Conversations in the Wheeler household...

Do you have conversations like this in your house??? (Oh, and while they were hilarious when they happened they don't seem to have the same zing... sorry... but I think you'll get the point!)

#1. Me: I have a deviated septum and will have to have surgery next week to fix it... Megan: So, your gonna get a nose job like Ashley Tisdale... that's what she said and her nose is all different now. Me: No, they aren't going to do anything to the outside of my nose. Kali: well, I think you should let them make it smaller... (is this her way of saying I have a big nose???)

#2 This conversation needs some background info... My little brother lives with is gf and has 3 babies by 2 women and marriage doesn't seem to be in his future... Kali at dinner tonight: Did you know you can have sex without being married? Me: Well, that's true but that is not God's plan and life is wayyyy harder if you do things in the wrong order. Megan: There was a 5th grader who was prego at my last school...ewwwww Robert: Kids don't need to have kids Me: God made sex for a husband and wife and within that bond sex is not a bad thing, in fact God meant it to be fun RT: WOOOO HOOOO.... at this point my children turned beet red and proceeded to leave the room! I can only imagine what they will be thinking when they go to bed tonight.

#3 Kali fell off of her bike at ACU this afternoon and hurt her arm. On the way home Robert was trying to console her and tried to tell her why it was good it was one arm and they could put a sling on it at home. Kali: But I use this arm to play on the compt Robert: (who has a busted lip) well, I like to kiss mommy with both of my lips and I have a busted lip so how do you think I feel? Kali: You can put a sling on your face...

I just noticed that all the funny comments seem to come from Kali. She does keep us quite entertained but it is usually because she is saying things that leave me speechless....

I'm not CRAzY!!!

I went to see the ENT today and I am officially NOT CRAZY! I have a deviated septum and sinus cavities that are completely packed with the yucky stuff! You ask why I celebrate so... well, it is because I have had chronic sinus crap for 6 mths and my family dr treats me like I'm over exaggerating or something every time that I go in. I think he just didn't think it was as bad as I thought it was... shows him what he knows! The ENT couldn't even look up one side of my nose because my septum was pushed over so far. I will be having surgery next week or the week after... I'm not overly joyed about surgery, but I'll deal with it just to be able to breathe again!

My crazy life...

It has been a while since I posted... Sorry! It is always more difficult to find time to post when I am off of work... I try to sit on the couch and post, but it's not the same as sitting in my office in the quiet!

I'll try to catch you up on the happenings of our lives!

I have reached a certain level of peace regarding my future at the University. I don't know what God's plan is, but I know He has one and will let me in on it when I need to know... you just don't know how much I hate that! It took me a while to get to that point and but it did help that last Sunday at church my preacher made several points that applied to my life while staring at me! I'm not sure if it is good or bad that my preacher knows what is happening in my life and what I struggle with, but what he had to say does make a lot of sense.

One of the reasons that I have reached a certain peace with my changes at work is that I am being pulled in other directions pretty strongly. I have been pestering my husband for over a year about having another child. I can't exactly have one myself due to the fact that my tubes have been cut, burned, and tied and although my dear Kali thinks I should just buy new tubes that isn't exactly possible. Not to mention that fact that I'm not the best pregnant person... I don't like the lack of control I have over my body (nausea, vomiting, peeing when you sneeze, laugh, cough) so I end up being rather whiny and annoying. So... over Chicken Express a couple of days ago we narrowed down our options. We will continue to pray about it, but we are thinking about becoming foster parents. I need to check into all the guidelines, but so far it looks like a real possibility and if I am working less I would have more time for the stuff that has to be done for the kiddos. I'll keep you posted!

Christmas was at our house this year due to my mom's foot surgery. It was quite difficult to get everyone together due to my little brother and all of his children and in the end we were missing his current gf's kid. But, it did turn out well and everyone seemed to have a good time. Robert was off Christmas Eve, so that was an added bonus. He got to help with the house cleaning and even pitched in with the pie baking. I love that his mother (no matter how crazy she is) taught the boy to move around the kitchen. Some of our pies looked a little retarded, but they tasted just fine. [For those who don't know me you should know that this is the first time in my life that I have EVER baked a pumpkin or pecan pie... I don't cook nor do I know how to cook most things!] All the cooking with my hubs made me look forward to the day when he finishes school and has time off at the same times I do! Too bad he can't quit his current job and go crazy taking classes... instead we have 108 more hours to go... which looks like it will take 7 more semesters!

We did do something new this Christmas... because everyone left early Christmas Day we decided to go to the movies. We took the girls to see the new National Treasure movie... I recommend it to everyone. It was awesome... no sex, no language, and not that scary! We couldn't have chosen a better movie to watch! Both girls enjoyed it and no one fell asleep!

Ok, I think that catches everyone up! I have lots of stuff on my mind, but I'm not sure where to begin and the kids are busy bickering over the other compt behind me... so I best go break it up...

What do you do?

I had a funny thought just now as I was cleaning my office and rearranging furniture... every time my world begins to spin out of control I clean my office and rearrange furniture. Why is this? Then I started to think back to the day before my job... my solution then was to shop... I think cleaning my office might be the more responsible way to handle stress. On some level, cleaning my office and rearranging furniture is me controlling my life in the only way I know how... I mean, there is so much happening right now that is puzzling... the one thing I can control is where my desk is in my office. What do you do when your world is spinning around you???

You might be wondering what has thrown me into such a cleaning freenzy... I had a meeting with my dean and the VP yesterday. For the 08-09 school year I am being dropped down to 3/4 time. I will still have benefits, but it will be a $8000 pay cut. They seemed so excited when they told me that the other person that I work with would be 3/4 time as well, but they don't seem to realize how this affects my life. I don't really care that the 65 yr old woman that I work with who retired from the public schools will still have a job... I care about the fact that a pay cut of 800$ a month will financially damage my family. In fact, about the time that all of this will take place is about the time my loans will come due, so instead of being 800$ short a month we will be about 1600$ short a month. I care about the fact that this decision brings into question what will happen the next year... should RT even continue school??? I mean, he'd have 60 hrs and then I wouldn't have a job if all goes as it seems it is going to. So many questions...

Anyway, on top of the house issue (see below) and the questions I have there I now get to add this to my list. I seriously would like one year where there were no freakin' complications. Is that too much to ask? I know that God has a plan... I really do... and I know that everything happens for a reason, but as I sit here in my office crying once again I can't seem to figure out what it is. Is this God's way of telling me to get out of the education field? I mean, it has truly been an uphill battle, so maybe it isn't where I'm supposed to be. Who knows? Anyway, pray for my family as we try to figure this out!

Update...

Sorry, no fancy title. The guy didn't show up Tuesday night. I called his number to check if I had the time wrong and his wife is in the hospital. He said he would call back later this week, but I don't know that he will. The most difficult part of this process is that I was perfectly fine with living out in the boonies still, until he contacted us. Then I let myself consider what living in town would mean and how it would affect our entire lives. That sounds dramatic, but living 25 min from work, church, and Target does not make life convenient. I mean, if we moved to town our gas bill would go down about 400$ a month. We already have a house that would work out wonderfully and it is 2 blocks from church, 3 blocks from my work, and 4 blocks from the kids school. Do you know how much more sleep I could get if I live that close to everything we do??? Not to mention if you live 2 blocks from church you can't use oversleeping as an excuse not to go, unlike living 25 min away. Then there is the friend thing... my kids don't exactly have neighbors to play with... it would be nice to be able to say 'go play outside with the kids.' Or even go ride your bikes, and the kids not be able to say 'but we live on a dirt road.' (Oh, and I know you can ride on a dirt road, but you should see the rocks, even I wouldn't brave it!)

The funny thing about all of this is that it seemed like him coming and wanting our house and us moving to this other house was the PERFECT plan. I mean, I can think of 100 reasons why it would benefit everyone involved. I look at it and it all seemed to fit and there was a peace about it, like this is how it should be... AND THEN... it didn't happen. I'm not questioning God, I know things happen in His time and that He has a plan, it is just sort of puzzling. It makes me wonder what is yet to come... like if this wasn't the plan then what is the plan???? Does that make any sense?

Blessed...

Yesterday, while we were gone to church, our house tried to burn itself down! Well, I know a house can't choose to burn down, but somehow the stove cut on (the knobs are in the front so someone probably bumped them and we just didn't see it) and caught the stone and spatula that were sitting on top on fire! I assume the entire house was filled with smoke because there is a layer of black ash on every surface of the house.



