!)

So many things to say

For once, I have a little free time today AND have enough brain cells to think and type! So much has been going on with our lives and I have had so little time or energy to talk about it.

1. Our home is on the market! YES, I know it's the worst possible time to sell a house, thank you for telling me the obvious. I could have proved that to you by the fact that in nearly 90 days on the market we have had exactly NO SHOWINGS! That's right, 3 months on the market, with a professional realtor, and we have had no one come see our home. YES- we have had open houses, those people weren't serious lookers, they were mostly our curious neighbors. YES- we have lowered our price, TWICE. We are trying to stay positive and look at this as a marathon. It's okay to start off a little slow as long as we finish the race within the time we'd hoped.

2. I've over committed myself at work, but that's not really new, just different on any given day. This year it's the program review committee, the internal community committee, the school improvement planning committee, team leader, flag coach, and 6th grade committee co-chair. Not to mention teaching my 100 or so kids and planning for them and grading all the work they do. Some people have said to my face that I need to slow down. They are mostly my co-workers who just complain about problems and then don't offer to help find solutions. I see myself as a go-getter who wants to be part of the solution. And the fact is, none of it will hurt when my resume looks fabulous in 2 years and I want an administrative position!

3. Oh yeah, did I mention I have two WONDERFUL children who are so amazing it's earth-shattering? The kids are growing so fast.
Brianna is curious about absolutely everything and does nothing but ask questions. I hate to stunt her curiosity, but I might muzzle her! :-) On the plus side she is learning so much and constantly astounds me with the things she picks up. Good and Bad things!
Grant has really found his voice too. Literally. He talks all the time. Sometimes to himself, sometimes to us, sometimes to the toys and TV. He can talk in short phrases and 3-4 word sentences now, it's amazing to hear him form questions and thoughts and actually understand what is going on inside that cute little head of his. On the other hand, I will be trying to find out if muzzles come in his size too. He actually figured out recently that "okay honey" is not the correct answer to whatever it is he's trying to tell me... Now he repeats his phrase over and over and over and over and over and over until I repeat back the right words and respond properly to the comment. Some favorites:

da da dat date mommy?--- Translation: Are we there yet mommy?
sis dack ot ide mommy.--- Translation: It's dark outside mommy.
ca bankie binkie ie ead mommy. Translation: Car blankie and binky are in bed mommy.

(Notice how they all end in mommy... you would think daddy was just a prop or a toy. He apparently is not to be asked questions of, even when he's in the same room or car!!!!!)

WELL- I guess I should go teach class now. Maybe I'll be back later with pictures...

Thanks for the idea Jamie!

You Belong in London

You belong in London, but you belong in many cities... Hong Kong, San Francisco, Sidney. You fit in almost anywhere. And London is diverse and international enough to satisfy many of your tastes. From curry to Shakespeare, London (almost) has it all!

What European City Do You Belong In?

Merry Christmas!

I'm not loving it right now

I don't have time for this post.

I have 300 papers to check and put in my grade book.
I have a flag routine to finish writing.
I have lots of paperwork to finish and mail ASAP.
I have checks to deposit.
I have checks to request.
I have kids to pay attention to, at home and at work.
I have Christmas shopping to finish.
I have to figure out how to work the sound system in the gym.
I have to breathe.

I don't want to do any of those things, except the shopping and breathing parts.

I want to be alone.
I want to get a massage.
I want to read blogs (which I haven't even had time to read this month).
I want to eat until I pop.
I want to watch my children, not my students.
I want this week to be over!

Because I don't have any real free time

A Meme/Forwarded email for you to enjoy:

Welcome to the Christmas edition of getting to know your friends.
Okay, here's what you're supposed to do, and try not to be a SCROOGE!!!
Just copy (not forward) this entire email and paste into a new e-mail that you can send.
Change all the answers so that they apply to you.
Then send this to a whole bunch of people you know, INCLUDING the person that sent it to you...Tis the Season to be NICE!

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? both, I like a nice mix under the tree
2. Real tree or artificial? fake, pre-lit!
3. When do you put up the tree? the first weekend of December
4. When do you take the tree down? when Adam makes me
5. Do you like eggnog? NO!!!!!!!!!
6. Favorite gift received as a child? I have a hard time remembering early childhood.... probably Barbies or Dolls
7. Do you have a nativity scene? No
8. Hardest person to buy for? I'm not sure... Aunt Judy and Uncle Jim I guess
9. Easiest person to buy for? my kids
10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Strange Catalog findings...
11. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail, but sometimes late and called a Happy New Year card
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? White Christmas
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Whenever... I start planning early but shop late
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Yes:)
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas: Mom's homemade candies, especially peanut butter balls.
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? white!
17. Favorite Christmas song? I like lots of different ones. Currently our family likes the songs on the Nick Jr. Christmas CD... nothing says Christmas like songs sung by Dora, her backpack, Diego, baby Jaguar, Tyrone, and Linny the Guinea Pig!
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay home, or at family homes
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen & Rudolph (okay..I stole the previous person's answer...I cheated! But they stole it from the person ahead of them!)
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? angel, given to me by my parents when I was a kid because it looked like me.
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? morning, except for the matching family PJ's mom gives us the night before.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? shopping in the snow and winter coats
23. What I love most about Christmas? Being with family and days off of school
24. Do you buy gifts for your pets? I don't have pets but I do buy gifts for other peoples pets so, Yes.
25. Have you ever been Christmas Caroling? yes, but I mostly pretended to sing because, I suck at singing on tune!
26. Hot chocolate or Hot Apple Cider? Hot Chocolate, extra marshmallows please!


Hope you have a wonderful holiday season!

The word of the day is...

(click on pic to clarify words...)

Stole this from an e-mail... I can't take credit...
If I'd bothered to create it, then it wouldn't be true anymore!

Halloween

So, other than the most boring title in history... here come some of the most boring (but CUTE!) pictures in history. (Sorry people, between committee meetings, may shoot self....)

Here, see Ariel and Flounder ready to go scrounge for human stuff (aka CANDY!)



Here, see Ariel and Flounder with their adoptive land parents, Superman and the mystery witch.



And here, Flounder sees a ane... I mean a plane!

Smarter than the average bear?

So this weekend, I went upstairs to see what Brianna was doing... up there by herself, for over 30 minutes.... I peeked around the corner and caught her unawares. She wasn't doing anything wrong, I just caught her by surprise.

She saw me, and said, "Damn It!"
I responded with awe, concern, and a very loud, "What did you just say?"
She looked a little sheepish and said questioningly, "Forget it!?!"

So here's my question: Does your 4 year old know how to lie and cover their tracks? Because mine sure as heck did! We spent the next 5 minutes... me trying to get her to repeat it, her trying not to make eye contact and think of anything else that would get her out of trouble. She finally admitted to it with a little grin, and spent 5 minutes in time-out willingly.

Seriously people... I don't even know where she got that one, REALLY! That's not a phrase Adam or I really use much. And we always do our best not to swear in front of the kids. Maybe daycare..... But with Brianna, it would only take one slip, she picks up on EVERYTHING! E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G!

I was not prepared for this!

How old are your ears?

You are about 20 years old

The teen repellent will no longer foil you, but you can still hear some pretty high tones. The highest pitched ultrasonic mosquito ringtone that I can hear is 16.7kHz

Find out which ringtones you can hear!

I don't know how REAL this is, but it's pretty funny to compare with your co-workers.
My 24 year old co-worker can hear 1 step better than me but my 27 year old co-worker has worse hearing.... I love being 30!

William Tell Overture for Moms

Perfect for anyone who is a mom, or has a mom. This is the funniest 2 min and 30 seconds I've seen in weeks!
Sound is a MUST for this one!

Oh Blog, How lazy I've been!

I have not posted any new news in SOOO long!
I could say I've been busy, but that's always true. (See also title of blog!)
I could blame home computer issues, but that's boring and hasn't been a significant problem since I went back to work Aug. 27.