Here's a pic of the cabinet above the stove. Pretty, huh??? The next pic is of my white curtains in the living room. You can't really tell in the pic how bad it was, but if you look closely you can see the soot on the ceiling too!

We are having a clean up party today after school (if anyone feels sorry for me and wants to come help, feel free) and the carpet people are coming in the morning! We really have to rush to clean it up because a guy is supposed to come out tomorrow night to see about buying the place. He seems quite promising as he has been leaving us notes for a couple of weeks trying to catch us (he left them on the front door, which is not the door we use to come in the house). He told RT yesterday that he can't find a house anywhere within his range and ours seems to fit perfectly. Keep your fingers crossed that we can get the mess cleaned up and the house smelling pretty so that he will buy it.

We cleaned up a little last night, and I kept trying to remind my husband that we were very, very lucky that our house didn't burn down and that we truly are blessed! (I'm not sure he was convinced since he was cleaning instead of studying for his Algebra final!) My other happy thought was that since I haven't started Christmas shopping yet, there are no presents that have to be rewrapped or a tree that has to be cleaned! See... I knew there was a reason I hadn't started shopping yet!

Edit: My friends are truly awesome. Holly, Emily, Betty, and my mom all came out to help me clean up yesterday. It took about 3 hrs so I can only imagine how long it would've taken if they hadn't been here! I am blessed to have such great people in my life that are willing to drop everything to come help me clean up my messes (not just talking about the house now). I am currently sitting on the couch watching the carpet cleaners scrub away on the nasty carpets. It is amazing to me how much cleaner the professionals can get the carpet. Keep praying that the guy who is coming to look at the house tonight is so impressed that he writes me a check on the spot! :) With Robert in school and the price of gas, it would be so nice to have the opportunity to move back into town. I'm trying not to get our hopes up... but it's soooo hard! Anyway, thanks again to the people who helped me clean (my mom even ironed my curtains)! It means a lot to me!

Busy, Busy

We have reached the point in the semester where I begin to question whether I need to be admitted to the place with the padded walls! It is the last week of classes with finals next week! My desk is completely covered with work that needs to be graded, my voicemail and email are full of messages from students explaining why it is that they haven't gotten their work done, the kids are mad because I haven't put the Christmas tree up yet, and my husband is irritated because he is feeling neglected! AUGH! At least I know that this feeling is temporary!

Ashley went to the dr... her due date is January 19th.... and she is dilated to a one. The doctor doesn't seem too concerned that she has gone 8 1/2 mths without prenatal care, which concerns me and everyone else, but who are we, I guess. Her sonogram is December 19th, but if you could see her you would question (like me) if she's even going to make it to that appt. Keep praying for my brother and his girlfriend... I can't imagine how difficult life is going to be with four children under the age of 5 and one with severe disabilities. Matt did say he and Ash were going to get married... so I guess that is a step in the right direction.

Our Sunday School Christmas party is Saturday night... it is at the Country Club. I'm not overly joyed about the 50$ that it is going to cost to eat there, but I'm hoping that the food is great and we enjoy it. Any ideas about what to wear to the country club??? I mean, my preference is always blue jeans but for some reason I get the impression that is not appropriate attire! Guess I need to go buy a dress! Shucks...

Our church Christmas program is Sunday night... if your bored and need something to do! :) The children's choir is singing (as in both of my children) and I have a solo! I love that I'm in a church where I can use the talents that God gave me!

Ok... I guess that about does it. My goal for this weekend is to put the tree up, but first I have to get the house clean! Wish me luck...

The Truth

It has been very interesting watching all of the news coverage regarding the football player that was murdered last week. My students and I were discussing it today, and many of them were of the opinion that the guy lived a lifestyle that was not safe and therefore bad things happened to him. I just opened MSN and there was this very interesting article addressing how black men are being murdered by other black men and what to do about it. It specifically addresses the NFL player, but I think it can be spread throughout. I can't wait to get to school and see what my students think. This won't be the first time we have had this conversation, and I wish we as a school would have the conversation campus wide... I mean, we bring these kids from inner city Houston and Dallas and within a week they are hanging out with kids who are just like the ones they left at home... Instead of taking the opportunity to choose friends that will lift you up and help you succeed in life they picks guys who are packing and know how to kick some fanny. It is a situation that causes much distress for me as I watch students get sucked right back into destructive cycles... Anyway, sorry for the rant... any comments???

What I'd like to say...

If you missed Brandi's comment from the post before you should go read it... it had me laughing out loud in my office!

Ok, so this has been one of those mornings that I have had to bite my tongue for fear of telling numerous students how I really feel... Let me give you some examples of how my students are behaving...

I sent an email regarding speech grades yesterday. I gave them an extra credit opportunity that had to be turned in at the beginning of class, typed, no excuses. If they didn't have it, they didn't get the points. (Mind you, the students are required to use their MCM email.)

Student after seeing other students handing stuff in: What email?
Me: The one I sent on Moodle, I'm sorry you missed the opportunity.
Student: But my MCM email doesn't work?
Me: How long has this been happening? (This was in an effort to figure out if this just happened so I should feel sorry for her.)
Student: Oh, all semester.

I couldn't even respond for fear of something sarcastically inappropriate coming out!

After group presentations I had another student come tell me how awful I am for making them do a group presentation. She then informed me that she was offended by the extra credit opportunity because she feels like she did everything she was supposed to for an A and she didn't get one. Mind you this is the same student who has turned in every assignment late... always with some excuse about stress from other classes. Why don't students get it??? If they turn in their work and follow the directions and come to class they will be happy with their grades...

I love my job, I love my job, I love my job...

Catching up...

It is 11 and I really should be in bed... 6am is going to come early after 5 days of sleeping until 8am. I really think grown-up world shouldn't start until at least 9am. If I didn't have to be anywhere until 9am I would be a much happier person! haha!

I've never been good at doing things when I am supposed to do them. For example, I had 5 days home in which I could've completely graded the work for all of my classes not to mention prepared for the next two weeks... instead, I did things like watch all the shows I have DVR for the last 2 mths, cleaned my bedroom from top to bottom, cleaned the living room from top to bottom, and washed, dried, folded and put away about 12 loads of laundry. All important stuff.... but probably not what the most impt.

I will say that cleaning my room from top to bottom completely disgusted me. Has anyone looked under their bed in the last year??? I decided to pull up the mattresses and vacuum under the bed... eww... lots of dust hiding under there. No wonder my allergies have been killing me!

As for the laundry... we had to buy a new dryer on Friday... let's just say how fun that wasn't. When I got my front loading washer I knew I would eventually have to buy a dryer, but I didn't expect the matching dryer to cost 700$. We decided that the matching part was a bit overrated when we could get a dryer that was just as good for 348$ and most dryers are front loading anyway. I will say that dryer should've been bought long ago. I can now get a load of laundry washed, dried and put away in less than 2 hrs. I'll let you know how this affects the electric bill!

So, this post is a little random... sorry... not a lot of important stuff happening... I'm sure I could come up with something meaningful to post... but I'm tired and my brain is not so much working! Have a good week!


PS> I have a grammar question... everytime I use the words should've, would've, could've the spell check goes crazy... why is this??? Those are words, aren't they????

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I spent the day at my mom's cooking for lunch tomorrow. We made dressing, banana pudding, and pie after pie. Oh and I got the job of deboning the turkey... ewww! It was a lot of fun though... something mom and I have never done before. Usually she has the kids out to help, but never has she asked me. She didn't ask this time, I volunteered... and she said that would be great. It was fun to spend the day working with her.

I did find out that my little brother's girlfriend is 7 mths or so prego! Um... how do you get that pregnant and not know??? Or how do you go that long and none of us know??? I mean we just say them a month ago and she didn't look prego... hmmm.

On the way home from my mom's I ran out of gas! I had to call RT to come rescue me! I do this occasionally and the guys he works with enjoyed a laugh at my expense today! I'm so glad I could cause a smile!

Anyway, that's about all I have... I hope everyone has a great day tomorrow!

Better...