So... since Aug. 27... I feel like Indiana Jones in danger of being plowed down by the giant boulder and I just can't run fast enough.

In the meantime, lets just say things are calming down a little, I have some pampering planned thanks to the Pretty in Pink campaign, and I have tomorrow off work thanks to Rosh Hashanah AND the kids are going to be staying at my parents!

If you have any extra relaxation, send it my way!

It's Done

I just finished the last Harry Potter book, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows".
(Don't worry, no spoilers here, I wouldn't dream of it!)

I picked up the book around 10:30 this morning from my local Borders and read all day. I stopped for food. I stopped a couple times to pay attention to the kids (who mostly watched TV all day). And I stopped for about an hour this evening... I had to hold off the last few chapters until the kids were asleep and I knew I could read completely uninterrupted.

It was an enthralling book. It lived up to all my hopes and then some. I have no idea that a day could fly by so fast. I estimate that it took me about 10 hours to read the book. I will have to read it again sometime soon because I'm sure I missed details along the way. I tend to do that... If I am really into a book, I read so fast that I miss some of the writers best nuances. I will read it again. And probably a third time next summer when I want to relive all the emotions of this time.

That being said... I find myself to be very sad. Not in any way related to the plot of the book, only that it is done. Now that I've read book 7, there won't be any more to look forward to. There won't be any more secrets, any more wonderfully written characters who grow and develop until I can feel them. There will be movies, which I always find predictably shallow compared to the books. You just can not take a book written with such depth and development and shorten it in any way. Even the most minor incidence, when left out, leaves a hole in the stories I love so much.

I will find new books to read. I will love them too. But I feel like Harry has left me.
This is silly, REALLY silly to some of you, but I feel like a good friend has moved very far away and I know we will lose touch.

I will miss you Harry. I've looked forward to all your adventures and I can't wait to share them with my children when the time comes.
Thank you J.K. Rowling for filling so many days with entertainment. However, if this should reach you... I do still have a few questions for you.

(I have intentionally left out links to all the copyrighted or trademarked items in this entry. Please don't sue me. If you want more information on any of the items, use Google. That's not my job!) :-)

No details, no energy

So, the rest of vacation was fine. It might have been just a little too long with my family but what are you going to do? A week's house rental means a week with the family. I was simultaneously glad and a little depressed to be home again.

Did a little grocery shopping... got back to normal... blah blah blah.

However, slight differentiation from blah when Tuesday night's stomach ache became uncontrollable pain with no position I could find relief in by Wednesday late afternoon. A quick call to the doctor led to a not as quick visit to the acute care center which was followed by a trip to the ER and an "emergency" appendectomy. That's right. I went to the doctor with generalized stomach pain around 6:30 Wednesday night and approx. 6 hours later I was no longer in possession of my appendix!

The surgeon, who had the personality of a door, said that it was the earliest case of appendicitis he'd ever operated on. That leads me to believe either; 1- I'm a wuss, 2- He says that to all the girls, or 3- I could have waited longer, been in more pain, and other people are just stupider than me. I vote for #3.

As of now, I am spending a lot of time on the couch... and loving the Vicodin.
I hope next week is less eventful.

Quick Change in Plans...

I said I wasn't going to post from vacation but....

Very cool vacation house, paid for by very cool parents who are here with us, has very cool wireless Internet for which new, somewhat cool notebook computer is compatible.

Quick re-cap so far:
Saturday... (WAY too much driving + with WAY too much stuff jammed in car) x (2 kids who do not want to nap on time + WAY too much Wiggles and Backyardigans DVDs) = INSANITY
Sunday... sleep in, grocery shop, rest, drink alcohol
Monday.... Pontoon boat rental, lots of sun, not quite enough sunblock on the grown-ups (Awesome day! I went tubing for the first time!)
Tuesday.... relax, grocery shopping, Dollar General going out of business clearance, shoe store with 50-70% off.
Wednesday... hectic morning trying to get kids out door to children's museum 1hour away only to get there and find out said museum was closed for the 4th of July holiday. Luckily, the kids think McDonalds playland is pretty cool and don't care about museum when nuggets are involved. Sparklers before rugrat bedtime, alcohol after rugrat bedtime.