Sorry to be all down in the dumps yesterday! After posting yesterday I decided to go get some good ole Burgers and Fries because I loooovvveee their very thick handcut french fries and whoever had cut the fries the day before made them shoestring! Talk about fitting into my day... I called Rt to tell him and he laughed very loudly! Oh well... everyday is a new day!

Today has been a better day... I think it was because I don't teach an 8am on Tues/Thurs. 8am classes are full of people who don't really want to be there and that makes a classroom difficult to deal with.

I have a question for you mothers out there... How do mornings go in your house??? I'm only asking because we struggle sooo much in the morning. It would help if I would get out of bed on time, but 6:30 is soooo early. I thought that getting out of bed would be easier as I got older.... but it's been the opposite. So... do you just bounce out of bed??? Is there some secret to it??? Give me some ideas!

When it rains, it poors...

Not literally of course since Abilene hasn't seen rain since sometime in Oct, but I feel like today has been one of those days that I would have rather not experienced... and it's only 11am. Ugh! I know that there are many people with many problems much worse than mine, but when you are stuck in the middle of the stuff it all seems so big. I know that in the long run it won't really matter and most of what is happening is just annoying, but I don't like how I feel inside when all of this stuff is happening. I woke up at 7:15 this morning and we have to leave the house by 7:30 for the kids to make it to class on time. It was anything but peaceful on the way to school and then I got to listen to 100 excuses for why the students didn't have their work done or why this or that was happening. I blew up at my 9am class because I have frankly heard just about enough. Then I looked at my checking acct and I cannot make heads or tell of what is happening. I used the bill pay that the bank does to pay the bills, but since it doesn't take the money out right away I cant figure out the balance. I guess I will just have to use that acct for bills and nothing else so that I can stay on top of the blow money. (I can budget, I can budget, I can budget... if I keep telling myself this will it happen???) Robert walked into my office before his 11 o'clock class and I burst into tears.... and now I cannot get them to stop. His solution was that I needed to go home and go to bed... he might be right. I honestly think that I have been sick with sinus stuff for so long that my body is just wearing down... or something like that. Too bad I can't just stop time and take a little nap.....

ALyssa Update...

Alyssa came home today. She is doing extremely well. She hasn't needed any pains meds and she is eating the entire house. I guess we will see what the future holds from here for her.

We went to Primetime on Friday night. It was a lot of fun, but I made Megan drive her own go-cart and it turned into disaster. She didn't really want to be by herself in the go-cart, but I made her do it anyway... I really though her anxiety was just her being silly about new things. So, guess what happened... Some great teenage boys who weren't paying attention ran into her in the back and side causing her to spin out and hit the side. She has some great bruises on her neck and down her chest and keeps complaining that her chest hurts and she has a great scrap on her chin. I'm not sure what to do about it... I mean, how long is she going to be sore? Should I take her to the dr? Anyway, the most frustrating thing of it all is that the accident only furthers her anxiety about the world around her. She is the kid who thinks of every possible negative thing that could happen and then refuses to do whatever it is that she was going to do. Not to mention I am now the bad guy... I made her go by herself and the bad things she thought were going to happen did. This is where I would like to thank the boys who only considered themselves and the fun they wanted to have... next time could you perhaps be considerate of the kids who are driving around you???????

Baby Alyssa

For those who are wondering, my walk was amazing. I'll share more later.

Right now I need some major prayers lifted up. My little brother and his girlfriend Ashley had baby Alyssa a little over a year ago. At the time of her birth, we knew there were problems, we just had no idea the extent of the problems. In the last year, Alyssa has had a surgery to fit a cleft small palate, an open heart surgery, and now on Wednesday morning she will have the top half of her skull taken off and reshaped because it has fused together too early. Alyssa is not developing normally... she has no motor skills... as in she cannot hold anything, roll over, or sit up... she can giggle at you when you act silly and she looks around... but that is all. The doctors have never given what she has a name, they just say that she has a syndrome. I'm not sure if the doctors don't know what the problem is or if they just don't think Matt and Ashley could handle it. We love Alyssa, she is quite precious, but her future is so shaky... so unsure... so challenging...

Anyway, on top of all of this my mom called to tell me that Ashley is pregnant again. I want to be happy.... I really do... but they are not married and they have an infant with soooo many problems already not to mention the fact that Ashley gets sick every time she takes Alyssa for an appt... how is she going to have a newborn and Alyssa??? On top of that... the genetic testing shows that Ashley's chromosomes are mixed up and my brother has had so much chemo his dr's suggested he not have anymore kids... anyway, do you get my frustration? I'm trying to be supportive, but I don't think they have been very responsible in all of this... It's too much of a risk if you ask me, but what do I know. I guess I would feel differently about it if I had gotten the impression that this was somehow planned, but apparently this baby was a complete surprise... just like Matt's other 3 children. Really, I'm not annoyed in the least... 4 kids, 3 women, it sometimes amazes me that we grew up in the same family. It was great fun explaining to my children that Ashley was pregnant again and fielding the questions regarding marriage, babies, and sin. Now, I don't want anyone to read this blog and think that I'm being a judgemental twit, I'm not, I love my brother, Ashley, and all the kiddos involved, I just really, really hate explaining all of this to my kiddos... I've gotten to be a pro at saying things like 'everyone makes mistakes' and 'yes I know, but we still love uncle matt.' I don't want my kids to think that babies are 'accidents' or 'mistakes' by any means, but I really don't know how to explain it all to them. Rt joked with Matt that he would pay for the vasectomy... I think he may be ready to make the appt and carry him to it.

So... please pray for baby Alyssa, pray for the dr's and the nurses who will be taking care of her. Pray for Matt and Ashley and my parents as they wait patiently for the surgery to be over... pray that there will be a peace about whatever happens. Pray for peace for all of us regarding this new pregnancy... I do know that everything happens according to God's plan and there isn't a lot that I can do about any of it... (see I did learn something this weekend!).

Happy Halloween!

I'm not sure why the pic is so small, but here's Halloween for us. Megan was a pirate again and Kali was a bride... or better yet the runaway bride since she had her camo tennis shoes on. We are all about recycling this year! Megan's costume cost way too much last year and so she knew she had to wear it again. Kali's dress is the flower girl dress from the wedding this summer and she had my vail from my own wedding. Our church had their fall festival tonight so we hung out at the church for a few hours and then headed home. We've already gone through our candy and weeded out the stuff we don't like so I have goodies to take to my students tomorrow. haha!

I leave Thursday afternoon for a walk to Emmaus. Please keep me in your prayers over the weekend. While I am very excited about this experience, there is still a part of me that is leary.... not of anything that is going to happen even though I have NO CLUE what happens while you are there, but because I am a firm believer that the only time Satan cares what a Christian is doing is when they are becoming closer to God... so by going on this walk I almost feel like I'm putting a target on my chest for Satan. I know that sounds a little morbid, but the times in my life that I have struggled the most and felt truly attacked are the times when I have been trying the hardest to be closest to God. Pray for my family too... Thursday-Sunday is a long time to be without a Mom in the house.

God bless and I hope everyone has a great weekend! I'll post again Monday!

What's the world coming to???

Update: I did go to the dr yesterday and I have bronchitis. Yuck! I got a shot, antibiotics, cough medicine and two inhalers. He said I should start feeling better soon. I told his nurse when I went in that if he told me it was allergies again I was going to kick him... guess he listened! ha! He did say that this season is the worst one for allergies... he also mentioned my dogs... hmmm... what to do, what to do????

Now to the serious part:

I am a huge Boston Legal fan, but man, tonight's episode was depressing. You can read the episode recap if you would like on the link above. There were many twists and turns tonight, but the most frustrating part was that a man who was innocent was murdered because a town didn't want him around. He had convicted of rape at 17 for having sex with his 16 yr old girlfriend and when he moved to the town he registered as he was supposed to. The rape was overturned, but the town didn't care, they wanted him gone. Even the town Priest was ugly to him. I'm not sure what the creators of the show were wanting to leave the audience with... I mean, were they pointing out that "Megan's law" has some real issues, were they pointing out that we are not a very forgiving society, were they pointing out that parents will do anything to protect their children??? I'm not sure... but I do know I have a problem with a law that puts a man who had sex with his girlfriend on the same list as a man who molests little children... perhaps something should be changed in the law. I am more concerned about how the church was portrayed though... a part of me understands their behavior but I also know that there was nothing ok with it. Do we really treat people like that???

To make matters worse I watched the news after the show and got to hear about a 15 yr old boy who beat a homeless man to death. Now, is it just me, or do you question how things like that happen? Did the kid just wake up this morning and decide it was a good day to kill someone? Where were his parents? What has happened in his life that would give him the rage necessary to kill a person? Other questions that the new story left me with were about the victim... apparently he was a Vet who has lived on the streets of Abilene for several years... huh? several years? a Vet? How do people like this slip through the cracks? Why was he on the streets?

Ok, I know this is a depressing post... but golly... what is this world coming to???? I will never understand how people can do such horrible things to each other. It is just not ok...

What a weekend!

Another weekend gone... and what a weekend it has been...

I hosted a bridal shower (with 9 other women) on Friday night and in the middle of the shower I got a phone call from my husband. I, of course, didn't have my phone on me, so I didn't know I had received the call. Oops. When I finally checked the message I quickly got in the car and sped home... wanna know why???? There was a skunk in the dog fence! Ugh! When I got home, I found my husband sitting in a lawn chair waiting for the skunk to emerge from behind the doghouse. I finally got the water hose and squirted the smelly creature out of his hiding place. On his way to dispose of the skunk, Rt saw another skunk leaving our yard... what's that about? We have lived here for almost 3 years and have never seen a skunk in our yard... in the last week Rt has seen several! And for those who are saying 'ah, poor skunk' sorry to offend, but if you had smelled my yard and vehicle all day Saturday, you would realize that skunk and man cannot cohabitate!

My dad went in for his interview with Cintas. Must to our surprise, he is considering NOT taking the job. This is not ok with any of us, and we do not understand his logic... so just keep him and us in your prayers. I don't want him to turn down a position just because it scares him. Anything is better than the jail!

We took the girls to see "Hairspray" this weekend at the $1 theater... and Megan didn't like it. When I probed her for answers I found out that she just didn't get parts of it. Can you guess what part of the movie she didn't get??? The racism part! We spent the entire ride home trying to explain to her the stupidity of prior generations. And the stupidity that still exists today. Then we watched "Glory Road" and had to explain again why all the bad things happened to the black basketball players. And why the confederate flag was disrespectful. Anyway, poor kid... you could tell that she didn't really get why people would act that way. If you haven't seen Glory Road... you should see it... it is a great movie...

Well, since I've had a sinus headache for 3 days I think I'm going to go to bed now... Hope everyone had a great weekend...

Icky!

I feel icky! I hate sinus stuff! I do great as long as I'm sitting still, but as soon as I move the icky feeling comes back. Hmphf! I have stuff to do... I don't have time to be sick!


I played hookie from school today and I let Megs stay home too (she's sick too). We decided to go to the mall before we picked Kali up from school and right when I walked into the mall I saw 2 students that I would've had in class today. It wouldn't have been so bad, but these were Cooper High School kids... ummmmm.... they weren't supposed to leave campus! Megs thought it was funny!


I have a 'what to do' question for ya'll... Megs got her health check done at school last week and she was quite upset about her weight. What would you do if it were your own kid? I already watch what she eats... am I supposed to put her on a diet? She weighs 6 pounds less than I did when I graduated high school... she's only 3 inches shorter than I was then, but still.... what would you do?

It's cold outside...

Today is one of those days where it would have been nice to stay in bed! It's cold! The forecast for the week is a cool one... part of me is happy because I really hate to be sweaty... the other part of me is sad because I hate to shiver. Where is the happy medium?

I did get my house cleaned. Or at the least the part of the house that I was responsible for. Robert helped out a lot, and so that made a difference. The girls cleaned their end of the house, but it wasn't my kind-of clean... I'm learning to let go of that idea that it will be spotless... but it's hard!

Kali woke up Sunday with a low-grade fever so we stayed home from church. It is amazing how much you can get done if you do not leave your house for an entire day. We did 10 loads of laundry and got them all put away (miracle, huh, holly?). I cleaned out all of the closets... meaning I took out the stuff that was too small, too ugly, or otherwise not going to be worn and put it away for the next dittos... and got an idea of what all I need to purchase in order for my kiddos to be clothed this winter. I even cleaned and organized a couple of kitchen cabinets. If only I had one day a week that I could dedicate to getting on top of my house. Again, this is why I need a wife!

I called the dr this morning to make appointments for me, Megan, and Kali as we all have heads full of snot (ewwww... not one of my fave bodily fluids), but they had no available appts. Nice. The nurse did call me back, though, and she is just going to call me in some Z-packs... so maybe I'm glad there were no appointments... this way I only have to pay for the meds and not the 25$ copay for all 3 of us.

Hope everyone has a blessed day!

Busy weekend ahead...

It's amazing to me that my house has not been condemned. Well, maybe it's not that bad, but it is pretty bad. I don't see how people keep a clean house constantly! I can't do it. There is laundry to be put away on the couch... laundry to be done on the kitchen floor (no laundry room, the kitchen floor is the closest place to separate before it heads down the hall)... both bathrooms need to be cleaned... let's not even talk about the last time the place was dusted... and once again I cannot see the actual counter in kitchen! Ugh! I have this overwhelming urge to put my fingers in my ears and starts singing (you know, like when someone's trying to tell you something you don't want to hear!). I know exactly what has caused this disaster to happen in my house... it is called life. I get up between 6:30 & 7... leave the house by 7:30 in order to get the kids to school by 8 (have I told you how much I love country living?)... go to work until I pick the kids up at 3... MW is reading camp... Tues is speech... Wed is church... Thurs is soccer.... then the weekend hits! Thursday nights is the only night that I get home by 3:30... then it's right out the door to soccer. I guess I could be like a couple of my friends and give up sleep so that I could maintain my house, but that doesn't sound appealing by any means... not to mention if I don't go to sleep by 10:15ish on a consistent basis I get complaints from those around me that I'm not a nice person... SOOOOOO... does anyone have some ideas for how I can manage my house, my job, my kids, the bills, the pets, church, etc. Oh and I do like to have friends... so occasionally I like to do things with them! Ugh! I SERIOUSLY NEED A WIFE~

I still haven't heard anything about my dad's job. I know he is sooo frustrated. Keep praying something comes up. He'll stay at the prison til it kills him... which is liable to happen since it is the jail we are talking about! Gah, that sounds bad... but since he started at the jail the stress really has done things to his normally healthy body.

Oh, and does anyone need a bunk bed? We have a set that we got when RT and I were separated... it is a futon on bottom and twin on top. It is from Sam's and we bought it from the woman who bought it from Sam's. It is just sitting in my entryway right now and needs a place to go! :)

Have a blessed weekend.... and if you know a solution to my housing dilemma, let me know!

Hmph!~

Cintas didn't call. Hopefully they will call today. I hate the waiting game and I want this to work out for my parents! It has been difficult watching them struggle financially over the last couple of years.

One of the things that I enjoy about reading my friend's blogs is the amount of honesty about how life really is. People talk about their lack of time management skills, their slip ups, their bad parenting moments, their imperfect marriages, children's, selves...etc etc. As if blogspot is a safe forum... away from judgement. Here is my question... why is it that being truthful about struggles is so easy online, but not in person? Or maybe the better question for me is why is it that when you tell people you are struggling 'out loud' you get the look that says 'I can't believe you said that out loud.'

You all know Rt is in school and lets just say that this last writing assignment he had really made me question whether our marriage would survive the assignment. In fact, the process was so frustrating for me that I left him at home Sunday morning and went to church. During Sunday School, I asked for prayers for both Rt and I as this research paper was causing much frustration for him and was causing much conflict in our marriage. I didn't share all the gory details of the not nice things that had been said over the course of the weekend, but I did say that we were both struggling with our tempers etc. I didn't look at the entire room as I was speaking, but I did look at one of the sections and both of the wives had looks on their face like 'oh my... I can't believe she said that.' I've tried really hard to not think about what was going on in their heads, but you know how well that works sometimes. I guess I just wish that we really were free to be honest with the people who are supposed to care without feeling the airs of judgement. And I know that not everyone was acting like they did... but it just annoys me!

SO.... for the women who acted like this here is my message to you... The one thing that I have discovered over the last few years is that we all have 'crap' going on in our lives. Everyone yells at their kids or their husbands once in a while... Everyone has problems with handling money... or eating right... or making the right parenting choices... and the list goes on and on... I have not met one person who can honestly say that they are perfect... so just for me, the next time someone asks for prayers for something that is happening in their life... just smile and pray... appreciate the honesty, because I would rather see honesty any day over fakeness.