So far... lots of fun. Still 2 days to go, and then another driving day... but we will pretend that's not going to happen.

Got to go... Wine coolers are getting warm.

Happy Independence Day Everyone!!!!!!

I'm Outta Here!

Nothing really new....

Adam and I had the babysitter come back last night and went to dinner and a movie as a couple!
Dinner was good... Movie was great (Pirates 3 anyone?) except that a REALLY annoying former student sat right in front of me with his detestable dad who thinks I suck. Sounds like a good combo for date night huh? I of course turned my back and rummaged in my purse as the lights came on and Adam told me when they were gone. I don't think they really noticed me since it was already dark when they entered... I HOPE they didn't notice me anyway... no one burst my bubble OK?

Today, a lot of laundry and packing. We are heading off tomorrow for a week in Tennessee with my parents, sister, and her boyfriend. My parents rented a house on a lake near Knoxville. The kids will be thrilled. I will be mostly thrilled... I'm hoping to gain a little alone time from all the live-in, free, babysitters next week! I only dread the 9 hour drive with the kids.... well, 9 hours driving + multiple potty/movement/food stops + lose an hour in the time change. We hope to make it to the house by around 6 EST if we leave our house around 5 CST!

I might have Internet access there, but I don't plan on updating my blog! SO THERE! But seriously... one of my 3 readers will be with me and the rest of you will just have to wait.
Luv ya anyway and Happy Independence Day!

And then the angels sang!

People, I hired a babysitter! Well, actually 2 because they are sisters and both were available and I didn't want to pick between them.

This morning, I called the nice neighbor girls and asked them to come by this afternoon. Currently, they are at my house with my kids. I am at the library ALONE! (Yes, I could be doing this from home with the kids but I had to do some computer stuff that my new computer at home is not yet set up for and/or to dang slow!)

Faithful readers (Hello to the 3 of you!) will know that Adam is not working this summer and will wonder why he's not with the kids while I get things done... He's golfing... with his dad. Which he sprung on me in the middle of Brianna's birthday party last weekend so of course I couldn't say no. Despite the fact that we have 900 things to do before this coming weekend and one car is in the shop!

Brianna was so excited to have new people to play with that she didn't shut up the whole 15 minutes I was giving the girls the important info. She has already planned that they will play in her castle after lunch, and then dress up, and then read some books. Yes, I could have done that with her to, but, I don't. Because she is annoying!

Don't start throwing things at me yet! You did not misunderstand, I said that my 4 year old daughter was annoying. And it's true. But she's only annoying to me. She is in that phase where she tests every single boundary I have, and does it in the most obvious, look-at-me-while-I-break-every-rule-you-crazy-mommy kind of way. To the average outsider or family member, she is sweet as pie and cute as a bunny. To me, she is 4 going on 15! Moms out there... you understand right?

Anyway, I think I will hire a babysitter more often!

Where does the time, and my brain, go?

If a few mere hours, my baby will be 4 years old. No longer a baby I guess, not even a toddler. She is a child, a little girl with a mind and opinions of her own.

Some days I am amazed by the clarity of thought with which she can tell a story, or remember some event that I'd never have thought important, or with how much love and caring she can show to us and especially to her little brother. And then, not a full 5 minutes later, I am amazed at the teenage attitude and stubborn streak that never fail to have me gritting my teeth and saying things like; "Because I said so" or the all time favorite "Just Because!"