...ok... sorry if I'm venting again... jess

Needed prayers...

When my dad lost his job at Crown, Cork & Seal (remember, they closed last year) he had much difficulty finding another and eventually ended up with the jail. Well, for those who know anything about him, you know the jail is SOOOOOO not the place for my sweet little dad. He has held his own and is definitely respected, but he always has seen life through rose colored glasses and the jail is changing that. He interviewed for a job at Cintas about 6 mths ago and although they really, really wanted to hire him, something happened corporately and they weren't able to. At that point, they told my little brother, who works at Cintas, that they would find a way to hire my dad. Well, yesterday, they told my little bro that they were calling my dad TODAY! Please pray that the job is something my dad can take! I mean, at this point he would take just about anything, but he has to make more than he does at the jail, otherwise my parents cannot pay the bills. When my dad took the job at the jail he took at 30,000$$ a year pay cut (not that he had a choice... there are no jobs in Abilene) and this last year or two has been very hard on my parents. Anyway, pray, pray, pray...

Amazed...

Ok, I have to vent a little! Last year, Abilene passed a no smoking ban that covers restaurants, bowling alleys, bars, and even entryways to buildings. I don't smoke (I used to smoke one cigarette when we went out dancing... but that is now illegal) so other than I'm annoyed that my friends have to go outside and smoke if we go out dancing... it really is no biggie to me. But what I don't understand is how we can tell people that they cannot smoke in a bar, which is a place that I would fully expect people to smoke, and yet we will not tell parents they cannot smoke in their car with their children! Can someone explain this to me? I mean, if I choose to go to a bar that I know is going to be smoke filled it is my personal right, but a child has no ability to stand up for themselves! Ugh!

You might ask what is bringing this little rant on... and here is what it is... This morning, while sitting at a red light, I look over and see a mom in a little bitty car (you know, roller skate on wheels) with the windows rolled up tight... she had two little kids strapped into their car seats and she was puffin' away. I wanted to get out of my car and knock on her window and give her some statistics regarding death and cigarette smoking... or better yet, the statistics that link children's asthma to parental smoking. but I didn't... I just drove on.

I get that smoking is a person's right... and I get that I shouldn't tell people how to raise their children. BUT COME ON... if you ask anyone who smokes, they will tell you that it is awful for them... and yet, most smokers still smoke in the presence of their children. WHY??? My cousin works for the American Cancer Society and one of her jobs is to answer questions about loss. A few months ago a woman called to ask if her dog was dying of lung cancer because she smoked around the dog... my cousin answered "Yes, smoking has been directly linked to lung cancer" and the woman burst into tears. I have yet to meet a parent who wants to give their child lung cancer (or their pet), so why do people continue to smoke in their presence?

Let me just clarify here before I get a bunch of strange comments from people about smoking being their right... I do get that... and I honestly believe that if you want to contaminate your body with that crap it is sooooo your right and I will leave you alone... but it is not your children's (or your pets) choice... so don't smoke around them!

Ok... I think I have that out now... Keep me in your thoughts about 3 o'clock... we have a dept meeting with the Dean, VP, and Registrar...

Long day...

It is only 6 o'clock, but I could seriously crawl into my bed and stay there until morning. Megan had her birthday sleepover last night and I got all of 4 hrs sleep. The girls had a good time, though, so I guess my lack of sleep was well worth it. We ended up eating dinner at Olive Garden last night and then we went to see the movie Sydney White. The girls really enjoyed the movie, but it didn't end until after 11. By the time we got home and they played it was pretty late! At 2:20 am I told them to go to sleep and I think they did... but I was passed out, so who knows! At 7am they woke me up so I could cook the cinnamon rolls... aren't they sweet?

Kali had a soccer game today. The team we played was quite aggressive and both Kali and her friend Karina were "injured" during the game. The girls were fine after a few tears, but I really wanted to go ask the other team's parents what they were teaching their team... I mean, last I heard pushing and tripping in 7 yr old soccer is not acceptable and someone really could've been hurt! I guess this is all just part of the game, but I'm finding that parents are rather annoying on the benches... I just want to hold up a sign that says "Our kids are 6-7 for goodness sake... lighten up!!!!" Oh well, only 2 more games! I wonder if softball is any better?

Ok... I'm done for the night! Have a good rest of the weekend!

Megan

Happy 10th BD Megan! (It was yesterday, but my compt crashed again!) I have written and rewritten this post this morning. It is hard to put all of what Megan is into words. She is very intelligent and excels in school. Her teachers love her, but I think it has something to do with the fact that they don't really have to teach her. She loves to sing and we have been informed by many that she has a gift. She loves the Lord and doesn't understand when kids at school don't . She is kind-hearted and hates for people to be ugly or mean. She helps around the house and she is a great help with Kali. She really is a good kid and she is quite responsible. Life isn't exactly easy for our dear little Megpie. She is sooo hard on herself to be perfect in school and in life that she is full of anxiety. We are constantly encouraging her to just do things and that she needn't try to be perfect, but she still struggles. Someday her perfectionistic tendencies will probably benefit her, but when you are 10 they just make life difficult! (If anyone knows a solution to this, let me know!) Anyway, while life with Megs isn't always easy emotionally she is a wonderful kid whom we love very much! Happy Birthday girl!

Dance Lessons

When Rt and I were separated, we took dance lessons once a week as a way to try to reconcile things. It is very difficult to dance with a person you have no desire to be in the same room with. Now that things are better, we are taking the dance lessons again. It is so much more fun. However, I made a few notes to self while dancing tonight:

1. Don't garden for hours the day before you take dance lessons... especially if the dance is the waltz. (My legs hurt!)
2. Don't try to dance in socks if your husband wears work boots to dance practice... your toes will pay for it.
3. Don't show up late to dance practice... otherwise, you'll have to cut in to dance with your spouse. (I did tell him I would be late and to just dance with someone, but I wasn't sure how to cut in when I finally got there.)

Anyway, if you have the opportunity to take dance lessons you totally should! We are having a great time! We weren't going to do it, at first, because our schedule has been so crazy, but I'm glad we decided to do it!

Flower Garden & Funny Moments

When we moved into our house we had this big round Iris bed on one side of the yard... you know, strategically placed so people driving in could see the pretty Irises when pulling down our drive. {Ok... I must add sarcasm here... I'm not sure why they planted Irises, I mean, they flower once a year so what people really see when they roll down the driveway is big green blades sticking up!) Well, I have done nothing to the flower bed and we have lived here for two 1/2 years. It still has Irises, but it also has a large amount of Johnson grass. A few days ago I decided we should clean it out and plant some crape myrtles in the center and have the Irises surround them. I went out today and started pulling the grass out... it is not as easy as I thought it would be! That grass will not come out. I tried watering the ground so the grass would pull out more easily but all that I accomplished was attracting "Daphne" to the muddy water and dirt. So... if you have any ideas, please pass them on! I thought about spraying weed poison on it, but I don't want to kill the bulbs! (Is that possible!!) Ok... I am in wayyyy over my head!

Funny Moment for today.... and a reminder that I should be glad the camera is in the shop...

While Rt was mowing the yard today I noticed that there was a kitten stuck in the very, very top of one of the many mesquite trees in our 'yard'. Being the kind hearted (or idiotic) person that I am I decided to go up after it! Well, I haven't climbed a tree in years and was never all that graceful at it before... but the poor kitten needed help. I climbed the tree and coaxed the kitten down and then figured out that I myself couldn't get down. Robert was mowing and didn't even notice that I was in a tree. It took him about 20 min, but he did finally come rescue me... if the camera had been in the house I swear he would've gone and gotten it before he helped me out! I had to promise not to climb anymore trees so I guess the kitten is on its own should it get stuck in a tree again!

No progress

Well, I haven't made any progress in the bed department or the education department. The most difficult thing with the education choice is that I can't wait until I'm told I don't have a job to make a decision... especially because all of the plans include education. I did spend a couple of hours online today looking at education options. Tech has a couple of PhD's that are almost completely online... that is definitely more tempting than moving.

There was a Tech guy at MCM giving a lecture and he brought a SegWay with him. Here are a few pics of the girls trying it out! I got a chance too, but no one took pics of it! It would be great fun to own one, but with a price tag of $5000 I guess I'll be walking instead of rolling!

Running, Running, Running

I'm really considering calling in sick tomorrow just so I can have a break! haah! Just kidding... but it did cross my mind. I would like a day to stay home with no one here so that I can get on top of my house. I seriously need my house cleaner back!

I have a couple of opinion questions for you... decisions I am having difficulty making on my own... Give me your opinions, please!!!

Question 1:
One of my friends and I were talking about my children's sleeping arrangements and she commented that we have had more beds in our house... and she is right. We cannot seem to work out a system that keeps my children happy. First it was separate beds in separate rooms and no one would sleep. Then it was bunk beds in the same room and again no sleepers. Now the girls sleep on the same bed in the same room and they are sleeping just fine. I would really like to get rid of one of their rooms and make them share again and use the other room for a craft/play/TV room, but do I get rid of the bunk beds and buy a full-size bed? Hmmm... How do your children sleep? A few of my friends grew up sharing a room and a bed with their sisters and think that is what I should do, but since I would still prefer to have my own bed I just don't know! (Seriously, I understand the Leave it to Beaver days when couples slept in separate beds... if I didn't share a bed no one would touch me and wake me up in the middle of the night! I know, I have issues!) Anyway, what would you do?

Question 2:
I had a long talk with my dean today about job security... and basically there is none until I get a Phd. and even then who knows. Here are my current options and I would like you to tell me what you would do... Option #1: I take the fast track classes at MCM and get certified to teach high school and use that as my plan B should something happen at MCM. Option #2: I start my Phd in English or EdD in Higher Ed and remain in the college world but in a different position. Neither option really has the security I would like to have, but I am realizing I don't exactly have control over this. I have spent much of my day praying about this and am really trying to let it go... but not stressing over it is easier said than done. {For those who don't know the situation at MCM I'll give you a little catch up.... MCM cut the comm dept and we have one year left...there is no plan after that time and we have no idea how many of us they will keep on. } It would be easy to put all of this on the back burner and try not to think about it, but the truth is I have to have some sort-of plan... I mean, if I am moving to high school I need to take the courses while they are free just like I need to get started with the other courses if I'm staying in the college world! Anyway, what would you do????

Day Two...

Day two of "Daphne" ownership.

I have never really been a dog person. Cats are more my style... I think it has something to do with the likenesses in our personalities! :) When we got Yogi during the summer I wasn't sure how it was going to go, but I love him and everyone knows he is MY dog. Well, I'm not sure what I was thinking when I decided we would get Yogi a friend. Daphne is very cute (and I'm sure that is what I was thinking), but she is very much a lab. So far she has been in our family for 24 hours and has managed to desecrate my bedroom floor with her bowels, jump on every surface in the house, and scare sweet little Yogi. So much for Yogi having a friend! I forgot how hyper labs were and how much their tails hurt! Daphne is very happy and therefore her abusive tail is always wagging. I foresee her being an outside dog (only) in a few days. I got up this morning and took the dogs for a walk. Daphne was literally dragging me along, while Yogi was moving quite slowly. I came inside and told Robert that he was going to have to walk the dog or I was going to have to wear running shoes... hmmm... maybe this is a sign!

It's over...

Our very busy weekend has drawn to a close. (Thank goodness!) I would post pictures, but I had to drop the camera off for repairs so no pics. This weekend we managed to attend the AHS homecoming game, watch Kali play soccer, start a fence, go to dinner with the family, go to church, watch the Junie B Jones production, finish a fence, and go to the grocery store. It is 8:30 on Sunday and this is probably the first time that I have rested. I have not gotten a single thing ready for this week, but I guess I can just wing it! (Or so I hope!)

We ended up eating dinner with the family on Saturday to celebrate my niece's bd. That way we avoided the entire dealing with the ex thing and my kids got to see Junie B. Jones.

That's all for now as Rt needs my compt to do his homework... guess I'll post more later!

Busy, Busy...

I started to list all that we have to do this weekend and it isn't all that much, but it seems like a lot. Kali has a sleepover tonight to go to, but she has to be at the AHS game tonight and a soccer game in the morning. Bet she'll be in the best mood for the soccer game!

I do need some advice. My niece is having her bd party this weekend and I cannot decide if we should go. My little brother and the baby's mom are not married and their break-up was not exactly nice. The mom hasn't exactly been a nice person and I frankly don't want to go to a party with her and all of her family. I suggested to my brother that we all go out to lunch and celebrate her bd, but he didn't seem interested. Not to mention the party is on Sunday at the same time that I promised the girls we would go see Junie B. Jones. Give me some advice... what do I do?????

Funny Stuff

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_oc1j5NakY

This is funnyyyyyyy!

Pics

I promised pics from this weekend, but so far the only ones I have are the flood... so here goes!

Pretty, huh? I think we got there in time, though, so the damage isn't going to be toooo bad! or so we pray!

Crash

If you are feeling up to a eye opening experience watch the movie Crash with a freshman class of college kids and make them read this article . Wow! If you haven't seen the movie I strongly suggest that you take the time and watch it. I know it is rated R and several of you don't watch rated R movies, but it really is worth the exception. The movie discusses stereotypes etc and has a way of really opening a viewers eyes to the ways that we all struggle with this.

My weekend....

Thanks Amy for your comment. It's just nice to know people are reading! Heehee! I used to say I blogged just for me and I do sort-of... it's just that sometimes you need to know people care! haha!

Ok... so about my trip this weekend. Our music minister was called to another church and has been gone for about 3 wks. His wife is one of my favorite people and Amy, Karen, and I have all missed them both terribly. So... we decided to go see them. We packed up Saturday morning and drove to my cousin's lakehouse (thank you so much Brooke) and Krista was to meet us there! That's where all the normalcy ends! When we got to the lakehouse we found that a hose under the sink had busted and the entire bottom floor of the lakehouse was flooded. We found the water meter and turned the water off and began scoopin' out the water. It took about 2 hrs to get the water out. I have never seen so much water in all my life (at least without the pool). It really is a good thing we went this weekend, though, because that water could've flowed forever. We did call a plumber and it took the man all of 20 min to fix the hose! Nice!!!!

So, then we decided to go eat lunch in Granbury at a girlie food place and in the middle of lunch my hubs called to tell me he was stranded on the side of the road. Apparently one of our cats decided that riding inside his engine was fun and the belt slipped off and the truck overheated. Kali was supposed to be at the soccer field at 2 and he called at 1:35. Our good friend, Matt, came and picked them up and got them to the soccer field, another friend took the kids and kept them safe at the soccer field, and then Matt took Rt back to his truck to fix the belt. I will say that I am very proud of my husband... he didn't freak out and he was very calm when he told me what happened. (As for the cat, this was cat #4 of the 4 adorable kittens we got a few months ago. Never will I get kittens from those neighbors again as they seem to be retarded. And while I cried at the loss of another kitten my children just rolled their eyes. We have got to move back to town!)

Other than those dramatic events the weekend was great fun! We spent lots of time shopping, talking, eating, more talking and more shopping. We got up this morning to drive to Cleburne to watch Brett lead music. I will say that they seem to belong there, as sad as that makes me.

I did get the entire living room clean before I left and came back to a house that was still relatively clean! Yeah family! I do have a question of the day... The kids went off with a family friend yesterday and then today they both went home with another family. Why does no one take my kids when it is just me? Do people just feel sorry for dad's? Matt had someone offer to take his kids for the afternoon toO!

Ok... it's desperate housewives night... I know, awful show... but it's the premiere and I must watch! Oh and spell check doesn't seem to be working! Sorry for any mistakes!

The plague...

Seriously, do I have the plague? I write these thought provoking posts and no one comments! :) Just kidding about the though provoking, but I just realized that out of my last 6 or so posts I have had a total of 6 comments (all by the same people!) Ok, I'll quit whining now.

My husband just informed me that our house has to be spotless before I can leave town tomorrow. I'm not sure what he was smoking at work this morning, but I am pretty certain that his wish is a little unrealistic. Not that I don't wish I could snap my fingers and the house be perfect, but it doesn't really work that way. I did get up at 4am and clean the kitchen. Don't get all excited, I haven't become a morning person, I just had really bad heartburn and couldn't sleep. I screwed up, though, and went back to bed at 5:30 so when the alarm went off at 6:30 I had much difficulty getting up. Oh well, at least the kitchen is clean. Only 4 more rooms to go...