Tonight after an especially trying trip to K-mart, I decided that I needed a quiet moment with her. I didn't want either of us to start her birthday in the morning by being irritated with each other. We pulled out her baby book. We looked at pictures and I told her some of my favorite little stories from when she was a newborn. We compared her foot now, to the little footprint the hospital made for us the day she was born. We measured how tall she was now, and then I showed her how big she was when she was born. I was a little choked up and surprised to find that I had forgotten some of the details of her birth... when did I start feeling pains, when did we get to the hospital, what exact time was she born. Those are crucial statistics and I already need a book to remind me after 4 short years.

She was only interested in turning the pages by herself and getting the tape measure off the counter. BY HERSELF, NO, I WAS NOT ALLOWED TO HELP! She didn't care that I couldn't remember that she was born at 9:58am. She only wanted to stay up 5 more minutes and practice sticking out her tongue like her 3 month picture.

I miss my baby, I'm a little unsure about this little girl, but I can't wait to see my daughter grow more each year. Happy Birthday Brianna, I love you!

Update

1. Computer Hard Drive was FRIED and we couldn't even use the little magic disk so....
2. Bought new computer! Nice HP notebook however....
3. Am waiting for Best Buy to set it up and then....
4. Will have to wait for new AOL CD or decide on new Internet server then...
5. Will have to upload/set-up etc.

We will still be limited by stubborn husband and his refusal to upgrade to ANYTHING but dial-up Internet. However, we will be back on-line and our marriage may be saved! (In the case that I don't get around to a post about that, let me just say, I didn't realize how much personal time I got when Adam was on the Internet instead of making me work!)

I may be back sooner than I thought! But don't hold your breath, because, this is me, I never posted all that much to start with!

Farewell, for now!

Well, this is good bye for now!

School is over for summer! I will be enjoying days at home with the kids and Adam... or I will be trying to endure spending the next 80 or so days (24 hours a day) with my husband and children... it depends on you point of view...

And in a further note... I think we may have killed our home computer! We haven't had reliable Internet access there for some time and now every time we turn on the computer, we can't even get to a workable screen. We get a message that basically says... you fried your system Jerk! (or something like that...)

Adam spent the better part of 4 hours on the phone with the helpful Utah Dell boys on Sunday and they have mailed us a magic disk that will erase everything we've ever done to the computer in last ditch hopes that this will save the thing! They say our operating system is corrupt or some other lofty computer jargon like that. I picture the computer laying on the operating table, with some doctor massaging it's heart and asking for everyone to clear!

On the upside, if it dies, we will be saving up all summer and looking for deals on a new computer. Yeah! (said dripping with sarcasm and a slight frown over all the dinners out she will sacrifice to pay for said computer)

On the real upside, I am hoping to convince Adam to take this opportunity to upgrade to wireless cable Internet and a laptop! Wish me luck!

SO- Enough said... I will try and get back to you all from the library or my in-laws...
Love!
and have a great summer!
Jo

Tag, I'm it!

Jamie tagged me for this meme....

She seems to think that I have all sorts of time on my hands since the school year is ending and I have a student teacher teaching my classes. She must not have noticed the severe lack of blogging due to the severe neuroticness of ME! I have been more busy now then ever before... AND I 'M NOT EVEN DOING MY OWN JOB!

Anyway... on with the meme....

3 things that scare me:

1. The death of close family
2. Spiders
3. people not thinking I'm smart and capable

3 people who make me laugh:

1. DH Adam
2. "The Kids" aka DD Brianna and DS Grant
3. my coworker and friend; Stephanie

3 things I love:

1. My Family
2. My Job (most days)
3. TV

3 things I hate/severely dislike:

1. reality TV
2. worrying about money around Tax time
3. having nothing to do (see comments above)

3 things I don't understand:

1. insensitive people
2. war
3. runny noses in kids

3 things on my desk:

1. Diet Coke
2. a To-Do pile
3. lots of pens, markers, highlighters, etc in quick reach.

3 things I'm doing right now:

1. Blogging
2. Listening to my student teacher and the class
3. wishing I had some chocolate

3 things I want to do before I die:

1. Travel
2. Be a Principal
3. hold political office?

3 things I can do well:

1. Teach
2. Have Babies
3. listen

3 things I can't do well:

1. talk on the phone and watch TV
2. be blunt
3. dislike you

3 things I think you should listen to:

1. your mother
2. small children
3. yourself

3 things I think you should never listen to:

1. People who don't know you well but give you advice
2. Internet medical info
3. People who are famous but haven't done anything worthy

3 things I'd like to learn

1. how to be blunt and nice at the same time
2. how to keep my house cleaner
3. How to get rich without trying

3 favorite foods:

1. Chocolate
2. pasta
3. peanut butter

3 shows I watched as a kid:

1. Smurfs
2. Solid Gold
3. Days of our Lives

3 things I regret:

1. debt before my marriage
2. not working harder at my early career
3. my own laziness

3 people I tag:

(This was the hardest because I don't have many blogging friends. I'm more of a reader than a chatter...)
1. Janet because I love reading more about my newest friends!
2-6. Stephanie, Heather, Jenny, Min, and Kate at Mama Drama. Because they are SO much fun!

SOOOO cute!

I found a great product when I was reading Dancing Through today.

Tutu Fantasy is having a contest! I LOVE contests!
But regardless of if I win or not, I think this might be a great gift for my niece for her birthday next month. She LOVES ballet class and LOVES dressing up... what could be better?

And I might get this one for Brianna!

Panic attack subsiding...

One of my favorite bloggers... Jenny over at Mama Drama... posted this post today.

Now, I love Jenny's posts and this one is no different. It is worded wonderfully and I can completely picture what she is saying. Therefore, the gratuitous scary picture is not needed. Seriously, I think I may have just died a little looking at that picture.

If you didn't know this about me... I am TERRIFIED of spiders. I currently have a pair of shoes sitting in the garage that I may never wear again because since they have been in said garage for several days, I am just sure that some family of spiders has made a home of them. I do a double take every time I pass the nail that has popped out of the wall in the office. I swear I just saw it moving and it will chase me down now.

I probably shouldn't laugh

I have been silently worrying for weeks (OK- maybe months) about Grant and his lack of words. He says Car, Ball, Cow, Meow, and Dada fairly regularly... but not Mama, eat, drink, etc... words that you would think he would actually need.

The past week or so has shown a good change in his language skills. He has added cracker, milk, and every mother's favorite... No.

That's right... last night... my precious baby boy said No for the first time! Except he doesn't just say no... he mimics the way Brianna says No when she's trying to keep him from stealing her toys! It starts really slow with a drawn out "N" sound and ends in a quick "O".

nnnnnnnNNNNNNNO!

I couldn't help cracking up! He says it just like Bri... and even makes the same little mad face! It never failed to make me laugh last night... and again this morning. I'm going to have quite a spitfire on my hands!

This may be my first attempt at recording, and uploading video... I just have to figure out the digital video part of my camera... and then actually get him to do it... and then upload it properly... By the time I do all that, he'll be talking in sentences!

And I love him anyway!

This weekend, my parents took the kids!! BOTH KIDS! for a whole 28 hours... not that I was counting or anything.

It was really nice having some time to ourselves. Even if we did spend the majority of that time doing manual labor. We ran errands with out tears. We worked in the garden without having to watch who was running in the street. We went out to dinner without rushing. We watched a movie with profanity. We slept in... until we just couldn't sleep anymore. We ate breakfast and simultaneously read the paper. We went for a walk without a stroller. And then... the best part... we went our separate ways! Adam went golfing with his dad and brother, I went to get a long overdue haircut and highlights.

By the time the kids came home on Sunday, we were ready for them.

It was so much fun to walk through the door and see little Grant light up... and lift up his little arms... and run toward me.... and call me "Dada".

That's right, my son calls his mother Dada... If you have a problem with that... Just don't tell me. OK- maybe I do have a little problem with this new development. Maybe I would like him to call me Mama. But maybe I will pretend not to notice and just enjoy his heart wrenching hugs and his big sloppy kisses and know that he loves me, no matter what name he uses.