Ok... have a good weekend... I'll post pics when I get back!

Perceptions

I am teaching a dual-credit course at one of the high schools in town this semester. Part of my concern with teaching the course was dealing with underage children and censoring myself. In a true college class I can talk about whatever I want to and it doesn't matter... I don't have the same freedom in a classroom full of 17 yr olds on a public school campus. Today we were discussing perceptions, stereotyping, and prejudice and one of the students brought up homosexuality. (AUGH! This is one of the subjects I would've rather avoided.) I'm not really sure how we got to the topic other than we were discussing segregation in churches and all of a sudden we were discussing the other. One of the student's piped up with "aren't they all going to hell anyway?" and the conversation took off from there. I was very careful about what came out of my mouth, but it was VERY difficult. Not that I was going to say anything offensive, but sometimes my view of loving everyone irritates people.

Listening to my students discuss all of this made me really think about how much our children absorb from us. Most of their comments started with a "my dad says" or a "my mom says" or even "my church says" as if the kids didn't have an opinion of their own. It's a little scary to see how prejudice can flow so easily from generation to generation without even a blink. I mean, the kids who asked the hell question looked shocked when I answered her in a way that obviously contradicted her parent's view.

When I left the classroom I was struck with an "I'm so old" moment, though... never in all of my years of public school did I even hear the world homosexual come from a teacher's mouth in any way other than negative ... and I could probably count those times on one hand. My how times have changed!

Schedules...

I woke up this morning and realized that I have a teacher's conference at 3:15 and Kali's speech therapy at 3:30. Hmmm... It is times like this that I could use a clone! Or at least a wife. Robert gets a little irritated when I say I want a wife, but wouldn't it be nice? I mean, come home to clean house and a hot meal? Not that I have ever been that kind of wife, but wouldn't it be grand to have one? You would think Robert would agree since many of our fights during our marriage have been about me not being that kind of wife. I can't say I blame him, it would be nice to be taken care of. HAHA, I'm only (half) kidding... polygamy is wrong.

Edit: Just got off the phone with a friend whose husband went home during lunch and vacuumed and cleaned out the fridge. This is so not fair!

Emergency!!!!

So, I don't really know what happened to my blog. One minute it was all flowery and the next it was solid black. So... this is all I could manage with my limited technical abilities!

Ok, on to the emergency. Kali dropped Robert's new tablet pc into the bathtub full of water. We have taken it apart as best we can and it is sitting in front of the fan, but does anyone have any other advice as to how we might save it? I've read a couple of things online that suggest if the power is off and you can get it dried out it might survive. Today has definitely been a lesson in patience!

Wow...

You know how sometimes you don't realize you have a problem or you don't realize how bad the problem is until you begin to fix it? Well, that is precisely how I am feeling right now. I didn't realize how active my brain was until I started taking this medication. Never have I been able to sit calmly and quietly mentally (I have always been able to physically sit quietly, because my brain is quite entertaining). Usually there are constant thoughts zooming through my head... constant worries... constant questions... but for the last two days things have been calm inside my head. Not that there haven't been thoughts, there have been, but now they come slower and are more understandable and cause less anxiety. What is funny to me, though, is that I didn't realize that what was happening inside my head wasn't normal. I assumed everyone has constant messages floating around at the speed of light. Anyway, let's just say I am slightly amazed right now.

Other happenings in my life... Kali told me this morning that she didn't want to go to school today. I told her she didn't have a choice, if she didn't go to school they could put mommy in jail (there is actually a law that says parents will go to jail if their child doesn't go to school and they aren't homeschooled). Her response...that's ok Grandad would take care of you. My dad works at the jail... so I guess that would make it ok! Kids amaze me sometimes.

Kali has her first wall word test today. Pray that she does well. It really is different having a child that struggles with reading. For Megan we did nothing. She just got it. In fact, I'm pretty sure I never went over her wall words with her (I know this should get me the bad parent award) but she just didn't need our help. Kali, on the other hand, requires a great amount of assistance from us. She starts reading camp again next week. McMurry has this great program where kids can come to the school two times a week and be tutored by early education majors. I'm not sure how much the program costs, but we did it this summer and the girls seemed to enjoy it. The classes are MW 4-5:15 (?) or something like that!

Here's my question of the week... Megs really doesn't care for PE. She never has and I know it is because it is hard on her and she can't stand not succeeding at things. Her new PE teacher likes to yell (hollar) at the kids which Megan doesn't understand or handle well. In fact, yelling at Megan usually has the opposite affect of what was intended. The teacher has been doing her job for 20 yrs and I'm sure she isn't going to understand what I'm saying and I have told Megan to do her best and try to understand some people yell and it doesn't mean your in trouble... but she still comes home upset. How do I deal with this? I feel guilty telling her to suck it up and deal with it when (in my opinion) there have to better ways of telling a kid to get it together. UGH! (Oh, by the way, this is why I don't teach elementary school... I would feel the need to yell at the kids.)

JW

A day of dr appts...

Kali had her eval with the speech therapist at Hendricks today. She will begin speech with someone next week and we will do about 10 sessions and see if some intense R therapy will do the trick. The speech therapist isn't sure if she has a tongue thrust, but she is certain that she at least has a lazy tongue! As for her Rs, she cannot say them... not sure why... but she uses all kinds of substitutes and will go as far as to use a completely different word to avoid an r. Hmmm... guess that means she should be increasing her vocabulary! :)



Rt went to the dr today for his weird bald spots. He has alopecia. Dr. Martin suggested he just draw a smiley face on it and not worry about it because there isn't much that can be done. He did inject a steroid into the smaller of the two spots to see if it will help. If hair grows there we will inject the larger spot. Fun, fun. I guess there is a risk that the hair could come back without any color at all... hmmm... what is worse a big bald spot or a white spot?



I also went to the dr today and was placed on Adderall and removed from my Wellbutrin. I'm hoping this fixes my memory issues. My friend Emily suggested that I was going to be able to focus, but so grouchy that no one would be able to tolerate me. Let's pray that doesn't happen. Edit: Rt just brought my pills home. I've never filled a prescription before that 5 full pg medication facts booklet. Hmm....



We went to the fair last night. We had a good time and saw tons of people that we knew. I could've lived without the crickets though. We rode the Ferris wheel and one jumped on me. And then, I was just walking along and one landed on my head... I rubbed my head and it fell down my shirt. EWWWW! I'm not a fan on those icky things! Anyway, here are some pics from our adventure!

We took an extra with us. His mom didn't think she should brave the fair with 15mth old twins.

The Texas Tornado. Notice mommy isn't on it? HAHA!
What is it about that girl and her tongue. She sure does stick it out a lot. Uncle Billy said she reminded him of his heavy metal days. haha!
Such pretty faces!

The last ride of the evening. Watch out for the crickets!!!!

New tubes?

At dinner tonight Megan and Kali were telling me that they want a little brother or sister. I explained to them that my tubes has been cut, burned, tied and therefore I couldn't get pregnant. At this point Kali looked at me and asked why I couldn't just buy new tubes and have them put in. Thank goodness that's impossible... right? :)

WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME????????

At the end of last semester I really began to think I was losing my mind. I was forgetting the sentence I was saying in mid-sentence. I was forgetting impt dates and appoints. I even forgot to feed my kids (long story). I went to the dr and he said it was stress and that I should get better when things settled down. Then summer came and I didn't get better. I was doing less so my incidences of forgetfulness were less, but I have decided that is only because there was less to forget. I went to the dr again and asked why it was still happening and his response was that my brain didn't know what to do with nothing to do... huh? You mean it was under worked? Well, not it is 8 mths later and my forgetfulness is getting worse. I walk into a room and realize I don't know how I got there. I say the wrong word 3 or 4 times in a sentence (this happened last night) and don't even notice I am doing it. I started looking online for answers (which let me tell you can be dangerous). One of the articles I read suggested that ADHD in women presents itself in a myriad of ways and that sometimes it is mistaken for depression or hormonal issues. Hmmm... Now I really don't know what to think. I mean, I am on depression for ADHD (ok I thought I would leave this one in... see what I mean, I'm losing it... what I meant to say was I am on Wellbutrin for depression/anxiety) and on birth control for hormones and yet my symptoms have not gone away.

This leads to an even bigger issue... my dr doesn't believe that ADD is an actual disorder. He told our music minister that ADD was not a diagnosis in other countries. So what do I do? There is no actual test to determine if you are ADD so it really could all be in my mind. I read part of the article to Rt last night because it cracked me up. It said that women with ADHD struggle with money management and budgeting and are usually unable to save money. At this point he volunteered to go to the dr with me! (We have serious budgeting disagreements in our household for those who don't know.)

Anyone got some words of wisdom for me????

Kali

For those who don't know, Kali was in speech therapy from about 18 mths until half way through kindergarten. When Clyde discharged her from speech I wasn't exactly happy about it, but there was nothing I could do. I noticed over the summer that she has started replacing sounds she cannot make. For example, curler instead of curl. A couple of weeks ago I asked one of the speech therapists at church what she thought and her suggestion was to take her back to speech because she has started "phoneme replacement." Huh? She also questioned whether Kali had a tongue thrust and suggested I ask our dentist. Well, our dentist happens to go to church with us too so I asked her Sunday morning what she thought and before I could get the whole phrase out she said yes. ugh! So... now I either have to fight with AISD for specialized speech therapy or I have to PAY $50 a session for it. UGH! Apparently Kali's issues aren't something the school district likes to deal with because they require individual treatment instead of group therapy. I wish there was some magical treatment for Kali's tongue (she started with an articulation delay due to her refusal/inability to use her tongue). I know there are parents who just ignore this kind-of stuff, but I have noticed that her speech issues have effected her ability to read. So I guess here's to another year of speech...

Payday

Can someone explain to me how I can get paid my monthly salary on Friday and now it is GONE?????

This week...

What a week it has been! We all started school on Monday and have lasted an entire week without much drama. Kali did get in trouble daily for talking, but Megan managed to make it a week without trouble. We were late to school twice due to Kali misplacing her backpack one day and a folder the next. Sometimes I just don't know what to do with that child. I mean, Megan was always so worried about getting in trouble at school that she rarely did things like that... Kali on the other hand, ugh!

I started teaching a dual-credit class at one of the high schools this week. I'm trying to not be gripey about it, but it is getting harder and harder to do. The school district wants the kids to take college level classes, but they want us to run them like high school classes with 3 wk and 6 wk reports. They also want us to average grades. I have a list of questions that no one seems to know the answers to or that no one is willing to answer and I have been called into my dean's office already this week because the AISD administrators are concerned about my friend and I teaching our classes. Come to find out what they are concerned about has nothing to do with anything that matters they just don't like that we are young and ask questions. Let's just say that I am not overly impressed with the decision making process at AISD right now.

Robert started classes this week too. We are excited about it, but I can tell it will be way different than when I was in school. I left him at home today so he could work on his homework without the noise from the kids. I'm trying not to be bitter about things like that, but do ya'll remember how many tears I cried due to the frustration of dealing with the kids and his demands all the while knowing how much work I had to get done? I guess the part that is even more frustrating to me is that he hasn't even realized how hard he made it on me to be in school. Oh well, I'll just keep praying that God will take away my frustration with all of this because I really do want Robert to succeed in school.

We start our new Sunday School class tomorrow. I am excited about moving out of the 20ish class into the 30ish class. The teachers in the other class are supposedly amazing and I am ready for that. I am ready to go to SS and learn as opposed to spending the entire hour frustrated. Tomorrow will be a little sad, though, as it is the first Sunday without our music minister. I know that God is in control and that if Bret is called to be at the church in Cleburne then there is a person who is being called to be at our church... but, gah, this stinks! I think I liked it better when I was a kid and was completely oblivious when ministers came and went.

I went through all my fave blogs tonight and caught up on the happenings of everyone. I've missed not being able to sit and read. Maybe having office hours that are required will give me time to do that... you know, instead of working on stuff I should be doing!!! haha!

Hope everyone has a blessed week!

Busy, Busy, Busy

I'm sorry I haven't been posting... things have been CRAZY around here. I'll try to catch you up without too much whining!

* My presentation went well. I filled up my 4 hrs and everyone seemed to find the information helpful.
* The following week (last week) was filled with going back to school faculty meetings. Those were loads of fun. I really don't understand how people can enjoy spending 4 hrs analyzing a document.
*I'm allergic to the sweet little dog we have... Yogi... I have been full of snot (nice image there) since we got Yogi and today ended in the dr office. The dr gave me antibiotics and some nice cough medicine with Codeine. :) Apparently what started with allergies ended with a sinus infection. Is it bad to want to keep a dog even if it is making me sick? Hmm...
* The kids enjoyed their first day of school. I was a tad scared for Megs because her teacher frightened me with her drill sargent nature... but Megs really seems to like her. Megan's team teacher is my elementary PE teacher... that was a blast from the past. Kali enjoyed school but was quite concerned that her teacher made her use her right hand to write. Kali is a leftie... uh oh. I asked her a bunch of questions and what I think happened is that the teacher said something about writing and she thought she meant 'right.'
*Robert had his first college class today. I think he is feeling quite overwhelmed, but I'm sure he will do fine. It will just take a lot of patience on my part. He gets a little snappy when he is overwhelmed.
*We noticed about a month ago that Rt has a spot on the back of his head where all the hair has fallen out. We think it is stress related alopecia... any ideas what you do about that?

Ok, I think that gets it all... I'll try not to take so long to post again!

17 days...

I realized last night the school is less than three weeks away. It is a little frightening to see how much life is about to change. Not only are the girls going into grades that will require much more effort, but I completed all of Robert's financial aid paperwork last night and he will be starting at MCM. We think he is going to be a math teacher. He was always really good at math and because of the new laws requiring math for all four years of high school there is definitely a need. I do find it comical that one of the deciding facts for Rt about what he was going to major in was the idea that he would have summers off. He forgot to ask how I felt about him having summers off! haha! He better develop a love for the pool.

Well, I'm off to work on my presentation. All of my paperwork is due by 3 tomorrow and I would like to have it done tonight. Keep your fingers crossed!

Update...

Last night the girls and Rt were watching Rt's fave movie "Oh brother where art thou?" and the next thing I know he is rewinding it and they are all trying to recreate the dance moves! It was quite comical, and I wish I had a video camera... that would've been a great 'first date' movie to have on! haha!

I got home about 9:30 tonight and there's this HUGE raccoon eating the cat food. I have been complaining for a while that something has been eating the food every night... guess I figured out what it is! I'm surprised the cats let the coon get away with it... Rt thinks they are scared... but my male cat is kind-of mean. Maybe he knows what battle to pic. Anyone know how to get rid of a coon?

I have a 4 hr presentation due on Wednesday at 10am... I haven't started yet! Guess I should get on that, huh?

jw

New Dog

One of my students asked me to take her dog, because she is moving and cannot take it with her. We picked up sweet little Yogi yesterday, and this pic commemorates the one and only time that the dog has let Kali get near him. She seems to frighten him! He seems to tolerate Megan, but hides when Kali comes around. We have had issues for a while with getting Kali to sleep in her own bed, so we really hoped the solution would be a dog for her to sleep with. I'm guessing that this isn't going to solve our problem, though, since the dog actually slept in my bed last night. Ugh... guess I'll have to work on another solution to Kali's sleeping arrangements!

Wedding pics

We have returned from our trip to Austin. We had a great time and the wedding was absolutely beautiful! The girls were adorable and we all had a really great time!

Here is a pic of the girls and Misty. Misty looked gorgeous in her dress. And the girls loved being able to hide out in the back room with the bride.

Kali loved being a princess for a day. She twirled and twirled! The photographer probably took an entire roll of film of her being all prissy!

I couldn't rotate this one in blogger... but isn't she beautiful! Although she wasn't excited about being all froo froo, she did enjoy getting her hair done and the fact that Grammy put some makeup on her (eye shadow and lipstick only).

Here is a pic of the four of us. We will have to get it blown up since I have an aversion to getting pictures made! It was fun getting all dressed up but I'm glad I don't have to do it often, it was exhausting getting everyone ready!

I couldn't get anymore pics on here, but the reception pics were great. I'll upload those later! Anyway, all in all it was a great experience! I really think every girl should get to be the flower girl or jr bridesmaid in a wedding.... they thoroughly enjoyed being princesses.